Films round-up
Apr. 10th, 2023 05:19 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
rich_jackoSorry, short reviews only. Longer ones take me too long and I'm not sure anyone reads them anyway! They're mainly a reminder for me of the films I've seen.
Violent Night - David Harbour plays a suitably grumpy Santa (the real Santa) who comes to the rescue when a rich family is held hostage by gangsters. The filmmakers know what they're aiming for, with shades of Die Hard and Home Alone, and they succeed.
Avatar: The Way of Water - Extremely pretty and totally pointless sequel which retreads much of the first. Turns into a teenage drama, then a Disney cartoon, then a best-of-Cameron action flick. Exactly what you'd expect really.
Empire of Light - Olivia Coleman heads up a stellar cast in this low-key portrait of a disparate group of people working in a small coastal cinema. Part mental health drama, part '80s historical pic, part love letter to the cinema. Highly recommended.
M3gan - Raises some deep questions about both the nature of grief and our over-reliance on technology. Ultimately though, it's a Blumhouse horror about a killer doll murdering people in lots of creative ways. Does what it does very well.
Babylon - Decadent and over-the-top describes the film as much as the seedy underbelly of the 1920s Hollywood era it portrays. Diego Calva, Margot Bobbie and Brad Pitt star. Worth a watch if you can stand the 3hr+ running time (It covers a lot of ground!).
Everything Under Control - Bonkers Hong Kong genre-mashup comedy about a heist gone wrong. Security guards and gangsters tangle with a remote village, whose inhabitants are more than a match for them. Better than the poor reviews suggest, but not entirely successful.
The Fabelmans - Semi-autobiographical Spielberg drama about a young lad's journey to become a filmmaker. A very different tribute from Empire of Light to the magic of cinema - certainly schmaltzier, but you'd have to be hard-hearted not to enjoy it.
Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania - Mainly an introduction to new big bad, Kang (Jonathan Majors). Michelle Pfeiffer and Michael Douglas both get a lot to do this time, which is good. The problem is the quantum realm feels like a video game, with nothing real to latch onto.
Knock at the Cabin - Surprisingly good M. Night Shyamalan film, mainly thanks to a superb performance from Dave Bautista, as the leader of a cult who captures a family in their cabin. Makes the most of it's rather thin and far-fetched premise.
All Quiet on the Western Front - A German POV of life in the trenches, which emphasises how much pointless suffering WW1 similarly caused on both sides. There's a side plot about armistice negotiations but mostly this is a look at the tragic loss of young lives.
65 - Adam Driver finds himself stuck on Earth 65 million years ago. This is from the makers of A Quiet Place, and it shows. There are surprisingly few dinosaurs, with the impending meteor being the real threat. It's okay, but nothing special.
Scream VI - The original and still best of the knowing, self-referential horror franchises. Lots of call-backs to past films but you don't need to have seen them. Smart, scary and full of very black humour, with some tense and inventive set pieces.
Dungeons & Dragons: Honour Among Thieves - Finally, a D&D film which genuinely captures the feel of the game! Every bit as unashamedly madcap as I'd hoped for. I recognised about a thousand game references and probably missed a billion more. Gotta love an Owlbear!
Violent Night - David Harbour plays a suitably grumpy Santa (the real Santa) who comes to the rescue when a rich family is held hostage by gangsters. The filmmakers know what they're aiming for, with shades of Die Hard and Home Alone, and they succeed.
Avatar: The Way of Water - Extremely pretty and totally pointless sequel which retreads much of the first. Turns into a teenage drama, then a Disney cartoon, then a best-of-Cameron action flick. Exactly what you'd expect really.
Empire of Light - Olivia Coleman heads up a stellar cast in this low-key portrait of a disparate group of people working in a small coastal cinema. Part mental health drama, part '80s historical pic, part love letter to the cinema. Highly recommended.
M3gan - Raises some deep questions about both the nature of grief and our over-reliance on technology. Ultimately though, it's a Blumhouse horror about a killer doll murdering people in lots of creative ways. Does what it does very well.
Babylon - Decadent and over-the-top describes the film as much as the seedy underbelly of the 1920s Hollywood era it portrays. Diego Calva, Margot Bobbie and Brad Pitt star. Worth a watch if you can stand the 3hr+ running time (It covers a lot of ground!).
Everything Under Control - Bonkers Hong Kong genre-mashup comedy about a heist gone wrong. Security guards and gangsters tangle with a remote village, whose inhabitants are more than a match for them. Better than the poor reviews suggest, but not entirely successful.
The Fabelmans - Semi-autobiographical Spielberg drama about a young lad's journey to become a filmmaker. A very different tribute from Empire of Light to the magic of cinema - certainly schmaltzier, but you'd have to be hard-hearted not to enjoy it.
Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania - Mainly an introduction to new big bad, Kang (Jonathan Majors). Michelle Pfeiffer and Michael Douglas both get a lot to do this time, which is good. The problem is the quantum realm feels like a video game, with nothing real to latch onto.
Knock at the Cabin - Surprisingly good M. Night Shyamalan film, mainly thanks to a superb performance from Dave Bautista, as the leader of a cult who captures a family in their cabin. Makes the most of it's rather thin and far-fetched premise.
All Quiet on the Western Front - A German POV of life in the trenches, which emphasises how much pointless suffering WW1 similarly caused on both sides. There's a side plot about armistice negotiations but mostly this is a look at the tragic loss of young lives.
65 - Adam Driver finds himself stuck on Earth 65 million years ago. This is from the makers of A Quiet Place, and it shows. There are surprisingly few dinosaurs, with the impending meteor being the real threat. It's okay, but nothing special.
Scream VI - The original and still best of the knowing, self-referential horror franchises. Lots of call-backs to past films but you don't need to have seen them. Smart, scary and full of very black humour, with some tense and inventive set pieces.
Dungeons & Dragons: Honour Among Thieves - Finally, a D&D film which genuinely captures the feel of the game! Every bit as unashamedly madcap as I'd hoped for. I recognised about a thousand game references and probably missed a billion more. Gotta love an Owlbear!
