Tag: Thriller

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Movie Review

Fair Play (2023) Movie Review

Fair Play – Movie Review

Experience the tension and drama of Fair Play, a thought-provoking movie that explores the consequences of ambition on personal relationships.

Director: Chloe Domont

Writer: Chloe Domont (Screenplay)

Cast

Plot: An unexpected promotion at a cutthroat hedge fund pushes a young couple’s relationship to the brink, threatening to unravel far more than their recent engagement.

Runtime: 1 Hour 53 Minutes

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Story: Fair Play starts when Emily (Dynevor) and Luke (Ehrenreich) get engaged and plan their lives together. They work together, and Luke is on the verge of a big promotion at the hedge fund company. However, Emily’s work hasn’t gone unnoticed by their boss Campbell (Marsan).

Emily gets the promotion and as the couple must keep their relationship secret, they find the change in dynamic difficult to manage. Luke begins to get jealous of Emily’s success, as she learns more about what the office thinks of him.

Verdict on Fair Play

Fair Play is a thriller following a couple who keep their relationship secret in a hedge fund company. However, when Emily gets the promotion Luke expected, their relationship ends up on the ropes, showing the power of control.

This movie takes us into the world of cutthroat hedge funders. It follows a couple trying to keep their relationship secret as one gets a promotion the other expects to get. This dives into the problems a relationship can have when the dynamic takes over the relationship. While it portrays the career world as the biggest problem. It ends up focusing more on the relationship.  We never get enough to show how the career world operates and walks all over people, instead of helping people. In the end, they end up going down a dangerous path without enough focus on what they want in life.

Where to Watch: Fair Play is available on Netflix now.

Final Thoughts – Fair Play shows the deadly world of hedge fund company and relationships.

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Movie Review

Cash Out (2024) Movie Review

Cash Out – Movie Review

Discover the thrilling world of Cash Out - a gripping movie about a professional thief's biggest heist gone wrong.

Director: Randall Emmett

Writer: Dipo Oseni, Doug Richardson (Screenplay)

Cast

Plot: Professional thief Mason attempts his biggest heist with his brother, robbing a bank. When it goes wrong, they’re trapped inside surrounded by law enforcement. Tension rises as Mason negotiates with his ex-lover, the lead negotiator.

Runtime: 1 Hour 32 Minutes

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Story: Cash Out starts when expert thief Mason Goddard (Travolta) is betrayed by his girlfriend, an undercover FBI agent Amelia Decker (Davis). Months later, Mason is still struggling with the betrayal. However, his brother Shawn (Haas) has put the team together for a new job and wants Mason to complete the team.

Mason reluctantly joins the operation and finds things haven’t been planned as smoothly as expected. The heist gets compromised, and Amelia is leading the operation to capture Mason and his team.

Verdict on Cash Out

Cash Out is an action thriller following a professional thief dragged into a new job. However, the job quickly goes south, and his ex-girlfriend is running the negotiations. Now, the professional must get his team out before anyone is hurt in the exchange.

This movie brings us a heist that goes from a simple job to a massive incident with multiple potential problems. It uses the calm demeanour of Mason to show how smoothly things can go, with the nervous eager nature of Shawn to create panic. This keeps us guessing through the whole heist as we wait eagerly at the edge of our seats. John Travolta looks like he is having a lot of fun, which keeps us wanting to see what happens with his character. However, the romantic angle tries something different but can slow things down.

Where to Watch

Released on digital 8 July 2024.

Final Thoughts – Cash Out is an entertaining heist thriller which keeps you guessing.

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Movie Review

Paradise Highway (2022) Movie Review

Paradise Highway – ABC Film Challenge – Female Directors – (G – Anna Gutto) – Paradise Highway – Movie Review

Paradise Highway – ABC Film Challenge – Female Directors – (G - Anna Gutto) – Paradise Highway - Movie Review

Director: Anna Gutto

Writer: Anna Gutto (Screenplay)

Cast

Plot: A truck driver has been forced to smuggle illicit cargo to save her brother from a deadly prison gang. With FBI operatives hot on her trail, Sally’s conscience is challenged when the final package turns out to be a teenage girl.

Runtime: 1 Hour 55 Minutes

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Story: Paradise Highway starts when trucker Sally (Binoche) takes jobs smuggling things across the border to save her brother Dennis (Grillo) who is in prison. However, the latest package is a young girl Leila (Finley), who makes things complicated when they meet to exchange.

Sally finds herself needing to protect the young girl from human traffickers, putting herself in a race against time to stop her brother from getting harmed. Elsewhere, veteran cop Gerick (Freeman) teams up with a rookie Sterling (Monaghan) to figure out what is going on.

Verdict on Paradise Highway

Paradise Highway is a thriller following a trucker doing everything she can to keep her brother safe in prison. However, the latest task sees her needing to transport a young girl until she learns what it is for. Now she must figure out what to do to save the young girl from a horrific future.

This is a thriller that keeps us following the trucker looking to do the right thing. It shows her jaded past that could have created doubt and shows the horrifying criminal underworld operation going on. While the story is filled with twists and turns along with a veteran/rookie cop dynamic. We don’t get offered too much into the truly disturbing vision of the underworld. Everything feels safe on the surface level and by the end of the movie, it unfolds how you would expect.

Final Thoughts – Paradise Highway is a safe-by-the-books thriller.

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Movie Review

We Still Say Grace (2020) Movie Review

We Still Say Grace – Movie Review

Discover the suspenseful tale of 'We Still Say Grace'. Read our movie review of this gripping film that follows a religious family's encounter with three strangers.

Director: Brad Helmink, John Rauschelbach

Writer: Brad Helmink, John Rauschelbach (Screenplay)

Cast

Plot: The teenage daughter of a religious fanatic attempts to escape her father’s delusional suicide pact after three strangers break down near her family’s remote rural compound.

Runtime: 1 Hour 34 Minutes

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Story: We Still Say Grace starts when a religious figure Harold (Davison) prepares his family for their greater cause. His wife Betty (Zucker) and teenage daughters Maggie (Taylor) and Sarah (Volk). One day, they get visited by three strangers Fisher (Hart), Randy (Wolf) and Luke (Watson).

However, as the guys wait to fix their vehicle, Maggie starts having her head turned by the wider world she has never seen. Meanwhile, Harold continues trying to control the situation and ensure his family remains in line.

Verdict on We Still Say Grace

We Still Say Grace is a thriller following a religious family preparing to commit their right of passage. However, three strangers turn the heads of one of the daughters leading to a change in mentality and ruining the father’s plan.

This movie shows the dangers behind cult mentality and how it creates a desire to learn more, by controlling people. It creates an uneasy tension as one of the members of the family wants more from life after learning there is more. There is a feeling of dread as we wait to see what the father will do to protect his family. While, a threatening feeling when things don’t go to plan.

Where to Watch

JustWatch

Final Thoughts – We Still Say Grace is filled with dread and uncertainty.

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Movie Review

Black Flies (2023) Movie Review

Black Flies – Movie Review

Discover the intense and chaotic world of NYC paramedics in the thrilling movie Black Flies. Read our review now!

Director: Jean-Stephane Sauvaire (A Prayer Before Dawn)

Writer: Ben Mac Brown, Ryan King (Screenplay)

Writer: Shannon Burke (Novel)

Cast

Plot: Ollie Cross is a young paramedic assigned to the NYC night shift with an uncompromising and seasoned partner Gene Rutkovsky. Each 911 call is often dangerous and uncertain, putting their lives on the line every day to help others.

Runtime: 2 Hours 5 Minutes

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Story: Black Flies starts as Ollie Cross (Sheridan) joins the NYC paramedic team. He learns quickly how intense the job becomes and the night shifts only create more chaos. Seasoned paramedic Gene Rutkovsky (Penn) takes a shine to Ollie’s commitment and the pair start working together.

As Ollie starts getting into the role, he starts to learn more of the stresses with start to consume him. It affects his life, causing troubles at home and he must learn from Gene how to manage the two worlds.

Verdict on Black Flies

Black Flies is a thriller following a rookie paramedic who gets thrust into the chaotic New York City operations. It shows him the darker side of the job, where the stress starts to consume him. Even if it shows some of the more rewarding moments.

This movie takes us inside the paramedic world where each case is filled with different challenges. It has extremely graphic cases, similar to what real paramedics would go through and never holds back from the reality in this world. The movie does an excellent job of showing the stress involved in the role. Tye Sheridan is brilliant in the leading role and reflects the challenging role his character goes through.

Where to Watch

JustWatch

Final Thoughts – Black Flies is an impressive reflection of a paramedic’s life.

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Movie Review

A Sacrifice (2024) Movie Review

A Sacrifice – Movie Review

Read our review of 'A Sacrifice': a thought-provoking movie about a psychologist's journey into a local cult and the impact on his daughter's life.

Director: Jordan Scott

Writer: Jordan Scott (Screenplay)

Writer: Nicholas Hogg (Novel)

Cast

Plot: American social psychologist Ben Monroe investigates a local cult connected to a disturbing event, while his daughter becomes embroiled with a mysterious local boy.

Runtime: 1 Hour 32 Minutes

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Story: A Sacrifice starts when social psychologist Ben Monroe (Bana) gets invited to learn about a local cult. Meanwhile, his daughter Mazzy (Sink) joins him in Germany for her studies. Ben is invited by investigator Nina (Hoeks) as they try to understand what the local cult has been doing.

Mazzy meets a mysterious local boy Martin (Dassler) and she gets drawn to another world. As the two live separate lives, they start to question why they agreed to spend time together. However, Mazzy has become the latest target of the cult, Ben must race to uncover the truth before it is too late.

Verdict on A Sacrifice

A Sacrifice is a mystery thriller following a professor who gets invited to learn about a mysterious cult. Meanwhile, his estranged daughter is visiting and when his two lives cross paths, he must race to protect his daughter.

This movie starts out interesting, seeing the studying into a mysterious cult. Add in the personal drama between father and daughter. However, it soon spirals out of control and feels rushed by the end. It never seems to get enough time to breath or explore the cult enough and leaves everything to feel more predictable.

Where to Watch

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JustWatch

Final Thoughts – A Sacrifice is the standard thriller without enough bite.

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Movie Review

Disturbia (2007) Movie Review

Disturbia – Movie Review

Director: D.J. Caruso

Writer: Christopher Landon, Carl Ellsworth (Screenplay)

Cast

Plot: When a teenager is placed under house arrest, he succumbs to despair and starts spying on his neighbors, hoping to spice up his life. This, however, leads him to witness a serial killer on the loose.

Runtime: 1 Hour 45 Minutes

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Story: Disturbia starts when Kale’s (LeBeouf) father tragically dies in an accident. One year later, Kale hasn’t recovered and gets provoked by a teacher causing him to be placed under house arrest. Kale must adapt to remaining in his home, with his already strained relationship with his mother and knowing one of the police officers Gutierrez (Cantillo) is waiting for him to mess up.

During his house arrest, Kale gets a new neighbour in Ashley (Roemer) and must learn to adapt to life without leaving his home. However, his spying on the neighbours sees him witness a neighbour commit a crime and he believes he lives next door to a serial killer. He must put his friends together to help solve the situation before the killer strikes again.

Verdict on Disturbia

Disturbia is a thriller following a teenager under house arrest who believes his neighbour is a serial killer. He teams up with his friends to investigate, but he can’t leave his home to learn the truth.

This movie is a modern retelling of the Hitchcock classic ‘Rear Window’. It does the same idea of someone trapped believing there is a murderer next door. However, this movie is filled with problematic issues. First, is why Kale never got any professional help after his father’s help and how a teacher is allowed to use his father’s death against him. Second, Kale’s behaviour doesn’t help, he is messy, disrespectful and creepy by watching the neighbours. Finally, it lacks the tension the original had, trying to make everything feel like a fast forward no attention span concept. In the end, this lacks interesting characters and any tension to elevate it in any way.

Where to Watch

JustWatch

Final Thoughts – Disturbia fails to grab the tension is desperately needs.

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Movie Review

Deadland (2023) Movie Review

Deadland – Movie Review

Read our review of the thrilling movie Deadland, directed by Lance Larson and featuring an all-star cast. Find out about the haunting story and difficult decisions faced by the characters.

Director: Lance Larson

Writer: Lance Larson, Jas Shelton (Screenplay)

Cast

Plot: U.S. Border Patrol Agent, Angel Waters, makes a routine apprehension that will haunt him forever.

Runtime: 1 Hour 32 Minutes

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Story: Deadland starts when Border Patrol Agent Angel Waters (Urbina) rescues an immigrant (Chavez) crossing dangerous waters. However, he needs help and Salome Veracruz (Restrepo) helps with medical needs. While he is being treated an incident occurs and now Angel, Salome and Ray (Lombardi) must make a difficult decision.

In the aftermath, the three deal with the nightmares of their action. It starts to consume them and drive them crazy, when they struggle to deal with reality. However, Angel’s personal life makes things even more challenging.

Verdict on Deadland

Deadland is a thriller following three Border Patrol Agents who must deal with the consequences of their action. They want to move on with their lives but find themselves haunted by what happened and face other consequences in their lives.

This movie deals with a range of factors, from the guilt of what happened to the daily struggles in life. It creates a mystery about the connection made between the suspect and agents. This takes us on a range of different directions and keeps us guessing throughout, leading to a shocking conclusion. There is plenty of tension and the bigger picture only adds to the mystery.

Where to Watch

Deadland will be available to own or rent in the UK & Ireland from June 24 via Amazon Video, AppleTV, Sky Store and Rakuten.

Final Thoughts – Deadland keeps you guessing from start to finish.

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Movie Review

Queen Rising (2023) Movie Review

Queen Rising – Movie Review

Discover the thrilling story of Queen Rising, a suspenseful movie about a school teacher's journey into her dark past and the secrets she uncovers.

Director: Princeton James

Writer: Allison Chaney, Henry E Reaves III (Screenplay)

Cast

Plot: Struggling school teacher Madison strikes a lucrative book deal to help solve her financial troubles. As she dives into her dark past surrounding the “College Town Slayings,” she realizes it may still be a part of her present after all.

Runtime: 1 Hour 25 Minutes

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Story: Queen Rising starts when school teacher Madison (Hale) is struggling to make ends meet. Her boyfriend Greg (Glasper) encourages her to write a book about her darker past. It leads to her diving into her past in college and her troubles fitting in.

However, her past connections with college slayings come back to haunt her. As her connections to the victims are closer than she ever imagined. Can she understand what happened for the book which could change her life?

Verdict on Queen Rising

Queen Rising is a mystery thriller following a teacher looking back at her past to prepare for a new book. It follows her college years when she was on campus when a serial killer started picking off any man in her life.

This movie creates an interesting story following someone around during a serial killer spree. It spins the typical slasher concept around, by making it a reflective crime thriller, instead of a bloodbath. This works for another direction, but it does remove any tension behind Madison’s time at college. It does keep us on edge about who was behind the crimes and why there is a sudden determination to uncover the truth.

Where to Watch

AVAILABLE ON VIDEO ON DEMAND Tuesday, June 18, 2024

Final Thoughts – Queen Rising is a tense thriller, filled with twists and turns.