Jungle: Lost In The Wilderness

Jungle is a biopic survival film directed by Greg McLean. The plot follows young Israeli explorer Yossi Ghinsberg (Daniel Radcliffe), who gets stranded alone in the amazon for three week, the film details his fight to stay alive.

This is a harrowing film especially towards the end when you can see the physical and mental tole the whole ordeal has had on Yossi; it makes you question just how much the human spirit can endure. Adding to that when it is revealed that Karl (Thomas Kretschmann), was not who he said he was and that he had taken other people out to the jungle before, with said people never coming back, it adds a whole chilling other tone to the film.

I think for his part Radcliffe is trying his best, he gives a strong performance especially with the physicality of it but is limited by a weak script. That would be my fundamental problem with this film, the way it is structed and set out from a writing sense. The bit up until Yossi is left behind feels like it goes on for ten years, it is painfully dull and takes up far too much of the film. Likewise the actual survival parts of the film, the interesting bits, feels far too short almost rushed.

Overall, I can only recommend the last half an hour of this film, as that is the only bit that is compelling and interesting. The rest feels torturously slow and drawn out being crippled by poor writing.

Pros.

Radcliffe

The very real feel of the survival parts of the film/ the physical transformation

Cons.

It is incredibly slow

The writing is bad

There is only half an hour of the film that is interesting

1.5/5

Reviewed by Luke

Blue Iguana: Sam Rockwell and Ben Schwartz Are The Pairing You Never Knew You Needed

Blue Iguana is a crime comedy film directed by Hadi Hajaig. The plot sees two American bank robbers get drawn into a plot to steal from a UK gang lord and his underlings.

This film is held together by the sheer star power and likeability of Sam Rockwell, without his involvement this would surely have faded into the background becoming yet another forgettable crime film. The on-screen chemistry Rockwell has with his heisting partner Paul (Ben Schwartz), is magnetic and keeps you invested throughout, the two play off each other nicely.

The film itself is not as clever as it thinks it is, or even as smart as a lot of better crime/ heist films. Everything is fairly predictable and there are no real twists and turns. That said there are a few memorable moments mostly steaming from the films antagonist Deacon (Peter Ferdinando), who is definitely an asset of the film.

This is definitely more of a comedy film than a crime film, as the drama often takes backstage to the jokes. For me this is a problem as often the jokes don’t land and only serve to take away from any sense of tension. Whenever, the characters feel in danger you know they will be fine, because it is that sort of the film; one that has no stakes.

There are some neat visuals towards the start of the film that feel very Edgar Wright inspired, it is a promising start, but said visuals disappear midway into the film leaving a void and disrupting the style of the film.

Overall, a visually interesting if lacking comedy crime film. Boosted by the talents of Rockwell and Ferdinando

Pros

Rockwell

Swartz

Ferdinando

Cons.

No stakes or tension

The jokes didn’t work at all

2/5

Reviewed by Luke

Aloha Scooby Doo: The Most Obvious Mystery Of The Gang’s Career

Aloha Scooby Doo is an animated family film directed by Tim Maltby. The plot sees Scooby (Frank Welker) and the gang be invited to Hawaii, as Daphne has been offered a job, of course not long after they arrive a vicious tiki spirit starts to wreak havoc.

I have written at great length about the Scooby Doo formula and this might be the best example of it, and the harmful effects of it on the films themselves. My issue with this film is that it is clear from the off who the bad guy is, it is so obvious and predictable. This is a result of how strictly this film sticks to the formula, its like clockwork. You will know exactly what is going to happen and when if you have ever seen a Scooby Doo film before.

There is no charm in this feature either, a little warmth might have made the glaring flaws a little less noticeable. Also the jokes don’t land and are often painfully unfunny, and the characters themselves are particularly likeable and that stretches to the gang as well.

The one thing I will give this film props for is that it doesn’t reduce the Hawaiian characters to stereotypes, as often happens in these films.

Overall, an incredibly by the numbers affair that is soured by the lack of charm, humour or surprise.

Pros.

The minor Adam West role

The Hawaiian characters don’t feel like clichés and stereotypes

Cons.

The humour doesn’t land

It is painfully predictable

It is joyless

Even the gang themselves aren’t very likeable here.

1/5

Reviewed by Luke

Cuban Fury: A Peggless Frost Dances The Solo Salsa

Cuban Fury is a British comedy film directed by James Griffiths. The plot sees office worker/ child salsa prodigy Bruce (Nick Frost), get back into the salsa game in order to impress his new boss Julia (Rashida Jones). However, in doing so he realises that he has been living in fear of being himself for years and this salsa reawakening is just the thing he needs to remerge from his shell.

This is very watchable, but nothing special. It is very meh. Very predictable and like many other films you have seen before, just with a slightly tweaked premise.

Frost has a strong amount of charm and what I am going to coin as rootability, you want to see him win and be happy. He more than stands on his own without the involvement of his best friend Simon Pegg and is a competent lead.

Chris O’ Dowd is very easy to hate and plays the antagonistic non-threatening jerk type well. He is often forced into that sort of role and this is why. Ian McShane is again being typecast as the old wise mentor type character, but he plays the part perfectly so that is not really a complaint on my part. Jones is underused and is in the film barely at all, which I thought was an odd choice considering that she has incredibly strong comedic chops as shown by Angie Tribeca.

Overall, very watchable, but very familiar, it is fine if you can’t find anything else.

Pros

Frost

McShane

The wider supporting cast

Cons.

Under-using Rashida Jones

Very predictable and familiar

The drama between O’ Dowd and Frost gets quite repetitive after a while

2/5

Reviewed by Luke

The Heat: Paul Feig Pulls Off The Impossible Again

The Heat is a buddy cop comedy film directed by Paul Feig. The plot follows uptight FBI agent Ashburn (Sandra Bullock), as she is forced to work with unsavoury, unconventional beat cop Mullin’s (Melissa McCarthy). You guessed it, the two polar opposites learn a little from the other and become more rounded people and friends along the way.

So, yes the premise is uninspired and has been done one million times before, there is very little about this film that feels truly original. The plot is predictable and goes the way you would expect it to, there are no surprises, but this was never going to be that kind of film.

What impress me about this film is that Feig managed to do the impossible twice, the impossible being making Melissa McCarthy funny. Here McCarthy actually has quite a lot of funny moments and jokes that seem thought out, rather than just oh look she feel over, or oh look something about poo; maybe McCarthy should stop making films with her husband and only make comedy films with Feig, cleaning up her poor filmography.

The buddy cop dynamic between Bullock and McCarthy works well and they are each a good foil to the other, Bullock particularly handles the comedy well and manages to keep pace with McCarthy.

Overall, Paul Feig manages to make McCarthy funny which is no mean feat. If the plot was a little more original and a little less familiar I would be giving it top marks, but as is, it is okay.

Pros.

The dynamic between the leads

McCarthy and Bullock are both funny

The jokes are funny and smart

Cons.

It is so familiar

It is too long

2.5/5

Reviewed by Luke

Johnny English Reborn: Forget Wick, Hunt, Reacher, Bourne and Eggsy, This Is Bond’s Real Competition

Johnny English Reborn is a comedy spy film directed by Oliver Parker. The plot sees international super spy Johnny English (Rowan Atkinson), come back from disgrace to find the world at the mercy of mysterious evil organisation Vortex, naturally he is the only man who can stop them.

In all honesty this film didn’t need to be made, the first Johnny English works as a perfectly fun standalone adventure, but as the rules of the industry go if something makes a little bit of a profit it must be mined for all it is worth. There is little new here that you haven’t seen before, nor is there any character development or plot intrigue to make it worth your time.

Atkinson is fine here, but again it is nothing you haven’t seen in the previous film. The real star of the show here is Agent Tucker (Daniel Kaluuya), who shines despite only being a glorified side kick. Him and Atkinson have a strong repour that is fun to watch.

The comedy didn’t really do much for me, again it was a retread and a rehash. It was watchable, but it never made me laugh or even smile really, but comedy is subjective. The plot feels like clutching at straws and the big-name actors who are brought in to try and sell more seats, don’t add all that much.

Overall, a deeply needless sequel, that only serves to stretch the jokes and the characters further- breaking both in the process.

Pros.

Daniel Kaluuya

It is very watchable

Cons.

It does not justify its existence

It isn’t funny

The new characters, other than Kaluuya’s Tucker, add nothing

2/5

Reviewed by Luke

Locke: An Entire Film Of A Man Sat In A Car Having Phone Conversations

Locke is a drama film directed by Steven Knight. The plot sees Ivan Locke (Tom Hardy), driving to the birth of his child. However, as he does this his life falls apart around him, as the child is not with his wife and he is blowing off work for the birth.

So, if anyone ever questions Tom Hardy’s acting credentials tell them to go and watch this film, it is slightly under an hour and a half of a man sat in his car talking to people on the phone. Though that might not sound like much the emotional journey we go on, is indescribable.

Once again through very subtle facial acting Hardy is able to communicate such a wide array of emotions. We can see Ivan as a character slowly start to break down as the film goes on when he realises how severe the consequences of his actions are going to be. All this is not said, but it is shown through Hardy’s performance.

I especially enjoyed Ivan’s conversations with his dead father, who he talks to as the journey progresses. In these instances Hardy is so raw and so passionate that you can’t help but be enthralled by him.

The supporting cast who he talks to over the phone give good enough performances, but this is Hardy’ film through and through.

Overall, a magnificent film and a tour de force performance from Hardy, highlighting the fact that he is one of the best character actors of these modern times.

Pros.

Tom Hardy’s performance, that is all five pros

Cons.

None.

5/5

Reviewed by Luke

Venom: Two Poorly Rendered CGI Models Ramming Into One Another

Venom is a superhero action film directed by Ruben Fleischer. The plot follows disgraced reporter Eddie Brock (Tom Hardy), as he comes into contact with the extra-terrestrial symbiote called Venom. The two team up to save the world and eat some people.

The best thing about this film is the awkward charm of Tom Hardy’s performance. The man can do a lot with very little and through his facial expressions we get a got sense of who Eddie is before we have even spent much time with him, he is a very versatile performer. I have heard a lot of people criticising Hardy’s accent on this one, and I have to say when I first heard it I thought it was bad too, but as the film went on it felt more and more natural. The rest of the cast’s accents are another story, they ranged from unconvincing to bad.

The CGI here wasn’t great, the bike chase showcase everything wrong with it. However, I thought when Brock turned into Venom that looked okay, not great but better. I thought a lot of the action felt very flat, this is a criticism of not just this film but also a lot of superhero films, a lot of the time it was just one CGI fight after another, and it gets a bit samey after a while.

I enjoyed the ‘buddy cop’ relationship between Brock and Venom and I thought the two had great chemistry together, especially towards the end and would like to see it developed further in future films.

Overall, it is better than average, but an overreliance on poor CGI action scenes ended up hurting the film in a big way, Hardy’s performance is able to improve the film as a whole, but not enough to make it good.

Pros.

Tom Hardy’s performance

The buddy cop relationship between Brock and Venom

She-Venom tease

Cons.

The bad CGI

The battle at the end felt generic and been there done that

The accents aren’t good.

2.5/5

Reviewed by Luke

Murder On The Orient Express: Mustachioed Man Sets Aside Dickens To Solve A Murder

Murder On The Orient Express is a drama mystery film directed by Kenneth Branagh, who also stars as Hercule Poirot. The plot revolves around a murder on the titular Orient Express that forces famed detective Poirot to abandon his holiday and take action.

I have seen this film several times now, with last night being the most recent, and I have to say this is a tremendous film. The problem with these kind of films is that once you know who the killer is, the fun isn’t there anymore, so it has no rewatch value. This I can say with confidence does not suffer from that problem and is incredibly entertaining even when you have seen it as many times as I have.

Branagh gives a tour de force performance and steals the entire film, no one else can compete with him on the acting front. That I would say is the great issue with this film, the cast outside of Branagh is made up of some incredibly talented people, but because there are a lot of them, none of them really shine. The cast could have done with being thinned out a bit.

The emotion in this film, especially around the big reveal, feels pitch perfect. It hits you hard and square in the chest and you question what right is in this situation just like Poirot does.

Overall, a very fun murder mystery film with a great performance from Branagh.

Pros.

Branagh

The mystery

How easily rewatchable it is

The emotion and the reveal

Cons.

Wasting a strong supporting cast

4/5

Reviewed by Luke

Superman, Man Of Tomorrow: A Superman Story With No Martha Moment

Superman Man Of Tomorrow is an animated superhero film directed by Chris Palmer. The plot follows Clark Kent (Darren Criss), in his early days as he is settling into his Superman identity. This super powered coming of age story is capped off by a wild show down with Lobo (Ryan Hurst), and a mad dash to defeat Parasite (Brett Dalton), before he takes over the world.

I had heard good things about the animated Superman films, so despite the fact that I am more of a Batman person I decided to check this out. I have to say it was nothing I haven’t seen before, it was yet another film showing the early life of Clark Kent, maybe it was a different take on it? I don’t think it was a different take personally, I just think it was yet another boring origin story.

The voice cast was strong with Zachary Quinton as Lex Luthor being the standout, the rest were serviceable if not memorable. I found the dialogue to be quite stilted personally, with some of it reading like poor fan fiction; in fact I think I have read stronger Supes fan fiction before.

Overall, much more boring than it should be, it did nothing for me and other than Zachary Quinton, I thought it was incredibly average standard fare.

Pros.

Zachary Quinton

Cons

Yet another take on young Superman

The voice cast were serviceable if not great

A lot of it boiled down to two super powered beings just punching each other for a long period of time

It was incredibly average

1/5

Reviewed by Luke