Quick Reviews #19

I thought it was time for another round of quick reviews, mainly for films I have seen in this year that I never got around to giving full reviews to. Not that this makes them bad, at least one of these is more than likely to make my top ten this year… Read on and enjoy!

Logan Lucky

Logan Lucky is a confident and well-made heist film that plays out with a bunch of characters you wouldn’t usually associate with the genre. It makes a for a low stakes but very funny film, where all threads are tightly woven and come together in a satisfying way in the end. The cast are all great, especially Danial Craig, who plays a role unlike any we’ve seen before, it’s genuinely great seeing him do something completely different to Bond. Also, get ready for the best Game of Thrones joke in a film yet…

4/5

Raw

Wow, this film lives up to its name! Such nail-biting and visceral experience. It was hard to watch at times but I did not want to avert my eyes from the gorgeous horror that was happening on screen. It was a strangely moving experience that stuck with me for the next few days. A unique coming of age film, unlike anything I’ve seen before, surrealist yet still approachable with a lot of subtext, the obvious ones being sexuality, social norms and femininity, with many more I’m looking forward to reading into. It won’t be for everyone but is an experience of a film that’s very inspiring. An incredible work of art. 

5/5

Death Note

Everybody is going on about how bad this film is, and if I had ever seen/read the source material I would probably be upset that it had be turned into a whitewashed, Americanised, one hour forty film - but I haven’t and I kind of enjoyed it. It’s a goofy premise with cheesy characters but it keeps you engaged and I got a kick out of it’s over the top nature and hammy acting. It’s not amazing, the style gets in the way of the substance and the very fast pacing can get in the way of emotional moments, it really could have done with slowing down every now and then to let me readjust. Apart from that, it was fine and it was fun, I understand if you were a fan of the material and hate it though.

3.5/5

Baby Driver

Edgar Wright is back after what feels like way too long! Baby Driver brings the action, the charm, the comedy and the romance as it blasts onto the big screen. It’s a visceral experience as Wright’s camera flair follows the action in an upbeat and unique way, completely choreographed to a kick ass soundtrack, with a dash of Tarantino and Scorsese in the mix. This film is as creative in its premise as it is in its approach, it’s so good to see this style of filmmaking where the camera is being used just as much as the incredible performances are to tell a story. This film is a lot of fun and deserves to be seen in the cinema. My only criticism is the lack of female characters, there’s really only two and they work mainly as extensions of the males they’re coupled with. Apart from that though, great film!

4.5/5

Thanks for reading!