Beirut: John Hamm Plays A Worse Version Of Don Draper

Beirut is a political thriller film directed by Brad Anderson. The plot sees an ex spook negotiator be brought back to Beirut after the death of his wife to save his friend who is being held hostage. Only a man with nothing left to lose can pull off a deal that no one wants to happen.

I think this film is quite generic, when you start watching a lot of these genre films you see patterns start to emerge and this one seem to feature all of the patterns under the sun. You will have seen it before. How many times have we seen the super spy who is great at what he does, brought close to breaking by the death of a loved one, only to have to seek redemption and prove himself again? That is basically the three acts of this film summed up without spoilers.

It doesn’t have anything new or interesting to say about the situation in the Middle East, it is just the same old same old.

John Hamm and Rosamund Pike are strong leads and bring a certain level of presence and prestige to the film, but they are stifled by a bad script. We barely get to see any range from either skilled performer, and both feel like they’re written to be cliches of other better characters they’ve played in the past.

Overall, deeply generic. Fine in a pinch okay to miss.

Pros.

Hamm and Pike are trying

I enjoyed the ending, I thought it was smart

Cons.

The script stifles them

It has nothing new to say

I feel like I’ve seen it before

It wasn’t hugely engaging

1.5/5

Reviewed by Luke

The Devil All The Time: The Scent Of Sin Is Hard To Wash Out

The Devil All The Time is a crime thriller film directed by Antonio Campos. The plot follows Arvin Russell (Tom Holland), a man who witnesses the worst the world has to offer at a young age. One day he snaps and decides to right the wrongs of his past.

Can I just say before we get into this that this film has been mismarketed in the extreme. Netflix has presented this film as some sort of slow burn horror film, this is not that, rather it is a crime epic. An exploration of the depths of sin in a small town and how the tendrils of said sin spill out and infect the people therein. It is gruelling and quite hard to watch at times.

The performances are all great. This film really convinced me, as I am sure it will a lot of other people, of Tom Holland’s acting ability. The feature as a whole is unrelentingly violent and grim and Holland perfectly matches that and gives a very visceral turn. Robert Pattinson is not in it as much as has been promoted and yes, he does only have a small part, but he plays the the slimy preacher well. The real standout of the film for me was Bill Skarsgard as Arvin’s father, who we only really see at the start of the film briefly, Skarsgard dominates the screen and makes the most out of every second, it is he who you will be walking away from this talking about.

My one complaint would be that it is on for far too long and has a lot of bloat as a result. There are plenty of side characters and side stories that could have been cut to make this more succinct.

Pros.

The performances

The raw brutality of it

It is hard to look away from

Cons.

It might be a bit too dark for some

It has pacing issues galore

3.5/5

Reviewed by Luke

Widows: Elizabeth Debicki Out Acts Every Single Person In This Film

Widows is a crime thriller film directed by Steve McQueen. The plot follows a group of women who find out posthumously that their husbands were highly successful thieves, however now with their husbands gone local mobsters are seeking to collect their debts and its up to the widows to pay.

I thought this film was good and well done to a point. I enjoyed seeing the women have to carry out a heist with little experience, it was interesting to see them progress and become stronger together. I thought 2 of the lead actresses gave good performances and that one was underused and maybe even miscast.

Viola Davis was a strong anchor for the film and played the no nonsense with an emotional vulnerability type very well, Michelle Rodriguez was fine, but was certainly the weakest member of the cast, she had very little to do and the film wasted her for the most part. Finally you have Elizabeth Debicki, who for me was the strongest member of the ensemble, her storyline was harrowing and Debicki conveyed that well.

The supporting cast also helped boost this film up, with a lot of the wider talent adding nicely to the central three characters and fleshing out the world as whole. In this regard Daniel Kaluuya was terrific, being a very menacing side villain.

My issue with the film came when it revealed that Davis’s characters husband was still alive. This is a second act twist that I find undermines a lot of the film and takes away from the character motivations. Is the twist shocking? Yes, but does it do anything more than that, no not really.

Overall, a potentially strong crime film that is let down by a miscast and underused Rodriguez and a silly twist that adds very little to the narrative beyond a cheap shock.

Pros.

Debicki

Davis

Kaluuya

The tension and the transformative journey

Cons.

Rodriguez

The twist

3.5/5

Reviewed by Luke

Extraction: All These Netflix Action Films Are Starting To Feel The Same

Extraction is an action film directed by Sam Hargrave. The plot sees mercenary Tyler (Chris Hemsworth), charged with saving a hostage and then safely extracting them, as you can imagine things don’t go quite to plan.

I have said it before and I will say it again, whoever Netflix has in charge of green lighting these action films needs to be fired, not because the films themselves are terrible, no because they all feel and look the same. This film could be so many different action movies, with the only difference being the actor and the location and a few minor plot details, it is so samey it is boring.

The story, I found to be incredibly dull. Maybe the Russo’s should stick to directing? I didn’t really care about what was going on and often lost interest. The worst bit of writing in the whole film comes when this kid early on in the film clearly wants to kill Hemsworth’s character, so you think ‘oh the showdown between those two will be a pretty big deal’. No, he just shoots him in the back of the neck with no pomp or circumstance, and it just feels lame and disappointing.

The two things I will credit this film for are both Hemsworth related. The first is that Chris Hemsworth actually gives quite a good dramatic performance, one that made me sit up and take notice. Before this I had not taken him seriously as an actor at all. Secondly, the action scenes are well done and well-choreographed, not John Wick level but still.

Overall, more generic action fare form Netflix

Pros

Hemsworth’s performance

The action itself

Cons.

The showdown

The writing

It was so so dull

2.5/5

Reviewed by Luke

Tenet: What Is In A Word

Tenet is an action science fiction thriller film directed by Christopher Nolan, the plot sees The Protagonist (John David Washington), try and prevent the end of the world, whilst also dealing with events happening backwards and forwards in time.

So before I get into this one, I would be remiss if I did not mention, that during the pandemic I have come to dislike Christopher Nolan quiet a bit, as he has had no regard for the ongoing corona virus and how his film may act as a super spreader event, he just cares that it is out and that he can lord himself as the ‘saviour of cinema’, so some bias, but hey if you’re still with me let’s get into it.

The concept is novel and inspired, I enjoyed it very much. Though the timey whimey stuff could have felt gimmicky it never does. I enjoyed seeing the same scene play out twice, one forward in time and once backwards, I found that this approach cleared up a lot of plot holes along the way.

The acting was all superb, with John David Washington proving that he is more than capable of leading a blockbuster film and of giving his dad a run for his money in the charm department. Though his co-stars give good performances as well, really this is Washington’s film and will be the one you walk away taking about.

The plot I had a few issues with, I found it to be overly obtuse and deliberately confusing, throwing in random science things from left field in an effort to seem smart. Some of the dialogue comes across as feeling a little try hard in that regard, and as I always say making something pretentious doesn’t make it clever or deep; it makes it smug.

Furthermore, in my screening of the film I had a lot of issues with sound mixing, I have talked to other people about it and they have experienced it as well. There will be a quiet conversation and you won’t be able to hear it because there will be a loud boowom in the background and you will be like wait what.

Overall, is this film worth seeing it cinemas right now? Maybe, maybe not, it is good, but I don’t really think it would be any worse on streaming, the cinema experience seems to work against it in the sound department. I think this film will be quite niche, you will either enjoy it or you will walk away bored and frustrated; there is no in-between on this one.

Pros.

The acting

The premise and the time effects

I enjoyed it far more than I thought I would

Cons.

It reeks of smugness and is deliberately confusing

The sound mixing is awful

3.5/5

Reviewed by Luke

Run All Night: Neeson Will Kill Anyone

Run All Night is an action crime film directed by Jaume Collet-Serra. We are introduced to aging mob enforcer Jimmy (Liam Neeson), a man who’s past has long since caught up with him. He is shunned by his family and his only friend in the world is the boss of the crime family he used to work for Shawn McGuire (Ed Harris). That all changes when Jimmy ends up killing Shawn’s son to protect his son, the two men then have to face off and only one can walk away alive.

The post Taken action film of one Liam Neeson have become something of a guilty pleasure of mine in that vein I greatly enjoyed this film. I knew exactly what was going to happen before I had even seen it of course, but that is the same with all these kinds of films, I wasn’t watching it for the story of the plot I was watching it to see old man Neeson gun down a room full of people without even pausing to reload.

The acting was okay, nothing more than that, everyone acted exactly how they normally would in these sort of roles, Liam Neeson’s character and performance could have been from any number of movies. The one thing I will say on the characterization front is that the father son stuff in the film, shifts greatly by the end of the film and it does not feel earned. I understand that Neeson’s character final action is to save his son’s life, but does that make up for all the horrible things he has done throughout his life, including murdering his own family?

Overall, a schlocky action film that is as predicatable as they come, if like with me that is what you’re looking for then you will enjoy it.

Pros.

Solid action

Liam Neeson is fun

Its good schlock

Cons.

It is very predictable

It is dumb as hell

3.5/5

Reviewed by Luke

Mother: A Lot Of Pretentious Allegory

Mother is a horror thriller film directed by Darren Aronofsky. The plot tells the story of a couple whose happy tranquil retreat is ruined by the arrival of unexpected, unwanted guests.

So this one is going to be a controversial for sure, even now years after it has come it is still polarising people, you either love it or you hate it. I find myself torn.

There is a lot of debate as to whether this is even a horror film, but I think it is. I also think the later in the film sequences where all hell breaks loose, which are arguably the horror scenes are strong and work well. The scenes when the followers descend to the house and fight to get a glimpse of the new baby are downright menacing and claustrophobic.

On the flip side, I hate the narrative of this film in so many ways. Firstly it has no story or plot just random events and allegory, it is one of those films where the director wants you to put it together yourself; in other words an excuse for poor writing. Moreover, the clear Bible reading (that everything that happens in the film is reflective of the Bible and the events therein), are so incredibly obvious that it basically beats you in the face with it. Yet in has to be pretentious and act like that is not true and that it has multiple meanings.

Jennifer Lawrence does an admirable job and I will applaud her for steeping outside of her comfort zone.

Overall, divisive to the core you will have strong feelings about it, for me I thought the narrative was weak and obvious, but the practical execution and the acting was spot on.

Pros

The acting

The ending

Some genuinely quite tense scenes

Cons.

The stupidly pretentious narrative

Having no form of story

3/5

Reviewed by Luke

The Call: How Far Halle Berry Has Fallen

The Call is a psychological thriller film directed by Brad Anderson. The plot follows 911 operator Jordan (Halle Berry), as she tries to save a girl who has been taken prisoner by a deranged serial killer.

This is one of the tamest thrillers I have seen in a long time, it could probably be a 12. It is the opposite of menacing, and everything is incredibly predicatable. There is no element of danger because right from the off you know how it is going to end; in the final minutes of the film there is a chance for a surprising character twist, but the film just ignores it.

You have to feel bad for Berry, she went from big meaningful films and blockbuster to this, you can tell she is going through emotions and even though she is trying she is never quite convincing. Her role could have been played by anyone, there was nothing she herself brough to the role.

The same could be said of the generic villain. The only chance a film like this has to flourish is if it has a worthy memorable villain; what would The Silence Of The Lamb be without Anthony Hopkins and Buffalo Bill. This film gives us one of the blandest weakest villains maybe ever in a thriller movie and he is forgotten about in under ten seconds.

Overall, an incredibly bland forgettable film that serves to do nothing other than make me feel sorry for Berry having to be involved.

Pros.

The first ten minutes are mildly interesting

Cons.

It is boring

It is predictable

Berry isn’t convincing

It feels generic

0.5/5

Reviewed by Luke

The Rental: The World’s Worse Air BNB: Imitation Is Not The Finest Form Of Flattery

The Rental is a horror thriller film directed by Dave Franco. The premise seems two couples head to a rental house for the weekend, once they get there they notice that it is the Air BnB from Hell and things quickly escalate.

Now, I had mixed feelings on this one. I thought for what it was trying to achieve and for a first-time directional effort it was good, but in a lot of other ways It was critically let down.

I thought the actual story itself was well done and well executed, it was tense and it used that tension well throughout. What I didn’t like however, was how blatant it was in its homage. This film feels like Franco is trying to make a Hitchcock film, there are several sections that seem directly inspired, I didn’t enjoy that. Mimicking the classics does not make your film a classic.

The characters are also a mixed bag. On the one hand you have Alison Brie as Michelle, the nice person of the group, she is likable and should really be the hero of the story; however she is unceremoniously killed off. The other 3 main characters are differing degrees of bad people and their unpleasant actions make it very hard to sympathise with them.

One more thing that bugged me about this film was the weird racism subplot from the start of the film. It plays into character motivations eventually and gets better over time, but at the start of the film it did not fit at all and felt forced and clunky. Trying too hard to be relevant.

Pros.

A solid first effort

Uses tension well

Alison Brie

Cons.

It feels like a poor imitation of one of Hitchcock’s lesser works

The racism subplot at the start of the film does not feel natural

3/5

Reviewed by Luke

Underwater: The Threat Came From Beneath The Waves

Underwater is a science fiction film directed William Eubank. The plot sees an underwater research centre become under attack by a strange unknown type of sea life.

I go back and forth on Kristen Stewart as an actress, sometimes I think she is good and worthy of all the praise she gets; other times I think she struggles with even basic emoting and can’t convince me of anything. However, I will give her praise here, she commands this film, her performance is striking and in some ways very reminiscent of Sigourney Weaver in Alien. This film would be far less good without Stewart in it.

Despite, feeling a little too overly familiar this film managed to keep me engaged throughout. It used the environment and tension to great effect and had a few great sequences that will stuck in my mind long after the film has ended. My one critique in this regard is the way some of these high-tension kinetic scenes are shot. The cinematography of these scenes makes them hard to see; which therefore makes it hard to tell what is going on. An example of my point is midway through the film one of the team is pulled out of their suit, but you don’t realise that you just see a lot of blood, you don’t realise what happened until one of the characters tells you. That is a big problem in my book.

Also T.J Miller is in this and he is every bit as grating as you are imagining. Horror/ dark science fiction films don’t need comedic relief.

Overall, a solid disaster film boosted tremendously by a great performance by Kristen Stewart.

Pros.

Stewart

The tension

Keeping me engaged in a played-out idea

Cons.

The characters outside of Stewart’s lead are one note

It is hard to tell what is going on

3.5/5

Reviewed by Luke