Spiderhead: Chris Hemsworth Might Be The Next Anthony Hopkins

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

Prisoners in a luxury prison are used as guineapigs for mind-altering pharmaceuticals.

It has been a long, long time since a Netflix original film has managed to impress me, however, this film managed to buck that trend.

I thought though the premise has been explored before, I enjoyed where this film took it. The twists and turns keep you guessing and it didn’t end up going in the way I was expecting it to. I thought Chris Hemsworth was a completely inspired villain, Hemsworth needs to take more of these sort of roles, he was not downright sinister but rather slightly unsettling and I thought he was very effective in the role.

Miles Teller on the other hand was a fairly forgettable lead and he wasn’t really able to blow me away in any significant way. Many other actors could have had that role and would probably have been better able to do more with it then what Teller can muster up. Comparing Hemsworth to Teller, really highlights the flaws in Teller’s performance.

Overall, a fun film with a good performance from Hemsworth.

Pros.

Hemsworth

The premise

The twists and turns

The ending

Cons

Teller

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The Forgiven: Repentance At What Cost?

4/5

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

A hit and run in the mountains of Morocco changes a man’s’, played by Ralph Fiennes, life forever.

I think this film is quite odd and won’t be what a lot of people are expecting. The trailer for the film gives off somewhat of a thriller vibe, but it is far more meditative than that. This film touches on notions of greed and culture clash as well as the value of life, in many ways this is far more of a tense drama film than anything else.

Fiennes is terrific, as he often is, and is flanked by a sea of other talented faces with Jessica Chastain, Matt Smith and Saïd Taghmaoui also being outstanding. However, I think due to the vast cast some of the other performers are somewhat overlooked and not given much to do, which is a shame.

Widely, I really enjoyed the weighty themes of this film and the message it was trying to hammer home. Moreover, I thought the juxtaposition of extreme wealth as encapsulated by the party and extreme poverty as captured by the nomad village really spoke to society more broadly and certainly left you with something to think about.

Overall, not quite what was advertised, but something that is equal parts layered and smart.

Pros.

The subtext

The themes explored

The performances

The ending

Cons.

Some of the wider cast is wasted

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God’s Not Dead: Opium For The Masses

1/5

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

Evangelical propaganda, which highlights the absurdities of extreme faith and belief albeit it not on purpose.

As I was strolling through the internet I heard some talk of this film, and despite being deeply negative, decided to check it out for myself to see if it was indeed as bad as people were saying. Well, it turns out the bad reputation this film has is well deserved, as it is an incredibly weak film that feels like religious propaganda belonging in another century.

I will admit my experience with faith films is relatively small, so I cant say if they are all as bad as this, but if they are I question who turns up for them. The plot was not only incredibly ham-fisted but also ridiculous in the extreme, with the way it portrays the atheist characters being especially out of touch and baffling. It is a strawman argument trying to convince the good Christian viewers of how the modern world is a personified devil that needs to be fought at all costs, with only a return to goof old fashion Christian values capable of saving the day.

The film seems to think of itself as a way to convince the agnostics and the atheists out there and get them on board, however, it fails in this aim so spectacularly that it will have the opposite effect, making the version of Christianity this film preaches seem even more fundamentalist.

The only good thing about this picture is that it crosses a line wherein it becomes laughably bad.

Overall, a mess that highlights some of the key problems at the root of US identity.

Pros.

Its laughably bad

Cons.

It is evangelical propaganda

It is stupid

It is so heavy handed with its message that it destroys it

All the characters are loathsome

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Brian And Charles: Build Your Friends

3/5

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

A lonely but gifted man, played by David Earl, builds a robot, voiced by Chris Hayward, and a friendship between the two blossoms.

I think this film really strikes a chord with those of us out there who have known loneliness, isolation or torment by our peers, in many ways it is a beautiful tale about friendship and standing up for yourself. It truly is hard to not feel something whilst watching this film.

However, therein lies the problem with it for me. Perhaps somewhat paradoxically this film made me care about Brian and Charles so much that during the third act where it looked like Charles was going to be burnt alive I could barely get through it. The film bonds you to these characters in such a way that when they face harm it almost feels traumatic.

I wouldn’t view this film as a comedy, so in that respect I would say temper your expectations, but it does have feel good elements and an ending that makes you want to cheer. Ultimately this film takes you on an emotional rollercoaster, but laughter isn’t on the track.

Overall, a touching film that at times succeeds a little bit too much.

Pros.

You really care about the characters

It has a great ending

The performances are all top notch

Cons.

Seeing bad things befall Charles almost feels a little traumatic and that can be hard to watch

It has pacing issues

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Mothering Sunday: Prepare To Be Depressed

1/5

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

Set in a post WWI Britain this film tells the tale of Jane, played by Odessa Young, a maid who falls in love with a wealthy man, played by Josh O’ Connor.

This film was fairly bleak across the board. With the amount of death and heartbreak in it one questions whether this is even a romance film, or whether it is simply a drama about the impacts of post war trauma and gilded cages. I was so depressed by the end of this film that I had to watch something happy and upbeat almost straight away, be warned.

Moreover, the film has a needless amount of nudity throughout. This goes in both directions and feels as though it has just been stuffed in to give a shock to the older market that would usually come out for this sort of fare. Rather than feeling daring, or perhaps subversive, this instead feels incredibly try hardy.

For positives I would say that this film is certainly watchable, Colin Firth and Olivia Colman both give strong performances even if they are only featured infrequently. However, The leads seem far too detached for most of the film, which makes it hard to care about either of them, or even the film itself at times.

Overall, I am curious who this was made for?

Pros.

It is watchable and Firth and Colman give good performances

Cons.

The excessive amount of nudity

It is depressing

It is hard to care about any of the characters

It is terribly paced

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Good Luck To You, Leo Grande: A Sexual Prime Is Never Over

4.5/5

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

After the death of her husband a woman, played by Emma Thompson, grapples with rediscovering her sexuality.

I think this film is a marvel. Not least for what it does in terms of pushing age boundaries in Hollywood and reconstructing the idea of a nude scene, but also because it is so earnest and tender.

For the most part the film is a series of conversations in a room between Thompson and a male prostitute, played by Daryl McCormack, who she hires. This could easily have become very boring and drawn out however, the film does a great job of exploring these characters and allowing us to see further and further past their carefully crafted masks as the film progress.

Furthermore, I thought the conversations between the two often became very heartfelt and insightful, not only reflecting the struggles of life but also the very notion of British repression. I thought the two actors had great chemistry together and the screen really came alive when they were interacting.

Overall, I thought it was a wonderfully thoughtful film.

Pros.

Thompson

McCormack

The writing and the insight

The feel good nature of the film

It made me smile frequently

Cons.

It certainly won’t be for everyone

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The Starling: A Favourite Film Of Guantanamo Bay

0.5/5

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

A couple cope after the sudden death of their child.

Boy this film was badly on quite a number of different levels. However, I think one of the roots causes of this film being awful was the casting of Melissa McCarthy. Some people would argue that like Adam Sandler that McCarthy cam be good in the odd dramatic role here and there, the same people would point to her performance in Can You Ever Forgive Me? However, I would argue that her performance in that film was nothing more than a fluke, and that by and large she is only capable of giving one kind of performance loud and obnoxious, and that is true in whatever film she is in comedic or dramatic. It certainly is true here.

It has to be said though that the failings of this film cannot be entirely blamed on McCarthy, as the script is also frequently terrible, being not only overly sentimental but also incredibly tonally off at times. There is a scene in this film wherein the message seems to be that it is okay to be angry at suicidal people for being that way which sends a hell of a bad message even if that is not how the writer intended it to come across.

Overall, the film is incredibly generic, it is the very definition of the kind of trash we have collectively come to expect from a Netflix original over the years.

Pros.

Timothy Olyphant is always great and a welcome presences

Cons.

McCarthy

It is very generic

It has a bad message

The tone is all wrong

It borders over-sentimentality

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It’s A Wonderful Afterlife: Ghosts Of Girlfriends Past Got Real

3/5

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

A mother, played by Shabana Azmi, becomes so obsessed with who her daughter, played by Goldy Notay, is going to marry that she starts killing people who she views as getting in the way or to have slighted her daughter. Sadly for her these people later come back as ghosts that haunt her every waking moment.

I thought this film had a lot of charm, is it the best film ever? No. However, there is more than enough to enjoy here. I liked the spin this film put on the idea of the traditional mother worried about daughter being single storyline and thought the added horror comedy elements really helped to bring it all together in a strong way.

I thought a lot of the jokes landed and I found myself laughing a fair bit throughout, I thought Sally Hawkins’ best friend character had all the best lines, though maybe some would say these days there was an element of cultural appropriation within her character.

My main issue with this film is as it so often is the pace of the film. I thought the film was overly long and had too many needless asides and sub-plots, it could have been a lot better if it had been half an hour shorter is what I would say.

Overall, above average though not quite up to the level of Gurinder Chadha’s later work Blinded By The Light though few films are.

Pros.

It is a lot of fun

The performances are good

Sally Hawkins

Cons.

It is too long

A few of the jokes don’t age well

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Flight Attendant Season Two: An Eight Episode AA Meeting

3.5/5

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

The plot this time around sees Cassie, played by Kaley Cuoco, seemingly being framed for murder whilst also having to work through her alcoholism.

I enjoyed this season slightly less than the first, and though I do think there is still a reason for this show to exist and that the second season is not totally unnecessary, I do think that the show can do with improving if it is going to go onto a third season.

I liked that Max and Annie, played by Zosia Mamet and Deniz Akdeniz, were given far bigger roles and I thought it was a good idea to even give them their own side stories as well, it really helped to strengthen some of the weaker moments and to add some much needed comedic relief.

The darker tone and the more intense focus on Cassie’s alcoholism is an issue for the show as far as I am concerned as though it is for the most part good character work it does become a bit too bleak and hard to watch at times, and last I checked this was a comedy drama series. My issue is that this season spent a lot of time focusing on these sad elements and that made it less enjoyable to watch.

Overall, the darker tone and deep dive into Cassie’s alcoholism makes this show hard to watch at times and makes you question whether it is still fun to watch, however, there is still enough good elements to keep you around.

Pros.
Mamet and Akdeniz

An engaging mystery

Fun to be had

The ending

Cons.

It is bleak and hard to watch at times

They give the alcoholism stuff far too much focus

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France: A Highbrow Satire That Won’t Leave Many Laughing

2/5

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

A well respected French journalist, played by Léa Seydoux, decides to quit her job and seek new horizons after she has a road traffic accident that leads to someone else getting hurt.

In many ways I think the humour of this film just didn’t register with me, there were a few lines that made me laugh and I think the film did manage to formulate some competent satire of the modern media landscape at times, but for the most part the jokes left me cold. This could be humour lost in translation that if I was French I would understand and appreciate or it could just be my subjective comedic tastes not aligning with this film.

I think the biggest issues I had with this film is that the tone seemed so all over the place, at times coming across as a drama and other times as a dark comedy. The issue with trying for both is that often neither comes off well, this was certainly the case here as both the dramatic elements and the comedic elements felt underdeveloped.

The performances were good and I can’t fault Seydoux she did all she could to keep this film together, a valiant effort, however, it wasn’t enough.

The worst crime of this film is that it can be labelled as boring.

Overall, Seydoux tries her best but this film just doesn’t seem to know what it wants to be and comes across as boring.

Pros.

A few funny lines

Seydoux

Cons.

A lot of the humour doesn’t land

The split focus

It is boring

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