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!

Quick Reviews #12

I have seen a bunch of cool films (and one bad) recently, all of which I really wanted to review, so here is another round of quick reviews! This time I will give my brief thoughts on six films; The Overnight, Legend, Unexpected, Tomorrowland, Magic Mike XXL and Me and Earl and the Dying Girl. Read on and enjoy!

The Overnight

The Overnight is one the surprise films of the year, I didn't even realise the film existed until recently and as soon as I saw it I fell in love. It's strange, thrilling, honest and absolutely hilarious. It's hard to talk about because it's one of those films that you have to figure out what's going on as you watch it and constantly keeps you guessing as to the intentions of the different characters. Easily the best comedy I have seen this year if not just one of the best overall! Go and check it out! I'm giving it a rating of 5/5.

Legend

Legend is one of those classic gangster films, it's violent and brutal but also really quite funny. I am a sucker for these kinds of gangster films and I absolutely loved this one as well. Tom Hardy proves yet again he is one of the best actors around by playing both of the notorious Kray twins, his performances are so good that you forget that it is just one man performing both. My only problem with the film is the character of Reggie's wife who's troubled history is always hinted at but never actually explained, leaving us wanting more in order to care about her. Apart from that it is a quality film. I'm giving it a rating of 4.5/5.

Unexpected

Unexpected is one of those nice personal stories that can easily connect with audiences. It's about a pregnant teacher and the friendship she has with her also pregnant student. Both are from different backgrounds but they both share the joy and fear that is motherhood. Cobie Smulders is the main character here and she is really good in this film, she goes through the motions of an unexpected pregnancy convincingly. The production is great as well as there is not one fake looking baby bump, (not that I saw anyway), a problem a lot of films dealing with pregnancy have! Like I said at the start, a really nice film, it's not grounbreaking but it's still a good watch that I'm rating 4/5.

Tomorrowland

I think I liked Tomorrowland more than a lot of other people. This film received a lot of negativity when it came out but it ain't half bad! It's a great family film about dreaming, imagination and inventing, you don't get more family friendly then that. It's a bit long and could be streamlined a bit but the production value and special effects are amazing and enough to keep you glued to the screen throughout. Most of the performances are good but there are few dodgy acting moments from some of the younger cast. It doesn't ruin it though, to me it was a really fun and inspiring adventure film. I'm giving it a rating of 4/5.

Magic Mike XXL

I would like to state that I actually liked the first Magic Mike film, it surprised me, for a film about male stripping it had a lot of heart and dealt with a lot of serious issues in a great way. Now we have Magic Mike XXL, a film that promised to be more fun and less serious but ultimately is just not very good. It's constant build up to the final strip leads to a pretty dissapointing finale and whilst we wait to get there the crew of strippers drive from location to location being all bro-y and cool whilst completely contradicting some of the messages of the first film. The conversation barely changes from them constantly making excuses as to why some of the actors from the first film aren't in this one or Channing Tatum awkwardly flirting. This film was made purely on the success of the first but doesn't do anything to recreate the magic, I just didn't care. I'm giving it a rating of 1/5.

Me and Earl and the Dying Girl

I absolutely adored this film. It's smart, funny and quirky. It features some great characters and truly dives deep into the mind of a teenager whose having to grow up. It's sad, but not in a way like many films dealing with cancer are, it's never glum but almost bitter sweet and deals with the subject more realistically than others. It's uplifting and inspiring, it's a film about film making which obviously resonates with me and it's full of references that any cinema lover will get giddy over. The story is great and the cinematography beautiful, so many weird and wonderful shots that at times it reminded me of a more contemporary Wes Anderson movie. This film has a lot going for it and it's no wonder it won big at the Sundance film festival this year. Easily one of the best films of the year, a solid 5/5.

Well I hope you enjoyed my reviews. Have you seen any of the films above? Let me know what you thought in the comments below!

Thanks for reading!

God Bless America & 21 Jump Street

I am actually on holiday right now but I prepared in advance and here is a new blog post containing two new reviews. Both comedy films and both brilliant!

God Bless America
I heard about this film from the Empire podcast (which I recommend you all listen to!). They had an interview with writer/director Bobcat Goldthwait who's last project was Worlds Greatest Dad, a film which I really liked, in a strange way. It seems the director has a knack for making films around characters you should dislike but don't and that is not an exception for God Bless America, where we follow Frank, a man who is at the end of his tether after losing his job and finding out he has a brain tumour. He decides to take his own life but as he is about too he sees an episode of My Super Sweet 16 and decides to take the girl on the shows life instead. At this event he meets Roxy who joins him on a mass killing spree of people who he thinks 'deserve to die'. Including people who talk in cinemas and take up two spaces in a car park.
This is one of those films that is so wrong but so so right! Its statement on society is truthful yet the way they go about it kind of defeats the point, but it's a fun film anyway so who really cares? The film is very funny and very shocking and I enjoyed it a lot more than World's Greatest Dad. There is only one moment where I think it went a bit too far, it happens within the first 5 minutes and a baby gets killed. Just a tad too far don't you think?

Apart from that though everything else is good and there are some great laugh out loud moments and times where you think that the killing is almost justified! A crazy film that has a strong message and surprisingly a lot of heart, I'm giving this film a rating of 4/5.

If you have no idea why this film would be good, take a look at the trailer below:

21 Jump Street
I have never liked Channing Tatum, yet in this recent film I liked him a lot! 21 Jump Street is a reboot/remake of the 80's series that starred Johnny Depp. Unlike most other remakes this film acknowledges its unoriginality and takes the mick out of it.

Starring Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum the film is about a pair of underachieving cops that are sent on an undercover mission due to their young looks, to bring down a drug ring within a high school. The film starts off quite rushed but once the first 5 minutes of back story are out of the way, hilarity ensues.

The film is stupid but packs enough laughs to entertain thoroughly. Whoever came up with the Hill and Tatum partnering is a genius as the bromance is one of the best parts of the film! Channing Tatum should stick to comedy as he is hilarious in this! Everything else he has been in has been funny for all the wrong reasons. Skinny Jonah Hill is brilliant as usual, and this is probably is funniest role since Superbad.

It's stupid, rude, crude, hilariously funny and has an incredibly smart cameo! I'm sure there will be sequels as this was a top notch comedy, that's why I'm giving it a rating of  4/5.


Thanks for reading!