Jul 20 2021

The Boy Behind the Door (2020) Movie Review

The Boy Behind the Door – Relentless Tension

Director: David Charbonier, Justin Powell

Writer: David Charbonier, Justin Powell (Screenplay)

Starring: Lonnie Chavis, Ezra Dewey, Kristin Bauer van Straten, Scott Michael Foster, Micah Hauptman, Rich Ceraulo Ko

Plot: After Bobby and his best friend Kevin are kidnapped and taken to a strange house in the middle of nowhere, Bobby manages to escape. But as he starts to make a break for it, he hears Kevin’s screams for help and realizes he can’t leave his friend behind.

Runtime: 1 Hour 28 Minutes

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Story: The Boy Behind the Door starts when two boys Bobby (Chavis) and Kevin (Dewey) are kidnapped and taken to a mysterious home, Bobby manages to escape his situation, only to learn the Kevin is still trapped. Bobby doesn’t want to leave his friend, so looks for a way to rescue him, learning more about the house in the process.

With Bobby needing to stay out of sight, he finds himself needing to figure out the solution before it is too late, where he will need to try and hide, staying one step ahead of their captor.

Thoughts on The Boy Behind the Door

Characters & Performances – Bobby is one of the two boys kidnapped, he is the one that manages to escape, but doesn’t want to leave his friend behind. He will do everything in his power to find a place to hide from the captor, as he looks for a way to rescue his best friend, smart, tough and unwilling to give up. Lonnie Chavis does a great job in this role, he gives us a performance that show the toughness needed to survive. Kevin is the friend that has been kidnapped too, he is put though something horrendous, needing to find a way to escape, but also knowing he doesn’t want Bobby to go through what he did. Ezra Dewey does well in his role too, showing the true pain his character has been through, balancing the desperation to escape with the fear of something worse happening. The captor has been putting the kids through a torture for their own pleasure, they will do anything to keep their secret and doesn’t want to lose what they have either.

Story – The story here follows a young boy that is looking to save his friend after the pair are kidnapped by someone that wants to use them for their own means, giving us a high-end tension filled experience. The story will leave us within the one location, as the boys don’t know how to get out of the situation, not knowing where they are and not knowing how dangerous the captor is. This will get involved in a dark subject matter, one that will leave us in shock when we see what is going on, or what the plans are, while we get to see the survival side (thankfully) where we see how the boys must look to fight back to survive.

Themes – The Boy Behind the Door is a horror thriller that will show us the isolated location the two boys find themselves in away from anywhere they know. The tension comes from seeing how the boys need to try and stay ahead of the captor, with plenty of searching sequences, while we do get the shock moments when it comes to seeing the fights between the adult and child.

Final Thoughts – The Boy Behind the Door is a horror filled with tension, while tackle a disturbing subject.

Jul 20 2021

The Toll – Release News

Signature Entertainment presents The Toll in cinemas and on premium digital 27 August

On the Pembrokeshire border, a man (Smiley) working solo shifts in the quietest toll booth in Wales, hides from a criminal past where nobody would ever look. As his past actions catch up with him and his peace is shattered, he enlists the help of local ne’er-do-wells and oddballs, including a female Elvis impersonator, rampaging triplets and disgruntled sheep farmers, while village police officer Catrin (Elwy) grows increasingly suspicious…

With an all-star cast of British talent, The Toll is a deliciously dark journey into the wild west of Wales from debut director Ryan Andrew Hooper. The Toll stars Michael Smiley, Iwan Rheon, Paul Kaye, Annes Elwy, Steve Oram (Sightseers) and Julian Glover (The Empire Strikes Back, For Your Eyes Only).

Jul 20 2021

ABC Film Challenge – Comedy – T – Troop Beverly Hills (1989) Movie Rob’s Pick

Head over to Movie Rob’s site for more reviews here.

“I may be a beginner at some things, but I’ve got a black belt in shopping! ” – Phyllis

Number of Times Seen – 1 (19 Jul 2021)

Brief Synopsis – A Beverly Hills divorcee decides to volunteer to lead her daughter’s girl scout troop in order to bond with her.

My Take on it – Horrendous Fish out of water story that just doesn’t work well at all.

Shelly Long is a great actress, but her work in this film is too over the top as she plays a spoiled Beverly Hills housewife.

The antic that she plays along with the ones played by the rest of the cast isn’t very funny and it is quite torturous to watch this story unfold.

There is no chemistry between Long and the rest of the cast and that disconnect hurts things far too much here.

The girl scouts aren’t developed at all and they all seem to fit into various stereotypes that make this movie feel so unoriginal and boring the whole way through.

The cluelessness of the main character is absurd to watch here and this hurts things far too much as the story unfolds in a very unrealistic fashion.

The film has a nice supporting cast, yet none are given enough to do here.

Craig T. Nelson, Mary Gross and Betty Thomas are all wasted in this film because they have so much more to offer than what this story allows them to give which is such a shame.

MovieRob’s Favorite Trivia – Lily’s mother was modeled after Imelda Marcos, former First Lady of the Philippines. There are ‘in-jokes’ made about Karina’s husband being a dictator and how Karina has thousands of pairs of shoes (as Imelda did). Also, the couple have a son, Ferdinand Jr., who is fondly called Bong Bong. (From IMDB)

Rating – Razzie Worthy (2/10)

Jul 20 2021

ABC Film Challenge – Comedy – T – Top Five (2014) Movie Review

Director: Chris Rock

Writer: Chris Rock (Screenplay)

Starring: Chris Rock, Rosario Dawson, J.B. Smoove, Gabrielle Union, Romary Malco, Hayley Marie Norman

Plot: A comedian tries to make it as a serious actor when his reality television star fiancée talks him into broadcasting their wedding on her television show.

Runtime: 1 Hour 42 Minutes

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Story: Top Five starts as comedian Andre Allen (Rock) is going on his press tour for his first serious acting role with journalist Chelsea Brown (Dawson) doing a personal story on Andre in a day in the life. Andre is also letting his reality fiancée Erica Long (Union) plan their wedding for a television show.

As the pair spend the day together, Chelsea gets one of the most personal insights into Andre Allen, showing the pressure to change his persona in the public light.

Thoughts on Top Five

Characters & Performances – Andre Allen is the comedian turned movie star that has started to see his career starting to get out of control, with people expecting too much from him, while he is trying to recreate his own career. He doesn’t know who to trust in the industry anymore, while still trying to keep his own fans happy. Chris Rock is great in this role, he gets to reflect what it is like to be put into one type of character in the view of the audience. Chelsea Brown is the journalist that is looking to write a story about Andre, getting to spend the day on his press tour, getting one of the most personal interviews with Andre. Rosario Dawson does well in her role in the film showing the grounded figure in the world filled with people who want things from Andre. Along the day we meet plenty of different people in Andre’s life who have help him, be it his lifelong friend, family, agency, co-stars or fiancée trying to put together the perfect wedding.

Story – The story here follows a day in the life of comedian turned movie star that is trying to redefine his career before his big celebrity wedding, with a journalist looking to write a story about him. This story does feel like an intimate look at celebrity life, showing us the pressure put on the performer to keep their fans happy, while trying to make the most of their own time in the spotlight, how bad decisions will haunt them and addiction could hold up their life. This story is told in a way we haven’t seen much before, mixing the idea that we do get to see these personal interviews with a journalist spending a day with the celebrity, which explains how the film can do the flashback concepts too.

Themes – Top Five is a comedy that follows a stand up comedian turned actor, we will get plenty of jokes through the film, showing us just how Andre Allen can just hit jokes out of nowhere, we explore the New York setting, showing us different places that Andre has been to through his career too, each one will have its own story.