Tag: 2021

The Year the Film Was Released

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Movie Review

The Resort (2021) Movie Review

The Resort – Movie Review

The Resort features four friends investigating a haunted Hawaiian resort, but it ultimately fails to deliver genuine horror despite its potential.

First Reaction – The Resort has potential to be a lot scarier.

Watch The Resort on Tubi.

Director: Taylor Chien

Writer: Taylor Chien (Screenplay)

Cast

  • Bianca Haase (Hot Tub Time Machine 2)
  • Brock O’Hurn (Players)
  • Michal Vlamis (Roswell, New Mexico)
  • Michelle Randolph (1923)
  • Dave Sheridan (The Devil’s Rejects)

Plot: Four friends head to Hawaii to investigate reports of a haunting at an abandoned resort in hopes of finding the infamous Half-Faced Girl. When they arrive, they soon learn you should be careful what you wish for.

Runtime: 1 Hour 16 Minutes 

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Story: The Resort starts when four friends, Lex (Haase), Chris (O’Hurn), Sam (Vlamis) and Bree (Randolph) head to an abandoned Hawaii island. It has been abandoned because of the haunting of the Half-Faced Girl, and they love investigating the paranormal.

What begins as an investigation of the abandoned complex turns into a nightmare. Night falls and the hauntings begin, leading the friends to fighting to survive. However, Lex is recounting her story to a local detective wondering what happened to her and her friends.

Verdict on The Resort

Recap

The movie follows four amateur paranormal investigators exploring an abandoned island. However, the ghosts of the island come to life, and they must fight their way to safety.

Best Parts

The location is the highlight of the movie. Despite looking like it could have been from the Dead Island games, it offers an empty calm.

Worst Parts

This is painfully by the book storytelling. First, when they are about to get to safety, they even mention going back being stupid and dangerous, but they did it anyway. This is one of the most frustrating traits in any horror movie. Most of the scares are rushed, with not enough exploring or understanding what is happening. They spend more time focusing on some sexy shots of the four swimming than making the horror feel scary.

Final Thoughts –The Resort misses too many opportunities to truly scare us.

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Movie Review

Willy’s Wonderland (2021) Movie Review

Willy’s Wonderland – Movie Review

Willy’s Wonderland is a chaotic horror comedy featuring Nicolas Cage, pitting a drifter against demonic animatronics in a condemned attraction.

First Reaction – Willy’s Wonderland is a bonkers, crazy enjoyable movie.

Watch Willy’s Wonderland Here.

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ABC Film Challenge – Favourites – W

Director: Kevin Lewis

Writer: G.O. Parsons (Screenplay)

Cast

Plot: A quiet drifter is tricked into a janitorial job at the now condemned Willy’s Wonderland. The mundane tasks suddenly become an all-out fight for survival against wave after wave of demonic animatronics. Fists fly, kicks land, titans clash — and only one side will make it out alive.

Runtime: 1 Hour 28 Minutes 

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Story: Willy’s Wonderland starts when a drifter (Cage) breaks down in a small town. He reluctantly agrees to clean the condemned attraction Willy’s Wonderland in exchange for car parts. Meanwhile, Liv (Tosta), Kathy (Cowan), Chris (Kadlec) Dan (Mercedes) and Bob (Hill) know the dangers of the attraction.

They plan on destroying the building but first, they need to get the drifter out. However, he has other plans and has already started fighting back against the evil, the animatronic demonic creatures.

Verdict on Willy’s Wonderland

Recap

The movie follows a small town with a deep secret. A drifter rolls into town and prepares to fight back against the secret, as the evil demonic animatronic creatures take over.

Best Parts

The idea of demonic animatronics is unique and great to see, the designs are brilliant and terrifying at the same time. It has a big secret within the town consumed by keeping everything together and Nicolas Cage is fantastic in a silent role. This is a perfect mix of a bloodbath slasher and horror comedy.

Worst Parts

It does have a lot of similarities to Five Nights at Freddy and we got that movie a few years later, which has overshadowed this, despite this being better.

Final Thoughts –Willy’s Wonderland is a chaotic, bonkers and wildly enjoyable movie.

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Movie Review

The Guilty (2021) Movie Review

The Guilty – Movie Review

Discover an intense and gripping thriller in The Guilty. Jake Gyllenhaal stars as a police officer caught in a race against time to save a kidnapped woman.

ABC Film Challenge – Favourites – G

Director: Antoine Fuqua

Writer: Nic Pizzolatto (Screenplay)

Writer: Gustav Möller, Emil Nygaard Albertsen (Original Screenplay ‘Den Skyldige’)

Cast

Plot: A demoted police officer assigned to a call dispatch desk is conflicted when he receives an emergency phone call from a kidnapped woman.

Runtime: 1 Hour 30 Minutes

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Story: The Guilty starts when a demoted police officer Joe Baylor (Gyllenhaal) is forced to a dispatched desk. He doesn’t want to be there and is short with anyone calling for help. However, his day dramatically turns when Emily (Keough) calls for help.

Joe tries to solve the crime which sees him diving deeper into the case, while managing the past case looming over his head. However, not everything is adding up and Joe is left helpless as the case reveals more secrets.

Verdict on The Guilty

The Guilty is a thriller following a dispatch police officer facing a dramatic case. He tries to help solve the situation as things seem more dangerous but must address his own upcoming case to get through the night.

This movie is edge-of-your-seat thriller which keeps you guessing as to where it will go. Nothing is as simple as it seems and the intrigue behind Joe’s case is also there. The two sides balance well and watching this only from Joe’s point of view only adds more tension to the movie. I am unaware of whether this changes much from the original, but for a stand-alone movie it works extremely well.

Where to Watch

The Guilty is available on Netflix now.

Final Thoughts – The Guilty is a tense edge-of-your-seat thriller.

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Movie Review

Cruella (2021) Movie Review

Cruella – Movie Review

Experience the darker side of Disney with Cruella. Follow the journey of Estella as she transforms into the notorious Cruella de Vil.

ABC Film Challenge – Oscar Nominations – V (Julia Vernon, Makeup & Hairstyling)

Director: Craig Gillespie

Writer: Dana Fox, Tony McNamara (Screenplay)

Writer: Aline Brosh McKenna, Kelly Marcel, Steve Zissis (Story)

Cast

Plot: A live-action prequel feature film following a young Cruella de Vil.

Runtime: 2 Hours 14 Minutes

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Story: Cruella starts when a young Estella sees her mother killed in a tragic accident. She believes it was her fault for breaking her mother’s rules and ends up running away to London. Estella makes friends with two small-time thieves Horace and Jasper.

Years later, Estella (Stone), Jasper (Fry) and Horace (Hauser) work plenty of cons around the city. However, when Estella impresses The Baroness (Thompson), she gets close to her, only to learn a shocking secret about her mother’s death. Now, Estella looks to take revenge on the person who took everything from her.

Verdict on Cruella

Cruella is a crime comedy movie following the early life of Cruella de Vil. It follows her tragic backstory and growing up with a couple of small-time thieves, before getting her first taste of the ruthless nature of the most famous members of the industry.

At a time when we are getting prequels to villains, this one seems to miss the mark. It tries to make us sympathise with Cruella because of what happened to her, but in reality, there is next to nothing that could make us care about her. However, hard the film tries, the later actions will always be unforgivable. The Emmas are both great in their roles, but it is nearly impossible to care about the characters involved.

Where to Watch

JustWatch

Final Thoughts – Cruella is a prequel which makes no sense.

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Movie Review

The Queen of Basketball (2021) Movie Review

The Queen of Basketball – Movie Review

Get a first-hand look at the extraordinary career of Lucy Harris, the Queen of Basketball. Learn about her historic achievements and her trailblazing journey in the NBA.

First Reaction – The Queen of Basketball is a brilliant look at an icons career.

Watch The Queen of Basketball Here on YouTube

ABC Film Challenge – Oscar Nominated – Q

Director: Ben Proundfoot

Plot: Queen of Basketball is an electrifying portrait of Lucy Harris, who scored the first basket in women’s Olympic history and was the first and only woman officially drafted into the N.B.A. Harris has remained largely unknown – until now.

Runtime: 22 Minutes 

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Verdict on The Queen of Basketball

Recap

The Queen of Basketball is a documentary following Lucy Harris’ career in basketball. She was considered the best female player in her time, entered the Olympics and became the only woman drafted in the NBA. This follows her story, from her words and her childhood to basketball history-maker.

Best Parts

This is nice to see the story from the star’s point of view, Lucy is so proud of what she achieved. It gives us a chance to look at a history-maker and someone many others should look up to. By doing this, we get a real feel of what it was like being part of the moments that made her an icon. This ends up feeling like a really good documentary that highlights a sporting great. However, there is a far more tragic side to her story than it seems on paper. This highlights the former problems with the sporting system and not preparing people for the world once their college career is over. It also highlights the divide between sexes in sport despite the changes that have been put in place.

Final Thoughts – The Queen of Basketball is a fantastic documentary.

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Movie Review

The Mitchells vs the Machines (2021) Movie Review

The Mitchells vs the Machines – Movie Review

Get ready for a wild ride with The Mitchells vs the Machines. This animated film combines heart, humor, and robot mayhem in a truly unique way.

First Reaction – The Mitchells vs the Machines has a massive heart and family dynamic.

Watch The Mitchells vs the Machines Here

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ABC Film Challenge – Oscar Nominated – M

Director: Michael Rianda, Jeff Rowe

Writer: Michael Rianda, Jeff Rowe (Screenplay)

Cast (Voice Talents)

Plot: A quirky, dysfunctional family’s road trip is upended when they find themselves in the middle of the robot apocalypse and suddenly become humanity’s unlikeliest last hope.

Runtime: 1 Hour 54 Minutes 

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Story: The Mitchells vs. the Machines starts when the Mitchells are fighting the machine apocalypse. We jump back to how we started here, as Katie is preparing for college, but her father Rick struggles to see her go. He turns her college journey into a family road trip with Linda and Aaron, leading to the family setting off across the country.

Meanwhile, tech billionaire Mark has created a new AI system of robots but his first creation PAL has taken over. The family escape capture and must put aside their differences to save the world.

Verdict on The Mitchells vs the Machines

Recap

The movie follows a dysfunctional family in the middle of a robot apocalypse. They must put aside their differences to save the world before the robots destroy the remaining humans.

Best Parts

The movie uses the different generations causing problems with everyday life. It mixes with teenage rebelling and a controlling father. Deep down it brings the idea that people want to stay together but also want to experience their own lives. This side of the story is done well and with a big heart. When it comes to the robot apocalypse, it dives into a softer Terminator concept. This is a movie that wants to dive into emotions and the family unit brings that.

Worst Parts

The movie does deal with family dynamic problems, but it shows how they fail to even be remotely normal for one moment. It also highlights the modern fast-cutting style taking over social media that plays into short attention spans. The villain is a basic evil AI too, which has become all too common nowadays.

Final Thoughts –The Mitchells vs the Machines is an enjoyable family film.

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Movie Review

Thunderbird (2021) Movie Review

Thunderbird – Movie Review

Discover the dark and mysterious story of Thunderbird, a thrilling movie set in the rugged Pacific Northwest. Watch it now!

First Reaction – Thunderbird takes us down a dark mysterious story.

Watch Thunderbird Here

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Director: Nicholas Treeshin

Writer: Nicholas Treeshin (Screenplay)

Cast

Plot: A reclusive young fisherman goes looking for his missing sister in the rugged Pacific Northwest.

Runtime: 1 Hour 35 Minutes 

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Story: Thunderbird starts when Ivy Seymour (Brown) arrives in a small Pacific Northwest town to investigate a murder. She must learn how the locals think, in a large Native American community. However, an outsider, Will Brook (Wilke), returns in search of his sister, causing a stir in the community.

When the two team up, they make a disturbing discovery that only leads to something far more terrifying happening in the area. they face a race to solve the murder and the larger crime happening before something much bigger happens.

Verdict on Thunderbird

Recap

The movie follows a detective arriving in a town to solve a murder. She teams up with an outsider local. The movie points towards the Native American community, but the outsider’s past with the community causes more trouble in solving the crime and understanding the truth.

Best Parts

The movie presents an interesting mystery and it shows the connection between differing communities. It uses this to highlight the strained relationship between Native Americans and outsiders who try to take their lands. The mystery takes us down plenty of different paths and the performances are strong throughout.

Worst Parts

On the negative side, this suggests a lot more supernatural behaviour and doesn’t seem to present that. It wants to pay on a myth or legend but doesn’t get into that enough. This is also strange because it wants to blame someone who made a decision as a scared child and make him pay for that decision.

Final Thoughts –Thunderbird is a dark disturbing mystery.

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Movie Review

Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City – Movie Review

Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City – Movie Review

Uncover the secrets of Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City. Follow Claire Redfield as she returns to the haunted city and joins forces with the local police to survive the horrors within.

ABC Film Challenge – Video Game Movies – Z (Zombies)

Director: Johannes Roberts

Writer: Johannes Roberts (Screenplay)

Cast

Plot: Set in 1998, this origin story explores the secrets of the mysterious Spencer Mansion and the ill-fated Raccoon City.

Runtime: 1 Hour 47 Minutes 

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Story: Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City starts when Claire Redfield (Scodelario) returns to Raccoon City. Her brother Chris (Amell) is part of the local police force along with Jill Valentine (John-Kamen), Albert Wesker (Hopper) and rookie Leon Kennedy (Jogia).

The police officers and Claire are going to need to band together to face an infection spreading across the city. It follows them heading to the mysterious Spencer Mansion, in search of answers. However, what they discover has a much more disturbing outcome.

Verdict on Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City

Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City is a soft reboot of the horror franchise bringing together a large number of the favourites from the game series. It sees them investigating an incident in Raccoon City, which has unleashed the undead. They must use their skills to escape and solve the mystery of things being unleashed.

This movie uses the more popular characters better than the original series. The core game characters feel like they get to shine more and offer more in dealing with the problems. However, it does mean they feel safe compared to any other characters we meet. The idea of going into the mansion feels a lot more claustrophobic, playing into the game’s strengths. It is more interesting than dealing with endless hordes of zombies. There are a few wacky scenes and the 1998 timeline takes us back to an environment when the series just began. When I first saw this, I wasn’t overly impressed, but on rewatches I have grown to enjoy the movie.

Where to Watch

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JustWatch

Final Thoughts – Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City follows the games much better.

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Movie Review

Mortal Kombat (2021) Movie Review

Get Ready For Mortal Kombat – The Movie Review

ABC Film Challenge – Video Game Movies – C (Cory Young)

Get Ready For Mortal Kombat - The Movie Review

Director: Simon McQuoid

Writer: Greg Russo, Dave Callaham (Screenplay)

Writer: Oren Uziel, Greg Russo (Story)

Cast

Plot: MMA fighter Cole Young seeks out Earth’s greatest champions in order to stand against the enemies of Outworld in a high stakes battle for the universe.

Runtime: 1 Hour 50 Minutes

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Story: Mortal Kombat starts when MMA fighter Cole Young (Tan) gets recruited by a group of the best fighters on Earth. He is joined by Sonya Blade (McNamee), Kane (Lawson) and Jax (Brooks) as they train for the battle. Elsewhere, Emperor Shang Tsung (Han) is trying to eliminate them all before the final fight.

Lord Raiden (Asano) must prepare his fighters for combat or the Earthrealm will become home for the Outworld Emperor. However, the training is more difficult than imagined as they must learn their skills before time runs out.

Verdict on Mortal Kombat

Mortal Kombat is an action fighter movie, following a few of the favourites from the video game as they face their first battle. It focuses mostly on Cole Young, as he learns the world and the supernatural fighters. All while drawing up the battle lines between the two sides.

This breath fresh life into a series that never really took off in the 1990s. It uses the brutality involved in the gameplay for the fight sequences. This movie does get stolen by Kano who you just want to watch and listen to putting his foot in it. The general concept for a story was always going to be difficult because the source material was mostly just fighting. If you want to enjoy a movie that doesn’t hold back you can enjoy this one and prepare for the sequel.

Where to Watch

JustWatch

Final Thoughts –Mortal Kombat is wild over-the-top and brutal.