TL;DR – It is a good, sometimes great film, but it does fall into some of the same traps as other Disney classic remakes of recent years.
Score – 3.5 out of 5 stars
Post-Credit Scene – There is midish-credit dance number scene
Review –
I’m not sure if I have ever been so apprehensive walking into a film before. For
me, the original Aladdin holds a special
place in my heart and without a doubt, it is my favourite from the entirety of
the Disney Renaissance. However, this
more than any of the recent remakes have had a very rocky history with its
promotion misfires on top of the simple worries of how does an Aladdin film without Robin Williams?
Well, some of those fears were put aside in the first couple of minutes of the
films, others not so much.
So to set the scene, we open in on Aladdin (Mena Massoud) who is walking
through the streets of Agrabah with his monkey companion Apu (Frank Welker). He
is an orphan, or street urchin, or as the guards call him a street rat. He lives
by stealing from others and then surviving off the small returns. But this is
not your every day, because someone new is in the markets, someone who clearly
does not belong, Princess Jasmine (Naomi Scott) in disguise. One musical number
later and all is right in the world, however, The Sultan’s (Navid Negahban)
Grand Vizier (Marwan Kenzari) has other plans, for he is searching for the ‘diamond
in the rough’ and his macaw Iago (Alan Tudyk) might have just found it.
TL;DR – It takes everything that worked in the last two films and took it up to 11
Score – 5 out of 5 stars
Post-Credit Scene – There is no post-credit scene
Review –
One of the first reviews we ever wrote back in the day was for the first John Wick
film and since then we have really had a love affair in this world of under the
table dealings, societies in this world but out of this world, visual
storytelling, and neon rock operas. This is a world that is told in
part by creative directing, interesting stories, and also the sheer determined
strength of character that is Keanu Reeves and everyone in the whole cast and
crew that make the character of John Wick shine. Today we get to look at the
third film in the series that has John at his lowest and discovering there are
more places to fall.
So to set the scene, at the end of John
Wick Chapter 2, John found himself in a very precarious
position. Someone had Marker on John (Keanu Reeves) forcing him to do his
bidding (killing his sister) and then turned on John putting a contract out on
his life for the before mentioned killing of his sister. After fighting his way
through New York he arrived back at The Continental Hotel and though warned by
the Manager Winston (Ian McShane) John killed the man on hotel grounds one of
the few unbreakable rules in their universe. Winston gives John one hour of
life before he is excommunicated from the organisation and this is where we
open. John is running through the streets of New York as the skies bucket down
because the Gods are at war. He is trying to get to the New York Public Library
but as one of the Bowery King’s (Laurence Fishburne) henchmen calls out tick
tock, tick tock John.
TL;DR – It explores what happens when a hitman’s work and life collide
Score – 3 out of 5 stars
Post-Credit Scene – There is no post-credit scene
Review –
The hitman is a character that has been around as long as cinema has been a
medium. Sometimes they are the bogeyman lurking in the shadows, sometimes they
are a threat to contend with in running gun battles, and sometimes you kill the
wrong person’s dog and you forfeit your life. One area that does not get as
explored as much as it should is what happens when the hitman goes home and how
does that affect their lives. How can you kill people by day and go home to
your family at night and what happens if those worlds collide together? Well,
today we look at a film that explores this intersection with Chase.
So to set the scene, we open in as Chase (Damien Puckler) and his best friend
who is also his sort of boss Miles (Aries Spears). Chase and Miles have been inseparable
since they were 15 and ran off from foster care together. Miles is the boss and
always seems to be in the position to manipulate the people around him and Chase
is his best hitman. Chase has a simple system, he has a flat rate, double for
women, and triple for kids and his only rules that he is paid in full up front,
he not a repeat service so you will never see him again, and that he does not
leave orphans. Chase has been living that life for a long time but in recent
years he has found two attachments, his girlfriend Blair (Jessica Morris) and
their child Micah (Eli Michael Kaplan). However, while Chase is good at compartmentalising,
Miles thinks he is going soft and well as you can imagine this is a recipe for
disaster.
TL;DR – While there are some good ideas here, what we have is a film of two halves that don’t quite work well with each other.
Score – 2.5 out of 5 stars
Post-Credit Scene – There is a mid-credit scene
Review –
Today I have an interesting task in reviewing someone’s first ever feature film
which actually puts me in an odd position. That is because while there are some
really good ideas here in places and the core concepts are sound, a lot of this
film does not quite come together. We need more creatives taking those first
new steps because that is where all of our greatest filmmakers started. With
that in mind explore the world of a horror aficionado and the chaos they leave
in their wake.
So to set the scene, we open in on Zoe (Aida Valentine) as she is preparing for
her last day at school for the term and by preparing I mean setting up a horror
scene of a wedding, including an exploding bride. This is a frustration to her
father Sal (Greg James) who is trying to raise her and run a business as a single
dad. All of this comes to a head when Zoe’s older sister Zilla (Sam Kamerman)
returns home to announce that she is getting married, oh married to a women Lu
(Mia Allen), oh and all of Lu’s family have made the trip from New York to
Portland to come over for dinner, oh they are all super conservative, and oh
the wedding is in a couple of weeks.
TL;DR – It is a film with one of the best comedic casts in the industry, but it just meanders a bit too much.
Score – 3.5 out of 5 stars
Post-Credit Scene – There is no post-credit scene
Review –
Turning 50 is one of those big moments in your life that makes you think back
at everything that has led you to this point. The friends you made, the choices
you made or didn’t make, how your bodies do or don’t hold up. It is a time of
friendship, reflection, and a lot of wine, like a serious copious amount of
wine.
So to set the scene, a long time ago in a pizza joint in Chicago a group of
friends came together. Since then Abby (Amy Poehler), Naomi (Maya Rudolph),
Rebecca (Rachel Dratch), Catherine (Ana Gasteyer), Val (Paula Pell), and Jenny
(Emily Spivey) have been inseparable even though they have all moved to different
cities and have had very different lives. First the first time in a long time
the whole group is coming together to celebrate Rebecca’s 50th
birthday. The group booked out a house in Napa Valley for a weekend of wine,
lots of wine, a very tight schedule, and more wine. But as everyone’s lives
have moved in different directions, the question is, have they moved on from
each other.
TL;DR – I had a smile on my face for the whole film, filled with joy and heart.
Score – 4 out of 5 stars
Post-Credit Scene – There is no post-credit scene
Review –
Before we start I should mention that I am probably the easiest sell when it
comes to a live action Pokémon movie.
I grew up with the show and the video games, so this is honestly the perfect
setting for me if you want to hit that rose-tinted nostalgia that people in the
industry crave. With this in mind, I walked into the cinemas with a sceptical
mind, but I have to say it got caught up in the world almost instantly.
So to set the scene, we open in on Tim Goodman (Justice Smith), there was a
time long ago when he wanted to be a Pokémon trainer, but that time has passed
and now he is happy being an insurance claims adjuster (which I think they
chose because it sounds like the most boring job in the world if you were a
child … or adult). His best friend Jack (Karan Soni) is about to leave town to
be a Pokémon trainer and he fears for his friend being left all alone, so they
try and catch a Cubone, this way he will have a companion. After that all falls
apart they walk back into town only to discover Tim has several missed messages
from Detective Hideo Yoshida (Ken Watanabe) from Ryme City where his dad works.
There has been an accident and his father has been killed in the line of duty
and Tim needs to come to the city to settle his affairs. However, when he
arrives he finds someone lurking in his dad’s apartment, a Pikachu (Ryan
Reynolds) that only he can understand.
TL;DR – A sci-fi film that excels in creating atmosphere in both world building but also in creating a suffocating feel.
Score – 4 out of 5 stars
Post-Credit Scene – There is no post-credit scene
Review –
I don’t think it is any great surprise that I am a fan of science fiction, I’ll
take it any way I can get it. However, it is a rare film that captures my attention
for doing things a little different and Prospect
is such a film. Instead of big battle scenes and space opera set pieces, it
focuses on building atmosphere and exploring the lives of its characters.
So to set the scene, we open in space convey ship as Cee (Sophie Thatcher) is
listening in to some music only to forget to be back in their pod in time. She
lives on the edges of society with her father Damon (Jay Duplass) trying to scavenge
whatever they can to stay afloat. They are over a moon that is covered in a
forest (the green) that produces toxic spores that make it impossible to breathe
for more than a few seconds. However, it is home to some biological gems that
are quite profitable if you can find a site that was not picked clean during
the rush. Landing off course, they have to go overland to their job site when
they run into Ezra (Pedro Pascal) and his crew. Setting off a tense scene
because the Convoy ship is leaving in three cycles and it is not coming back
which is just the moment everything falls apart.
TL;DR – While it focuses on the charismatic nature of Bundy and his toxic effects, that is all the film has going for it, and that is not enough when you are exploring a narrative like this.
Score – 2.5 out of 5 stars
Post-Credit Scene – There is a mid-credit sequence
Review –
Murder, it is a topic most foul, but it is also one that is ripe for
adaptation. We have seen this time and time again, and today we are looking
film depicting the life of one of the most heinous serial killers in American
history. There is a lot of obsession around him due to his charismatic nature
and the way he used the media in his trial, after numerous escapes from
custody. Quite often this obsession is deeply problematic, so when you are
dealing with a film in which he is the core subject you have to be very
careful. Today we are looking at Extremely
Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile, a film that attempts this but does not
quite succeed.
So to set the scene, in the middle of the 1970s and Liz (Lily Collins) is out
at a bar with her friend Joanna (Angela Sarafyan). Joanna wanted Liz to have a
little fun, instead of being stuck at home with her daughter and there is one
man that has not taken his eyes off her. He walks over and introduces himself
as Ted Bundy (Zac Efron) and the two instantly hit it off. However, not long
after they move in together Ted is arrested in Utah on what he claims are
trumped up charges. This begins a long march for justice and the long decline
of Liz’s health.
TL;DR – This is a perfectly
fine film, but it felt like it could have been more if they had gone for
something other than the shotgun approach to storytelling.
Score – 3 out of 5 stars
Post-Credit Scene – There is a mid-credit scene
Review –
It has been a long time since the sort of wholesome teen romance film was in vogue.
You know the sort of film that can get away with having bloopers during the end
credits. In some respects, this feels like a lost art that was only recaptured recently
thanks in part by a number of films on Netflix. Well today we take a look at an
interesting example of this genre that has moments of real joy in between
moments of real dullness.
So to set the scene, it is the last summer after the end of high school where
everyone is having fun before having to move away for college. Our story
revolves around a group of teens that sort of know each other from school as
they endure heartbreak after heartbreak. You have Griffin (KJ Apa) who is
coming home from prep-school, so he feels disconnected for most of the people who
stayed in Chicago. You have Alec (Jacob Latimore) and Erin (Halston Sage) who
are going to different colleges so they decide to pre-emptively break up. Also
Audrey (Sosie Bacon) has been put on the wait-list from even her back-up,
back-up College and does not know what she wants to do with her life. All of
these stories sort of collide with each other over the summer as people’s priorities
are put into focus.
TL;DR – Now all together “Baaaaaaaar bar bar bup barrrrr, barr barrr, barrrrr bup bup barrr baaar bomp barrrrrrr, Baaaaaaaar bar bar bup barrrrr, barr barrr, ba dum, ba dum, ba dum, ba dum, Baaaaaaaar”
Score – 4.5 out of 5 Stars
Post-Credit Scene – There is a mid-credit sequence and a hint at the end
Review –
Wow and here we are. Honestly, when I sat down to watch Iron Man in cinemas all the way back in 2008 I don’t think I really
comprehended just what it was that I was watching. I didn’t know it would spawn
a 20+ movie franchise that would take us into the past, into the deep reaches
of space, and create one of the biggest events in movie history. In many
respects, it feels like this is my generation’s Star Wars moment, and I have not seen queues like this to go see a
film in a long time. Well, today we take the plunge and see if they can work
out one of the biggest cliff-hangers in movie history and can this be a film
that gives closure to the films that came before it.
So to set the scene, at the end of Infinity
War the one thing they were trying to stop happening actually
happened, as Thanos (Josh Brolin) obtained all the infinity stones after
ripping the mind stone out of Vision’s (Paul Bettany) head and snapped his
fingers. All at once across the galaxy, 50% of everything turned to dust and we
had that gut-wrenching moment as everything literally fell apart in people’s
hands. Indeed Peter (Tom Holland) looking desperately at Tony (Robert Downey Jr)
pleading that ‘I don’t want to go” is
one of those moments that just stays with you and it stays with the cast.
Because as we start everything is in a bad place. Tony is trapped with Nebula (Karen
Gillan) on a ship running out of fuel, air, and food, and those Avengers that
survived are counting the losses on Earth where no one has been left
unaffected. However, one should never give up all hope, because you never know
when deliverance will come from an unlikely place, and then hope is lost again.
Now with today’s review, we will be doing something a little different. In this
review, we will be looking at all of the film so there will be [SPOILERS] ahead. This is for people
that have already seen the film and want to explore the ending of Endgame. If
you have not seen the film and would like to see a no spoiler discussion Endgame you can go HERE.
Also if you have already read the no spoiler review and want to skip to the discussion
on the ending, it is the chapter starting with the big [SPOILER WARNING] below.
Before we dive into the story and character aspects of the film, I want to
first take a moment to talk about the production side of things. In this film,
they have left nothing on the table when it comes to the lighting, production
design, and effects. That opening scene as Tony is sitting in the ship waiting
to die while bathed in a light blue light from the nearby stars was one of the
most beautiful lighting techniques I have seen in quite a while. This extends
throughout the entire film, with harsh contrasts at times, natural light in
places, relentless oppression in other places. Every part of the film is well
designed, even when they are using sets from the previous film, it has been
amended to make it feel right in the new context.
TL;DR Movie Reviews and Analysis 