Sonic Three: The Quest For Meaningful Stakes

Sonic, voiced by Ben Schwartz, is back.

Going into the latter half of the year and looking at a pretty dire slate this was one of the few films that kept that small ember of optimism alive in me. However, after seeing it I have to say I was disappointed. I really don’t want to be writing that but it is the truth.

My issue with the film is pretty clear cut, whilst I liked Knuckles it did feel very much like a small story idea wrapped in goofiness and filler that was acceptable as it was a streaming show and not a mainline film. This film was far more Knuckles than the previous two films, rather than having some earnest heart, and having some epic moments or deeper worldbuilding, this film instead decided to have lots of goofy nonsense, such as a musical dance number, Eggman, Jim Carrey’s, obsession with telenovelas and a long drawn out race sequence in the films first act.

They have Krysten Ritter as the new director of GUN yet they give her one line and that is it, it is such a waste. I would have rather had more scenes that debated the ethical nature of GUN and made Sonic and co question whether they could trust them. As far as Shadow, voiced by Keanu Reeves, goes I was again disappointed. Shadow is my favourite character in Sonic lore yet they just give him a pretty bog standard revenge arc here before making him team up with Sonic at the end. I would have liked to see more of Shadow being an anti-hero, rather than him just getting the Knuckles in Sonic Two treatment where he is a villains henchman turned hero. It would have been better to have him and Sonic both trying to fix a problem say GUN did something bad in the past, but Shadow’s ways are too extreme and that puts him at odds with Sonic, rather than Sonic and Shadow both realise GUN did something bad so Shadow is going to destroy them for revenge, this seem over the top for Shadow who is an antihero, to kill lots of innocent people, and yes he isn’t fully aware of the weapons potential but still.

Overall, I would hope for the next film they could have less goofy silly stuff and a little more stakes and tension. It is never going to be super serious but some worldbuilding and some deeper character work would be nice. What I would like out of the next film is a for Amy-Rose to take team Sonic, including Shadow off world and for it to be a galaxy hopping adventure to stop a mass wave of Metal Sonics from destroying Earth to get to Sonic, this journey would explore Sonic’s origins and be large scale and epic. We wouldn’t have any goofy sing alongs dancing or anything else like that, we would have character growth and stakes.

Overall, good but a bit too silly and without the heart of the previous films.

3/5

Pros.

The end credits

It is cool to see Shadow even if they don’t do much with him

Jim Carrey is entertaining

Cons.

It is too goofy

It wastes new actors like Ritter

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Borderlands: How Not To Adapt A Videogame

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

A popular game series is turned into a film by someone who has never played the games before.

Who didn’t see this coming? I think right from the moment the public was first introduced to this film red flags began to appear everywhere. From stunt or joke casting to the way it ripped off what Guardians does with music and the score, there were clear indicators that this film was going to be bad. However, after watching it I can say that it is not offensively bad nor is it terrible, for the most part it is just boring and cheaply made.

I found the action and the games references to at least be somewhat entertaining even if they were incredibly hollow, it was very much look kids there is something from the game remember sans any of the emotional attachment or enjoyment of it. They got in a lot of references but did precious little with each one.

Moreover, the fact that they made it a 12 here in the UK, so a PG 13 if you’re American, was a terrible move. Not the least because most of those who grew up playing the game are now adults and so are ready to see the blood and gore of the games replicated but don’t get it, but also with the fact that the kids this film is aimed are not even old enough to play the games legally.

It is also quite odd that Roth and co decided to have all of the women in the film be about two decades older than their games counterparts? Was this done to bring in older women to watch it , I wouldn’t think it would be there sort of thing. Cate Blanchett was not very convincing during her action scenes and I must say it wasn’t helped by the terrible wig they had her wear.

Overall, there is no point making a film like this if you don’t have a passion for the game and clearly no one involved with this project had any passion for the games.

1.5/5

Pros.

Some funny lines

The action was okay

Cons.

Cate Blanchett, Hart and Lee-Curtis were badly miscast

It wasn’t funny

The lack of gore was disappointing

It was incredibly average

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Knuckles: Life In The Fast Lane

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

Knuckles, voiced by Idris Elba, is back and this time he is patching up father son relationships, or trying to at least.

I was really, really looking forward to this and possibly I went in expecting a bit too much. I thought this was going to be the next chapter in the Sonic universe, I was expecting much more in the way of cameos and maybe even some more games characters being introduced that were more Knuckles centric. Alas we didn’t get that, and maybe I expected too much, this was an incredibly self-contained show and without the opening credits, the villains being vaguely tied to Robotnik, and a brief first episode cameo, you could watch this and not even realise it was related to the wider Sonic universe.

Another odd choice was that the main character of this series isn’t Knuckles, but rather Wade Whipple, Adam Pally. Now there is nothing wrong with Wade he is quite a funny character and you can easily relate to and root for him, but he isn’t the show’s namesake. I expected far more time to learn who Knuckles as a character was, learn more of his back story, maybe through flashbacks to before the Owls attacked, but again no. We don’t learn much more about Knuckles from this show other than he likes grapes. That said I did like Wade’s quest to become a warrior and to defeat his dad, Cary Elwes, who was comically evil.

I also thought the bond between Wade and Knuckles was quite endearing, they genuinely seemed to care about each other, in a sort of human pet way, or maybe even a father and son way.

The humour of the show was good and it was mostly funny, there were a couple of times were they let a joke drag on for too long or repeated an unfunny joke but for the most part it was funny.

A final word I would like to say that no doubt will get me hate, but hey I am not going to stop, is that I liked that this show gave an upfront portrayal of the Jewish Shabat dinner and had a lot of good Jewish representation without reducing the characters to stereotypes or having it be all they are. I think in these politically divided times, I am writing this in May 2024, where antisemitism is on the rise and more and more people seemingly hate Jews, for something that is not their fault, they are not responsible for state policy, it is nice to see positive representation, it shouldn’t be needed to combat all the hate as the hate shouldn’t exist but that is the world we live in.

Overall, a nice, fun self-contained series but one that left me a little disappointed

3.5/5

It is funny

Wade and Knuckles

It provides much needed representation

It sets up new adventures

Cons.

It is not as big in scope as I would have liked it to be

It repeats a few unfunny jokes

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Fallout: Good Actors Locked Underground In A Vault Of Bad Writing

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

Lucy, Ella Purnell, emerges from an underground vault to find the world is quite different after a nuclear apocalypse.

For the record I have played several of the Fallout games over the years, so I am very familiar with the franchise. Whilst I wouldn’t consider myself a massive fan I do have some regard for the game series, and so went into this sceptically.

In many senses this is an Amazon series in everything you would think that entails, you have the tokenistic diversity, which could add an interesting lens if it was not just done to tick off a box, the overtly left wing political themes, and of course the quasi feminist stans of the lead with elements of all the modern tropes of both the quirky girl and also the girl boss. It goes without saying that you can have a compelling lead in a TV series that is empowered and a feminist without having to use these tropes see Delores in Nolan’s other show Westworld. No in contemporary Hollywood there are pre-sets for a feminist and empowered woman, and they can only be that and if they aren’t then its sexist. It’s dumb.

It is a shame as Lucy is an interesting character who you do care about and want to go on this journey with, however, her characterisation is just widely off as she flits back and forth between the girl boss trope and the quirky I am so random girl trope as well. In many senses I view this writing as a disservice to Purnell who was great on Yellowjackets, but here she is reduced to acting out tropes. Not too go too off topic but have you noticed that when female directors and writers handle empowered female leads there is much more nuance to them they aren’t tropes, at least not often, and they are allowed to exist as they are. Whereas when its men writing them or directing them no no they can only be girl bosses or quirky I am so random type of girls, not always but most of the time, it is almost as though they are worried if they don’t show women in what they view a correct light they will be called sexist and cancelled. However, by reducing female characters to tropes they are still being sexist without wanting to appear sexist as they don’t take proper time to write them.Apparently a female writer handled some of the episodes but if that is the case then she again is propagating outdated tropes and cliches and limiting her own female lead, perhaps suggesting she has some internal sexism going on.

Anyway moving on, Walton Goggins is also terrific as the rodeo star turned ghoul who has lost his family, you really buy his lack of humanity and how this world has shaped him. As always Goggins does a great job with the material and brings a certain level of gravitas to the role that is sorely needed across the board here. The Brotherhood of Steel guy, Aaron Clifford Moten, is weak and feminised to such a point that at times he seems kind of pathetic, I understand the show wants us to root for him so it has to present him as being someone you root for but this isn’t the way. They try and be like oh what are his motivations what does he want and set up some moral ambiguity there but there really isn’t, it is perfectly clear the character is just self-serving. The key difference between him and Goggin’s character is that Goggin’s character is bad morally as he has been corrupted by the world, however, due to the opening sequence you can still see his humanity and root for him, whereas with Moten’s character there is never a scene that makes you root for or care for the character in anyway.

Finally, if you are a fan of the games then don’t watch this. It is at times wildly out of synch with any of the lore, and it doesn’t care about that which in an off itself is a problem. Many praise this show for caring so much about the games but if it did then it would have stuck to the lore, it has set dressing to pay lip service to the games and to get that praise but where it counts this series doesn’t care about them at all. The general road movie let’s explore the world style plot to the series narrative is fine it goes exactly how you would expect it too and unlike the first season of Westworld there are no real twists, there are a few things that it thinks are twists such as the raiders leader actually being misunderstood, but in contemporary Hollywood you could see those sort of reveals coming from the opening minutes of the series.

Overall, Purnell and Goggin’s try their best to elevate what is otherwise a very hollow adaption of a game series. For season two they need new writers.

1.5/5

Pros.

Purnell

Goggins

Cons.

It is preachy

Maximus is awful

The plot is stupid and obvious

It doesn’t care about the lore

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Five Nights At Freddy’s: Possibly The Worst Video Game Movie Ever Made

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

An out of work man, Josh Hutcherson, takes a job at a Pizzeria that is full of dead children residing in robots.

I will open this by saying that though I am aware of the game franchise this is based on I have never played one of the games.

I thought this may have been the most disappointing and misguided film of 2023. My central thesis question would be who was this made for? I would guess the hardcore fans and that is it as I entered this film as a normie and didn’t understand most of what was going on. That shows a bad job on the writing front as if you are required to have a dedicated knowledge of a game series to be able to follow the plot of a film then maybe it should have come out on a fan site rather than at the cinema, at least then people like me wouldn’t have wandered into something that clearly wasn’t for us.

Additionally, the tone of this film is also completely off. So, I thought this was a horror film, the games are horror games are they not? Well clearly no one told whoever wrote this film that because for all the scenes you get of the robots ripping people apart it is entirely undone by a film breaking sequence in which they all sit down and have a tea party with a little girl and its all happy and played almost for laughs. Again I understand that their was a hostile undertone to this scene but the music and the dialogue shifted the scene and made it seem like I had entered a screening of Night At The Museum.

The acting is okay, I had forgotten the lead existed in a post Hunger Games age I thought maybe he had retired, he was warm enough and I believed his bond with his sister. Elizabeth Lial faired better and was quite easy to like and root for, it was clear that she was going to be involved in it from the jump but I like that they didn’t make her evil in the end and have kept her alive for the sequel. I think by far and away Matthew Lillard steals the show, I wouldn’t have guess the twist reveal with him and I think he played both ordinary and evil with great relish.

Overall, the actors do their bests but this film is only for the fans and if that isn’t you don’t bother.

0.5/5

Pros.

The actors across the board

Cons.

The tone

The inaccessibility of it

The weird dream stuff

The needless family drama

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The Super Mario Bros. Movie: Bring On The Luigi’s Mansion Spin-Off

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

Two Italian-American plumbers, voiced by Chris Pratt and Charlie Day, fall through a magical sewer pipe and end up in the Mushroom Kingdom. Adventure awaits.

So the initial bad reviews of this film seemed to want it to be something it was never going to be, it was always going to be silly and with a fairly predictable story that reflected a lot of game elements and that is exactly what this film is.

Yes there are some jarring elements like Chris Pratt’s accent, which drifts in and out over the course of the film, and the random song mid-way through, but on the whole there is nothing bad here. In many ways it is a very serviceable and accessible entry into the world of Mario and has a number of memorable moments and characters.

Funnily enough Mario himself was probably the least interesting character here, as he was a fairly standard main character out to prove himself, prove his father wrong and get the girl. However, said girl Princess Peach to be exact, voiced by Anya-Taylor Joy, Donkey Kong, voiced by Seth Rogen and Luigi, voiced by Charlie Day, are all terrific. I like that the film expands each one as a character and tries to dig deeper into them rather than just presenting them in fairly obvious archetypal roles. A confusing move the film makes is having Mario and Donkey Kong be friends, which then negates Donkey Kong as a Mario antagonist later down the road, as he was in the games, though a heel turn is always possible.

I would definitely say that if you are a fan of the games you will get more out of this film, as though it is not incredibly reference heavy there are a number of nods and background character appearances that fans of the game can enjoy and which sometimes hint at future things to come in the inevitable sequel.

Overall, fun, but not perfect.

3/5

Pros.

Day, Taylor-Joy and Rogen

Expanding on the supporting characters in interesting ways

The references and nods to the games

Cons.

Pratt and his inconsistent accent

It is badly paced.

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The Last Of Us: Look For The Lights

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

Joel, played by Pedro Pascal, and Ellie, played by Bella Ramsey, reach the end of their journey.

So this episode wasn’t shocking for me as I knew it was coming, when Ramsey took to social media to say the final would be divisive I was expecting something shocking but in reality it was just the ending of the game most people picked, to save Ellie.

When Joel goes on his rampage and guns down most of the fireflies in order to get Ellie out the show clearly wants to frame it through the lens of look at what a brutal, and possibly even unjust, thing he is doing, however, this doesn’t work for me as I agree with Joel and picked this ending in the game. A parent would watch the world burn as long as their child was safe.

I also question the merit in having the season finale be one of the shortest episodes of the show, if not the shortest. I think the episode does have somewhat of a rushed feel to it and could have gone into more of the life of Ellie’s mother, played by Ashley Johnson, or could have shown more of Joel and Ellie in the aftermath of the hospital bloodbath as they deal with what happened.

Overall, whilst still good this was probably one of the weakest episodes of the show.

PS. I think this might be where I leave the show, as if they do a second season that adapts the second game I don’t want to watch it unless they make some pretty major changes.

3.5/5

Pros.

Joel rampage

The emotions

Pascal’s acting throughout

Saving Ellie

Cons.

It was too short

I disagreed with how the show framed things

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The Last Of Us: When We Are In Need

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

Ellie, played by Bella Ramsey, is kidnapped by a group of cannibals, and a recovering Joel, played by Pedro Pascal, must fight to try and save her.

I think this may have been the best episode of the season yet. The emotion in the final ten minutes of the episode is so powerful that you can’t help but be effected. Whether it is the scene of Ellie hacking apart the leader of the cannibals and the look into her soul we get during that scene, or the moment where she meets up with Joel again and he finally accepts her as his daughter. Truly it is incredibly powerful.

I thought the character work within this episode was great, both of the characters go to some really dark places but it is interesting to see them hit that edge and to consider their reactions to the darkness within the show. It is through this that the morality and the complexities of the world are better realised and played with. Once again the performances from both Ramsey and Pascal are fantastic.

Overall, perhaps the best episode yet.

4.5/5

Pros.

Pascal

Ramsey

The emotional journey of the episode

The dark places the characters go to

The ending

Cons.

There are some light pacing issues especially around the first act of the episode that really do slow it down

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The Last Of Us: Left Behind

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

Ellie, played by Bella Ramsey, now looking after a seemingly dying Joel, played by Pedro Pascal, remembers a time when she lost someone else who was close to her.

I think this was the best episode yet for letting us understand the character of Ellie. She goes through so much in this episode and Ramsey really takes us on a journey through the character, we see the highest highs and then the crushing lows and as we are so invested we feel these emotions along with the character.

I thought the central romance was quite good, not as good as Bill and Frank from a few episodes ago, however. I think Ramsey does a lot of the heavy lifting in this department, which I suppose is because until fairly near the end Riley, played by Storm Reid, isn’t aware of Ellie’s feelings but still. In my opinion, Ramsey’s performance across the whole episode is quite a bit stronger than Reid’s who really doesn’t do a good job of emoting.

Personally, I would have liked a bit more time with Ellie and Joel so that we can understand how long has passed and more about their situation but I guess that is being saved for next week’s episode with the cannibals.

Overall, another good episode but not one of the show’s best, mainly due to a weak performance from Reid and a lack of Joel and Ellie development. This weeks episode does very much feel like DLC.

4/5

Pros.

Ramsey really has a chance to show off here

The romance

The emotions

Really doing a lot with character growth

Cons.

Reid

Not enough Joel and Ellie time

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The Last Of Us: Kin

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

Joel, played by Pedro Pascal, and Ellie, played by Bella Ramsey, finally reach Tommy, played by Gabriel Luna.

I enjoyed this episode in many ways because it focused on character relationships be that between Joel and his brother or between Ellie and Joel. I thought the conversation Ellie and Joel had about the other filling a role in their lives that is empty was quite powerful and needed, I think it adds a layer to their relationship now going forward.

Having played the game I knew where this episode was heading with regards to Joel’s brush with death. I thought the choreography of the action and the wider scene in which Joel was stabbed was well done, it felt frantic and rushed pacing wise, which although it doesn’t sound good in this case is as it lends it a certain visceral feel. It will be interesting to see how long the show will have Joel on ice, will it only be one episode or more?

My one complaint would be that if anything this episode feels as though it brushed past a lot of the background of what Tommy has been up to and his new community, yes we see some of a day in their lives, but that still leaves a lot of questions unanswered which really isn’t good if the story isn’t going to double back to them at some point. I suppose when they get around to the events of the second game we would get more Tommy and maybe some of the questions would be answered there but that seems a long way off at this point.

Overall, another good episode though one that leaves quite a few questions unanswered.

4/5

Pros.

Joel and Ellie’s relationship growth

Finally seeing Tommy again

The action scene that sees Joel injured

The emotions

Cons.

At times the pacing feels a little rushed

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