Review by Matthew Turner
Stars: Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, Adam Driver, Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, Andy Serkis, Lupita Nyong’o, Domhnall Gleeson, Anthony Daniels, Gwendoline Christie, Kelly Marie Tran, Laura Dern, Benicio del Toro | Written and Directed by Rian Johnson
Star Wars fans rejoice! Rian Johnson’s eagerly-awaited follow-up to 2015′s The Force Awakens is everything you could possibly have wished for and more.
Picking up from where Episode VII left off, Star Wars – Episode VIII: The Last Jedi jumps straight into the action, with ace Resistance star pilot Poe Dameron (Oscar Isaac) leading a thrilling bombing attack on a First Order Dreadnought. However, the tables are soon turned as the Resistance realise, with sickening horror, that the First Order are capable of tracking them through hyper-space jumps, sending them into a desperate retreat.
With fuel supplies running low, former-Stormtrooper Finn (John Boyega) embarks on a secret...
Stars: Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, Adam Driver, Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, Andy Serkis, Lupita Nyong’o, Domhnall Gleeson, Anthony Daniels, Gwendoline Christie, Kelly Marie Tran, Laura Dern, Benicio del Toro | Written and Directed by Rian Johnson
Star Wars fans rejoice! Rian Johnson’s eagerly-awaited follow-up to 2015′s The Force Awakens is everything you could possibly have wished for and more.
Picking up from where Episode VII left off, Star Wars – Episode VIII: The Last Jedi jumps straight into the action, with ace Resistance star pilot Poe Dameron (Oscar Isaac) leading a thrilling bombing attack on a First Order Dreadnought. However, the tables are soon turned as the Resistance realise, with sickening horror, that the First Order are capable of tracking them through hyper-space jumps, sending them into a desperate retreat.
With fuel supplies running low, former-Stormtrooper Finn (John Boyega) embarks on a secret...
- 12/12/2017
- by Guest
- Nerdly
Review by Matthew Turner
Stars: Levi Miller, Olivia DeJonge, Ed Oxenbould, Dacre Montgomery, Aleks Mikic, Patrick Warburton, Virginia Madsen | Written by Chris Peckover, Zack Kahn | Directed by Chris Peckover
Previously known as Safe Neighbourhood, this Australian Christmas horror falls firmly in the tradition of other festive frighteners such as Silent Night, Deadly Night (1984) or Black Christmas (1974). However, it comes with something of a secret weapon, in the form of a sharply-executed central twist, that allows for a subversive take on the genre and a disturbing look at toxic masculinity.
Set in Smalltown, USA, Better Watch Out stars Levi Miller (Pan) as 12 year-old Luke, whose affluent parents (Virginia Madsen and Patrick Warburton, both under-used) head out to a Christmas party, leaving him in the care of their regular baby-sitter, 17 year-old Ashley (The Visit’s Oliva DeJonge). However, unbeknownst to Ashley, Luke has become quietly obsessed with her and is planning to make his move,...
Stars: Levi Miller, Olivia DeJonge, Ed Oxenbould, Dacre Montgomery, Aleks Mikic, Patrick Warburton, Virginia Madsen | Written by Chris Peckover, Zack Kahn | Directed by Chris Peckover
Previously known as Safe Neighbourhood, this Australian Christmas horror falls firmly in the tradition of other festive frighteners such as Silent Night, Deadly Night (1984) or Black Christmas (1974). However, it comes with something of a secret weapon, in the form of a sharply-executed central twist, that allows for a subversive take on the genre and a disturbing look at toxic masculinity.
Set in Smalltown, USA, Better Watch Out stars Levi Miller (Pan) as 12 year-old Luke, whose affluent parents (Virginia Madsen and Patrick Warburton, both under-used) head out to a Christmas party, leaving him in the care of their regular baby-sitter, 17 year-old Ashley (The Visit’s Oliva DeJonge). However, unbeknownst to Ashley, Luke has become quietly obsessed with her and is planning to make his move,...
- 12/8/2017
- by Guest
- Nerdly
Review by Matthew Turner
Stars: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Linda Hamilton, Edward Furlong, Robert Patrick, Joe Morton, Earl Boen, Jenette Goldstein, Xander Berkeley | Written by James Cameron, William Wisher Jr. | Directed by James Cameron
Twenty-six years after it blasted onto screens in the summer of 1991, James Cameron’s smash-hit Terminator sequel Terminator 2: Judgment Day has been given an immaculate clean-up and 3D conversion treatment for this missed-it-by-a-year anniversary release. Supervised by Cameron himself, the newly tweaked 3D effects are reason enough to see the film again, but does it still hold up after all this time? The short answer is yes. Yes, it does.
The plot, in case you somehow needed reminding, picks up ten years after the events of 1984′s The Terminator, with Sarah Connor (Linda Hamilton) locked up in an asylum, muttering about an imminent apocalypse, and future resistance leader John Connor (Edward Furlong) still just a snarky ten...
Stars: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Linda Hamilton, Edward Furlong, Robert Patrick, Joe Morton, Earl Boen, Jenette Goldstein, Xander Berkeley | Written by James Cameron, William Wisher Jr. | Directed by James Cameron
Twenty-six years after it blasted onto screens in the summer of 1991, James Cameron’s smash-hit Terminator sequel Terminator 2: Judgment Day has been given an immaculate clean-up and 3D conversion treatment for this missed-it-by-a-year anniversary release. Supervised by Cameron himself, the newly tweaked 3D effects are reason enough to see the film again, but does it still hold up after all this time? The short answer is yes. Yes, it does.
The plot, in case you somehow needed reminding, picks up ten years after the events of 1984′s The Terminator, with Sarah Connor (Linda Hamilton) locked up in an asylum, muttering about an imminent apocalypse, and future resistance leader John Connor (Edward Furlong) still just a snarky ten...
- 12/4/2017
- by Guest
- Nerdly
Stars: Aaron Taylor-Johnson, John Cena, Laith Nakli | Written by Dwain Worrell | Directed by Doug Liman
Review by Matthew Turner
Director Doug Liman follows up Edge of Tomorrow with this stripped down Iraqi sniper thriller that plays like an Iraq War version of Joel Schumacher’s Phone Booth.
Set in 2007 – at the tail-end of the war, with Bush having declared victory – the film effectively takes place at a single location. When Army Ranger sharpshooter Sgt Shane Matthews (WWE star John Cena) and his spotter, Sgt Allen “Eyes” Isaac (Aaron Taylor-Johnson) arrive at the scene of a distress call, they discover eight bodies (including civilians and their military liaison officers) lying dead near an unfinished pipeline. After observing the area from a distance for the past 24 hours, Matthews believes it is safe and approaches the bodies, only to take a hit from an unseen sniper that leaves him severely wounded.
Isaac rushes to help,...
Review by Matthew Turner
Director Doug Liman follows up Edge of Tomorrow with this stripped down Iraqi sniper thriller that plays like an Iraq War version of Joel Schumacher’s Phone Booth.
Set in 2007 – at the tail-end of the war, with Bush having declared victory – the film effectively takes place at a single location. When Army Ranger sharpshooter Sgt Shane Matthews (WWE star John Cena) and his spotter, Sgt Allen “Eyes” Isaac (Aaron Taylor-Johnson) arrive at the scene of a distress call, they discover eight bodies (including civilians and their military liaison officers) lying dead near an unfinished pipeline. After observing the area from a distance for the past 24 hours, Matthews believes it is safe and approaches the bodies, only to take a hit from an unseen sniper that leaves him severely wounded.
Isaac rushes to help,...
- 11/22/2017
- by Guest
- Nerdly
Review by Matthew Turner
Stars: Ben Affleck, Gal Gadot, Ezra Miller, Jason Momoa, Ray Fisher, Jeremy Irons, Henry Cavill, Amy Adams, Diane Lane, Connie Nielsen, Jk Simmons, Ciarán Hinds | Written by Chris Terrio, Joss Whedon | Directed by Zack Snyder
DC’s Justice League has had a famously troubled production history, from panicked reshoots and rewrites to director Zack Snyder having to leave the project due to a family tragedy. DC cannily drafted in Joss Whedon to finish the film, which lead to yet more reshoots and rewrites, as well as Whedon shooting a reputed 15 to 20 per cent of the finished film. Unfortunately, the patch-up job has been clumsily handled and the result is both ugly to look at and a slog to sit through, marred by shoddy effects work and a general lack of imagination.
The plot continues on directly from Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. Superman (Henry Cavill) is dead,...
Stars: Ben Affleck, Gal Gadot, Ezra Miller, Jason Momoa, Ray Fisher, Jeremy Irons, Henry Cavill, Amy Adams, Diane Lane, Connie Nielsen, Jk Simmons, Ciarán Hinds | Written by Chris Terrio, Joss Whedon | Directed by Zack Snyder
DC’s Justice League has had a famously troubled production history, from panicked reshoots and rewrites to director Zack Snyder having to leave the project due to a family tragedy. DC cannily drafted in Joss Whedon to finish the film, which lead to yet more reshoots and rewrites, as well as Whedon shooting a reputed 15 to 20 per cent of the finished film. Unfortunately, the patch-up job has been clumsily handled and the result is both ugly to look at and a slog to sit through, marred by shoddy effects work and a general lack of imagination.
The plot continues on directly from Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. Superman (Henry Cavill) is dead,...
- 11/17/2017
- by Guest
- Nerdly
Review by Matthew Turner
Stars: Eili Harboe, Kaya Wilkins, Henrik Rafaelsen, Ellen Dorrit Petersen, Grethe Eltervag, Oskar Pask, Steiner Klouman Hallert | Written by Joachim Trier, Eskil Vogt | Directed by Joachim Trier
Co-written and directed by Norwegian filmmaker Joachim Trier (Louder Than Bombs), this compelling psychological thriller is part coming-of-age drama and part supernatural chiller, layered with complex emotion and anchored by a superb central performance. Imagine an arthouse take on Carrie and you won’t be far wrong.
Thelma opens with a supremely unsettling prologue sequence, in which a father silently aims his rifle at his young daughter’s head while they’re out hunting deer. The story then jumps forward to find a now teenage Thelma (Eili Harboe) studying at Oslo university and having difficulty making friends, until she meets beautiful fellow student Anja (Kaya Wilkins) after suffering a severe seizure in the university library.
The pair quickly become close,...
Stars: Eili Harboe, Kaya Wilkins, Henrik Rafaelsen, Ellen Dorrit Petersen, Grethe Eltervag, Oskar Pask, Steiner Klouman Hallert | Written by Joachim Trier, Eskil Vogt | Directed by Joachim Trier
Co-written and directed by Norwegian filmmaker Joachim Trier (Louder Than Bombs), this compelling psychological thriller is part coming-of-age drama and part supernatural chiller, layered with complex emotion and anchored by a superb central performance. Imagine an arthouse take on Carrie and you won’t be far wrong.
Thelma opens with a supremely unsettling prologue sequence, in which a father silently aims his rifle at his young daughter’s head while they’re out hunting deer. The story then jumps forward to find a now teenage Thelma (Eili Harboe) studying at Oslo university and having difficulty making friends, until she meets beautiful fellow student Anja (Kaya Wilkins) after suffering a severe seizure in the university library.
The pair quickly become close,...
- 11/3/2017
- by Guest
- Nerdly
Review by Matthew Turner
Stars: Elina Lowensohn, Stephane Ferrara, Bernie Bonvoisin, Herve Sogne, Michelangelo Marchese, Marc Barbe, Pierre Nisse, Marine Sainsily, Dorilya Calmel, Aline Stevens, Dominique Troyes, Bamba | Written and Directed by Helene Cattet, Bruno Forzani
Belgian co-directors Helene Cattet and Bruno Forzani garnered an instant cult following with Amer (2009) and The Strange Colour of Your Body’s Tears (2013), both of which paid luxurious homage to 1970s giallo movies. Their latest film, Let the Corpses Tan (or Laissez Bronzer les Cadavres, original language fans) sees the pair applying their expert pastiche skills to violent European crime thrillers of the same decade, to deliriously enjoyable effect.
Loosely adapted from a 1971 French novel by Jean-Patrick Machete and Jean-Pierre Bastid, the plot is deceptively simple and a good deal more coherent than either of Cattet and Forzani’s previous films. Former Hal Hartley muse Elina Lowensohn plays Luce, a middle-aged artist who lives in a run-down,...
Stars: Elina Lowensohn, Stephane Ferrara, Bernie Bonvoisin, Herve Sogne, Michelangelo Marchese, Marc Barbe, Pierre Nisse, Marine Sainsily, Dorilya Calmel, Aline Stevens, Dominique Troyes, Bamba | Written and Directed by Helene Cattet, Bruno Forzani
Belgian co-directors Helene Cattet and Bruno Forzani garnered an instant cult following with Amer (2009) and The Strange Colour of Your Body’s Tears (2013), both of which paid luxurious homage to 1970s giallo movies. Their latest film, Let the Corpses Tan (or Laissez Bronzer les Cadavres, original language fans) sees the pair applying their expert pastiche skills to violent European crime thrillers of the same decade, to deliriously enjoyable effect.
Loosely adapted from a 1971 French novel by Jean-Patrick Machete and Jean-Pierre Bastid, the plot is deceptively simple and a good deal more coherent than either of Cattet and Forzani’s previous films. Former Hal Hartley muse Elina Lowensohn plays Luce, a middle-aged artist who lives in a run-down,...
- 10/18/2017
- by Guest
- Nerdly
Review by Matthew Turner
Stars: Kyle Mooney, Mark Hamill, Jane Adams, Greg Kinnear, Matt Walsh, Michaela Watkins, Ryan Simpkins, Alexa Demie, Jorge Lendeborg Jr., Claire Danes, Chance Crimin, Beck Bennett, Andy Samberg | Written by Kevin Costello, Kyle Mooney | Directed by Dave McCary
Saturday Night Live alumnus Dave McCary makes his directorial debut with Brigsby Bear, an engaging and smartly judged indie comedy-drama that mixes elements from several different movies but still manages to feel entirely original.
SNL’s Kyle Mooney (who co-wrote the script with Kevin Costello) plays twenty-five year-old James, who grows up in an underground desert bunker with his “parents” Ted (Mark Hamil) and April (Jane Adams). Kyle’s only entertainment is Brigsby Bear, a children’s fantasy TV show about a talking bear who protects the universe and dispenses weekly life lessons like “curiosity is an unnatural emotion” and “trust only the family unit”.
When the FBI raid the bunker,...
Stars: Kyle Mooney, Mark Hamill, Jane Adams, Greg Kinnear, Matt Walsh, Michaela Watkins, Ryan Simpkins, Alexa Demie, Jorge Lendeborg Jr., Claire Danes, Chance Crimin, Beck Bennett, Andy Samberg | Written by Kevin Costello, Kyle Mooney | Directed by Dave McCary
Saturday Night Live alumnus Dave McCary makes his directorial debut with Brigsby Bear, an engaging and smartly judged indie comedy-drama that mixes elements from several different movies but still manages to feel entirely original.
SNL’s Kyle Mooney (who co-wrote the script with Kevin Costello) plays twenty-five year-old James, who grows up in an underground desert bunker with his “parents” Ted (Mark Hamil) and April (Jane Adams). Kyle’s only entertainment is Brigsby Bear, a children’s fantasy TV show about a talking bear who protects the universe and dispenses weekly life lessons like “curiosity is an unnatural emotion” and “trust only the family unit”.
When the FBI raid the bunker,...
- 10/17/2017
- by Guest
- Nerdly
Review by Matthew Turner
Stars: Vince Vaughn, Jennifer Carpenter, Don Johnson, Marc Blucas, Tom Guiry, Udo Kier, Rob Morgan, Geno Segers, Fred Melamed | Written and Directed by S. Craig Zahler
The second feature from Bone Tomahawk writer/director S. Craig Zahler, stylishly executed, ultra-violent prison flick Brawl in Cell Block 99 features a revelatory performance from Vince Vaughn that will make you see the actor in a whole new light.
Vaughn plays Bradley Thomas, a scary-looking recovering alcoholic with a shaved head and a big old crucifix tattooed onto the back of it. When Bradley winds up in prison after a spot of drug-running goes south, he’s visited by a sleazy henchman (Udo Kier) and given an ultimatum: he has to get himself transferred to a nearby maximum security prison and murder an inmate there or horrible things will happen to his kidnapped wife (Jennifer Carpenter) and unborn child.
Stars: Vince Vaughn, Jennifer Carpenter, Don Johnson, Marc Blucas, Tom Guiry, Udo Kier, Rob Morgan, Geno Segers, Fred Melamed | Written and Directed by S. Craig Zahler
The second feature from Bone Tomahawk writer/director S. Craig Zahler, stylishly executed, ultra-violent prison flick Brawl in Cell Block 99 features a revelatory performance from Vince Vaughn that will make you see the actor in a whole new light.
Vaughn plays Bradley Thomas, a scary-looking recovering alcoholic with a shaved head and a big old crucifix tattooed onto the back of it. When Bradley winds up in prison after a spot of drug-running goes south, he’s visited by a sleazy henchman (Udo Kier) and given an ultimatum: he has to get himself transferred to a nearby maximum security prison and murder an inmate there or horrible things will happen to his kidnapped wife (Jennifer Carpenter) and unborn child.
- 10/16/2017
- by Guest
- Nerdly
Review by Matthew Turner
Stars: Ryan Corr, Abbey Lee, Simone Kessell, Josh McConville, Matt Nable, Aaron Pederson | Written by Matt Nable | Directed by Stephen McCallum
The debut feature from Australian director Stephen McCallum, this gritty biker gang thriller achieves a certain level of sweaty intensity and largely pulls off its Shakespearean parallels, though there are a few wobbles along the way.
Set in present-day Australia, the film centres on biker gang member Paddo (Ryan Corr), who has taken over leadership of the Copperheads Motorcycle Club during club president Knuck’s (screenwriter Matt Nable) three year stint in jail. When Paddo’s learning disabled brother Skink (Josh McConville) steals heroin from rival gang the Devils, Paddo brokers a mutually beneficial agreement with gang leader Sugar (Aaron Pederson) in return for his brother’s life.
However, when Knuck gets out of jail, he refuses to honour the deal, putting both Skink and Paddo’s lives in danger.
Stars: Ryan Corr, Abbey Lee, Simone Kessell, Josh McConville, Matt Nable, Aaron Pederson | Written by Matt Nable | Directed by Stephen McCallum
The debut feature from Australian director Stephen McCallum, this gritty biker gang thriller achieves a certain level of sweaty intensity and largely pulls off its Shakespearean parallels, though there are a few wobbles along the way.
Set in present-day Australia, the film centres on biker gang member Paddo (Ryan Corr), who has taken over leadership of the Copperheads Motorcycle Club during club president Knuck’s (screenwriter Matt Nable) three year stint in jail. When Paddo’s learning disabled brother Skink (Josh McConville) steals heroin from rival gang the Devils, Paddo brokers a mutually beneficial agreement with gang leader Sugar (Aaron Pederson) in return for his brother’s life.
However, when Knuck gets out of jail, he refuses to honour the deal, putting both Skink and Paddo’s lives in danger.
- 10/11/2017
- by Guest
- Nerdly
Review by Matthew Turner
Stars: Aubrey Plaza, Elizabeth Olsen, O’Shea Jackson Jr., Wyatt Russell, Billy Magnussen, Pom Klementieff | Written by Matt Spicer, David Branson Smith | Directed by Matt Spicer
A Single White Female for the Instagram generation, this sharp-edged stalker comedy from co-writer / director Matt Spicer succeeds as both scathing social media satire and jet-black comedy, while maintaining a surprising amount of sympathy for its central character.
Aubrey Plaza plays lonely weirdo Ingrid Thorburn, who spends time in an asylum for pepper-spraying a bride at her wedding, in retaliation for not being invited. It turns out that they were never really friends – the bride was someone Ingrid had followed on Instagram and she’d formed an unhealthy fixation on her after a reply to her comments.
After her release, Ingrid quickly forms a new attachment to Insta-celebrity Taylor Sloane (Elizabeth Olsen), after reading about her in a magazine profile.
Stars: Aubrey Plaza, Elizabeth Olsen, O’Shea Jackson Jr., Wyatt Russell, Billy Magnussen, Pom Klementieff | Written by Matt Spicer, David Branson Smith | Directed by Matt Spicer
A Single White Female for the Instagram generation, this sharp-edged stalker comedy from co-writer / director Matt Spicer succeeds as both scathing social media satire and jet-black comedy, while maintaining a surprising amount of sympathy for its central character.
Aubrey Plaza plays lonely weirdo Ingrid Thorburn, who spends time in an asylum for pepper-spraying a bride at her wedding, in retaliation for not being invited. It turns out that they were never really friends – the bride was someone Ingrid had followed on Instagram and she’d formed an unhealthy fixation on her after a reply to her comments.
After her release, Ingrid quickly forms a new attachment to Insta-celebrity Taylor Sloane (Elizabeth Olsen), after reading about her in a magazine profile.
- 10/9/2017
- by Guest
- Nerdly
Review by Matthew Turner
Stars: Seann William Scott, Alison Pill, Marc-Andre Grondin, Liev Schreiber, Wyatt Russell, Kim Coates, Elisha Cuthbert, Jay Baruchel, Callum Keith Rennie, Jonathan Mark Cherry | Written by Jay Baruchel, Jesse Chabot | Directed by Jay Baruchel
Back in 2011, Michael Dowse’s Canadian sports comedy Goon was a minor hit with critics, but only ended up taking a modest $12m at the U.S. box office. Evidently, however, the film has since picked up something of a cult following, which explains the presence of this somewhat belated but nonetheless entertaining sequel that reunites the majority of the key players.
The directorial debut of actor Jay Baruchel (who co-wrote and co-starred in the first film), the sequel finds sweet-natured but dim-witted ice hockey bruiser Doug “The Thug” Glatt (Seann William Scott) still playing for his beloved Halifax Highlanders and now married to former girlfriend Eva (Alison Pill), who has just announced that she’s expecting.
Stars: Seann William Scott, Alison Pill, Marc-Andre Grondin, Liev Schreiber, Wyatt Russell, Kim Coates, Elisha Cuthbert, Jay Baruchel, Callum Keith Rennie, Jonathan Mark Cherry | Written by Jay Baruchel, Jesse Chabot | Directed by Jay Baruchel
Back in 2011, Michael Dowse’s Canadian sports comedy Goon was a minor hit with critics, but only ended up taking a modest $12m at the U.S. box office. Evidently, however, the film has since picked up something of a cult following, which explains the presence of this somewhat belated but nonetheless entertaining sequel that reunites the majority of the key players.
The directorial debut of actor Jay Baruchel (who co-wrote and co-starred in the first film), the sequel finds sweet-natured but dim-witted ice hockey bruiser Doug “The Thug” Glatt (Seann William Scott) still playing for his beloved Halifax Highlanders and now married to former girlfriend Eva (Alison Pill), who has just announced that she’s expecting.
- 9/9/2017
- by Guest
- Nerdly
Review by Matthew Turner
Stars: Jeremy Renner, Elizabeth Olsen, Gil Birmingham, Graham Greene, Jon Bernthal, Julia Jones, Kelsey Asbille, James Jordan | Written and Directed by Taylor Sheridan
Avengers co-stars Jeremy Renner and Elizabeth Olsen headline this snowbound mystery thriller from Taylor Sheridan, the writer of Sicario and Hell or High Water. Gripping and moving in equal measure, it’s being billed as Sheridan’s “proper” directorial debut, which probably says everything you need to know about his actual debut, the little-seen 2011 horror flick Vile.
Set in the remote Wind River Reservation in Wyoming, the film opens with a young Native American woman (Kelsey Asbille) running for her life, barefoot, in sub-zero conditions in the wintery wilderness. When she’s found, frozen to death, an autopsy reveals that she was raped, prompting the arrival of Vegas-based FBI agent Jane Banner (Olsen), who teams up with Native American sheriff Ben (Greene) to investigate.
Stars: Jeremy Renner, Elizabeth Olsen, Gil Birmingham, Graham Greene, Jon Bernthal, Julia Jones, Kelsey Asbille, James Jordan | Written and Directed by Taylor Sheridan
Avengers co-stars Jeremy Renner and Elizabeth Olsen headline this snowbound mystery thriller from Taylor Sheridan, the writer of Sicario and Hell or High Water. Gripping and moving in equal measure, it’s being billed as Sheridan’s “proper” directorial debut, which probably says everything you need to know about his actual debut, the little-seen 2011 horror flick Vile.
Set in the remote Wind River Reservation in Wyoming, the film opens with a young Native American woman (Kelsey Asbille) running for her life, barefoot, in sub-zero conditions in the wintery wilderness. When she’s found, frozen to death, an autopsy reveals that she was raped, prompting the arrival of Vegas-based FBI agent Jane Banner (Olsen), who teams up with Native American sheriff Ben (Greene) to investigate.
- 9/8/2017
- by Guest
- Nerdly
Review by Matthew Turner
Stars: Dominic Cooper, Gemma Chan, Connie Nielsen, Tom Felton, Tyler Hoechlin, Derek Jacobi, Austin Stowell, Thomas Kretschmann | Written by Warren Davis II, Duncan Falconer | Directed by Simon West
Directed by Simon West (Con Air), this British spy thriller clearly fancies itself as the basis of a lucrative action franchise in the Bond or Bourne mould. Unfortunately, the action is decidedly sub-par and the central character is as dull as dishwater, which doesn’t bode well for its chances of future instalments.
Based on a series of novels by former Special Boat Service commando Duncan Falconer (who co-wrote the screenplay), Stratton centres on pint-sized Sbs commando John Stratton (Dominic Cooper), who’s tasked with capturing evil Russian agent Grigori Barovsky (Thomas Kretschmann), before he unleashes a deadly terror attack on central London. The mission has a personal edge for Stratton, as Barovsky is the man responsible for...
Stars: Dominic Cooper, Gemma Chan, Connie Nielsen, Tom Felton, Tyler Hoechlin, Derek Jacobi, Austin Stowell, Thomas Kretschmann | Written by Warren Davis II, Duncan Falconer | Directed by Simon West
Directed by Simon West (Con Air), this British spy thriller clearly fancies itself as the basis of a lucrative action franchise in the Bond or Bourne mould. Unfortunately, the action is decidedly sub-par and the central character is as dull as dishwater, which doesn’t bode well for its chances of future instalments.
Based on a series of novels by former Special Boat Service commando Duncan Falconer (who co-wrote the screenplay), Stratton centres on pint-sized Sbs commando John Stratton (Dominic Cooper), who’s tasked with capturing evil Russian agent Grigori Barovsky (Thomas Kretschmann), before he unleashes a deadly terror attack on central London. The mission has a personal edge for Stratton, as Barovsky is the man responsible for...
- 9/2/2017
- by Guest
- Nerdly
Review by Matthew Turner
Stars: Charlie Cox, Billy Cook, Freema Agyeman, Robert Portal, Mackenzie Crook, Eve Myles, Vincent Regan, Tony Curran, Dexter Fletcher, Ruth Jones, Annette Crosbie | Written by Danny King | Directed by Jason Flemyng
The directorial debut of actor Jason Flemyng, this low budget British horror-comedy has a solid cast and a moderately intriguing premise, but it can’t quite decide whether it wants to go for scares or laughs and ends up falling awkwardly between the two.
Written by Danny King (Wild Bill), Eat Locals (originally Eat Local, with an ‘s’ being added in the marketing stage) centres on a coven of centuries-old vampires – including Daredevil’s Charlie Cox, Doctor Who’s Freema Agyeman and One Foot in the Grave‘s Annette Crosbie – convening for their semi-centennial meeting at a remote country farmhouse. Also present is naïve orphan Sebastian (Billy Cook), who thinks he’s on a promise with vampish Vanessa (Eve Myles,...
Stars: Charlie Cox, Billy Cook, Freema Agyeman, Robert Portal, Mackenzie Crook, Eve Myles, Vincent Regan, Tony Curran, Dexter Fletcher, Ruth Jones, Annette Crosbie | Written by Danny King | Directed by Jason Flemyng
The directorial debut of actor Jason Flemyng, this low budget British horror-comedy has a solid cast and a moderately intriguing premise, but it can’t quite decide whether it wants to go for scares or laughs and ends up falling awkwardly between the two.
Written by Danny King (Wild Bill), Eat Locals (originally Eat Local, with an ‘s’ being added in the marketing stage) centres on a coven of centuries-old vampires – including Daredevil’s Charlie Cox, Doctor Who’s Freema Agyeman and One Foot in the Grave‘s Annette Crosbie – convening for their semi-centennial meeting at a remote country farmhouse. Also present is naïve orphan Sebastian (Billy Cook), who thinks he’s on a promise with vampish Vanessa (Eve Myles,...
- 9/2/2017
- by Guest
- Nerdly
Review by Matthew Turner
Stars: Bill Nighy, Olivia Cooke, Douglas Booth, Daniel Mays, Sam Reid, Maria Valverde, Henry Goodman, Eddie Marsan | Written by Jane Goldman | Directed by Juan Carlos Medina
If you know your mythical creatures, the title (and, indeed, the IMDb synopsis) of this period horror movie might give you unreasonable expectations for its content. However, instead of the monster from Jewish folklore, the Limehouse Golem here is essentially a nick-name for a (fictional) Jack the Ripper-like slasher terrorising the East End of Victorian London.
Directed by Juan Carlos Medina (his English language debut after 2012′s Painless) and adapted from a 1994 novel by Peter Ackroyd (Dan Leno and the Limehouse Golem), The Limehouse Golem opens with former music hall star Elizabeth “Little Lizzie” Cree (Bates Motel’s Olivia Cooke) being arrested for the murder of her husband, failed journalist John Cree (Sam Reid). That brings her to the attention...
Stars: Bill Nighy, Olivia Cooke, Douglas Booth, Daniel Mays, Sam Reid, Maria Valverde, Henry Goodman, Eddie Marsan | Written by Jane Goldman | Directed by Juan Carlos Medina
If you know your mythical creatures, the title (and, indeed, the IMDb synopsis) of this period horror movie might give you unreasonable expectations for its content. However, instead of the monster from Jewish folklore, the Limehouse Golem here is essentially a nick-name for a (fictional) Jack the Ripper-like slasher terrorising the East End of Victorian London.
Directed by Juan Carlos Medina (his English language debut after 2012′s Painless) and adapted from a 1994 novel by Peter Ackroyd (Dan Leno and the Limehouse Golem), The Limehouse Golem opens with former music hall star Elizabeth “Little Lizzie” Cree (Bates Motel’s Olivia Cooke) being arrested for the murder of her husband, failed journalist John Cree (Sam Reid). That brings her to the attention...
- 9/2/2017
- by Guest
- Nerdly
Review by Matthew Turner
Stars: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Linda Hamilton, Edward Furlong, Robert Patrick, Joe Morton, Earl Boen, Jenette Goldstein, Xander Berkeley | Written by James Cameron, William Wisher Jr. | Directed by James Cameron
Twenty-six years after it blasted onto screens in the summer of 1991, James Cameron’s smash-hit Terminator sequel Terminator 2: Judgment Day has been given an immaculate clean-up and 3D conversion treatment for this missed-it-by-a-year anniversary release. Supervised by Cameron himself, the newly tweaked 3D effects are reason enough to see the film on the big screen again, but does it still hold up after all this time? The short answer is yes. Yes, it does.
The plot, in case you somehow needed reminding, picks up ten years after the events of 1984′s The Terminator, with Sarah Connor (Linda Hamilton) locked up in an asylum, muttering about an imminent apocalypse, and future resistance leader John Connor (Edward Furlong) still...
Stars: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Linda Hamilton, Edward Furlong, Robert Patrick, Joe Morton, Earl Boen, Jenette Goldstein, Xander Berkeley | Written by James Cameron, William Wisher Jr. | Directed by James Cameron
Twenty-six years after it blasted onto screens in the summer of 1991, James Cameron’s smash-hit Terminator sequel Terminator 2: Judgment Day has been given an immaculate clean-up and 3D conversion treatment for this missed-it-by-a-year anniversary release. Supervised by Cameron himself, the newly tweaked 3D effects are reason enough to see the film on the big screen again, but does it still hold up after all this time? The short answer is yes. Yes, it does.
The plot, in case you somehow needed reminding, picks up ten years after the events of 1984′s The Terminator, with Sarah Connor (Linda Hamilton) locked up in an asylum, muttering about an imminent apocalypse, and future resistance leader John Connor (Edward Furlong) still...
- 9/1/2017
- by Guest
- Nerdly
Review by Matthew Turner
Stars: Tom Cruise, Domhnall Gleeson, Sarah Wright Olsen, Alejandro Edda, Caleb Landry Jones, Jayma Mays, Jesse Plemons, Lola Kirke | Written by Gary Spinelli | Directed by Doug Liman
Tom Cruise reteams with Edge of Tomorrow director Doug Liman for this slickly entertaining, if slightly familiar comedy thriller based on the true story of pilot-turned-drug smuggler-slash-cia conscript Barry Seale.
American Made begins in 1978, with bored Twa pilot Seale (Cruise) being tapped by CIA agent Schafer (Domhnall Gleeson) to fly covert surveillance missions over Central America. When those missions involve Colombia, Seale is approached by the Medellín Cartel, who offer him large sums of cash if he smuggles cocaine into America.
Things quickly spiral out of control as the CIA task Barry with running Russian guns to the Contras in Nicaragua, only for the Cartel to make him a better offer for them, which he cheerfully accepts. Meanwhile,...
Stars: Tom Cruise, Domhnall Gleeson, Sarah Wright Olsen, Alejandro Edda, Caleb Landry Jones, Jayma Mays, Jesse Plemons, Lola Kirke | Written by Gary Spinelli | Directed by Doug Liman
Tom Cruise reteams with Edge of Tomorrow director Doug Liman for this slickly entertaining, if slightly familiar comedy thriller based on the true story of pilot-turned-drug smuggler-slash-cia conscript Barry Seale.
American Made begins in 1978, with bored Twa pilot Seale (Cruise) being tapped by CIA agent Schafer (Domhnall Gleeson) to fly covert surveillance missions over Central America. When those missions involve Colombia, Seale is approached by the Medellín Cartel, who offer him large sums of cash if he smuggles cocaine into America.
Things quickly spiral out of control as the CIA task Barry with running Russian guns to the Contras in Nicaragua, only for the Cartel to make him a better offer for them, which he cheerfully accepts. Meanwhile,...
- 8/26/2017
- by Guest
- Nerdly
Review by Matthew Turner
Stars: John Boyega, Will Poulter, Algee Smith, Jacob Latimore, Jason Mitchell, Hannah Murray, Kaitlyn Dever, Jack Reynor, Ben O’Toole | Written by Mark Boal | Directed by Kathryn Bigelow
Kathryn Bigelow’s third collaboration with screenwriter Mark Boal (The Hurt Locker, Zero Dark Thirty) is a powerful, angry drama about racism, police brutality and the complicity of silence. Though it focuses on an incident that took place exactly fifty years ago, it feels horrifyingly relevant today and will leave you shaking with rage.
Detroit begins with white police officers raiding a black, after-hours drinking club in July 1967 and violently mistreating its patrons, an incident that quickly flares up into the Detroit Riots and brings the National Guard to the streets of the city. Meanwhile, at a nearby theatre, aspiring singer Larry (Algee Smith) is devastated when the rioting outside forces the closure of the venue, right before...
Stars: John Boyega, Will Poulter, Algee Smith, Jacob Latimore, Jason Mitchell, Hannah Murray, Kaitlyn Dever, Jack Reynor, Ben O’Toole | Written by Mark Boal | Directed by Kathryn Bigelow
Kathryn Bigelow’s third collaboration with screenwriter Mark Boal (The Hurt Locker, Zero Dark Thirty) is a powerful, angry drama about racism, police brutality and the complicity of silence. Though it focuses on an incident that took place exactly fifty years ago, it feels horrifyingly relevant today and will leave you shaking with rage.
Detroit begins with white police officers raiding a black, after-hours drinking club in July 1967 and violently mistreating its patrons, an incident that quickly flares up into the Detroit Riots and brings the National Guard to the streets of the city. Meanwhile, at a nearby theatre, aspiring singer Larry (Algee Smith) is devastated when the rioting outside forces the closure of the venue, right before...
- 8/26/2017
- by Guest
- Nerdly
Review by Matthew Turner
Stars: Brittany Snow, Dave Bautista, Angelic Zambrana, Jeremie Harris, Myra Lucretia Taylor, Alex Breaux, Arturo Castro | Written by Nick Damici, Graham Reznick | Directed by Cary Murnion, Jonathan Milott
Directed by Cary Murnion and Jonathan Milott (Cooties), this pacey U.S. invasion thriller picks up points for its premise, performances and photography, but the script passes up the chance for some political commentary.
The film’s extremely strong opening has college student Lucy (Brittany Snow) getting off the subway in Bushwick, New York and suddenly finding herself in the middle of a war zone, with armed militia on the streets. Dodging the hails of gunfire, Lucy is rescued by hulking ex-Marine Stupe (Guardians of the Galaxy‘s Dave Bautista), who agrees to help her make it to her grandmother’s house, a few blocks away. However, they soon discover that the situation is worse than they thought...
Stars: Brittany Snow, Dave Bautista, Angelic Zambrana, Jeremie Harris, Myra Lucretia Taylor, Alex Breaux, Arturo Castro | Written by Nick Damici, Graham Reznick | Directed by Cary Murnion, Jonathan Milott
Directed by Cary Murnion and Jonathan Milott (Cooties), this pacey U.S. invasion thriller picks up points for its premise, performances and photography, but the script passes up the chance for some political commentary.
The film’s extremely strong opening has college student Lucy (Brittany Snow) getting off the subway in Bushwick, New York and suddenly finding herself in the middle of a war zone, with armed militia on the streets. Dodging the hails of gunfire, Lucy is rescued by hulking ex-Marine Stupe (Guardians of the Galaxy‘s Dave Bautista), who agrees to help her make it to her grandmother’s house, a few blocks away. However, they soon discover that the situation is worse than they thought...
- 8/25/2017
- by Guest
- Nerdly
Review by Matthew Turner
Stars: Ruth Ramos, Simone Bucio, Jesús Meza, Eden Villavicencio, Andrea Peláez, Oscar Escalante, Bernarda Trueba | Written by Amat Escalante, Gibrán Portela | Directed by Amat Escalante
The fourth film from Mexican writer-director Amat Escalante (Heli) mixes social realism and weird sci-fi eroticism to mesmerising effect.
Co-written by Escalante and Gibrán Portela, The Untamed begins with a shot of a meteorite, drifting through space, before abruptly cutting to a young, naked woman (Simone Bucio as Veronica) being pleasured by a tentacled creature in a shed, somewhere in the Mexican countryside. As if that wasn’t already strange enough, she’s also being observed by an older couple (Oscar Escalante and Bernarda Trueba), who appear to be the creature’s guardians.
When Veronica sustains a nasty injury during her encounter, she attends the local hospital, where she befriends first charming, openly gay nurse Fabian (Eden Villavicencio), and later his...
Stars: Ruth Ramos, Simone Bucio, Jesús Meza, Eden Villavicencio, Andrea Peláez, Oscar Escalante, Bernarda Trueba | Written by Amat Escalante, Gibrán Portela | Directed by Amat Escalante
The fourth film from Mexican writer-director Amat Escalante (Heli) mixes social realism and weird sci-fi eroticism to mesmerising effect.
Co-written by Escalante and Gibrán Portela, The Untamed begins with a shot of a meteorite, drifting through space, before abruptly cutting to a young, naked woman (Simone Bucio as Veronica) being pleasured by a tentacled creature in a shed, somewhere in the Mexican countryside. As if that wasn’t already strange enough, she’s also being observed by an older couple (Oscar Escalante and Bernarda Trueba), who appear to be the creature’s guardians.
When Veronica sustains a nasty injury during her encounter, she attends the local hospital, where she befriends first charming, openly gay nurse Fabian (Eden Villavicencio), and later his...
- 8/18/2017
- by Guest
- Nerdly
Review by Matthew Turner
Stars: Charlize Theron, James McAvoy, Sofia Boutella, Bill Skarsgård, John Goodman, Toby Jones, Roland Moller | Written by Kurt Johnstad | Based on “The Coldest City” by Antony Johnston & Sam Hart | Directed by David Leitch
An ice cool Charlize Theron kicks plenty of ass in this stylish Cold War action thriller from the co-director of John Wick, but the script leaves a lot to be desired.
Sporting a distractingly dodgy British accent and a Debbie Harry-style peroxide blonde hair-do, Theron plays MI6 agent Lorraine Broughton, who’s sent into Cold War Berlin to investigate the murder of a fellow agent (Sam Hargrave) and recover a missing list of undercover agents. Her contact in Berlin is shady MI6 station officer David Percival (James McAvoy), who seems to have gone a little too deep undercover as a contraband-toting wheeler-dealer and appears to have his own agenda.
Sure enough, Lorraine...
Stars: Charlize Theron, James McAvoy, Sofia Boutella, Bill Skarsgård, John Goodman, Toby Jones, Roland Moller | Written by Kurt Johnstad | Based on “The Coldest City” by Antony Johnston & Sam Hart | Directed by David Leitch
An ice cool Charlize Theron kicks plenty of ass in this stylish Cold War action thriller from the co-director of John Wick, but the script leaves a lot to be desired.
Sporting a distractingly dodgy British accent and a Debbie Harry-style peroxide blonde hair-do, Theron plays MI6 agent Lorraine Broughton, who’s sent into Cold War Berlin to investigate the murder of a fellow agent (Sam Hargrave) and recover a missing list of undercover agents. Her contact in Berlin is shady MI6 station officer David Percival (James McAvoy), who seems to have gone a little too deep undercover as a contraband-toting wheeler-dealer and appears to have his own agenda.
Sure enough, Lorraine...
- 8/14/2017
- by Guest
- Nerdly
Review by Matthew Turner
Stars: Aaron Taylor-Johnson, John Cena, Laith Nakli | Written by Dwain Worrell | Directed by Doug Liman
Director Doug Liman follows up Edge of Tomorrow with this stripped down Iraqi sniper thriller that plays like an Iraq War version of Joel Schumacher’s Phone Booth.
Set in 2007 – at the tail-end of the war, with Bush having declared victory – the film effectively takes place at a single location. When Army Ranger sharpshooter Sgt Shane Matthews (WWE star John Cena) and his spotter, Sgt Allen “Eyes” Isaac (Aaron Taylor-Johnson) arrive at the scene of a distress call, they discover eight bodies (including civilians and their military liaison officers) lying dead near an unfinished pipeline. After observing the area from a distance for the past 24 hours, Matthews believes it is safe and approaches the bodies, only to take a hit from an unseen sniper that leaves him severely wounded.
Isaac rushes to help,...
Stars: Aaron Taylor-Johnson, John Cena, Laith Nakli | Written by Dwain Worrell | Directed by Doug Liman
Director Doug Liman follows up Edge of Tomorrow with this stripped down Iraqi sniper thriller that plays like an Iraq War version of Joel Schumacher’s Phone Booth.
Set in 2007 – at the tail-end of the war, with Bush having declared victory – the film effectively takes place at a single location. When Army Ranger sharpshooter Sgt Shane Matthews (WWE star John Cena) and his spotter, Sgt Allen “Eyes” Isaac (Aaron Taylor-Johnson) arrive at the scene of a distress call, they discover eight bodies (including civilians and their military liaison officers) lying dead near an unfinished pipeline. After observing the area from a distance for the past 24 hours, Matthews believes it is safe and approaches the bodies, only to take a hit from an unseen sniper that leaves him severely wounded.
Isaac rushes to help,...
- 7/31/2017
- by Guest
- Nerdly
Review by Matthew Turner
Stars: Mandy Moore, Claire Holt, Matthew Modine, Chris Johnson, Yani Gellman, Santiago Segura | Written by Johannes Roberts, Ernest Riera | Directed by Johannes Roberts
Directed by Johannes Roberts (The Other Side of the Door), this ladies-in-peril shark thriller might lack the bite of last year’s The Shallows, but it delivers enough of the requisite suspense moments to ensure that it succeeds on its own B-movie terms.
Mandy Moore (TV’s This Is Us) and Claire Holt (TV’s The Vampire Diaries) play Lisa and Kate, two vacationing sisters who have come to Mexico to help Lisa get over being recently dumped by her boyfriend. (In an unexpected echo of Amy Schumer’s Snatched, Kate is a last-minute replacement for the now ex-boyfriend, which kind of makes you wish Schumer and Hawn had thrown in some sharks to liven things up a bit).
Down in the dumps...
Stars: Mandy Moore, Claire Holt, Matthew Modine, Chris Johnson, Yani Gellman, Santiago Segura | Written by Johannes Roberts, Ernest Riera | Directed by Johannes Roberts
Directed by Johannes Roberts (The Other Side of the Door), this ladies-in-peril shark thriller might lack the bite of last year’s The Shallows, but it delivers enough of the requisite suspense moments to ensure that it succeeds on its own B-movie terms.
Mandy Moore (TV’s This Is Us) and Claire Holt (TV’s The Vampire Diaries) play Lisa and Kate, two vacationing sisters who have come to Mexico to help Lisa get over being recently dumped by her boyfriend. (In an unexpected echo of Amy Schumer’s Snatched, Kate is a last-minute replacement for the now ex-boyfriend, which kind of makes you wish Schumer and Hawn had thrown in some sharks to liven things up a bit).
Down in the dumps...
- 7/31/2017
- by Guest
- Nerdly
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