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darylgould
Reviews
Little Monsters (2019)
A fun Zombie Comedy
Little Monsters
An enjoyable Horror/Comedy about a loser who has to take responsibility and grow up quickly to fight a zombie apocalypse (sound familar?)
Shaun Of The Dead this isn't, but there are strong performances from the core cast and the kids involved in this film
Dave is a loser. His Girlfriend has had enough of him, and he is living on his sister's sofa, and setting an awful example for his nephew Felix.
When he gets handed the responsibility of taking Felix to school, Dave meets Miss Caroline and ends up volunteering as a chaperone for a school trip. Of course, this is all whilst a zombie escape takes place at a local miltary facility (what did you expect?!), and Miss Caroline, Dave and the kids all end up trapped in the gift shop whilst the undead try to break in
Simple premise, great execution. Both leads carry the film well, and the children give strong performances too, with Diesel La Torraca as Felix providing some genuinely sweet and funny moments. Also, Lupita Nyong'o as Miss Caroline provides a calm, collected and understated performance in a film that has some crazy over the top characters. Speaking of which....
The stand out performer for me has to be Josh Gad, playing a well known childen's entertainer, Teddy McGiggle. His worst nightmare comes true when he is trapped in with his biggest fans. A beligerent, alcoholic, kid-hating egotist, McGiggle is played by Gad with great relish, and provides a lot of the laugh out loud moments of the film
To be honest i think the weakest link for me was the character of Dave, played by Alexander England. I think the whining, selfish no-hoper he starts out as was so efective it stuck with me too much throughout the duration, even when the character arc had reached its end point. Im not saying its a bad performance, but i just didnt find the character likeable
As a zombie comedy, this does everything it says on the tin. Its fun, dark and if you do like the horror comedy genre, this ticks all the boxes
The Judge (2014)
Engrossing, well acted, vey entertaining
Robert Downey Jr and Robert Duvall give powerhouse performances in this tale of a lawyer revisiting his home town, and all of the issues that come with opening up old relationships, good and bad
Hank Palmer (Downey Jr) is a Chicago defence attorney, who is called back to his home town to attend his mothers' funeral. It is clear that this not a town with happy memories, which is hinted at through his intitial interactions with his 2 brothers, played by Vincent D'Onofrio and Jeremy Strong. His relationship with his father, the titular Judge (Duvall), is non existent, with the two barely on speaking terms.
With Hank leaving, he finds that his father has been accused of murder, and this leads to the "Big Lawyer Small Town" scenario, where Hank tried to push against this community who are stuck in their ways, in order to prove his father's innocence, whilst reconnecting with an old flame and trying to maintain a father daughter connection too.
Downey Jr has done so well out of the wise cracking Tony Stark that it has actually bled into other performances, and this is no exception. But his ability to switch between the glib remarks and genuine emotion is what makes this movie so engrossing, with some moments of levity (including a very non-typical shower scene that provides a funny moment combined with genuine love and emotion).
Duvall is his reliable best, playing a proud man who is more concerned about his reputation as a judge in this small town than building up his relationship with his estranged son.
A very strong supporting cast including Billy Bob Thornton and Vera Farmiga, and a very funny turn from Dax Shepherd as an antique shop owner come defence attorney, make this film seem shorter than its actual running time without feeling rushed
All in all, i really enjoyed this film. I was highly engrossed in all the performances and both the highs and lows the characters experience. It provides a great balance, providing some genuinely emotional moments, interspersed with some funny instances as well. Would definitely recommend this
A Guide to Second Date Sex (2019)
A fun, awkward, likeable comedy
Watched this not expecting much, but i was really pleasantly surprised.
Laura and Ryan meet at a nightclub, and after an awkward exchange at the bar, we then jump to their second date. They both receive different, but equally terrible advice from their friends about how to seduce each other...
The two main characters, played by Mackay and Roach, are such likeable characters, i found myself willing them on, and cringeing every time there was a false start for them. They both play the awkwardness so well, nd with the fringe characters (especially Tom Bell's Adam, a housemate whom both Ryan and his other housemate Dan have never learned the name of), providing additional laughs, this is a great comedy.
Undoubtedly cringeworth in places, but without malice, i found myself rooting for them, even with everything else that gets thrown their way on this one night, interspersed with flashbacks to their first drunken encounter.
All in all, this is a good comedy with solid performances all round, and a last minute twist that helps add a new element to the already tricky and clumsy night that Ryan and Laura have both experienced