Audrey Plaza headlines Ingrid Goes West, that's in UK cinemas now. Here's our review...
There's a clever bit of storytelling early on in Ingrid Goes West, an Instagram social satire, in which Aubrey Plaza's Ingrid Thorburn double taps images on her feed to like them. We're shown this just once, but the act of her staring blankly at her screen and emotionlessly giving the heart to everything she sees goes on for the duration, less like an addiction and more like muscle memory. That incessant tap tap sound effect is the scary heartbeat underlying this dark comedy.
Right after that first time though, she gets out of her car, tearfully gatecrashes a wedding reception and pepper sprays the bride for not inviting her. It transpires that they're not even real life friends, and somewhere in Ingrid's grief over the recent loss of her mother, she's started to invest more...
There's a clever bit of storytelling early on in Ingrid Goes West, an Instagram social satire, in which Aubrey Plaza's Ingrid Thorburn double taps images on her feed to like them. We're shown this just once, but the act of her staring blankly at her screen and emotionlessly giving the heart to everything she sees goes on for the duration, less like an addiction and more like muscle memory. That incessant tap tap sound effect is the scary heartbeat underlying this dark comedy.
Right after that first time though, she gets out of her car, tearfully gatecrashes a wedding reception and pepper sprays the bride for not inviting her. It transpires that they're not even real life friends, and somewhere in Ingrid's grief over the recent loss of her mother, she's started to invest more...
- 11/22/2017
- Den of Geek
Mark Harrison Nov 21, 2017
A spoiler-y look at Batman Vs Superman, Justice League, and Batman's 'Knightmare'...
This article contains spoilers for Batman V Superman: Dawn Of Justice and Justice League.
One of the most surreal and oft-discussed scenes in Zack Snyder's Batman V Superman: Dawn Of Justice comes around an hour into the film, when Bruce Wayne nods off at his desk in the Batcave. The five minute sequence that follows, dubbed 'the Knightmare' (but not the Citv gameshow), is the sum of all Bruce's fears about Superman, showing a dystopian future that could have foreshadowed the future of the DC cinematic universe.
However, these plans have been significantly changed over the course of the 20 months between the release of Batman V Superman and its follow-up, Justice League, by a combination of the vitriolic reception of the former, a frantic course correction on the latter and the real life...
A spoiler-y look at Batman Vs Superman, Justice League, and Batman's 'Knightmare'...
This article contains spoilers for Batman V Superman: Dawn Of Justice and Justice League.
One of the most surreal and oft-discussed scenes in Zack Snyder's Batman V Superman: Dawn Of Justice comes around an hour into the film, when Bruce Wayne nods off at his desk in the Batcave. The five minute sequence that follows, dubbed 'the Knightmare' (but not the Citv gameshow), is the sum of all Bruce's fears about Superman, showing a dystopian future that could have foreshadowed the future of the DC cinematic universe.
However, these plans have been significantly changed over the course of the 20 months between the release of Batman V Superman and its follow-up, Justice League, by a combination of the vitriolic reception of the former, a frantic course correction on the latter and the real life...
- 11/20/2017
- Den of Geek
Mark Harrison Nov 16, 2017
Here's our review of Red Dwarf Xii's funny, fan-pleasing finale, available now to stream on UKTV Play. Spoilers...
This review contains spoilers. Don't read on if you haven't seen episode 6, which is available now on UK TV Play.
See related The Walking Dead season 8 episode 4 review: Some Guy The Walking Dead season 8 episode 3 review: Monsters The Walking Dead season 8 episode 2 review: The Damned
12.6 Skipper
“Gordon Bennett. Nobody's dead, Arnold. Nobody is dead."
The future of Red Dwarf remains open, but unconfirmed. Short of UK TV announcing a Day Of The Doctor style special to go out in the next twelve months, it looks like Skipper is as the closest thing we'll get to a 30th anniversary special from Doug Naylor and the gang. If that's the case, it fills those boots rather spectacularly, while simultaneously playing as fast and loose with continuity as it always has.
As...
Here's our review of Red Dwarf Xii's funny, fan-pleasing finale, available now to stream on UKTV Play. Spoilers...
This review contains spoilers. Don't read on if you haven't seen episode 6, which is available now on UK TV Play.
See related The Walking Dead season 8 episode 4 review: Some Guy The Walking Dead season 8 episode 3 review: Monsters The Walking Dead season 8 episode 2 review: The Damned
12.6 Skipper
“Gordon Bennett. Nobody's dead, Arnold. Nobody is dead."
The future of Red Dwarf remains open, but unconfirmed. Short of UK TV announcing a Day Of The Doctor style special to go out in the next twelve months, it looks like Skipper is as the closest thing we'll get to a 30th anniversary special from Doug Naylor and the gang. If that's the case, it fills those boots rather spectacularly, while simultaneously playing as fast and loose with continuity as it always has.
As...
- 11/10/2017
- Den of Geek
Mark Harrison Nov 9, 2017
M-Corp is the latest thoroughly entertaining Red Dwarf Xii episode. Spoilers ahead in our review...
This review contains spoilers.
See related The Punisher: new images The Punisher: what can we expect from a solo Netflix series? New on Netflix UK: what's added in November 2017?
12.5 M-Corp
“Welcome to M-Corp. We love looking after you.”
At the end of last week's episode Mechocracy, Lister told Cat that you can't help getting older, but you can help getting old. It's something he might have wanted to keep in mind in this week's episode, M-Corp, in which he has an unfortunate brush with terrifying outer space capitalism on his birthday.
At the turn of another year – not his 30th, not his 40th, but somewhere beyond that – Lister suffers a heart scare that turns out to be chronic indigestion. Upon discovering that the ship's outdated medical computer is utterly unfit for purpose...
M-Corp is the latest thoroughly entertaining Red Dwarf Xii episode. Spoilers ahead in our review...
This review contains spoilers.
See related The Punisher: new images The Punisher: what can we expect from a solo Netflix series? New on Netflix UK: what's added in November 2017?
12.5 M-Corp
“Welcome to M-Corp. We love looking after you.”
At the end of last week's episode Mechocracy, Lister told Cat that you can't help getting older, but you can help getting old. It's something he might have wanted to keep in mind in this week's episode, M-Corp, in which he has an unfortunate brush with terrifying outer space capitalism on his birthday.
At the turn of another year – not his 30th, not his 40th, but somewhere beyond that – Lister suffers a heart scare that turns out to be chronic indigestion. Upon discovering that the ship's outdated medical computer is utterly unfit for purpose...
- 11/2/2017
- Den of Geek
Mark Harrison Oct 31, 2017
Want to enhance your horror movie? Make sure you sign up a cat...
This feature contains broad spoilers for several horror movies featuring cats, including Alien, Cat People, Drag Me To Hell, Fallen, A Girl Walks Home Alone At Night, Pet Sematary and The Voices.
The relationship between humans and cats over time has given way to a number of cultural impressions and outright superstitions. Ancient Egyptians associated them with gods. In the Middle Ages, they were linked with witches and killed en masse, which probably hastened the spread of the Black Plague through the rodent population. And in the modern day, it's interchangeably lucky or not if a black cat crosses your path.
Like anything with such a wide array of symbolic links, movies have presented cats as characters in different ways over the years. It's their abiding association with the supernatural – whether as an omen...
Want to enhance your horror movie? Make sure you sign up a cat...
This feature contains broad spoilers for several horror movies featuring cats, including Alien, Cat People, Drag Me To Hell, Fallen, A Girl Walks Home Alone At Night, Pet Sematary and The Voices.
The relationship between humans and cats over time has given way to a number of cultural impressions and outright superstitions. Ancient Egyptians associated them with gods. In the Middle Ages, they were linked with witches and killed en masse, which probably hastened the spread of the Black Plague through the rodent population. And in the modern day, it's interchangeably lucky or not if a black cat crosses your path.
Like anything with such a wide array of symbolic links, movies have presented cats as characters in different ways over the years. It's their abiding association with the supernatural – whether as an omen...
- 10/29/2017
- Den of Geek
Andy Serkis' directorial debut, Breathe, has much to recommend it. Here's our review...
Back in 2011, Andy Serkis and producer Jonathan Cavendish set up The Imaginarium, a production company and performance capture studio that has provided effects for Serkis-starring movies like Avengers: Age Of Ultron, Star Wars: The Force Awakens and the last three Planet Of The Apes movies. Breathe is the Imaginarium's first produced film (though their second on release, after horror movie The Ritual) and as you must be able to guess from the premise, it's a world away from that kind of Hollywood fare.
Based on the true story of Cavendish's parents, we meet 28-year-old Robin Cavendish (Andrew Garfield) as he meets and courts Diana Blacker (Claire Foy.) They marry and move to Kenya soon after and anticipate a lifetime of adventure ahead of them, that is, until Robin falls ill. Polio leaves him paralysed from the neck down,...
Back in 2011, Andy Serkis and producer Jonathan Cavendish set up The Imaginarium, a production company and performance capture studio that has provided effects for Serkis-starring movies like Avengers: Age Of Ultron, Star Wars: The Force Awakens and the last three Planet Of The Apes movies. Breathe is the Imaginarium's first produced film (though their second on release, after horror movie The Ritual) and as you must be able to guess from the premise, it's a world away from that kind of Hollywood fare.
Based on the true story of Cavendish's parents, we meet 28-year-old Robin Cavendish (Andrew Garfield) as he meets and courts Diana Blacker (Claire Foy.) They marry and move to Kenya soon after and anticipate a lifetime of adventure ahead of them, that is, until Robin falls ill. Polio leaves him paralysed from the neck down,...
- 10/29/2017
- Den of Geek
Mark Harrison Nov 2, 2017
With Mechocracy, Red Dwarf Xii delivers a contender for the first bonafide classic episode of the Dave era. Spoilers ahead in our review...
This review contains spoilers.
See related 26 new TV shows to watch in 2017
12.4 Mechocracy
“I'm Kryten 2X4B and I approve this message.”
Now, this is more like it. Whatever you thought of the first three episodes of Red Dwarf Xii, you're in for a real treat with the back half of the run. And what better way to start than with Mechocracy, a ship-bound character-driven satire which I think has a strong claim to being the first bonafide classic episode of the Dave era.
We've seen sentient dispensing machines in Series X's Dear Dave, but this makes better use of the automatic population of Red Dwarf, who are mostly voiced by Daniel Barker once again. When Lister accidentally downloads an Sos virus into Red Dwarf's Cpu,...
With Mechocracy, Red Dwarf Xii delivers a contender for the first bonafide classic episode of the Dave era. Spoilers ahead in our review...
This review contains spoilers.
See related 26 new TV shows to watch in 2017
12.4 Mechocracy
“I'm Kryten 2X4B and I approve this message.”
Now, this is more like it. Whatever you thought of the first three episodes of Red Dwarf Xii, you're in for a real treat with the back half of the run. And what better way to start than with Mechocracy, a ship-bound character-driven satire which I think has a strong claim to being the first bonafide classic episode of the Dave era.
We've seen sentient dispensing machines in Series X's Dear Dave, but this makes better use of the automatic population of Red Dwarf, who are mostly voiced by Daniel Barker once again. When Lister accidentally downloads an Sos virus into Red Dwarf's Cpu,...
- 10/25/2017
- Den of Geek
Mark Harrison Oct 24, 2017
As Doctor Who series 11 adds a trio of soap opera stars to its cast. And it makes sense...
What do Mandip Gill, Tosin Cole and Bradley Walsh have in common? Other than the fact that they're all joining Jodie Whittaker's Doctor as part of the regular cast of Doctor Who's next series, they've all acted in soap operas. Even 12 years since the show was revived by a former Coronation Street writer, that still makes some fans nervous.
Whatever your thoughts on Corrie, EastEnders and other serial dramas (to give them their proper name – the nickname comes from an outdated observation about soap companies sponsoring many of them), they're the best, most relevant training ground for young actors in British television. It's also more relevant to the experience of working on Doctor Who than you might necessarily expect.
We won't go so far as Doctor Who...
As Doctor Who series 11 adds a trio of soap opera stars to its cast. And it makes sense...
What do Mandip Gill, Tosin Cole and Bradley Walsh have in common? Other than the fact that they're all joining Jodie Whittaker's Doctor as part of the regular cast of Doctor Who's next series, they've all acted in soap operas. Even 12 years since the show was revived by a former Coronation Street writer, that still makes some fans nervous.
Whatever your thoughts on Corrie, EastEnders and other serial dramas (to give them their proper name – the nickname comes from an outdated observation about soap companies sponsoring many of them), they're the best, most relevant training ground for young actors in British television. It's also more relevant to the experience of working on Doctor Who than you might necessarily expect.
We won't go so far as Doctor Who...
- 10/23/2017
- Den of Geek
Mark Harrison Oct 26, 2017
Here's our spoiler-filled review of the latest Red Dwarf Xii episode, Timewave...
This review contains spoilers.
See related The Crown season 2: premiere date set as new trailer arrives
12.3 Timewave
“Are you criticising me?”
This is awkward. If it weren't for the fact that no one sets out to make bad TV, we'd almost think that Doug Naylor was going meta with this one. How rubbish can an episode that lampoons criticism possibly be?
Well, contrary to the dopamine release that reviewers supposedly get from slagging something off, (cheers, Kryts) it gives us no pleasure to say that Timewave is not up to the high standard that Red Dwarf Xii has set in the last two weeks. In fact, we'd go so far as to say it's the worst since the Dave era began with Back To Earth.
The episode starts strongly enough, as Rimmer leads an...
Here's our spoiler-filled review of the latest Red Dwarf Xii episode, Timewave...
This review contains spoilers.
See related The Crown season 2: premiere date set as new trailer arrives
12.3 Timewave
“Are you criticising me?”
This is awkward. If it weren't for the fact that no one sets out to make bad TV, we'd almost think that Doug Naylor was going meta with this one. How rubbish can an episode that lampoons criticism possibly be?
Well, contrary to the dopamine release that reviewers supposedly get from slagging something off, (cheers, Kryts) it gives us no pleasure to say that Timewave is not up to the high standard that Red Dwarf Xii has set in the last two weeks. In fact, we'd go so far as to say it's the worst since the Dave era began with Back To Earth.
The episode starts strongly enough, as Rimmer leads an...
- 10/19/2017
- Den of Geek
Mark Harrison Oct 19, 2017
We salute the 10th anniversary of Matthew Vaughn's wonderful Stardust...
“A philosopher once asked, 'Are we human because we gaze at the stars, or do we gaze at them because we are human?' Pointless, really. Do the stars gaze back? Now, that's a question.”
Comic book movies are Matthew Vaughn's speciality. Between Kick-Ass, X-Men: First Class and the Kingsman franchise, he's been a constant and eclectic presence as these films have boomed, and if reports are to be believed, his next film could be about either Flash Gordon or Superman.
But going back even further than Mark Millar or Marvel, Vaughn's first comic book movie was his adaptation of Neil Gaiman's Stardust, which arrived in UK cinemas ten years ago this week. Before it was published as a novel in 1999, Gaiman conceived the postmodern fairy tale as a 'prestige' comic; the four-issue mini-series...
We salute the 10th anniversary of Matthew Vaughn's wonderful Stardust...
“A philosopher once asked, 'Are we human because we gaze at the stars, or do we gaze at them because we are human?' Pointless, really. Do the stars gaze back? Now, that's a question.”
Comic book movies are Matthew Vaughn's speciality. Between Kick-Ass, X-Men: First Class and the Kingsman franchise, he's been a constant and eclectic presence as these films have boomed, and if reports are to be believed, his next film could be about either Flash Gordon or Superman.
But going back even further than Mark Millar or Marvel, Vaughn's first comic book movie was his adaptation of Neil Gaiman's Stardust, which arrived in UK cinemas ten years ago this week. Before it was published as a novel in 1999, Gaiman conceived the postmodern fairy tale as a 'prestige' comic; the four-issue mini-series...
- 10/18/2017
- Den of Geek
A British horror comedy penned by Danny Morgan, we take a look at Double Date...
British horror comedy is a broad church, and when it comes to the cinema, you could end up with anything from Shaun Of The Dead to Lesbian Vampire Killers. Happily, Double Date, a blokey thriller written by its star Danny Morgan (BBC Three's Ideal) is quite funny and has a certain amount of visual panache, so it lands comfortably in the better end of the spectrum.
Arriving in UK cinemas fresh off a crowd-pleasing premiere at FrightFest earlier this year, the film follows Jim (Morgan), a painfully shy young man who's on the verge of becoming a 30 year old virgin. His best mate Alex (Michael Socha) seems even more exasperated about this than he does. And so, neither of them can believe their luck when stunning sisters Kitty (Kelly Wenham) and Lulu (Georgia Groome...
British horror comedy is a broad church, and when it comes to the cinema, you could end up with anything from Shaun Of The Dead to Lesbian Vampire Killers. Happily, Double Date, a blokey thriller written by its star Danny Morgan (BBC Three's Ideal) is quite funny and has a certain amount of visual panache, so it lands comfortably in the better end of the spectrum.
Arriving in UK cinemas fresh off a crowd-pleasing premiere at FrightFest earlier this year, the film follows Jim (Morgan), a painfully shy young man who's on the verge of becoming a 30 year old virgin. His best mate Alex (Michael Socha) seems even more exasperated about this than he does. And so, neither of them can believe their luck when stunning sisters Kitty (Kelly Wenham) and Lulu (Georgia Groome...
- 10/16/2017
- Den of Geek
Mark Harrison Oct 19, 2017
Siliconia is a staggeringly ambitious episode that shows exactly what Red Dwarf can do in the Dave era...
This review contains spoilers.
See related Star Trek: Discovery episode 1 review - The Vulcan Hello Star Trek: Discovery episode 2 review - Battle At The Binary Star Star Trek: Discovery episode 3 review - Context Is For Kings
12.2 Siliconia
“Our heads are sensibly shaped.”
Kryten is inarguably Red Dwarf's most iconic character. The rubbery, angular mask of the mechanoid head is a marvellous design that should probably stifle any actor wearing it, but Robert Llewellyn's performance has only become more impressive over time. In terms of design and personality, he's the character who could scarcely belong to any other show.
Aside from Llewellyn, only a few other actors have donned the mechanoid get-up in previous episodes, but a lot of what we see in Siliconia feels like it's been...
Siliconia is a staggeringly ambitious episode that shows exactly what Red Dwarf can do in the Dave era...
This review contains spoilers.
See related Star Trek: Discovery episode 1 review - The Vulcan Hello Star Trek: Discovery episode 2 review - Battle At The Binary Star Star Trek: Discovery episode 3 review - Context Is For Kings
12.2 Siliconia
“Our heads are sensibly shaped.”
Kryten is inarguably Red Dwarf's most iconic character. The rubbery, angular mask of the mechanoid head is a marvellous design that should probably stifle any actor wearing it, but Robert Llewellyn's performance has only become more impressive over time. In terms of design and personality, he's the character who could scarcely belong to any other show.
Aside from Llewellyn, only a few other actors have donned the mechanoid get-up in previous episodes, but a lot of what we see in Siliconia feels like it's been...
- 10/11/2017
- Den of Geek
Mark Harrison Oct 12, 2017
Here's our spoiler-filled review of the Red Dwarf series 12 opener, Cured...
This review contains spoilers.
See related Who are The Gifted? The Gifted: spoiler-free review The Gifted episode 1: every X-Men and Marvel Easter Egg
12.1 Cured
“Thank you, deep space!”
In recent years, it's never stopped being remarkable that we're still getting new episodes of Red Dwarf. The show's second lease on life got off to a bit of a shaky start with 2009's Back To Earth, but the back-to-basics approach of subsequent series has got the boys from the Dwarf (waggle your hands appropriately) back on track.
Red Dwarf Xii comprises the second batch of six episodes, out of the twelve that were filmed in early 2016, and as such, you might expect that there isn't much difference in tone between XI and Xii. Remarkably, writer and director Doug Naylor has given us Cured, a high concept...
Here's our spoiler-filled review of the Red Dwarf series 12 opener, Cured...
This review contains spoilers.
See related Who are The Gifted? The Gifted: spoiler-free review The Gifted episode 1: every X-Men and Marvel Easter Egg
12.1 Cured
“Thank you, deep space!”
In recent years, it's never stopped being remarkable that we're still getting new episodes of Red Dwarf. The show's second lease on life got off to a bit of a shaky start with 2009's Back To Earth, but the back-to-basics approach of subsequent series has got the boys from the Dwarf (waggle your hands appropriately) back on track.
Red Dwarf Xii comprises the second batch of six episodes, out of the twelve that were filmed in early 2016, and as such, you might expect that there isn't much difference in tone between XI and Xii. Remarkably, writer and director Doug Naylor has given us Cured, a high concept...
- 10/4/2017
- Den of Geek
The new Flatliners? Best not.
You can probably think of all the best and worst puns that we could load into this review without even seeing Flatliners. So, with apologies in advance, there's no better way to describe Niels Arden Oplev's mis-sold remake than this - it just lies there on the slab.
1990's Flatliners is a sci-fi inflected psychological horror, directed by Joel Schumacher and boasting an all-star cast. In the original, Kiefer Sutherland, Julia Roberts, Kevin Bacon, Oliver Platt and William Baldwin star as medical students who conduct ill-advised experiments on themselves in the hope of proving that there is life after death.
In the 2017 version, it's Ellen Page, Diego Luna, Nina Dobrev, James Norton and Kiersey Clemons in the lead roles. The likeliest reason it wasn't shown to critics ahead of release is because, bizarrely, it's not the sequel that we've been led to believe it would be,...
You can probably think of all the best and worst puns that we could load into this review without even seeing Flatliners. So, with apologies in advance, there's no better way to describe Niels Arden Oplev's mis-sold remake than this - it just lies there on the slab.
1990's Flatliners is a sci-fi inflected psychological horror, directed by Joel Schumacher and boasting an all-star cast. In the original, Kiefer Sutherland, Julia Roberts, Kevin Bacon, Oliver Platt and William Baldwin star as medical students who conduct ill-advised experiments on themselves in the hope of proving that there is life after death.
In the 2017 version, it's Ellen Page, Diego Luna, Nina Dobrev, James Norton and Kiersey Clemons in the lead roles. The likeliest reason it wasn't shown to critics ahead of release is because, bizarrely, it's not the sequel that we've been led to believe it would be,...
- 9/29/2017
- Den of Geek
Mark Harrison Sep 22, 2017
It first appeared on screen in Mystery Men. But then All Star began to spread...
“Somebody once told me the world is gonna roll me...”
See related Star Trek Discovery: take our special quiz here! Star Trek: Discovery trailer breakdown & analysis
Once upon a time, there was a movie called Shrek. Back in 2001, the world was introduced to the titular ogre, a not-so-jolly green giant, as he literally wiped his arse with the traditional fairytale and burst through his outhouse door. Cue All Star by Smash Mouth, and a generational obsession that ripened with the emergence of mashup culture.
The track was composed two years earlier for Smash Mouth's second album, Astro Lounge, after guitarist Greg Camp was told by their record label Interscope that the new record lacked “a hit single”. Their punk/ska influenced debut, Fush Yu Mang, had yielded Walkin' On The Sun,...
It first appeared on screen in Mystery Men. But then All Star began to spread...
“Somebody once told me the world is gonna roll me...”
See related Star Trek Discovery: take our special quiz here! Star Trek: Discovery trailer breakdown & analysis
Once upon a time, there was a movie called Shrek. Back in 2001, the world was introduced to the titular ogre, a not-so-jolly green giant, as he literally wiped his arse with the traditional fairytale and burst through his outhouse door. Cue All Star by Smash Mouth, and a generational obsession that ripened with the emergence of mashup culture.
The track was composed two years earlier for Smash Mouth's second album, Astro Lounge, after guitarist Greg Camp was told by their record label Interscope that the new record lacked “a hit single”. Their punk/ska influenced debut, Fush Yu Mang, had yielded Walkin' On The Sun,...
- 9/11/2017
- Den of Geek
Scarlett Johansson headlines Rough Night finally arrives in the UK. Here's our review...
At what point does a hen do become a hen don't? In Rough Night, the new comedy thriller from the makers of Broad City, it's around the time that a cheeky night of drinking and novelty penis props turns to involuntary manslaughter, and things quickly escalate into a mashup of Very Bad Things and Bridesmaids.
Jess (Scarlett Johansson) is the bride-to-be; a driven senatorial candidate who's taking a weekend off from her campaign for her bachelorette party. Her college friends Alice (Jillian Bell), Blair (Zoë Kravitz) and Frankie (Ilana Glazer), and her Australian friend Pippa (Kate McKinnon) converge on Miami for a boozy, drug-fuelled weekend away that quickly spirals out of control after the accidental death of a male stripper in their party house.
Outside of the obvious reasons for not wanting to get caught, each of...
At what point does a hen do become a hen don't? In Rough Night, the new comedy thriller from the makers of Broad City, it's around the time that a cheeky night of drinking and novelty penis props turns to involuntary manslaughter, and things quickly escalate into a mashup of Very Bad Things and Bridesmaids.
Jess (Scarlett Johansson) is the bride-to-be; a driven senatorial candidate who's taking a weekend off from her campaign for her bachelorette party. Her college friends Alice (Jillian Bell), Blair (Zoë Kravitz) and Frankie (Ilana Glazer), and her Australian friend Pippa (Kate McKinnon) converge on Miami for a boozy, drug-fuelled weekend away that quickly spirals out of control after the accidental death of a male stripper in their party house.
Outside of the obvious reasons for not wanting to get caught, each of...
- 8/27/2017
- Den of Geek
Mark Harrison Aug 23, 2017
Studios are discussing a model that'd see movies land on home streaming formats in under two months...
After a somewhat bruising summer blockbuster season for cinemas, in which gross receipts were 13% down from last year, it can't be good news for them that video on demand could be closing the window between exhibition and home release even further. And yet, as The Hollywood Reporter revealed yesterday, some Hollywood studios are close to reaching an agreement on a premium VOD service that could take effect by the end of the year.
Of a number of different proposals, the one that's currently gathering the most steam is a model proposed by 20th Century Fox, whereby new movies would be available to stream at home for a rental fee of $30, within 30 to 45 days of its release in cinemas. Comcast, Apple and Amazon are reportedly collaborating on making this system deliverable...
Studios are discussing a model that'd see movies land on home streaming formats in under two months...
After a somewhat bruising summer blockbuster season for cinemas, in which gross receipts were 13% down from last year, it can't be good news for them that video on demand could be closing the window between exhibition and home release even further. And yet, as The Hollywood Reporter revealed yesterday, some Hollywood studios are close to reaching an agreement on a premium VOD service that could take effect by the end of the year.
Of a number of different proposals, the one that's currently gathering the most steam is a model proposed by 20th Century Fox, whereby new movies would be available to stream at home for a rental fee of $30, within 30 to 45 days of its release in cinemas. Comcast, Apple and Amazon are reportedly collaborating on making this system deliverable...
- 8/23/2017
- Den of Geek
Stephen King's The Dark Tower finally makes it to the screen. And not without problems...
The consensus among fans of Stephen King's epic fantasy novels seems to be that the long-gestating film adaptation of The Dark Tower has forgotten the face of its father. This isn't going to be one of those reviews, as it comes from a Dark Tower newbie who has yet to read the books, but judging it on its merits as a film, it's not a whole lot better than that.
As adaptations go, it's come out of long spells of development by Jj Abrams and Ron Howard with a killer idea – it's billed as a continuation of the series, in which its events take place over again at some point after the final book. You'd expect that this approach will offer a new story for the experts and a jumping-on point for the newbies,...
The consensus among fans of Stephen King's epic fantasy novels seems to be that the long-gestating film adaptation of The Dark Tower has forgotten the face of its father. This isn't going to be one of those reviews, as it comes from a Dark Tower newbie who has yet to read the books, but judging it on its merits as a film, it's not a whole lot better than that.
As adaptations go, it's come out of long spells of development by Jj Abrams and Ron Howard with a killer idea – it's billed as a continuation of the series, in which its events take place over again at some point after the final book. You'd expect that this approach will offer a new story for the experts and a jumping-on point for the newbies,...
- 8/20/2017
- Den of Geek
A bit of a surprise this, as the new Annabelle movie punches above its weight a little. Here's our review...
There's likely to be some justifiable trepidation about the quality of Annabelle: Creation, the fourth film in what the marketing now bills as 'the Conjuring universe', given the poor reception for the first Annabelle spin-off and the generally low hit-rate of studio horror movies among even moderately well-read genre fans.
But it's not even 12 months since director Mike Flanagan turned Ouija: Origin Of Evil into one of the most surprising films of last year. His prequel to the profitable but poor Hasbro horror was an engaging and creative chiller, and Creation has drawn favourable comparisons for the way in which it also brings in a new director - David F Sandberg, fresh off last year's Lights Out - to reinvigorate the latest studio-mandated spin-off. It hardly reaches the heights that Flanagan did,...
There's likely to be some justifiable trepidation about the quality of Annabelle: Creation, the fourth film in what the marketing now bills as 'the Conjuring universe', given the poor reception for the first Annabelle spin-off and the generally low hit-rate of studio horror movies among even moderately well-read genre fans.
But it's not even 12 months since director Mike Flanagan turned Ouija: Origin Of Evil into one of the most surprising films of last year. His prequel to the profitable but poor Hasbro horror was an engaging and creative chiller, and Creation has drawn favourable comparisons for the way in which it also brings in a new director - David F Sandberg, fresh off last year's Lights Out - to reinvigorate the latest studio-mandated spin-off. It hardly reaches the heights that Flanagan did,...
- 8/14/2017
- Den of Geek
Mark Harrison Jul 3, 2017
After the Doctor Who series 10 finale, what might be the future of the Master's character? Spoilers...
This feature contains spoilers for Series 10 of Doctor Who, including The Doctor Falls, from the very beginning.
See related Jurassic World review Looking back at Jurassic Park
Peoples of the universe, please attend carefully. In life, nothing is certain but death, taxes and the Master coming back to Doctor Who every once in a while. First appearing in 1971's Terror Of The Autons, Roger Delgado's original incarnation even appeared in every single story of the eighth season, with various nefarious schemes designed to threaten or simply annoy the Doctor.
Over the rest of the classic series, he menaced later Doctors as the decrepit Peter Pratt, the full-on Kentucky fried Geoffrey Beevers, the wry, murderous Anthony Ainley and the 90s action movie baddy Eric Roberts. He was a master of disguise,...
After the Doctor Who series 10 finale, what might be the future of the Master's character? Spoilers...
This feature contains spoilers for Series 10 of Doctor Who, including The Doctor Falls, from the very beginning.
See related Jurassic World review Looking back at Jurassic Park
Peoples of the universe, please attend carefully. In life, nothing is certain but death, taxes and the Master coming back to Doctor Who every once in a while. First appearing in 1971's Terror Of The Autons, Roger Delgado's original incarnation even appeared in every single story of the eighth season, with various nefarious schemes designed to threaten or simply annoy the Doctor.
Over the rest of the classic series, he menaced later Doctors as the decrepit Peter Pratt, the full-on Kentucky fried Geoffrey Beevers, the wry, murderous Anthony Ainley and the 90s action movie baddy Eric Roberts. He was a master of disguise,...
- 7/3/2017
- Den of Geek
Will Ferrell and Amy Poehler headline new comedy The House. Here's our review...
There's no more damning indictment of the current state of Hollywood comedies than that Will Ferrell keeps getting cast as boring white collar blokes, in movies that aren't The Lego Movie. We don't want to defend his latest too strongly, but while it's certainly one in a line of lacklustre films like it, it's easily a cut above the bland Daddy's Home (which has a sequel coming this Christmas), and the foul Get Hard.
The House is the directorial debut of Andrew Jay Cohen, co-writer of the Bad Neighbours films, and finds another couple in yet another naughty situation. However, this couple is much further along than Seth Rogen and Rose Byrne's new parents, as devoted dad Scott (Ferrell) and mum Kate (Amy Poehler) prepare to send their only daughter Alex (Ryan Simpkins) off to Bucknell University,...
There's no more damning indictment of the current state of Hollywood comedies than that Will Ferrell keeps getting cast as boring white collar blokes, in movies that aren't The Lego Movie. We don't want to defend his latest too strongly, but while it's certainly one in a line of lacklustre films like it, it's easily a cut above the bland Daddy's Home (which has a sequel coming this Christmas), and the foul Get Hard.
The House is the directorial debut of Andrew Jay Cohen, co-writer of the Bad Neighbours films, and finds another couple in yet another naughty situation. However, this couple is much further along than Seth Rogen and Rose Byrne's new parents, as devoted dad Scott (Ferrell) and mum Kate (Amy Poehler) prepare to send their only daughter Alex (Ryan Simpkins) off to Bucknell University,...
- 7/2/2017
- Den of Geek
Mark Harrison Jul 3, 2017
Music is a vital part of Shaun Of The Dead, Hot Fuzz and The World's End. We take a look in more detail right here...
This feature contains major spoilers for Shaun Of The Dead, Hot Fuzz and The World's End.
Edgar Wright's films are often likened to musicals, with his precise use of editing and shot choices giving us some of the most stylish comedy films of the century. His latest, Baby Driver, isn't a comedy per se, but “a musical with car chases”, or “An American In Paris on wheels and crack smoke”, as an elated Guillermo del Toro described it on Twitter.
Centring around Ansel Elgort's Baby, a getaway driver who does his best work while listening to a personal soundtrack, it seems like the film Wright was born to make. He had the idea for the film after making his first feature,...
Music is a vital part of Shaun Of The Dead, Hot Fuzz and The World's End. We take a look in more detail right here...
This feature contains major spoilers for Shaun Of The Dead, Hot Fuzz and The World's End.
Edgar Wright's films are often likened to musicals, with his precise use of editing and shot choices giving us some of the most stylish comedy films of the century. His latest, Baby Driver, isn't a comedy per se, but “a musical with car chases”, or “An American In Paris on wheels and crack smoke”, as an elated Guillermo del Toro described it on Twitter.
Centring around Ansel Elgort's Baby, a getaway driver who does his best work while listening to a personal soundtrack, it seems like the film Wright was born to make. He had the idea for the film after making his first feature,...
- 6/29/2017
- Den of Geek
Marc Webb goes from The Amazing Spider-Man 2 to Gifted, starring Chris Evans. Here's our review...
When the moment comes for Chris Evans to put down Captain America's shield, we'll be sorry to see the back of one of the best big screen superhero portrayals ever. But Marvel's loss will be cinema's gain, going by the interesting projects he's chosen between his more red, white and blue escapades. In Gifted, he's put whatever blockbuster clout he may have behind a project that deserves it, and the result is one of the year's nicest surprises.
Evans plays Frank Adler, a boat mechanic who lives in Florida with his seven-year-old niece Mary (Mckenna Grace) and a one-eyed rescue cat called Fred. Mary is a child prodigy who immediately captures the attention of her first-grade teacher Bonnie (Jenny Slate) with her advanced grasp of maths.
When she asks if Frank has ever...
When the moment comes for Chris Evans to put down Captain America's shield, we'll be sorry to see the back of one of the best big screen superhero portrayals ever. But Marvel's loss will be cinema's gain, going by the interesting projects he's chosen between his more red, white and blue escapades. In Gifted, he's put whatever blockbuster clout he may have behind a project that deserves it, and the result is one of the year's nicest surprises.
Evans plays Frank Adler, a boat mechanic who lives in Florida with his seven-year-old niece Mary (Mckenna Grace) and a one-eyed rescue cat called Fred. Mary is a child prodigy who immediately captures the attention of her first-grade teacher Bonnie (Jenny Slate) with her advanced grasp of maths.
When she asks if Frank has ever...
- 6/19/2017
- Den of Geek
Brian Cox gives an excellent performance as Winston Churchill in Churchill. He's the best thing about it...
One of the earliest and most foreboding images in Churchill comes as a put-upon Prime Minister stands by the sea. As the tides gently roll in, his famous Homburg hat blows into the water and when he bends down to retrieve it, the tide appears to him to be reddened with blood. Regrettably, it's the first and last cinematic beat in a film that puts its lead character's inner turmoil upfront.
It's June 1944, and Winston Churchill (Brian Cox) cuts a less impressive figure than he did when he was inspiring the people of Britain as they came under attack from Nazi forces years earlier. In fact, he finds himself listing in the margins of an Allied high command led by Dwight D. Eisenhower (John Slattery) as they plan Operation Overlord and the Dunkirk landings.
One of the earliest and most foreboding images in Churchill comes as a put-upon Prime Minister stands by the sea. As the tides gently roll in, his famous Homburg hat blows into the water and when he bends down to retrieve it, the tide appears to him to be reddened with blood. Regrettably, it's the first and last cinematic beat in a film that puts its lead character's inner turmoil upfront.
It's June 1944, and Winston Churchill (Brian Cox) cuts a less impressive figure than he did when he was inspiring the people of Britain as they came under attack from Nazi forces years earlier. In fact, he finds himself listing in the margins of an Allied high command led by Dwight D. Eisenhower (John Slattery) as they plan Operation Overlord and the Dunkirk landings.
- 6/19/2017
- Den of Geek
Mark Harrison Jun 5, 2017
Arcing storylines enrich Doctor Who and reward its audience, Mark suggests...
Warning: contains spoilers for Doctor Who series 10.
See related Broken episode 1 review How Jimmy McGovern's Common challenged injustice Accused: Tracie’s Story review
Unlikely as it might seem to long-time readers of this site, there might be some people who have only just started watching Doctor Who this year. After a year off air, Steven Moffat's brief going into this year's excellent tenth series seems to have been to give the show a soft reboot, picking up with Peter Capaldi's Doctor some time after the last series and ushering in the arrival of Pearl Mackie's new companion, Bill Potts.
To that end, the series started out with an enjoyable run of standalone episodes, boiling the show down to its essence of a madman in a box taking a young woman on adventures in time and space.
Arcing storylines enrich Doctor Who and reward its audience, Mark suggests...
Warning: contains spoilers for Doctor Who series 10.
See related Broken episode 1 review How Jimmy McGovern's Common challenged injustice Accused: Tracie’s Story review
Unlikely as it might seem to long-time readers of this site, there might be some people who have only just started watching Doctor Who this year. After a year off air, Steven Moffat's brief going into this year's excellent tenth series seems to have been to give the show a soft reboot, picking up with Peter Capaldi's Doctor some time after the last series and ushering in the arrival of Pearl Mackie's new companion, Bill Potts.
To that end, the series started out with an enjoyable run of standalone episodes, boiling the show down to its essence of a madman in a box taking a young woman on adventures in time and space.
- 6/4/2017
- Den of Geek
Mark Harrison May 10, 2017
Over Doctor Who's long history, what prompted the decision to leave for those in the lead role?
All sorts of things have killed off the Doctor. In the last half century, Doctor Who's unique approach to recasting the lead character has seen him fettled by old age, as punishment, by radiation poisoning, falls big and small, dodgy operations and time itself. There are plenty of in-universe reasons for why the Doctor regenerates, and the outgoing Time Lord Peter Capaldi promises that his upcoming demise will be suitably timey-wimey, but what of the behind-the-scenes reasons that the Doctor has to go?
See related DC Comics movies: upcoming UK release dates calendar Batman V Superman: where does it leave the Justice League? Why cinema needs Batman: the world’s greatest detective Zack Snyder interview: Batman V Superman Deborah Snyder & Charles Roven interview: Man Of Steel
“While you're enjoying it,...
Over Doctor Who's long history, what prompted the decision to leave for those in the lead role?
All sorts of things have killed off the Doctor. In the last half century, Doctor Who's unique approach to recasting the lead character has seen him fettled by old age, as punishment, by radiation poisoning, falls big and small, dodgy operations and time itself. There are plenty of in-universe reasons for why the Doctor regenerates, and the outgoing Time Lord Peter Capaldi promises that his upcoming demise will be suitably timey-wimey, but what of the behind-the-scenes reasons that the Doctor has to go?
See related DC Comics movies: upcoming UK release dates calendar Batman V Superman: where does it leave the Justice League? Why cinema needs Batman: the world’s greatest detective Zack Snyder interview: Batman V Superman Deborah Snyder & Charles Roven interview: Man Of Steel
“While you're enjoying it,...
- 5/3/2017
- Den of Geek
Warren Beatty's new film, Rules Don't Apply, quietly snuck into UK cinemas last weekend. Here's our review...
Not unreasonably, Howard Hughes is a figure of fascination in cinema. From Leonardo DiCaprio in The Aviator to Terry O'Quinn in The Rocketeer, to characters who were inspired by him, like Willard Whyte in Diamonds Are Forever or Howard Stark in the Marvel cinematic universe, the billionaire businessman's on-screen influence feels fitting for his early status as a movie tycoon.
Now, Warren Beatty directs, produces, writes and stars in Rules Don't Apply, whose convention-busting title reflects the way in which it runs counter to other cinematic treatments by putting the spotlight on two of Hughes' many employees. Set during the tumultuous years of 1958 to 1964, the film focuses on virginal Virginia beauty queen Marla Mabrey (Lily Collins), an actress who's new to Hollywood, and Frank Forbes (Alden Ehrenreich), a chauffeur who drives her around.
Not unreasonably, Howard Hughes is a figure of fascination in cinema. From Leonardo DiCaprio in The Aviator to Terry O'Quinn in The Rocketeer, to characters who were inspired by him, like Willard Whyte in Diamonds Are Forever or Howard Stark in the Marvel cinematic universe, the billionaire businessman's on-screen influence feels fitting for his early status as a movie tycoon.
Now, Warren Beatty directs, produces, writes and stars in Rules Don't Apply, whose convention-busting title reflects the way in which it runs counter to other cinematic treatments by putting the spotlight on two of Hughes' many employees. Set during the tumultuous years of 1958 to 1964, the film focuses on virginal Virginia beauty queen Marla Mabrey (Lily Collins), an actress who's new to Hollywood, and Frank Forbes (Alden Ehrenreich), a chauffeur who drives her around.
- 4/23/2017
- Den of Geek
Mark Harrison Apr 12, 2017
The balance of secrecy and publicity is a tricky one for Doctor Who to keep, but spoilers are simply a question of manners...
This article contains no spoilers for the forthcoming tenth series of Doctor Who. However, the comments section may discuss recently revealed plot details.
See related Labyrinth: looking back at an 80s fantasy classic Labyrinth at 30: Brian Froud conceptual designer interview Labyrinth: rare behind the scenes pics and promo shots
“Patrick Troughton, the character actor, has been chosen by the BBC to replace William Hartnell as Doctor Who in the children's television serial.”
This is how the Manchester Guardian reported the first ever regeneration of Doctor Who's lead character, in a news in brief column published back in 1966. There's no way of overstating how media coverage of the show has changed in the last 50 years, but the last two casting announcements...
The balance of secrecy and publicity is a tricky one for Doctor Who to keep, but spoilers are simply a question of manners...
This article contains no spoilers for the forthcoming tenth series of Doctor Who. However, the comments section may discuss recently revealed plot details.
See related Labyrinth: looking back at an 80s fantasy classic Labyrinth at 30: Brian Froud conceptual designer interview Labyrinth: rare behind the scenes pics and promo shots
“Patrick Troughton, the character actor, has been chosen by the BBC to replace William Hartnell as Doctor Who in the children's television serial.”
This is how the Manchester Guardian reported the first ever regeneration of Doctor Who's lead character, in a news in brief column published back in 1966. There's no way of overstating how media coverage of the show has changed in the last 50 years, but the last two casting announcements...
- 4/11/2017
- Den of Geek
Here's our look at wedding reception comedy-drama Table 19, starring Anna Kendrick, Craig Robinson and Lisa Kudrow...
Back in the early days of my online film geekdom, I used to take part in a fantasy film league, inspired by fantasy sports leagues. You take the role of a producer and using your budget for the season, you choose six stars to be in your made-up film. The box office returns of that film are then determined by the real life box office successes of those stars throughout the season.
See related Game Of Thrones season 6: new deleted scene released Game Of Thrones: HBO ruling out spin-offs, for now Game Of Thrones season 6: breaking down Blood Of My Blood's vision Game Of Thrones season 6: 9 questions about The Door
Table 19 could have been cast in much the same way as you'd cast one of those fantasy films.
Back in the early days of my online film geekdom, I used to take part in a fantasy film league, inspired by fantasy sports leagues. You take the role of a producer and using your budget for the season, you choose six stars to be in your made-up film. The box office returns of that film are then determined by the real life box office successes of those stars throughout the season.
See related Game Of Thrones season 6: new deleted scene released Game Of Thrones: HBO ruling out spin-offs, for now Game Of Thrones season 6: breaking down Blood Of My Blood's vision Game Of Thrones season 6: 9 questions about The Door
Table 19 could have been cast in much the same way as you'd cast one of those fantasy films.
- 4/10/2017
- Den of Geek
Mark Harrison Apr 4, 2017
Why are there rumblings of a new writers' strike in Hollywood, and what are the main issues?
In November 2007, the Writers Guild of America voted to go on strike for fairer payment in relation to studio profits from new media. The Guild represents around 13,000 film and television writers and the 100 day strike led to around 60 TV shows shutting down production altogether, as the steady flow of scripts dried up and other unions refused to cross the picket line, before a deal was agreed in February 2008.
Older readers may remember the 2007-8 television season for shortened episode orders on shows like Lost and Heroes – some will argue that the latter show never recovered the creative heights of its debut year after the truncated second season. You may also remember various half-baked blockbusters that came out in summer 2009, many of which went into production without a completed script, or...
Why are there rumblings of a new writers' strike in Hollywood, and what are the main issues?
In November 2007, the Writers Guild of America voted to go on strike for fairer payment in relation to studio profits from new media. The Guild represents around 13,000 film and television writers and the 100 day strike led to around 60 TV shows shutting down production altogether, as the steady flow of scripts dried up and other unions refused to cross the picket line, before a deal was agreed in February 2008.
Older readers may remember the 2007-8 television season for shortened episode orders on shows like Lost and Heroes – some will argue that the latter show never recovered the creative heights of its debut year after the truncated second season. You may also remember various half-baked blockbusters that came out in summer 2009, many of which went into production without a completed script, or...
- 4/3/2017
- Den of Geek
Mark Harrison Mar 17, 2017
As Get Out arrives in UK cinemas off its hugely successful Us debut, we look at the growing hit factor that is Blumhouse...
This article contains spoilers for Split.
It feels as if the more expensive a film is, the fewer risks the studio will allow. There are perks to having a bigger budget, but often, a low budget either allows or forces filmmakers to be more creative. As tentpoles and franchise properties fill up the movie calendar, producer Jason Blum's company Blumhouse Productions has reintroduced a little risk into Hollywood with its tried-and-tested production model.
Blumhouse is primarily known for horror films, but they dabble in a number of different genres, producing independent films on budgets of no more than $10 million, and usually under $5m, and then distributing them through the studio system. They emerged with the massive success of the micro-budgeted Paranormal Activity series...
As Get Out arrives in UK cinemas off its hugely successful Us debut, we look at the growing hit factor that is Blumhouse...
This article contains spoilers for Split.
It feels as if the more expensive a film is, the fewer risks the studio will allow. There are perks to having a bigger budget, but often, a low budget either allows or forces filmmakers to be more creative. As tentpoles and franchise properties fill up the movie calendar, producer Jason Blum's company Blumhouse Productions has reintroduced a little risk into Hollywood with its tried-and-tested production model.
Blumhouse is primarily known for horror films, but they dabble in a number of different genres, producing independent films on budgets of no more than $10 million, and usually under $5m, and then distributing them through the studio system. They emerged with the massive success of the micro-budgeted Paranormal Activity series...
- 3/16/2017
- Den of Geek
2017 should hopefully have some terrific comedies. Fist Fight, starring Ice Cube and Charlie Day, is not one of them.
At one point during Fist Fight, the new comedy starring Ice Cube and Charlie Day, I could only think of Step Brothers, an inverted Bugsy Malone that casts adults as childish characters and stands up as Adam McKay's masterpiece. Although there's plenty of comic mileage in adults acting like kids, Fist Fight is sadly not a patch on those farcical heights.
The film takes place at Roosevelt High School, an inner city school where budget cuts have left the entire faculty fearing for their jobs, and also fearing the students' designated Senior Pranks Day on the last day of term. As English teacher Mr. Campbell (Day) observes, the pranks don't really seem like pranks - mostly, they involve criminal damage and horse-kidnapping.
History teacher Mr. Strickland (Cube) is having none...
At one point during Fist Fight, the new comedy starring Ice Cube and Charlie Day, I could only think of Step Brothers, an inverted Bugsy Malone that casts adults as childish characters and stands up as Adam McKay's masterpiece. Although there's plenty of comic mileage in adults acting like kids, Fist Fight is sadly not a patch on those farcical heights.
The film takes place at Roosevelt High School, an inner city school where budget cuts have left the entire faculty fearing for their jobs, and also fearing the students' designated Senior Pranks Day on the last day of term. As English teacher Mr. Campbell (Day) observes, the pranks don't really seem like pranks - mostly, they involve criminal damage and horse-kidnapping.
History teacher Mr. Strickland (Cube) is having none...
- 3/5/2017
- Den of Geek
Mark Harrison Feb 27, 2017
Alfonso Cuaron's Children Of Men is a film from a decade ago that very much stands the test of time...
“Last one to die, please turn out the light.”
The tenth anniversary of Children Of Men came at the end of a tumultuous year in politics. You don't have to look far on the web for thinkpieces about how the results of the Brexit referendum or the election of Donald Trump as Us President have brought us closer to the grim forecast of Alfonso Cuarón's superb dystopian thriller, but rewatching it now, the film feels a triumph of preparation rather than prescience.
Based on Pd James' novel, the film takes place in the year 2027, in the midst of a global epidemic of infertility. Britain has closed its doors to immigrants and refuses to acknowledge the status of 'fugees' as human beings. The day after the...
Alfonso Cuaron's Children Of Men is a film from a decade ago that very much stands the test of time...
“Last one to die, please turn out the light.”
The tenth anniversary of Children Of Men came at the end of a tumultuous year in politics. You don't have to look far on the web for thinkpieces about how the results of the Brexit referendum or the election of Donald Trump as Us President have brought us closer to the grim forecast of Alfonso Cuarón's superb dystopian thriller, but rewatching it now, the film feels a triumph of preparation rather than prescience.
Based on Pd James' novel, the film takes place in the year 2027, in the midst of a global epidemic of infertility. Britain has closed its doors to immigrants and refuses to acknowledge the status of 'fugees' as human beings. The day after the...
- 2/25/2017
- Den of Geek
Asa Butterfield and Britt Robertson star in new sci-fi romance, The Space Between Us. Here's our review...
Asa Butterfield and Britt Robertson play star-crossed lovers in The Space Between Us, a sci-fi romance which, shockingly, is not an adaptation of a novel by Nicholas Sparks or Stephenie Meyer. It's still full of the sort of contrivances that usually get explained away by some well-read fan as being faithful to the source material, but it comes from an original screenplay. However, when you realise that the screenplay was written by Allan Loeb, author of last year's feel-bad turkey Collateral Beauty, you might start to understand why it's utter nonsense.
In the not-too-distant future, 16-year-old Gardner Elliot (Butterfield) is the first human born on Mars. Raised by scientists and kept secret from the people of Earth by aerospace CEO Nathaniel Shepard (Gary Oldman), Gardner rails against his sheltered life and longs to...
Asa Butterfield and Britt Robertson play star-crossed lovers in The Space Between Us, a sci-fi romance which, shockingly, is not an adaptation of a novel by Nicholas Sparks or Stephenie Meyer. It's still full of the sort of contrivances that usually get explained away by some well-read fan as being faithful to the source material, but it comes from an original screenplay. However, when you realise that the screenplay was written by Allan Loeb, author of last year's feel-bad turkey Collateral Beauty, you might start to understand why it's utter nonsense.
In the not-too-distant future, 16-year-old Gardner Elliot (Butterfield) is the first human born on Mars. Raised by scientists and kept secret from the people of Earth by aerospace CEO Nathaniel Shepard (Gary Oldman), Gardner rails against his sheltered life and longs to...
- 2/13/2017
- Den of Geek
Casey Affleck is already the favourite for Best Actor at the Oscars courtesy of Manchester By The Sea. But what's the film itself like?
The non-linear structure of Manchester By The Sea means that we meet Casey Affleck's Lee Chandler twice at the start of the film. First, as he teaches his young nephew to fish and kids around on his brother's boat, then seven years later, as he miserably shovels snow off the path outside the box room where he lives. Writer-director Kenneth Lonergan has us hooked from this first contrast and then reels us in as the drama unfolds.
We soon learn that Lee lives a simple and unfulfilled existence as a janitor in Boston, serving whingy residents in a run-down tenement. When he gets word that his brother Joe (Kyle Chandler) has succumbed to a terminal heart condition, he heads back to his hometown of Manchester,...
The non-linear structure of Manchester By The Sea means that we meet Casey Affleck's Lee Chandler twice at the start of the film. First, as he teaches his young nephew to fish and kids around on his brother's boat, then seven years later, as he miserably shovels snow off the path outside the box room where he lives. Writer-director Kenneth Lonergan has us hooked from this first contrast and then reels us in as the drama unfolds.
We soon learn that Lee lives a simple and unfulfilled existence as a janitor in Boston, serving whingy residents in a run-down tenement. When he gets word that his brother Joe (Kyle Chandler) has succumbed to a terminal heart condition, he heads back to his hometown of Manchester,...
- 1/12/2017
- Den of Geek
IMDb.com, Inc. takes no responsibility for the content or accuracy of the above news articles, Tweets, or blog posts. This content is published for the entertainment of our users only. The news articles, Tweets, and blog posts do not represent IMDb's opinions nor can we guarantee that the reporting therein is completely factual. Please visit the source responsible for the item in question to report any concerns you may have regarding content or accuracy.