28 Years Later – Movie Review

TL;DR – A wildly fascinating film, filled with interesting creative choices. I am not sure that makes it a great movie, but it does make it a wildly engaging one.

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Post-Credit Scene – There are snippets during the credits.

Disclosure – I paid to see this film.

Warning – Contains scenes that may cause distress.

Warning – Contains flashing lights.

Blood splattered across a television playing Teletubbies.

28 Years Later Review

In the last year or so, we have been inundated with sequels to old films with a significant gap since the previous movie. Think Beetlejuice Beetlejuice or Gladiator II. Well, today we are dipping into the Zombie genre with a sequel that is just as long, but probably works from an alliteration perspective [as long as we ignore months, and let’s be honest, who hasn’t done that at one point]

So, to set the scene, we open in the throughs of the first rage virus outbreak as carnage spreads across the Scottish Highlands. 28 Years Later, the rage virus has been stopped in Europe and now the British Iles are quarantined. No one can leave once they touch the ground. Settlements are few and far between, but on an island off the British coast, a community has survived on Holy Island. Where only a tidal causeway connects with the mainland. Spike (Alfie Williams) lives on the island with his mother Isla (Jodie Comer) who is profoundly sick, and Jamie (Aaron Taylor-Johnson) his father. Jamie desperately wants to take Spike out on his first killing trip, more than a few years before the town would like them to. But as they explore a fallen world they come across something they are not ready for, an Alpha (Chris Gregory/ Chi Lewis-Parry).

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The Falcon and The Winter Soldier (Captain America and The Winter Soldier): One World, One People – TV Review

TL;DR – What a stunning end to a remarkable story.  

Rating: 4.5 out of 5.

Post-Credit Scene – There is a Mid-Credit Scene

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

The Falcon and The Winter Soldier (Captain America and The Winter Soldier): One World, One People. Image Credit: Disney+.

The Falcon and The Winter Soldier Review

And so it has come to an end. I was unsure what The Falcon and The Winter Soldier would explore rather than let Anthony Mack and Sebastian Stan banter with each other for six episodes. However, as we have gone through this first(?) season, it is clear that the show was, of course, ready for the banter, but it wanted more. Well, today, we take a look to see, after all that promise, if the show sticks the landing.  

So to set the scene, we open in one the end of Truth, as the Flag Smashers make a move and attack the central GRC meeting in New York. Karli (Erin Kellyman) holds off until Sam (Anthony Mackie), Bucky (Sebastian Stan), and a surprise Sharon (Emily VanCamp) arrive on the scene. But Sam understands the plan. Karli wants them to evacuate because that is where she is going to attack. The question is that in the chaos, can Sam stop things before they go too far. 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 Falcon and The Winter Soldier: The Whole World is Watching – TV Review

TL;DR – This episode is like a storm approaching over the horizon. You see it coming, you feel the wind, you know something bad is about to strike, but you are not prepared even then.

Rating: 5 out of 5.

Post-Credit Scene – There is no End Credit Scene

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

The Falcon and The Winter Soldier: The Whole World is Watching. Image Credit: Disney+.

The Falcon and The Winter Soldier Review

Many people feel that comic book films are nothing but popcorn trash, just there to fill in time with some pretty colours and then send you on your way. However, when we look at just the Marvel Cinematic Universe [and there is a whole lot more than that], then that statement simply does not hold water. We just watched an entire season of WandaVision exploring the legacy of trauma and what that does to a person. I mean, Thor: Ragnarok is all about post-colonial societies and how they whitewash and inevitably have to rectify with the darkness of their pasts. Sometimes, that means tearing the state down completely. Then it should be no surprise that The Falcon and The Winter Soldier set in a world trying to recover from a great cataclysm would have something of relevance to say, and this week they were most explicit about it.    

So to set the scene, at the end of Power Broker, Bucky (Sebastian Stan), Sam (Anthony Mackie), and Zemo (Daniel Brühl) had arrived in Latvia in the hopes of tracking Karli Morgenthau (Erin Kellyman) down. However, they were not the only ones on the hunt because as they arrive at their safe house, Bucky spots Wakandan tech lying around and traces it back to Ayo (Florence Kasumba), one of the Dora Milaje. As she is one of the people that helped Bucky get rid of his programming, she is most upset that he was the one that broke Zemo out of jail. However, as Zemo is just ‘a means to an ends’ Ayo will give Bucky eight hours, and then she is taking Zemo for herself. Now from here, we will be looking at the episode as a whole, so there will be some [SPOILERS] ahead. 

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Movie Review – Solo (Solo: A Star Wars Story)

TL;DR – It is okay, the story is okay, the acting is okay, the effects, okay well they are more than just okay, but overall it is just okay

Score – 3 out of 5 stars

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

Solo

Review

Hmm, okay, well this is an interesting film, it had a dramatic change of directors and tone during production, and it is charting the course for one of the most iconic characters in film history. All of this leads to some pretty big expectations, but also a lot of hesitation because a large course change mid-way through rarely leads to a great end product. However, the same was also said of Rouge One (see review) and that turned out to be really good, by the end. Well, today let’s see if they can capture that magic again, and give justice to the character of Han Solo.

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