Reviews

Yeah this was a fun old fantasy, subverting the usual tropes - kind of. A strong cast round out Millie's establishing star power. Mind you the ham is almost panto level acting occasionally and script chat GTP generic, the movie could most certainly done with a bit more self awareness - hell it even had the OG princess bride in it hamming up the badness. Not a joke in sight other than some smarmy lines. The movie was quite uneven with scenes you'd have thought that cgi looks pretty good then scenes it most certainly did not. In the end however there were some good ideas and well executed scenes, and the movie galloped along - while there could have been more scope to highlight the more interesting dark side of the tale which would have made a distinct memorable movie, still a decent Netflix and chill.

Well I didn't realise Neill Blomkamp directed this movie so that was a nice surprise. Some may assume this is another video game movie adaptation however it actually opts for a story based on real life which breathes something fresher into the movie. I'm not even a fan of any racing game (other than MarioKart on the original Wii - there is no other for me) however the movie was able to take this true life story and deliver an occasionally touching and rousing movie. Add in a solid cast GT manages to rise above the typical package tropes of this type of a movie and deliver a well paced enjoyable underdog sporting/gaming film for both types of fan.

Almost worth it for a scene where Jeremy Piven's character is pretending to be in the same room as the rest of the cast. The budget was certainly blown on the couple of recognisable faces present. Unfortunately it's a low bar all round for this one. The costumes look a bit naff and the acting is largely terrible. There's an under current to the script which isn't too bad an idea addressing the corporation of the prison system in the US coupled with the treatment of ex-army Vets however direction, location, lighting and the juxtaposition of over earnest with plain bad acting unfortunately ends up delivering a difficult watch. A couple of funny moments (maybe not intentional mind) and a few passable fight sequences.

Wow what a cast - looks like the director got their dream cast. What comes out however is a very unsuper hero movie that lacks the usual Marvel touch. The movie was encumbered by too wide a cast with not enough time to develop relatively shallow eternally living characters. Lots of hope, humanity and diversity in the script however despite promising elements it just struggled for connection and impact. For ancient beings they weren't too bright, still however there was a lot to like, I feel a series would have provided the much needed room for its potential. Enjoyable and great cast but struggled to be compelling despite some great scenes and potential.

Quite a surprise that was, however the timely setting of New York at Christmas brings back good memories. The two leads were great together and this was filled out with a top tier excellent cast and additional characters. Marvel really does what it does so well and always hits all the right notes, I've watched so many bad movies, good movies, serious documentaries and got up so early with my 2 year I just want to sit back and enjoy something with a little bit of heart at times, some laughs, and escapism excitement. All spot on in Hawkeye, was my favourite viewing over the Christmas season.

For Matrix and Keanu fans this is still a fun outing, it's very much like the 20 year anniversary tour of that great album. The album was still great but the fizzle of that breaking idea isn't so sharp now, and the bands a bit older and obviously looking to capitalise on the good stuff. A few more philosophical threads with action that on some occasions came across as pedestrian, although there movie took a self aware approach. All in all I enjoyed it though and a nice revisit to the Matrix however, let's leave it at that.

In summary no Game of Thrones, doesn't have the production level or on point casting or as rich a source material however the producers make the best choice in grabbing the series by the horns and galloping along with a largely solid cast with some stand out performances . It was always going to be tough to adapt these novels which predate the Game of thrones in writing and while similar in their vast scope lack the maturity of George RR Martins novels, and well he was already an accomplished screen writer. Like most books unfold as they progress elements are not explained from the onset which may confuse some viewers but some cool moments and a few where the budget sags and one popular character from the books simply wasn't pulled off so great which was a shame, prosthetics haven't come a long way. We are spoiled in the golden age of tv and this is still great fantasy - a teenage version of myself would've been over the moon the see this series of the books being read, so happy it's come along a few decades later.

You always get what you expect from Guy, a slick bit of twisty stuff full of dangerous criminals who you like teddy bears really. Unfortunately here Statham turns in not so great a piece probably because it's just too much of a stretch story wise. Great supporting cast would have enjoyed more of, however in some downtime I enjoyed it sometimes you just need a brain in reverse movie and WOM delivers blokety bloke with a side order of a couple of minor female roles with blokes on it.

Dispensing with Hollywood stars and executive producers this show just gets down to it and competently executes its story with some decent performances along the way. To be honest its very like The Strain however, as a fan of the books disappointed in that TV series, Blood Red Sky is more of what that should have been. My only complaint is it could have been a bit slicker but that's a minor grumble really for its own benefit as some folks avoid anything without that Hollywood gloss, however all round good show up there with the Girl With all the Gifts and Rec as modern European horror gems.

This is a Giant Cheese Burger however considering the game what could you expect, and for fans enjoyable, non-fans give this a wide berth, but if you're in the mood for a cheese burger its good, specially that bad plastic cheese. Things warmed up enormously when Kano came on the screen I found this incarnation pretty much the highlight of the show, Hiroyuki Sanada was like he was in a different parallel movie altogether, and Chin Han gets an honourable mention for managing to keep a straight face as Shang 'Ma Wig' Tsung. All in all a valiant effort and I enjoyed the fun of it all - not all fights were particularly spectacular though. Ah but that old plot device reminded of that old Masters of the Universe movie, even then I thought it was a bit naff.

There's some good points to this one, the supporting cast are quite good and I don't mean the obvious main cast - Will Patton and his fellows would make a good sequel, the lead was also good too. It was a bit of a mixed bag but overall enjoyable, good creepy music and sound. Someone said they didn't see the 'Devil' - I though you saw too much - its a bit of a creature feature, rough around some edges but some promise there. Definitely a The Descent vibe if a fan of that.

Now Will Ferrell is just shooting movies on where the holiday is at this stage, Downhill was a terrible idea, but hey the scenery and skiiing, and here we have wonderful Iceland and Edinburgh - brilliant locations. Fortunately Eurovision is still a good movie and an absolute must for the Eurovision fans who did not get their fix this year. Having grew up with the competition and seen it grow it has a special place for many with its hammy songs and overdone everything, there's still a charm about it. Although not one of his best this is still captured in the movie and the cast surely seem to be enjoying themselves - McAdams is excellent as always - a goofy colourful movie just right for a bit of light entertainment in these times.

Promising cast, and slickly presented with an interesting enough premise, then Grammarly took over the script. I'm going to assume some Exec producer got involved in this and dumbed everything down cutting short story lines and character development for a Scooby Doo wrap up. We had a good chuckle spotting the dull as get out lines and figuring out the plot. There was an attempt to create multi layered characters however this just ended up a right 'ol mess with a resolution as old as bad tv movies. Shame, effort was made.

Everybody's trying to hit the next Game of Thrones gold right, well cursed is not it, but all in all its an enjoyable turn on a familiar story with some stand out elements. Terry Gilliam's Excalibur has not really been matched in this tale and the remaster version surprisingly stands up well enough still, stellar cast it had, however Cursed opts for a different prequel angle regarding the inclusion of the Fey and the battle with the Red Paladins/Church. Its surprisingly dark in parts although this can sometimes be difficult to balance within the overall tone whenever they find it. The animated links work well, as does a good cast, even the humour seems to land well enough. Its quite difficult to pull all the threads together in the right chords even when time, distance and velocity are disregarded as the story escalates quickly however there are enough layers and intriguing elements to keep your interest and most of the main roles are filled with top tier acting talent to help overlook the occasional naff script. I do hope it won't be cursed and will get a second series as it does deserve it.

Having started to watch a film with a similar premise and not completed it recently I though initially this was maybe a run of the mill type movie. However it is from Jason Blum who has a certain pedigree. Turns out I was very pleasantly surprised. Its quite a tongue in cheek dark humoured violent movie, however it does not take itself seriously and rolls along at a good pace. A good cast rounds out this movie which hits the right notes for what its aiming at I think.

But man I needed a laugh. Comedies are hard to pull off, I'm sure I'd make a rubbish one, and certainly the last few I've seen were formulaic and short on laughs. Lauren Lapkus however is the silver bullet that elevates this movie above many others. Yes its crass and dumb, but there's such a 110% from Lauren as her character it pulls it off. One might say maybe there wasn't enough of her in the movie. Nick Swardson and Rob Schneider have a few good lines but are small parts, and David Spades character although the main is really just the straight foil to Missy. Pitters off a bit in the third act but some good laugh out loud moments before then thanks to Missy.

Greed certainly shows an interesting side to the obvious character its portraying and making a comment on the fashion and business financial industry, revealing something the average person rarely considers and the movie certainly has a point in its tale of how so many are affected by one mans ambition and greed. Coogan is also great as the by turn charismatic and nasty main character. The problem is the messy way it gets there, I wasn't really sure whether this was a black comedy or a partial serious biography story based on reality. There's quite a cast of characters involved as the story is regarding how so many are whipped up with one man's whims - maybe the narrative jumps around too much to have the full impact which kind of arrives at the very very end. Reminded me of another cinematic gem filmed on Mykanos - Island of Death - must be something about the feta cheese.

Blumhouse have made many a low budget decent horror flick so there is hope with that. The location is also a-mazing and the movie gets off to not so bad a start. It does however devolve into a goofy TV movie concept with silly twists and vague explanations. Ok if you want something that doesn't even tickle a brain cell and has a nice beach. Despite being setup for a sequel I really doubt that'll happen.

Was looking forward to this - Will Ferrell, Julia Dreyfuss - hoping for a family type comedy - echoes of national Lampoons maybe - that's what the trailer seems to hint at. Man was I wrong. Will Ferrel wasn't funny once in it, because his character didn't get a chance to. It was all situational awkward humour - one scene with Julia got a laugh, but otherwise just not funny. More the the point the characters weren't even likeable to the extent it was just painful to watch at times. The movie really is not uplifting. Very rarely do I wish I had simply never watched a movie. Scenery was nice.

I for one enjoyed Underwater - yes there's various plot holes, what movie has none. There s bit of a question why it went so under the radar with such a great cast (I for one like Kristen Stewart she's done her time since the teen vamp stuff). Its no Abyss and lacks a certain movie gloss however the reason I''m guessing is the Lovecraftian influence. Del Toro's been trying to get a Lovecraft movie of the blocks for years but they do not lend themselves well to blockbusters, well because Lovecraft is so dark. We had another Lovecraft influenced movie recently in the Nicolas Cage led Colour from Outer Space which was wonderfully bonkers. With Video game and movie story telling blurring more and more Underwater does remind me a bit of some Sci-fi games - the detail is there, the intro and end credits expand the story and explain a bit more, disembodied voice messages adding atmosphere as to the environment, as well as pages not even focused on in shot giving more information - some stuff is not spoon fed to the viewer. It does get off to a good start I thought and takes place over not a long period of time. I'm not sure if it would look better in the cinema or not - had a very short run - the in water shots were kinda unclear. However for me its a 7, that's because I appreciate that Lovecraft influence - mainstream viewers may not. It will get compared to Alien and Abyss but to me it does have its character aspect similar to a Lovecraft short story, and that I liked.

Ad Astra kind of stays with you as front and center is the leads relationship with his father and his fathers relationship with the rest of the universe. Pitt is in every scene and narrates throughout. Because of the root of the story is actually relationships the far flinging sci-fi would work as a play - this is because so much of the external is superfluous. While stylish and 2001-esque some zingy scenes seem tacked on to ramp up the heartbeat. However it is a smart movie with a message but definitely not a thriller like Gravity which operated in lower stratospheres. Serious level 3000.

For fans of the series this is a welcome return to some beloved characters and the flares of style BB is known for. Taking Jessies cliff hanger furthering that. In an unsurprising way. Really wanted to love it but it shows while Jessie was a great character ( and despite being a main and central character) BB was not his story, being more a as he was the contrast for Walt, nor could it ride on his shoulders. Personally I'd rather left it at the series end with Jessies destiny unknown driving off. I'm not all against further BB story mind you as I have enjoyed Better Call Saul.

Was not too sure at the start of this - a lot of homage to B-movies can fall flat. Watched this in a sunday afternoon however and it was perfect. Its a stupid movie doesn't pretend to be anything else. However the notable cast were obviously enjoying themselves and this came across as they delivered gung ho. Had quite a few laugh out loud moments. Even the songs were'nt too shabby either. Wasn't perfect but I did enjoy mucho, and I'd totally go see this band if they existed.

A good cast helps this entertaining enough jaunt saunter along. The premise isn't too bad or too new although some greater plot issues are papered over in very broad strokes, this is kept in place by keeping family front and centre in the story - I thought keeping things a bit smaller in scale regarding the over all arc would have been more traditionally successful however that's not the premise of the book. No great budget here - this would have been "straight to dvd" back in the day and a relatively decent enough one at that. A Quiet Place and Bird Box would spring instantly to mind - but this isn't up to their level in budget or viewing. Gives me a more TV Stephen King adaptation vibe. On the upside mom, pop, grandma and sister all come across as memorable enough characters and the story did give a twist or turn for those in the mood for the genre.

Despite a great cast and intriguing topic The Frontrunner is simply boring.

Probably testimony to current political climates this looks a bit uneventful in comparison.