Toy Story 4: Saying Goodbye

Toy Story 4 is a computer animated comedy film directed by Josh Cooley. The plot continues on from the ending of Toy Story 3 with the toys now having moved on from Andy and are now loving life under Bonnie. However, one of the toys feels as though he doesn’t fit in this new world anymore and questions where he does belong, this toy is Woodie (Tom Hanks).

I firmly believe this film doesn’t need to exist, Toy Story 3 wrapped the character arcs up for everyone in such a nice and satisfying way we didn’t need to revisit them, maybe in 30 years when the series will inevitably be rebooted, or remade, but we didn’t need another sequel. Pixar billed Toy Story 4 as an epilogue, a whole film that would serve as the end. So, it is by that definition I will judge this film.

I thought this film was good, but not great, by far it is the weakest instalment in the quadrillage. This film is very much Woodies film and yes, he has always been the main character of these films, but he has just been one part of a larger ensemble. Here he is the main focus. As such characters like Buzz (Tim Allen) and Jessie (Joan Cusack), are not really in this film, they have sort of appearances here and there, but they are given nothing of note to do, Jessie especially.

In terms of characterisation Woodie goes on quite the journey, he starts the film trying to make Bonnie into the new Andy, when he realises, he can’t do that and Bonnie makes Forky (Tony Hale), a new toy to replace him, he realises he needs to move on. In many ways Woodie is the audience in this film as he realises the time has come to say goodbye. They tie into this Bo Peep (Annie Potts), coming back into Woodie’s life, she is the one who got away and she shows him, very much the film shows us that it is okay to move on.

Audiences of my generation have grown up with these films and now we are being told it is okay to move on and leave the Toy Story films behind and I think there is something beautiful about that. Though I think this film was deeply unnecessary and was most likely a cash grab it still had heart and it still had soul, I liked seeing where it left Woodie and I hope they leave him there.

Ps. Please Pixar don’t make Toy Story 5!

Pros.

The ending.

Woodie’s Arc.

The new characters are good for a laugh.

Cons.

Side-lines Buzz and Jessie.

You can’t shake the feeling this film doesn’t need to exist.

3.5/5

Justice League Dark: The Mystical Side Of DC

Justice League Dark is an animated science fantasy superhero film. The plot revolves around a team of DC Superheroes, the more mystical ones, who have to investigate a pattern of strange behavior that has turned fatal. The Justice League themselves can’t understand the problem, so it is down to Batman (Jason O’Mara), and his strange collection of allies to save the day.

*Justice League Dark is one of my favourite DC comics, I have read many runs of the team over the years, so when I heard about this project, I knew I had to check it out. I was disappointed, this was an incredibly average film, nothing more, nothing less.

I will admit it was nice to see the team of Constantine (Matt Ryan), Zatanna (Camilla Luddington), and Deadman (Nicholas Turturro), get together; furthermore, it was nice to see Matt Ryan return to play Constantine, he is fairly synonymous with the character to me. However, my issue was the overall story just felt flat. The best issues of the comic have strong horror elements, but I didn’t get that here, other than the shades and a few other things it was mainly without horror.

What’s more though I liked Constantine I felt that a lot of the other characters were short-changed so that he could have more screen time. An example of this would be Swamp Thing (Roger Cross), who has been a major part of the team before in the comics, here only gets a few lines. Worst of all after he gets defeated, he just goes away and we don’t see him again, which feels like a big unresolved plot thread.

As I said before, this film is everything I would expect from a Justice League Dark film, a group of the more mystical DC heroes fighting against a supernatural opponent, but that isn’t enough to sustain my interest across the film’s runtime, I wanted more. More depth to the characters, more scope to the narrative, I don’t know exactly what but, something that felt better than bog standard.

Overall, this film fell short my expectations, it didn’t wow me in anyway, in fact it annoyed me a lot of the time. I wish they had put more time and energy into the characters and the story overall, if they had this might have been something special.

Pros.

Matt Ryan.

It is nice to see all of the characters team up.

A solid foundation.

Cons.

Other than Constantine and Zatanna very weak characters.

How they handled Swamp Thing.

2.5/5

Reviewed by Luke

Avatar: A World Beyond Imagination

Avatar is an epic science fiction film directed by James Cameron. The plot of the film revolves around Jake Sully (Sam Worthington), a marine who arrives on the planet of ‘Pandora’ to follow in his brothers’ footsteps and join the Avatar Program. Once Sully dives into the native’s culture he realises that they are a wonderful people and that he is on the wrong side of the conflict; he then goes native.

The story of his film is one we have all seen before, solider goes undercover and learns about another group of people and then switches sides, think Dances With Wolves. There is a timeless quality to the narrative. The Na’vi’s world is deep and rich and every inch of it seems rife to explore, it is stunningly designed, and each character design is a marvel to look at; James Cameron truly did something special with this film.

Sam Worthington is serviceable as the lead, but he is in no way memorable. It is a surprise to no one that Worthington has been in nothing of note since about 2010, his time has very much passed. My main issue with his performance is that anyone could play that character, he doesn’t make the character his own. This problem is only made more evident when you compare his performance to some of the heavy hitters in the cast such as Stephen Lang and Sigourney Weaver. Stephen Lang plays the film’s antagonist Colonel Miles Quaritch, a man who wants to wipe the Na’vi out as he sees them as a threat and as standing the way of what he wants.

Lang is easily one of the best things about the film as he is a great menacing villain and one that has something about him. When Cameron brings out the inevitable 4 sequels, that no one has asked for or wants, I would love to see Lang return; with some type of Science Fiction magic obviously.

Overall, I think the strongest thing about this film is its world. It is this world that I want to see more explored not the characters. I hope the sequels reflect that. If Cameron can show us more of this world then I think they could be hits. The thing that stops me from grading this film higher is the fact that the main character is bland and in no way unique.

Pros.

Stephen Lang.

Beautifully Designed Creatures And Characters.

Fantastic World Building.

Cons.

Pacing Issues.

Sam Worthington.

3/5

Reviewed By Luke

The Witcher: A New Fantasy King Rises

The Witcher is a fantasy drama series based on the novels by Andrzej Sapkowski. The plot of the series revolves around Geralt of Rivia (Henry Cavill), a Witcher, a mutant who hunts monsters. Over the course of the series we see Geralt try to escape destiny and his responsibility towards Princess Cirilla (Freya Allan), a child whose fate is tied to Geralt’s through the law of surprise. The series builds to these two characters meeting.

I have to say before I get into this review, I am a huge Witcher fan, I love the games and the books. So, I had been eagerly awaiting this series for quite some time. This series does play homage to both of these, that have come before, taking elements from both. I would say it probably leans more towards the books in terms of faithfulness.

When I first saw him on screen, I wasn’t quite sure how I felt about Cavill as Geralt, but he did grow on me overtime. I think Cavill did a good job as the character and I can’t wait to see where he takes the character in the next season. I think he especially did a good job with the voice; he sounds just like the voice actor from the game; if you close your eyes and listen you will see what I mean.

The breakout star of the series for me is Anya Chalotra as Yennefer, who did a great job. Yennefer is the love of Geralt’s life, and their relationship is a huge part of the series. I think the writing of her character was quite weak in the first few episodes, but when she becomes a full-fledged Mage in about episode 2 or 3, she becomes far more engaging.

The world of this show is fantastic it is deep and rich, it is easily one of the best fantasy worlds ever brought to the small screen. The story is told in 3 separate sequences that all take place outside of one another. Geralt has one, Ciri has one and Yennefer has one, they all come together in episode 6, but before that it can be a bit confusing to figure out what is happening and when; on second watch it all makes a lot more sense.

Overall, this is one of Netflix’s best new shows and can easily fill the void left behind by things like Game Of Thrones. If you’re a fan of the games or the books or just fantasy in general, you will love this series and it is definitely one to watch!

Ps. The fight sequences are a thing of beauty.

Pros.

A Solid Lead.

A Rich Developed World.

Multi Layered Characters.

A Loving Homage.

Anya Chalotra Is The Breakout Star.

Cons.

The Out Of Sequence Story Telling Can Be Confusing.

4.5/5

Reviewed By Luke

The House With A Clock In The Walls: Eli Roth’s Child Friendly Feature

‘The House With A Clock In Its Walls’ is a dark fantasy, horror, comedy film, based on a series of children’s book. The plot follows Lewis (Owen Vaccaro), a recent orphan who moves to live with his uncle Jonathan (Jack Black), when he arrives he realises there is more to his uncle then he ever knew; namely that he is a Warlock. The events that follow are Jonathan and his neighbor Florence (Cate Blanchett), fighting the evil Warlock, that use to be Jonathan’s magic partner and mentor.

This film marks a first for the director Eli Roth this film is Roth’s first film that isn’t out and out a horror film; Roth’s trademark gore is nowhere to been seen here. The strangest thing about this film is that it works quite well, Roth doing children’s dark fantasy seems to be the perfect match; this film feels very Del Toro esque which is the highest compliment I can give.

The horror elements are quite strong here, for a kids film, the gothic sensibilities this film wears on its sleeve are used to wonderful effect. It feels very much in the same vein as Black’s other children’s horror series ‘Goosebumps’, but better. The villain of the film Issac Izard (Kyle Maclachlan), brings with him a genuine sense of menace and threat. His dastardly plot is to turn back time and erase the human race; which is weirdly wonderful.

The central trio of heroes are all mostly great, the weak link is Vaccaro, but that is to be expected. I won’t go on about it too much as it is low hanging fruit to go after a child actor for being the weak part of the film, but he brings very little to the film no charm no charisma nothing.

Blanchett is terrific as Florence, a mater witch who has lost her magical ability as a result of losing her family. The transformation she goes through, which results in her becoming a part of the family is very sweet and affecting. Black also plays the caring uncle, very well he gives it just the right amount of warmth and humour, which makes him the star of the show. Black is also the main person on the comedy front and, he does a great job all of his jokes land well, which make for some great chuckle-inducing moments.

Overall this film is a great turn for Eli Roth as he proved he can do more than just ‘torture porn’, it could also be a great start for a potential franchise of child-friendly gothic horror films; hopefully Black and Blanchett return if they do a sequel.

Pros.
Black.
Blanchett.
The Gothic Horror Elements.
A Surprising Turn For Roth.

Cons.
The Plot Is Daft And Riddled With Plot Holes.

3.5/5

Reviewed by Luke

The Babysitter: What Goes On After You Go To Bed.

‘The Babysitter’ is a teen horror-comedy film the plot follows Cole, (Judah Lewis), as he stays up to see what his Babysitter Bee, (Samara Weaving), gets up to when he goes to bed; what he finds out chills him to the bone. Bee and her friends are devil worshipers and, they are using Cole for his blood. Cole and Bee then enter into a showdown to the death that only one of them can walk away from.

For those of you who read my reviews and, follow me on social media, you know that I find Samara Weaving incredibly annoying; it’s her scream. However, this film does something I didn’t think was possible it made me like her, she was charming and, funny and easily the highlight of the film; throughout the film, you think she is going to turn back to the side of the light, but no she is evil through and, through.

The showdowns between Cole and, his perusers are all excellent they are very reminiscent of, ‘Home Alone’ all of Cole’s weapons are improvised and the deaths are spectacularly gory. They manage to capture the tension of the situation while also remaining comic. The comedy in this film is quite good, it will bring a smile to your face and, warm you, towards the characters.

This film is very stylised think Zack Synder or, Edgar Wright, but turn it up to 100; every chance to have a graphic or, do a cinematography trick is taken. The issue with this is that a lot of the time it takes you out of the film, there was a sequence where the camera was moving around, but also supposed to be doing a POV shot and, the effect is incredibly jarring. There is nothing wrong with a film having style, but if anything this film is overly stylised.

Another thing about this film is that it is completely predictable, but that is okay as this film knows what it is, a pulpy horror B movie homage, and it plays to that. Viewing this film through the lens of it being a homage to horror B movies, makes it a much better film than it actually is. As I don’t think it is a horror B movie homage deliberately.

Overall ‘The Babysitter’ feels like something out of a bygone age, it is over stylised and, it seems to be doing all this to overcompensate for the fact that it isn’t very original. However, it is a nice piece of horror movie junk food and, Samara Weaving is excellent.

Pros.
It’s Good Horror Junk Food.
The Genre Diehards Might Find Something To Like.
Samara Weaving is excellent.

Cons.
It Feels Very Dated.
Overly Stylised.

3.5/5

Reviewed by Luke

Fred Claus: A Tale Of Two Brothers

‘Fred Claus’ is a fantasy comedy-adventure film about the older Brother of Santa Claus Fred, (Vince Vaughn), naturally, as someone who grew up in the shadow of an older sibling could tell you this lead to Fred having a strained relationship with his brother as well as the season he represents. Then one day after a series of bad events for Fred, he is forced to go to the North Pole to see his brother; and in a twist, no one could see coming save Christmas.

Now I want to get this out of the way here; this film does feature Kevin Spacey, he is not featured prominently, but he does appear mainly to act as a villain of sorts. His involvement does tarnish the enjoyability of this film; it has to be said.

That said on to more happy topics, the performances of Fred and Nicholas AKA Santa Claus, (Paul Giamatti), are both very good. Giamatti’s Nicholas gives off the sense that he wants to make everyone in the world happy but, he doesn’t realise when this want actually makes other people unhappy, this social blindness in a sense, really helps to humanise Santa Claus, who is by most accounts an all-round perfect being.

What’s More, Fred comes across as an annoying dick but, he is supposed to be, and as the film goes on and, you get to see more and more inside this head; you realise that he is a deeply sad individual, he is someone who has realised very early on that they are never going to measure up and, because of this has stopped trying to. The more we see Fred grow as a person, the more we as an audience care about him.

Another feather in this film’s cap is how well it captures and, depicts the relationship between brothers. They fight, they even hate each other at times, but deep down no matter what they love each other and, are always going to be there for one another. This is reflected extremely well at the moment when the two brothers make up and, Fred takes up the mantle of Santa Claus for the night and, the brothers share a scene, the emotion is spot on.

My one big issue with ‘Fred Claus’ other than the one mentioned before is that it wastes it supporting cast, said cast has talented actors like Rachel Weisz, Elizabeth Banks and, Kathy Bates amongst its ranks but, it gives them precious little to do other than drive a few subplots; which to me feels like a waste.

Overall all this film has heart, it captures the familial feeling between brothers very well and, what is more, important than family on Christmas? The wasted cast let this film down a ways but, it is still worth a watch.

3.5/5

Reviewed by Luke

Johnny English: Bean Meets Bond

‘Johnny English’ is a spy action comedy film, the plot revolves around a bumbling super-spy Johnny English, (Rowan Atkinson), as he tries to stop the nefarious plot of a french mastermind Pascal Sauvage, (John Malkovich), and retrieve the crown jewels.

The reason why ‘Johnny English’ works so well is because it is such an excellent spoof of the British national treasure, James Bond, this parody works in every respect. It makes a joke out of everything the gadgets, the girls and of course the spy himself all of which bring genuinely good laughs. This film is one of the funniest I’ve seen in a long time and, it has a lot of moments that don’t simply make you smile but, rather they make you laugh out loud.

A lot of this is due to Rowan Atkinson his comedic delivery is always on point and, he plays someone playing at being a suave charismatic spy well. There is also a vulnerability to English that Atkinson captures extremely well we know that he knows he’s a rubbish spy deep down, but that he is trying his best and, that is what makes him so loveable. He is the underdog hero that we all want to see succeed.

The actual events of the film are all entertaining to watch they expertly capture the wacky over the top plots that some of the later Bond films, before Craig, suffered from; this is shown as Suave’s evil plan is to turn all of Britain into a huge prison. There is also some decent tension built across the film as there are moments where it looks like it’s all over for English and, we can’t help but feel sad at these times.

The one element of the parody that ‘Johnny English’ doesn’t do so well is its spoof of the Bond girl trope. Natalie Imbruglia plays Lorna Campbell an Interpol agent; who gets roped into Johnny’s manic craziness. Until writing this review I genuinely didn’t know what the character was called. Rather than be given something to do, or maybe even reject English, which would be a great spoof of how Bond always gets the girl, Campbell instead follows the same characterisation of a lot of the past Bond girls given the paper-thin development of also being a spy while actually just being a romantic interest destined to end up on Johnny’s arm.

Despite this dated depiction, this film is still an incredibly entertaining spy spoof film and, a must-watch. Perfect for over the holidays viewing.

4.5/5

Reviewed by Luke

The Golden Compass: The Bear, The Witch And The Compass

‘The Golden Compass’ is a fantasy adventure film based on the best selling ‘His Dark Materials’ series of novels; with this film serving as a loose adaption of the first book. The plot follows Lyra Belacqua, (Dakota Blue Richards), a young girl living in a parallel universe to our own, in her universe children are born with their souls on the outside of their bodies, said souls take the form of an animal these are called daemons. This world is ruled over by a tyrannical group called the Magisterium, who seeks to oppose any free thought and, instead force their will on the people. When children start going missing Lyra ventures to the far north to try and, find out what is going on and, rescue the missing children.

I think that this film is criminally underrated with it being a fantastic fantasy film. The thing that hurt this film upon release was the fact that it decided to not lean into the anti-religious message of the books and, this upset some fans. However, if you can look past that this is a marvellous film; the plot and, the world is rich with lore, with every scene leaving you wanting to know more, but not revealing much- teasing you.

The performances are great as well Nicole Kidman is a fantastic Mrs Coulter having just enough warmth to allow you to let down your guard, while also having just enough malice to be always threatening, this is her and, Richards film. Richards for a firs time outing is a very likeable lead she is very easy to root for and easily relatable.

Daniel Craig, James Bond himself is also in this film as the heroic Lord Asriel Lyra’s Uncle, Craig makes the most of the few short scenes he has and, does leave an impression however, his character does feel as though he could have been fleshed out a bit more. Likewise Craig’s ‘Casino Royale co-star Eva Green portrays the Witch Queen Serafina Pekkala and, much like with Craig does a good job with not much to work with; she is easily the most interesting character in the whole film and, the one you want to learn more about.

To conclude this is a fantastic fantasy film it sets up a world which seems rife for exploring, but sadly it wasn’t meant to be as the film never became a franchise, ‘His Dark Materials’ has recently been adapted into a TV series. However, despite having some good moments the series can never live up to the film. ‘The Golden Compass’ truly was something special it could have been the next ‘Lord Of The Rings’, but alas we will never know.

4/5

Reviewed by Luke

Shrek Forever After: My Kind Of Fairytale

‘Shrek Forever After’ is an animated comedy film serving as both a concluding chapter in the Shrek franchise as well as a sequel to ‘Shrek 3’. The plot revolves around everyone’s favourite angry green ogre Shrek, (Mike Myers), who after the events of ‘Shrek 3’ has become a family man however, there is a part of him that yearns to be the feared ogre he once was again. Rumpelstiltskin, (Walt Dohrn), the villain this time around, tricks Shrek into signing a contract that would allow him to return to his glory days but, at a terrible cost.

The Shrek franchise is legendary not just for its films but, for its effect on the animated movie industry, the first Shrek film ripped up the rule book on fairy tale stories and, wrote something entirely new that took pop culture by storm. ‘Shrek’ and ‘Shrek 2’ were masterpieces in their own right they captured the idea of wanting to be someone else, but over time learning to love yourself as you are so so well this is what made a lot of people like them. Then ‘Shrek 3’ came out and, though I liked it personally a lot of people didn’t, a lot of people though the franchise should have ended after 2, so it could have gone out on a highnote; not being milked for all it was worth.

To those people, I say, “you want to check out ‘Shrek 4”, not only isn’t it a cynical corporate sellout, it arguably has the most soul of any of the films in the series. The plot of this film highlights how we all grow and, change as people as we get older, no doubt a nod to the audience that has grown up watching these films. As well as this ‘Forever After’ see the most character development for Shrek himself since the second film, Shrek realise the value of family and, what his life is without it; the choice to have true loves kiss not work the first time around is genius as it put Shrek in a real sense of danger, as well as uncharted territory narratively.

Also, this film finally gives Fiona, (Cameron Diaz), something to do, the other films had flirted with this idea in the past but, had mostly sidelined her character. It is nice to see her leading the resistance against Rumpelstiltskin as it finally gives her a purpose as a character beyond being a wife and mother and, occasional sidekick to Shrek.

‘Shrek Forever After’ lets the series go out on a high note, it has heart and, a much-needed message. A lot of people tuned out after ‘Shrek 3’ and, didn’t give this a chance but, that is a real tragedy, as this is a great instalment in the series and, one of the best-animated films of all time. I can’t wait for Shrek 5.

4/5

Reviewed by Luke