Month: September 2021

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Movie Review

No Time To Die (2021) Movie Review ‘Proper Slog’

No Time to Die – Proper Slog

 

Director: Cary Joji Fukunaga

Writer: Neal Purvis, Robert Wade, Cary Joji Fukunaga, Phoebe Waller-Bridge (Screenplay) Neal Purvis, Robert Wade, Cary Joji Fukunaga (Story)

Starring: Daniel Craig, Rami Malek, Lea Seydoux, Lashana Lynch, Ralph Fiennes, Christoph Waltz, Ben Whishaw, Naomie Harris, Jeffrey Wright, Ana de Armas

Plot: James Bond has left active service. His peace is short-lived when Felix Leiter, an old friend from the CIA, turns up asking for help, leading Bond onto the trail of a mysterious villain armed with dangerous new technology.

Runtime: 2 Hours 43 Minutes

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Story: No Time to Die starts as James Bond (Craig) living the retired life with his new girlfriend Madeleine Swann (Seydoux), this will see his past start to catch up with him, with James needing to move away from people once again.

5-years later James gets a chance to get back at his nemesis Spectre, when CIA agent Felix Leiter (Wright) offers him a new mission, one which will see him meet the new 007 Nomi (Lynch), as they need to work together to stop criminal mastermind Lyutsifer Safin (Malek).

Thoughts on No Time to Die

Characters & Performances – James Bond is the man we know, from the franchise, he has however moved away from the agent life, trying to stay off the radar, but his past will draw him back once more, now just a spy, working with British Intelligence, to get back at Spectre, only for everything to hit a new personal approach for him. Daniel Craig does get to give his version of Bond a nice send off, he gets some cheeky humour, which will be one of the few things to get your attention in this film. Madeleine Swann is the woman that James wants to spend his life with, she does have a connection to his past, one that will leave a level of uncertainty about where her she stands in his eyes. She comes back into his life, with her connection to an old enemy, one that will make her a threat for everyone. Lea Seydoux does everything she needs to in this film, she brings the bigger emotional stakes to the movie. Lyutsifer Safin is the villain, he has planned everything and has a bigger idea, but my god, he is one of the most forgettable villains I have ever seen in a Bond movie, I can barely remember anything he said or did. Rami Malek really does struggle to make this character make an impact, it does feel like the weakly written character over the bad performance. Nomi is the new 007, she does create a good banter in style with James, with her looking to learn from his rule breaking ways. Lashana Lynch does do well in this role, we get enough to not get too much, and enough to want to see more from the character. We do get a lot of returning characters, who are interesting, but the star of the performances is Ana de Armas, because what she brings to the table is the most entertaining part of the film.

Story – The story continues to follow James Bond, as he looks to escape the world of spies, only to find himself getting drawn back in, when he gets a chance to face Spectre once again, which will see him meet a new threat. When it comes to the overall story in this James Bond film, we must look at the fact the villain is one of the most forgettable factors in the film, which is sad, because without a good villain, we get left with a weak story. The story tends to put more focus on the emotional impact away from the agent world, much like Mission Impossible 3 did, only that film handled everything much better. The idea of bringing in a new 007, does work well, it is interesting to see the dynamic between the two, but it does end up falling into James Bond is better than you will ever be factor. This story also seems to have poor dialogue, with how certain moments, just feel like quotes, rather than natural conversations.

Themes – No Time to Die does have a mix of action, with one brilliant single take, Paloma’s action sequence and the car chase, which is by far the only entertainment factors we get in this film. The mix of sound depending on explosions, works well, but the idea of the voices in the head, but not showing the character, does feel clunky. The locations are beautiful, this can’t be denied, something the franchise will always be known for.

Final Thoughts – No Time to Die is a long movie that has plenty of pacing problems, with the action being the highlight of a bland Bond movie.

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Movie Review

The Old Ways (2020) Movie Review ‘Exorcism With a Twist’

The Old Ways – Exorcism With a Twist

 

Director: Christopher Alender

Writer: Marcos Gabriel (Screenplay)

Starring: Brigitte Kali Canales, Andrea Cortes, Julia Vera, Sal Lopez, AJ Bowen, Weston Meredith, Julian Lerma

Plot: Cristina, a journalist of Mexican origin, travels to her ancestral home in Veracruz to investigate a story of sorcery and healing. There, she is kidnapped by a group of locals who claim she’s the devil incarnated.

Runtime: 1 Hour 30 Minutes

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Story: The Old Ways starts as journalist Cristina (Canales) finds herself locked up after arriving back in Mexico to see her cousin Miranda (Cortes), the locals believe she has been infected by a demon, wanting to get it out of her before she brings the evil to their land.

As Cristina starts going through the exorcisms the locals claim to be for the best, she starts to learn about what happened in her past, that will connect her to the evil in the area.

Thoughts on The Old Ways

Thoughts – The Old Ways with see a native of Mexico returning to her homeland after making a career in journalism in America, only to find herself thrown into a world where she is believed to have been infected by a demon. This is a story that will see us dive into the traditions within the smaller villages that will see anyone as being evil in the world. We get the slowly building more horrific events that we would expect to see in horror, with the exorcisms. Certain moments will have big moments for the horror, with the exorcisms being bone crackling, while not always going in the directions you would be used with how the demon reacts to what is going on. When it comes to the exorcism style of movies, this one will do certain factors that will make it stand out from the rest of the film. The performances in the film are strong throughout to.

Final Thoughts –The Old Ways is an exorcism film that will take things in a brand-new direction.

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Movie Review

Inside the Circle (2021) Movie Review ‘Romantic Comedy 101’

Inside the Circle – Romantic Comedy 101

 

Director: Javier Colon Rios

Writer: Omar Mora (Screenplay)

Starring: Omar Mora, Justin Lee, Stefy Garcia, Valeria Gonzalez

Plot: Inside the Circle is a quirky romantic dramedy that tells the story of a girl who believes in relationships and marriage, and who falls for a comic book and superhero-loving man who does not share her same beliefs.

Runtime: 1 Hour 33 Minutes

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Story: Inside the Circle starts as we meet Rocio (Garcia) who believes in relationships, wanting to get married and to have children, who meets Giancarlo (Mora) who has a very different view on finding love, believing it will happen one day, but for now, he is doing the things he loves in life.

The pair don’t seem like a good match, but sparks fly between the two, as we follow their relationship through the time together, leaving to the conversation about what love is truly about.

Thoughts on Inside the Circle

Thoughts – Inside the Circle brings us a romantic comedy that will see two people who have different points of view on love that meet and fall in love, with their own differences becoming the biggest stumbling block on whether they can make their relationship work in the long term. This is the type of romantic comedy, that wants to put the focus on people getting caught up in one mindset on love, that aren’t open to finding more from their lives. This doesn’t seem to offer much more to anything that we have seen before, but also isn’t something that is done in a bad way, we can see where this story is going to go from an early stage. The performances are strong, with Omar Mora and Stefy Garcia show a strong chemistry in the film, but sadly, like most of the strongest rom coms, we don’t get much from the best friend characters, they often have one or two scenes, instead of a lot like we would be used to seeing.

Final Thoughts – Inside the Circle is everything you expect in a romantic comedy.

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Movie Review

The East (2020) Movie Review ‘Hard Hitting War Drama’

The East – Hard Hitting War Drama

 

Director: Jim Taihuttu

Writer: Mustafa Duygulu, Jim Taihuttu (Screenplay)

Starring: Martijn Lakemeier, Marwan Kenzari, Jonas Smulders, Abel van Gijlswijk, Coen Bril, Reinout Scholten van Aschat

Plot: A young Dutch soldier deployed to suppress post-WWII independence efforts in the Netherlands’ colony of Indonesia finds himself torn between duty and conscience when he joins an increasingly ruthless commander’s elite squad.

Runtime: 2 Hours 17 Minutes

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Story: The East starts as we meet the young Dutch soldier Johan de Vries (Lakemeier) who has been deployed to Indonesia in an attempt to supress the post-WWII independence efforts in the Netherlands colony.

As Johan learns the Dutch military are just doing the basics to show control, he starts to turn to a man Raymond ‘The Turk’ Westerling (Kenzari) who lives outside of the military protection, a man that will lead a special group of soldiers in fighting back against the rebels.

Thoughts on The East

Characters & Performances – Johan de Vries is the young solider in the Dutch military, deployed to Indonesia to help protect the peace from the rebels fighting for independence, finding the routine wondering around the military base boring, until he meets a local begging for help. He learns that there is a darker side to the Dutch involvement, one that he finds himself getting involved in, see the true horrors of being part of a military invasion. Martijn Lakemeier does an excellent job showing the transformation that Johan goes through during the film, despite his character having a secret. Raymond Westerling is the outsider soldier that shows no fear in the land, he leads an elite group of soldiers who are looking to solve the problems before they become the threats they are scared they will become. Marwan Kenzari does bring us a ruthless performance, one that shows the leadership in the darker side of the war. When it comes to the supporting cast, everyone does a solid job, which is mostly filling the roles you would come to expect within this type of movie.

Story – The story here follows a young Dutch soldier who finds himself in a post-World War II deployment in Indonesia in the fight to stop the battle for independence, only to find himself going down a path he isn’t prepared for. This is a story that bring the hard hitting reality of war, how somebody thinks they might be doing the right thing, only to learn how people have used the position for their own desires. This story doesn’t show us enough of the history lesson about what happened between the two countries, which is disappointing, as it does feel like it is important to learn about. When it comes to the raw look of the soldier experience, it does shine though.

Themes – The East is a war drama that shows one soldier’s journey in the Dutch army in Indonesia in the battle to try and gain independence. The locations show us the horrors of the war, with each one putting Johan through a new traumatic experience.

Blue Finch Film Releasing presents The East on Digital Download 4 October

Final Thoughts – The East is a drama that shows just how horrific the war was on anyone involved.

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Movie Review

Camino (2015) Movie Review

Director: Josh C Waller

Writer: Daniel Noah (Screenplay) Josh C Waller (Story)

Starring: Zoe Bell, Nacho Vigalondo, Francisco Barreiro, Sheila Vand, Dominic Rains, Jason Canela

Plot: In the jungles of Colombia, a photojournalist captures the truth behind a group of missionaries who may not be what they seem.


Tagline – The camera sees what it sees.

Runtime: 1 Hour 43 Minutes

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Story: Camino starts when award winning photojournalist Avery (Bell) gets offered her latest project, a chance to go and view the work of a group of missionaries in Colombia, lead by Guillermo (Vigalondo). What seems like a routine job takes a dramatic twist when Avery witnesses something she shouldn’t, leading to Guillermo sending the whole group after her.

Avery must fight to survive, while trying to prove the truth of what happened and Guillermo’s twisted ways if she is going to make it out of this alive.

Thoughts on Camino

Thoughts – Camino is a thriller that will see how a photojournalist will need to use her own survivalist skills to make it out of the latest situation in the Colombian jungle, after witnessing something horrific. This is a nice survivor thriller that will give us everything we need, as we dive into seeing how the leader of this group shows a darker side, which shows just how convincing he is in controlling the group to believing anything he says. The environment will show the dangers that Avery must deal with and show just how much photojournalist would risk getting the big story. Everything comes of tidy, without feeling as intense as it could, leaving us wanting to see more before it unfolds in the manner you would expect in any thriller.

Final Thoughts – Camino is a by the book thriller offer little fresh without being on the duller side.

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Movie Review

Like Dogs (2021) Movie Review ‘Never Gets the Shock Value it Wants’

Humans Chained Up Like Dogs: A Behavioural Experiment Gone Wrong

Humans Chained Up Like Dogs: A Behavioural Experiment Gone Wrong

Director: Randy Van Dyke

Writer: Randy Van Dyke (Screenplay)

Starring: Annabel Barrett, Ignacyo Matynia, Ryan Tran, Shay Denison, Katy Dore, Nicole Bleacher

Plot: A behavioural experiment treating humans like animals goes awry when a University Student manipulates the research with deadly results.


Tagline – Sit. Stay. Survive.

Runtime: 1 Hour 30 Minutes

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Story: Like Dogs starts when Lisa (Barrett) is abducted by a group of strangers, finding herself chained up in cubical like a dog, feed dog food and ordered to follow instructions. She finds out she isn’t alone in the experiment with Adam (Matynia) also chained up.

When the truth about the experiment to light, everything you thought you knew, will be turned on its head, with a brand-new way of seeing what is happening.

Thoughts on Like Dogs

Thoughts – Like Dogs is an experimental therapy movie that is filled with twists and turns, it is filled with miss-direction from the start. This story starts off making us believe we are watching one film, but takes a sharp turn into showing us something completely different. Which is filled with a moral dilemma, which does end up taking away from a lot of the early film points. By the time we get into the deeper side of the film we find that the story does feel too busy, not getting enough focus on what the actual experiment truly is. Only for it to end up with an unsatisfying set of motivation behind what has driven the characters to make their decisions.

This is a film with performances that don’t stand up to the highest level, with the confident side of the characters being great. But when it comes to doing the routines, nothing feels like it is where we needed it to be. This is a film that is trying to be edgier than it is, leaving everything down one factor, instead of having the twisted ideas it wants to.

Final Thoughts – Like Dogs is a film trying to be edgy, only to fall into a weak motivation mindset.

Explore the consequences of a dangerous University experiment as Lisa and Adam battle to bounce back in the uncompromising Like Dogs.
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Movie Review

Hammer (2019) Movie Review

Director: Christian Sparkes

Writer: Christian Sparkes (Screenplay) Joel Thomas Hynes (Story)

Starring: Will Patton, Mark O’Brien, Ben Cotton, Vickie Papavs, Connor Price, Dayle McLeod, Curtis Caravaggio

Plot: A father faces a personal crisis when he discovers his estranged son fleeing a botched drug deal. The two men embark on a violent odyssey that grapples with themes of fatherhood, family and fate.

Runtime: 1 Hour 22 Minutes

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Story: Hammer starts when drug dealer Chris (O’Brien) looks to work with his younger brother Jeremy (Price) to get one over a drug dealer Adams (Cotton) leading to everything going wrong and Chris’s father Stephen (Patton) reluctantly looking to help him fix it, finding out just how much trouble Chris has gotten himself in, with the idea of trying to fix their broken relationship, however difficult it will turn out to be.

Thoughts on Hammer

Thoughts – Hammer is a slow movie thriller that will see a broken family needing to put the pieces back together to solve a problem which could see them getting more than bargained for, showing a parent will always protect their son. This is a thriller that isn’t as engaging as it wants to be, with a lot of shouting a screaming, without much storytelling going on, it is mostly driving to a certain location, have an argument, before going to the next and the same happening. The performances are solid enough, it just ends up feeling flat overall.

Final Thoughts – Hammer is a flat thriller with next to nothing going on through the film.

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Movie Review

North Hollywood (2021) Movie Review ‘Entertaining Coming-of-Age Film’

North Hollywood – Entertaining Coming-of-Age story

 

Director: Mikey Alfred

Writer: Mikey Alfred (Screenplay)

Starring: Ryder McLaughlin, Miranda Cosgrove, Vince Vaughn, Mikey Alfred, Aramis Hudson,

Plot: A kid must decide between choosing the future his father wants and following his dream of becoming a pro skater.

Runtime: 1 Hour 33 Minutes

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Story: North Hollywood starts as we meet high school student Michael (McLaughlin) who is reaching the crucial part of his life, where he must decide between college, working with his father Oliver (Vaughn) in construction or following his dreams of being a professional skater.

As Michael starts finally talking to his high school crush Rachel (Cosgrove), he starts to see his potential skating career take off, hanging out with a new group of people, while his father continues to push for him to make sure he plans for his future.

Thoughts on North Hollywood

Characters & Performances – Michael is the high school student, planning on moving to college, while harbouring dreams of becoming a professional skater. He has often lived in the shadow of his father’s shadow, always trying to keep him on the right path in life, with Michael wanting to take more chances in life, which will see him in that position where he doesn’t know what will happen next in his life. Ryder McLaughlin does give us a performance where we get to see the struggles in life, wanting something more, while not knowing what is best, the confliction his character is going through is in every scene. Rachel is the high school crush that Michael has waiting to get closer to for years, it is one of the things that will see him risk something more in life. Miranda Cosgrove does the basic side of this role well, she doesn’t get a chance to do much more than being potential love interest with her feet on the ground. Oliver is the father of Michael’s, he is strict because he knows how hard life will be on Michael, he is fair though, offering college or a chance to work with him, he is always willing to advice in life, struggling with the idea that he might not making something for himself. Vince Vaughn is the best part of the acting in this film, bringing a honest figure to life, a man that has seen the world and always wants the best for a loved one.

Story – The story here follows a high school student that is facing the difficult decision on what to do next in his life, with his dreams of being a skater not being seen as a smart choice, with college or employment being what his father is pushing for. This is a coming-of-age story where a teenager who is about to enter adulthood must make the decision which is best for him, he knows whatever he picks, his life will change, his friendships will fade away, his father will be there for him though, but the importance of this decision will define him. This story might not offer much more than we have seen before but does everything it needs to for the film to become enjoyable.

Themes – North Hollywood is a comedy drama looking at the desire of a high school teenager wanting to become a pro skater, which will only pay if he is a success, leaving him in the middle of the position of whether he will be able to make it in this world. The North Hollywood setting shows people who are living in a dream world, but not a celebrity world.

North Hollywood will be available on Digital Download from 11th October.

Final Thoughts – North Hollywood is an entertaining comedy drama.

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Movie Review

Séance (2021) Movie Review ‘Scares Up a Treat’

Séance – Scares Up a Treat

 

Director: Simon Barrett

Writer: Simon Barrett (Screenplay)

Starring: Suki Waterhouse, Madisen Beaty, Inanna Sarkis, Ella-Rae Smith, Stephanie Sy, Djouliet Amara

Plot: Camille, a young woman who arrives at the Fairfield Academy following one of the student’s untimely and violent death.

Runtime: 1 Hour 32 Minutes

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Story: Séance starts in the aftermath of an accident, Camille Meadows (Waterhouse) arrives at Fairfield Academy to replace the deceased student, where Camille must learn of the politics between the girls with Alice (Sarkis) leading the bully parade to welcome he.

When the girls perform a séance, they find themselves getting haunted by an unknown presence, Camille and Alice must learn to put their differences aside to figure out what it behind the haunting.

Thoughts on Séance

Characters & Performances – Camille Meadows is the new student to the school, she takes the recently deceased girls room and it doesn’t take long before she finds herself clashing with the school bullies. She won’t take it lying down, when she finds herself caught in the middle of a previous séance the girls summoned. She knows how to deal with the pranks the bullies are looking to pull on her and leads the investigation when one of the girls goes missing. Suki Waterhouse does bring this smarter figure to this world, one which will show us that have been in the world more than the boarding school. Alice is the lead of the bullies, along with the rest of the group they do what they want in the school, controlling the pranks they do on the students. She is the typical mean girl, quick to react to anything that goes against her. This is where the supporting cast does struggle to make an impact, all the bully group struggling to stand out from the crowd. When it comes to the film being set in a school, it does feel like we have only one teacher and the group involved, it never feels like there is anyone else there.

Story – The story follows a new girl starting an exclusive boarding school after the death of one of the students, she must deal with the typical new girl treatments before finding herself in the middle of a series of hauntings, with the student vanishing. This does tend to follow the slasher style of horror, despite trying to play itself as a supernatural one. We know how the picking off selection tends to happen and despite certain things happening, the girls still play the idea that horror films don’t exist, making silly decisions when a friend has either gone missing or been killed. Once you step away from this, we get an entertaining story along the way, which will you leave trying to figure out the truth.

Themes – Séance is a horror mystery that will use the boarding school as the main location, showing us the girls will have to learn to trust each other through the events of the horror, which will fall into the slasher side of horror, despite wanting to make more of a use of an actual séance to create what is happening. The scares are slowly built up, coming more from the alone sequences, relying on the darkness for more effect.

Final Thoughts – Séance is a creepy slasher, that doesn’t hold on some of the brutal scenes, only to struggle to build the world the vents take place in.