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Ultrasound (2021)
Original and well constructed
The film is quite unlike most films in that it keeps you in the dark and doesn't spoon-feed the plot. I thought it was a really well made low budget film with a truly original script. The film is quite mind-bending and I can see why some people might not like it, but it is really worth watching to the end. I would say it's one of the best low budget films I've seen as the script and direction is really quite unique.
The Suicide Squad (2021)
As dumb as it gets
The film has a Mature rating but is made for an immature audience. The pacing and plot is all over the place. Your enjoyment will depend on if you like juvenile humour or not as the movie is packed full if it. I grew tired of it quite quickly, its an exceedingly dumb movie, the superhero equivalent of Sausage Party.
The Tomorrow War (2021)
Huge budget but extremely average movie
You've seen it all before. This film borrows all its script from other movies, and uses all the usual action movie tropes.
I thought that the CGI was very obvious and stuck out like a sore thumb, the physics and lighting was off so it was obvious the CG aliens were not actually there in the environment so that took away any tension or threat for me. The aliens were shouty with pointy teeth but not menacing at all.
JD Simmons is brilliant, and steals the show in every scene he is in, but otherwise I found it quite underwhelming, especially for the money that must have been spent on it. No wonder it missed the cinema and went straight to streaming, I think it would have been a flop.
Katla (2021)
exceptional film-making
The idea behind the series is really well executed. It is slow-burn and deliberately slow paced. The Icelandic scenery is ideal for this series which at one point could have gone in so many directions.
I think its the best thing that Netflix has commisioned in ages, the cinematography, plot, acting and mystery are all really well done and I hope it gets a second series.
Monsters of Man (2020)
unsatisfying. 3 for the cinematography
I slogged through watching this movie to the end, and regretted it. It is way too long with an unsatisfying ending. The CGI and camera work is very well done for its budget and looks like a much more expensive film, but otherwise the plot is as predictable as predictable can be, the characters in the film are all caricatures and cliche. I really didn't like the ending, there was no payoff for watching this overly long film.
A Quiet Place Part II (2020)
Exceptional filmaking
I enjoyed this as much as the first film, I thought it was equally inventive, it didn't do the predictable thing and expanded upon the families plight in new and exciting ways. It excels in Hitchcockian suspense and each of the tense scenes has a satisfactory payoff, especially the ending. The sound mixing is exceptional in Atmos and again really adds to the originality and inventiveness of the film.
I would definitely go and see a Part 3, and will be buying the UHD when released to watch again.
Rogue Hostage (2021)
Very average action movie
This is a low budget made-for-TV type action movie. It is certainly watchable, as long as you can ignore lots of "they would never do that" plot conveniences.
Tyrese Gibson is excellent as the lead, I would watch more of his movies, and John Malkovich is is good as ever. The lady actor in the red dress should stop "acting" immediately. I found it entertaining enough, with a bit better screenplay it could have been excellent for a low budget movie.
Awake (2021)
Enjoyable TV movie
I enjoyed this a lot more than I expected to based on the negative reviews.
The film has quite an original premise and is well executed. It is a lower budget movie but is well acted, shot and directed. I thought it was well paced and kept me interested and watching from start to the end. The young actors were great and the lead actor carried the movie well. I thought it had a satisfying ending and would recommend it. It is a standard Netflix production, so dont expect over the top Hollywood CGI and effects.
A good story, well told.
My Fair Lady (1964)
timeless classic that looks incredible in 4K
I have just watched this for the first time in the new remastered 4K version and WOW it looks astonishing, the amount of detail captured from the original 65mm film is incredible. The costumes, indoor and outdoor scenes are glorious and I was captivated by the story from start to finish. It has great songs, some of which are famous and I didn't know were attributed to this musical and the two leads, particularly Audrey Hepburn, sing and act really well.
I thoroughly enjoyed this film and will definitely be watching it again.
Wrath of Man (2021)
Great action movie
This is a really well made action movie, well scripted, well paced and well acted. The cinematography is also really well done. Jason Statham gives a good performance as always, quiet and composed he portrays his character excellently. Like any Guy Ritchie film, it has a nicely crafted script and keeps you guessing through the movie, it has a good pay off at the end. One of the best films I've seen this year and more entertaining than most of the mindless popcorn flicks that Hollywood churn out.
Army of the Dead (2021)
Terrible cinematography
This film has some of the worst, most amateur, cinematography I have ever seen. What kind of noob cameraman shoots a portrait shot in shadow against an extremely bright background??? It was obviously a creative choice, because the exposition is delivered in back-lit darkness over and over and over again. As a photographer I found it infuriating. When someone is delivering dialogue you want their face lit so you can see properly what they are saying and the facial expressions, not people talking in shadow repeatedly. Maybe it was done on purpose so you cant see the wooden acting very well, who knows but I found it to be terrible. Large parts of the film are shot at a ridiculously shallow depth of field, sometimes leaving the subject of the frame out of focus! Some of the action sequences are a messy blur and much of it could be filmed anywhere as the background is continually out of focus. Its like someone has just discovered bokeh and totally overuses the effect when it is not needed or beneficial. It also had very excessive slow-mo.
As for the movie itself, it was fun in a few places, had a couple of funny moments but was mostly fairly predictable and dull. It may have been because I was really looking forward to the film based on the trailers, the actual film itself was a bit of a let down in comparison. If you've seen the trailers you've seen 95% of the best parts of the entire 2.5 hour running time. It could easily have had 30-45 minutes chopped off with no loss and would have probably made for a better film. I felt it dragged on and on in places where the action slowed to some heartfelt dialogue, but I cared little for the characters, so wasn't really bothered about all the relationship parts of the film. Some of this endless exposition was during the time they were supposed to be racing against the clock, so destroyed any sense of tension.
It was a passable movie, but nothing special and certainly not something I would want to watch more than once. It was also a swiss cheese of plot holes and unfired Chekov's guns, it seems that they were planning to make a string of movies setting up all kinds of plot directions that went unanswered. If there are sequels they will have to do much better than the first to regain my interest in a franchise.
Detectorists (2014)
pure gold
This show is an absolute gem, I have watched all episodes of the 3 series 3 times and expect I will watch it again more than once. It is perfectly cast, the humour is perfectly placed and the story is marvellous. Mackenzie Crook has hit a home run with this, the ending is brilliant but I would love if they do another series or even a special episode in the future.
SAS: Red Notice (2021)
exceedingly awful
EDIT: It seems the Sam Heughan fan club have turned up en-masse to inflate the ratings for this film. Sam is OK in the film, he is good but doesn't stand out in any way, it seems they are trying to get him to be the next Bond or something, but there is NO WAY anyone could consider this film a 10/10 masterpiece, it is terrible in so many aspects.
I was looking forward to watching this, and boy what a disappointment it was.
They have a half decent cast so I'm not sure how they all manage to act so unconvincingly. I think it has a lot to do with the script which is comically bad, full of plot holes and the characters motivations and consistency are all over the place. The characters actions don't make any sense a lot of the time, which would be OK if the action carried the film along, but the action sequences are also quite comically bad.
The action is like a dud firework, you expect to be at least somewhat entertained but the action is badly choreographed and very underwhelming. It like a very bad straight-to-TV 80s low budget film. Looking at the credits they have a load of people that worked on the movie, but they seemingly forgot to hire any military advisors.
Even the love story (yes, it its core it really is a love story) is really corny and doesn't work. Some of the dialogue, especially in the ending is just so unbelievably, facepalmingly, bad, and not in a so-bad-its-good way.
Who Dares Wins, almost 40 years old, still hasn't been bettered and if you want to watch a SAS/action movie just watch that instead it is leagues better in every way.
Seungriho (2021)
Outstanding
WOW. This film really was an unexpected gem. I was expecting an average run of the mill sci-fi film, but this film just blew me away how good it was.
It starts of decent enough and develops into a really compelling action sci-fi adventure, the core characters are all really likeable and by the end I was rooting for them, the CGI and special effects are really well done and it has a novel idea for a plot and a well paced and well thought out story. There are some real edge-of-your-seat sequences and some nice humor throughout. I was expecting an average B movie and was really impressed with how good it turned out.
Wonder Woman 1984 (2020)
Boring and bad CGI
I was looking forward to watching this, I enjoyed the first WW film, but this is nowhere near as good. The CGI is really bad, it looks really fake, particularly the scene in the mall, it looks more like a computer game than a movie. The story is also full of moralising and is over long and very boring, I was hoping for more 80's elements but that was wasted along with my time watching this disappointing sequel.
The Mandalorian: Chapter 10: The Passenger (2020)
Crashed and burned
This episode was abysmal. Nothing had progressed from the start of the episode to the end. What little plot there is was stretched wayyy too thin. It seems like the producers either forgot to write a script or have no idea where to take this series.
There is so much lore and backstory that could be explored and this garbage is what they come up with.
Its all just empty visuals. The one-trick pony of using props and characters from the original trilogy is wearing thin, and without a story it will just get boring.
The Mandalorian (2019)
The exposition for this show is slow as paint drying
What little plot there is for this series moves at an absolute snails pace. I've never seen such a glacial series with so little happening. At the start of Season 2 Episode 2 there is a recap of the first episode that lasts a minute. It includes the entire plot for the first almost hour long episode. The show is well made, but the producers seemingly forgot to write a script, and are stretching the flimsiest, smallest plot over the longest time and it is becoming tedious to watch. The second episode is half an hour, but feels like it drags on and on, a chase sequence copied straight from Harry Potter and Chamber of Secrets lasts an entire 5 minutes and feels like an eternity.
The plot barely moved on in the first episode, and does not move on at all in the second episode, the entire episode was a complete waste of time, nothing has been learned or accomplished by the end of the episode.
At the moment the show is just riding on nostalgia, the only way it keeps interest is in giving flashbacks to the original Star Wars. Its nice seeing some of the background characters from the original trilogy re-appear, but its a one-trick pony that is getting worn out with having no plot to keep me interested. With such a complex, detailed world there is so much to explore and so many stories that could be told, but this series just chooses to be an empty spectacle rather than exploring the lore and delivering a compelling story. If the plot doesn't pick up in the next few episodes it will totally lose my interest.
I expected it to have multiple story threads and a lot going on, but its just a pretty but empty vessel for SW nostalgia.
The Vast of Night (2019)
Mind numbingly tedious
I like sci-fi, slow burn movies and had heard good things about this film so I was looking forward to watching it. Unfortunately I found it unbelievably, excruciatingly, dull and boring. People jabber on and on and on but say nothing of any purpose. The plot is paper thin and radioed in early so there is no suspense, the film keeps you hanging on for some kind of payoff but it doesn't come, just endless dialogue and few bits of arty camera work. Avoid unless you have trouble sleeping.
Alita: Battle Angel (2019)
Great CGI, not so great movie
I'm a bit divided on this film, the world-building, special effects and CGI are really well done, but the story is all over the place, disjointed, illogical, daft in places, and ultimately empty and pointless.
There is no real story arc and characters are not very well established or developed during the film, things just happen seemingly for the sake of it, certain plot points conflict with eachother and others make no sense, its like half the story has been chopped out and you have to (easily) fill in the blanks or just go with the flow and disengage your brain to all the contrived plot points, and certain conflicts in the writing and script that don't follow on from eachother. It seems to have been made to achieve various special effects with a plot shoe-horned together afterwards. The romance doesn't really work and is just another cliched plot device, I think the movie would have been stronger without it.
All in all its an entertaining film, especially in 4K/on a large screen. The CGI and special effects are extremely well done, and the battles are engaging and worth watching. The sound and music are OK they're really just in the background and don't catch your attention apart from some weighty sound effects during the battles which add to the atmosphere.
There are much better sci-fi films than this, its a shame as there is so much premise in the concept, I think if the story had been stronger or better developed it could have been so much better. It seems to have been chopped up and dumbed down too much for a sci-fi film for my liking.
Paddington 2 (2017)
Great Sequel
This is a charming and well made sequel. I enjoyed the first movie, as did my children, and didn't expect the sequel to match the charm and enjoyment of the first film, but it is as every bit as good as the first.
The prison scenes were particularly well done and Hugh Grant hams up his role with aplomb, its maybe his best performance I think. All the cast are excellent and the pace, humour and pacing of the movie are delightful.
My children enjoyed the sequel as much as I did, and we will certainly be watching it again at home when its out on Blu-ray.
Star Wars: Episode VIII - The Last Jedi (2017)
Star Worse
The plot of the story has holes that you could pilot a dreadnought through. The main premise of the story is ludicrous, the few rebel ships travel slightly faster than the First Order so the main thrust of the movie is an exceedingly slow motion chase until the rebels run out of gas (wait, what!)
There is a side mission that turns out to be entirely contrived and unnecessary, with some huge leaps of logic.
If you think Rey's character was very overpowered in TFA, Rian Johnson basically says "hold my coat JJ Abrams" and turns her character into "Mary Sue" levels of incredulity. She is better than Luke, Snoke, all Snokes personal guards, Vader and Ren with no training at all and within 5 minutes of knowing what the force is.
The humor is contrived and out of place, in my showing only one person in the entire audience laughed at any of the Marvel style dumb jokes.
There are many face-palm moments - including Luke being totally out of character for the whole movie, Rose knowing Finn for a couple of hours and putting the entire rebel alliance at risk because she is somehow hopelessly in love with him. She spoils Finns best and defining moment.
Luke's cow milking is the most absurd and un-necessary scene I've seen in any Star Wars film, and possibly any movie, along with Leia's dead... oh wait... Gotcha I'm not! Superman flight, followed by opening space doors and no-one getting sucked out to space. DUMB, DUMB, DUMB.
The movie is also blatantly full of political correctness, including a string of characters that practically have "hello I'm a feminist" tattooed onto their foreheads.
Porgs are a plain cash-grab. I wont be participating in future as Disneys milking of the franchise is becoming as ugly as Lukes space cow milking scene.