Nerve: I Dare You To Not Watch This Film

Nerve is a social media themed adventure film directed by Henry Joost and Ariel Schulman. The plot sees Vee (Emma Roberts), a shy quiet girl, take a more active role in her life by playing a social media craze; said craze sees the player being dared to do things by the watchers for various sums of cash, as you can imagine things quickly get out of control.

This is one of the vapidest, lame, needless films I have ever seen. Right from the beginning you get a sense that this film thinks it is great; not only great, but also deep and that it has something meaningful to say about our social media society. It does not. The ham-fisted messages and taking points that this film regurgitate are the same sort of things that any child could tell you, or that you might see written on the Facebook page of your elderly family member who is deeply out of touch with the ‘youth’.

I am almost certain that this film was written by people who don’t understand how teens interact. The main group of teens the film follows behave nothing like any teen I have ever met and are just a collection of out of touch stereotypes, that are also strangely inconsistent. As I was writing this review, I found out that this garbage fire was based on a book, this film proves that not ever teen novel needs an adaption Hollywood if you’re reading.

Roberts and Dave Franco, that plays her beefy onscreen love interest, are just passable enough to not be called out for accepting the role for a cheap pay day, however in the way of charm and charisma they are devoid of anything resembling either and both are the definition the term blackhole of charisma. These sorts of performances are the reason why the Razzies were invented.

Overall, this film feels incredibly out of touch, the characters range from forgettable to hate inducing, this is an hour and a half of your life you will not get back, so please don’t waste your time.

Pros.

The concept is interesting enough, for about 10 minutes.

Cons.

It is boring.

It is repetitive.

All the performances are terrible, the actors should be ashamed.

It is the most out of touch film I have seen in recent memory.

1/5

Reviewed by Luke

Crimson Peak: Mystery, Murder And Misunderstanding

Crimson Peak is a gothic romance film directed by Guillermo del Toro. The plot follows Edith (Mia Wasikowska), a young woman who moves with her new husband Thomas (Tom Hiddleston), into his ancestral home know to some as Crimson Peak, due to the red ore turning the snow red in the winter. However, since she was a girl Edith has been told to beware Crimson Peak, mainly from the ghost of her dead mother, unsurprisingly once she moves into the house things to start to take a turn towards the ghostly and the demonic.

Whoever was in charge of the marketing campaign for this film should have been fired; if not, fire them now, clearly, they can’t do their job. This film was marketed in its trailers and supporting material as a horror film, it is not. Despite having ghosts appear and a few other horror elements, this film has nothing else in common with the horror genre and to say otherwise in an insult to both and to del Toro himself.

This film is beautiful to look at, every scene is chocked full of vibrant colour and gothic charm, this much like the rest of del Toro’s filmography is very pleasing on the eye. The people in charge of set design and costumes deserve a huge round of applause.

This film is very much unlike any other as it defies genre. It is a romance, but not in a traditional sense; hell this film makes the romance in del Toro’s The Shape Of Water look almost conventional. It truly is a gothic film however; you will see what I mean if you watch it.

The story is top notch, full of twists and turns that will keep you guessing right up until the end. The creatures/ ghost design is also on top form; if there is one thing you can expect to see in a del Toro film it is Doug Jones as any number of monsters, each one looking better than the last and all looking marvellous. The performances are strong especially from the women. Wasikowska is great in the lead role, it would be nice to see her in more films, and Jessica Chastain is superb as Lucile Thomas’s sister. I won’t go into specifics about their performances as it might spoil some of the reveals.

Overall, I think this is one of del Toro’s strongest films that was woefully mis-marketed and sold as something it was not. Hopefully after you have read this review and understand what it really is you will check it out and really love it, as I did.

Pros.

The look of the film.

The gothic beauty of the story.

The performances.

The creature design and Doug Jones.

Cons.

It is slightly too long, and the beginning feels a little indulgent.

4/5

Reviewed by Luke

Misbehaviour: Bringing Down The System

Misbehaviour is a historical drama film directed by Phillipa Lowthorpe. The people revolves around the 1970 Miss World competition and the actions of a branch of the Female Liberation Movement to disrupt it and show the eyes of the world the harm the competition is doing to society.

This one is a little politics heavy, right from the off, so if that isn’t your thing don’t watch it.

Personally, I think this film makes a lot of great points about society and the balance of the sexes. It shows us the audience the predatory nature of these competitions and how the woman are treated like meat. The scene when all of the girls have to turn around in their swimming costumes and the mostly male judges spent an awfully long time staring at their arses at it is an uncomfortable scene.

This film makes you question society and the messages it creates: because competitions like Miss World were aimed at a family audience, so you would have little girls watching it and thinking the only way a woman can have value is to be pretty; which is a bad message obviously. This film really begs the question to beauty pageants and competitions have a place in 2020?

Keira Knightly as Sally Alexander is commendable, she is one of the most underrated actors working today, turning in solid performance after solid performance. This film also features Gugu Mbatha-Raw as Jennifer Hosten aka Miss Grenada, Mbatha- Raw does a great job in this film and has a strong presences throughout, her character was the first non-white winner of the Miss World Competition, and her ending serves as a true inspiration; also the conversation she has with Sally about representation vs change is fascinating to think about.

This film has Greg Kinnear as Bob Hope, as I suppose the villain of the film, he is hateable from the moment he appears on screen and when his performance get cut short it feels like a true victory.

Overall, this is an important film as watching it forces us to consider elements and aspects from our society we might not otherwise think about, this film presents us with the lessons of the past and asks us to learn from them.

Pros.

Knightly.

Mbatha-Raw.

The Message.

Something to think about.

Cons.

It is a little long and could be trimmed down a bit.

4/5

Reviewed by Luke

Starry Eyes: What Is The Price Of Fame?

Starry Eyes is a horror drama film directed by Kevin Kolsch and Dennis Widmyer. The plot follows Sarah (Alex Essoe), a young actress who is presented with her big break, but in order to get it she must cross a line. The line transcends morals and decency, and instead leads straight to evil. Is sell her soul worth a life of fame and fortune?

This film is brutal, it pulls no punches at all, it shows the deeply out of whack power dynamic of Hollywood and the casting process; showing the depths of human depravity. It touches close to home in our modern climate as Sarah is asked to strip naked for the role and later, she is asked to perform sexual favours for it. However, it does not stop there, though that is already horrific, the movie executive force Sarah to give up her humanity and be demonically reborn.

Taking the supernatural elements out for a second, this film is an incredibly frightening social commentary on the film industry, the message of the film is a pertinent and relevant one and one that bares further reflection.

Essoe is great in the lead role, we really buy her mental and physical breakdown over the course of the movie. The hairpulling scenes are especially tragic and really help to highlight the characters desperation, showing just how much of a victim she is in all of this. The character was easy to warm to and was easily empathetic throughout.

My one critique of the film is that in parts it is slow. It is only on for slightly over an hour and a half; however it feels much longer, proof of pacing problems. The first and third, third of the film is fine, it is just the second act that is slow.

Overall, a frightening film for a number of reasons and one that I believe should be watched as it has a very timely message for all of us.

Pros.

The scares.

The subtext/ social commentary.

Alex Essoe.

The ending.

Cons.

The second act drags and is hard to watch.

4/5

Reviewed by Luke

Stan And Ollie: Going Out On Top

Stan and Ollie is a biographical comedy drama film directed by Jon S. Baird. It follows the last tour of beloved classic comedians Laurel and Hardy and details the later years of their life/ partnership. It gives us the audience a peak behind the curtain into the lives of these two funny men and it is far from singing and dancing happy. This film is as heart-breaking as it is hilarious.

I would say for sure this film is more of a drama than a comedy, there are funny moments scattered throughout, especially if you like their version of comedy, but a lot of it is sad. That is the nature of life though, especially if you’re a performer, a day will come when you have to take the curtain call one last time.

I think both actors do a great job and get you to really care about the characters. Steve Coogan sells Laurel as an almost tragic figure, still haunted by events from the past, but also a person who just wants to recapture his friendship with his best friend. John C. Riley is also incredible as Hardy, we can see the toll carrying on performing has on him, but he continues on anyway. Both men manage to capture the friendship between the two perfectly making it believable. Riley especially is a really good, really strong dramatic actor and things like this prove that he can shine outside of the comedy genre.

There is a real earnest sense of tragedy to this film that pervades it entirely, it hits you hard and it will make you feel something. It is because of this that when you get what is essentially a bittersweet ending it makes you cry and cheer, all because the film has made you care about these men.

Overall, a touching biopic about some of the best comedians of the Golden Age, Coogan and Riley show off their talents as both comedic and dramatic actors, giving damn fine performances. This film will affect you emotionally.

Pros.

Riley and Coogan

A near perfect biopic.

Touching/sweet.

The ending.

Cons.

Quite bleak at times, it might not be what you’re expecting.

4.5/5

Reviewed by Luke

Bliss: The Trip Of A Lifetime

Bliss is a horror mystery film directed by Joe Begos. The plot follows struggling artist Dezzy (Dora Madison), who begins to slip into a world of horrors after sampling the drug Bliss. Dezzy has days of blackouts only awaking to find herself covered in blood, with more and more of her friends going missing, and her painting becoming more and more complete.

This is a hell of a film. It is one of the trippiest films I have ever seen, and I works so well because you’re never quite aware of what is going on, nothing is spelt out to you here, there are so many levels to this film and things to be considered. Even long after watching it and sitting down to write out my thoughts, I find new thoughts coming into my head, being like oh I wonder if this was this, or that meant that. The ambiguous ending of the film only adds to it.

I also love the slow burning intensity this film has, things don’t just go from 0 to 100 as they do in some other horror films, even the good ones, but rather the descent begins softly and then becomes more and more of a freefall as the film progresses. You feel the sense of confusion and peril Dezzy is in, as she doesn’t realise what is happening to her, it is palpable.

My one complaint would be with the amount of nudity in the film, I understand that the director was clearly going for a very primal feel, but Dezzy spends more of the film nude than dressed and it reaches a point where it feels gratuitous. A lot of the time I don’t understand the reason for it either, the same scene could be staged without her being in the shower, maybe it was done push boundaries, maybe to be pervy; we can only speculate.

Overall, this is a great film, truly unique and beautifully designed. A good watch, however there is too much nudity which can be a bit uncomfortable.

Pros.

Stunning visuals.

Ambiguous story telling.

Great building sense of tension.

Good performances.

Cons.

Gratuitous nudity.

4.5/5

A Long Way Down: An Anti-FeelGood Comedy

A Long Way Down is a comedy drama film directed by Pascal Chaumeil. The film is based on a novel of the same name by Nick Hornby. The plot follows four people who were all going to kill themselves on New Years Eve, but because of the arrival of the others didn’t. They then all agree to a life pact, an opposite suicide pact and agree to stay alive until Valentines Day. Through their shared pains and new-found friendships they learn to heal and find new reasons to live.

This is the sort of the film you would expect it to be, it is mushy and overly emotional, it ends with all of the characters happy and moved on from their respective issues and two of the character get together; incredibly predictably. That is my issue with this film, everything that you think will happen does. Anyone who has ever seen a similar film before could easily tell you exactly the twists and turns of this film before they even watch this. Formulaic is a word that easily describes this film.

Another thing that bothered me about this film is that considering it is a feel good, mushy film it is not all that happy. A lot of this film is the opposite of inspiring and uplifting, it is depressing. I get that the point is to show them as having nothing left to live for and then turn it around over the course of the film, but rather than do this the film feels bleak until the final 5 minutes and then you get a manic burst of happiness all at once.

Furthermore, Pierce Brosnan’s character is a peado, there is no way around it, the reason he wants to kill himself is because prior to the events of the film his character has an affair with a girl he thought was 25, but it turned out she was 15. We are told this from the off and are then expected to cheer for him and be glad he doesn’t kill himself, but you feel icky the whole time when you think about it. It feels like a needless inclusion for him to be a peado, he could have just had an affair that ruined his life, she didn’t need to be a child.

Overall, this is a feel-good film that isn’t particularly feel good, it wants you to cheer on a sex offender and it is incredibly predictable, so…….

Pros.

The cast is solid.

Cons.

It is depressing.

He is a peado.

It is predictable.

It is painfully average.

1/5

Northern Soul: Keep On Dancing

Northern Soul is a drama music film directed by Elaine Constantine. The plot focuses on the underground northern soul movement in Britain in the 1970’s. Two friends John (Elliot James Langridge) and Matt (Josh Whitehouse), try to make it in the scene and become the most successful DJs in the north. What follows is a journey that tests their minds, friendships and of course their souls.

This film is an interesting watch, it sheds light on a time period and a type of music that is often not looked upon, it teaches you a lot of things you most likely wouldn’t have known otherwise.

The film itself can be hard to watch at times because even when things are going well there is a underlying sense of dread that something is just about to go bad, I suppose this is reflective of life, this film seems to want to be as realistic as possible; no happy endings here.

The most life affirming thing about this film is the friendship the two men share, even when everything goes wrong and all looks lost, the two men carry on and become friends again and it reminds you of the power of friendship. The final scene of the film when the two men walk off to go, and hangout is almost impossible not to make you smile.

The performances for the most part are great, in a heart-breaking sense. This film is just that heart breaking, in many different ways, however, there are moments of comedy that underscore it stopping it from being totally upsetting. Great comedic actors like Steve Coogan and Ricky Thomlinson are in this film, but sadly they only have very small parts.

Overall, this is a heart-breaking look into the Northern Soul scene of the 1970’s, as well as a sad look into the lives of Northerners.

Pros.

It is interesting.

It covers a time period that is rarely done in films.

The performance are great and that includes the cameos.

Cons.

It is a bummer.

It is hard to watch at times.

3/5

Reviewed by Luke

Hunt For The Wilderpeople:Gangsters For Life

Hunt For The Wilderpeople is a comedy drama directed by Taika Waititi. The plot follows Ricky (Julian Dennison), a young troubled boy, who is taken in by an older couple; when his new aunt dies he is left alone with his new uncle Hec (Sam Neil), and the two of them are pursed into the New Zealand bush by the police and by child protective services. Together they go on a journey.

Waititi films are always very special, they’re unique and anyone who has ever seen one will know what I am talking about, they’re quirky and have a distinct voice. This film is proof of that. On it’s surface this film is a coming of age story about a troubled young boy looking for somewhere to belong and a broken-down old man looking for a reason to carry on. However, underneath this there is so much more, it is a story about misfits finding each other about optimism and hope, about the human spirit and never giving up. As such it is easily incredibly uplifting.

The main duo are good, particularly Neil, he plays the bushmaster Hec with a degree of hardened pessimism as well as a misunderstood good heart. The relationship the two share is beautiful, they are so different and yet they come together, and the results are beautiful. The ending of the film when Ricky has a new family, but still wants Hec in his life is so touching and sweet you can’t help but cheer.

The best thing about this film is the cameos, from Waititi himself as well as his regular collaborator Rhys Derby. Waititi plays the priest that carries out Ricky’s adoptive aunt’s funeral and who lays out the philosophy of the film in a simple and funny way and Derby’s incredible performance highlights the film’s central theme, love for the outsider.

Overall, this is a very beautiful, touching film and everyone involved did a great job.

Pros.

The relationship between Hec and Ricky.

The performances of Neil and Dennison.

The humour.

The cameos.

The film’s sensibilities.

Cons.

None at all.

5/5

Reviewed by Luke

Tully: Help When Needed

Tully is a comedy drama film directed by Jason Reitman. It tells the story of a struggling mum of three Marlo (Charlize Theron), who forms a bond with her night nanny Tully (Mackenzie Davis). Tully seems to make everything in Marlo’s life better, while always remaining mysterious and wise beyond her years.

Let’s start off with the most important bit, the twist. In the final moments of the film it is revealed that Tully never existed and that everything that she has done was actually Marlo, having some sort of mental break. The twist isn’t hugely surprising, as right from the beginning there is clearly something off about Tully, however due to the good writing it is never obvious quite what is going on and there are multiple red herrings throughout that throw you off what is actually going on.

This film I believe is classified under the wrong genre, rather than being a comedy film, or even a dark comedy, it is by all means a horror film. It shows motherhood and parenthood as hellish, a never-ending cycle of sleepless nights and screaming kids, this film is enough to put anyone off wanting to have kids.

Mark Duplass plays Marlo’s brother Craig and even though he is only onscreen a very little bit he is terrific every second he is on screen. The two share a scene together and it is electric, and they have a great on-screen connection together.

On top of this the relationship between Tully and Marlo is also fantastic, the two women have a great bond, that sometimes verges on the extreme; which is highlighted in one really uncomfortable scene. Mackenzie Davis is amazing as always; she has a great quirky energy to her that reminded me in a lot of ways of Ellen Page in Juno.

Overall, the performances in this film are terrific and its depiction of motherhood is grounded and realistic; which makes this film a horror in every sense of the word. This film is an acquired taste, but if you give it a go you will see that it has something powerful to say.

Pros.

The performances.

The writing.

The realistic depiction of motherhood.

Cons.

The twist.

Some of the scenes are quite uncomfortable to watch and they don’t add much.

3/5

Reviewed by Luke