One of the benefits of film is that it is a visual media, and that means that it can do in a frame what it might take a book several pages to pull off. Where we see this the most is in its ability to build worlds in front of our eyes.
These worlds could be great space operas that explore galaxies, or a small period piece that looks back in time, or anything. But when every part of the film is being used to tell a story, you know it is good.
So without further ado, these are films that showed excellence in Worldbuilding 2019. Be warned that there may be some slight spoilers ahead for the films in question, also you can click on the banners to go to the full reviews.
Cinematography is an art form that can be as bold as a gong crashing after a moment of silence, or as subtle as the tide coming in. It is something that elevates a film to the heights of accolade or turns a film into a frustrating mess when it misfires.
While at the heart of cinematography is the Director of Photography or Cinematographer, to get something from the script to the final shot takes a whole team of professionals, and it is their talent that we champion today.
So without further ado, these are the moments of cinematography that took our breaths away in 2019. Be warned that there may be some slight spoilers ahead for the films in question. Also, click on the banners to be taken to the full reviews.
TL;DR – The action in the third act is some of the best monster action I have ever seen, however, the story is so incredibly dull that it is a slog to get to it.
Score – 3 out of 5 stars
Post-Credit Scene – There is some mid-credit important information and a post-credit scene
Review –
It is odd to see a film that has two such disparate parts that are almost in
conflict with each other. Where one part of a film is so amazing that you feel
it could be a game changer for the industry. However, there is another part of
the film that works so poorly that you wonder how it made it off the drawing
board. This is something that actually makes reviewing this film quite difficult
because you have to ask how much you should let the story side just because the
visuals were so good. Well, today we will try an unpack this all, as we explore
Godzilla: King of the Monsters.
So to set the scene, we open the film on the attack in San Francisco in the
first Godzilla as we see Dr Mark Russell (Kyle Chandler) and Dr Emma Russell (Vera
Farmiga) desperately look for their son amount the rubble of their house. In the
years that passed since it is clear that the tragedy irreparably damaged their relationship
as Mark is now charting wolves in Colorado and Emma is working for Monarch in
China with her daughter Madison (Millie Bobby Brown). Emma is working on ORCA an
interface that uses biodata to communicate with the Titans. The first trial of
the device works as they can control a newly born Mothra caterpillar. However,
just when they think it is all going well eco-terrorist Alan Jonah (Charles
Dance) attacks the lab killing everyone and taking Emma, Madison, and the ORCA.
Which is a problem because if the ORCA can control the Titans, what damage can
it unleash?