Category: Reviews

Malignant

Post author By Mark
Post date September 13, 2021

What does a superstar director turn his attention to after reviving and mastering the demonic possession film and helming a giant superhero epic? Well, if you’re James Wan you set your sights on the campy supernatural slasher films of the 80’s, with the absolutely insane new offering Malignant. Heading in a completely different direction from his Conjuring films, Wan proves once and for all that his talents behind the camera translate to any genre, embracing the weird and whack to terrifying effect in one of the most jarring (in the best possible way) and outright fun horror films of the year.

Let’s get one thing straight, Malignant’s plot is definitely a case of “the less you know the better” and to get too into the plot would be to spoil half the fun of its central mystery. On a very basic level the film follows the heavily pregnant Madison (Annabelle Wallis), a woman trapped in an abusive relationship with no hope of a way out. When a particularly bad encounter with husband Derek (Jake Abel) leaves her unconscious, Madison awakens only to find him horribly mutilated and a mysterious figure waiting to attack. Now more alone than ever having lost the baby in the ensuing chaos, Madison returns home intent on not giving in to the eerie presence she feels stalking her at every turn.

It would be easy for Wan to fall back on his laurels and construct another riff on the same sub-genre as his career-defining Conjuring films – the reason they were so big is due to just how well Wan is able to control the scares and audience’s expectations, leading you down the beaten horror path before pulling the rug out when you least expect it. He still employs these techniques to typically scream-inducing effect, but Malignant falls more in-line with campy slasher films of the 70’s and 80’s, with a heavier focus on gore and the whodunnit mystery at the centre which he pulls off without a hitch – remember, this is the man who gave us Saw, the very film that coined the term “torture porn” – he can do gory.

That’s not to say that the film sacrifices story for the sake of violence, with a tour de force performance from Annabelle Wallis holding the entire plot together. Slowly watching her unravel and question her every waking moment is its own form of torture – with the viewer desperate to get to the bottom of things – as each new clue chips away at what remains of Madison’s sanity; her face becoming more gaunt and harrowed as the horrors increase. George Young and Michole Briana White’s cop-centric side story is less involved, if still essential, as they strive to uncover the identity of a killer they believe to be Madison’s attacker before he strikes again. Becoming somewhat formulaic at times, their chemistry offsets whatever fatigue might have set in, with White providing a lot of the humour as the stereotypically pissy ‘bad cop’.

Tone is where Malignant will undoubtedly divide fans of Wan’s previous work, eschewing the more grounded, realistic tones of his earlier horror in favour of a campy, oftentimes over-the-top style. Madison’s attacker leaps and scrambles around with over-exaggerated gusto; Wallis locks into her inner scream-queen, constantly emptying her lungs at the smallest disturbance; and the police investigating communicate in the most intentionally clichéd dialogue. It won’t be for everyone, to be sure, and Wan does go too far at times – peppering a jarring (in the worst way) electronic cover of the Pixies’ “Where is My Mind?” into Joseph Bishara’s otherwise sublime score – but those that do latch onto the vibe Wan is shooting for will find it endearing in the same way as other horror films of this ilk, with each new quirk inching the film further to becoming a cult classic.

Malignant is a fascinating new chapter in James Wan’s increasingly diverse filmography, mixing in enough tried and true Wan-ism’s to satiate longtime fans whilst presenting a strikingly different turn for the oftentimes subdued and grounded filmmaker. The tonal shifts from his earlier horror films might not be to everyone’s tastes but the talent behind the camera and the proficiency through which the horror maestro delivers bone rattling scares and huge swing-for-the-fences curveballs in the plot cannot be denied: Wan’s latest is anything but benign.

Malignant stars Annabelle Wallis, Maddie Hasson, George Young, Michole Briana White, Jake Abel, Jacqueline McKenzie & McKenna Grace – In cinemas now and streaming on HBO Max in the US.

9/10

Tags Annabelle Wallis, George Young, James Wan, Maddie Hasson, Malignant, Michole Briana White

Movie Reviews

Don’t Breathe 2

Post author By Mark
Post date September 8, 2021

Fede Alvarez’ 2016 horror hit Don’t Breathe was a taut, inventive thriller that wasn’t afraid to get dark with its story of thieves who unwittingly find themselves up against a blind man who is far from the helpless stereotype they thought – a fast paced romp that wrapped its story up perfectly. Naturally Hollywood – never content to let a story end on its own merits if it smells a pay check – has brought back the property and Stephen Lang’s blind antagonist for an unnecessary sequel under the direction of the first film’s writer Rodo Sayagues. While Sayagues tries his best to take the story in an interesting direction – positioning Lang’s unnamed antagonist as a protector this time around – the audience is never truly invested, thanks to the character’s horrific actions in the first film and a lacklustre story that never feels like it was begging to be made.

We open in a similar manner to the first film, with a young girl ominously wandering down a quiet Detroit street before collapsing. Cut to 8 years later and that girl, Phoenix (Madelyn Grace), is now undergoing intense survival training as part of her home-schooling regime with her father – Lang’s raspy and grizzled unnamed blind man – and dreaming of interacting with other kids her age. When she is given the chance to accompany a business friend of her fathers around the city, Phoenix unwittingly attracts the attention of shady gangster Raylan (Brendan Sexton III) and his crew, unknowingly leading them back to the house where they launch an all-out assault in an attempt to kidnap Phoenix and kill the blind man. What seems like an obvious kidnapping, however, takes on a more complicated form when secrets about Raylan and the blind man are revealed, forcing Phoenix’s protector to risk everything on a violent crusade to save his daughter.

The biggest hurdle Don’t Breathe 2 has to overcome is the repositioning of Stephen Lang’s blind man as a hero after the horrifying deeds he carried out in the series’ first instalment. That film clearly painted the blind man as someone beyond saving; who had undergone terrible things in his life but who had ultimately surrendered to the darkness, raping and murdering to ensure that his lineage continued. A well-rounded character sure, the rare horror villain with a multi-faceted backstory, but one that doesn’t leave much room for a redemption arc. That doesn’t stop Sayagues from trying, and pairing the blind man with Phoenix is a tried and tested way to do it, just look at Logan.

But what worked for that character, who was always positioned as a hero before the filmmakers told (but never showed) us about the horrific deeds he committed, doesn’t apply here. It’s like taking Michael Myers fresh off his 1979 debut and asking audiences to now root for him as he teams up with the very teens he sought to kill. Give that to the fans after an endless stream of increasingly goofy sequels and you might have something fun on your hands, but right off the bat that tonal shift is too jarring. Here, Sayagues skews closely to the original’s tone, using the same music and similar sets to recreate the claustrophobic feeling of that film, only now they are asking us to accept that the guy who tried to forcefully impregnate a woman with a turkey baster is good because he has a daughter? That’s a tough moral compromise to ask of your audience and the film lets viewers think that she could be the product of this horrific act for far longer than it should – not a winning move to get you rooting for the blind murderer.

Without that emotional connection at its core, the film is forced to rely on the horror to entertain and, for the most part, this is standard horror sequel stuff: a jump scare here and there – nothing that breaks the mold. But when it comes to gore and unflinching depictions of violence, Sayagues demonstrates all that he has learned from Alvarez to blood-curdling effect, enough to have this usually strong stomached horror fan recoiling from the screen at times. The direction also stands out, with a particularly impressive one-take during the initial invasion keeping you on your toes as Phoenix sneaks and dodges her potential captors at every turn: a rarity in a genre that usually resigns sequels to a painfully uninspired formula.

Don’t Breathe 2 isn’t a bad horror sequel, doing just enough interesting things with the direction and gore to keep it out of that category. But for a film that doesn’t feel like it needed to be made in the first place, Rodo Sayagues’ script can’t shake the baggage of Lang’s blind protagonist and his awful earlier actions, no matter how emotional it tries to get (not very) or how evilly it positions the new gang of antagonists. Everyone loves a good redemption arc, but short of saving a burning building of school children, nothing is going to change how you feel about this bastard.

Don’t Breathe 2 stars Stephen Lang, Madelyn Grace, Adam Young, Fiona O’Shaughnessy & Brendan Sexton III – In cinemas now.

5/10

Tags Adam Young, Brendan Sexton III, Don't Breathe 2, Madelyn Grace, Rodo Sayagues, Stephen Lang

Movie Reviews

Reminiscence

Post author By Mark
Post date September 5, 2021

Film noir is largely absent from studio filmmaking nowadays, with the once prolific genre now existing as little more than beloved classics and cult hits, with the occasional modern indie film daring to journey into the territory. Westworld co-creator Lisa Joy should be commended then, on reviving the genre in a relatively big-budget way with Reminiscence: a sci-fi tinged love story wrapped around a murder mystery. Though while the Hugh Jackman-starring film looks incredible and features plenty of exciting futuristic concepts, it never coalesces into anything other than a fairly predictable mystery, albeit one buoyed by great performances from Jackman and Rebecca Ferguson.

In the aftermath of a global warming event that has partially flooded the world and sparked a series of wars for dominance over the remaining dry land, Nick Bannister (Jackman) and his veteran buddy Watts (Thandiwe Newton) operate a business out of the shady, waterlogged side of Miami that allows customers to re-experience important memories in vivid detail. When the enigmatic and mysterious Mae (Ferguson) pays a visit to her memory in order to locate a set of lost keys, Nick falls hard, with the pair soon becoming inseparable. Nick’s run of bad luck seems to be on the turnaround thanks to his relationship with Mae, until she abruptly vanished without a trace, leaving him distraught and desperately revisiting his memories in search of a clue that will help him reconnect with her. Just as Nick begins to put the past behind him, he uncovers a sinister clue hiding in someone else’s memory; a clue that pushes him down a dark path to uncovering Mae’s secrets and losing himself to obsession in the process.

The opening few minutes of Reminiscence do a fantastic job of introducing you to this unique world, with Jackman’s classic noir voiceover quickly familiarising you with the strange waterlogged city and its seedy inhabitants. Miami looks amazing, with vivid neon signs and lights reflected off the flooded streets back onto the people wading through them in knee-high rain boots. The streets themselves are lined with facades of buildings are pulled straight out of noir films of the early 40’s and 50’s, but with a distinctive futuristic touch, like your grandfather walking through his old neighbourhood as a kid with an iPhone. Nick’s occupation further expands the world, introducing an intriguing setup for a murder mystery; entering the memories of people offers the potential for a more cerebral search rather than the typical noir trapping of the hero scouring his city for the criminal.

Unfortunately Joy doesn’t seem particularly interested in venturing too far from noir conventions, content to bring the genre back to the screen without reinventing the wheel. Because of this the sci-fi concepts feel largely superfluous – Nick may detect a clue from someone’s memory (usually his own) but the pursuit happens in the real world, with the mystery of Mae’s disappearance becoming more predictable with each new clue uncovered. Similarly Jackman’s Nick begins the film as a downtrodden man struggling to scrape together a living before developing a crippling addiction to his search for Mae – new ground for the actor who has for so long been associated with claws and one hell of a temper. However as the mystery unravels, Nick sheds most of that baggage; going into full action hero mode and dispatching shady characters he encounters with all the violent proficiency of Wolverine.

All this might give the impression that Reminiscence isn’t worth your time, but that isn’t true thanks to a terrific cast led by powerhouse performances from Hugh Jackman and Rebecca Ferguson. Their chemistry as a couple of star-crossed lovers is palpable, with Jackman the perfect leading man to embody the modern equivalent of classic noir actors like Humphrey Bogart and Robert Mitchum. Despite the mystery unravelling into predictability, you never stop rooting for Nick, as Jackman completely sells the descent into obsession as he severs ties with those close to him and destroys everything he has built in his pursuit of Mae. Ferguson is brilliantly cast as the femme fatale, oozing old Hollywood glamour as she seduces Nick; her presence (or lack thereof) felt throughout the entire film despite only appearing in a handful of scenes. You might not like where the story ultimately heads or the superfluous science fiction elements, but this central pairing will keep you invested right up until the credits – a testament that Jackman is certainly not going anywhere now that his time as Wolverine is behind him.

Lisa Joy’s first big trip outside of Westworld is something of a mixed bag – a confident, if overstuffed swing at the film noir genre that succeeds on the strength of Jackman, Ferguson and the entire cast’s commitment to the material. It may not live up to the promise of the mystery initially established, spiralling into predictability along the way, but Joy should be commended for attempting something so wholly different from most big-budget filmmaking out there. Anything different is sure to stand out in an age dominated by superheroes and over-the-top action and Reminiscence is a cult classic in the making.

Reminiscence stars Hugh Jackman, Rebecca Ferguson, Thandiwe Newton, Daniel Wu, Brett Cullen, Marina de Tavira, Sam Medina & Cliff Curtis – In cinemas now.

6.5/10

Tags Cliff Curtis, Hugh Jackman, Lisa Joy, Rebecca Ferguson, Reminiscence, Thandiwe Newton

Movie Reviews

He’s All That

Post author By Mark
Post date September 1, 2021

When celebrities jump into acting from different mediums it can be a tricky situation; for every Arnold Schwarzenegger or Mark Wahlberg there are dozens of unsuccessful Paris Hiltons or Rihannas. As far as something as short form and potentially throwaway as Tik Tok goes, the skills don’t necessarily transfer to the silver screen. That hasn’t stopped Addison Rae, one of the platform’s biggest users, from trying as she stars in cult nineties teen comedy She’s All That in the gender-swapped remake He’s All That. Expectedly, she isn’t exactly Daniel Day Lewis on-screen, but Rae does her best and isn’t as much to blame for the film’s failures as the script itself and the overly cheesy tone.

Taking on the role made famous by Freddie Prinze Jr. in 1999, Rae stars as Padgett – a high-school senior on the cusp of winning prom queen with alongside her budding rap star boyfriend Jordan (Peyton Meyer) as she heads on to a life of internet fame, thanks to her constant online presence and social media branding. When her life is turned upside down by Jordan and her insensitive friend Alden (Madison Pettis), Padgett accepts a dare from Alden to transform the ugliest boy in school into prom king, seeing it as an opportunity to detail her journey and earn back her fame. She settles on outcast Cameron (Tanner Buchanan), inserting herself into his life until he is forced to become her friend and uncovering the prom king potential within. But as Padgett bonds with Cameron, she realises that there is more to him than meets the eye, and that the fame she has placed such an importance on in her life, isn’t as important as genuine human connections.

The original She’s All That is hardly a masterpiece; a formulaic, dated teen comedy with a few standout scenes but precious little else: the prime candidate for a remake improvement. Rae’s version is almost identical story-wise, but instead of fretting over which college she should go to Padgett frets about losing her social media following and sponsorships, and thereby a shot at college. It’s a welcome update that modernises what is now an extremely nineties film, but adds its own wrinkles, namely the cringe-inducing social media cheesiness. Annoying text bubbles and social media posts bombard the screen when Padgett is engaging with her followers, creating a cacophony of noise and garbage that is more irritating than it is engaging. Hell, the messages in the posts feel like they were written by some kind of generic comment AI as opposed to an actual teenager in 2021.

Whilst the film operates under the guise of a remake, what it really is is a showcase for Addison Rae. A statement to the world that she is more than the social media that made her. This is presented through the blatantly obvious “subtext” of Padgett’s crisis of conscience about what social media has done to her as a person and the havoc it has wreaked on her ability to form genuine connections with people that don’t consist of likes or follows. Except we never get to any point of actually condemning social media, likely because Rae is practically the face of an entire platform, and the film can’t – as a genuinely great Kourtney Kardashian puts it – “go viral in the wrong way”. Even after all her supposed growth Padgett continue to maintain this overtly always-online presence, even if it irritates the living hell out of her new beau. Rae is trying to break into acting, but at the same time ensuring she doesn’t bite the hand that feeds her, and that creates a film strangely lacking in the criticism it pretends it is dishing out.

As far as Rae’s actual acting goes it’s fine. There’s a certain magnetic optimism in her facial expressions that the Tik Tok star has cultivated through her endless seconds-long clips that lends itself perfectly to the bouncy, upbeat character of Padgett. When it comes time to hit some more dramatic notes however she seems unsure of how to play the scenes, relying on her more practiced co-star Buchanan to carry her through the more romantic moments. Their chemistry is nowhere to be found, relying on extravagant gestures to show how much the characters care about each other rather than any particularly meaningful conversation or interaction. Thankfully original supporting player Matthew Lillard and co-lead Rachael Leigh Cook return to spice things up, particularly Lillard in a scene stealing performance as a principal who gets away with saying things real principals could only dream of. Their presence is a nice nod to the original, even if they are playing different characters, and iconic returning song “Kiss Me” still hits as hard now as it did two decades ago.

He’s All That functions as more of a launchpad for Addison Rae’s acting career than it does as a loving recreation of a cult classic teen comedy. Mark Waters’ attempt at critiquing the current state of social media and its infection of our lives falls flat thanks to its lead star being be the face of the most trendy social media platform on the planet, with the message so muddied that it is hard not to think how much more relevant the original film’s message – beauty hiding beneath the surface in all of us – is in an age where social media has warped users perception of physical beauty. Addison Rae can act, not particularly well but not as terrible as some may have predicted, and while she’ll likely continue to find work on the strength of her name and brand recognition alone, this debut feels as disposable as one of her Tik Toks.

He’s All That stars Addison Rae, Tanner Buchanan, Madison Pettis, Rachael Leigh Cook, Peyton Meyer, Isabella Crovetti, Annie Jacob, Myra Molloy, Kourtney Kardashian & Matthew Lillard – Streaming on Netflix now.

4/10

Tags Addison Rae, Annie Jacob, He's All That, Isabella Crovetti, Kourtney Kardashian, Madison Pettis, Matthew Lillard, Myra Molloy, Netflix, Peyton Meyer, Rachael Leigh Cook, Tanner Buchanan

Movie Reviews

Snake Eyes: G.I. Joe Origins

Post author By Mark
Post date August 29, 2021

There wasn’t a high bar set for Snake Eyes, the origin story of the toy-based military team’s silent ninja member. The previous two films failed to spark a franchise in any meaningful way so why wouldn’t Paramount try an Avengers style approach and build up team-members individually? Henry Golding in the lead role? This might have the potential for a decent action film. Oh how wrong I was. Snake Eyes is an absolute disaster of a film from start to finish, just as bad as the previous entries with awful action, cheesy characters and downright dreadful dialogue. The briefest of bright spots comes in Golding, who tries his best to keep it all afloat, but ultimately fails in jumpstarting this tired, hackneyed franchise into anything other than mindless noise.

Our bland story begins with Snake Eyes (Henry Golding) witnessing his father’s murder as a child. Cut to several years later and our now adult hero is drifting through life, enjoying the occasional bare knuckle cage match before he is approached by Yakuza head honcho Kenta (Takehiro Hira) and offered the chance to join his crew and earn the location of his father’s killer. When he refuses to execute rival clan leader Tommy (Andrew Koji) on Kenta’s orders, Snake Eyes (yes, that really is the only name the character is given) is forced to go on the run, hiding out with Tommy’s family in Tokyo and undertaking a series of three challenges to become a ninja, whilst secretly carrying out his quest for revenge.

See how that sentence went naturally from refusing to execute a man to becoming a ninja? No? Well the film doesn’t either, moving from plot point to plot point without any connective tissue as Snake Eyes carries out a series of formulaic, done-to-death action movie tasks. Why does Snake Eyes need to become a trained ninja to kill his father’s killer, by all accounts a low-level thug? No idea but here’s that shaky-cam filled fight sequence where characters leap 10 feet in the air without explanation that you were clamouring for. Why does Tommy open his home and spill all the secrets of his clan to this outsider? Well because the plot demands it of course. Snake Eyes having to fight giant anacondas to become a ninja? It’s in the name, duh.

Every scene that isn’t filled with terrible action or some hollow attempt at ninja bonding serves only to expand the franchise in some clunky way. Take Samara Weaving’s appearance as franchise favourite character Scarlett. A largely throwaway role, she shows up, shoots a few baddies and then… delivers an exposition dump that sets up the next film in the franchise. Likewise with franchise shadow organisation Cobra, who inexplicably make an appearance and then swiftly exit the picture. These scenes are so ham-fistedly shoehorned into the film and overly engineered to start a franchise, that the filmmakers didn’t think to actually make the characters in this film worth our time and investment. Why worry about that when you can make more money off future team-up films I guess.

Paramount has made this same mistake twice before and still shows no signs of having learnt its lessons. Sure, the mythology of these films essentially boils down to children bashing action figures together but that doesn’t mean that the film adaptation of that needs to be mindless, chaotic action for 2 hours. Audiences need interesting characters and situations that they actually care about to get behind a franchise. Take the DC universe for example. They jumped the gun throwing all their characters straight into Justice League and the resulting film was a total mess. But they righted the ship by ensuring that (almost) every subsequent film has been an emotionally centred, focused narrative about an individual character that the audiences can get behind, like Aquaman.

For his part, Henry Golding does what he can with the limited material given to him. He’s a good actor, capable of charming his way through a movie like Crazy Rich Asians or going in a totally different direction like his gleefully deranged turn in The Gentlemen. In Snake Eyes, that range and ability is never tested; the character is the same blank slate hero we have seen a thousand times before, a boring audience surrogate who is injected into the family feud between Tommy and Kenta without having any actual stakes in the fight. Characters fawn over him and thrust him into crazy new situations without any good reason and his response is never anything other than a slightly disgruntled at the thought of having to fight the entire Yakuza. For those worried Golding would remain tight-lipped as the famously silent assassin, fear not, as one of the characters most defining traits is simply removed so as to make him as milquetoast as possible.

Henry Golding deserves better than Snake Eyes, an absolute mess of a film that completely wastes his talents while succeeding at bludgeoning its audience to death with a cocktail of everything that is wrong with modern action films. If the other films in the franchise didn’t do it then this latest attempt at making the G.I. Joe property “a thing” should surely be the final nail in the coffin for those burly relics of the eighties. At this point, contesting with the snakes would be a better option than watching another entry in this franchise.

Snake Eyes stars Henry Golding, Andrew Koji, Haruka Abe, Takehiro Hira, Iko Uwais, Peter Mensah, Úrsula Corberó, Eri Ishida & Samara Weaving – Available to rent or buy now.

2/10

Tags Andrew Koji, G.I. Joe Origins, Haruka Abe, Henry Golding, Iko Uwais, Peter Mensah, Samara Weaving, Snake Eyes, Snake Eyes: G.I. Joe Origins, Takehiro Hira, Úrsula Corberó

Movie Reviews

Sweet Girl

Post author By Mark
Post date August 24, 2021

Jason Momoa is one of the most physically imposing leading men in all of Hollywood, I mean just look at him, the man could kill you with a scowl alone. Putting him in a gritty revenge action flick like Brian Andrew Mendoza’s Sweet Girl seems like a no-brainer for Netflix to draw views, but apart from a solid performance from the big man himself this is as middle of the road action as you can get. Not an awful film by any means, just content to coast along on convention and do absolutely nothing special to stand out from the dozens of other throwaway action films Netflix seems to have in an endless supply.

When his wife (Adria Arjona) succumbs to cancer that may have been prevented had a new drug not been kept off the market by shady pharmaceutical company BioPrime, Ray Cooper (Jason Momoa) declares war against the organisation and issues a death threat to its skeevy CEO Simon Keeley (Justin Bartha). After an attempt to make good on that threat goes awry, Ray is reluctantly joined by his teenage daughter Rachel (Isabela Merced) as they attempt to outrun a crazed hitman (Manuel Garcia-Rulfo) and bring to light a conspiracy bigger than they had ever imagined. One that, if true, could bring an end to BioPrime’s shady dealings and provide the family some semblance of retribution.

The main problem with that plot is just how predictable it all is, until it isn’t. From the outset you can see where everything is ultimately heading and even though Momoa is clearly giving everything he has to his performance, it doesn’t change the fact that the film is almost identical to at least a dozen others. The initial carefully planned job gone wrong, our heroes evading cops and killers as their mettle is tested again and again until they find the will to carry on before the big reveal of the true mastermind. Think The Fugitive with the violence of Taken. It all sticks so painfully to formula apart from a late-game twist that should fundamentally alter everything that came before but fails to do so in any meaningful way. It’s one of those plot twists that seems profound but does little to alter the film’s final destination or improve upon any of the technical problems.

The most egregious of those technical problems is in the fight sequences, where shaky cam reigns supreme in all its unintelligible, painful to watch glory. What makes it worse is that there is some solid camerawork underneath, with slow, spinning pans and some excellent one-takes completely ruined by what appears to be the camera thrown into a washing machine. Momoa is more than capable of delivering a competent fight scene, just look at his work in Game of Thrones or Aquaman, yet it is almost impossible to discern what is happening when the action starts pumping, even more frustrating considering Mendoza’s history as a cinematographer. That, combined with the film’s strict adherence to formula, means these scenes are also devoid of any stakes or tension, with characters shrugging off falls from 2 storey buildings and stabbings as if they were nothing before launching into a fresh round of incomprehensible violence until someone somehow drops dead.

Sweet Girl is simply the latest in a long line of completely watchable action thrillers ruined by terribly executed, shaky-cam ridden fight scenes and a plot so predictable, you could make a pretty effective drinking game out of it. Thanks to Momoa and Merced’s chemistry it remains watchable and, as is always the case with these types of films, is sure to find a devoted audience on the streamer, but there are far better action film options out there than this perfectly serviceable, instantly forgettable thriller.

Sweet Girl stars Jason Momoa, Isabela Merced, Manuel Garcia-Rulfo, Amy Brenneman, Adria Arjona & Justin Bartha – Streaming on Netflix now.

5/10

Tags Amy Brenneman, Brian Andrew Mendoza, Isabela Merced, Jason Momoa, Justin Bartha, Lex Scott Davis, Manuel Garcia-Rulfo, Netflix, Sweet Girl

Movie Reviews

CODA

Post author By Mark
Post date August 21, 2021

Ruby (Emilia Jones) is like almost every other teenager at her school. Socially awkward and not a particularly bright student, she coasts through on her way to the inevitable life awaiting her on her family’s fishing trawler. Throw into the mix the fact that she is the only hearing member of a deaf family (CODA stands for Child of Deaf Adults) and that fate seems even more inescapable; they need her as a translator in order to continue operating. But Ruby loves to sing and – on a whim – enrols in a choir class where she is exposed to quirky music teacher Bernardo Villalobos (Eugenio Derbez) who inspires her to dream of more in life, forcing Ruby into a personal struggle between loyalty to her family and striking a path for herself.

You’ve probably seen a film like CODA before. Director/writer Sian Heder sticks closely to coming-of-age conventions in the way things unfold, but sets the film apart from other genre-mates with the sheer amount of heart and charm injected into the script and the thoughtful examination of the deaf experience on an everyday level. The closeness of Ruby’s working class family is at the centre of that; living in their own small world and relying on each family member pulling their weight to get by. Ruby’s role is key to the family, as the only person capable of interpreting and bartering prices; her path to self-discovery isn’t paved with high-school parties and experimental drug use, but through attempting to balance her family’s demands with her own desires as she learns that she perhaps can’t keep her feet in both worlds.

The reason it all works so well is thanks to the pitch perfect performances of the entire cast. Emilia Jones is superb as Ruby, battling her way through each day as she juggles the expectations of everyone around her and the responsibility that comes with them. She’s a tough-as-nails hard worker, due in no small part to her situation and need to simply get on with things, but there is a softer side that shines through as the possibility of securing a future in music increases and her ability to hold everything together wanes. Jones perfectly captures those warring sides, perfectly prickly in the tougher moments but breaking your heart when everything becomes too much for her. It is a truly special performance that should rightly earn her plenty of attention.

The scene stealer however is Troy Kotsur’s performance as Ruby’s father Frank. Deaf in real life, Kotsur relies on lively, emotive facial expressions and expressive body language to make his points, often in an overly frustrated fashion, at people who don’t understand him. His relationship with Ruby is the emotional core of the film, torn between having to rely on his daughter’s help to keep the family afloat and his desire to see her succeed out in the wider world, and Kotsur and Jones’ remarkable chemistry make their scenes incredibly heartwarming and endearing, even when they are at odds with one another. They also share many of the film’s lighter moments, with Kotsur showing some solid comedic timing as he injects some much needed levity into an otherwise dramatic scene. Easily the best supporting performance in a film this year, Kostur should be a shoe-in for nominations come award season, and for good reason.

Where last year’s excellent Sound of Metal conveyed the deaf experience through the lens of one man’s journey from hearing to deaf, struggling to cope with the immense change in his life, CODA takes a look at deafness on a more granular, everyday level. This is a family that has lived with deafness their entire lives and as such has developed their own shorthand and way of getting by, and getting to live inside that for two hours is fascinating. Unlike Sound of Metal’s fading sound design which showed the changing world from that character’s perspective, we see things through Ruby’s viewpoint: unable to concentrate on homework as the house constantly booms with noise made from her unaware sibling and parents and forced to wake the house up in the morning with flashing lights instead of alarms. They’re small details but ones that really go a long way to building a connection with Ruby and demonstrating just how vital to the household her presence is. When the prospect of her leaving causes uproar in the house you understand both sides of the argument; she is both essential and deserves to be allowed to pursue her own life.

Despite its genre trappings and familiar plot CODA manages to stand out from other coming-of-age stories thanks to its grounded look at a type of family that is not often as well represented on screens. With terrific performances across the board – particularly from Emilia Jones and Troy Kotsur – and a deeply affecting emotional core, CODA will constantly have you smiling, even through the inevitable tears. There’s a reason this was the highest-selling film in Sundance Film Festival history, see it now.

CODA stars Emilia Jones, Troy Kotsur, Marlee Matlin, Daniel Durant, Ferdi Walsh-Peelo, Amy Forsyth & Eugenio Derbez – Streaming on Apple TV+ now.

9/10

Tags Amy Forsyth, CODA, Daniel Durant, Emilia Jones, Eugenio Derbez, Ferdia Walsh-Peelo, Marlee Matlin, Sian Heder, Troy Kotsur

Movie Reviews

The Suicide Squad

Post author By Mark
Post date August 13, 2021

What does the director of two of the most popular Marvel films do when the studio fires him? Well if you’re James Gunn you get to work for the competition, with the reboot/sequel to 2016’s dismal Suicide Squad, conveniently and confusingly titled The Suicide Squad. It certainly doesn’t seem like Gunn holds any ill will towards the MCU which has now re-hired him but it’s hard to imagine there wasn’t a little revenge channelled into what amounts to DC’s own version of Guardians of the Galaxy, only better in almost every way. With a surprisingly endearing core cast of outsiders and plenty of gore and crass humour, The Suicide Squad is an endless ride of entertainment, even if it does steer into familiar territory for Gunn.

For those who wisely steered clear of the 2016 original David Ayer directed film, have no fear, you will miss out on absolutely nothing plot-wise, as the concept of the squad – outlaws with bombs implanted in their heads sent on dangerous missions in exchange for reduced sentences – is quickly explained within the opening minutes. From here its all cylinders firing as the returning Amanda Waller (Viola Davis) gathers her team of misfit criminals – the central crew consisting of Harley Quinn (Margot Robbie), team leader Rick Flag (Joel Kinnaman), Idris Elba’s assassin Bloodsport, John Cena’s peace-loving mercenary Peacemaker, clinically depressed Polka Dot Man (David Dastmalchian), the rodent controlling Ratcatcher 2 (Daniela Melchior) and King Shark (voiced by the great Sylvester Stallone) – and sends them on their merry way to infiltrate and destroy a defunct Nazi base on the South American island of Corto Maltese which secretly houses a scientific project with world-ending potential.

It’s a deceptively simple plot that Gunn manages to wring every last drop of movie out of, throwing in side-quests and more than a few twists and turns to keep the viewers on their toes. Not the least shocking of these is his commitment to live up to the name of the film. No one is safe and while the central team consists of those previously mentioned, there are many other obscure DC characters assigned to the mission, not all of whom make it out alive. This is explained to you through a brutally bonkers opening scene that sets the irreverent tone Gunn continues to build on perfectly: he might bring in one of your favourite comic characters who otherwise would never have had a chance at a big screen feature, only to blow their heads off a few minutes later.

At this point Gunn has all but trademarked his signature style of film, favouring stories of found families and disparate, conflicting personalities that must be brought together for the greater good and honing it with each retelling. Now, unrestricted by PG ratings and having to tie the story to a larger shared universe, the writer/director has perfected the formula, with a superbly written script that really understands the interplay between these huge, criminally insane personalities. It says a lot that he can take a character like the Polka Dot Man – a guy who literally excretes and shoots multicoloured, corrosive polka dots from his skin – and make him such a deeply sympathetic and dryly hilarious figure. A man who hates himself and has completely resigned his fate to death but who can’t help but find some gleeful joy in being a super-hero. Even a throwaway comment lamenting a largely pointless side-character’s demise does a lot to highlight the depth of the writing – these characters are more than their goofy superhero gimmicks, they’re fully rounded people that you can’t help but root for.

The casting is obviously a huge reason that the writing succeeds in the way it does. Dastmalchian is excellent as Polka Dot Man alongside other standouts in Elba, Cena and Stallone. Elba’s Bloodsport is the most obvious leading man stereotype of the bunch and it’s plain to see that Gunn is having a great time deconstructing that stereotype, giving the character a crippling fear of rats before plonking him on the same team as someone who literally controls all of them. And Elba goes for it, cowering from the rodents and turning his back on the team time and time again in a way that other leading men of the 80’s and 90’s would never do for fear of diminishing their masculinity. When push comes to shove he doles out the expected level of ass-kicking but just knowing that small flaw goes a long way to being able to attach to the character amidst all the chaos.

If Bloodsport is the stoic, quietly calm assassin, then John Cena’s Peacemaker is the complete opposite: a boastful, arrogant mercenary who doesn’t care how many people he has to kill to achieve it. It is easily his best performance to date, still as physically imposing as ever but unintentionally and hilariously self-deprecating in the complete paradox he has devoted his entire being to. The sheer stupidity Gunn has Peacemaker saying at times – delivered with a deathly serious, almost militaristic deadpan – is absolutely hilarious and the constantly bickering, macho rivalry between Peacemaker and Bloodsport ensures that there is always a joke or exasperated sigh to put a smile on your face, even in the middle of a massacre. Then there is King Shark, a giant half-man, half-shark dullard who steals every scene he is in. That’s largely due to the inherent hilarity of him being voiced by Sylvester Stallone, whose line readings sound like even he doesn’t know what is going on (Gunn gets bonus points for having Rocky himself repeatedly say “nom-noms”). He’s more than just another Groot-like animal sidekick however, with a sweet friendship with Daniela Melchior’s Ratcatcher 2 that hits on an emotional level more than it has any right to.

The downside of making three consecutive films in a row with similar plots and character archetypes is that the audience starts to notice the rhythm and crutches that Gunn tends to rely on. Just about every time we build to some kind of profound dramatic or emotional moment we cut to a comedic moment instead, which at this point is less funny and jarring than it is annoying. You know it is coming but sometimes it would feel far more gratifying to actually see these characters hit their big emotional beats rather than cut away and imply that these are already known. The bizarre positive of that is that Gunn builds a strange sense of anticipation in the audience when he gears up for one of these moments. You know that a big tonal shift is coming and the fact that it could be anything from a dick joke to somebody being dismembered keeps things fresh in a way that the Guardians films could never achieve without the shock factor of an R rating.

What could initially be seen as ill fortune has turned out to be a blessing in disguise for James Gunn, who has crafted his most outright enjoyable and sharply written film to date with The Suicide Squad. Taking a left turn where most superhero films would go right ensures that things stay fresh throughout the motley crew’s adventure; whether that be through the sheer insanity of the characters on-screen, the over-the-top gore or the constant stream of NSFW gags. If this is what the man can do with characters like Captain Boomerang and The Detachable Kid (as stupid as it sounds), then give James Gunn the keys to the whole DC kingdom and watch him go.

The Suicide Squad stars Margot Robbie, Idris Elba, John Cena, Joel Kinnaman, Viola Davis, Jai Courtney, Peter Capaldi, David Dastmalchian, Daniela Melchior, Michael Rooker, Alice Braga, Pete Davidson, Nathan Fillion, Sean Gunn, Flula Borg & Sylvester Stallone – In cinemas now and streaming on HBO Max in the US.

9/10

Tags Daniela Melchior, David Dastmalchian, DC, Idris Elba, Jai Courtney, James Gunn, Joel Kinnaman, John Cena, Margot Robbie, Michael Rooker, Nathan Fillion, Pete Davidson, Sean Gunn, Sylvester Stallone, The Suicide Squad, Viola Davis

Movie Reviews

Jungle Cruise

Post author By Mark
Post date August 1, 2021

Give a raise to the studio exec who came up with the idea of combining Disneyland’s most relaxing, mellow (some might even say boring) ride with Dwayne Johnson and Emily Blunt, two of Hollywood’s biggest stars. The resulting film plays like a combination of all the best action adventure films – from Brendan Fraser’s Mummy films to Disney’s own Pirates of the Caribbean franchise – with breakneck pacing, non-stop action and two absolutely electric lead performances that will have you rolling in the aisles and punching the air with excitement. While it may get a little long in the tooth and doesn’t necessarily bring anything new to the genre, Jungle Cruise does exactly what it sets out to do and takes you on a ride far more wild than the real thing.

When driven scientist Lily Houghton (Blunt) arrives in Brazil with timid brother MacGregor (Jack Whitehall) in tow, she enlists the services of local Amazon tour guide Frank Wolff (Johnson) to help her locate the Tears of the Moon – petals of an ancient tree with curative properties that could change medicine forever. As the unlikely group venture deeper and deeper into the jungle they must contend with German Prince Joachim (Jesse Plemons), hot on their heels in his own search for the Tears as well as the ancient explorer Aguirre (Edgar Ramírez), who has been cursed to live out his days endlessly in the jungle. With nothing but their wits and Frank’s knowledge of the Amazon to guide them, the trio battle against the odds only to discover that the thing they were searching for might not be as important as the bonds they make along the way.

If you’ve ever been on the actual Jungle Cruise ride, you know it to be an avalanche of godawful yet great puns delivered by your “guide” as you cruise along the river eyeballing all sorts of animal-induced craziness. The film does its best to show respect to that original 1955 ride, with Frank throwing out many of the rides’ best puns in a corny introduction to his character; a charming shyster who tricks and scares his tourist clientele to bigger tips by steering them through a gauntlet of fake traps and costumed trickery. It also establishes that fun and light tone that remains a mainstay throughout even the darkest of scenes before Lily arrives in the jungle; bringing with her an army of pursuers hot on her tail that creates chaos for the coming adventure.

From here it is as classic action-adventure as you can get. Sure, the key dynamic between the gruff guide and his two untested sibling charges is pulled straight out of The Mummy – but it works. Johnson, Blunt and Whitehall are all fantastically funny and endearing leads, with great interplay and comedic chemistry between them (even if the romantic chemistry between Johnson and Blunt isn’t as believable). The best parts of the film aren’t the crazy, over-the-top action sequences but the quieter moments on the boat where the trio trade jabs and learn about each other’s pasts and problems. Johnson’s character has a fair amount of depth to him, as opposed to a lot of his other roles where he is reduced to the infallible muscle, and he has fun with the image of himself as the action hero. He still gets those heroic moments, but he stumbles along the way: a refreshing, self-deprecating turn for one of the action genre’s biggest (literally) stars.

And there is a lot of action. German submarines destroying villages, cursed conquistadors chasing our heroes through native villages and one particularly playful Jaguar destroying everything in sight in a bar brawl. Again it’s all done with a light, playful tone and Lily and Frank’s constant bickering throughout does a lot to alleviate the boredom that could have set in with endless CGI explosions. For the most part, the action is fun and exciting but there is the occasional sequence that almost seems to exist simply for the sake of having an action set-piece to shake things up.

Edgar Ramírez’ cursed conquistador is essentially a duplicate of Barbosa from Pirates of the Caribbean, right down to his relationship with Frank, but unlike Geoffrey Rush’s classic character – who still managed to be fun whilst menacing – never comes across as anything other than another CGI baddie to take down. A meaningless obstacle rather than the truly terrifying threat the film would have you believe. Thankfully Jesse Plemon’s German prince of a villain is an absolute riot with his almost intentionally bad accent and strange idiosyncrasies. It is a performance that is a mish-mash of inspirations – from Christoph Waltz in Django Unchained to the stereotypical villains of classic cinema – as Joachim breaks into song before unleashing a machine gun salvo and offers meaningless pleasantries before every evildoing. Out of place in almost any other modern film, but a perfect fit for the lighthearted, early 1900’s set shenanigans of Jungle Cruise.

Free from the complex lore of its other Disney ride contemporary Pirates of the Caribbean, Jungle Cruise is able to just have fun with its characters and Amazonian setting, throwing audiences into the thick of things instead of floating past like the ride it is based on. The chemistry of Blunt, Johnson and Whitehall is without a doubt the film’s greatest strength, carrying you through all the CGI action and over-the-top craziness with genuinely endearing and layered characters. Some lacklustre villains and shaky CGI might distract at times, but it is never enough to throw things truly off course. All aboard, next stop Thunder Mountain.

Jungle Cruise stars Dwayne Johnson, Emily Blunt, Jack Whitehall, Jesse Plemons, Paul Giamatti, Veronica Falcón & Edgar Ramírez – In cinemas and streaming on Disney+ with Premier Access now.

8/10

Tags Disney, Dwayne Johnson, Edgar Ramírez, Emily Blunt, Jack Whitehall, Jaume Collet-Serra, Jesse Plemons, Jungle Cruise, Paul Giamatti, Walt Disney Pictures

Movie Reviews

Gunpowder Milkshake

Post author By Mark
Post date July 28, 2021

There’s a point in Gunpowder Milkshake where everything clicks and the film begins to live up to the craziness of its title, branching away from becoming another run of the mill John Wick impersonator. A hallway skirmish with a twist: our hero has been dosed with a muscle relaxant ahead of her fight with a trio of beaten-up wheelchair-bound and crutch-dependent goons. It’s where a unique sense of levity and absolute insanity takes form like a shot of adrenaline, propelling the film towards an absolute bloodbath of a finale. The characters and general plot might not be anything new, but you’ve never seen girls kick ass like this before.

Abandoned as a child by her mother and infamous assassin Scarlet (Lena Headey), Sam (Karen Gillan) has turned to a life of crime herself, following in her mother’s footsteps as a one-woman cleanup crew for The Firm, a mysterious group of men with their fingers in all the pies of the underworld. When a mission goes awry and Sam is forced to exact a bloody massacre – including the murder of crime lord Jim McAlister’s (Ralph Ineson) son – a target is placed on her head, prompting her handler at the Firm, Nathan (Paul Giamatti) to send her on a new mission to recover lost funds while he can soothe McAlister. When this run-of-the-mill mission takes a turn and Sam finds herself a babysitter to recently orphaned Emily (Chloe Coleman) and on the run from McAlister, she must turn to Madeleine (Carla Gugino), Florence (Michelle Yeoh) and Anna May (Angela Bassett) of the sisterhood of assassins that raised her for help clearing her name.

Style is the name of the game here for director Navot Papushado, but not at the expense of substance, centering the emotional core around Sam’s abandonment issues with her mother and the maternal role she takes on for the freshly orphaned Emily. The film takes a while to get to this point, taking its time setting up the world of the Firm and the Diner, a location that acts in the same way as the Continental hotel from John Wick – a gun-free meeting place for underworld figures. This introduction skews closely to the model of Keanu’s franchise, but stands out with a hyper-stylised flair; with rich neon lights filling the screen and endlessly badass and over-the-top introductions to all the key players.

Gillan proves she can easily lead her own action-intensive franchise having graduated from Marvel, channelling her character of Nebula from that franchise into Sam; her low, matter-of-factly menacing tone delivering statements of warning before preceding to kick ass. It’s almost impossible not to compare her to Wick and in that sense the characters are set up in much the same way: vague, mysterious individuals that endear the audience through their actions and the unfortunate situations they are put in rather than through their boisterous personalities.

We care about Sam because she is constantly put in the thick of things and scraps her way out, fighting to stick with Emily like her mother never did with her. All the supporting players around her – Coleman, Gugino, Basset and Yeoh – are great; each with their own distinct personalities and styles that make them a ton of fun to watch in combat, but Headey is the standout; effortlessly cool slaughtering dozens of men but completely inept at actually communicating and making amends with her daughter. Similarly, again to Wick, is Ineson’s villain; a means to an end to allow for all sorts of bloody shenanigans as Sam and her friends mercilessly plow through his men in gloriously violent fashion.

Where the style meets that substance so well is in the action. It’s exquisitely shot and the stunning fight choreography is always given the chance to shine, with slow, long pans allowing the audience to see every punch thrown and kick delivered – no shaky cam here. The muscle relaxant fight is easily the highlight, with so many inventive and darkly comical moments that would be out of place in other, more serious films, but feel right at home in this strange mish-mash of tones. The characters are all deadly serious but the action is so fervently ridiculous and insane that it is impossible not to get caught up in the macabre fun of it all. The grand finale is a huge explosion of more brilliantly choreographed chaos – worthy of a film with Gunpowder in the title – but it doesn’t quite live up to the earlier bout in terms of inventiveness.

Gunpowder Milkshake is a colourful, chaotic blend of highly stylised action, engaging leads with a genuinely compelling emotional arc and a stellar female supporting cast, much like the beverage it is named after. While it apes John Wick for a brief time to set things up, it soon explodes into its own weird and wonderful cocktail of colour and carnage, moving from one outstanding action sequence to the next. If action films are intent to follow in the footsteps of Keanu’s opus, Gunpowder Milkshake has all the right ingredients to stand out from the crowd – and it slaps a bright red cherry on top.

Gunpowder Milkshake stars Karen Gillan, Lena Headey, Carla Gugino, Michelle Yeoh, Angela Bassett, Chloe Coleman, Ralph Ineson, Michael Smiley & Paul Giamatti – In Australian cinemas now and streaming on Netflix in the US.

7/10

Tags Angela Bassett, Carla Gugino, Freya Allen, Gunpowder Milkshake, Karen Gillan, Lena Headey, Michelle Yeoh, Navot Papushado, Paul Giamatti