Category Archives: 2022 Reviews

Moonfall – Movie Review

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TL;DR – An interesting premise let down by a desperate need for at least another script pass

Rating: 2.5 out of 5.

Post-Credit Scene – There is no post-credit scene

Disclosure – I was invited to a screening of this film

Moonfall. Image Credit: Roadshow Films.

Moonfall Review –

One genre that I am always here for is the Disaster Movie. I like the exciting scenarios you can create, the engaging stories you can tell, or even just the wholesale destruction you can depict. Every part of this genre allows you to swing for the fences and create something interesting. Unfortunately, today, we got a film that took the safe option at every moment.

So to set the scene, on January 11, 2011, astronaut Brian Harper (Patrick Wilson) was in space helping repair a satellite while Jocinda “Jo” Fowler (Halle Berry) watches on from the Endeavour as both engage in the banter that only happens from long-time colleagues. However, the mission is interrupted by an electrical interference as a presence attacks the shuttle before making a beeline to the Moon. Ten years later, Brian has been booted out of NASA for insisting it was an alien entity that damaged the mission. However, at the University of California, Irvine, Dr K. C. Houseman (John Bradley) made a terrible discovery that the Moon’s orbit has changed and heading towards Earth.   

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The Book of Boba Fett: Chapter 6 (From the Desert Comes a Stranger) – TV Review

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TL;DR – A show that is getting interesting by ignoring its lead … not the best step forward

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Disclosure – I paid for the Disney+ subscription that viewed this show.

The Book of Boba Fett: Chapter 6 (From the Desert Comes a Stranger). Image Credit: Disney+.

The Book of Boba Fett Review –

This week we have an episode that swings wildly from two different extremes. The first extreme is a clear love letter to Star Wars fans with characters and callbacks galore. However, this is also an episode that shows deeply that the creators/writers don’t really care about their titular character.

So to set the scene, at the end of Return of The Mandalorian, the titular Mandalorian (Pedro Pascal) ended up getting abandoned by his sect, but not before he obtained a gift for Grogu. But as he arrives at Tatooine to pick up a new ship, he comes across Fennec (Ming-Na Wen), who offers him a job. In this episode, out in the wastes of Tatooine, Cobb Vanth (Timothy Olyphant) comes across some of the Pyke Syndicate dealing spice in his territory and takes offence. Now from here, we will be looking at the episode as a whole, so there will be some [SPOILERS] ahead. 

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Belfast – Movie Review

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TL;DR – A delightful film that has the ability to surprise you with its emotional content, even when you know it is coming.    

Rating: 4.5 out of 5.

Post-Credit Scene – There is no post-credit scene

Disclosure – I was invited to a press screening of this film

Belfast. Image Credit: Universal Pictures.

Belfast Review –

When I trace my lineage back in time, half of me comes from Ireland and the other half from England, which makes any film set in Northern Ireland this odd combination of interests and concern. I honestly did not know what to expect when I walked into the cinema, which was for the best as I got sucked into this narrative and world.

So to set the scene, on the 15th of August 1969, it was a quiet day in the suburbs of Belfast. Ma (Caitríona Balfe) calls out across the street for Buddy (Jude Hill) that it is time to come home for dinner. As the request gets passed up the road, Buddy comes galloping home only to crash into a riot in progress. As the violence increases, a barricade is put up on the street, and Pa (Jamie Dornan) comes rushing home from overseas because soon, the family will have to make some hard choices.   

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The Book of Boba Fett: Chapter 5 (Return of The Mandalorian) – TV Review

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TL;DR – Alas, this week’s episode felt like spinning wheels, holding back the exciting stuff for next week.

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Disclosure – I paid for the Disney+ subscription that viewed this show.

The Book of Boba Fett: Chapter 5 (Return of The Mandalorian). Image Credit: Disney+.

The Book of Boba Fett Review –

I have been on the record in these reviews that since Chapter 2, The Book of Boba Fett has been badly losing steam. The show has struggled to maintain momentum as it explores two different timeframes with less than stellar results. However, this week we see a remarkable shift back on course. The question is, can they keep it up for the rest of the season. Now from here, we will be looking at the episode as a whole, so there will be some [SPOILERS] ahead.    

So to set the scene, at the end of Chapter 4, it became clear to both Bobba (Temuera Morrison) and Fennec (Ming-Na Wen) that war with the Pyke Syndicate is the only option coming to Tatooine and the streets of Mos Espa. However, away from the planet on a Ring World, Din Djarin/ The Mandalorian (Pedro Pascal) is about to take a bounty only for the Dark Sabre to take a bite out of him. Now from here, we will be looking at the episode as a whole, so there will be some [SPOILERS] ahead. 

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Gold – Movie Review

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TL;DR – Brutal, uncomfortable, and completely compelling.

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Post-Credit Scene – There is no post-credit scene

Disclosure – I paid for the Stan subscription that viewed this film

Gold. Image Credit: Stan.

Gold Review –

When you are creating a film that wonders into the Survival genre, there are two very different ways you can engage your audience. The first is through shock, a sudden event or trauma like a bear attack. Or you can slowly pull everything away from people like a tide coming in or an approaching winter you are not ready for. Today we look at a film that explores the latter, but instead of the chill of winter, we get the brutal, unrelenting heat of the desert Sun.   

So to set the scene, some time, someplace, not far from now, a man is sitting in a train carriage boosting a ride in cargo. Man One (Zac Efron) has the clothes on his back and not much else as he walks out into the desert heat at Greenview Outpost. He is heading to the compound in the restricted Eastern Territories and gets a lift with Man Two (Anthony Hayes) through the inhospitable landscape. Man One goes off to take a leak after the car blows its radiator, which is when he spots something shiny in the desert, a gold nugget.

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Station Eleven – TV Review

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TL;DR – This stunningly beautiful show is about the connections we make and how love can triumph even in the darkest of worlds.

Rating: 5 out of 5.

Disclosure – I paid for the Stan subscription that viewed this series.

Station Eleven. Image Credit: Stan.

Station Eleven Review –

I came into Station Eleven not knowing anything really about what I was getting myself into. I had heard vague mentions that it was pretty good, and I knew it was post-apocalyptic, but not much more than that. So I was completely unaware that I would inhale this show in the space of a week and everything about it. It has been a long while since a show has affected me like this, and goodness, what a ride it was.

So to set the scene, one night in Chicago, Jeevan Chaudhary (Himesh Patel) is seeing to opening night of the play King Lear. However, halfway through, something odd happens on stage and star Arthur Leander (Gael García Bernal) collapses on stage. Jeevan rushes to help, but Arthur dies of a heart attack. As chaos erupts around him, Jeevan finds one of the child actors, Kirsten (Matilda Lawler), has been forgotten, so he offers to walk her home. But after finding no one home at Kirsten’s house, Jeevan got a call from his sister (Tiya Sircar), that works at the hospital. The flu spreading across Europe is not usual. The death rate was 999 in 1000, and a kid had arrived in Chicago from Moscow that day. The flu is here, and it will rip through the population in 24 hours. Jeevan has to get supplies and head to his brother Fred’s (Nabhaan Rizwan) apartment, don’t talk to anyone because society is about to collapse. Just one problem, what does he do with Kirsten? Now from here, we will be looking at the season as a whole, so there will be [SPOILERS] ahead.     

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The Book of Boba Fett: Chapter 4 (The Gathering Storm) – TV Review

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TL;DR – Alas, this week’s episode felt like spinning wheels, holding back the exciting stuff for next week.

Rating: 3 out of 5.

Disclosure – I paid for the Disney+ subscription that viewed this show.

The Book of Boba Fett: Chapter 4 (The Gathering Storm). Image Credit: Disney+.

The Book of Boba Fett Review –

I am not quite sure what has happened here. Chapter 1 held so much promise, and Chapter 2 showed that when it was good, this show could be excellent. However, since then, we have seen two back-to-back episodes that have left me wanting, and it is starting to get frustrating.

So to set the scene, we jump back in time to when Boba (Temuera Morrison) discovered that all of the Sand People had been murdered while he was away. Noticing the mark of the Kintan Striders, Boba decides to set the score. The only problem is that they work for Bib Fortuna (Matthew Wood). There is no way that Boba can do this by himself, which is lucky because right at that moment, he sees a couple of flashes in the distance and discovers the body of Fennec Shand (Ming-Na Wen) bleeding out from a gut wound and where The Mandalorian (Pedro Pascal) left her. Now from here, we will be looking at the episode as a whole, so there will be some [SPOILERS] ahead. 

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The Book of Boba Fett: Chapter 3 (The Streets of Mos Espa) – TV Review

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TL;DR – We get a lot more action this episode, but it did feel like it lost some of last week’s substance.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

Disclosure – I paid for the Disney+ subscription that viewed this show.

The Book of Boba Fett: Chapter 2 (The Streets of Mos Espa). Image Credit: Disney+.

The Book of Boba Fett Review –

In Chapter 1, my big concern was that the show would keep navel-gazing too much into the past. While in Chapter 2, the show went almost full-past and was better for it. All of this has put my first thoughts in harsh contrast because this week, we get the reverse, with most of it being in the present, yet I think this was the weakest episode so far.

So to set the scene, last week we discovered that all was not as it seems in Mos Espa, as the Mayor (Robert Rodriquez) had let slip that others were looking to take over Boba Fett’s (Temuera Morrison) territory. Jabba had family, and just that moment, The Twins arrived with their Wookie bodyguard Black Krrsantan (Carey Jones). Boba is looking to try and stamp his authority on the city with everything in flux when vassal Lortha Peel (Carey Jones) arrives and explains that social order is collapsing and a new gang is in town. Now from here, we will be looking at the episode as a whole, so there will be some [SPOILERS] ahead. 

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King Richard – Movie Review

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TL;DR – A fascinating picture of a complicated man.    

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Post-Credit Scene – There is a mid-credit sequence

Disclosure – I was invited to a press screening of this film.

King Richard. Image Credit: Warner Bros.

King Richard Review –

There has been a resurgence in biopics in recent years, mainly in the music space. However, if there is one area where we could see more coverage, it would be in the sporting space. Today, we are looking at just such a case, but instead of a sporting star, today we are looking at one of their parents.

So to set the scene, back in the day, Richard Williams (Will Smith) and his wife Oracene Price (Aunjanue Ellis) are raising their five daughters in a two-bedroom house in Compton, California. Richard works night as a security guard, and Oracene works as a nurse. Still, in all their free moments, they are helping their daughters Venus (Saniyya Sidney) and Serena (Demi Singleton) by coaching them in tennis. But for the girls to take the next step, they need to have more professional support, but Richard has a plan for that.     

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The Great: Season 2 – TV Review

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TL;DR – There is an absurd chaos on display from start to finish.  

Rating: 4 out of 5.
The Great: Season 2. Image Credit: Stan.

The Great Review –

There is something so odd watching something proposing to be one thing but is another. There is a level of tonal dissonance that can take you out of the experience if there is not a deft hand on show. Today we look at a show that dances through history while ignoring actual events for a more engaging story.

So to set the scene, at the end of Season One, Catherine (Elle Fanning) finally made her move on Peter (Nicholas Hoult) with the help of her advisors Orlo (Sacha Dhawan) and Velementov (Douglas Hodge). Catherine had to sacrifice her lover to take the crown, but her love for Russia overtook her personal desires. However, Peter still has some support at court and weeks in. He still controls part of the Palace even though he is now surrounded. Time is short, and the one constant is everyone around Peter and Catherine has made it clear, they need to kill the other. Now from here, we will be looking at the season as a whole, so there will be [SPOILERS] ahead.

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