Seeing HM Queen Elizabeth portrayed so many times in the past on both sides of the Atlantic for decades is nothing new, for good and bad. But this episode and the notion that young Princess Elizabeth on VE night found herself lured to the club basement by American G. Is to partake in some Jazz and Jitterbugging being flung round by a young black soldier whom she had to take a double look at as they past each other previously is open to serious suggestion. I'm sorry if any of you are in favour of revisionism in these modern times, but all it does is pass itself off as fake and disrespectful. The fact of the matter is, The Ritz in 1945 was not overly populated by black G. I soldiers out for a good time in The Ritz. And there's nothing wrong with that, it's the past and England nearly 80 years ago isn't the England of 2023. The Crown series in my opinion has less than 5 poor episodes in it's 7 years, this one is the worst despite the good main branching story about Princess Margaret.
Reviews
30 Reviews
The Killer
(2023)
I don't want to be one of those that says...you didn't get it.
25 December 2023
Right off the bat I'll say it's great seeing Michael Fassbender back in a noticeable lead role and teamed up with one of the modern great directors of film noir David Fincher. Having read a lot of earlier reviews from people on here and many of them low scored with the same sort of complaints of it being dull, boring and slow, I thought I'd better schedule a time to sit down and watch this new film. Ok having just seen it and immediately penning this review, I got to say it's definitely more positive than negative. Giving the film an 7/10 is very fair I think because there are no doubt quite a few poor points to level at the film. The biggest one for me is the pacing or at least the very first 20 minutes which was nearly impossible to get through as it slowly goes about setting up the professional ins and outs of a hitman. Why the director actually wanted the viewer to sit through watching the hitman eat a McDonalds burger or taking in a spot of yoga was alarming as you've invested no time with the character at all to be interested in his hobbies. But wait. Get past the 20 minutes mark and certainly with the plot more fleshed out and you will be greeted with a very dark and dangerous character study of a impassionate, sullen, detached killer that goes about his business with calculating efficiency. If you are expecting a rip roaring action thriller to match the levels of a Jason Bourne film, then you will be sorely disappointed with The Killer, that's not to say this film is without action mind you. There a brutal near 5min hand to hand fight with our Killer and a person of interest, there's also moments of cold style violence from our Killer as he extracts the required information needed. This type of film is bread and butter stuff for David Fincher having nearly 30 years of experience playing in this sandbox. Fassbender while absolutely capable of playing this type of role is quite incredible as the near silent barely talking Killer, his dialogue lines must be on the same level as Arnie's T-1000 from The Terminator (1984) in hardly utterly a sentence, and I use that comparison deliberately as here you have two characters with one goal to achieve and nothing will stop them and a rising body count in their wake. As I wrote in my heading..."you didn't get it", I stand by that. This is true filmmaking that forgoes the decade long trudge of superhero films and mindless flashy effects from talentless actors and hired directors that litter the cinemas today like stale popcorn. You want a deep brooding character study of what is perhaps one of the greatest screen incarnations of a professional hitman brought to the screen I've ever seen, then watch this film from a great director and actor in top form. Bear in mind it's certainly not a film for everyone hence many of the low end score on it's page. It only doesn't get an 8/10 from me because of that dead slow first 20 minutes that hurts the film and possibly sours the film for many viewers before it gets the chance to soar.
Boston Strangler
(2023)
All Preachy in Old Boston Town
22 May 2023
When I first heard about this film coming out and it's subject matter being about the infamous Boston Strangler investigations I was very interested. Then I found out who was the lead actor and it's Kiera Knightley, and my hopes slowly flushed away.
I still gave it a watch as I am a fan of true crime content in many forms. But this was being released on HULU and not in the cinema which is always a bad sign the studio have no faith in it. They were right, and my assumptions about the film were also right - it's yet another bland meandering boring plod through nearly two hours of not much tension when there should be, and following the two crusading female news journalists played decently enough to be fair by Carrie Coon and Knightley. Whereas Coon brings a weary heft to her side character role, it's Knightley that gets the lion share of the screen and the film suffers for it. Not once did I believe this character played by Knightley would be behaving and acting so recklessly in her dogged pursuit of the Strangler. I wouldn't say she's a bad actress of the past, but the range for me seems to be the same whatever she's cast in. And now in these modern times we get to hear Knightley character come across all preachy and very girl bossy with her male colleagues, male bosses and her husband accusing them of generally being difficult standing in the way of female progress and preferring her to stay at home with the kids etc. We just want entertainment and this film isn't it. In no way should this film be placed beside the superior "The Boston Strangler" from 1968 with the legendary Tony Curtis and Henry Fonda. In fact we just didn't need a new film about this already well informed story from American crime history, especially with the modern film classic "Zodiac" from 2007.
I still gave it a watch as I am a fan of true crime content in many forms. But this was being released on HULU and not in the cinema which is always a bad sign the studio have no faith in it. They were right, and my assumptions about the film were also right - it's yet another bland meandering boring plod through nearly two hours of not much tension when there should be, and following the two crusading female news journalists played decently enough to be fair by Carrie Coon and Knightley. Whereas Coon brings a weary heft to her side character role, it's Knightley that gets the lion share of the screen and the film suffers for it. Not once did I believe this character played by Knightley would be behaving and acting so recklessly in her dogged pursuit of the Strangler. I wouldn't say she's a bad actress of the past, but the range for me seems to be the same whatever she's cast in. And now in these modern times we get to hear Knightley character come across all preachy and very girl bossy with her male colleagues, male bosses and her husband accusing them of generally being difficult standing in the way of female progress and preferring her to stay at home with the kids etc. We just want entertainment and this film isn't it. In no way should this film be placed beside the superior "The Boston Strangler" from 1968 with the legendary Tony Curtis and Henry Fonda. In fact we just didn't need a new film about this already well informed story from American crime history, especially with the modern film classic "Zodiac" from 2007.
Angel Face
(1952)
70+ Years On It Has Lost None Of It's Power To Shock.
15 May 2023
The tale of a caddish by likeable ambulance driver Frank played brilliantly as always by Robert Mitchum that gets a call out to posh Beverly Hills and to the Tremayne family mansion of a report that the stepmother has been poisoned by a faulty gas radiator either by accident or some underhand tactics at play - he stumbles across the young 20 year old stepdaughter Diane Tremayne in another room quietly playing the piano to herself. Diane played superbly by the exquisite looking Jean Simmons. After a bit of playful banter and unscheduled meetups orchestrated by Diane with planned intent, they start seeing each other all the while Frank is involved with another woman Mary played by the beautiful Mona Freeman. Any other man would be more than content to settle for the beautiful doting Mary, but this being a Robert Mitchum film - well of course he's going to do things the hard way and get involved with the younger woman he knows little about. For Diane isn't all she seems on the surface, the surface being one of the most beautiful women of the 1950s, what bubbles beneath this complex character though is something that would keep a sleeping man awake with one eye open at night. She is cunning, devious, and evil. The direction by the masterful legendary Otto Perminger is fantastic, as is the cinematography by Harry Strandling. The iconic haunting musical score that perpetuates the whole film is handled peerlessly by the legendary Dimitri Tiomkin and it's what most viewers remember from this vintage film. The direction is deliberately slow paced but never boring. But what will shake you to the core is it's sudden burst of action, and in particular two major scenes that arrive in the middle of the film and one at the climax is utterly shocking to watch even 7 decades on and the advancement of mature R rated films, this film left me open mouthed in it's visual rawness. A film of the early 1950s that in it's cold heart is a typical film noir crime film you got by the bucket load in the 1940s where stars back then like Humphrey Bogart, Lana Turner, Claire Trevor and Alan Ladd ate these kind of films for breakfast. The 1950s would be the truly last great decade for classic film noir and Angel Face is one of the very best of it's type. Highly recommend it 10/10.
Very Average Film, A Wasted Effort All Round
20 November 2022
Surprisingly unemotional film. Black Panther 2 without the Black Panther is Disney Marvel's biggest folly yet. Delay and recast were the way to go with this sequel. Way too long running time to sit through a plot so boring and incoherent. So focused on current day and forgot to put the brakes on the director and writers throwing everything up the wall and using what sticks. The Namor character was so far removed from the classic origins of the old Marvel comics, he just came across as the weakest antagonist in the MCU with a poor backstory. The Shuri character is less annoying in this one than she was in the 1st Black Panther film but nevertheless, unable to carry the weight of the film. Angela Bassett was ok as the Queen. A fantastic actress that was given a poor plot and reasoning to go against the wishes of Namor that sparked the tensions and war. The Dora Milaje female warriors were even more insufferable this time round than ever before, quite frankly on this evidence, they'd beat the old Avengers and Thanos in one afternoon the way the director has amped them up with nothing more than carry shields and extendable staffs. The worst character in the film - Riri Williams aka "Ironheart", the teenage 19-year-old genius from the age of 3 first built her own powered Iron suit??? In this film she yet another Disney heroine with a sulky bad attitude that knows everything, a well-used and tired Disney trope at this point. The two scenes dedicated to the late great star Chadwick Boseman were exploitive at best. Of course, I understand the cast and crew wishing to pay tribute to their former cast member, but what was served just didn't hit me in the feels the way the film wishes it did. Everyone has said it already, they should've recast the Black Panther role instead of replacing him. Now the franchise has ruined itself behind the glaring fact that T'Challa is no more, again a choice that just didn't work. A very poor and disappointing film. Black Panther 2 is a mess of a film that ultimately dishonours the late star.
Halloween Ends
(2022)
Truly Horrifying for All the Wrong Reasons.
17 October 2022
Halloween Ends concludes this trilogy as bad as you feared they might, only worse than that. After the well-received 2018 film it's nose-dived badly into melodrama. The idea to follow this unlikeable grimly scruffy Corey character as a type of "mini-me" Michael Myers clone is a terminal mistake and the doomed romance with dumb Allyson just dragged it down even further that you'd hope the real Michael Myers would do away with her. The lack of presence of Michael Myers was painfully absent for at least 50 minutes into the film, just how do the filmmakers make and agree to that decision which would also include the legendary horror master himself John Carpenter??? The final showdown between Michael and Laurie was at least well handled, but if you're going to try sell me the idea that an aged grandmother can go hand to hand combat with a hulking 6ft plus killing machine beggars' belief. Classic use of plot armour. It's all a pity that they all couldn't stick the landing for this modern day retelling of the big screen's greatest monster icon. It's also very telling that the filmmakers didn't take at least a few years like they did after 2018 to 2021 and treat this second sequel to the same timeline and space it out. Just finishing this film within a year after Halloween Kills was a huge mistake and as a result it's ruined what could have been a very memorable horror trilogy to match the original old films. As it is, Halloween Ends winds up being the worst film in the entire franchise, Halloween 3 Season of the Witch is no longer the series' worst film - now that's scary.
Mostly a good episode, but glaring issues still exist.
13 October 2022
This episode is vastly better than the last episode which was a total bore and sludge to get through. This one at least returns to some real stakes as the heroes' plan and heist gets underway. The good: it's impeccably filmed, written and well acted by all involved. The real life living and breathing locations continues with beautiful imagery and rugged landscapes, the special effects and built onset locations are top notch. But to the bad: the character Andor still continues to be a backseat passenger in his own show, clearly outshone and deliberately so by the tough no nonsense "Vel Sartha" who barks and growls at anything and anyone making sure you know as a viewer she's in charge and leaves the lasting impression on you. She actually has the character drive and plot urgency that Andor should have being lead actor, but in comparison is still terribly one-note as the Rebel spy and while Diego Luna is a very competent actor elsewhere, he's character of Cassian Andor is very much a bore just like in Rogue One. This in a nutshell is how Disney plays it, tough women, black & minority players on the Empire that has a heart of gold, and the main lead being reduced as a side character in his own tv show.
The Great Dexter Ruined By His Dumb Kid
15 September 2022
I've read most of the 1/10 star reviews on here and I completely understand the frustration and boiling anger of how many Dexter fans feel on this final ever episode. I really get it. But for the near hour long episode, around 30 minutes of it was compelling gripping stuff that was touching a 8/10, that was already better than the original Dexter show finale episode from 2014 I think. But the last 25 or so minutes was cringe inducing head banging against a brick wall stupid that crashed and burned towards a 1/10. The great Michael C. Hall as one of the many executive producers has to take that squarely on the chin as a major pratfall. How on earth can he sign off on that premise, execution and ending given to him by the lazy hack writers just looking to wrap the whole thing up but leaving so many gaping plot holes and glaring open ended questions of illogical actions??? All the acting honours go to the remarkable versatile Michael C. Hall for seamlessly diving back into the empty coldly humorous Dexter Morgan like it's a second skin, and it's marvellous to see one of the greatest television characters of all time back on the screen. The other acting honours go to the ever dependable cult fan favourite actor Clancy Brown. But virtually everyone else in this snowy isolated town was a wooden character. The police sheriff that was Dexter's girlfriend just couldn't act from the first minute to the last, and I didn't buy them as a wholly believable couple. Her daughter and the other teen friends were the usual mix of kids behaving as grown up adults and all her backchat and swearing to her mother quickly drained on me. The kid playing Harrison was a better rounded character but did none of the adults or police officers twig to his real odd and awkward behaviour and the sudden bouts of violence all over town and recommend he gets some help pretty sharpish? It was nonsense the things Harrison was doing and getting away with. But that ending was as dreadful an ending I've seen in many a long year. Reminded me of The CW and their awful superhero endings of Supergirl or The Flash, just all quickly wrapped up with added forced convenience that this really is the end of the line. What's more the pity is that the whole season of "New Blood" was a very good show of 9 solid episodes that echoed past seasons of classic Dexter more than a decade earlier. It is typical of today's Hollywood hack writers and creators though that they couldn't care less about sticking the landing and finishing the bloodlust story of Dexter Morgan that would've been remembered for decades in the future like Six Feet Under and The Americans, instead it's to be forgotten like Batwoman and She-Hulk.
This Has Turned Into Batwoman Levels Of Bad
13 September 2022
After a fantastic debut season, the second season has gone down the pan so fast by headlining minor teen acting characters of no real importance to some lofty gravatas where they seemingly come across as adults with adult problems. Superman is sorely reduced to some kind of fetch quest character now being sent here and there, and Lois fully becomes realised as the main figurehead of the Kent household. This episode of season 2 episode 13 just broke my resolve to carry on after this season to watch any more. A scene that deliberately mirrors the notorious Batwoman scene of Kate stating the Batman suit will be perfection - "when it fits a woman" is present in this episode with John's teenage daughter being better and making a far superior suit than his just ended it for me, for good.
The Best Start Possible
22 August 2022
I was cautious leading up to the premiere of watching more Game of Thrones after the failure of the original show in 2019. But the safe haven is found in the writers given the task of bringing this enormous epic to the screen. Out goes original hack writers D&D and into comes Ryan Condal, Miguel Sapochnik and creator R. R Martin and between them they shift focus back to character development instead of the massive set piece after set piece scenes. This first episode couldn't have been better, already full of betrayal, back stabbing and power mad council members. Looking forward to the next episode and the whole season in general. As long as the lessons are learned from the final seasons of GoT, The House of the Dragon should be on solid ground.
Big Sky
(2020–2023)
So bad it's really bad and that's no gimmick
28 July 2022
I couldn't believe and I'm shocked this dreadful episodic tv show comes from the once brilliant writer mind of David E Kelley, creator of great shows Big Little Lies, Ally McBeal and LA Law. It's very clear the world of woke and feminism has consumed David's mind when he dreamt up this risible effort. The show is a checkbox of modern day do's and do nots much like every show and film being released since 2015. All the men are complete dopes or evil beyond redemption. All the women are amazing powerful beacons of light, capable of taking down bad men twice their size. Even the women on the bad side of the Law are unrestrained and fully capable of beating down fellow bad men with ease. Then there's a crossdresser being empowered by her victimhood at the hands of another man. The two main female leads as the private investigators are quite frankly pests as only women are being written these days, forever running into trouble, not listening to anyone and punching and shooting their way out of any situation. It's all eye rolling stuff, boring, predicable and ridiculous. The best thing in the show is the always the watchable great Ted Levine who's too good for this rubbish. The worst thing in the show is Britt Robertson is the only daughter of the main villain family, a family full of older brothers and Levine as the tough gruff father and she overpowers all of them with backchat insults or a swift knee to the groin for good measure. How this isn't cancelled yet after two full seasons beggars belief. Avoid.
Wonderfully Handled Drama Within A Sitcom
16 July 2022
This episode being Part 2 of "Goodbye" where the laughter track was purposely and rightly dropped out of respect for the actors, the mood and the sad untimely passing of comic legend John Ritter earlier on in the year. This classic show which continued to be great after the life of Ritter's character Paul will also be remembered and overshadowed by the fact Ritter collapsed onset and later died sending such a show into Hollywood folklore. All cast and crew should be very proud of their work and honouring John to continue on in his memory.
Thor: Love and Thunder
(2022)
The Origins Of Old Thor 2011 Is Now Dead
8 July 2022
Quite a terrible viewing experience with dollops of puerile comedy and unfunny jokes. What a far cry from a decade ago where Thor was seen as a more serious arrogant otherworldly being as depicted in the classic comics, to what we have today - a childish juvenile made in the very image of it's over the top overrated director who doesn't have a clue. Keep burning into your profits Disney, the world no longer watches like they did in droves before 2019.
The Terminal List
(2022– )
The Greatest Piece of Television In Ages
6 July 2022
I am positively shocked at how incredible this new tv series is, brought to the screen from the bestselling novel by Ex SEAL Jack Carr acting as exe producer, legendary action director and producer Antione Faqua and big screen star and fellow producer of the show Chris Pratt. What can I say about this show? It's utterly superb, compelling, unrelenting and very violent. The closest material I'd say this new tv show reminds me of is an R rated version of the old tv show 24 with Jack Bauer if FOX Tv ever took their feet off the brakes 20 years ago. If you have a weak constitution to viewing realistic graphic violence, you very well may struggle to get through all 8 amazing episodes because this is without a doubt R-rated stuff. Let's talk about the lead actor Chris Pratt who gives in my opinion one of the greatest performances I've ever seen as the protagonist "James Reese" hellbent in getting to the truth and delivering his brand of justice and he doesn't mess about. I'm not sure what awards these type of mini series' fall into, but I'd say give Chris Pratt the Golden Globe for Best Actor because he was sensational, mixing true grit, believable mannerisms of the world famous Navy SEALS, perfect amount of pained vulnerability as a man alone who's lost everything and will not stop to get the answers whatever the odds. The ratchetting tension as it goes along and the opposing forces that closes in on him, the fight scenes are just brutal and effective. The other main cast members are equally fantastic with Constance Wu, Taylor Kitsch, Jeanne Tripplehorn and Jai Courtney being the standout players. I certainly hope there is a Season 2 planned in the future. All in all a brilliant adaption from novel to the screen.
Top Gun: Maverick
(2022)
Astonishing and Thrilling
26 May 2022
Simply one of the very last old school actors of his kind from a now bygone era of filmmaking - Tom Cruise doesn't need to prove anything at this point but continues to show why he is indeed the last action hero the world needs in a current time of extreme partisan politics and extreme wokeism. This film while it was never needed after nearly 40 years since the iconic original had completed the short filmic story of "Maverick" saving the day and getting the girl at the end has under Tom's firm insistence that a return to "Fightertown" shouldn't just be a lazy cash grab like Disney Star Wars, but demand everyone be at the top of their game. A compelling enough narrative, while it does echo strands from the 1986 film is comfortable to get into it after several minutes. The whole cast simply didn't follow the trend of most of Hollywood's films today in bringing in the legacy characters to be humiliated and disgraced for the sake of a new younger cast that takes up the baton. It easily could've gone in that direction so many times, but thankful the direction and script thought better of it and instead the younger cast members were a very pleasant surprise. If I were to mark the film down somewhere, it would be the Jennifer Connelly character being the weakest part of the film and didn't need to be in it, purely there as love interest for Maverick at some point between the two films that was unseen. What would have been better and made more sense would've been to bring back Kelly McGillis, but understandably she isn't in the best of health and reports that she just wasn't even asked back which is very sad. Back in 1986 it was the legendary F-14 Tomcats that stole the show from a younger rising star with the dazzling smile, 36 years later it's the greatest action star of the past 30 years that now upstages the newer F-18 Super Hornet jets, as amazing as the aerial stunts are and they are real, the true star for two hours is Tom Cruise himself. No longer needs to prove it, he just turns up and shows why he's the best in the business. 10/10.
This Is Where The Fun Begins...
1 February 2022
Warning: Spoilers
After 3 very poor episodes and 1 pretty decent episode (ep2) of The Book of Boba Fett, we reach episode 5 and it's everything a Star Wars fan wanted. A solid narrative, fascinating lore, more live action world building (the ring world space station was incredible) and heavens above - Mando is back with the DarkSaber. A whole 50 min episode of Mando doing kickass stuff that has been shockingly absent from the Boba show only serves to highlight how much the filmmakers and writing team have cocked up the Boba show once you see Mando comfortably taking up the strain of a whole episode on his Beskar clad shoulders with ease. Superb action scenes throughout, plenty of nods back to the Prequel films and lots of Easter eggs makes this a worthy addition to The Mandalorian series in it's own right. Bryce Dallas Howard has clearly inherited her father's legendary directing skills and shows she has a knack for Star Wars in general. The future could be very bright indeed.
The Matrix Resurrections
(I) (2021)
The Matrix Deconstructed
21 December 2021
Where do I start? It's pretty awful to be basically blunt. While it was great to see Keanu Reeves and Carrie Ann Moss back in their famous roles as Neo and Trinity, they are vacuous hollow copies of their once iconic selves just going through the motions and obviously picking up a decent salary at the end of filming. The plot while fascinating from a certain point of view once you can stay awake long enough to see what the director/writer Lana Wachowski has dreamt up for the return of these classic heroes quickly falls apart and you learn that this isn't The Matrix follow-up film you've needed since 2003. The Matrix Revolutions ended properly two decades ago despite it's huge flaws - it was a Matrix film. This lame effort from 2021 flips the story, the aspect and lore on it's poor dumb head. The pacing was dreadful, the plot at least for a Matrix film was wholly idiotic, the supporting cast were unremarkable and forgettable, the classic screen hue of greens and blacks is replaced by bright colors and gloomy black palettes, the special effects are garbage for a film series reliant on amazing special effects, no memorable fight scenes or stunning chase sequences. I don't know why Lilly Wachowski didn't return to directing duties with her sister Lana, but that was a huge mistake judging by the finished and final product. Lana has clearly pumped current social woke trends and commentary into the script and it suffers for it focusing more on the politics of following other big franchises being brought back for today's audiences and deliberately ruined that falls in line with Star Wars, Star Trek, Marvel and DC and Watchmen. The sight of the blue haired girl from the Matrix Resurrections trailers gives a big clue to where the direction this film goes to and you won't like where it heads to and the reveal at the end.
Star Trek Online
(2010 Video Game)
The Best Star Trek Video Game Ever
22 October 2021
After a decade of hard work and development from the devs, it's fair to say they have done a very good job in churning this very well created universe out for the fans of this iconic franchise. Yes it suffers from a zillion bugs, glitches and maintenance works, but the storylines are very much Star Trek. Lovingly narrated in painstaking detail to such a point you would get out of Earth Space Dock if you read everything on offer. The options are mind blowing to your chosen character and customising your avatar and ship can be a mission in itself taxing over the tiny complex details. Finally the visuals of the game are split down the middle which is very much like the gameplay - the ground team visuals are pretty much rough and shoddy while also recognising the vast open spaces you can run around showing off the scope of the game, the visual up in space though is the money shot. Beautiful vistas, nebulas and planetary systems drift by on-route to your next mission, along with the classic Star Trek soundtrack, music cues and iconic sound effects and you can see why 1000s of gamers sink 1000s of hours into this MMO every week. To see fellow online gamers show up at Earth Space Dock in all manner of ships and sizes is a joy and makes for a real community and for me the best Star Trek video game of all time.
No Time to Die
(2021)
Time For You To Die Mr Bond...For Good.
3 October 2021
I am struggling with my rating on this film and have settled uneasily with 5 out of 10 where that number would likely fall lower of the passing of time the more I think about this uneven film. I'll say the 5 stars is purely aimed at the cinematography, the competent action scenes and the music but it's definitely not one of Hans Zimmer's best film scores by a long shot. That's the good. The middle ground is Daniel Craig's performance which is the usual gritty world weary 00 agent but this time round and with Craig's say so and blessing, it's now hampered with mannerisms and behaviour that's so unlike classic Bond that we've come to expect that it's jarring to the point of distraction. And now the bad - for my own sanity and to keep this review measured and manageable for anyone wishing to read, I'll keep it on the short side. The director, the multiple array of writers including the ultra feminist Phoebe Waller Bridge, the old producer team and owners of decades of Bond films under their belt Barbara Brocolli and Michael G Wilson and Craig himself all pushed for James Bond 007 to be flipped over and inserted into what we now know of the #METOO movement and Bond must be shown to reflect that change. What we get is put simply a character assassination that's been honed and created from past Bond actors going all the way back to the legendary Sean Connery. This version of Bond just doesn't work as Bond. If it was a generic action spy film with Jason Statham then it's fine, but this is James Bond and he's now saddled with life choices unbeknown to him initially and it's meant to just cuck him and reduce him to an ordinary man caught up in global drama he didn't sign up for. The baddies portrayed by the great Christoph Waltz and recent Oscar winner Rami Malek are shockingly poor with nothing to do but give pointless monologues to Bond. The women with this film obviously celebrates with ultra female empowerment are a mixed bag. For me Lea Seydoux who plays Madeline is competent enough with equal moments of damsel in peril to be saved and stand and fight to protect. Ana de Armas as the Cuban super spy "Paloma" was pretty much ridiculous going from gawky nervous operative to John Wick within five minutes dispatching multiple baddies with aplomb while Bond struggles just to beat one baddie. Then there's the worst character of the film in the dumpy shape of Lashana Lynch's "Nomi" or as the script directs everyone to tell her every 10 minutes she walks on "Hello 007", or "don't you know I'm 007 now" with alarming regularity. I feel after the run of Craig's Bond films, it was a mistake to keep up this "Vespa Lynd/Mr White" narrative since 2006, a very long time ago instead of giving Bond episodic adventures like the old ones used to do, thus making them memorable and highlighted as one can tell a classic scene from Moonraker, another from Goldfinger and one from Goldeneye. These Craig Bond films are very much the same squashed up mess with only Casino Royale being a superb film and Skyfall following suit but for me to a lesser extent. It started so well in 2006 and hit the highest of heights in 2012, then the rot set in badly with confusing complex directions for it's own good and directors signing up then leaving with not believing in the plotting of this Bond narrative. Director Danny Boyle who was originally signed on to film the 25th Bond film, then quit knowing way back then this was the Bond film the producers wanted to make and as a diehard Bond fan Boyle couldn't do it to the iconic character. The film is just too long clearly trying to copy the final film in the series like Avengers Endgame (2019) and Star Wars TROS (2019) both being exceedingly long in runtime. These 163 minutes hurts this film as much as all the other nonsense going on, they should've cut 30 minutes off easy as I can imagine a random cinemagoer not up with the plotting of Craig's Bond narrative will be lost in the dialogue, it's been six years since Spectre and the filmmakers are forcing you to watch that old film just to refresh up for this even poorer film. Not going to happen and as it goes I actually liked Spectre on some levels. But No Time To Die will have many people that like it that's for sure, they just won't be True and old James Bond 007 fans like myself that wanted fun over social commentary and political study.
Salem's Lot
(1979)
Can Only Be Viewed With The Lights Off To Feel The Terror
17 September 2021
Quite simply the greatest horror film ever made. The heightened tension, the dreaded atmosphere, the creeping foreboding doom that touches every corner of this small sleepy town. A great selection of character actors from yesteryear like the legendary James Mason and Lew Ayres, and from at the time popular rising stars like Geoffrey Lewis, David Soul and Bonnie Bedelia. Unforgettable iconic characters that will give you nightmares for the rest of your life as a kid of the late 1970s watching this first time round, and on repeat viewing it still holds up as essential viewing for horror fans young and old. Mr Straker and Mr Barlow wouldn't have it any other way, and in Mr Barlow the most terrifying vision of snarls, growls and grunts you will ever likely to witness on the big and small screen. From a great Stephen King novel turned into the greatest ever horror film 10/10.
1984
(1984)
Has Lost None Of It's Power To Scare You
1 August 2021
I've always been aware of this classic British film from the mid 1980s as a young teen and knowing the classic novel by Orwell of the same name from grade school. But compared to the flashy snap bang and crackle films around at the same time like Gremlins, The Goonies and Ghostbusters - they had my full attention while 1984 slipped under and away from my thoughts. Well fast forward nearly 40 years later and I'm in my 40s, with the state of the world in the fast decline it's in, this film popped back up into my consciousness. With a more mature mindset for slower thinking films and now the time to sit down for 2 hours and invested myself into it, I did just that today. It's a masterpiece of filmmaking, brilliantly directed by Radford and equalled by fantastic performances by John Hurt daring to think for himself as the radical Winston Smith, and Richard Burton in his final screen performance as Inner Party member O'Brien seeking to crush Smith's spirit for free thinking. The things we know of today in pop culture "thought police", "Big Brother", "Room 101", "thoughtcrime" etc is all here nearly 40 years ago and over 70 years ago with the famous old novel. The scare factor here does not need 8ft tall Aliens or zombies, it's usually quite simple that man itself is the scariest of all, and the willingness to subject your fellow man through sadistic measures to control one's thoughts and ideals is nothing new, but all the same terrifying because the state will always win in the end. That's the message overall I took away from this great film, and you can just see it in today's Governments on a smaller scale. But George has warned us all it's coming...
Not kidding, there's a Masterpiece episode in Season 10
13 June 2021
I've seen most reviews on here slotting this episode into the top 10-15 episodes of TWD, and I agree with that, for me it goes into my top ten TWD best episodes of all time. Truly a magnificent near 50 mins of backstory of Negan's past and what made him the character he is currently. At times painfully poignant and very sad with bursts of action. Jeffery Dean Morgan's performance is absolutely tragic and brutal in equal measures and you can't take your eyes off the screen. The ending sets up the Negan/Maggie dynamic going forward into Season 11 with renewal hope.
F9: The Fast Saga
(2021)
Awful
13 June 2021
As the Fast & Furious franchise veered more and more into the realm of James Bond and Mission Impossible with each passing entry, it was saved by the majority of the time by characters that's become beloved on the big screen for the past 20 years. Like most multi sequels of big budget films, the ramping up of stunts and action sequences was a given and only matched by genuine chemistry of Vin Diesel, Paul Walker, Michelle Rodriguez etc. Fast 9 takes the crown that I don't think any other film this year will be able to knock off it's head for being the worst big budget film of 2021 so far. Pull The Plug On This Franchise Now.
Wonder Woman 1984
(2020)
Not Wonderful and Pretty Bad
9 April 2021
Well I thought DC's Birds Of Prey at the start of 2020 was badly awful, but Wonder Woman 1984 makes that film look like a positive Oscar winner when lined side by side. Patty and Gal who's also Producer on the film (big mistake) make all the choices here in ticking off all the checkboxes where possible, from the ludicrous opening 12 minutes of pre teen Diana besting every adult Amazonian at their version of "It's a Knockout" to grown up Diana saving practically every female in distress around the city from those big loutish men. You'd already be rolling your eyes at this - and there's still another 2 hours to go. It was a waste of time bring a certain character back that added nothing. Gal Gadot was average in the title role, not as good as the film in 2017 but ok. Pedro Pascal was the best performance and was clearly chewing the scenery enjoying himself. Kristen Wiig I've heard wasn't good at all, I found her to be surprisingly ok in truth which sums her up in most anything she stars in playing the same character over and over. She looked gorgeous which she finds pretty easy to do as well. Patty Jenkins made sure she pumped this film full of empowerment up to the eyeballs - the women being put down, wolf whistled, harassed by virtually every male on the screen who just happened to be the worst trope of bad males you could possibly ever cross paths with. Disney has signed up Patty Jenkins to directed their next big screen Star Wars film??? I shudder to think what she's going to fill the screen with pushing her extreme agenda ideas. Regards to WW84, if you can watch it for free, it's only your time you'll be wasting. If you have to pay money for it - simply don't bother, it's not worth it. DC's worst film by a country mile.
Unhinged
(I) (2020)
Just How Many Punches Can You Take From Russell?
29 March 2021
I heard all about this film last year and what I learned put me off from watching it. So fast forward last weekend when starved of nothing new to watch, I found myself facing this film again and decided to plunge in. Well as I feared and can't stand from today's modern films is the sheer amount of feminism and woke pandering being subjected to my eyeballs. I'll start with the good - Russell Crowe was as usual, immense, striking, awesome and brutal about the way he went about his business. Frankly the 4 stars I've given this film is purely down to him in holding this paper thin event of a film together and that's an unfair blight on the iconic Crowe. Surely that performance should garner a 8/10 all by itself if not for the complete nonsense surrounding him. Well onto the bad, and boy it's bad. Far too many to list here and it actually hurts my brain to mull it over to write down. But the standout badness of this film is the performance of the lead woman and the idiotic ideas, situations and decisions she found herself in. I'll say this and give the movie a good point of being fairly interesting for the 1st 15 minutes and upto the 1st encounter of the villain and heroine in the traffic jam trading insults thru the car windows. Women simply do not behave like this in real life when faced with a large burly unknown man who's clearly triggered, but being in the era of woke feminism, she can take it and give it some. To the point where she can take a literal beating from Crowe's character using his size 10 feet and man mountain fists on her face and chest that would have broke her jaw and eye socket on top of a busted ribcage, being thrown head first into solid objects that would shatter your skull - but up she gets to fight on against someone that weighs 300 lbs and built like a tank. Well you know who's going to win that fight in current year woke right? It's an insult to compare this film to similar public rage classics of cinema like Duel, The Hitcher and Falling Down. Don't believe the 7 out of 10 ratings on here, it's nothing of the sort, it's a 4 or 5 at best and that's down to Crowe's acting. Worth putting on for a Friday night laugh with friends chowing pizza but it's a "one and done" film never to be re-watched ever again.
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