Oct 10 2021

How to Kill Your Roommates and Get Away With it (2021) Movie Review ‘Pitch Black Comedy’

How to Kill Your Roommates and Get Away With It – Twisted Dark Comedy

Director: Pat Kusnadi

Writer: Robbie Dias, Pat Kusnadi (Screenplay)

Starring: Nicole Cinaglia, Lara Jean Sullivan, Dave Sheridan, Felissa Rose, Hunter Johnson, Eric Reingrover

Plot: How to Kill Your Roommates and Get Away with It tells the story of Ellie who has had it with her roommates and is ready to take drastic action. With the help of her best friend, Jacob, the two start plotting ways to get out of her miserable living situation and not get caught. But one mistake may bring the full force of the law down on them.

Runtime: 1 Hour 15 Minutes

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Story: How to Kill Your Roommates and Get Away With It starts as we meet Ellie (Cinaglia) who finds herself living with the roommate from hell April (Sullivan) and her layabout boyfriend Clyde (Reingrover), they have started turning Ellie’s life into a nightmare, when her best friend Jacob (Johnson) suggests she kills them.

After the two come up with the plan, we see how they look to make this a reality, or whether they can even go through with it.

Thoughts on How to Kill Your Roommates and Get Away With It

Thoughts – How to Kill Your Roommates and Get Away With It is a dark comedy that will see one person being pushed to their limits by their roommates and deciding to go to dramatic decision to try and solve the problem. This can show just how hard it will be living with a stranger to try and make their dream happen, but will show that some people can’t deal with the problems they are going to be facing. The darkest in the comedy is brilliant, because we get to see how the different ideas are thrown together and how they might not work either. This however does catch up on the movie, because we end up going through this too often, making everything feel repetitive. The performances in the film are strong, showing the natural hatred between the two sides, which will come through strong in the film.

Final Thoughts – How to Kill Your Roommates and Get Away With It is a pitch black comedy.

Oct 9 2021

Kill Ben Lyk (2018) Movie Review

Director: Erwan Marinopoulos

Writer: Jean-Christophe Establet, Oliver Maltman, Erwan Marinopoulos (Screenplay)

Starring: Martyn Ford, Meena Rayann, Eugene Simon, Bronson Webb, Dimitri Leonidas

Plot: Within 24 hours, three people have been murdered in London, all by the name of Ben Lyk. Scotland Yard decides to gather together all the other Ben Lyks located in London until they can figure out who’s after them and why.

Runtime: 1 Hour 17 Minutes

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Story: Kill Ben Lyk starts when a man named Ben Lyk is killed, Youtuber Ben Lyk (Simon) gets paranoid before learning that another man called Ben Lyk has been killed. The police round up the Ben Lyk’s from London hoping to keep them safe from the hitman, leading to the battle between the different Ben Lyks to survive.

As the different Ben Lyk have the tension between them rise, the number of bodies start piling up and the motivation becomes clear.

Thoughts on Kill Ben Lyk

Thoughts – Kill Ben Lyk follows a killer hunting down everyone named the same, Ben Lyk, which on paper could well be a very interesting idea. Sadly, we follow one of the most annoying characters of all time, an annoying Youtuber that is always be looking for something new to fill, trying to become famous for doing nothing. He mostly becomes the main character, which makes things even more annoying. We have plenty of attempts of comedy, which usually return to the same missed joke, usually being girl Ben tricking him into her innocent idea. This is one of the most frustrating films I have seen, with such a unique idea, with such an annoying leading character and bad jokes.

Final Thoughts – Kill Ben Lyk is a comedy that misses on nearly ever attempt, leaving us feeling flat about an interesting idea.

Sep 28 2021

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.

Sep 27 2021

ABC Film Challenge – 90s Movies – # – Home Alone 3 (1997) Movie Review

Director: Raja Gosnell

Writer: John Hughes (Screenplay)

Starring: Alex D Linz, Olek Krupa, Rya Kihlstedt, Lenny von Dohlen, David Thornton, Haviland Morris

Plot: Alex Pruitt, an 8-year-old boy living in Chicago, must fend off international spies who seek a top-secret computer chip in his toy car.

Tagline – This Christmas, staying at home will be an adventure.

Runtime: 1 Hour 42 Minutes

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Story: Home Alone 3 starts when a group of terrorists Petr (Krupa), Alice (Kihlstedt), Burton (Von Dohlen) and Earl (Thornton) lose a chip, forcing them to race to Chicago to get it back. They set up in a quiet neighbourhood, looking to get the job done quietly, but they are unaware of young Alex Pruitt (Linz) who has been off school with the chicken pots, seeing them break into the different homes.

Alex looks to stop the thieves and will need to make his own traps to make sure the terrorist don’t break into his own home.

Thoughts on Home Alone 3

Thoughts – Home Alone 3 is the latest film to come into the franchise, with this one putting the kid up against a group of terrorists who just want a computer chip, forcing the kid needing to defend his home. This does bring a bigger serious of peril that the kid will find himself in, even if the terrorist don’t plan on killing anyone, meaning you might end up having more sympathy for them. The traps created are a lot of fun and do feel like they are painful as they are planned for. The comedy from the film does seem to rely on how people react to each incident the characters go through. The performances are strong throughout, with the first supporting role from Scarlett Johansson being one you will remember for a while.

Final Thoughts – Home Alone 3 is an easy to watch family film that the whole family can enjoy, despite never reaching the heights of the original.

Sep 22 2021

Freshman Year (2021) Movie Review ‘The True College Experience’

Freshman Year – The True College Experience

Director: Cooper Raiff

Writer: Cooper Raiff (Screenplay)

Starring: Cooper Raiff, Dylan Gelula, Amy Landecker, Logan Miller, Olivia Welch, Abby Quinn, Joy Sunday

Plot: A lonely college freshman forges a strong connection with his resident assistant during a fraternity party.

Tagline – College stinks

Runtime: 1 Hour 40 Minutes

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Story: Freshman Year starts as we meet freshman year student Alex Malmquist (Raiff) finds himself struggling to fit in, finding himself alone most nights, not enjoying the college party scene. Alex ends up meeting one of the resident assistant Maggie Hill (Gelula) who he spends the night with, travelling with around the city, where Alex looks to learn more about himself and the difficulties with the college experience.

Thoughts on Freshman Year

Characters & Performances – Alex is a freshman at college that has struggled to find his place there, not making any new friends, not getting along with his roommate and not enjoying the party scenes. He tries to make new friends at a party, only to find himself spending the night with a young woman, opening up for the first time in his time at college. Alex is a character that is raw and emotional, showing just how difficult the first few weeks and months, can be the most difficult for anyone. Cooper Raiff stars, writes and directs this movie, which does feel like it is a very personal story about his own struggles with college, showing the vulnerable side to his character in the film. Maggie is the resident assistant that meets Alex after her own slow night, spending the time with him, learning about a stranger, helping him learn more about the college experience. Dylan Gelula does have great chemistry with Cooper, which is the most important part of the leading roles in this film. The supporting cast are strong, but most are the people that Alex is trying to get close to in college, or his mum back home, the one person he knows he has for support.

Story – The story here does follow a freshman year student that has struggle to connect to the college world, failing to make friends or enjoy the party scenes. He will find someone who helps him learn about the experience, giving him a chance to enjoy it, through a new friendship, teaching him to relax and learn to enjoy meeting new people. This is a story that mostly revolves around one main night of a conversation, which is more about learning to open up to a stranger. This is a story that does feel very personal from the director, as most of the conversation does show us how fitting can be difficult for anyone in life, when stepping into a new environment. This is a story that has a slower paced, that isn’t about the wild parties, more about just learning to meet new people in life.

Themes – Freshman Year is a comedy romance drama that shows that people can meet people out of nowhere and find a connection through honesty and laughs along the way. The film is set in and around the college campus, showing us that people could meet people to help them find the best places.

Final Thoughts – Freshman Year is a great conversation based movie, showing the true difficulties of college life.