Tag: Sci-Fi

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Movie Review

The Call Up (2016) Movie Review

The Call Up – Movie Review

Experience the suspense of 'The Call Up' movie. Online gamers find themselves in a life-or-death battle in a cutting-edge virtual reality video game.

ABC Film Challenge – Action – U (The Up in Call Up)

Director: Charles Barker

Writer: Charles Barker, Damian Fitzsimmons (Screenplay)

Cast

Plot: A group of online gamers are invited to try a state-of-the-art virtual reality video game but things take a sinister turn when these masters of the shoot-’em-up discover that they will actually be fighting for their lives.

Runtime: 1 Hour 30 Minutes

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Story: The Call Up starts when a group of online gamers including Carl (Deacon), Shelly (Clark), Eward (Cook) and Zahid (Ler) are invited to a new gaming experience. They enter a new virtual reality military game.

However, once they start playing, they learn there is a lot more to meet the eyes. They must use their skills from the gaming world to face real combat in a battle for survival.

Verdict on The Call Up

The Call Up is a sci-fi action movie following a team of gamers recruited for a new game. They are experts in military games and use their skills to navigate the world. However, they are not prepared to learn the game is real and they must fight to survive.

This movie looks to combine what made ‘Gamer’ unique with a more modern virtual reality concept. However, it never seems to be explored as possible. The world they are thrown into feels small and contained, even if the wider concept makes it feel like a much larger concept. In the end, the film doesn’t grab our attention in the way you would expect the idea to.

Where to Watch

JustWatch

Final Thoughts – The Call Up is a basic thriller using a virtual reality world.

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Movie Review

Rebel Moon Part Two The Scargiver (2024) Movie Review

Rebel Moon Part Two The Scargiver – Movie Review

Discover the thrilling movie review of Rebel Moon Part Two The Scargiver. Director Zack Snyder brings together an all-star cast in this action-packed film.

Director: Zack Snyder (Dawn of the Dead)

Writer: Shay Hatten, Kurt Johnstad, Zack Snyder (Screenplay)

Cast

Plot: Kora and surviving warriors prepare to defend Veldt, their new home, alongside its people against the Realm. The warriors face their pasts, revealing their motivations before the Realm’s forces arrive to crush the growing rebellion.

Runtime: 2 Hours 2 Minutes

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Story: Rebel Moon Part Two The Scargiver starts as Kora (Boutella) and the other warriors return to Veldt. Meanwhile, Atticus Noble (Skrein) recovers from his injuries to take the forces to the planet to collect the harvest and kill the resistance.

As the rebels prepare for the harvest, they also prepare for battle as they look to ambush the arriving military. However, things spiral out of control and the pasts of the revels lead them into a deadly battle.

Verdict on Rebel Moon Part Two The Scargiver

Rebel Moon Part Two The Scargiver is an action sci-fi movie continuing the battle led by Kora. It follows her preparing the farmers of a community to go into battle against the military powerhouse.

This movie continues the battle between the two sides as the unlikely survival of the villain escalates the conflict. However, it doesn’t stop the first hour being extremely slow with nothing major happening. Once we get to the big battle, plenty is going on, without being on the best-ever level. It is mostly more of what we have seen before. Sadly, it all feels too long for the thin movement in the story and could easily have been condensed down for a more enjoyable experience.

Where to Watch

Rebel Moon Part Two the Scargiver is available on Netflix now.

Final Thoughts – Rebel Moon Part Two The Scargiver is slow, bloated and slog.

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Movie Review

G-Loc (2020) Movie Review

G-Loc – ABC Film Challenge – Action – G – G-Loc – Movie Review 

G-Loc

Director: Tom Paton

Writer: Tom Paton (Screenplay)

Cast

 

Plot: Bran flees the cold, uninhabitable Earth. He hopes to get to Rhea, colonized by humans 582 years ago. Rheans are against new arrivals from Earth. He boards a Rhean spaceship with a cute, feisty Rhean.  

Runtime: 1 Hour 32 Minutes  

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review 

Story: G-Loc starts in a future where the Earth is nearly uninhabitable. Bran (Moyer) has looked to escape to Rhea, a remote place located near Earth, but with a different understanding of time. When Bran finds his ship destroyed, he finds safety on a Rhean spaceship.

However, everybody both human and Rhean is dead. Bran meets a Rhean Ohsha (Gouveia) and the two must put their differences aside to fix the damaged ship. However, they find themselves in a bigger situation where they can bring peace to both kinds.  

Verdict on G-Loc

G-Loc is an action sci-fi movie that follows a man trying to get to a new safe home. However, he finds himself clashing with the alien species that is letting humans into their world. Although, they find themselves in a bigger battle than either expected.

This is a movie that gets to focus on the idea of a bleak future for humanity. All while showing a lack of willingness to let refugees into the new world. However, it shows that deep down most sides don’t really understand the hate toward each other and need to learn to be as one. Everything is contained between the two locations, Bran’s home before the mission and the spaceship. This is a movie looking to focus on hope and the future, in a way to escape the pain left behind. 

Final Thoughts –G-Loc paints a bleak future with a glimpse of hope.

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Movie Review

A Million Days (2023) Movie Review

A Million Days – Movie Review

Discover the intriguing plot of A Million Days. Join astronaut Anderson as he grapples with a life-changing mission and unexpected data.

Director: Mitch Jenkins

Writer: Michael Dobbin, Guillaume Fradin (Screenplay)

Cast

Plot: Over the course of one night, an astronaut must decide between pursuing his life’s work or sabotaging it for a greater cause.

Runtime: 1 Hour 23 Minutes

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Story: A Million Days starts on the eve of astronaut Anderson (Merrells) big life-changing mission. He is preparing for the big day when an analyst Charlie (Corfield) shows evidence of an extended simulation that shows a surprising series of events.

Anderson, Charlie and Sam (Jacobs) come together to figure out what the data is suggesting. However, the deeper they dive, the bigger the mystery becomes and the more they must make a difficult decision.

Verdict on A Million Days

A Million Days is a sci-fi thriller following three scientists trying to figure out what a simulation is suggesting. It is the eve of a big mission, but a computer simulation has started showing uncomfortable results that could jeopardise the mission. They must work together to understand their findings and decide whether or not to go through with the mission.

This sci-fi movie challenges the idea of risky journeys through space and using A.I. to be involved in the mission. It offers an open discussion about the worst things that could happen while challenging the unknown within the universe. The idea it happens over one night, offers up a real-time feeling, as the decision would change everything they have worked toward. In the end, this brings all the suspense needed for a much bigger question about the future of mankind in an ever-changing environment.

Where to Watch

A Million Days is available on Digital Platforms on 18th March. Distributed by Signature Entertainment.

Final Thoughts – A Million Days is a great thinking sci-fi movie.

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Movie Review

Knowing (2009) Movie Review

Knowing – ABC Film Challenge – Favourites – K – Knowing – Movie Review 

KNowing

Director: Alex Proyas

Writer: Ryne Douglas Pearson, Juliet Snowden, Stiles White (Screenplay)

Writer: Ryne Douglas Pearson (Story)

Cast

 Plot: M.I.T. professor John Koestler links a mysterious list of numbers from a time capsule to past and future disasters and sets out to prevent the ultimate catastrophe.  

Runtime: 2 Hours 1 Minute 

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review 

Story: Knowing starts when MIT professor John Koestler (Cage) sees his son Caleb (Canterbury) pick an unusual item from a school time capsule. The item is a mysterious list of numbers, but once he starts ticking his brain over them, he discovers something. John discovers they are dates and locations of disasters from the last 50 years.

Once John looks deeper into the number, he learns that not all disasters have happened. John sets out to stop the latest disasters from happening. However, the truth is even more shocking for John, and he learns more about the bigger position in life.  

Verdict on Knowing

Knowing is a sci-fi mystery following a professor that discovers a series of numbers that predicted disasters in the last 50 years. However, the list also includes disasters that haven’t happened yet. He looks to prevent the latest ones but finds out about a bigger problem nobody could have prepared for.

This is a movie that offers a big question about what you would do in the same situation. It makes bold decisions in how it handles the idea of seeing disasters before they happen. There is a massive battle to figure out what is happening. However, it is how the movie ends that will leave you shocked. 

Final Thoughts – Knowing is an ambitious, shocking sci-fi movie.

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Movie Review

The Shift (2023) Movie Review

The Shift – Movie Review

Discover the captivating movie 'The Shift' and join Kevin on his journey to escape a dystopian world and reunite with his wife.

Director: Brock Heasley

Writer: Brock Heasley (Screenplay)

Cast

Plot: After meeting a mysterious stranger, a man must escape a “dystopian” world to return to his wife.

Runtime: 1 Hour 55 Minutes

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Story: The Shift starts when Kevin (Polaha) meets a stranger who calls himself The Benefactor (McDonough). He gets offered a chance to join his mysterious force which can change the world people live in. Kevin finds himself placed in a new world, one without his wife, where another version of him has replaced him.

However, Kevin rejects the offer, he finds himself needing to navigate a new world in a dystopian future. He turns to Gabriel (Astin) who helps him navigate the world but deals with the nightmares of the Benefactor searching for him. However, Kevin refuses to go down without a fight and goes on his hunt for the Benefactor to put him back in his original life.

Verdict on The Shift

The Shift is a sci-fi thriller following a man who discovers people can be moved between dimensions and replaced by other versions of themselves. However, he doesn’t want to play the games of the person capable of doing this and ends up facing a battle to get back to his world and his wife.

This is an ambitious movie that asks the bigger question of potential other worlds in the universe. It follows the battle one man has attempting to return to his original world. As well as the bigger complication behind what could happen if things don’t change. It is such a massive concept, which has limitless potential. However, the ambition can hold back the bigger story, which doesn’t feel as flushed out as it potentially could. It is a world I would like to explore more as I think we could see endless ripples from each affected world.

Where to Watch

The Shift will be available on Digital Download from 25th March & Blu-ray and DVD from 1st April.

Final Thoughts – The Shift is a highly ambitious creation.

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Movie Review

Dune Part Two (2024) Movie Review

Dune Part Two – Movie Review

Discover the epic sequel to Dune. Read our review of Dune Part Two, where Paul Atreides seeks revenge and unites with the Fremen.

Director: Denis Villeneuve (Arrival)

Writer: Denis Villeneuve, Jon Spaihts (Screenplay)

Writer: Frank Herbert (Novel)

Cast

Plot: Paul Atreides unites with Chani and the Fremen while seeking revenge against the conspirators who destroyed his family.

Runtime: 2 Hours 46 Minutes

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Story: Dune Part Two starts in the aftermath of the Harkonnen invasion. Paul Atreides (Chalamet) and his mother Jessica (Ferguson) have aligned themselves with the Fremen. They look to learn the ways under Stilgar (Bardem) and Chani (Zendaya). But soon find themselves caught between a religious prophecy and the fighters.

Meanwhile, Emperor (Walken) sends Feyd-Raytha (Butler) to take back the spice production. However, the Fremen have other plans and with Paul leading the army, they head into battle for the planet.

Verdict on Dune Part Two

Dune Part Two is the big sequel to the epic saga, following the next chapter of Paul Atreides. It follows the battlelines being drawn up as Paul learns about his place in the world. He must master the fighting techniques of the Freman to fulfil his fate.

There has been a lot of talk about this movie being a masterpiece. For sure on the visual side of everything, it is near perfect, except the crowd scenes. However, the story feels a little empty. Paul’s training shows him to be perfect at mastering things instantly. There is no real scale of time of the events either. It feels like one of the more predictable storylines out there too.

One of the most frustrating things in the movie is the music, which is overly jarring and feels like noise for the sake of noise. This is an overly visual movie that unless you know of the source material, you might find yourself feeling a little underwhelmed.

Final Thoughts – Dune Part Two is visually stunning but the story felt flat.

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Movie Review

Curvature (2017) Movie Review

Curvature – Movie Review

Curvature

Director: Diego Hallivis

Writer: Brian DeLeeuw (Screenplay)

Cast

Plot: An engineer travels back in time to stop herself from committing a murder.

Runtime: 1 Hour 30 Minutes

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Story: Curvature starts when Helen (Fonseca) is dealing with losing her husband Wells (Bean). She has returned to work, where Florence (Hamilton) makes sure she can continue her creative mindset. However, when Helen falls asleep and wakes a week later, she finds herself being chased.

Helen discovers there is another version of her in the world. One that has been doing different criminal activities. However, this could help understand what happened to her husband.

Verdict on Curvature

Curvature is a sci-fi mystery following a widow who learns that she might be in danger because of the information her husband left her. However, as she looks to explore, she finds out the truth and looks to solve the problems.

This is a clever idea because it plays into the idea that you could travel in time, but in a limited capacity. It puts together rules that show us how changing things could be used to solve crimes, rather than fix them. Even if we could learn a lot more about the bigger picture, we see everything kept held back here. This ends up being an interesting idea that could have been even bigger.

Final Thoughts –Curvature is an interesting idea on how to detail time travel.

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Release News

Dune Part Two Character Posters

Dune Part Two Character Posters

From Paul Atreides to Chani and the Fremen: explore the world of Dune Part Two with the new character posters. #DunePartTwo

Which one is your favourite?

Paul Atreides unites with Chani and the Fremen while seeking revenge against the conspirators who destroyed his family.