Milkrun: The Horrors Of The British Corner Shop

Milkrun is a dark comedy, drama film directed by Alexander Jeremy. The plot sees one brave soul brace the wilds of outside of his bubble to venture down to the shops to get milk, in the age of Covid19.

This was just what I needed. As the new lockdown was announced recently in the UK and we were all sent back into our own isolated worlds to wait out the storm. I was feeling a little blue, however this film put a smile back on my face.

It pokes fun at Covid and social distancing without feeling disrespectful or done in bad taste, looking at you Songbird. The jokes are darkly comedic and feel funny through a shared experience that everyone on the globe can relate to. I was smiling and chuckling to myself as I was watching it.

The one thing I would note was that when the character was hugging people and took off his mask and gloves I was waiting for the inevitable comedic comeuppance that he had caught the virus. I feel like the ending delivered on that, at least in how I interpreted it, but it was not hugely clear.

That is not to say I did not enjoy the ending; on the contrary, I think it was nice that the film ended on a more dramatic and personal note as it reflected the bleakness of existence under Covid.

Overall, bravo to all involved I enjoyed this, and it made my dad to watch it.

Pros.

It is funny

The power of shared experience

The powerful ending

The musical score/accompaniment

Cons.

Did the character get punished for breaking the rules? Perhaps a little too open ended

4.5/5

Reviewed by Luke

Into The Storm: Man Vs. Tornado

Into The Storm is a disaster film directed by Steven Quail. The film recounts the devasting effects of a tornado on a small town in America, thriller seekers, researcher and horny teens all get caught up in its destructive wake.

In many ways the disaster move genre is very like the shark attack sub-genre in horror, you know what you are getting, they all play out pretty much the same barring a few details, and they are all as predictable as hell: in short they are junk food, you know they aren’t enriching in any way yet you still watch them as they’re easy.

My issue with this film compared to others in the genre like The Day After Tomorrow or 2012, is that a tornado is fairly simplistic. There is spectacle to it sure, but it gets old after about half and hour and has nothing new to pull out of the bag. There is only so many times you can watch a car get sucked into a hurricane.

The acting is what would expect nothing spectacular, just a bunch of b and c listers trying their best to be serviceable and for the most part they do a decent enough job. I would say the cast could have done with being smaller, as at times it felt like there were too many people on screen and as such I couldn’t remember who everyone was let alone form emotional attachments to them.

Overall, if you like disaster movies this is passable enough, if you want something above average or god forbid fresh then yeah maybe give this one a miss.

Pros.

It is watchable

The tornado is neat for the first 20 minutes

Cons.

It is nothing special

You have seen all of this film before several times over

The effects don’t look good

It is boring after a point

2/5

Reviewed by Luke

The Midnight Sky: Stick To Acting George, Oh Wait

The Midnight Sky is a science fiction drama film directed by George Clooney based on the novel Good Morning Midnight by Lily Brooks-Dalton. The film revolves around a lone scientist (George Clooney), who together with a little girl must venture into the artic circle to deliver a warning to a deep space mission.

This film was a slog to get through. Of the positive comments and reviews I have seen most praise the score and the visuals, and yes whilst there are some nice artic shots and vistas that is not enough to make up for the paper-thin characters or the lack of anything original from the story.

When I began this film I had moderate to high expectations, however, as it went on I kept comparing it to other ambitious science fiction films like Christopher Nolan’s Interstellar or last year’s Ad Astra as a result of these comparisons I saw how much this film was trying to be like them but failing hard along the way.

Even if you only watch a few minutes of this film you will see that it clearly has a high opinion of itself: by that I mean it thinks it is far deeper and far more intellectual with its themes then it actually is. What it actually seems to be is a pale imitation of better science fiction films, whereas of itself this film seems to think it is competing for Oscars.

Overall, the two words I would use to describe this film are boring and smug.

Pros.

It has some nice visuals

Cons.

The characters are so thin you can see right through them

The story feels done better before

There is an ever-present air of smugness

It is far too drawn out and badly paced

0.5/5

Reviewed by Luke

A Street Cat Named Bob: One For The Cat Lovers

A Street Cat Named Bob is a biopic, drama film directed by Roger Spottiswoode. The plot tells the real-life story of recovering homeless drug addict James (Luke Treadaway), and the cat that gave him a new lease on life.

I loved the book this was based on, so I went into the film with high expectations. The film seems far more down beat than the book, though the friendship and eventually turn around is inspiring and uplifting a lot of the moments along the way are deeply, deeply depressing. I have to say when the film ended I was left feeling bummed out.

I enjoyed seeing the bond between James and Bob (the titular street cat), I thought their relationship was very endearing, as someone who has had many cats over the years I can say that it is very effecting and will strike a cord with any cat owners.

Treadaway seemed convincing in the role, I enjoyed him and his characters emotional arc. However, I would say his Australian accent was inconsistent, it came and went sometimes you could hear it and it was believable but other times he seemed to forget to do it.

Overall, this film packs an emotional punch, if you can bare some of the more intense moments of despair then there is a beautiful film here.

Pros.

The James/Bob relationship

The ending

The emotion

As a cat lover I found it even more impactful

Cons.
It is very sad

Treadaway accent comes and goes

4/5

Reviewed by Luke

Slow West: She Is Just Not That Into You

Slow West is a western, drama, romance film directed by John Maclean. The plot sees a young boy (Kodi Smit-McPhee), travel across the American frontier to try and find and reconnect with his lost love. Whilst, traveling he meets up with an outlaw (Michael Fassbender), and the two form a bond and journey together.

This film will not be for everyone, that is really the most important piece of information that you will get out of this review. It is very niche and artsy and is almost certainly an acquired taste.

The ending of the film did a number on me, emotionally. Seeing the conclusion of his naïve young boys’ journey is nothing short of heart-breaking, and the ending is bleak and will leave you depressed: at least that’s how I felt after watching it.

Fassbender and Ben Mendelsohn (who only has a small role), both give very memorable performances and sink into their respective characters perfectly. Mendelsohn became this looming spector of death, whereas Fassbender became more of the loveable rouge as the film went on and he became ever more fatherly to the protagonist.

Despite the shorter than average runtime this film does have some pacing issues and a few scenes do feel needlessly drawn out; this put me off.

Overall, a very strange art house western that won’t be to all tastes, but there might be some niche appeal there.

Pros.

Fassbender

The emotion

Mendelsohn

Cons.

The ending

Pacing issues galore

The main star was quite weak and easily out-shined

2/5

Reviewed by Luke

Let Them All Talk: Be Nice To Your Friends

Let Them All Talk is a drama film directed by Steven Soderbergh. The plot follows a writer (Meryl Streep), as she, her nephew (Lucas Hedges) and her two old friends (Candice Bergen and Dianne Wiest) go on a cruise together to collect an overseas award.

I think this is a very charming film, it is not huge and over the top, but rather small, compacted, and intimate. It is very much a character study of all involved as well as a reflection on life and those that feature therein.

I think the performances of all involved were strong. Soderbergh does always prove to know how to get the best out of his cast and this is no exception. Gemma Chan, who plays the main character’s literary agent is particularly strong, I will admit I fell for her romance with Hedges character I enjoyed their scenes together and wanted to see them end the film together.

My one critique of this film is that it is poorly paced, t

. Though obviously a slow film there are moments in this which I believe are created with the explicit purpose of slowing the film down further, which it does not need. There is a reveal towards the end of the film, which is very significant however, due to the way the film structures itself there is not enough time to properly unpack the new development before the credit’s role; it strikes me that this film either needed to be longer or more tightly edited.

Overall, this is a slow watch and at times painfully so, it wont be for all, but if you are prepared for the time investment then there is a lot of charm to be found here within the quite character drama.

Pros.

The performances

The intimate feel

Soderbergh’s director (for the most part)

Cons.

The ending feels rushed

The pacing is off

3/5

Reviewed by Luke

Jack Frost: A New Specter To Haunt Your Dreams

Jack Frost is a dark fantasy drama film directed by Troy Miller. The plot follows the aftermath of the death of Jack Frost (Michael Keaton), a musician and family man who dies during the Holiday season. As his family tries to move on with their lives, Jack resurrects with the help of seasonal magic into the body of a snowman to see his son, one last time.

This is a horrifying film for a lot of different reasons. So, I went into this thinking it was a family Christmas film, and though it does share some of those elements: mainly the over sentimental moments and the family focus, it is actually far darker and sadder then that.

I have seen a lot of people who say that the snowman itself is nightmare fuel, and personally though I think it looks bad I would not go that far with it. I think viewed in a contemporary context for the time period it is about on par with a lot of the other CGI puppetry hybrid that existed at the same time.

I enjoyed the films focus on father and son dynamics and thought the ultimate message of the film was sweet and dearly earned, the ending was particularly touching. I think Keaton did a lot to make this freaky looking snowman feel human and allow us to empathise with him.

Overall, I think the core of this film is sweet, well thought out and well intentioned. Though the Snowman himself might not be the easiest to look at thanks to a great performance from Keaton it does touch our hearts.

Pros.

Keaton

The emotion

The ending

Cons.

The snowman itself is off putting

It crosses over into overly sentimental

3/5

Reviewed by Luke

Ham, A Musical Memoir: An Ode To The Past

HAM: A Musical Memoir is a biographical, comedy, musical film directed by Andrew Putschoegl. The film serves to tell the story of Sam Harris’ rise to fame.

This is a very effecting film, in multiple sense of the word. While watching it I became fascinated with this persons rise to stardom, not only was I rooting for them I also became invested in them as a person.

During my time with the film I was frequently smiling, also there were quite a large amount of laughs to be had over the run time as well; not laugh out loud sorts of laughs but definitely a few strong chuckles. Moreover, the complexity of this film’s emotion transitions comedy and becomes something more. Quite a few times while watching I could feel the film pulling on my heart strings, I found the character plight effecting, the film did not need to be overt in this, it never felt manipulative with its emotional delivery, yet it had a strong impact.
I also enjoyed the musical elements of this film I thought they worked well and added a nice flavour to the standard biopic format. I think in many ways this film seems destined to change the format of the biopic genre as a whole or at least pump some fresh blood into it, as it takes the best elements of something like Rocketman and distils them into a more refined product.

Overall, a must watch, it will make you laugh it will make you cry and most importantly it is a great way to kill a few hours.

Pros.

It is funny

It nails the emotion

I was invested in the story

The musical elements work well

Cons.

The first act is quite slow

4/5

Reviewed by Luke

The Stand-In: Praising And Rewarding Sociopaths

The Stand In is a comedy drama film directed by Jamie Babbit. The plot follows a disgraced Hollywood comedy star and her double switching places, both are played by Drew Barrymore.

A lot of the responses I have seen to this film have been negative, and my own was likewise inclined. I think the main issue with this film is the fact that it is mean spirited. There will be a few light spoilers here to help me make my point so be forewarned.

From how I understood the film we are supposed to root for both characters the past her prime actor and the stand in, this is hard however, when the stand in treats the real actors like trash. The stand in abuses the real actor emotionally multiple times and goes out of her way to sabotage her life so she can get what she wants, and I guess that catches up to her in the end, but it makes her deeply unlikeable.

The jokes here don’t work, but as I always say comedy is subjective. I found the film to be more of a drama than a comedy especially towards the midpoint of the film, it felt to me more like a commentary on stardom and what comes after. The jokes again feel mean spirited and at the expense of someone who clearly has problems which makes them hard to laugh at.

Finally, I don’t like seeing T.J Miller in the film, mainly because he isn’t funny at when he tries to be it goes horribly the other way, but also because he is a terrible person and should not be cast.

Overall, this is the definition of a misfire.

Pros.

Barrymore is trying

Cons.

It is misguided

It is not funny

It is meanspirited

Casting T.J Miller

0.5/5 (Close to a zero, but Barrymore saved it)

Reviewed by Luke

Couples Retreat: A Sticky And Uncomfortable Situation

Couples Retreat is a comedy film about a group of couples that go on holiday to an island resort thinking it will be fun, sand and sun. However, when they get there they realise that instead they will have to work on their relationships and reconnect, the horror.

Standard, that is the word I would use to describe this film. There is nothing particularly special about it one way or the other, it is neither good nor bad it is just very average.

The cast is okay with Vince Vaughn, Jon Favreau and Kristen Davis getting most of the funny moments, which are few and far between. Most of the film’s jokes don’t work and fall flat there are more hits than misses comedy wise as a whole in the film.

The characters are the usual collection of cliches, the busy guy, the overly anxious guy, the couple that say they don’t want to be together any more but secretly do, etc. In terms of plot and narrative the film is nothing new either, this is the same thing you have seen before just with a different cast. Said cast are never given very much to work with and become stereotypes, which stops you from forming any kind of attachment to them.

Overall, this is a very meh film there is worse out there and if you have nothing else to watch maybe give it a go, it will go exactly as you would expect it and end in the same fashion, it poses no challenge.

Pros.

It is watchable

There are a few funny moments

Cons.

The cast is wasted

The characters are cliches

The film is mostly not funny

1.5/5

Reviewed by Luke