Jolt: Missing A Spark

2/5

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

Kate Beckinsale’s Lindy is a woman with an explosive temper and a keen set of skills. As she re-enters society after years kept hidden away she falls in love, then her new beau is killed. You know what happens next.

Never has an actor needed to reinvent themselves more than Kate Beckinsale. Beckinsale has been on the forefront of the action genre for longer than I have been alive, but if her recent output is anything to go by the spark is gone.

As you might imagine from the premise Jolt is a very by the numbers film, it is passable action, but it is neither good nor bad just deeply average. What this film has going against it is a deeply generic plot that has been done so many times over the years in films and tv shows that you can’t help but role your eyes when you see it done yet again here.

Moreover, the cast aren’t bringing anything to the roles to make them or the film memorable. Yes, Beckinsale is a capable enough lead, but her character is forgotten the moment the film is turned off, and Jai Courtney………. Has no one told the makers of this film that Jai Courtney had his moment and blew it? The moment I saw him show up I immediately knew the film was going to be bad. If ever there was an omen to suggest a film is going to be bad, it is the casting of Courtney.

Again the action is fine, but it is nothing new.

Overall, you have seen this film before.

Pros.

It is passable

Everything is fine

Cons.

It is generic and played out

Courtney

The pacing

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Gunpowder Milkshake: In Search Of A Soul

2.5/5

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

A hitwoman finds herself the target of a number of underworld characters after she botches one of her hits and finds herself in the company of her victim’s child.

I am mixed on this. One the one hand I thought the concept and the action to be good. I enjoyed the world this film sets up; I thought The Firm and the Librarians were both interesting groups rife for further exploration. In addition I thought the action choreography was spot on, and many of the scenes feel very real: making the bone crunching all the more impactful.

However, the characters themselves for the most part were entirely devoid of any kind of personality or charm and were instead defined by their role in the narrative. The previous mentioned Librarians don’t really have any kind of personality beyond their job and a previous connection to one of the other characters. Moreover, Karen Gillan’s lead literally barely speaks at all and has no charm or personality either, she remains a mystery throughout though in this case that is a bad thing.

The feminist aspects which this film displays front and centre and that will no doubt annoy some, as many are looking to be offended these days, are clear and present throughout. Whilst many of the things this film is saying on that front are good, the issue comes from the fact that these characters are almost not written as people rather as tools to make certain points, this surely undermines the cause and provides a flaw in the film’s presentation.

I didn’t think the child acting was very good, but I won’t belabour that point as it is low hanging fruit.

Overall, it has potential, but some real character work is needed if this film does indeed return for a sequel.

Pros.

The world

The action

The message

Cons.

The characters are devoid of personality

It feels a little bit too familiar at times

The child acting

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The Bad Batch: Rescue On Ryloth

3/5

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

Following on from last week’s episode we see Hera ask the Bad Batch to break into the capital and save her family, where they have another run in with Crosshair.

I am glad this show is using Crosshair more, he makes for far more of an interesting antagonist than whatever random villain of the week they would otherwise use. Though in this episode the confrontation between Crosshair and his former teammates is not as thrilling or as tense as it has been in the past there is still enough there to make it enjoyable. Moreover, the series promises a bigger confrontation going forward as Crosshair is finally sent to hunt the Bad Batch down.

I enjoyed the Ryloth characters and seeing the show tie into Rebels, however, I think in doing this the show creates an inconsistency. Howzer is a clone, who despite the inhibitor chip can still disobey the rule of the Empire and think for himself- therein lies the problem. If Howzer and later other clones can disobey their programming then why can’t Crosshair, is the showing trying to suggest he was always bad so therefore his morality wouldn’t force him to break orders because I don’t think that is true. The episode as a whole glosses over this issue but it needs to be addressed.

Finally, as I have said before so won’t belabour, Omega is the worst character on the show and her naïve self-righteousness doesn’t make her any more likeable as a character.

Overall, for the most part a good episode

Pros.

The promise of more Crosshair

The action

The wider lore being set up

Cons.

The Howzer inconsistency

Omega

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Outlaw King: The Fight For An Independent Scotland

4/5

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

The film follows the struggles of Robert The Bruce as he rebels against the English crown and fights to become the King of Scotland.

Though there are a lot of historical epics, this one managed to stand out to me. I thought the pacing was tight and it covered a lot in an interesting way. The film could have easily felt slightly xenophobic and even as anti-English propaganda but honestly I think the film feels far more balanced than that and I found myself easily rooting for Bruce and his cause.

I thought the battle scenes were well done and very weighty enough to leave an impact. Moreover, I thought the performances were strong across the board, with Chris Pine being a dependable leading man throughout, only being upstaged by Aaron Taylor-Johnson’s James Douglas and Florence Pugh’s Elizabeth De Burgh. Truly everyone who said something to the extent of ‘oh Black Widow is Florence Pugh’s big breakout role’ are so deeply ignorant to a well of great performances from her.

Overall, I felt for a Netflix action film this was very standout.

Pros.

Pine

Pugh

Taylor-Johnson

The battle scenes

Cons.

Perhaps just a tad bloated

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Loki: For All Time, Always

4.5/5

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

Loki and Sylvie meet the man in the castle and learn a lot about the multiverse. Meanwhile Mobius and other rogue TVA agents bring down the organisation that has proven to be a lie to them.

I called this a while ago, though Wandavison was being billed as the project that would effectively bring on the Multiverse of Madness, I had guessed that in fact it would be Loki– I was right.

I think this could be the best episode of the series, it delivers on nearly every front. The only reason I didn’t give it full marks is because I thought the TVA resolution with Owen Wilson’s Mobius was a little weak and that Gugu Mbatha-Raw’s Renslayer also gets short-changed by the episode: I would assume both of these things will be made up for by a later movie or TV show, but I was hoping we could have got that here. Really the episode could have done with being about half an hour longer.

However, on the other side of things the Loki Sylvie plot line totally delivers. We get Kang, played wonderfully by Jonathan Majors or at least a multiverse version of the character and the promise of far more to come. Though this section of the episode is a little exposition heavy, I did find it all interesting as it sets up the next few years of the MCU, if not beyond that as well.

The ending of the Loki Sylvie romance is as heart-breaking as I was expecting it to be, but luckily neither of them died so it can be continued in future. I thought both Hiddleston and Di Martino gave very strong performances here that really resonated. I hope we get to see far more of Di Martino going forward in the MCU.

Finally, I wanted to mention the end tease wherein Loki finds himself in another dimension one that has already been conquered by Kang and say that I am very excited for season two I think the show is heading in a very interesting direction.

Overall one of the best episodes of a Marvel Disney + show to date.

Pros.

Kang

The multiverse

The ending tease

Sylvie and Loki

Cons.

Mobius and Renslayer

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Rick and Morty: Rickdependence Day

3.5/5

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

Morty uses a piece of surgical equipment for elicit means and creates a worldwide disaster, that leads to humans having to patch up their long standing feud with the subterranean CHUD people.

This was a fun episode of Rick and Morty,not too heavy and mostly just throw away fun. The premise of the episode is a little icky for my tastes, but I enjoyed how they built the reveal of the sperm monsters origins as a point of tension between the titular pair as Rick did not know what Morty had done.

Moreover, I thought Summer and Beth really stood out as characters here. Their comments on sexism and how women and their ideas are often overlooked and basically ignored were both insightful as well as humorously delivered.

I thought the episode had a few funny moments such as the joke at the expense of Marvel frontman Robert Downey Jr, but struggled to keep that comedy up throughout. For the most part a lot of the jokes in this episode just left me cold and were a little bit too gross out for my tastes.

I thought the CHUD people were an interesting addition to the episode, and it made for a great Rick moment at the end. However, I am starting to become perturbed by how this show keeps creating new characters and civilisations and then never references them again, it feels a little throwaway and I prefer it when the show builds up a character or group and makes them important to the wider narrative of the show.

Overall, a fun episode of Rick and Morty that struggles to be anything more.

Pros.

The Robert Downey Jr joke

Summer and Beth

The tension between Rick and Morty

The ending/ The CHUDs

Cons.

Some of the characters feel throwaway

Not all the jokes land

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The Bad Batch: Devil’s Deal

3/5

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

We leave the story of Hunter and Co, as we instead follow the series return of Hera Syndulla.

This is the first episode of The Bad Batch to barely feature the titular heroes themselves. Instead the gang play second fiddle to the origin story of a young Hera. We see her early experiences with the Empire that would be instrumental in forging her into the Resistance warrior we know and love.

Surprisingly, I thought the change of pace worked quite well for the series, showing that maybe we don’t need to follow the Bad Batch every week. This episode has a lot of stakes, perhaps the most of any episode of the series so far as we see a whole planet on the brink of war, with no doubt the Batch having to come in next week to save the day.

I would say that is the big issue with the episode, though it is nice to see Hera and her family return this whole episode just feels like set up for next weeks’. Furthermore, this idea then suggests that Hera and her family are basically being used as plot devices within the driving heroic narrative of the Bad Batch themselves. I would like to see the situation resolve itself with minimal involvement from our heroes.

Moreover, this episode brought back Crosshair which is always a good thing in my book. The series is at its best when he is around, and they should use him more rather than just ignoring him for vast numbers of episodes at a time.

Overall, an interesting episode but one that ends up feeling like filler.

Pros.

Crosshair

Hera’s Origin

Less involvement from The Bad Batch themselves

Cons.

It feels like filler

The Omega ‘friend’ sequence felt awkward and forced

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Loki: Journey Into Mystery

3/5

Written by Luke Barnes

Of the episodes so far this is definitely the most emotionally impactful episode of Loki. There were a number of moments here that both made you want to cheer whilst also bringing a tear to your eye, the two that particularly affected me were the hug between Owen Wilson’s Mobius and Tom Hiddleston’s Loki and the admittance of feelings between Loki and Sophia Di Martino’s Sylvie.

I enjoyed seeing all the other Loki variants that exist beyond the void and I thought there antics were fun enough for the short amount of time they were on screen. I would have liked to see them be more developed and have more to them then very surface level treatment they are given. I thought that Richard E Grant’s older future Loki was easily the best and had the most going for him in terms of character work: I would have liked to see more of him but sadly now that looks unlikely.

I thought the ending tease was interesting and sets up for one hell of a finale. All signs look pointing to the arrival of Kang The Conqueror, though I wouldn’t be surprised if the show pulls a fast one on us and subverts that. I do think this episode has very much of a waiting for the finale vibe to it, which is certainly a draw back at times.

Additionally I don’t like what they have done with Gugu Mbatha-Raw’s Ravonna Renslayer, as they have basically made her cartoonishly evil and stripped the character from any wider subtlety or nuance and just made a generic bad.

Overall, a good episode for the most part though the foundation is weak.

Pros.

Loki and Sylvie

Loki and Mobius

Richard E Grant’s Loki

Cons.

The other variants really don’t get much to do

The episode feels like it is just passing time till the finale

Renslayer

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The Bad Batch: Common Ground

2.5/5

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

The Bad Batch finally get to set out on their own for a mission without Omega that takes them right into the heart of Separatists space.

I have been excited about the prospect of the clones setting off on an adventure of their own, without Omega, for a while. Sadly, the chosen adventure for this outing is one of the tamest and most boring of the series so far.

I think the group works better on missions without Omega, and here it is nice to see them back in their element again. Although the idea of having the clones have to help out their former enemy may look good on paper as a character growth storyline the emotional pay off here just doesn’t land at all and it all feels very inconsequential.

Whilst away from the Batch Omega has a side story about how she isn’t useless, though she is and the only reason she often saves the day is because of blind luck rather than skill. Anyway, this storyline finishes with her paying off the groups debts and having a bonding moment with Hunter, which as I have said before and will say again does not work, they are trying to do a Grogu esque father/child bond and it is not taking at all.

Overall, this is very much a miss-able episode.

Pros.

Seeing the Batch do what they do best

The idea of the clones having to help the Separatists

Cons.

The episode is dull and boring

The emotional pay off doesn’t work

Omega is still dragging the show down

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Black Widow: The Young Live To Right The Mistakes Of Their Parent’s Past

4/5

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

Natasha Romanoff, Scarlet Johansson, returns to fix the mistakes on her past and finally undo the red in her ledger.

The first Marvel release back in cinemas had a lot riding on it, and I think it delivered.

Spoilers ahead.

The first thing I will say about this film is that it is very personal. If you are going in looking for the film that will set up the next Avengers this is not it. There is some connective tissue thrown in, but more or less this is quite self-contained. Which I feel is both a good thing and a bad thing, it is good as it allows for Natasha, her story and her world to stand on their own, but it is also bad as it can feel underwhelming at times especially if you go in with crossover expectations.

Moreover, those that did not like Falcon and the Winter Soldier because it was topical and was heavily influenced by racial issues will almost certainly not like this either- but who cares what they think? The beating heart of this film is an angry comment on women’s place not just within the MCU but also in the wider world to, the widows in this film have their literal free will taken away by the villains, they are entirely controlled by the evil man in charge. The commentary isn’t subtle, but it is strikingly accurate, and it does make you aware to how some men/parts of society treat women.

I felt as a swansong for Natasha within the MCU the film works well and gives her ‘final story’ a lot of power and impact to make sure the character goes out on a high. To that end I enjoyed her ‘family’, I thought Florence Pugh was terrific, I don’t like the notion that this is her breakout film as she has been doing great things for a while, but she really knocks it out of the park here and is a scene stealer. Furthermore, David Harbour’s Red Guardian is also a lot of fun and he gets the best jokes in the film. If I had to pick an odd one out of the family quartet it would be Rachel Weisz’s Melina who really doesn’t get much to do and spends a lot of the film as a glorified side character.

Additionally, the film does feature Taskmaster as the film’s sub-villain and though I won’t spoil the identity reveal here, I will say the film flips the character on it’s head and it does not go the way you are expecting. Personally, as someone who is a fan of the comics Taskmaster character I found the new version this film gives us to be sorely lacking, but you know what they say about villains in the MCU.

In terms of the wider big bad of the film that role goes to Ray Winstone’s Dreykov. As a sleezy tough guy type the role is perfectly cast, Winstone doesn’t get a huge amount to do when he is on screen beyond generally being evil, but he does manage to leave an impact. In that regard I just want to say that this may be at times one of the darkest films in the MCU so far, and the opening sequence of the sisters early days in the Black Widow program is particularly troubling, child friendly? I honestly don’t think so.

There is a post credits scene at the end of the film, and it sees Julia Louise Dreyfus’s character from the aforementioned Falcon and the Winter Soldier return to recruit Pugh’s Yelena to go after ‘the man who murdered her sister’, as I predicted setting up for a clash between her and Hawkeye in his Disney + series later this year.

Overall, a strong return to the cinema for Marvel though one that is not without issues.

Pros.

The social commentary

The poignant emotional goodbye

The new characters established

The post credits scene

Cons.

Slightly underwhelming at times

Taskmaster and the return of Marvel’s issue with villains

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