Unhinged: Bait

Unhinged is a thriller film directed by Derrick Borte. The plot sees angry man Tom Cooper (Russell Crowe), have a mental break and go on a rampage after his wife leaves him, he takes to the streets to harass, terrorise, and kill people who he deams rude drivers or those who slight him.

This is the film that told the pandemic to do a hike and came out in cinemas anyway, the film that refused to go straight to streaming and said it was too tough for that. It made you risk your health to prove your machismo.

This film is clearly made for a certain type of person, it takes multiple digs at modern culture, and seems to hate anything that was popular after the year 2000. The weird way that the film gives Tom Cooper’s character anti hero like qualities is troubling as it is almost condone this character, that is clearly the villain here.

The central family that become Cooper’s victims are so incredibly bland that I seem to have purged them for my mind, all I can remember is that the kids is incredibly irritating and talks in a way no other human child has ever talked before.

The pulpy schlock of it can only go so far before it just starts to feel lazy, the scares don’t really land because the film can’t seem to decide whether it is secretly trying to praise Cooper and his actions.

Overall, a skinhead action film if ever there was one, that seems to be at odds with the modern world and proud of it. Crowe is clearly trying which makes the whole affair sadder as it shows how far he has fallen.

Pros.

Crowe is trying

Cons.

The central family is generic

The kid is annoying

It can’t seem to settle on how it wants to depict the violence and aggression

It seems to be oddly dated

It has some unpleasant undertones

0.5/5

Reviewed by Luke

The Prophecy: Viggo Mortensen Is Under Your Bed

The Prophecy is a fantasy thriller film directed by Gregory Widen. The plot sees angel of death Gabriel (Christopher Walken), seek to find an evil soul and use it to wipe out mankind. It is set to a backdrop of a centuries long angelic civil war.

This is pulpy good fun, will it win awards no, but it was solidly entertaining for an hour and a half and it made me want to check out its sequels, stay tuned for reviews of them. I enjoyed the deeply 90s aesthetic of the film it reminded me a bit of films like The Crow. I thought the world building was incredibly on point, they create a huge world with a lot going on, but don’t spend big parts of the film spouting exposition which is appreciated.

The performances are really a conversation about two actors Christopher Walken and Viggo Mortensen. So, Walken played the menacing angle of death well, he was a very believable badass and managed to seem worse than the devil himself. Speaking of, Mortensen’s Lucifer is only in the film briefly, but he is a scene stealer while he is there, he is so manic and unhinged it is truly chilling; the performance has become one of my all-time favourite Devil performances.

Overall, if you want a schlocky good time with a surprisingly deep world and a few great performances then give this a try.

Pros

Walken

Mortensen

The deep lore

Not overcomplicating things and being a lot of fun

Cons.

It is quite dated now

4.5/5

Reviewed by Luke

Anonymous Killers: A Smart Gorefest

Anonymous Killer is a crime horror film directed by A.R Hilton. The plot sees a group of killers, from various walks of life, get captured and tortured and forced to judge one another by a mysterious man who seems to know them all deeply.

I enjoyed this film, I would say it is a thinking person’s Saw and I mean no disrespect to any with that, as I enjoy Saw as well, but this just feels better from a character point of view. The characters in this film have strong focus, we explore their pasts and their drives to get to know them on an almost intimate level; this might be some of the finest character development I have seen in a film all year.

I thought the threat and menace was there and done well, the gore didn’t overpower the film either. That is a common complaint of a lot of people with the Saw films, but I have to say the gore here is done tastefully well, but is still grisly at times.

I enjoyed the building mystery; it genuinely surprised me and went in a direction I wasn’t expecting it to go. No spoilers here though.

Overall, a well-acted, well written crime thriller that keeps you guessing and always on edge. It has just enough gore to appeal to gore fans, without too much that might put off more casual horror viewers. Don’t sleep on this film, make it your Halloween watch.

Pros.

Well written characters that feel fully developed and real

A nice amount of gore used tastefully

The mystery is compelling

The threat and the menace

Strong acting

5/5

Reviewed by Luke

The Prophecy 3: God’s Plan

The Prophecy 3 is a fantasy action thriller directed by Patrick Lussier, serving as a continuation of the Prophecy series. The war in Haven rages on, and now the Angel of Genocide Pyriel (Scott Cleverdon), has arrived on Earth to finish what Gabriel (Christopher Walken), started and wipe out the Nephilim and the humans with them.

This film completes the obvious character arc of Gabriel, and makes him a hero, which it turns out was God’s plan all along. Yes, this time around Gabriel wants to save the humans, as he himself is now one, and fight along side them to defeat Pyriel. I enjoyed seeing Walken play the character differently, it gives him chance to flex his charm and show his more loveable side.

I thought this film was a step up from the second but is still behind the first. The main reason for this is Cleverdon’s Pyriel. Pyriel is a much better antagonist, than a played-out Gabriel and has much needed presences and menace, I enjoyed seeing him ham it up as a very over the top evil villain and he looked like he was having fun.

The ending to this film also adds a nice sense of finality to the series as it feels like a lot of the lore and plot stuff has been tided up neatly and can be filled away; I am aware that there are two more sequels and maybe one day I will watch them.

Overall, still a lot of pulpy heavily 90’s fun and a decent final note.

Pros.

Cleverdon

Walken

The ending

Gabriel becoming the hero, even though it was cheesy and predictable

Cons.

It feels unnecessary

The production quality is still quite low

3.5/5

Reviewed by Luke

For The Sake Of The Vicious: Motorcycle Gang Of Death

For The Sake Of The Vicious is an action thriller film directed by Gabriel Carrer and Reese Eveneshen. The plot revolves around a tragic misunderstanding. When Chris’s (Nick Smyth), daughter is raped he abducts the man he thinks is responsible, he then brings him to the house of nurse Romina (Lora Burke), for unsaid reasons to begin the investigation. However, things are far more complicated than any of them know.

This film is unrelentingly bleak, which can be an issue for some people, it is not as easy watch I myself had trouble with it at times; but it is well worth sticking around for. The unpleasantness creates a real visceral sense of brutality which nicely compliments the film in its later stages when it shifts from being a character piece into basically being a slasher film.

The performances were strong and compelling, Romina was very easy to root for and it was easy for us the audience to put ourselves in her shoes and empathise with her. I think the standout performance of the film was definitely Smyth’s Chris who played a man possessed well. You could tell how haunted and troubled he was every second he was on screen it was both off putting and fascinating

My one issue with the film would be that the first act is very slow, and I mean slow. It was a bit of a slog to get through, but it is worth sticking with for the all-out brawl at the end.

Overall, a very intense film that wont be to everyone’s tastes, but if it sounds like something you might enjoy then you should definitely check it out.

Pros.

The drama and slasher elements nicely complement each other

The action scenes in the final act are really well done

The performances are top notch

The drama is compelling and engaging

Cons.

It is very bleak

The first act is too slow

4/5

Reviewed by Luke

Peppermint: John Wick Was A Good Film Right? Lets Copy It.

Peppermint is an action thriller film directed by Pierre Morel. The plot follows the transformation of quiet suburban mother Riley North (Jennifer Garner), after the death of her family.

So, this is a deeply average action film that is clearly trying to cash in on things like John Wick and those other kind of action films for as much as they can get. As such the story is played out before it begins and you can guess easily where it is going, it is a mash up of many different genre cliches and stereotypes.

Jennifer Garner is fine, nothing more than that. She is believable enough in the physicality of the role, but because the film is so poorly written and has no real reason to exist, her character feels incredibly hollow. Yes she is a badass, so what? We don’t feel anything for the character and the drama feels cliché and forced.

I mainly watched this as I was looking for schlocky action and that is pretty much all it is good for. It is just fun to watch guys get mowed down sometimes, I guess. Some of the scenes push the boat out on what is possible and are usually better for it.

Overall, only watchable if you either can’t find anything better or are looking for just some generic action schlock.

Pros.

It is watchable

Some of the more unbelievable action scenes are fun to watch

It is schlocky as hell

Cons.

Jennifer Garner brings nothing to the role

The film feels like a rip off

It has no reason to exist

It is incredibly generic

2/5

Reviewed by Luke

Inheritance: Being Locked In An Underground Bunker Would Be Better Than Watching This!

Inheritance is a thriller film directed by Vaughn Stein. The plot revolves around Lauren (Lilly Collins), discovering that her recently deceased father has been keeping a man locked in a bunker on their property. She decides to get to bottom of this dark family secret.

Why cast Patrick Warburton, a veteran actor to have a nothing two-minute cameo? Warburton play’s said deceased father, who dies at the very beginning of the film, and doesn’t really come back in anything meaningful way, they could easily have had Lauren find another tape to have more of him, but no. It is a huge missed opportunity.

You have seen this film before, there is nothing original about it at all. There is a twist towards the end of the film, I won’t tell you what it is, but I bet you can guess what it is. I was hoping when I put this on that maybe the filmmakers were going to do something interesting with the man locked in the basement concept, but they don’t. It’s all just very average.

The one pro I will give this film is that Simon Pegg is good as the man in the basement Morgan Warner. I enjoy seeing Pegg experiment with playing darker characters that are more outside of his wheelhouse and this is an example of that. I thought even though the way they took his character was super obvious that Pegg still managed to completely nail the role and be captivating whenever he was on-screen

Overall, deeply generic and played out entirely as expected

Pros.

Simon Pegg is giving it his all

Cons.

They waste Patrick Warburton and most of the other cast members

Lilly Collins is entirely forgettable

It is incredibly predictable

You have seen this before and better

1/5

Reviewed by Luke

The Villianess: Raised To Kill

The Villainess is a South Korean action film directed by Byung- Gil Jung. The plot follows assassin Sook- hee (Ok-Bin Kim), as she joins up with the South Korean intelligence service to order to hunt her husbands’ killer.

The action is well done, I especially enjoyed the first-person action sequence at the start of the film. I thought the brutality of the film added to its overall feel, it gave the film a gritty take no prisoners sort of attitude that really helps to define it.

The plot keeps you guessing it is full of twists and turns, however I would say that it is overstuffed. There is so much exposition, back story, and flash backs which are all pivotal to the narrative, it is a lot, also if you lose track you will be lost.

I enjoyed the lead performance I thought OK-Bin Kim did a good job, she was cool and badass, whilst also having a vulnerable streak that makes her very easy to root for and cheer on.

My main issue with this film is that it has major pacing issues, parts of it drag and feel like they’re overdone for the stake of being stylised. I feel It could do with being about half an hour shorter as it stands it feels like it has a lot of bloat.

You can see how this film has inspired others that have come after it (John Wick 3), and how it has been inspired by other classic action films (Old Boy, The Raid, Leon).

Overall, this is a nicely stylised action film that has a few pacing issues but is still well worth the watch.

Pros.

Good action

A homage to other classic action films

A strong lead

Cons.

Pacing issues

The story has a bit too much going on and is often confusing.

3/5

The Honeymoon Project: Can You And Your Partner Survive A Year Alone Together?

The Honeymoon Phase is a science fiction thriller film directed by Phillip G. Carroll Jr. The plot follows a young couple who volunteer for a science experiment, to test the idea of ‘honeymoon’ phase. After they move into a new house together, thing soon take a turn for the sinister as it appears that the house and the scientist monitoring them behind the scenes are trying to pit the pair against each other.

I enjoyed the Black Mirror esque, dark science fiction. I thought the film uses the threat of existential dread well to create a haunting atmosphere that lasts for the whole film. The acting is top notch and both Mike Sutton and Chloe Carroll flourish in standout performances.

My issue with this film is it takes things a step too far, into bad taste. Bear in mind that taste is subjective to the person, so you may feel different to me. Examples of what I am talking about are the sex scenes that are scattered throughout the film, these border on the soft core pornographic and get to the point where you feel uncomfortable watching them.

I understand that maybe this was done to push the art form and the boundaries, but for me it was too much.

Another example of what I am talking about is the curling iron scene. There is a part of the film when Eve (Carroll), is pregnant and is trying to lose the baby and rather than do anything else, that would be much easier, she decides to stick a curling iron up her vagina to kill the baby and I am left saying why?

Overall, though this has strong performances and a well-formed premise, the bad taste issues are just too much for me to overcome I found it very difficult to watch.

Pros.

The performances

The premise

The sense of existential dread

Cons.

The curling iron scene

The oddly pornographic sex scenes

3.5/5

Reviewed by Luke

The Owners: The British Knock Off Don’t Breath

The Owners is a thriller film directed by Julius Berg. The plot follows a group of thieves who break into an old rich couple’s house hoping to rob them of their fortune, however the tables are soon turned.

This is very familiar to Don’t Breath, in more ways than one, I don’t want to openly say it is a rip off, but it does seem more than a little influenced by it; down to the keeping a young women secretly chained up part. Regardless, I am really starting to get sick of these sort of films, there have been a lot of them recently, the thieves break into someone’s house and then things flip on them sort of films and I for one am getting bored.

This is a thoroughly unpleasant watch, unlike Don’t Breath this film doesn’t see any of the characters you are supposed to be rooting for live to tell the tale; the ending is a real bummer.

The praise I will give this film is that parts of it are quite creepy, mainly from about half an hour in we can see evidence of this. The first 30 minutes have structural problems and feels needlessly drawn out. However, once the flip occurs there is a good amount of tension and atmosphere, enough to make you forget about some of the films other glaring issues.

Maisie Williams is strong here; she makes for a likeable lead but also a believable survivor. When we see her characters’ final stand against the evil old couple she is carries the physicality well, clearly as a result of her GOT action training.

Overall, watchable, and maybe even enjoyable for some. Personally I found it a bit too bleak and was off put by the pacing issues and the weak secondary characters that populated and overly busy script. Williams was good though.

Pros.

Maisie Williams

The tension once it gets going

Cons.

The first act drags

There is too much going on and far too much back story

The secondary characters feel needless

It is a bit too bleak

2/5

Reviewed by Luke