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Reviews
Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015)
Mixed feelings
I enjoyed this film for the entertainment it is. A good cast, great action and a great villain with a complex moral compass, to me it's a very interesting character and one of the best comic book villains. However this film has plenty of terrible cliches, sexism and stereotypes.
Some/half of the dialog is very uncomfortable (cheesey/cringey). However, there are some great moments of dialog as the same time. Some scenes are purely terrible and other scenes are brilliant. It's as if this film was written and directed by two different people in conflict with each other.
Things I enjoyed:
- the scene where they sat around trying to lift the hammer was a great bit of humour and a change from the usual conversations they have.
- the design of ultron
- stan Lee's cameo was well done and funny
- the first scene where they meet ultron was very well done, seeing it in the cinema was very powerful.
- I enjoyed the sequence in the shipyard with Andy Serkis. Enjoyable action and dialog for the ending of the first act.
- the hulkbuster fight that shortly follows.
- the music by Danny elfman
- I enjoyed the hallucination scenes. A chance to give us a glimpse into black widows back story. It was also great for showing us what the characters truly wanted or felt as well as giving us a chance to see possible futures.
For all this films good moments. It also lacked in substance and overdid the unnecessary. For example. Almost every woman in this film was made out to be useless or otherwise sexually driven. Black widow and hulks story was some what lazy and stereotypical. The angry man only calms down for the small and beautiful woman. She we also given cheesy lines and a very skimpy outfit for the entirety of the film. There was also another unnecessary moment where Bruce banner fell ontop of black widow with his face in her breasts. Not needed. And repeated almost exactly by the director Joss Whedon when he directed justice league.
The majority of the strong women in this film series were shunned off for this movie as well. Pepper Pots was a no show, as was Jane foster. The women that were in this movie were persistently made to look stupid and constantly asked questions, 2 were in tight leather overalls and had no superpowers as constantly complained, gave no contributions to the plot. The other woman was a house wife, one was a doctor who made a goofy comment about fancying Thor and then died. Then the other was a villain with a fake accent, at the end she became a hero and in the final sequence she was doused in makeup and had massive clevage in her new outfit. Not to mention in later films where she is the hero, she loses her foreign accent and becomes American ... towards the end of the film black widow gets kidnapped by ultron for no reason and has to be rescued.
There's also a lot of typical moments where the men have to save the day, meanwhile they do manly things such as fight for leadership of the group, chop large amounts of fire wood (for some reason). In the end they manage to biologically create the saviour of the movie like Jesus who is yet another muscular man in a cape. The only 2 black men in the film only make an appearance for about 10-12 minutes with both there screen times put together.
Whenever a terrible destructive chain of events takes place it is always in another country, a made up Slavic country or otherwise. It seems to be a common theme in this film where instead of saving the world, America has to save a country or a foreign city/town. I've also noticed a lot of shots and imagery have been mimicked from other films that came before it, such as Batman, superman and other marvel movies, no originality.
This film overall was enjoyable. It was well acted, well written in places, visually stunning and great fun to watch during action sequences. However for me there's just to many moments of sexism and times where America comes to save the day! It just seems to me that joss whedon sticks to a formula that after a while gets tiresome which is probably why this movie didn't do as well as its predecessor.
Baby Reindeer (2024)
Great quality but unpleasant
There's a lot to say about this show and it's an understatement to say I have conflicted feelings about it. First of all I have to say it's amazingly acted, just brilliant. The writing is smart and very well put together , as is the script. The cinematography is very powerful at times. The sets and locations being used perfectly in order to create atmosphere and feelings of tension, depression, pain, pity, hope. However I didn't completely enjoy this show.
Personally, In my opinion I found this show very interesting but also very depressing. I found it depressing to the point where I did not enjoy this show. There was no excitement or joy at any point in this show, it only felt bleak and cold. Usually a show such as this has a resolution or some kind of slightly uplifting conclusion. However there was none of that in this show. The main character, he seems to return to a man who brutally raped him and agrees to work with him again on another project. He seems to finally get his stalker convicted but the show ends with him crying in regret for having a mentally ill woman convicted of a crime. I suppose this show reflects real life situations, that there sometimes never a happy ending or resolution, the bad people sometimes never get what they deserve and neither do the good ones.
The main issue I had with this show is that there was no release or reprieve. By the end of watching this show I was depressed and had a headache, as I finished the show I didn't feel like there was a reason for it. There was no reason for this show other than to leave you shocked or angered. We essentially watch an autobiography of a man who was endlessly abused and tortured by numerous individuals throughout his life. As a show about a man telling his story, it's amazing and truly inspiring how he had the strength to make this information about his life public. As a piece of bleak artistic filming it's excellent. As entertainment and a Netflix show, it's deeply unpleasant.
Doctor Who: Space Babies (2024)
Talking babies ..?
Being optimistic about the new doctor who I went in with an open mind. I loved Russel T Davis's original doctor who, I grew up with it and I enjoyed it immensely. It was scary for me at the time and now it's just fun, There's something in there for the adults and the older fans, just like doctor who should be. So I was looking forward to the new return. I like Ncuti Gatwa, good actor and a good choice. The writing is also very good. But. It was very child oriented, literally and figuratively. Large parts of this episode were very cringey and uncomfortable to watch, lots of soppy moments, very goofy, it felt more like a show for toddlers. The talking babies I found unsettling with there animated mouths and gormless expressions on there faces. An interesting idea but maybe not played perfectly. But apart from this my main issue was, there was no real edge or danger. It was just one of those doctor who episodes that, for me. Didn't work. Maybe better suited to a filler episode.
The pacing of the episode wasn't great, everything moved a bit to fast for an episode with no heft and depth, therefore it felt over and done with before I even noticed.
I enjoyed the teaser for the season finale. Russel T Davies has always added twists, small and ambiguous moments that all manage to piece together at the end.
Despite my disappointment at this episode, I won't be deterred from watching more. I'm Looking forward to more.
Avatar (2009)
Pokahontas in space
What can I say about this film. Great designs, very visually spectacular, great graphics, good acting. Yes yes yes. All of that. But the story, oh dear. It's just Pokahontas in space. It also went for the very tiresome story line of the protagonist rises and falls from glory. He gains everyone's trust and works his way to the top and then he looses it all in a matter of seconds and before the last 30-40 mins of the film he gains it back again. It's just exhausting and not in a good way. However that being said it has some excellent action sequences, it's a great idea using humans full stop as the villains, because we are. We happen to destroy everything we touch which this film does highlight very well. However it creates sympathy and empathy for made up animated characters and wildlife, meanwhile probably costing millions and millions of dollars to make and being very detrimental to our own planets health. With all the electricity, plastic and fuel it must of costed to make this film possible. So when it comes to delving deeper, this is not the film to do it with.
Upsides:
Sigourney Weaver.
Out of ten:
Story: 3/10 animation: 9/10 for the time and 8/10 now. Designs 9/10 cinematography 9/10 acting 8/10 however trying to put GOOD facial expressions into animated characters is virtually impossible.
Furious 6 (2013)
How long was the runway...?
Enjoyable, dreadful nonsense.
If your looking for a bit of fun this is your film. There's billions of things wrong with this film but it serves a purpose. It's funny, it's stupid, action packed, good cast with a lot of good and enjoyable people in it. This film was in no way realistic or accurate in terms of physics, science, dialog or reactions. There is little to no character building or personalities to speak of when you talk about the actual characters, you'd think after 6 films we may know at least 3 of the characters. This film, like all the others is full of cheesey lines, cliches and way too over the top action sequences, however that does appear to be the main point of these, just like the evil dead films are meant to be funny and silly.
The scene with the tank was funny, there is no way a tank could go that fast and why, If they wanted a heavily armoured vehicle, would they put a window on the front of it like that!
There was a Rita Ora Chameo, not overly bothered about that...
I had no idea what they were doing with that plane at the end. How long was that runway ?! It took them 8-12 minutes to drive down it at full speed! As it crashed Vin diesel managed to drive a car through the nose of the plane and drive it down the runway, flipping it and then surviving without a scratch on him. That happens a lot in this film. I think at least 6 of them survive crashing and flipping cars in horrific ways more than once, without any injuries at all. Gina carano and Michelle Rodriguez go down a flight of concrete stairs in a fight scene and they walk away with a cut lip and eye brow. The list could go on but I've proved my point. Stupid. But enjoyable none the less!
Overall 5/10. Enjoyable nonsense.
Evil Dead Rise (2023)
Doesn't pretend
This film doesn't pretend to be anything it's not. All of these films are ridiculous but in there own right. It was in keeping with the tradition of being disgusting, humorous and well put together. I see these films as little pieces of gory art work and less as serious storytelling films.
I liked the two leading actresses, progressive in the films universe in terms of having a female antagonist and female protagonist. The acting was good, although one of the silliest things about this film was the lack of realistic reactions to horrific death and gore. Whenever someone died or was torn to pieces the main characters just looked horrified before shrugging it off in the next scene, although that being said, that is exactly the same for all these films. There not meant to be full deeply emotional moments, there meant to be brutal, beautiful and symbolic in certain ways.
I saw references to numerous horror films it has clearly been inspired by. Not only the original evil dead films but also Poltergeist, the woman in black, the thing, the exorcist, Texas chainsaw massacre, aliens and the shining. In certain places this film was more of a homage to great horror films while still remaining a great horror film in its own right. This film also kept within the traditions of horror. For example the main character was pregnant giving her a maternal instinct to keep the child alive and giving her a reason to live.
I also thought this film was very brave in terms of what it did considering the limits of what Is acceptable are constantly changing and narrowing. For example several children died quite brutally, the antagonist was originally a single mother of 3 when normally a woman in this situation in a film would be the hero.
I thought there was an excellent use of surroundings and props to create almost relatable moments and play on relatable fears. . A good example of this is a scene when a woman has a cheese grater dragged down her leg, when we can all understand the pain of just grazing ourselves on one of these. Another example is that there are a few scenes with the same shot through a peephole in a door, we have all seen through a peephole and know the feeling of trepidation and not knowing as well as being unable to fully see what's going on. In another scene a woman starts eating a wine glass which is painful to watch especially for those who have trodden on or unfortunately bitten down on glass.
The Setting was perfect. The sense of isolation remained the same as it does in all the previous films except now in a completely different place. It was More gory than most of the other evil dead films.
Symbolism:
I realised the use of the lift was very symbolic of a womb. For example the mother was strung up by wires in the lift at the beginning when she was possessed, she was in pain, scared, confused. When she came out of the lift she was reborn as a possessed being. Later on the protagonist and her child ran into the lift and it began filling with blood. At the same time the 'evil dead' were burrowing into the dead mothers stomach with there hands. This could be the whole play on death and life, good and evil that all these films have.
Well directed, good use of lighting. Camera angles and imagery perfectly well used and done.
Years and Years (2019)
Low budget rubbish
Cringey scripts. Bad acting. Low budget. Something like this needs a high budget to be able to make it look and feel realistic. The music was terrible, filmed like a soap opera. Over the top acting which just looked awful and made the Unrealistic dialog even more insufferable. I love Russel T Davis but this is definitely the worst thing he's done by Miles. I also found the finale extremely underwhelming.
They used TV actors for a lot of the roles to save on money I imagine but they were joust, awful. Especially the disabled actress from the soap opera.
Good points:
- I usually love 50% or this cast. Great actors. Just bad writing.
- good political angle.
- they attempted to make it exciting.
Doctor Who: The Power of the Doctor (2022)
Ehh
It was a decent episode (for once).
Good points:
- great to see all the old faces
- it's great that chris chibnals era is over
- good acting from Jodi Whitaker just crap lines as usual
- it ended
Bad points:
- the whole master becoming the doctor thing was just so tame, so over done, so boring and not even a slither as good as Michelle gomez's master story line.
- the actor who played the master is usually a good serious actor in British tv. However as the master he was just trying REALLY HARD TO BE INSANE !!! And it just didn't work.
- boring
- hate the new cybermen
- daleks were just TOO silly
- way to much explanation . Your literally the opposite of 'on the edge of your seat'. Just stop telling the story ! So much talking, so much weaving in and around the point and in the end, it feels like nothing actually happened, nothings changed, nothings actually important. Just nonsense.
Overall 7/10 because it's all finally over !
Dead to Me: We've Reached the End (2022)
Great
Such a sweet ending. So sad but so well done. I'm going to miss seeing Christina on the big screen, she is honestly amazing. Coming from her comedic unsavoury reputation as an actress in the 90s to this transformed serious actress we see now. I loved how this series ended, you could argue that they should/could of given it a happier ending but as we all know, life isnt always like that. We all loose something, somewhere. Some great acting from everyone involved, well filmed, good editing, scripts were perfect. It was good to see they kept the comedic element flowing throughout this series considering how serious it got at times.
Overall a brilliant show. They did not let it drop this series which I think is amazing considering the conditions they unfortunately filmed under. Humanity prevails ! 10/10 from me.
The Crown: Decommissioned (2022)
Is that it ?
It was very good. Well written, well acted, well paced and the effort that went into the sets, cloths and settings was brilliant. However, I waited 2 years for this season and I couldn't help but feel disappointed. I was expecting more to be done this season. Diana's death and the after effect, the Alfayed's causing a big stir with Diana, they should of done more with the queen mother. Margaret was used less, once again. Where are Margaret's children ? Why didn't they further explore the Sarah furgason and Andrew story. Why didn't they do more with Anne, overlooked in tv and real life. Why was the gulf war never mentioned. They do a lot of this right but they miss out so much ! Like in previous seasons. Anne was once held at gunpoint in a kidnap attempt, the queen mothers health decreased rapidly in the 90s, no in depth look at Anne or edwards weddings or marriages, princes Margaret had 2 children. There's big chunks they just leave out. There wasn't really any exploration into how Charles handed Hong Kong back over to the Chinese either. Despite the disappointing lack of exploration, what they did do was amazing. A good 9.0/10 for this season, I am a lover of this show.
Doctor Who: Partners in Crime (2008)
Oh brilliant !
I loved this episode, I've seen it several times now and it's really an episode to listen too. It's very well written, a comedic plot line that's also touching and insights character development. I love Catherine tate. This probably isn't for you if you don't like her in any capacity. Luckily for me I like her comedy and I think she's a brilliant actress when she's given the right material. David tennant, always good. Sarah Lancashire, excellent. Bernard Cribins, love him. This series started around the time I started watching it as a kid, this has always been a favourite with its persistent naughties (2000's) nostalgia. Tennant and Tate are By far my favourite doctor/companion duo, there first episode together was hilarious and still is ! As are all this seasons episodes. What I enjoy is that they are JUST friends, for once he isn't in love, she isn't in love, they don't do any of that because there friendship grows instead. I wish they did more. Loved it. 10/10.
The Crown: Queen Victoria Syndrome (2022)
A good start
Beautifully filmed and good start ! Clearly building up to the inevitable disasters. Well written, well paced and well acted. I like this cast so far, Imelda Staunton is always brilliant so I won't worry about that. Loving the inclusion of the lesser known British actors this season. I don't understand all the outrage, it's based on true events with fiction filling in the gaps. Why can't some people and newspapers understand that ..? Although not much happened in this episode, it was clearly the warm up act. I imagine they can't give away to much, to early on. I am fascinated to see how they do it all. So far, 9.0/10 from me. Love it.
The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power: Alloyed (2022)
Yeah great
Yes that was great. Just have to wait 2 years until the next one... it hardly seems worth it too me. Having to wait all this time after having to wait a week between each episode with not much happening when the episode finally came out. I wouldn't mind if it was exciting but it's a very slow burner, dull in places and shockingly written in terms of script and dialog. However the acting is decent and the show has begun to pick up. I hope it continues to do so however this show is supposed to be 5 seasons long, taking almost 10 years to complete. I have a feeling most of it's viewers will be dead before it's finished.
Overall a decent but anticlimactic ending 8.0/10 from me.
Thor: Love and Thunder (2022)
That's a shame
This film, well.. where do I start.
This film had potential, such potential. The casting was perfect and so were the designs, sets, characters. Even the story had potential. The director was perfect as well, the writers and the producers too. This film had all the makings for an excellent film, but unfortunately it was just done so badly.
Some good points. It was great to see Natalie Portman again, it brought some consistency back to the films, merging some of the cast from the first 2 films with the cast of ragnarok.
Another good part of the film was The god butcher, Although he was poorly cast and underused in the film, it IS a good character. I also liked the screaming goats, they were one of the only funny jokes in the film. It was good to see the guardians of the galaxy at the beginning too.
I also loved the cameos in the play sequence at the beginning.
Disappointing aspects:
- some of the acting
- the jokes
- the editing !!
- the pacing !!
- the endless jokes and humorous moments outweighed the series moments, it disjointed the plot and made it feel like nothing was actually happening. After I finished the film I felt as if nothing happened. When Thor went to see Zeus, there was no plot or conversation of meaning, the entire sequence was just daft jokes and ended with a short, animated fight sequence, it was rather disappointing. At the end of the scene Thor kills Zeus, but at the end of the film in the after credits scene it turns out Zeus is still alive, which just made the impact of his death diminish. This goes for the death of Korg, the brief moment when he collapses and appears to have died, it's shocking! Something happened! But no he survived. Nothing of actual merit happened in the film. Thor ragnarok worked, it had a story and the humour just. FIT, perfectly. It wasn't over done and there was just the right amount of severity, comedy and pacing. But Love and Thunder just, got it all wrong.
- the animation was disappointing
- the fight sequences were badly edited and weren't enjoyable.
- the plot line of Jane having cancer was good, but held less merit as she hadn't been in any marvel films for a while, if she was a regular, reoccurring character, the plot line would of been more impactful.
- there were countless missed opportunities, plot and story wise.
- It just lost its magic. Lost its ability to be funny, witty and intelligent. The nostalgia effect was just lost/over done, again. The 80's feel was just way to over done, why would you want to reminder the 80s, they were dreadful, why not the 60s or 70s.
- the choice of music was AWFUL. (Guns N roses)
5.5/10 from me.
Hocus Pocus 2 (2022)
Very enjoyable.
The first film is a childhood classic of mine. This
One kept the cheesey, enjoyable theme of the first. It kept the good 90s trash style too. It was Musical, comedic, light hearted and yet not over done. A great piece of fun that was a decent sequel/instalment, I loved the very subtle nods to the first one too.
Can't believe this film is 29 years after the first one, complete madness! To see the witches again was a thrill in itself, the acting from the new cast members was very decent, it was nostalgic, well written and scripted. I can't think of much else to say other than it was FUN. Overall, FUN. The film also had a very meaningful and touching undertone, especially towards the end.
For old times sake 8.5/10
For Creativeness 6.0/10
For casting 8.4/10
For humour 8.0/10
Overall: 8.2/10.
Spencer (2021)
Had potential
The premise of this film had potential. It was a decent idea However it was written and delivered poorly. The sets/locations felt hollow and just like they were going around a museum the whole time. It felt cheaply made, it also felt like a film that was made in the 2000, as if it was something that had already been done 10 years ago. Another downer is that nothing really happened, I mean literally NOTHING happened. It also had very unbelievable and over the top moments in it. When it comes to a show about royalty like The Crown, it's enjoyable because it is sensible, it FEELS right. This film some how lacked its feeling. That acting was decent, however what the actors were given to work with was dreadful; the scripts, the story, the screenplay. Whoever filmed this should be shot ! Just dreadful camera usage.
As I'm writing this review I'm trying to think of things I liked to make it fair. However, this film was a patch work of a lot of very average moments and some really bad ones. There weren't any 'good' or 'memorable' moments. I just think they could of done better.
5.5/10 from me.
Everything Everywhere All at Once (2022)
Amazing film
Absolutely gripped, fascinated and thrilled by this entire film. This film was creative, action packed, funny, very well acted and put together. The writing was excellent, the dialog AND story. The acting was perfect, no one was lacking and no one over acted either. To top it off it was casted perfectly, Jamie Lee Curtis is amazing, it was funny to see her take on a more light hearted role in this film. Michelle Yeoh, what a star, her career is making a come back and this film is proof that she is deserving of it.
Great cinematography and film sets. I loved how the film majorly took place in about 6-7 rooms in total but it felt far more than that.
Such creative ideas for all the fight sequences and designs. When it comes to the story it starts off making you think it is just another typical storyline, the big bad wants to kill the main character. But it turns Into something far more powerful.
9.0/10 from me.
Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines (2003)
Good, terrible and fun
Like all the terminator films since the first 2, this film has some cheesey, crapy moments. The upsides are it wasn't cheaply made, it was fun and the acting wasn't terrible.
The action sequences were excellent, especially the scene with the crane truck destroying most of a town as it drove through it. There was good makeup, good designs for the terminators, the machines and the sets.
I enjoyed the TX terminator. It was a good idea, fun to watch and scary like the T-1000.
The animation in places was diabolical.
For 2003 this was a very well put together film. The plot and story were more solid than some of the other sequels and in this respect it was better.
Overall this film was a fun action film. A terminator film. One of the best movie franchises in the world. A great film to watch when you want a bit of naughties nostalgia or some senseless violence in the background.
A good 8.0/10 from me.
The Predator (2018)
Decent, but doomed
This film was doomed from the get go. When filming, they scraped together scenes and a base line story they wanted to make. They showed this original cut to target groups who apparently reacted badly to it. So Shane Black decided to re-shoot half the films scenes to make a new plot, hence the disjointed feeling of the film and it's poor pacing. Not to mention they discovered an actor in a scene turned out to be a registered sex offender so they had to cut his scenes from the film as well.
I felt awful for Shane black, his original cut sounded dreadful and the one he released seemed to lack and constantly felt like you were waiting for something big to happen but nothing ever did.
This predator film like the others, pioneered when it came too casting diversity. Women, African Americans, white, English, Latin American, mexican. In this respect I thought the film was very forward thinking. Not to mention the positive way they looked at Autism, calling it the next step in the evolutionary chain which large groups of scientists believe themselves. They also had almost all the main characters have mental illnesses. PTSD, schizophrenia, depression. Even physical illnesses like nervous ticks and Tourettes.
Another positive way this film looked at things was by talking about climate change. They came to the conclusion that visits to earth by predators was increasing because global warming was making us endangered and they still wanted the best human DNA. Then possibly inhabit our world because they thrive in hot climates.
What this film also did was try and take the predator franchise in a new and different direction. In truth it failed to make an likeable change in direction for the majority of its viewers. However if this film was rewatched by its viewers and thought about more seriously I think it would be liked a lot more.
Good factors:
- casting, perfect cast
- positive outlooks on mental illness, physical illness, autism and places battle scarred military as the main characters.
- great designs. Of the predators, the sets, locations, space ships, some of the technology was a bit over the top - I preferred the original.
- good steps forward in explained the predators and there ways of life and fighting.
- some good nods to the other predator films and the AVP film.
- Good link to predator 2. Characters between the two films turn out to be related.
- decent animation
- good use of lighting, especially In the scenes set at night in the forests.
- enjoyable traditional showdown between the final characters and the final predator.
Bad factors:
- poorly paced and disjointed due to being 2 different films stitched together.
- poorly edited In places
- there wasn't really a need for a big animated predator, but it worked for the story.
- the design of the Predator dogs was odd, they should of made them the same design as the ones in Predators (2010).
- the ending lacked something
- I didn't like the idea of the predator killer suit. I thought it was over the top, terribly designed and a disappointing reveal at the end of the film.
- this film was meant to kick off two sequels but there were no links into the next film that were promising.
Overall. 8.5/10. At the end of the day it's a predator film.
Terminator: Dark Fate (2019)
Americans must HATE this
I thought this film was great. A homage to the original first 2 films. However, must of received a lot of hate from Americans. They touch on the unpleasantness of the immigration camps in the US. The main leads are almost all women, the main character, Mexican. They show US military and riot police being easily killed by terminators and hardly any shots of the US flag, it's hardly patriotic.
I know a large amount of people considered this cheap liberal trash. However this film went in a new direction with its casting. For once Latin Americans and Mexicans are portrayed with some decency in a main stream film. In the process it points out the inhumanity of immigration camps, splitting parents from there children and keeping them in cages, It doesn't sugar coat things as films usually do. And on the other hand people have no problem I'm films when white soldiers and spy's kill Middle Eastern men in turbans.
Good things about the film:
- good scripts, well written
- great casting
- well acted and paced
- good terminator designs
- decent animation
- action packed and brilliantly choreographed fight scenes.
- great music
- well filmed, good cinematography.
- great uses of lighting. Dim and bright lighting, silhouettes, Natural lighting, sunsets, moonlight.
- good makeup, Injury detail and cosmetics as usual.
Bad things:
- in places it's to much like a remake
- could of been longer
- could of made 2 films.
Predator 2 (1990)
Cheesey fun
While this film has some utterly great and memorable scenes that will stay in cinema history forever, In places it is also poorly executed and riddled with 80s cheese.
Good things about this film:
- diverse casting way ahead of it's time. A black American lead with Mexican, Latin American, Jamaican and white Co-stars, including women.
- memorable and great scenes, for example: the train scene, the abattoir scene and the final sequence on the predator ship, great sets and designs.
- a large variety of sets and locations.
- clearly not a low budget
- a large range of new ideas for the predator, we learn more about the species, see new weapons, medical equipment, massively creative.
- a clear story and a plot.
- action packed
- full of ideas
- well written
- creative use of lighting, camera angles and editing.
- not only does this film deliver on all aspects needed for a predator film but it's also enjoyable, with each scene linking and falling into the next.
- Not over the top when it comes to stunts, merely a few realistic jumps and climbing by humans.
Bad things about this film:
- the film is riddled with 80s cheeseyness
- an over the top sex scene that comes across both insulting and hilarious as it objectifies a naked woman.
- although the scripts are decent and make sense there are numerous cheesey and humorously outdated 80s lines.
- slightly anticlimactic ending to the final fight scene.
- unrealistic police procedures.
- unrealistic reactions at times by characters
Overall this film is a bit of early 90s nonsense. But it's over the top moments and cliches work perfectly to make a fun film even more enjoyable. A perfect example of sci fi cinema and a fine instalment in the predator franchise. Seriously underrated.
8.2/10 from me.
Prey (2022)
Finally
Finally a really good predator film. Finally a film that empowers native Americans. I saw a lot of negative reviews about how tribes wouldn't allow there women to hunt let alone leave the camp. Yes that's mostly true, however an alien hunter also didn't land on earth 300 years ago. There's finally a mainstream film out there with a female, Native American born lead. I imagine a lot of people don't like it because they can't face what we did to them or they don't really care.
- Great cinematography
- reasonably well paced
- great scenery and setting
- not over the top in its fighting and finale sequence.
- a nice nod to predator 2 at the end
- good animation
- great design on the sets, the predator, the animals, costumes.
- not to long and not to short
- meaningful in places and intelligent
- respectful of Native American culture
- didn't pretend to be anything other than what it is. A predator film. Action packed, thrilling and delivered on what was expected.
One of the best predator films so far. 9.0/10.
Two Doors Down (2016)
Very well written
It's very well written and paced. I have to say it's painfully realistic, with most of the characters being insufferable yet enjoyable at the same time. The writer of this show obviously has had a lot of experience in dealing with this kind of social conflict. Great acting all round, good characters, painful, funny and amusing.
As well as being just a bit of fun it's also a show you really have to watch and listen to. The faces, the way people say things and act is just perfect. I highly recommend this show. 8.5/10 from me !
Stranger Things (2016)
Enjoyable nonsense
Things that are good about this show:
- sci fi
- the 80s setting, as much as the 80s were terrible I love all the toys, the cars , the hair and the proper names.
- well written yet slightly cringey dialog between the children
- David harbour
- Winona rider
- the monster designs
- lighting
- scenery
- costume/clothing
Bad things:
- some of the actors
- the fact that everyone likes it
- it's incredibly American
- over the top dialog between the kids
- very safe, no sex, not much swearing. As if 'violence is fine as long as you don't show a nipple !"
- the 80s
- overrated so you become disappointed when watching it
The seasons are varied, the first season was a great bit of weirdness, season 2 was not as good, season 3 picked up a bit, season 4 was worse and ended on a cliff hanger clearly as part one of the two parted finale. If you ask me that's just squeezing money out of an empty tooth paste tube.
Overall enjoyable. I like Millie Bobby brown, David harbour and Winona rider so the main leads have big ticks from me. It is slightly dark but still very safe. Could be a lot more twisted and different.
8.0/10 from me.
Bride of Chucky (1998)
Iconic garbage
Don't get me wrong this film is trash, just garbage. But it's iconic and cheesy. I love the crap story and the stupidity of the whole thing. Plus I love Jennifer Tilly. This is the perfect film to watch when you want to watch a trashy movie, after a tiring day and you just want your brain to rot a little. It's enjoyable, horrible and trashy as well as funny, and not because of the jokes but because of how unfunny It is. A solid 6.0/10.