C’mon C’mon: Joaquin Phoenix Proving Why He Got An Oscar

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

Johnny, played by Joaquin Phoenix, must look after his young nephew Jessie, played by Woodie Norman.

For the most part I thought this was a beautiful film about lonely souls finding each other and bonding. I thought Phoenix was at his most paternal here and his relationship with Norman’s Jessie felt very organic, powerful and real. A number of times the scenes between the two as well as some of the scenes where Phoenix’s character is talking into his radio equipment about Jessie were so sweet and wholesome that they almost brought me to tears.

Now this film won’t be for everyone there will be some that view it as boring or as pretentious, especially because it chooses to be entirely in black and white, however I think the intimate focus and this colour choice help the film to stand out and give it personality.

The only thing I don’t like about this film is the long drawn out sequences where the children that Johnny interviews go on about their fears for the future. To me I thought these were dull and took away from a tight and compelling main story about the bond between boy and uncle.

Overall, Phoenix is an incredible talent.

Pros.

Phoenix

Norman

The emotion

The style

Cons.

Some of the sections drag on

If you enjoyed this review, then please head over to my Patreon to support me, I offer personalized shoutouts, the ability for you to pick what I review next and full access to my Patreon exclusive game reviews. Check it out!

https://www.patreon.com/AnotherMillennialReviewer

Mother/Android: The YA Genre Just Can’t Seem To Die

2/5

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

Chloe Grace Moretz tries to break free of the YA market by making a science fiction film that feels remarkably YA. Moretz plays a young woman who must navigate an AI uprising in order to get to safety so she can give birth.

It is a shame this year has been so mixed for Moretz she started off with the underappreciated Shadow In The Cloud, and then went on to make Tom And Jerry, a sequel to the animated Addams family film and then this, further and further from grace. This film is by no means terrible, there are some interesting concepts here, however, it never does much with them. Instead it seems content on making this film a depressing melodrama with a YA dystopian setting and a front and centre romance.

Even when the film gets gritty the violence is either not shown or it is surprisingly bloodless, which I guess makes sense if you are fighting robots. However, it just makes this film feel like yet another poor YA film.

Moretz is trying her best however, she doesn’t really bring enough resonance to the part and as such the big emotional twist at the end doesn’t work as much as the film needs it to.

Overall, yet more weak science fiction.

Pros.

Some interesting ideas

It is relatively well paced

Cons.

Moretz can’t land the emotional delivery

Surprisingly bloodless

It feels like an edgy YA film

https://www.patreon.com/AnotherMillennialReviewer

Villain: The Saddest Of The Gangland Films

1/5

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

A recently released convict, played by Craig Fairbrass, must try and save his families pub from gangland threats.

To me this film failed to be in any way fun, yes though it is a different type of fun a lot of the gangland films, particularly those with Danny Dyer, have enough charm or gravitas to keep you around and enjoying yourself until the end of the film, this didn’t have that.

Not only was this film depressing, it was morbidly depressing, and seemed to go out of its way to be grim and off putting, honestly watching it made me sad. I understand the point the film was trying to make by having Fairbrass’ character die at the end, the superfluousness of his life style and how in the end even if you win you die, and it did deliver this message however, it just made the film feel even more of a downer and left a bit of a bad taste as well.

Fairbrass is fine he is playing a slightly toned down version of his Rise Of The Foot Soldier character. He tries hard to try and round the character and to add emotional depth though this ends in a colossal failure.

Overall, who was this made for?

Pros.

It is short

Fairbrass is trying

Cons.

The ending

It is depressing

There is no charm to it

It has pacing issues galore

https://www.patreon.com/AnotherMillennialReviewer

Christmas Eve: Never Get In A Lift Again

0.5/5

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

A series of people get stuck in lifts, elevators for The American audience, and have reflective life experiences.

When one begins to dive into Christmas films they are met with one absolute truth, most of the genre is awful. For every Elf and Home Alone there are one million made for TV Christmas films which serve as nothing more than a resequencing of cliches and stale jokes. Though I can’t speak for whether this film was made for TV, as honestly I don’t know, I can say there is a clear reason why this film has a zero on Rotten Tomatoes.

All of the sentimentality in this film feels like it was constructed by a robot that is devoid of human emotion and that does not know how people interact, a lot of the character interactions in this film range from either comically evil and cold to downright predatory and creepy, it is not a likeable bunch yet the film still tries to force in sentiments to the contrary. Even in a Christmas film some people are still going to be trash.

This film trots out Patrick Stewart to try and prop it up, and try though he might, it just feels like he is playing a bargain bin version of his Scrooge character. Even he can’t save this film.

Overall, yet another bad Christmas film.

Pros.

It is short

Cons.

The characters are creepy, cold and mostly awful

It has pacing issues

It can’t get the sentiment even remotely right

The ending

It wastes Stewart

https://www.patreon.com/AnotherMillennialReviewer

Demolition: Dealing With Grief By Taking Apart Lights In Toilets

3/5

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

The film follows Davis Mitchell, played by Jake Gyllenhaal, a man who after the death of his wife Julia, played by Heather Lind, realises he feels nothing at her death and starts objects apart to try and find some meaning in his life, whilst also maintaining a pen pal like relationship with fellow lost soul Karen, played by Naomi Watts.

I enjoyed this film for the simple fact of it being Jake Gyllenhaal being strange, there is a lot to mine in that area. Gyllenhaal is of course suitably wacky here and has a lot of fun in the role, I enjoyed the idea of him slowly realising how unhappy he was in life and viewed the ending with him knocking down his house to be the ultimate catharsis. I thought the emotional impact was mostly on mark though there were a few times it strayed into aimlessness.

I would say the thing that holds this film back from getting higher on my rating is the pacing, the film often feels like it is dragging by and needs to move at a quicker pace than it does as when it drags it loses the attention of the viewer, or it did me.

Overall a good Gyllenhaal performances however the film as a whole has a fair amount of issues.

Gyllenhaal being strange

The ending

It feels cathartic

Cons.

Pacing issues

A confused message

https://www.patreon.com/AnotherMillennialReviewer

Drive My Car: Listening To Tapes From Your Dead Wife

3/5

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

The film follows Yusuke Kafuku, played by Hidetoshi Nishjima, who after the death of his wife Oto, played by Reika Kirishima, tries to continue on living his life and begins trying to organise a play.

I thought this film was more good than bad. Certainly there is no getting around the fact that this film wont be for everyone, the run time alone is enough to put most off: clocking in at almost three hours and there is no real reason for this long runtime. However, those that stick with it are in for a deep dive into the human soul that in many ways is rewarding.

The characters are all strong and well developed, a pro for the long run time is that many of the characters get explored and are given plenty of focus. I also think the thematic exploration is where this film really shines as it has a lot to say on relationships and grief, most of which is quite insightful. I truly do think the strong point of this film is the writing.

Overall, this film will not be to the taste of many and the long run time will prove testing but there is something worth seeing here.

Pros.

The writing

The themes

The performances

Cons.

The run time

The ending is a little vague

https://www.patreon.com/AnotherMillennialReviewer

Boiling Point: The Worst Night Ever

4.5/5

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

A chef must contend with a nightmare evening where everything goes wrong.

This is an emotional gut punch of a film, stressful is how I would describe it. The stress being felt by Stephen Graham’s Andy is so palpable that it comes through the screen and you feel it too. You latch on to Andy so much and relate with him as he is just trying to keep it all together, however as the film progress you see that maybe Andy isn’t so great. I enjoy the emotional ambiguity towards the end of the film, I think it makes the whole piece feel more rounded and nuanced.

In many ways this film feels like a horror film and is hard to watch at times if you have ever worked in a restaurant before either in the kitchen or in the front of house you will feel the terror of this film and it will leave you in a cold sweat.

I think the greatest thing about this film is Stephen Graham. Graham is one of the most reliable actors working today, often terrific and when used properly is the high point of any film that is the case here. Graham play’s damaged character just so well and throughout the film he portrays the moral ambiguity and vulnerability of Andy with such sincerity that he becomes real.

Overall, a magnificent film that is sure to horrify anyone who has ever worked in a restaurant.

Pros.

Graham

The tension

The moral ambiguity

The ending

Cons.

The health inspection scene drags for just a little bit

https://www.patreon.com/AnotherMillennialReviewer

Calendar Girls: The Calendar That Titillated The World

3/5

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

A group of older Yorkshire women pose nude for a calendar to raise money for cancer patients. Based on a true story.

I found this film to be enjoyable to watch and mostly feel good. Yes, there were one or two moments that were a little on the depressing side but for the most part it was a cheery celebration of life.

I thought all of the performances across the board were strong, Helen Mirren and Julie Walters are both compelling co-leads and both are relatable with their individual struggles and how they handle their fame. I thought it benefited the film to have the reflection on fame and what it can do to up end a life, it made the characters feel genuine and real.

My issues with the film would come as a result of a very played out narrative that feels been there done that. Obviously this film was pinned down as it was a true story so had to stick to that, but a lot of the emotional beats and revelations about life felt deeply generic and puddle deep. The film was also insanely predictable.

Overall, a sweet if overly familiar film.

Pros.

Mirren and Walters

It is very watchable

A few funny lines

Cons.

It is very predictable

It feels played out

https://www.patreon.com/AnotherMillennialReviewer

Off The Rails: Singing Song Lyrics Out Loud To Signify You Are Sad

2/5

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

A group of friends get together after the death of one of their member and decide to go on a European trip.

Frankly there just isn’t anything new about this film, you have seen this film before and no the film doesn’t do anything new with it.

A bigger issue with this film is the fact that it is overly sentimental and that none of its emotion comes across and genuine or heartfelt. Rather it comes across as depressing. All of the emotional moments in this film feel cliched and predictable and as such have no impact. By the end of the film you are left feeling depressed and as though you might have wasted your time.

This film makes a big deal out of the fact that it heavily features the music of Blondie, even having the characters singing lyrics in supposedly sad moments for some reason, however even as a Blondie fan I didn’t find anything particularly impressive about this. Other than the very ham-fisted way I have already mentioned the catalogue of songs are not used for any real purpose.

Overall, though I like Sally Phillips, and she is a saving grace here, this film is simply depressing and played out.

Pros.

Phillips

It is short

Cons.

It is depressing

They waste Blondie

The emotion doesn’t land and feels fake

Judy Dench is forced in for no reason

https://www.patreon.com/AnotherMillennialReviewer

Belfast: Personal Yet Familiar

4/5

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

The life and times of a young boy, played by Jude Hill, from Belfast whose family has to come to terms with leaving the area to escape the Troubles.

Do I think this is a good film? Yes. Do I think it should be inevitably nominated for Best Picture? No. This is a good film in many ways but it is not spectacular, and despite this being a very personal journey and reflective of a certain time and place there is an element over familiarity here, meaning you have seen this film before the plot is not quite as fresh as it really ought to be.

I thought this film particularly came into its own when dealing with emotion. I thought there were a number of stirring scenes here, the final scenes we get with Ciaran Hinds’ Pop and Judi Dench’s Granny and both powerful and the shop looting sequence is also quite harrowing. I was impressed with the film in that it both manages to show the danger of the Troubles whilst also presenting it from the point of view of a naïve child and keep the lens being from his perspective but at the same time not losing any of the perceived danger.

I thought the performances were good across the board however, I think Caitriona Balfe should be spotlighted for any awards nomination from this as she was excellent here- easily stealing the show.

Overall, a powerful yet familiar film.

Pros.

A strong cast across the board

Managing childlike nativity with the grim reality

The ending

Balfe especially

Cons.

The plot feels a little bit overly familiar

https://www.patreon.com/AnotherMillennialReviewer?fan_landing=true