The Meaning of J

 Exorcist II: The Heretic (1977)      Exorcist II: The Heretic (1977)  is the worst movie I have ever seen in my 19 years as a film fanatic; it's $27.93 I will never get back. This movie has successfully dethroned  The Grudge  (2020) as the worst horror movie I have ever seen in my life.  John Boorman created an absolute mess of a movie that didn't need a sequel. It mixes an incomprehensible plot with insane visuals, laughably bad "special" effects, and phoned-in acting performances. It's a gigantic middle finger to the original film in every way imaginable. It fails to find a reason to justify its existence.        Before I continue giving this film the critical beatdown it needs, let us rewind and learn how this baffling sequel came into existence. It was 1973, and a little-known film called  The Exorcist  has released in American theaters to the unsuspecting public. The story of a girl possessed by a demonic spirit...

 Earwig and the Witch [Aya to Majo] (2020)    Earwig and the Witch proves that even the most esteemed animation studios aren't incapable of producing a lackluster effort every once in a while. It's a failed experiment that tried to use CG animation for the first time in the studio's history, only for the result to land with a resounding thud. It feels out of place in the filmography of a studio known for crafting breath-taking and awe-inspiring animated films. It ends up bearing little resemblance to their previous, highly-regarded efforts. I would even go as far as to consider a Studio Ghibli movie in-name-only because I refuse to regard it as one.    Earwig and the Witch is  Studio Ghibli 's first animated film in six years since 2014's When Marnie Was There ( Omoide no Mani , "Marnie of My Memories"), with production support from NHK Enterprises . The movie's based on the children's book of the same name by Diana Wynne Jones (1934-2011), the au...