Tag Archives: Netflix

The Gray Man – Movie Review

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TL;DR – A perfectly serviceable if messy action film but one that struggles to find an identity.

Rating: 3 out of 5.

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

Disclosure – I paid for the Netflix service that viewed this film.

A plane about to crash.

The Gray Man Review –

You can feel that Netflix is a company going through an identity issue. No longer is it just ‘the place where you go for binging streaming content’ because others are doing it just as well, and now even the concept of binging has lost its value. So what we are getting are things being cancelled left, right and centre, but then $200 million being dropped on big-name films. I am not sure how this will go for the company, but we are getting to see the results of this tonight with The Gray Man.   

So to set the scene, we opened in 2003 in a state prison in Florida, where Donald Fitzroy (Billy Bob Thornton) of the CIA is here to recruit Court Gentry (Ryan Gosling). He is looking for people to add to his black-ops team, whose central role is assassinations in the ‘grey’. Eighteen years later, in Bangkok, Court is now Sierra Six and is one of the CIA’s best assists in the field, where he takes an op from Dani Miranda (Ana de Armas). It is a time-sensitive mission to take out Dining Car (Callan Mulvey), which is why they are using Six. But when he won’t risk the collateral of children, things start spiralling out of control, and then Six discovers that the mark Dining Car is Sierra Four and that his boss Denny Carmichael (Regé-Jean Page), might not be on the up and up.

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The Bubble – Movie Review

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TL;DR –  While the central conceit  is good, and the cast is there for it, unfortunately, the concept runs out of steam about halfway through

Rating: 2.5 out of 5.

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

Disclosure – I paid for the Netflix service that viewed this film.

The Bubble. Image Credit: Netflix.

The Bubble Review –

I don’t think it is a surprise that the pandemic has sucked, impacting every industry, including motion pictures. We have seen films like Spider-Man, where it is clearly filmed in social distancing but were still written beforehand. However, now we are starting to see films that were both written and produced during COVID, and it is going to be interesting to see how it all pans out.

 So to set the scene, in the era of big-budget franchises, one of the somewhat more successful runs was that of Cliff Beasts staring Sean Knox (Keegan-Michael Key), Carol Cobb (Karen Gillan), Lauren Van Chance (Leslie Mann), Dustin Mulray (David Duchovny), and Howie Frangopolous (Guz Khan). Having several successful sequels like Cliff Beasts Re-Extinction, Cliff Beasts Oceana, Cliff Beasts Beijing Beast, and Cliff Beasts Space Fury, the team have come back together to film Cliff Beasts 6. Unfortunately, this occurred during the COVID pandemic, which this documentary explores. How does a film get made in the age of a bubble?       

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Stowaway – Movie Review

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TL;DR – A film that understands the weight of the question it asks and the damage that would do to people.     

Rating: 4.5 out of 5.

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

Disclosure – I paid for the Netflix subscription that viewed this movie

Stowaway. Image Credit: Netflix.

Stowaway Review –

It should come as no surprise to long or short term readers that I love Science Fiction. While the fantastical location of space is an excellent place to set your film, and I enjoy them no matter how they come. What can make a film special is when they use that setting to ponder important questions about the human condition. Today we have a look at a film that delves into crucial Kobayashi Maru territory.   

So to set the scene, we open in as the Hyperion mission on MTS42 is about to launch. Mission commander Marina Barnett (Toni Collette) is setting the ship on a course for a two-year mission out to Mars and back. Along for the mission is Zoe Levenson (Anna Kendrick), a medical researcher and David Kim (Daniel Dae Kim), the ship’s biologist. You feel the rumble of engines, the shake that makes you think the very ship will through itself apart, but then you break free into the void. Once connected with the main module, they begin the long trip to Mars. However, this is a mission with supplies for three people, but as the title implies, someone else made the journey into orbit.

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DOTA: Dragon’s Blood: Season One – TV Review

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TL;DR –A little convoluted yet strangely compelling ride through the expanded lore of one of the most popular video games out there.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

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

DOTA: Dragon’s Blood. Image Credit: Netflix.

DOTA: Dragon’s Blood Review –

DOTA is one of those video games that I know, but I have never been able to get into, and that is not from a lack of trying. It is this phenomenon that I have watched from a distance with this odd curiosity. While the game itself feels like an impenetrable mess, there is a lot of style and intrigue going on, and I know that there is a whole lot of lore built into the game that could be good to explore.    

So to set the scene, we open with a huge info lore dump that you probably don’t need to understand fully. We then cut to the middle of a battle as many militiamen get ripped apart by a dragon that dives in and out of the ground. It is a losing conflict until Davion (Yuri Lowenthal), the Dragon Knight, enters the fray as his squire Bram (Josh Keaton) watches on. It is a glorious battle that dives in and out of the ground, and eventually, it is killed. It a moment of rejoicing. However, Frühling (Matthew Waterson), the captain of the guard, is less than pleased because an elder dragon still sleeps nearby, waiting to attack. But when he goes down into the lair of the best, he finds there is more terror there than he expected. Now from here, we will be looking at the season as a whole, so there will be some [SPOILERS] ahead. 

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Animals on the Loose: A You vs. Wild Movie – Movie Review

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TL;DR – An improvement on this style of story, but an odd juxtaposition holds it back.   

Rating: 3 out of 5.

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

Disclosure – I paid for the Netflix subscription that viewed this movie.

Animals on the Loose: A You vs. Wild Movie. Image Credit: Netflix.

Animals on the Loose: A You vs. Wild Movie Review –

 

One way that Netflix has tried to differentiate itself in an increasingly bifurcated market has been the implementation of ‘choose your own adventure’ films. These echo back to an old style of storytelling, but while the nostalgia has been interesting, none of them has been able to nail the technique so far. However, if anyone has a shot at it, it would be Bear Grylls for the entertainment factor alone.

So to set the scene, we open in a wildlife sanctuary in South Africa, where we find Bear Grylls (Bear Grylls) running from a lion only to reach his car to find it locked. We then jump back earlier in the day to find Bear inspecting a fence to see that something had broken through and that the fence that should be electric is not working. You have to fix, the power, find a baboon, and stop a lion all before a storm comes in.

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News of the World – Movie Review

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TL;DR – A compelling ride through the 1890s with a man trying to his best in difficult circumstances    

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

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

Disclosure – I paid for the Netflix subscription that viewed this film.

News of the World. Image Credit: Universal Pictures.

News of the World Review –

There are few actors around that you know going in will always give their best performance no matter what film they are in. One of those few is Tom Hanks who gives his all even in movies that are not that great. Today we get to explore a film that puts him right in the centre of a world going through a difficult transition.

So to set the scene, we open in Wichita Falls, North Texas, 1870, on a cold a rainy night. Here we find a Captain Kidd (Tom Hanks) speaking with the fine folks of the town. They are cut off from most of society, so he lets everyone know the news of the time, like a local fever going around or river crossings being cut, for a fee of 10c. On the way to the next town he stumbles across a black man who had been lynched, and the young girl Johanna (Helena Zengel) who he was carrying. She had been taken in a raid by the ‘Indians’, and she had been brought back to what was left of her family. When some Cavalry riders arrive, we discover that Captain Kidd served with the Confederate Army in the Civil War. They tell him to take the girl to the next town, but things are never as easy as that.

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Jurassic World Camp Cretaceous: Season 2 – TV Review

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TL;DR – This is a strong entry into the Jurassic franchise leaning both into joy and terror of dinosaurs and what it takes to survive in this world alone.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

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

Jurassic World Camp Cretaceous: Season 2. Image Credit: Netflix.

Jurassic World Camp Cretaceous Review –

Last year, a weird experiment actually kind of worked – what if they made animated kids orientated series based around Jurassic Park. It is one of those suggestions that on the face value sounds untenable, but the more you think about it, the more interesting it becomes. The first season was a fascinating ride, set during the fall of the park in Jurassic World. With a strong opener, I was interested in seeing where they could go with it next.

So to set the scene, at the end of last season the group Darius (Paul-Mikél Williams), Brooklynn (Jenna Ortega), Kenji (Ryan Potter), Yaz (Kausar Mohammed), Sammy (Raini Rodriguez) and Ben (Sean Giambrone) were rushing to try and make it to the evacuation ferry. Unfortunately, they missed the boat and more than that. Ben fell to his death from the tram into the jungle below. Left on the island, the group have to find a way to survive and get a message out of the island. The only problem is that between them and the emergency broadcast beacon is a T-Rex who has happily built her nest out of the past world’s detritus. Now from here, we will be looking at the season as a whole, so there will be some [SPOILERS] ahead.     

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Outside the Wire – Movie Review

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TL;DR – An interesting film that attempts to integrates some complex issues, but could not make the landing stick.    

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

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

Disclosure – I paid for the Netflix subscription that viewed this film.

Outside the Wire. Image Credit: Netflix.

Outside the Wire Review –

I have been looking forward to an exciting action science fiction film for a long time. I do like that sort of real, sort of future, mash-up like we got in Edge of Tomorrow, but it is a hard line to get right. Well, today we get a film that walks that line into interesting, even if it clear that they don’t know a whole lot about Ukraine.

So to set the scene, it is 2036, and Eastern Europe (Ukraine) has collapsed into war with the USA controlling to the border to stop the chaos spreading. Along this border, a platoon comes under attack and Lt. Thomas Harp (Damson Idris), a drone pilot breaks with command to kill a potential target but taking out two marines as collateral. As a punishment, he is sent to the front line to meet Captain Leo (Anthony Mackie), an android military officer, to gain some perspective on war’s realities through first-hand experience.     

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History of Swear Words: Season 1 – TV Review

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TL;DR – I found the show engaging, confronting, juvenile, overblown, and interesting, sometimes all at the same time.

Rating: 3 out of 5.

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

History of Swear Words. Image Credit: Netflix.

History of Swear Words Review –

Whether you call them ‘Swear Words’, ‘Curse Words’, or Profanity, every single person on the planet has used them at least once, some on a daily basis. But one of the things that I have always wondered was where the words came from because there are many stories, but they usually smell of the words they are describing. This is the series that looks six of the more popular terms of ill repute.

This series’ framing device is sitting down with a full suited actor Nicolas Cage in front of a fire with a drink globe nearby. It is the epitome of class, clearly positioned as a juxtaposition between the framing and the content. We then cut to a selection of experts and comedians as we explain the many different words.

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The Midnight Sky – Movie Review

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TL;DR – A film with a premise that does not hold up and then undermines the rest of the narrative   

Rating: 2.5 out of 5.

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

The Midnight Sky. Image Credit: Netflix.

The Midnight Sky Review –

I think it is safe to say that I am a fan of the Science Fiction genre. Indeed I try to watch as much as I can get. However, sometimes you come across a concept that just does not work. Unfortunately for all the star power, good acting, and exciting design, today we look at a film that just does not work.

So to set the scene, we open in on the Barbeau Observatory in the Arctic Circle in February 2049 where we are told it has been three weeks since ‘The Event’. The Observatory is being evacuated chaotically, but Augustine (George Clooney) stays behind as menacing red circles appear over cities on maps on the computer monitors behind. Augustine is trying to contact the last mission away from the planet Æther to warn them when he finds that not everyone evacuated with a little girl Iris (Caoilinn Springall) being left behind.        

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