Written by Tyrone BruinsmaAfter earning attention by the petty stupid bigots of the planet for casting a black actress as Ariel in this remake-The Little Mermaid ends up as one of the better Disney remakes.
Following the original 1989 film, but deviating in some nice ways-this remake follows Ariel's journey to fall in love with her human crush Eric and the conflicts that arise. So, for one, this movie does look gorgeous and it's clear a lot of that effort in the CGI was why this took so long. Sure, some of the CGI sea creatures who talk look a little odd at first-but you get over it like Will Smith's Genie or the eyes in Alita Battle Angel. Halle Bailey as Ariel is wonderful, exuding the same charm as our original red headed animated princess. If there's an improvement in this version, it's that it characters both Ariel and Eric as giant nerds who just want to be together and enjoy their passions. Largely the film does improve the characterizations of characters like Triton, Ursula, Scuttle and adds in new characters to give us a better understanding of the world and these characters. The music is great, even if some of the new songs aren't quite as good as classics like Part of Your World, Poor Unfortunate Souls, Under the Sea or Kiss the Girl. These sequences are largely great, while not as visually spectacular as their animated counterpart. While Rob Marshall's never been one of my favorite directors, this is probably his best overall film thanks to the original material and Disney's money to make it look the best it can be. It's not going to surpass the original, but it's a nice alternative for young girls to be reminded that anyone can be a mermaid. And seriously, if you're one of the stupid adults who were having a hissy fit over a black mermaid and trying to rationalize why that's wrong...cry harder because you're more immature than a child. 7/10
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Written by Tyrone BruinsmaAnother year, another attempt by Netflix to make their own crowd pleasing blockbuster that kind of fails. While they've tried with big star-studded films like The Gray Man and Red Notice-Heart of Stone is another middling attempt at this filmmaking. Heart of Stone is an attempt at Netflix crafting their own James Bond/Mission Impossible spy franchise with Wonder Woman star Gal Gadot as the lead and The Aeronauts director Tom Harper at the helm. Sadly though, it's such a boring and cleanly crafted slog of a film.
The premise is that Gal Gadot works for this ultra secret agency that covertly operates within other agencies and uses a supercomputer to achieve their goals. Things are complicated when this computer's software is stolen by and old friend of Gadot's and they need to retrieve it. Sadly, it's really just boring. Despite a somewhat fun sequence inspired by On Her Majesty's Secret Service, the film's eventual plot twists start unravelling from there and the action scenes become less and less engaging as the movie goes on. The writing is mediocre, with more attention put into the premise than the dialogue or progression. I could actually spot an eventual betrayal coming from a mile away, and I'm not sure if it was the actor's performance, the writing or direction (or all 3) but I wasn't happy that it was so obvious. While Tom Harper has solid direction, grasp of geography and visual abilities-there's no inventiveness or creativity in the action scenes. They're all the same generic grab bag of action movie cliches, shot and edited with no flair. Considering how good the truly best action films this year have been, Heart of Stone really needed to step up its game. Extraction 2 came out from Netflix the same year and that was such a gold standard for making action films. Heart of Stone has solid acting and direction, but a bad story, weak action and no originality that this review can only be so long. 4/10 Written by Tyrone BruinsmaAfter getting announced almost a decade ago, being re-worked through multiple DC film leadership changes, at one point set up to be a big reset button, suffering bad publicity from its lead actor's internal crime spree, COVID and several delays-The Flash finally came out. And, it was a gigantic box office bomb (likely losing Warner Brothers $200+ Million) and receiving mixed reception at best. To some, it's a fun ride, while many consider it a messy failure. Honestly, I'm somewhere in between because this might be the first time I have a film be on my best AND worst list of a year. This is gonna need unpacking.
After WB let Zack Snyder set about making his version of the DC Universe, a Flash film was greenlit with no clear story. After multiple directors and writers were attached and the project made to be a Flashpoint Paradox light adaptation, it's clear we were gonna get something in the form of an in-universe reset/restart/soft-reboot. But by the time this was in the can, too much money had been spent and James Gunn was set to officially reboot, so while I was personally excited for The Flash-I realize many audiences probably didn't care. It's especially tragic that this film ended up coming out after Into the Spider-Verse, Everything Everywhere All At Once and Dr Strange in the Multiverse of Madness all came out to varying success, plus it came out in the wake of Across the Spider-Verse being a massive critical, box office and cultural hit tapping into similar ideas in a better way than this film. So yeah, I can understand why many people hate it and those enjoy it. But if anyone tries to posit that The Flash is better than Across the Spider-Verse...that's just bait or fan boy posturing. The plot of this film is that Berry Allen/The Flash is a little tired of helping everyone except his father and dead mother, but one day discovers (or re-discovers from the Justice League films) that he can go back in time. He decides to go back in time to prevent his mother's death, but in the process is attacked by a time monster that knocks him into 2013 where his mother is alive and another him has no powers. After a series of accidents, Barry and Barry must team up Michael Keaton's Batman and Sasha Calle's Supergirl to takedown Man of Steel's Zod. So, I will try to get all the praise I can for this out of the way before delving into my (and other's) big issues. First of all, Andy Muschietti's direction is great. His prior horror filmography was solid with Mama being a good spooky story, the 2017 adaptation of It being masterful and It: Chapter 2...ok was a mess but his direction was solid. From a color, direction, action, visual ideas, cinematography standpoint-Muschietti's handling of The Flash is great. He also handles Batman well, with the action scenes involving Ben Affleck and Michael Keaton's Batman heroes being handled very well. Even simple pan back and forth shots establishing police arriving on the scene in the opening action beat showcasing a thought-out way to handle things. Seeing Ben Affleck for (presumably) the last time is fun and witnessing Michael Keaton return as Batman to mess up dudes royally thanks to modern effects is the stuff from my childhood. Luckily, both actors do more than many would expect. Sasha Calle's Supergirl is criminally underused despite her being great in action scenes and emotions. The action in general is awesome, even if it's largely only 3 scenes across nearly 2.5 hours. The opening hospital save/Bat-cycle chase scene is great with a fun ending, the rescue scene in a Russian base is a great showcase for Keaton's Batman and the final scene with all our heroes fighting Zod's army is fun stuff. I can also give praise to Benjamin Wallfisch's score and Henry Braham's cinematography, especially since he's also shot James Gunn's last 3 films-he's a great modern DOP. But now we gotta get onto the more problematic stuff. Upfront, yes Ezra Miller's crime spree of assaults, weapon possession and child endangerment is more than enough reason for anyone to not want to watch this film. And while I would've liked it if they could've reshot him with a new actor-the price of this VERY expensive movie would've likely become astronomical. Plus, due to Ezra putting themselves in therapy before its release-Screen Actors Guild rules state that they cannot be fired. And what's sad is that Ezra isn't terrible in this film, but exemplifies that they probably shouldn't have been asked to carry the lead. When another actor is helping carry the scene, Ezra's energy has the right balance. But because most of the film is present and past Barrys talking to each other-it really shows that Miller has always been a limited talent and renders the film lagging in the middle. The film either needed to be shorter or actually longer. If shorter, it needed to get to Batman and Supergirl faster or if longer, explore more of the esoteric ideas revolving around changing the timeline. Unfortunately, the middle part of the film where we just have two Barrys to interact with is the weakest part, with a scene involving Barry "comedically" trying to find other heroes being just a wash in lazy humor. Another issue that I don't know is just a missed creative attempt or genuine bad execution in quality are the visual effects. Most of the CGI, green screen and visuals are great-however the CGI for babies in one scene and the CGI element for Barrys time travel look really bad. I get the visual idea and if this were a 2D animated film or comic book-would be incredibly impressive. But I'm more than willing to bet these sequences were undermined by a lack of time, money or changes to the project. It's just a lacking element for such an expensive film when so much of it does look impressive. And lastly, without trying to spoil-the climactic ending sequence involves both some pretty bad CGI cameos in an artificial way as well as finalizing the narrative on kind of a negative note. Many people have read the film as to mean "Don't let your tragedy define who you are" (as literally said by Ben Affleck), while just as many have read it as more "Stop trying to fix the world and improve your life, you'll wreck everything" and I can see both and neither true. I think the problem is that The Flash was started back in 2013 after Man of Steel, had no clear direction for story and was being changed constantly in the franchise's changes, creative shifts and even during its filming and production. I don't even think the filmmakers ultimately know the final meaning of the narrative. I can say that while the climactic resolution is dumb...at least it's not the dumbest version that I worried was going to happen. Ultimately, The Flash is a mess similar to Black Adam or 2016's Suicide Squad-but probably the best of those 3 films. They're all still entertaining in their own way and have some quality of craft to them, but pale in comparison to the better installments of the DC films or rival features. I'll probably continue to watch The Flash as a guilty pleasure I find a lot of joy in, but I look forward to when someone under James Gunn creates a truly definitive Flash film. 7/10 Written by Tyrone BruinsmaWhen I first saw the trailer for Elemental, I (like many others) dismissed it as almost Pixar self-parody. The reviews at first weren't overly positive and the film wasn't an instant smash. But after audiences took more time to watch it, the film eventually got better reviews and managed to make more money that blockbuster franchises like Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, The Flash or Transformers: Rise of the Beasts.
What was seemingly pitched as "elements come to life" is actually a really well-done version of an immigrant storyline realized through the motif of "Elements don't mix". It's clear director Peter Sohn was touching on his personal background much in the same way Domee Shi did for Turning Red last year. This is obviously not the first time an animated kid's film has dealt with this subject matter, as An American Tail from Don Bluth back in 1986 in a more overt manner. Where Elemental succeeds over An American Tail from not lagging in the middle and not giving into post-Civil Rights Neo-Liberalism, is that Elemental is actually a love story. The story follows Ember, a 2nd generation fire immigrant in Elemental city who must save her family's shop (and entire neighborhood) with the help of water city inspector Wade. Overtime they learn more about each other, their backgrounds and grow closer together despite the prejudices. Whereas a film like Zootopia could be a bit on the nose with its prejudice allegory, Elemental is smarter and more subtle in scenes like Wade's father making a micro-aggressive comment about Ember's ability to speak. One could argue that the film could've been made with entirely human characters and just have the Asian coded fire nation be exactly drawn from Sohn's family life. But I will say the elemental nature allows for more visual creativity, comedy and moments that would've been silly to replicate without the fantastic element. The movie if very well crafted, with it featuring amazing visuals and creativity thanks to the elements-but also the somewhat grounded nature of the city. The writing is also good, willing to give into earnest heartfelt moments and over the top comedic moments when needed. It helps that the cast is really good, Mamoudou Athie (Jurassic World: Dominion) is amazing as Wade, one of the most emotionally potent and loveable characters in a feature film ever made. And Leah Lewis gets the more emotionally and narratively complex character of Ember, a character torn between raised prejudices, love for her family, self struggles and desire to be more to the degree she's commonly displayed with anger issues. It's a really tough role, with the writing, voice work and script crafting a great protagonist. The supporting cast is great, making the world feel lived in. This film has 3 great scenes I love, 2 of which are spoilers so I'll briefly cover them. One is a romantic scene that feels realistic in its flow and emphasizes that connection and understanding can override "chemical" differences, while another is a generational bond of respecting tradition and the future. The one scene I can show here (YouTube) is this adorable date scene with Wade and Ember to the original song "Steal the Show" and is largely dialogue free, reminding me of the best romantic moments from 90s films. Elemental is now out on Disney +, so if you have it, it's absolutely worth watching for kids, families and adults. If you yourself are from a family of immigrants it may hit very hard. It's not likely going to be considered one of Pixar's masterpieces like Up-but may very well end up being some people's favourite. 8/10 Written by Tyrone BruinsmaBack in 2019, Godzilla: King of the Monsters came out and it was my favorite cinema going experience of that year and one of my favorite films of all time. Come to find out most critics detested it and labeled it as nothing more than a bad/stupid monster film. I got flashbacks to that sensation watching Meg 2: The Trench and coming to find most film critics have dismissed this film. Seriously, I do not know what some of you critics want when you go see a movie called Meg 2: The Trench. And if any of you say "A good film" in that snarky response, I hope you stub your toe. After 20 years of low-grade z tier Megalodon films like Shark Attack 3, Megalodon (2004/2018), the Mega Shark V.S franchise or The Black Demon from earlier this year...how anyone could look at 2018's The Meg and its superior sequel to say "these are bad" is beyond me.
Seriously, watch this trailer and if you're not sold...why are you here? MEG 2: THE TRENCH - OFFICIAL TRAILER - YouTube Jumping back for context, in 1997-novelist Steve Alten released "Meg: A Novel of Deep Terror" about Megalodons being discovered in the deep ocean. The book (especially coming out in the success of the Jurassic Park films and just before Deep Blue Sea) became a hot commodity in Hollywood but languished in development hell for 20 years). Jan De Bont (Speed, Twister), Guillermo Del Toro (Hellboy, Pacific Rim) and El Roth (Cabin Fever, Hostel) were all attached at various points until it was picked up by Warner Brothers as a Chinese co-production. China's involvement likely stemmed from both a need to offset costs and China's obsession/interest in undersea movies for increased box office returns. For director, workman director Jon Turteltaub (Cool Runnings, National Treasure) was chosen with Jason Statham leading an all-star cast. The film ended up earning over half a billion at the global box office ($530 Million) and positive enough reviews. So, a sequel was greenlit...but COVID-19 halted production for some time. For the sequel (after dropping out of the sequel to 2018's Tomb Raider) British filmmaker Ben Wheatley was tasked with directing. I was instantly excited as I'm a fan of the director's off beat genre work and his last mainstream attempt in the Netflix version of Rebecca wasn't so good. So, when you tell me the director of Kill List, A Field in England, High Rise, Free Fire and In the Earth directed a $100 million + giant shark movie-I'm sold. Set 5 years after the first film, Jason Statham's Jonas has gone from a Deepsea rescue diver to now a celebrity diver, pro-eco whistleblower and lone stepfather to a now 14-year-old Meiying after marrying her mother (played by Li Bingbing in the first film) who passed away 2 years prior to this film. Jonas continues to work alongside his friends played by Cliff Curtis and Page Kennedy, while also working alongside Meiying's uncle played by Chinese megastar Wu Jing (Wolf Warrior, The Wandering Earth) who has a young female Megalodon in captivity. They've also discovered their team is not the only one entering the Megalodon infested Trench and there's a conspiracy afoot. The film has clearly taken a lot from the Meg sequel novels; including a juvenile Megalodon in captivity, Megalodon mating calls, a cold opening that directly recalls the opening scene in the first book (if scientifically inaccurate) and more deep-sea beasties. They've added more to the story for the purposes of variety in set pieces and sequences. Deep-sea dive mech suits, 3 Megalodons instead of one, amphibious monsters, a giant octopus and bad guys to fight all keep the action moving. The first film was great, but only really had two kinds of action/horror scenes with "Submarines vs Megalodon" or "Open water with Megalodon", while this had more variety. And thanks to Ben Whatley, he brings more colorful and unique visuals to the table in terms of execution. He uses a variety of colors, classic use of tension, jump scares, humor, subversion and reversals in the set pieces and even creative ways on how to display carnage. One of my favourite parts is him showing the inside of of a Megalodon's mouth while it casually swallows people. It reminds me a lot of that one shot in 1997's Anaconda, which does remind me that a lot of this film takes inspiration from some of the better monster movies. There are moments and scenes that call back to Jaws 1 and 2, Anaconda, Deepstar Six, Underwater, The Lost World Jurassic Park and Deep Blue Sea. Hell, this movie even takes ideas from bad shark films like Deep Blue Sea 2 and Mega Shark V.S Giant Octopus and makes them good. It does somewhat replicate the pace of the first film with the first being half tinged in horror and suspence, while the second half is a balls out action rollercoaster. The cast does a lot of great work with Statham making his character work in comedy, action and dramatic moments-especially the 3rd act which sees him tackle multiple Megs at once in stunning fashion. Page Kennedy gets a lot more comedy and action, and I'll always root for him ever since I discovered him as a Vine star as a teenager. Shuya Sophia Cai having grown up since the first film continues to be a winning emotional core and comic relief so I hope we see more of her in sequels and other films. And while the rest of the cast (especially the juicy bad guys) do well, it's Wu Jing that steals the show as the co-lead. He's been a Chinese action star for years, with this one feeling like he's auditioning to become the new Jackie Chan as an action star who can balance comedy, fight scenes and taking hits. If Hollywood is watching, they'll bring this guy on for John Wick 5 or Shang Chi 2. Honestly, I don't know what else to tell you if you're not already sold. It's a fun B-Movie creature feature with lots of new to add to from the solid original. The score by returning composer Harry Gregson-Williams is great, frequent Kenneth Branagh cinematographer Haris Zambarloukos builds from the first and I had a really fun time. If you're not sold on a giant killer shark film made to Hollywood perfection, then this ain't for you. I'm just extremely happily this got made and I'm hoping it does well enough at the box office for more sequels. Maybe the next film can give us Mosasaurs, Dunkleoteus, Livyatan, Brygmophyseter or some new creatures. But if this bombs or the reviews convince the studios to not make more...you're all gonna pay for this. I want more Legendary MonsterVerse films, more Jurassic Park installments, more Alien films and in general-more big budget monster movies. I like giant monster movies made with millions of dollars and by talented filmmakers, deal with it. 10/10 Written by Tyrone BruinsmaIf you're familiar with Ari Aster's prior films Hereditary and Midsommar (which you should) then you'll be more than prepared for the mad stream of sub consciousness Beau is Afraid has to offer. While Aster's previous films were lavish horror films with Hereditary being a classy trickster version of an Italian Giallo film, and Midsommar being an overly bright take on The Wicker Man cult premise. Both films eventually revealed their thematic core with Hereditary becoming a twisted take on the Oedipus myth while Midsommar said "yeah, trauma is a lot but don't give into psychotic groups pretending to understand your pain so they can use you to perpetuate their dark society". And for Aster, he has decided to make what for now might be considered his Magnum Opus in the form of a 3-hour surrealist horror comedy in what the director himself describes as "a Jewish Lord of the Rings, but Beau's just going to his mom's house".
So yeah, this is certainly a divisive film by design-but clearly more so looking at the audience response. The reviews range from overwhelming praise to complete hatred, and despite being A24's most expensive film at $35 Million budget (at least $10 Million more than the budget for Everything Everywhere All at Once) only managed to earn about $11 million at the box office. This is a film you'll love or hate, or to put it better-a film you will or won't watch. Personally, I was going to watch this film no matter what people said as I'm fully invested in Aster as a visionary talent. While many have decried the film as self-indulgent and pretentious, I will take a director's uncompromised vision over a sanitized or studio mandated product. Because for me, Beau is Afraid is one of the best films of the year. The premise here is that Joaquin Phoenix plays the titular Beau, an anxiety riddled paranoid shlub of a man who is supposed to see his mother, but...things start happening. And to describe anymore direct details would spoil the fun. See, Beau is Afraid exists in a surreal heightened reality that's clearly meant to emulate the extremes of anxiety. The streets where Beau lives are infested with freaks and savage criminals, he seems to read messages and words from people and thinks everything bad is going to happen from the tiniest things. As someone who is diagnosed with anxiety, it feels like a perfect visual realization of that negative instance at its worse. And that's just the starting point. Because the film examines everything from anxiety, medication, familial difficulties, masculine insecurities, relationships between mother and son, and even a commentary on how people read themselves in stories as a kind meta/selfish reflection. There's a lot going on here and while many will (and have) detest the 3-hour runtime, I feel it's valuable to getting us firmly into the world. It's a film that feels epic despite the fact that when you look back at it-there's really only 4 or 5 main locations. It's a journey in the sense of an experience, but not in some ground globe-trotting way. There aren't not many films that resemble it from today's modern film landscape. Two films it shares a closer tone/format to would be the 70s surrealist works The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie by Luis Buñuel and The Holy Mountain by Alejandro Jodorowsky. Jodorowsky himself is likely an influence, with other more recent similar works being Tarsem Singh's The Fall, Denis Villeneuve's Enemy and Tyler Cornack's Butt Boy. If you're familiar with surrealist works-you'll be prepared for the experience, but those less accustomed will likely be flabbergasted. Getting away from the more esoteric questions for a moment, the film is incredibly well made. Phoenix is an amazing actor as usual, with this feeling like a more extreme and emotional version of his Joker performance. He has to commit to being this weak man with many issues and his emotional peaks really hit me. While he honestly deserves an Oscar nod for his performance here, his upcoming role as Napoleon in Ridley Scott's biopic will likely dominate that debate. Reliable character actors like Amy Ryan, Nathan Lane, Richard Kind and Stephen McKinley Henderson show up to give very nuanced performances-with Amy Ryan and Richard King in particular being very cutting. Zoe Lister-Jones, Parker Posey and Julia Antonelli also do great work. Kylie Rogers is a new surprise and gives a really interesting character, while stage icon Patti LuPone dominates the last act of the film and I genuinely hope people debate her getting a Best Supporting Actress Oscar. The film on a technical level is awe inspiring. For Aster and his production team to make a meticulously lived in world with subtle details within the chaos is fantastic. Aster's repeated collaborator in cinematographer Pawel Pogorzelski does awe inspiring work with camera moves and framing that just amaze you when you realize "wait, there's no cutting". The editing itself for a 3-hour film is great through the use of insert shorts, perspective shifts and overall flow. The visuals and effect work are great, with a semi-animated sequence being one of the many highlights of this film. Oh, and while I won't spoil exactly what it is, let's just say there's a practical effect in the 3rd act that if I told you what it was...you wouldn't believe me. In the end, I think Beau is Afraid is a great film because while it is a dense, 3-Hour purist artist vision: it's also rich in details and themes that will resonate differently to everyone. It's not something I can honestly recommend to anyone because not everyone would willing sit through a film like this for this long, but if you have any desire, interest or curiosity-try it. I can't guarantee you'll like it, but I guarantee you won't forget it. Ari Aster really is an invaluable talent and I can't wait to see what he does next. Apparently, he's going to be producing a tv adaptation of the Junji Ito manga Uzumaki so...that should be fun. 9/10 Written by Tyrone BruinsmaRobert Rodrigeuz is a man whose films can easily be divided into different categories based on form and genre. You have his CGI heavy kids' film like Spy Kids, Sharkboy and Lavagirl, and Shorts. His quick and dirty genre films like Desperado, From Dusk till Dawn, The Faculty, Sin City, Machete and Planet Terror. And after directing the ambitious and genuinely awesome Alita: Battle Angel, seems to want to put sci-fi blockbuster filmmaker as a new category with Hypnotic as his second attempt. But sorry to say Rob, this doesn't fully land.
While Hypnotic is not as bad as Rodrigeuz's worst films like Spy Kids 3, Machete Kills or Sin City: A Dame to Kill For, it still falls short of his best work. Hypnotic lacks the $200 Million budget of Alita to go truly big, the political anger behind Machete, the CGI technology of Sin City, the energy of From Dusk till Dawn or even the genre madness of Planet Terror. Based on a story Rodrigeuz conjured back in 2002 and now fully realizing thanks to co-writer Max Borenstein (Legendary's Monsterverse, The Terror Season 2, the Minority Report tv series), the film feels like what would happen if you mixed Scanners, Minority Report and Inception into a mid-tier thriller. This film isn't "bad" in the traditional metric. The cast is good, the production values are solid, Rodrigeuz using actual locations instead of lazy green screen work is nice, there's some neat shots and the general premise is not bad. What initially starts out as a detective (Ben Affleck) pursuing a villainous thief (William Fitchner) with hypnotic powers who might be tied (to his daughter's disappearance becomes a twisty narrative any seasoned film goer can start to pick out. Unfortunately, while this story might've been more surprising, 3 years after The Sixth Sense-in a post-Christopher Nolan world it's lacking. Weirdly, it's a film that either needed more or less money than the $65 Million budget it had. Either it needed to be a big $200 Million summer blockbuster to get bigger and better action scenes, or it needed a $5 Million budget from Blumhouse to make it a lean-mean theme and ideas focused thriller. Sadly, it has enough money to have big stars and sets, but not enough for more elaborate ways to explore its ideas in action. Sadly, much of this movie is just good actors in good locations giving bland explanations for what's happening. And while Rodrigeuz has given us great action scenes on small and big budgets, Hypnosis barely has any. It's a film with about 5 action scenes and none of them run more than a few minutes. Maybe that's due to the limited budget or barely 80-minute runtime-but it weirdly feels like Rodrigeuz got more involved with the sci-fi premise and eventual emotional core than the potential for action scenes. It feels like the premise sets us up for a film like The Matrix or Minority Report where the sci-fi world basically sets the audience up to experience a multitude of great action scenes...but doesn't. When the eventual reveal hits, you'll either be impressed or cry "this is stupid" like a majority of critics have. And it's sad because for most of the film, I was with it-but then I started to realize the narrative wasn't working and there wasn't even elaborate shootouts or brawls to keep me invested. I like the cast, production team and potential-but it was more disappointing than anything else. 4/10 Written by Tyrone BruinsmaSo after 40 years, five films and a tv series (which I haven't seen) the Evil Dead franchise still manages to achieve a quality more beloved horror properties haven't. The first film was Sam Raimi and company making this twisted blend of exploitation horror and comedic slapstick. The second was this mad vision that balanced horror and comedy perfectly with a bigger budget and more gore. Army of Darkness was this fun man of time fantasy action romp. The 2013 remake of the original film realized Raimi's original intent with making a full-on terrifying visceral gore experience. And now this new film feels much in the same vein as the now 10-year-old remake (which still holds up) but giving us a new environment and setting up a bigger potential for the series.
After an opening other are finding divisive but I enjoyed, we cut to a single mother, her sister and 3 children living in a should-be condemned apartment building as an earthquake hits. The tremor reveals a weird vault under the basement that contains an evil book and some vinyl records and if you know your Evil Dead-you know what happens. The mom gets possessed and we're in for a full on claustrophobic gorefest horror ride. While I'm not the biggest Evil Dead fan, the series has this strong quality throughout with a spectrum of horror and comedy. Evil Dead Rise and the 2013 remake fully commit to pure nightmare horror and they're both my personal favorites with this one being the best of the franchise for me. Aside from changing the location from a cabin in the woods to a more interesting apartment block, the dynamic of functional but not quite, broken family needing to fight the ultimate evil. The cast is good, with Australian actresses Lily Sullivan and Alyssa Sutherland as the adult sisters being real stand outs. Alyssa Sutherland herself is amazing as the first possessed entity, balancing a character who is a torturous monster with a loving mother trapped inside. Between her, M3gan and the mama bear from Cocaine Bear-2023's shaping up to be a really good year for villainesses in horror. Special mentions goes to Gabrielle Echols as the middle children Bridget, as she gets a lot of range and is involved in two of the films nastiest moments. And this film really feels like it wants to outcompete the 2013 remake on gore. And while I'm not fully sure if this film's climax beats out its predecessor's blood-soaked finale, it certainly has buckets of gore, nasty moments and two instances that made me physically react. Seriously, if all you need is nasty kills and gore moments to make a horror film good-this is already an isntant recommendation. But I still think the way the story is told, the themes it engages with and the sense of these events being a kind of Pandora's Box are what elevate it. See, I know pop-culture and horror fans are in love with Bruce Campbell's Ash (and I love him too), but this is the first film in the franchise that made me this "hey, so this problem could affect more people than some folks at a cabin". Its ending and few loose ends give it a kind of Ju-On: The Grudge or Kairo/Pulse sense of the horror going on and on to hurt more people which is inherently more terrifying. I loved it, I think fans of the series and horror buffs will love it. And even if you're NEVER seen an Evil Dead film-it's still an easy-to-understand watch. If you hate horror and gore, don't sign up for this ride. 8/10 Written by Tyrone BruinsmaIf you wanted some indication of how good I thought Shin Kamen Rider was, it's that I had no prior knowledge or association with its franchise (aside Japanese media in similar tone/genre/style) and came away thoroughly enjoying it for what it is. Basically, if you're someone who is into Japanese film/tv shows, anime, manga and/or the Tokusatsu genre (Think Power Rangers if you're from the west) in general-this is the film for you. But you're someone who's going to ask "what does that even mean?" when I say this film is like a live-action anime: this might not be for you.
Adapted from the long running (as in from the early 70s) tv show and manga Kamen Rider, Hideaki Anno re-imagines the character in a darker and more thoughtful form that speaks to the creator's other works. Much in the same way he re-invented the mecha anime with Neon Genesis Evangelion or the Godzilla franchise as a whole with 2016's Shin Godzilla: Shin Kamen Rider does come at the series from a difficult angle that even a newbie to the franchise like myself can identify as being different. And while the film thematically it shares from those works, on a technical and production level-it resembles Anno's 2004 live action adaptation of Cutie Honey in attempting to realize anime in the real world. Granted Shin Kamen Rider is a lot more violent than Cutie Honey ever was. Seriously, I didn't know this movie was going to open with essentially Power Ranger by way of Mortal Kombat-but it was a clear sign to what was to come. Eventually the film's overall sense of deconstructing the genre and franchise itself comes to life more than simply amping up the gore. While it doesn't get as big into deconstruction the same way western superhero movies like Logan, it is still welcome to see. As for the plot of the film, it more or less feels like the general premise of the show re-worked by way of an almost David Cronenbergian by way of anime sci-fi program to make human/animal hybrids. The titular Kamen Rider is the unambiguous good version of these experiments sent to fight humanoids with the powers of spiders, bats, wasps etc while questioning himself for his violent powers. It feels like the kind of thing that straight up would be a weekly show, just crammed into a 2 hour serving of the melodrama, weird visuals, over the top action and cheesy writing. But the same way Japanese media often perfects the "taking the most ridiculous stories serious" mode of storytelling-its cast commit to the assignment and it suits the more serious elements when our hero questions his role as the superhero. It helps that the performances of the villains are varied from pompous, to psychotic, to somber and the bat-shit crazy to add some color to the experience. The action scenes are well executed with lots of practical gore, poses and angles from straight of an anime or manga and even if the CGI isn't all there-still conveying a strong sense of momentum and impact. It doesn't beat out 2023's current king of action with Bollywood's Pathaan-but it is still as engaging as any other Hollywood superhero beatdown offered this year. I can't Shin Kamen Rider will be for everyone (as it'll probably alienate anyone who ever turned their nose up at Power Rangers or anime) but it is fun, well told and fully committed to its director's vision. 8/10 Written by Tyrone BruinsmaIt took me a while to fully appreciate the original Shazam! from 2019-but I have come to love it. The original film was this breath of fresh air for many people at the time, ending up in the film becoming a modest hit and big family classic for the holiday season. But when you're a film series built around child actors and the Covid pandemic shuts down filming while your parent company gets wrecked about 2 or 3 times (depending on how you look at it), a spin-off film intended to be a big hit in Black Adam doesn't do better and you're released in a line up that's about to be removed from DC continuity by a new vision...yeah it's a mess. Oh and if it wasn't bad enough, you're popular and seemingly likeable lead adult hero everyone loved from Tangled decides to double down on supporting anti-vaxxers, fascists and transphobes for no real reason other than he might just be a dumb bigot. Yeah, I look forward to this series getting a soft reboot and someone replacing Zahcary Levi.
And after all that, Shazam 2 is a perfectly good film, while falling short of the original. I mean if all that studio BS, pandemic, unlikable star and barely attached spin-off had affected the film more-I could blame them. But yeah, turns of David F. Sandberg still knows how to make a great film on any budget and I look forward to his return to horror films. Following the first film where Bill Batsen and his adopted siblings can now turn into adult versions of themselves: Helen Mirren and Lucy Lui appear as villains in the form of the daughters of Atlas. They plan to take the powers of Shazam from Billy and his family to recreate a world for the Gods and that's your conflict. Shazam as a franchise was only ever meant to be classic, fun superhero action fair and this film continues that while still letting Sandberg do mild horror takes on turning people to stone, Greek monsters and an awesome Dragon. While everyone in the cast is good, Zachary Levi as Billy is the big letdown. Maybe it's perception bias, but he's really worn out his welcome in the humor department while the younger actor Asher Angel does great work. Hellen Mirren and Lucy Lui are having fun as the baddies, with Lui in particularly made to be especially threatening. Dylan Jack Grazer and Rachel Zegler have great chemistry as a sort of couple, with Rachel continuing to be a great rising star and Grazer being perfect comedic relief. Seriously, aside from that lead oversight, everyone manages to be fun, funny and emotional as needed. With a cameo towards the end being a great use of the expected superhero format. Plus, there's a great little scene of a character coming out as gay and it's cute. The action scenes are varied and fun; with there being monster fights, a bridge rescue scene and some meaty brawls throughout. As a horror specialist, Sandberg knows how to frame these scenes while giving them a great sense of cohesion, choreography and geography. Between his 4 feature films: Lights Out, Annabelle Creation and the 2 Shazam films, he's proven he's more than capable of being a commanding visual voice who knows storytelling. Really, it's just disappointing that this film landed where it did. If it came out sooner, there might've been more momentum. If Warner Brothers wasn't lead by a complete fool who is now most famous for greenlighting the Honey Boo Boo show and cancelling Batgirl-the franchise might've been in a better place to grow. If Black Adam wasn't a mess and actually wanted to connect to Shazam, people might've been more excited. If Zachary Levi didn't decide to be a bigot, I might be more inclined to be forgiving of his bad performance. And if James Gunn wasn't resetting the muddled mess of DC films, I might care about this getting reset. It's a fun film that kids and families are bound to love, just not as much as the first film. Honestly James, reset this with a less douchey actor and have Shazam appear as a supporting character whenever you get to Justice League. 7/10 |
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