Starring: Sean Bean, Danny Dyer, Aksel Hennie, Izabella Miko, James D’Arcy, William Houston, John Dagleish
Plot: The true story of the formation of Ian Fleming’s 30 Commando unit, a precursor for the elite forces in the U.K.
Tagline – The Were Britain’s Commando Elite.
Runtime: 1 Hour 30 Minutes
There may be spoilers in the rest of the review
Story: Age of Heroes starts as World War II rages on, Steinar (Hennie) is recruited to help in the war, with him guiding Jones (Bean) to lead his group of commandos behind enemy lines, where lost soldier Rains (Dyer) will be put through the grinder to make it into the Commando unit.
One the mission the soldiers head to Norway where they will meet with their connection for the final piece of information as they look to win a major battle in the war.
Thoughts on Age of Heroes
Thoughts – Age of Heroes brings us the typical war time story, which will see a small group of soldiers needing to overcome the odds to defeat a group of ruthless Nazi soldiers that will help in the war effort. The military side of the training is everything we have seen before, while the mission itself doesn’t add anything original to the idea. The performances in this film are carried by Sean Bean, who is head and shoulders above most of the rest of the cast, with Danny Dyer struggling to look the part. This doesn’t end up changing an over used style of film, just being on of the more forgettable, without ending up being one of the offensive ones.
Final Thoughts – Age of Heroes is a simple war time action film.
This is under G because of the Gena character in the film.
Director: Harvey Lowry
Writer: Kelsey Tucker (Screenplay)
Starring: Thora Birch, Chris Klein, Claire Coffee, David Blue, Gabrielle Stone, Jason Tobias, Tiffany Fallon
Plot: The main character (Thora Birch) follows the “PIG Theory” and ends relationships after six months in order to avoid heartache until she meets a man (Chris Klein) who wants to disprove her theory.
Runtime: 1 Hour 43 Minutes
There may be spoilers in the rest of the review
Story: The Competition starts when Calvin’s (Klein) boss Gena (Coffee) challenges him to help her sister Lauren (Birch) shake the pig theory, where relationships should end after 6 months before heartache.
The two do hit it off, while creating a competition between the two, showing that five of Calvin’s friends wouldn’t cheat with temptation around them, if they don’t, Lauren must give up the pig theory blog, if she loses, but if she wins, Calvin has to write a forward for her book.
Thoughts on The Competition
Thoughts – The Competition is a romantic comedy that will show how people have started to follow trends instead of following their hearts when it comes to love. This does put the competition as an early bonding moment in the relationship between the two, rather than holding it back as part of a game, which is could easily have become. It will show that you don’t always know the people you are closest too, with their actions in life either. The story will follow the generic formula, that was always only going to be going one direction, pushing to make Lauren change her mind about love, almost showing her to be the flawed person, without getting to the reason why she believes in this theory. Thora Birch and Chris Klein are both great in the leading roles, getting plenty of laughs along the way and it is great to see the pair back on the big screen.
Final Thoughts – The Competition is a by the book romantic comedy.
Plot: On its maiden run, the world’s fastest bullet train is rigged with a bomb that will explode if it dips below 200 mph.
There may be spoilers in the rest of the review
Story: Bullet Train Down starts when genius creator Jack (Bailey) is seeing his first Bullet Train launched in America. As soon as the train sets off, Jack receives a call to demand money or the trigger-happy bomber will set off a bomb. The train can’t drop below 200mph or it will trigger too.
Former bomb disposal military man Kessler (Freelove) is on board and looks to work with Jack to solve the problem. FBI agent Scott Madison (Sizemore) is running an operation from outside. With the train running out of track, the race to dispose of the bomb and escape the train is on.
Verdict on Bullet Train Down
Bullet Train Down is an action thriller that sees a bullet train on its maiden voyage that comes under terror attack by a bomber. You can see a lot of this movie is borrowed from ‘Speed’ rather than the bigger budget ‘Bullet Train’.
The story itself is a simple concept that works well for creating the tension of needing to survive. Where the film can come off short, is lacking motivation for what is going on. There is also too much focus on the passengers who are doing next to nothing apart from waiting in carriages that have been made safe.
Final Thoughts –Bullet Train Down is a simple concept that helps cover up the low budget.
Starring: Aaron Pedersen, Alex Russell, Jacki Weaver, David Wenham, David Gulpilil
Plot: Indigenous Detective Jay Swan arrives in the frontier town of Goldstone on a missing persons inquiry. What seems like a simple light duty investigation opens a web of crime and corruption. Jay must pull his life together and bury his differences with young local cop Josh, so together they can bring justice to Goldstone.
Tagline – Where worlds collide.
Runtime: 1 Hour 50 Minutes
There may be spoilers in the rest of the review
Verdict: Slow Burn
Story: Goldstone starts as Indigenous detective Jay Swan (Pedersen) finds himself in the town of Goldstone on his latest investigation of a missing person, here he finds young cop Josh Waters (Russell) looking into him, only for him to turn the truth on the situation in the town.
When the two put their differences aside they learn they are investigation a human trafficking situation, where the Mayor (Weaver) is turning a blind eye to everything going on, because of the extra money is generating for the town.
Thoughts on Goldstone
Characters – Detective Jay Swan has been working on a missing persons case, this has seen him enter new territory, stepping on people’s feet, only his ideas and investigation are important to trying to help clean up the area. He must work with Josh to try and solve the crime, which is bigger than he first thought. Josh Waters is a young detective that is unaware of what has been happening in the local area, once he hears the stories, he looks to try and help the latest victims of the human trafficking, even if that drives the town against him, he wants to do the right thing. The Mayor has been using this system of human trafficking for years, it is how she funds the area and she is quick to silence anyone who tries to get in her way.
Performances – Aaron Pedersen and Alex Russell do work well together through this film, they come from different mindsets, which sees them clash at times, while showing the desire for the same thing too. Jacki Weaver does make for a fun villainous mayor through the film, only we don’t get enough of her character.
Story – The story here follows two different cops that ends up working together to bring down a human trafficking ring that have been running a small town for years. This does bring us a crime story that shows that certain people can look to take advantage of people and how a town will use their position to turn their heads on something that will increase money they are making. The pacing of the story is too slow in places, focusing on more of the open world that we are in, rather diving into the criminals motivations.
Crime – The crime side of the film shows how the victims are being taking advantage of and how they will just turn their heads for profits.
Settings – The Australian open land will make for the setting, which shows how it could be achieved, only it does mean we are stuck in long shots of the landscape over filling the story.
Scene of the Movie – The shootout.
That Moment That Annoyed Me – Not enough from the Mayor.
Final Thoughts – This is a slow burner that has the typical dealing with human trafficking, where it shows people needing to work together to solve the case.
Starring: Sandra Bullock, Ben Affleck, Maura Tierney, Steve Zahn, Blythe Danner, Ronny Cox
Plot: A soon-to-be-married man encounters an exciting stranger after his plane suffers an accident on takeoff.
Runtime: 1 Hour 45 Minutes
There may be spoilers in the rest of the review
Story: Forces of Nature starts when soon-to-be-married Ben (Affleck) finds his journey to Savanna for the wedding go wrong when the plane crashes on take-off, leaving him with a position where he saves the woman Sarah (Bullock) next to him.
The two must work together to reach the same destination leading to an unlikely friendship, as Ben starts to question everything about his upcoming wedding to Bridget (Tierney) whose parents have never been his fans.
Thoughts on Forces of Nature
Thoughts – Forces of Nature is a romantic comedy bringing two strangers together in a random encounter, changing both of their lives forever. Forces of Nature will end up giving us a story that will show how people will give up on something they believe is so perfect for a fling with a stranger, putting the old risk reward thing about a relationship together, we will get the chance of never judging a book by its cover and getting to know people will let you learn who they are, once you can get through their defences. Sandra Bullock and Ben Affleck are both fun in the leading roles, while most of the supporting cast does feel like filler, which is trying to hard to get laughs. The film tries to use the weather as a reason for things to get delayed which can feel like an added problem that doesn’t get enough out of it.
Final Thoughts – Forces of Nature is a fun road trip while being a middle of the road comedy.
What Went Wrong in the Marvel Cinematic Universe Phase Four?
The Marvel Cinematic Universe Phase Four has become one of the biggest talking points in the fandom. It was always going to have a massive task to follow the most profitable phase of the MCU, Phase 3 ($13 Billion). It was also the final chapter of two of the biggest characters in the series, Ironman Captain America and Black Widow.
What Were the Challenges?
New Characters
When it comes to phase four, the MCU needed to kick some new characters into the leading role, but the problem was not enough of the new characters had a built-in fanbase.
In Phase Four we got the following new characters:
Yelena Belova
Shang-Chi
The Eternals
Moon Knight
Ms Marvel
She-Hulk
Compared to Phase Three
Doctor Strange
Spider-Man
Black Panther
Captain Marvel
The number might not be too far apart, but the iconic figures of Spider-Man, Doctor Strange and Black Panther have a built-in fan base.
The Eternals could easily have been included as the alternative Guardians of the Galaxy. Making this decision a smart one gives us a large group of characters in one group. Yelena is the simple replacement for Black Widow. Shang-Chi is like Black Panther, targeting a different audience to give Asian representation in the universe.
If we break this down, we can see that this is similar. The biggest difference comes from how they were introduced. Captain America: Civil War let us meet Spider-Man and Black Panther. This gave the audience two characters to want to get behind, without requiring an origin story. Phase Four relied on the origin stories of the new characters. So, if things are missed, they could see a character struggling to make an impact.
TV Shows
Phase 4 was the first phase that introduced TV Series instead of odd little shorts. We have been given seven different TV series this year, four of which expand on supporting characters and three are even more characters added to the universe.
This has worked two ways. First, it gives the characters extra time to get to meet and get familiar with. 6-8 episodes give us a closer origin story while expanding the people that help the established figure we have met before.
The second side of this is a weakness. The universe has been created in the movies, in a place to which everyone has access. The TV shows are locked behind Disney Plus if people don’t want another streaming service or the time for 6/8 hours to watch. It becomes difficult to connect to the movies being released around it.
Films
There have been seven movies in this phase with only Black Panther: Wakanda Forever left to be released. It would be fair to say it started well, with the following:
Black Widow – This gave Scarlett Johansson a chance to have her own solo movie, one she deserved in the universe. It offered a fresh approach, that was more of a spy movie compared to a superhero movie.
Shang–Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings – A fresh movie that brings us a new character, in a new bigger universe. It is a fun movie that relies on an end-credit scene for how big the series could go.
Eternals– Eternals might well have gotten the weakest reviews and kept itself as far away from anything established. It did give a host of great new characters that have plenty more to give us.
Spider–Man: No Way Home – This is the only one in the universe that uses a connection from a previous movie. Peter Parker has his identity revealed at the end of Far From Home. He has lost his father figure in Tony Stark and turns to the one person who could help him, Doctor Strange. The movie might well end up turning into a festival of Spider-Man movies past and present. It still left us with a massive cliff-hanger for Spider-Man’s next adventure.
The Weak Films
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness – This is where things started to go wrong. Having previously seen Doctor Strange use his powers to help Spider-Man. The movie goes in a very different direction throwing in Wanda, who in the movie world, hasn’t been seen since Endgame. Which gave no hints of this new darker side to her character. Even though it would have made more sense for Doctor Strange to go on a journey after his mistakes in No Way Home.
Thor: Love and Thunder – Following on from Doctor Strange’s failure to continue the story we previously saw them in, comes Thor: Love and Thunder. Thor agrees to team up with the Guardians of the Galaxy at the end of the Endgame. The movie throws this idea away within 10/15 minutes of the movie, to put Thor back on a soul-searching movie. This makes the movie feel disconnected from the rest and almost makes it look like it wants to be a solo movie only.
Covid
The Covid Pandemic that is still affecting parts of the world is a major factor in the problems phase four has faced. It wasn’t only the MCU that struggled, cinema, in general, had a tough couple of years. This is a factor out of the studio’s control, but the effect is clear.
It was two years between Spider-Man: Far From Home ending Phase Three and Black Widow kicking off Phase Four. Spider-Man’s two-and-a-half-year difference would have been one of the most natural between films. Having a large gap between what was one of the best conclusions in any franchise series in Endgame, would have left fans wondering what could happen next.
Chadwick Boseman’s Tragic Death
Chadwick Boseman’s sudden death at 43 years old put another spanner in the works for the MCU. Black Panther gaining such a following was the major hit in Phase Three. This threw out the questions about Wakanda Forever. Will they re-cast or who should become the Black Panther character? This only got more complicated with a new mandate on set, with the favourite to step into the suit Laticia Wright, having issues with the vaccine rules.
Everything around this is out of their control and on the promising side. The first trailer for Black Panther Wakanda Forever looks excellent, so hopefully, it can end the phase with the strength it deserves.
Evolution of Cinema & Streaming
Covid created a new wave in cinema and streaming. There has been a shorter date between cinema releases and access to streaming. This offers new habits for the audience who are more willing to wait the 45 days between releases to watch at home, with their Disney Plus access. Meaning the box office returns are going to be lower than previous outings.
In Conclusion
It seems like the MCU has only struggled because of its previous success. The Universe has tried to do something more, moving away from only offering movies and not taking risks on every new character. The TV series offer a cheaper option to expand the universe.
On the positive, it has created a better representation of the product. This was an issue that was challenged in the previous phases of the universe and they have been addressed very well.
This hasn’t been the best phase in the franchise, but it can hardly be called bad. It has a lot to go up against after what was the best phase in the universe. It had to do a lot of rebuilding and evolution with changes in media consummation.
The show kicks off with Pat McAfee talking about and analysing how he kicked Happy Corbin in the balls for the win. Leading to the locker room laughing at Happy Corbin. Ricochet steps up to challenge him tonight.
Match 1 – Ricochet vs Happy Corbin
The match starts fast playing into Ricochet’s skills, high flying moments until Corbin slows everything down if a massive clothesline. In the match we go between power and speed, with Corbin’s obsession with Pat McAfee causing him to get distracted.
Winner – Ricochet
Next Up Sami Zayn comes to see the Bloodline to congratulate them and explain why he wasn’t around for Summerslam, getting rejected by the Usos.
Match 2 – Shinsuke Nakamura vs Ludwig Kaiser
If Nakamura beats Ludwig, he will get to face Gunther for the Intercontinental Championship. In a solid back—forth, Nakamura picks up the win to become the number one contender.
Winner – Nakamura
A dream match next week on Smackdown, Shinsuke Nakamura vs Gunther.
Time for a flashback to the Viking Raiders and New Day clashing over the last few weeks, as the Raiders left Xavier Woods injured, leaving Kofi Kingston on his own to address the Raiders.
Sami Zayn continues to try to get in contact with Roman, with the Usos sending him on jobs they claim Paul Heyman usually does.
Liv Morgan is up next to address the controversial finish to her match with Ronda Rousey. The fans start to turn on Liv because of the ending of the match, booing her, in a shocking turn of events, claiming she only tapped after she thought the pinfall has been counted.
This leads into the next match, the women’s gauntlet match to see who faces Liv Morgan at Clash at the Castle.
Match 3 – Women’s Gauntlet Match
Sonya Deville vs Aaliyah in a short first-round match, Sonya Deville knocks out Aaliyah.
Raquel Rodriguez enters next, straight into dominating performance against Sonya. Until Sonya slows it down to her pace.
The crowd continue to give mixed responses to Liv and ringside, including calling out her Tapping Out, Ronda Rousey and supportive Liv Morgan chants.
Raquel Rodriguez advances to the next match against Shotzi, where Raquel gets the elimination before Xia Li enters next. Despite a dominant series of strikes from Xia Li, Raquel eliminates her too. Natalya is next, looking to use her experience to finish off Raquel. Raquel continues to overcome the odds, but last up is the dangerous Shanya Baszler. For a gauntlet match, this was a lot shorter than we usually see, not giving the talent enough time to shine.
Winner – Shayna Baszler
Sami continues to try and see Roman when the Usos send him away again, unless he starts pulling his weight in the group.
Match 4 – The Viking Raiders vs Two local talents
The Viking Raiders dominate the young team, showing the ruthless nature they have returned with.
Winners – The Viking Raiders
Post-Match, Kofi Kingston launches an attack on the Raiders, standing tall with a kendo stick.
Match 5 – Kofi Kingston vs Erik
In another power vs speed match, this lets Erik show more powerful moves than in recent months but a distraction from Ivar, lets Erik back in the match before Kofi gets a quick roll-up victory.
Winner – Kofi Kingston
The Women’s Tag Team Championship Tournament starts on Monday Night Raw
Closing the show, Roman Reigns makes his presence known to address his upcoming match with Drew McIntyre. In the typical victory speech that gets interrupted by Drew McIntyre, who wants to fight now, only to get interrupted by Karrion Kross. Beating down Drew and living the hourglass with Roman Reigns.
Triple H continues to start making his early statement by pushing the talent who set his NXT to light and a returning Karrion Kross straight into the main event picture is massive.
Plot: Mountain biker Benny Jones sets off on a weekend ride to remote Crow Valley but is knocked off his bike in a brutal hit and run. He wakes badly injured in an abandoned cabin where he meets young hiker Greta. When her lies and sanity start to unravel he finds himself in a desperate fight for survival.
Runtime: 1 Hour 17 Minutes
There may be spoilers in the rest of the review
Story: Crow Valley starts when Benny sets off on a mountain bike ride to the remote Crow Valley. Benny stops for maintenance of his bike, where he gets hit by a car. Greta offers him help, taking him back to a remote cabin to recover from his injuries.
As Greta starts to show an unstable side to her nature, it becomes clear she has planned this for a while now. This leaves us wondering what his motivation is to capture Benny.
Verdict on Crow Valley
Characters
Benny is a mountain biker that is on a reflective journey after an incident in his past. He gets hit by a car, leaving him injured on the side of the road, and waking up in a remote cabin. Benny finds himself fighting for his life when his past comes back to haunt him once again.
Greta is the woman that has hunted down Benny, showing herself as a random hiker. She is unstable having visions of her past traumas, despite having a reason for targeting Benny.
Performances
Nicole Freeman does a great job with the unstable character she is playing. She switches up her character for each and every scene, making it just as uneasy to see what she does next.
Josh Conn stars, writes and directs this movie, where he will bring his character to life. He shows the character has a lot of remorse for something that has happened, a broken man for his mistake.
Story
The story follows a man who gets injured and taken back by a stranger to help him recover. As the story unfolds, we get to learn the truth about both the characters, who have their own darker problems.
This is a movie that could have comparisons to ‘Hard Candy’ with the idea of one person trapping the other in what they see as a revenge idea. It has a very different motivation behind what is happening though. The story is smart enough to play both characters off as having problems they can’t address. Even if the final showdown feels a lot flatter because of what had previously happened.
Themes
Crow Valley is a horror thriller that sees a cyclist injured and taken back to a mysterious cabin. There is the creation of isolation, as Benny can’t get to safety after his accident. The torture side of the film feels tame by the time it gets underway though. This can be explained more because Greta is unsure of what she wants from the encounter.
Final Thoughts – Crow Valley is a solid thriller with twists along the way.
Plot: The origin story of the Predator in the world of the Comanche Nation 300 years ago. Naru, a skilled female warrior, fights to protect her tribe against one of the first highly evolved Predators to land on Earth.
Runtime: 1 Hour 39 Minutes
There may be spoilers in the rest of the review
Story: Prey starts as we meet Naur (Midthunder) a young warrior in a Comanche tribe. When one of the tribe goes missing, the men go in search of them, believing a predator could be lurking in the woods. Taabe (Beavers) talks to the men to allow Naru to join them, and she believes they are up against something more than a lion.
Naru returns to the woods alone, in search of the creature, leading to her meeting the real predator. One that has been hunting on Earth for different trophies and has now got a taste for hunting humans. This leaves Naru to fight for her people against the deadliest predator they have ever come up against.
Verdict on Prey
Characters
Naru is a female tracker in a Comanche Tribe, she wants to become a hunter, but tradition forbids it. She won’t back down because of her talent for tracking, constantly learning to improve. Being the first to suspect a new predator in the woods, something they have never faced before. She must use all her skills to battle against the predator.
Taabe is Naru’s brother, he is the best hunter in the tribe and will encourage his sister to find her place in the tribe. He is happy to let her learn but doesn’t want to force her until she is ready.
The Predator has arrived on Earth, it slowly starts running through the predators in the area. It studies them to see which are the biggest threat before hunting them down. It looks like it is still learning and not having as futuristic weapons as we have seen in other predators’ movies.
Performances
Amber Midthunder is wonderful in the leading role, giving a breakout-level performance within the action world. She is the star of the show, getting the most out of the intense physical performance. The supporting cast is strong with their limited time around with Dakota Beavers being the best of the rest.
Story
The story follows a young female warrior that believes her tribe is in danger from a new predator, unlike anything they have seen before. This sees her going further than anyone has before to fight to save her tribe.
When it comes to Predator movies, the story has always worked well as being simple. A Predator versus a different warrior/soldier, in a fight, to see who can outsmart the other. This does that too, which helps keep the story trimmed and easy to follow because we are just waiting for the showdown between the pair.
Themes
Prey is an action sci-fi movie that will bring the Predator story back to the 1700s for a different fight. This sees different time-appropriate weapons in play and most interestingly, the Predator learning about different natural predators. It shows us that the Predator we meet hasn’t been in the fight here before and does get challenged by different creatures along the way. The action is hard-hitting, even if a lot of the biggest gore moments are off camera.
Where to Watch: Prey is available on Disney Plus
Final Thoughts – Prey is a brutal return to form for the Predator franchise.
