Tag: 2021

The Year the Film Was Released

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Movie Review

Swim (2021) Movie Review

Swim – Movie Review

Discover the suspenseful plot of 'Swim' - a movie about a family battling sharks in a hurricane-flooded vacation rental.

Director: Jared Cohn

Writer: Anthony C Ferrante (Screenplay)

Cast

Plot: A family trapped in a hurricane-flooded vacation rental must keep going further and further up into the massive house as the water becomes infested with sharks.

Runtime: 1 Hour 26 Minutes 

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Story: Swim starts when the Samson family, Lacey (Field), Noah (Lauer), Charlotte (Hargrave) and Tucker (Grogan) head to their vacation home. Hudson (Lawrence) is joining them later after being forced to drive because of an incoming storm. However, the vacation is left shattered when the family learns of a shark lurking in the waters outside their beach home.

When a family friend Becky (Bowman) gets attacked, the family must come together to provide first aid to save her life. The family must work together to survive when they get trapped in the basement with the shark, as the waters continue to rise.

Verdict on Swim

Swim is a survival horror following a vacationing family who find their home flooded during a storm. However, that isn’t the biggest problem, as a shark gets trapped inside too. They must work together to figure out how to make it out and survive the attack.

This movie looks to grab the same concept that Crawl gave us with a much lower budget. The CGI involved makes it a lot hard to believe, as everything looks incredibly cheap. The peril becomes more laughable than disturbing. There is next to no suspense, despite the situation of everything involved. However, if you want to watch a shark attack movie, you can have some fun watching this.

Final Thoughts – Swim struggles to build the tension needed through the fight to survive.

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Movie Review

Blood Red Sky (2021) Movie Review

Blood Red Sky – ABC Film Challenge – Horror – B – Movie Review

Blood Red Sky

Director: Peter Thorwarth

Writer: Peter Thorwarth (Screenplay)

Cast

Plot: A woman with a mysterious illness is forced into action when a group of terrorists attempt to hijack a transatlantic overnight flight.

Runtime: 2 Hours 1 Minute

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Story: Blood Red Sky starts when a hijacked plane lands in Scotland. A young boy Elias (Koch) manages to escape where Col Drummond (McTavish) leads an investigation before boarding the plane.

Flashback to the original flight, we meet Elias’s mother Nadja (Baumeister) as we see the plane hijacked by Berg (Purcell) and his men. This sees them shoot Nadja unwittingly setting off a darker side to her personality. It has now become a battle for survival for passengers and hijackers alike.

Verdict on Blood Red Sky

Blood Red Sky is a horror thriller following an international flight that gets hijacked, only for that not to become the bigger threat. As one of the passengers has their own secret that gets revealed, leading to everything on board to be put in a fight for life.

This is a big bloody horror movie that could easily be compared to ‘Flight of the Living Dead’. Let’s face it is just vampires on a plane. However, by having the human hijackers cause everything to unfold, it adds an element of confusion to everything going on. There could have been an extreme little twist involved that does get avoided but, in the end, we get a fun big action horror movie. One that is filled with chaos from start to finish.

Final Thoughts – Blood Red Sky is a big blood-soaked vampire movie.

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Movie Review

Body Brokers (2021) Movie Review

Body Brokers – ABC Film Challenge – Thriller – V (Vin) – Body Brokers – Movie Review

Body Brokers – ABC Film Challenge – Thriller – V (Vin) – Body Brokers - Movie Review

Director: John Swab

Writer: John Swab (Screenplay)

Cast

Plot: Brought to Los Angeles for treatment, a recovering junkie soon learns that the rehab center is not about helping people, but a cover for a multi-billion-dollar fraud operation that enlists addicts to recruit other addicts.

Runtime: 1 Hour 51 Minutes

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Story: Body Brokers starts when drug addict Utah (Kilmer) gets offered a lifeline by a stranger Wood (Williams). It sees Utah move to California to a rehab centre fronted by Vin (Grillo) with Dr White (Leo) treating the addicts.

As Utah starts his recovery process, he convinces his girlfriend Opal (Englert) to join him in the centre. However, the more Utah recovers, he starts to learn of the fraud operation being run taking advantage of addicts.

Verdict on Body Brokers

Body Brokers is a thriller following a drug addicted offered a chance for a recovery process. However, he learns about the con going on bringing addicts to the centre for profit. He doesn’t know how to escape the world taking advantage of addicts across the country.

This is another drama thriller showing how easily well intended schemes can be exploited. It shows how addicts can be used to make numbers look better when it comes to wanting to make the biggest impact. This is eye-opening to an exploit and shows how easily addicts can be used for profit.

Final Thoughts –Body Brokers highlights the ease people exploit addicts.

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Movie Review

Stowaway (2021) Movie Review

Stowaway – ABC Film Challenge – Thriller – S – Stowaway – Movie Review

Stowaway – ABC Film Challenge – Thriller – S – Stowaway - Movie Review

Director: Declan Whitebloom

Writer: Ian Hayden (Screenplay)

Cast

  • Patrick Schwarzenegger (Midnight Sun)
  • Ruby Rose (The Meg)
  • Frank Grillo (Captain America Civil War)
  • Luis Da Silva Jr (Fast X)
  • Major Dodge (Bomb City)

Plot: A tenacious party girl fights to survive after three thieves commandeer her luxury yacht. Unable to escape and trapped on the yacht at high seas, she turns the tables on the intruders and takes matters into her own hands.

Runtime: 1 Hour 34 Minutes

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Story: Stowaway starts when party girl Bella Denton (Rose) inherits her late father’s boat. Despite being afraid of the water, she gets shown the boat by family friend Meeser (Grillo) before she takes it out. After her latest party, she finds her boat taken by a group of thieves.

Bella must now hide or fight back against the thieves. All while waiting to see where she is being taken. However, the truth will leave her shocked as she learns the truth.

Verdict on Stowaway

Stowaway is a thriller following a woman who inherits a boat from her late-father. On her first night on the boat, she finds three thieves stealing the boat and must figure out how to make it out alive.

This thriller follows a lone woman trying to survive against a group of deadly thieves. She must use her ability to hide to avoid a deadly situation. It does the basics of a thriller well, but it feels flat for the required intensity. This all ends up just fizzling down to not very much leaving us feeling disappointed.

Final Thoughts – Stowaway is a slow flat thriller.

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Movie Review

Locked In (2021) Movie Review

Locked In – ABC Film Challenge – Thriller – L – Locked In – Movie Review

Locked In

Director: Carlos V Gutierrez

Writer: Carlos V Gutierrez (Screenplay)

Cast

Plot: A single mother must protect her daughter and herself during a heist gone wrong at a high-tech storage facility.

Runtime: 1 Hour 30 Minutes

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Story: Locked In starts when struggling single mother Maggie (Suvari) has taken a job role at a storage facility. At home, she is struggling to cover rent with her daughter Tarin (Polish) and she gets tempted by her boss’s secret off-the-books stash.

When Maggie returns to her work to cover her rent, she accidentally finds herself walking in on a robbery. Ross (Perez) and Mel (Fahey) are trying to retrieve the diamonds they stole. Maggie must help them to protect her daughter, only to find that not everything is complete as it seems.

Verdict on Locked In

Locked In is a thriller following a single mother dealing with a bunch of thieves while trying to keep her daughter safe. She must help them do everything she can to keep them focused and keep her family safe.

This is a nice, contained thriller using the storage facility for the pickup side of a heist. We get to see how Maggie tries to stay one step ahead of the criminals. It makes the interesting decision to make the daughter just as feisty as her mother, leading to a story that makes the criminals come off like idiots. The movie keeps us on edge throughout but doesn’t seem to feel as dangerous as it presents itself.

Final Thoughts – Locked In is a nice late-night thriller.

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Movie Review

She Will (2021) Movie Review

Revenge and Redemption: A Look at She Will Movie Review

ABC Film Challenge – Set in UK – S

Revenge and Redemption: A Look at She Will Movie Review

Director: Charlotte Colbert

Writer: Charlotte Colbert, Kitty Percy (Screenplay)

Cast

Plot: An ageing film star retreats to the Scottish countryside with her nurse to recover from surgery. While there, mysterious forces of revenge emerge from the land where witches were burned.

Runtime: 1 Hour 35 Minutes

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Story: She Will starts when ageing actress Veronica Ghent (Krige) heads to the Scottish countryside for a retreat. Veronica is joined by her nurse Desi (Eberhardt) who is there to care for her, despite Veronica not wishing to have help.

She isn’t happy that other people are also on the retreat, but with the help of Desi, she starts to accept them. However, an unlikely connection to the history of the location offers Veronica a new ability to connect to the world. She wants to connect with the director who made her a star, Hathbourne (McDowell) who has reached new levels of stardom thanks to her work. Although, she doesn’t know how to control what has started to take over her.

Verdict on She Will

She Will is a horror thriller following an ageing actress who is trying to recover at a remote retreat. However, after spending time there, she starts to connect to the past witchcraft leading to a series of unusual events.

This is a suspenseful horror movie with plenty of mystery about what has caused the friction between the star and the director. It uses this to create a hostile actress who doesn’t want to be around people when she should use the help around her. Meanwhile, the creepy interwoven storyline involving the connection to witches adds plenty of tension. It shows us what could happen, before leading up to what does happen. Alice Krige is great in the leading role, with Kota Eberhardt supporting her extremely well.

Where to Watch

JustWatch

Final Thoughts – She Will is a creepy and suspenseful horror.

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Movie Review

The Little Things (2021) Movie Review

The Little Things – Movie Review

Little Things

Director: John Lee Hancock

Writer: John Lee Hancock (Screenplay)

Cast

Plot: Kern County Deputy Sheriff Joe Deacon is sent to Los Angeles for what should have been a quick evidence-gathering assignment. Instead, he becomes embroiled in the search for a serial killer who is terrorizing the city.

Runtime: 2 Hours 8 Minutes

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Story: The Little Things starts when a county deputy Joe Deacon (Washington) is set on an evidence-gathering journey. However, once he arrives in LA, he teams up with local detective Jim Baxter (Malek) who is hunting a serial killer. The two must put their differences aside to make sure they uncover the truth.

However, the killer starts taunting them with an increased body count. Joe must convince Jim he is an excellent officer who previously walked away for his reasons.

Verdict on The Little Things

The Little Things is a crime thriller following a small-town county deputy teaming up with a detective in the big city to hunt down a serial killer. It follows the two as they must learn to put their differences aside to find the serial killer before they strike again. However, the past of the senior officer could come back to haunt them both.

This is a thriller that brings to life the idea of hunting down a serial killer with two different detectives. While the idea is interesting, it doesn’t seem to stay on track and ends up fizzling out. The performances are strong, it is purely the story that fades away without feeling as complete as possible.

Where to Watch

JustWatch

Final Thoughts –The Little Things is a thriller that starts well but fades away.

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Movie Review

Twist (2021) Movie Review

Twist – Movie Review

Discover the modern twist on the classic tale of Oliver Twist. Read our review of the movie and find out if it lives up to the original story.

ABC Film Challenge – Set in the UK – O (Oliver Twist)

Director: Martin Owen

Writer: John Wrathall, Sally Collett (Screenplay)

Writer: Charles Dickens (Novel)

Cast

Plot: A Modern take on the classic tale of Oliver Twist.

Runtime: 1 Hour 30 Minutes

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Story: Twist starts as we meet street hustler Twist (Law) who fends for himself around London. However, his latest incident leads to him clashing with the law and Dodge (Ora) and Batesy (Drameh) saving him. They welcome to a world a young people taken in by Fagin (Caine), who has created a home for outcasts.

As Twist gets welcomed in, he learns what Fagin does and he puts together a series of heists for the poor. The latest sees Twist join the team with Red (Simnett) and learn more about being part of a team. However, he learns more about the people involved and struggles to know who to trust.

Verdict on Twist

Twist is a modern action comedy take on the classic novel. It takes us into the streets of London, filled with hustlers trying to make the most of life. However, one young man finds himself drawn into a criminal world.

This movie is a needless reimagination of the classic novel, however, it ends up becoming a lacklustre heist movie. There is no magic in the original tale and the characters could be from any world, tagging Oliver Twist’s character names into the film feels lazy. There is nothing enjoyable in this movie and in the end it is mostly forgettable.

Where to Watch

JustWatch

Final Thoughts – Twist is largely forgettable and lacks the spark.

Categories
Movie Review

Inbetween Girl (2021) Movie Review

Inbetween Girl – Movie Review

Inbetween Girl

Director: Mei Makino

Writer: Mei Makino (Screenplay)

Cast

  • Emma Galbraith
  • William Magnuson
  • Emily Garrett
  • Liz Waters
  • KaiChow Lau

Plot: Teen artist Angie Chen turns to secret hook-ups with the heartthrob of her private school after her parents’ sudden divorce.

Runtime: 1 Hour 29 Minutes

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Story: Inbetween Girl starts as teenage artist Angie Chen (Galbraith) sees her life start to spiral out of control. She sees her parents getting a divorce and the guy she likes Liam (Magnuson) spending more time around her. The two start having a fling behind Liam’s girlfriend Sheryl (Garrett).

When things start getting serious in her mind of Angie, she gets caught up wondering what to do. Her first love can become one of the most dangerous when she starts a project with Liam’s girlfriend.

Verdict on Inbetween Girl

Inbetween Girl is a coming-of-age drama following a teenage girl that sees her parents going through a divorce. She discovers new friends and experiences love for the first time, leading her down a dangerous path when the two things clash.

When it comes to coming-of-age movies, we know where most of them are going. They start with an outsider stepping outside their comfort zone to get involved in something well out of their control. This does everything you would expect, with Emma Galbraith bringing the emotions that come with her character’s feelings. In the end, this does everything it needs to for a coming-of-age tale, showing being a teenager isn’t ever going to be easy.

Final Thoughts – Inbetween Girl is everything you expect to see in a coming-of-age tale.