Fear Street Part 3: The Worst Irish Accents Ever

3/5

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

The survivors of Sarah Fier’s murderous rampage are transported back in time to see her origin and the truth behind the curse.

There is a twist. A really obvious and blatant one from the start of the film. I won’t spoil it here but suffice it to say that it will hit you in the face several times before it is finally revealed.

Moreover, the Irish accents that our cast are doing in these flash back scenes are particularly bad. They use a lot of the same cast from the previous films to flesh out the residents of Sarah’s township in this one and not a one of them can do an Irish accent, to a point where it becomes laughably bad.

However, therein lies the charm. This film much like the others is dumb fun. There is poor writing and silly moments that are supposed to be scary a plenty, but again it only adds to the charm.

I thought the final showdown was fairly well done it managed some scary moments and it gave everyone what they didn’t know they wanted…… A showdown between all the undead killers for some reason. I did think this final sequence could have been bloodier, but I suppose it is intended for a younger age group.

I thought the flashback storyline with Sarah Fier was interesting as it gave us a good look into the paranoia of witch hunting and provided the most chilling scene of the series with the church mass death sequence.

Overall, a slightly disappointing ending to the series, but still dumb fun.

Pros.

The church sequence

The killer battle royal

The dumb fun

Cons.

The accents

The ending is somewhat disappointing

The twist is super obvious

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Gunpowder Milkshake: In Search Of A Soul

2.5/5

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

A hitwoman finds herself the target of a number of underworld characters after she botches one of her hits and finds herself in the company of her victim’s child.

I am mixed on this. One the one hand I thought the concept and the action to be good. I enjoyed the world this film sets up; I thought The Firm and the Librarians were both interesting groups rife for further exploration. In addition I thought the action choreography was spot on, and many of the scenes feel very real: making the bone crunching all the more impactful.

However, the characters themselves for the most part were entirely devoid of any kind of personality or charm and were instead defined by their role in the narrative. The previous mentioned Librarians don’t really have any kind of personality beyond their job and a previous connection to one of the other characters. Moreover, Karen Gillan’s lead literally barely speaks at all and has no charm or personality either, she remains a mystery throughout though in this case that is a bad thing.

The feminist aspects which this film displays front and centre and that will no doubt annoy some, as many are looking to be offended these days, are clear and present throughout. Whilst many of the things this film is saying on that front are good, the issue comes from the fact that these characters are almost not written as people rather as tools to make certain points, this surely undermines the cause and provides a flaw in the film’s presentation.

I didn’t think the child acting was very good, but I won’t belabour that point as it is low hanging fruit.

Overall, it has potential, but some real character work is needed if this film does indeed return for a sequel.

Pros.

The world

The action

The message

Cons.

The characters are devoid of personality

It feels a little bit too familiar at times

The child acting

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Pig: Food Is The True Window To The Soul, One Of Nicolas Cage’s Best

4/5

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

A former chef goes on a quest to reclaim his truffle pig after it is kidnapped.

Pig is not the film you’re expecting. The trailer played on John Wick vibes and tried to turn it into something it is not, this is not an action thriller film, really quite far from it. This is a soulful reflection on life, love and loss, told often through the facial emotions of the actors rather than through dialogue.

This film almost certainly won’t be everyone’s cup of tea, it is not always a pleasant viewing experience there are moments of extreme grief and trauma throughout that might adversely effect those watching, but they need to be there as it is in these moments that we see the film’s true soul.

Nicolas Cage proves his vulnerability and versatility here in this role as he manages to change between intimidating, cold and detached and passionate breakdown all within the space of a few seconds, this really is one of Cage’s finest performances and proves his strength as a performer. Likewise Alex Wolff is also terrific I believed his emotional damage and his strained relationship with his father and thought his whole performance dripped with nuance.

Overall, this could have very easily have been silly, but it isn’t it is deep and soulful and perhaps one of Cage’s best. Be careful how you view this film before you see it, as the trailers are deeply misleading. Well worth the watch.

Pros.

Cage

Wolff

The emotion

The bond between man and pig

Cons.

A little depressing at times

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Outlaw King: The Fight For An Independent Scotland

4/5

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

The film follows the struggles of Robert The Bruce as he rebels against the English crown and fights to become the King of Scotland.

Though there are a lot of historical epics, this one managed to stand out to me. I thought the pacing was tight and it covered a lot in an interesting way. The film could have easily felt slightly xenophobic and even as anti-English propaganda but honestly I think the film feels far more balanced than that and I found myself easily rooting for Bruce and his cause.

I thought the battle scenes were well done and very weighty enough to leave an impact. Moreover, I thought the performances were strong across the board, with Chris Pine being a dependable leading man throughout, only being upstaged by Aaron Taylor-Johnson’s James Douglas and Florence Pugh’s Elizabeth De Burgh. Truly everyone who said something to the extent of ‘oh Black Widow is Florence Pugh’s big breakout role’ are so deeply ignorant to a well of great performances from her.

Overall, I felt for a Netflix action film this was very standout.

Pros.

Pine

Pugh

Taylor-Johnson

The battle scenes

Cons.

Perhaps just a tad bloated

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Space Jam 2: Blatant Product Placement Strangely Works Here

4/5

Written by Luke Barnes

I will admit I went into this with very, very low expectation. However, the film completely took me by surprise and I actually ended up really enjoying it. Yes, the film is a blatant excuse by the higher ups at WB to constantly advertise all their various properties, and yes it is excessive with the product placement, but in a strange way it all works well.

I think the reason this film works so well is because of how self-aware it is, it knows what it is, it knows what it is doing, and it makes a joke out of it. Honestly, this film is quite funny in a lot of places and it often has you laughing or at least smiling. Yes, there are a few cringey lines here and there, but they aren’t bad cringe and some of these lines prove to be amongst the funniest.

Lebron James is by no means a natural actor, but he is very watchable, and I would say he does a better job than Michael Jordan in the first film. I believed his bond with his son and in that respect I found the ending of the film to be surprisingly touching. Additionally, James has strong chemistry with the Tunes and him and Bugs are a good pairing. I would like this film to get a sequel so we can get more of them together.

In terms of being a Looney Tunes property this modernised the characters well and gave them a compelling motivation to help James and in doing so return to the court. The one comment I would make in this regard is that this is very much a Bugs Bunny film, and though the other well known characters appear he gets pretty much all of the screen time. Bugs ending runs the gambit between heart breaking and cheer-worthy, and you feel every minute of it.

Overall, the strongly negative response this film has brought out from a lot of people seems to be out of a sense of nostalgia, they are comparing this to the first film that they make have childhood connections with and viewing it like that this film never could have lived up. However, I think not only is this a good film, but I would say it is even better than the first.

Pros.

James

The Tunes characters

The emotions

The jokes

Cons.

It is a little blatant with the product placement

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Crash Pad: The Most Toxic Male Character In A Film Possibly Ever

3/5

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

A hapless romantic who finds out the woman he has been seeing is married is surprised when her angry alpha male husband moves in with him.

Though I love Thomas Haden Church his character in this is one of the most toxic characters ever put to film, though I suppose that is the point. Yes, some of the lines that Church’s character comes out with are utterly repellent over the course of the film, but from a narrative perspective this is needed to show how much our sweet and sensitive protagonist has changed him and vice versa.

Speaking of this is Domhnall Glesson’s film. Gleeson plays Stensland a romantic who spends his days watching Dawson’s Creek and his nights dreaming about finding the one. I found this film really managed to tap into the very specific comedic talents of Gleeson and capitalise on them near perfectly: the only time I have seen it done better is in Frank with Michael Fassbender.

The comedy in the film is fairly hit and miss. It made me laugh a few times, but it certainly wasn’t a laugh a minute. I would say more hits than misses for sure. Gleeson and Church have a strong back and forth and by the end of the film their friendship feels very genuine and believable.

I thought one of the big negatives of this film was relegating the phenomenally talented Christina Applegate to a weak supporting part. Applegate plays Church’s characters wife Morgan and is used as nothing more than a romantic interest. The film deeply underserves both the character and the actor.

Overall, Domhnall Gleeson shines through a troubled film.

Pros.

Gleeson

Church

It has a nice message in the end

Cons.

Some of the lines are incredibly off putting

Applegate is deeply underwritten, and the character is not allowed to be more than a romantic interest

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My Super Ex Girlfriend: Deeply Sexist Hollywood

1.5/5

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

Unassuming office worker Matt Saunders, Luke Wilson, begins a relationship with Jennifer Johnson, Uma Thurman, who would later turn out to be a superhero. All seems to be going well at first and then the two suffer a bad breakup.

This film hates women. Maybe that is a touch hyperbolic but there is more than enough proof to demonstrate this film’s negative opinion of women. Firstly, the lead is crazy and becomes aggressive and manic when she feels jealous of another women, which feels sexist to its core. It furthers the idea of the hysterical woman who is controlled by her emotions and who needs a man to keep her in check.

Moreover, there is a plethora of sexist jokes coming in from the supporting cast with Rainn Wilson’s Vaughn, being perhaps one of the sleaziest side characters ever and worst of all we are still supposed to like him despite the fact he only views women as sexual objects to use for this own pleasure.

Uma Thurman and Luke Wilson are fun to watch on screen and do have the odd funny line or smile inducing moment hence this film not getting lower, but that does not make up for the fact that this film is sexist in nearly every possible way, deeply and utterly.

Overall, proof of how bad the studio comedy can be when it is not worried of being called out online.

Pros.

Thurman

Wilson

Cons.

It is sexist

It pushes harmful stereotypes

The side characters are toxic as hell

The film’s jokes mostly don’t work

It is offensive

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Ride The Eagle: The Best Film Of The Year That You Have Not Seen

4.5/5

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

A man must complete his deceased mother’s to do list in order to receive her cabin as his inheritance.

There is so much depth, heart and soul to this film- it is beautiful. This film made me cry and I would wager it would do the same for you, as it strikes the feels harder than ever the saddest of Pixar films. However, that is not to say this film is sad, far from it. If anything this film is a joyful embrace of life, living in the moment and chances taken.

The performances across the board are terrific. Jake Johnson excels in these intimate character driven indie comedies and he really brings a rawness to his performance here that makes it instantly memorable. J. K Simmons is also strong here though he only has a very minor role, whilst he is on screen he does steal the scenes and has a few good lines. The same can be said for D’Arcy Carden, who has a really strong chemistry with Johnson, so much so that I would like to see the two star in more things together.

The ending is both heart-breaking and also smile inducing and is almost certainly going to make you feel something. A big part of this is the wonderful performance by Susan Sarandon who plays the deceased mother through a series of VHS tapes she has left behind for her son to watch, Sarandon’s acting is powerful, and I challenge you not to cry in the film’s final ten minutes.

Overall, an indie gem that you need to see.

Pros.

Johnson

Carden

Sarandon

Simmons

The ending

Cons.

It won’t be to everyone’s taste

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Escape Room Tournament Of Champions: Minos Is Basically God

2.5/5

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

The survivors of all the previous Minos escape rooms are brought together to see who is the best at solving life and death puzzles.

After watching the first film on New Year’s day I was very excited for this sequel I thought that the first film set up a very interesting conspiracy and I wanted answers. We do get some answers here, but for the most part the conspiracy is pumped up to a laughably degree. In the first film Minos were simply a group of wealthy people who are betting on which of the kidnapped participants will survive to the end of the escape room experience. Here they now have untold power over the world at large and control the police the transportation networks and can get you at any time. They have more than overdone it, to a point where the characters basically can’t win.

Moreover, the film ends rather abruptly, the characters are just starting to win and fight back against the system, when bang it is all over and they are at a police station telling their story and you think ‘wait what is that it?’, it is jarring.

I did not like the twist at the end as I have previously said it now makes the threat of Minos simply ridiculous and their ability to stay covert even more so.

The acting is okay here but the cast is mostly wasted, for the most part everyone is only here to be used as fodder for the various rooms. They even bring back Deborah Ann Woll’s character from the first film, who was my personal favourite however, she only gets five minutes of screen time and is then quickly forgotten about.

Overall, a needless sequel that struggles to live up to the first film. If they do a third film I won’t rush out to see it.

Pros.

The escape rooms are neat

It is nice to see Deborah Ann Woll’s character return

Cons.

The ending

It feels rushed

They ruin the threat of Minos

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The Forever Purge: Hasn’t This Happened Already

4/5

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

Turns out one night of purging is not enough for some people, so they have now decided to make it all year round.

I think out of all the films in the Purge franchise this is the scariest. The reason for that being that this is the most true to reality, in that in could happen; and some might say it already has. The frightening thing about this film is how much of an accurate reflection of our own reality it is.

I don’t like how this blatantly throws the third film, Election Year, to the wolves: for those of you who don’t know the series, the third film saw the purge be brought to an end and NFFA be voted out of power. Within the first few moments of this film that is just undone and ignored, which feels like a lazy write around. Though that said it does work as a comment on the cyclical nature of modern politics.

Though the action in this film does feel a little repetitive at times, it is still done in a very tense way that forces you to sit up and take notice. There is a moment in this film where one of the character is stook in a trap and is about to have a whole put in her head, and honestly you can feel it as you watch. It feels traumatic.

The ending of the film does pose and interesting question as to where the series is going to go from here. I would like to see the fight between the NFFA and the far right radicals that were born out of their movement, or perhaps a worldwide purge. However, one thing is for sure the franchise still has a lot of life left in it.

Overall, a lot better than I was expecting. Powerful and honestly very damning of our current world.

Pros.

The social commentary

The ending

The friendship between the two men and its take on modern day racism

Tense and hard to watch at times

Cons.

It ignores Election Year

It does get a little repetitive

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