TV Review – Westworld: Reunion

TL;DR – This first episode is like watching an oncoming storm approach. It is beautiful but also full of trepidation as it unleashes its torrent.

Score – 4.5 out of 5 stars

 

Reunion

 

Review

What is life? It is a question as old as time itself. Were we created? Did we evolve? A little of both? Well in this week’s episode we take a look at some of those questions when the created become the creators and the created fight back. While Journey into Night (see review) had to do a lot of setting up to get the season started again, Reunion doesn’t have that baggage and as such it barrels full steam ahead into the season.

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Movie Review – Avengers: Infinity War

TL;DR Infinity War brings everyone together and then tares them apart leaving you with a foreboding as to what will happen next, but also an excitement as they try to work it all out.

Score – 4 out of 5 stars (this is a tentative score, it might change after Part 2)

Post-Credit Scene – There is an end credit scene

Avengers Infinity War Banner

Review

It should be no surprise that I have been eagerly awaiting the new Avengers film. In preparation not only did I map out the Marvel Cinematic Universe (see here) but I also ranked every film released in the build-up (see here). However, if I am to be perfectly honest, part of this stemmed from a nervousness, could they stick the landing, could they create a story that would give justice to all the desperate characters they were involved, could they actually bring on Thanos? Well as you can probably tell I have seen the film now, so I can now answer those questions … sort of. Now a quick note today, there will be [SPOILERS] for several of the recently released Marvel films including Thor: Ragnarok (see review) and Black Panther (see review). As well as this, I will try to avoid most of the major spoilers until a paragraph at the end when we discuss the ending, but because of how quick the film moves this is just a general [SPOILER] warning if you have not seen the film yet.

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Movie Review – Super Troopers 2

TL;DR – Canadian jokes, American Jokes, and an absurd set up that somehow still works by letting all the characters shine in the absurdness of it all, oh my.

Score – 3.5 out of 5 stars

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

Super Troopers 2

Review
When a cult classic has a sequel, especially a sequel after a long time, there are the usual questions as to can it strike lightning again? Now, this is always an unfair question because if they just do the same thing as before you get hit for not innovating, and if you change it up you get hit for not respecting the original. So how do you approach a sequel with this minefield ahead of you, well the first thing is you engage with the fans from the start, which a well-crafted Indiegogo campaign clearly did, but also it is to know your strengths and play with them and Super Troopers 2 is a great example of this. Also releasing on the 4th of April, I see what you did there Super Troopers.

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Exploring the Past – Super Troopers (2001)

TL;DR – A combination of off-brand Afghani animation, smugglers on the border, and all the shenanigans.

Score – 4 out of 5 stars

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

Super Troopers banner

Review
Super Troopers is one of those little films that could. Fighting hard to get it financed and being turned down at every point and then finally getting it greenlit but you only have $1.2 million to put your passion project together. Well after many years a sequel is about to be released so I thought it would be good prep to take a look down memory lane at a world full of shenanigans, so, many, shenanigans.

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Movie Review – Rampage

TL;DR – Rampage knows what it is and leans into it hard, with giant monsters crashing into buildings and Dwayne Johnson being his charismatic best

Score – 3.5 out of 5 stars

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

Rampage

Review

Now, this is the point at the start of the review where I talk about how there has never been a great movie adaption of a video game so far, and I talk about the problems about adapting and trot out examples like Assassin’s Creed (see review) and Tomb Raider (see review). However, this time around I don’t think I have to do that because while this is by no means a masterpiece I think it is the first film to really crack that adaption puzzle or at least the one who has got the closest to it. With that in mind, today we are going to enter the realm of giant monsters crashing into buildings, and who doesn’t love a giant monsters crashing into buildings.

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Movie Review – Blockers

TL;DR – Despite the fact that none of this should work, it is surprisingly touching and quite funny

Score – 3 out of 5 stars

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

Blockers

Review
This is a film that shouldn’t really work at all. It is smashing storylines of what feels like two completely different films from different genres together and it should be an unmitigated mess, yet somehow it all kind of works. So today we will take a look at what makes Blockers work when it really shouldn’t.

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Movie Review – Isle of Dogs

TL;DR – There are some aspects, like the animation which are superb, but also some things like some of the story aspects that leave you wondering why did they make that choice.

Score – 3.5 out of 5 stars

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

Isle of Dogs

Review

Hmmm, this is a difficult film to review because as much as it is unique work of art celebrating a form of animation that you don’t see much these days. It is also a deeply problematic story with regards to some aspects of its narrative and characterisation, and as such, it is hard to rectify these two halves. Well, it might be difficult, but then that is what we are here to do today so it is time to rise to the occasion and dive into the world of dogs.

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TV Review – Lost in Space: Season One

TL;DR – Blllaaaare baba bi bop bum barrrr, Blllaaaare baba bi bop bum barrrr, blllaaaare baba bi bop bum barrrr, blar, blarrrrrrr

Score – 4.5 out of 5 stars

Lost In Space Banner

Review

Rebooting an old and much-beloved TV series is a fraught proposition. Now from a business perspective, it makes perfect sense because you have an inbuilt fanbase to launch the show to. However, it also comes with a lot of baggage with fan expectations and a wealth of information that you have to wade through and decide what you will keep and what you will ignore. So for every Battlestar Galactica or Doctor Who you have a Knight Rider and Bionic Woman that failed to get that balance right. Today we have a chance to look at a series reboot that actually gets that balance right, both showing it understands and respect of the original, but also a show stepping out and doing its own thing. Now as we go on there will be some [SPOILERS] as we will be looking at the season as a whole, so just be warned if you have not seen it yet.

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TV Review – Lost in Space: Impact

TL;DR – Blllaaaare baba bi bop bum barrrr, Blllaaaare baba bi bop bum barrrr, blllaaaare baba bi bop bum barrrr, blar, blarrrrrrr

Score – 4.5 out of 5 stars

Lost in Space

 

Review

Can you reboot a TV series that has been off the air for 40 years, and which the last attempt to bring it back to life on film was mixed at best and the last time on TV didn’t make it past the plot? Well, that is the question being asked here in this new Netflix series, and right from the start, we can see that Netflix is not here to play games. Today we are going to look at the pilot episode Impact, an episode that shows you how to do the first episode, and do it right.

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Movie Review – A Quiet Place

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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