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Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (2022)
Multiverse of boredom...
If you like movies with dull plots and acting this film is perfect for you. The story just felt bland and seemed a big waste of time. Throughout the film we're told the multiverse is a wild place with unlimited possibilities and outcomes but we hardly see that instead we just get given a few boring areas in the film that are blatantly just green screened and lack any realness or emotion. The story itself is so boring and the main antagonists reasons for being the antagonist are genuinely laughable, it's that stupid. I'm not a big fan of the MCU admittedly but 'Dr Strange (2016)' was one of the few I enjoyed the most and it's a shame the sequel failed to live up to it whatsoever. The main reason I was exited for 'Dr Strange and the Multiverse of Madness' was cameos from characters that haven't been introduced yet or have been introduced in previous franchises however these cameos feel so pointless and for the sake of getting peoples attention which 'Marvel Studios' clearly saw as a cash grab after the success of 'Spider-Man: No way home'. It's funny to be saying that the cameos were what I was looking forward to the most yet now I've seen the movie I'm genuinely disappointed with them. Especially considering how long they last in the film. Would I watch this film again? Probably not.
My IMDB score 5/10
Viewed on VUE cinema
5/5/22.
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (2022)
Multiverse of boredom...
If you like movies with dull plots and acting this film is perfect for you. The story just felt bland and seemed a big waste of time. Throughout the film we're told the multiverse is a wild place with unlimited possibilities and outcomes but we hardly see that instead we just get given a few boring areas in the film that are blatantly just green screened and lack any realness or emotion. The story itself is so boring and the main antagonists reasons for being the antagonist are genuinely laughable, it's that stupid. I'm not a big fan of the MCU admittedly but 'Dr Strange (2016)' was one of the few I enjoyed the most and it's a shame the sequel failed to live up to it whatsoever. The main reason I was exited for 'Dr Strange and the Multiverse of Madness' was cameos from characters that haven't been introduced yet or have been introduced in previous franchises however these cameos feel so pointless and for the sake of getting peoples attention which 'Marvel Studios' clearly saw as a cash grab after the success of 'Spider-Man: No way home'. It's funny to be saying that the cameos were what I was looking forward to the most yet now I've seen the movie I'm genuinely disappointed with them. Especially considering how long they last in the film. Would I watch this film again? Probably not.
My IMDB score 5/10
Viewed on VUE cinema
5/5/22.
Forrest Gump (1994)
Beautiful & heartwarming...
'Forrest Gump' is a heartwarming story about the life of a man with a low IQ that had to have leg braces as a child. For years I've always put off watching this movie and I've never known why but now I've finally seen it, I'm glad I did. The story is so captivating by the way it's shown to the audience and the story itself is so up and down with emotions I couldn't say what part I enjoyed the most. From start to finish I was hooked to this beautiful and innocent tale and couldn't help but empathise deeply with the main character. 'Forrest Gump' is definitely a film I would rewatch and recommend.
Tolkien (2019)
A Simple but spectacle film...
'Tolkien' is a beautiful tale of the famous author J. R. R Tolkien and his life as an orphan to fighting in World War One. This film captures Tolkiens story wonderfully and Nicholas Hoult portrays him equally as wonderful. 'Tolkien' does lack in some areas such as the pacing being off and some scenes feeling dragged out which makes some parts a bit boring but overall this a great film. This film is perfect for all Tolkien fans and I'd sincerely recommend it.
My IMDB score 7/10
Viewed on Disney+
17/4/22.
12 Years a Slave (2013)
Sad but beautiful...
From start to finish '12 Years a Slave' was engaging and touching. The story Is sad and eye opening which just builds that tension of waiting for a final happy ending for 'Solomon'(Chiwetel Ejiofor). This film is spectacular, the directing is phenomenal and fresh, I don't think I've ever seen a film anything like '12 Years a Slave' before. With the likes of Brad Pitt, Paul Dano and Michael Fassbender the story just feels so real and authentic and results in a interesting story that's well executed into a sad but beautiful film. My only regret with this film is not watching it sooner.
My IMDB score 8/10
Viewed on Blu-ray
2/4/22.
Mechanic: Resurrection (2016)
Dull & unoriginal...
I had no clue what the 'Mechanic: Resurrection' was about besides it being a Jason Statham movie so my expectations weren't exactly high in the first place but this film was a major disappointment. Don't get me wrong, some points of the film were somewhat enjoyable but these moments weren't common and didn't last long. 'Mechanic: Resurrection' was a bland and generic action movie that took itself too serious. The characters and story felt so unoriginal which made the film a bit of a chore to watch as it feels like many other films I've seen in the past. It's very unlikely I'd bother to watch this film again as there's countless similar films that just do it better.
My IMDB score 3/10
Viewed on Blu-ray
1/4/22.
The Batman (2022)
Not the best, but definitely in the top 3...
'The Batman was great in many ways but disappointing in others. I'd say 'The Batman' is a great movie but at the same time, I wouldn't say it's a great Batman movie, but it's definitely in the top three. Throughout watching the 'The Batman', I couldn't help but feel like the movie was lacking something and I really couldn't say what, something just felt off throughout the film. I've spent the good part of the twelve months or so looking forward to this film and I really think it struggled to deliver my expectations however I was impressed by many things in this film. Such as; excellent casting especially with Jeffery Wright as Commissioner Gordon and Colin Farrell as The Penguin, little details throughout the film like seeing Batman's outfit obtain damage that doesn't disappear in the next scene. One thing I loved in this film was the gorgeous cinematography that brings Gotham city to life perfectly.
There was so many things Matt reeves and the teams behind 'The Batman' did just right which helped make the three hour runtime stay interesting. As expected though it does have its 'hiccups' such as the plot feeling bloated at times or over complicated and some scenes are unnecessarily dragged out which is ironic because the most enjoyable scenes feel a lot more fast paced and don't feel long enough (especially the fight scenes). I believe if the film was cut a bit shorter and some slow paced scenes were cut shorter, 'The Batman' would seem more streamlined and less tedious at certain points when the film feels to slow.
This is a Batman movie like no another. With an original tone, style and take any Batman fan would be silly to miss this film. The soundtrack, cinematography and casting is perfect and suits this iteration, giving it a unique feel like never before. I personally wouldn't say this is the best Batman movie out there (as much as I had confidence) but it still doesn't disappoint and I'd recommend this film to anyone with an interest in dark comic book movies with violent action and can enjoy a complicated murder mystery.
My IMDB score 8/10
Viewed at ODEON cinema
4/3/22.
The Gentlemen (2019)
Genuinely enjoyable from start to finish...
Before watching this film my hopes weren't so high. I loved Guy Ritchies 'Snatch' and 'lock stock & two smoking barrels' but other films I've seen of his, never came to being anywhere near as good as the previously mentioned (until now). So after seeing this film, I was actually impressed! At no moment during the film did I think 'this is feeling dragged out' or 'boring', instead I was completely engaged with the complex plots filled with a mix of different hilarious characters.
'The Gentlemen' is a very fast paced and confusing film. The moment you take your eyes of the screen you've missed the next plot twist or a really good laugh. Because of the complexity of the story you would have to pay attention constantly. For some this would be a pain but I didn't have any issues with this as I was genuinely entertained by the film enough, to pay full attention the whole time.
My only issue with the film is that 'The Gentlemen' is very forgettable. Don't get me wrong, it's a very good movie but it's just so forgettable and blends in amongst many over films of the same genre. I can confidently say however, I would easily recommend 'The Gentlemen' to people that like this style of film and humour. If you're after a confusing but intriguing story filled with a mix of characters, violence and a lot of swearing, this film is definitely for you.
Viewed on Netflix
27/2/22.
Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021)
Could've been better, could've been worse...
I won't lie, I was hyped to see this film and during the build up of 'no way home' coming out, I couldn't wait to see how it would unfold. The first thing I'll say is the film didn't really live up to the hype, which was a little disappointing but it didn't stop me enjoying the film one bit.
The idea of introducing the multiverse was a clever way to re-introduce characters from previous iterations of Spider-Man films however some characters in this film that were re-introduced felt unnecessary and purely fan service. For example, 'the lizard' (Rhys Ifans) felt so pointless and irrelevant throughout the film. This character was sidelined for a majority of 'no way home' and served no use to the plot besides showing up when the plot required so. This also seemed to happen with Sandman too. I understand to make the film less bloated, it was a wise choice to sideline some villains but if that's the case, they may as well not have been in 'far from home' and the main villains should have just been more centre stage.
The way they introduced Toby Maguire and Andrew Garfield also felt quite uncreative as they just showed up out of the blue and it felt quite rushed which was weird because at times the film felt like it was slow paced. The three spider men however, worked well on screen together and this was interesting enough on its own to carry the second half of the film.
Another issue I had with the film, was that it seemed to heavily rely on expecting viewers to have seen the 'MCU' films. This could cause problems for new viewers or people just trying to watch 'no way home' just as a casual one-off film. I understand that having a connected universe with so many films, that referencing and cameos are obviously going to happen but some conversations and interactions between the characters would have made next to no sense to nee viewers whatsoever.
To be honest, the film was enjoyable, despite the flaws and the way certain characters were handled was brilliant. It was great to see characters like the 'Green goblin' (Willem Dafoe) and 'Doctor octopus' (Alfred Molina) return to the big screen. Out of the the whole film, I'd say Willem Dafoe's performance stood out and showed how impressive Dafoe's acting skills really are. The way he portrayed 'Norman Osbourne' and the 'green goblin' was exceptional and it definitely carried the film somewhat.
Overall, I'd say this is a pretty good film and easily the best of Tom Holland's Spider-Man films. 'Far from home' doesn't live up to its hype but it doesn't stop the film being fun to watch from start to finish. The way the film ends also leaves a lot of room for more Spider-man films and also gives the writers an opportunity for new directions to take 'Spider-Man' (Tom Holland) and his story. The re-introduction of characters from previous Spider-Man films was also a nice touch and being a fan of Toby Maguire's trilogy and Andrew Garfield's films, it felt good to see them back again as Spider-Man and give their versions of the web slinger a final good bye.
Viewed at ODEON cinema
14/2/22.
The King's Man (2021)
Underrated & overlooked
Before watching 'The Kings Man', my expectations were far from high. I had seen many negative reviews on this film and with the 2nd kingsman movie 'the golden circle' not really living up to the hype of the first film, I felt obliged to doubt this film. Once I'd finished watching this film, my opinions changed quick and I found it weird that so many people didn't seem impressed by this film. 'The Kings Man' is far from a brilliant film and the story was a bit all over the place at times however the film still succeeded in keeping me entertained throughout.
Certain characters could have been
developed a bit more but I still found these new characters interesting and entertaining to watch on screen especially Rhys Ifans as 'Rasputin'. What I mainly liked about this movie that I think lacked in the other kingsman films, is that the main characters are relatable in some way or another and there motives make sense in a realistic way which helped me to feel more for these characters. Whereas the previous films didn't seem to have serious consequences or risk for the characters as much as 'The Kings Man' does. For example the character 'Conrad Oxford' (Harris Dickinson) he was a likeable guy with ambition and seeing him progress into a hero was heartwarming to watch. This also helped contribute towards his death feeling more serious and touching. The killing of this character made the story feel more real and showed the audience that consequences can happen which gave the film a slightly more dark but appropriate tone that the previous films don't share.
Overall I wouldn't say this an amazing film but it's definitely a solid good film and If you view it without thinking to much of the previous films you would definitely appreciate 'The Kings Man' for what it is, an action packed spy thriller that can have a bit of fun when it's appropriate.
Viewed on Disney+
13/2/22.
The Curse (2022)
Bad but brilliant!
The Curse (2022) review
Before watching 'the curse' I didn't really have high expectations. I'm a big fan of the 'people just do nothing' cast and seeing them in something out of the norm didn't really sit well with me at first which is why I wasn't expecting much from this show. Don't get me wrong the show is far from perfect and there's many faults and issues that I found with this show while watching it. These little issues I picked up on however didn't ruin the show but somehow added to the vibe and made the show more enjoyable. For example the acting in 'The Curse' was quite bad (in a humorous way),especially with the 'people just do nothing' cast however the bad acting didn't ruin the show for me, instead it enhanced the comedic tone and gave me a lot more laugh out loud moments.
The story itself was interesting enough to keep me entertained and there was enough twists throughout the episodes to keep the story compelling and engaging and I'd really like to see what's next for this show and where it could take the characters because this show does have a lot of potential! 'The Curse' definitely exceeded my expectations in a very unusual but enjoyable way.
All the characters seem fresh and have their own uniqueness about them especially Tom Davis's character 'Big Mick Neville' who definitely stands out throughout the show both literally and metaphorically.
Like all shows and films however there's always some negatives...
Certain characters in the show came across as really irritating and their motivations don't make sense. On top of that, the bad acting makes these said characters even more irritating which unfortunately makes it hard to watch when they're in scenes at times. Another thing I found disappointing was the pacing of the last two episodes as they felt rushed but at the same time hardly anything important actually happened up until the last 5 minutes and the overall ending was quite weak and very fast paced. It seems as though the writer forgot to write an end at first and just quickly thought of something that would fit, just to tie it all together.
Overall the 'the curse' is definitely my favourite new series of 2022 and besides it's little flaws here and there, it really is a fresh, engaging and hilarious show! I'm not sure myself if there will be a series 2 but based on how the show ended it would only feel right to see where the characters and story will go next!
Viewed on 'All4'
7/2/22.
Free Guy (2021)
Overhyped.
So so disappointed...
After seeing the marketing for this film it was very apparent to me that 'free guy' isn't meant to be taken seriously at all and it's just a simple switch off comedy. After around half hour into the film however I started to question all these positive reviews I've read. I didn't find any of this film remotely funny besides a few lines here and there and the story itself was cringe and hard to watch at times. The film seems to heavily rely on cameos, references and that 'usual Ryan Reynolds' character which has been milked to death. The acting also comes across as very amateurish considering some actors in this film are great actors in other films. I get 'free guy' is meant to be a comedy but I don't think that's an excuse for actors to perform so poorly. The action sequences also come across as quite meh, which was a let down as I was expecting a film based in a video game world to have unique and crazy type action scenes but instead it was just dull and so so cringeworthy.
Overall I find 'free guy' quite a boring and tedious film, I can see what the creators were trying to do and I do think this film had potential however it was just poorly executed. I really don't get why this film is receiving the praise it has. Personally I can't think I'd watch this film ever again but hey ho that's just my opinion watch it for yourself bro!
Viewed on Disney+
8/2/22.