The Last Of Us: Long, Long Time

Summary

Joel, played by Pedro Pascal, brings Ellie, played by Bella Ramsey, to the home of his friend Bill, played by Nick Offerman, only to discover a horrifying truth.

I thought this episode was easily the best yet. Though it deviated from the game in several major ways, I thought the beautiful yet tragic love story of Bill and Frank, played by Murray Bartlett, easily deserved to be told and I personally dare you to watch it and not feel anything. As it came time for the two loves to say goodbye to one another I was wiping away tears, the performances from both Offerman and Bartlett are both so open and raw and truly there are a lot of layers there. I think this will probably be remembered when the season ends as its best episode, I think this will be the episode to win awards and I think that is rightly so.

Furthermore, I also really liked how this episode showed Joel morn for his friends and for Tess and really have a moment to breakdown. I think the whole scene with the letter really shows how much of a pro Pascal is and his real power as a dramatic actor. In addition, much like with last week’s episode this one had me again warming a lot to Ramsey’s Ellie to the point wherein now I do believe she was well cast in the role. I thought the final scene of them in the car together really felt like the game and reminded me why there dynamic worked so well in it. Although I would be remiss if I didn’t point out how the final scene in the car did feel an awful lot like Din and Baby Yoda, but hey I didn’t mind that.

Overall, one of the best episodes of TV I have seen in a long, long time.

4.5/5

Pros.

Bill and Frank’s love story

Joel’s breakdown

The final car scene between Joel and Ellie

Terrific performances all round

An emotional roller-coaster

Cons.

You will need to prepare yourself for just how sad this episode is

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The Last Of Us: Infected

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

The journey to get Ellie, played by Bella Ramsey, to the Fireflies goes horribly awry.

I thought this second episode was better than the first for several key reasons. Firstly, we got to see the infected up close and personal which was good, the show has really put a lot of money into making them looking both terrifying and also very true to the game. The make-up work on the clickers and other infected really does deserve your praise. Secondly, we get further insight into Joel, played by Pedro Pascal, and Tess, played by Anna Torv, and see more indicators of their relationship, which was eluded to but never fully confirmed in the game. I think Torv’s performance in the horde scene is incredibly striking, and the emotional impact of her death and the effect it has on Joel is incredibly powerful and effecting viewing. Thirdly and finally, I really enjoyed the prologue of the episode wherein it showed the early days of the outbreak in Indonesia, I think it added a lot to the world and the wider lore of the series.

It has to be noted that in many last review I was not keen on Ramsey’s performance as Ellie, I thought she was badly miscast, but I have to say here she is a lot better and her take on the character is starting to grow on me quite a bit.

Overall, a strong episode that is held up by well-acted performances and well-constructed emotional manipulation.

4/5

Pros.

Joel and Tess’ relationship

The Indonesian outbreak

Ramsey

Tess’s death and sacrifice

Cons.

Slightly too short, and as a result the pacing doesn’t leave enough time for processing

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Teen Wolf The Movie: TV Magic Cannot Hold Up When Compared To The Cinematic

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

Teen Wolf is resurrected.

I will preface this review by saying when it was airing I was a massive Teen Wolf fan, the first few series were terrific and yes it did fall off quite a bit by the end but it still had its moments and I thought that the ending it had was fitting and meaningful. When I saw this film announced I was trepidatious, I didn’t think it needed to exist but then they said they were bringing back Alison, played by Crystal Reed, and my romantic heart was excited that her and Scott, played by Tyler Posey, could finally get their happy ending. Little did I know I was right on both accounts.

Fundamentally, the issue with this film is that it doesn’t need to and probably shouldn’t exist. It adds very little to the ending of the series, bar a tease at the end for a new series with younger characters. In many ways the film feels like it is bringing back everyone it can from the series and just throwing them at you to be like, remember this character how about this character, they even do this with the villain. It is a boon for the film that it brings back the best villain the show ever had and that does score it some points in my opinion, but again it doesn’t really do anything with them it just does it for the nostalgia.

It is good to have Reed back as Alison, but the issue here is that she doesn’t come back until a good ways into the film, and when she does she doesn’t do much at all. Again I question whether her return was more nostalgia baiting to try and lure fans back.

I do think the film is a lot worse off for not having Dylan O’Brien and Arden Cho return there absence is felt and in a sense the script for the film seems to be constantly bringing it up and being almost remorseful for their absence, it too wishing they were here.

Overall, in the end Scott and Alison did get their happy ending, but did we really need it? This film does nothing to move the franchise forward from where the series ended and instead feels like a highlights reel of all your favourite characters and monsters with some glaring omissions.

2.5/5

Pros.

I am torn on how they ended things with Derek, I both like it but also don’t

It is nice to see almost everyone again

It has some good moments

Cons.

The pace is awful

It doesn’t justify its existence

The TV esque effects really don’t work when things are supposed to be cinematic

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Unwelcome: Outdoor Liver At Sundown

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

A young couple move to Ireland and run into the strange local legend of the Redcaps.

This film was depressing, clearly it was designed to be a comedy horror but like many that have come before it and many that will come after the film cannot marry its two tones well. For the most part I found this film to be incredibly grim and depressing, it made both London and Ireland look like absolute hellholes populated by thugs and pervs, this was then off set by the comical Redcaps which feel like the evil gremlins, from the film of the same name, turned up to just slightly more sinister.

The Redcaps themselves are what saved this film for me, as otherwise I would have given it even lower. I liked that they seemed to be puppets and were not CGI monstrosities, moreover I enjoyed how they interacted with the characters and the battle scene featuring them had some great moments.

In terms of the human characters other than Hannah John-Kamen’s lead everyone else was unlikeable in the max. Douglas Booth, who played John-Kamen’s boyfriend, is toxic in the extreme and is also pretty pathetic, he flies off the handle into a rage constantly and when he is actually faced with a dangerous situation he abandons his wife and starts to cry rather than defend her. Honestly Booth’s character was incredibly off putting.

Overall, fun little creatures and I am glad they weren’t CGI, but the film as a whole doesn’t get its tone right and is manically depressing and the lead male character is repulsive in many ways so much so that his scenes are hard to watch.

2/5

Pros.

The Redcaps

It is watchable

Cons.

It is manically depressing

Booth’s character is awful

The tone is all over the place

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The Lair: Like Something Paul W.S Anderson Would Have Made Years Ago, But Worse.

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

After being shot down a pilot, played by Charlotte Kirk, must contend with an army of alien human hybrids.

In many senses this film feels like a videogame movie, that is not a knock on videogame movies as I actually like more of them than most, however, it also highlights the obvious short comings of this film but unlike videogame films it doesn’t have the premade excuses those films have or the charm of their associated IP.

We have all seen films like this before wherein a group of soldiers have to hold off wave after wave of monsters as they are picked off one by one. In this sense this film isn’t anything particularly interesting, but is watchable.

Charlotte Kirk is not a good lead here at all, she is much better in Marshall’s other recent work The Reckoning, she barely emotes at all and her dialogue is paper thin at best. What’s worse is that a lot of her action scenes don’t come across as either believable or well-choreographed and can even be described at times as laughably bad.

Overall, whilst this is watchable it is nothing new and the acting, dialogue and action are all lacking.

2.5/5

Pros.

It is watchable

It is unintentionally hilarious

It is well paced

Cons.

The dialogue is awful

Kirk gives a terrible performance

It feels like a bad videogame film

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Slash/Back: Aliens Are Always Popping Up Where You Least Expect Them

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

A group of Inuit teens do battle with aliens.

I thought this was a really quite fresh feeling horror film, both for exploring the mythology of a group of people that most of the world isn’t familiar with, and also for depicting aliens in a way that differs quite strongly from the little green men or humanoid figures we are so used to.

I really appreciated and liked the low-fi appeal of the monsters, I thought when the clearly dead animals were possessed and moving it was quite unsettling because in a sense you hadn’t, or certainly I hadn’t, seen something move like that before. I thought the skin suits later employed by the aliens were equally quite unnerving.

My one complaint of the film would be that it has a slow start, it feels like it is quite a while before we actually get into the alien business, and yes the film is setting up its world and characters in this time but it drags on.

Overall, a fun film that tries and mostly succeeds in doing something new.

4/5

Pros.

The look of the aliens both in animal and human form

The scares

Exploring Inuit mythology

The central teen cast are all likeable and do a good job for child actors

Cons.

A slow first act

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The Last Of Us: When You’re Lost In The Darkness

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

Yet another post apocalypse narrative but this time based on a popular, if deeply overrated video game.

The Last Of Us was never my favourite game, hell it wasn’t even my favourite Naughty Dog game, it was very okay and in many senses that is how I felt about this first episode. It was alright, but no different than any other piece of post apocalypse fiction that you have ever seen before.

If you have played the first game, this episode is a pretty faithful recreation of the opening sections of it. I wouldn’t say it is shot for shot the same in terms of adaption as say something like The Sandman was, but it comes pretty close.

I think Pedro Pascal is a very good Joel, truth be told he was the only reason I tuned into this at all. I think Pascal’s skill as an actor is really highlighted in the scene wherein he loses his daughter, that is a haunting scene in both the game and this first episode. Pascal really nails the emotion here and delivers in the way you would want him to.

My issue with this episode is Ellie, played by Bella Ramsey. Frankly put I think she has been miscast, and was only cast based on the popularity of her character in GOT, she doesn’t feel or remotely look anything like Ellie from the games and it takes you out of it. In the scenes wherein she is chained up in the Firefly safe house and is interacting with her jailors it comes through incredibly clearly that she is acting it feels in no way natural and this when compared to Pascal’s performance really highlights a juxtaposition in acting quality.

Overall, the first episode was on the better side of fine, Pascal brings a lot to the show and it was impressive how close they were to matching the games, but Ramsey is miscast.

3.5/5

Pros.

Giving us Joel and Tess as a couple

It is quite close to game accurate

Pascal is terrific

The emotions really hit

Cons.

Ramsey is miscast and unconvincing

The episode is bloated

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A Field In England: Taking Drugs In A Field

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

An alchemist’s assistant, played by Reece Shearsmith , and a group of deserters try and navigate the battlefields of the English Civil War.

I like the films of Ben Wheatley for the most part even though sometimes they miss the mark. However, this film I think may be his worst and misses the mark by a large degree boiling down into pretentious nonsense that feels like the sort of thing a first year film student might make if they couldn’t decide on a narrative direction for their film and instead decided to throw everything at the wall.

This is clearly most experimental work but that isn’t a good thing as it makes the film feel far too art house for its own good, coming across as an effort in pretention. Additionally, this decision to be experimental means there are big sections of the narrative that make little to no sense and don’t really fit with the tone of the rest of the film, this doesn’t come across as some brave stylistic decision but rather a lack of ability to write narrative and an attempt to disguise lazy writing by being pretentious.

The only thing that really gripped me about this film is the occult focus which I enjoyed and which did deliver some good scares, we could have done with more of this and less silly art house nonsense.

Overall, Wheatley pushes the boundary into how art house he can be and still maintain audience interest and arguably goes too far.

2/5

Pros.

A few good scares

The occult stuff later into the film

Cons.

It is pretentious

Some sections of the film don’t fit

It has awful pacing

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M3GAN: Chucky’s Competition?

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

A new evil doll is born, Chucky has competition.

I went into this film with high expectations, after hearing all the praise for the film and seeing al of the decorated reviews I was expecting this film to be good and honestly, it was just okay.

I think the strengths of the film are M3GAN herself, she is both sassy and scary in equal measure, and the fact that the film doesn’t take itself too seriously and that there is a good amount of tongue in cheek humour throughout the film that will likely make you laugh.

However, my issue with the film is that the tone never really feels quite right, it wants to be scary, but also wants to keep the jokes in, but then also doesn’t want to fully abandon the scares and go full comedy either. In my mind if the film had committed more to being silly and had gone even more over the top then it would have been better, we have enough spooky doll films something more in line with Bride Of, Seed Of Chucky would have played better in my mind.

Another thing that bothered me was that it all felt very played out, and by that I mean that this film did not surprise me in anyway everything that I thought was going to happen did and it happened when I thought it would. Maybe this stems from the fact that I watch a lot of horror films and for someone who watches less they might not find it so familiar, but for me it was an issue.

Overall, certainly watchable and with potential if they ramp up the satire and silliness for the next film then I could easily see a new horror franchise be born, but as it stands it feels too derivative.

3/5

Pros.

M3GAN herself is quite funny

I enjoyed the comedy for the most part

It was very watchable

Cons.

The humour doesn’t go far enough and there are tonal issues

It felt very familiar

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Velma: First Two Episode Overview

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

Mindy Kaling turns herself into Velma from Scooby Doo and creates one of the most grotesque vanity projects I have ever seen in my life.

Who is this for? It certainly isn’t for Scooby Doo fans, as the talking dog himself is not even in this, is it for new fans as it feels like a new show? Well maybe, but if that is the case then have the balls to call it something different and not attach it to the Scooby Doo IP. In my mind this is for fans of Harley Quin as this is basically just the same show, but set in a different fictional universe.

Where to begin with why this show doesn’t work. Frankly Scooby Doo as a franchise was never calling out for an adult take, we never needed to hear the gang talk about sex and drugs and for the most part here it just feels like the show is trying to be edgy. However, the issue is that in its attempts to be edgy it just feels desperate instead, and the comedy, if you can call it that, feels at least a few years out of date.

However, I think worst of all is Velma herself. Kaling takes the very worst aspects of her characters from her other shows and forces them all up to the max to create a truly irritating character that only gets worse. In the two episodes that I watched, and believe me I won’t be watching anymore, Velma went from stupid, to irritating to hateable really quick.

Overall, for once Zaslav should have used his axe for good and should have prevented us from ever having to be subject to this, it makes you truly thankful for and remember fondly the James Gunn films and that is saying something indeed. Truly a trash show destined to not find an audience and fail.

0.5/5

Pros.

It gave me a renewed appreciation for the James Gunn Scooby Doo films

Cons.

It is a vanity project and is in no way Scooby Doo

It is unfunny and the adult humour feels try hard at best

Velma is deeply irritating and unlikeable

There is no Scooby Doo

It feels like Harley Quinn but with different characters

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