Tag Archives: review

Movie Review – A Quiet Place

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TL;DR – A masterpiece in tension and the bonds of family, where every moment has you on the edge of your seat.

Score – 5 out of 5 stars

Post-Credit Scene – There is no Post-Credit Scene

A Quiet Place

Review –

Now today before we start I want to do something a little be different than the norm. If you are a fan of sci-fi, horror, monster films, or films that take creative risks then I want you to stop reading this review right now and go see A Quiet Place, Trust me it is well worth your time, and you will want to go in with as little pre-knowledge as possible other than it is an expertly created film with a compelling narrative. For those who have seen the film or everyone else who is jumping ahead let’s take look at the masterpiece that is A Quiet Place.

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Movie Review – Love, Simon

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TL;DR – A great story about love and everything that it takes to get there.

Score – 4 out of 5 stars

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

Love Simon

Review –

Your last year in high school is difficult at the best of times, but when you have a secret that could rip your life apart, it adds to it a bit. In Love, Simon, that secret is that the titular Simon (Nick Robinson) is gay, and he hasn’t told anyone yet. So today we are going to look at a story that is part coming of age, part love story, and party mystery novel.

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Movie Review – Ready Player One

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TL;DR – This film is so thirsty for you money with that nostalgia dollar, but like most mirages, there is not an oasis at the end, just a barren wasteland

Score – 2.5 out of 5 stars

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

Ready Player One banner

Review –

Well, um, well, that was very much a film, and it is a film that both fascinating to watch, yet also deeply hollow. It was honestly weird to see a film with so many contradictions, made by one of the best filmmakers of our time. However, it feels in many ways like a lot of the throwaway faff that we see on screen all the time, completely without substance. So just a quick aside, with today’s review I can’t really comment on how well this is an adaption of the source material because I have never read it. As well as that, unfortunately, this does mean that I can’t tell you if this movie does not work because of the directions that they took in the adaptation, or because the source material just gave them not much to work with. With that in mind, let’s take a look at a film that launched a thousand top 10 lists.

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TV Review – Safe House: How Brooklyn Nine-Nine is Finding New Heights in Season 5

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TL;DR – Safe House shows that five seasons in Brooklyn Nine-Nine is getting better and better, blending humour and emotion into an amazing episode.

Score – 5 out of 5 stars

Brooklyn Nine-Nine banner

 

Review –

Now, I have to say that Brooklyn Nine-Nine might be one of the best gems out there on TV at the moment, and one of the few shows that I actively seek out these days. It is created by Dan Goor & Michael Schur who have been the creative minds behind The Daily Show, Saturday Night Live, Parks and Recreation, The Good Place, and more. So right from the start, you have an amazing creative team that extends out to all the writing staff. As well as this, you have an amazing and diverse cast that is committed to working together as a team. They all have an amazing rapport with each other, which feels effortless. It is from this platform that they keep getting better each season.

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Movie Review – Annihilation

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TL;DR – Annihilation is a slow burn that then hits you like a freight train and then messes with your mind till it becomes putty, would recommend watching this, but maybe not at night.

Score – 4 out of 5 stars

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

Annihilation banner

Review –

What is good sci-fi? As someone who loves this gene in all of its permutations, good sci-fi could be the grand space operas of Star Wars, Stargate or The Expanse, the more character driven works like Moon and The Martian. They can be thought-provoking works like Star Trek or Arrival, or thumping action set-pieces of Mad Max. Now sometimes they can be the weird contemplative works that dip into science, horror, supernatural, blending that hard and soft sci-fi into new and wonderful ways, and today’s Annihilation is the later. Now before we jump in I do have to say because the film begins in medias res, that is it opens on the ending, it is hard to talk about the film without getting into [SPOILERS] straight from the start, even with our setting the scene part of the review. If you have not seen Annihilation you may need to be a bit more careful going forward, as there will be major plot points discussed throughout.

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Video Game Review – Civilization VI: Rise and Fall Expansion  

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TL;DR – It takes the formula of Civilization VI and adds to it in very different and unexpected ways boosting the core game and adding some new flavour to the experience

Score – 4 out of 5 stars

Rise and Fall

 

Review –
If there is one thing that you can almost reliably count on is that a Civilization game is going to get an expansion at some point (and hopefully more than one). It is one of those gaming truisms, like there will be a controversy with each Grand Theft Auto game release, or Nintendo is going to Mario up every console it makes, the things that help make life that little bit more predictable in a world of chaos. So today we are going to explore Civilization VI’s (see review) first expansion pack Rise and Fall, which both describes some of the mechanics in the game but is also a homage to the popular mod Rhye’s and Fall.

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TV Review – Ugly Delicious: Season One

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TL;DR – A fascinating documentary dissecting every facet of food, from its history, its traditions, and the future.

Score – 4 out of 5 stars

Ugly Delicious banner

 

Review –

As a food culture, we have really started to focus on tradition, authenticity, style and presentation, but have we lost something in the process? This is something that chef David Chang is trying to get to the heart off in his new series Ugly Delicious which he hosts with food writer Peter Meehan. Chang who is known from his Momofuku restaurants is pulling apart what makes food the way it is, what makes something traditional and something rebellious, and what is the soul of the food we may eat on a daily basis.

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Movie Review – Mute (Moon II)

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TL;DR – Compelling, brutal, it charts a world of extremes crashing together and the damage that it can do to people.

Score – 3.5 out of 5 stars

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

Mute banner

Review –

Because of who you are, you live almost apart from the world. However, one day you meet someone who completes you, helps you to live your life, it is pure joy. Then one day that gets taken away from you, what would you do? Where would you go? Is there any length that you would not go to get her back? These are just some of the questions that Mute askes among the tapestry of future Germany. Today we will be exploring this fascinating film from Duncan Jones, a gritty neo-noir film of mystery and deception, but also a film dealing with some very real and present issues in the world today.

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Movie Review – Hibiscus and Ruthless

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TL;DR – A beautiful, funny film of charting family expectations

Score – 4 out of 5 stars

Post-Credit Scene – There is a mid-credit sequence as the credits roll

Hibiscus & Ruthless. Image Credit: M2S1 Films.

Review –

‘Families are complicated’, I think that is a phrase that just about anyone in the world can relate to. There is pressure to conform to your parents wants, and there is pressure to try and help the next generation succeed more than you did, and sometimes those two drives crash into each other in explosive fashion. Today we will be looking at a film that deals with just this very issue, as we explore this fascinating film from New Zealand from the same creative team behind Three Wise Cousins. There will be laughter, there will be tears, and there will be bread rolls on people’s heads for some reason.

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Movie Review – Lady Bird

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TL;DR – A coming of age story with a strong emotional centre, and an amazing cast

Score – 4.5 out of 5 stars

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

Lady Bird

Review –

Last year I missed seeing Moonlight in the cinemas, due to its very limited release near me. Well, Moonlight went on to win the Best Picture Oscar at the Academy Awards, and I felt a bit foolish for missing it. Well this year I made sure that this would not happen again and the last film on that list is Lady Bird and it has finally been released here in Australia. So today we are going to look at this magnificent insight into families under stress, yet still being resolute in the face of it all.

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