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My list of most disturbing movies I've seen
Films about writing and writers
Top ten movies of the last ten years.
Top 30 movies
Movies that make me cry
Films that never should have been made.
Films I'm dying to see
Best music films
Less than good movies
Most Sexist Movies
Reviews
The Penguin: A Great or Little Thing (2024)
Tense, heartbreaking and absolutely BRILLIANT
What a way to end a great mini series!
I was on the edge of my seat the entire time. I had no idea what was going to happen but I knew that things would not end well for certain characters.
Everything that I wanted to happen, happened, including a few shocking twists that I did not see coming.
Just like Centanni, this episode changes everything. Everything you thought you knew about Oz is turned on its head. He effectively goes from an opportunist underdog gangster and someone you can kind of sympathise with, to a truly evil monster and a formidable foe to Batman.
What this series does so well is to tell complex, nuanced stories about villains: Explaining their backstory, establishing their motivations and sharing some of their humanity on screen, while still making it clear that they are not good people.
Every main actor is good in this, but both Colin Farrell Cristin Milioti are absolutely incredible and should absolutely win awards.
It truly feels good to get into a show that not only is good all the way, but really pays off at the end.
So now I can't wait for Batman 2! ^^
The Outrun (2024)
Part recovery film, part love of nature pic
Having read both several of Liptrot's essays and her novel that this film is based on, I can definitely say it is an extremely well crafted adaptation that is mesmerising to watch.
The film takes place in several timelines: The present, where Rona, an alcoholic former biology student, having completed a stint in a strict rehab facility, returns to her childhood home in the Orkney Islands. She stays with her family for a bit, only to stay a little longer having found a job as a bird watcher.
Like the novel, this story is mostly non-linear, especially her days in London where she is off her face on booze and her personal life falls apart. It's difficult to pinpoint a timeline when things spiral, mostly because of her change in hair colour. It goes from full blue, to blonde, to pink, to pink tips, to blue tips and then blonde again.
There seems to be a pattern in movies with alcoholic/drug addicted female protagonists and thier changing hair colours. Both Four Good Days and To Leslie feature similar plots of women failing to stay sober even when they've lost everything. The difference here is that there is a strong beauty and connection with nature and an almost fantasy-like place in the form of the Orkney Islands. A place where filming on location does not feature often in movies.
Saoirse Ronan is absolutely terrific in this. Her drunken meltdowns are hard to watch and her promises to change are null and void since we know she will absolutely drink again.
I myself have struggled with alcoholism, but I don't lose control in the way that Ronan does when she drinks.
The use of cinematography and sound is absolutely amazing and I hope this will be nominated for a few awards!
Craith (2018)
Bleak Welsh detective thriller
I do believe it's very important for the Welsh language to be spoken in some of these shows and films, as it is a dying language. So when I saw that there was a Welsh detective series, I jumped at the chance of watching it.
This is an incredibly slow burn, bleak downbeat reverse whodunnit set in Wales. You already know who is responsible for the dead body of a girl found in the river, and what you basically witness is the killer and abductor going about his day, with his dysfunctional family, and his hunt and capture of his next victims.
This also highlights the misogyny and the epidemic of violence against women. The way women are not taken seriously when they have a gut feeling about a strange individual. The anger and nastiness men feel and express about women in charge, or when they make their own decisions. And then there is also the condoning of abuse or murder, and the victim blaming that goes with it.
On the negative side, I absolutely do think this series could have been much shorter. There are long sections in it that seriously slow the pace down, and could have done with a lot more time in the editing room; as the information provided through character's actions and reactions are later explained through dialogue. Three or four episodes would have probably sufficed.
The acting is very good, especially from Gwyneth KeyWorth (teenage victim Megan) and Gillian Elisa (Dylan's mother Iona Harris)
The Penguin: Cent'Anni (2024)
This changes everything
So far, The Penguin has been one of those series that has been consistently good. And that we would follow the protagonist Oz Cobb throughout his schemes and plans to take over the criminal empire after the death of Carmine Falcone.
In this episode, we find out Sofia Falcone, Carmine's daughter's backstory. And I absolutely was not prepared for the horror that unfolded.
After she contacts a reporter after being suspicious of her father's role in the death of her mother, her father silences and punishes her by locking her up in the Arkham Asylum, falsely accusing her of multiple murders of women he committed . Every shred of humanity is stripped away from her: Stripped down, cavity searched, beaten to a pulp by a prisoner, multiple shock therapies and denied trial for over ten years. Every single member of her family apart from her brother Alberto condemns her to the place, saying she is mentally ill.
This is honestly my worst nightmare. As someone who is autistic, I've often been accused of lying, being confused and not taken seriously. As well as severe bullying.
So there's no doubt that I'm now rooting for Sofia instead of The Penguin. I was absolutely thrilled when she took her revenge on the family members who made sure she stayed in that hell hole. There's nothing more satisfying that burning an entire corrupt institution to the ground.
The Substance (2024)
Ladies and gentleman... THIS is cinema.
I can't believe what I just saw. This movie is a masterpiece in horror cinema.
This is essentially The Fly meets Cinderella, injected with drugs.
I adore a film that challenges the ridiculousness of beauty standards. This film does do that, but cranks it up to not 11, not 20, but 100+. It is absolutely effing insane.
Elizabeth Sparkle (a still gorgeous Demi Moore, let's not forget it!) is a veteran starlet who has been kicked out of her job due to ageism. After getting into a car accident, she is given an oppurtunity to literally transform herself into a younger, tighter, more beautiful version of herself. She reluctantly agrees. From the get-go, this is dodgy AF. But she is desperate, so she goes for it.
What emerges from this is Sue (Margaret Qualey) the version Sparkle wants to get back, and who ends up replacing her. There are so many shots of butts, boobs and thighs in this film, but it's not done in a way that is exploitative. It's all the parts that women want, and all the parts that men want.
Like in Gremlins, like in The Fly, rules are broken due to pride. And once the rules are broken, it begins to go south very, very far.
What I love about its Cronenbergian roots, is that, like Rachel Weisz's take on Dead Ringers, this is a feminist, female-driven version of Seth Brundle's quest for perfection - that goes horribly wrong.
It is also a massive big finger to the vacuous, youth and beauty obsessed nature of celebrity culture. The buccal fat removal, the Ozempic injections and all of the cosmetic surgery that high-paid celebs get to afford.
Also, like The Fly, it is an incredibly sad tale about loneliness, isolation and the pressure you feel to be a better version of yourself. One of the first things I noticed about the film, is there is very little dialogue. Because Elizabeth has no friends, doesn't talk to anyone outside of work and lives on her own. Even when the prospect of a date from a schoolfriend comes up ("You're still the most beautiful girl I've ever seen!") Elizabeth still doesn't feel worthy enough to match her former self.
Guaranteed this will not be for everyone. But for all the horror fans and masochistic freaks like me who love to challenge themselves, this is the long awaited film for you.
Beetlejuice Beetlejuice (2024)
Funny and well-acted, but knocks off points for its ending
I will assess that I did have a good time watching this film. It made me laugh out loud quite a few times and I absolutely adored seeing some of the characters back again.
Michael Keaton is in his 70s, yet he slips back into this character like a second skin so easily. I absolutely loved his character. Despite still being considered "The antagonist" of the film series, he does quite a few heroic things along the way.
Catherine O Hara's Deelia was probably the most hilarious character of the bunch. I thought that Lydia and Astrid's relationship could have been fleshed out a little more since they were at the heart of the story, but they went very well together.
Probably my biggest gripe was its ending. The original had a definitive ending that wrapped things up well. But in this one, there is an implication that there could be a sequel - which Tim Burton confirmed they're won't be.
The other minor thing is of course, that the Maitlands don't make an appearance in this film. Although it's true that both Geena Davis and Alec Baldwin have drastically aged and in Davis's words "Ghosts don't age", they could have been recast for a cameo. The explanation as to why they are not there is, as Astrid points out "Too convenient "
There are also many plot strands that get resolved way too quickly. Most notably Monica Bellucci as Beetlejuice's vengeful ex wife who has found a way to kill ghosts.
It definitely doesn't surpass the original, but it is a fun Halloween film. So it does go well as a double bill with the first one.
Don't Hug Me I'm Scared 6 (2016)
An incredible, satirical horror puppet show.
I watched this after a recommendation from YouTuber Ryan Hollinger.
The basic premise consists of three puppet characters sitting in their flat, or outside, doing not much, within a single day, as different non sentient appliances come alive and sing a song about different things to improve their lives, such as creativity, intelligence, love and death. Only their lessons become self contradictory and ultimately turn to dark, nefarious motivations.
Duck is constantly suffering from abuse and violence. Yellow guy is suffering from loneliness and mental illness. And the last, Red guy with a spaghetti mop-like head, is rendered cynical and unfulfilled due to the mundane, life sucking job and lack of social interaction.
Despite this show intending to be a satirical parody of constantly happy British children's TV shows, I've honesty grown to love these characters, and I really didn't want any thing truly bad to happen to them.
The themes of existentialism, cultish coercion and the inevitability of the loss of innocence are things I really love to see, especially when done right.
That's not to say the series didn't freak me out quite a bit at times. That mounting dread that you feel, not knowing what is going on, but knowing that it's wrong, is a terrifying experience.
Gwledd (2021)
An atmospheric horror that falls apart in its last act.
I had been wanting to watch a Welsh-speaking language for a long time. But sadly despite the great cinematography, intriguing setting and creepy atmosphere, it completely fails to live up to its synopsis by its frankly bizarre and unresolved conclusion.
I have no freaking idea what the whole film was about in the end. Was Cadi a supernatural being that possessed people? What were her motivations?
I had to look online to figure out what the hell was going on, which is always a sign that the film has failed. Basically Cadi is indeed a vengeful spirit punishing the rich, privileged family and friends for destroying the land with their greed and capitalism. The very fact that it doesn't deal with the human issues in that way (such as Gweiredd raping girls at the hospital and the mother's fraught relationship with her family) proves how weak it is.
Although it did have some remnants of Hereditary and The Witch, there is no great payoff and I found myself increasingly frustrated. There's crucial information that should have been used better, but not fully explored.
What a disappointment.
The Bikeriders (2023)
Love the look, but several things were missing.
The production, the music and feel of this film reminded me of a Scorsese flick. There is certainly a sense of danger in the film and it has an amazing cast of actors playing interesting roles.
So why did I feel that something was missing?
In Goodfellas, you understand why Henry Hill found the mafia life so intoxicating. But with this, there wasn't really that much to be said about Austin Butler's character. Probably because the story is told from Kathy(Jodie Comer) s' point of view. I felt like we were not able to get a look inside their emotional worlds of these men.
I liked the concept of an organization starting out innocent and small, only for it grow bigger and become insanely corrupted afterwards. There are a lot of famous organizations who have gone down that route.
It's not the grand epic that people were led to believe it was. Jodie Comer is brilliant in it, but then she's brilliant in anything. Tom Hardy was good but not exceptional. And I wanted more from Butler.
7 out of 10.
Back to Black (2024)
Amy who?
I honestly do believe that if you have a documentary about a famous, beloved singer that tells you so much about the subject, with intimate footage and how they practice their craft and the eventual downfall of of the celebrity, while reminding us that they are human, a fun biopic is not what is needed.
In the same vein as the Whitney Houston biopic I Wanna Dance With Somebody, this is not only extraordinarily sanitized, having the family stamp of approval (something the Asif Kapadia film did not have) but portraying them as blameless saints when in actuality they were far from perfect. The same as the Whitney film, when you have powerful people still working in the industry who want to protect their image, they will tell lies to in order to make themselves look great.
The fact is, both Houston and Winehouse were taken advantage of by the music industry, and by the men around them. And while it wasn't entirely on those two factors that the singers ended up where they did, it certainly contributed to it. Addicts don't just become addicts. There is always a inciting incident that starts it.
Amy Winehouse was very clear in her words about music and the fame. She wanted people to feel the raw vulnerability in her songwriting. She didn't want packed stadiums as she was an old school jazz musician. And what flipped her over the edge was being forced to do things she didn't want to do when she was in a vulnerable state.
The movie does the complete opposite of what Amy really felt like, what happened to her and what she said. The lead actress Marisa Abela was really great as Amy, but this jumbled up so many things that made Amy the complex, yet once in a lifetime phenomenal talent that she was, it is not worth watching.
Want to find out about the real Amy? Watch the 2015 documentary or just sit back and listen to her music.
Eric (2024)
A fantastic, well crafted odyssey in 80s New York - with puppets
This is an absolutely gorgeous, dark, hard hitting brilliantly created series about an alcoholic puppeteer whose son Edgar, goes missing on his way to school, and a detective who uncovers corruption while searching for the boy.
Cumberbatch's Vincent is a very unpleasant man who pretty much alienates everyone at work and at home with his abrasive behaviour and vulgar abuse. But while his character Phil in the Power of the Dog was violently sadistic, Vincent is simply utterly clueless as to how he affects everyone - due to the vileness of his cold, privileged parents, and their complete lack of understanding of mental health. If you are not embraced with the basic needs of love and support as a child, what chance have you got later in life?
Detective Mike Ledroit, a black gay cop in charge of finding missing people, must conceal his sexuality and love for his partner, a much older man dying of AIDS and he is pressured by a lot of angry frustrated people to find young boys that continue to go missing.
The world-building that Abby Morgan has created is truly phenomenal. When a show runner/director brings you full throttle into a completely different world with some similarities to our world, it's a winner. She really has captured the roughness and the griminess of the 1980s.
It's certainly not an easy watch, especially for those who have children. But it is an important one. It's really about the toxicity of fathers and how that affects their children. About being true to oneself and fight for justice rather than just stand by and ignore everything.
I honestly don't usually bingewatch series all in one go as I love to pace myself while watching them. But with this one, I just couldn't stop. It was THAT addictive.
Wicked Little Letters (2023)
The full on comedy is let down by its tonal inconsistencies.
While this film is absolutely hilarious in parts, it doesn't manage to fall under the category of comedy. Nor does it do that good a job with its historical accurancy.
The real life story of the Littlehampton libel letters is a much more complex one, a darker tale full of flawed, unlikeable characters. The movie version soft-pedals certain events in order to tell a story about the oppression of women at this certain time in Britain. The sexual discrimination Police Officer Gladys Moss suffers is mirrored with the domestic abuse Edith suffers at home at the hands of her cruel, misogynistic father Edward. While this does lead to some revelations about certain characters - this dark tone contrasts with the hilarious vulgarity of the dialogue in other scenes. And sadly it doesn't always balance out.
Timothy Spall's character is very one- dimensional. He is far too cartoonishly evil and therefore doesn't have any nuance.
While the character of Moss shows what hardships women had to endure when they took on "men's work", in real life she was not Indian, which would have added a whole new layer of difficulty for her in that time and place - even though Anjana Vasan is really fantastic in the role.
The two leads Olivia Coleman and Jessie Buckley are fantastic as ever in this. And their chemistry radiates, which does help the film a lot.
The interesting thing about the swearing is that when it's used as a dry joke, and in the letters, which are very peculiar, it's funny. But when it is used by men to put women down and abuse them, it absolutely is not.
Overall not quite the funny romp I was hoping for, but still enjoyable in parts.
Love Lies Bleeding (2024)
Bad gays go everywhere.
This is such a unique and electrifying premise. The subject of a film noir, featuring female body building and gay women is something that is incredibly exciting.
While Rose Glass's first film Saint Maud showed a lot of promise, this film pretty much cements the director as talent to watch.
Kristen Stewart is as brilliant as she has ever been in this role. It's one she's clearly very much at ease with. Katie O Brian also truly shines in this role that seemed to be tailor-made for her. Especially given the fact that she not only was a body builder at some point in her life, but she also worked as a police officer for seven years.
As for the lesbians going wild about this film, there are a lot of passionate raunchy sex scenes between the two leads, and it is HOT.
It also should be noted that NONE of the characters in the film are good people, not even the two lead women. It was a very welcome change to see two gay women in a mainstream film be incredibly flawed and make stupid, and I mean STUPID mistakes.
Which brings me to the crux of the film: Careless, obsessive love costs lives.
The "Love is like a drug" theme is done extremely well here. The unconditional love, the messy love, the destructive love, and the "love will hurt you the most" love.
There is also a lot to be said on how this plays on bodies. You have Jackie, who was teased as kid for being fat, bulk herself up to the max and be larger than life. In contrast, there is Lou who chain-smokes and eats ready made meals, and Daisy, Lou's possessive and suspicious off again, on again girlfriend who rots her set of teeth with sweets.
It's a great little twist on the western noir genre.
Daisy Jones & the Six (2023)
More of this, please!
The book that this series is based on absolutely blew me away. The characters, the relationships, the troubles and the feelings that run high, the chemistry and of course the music - all of it is perfect!
Riley Keogh is a perfect Daisy Jones and she is absolutely who I pictured in the novel. Sam Claflin as Billy Dunne I was a little less convinced - however Claflin played him extremely well.
This has a few differences from the book - such as Simone, Daisy's friend, having a much bigger role as a disco singer coming to terms with her sexuality, as well as Camilla's role in the episodes expanded.
The messiness of falling for someone in the famous band is on full display here. The heartbreak, the flawed dynamics, addiction and mental health. You absolutely do believe you are witnessing the rise and fall of an actual band (this one being particularly inspired by the career and lives of Fleetwood Mac)
Taylor Jenkins Reid's library is full of gems like these, and I can't wait to see what they do with the rest of her novel adaptations.
The Zone of Interest (2023)
Zone of discomfort
There isn't any onscreen violence in this film. And yet the implication of what you see is far more disturbing than any gore or physical stuff.
A boy examines several gold teeth - we know where they came from.
A nazi officer wipes away blood from his shoe - we know what happened.
A woman tries on new sets of clothing - we know they belonged to someone else.
Skulls and ash - we know who the victims are
The sounds of screaming, shouting and occasional gunshots - sometimes loud enough, other times mixing with other sounds - we know what is going on.
This is a masterclass in subtlety and depiction of the banality of evil. The casualty in cruelness and indifference towards what is literally happening on the other side of the wall is palpable. It makes you super aware of your surroundings.
Not always a pleasant watch, but an important and brilliantly made film.
Poor Things (2023)
Enter the colourful, wonderfully weird world of Bella Baxter.
This film is delightfully gorgeous to look at. Emma Stone is not only physically mesmerising, but her character arc is one of the most incredible to witness. And she completely embraces the character without any shame or reticence, and it's just simply amazing.
Like Lanthimos's last film, The Favourite, which was considerably a lot more than "Mean Girls with high stakes", this film is also considerably a lot more than "Feminist retelling of Frankenstein". It has a lot of philosophical ideas about the human condition, about mankind's cruelty towards others and the role of women in society. It's like a brilliant collection of weird, fancy chocolates all in one movie.
Delightfully bizzare, unabashedly forthcoming and bravely experimental, this is nothing short of a triumph.
Lanthimos and Stone have done it yet again!
The End We Start From (2023)
Motherhood and social disasters collide.
While I don't know what it's like to have a baby, this film certainly paints a pretty accurate picture of what it's like to have your world turned upside down by the arrival of a newborn. Only this time, it happens just as the country is almost completely flooded and society has been thrown into chaos.
The book that this film is based on reminded me of both The Impossible and The Handmaid's Tale - dystopian horror mixed with motherhood and the effects it has on women.
This film takes a rather different approach to the story. It reminded me of the Covid lockdown, how the whole world was in chaos and how greedy people can become. This story is centered almost entirely on Jodie Comer's character's relationship with her baby, the effects it has on her body and mind, and all the while dealing with terrible tragedies.
It features a warming, delightful cameo by Benedict Cumberbatch, along with a sweet relationship the MC has with a fellow mother (Katherine Waterson).
Although I would have liked a little more insight into the world building, this is a really beautiful, devastating and intimate indie film about the upheaval of motherhood and environmental nightmares, the latter of which sadly could very well become our reality.
Wish (2023)
A terrible way to celebrate 100 years
This movie is Bland with a capitol B.
It fails at so many aspects, it's difficult to pinpoint which one is the worst.
For a start, it completely misses the point of how wishes in media work. The conflict arrises when Magnifico refuses to grant Asha's wish - which is really her grandfather's wish. Saba wants to "inspire the next generation" which Magnifico describes as too vague. And he is right. He keeps most of the wishes to himself, due to a trauma in his past and so the wishes don't spin out of control. A perfectly sound reason. What if some people's wishes involve killing a relative to get money? Or getting revenge on someone in a horrible way?
But no, the film doesn't go any further than that, other than saying 'he's a meglomaniac with fascist ideology and dismisses the heroine as too young and naive to understand.'
Which brings me to Asha.
She is one of, if not the most, blandest Disney Princesses I've ever seen. Mulan disguised herself as a man and fought hard in the army to save her father from death. Tiana scrimped and saved every penny to open a restaurant in her late father's honour. Relatable goals, correct?
Well Asha quite literally has no agency of her own except that she wants the best for her people and her family. This would have worked if there were real stakes involved. But when Magnifico crushes wishes, all the people do is get a little bit sad.
All of my favourite Disney movies are the ones who have a bit of darkness to them, beloved character deaths, mature themes and hard life lessons. Watching this and knowing so many ways it could have improved is incredibly disappointing.
As for the songs, they don't fare any better. Ariana DeBose certainly has an amazing voice, and Chris Pine can also definitely sing, but the lyrics and their placement are all over the place. The "I Want Song" This Wish is uninspiring. This Is The Thanks I Get doesn't do the thing villain songs is supposed to. At All Costs sounds more like a romantic ballad than the villain and the heroine singing to the wishes. And I'm A Star is utterly disposable.
It's clear the creators were more interested in putting in easter eggs of other Disney creations rather than making something wholly original and memorable. They just kept playing it safe at every turn.
Very, very disappointing.
Anatomie d'une chute (2023)
Fantastic and fascinating legal drama
This is so much more than your average trial film. It is a deep dive into themes of memory, of domestic drama and fallouts from traumatic incidents.
This film also has the distinction of switching between both French and English. This is the first film I've seen that properly deals with what it feels like to be bilingual, and how one feels more at ease with one language than they do with another. Samuel is francophone, but Sandra is German, yet fluent in English, and cannot express herself as precisely in French. This, along with accusations of plagiarism and infidelity, as well as the difficulty of raising a blind son, leads to extreme conflict within the relationship.
The concept of memory is also invoked. A character tells another: if you are not sure what is true, then you must tell the truth that you are the most comfortable with.
All of this makes for a hypnotic film that leaves you glued to the screen. All the actors involved are absolutely brilliant, even the dog!
Incredible work from all involved. :)
How to Have Sex (2023)
The Hangover for girls: the real deal
Men who behave in horny, hedonistic ways on holiday can continue to do so well into their old age without consequences. Women do the same, and they become victims.
That is the message, I believe, that comes out of this coming of age film, where three British girls let off some steam before exams come, with excessive drinking and partying and trying to get laid.
It portrays a hangover perfectly: What may have been absolutely awesome the night before, turns into a dull or even nightmarish affair the day after. Its depiction of how consent tips so delicately into one balance or the other is really well shown.
I think this is one of my top ten films of the last 10 years. The movie has a great flow and natural feel to it that I really loved. Everything was so realistically captured: the feel of youth, the uncertainty, the awkwardness, the loud drunkenness and the feeling that some things will not always last forever, like friendship and innocence.
What If...?: What If... Strange Supreme Intervened? (2023)
How to ruin a series and a great character.
Well this was a colossal disappointment in every sense of the word. Supreme Strange, who had redeemed himself at the end of the last series by saving the multiverse, has turned evil again and tries to destroy it in order to resurrect his own world.
Yes the writers, for no discernible reason whatsoever, have completely reversed the growth and arc of my favourite character, just so two overpowered female characters can save the world.
Just when I thought Marvel could sink no lower, they create one of the ultimate writer faux pas and retcon a character arc. And it didn't even end up being a good story. It was boring, unoriginal and completely pointless.
I liked Captain Carter in the beginning of this show, but now she has become so overpowered (think G'Iah in Secret Invasion) and annoying (her arrogance does her no favours either) that I no longer care about her.
I am officially done with Marvel. Destroying and killing one of my favourite characters was the last straw.
The Marvels (2023)
Lower, Further, Slower
This film is somehow way more depressing and worse than Ant Man Quantumania. We honestly thought Eternals was bad, but that was only the beginning. It was only going to go downhill from there.
Watching this movie felt like watching a beloved friend in a coma fighting for her life. It was sad, frustrating and ultimately hopeless. So much potential squandered right before our very eyes.
Much has been said about the Girl Power aspect of this story, but it doesn't mean jack when the characters are so thinly written. After the big character tension build up between Carol and Monica, with the latter resenting her for not coming back, their fractures mend themselves very quickly. There is no chemistry between the the two at all.
The villain is Bland with a capitol B, and highly forgettable.
Nick Fury is actually pathetic in this movie. He doesn't at all act like the Fury we know and love. He was more in character in Far From Home when Talos was impersonating him!
I don't think I've ever had this much of a bad experience with a film since Cats. And it is telling that there actually features a ludicrous scene involving baby flerkens and the song Memory.
What the actual hell, Marvel?
The only good thing is that it is mercifully short, and Iman Vellani does seem to be enjoying herself in the role.
Once a great studio, brought crumbling down on itself. If I could give it zero stars, I would.
Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget (2023)
Not worth the wait.
There are some prequels or sequels that no one asked for, but end up being happy that they happened anyway.
This sadly isn't one one of them.
I was already upset by the fact that many of the core voice actors were being replaced. Mel Gibson I could understand for obvious reasons, but the excuse for Julie Sawalha's exclusion was not acceptable. I do believe the real reason was because Sawalha is no longer famous, while Thandi (or Thandiwe) Newton, her replacement, is a big name in the industry. This is a growing trend in modern animation where famous actors are favoured to voice cartoon characters rather than actual voice actors.
At one point Ginger fearfully says "that voice!" before the reveal of the return of Mrs Tweedy. It would have been extremely awkward if Miranda Richardson was no longer voicing the villain.
The story itself is a little too similar to the first Chicken Run and the animation looks too shiny and CGIed, despite most of it being clay-animation. The stakes were not really as high, and the characters were not as fleshed out as they were in the first film.
My favourite character is still Fowler, as he was still hilarious. And unlike the new voices for the other main characters, David Bradley does a great job here.
The humour in the first film was intelligent and witty. But despite most of the film still being proudly British (even including a chicken character with a Scouse accent)
, the magic and the passion found in the first film has dampened down quite a lot here.
Kids will no doubt enjoy it. But after 23 years, I wasn't all that impressed.
Killers of the Flower Moon (2023)
The foxes in the hen's coop.
This is an incredibly moving, tragic, grim, dark story about an attempted genocide committed against the Osage people at the turn of the century. One that everyone should have known about for years, but sadly had been swept under the rug. Because Native people were not deemed as important as white people when they were killed in masses. As one character puts it: a man had more chances of being convicted of killing a dog than an Indian.
In regards to its excessive runtime, if anyone can make a very long movie feel much shorter, it's Martin Scorsese.
His films are always so well paced and written that, that , unlike many other films of today, it makes the time pass quickly because it's so immersive, captivating and fascinating.
This film brings home all of his common traits: greed, corruption, incompetent criminals, narration, and murder. This is the first time in a long time, however, that a female character gets Scorsese's narrative treatment. Mollie Burkhart (played brilliantly by Lily Gladstone) is the movie's beating heart in a sea of horrific sabotage and slayings. In many of the director's other movies, there is a problematic trope of women being portrayed as nothing more than gold-diggers with pretty faces. In this film however, it's reversed. Leo DiCaprio wants to marry Gladstone's character for her money. It was another nice little change that I appreciated.
This film could, potentially, have also done well as a miniseries (expanding on the story and the background of its setting and characters) but I'm still really glad we still get to witness the mastery of Scorsese's genius directing and storytelling.
May December (2023)
A lot of problems. Not what I was hoping for.
Maybe I had too many high expectations for this film. But the script is all over the place and many of its plot points raised more questions than answers.
First of all, why would it only be the lead actress Elizabeth (Natalie Portman) who is spending time with the family her film is focused on? Surely that's for the director and the screenwriter to unpack? I understand she wanted to get into her character and meet the woman she would be playing. But then she does something completely innappropriate, and there are no consequences for it.
With Gracie, in the end, there really isn't much more to unpack than what we already know from the beginning. She is a sexual predator and a child rapist who ended up marrying her victim and had kids with him. That's it.
Joe, on the other hand, is probably the most interesting part of the film. His character goes through a lot and is the most conflicted out of all of them. He slowly realises that the decision to stay with his abuser and raise a family was done out of naivety, youth and possibly grooming. Now that he, as well as all of his children, have grown up, he starts to mature and question his life.
So perhaps the film should have been only from his point of view and not Elizabeth's, as she was very undeveloped and vapid.
In the end, not that all impressed.