KNIVES OUT, 28/11/19

KNIVES OUT

Trailer

Synopsis

A lush estate of a patriarch is visited by police and a private detective when he is discovered dead after his 85^th birthday celebration. Suddenly the quirky relatives and those present become suspects.

Cinema

ODEON

Run Time

Two hours, ten minutes (2h,10m)

Current Rating

96%

Cast

Detective Benoit Blanc – Daniel Craig
Hugh “Ransom” Drysdale – Chris Evans
Marta Cabrera – Ana de Armas
Linda Drysdale – Jamie Lee Curtis
Walter “Walt” Thrombey – Michael Shannon
Richard Drysdale – Don Johnson
Joni Thrombey – Toni Collette
Detective Lieutenant Elliot – Lakeith Stanfield
Megan “Meg” Thrombey – Katherine Langford
Jacob Thrombey – Jaeden Martell
Harlan Thrombey – Christopher Plummer
Trooper Wagner – Noah Segan
Fran – Edi Patterson
Donna Thrombey – Riki Lindhome
Wanetta “Great Nana” Thrombey – K Callan
Alan Stevens – Frank Oz
Mr Proofroc – M. Emmet Walsh
Marta’s Mother – Marlene Forte
Cop – Raul Castillo
Voice Cameo – Joseph Gordon-Levitt

Movie details

Mid – Credits:  No

End – Credits: No

Before the Review: One person drove at 30mph on a country road when the speed limit was in fact 60mph. *Sigh* Some entitled driver drove up a No Entry zone in the car park, with a suspected driver’s license they must have clearly bought . A company minivan almost crashed into a bus after a dangerous manoeuvre to overtake an SUV, which joined from the wrong side of a roundabout.   

Review: I saw the trailer for the movie, and instantly saw that it was stacked with star power. However, all I could think of was: “This isn’t freedom. This is fear”, “Just tell me the first word that pops into your head. For example, I say, Day, and you might say... Wasted.”, “I was bred to be a warrior, Kal. Trained my entire life to master my senses. Where did you train? ON A FARM?”

Those are, of course, my most memorable quotes from Captain America: The Winter Soldier (Chris Evens as Captain America) , James Bond: SKYFALL (Daniel Craig as James Bond) and Man of Steel (Michael Shannon as General Zod). And now, they are all part of a murder mystery in the mould of Murder on the Orient Express. It took some getting used to seeing Chris Evans no longer as Captain America. And Daniel Craig, the man can act. In fact, he was my main draw for the movie.

Usually these types of movies have me dozing off, but I was determined to see this one to the end, considering that the director, Rian Johnson, is of Star Wars (The Last Jedi) fame. There was humour; a car chase (with a hint of what seemed to be an insult to a certain car brand) and suspense, which all came together. I don’t know who gave the age rating of 12A, given some upsetting scenes, but it definitely isn’t suitable for children. The last scene kind of felt a little bit satisfying.

FROZEN II, 22/11/19

FROZEN II

Trailer

Synopsis

The Snow Queen Elsa and her sister Anna, head off on an adventure far away from thekingdom of Arendelle and are joined by their friends, Sven, Kristoff and Olaf

Cinema

ODEON

Run Time

One hour, forty three minutes (1h, 43m)

Current Rating

83%

Cast

Elsa – Idina Menzel
Young Elsa – Mattea Conforti / Eva Bella
Anna – Kristen Bell
Young Anna – Hadley Gannaway / Libby Stubenrauch
Kristoff – Jonathan Groff
Olaf – Josh Gad
Lieutenant Destin Mattias – Sterling K. Brown
Queen Iduna – Evan Rachel Wood
Young Iduna – Delaney Rose Stein
King Agnarr – Alfred Molina
Young Agnarr – Jackson Stein
Yelana – Martha Plimpton
Ryder – Jason Ritter
Honeymaren – Rachel Matthews
King Runeard – Jeremy Sisto
Grand Pabbie – Ciarán Hinds
The Duke of Weselton / Guard / Northuldra Leader / Arendellian Soldier – Alan Tudyk
Hans – Santino Fontana
Marshmallow – Paul Briggs
The Voice – Aurora

Movie details

Mid – Credits:  No

End – Credits: Yes

Before the Review: One driver on the road, who had just passed their driving test, threw the whole thing into question by driving like they had only had a provisional licence when they failed to indicate and cut off two cars, at 60mph on a dual carriageway. There was an unsupervised child throwing popcorn on the stairs inside the cinema screen, having a very excited time in doing so. Three kids seemed to be bunking off school and failed to hide their school emblem. Shocking(!)

Review: When I first when to see Frozen in 2013, it was riding a huge wave of anticipation and garnering a lot of attention. It took me a while, but I finally managed to get myself some tickets and took my kid brother to watch the movie. Surprisingly, for many scenes, I seemed to resonate with Elsa as an introvert who was mostly closed off (hermit like) from everyone else. By the movie end, she had come out of her shell and was finally accepted by everyone at Arendelle. And a catchy song  was sung by everyone leaving the cinema.

Fast forward to Frozen II (2019), and I am watching similar scenes take place, but with Elsa coming to terms with trusting her sister Anna more, as a kind of coming of age situation. It has been 6 years and still I can resonate with Elsa for parts of the movie. Much more is included and the story has been expanded upon. The humour will mainly be understood by a grown up in attendance, along with character development.

The award winning song, “Let It Go” is replaced by “Into the unknown”. Personally, I found it catchy, but time will tell if it surpasses “Let It Go”. Credit to Disney though, they seem to show my life development and evolution in both films. It would appear that I feel like I am Elsa personality-wise and without the physical ice powers, but with a different mission in life, which I commend Disney for. Looks like the Marvel franchise is not the only Disney property getting the heavy focus on good stories.

LE MANS ’66 (FORD VS FERRARI), 15/11/19

LE MANS ’66 (FORD VS FERRARI)

Trailer

Synopsis

Carroll Shelby, an American automotive designer and Ken Miles, a fearless race car driver do battle with the laws of physics, corporate interference at Ford Motor Co and personal demons to build a revolutionary vehicle. Up against the likes of Enzo Ferrari race cars, amongst others, together they plan to compete at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in France 1966.

Cinema

ODEON

Run Time

Two hours, thirty two minutes (2h, 32m)

Current Rating

92%

Cast

Carroll Shelby – Matt Damon
Ken Miles – Christian Bale
Mollie Miles – Caitriona Balfe
Lee Lacocca – Jon Bernthal
Henry Ford II – Tracy Letts
Leo Beebe – Josh Lucas
Peter Miles – Noah Jupe
Enzo Ferrari – Remo Girone
Phil Remington – Ray McKinnon
Roy Lunn – JJ Feild
Head of Security – Gian Franco Tordi
Jack McMullen – Charlie Agapiou
Bruce McLaren – Benjamin Rigby
Donald N. Frey – Joe Williamson
Dan Gurney – Alex Gurney
Gianni Agnelli – Giovanni Cirfiera
Corrado Invernizzi – Franco Gozzi
Dr Granger – Wallace Langham

Movie details

Mid – Credits: No

End – Credits: No

Before the Review: I had to give way to a very aggressive Vauxhall Corsa driver on a roundabout, who was in the wrong lane to begin with. A near six foot tall dude blocked the view of at least four people when taking his jacket off, for nearly two minutes whilst the trailers were rolling in the cinema. Those four people would quiz the dude after the movie about his antics. And another cinema goer had their Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker tickets wrongly printed out.

Review: I’m not a petrol-head or particularly interested in cars in that way. However, Christian Bale is one of my favourite actors, ever since he starred in The Dark Knight Trilogy and personified the words: “I’M BATMAN.” (We’ll ignore Exodus: Gods and Kings). He stars alongside Matt Damon, whilst hes not particularly one of my favourites, he is still a very good actor.

The 92% rating is quite spot on. A lot went on in this movie and I was able to follow it all. Based on the real life events of Carroll Shelby and Ken Miles, the movie kept me interested throughout, possibly because of Christian Bale, and does really well to capture the mood of the intensity of what FORD were trying to accomplish at Le Mans.

Taking a step away from the IMAX screens, this movie does boast some comical moments; feel good music during some races that somehow draw you in and, at times, suspense. It seems like the actors who portrayed iconic figures, like Enzo Ferrari, kind of reminded me of how Bruce Lee was portrayed in Once Upon a Time in Hollywood. It may have just been to build up the story. I always feel satisfied when watching these kind of movies, as before the credits start rolling, you are sometimes reminded of actual events based around the movie’s premise, but you also feel educated.

MALEFICENT: MISTRESS OF EVIL, 02/11/19

MALEFICENT: MISTRESS OF EVIL

Trailer

Synopsis

As young Aurora’s upcoming wedding to Prince Phillip beckons, Maleficent travels to the grand grand castle to witness the event. Whilst there, she meets Aurora’s future mother-in-law, a queen who whilst conniving, is also hatching a devious plot to destroy fairies amongst the land. To stop this plan from happening, Maleficent joins forces with a seasoned warrior, along with a group of outcasts to battle the queen, and her powerful army.

Cinema

ODEON

Run Time

One hour, fifty eight minutes (1h, 58m)

Current Rating

41%

Cast

Maleficent – Angelina Jolie
Princess Aurora – Elle Fanning
Queen Ingrith – Michelle Pfeiffer
Conall – Chiwetel Ejiofor
Diaval – Sam Riley
Borra – Ed Skrein
Prince Phillip – Harris Dickinson
Knotgrass – Imelda Staunton
Thistlewit – Juno Temple
Flittle – Lesley Manville
King John – Robert Lindsay
Lickspittle – Warwick Davis
Gerda – Jenn Murray
Percival – David Gyasi
Shrike – Judith Shekoni
Udo – Miyavi
Ini – Kai Alexander
Narrator – Aline Mowat
Pinto – Emma Maclennon
Jungle Warrior – John Carew
Young Peasant – Freddie Wise

Movie details

Before the Review: A people carrier forced itself into my lane from a T-junction, no breaks and no indicators. This meant the car in front of me needed to do an emergency avoidance manoeuvre otherwise there would have been casualties. At the cinema, an unsupervised child managed to pull down a whole shelf of canned fizzy drinks, lots of written off product but a very delighted child. An animated customer started fuming that their Star Wars: Rise of Skywalker tickets had been printed off in advanced, and not “Joker”.

Mid – Credits: No

End – Credits: No

Review: It’s not very often I attend an Angelina Jolie movie; actually I would say this was first movie starring her. And truth be told, upon looking at the release posters, I thought I was looking at Vertigo Comic’s Lucifer, before realising it was in fact, the sequel to Maleficent, which I saw in 2014, a somewhat different take on the story from Sleeping Beauty.

The movie itself I thought showed Maleficent’s turn as an adoptive mother to Aurora, their bond stronger than ever. The added humour, at times synched up rather well, in particular with one reminding me of when a young John Conner tries to teach the Terminator how to smile in Terminator 2: Judgement Day.

We also have a more back story to the Dark Fae, Maleficent’s own kind (Race), much like in Kung Fu Panda 3, again with a twist from the original story. Lots of character building in regards to Maleficent’s especially, with build ups and slight expectation shocks, one concerning a warrior fae with a seeming passion for war with humans. Lots of animation with twists and feel good scenes as well. A hint of a future continuity for eager listeners.

TERMINATOR: DARK FATE, 26/10/19

TERMINATOR: DARK FATE

Trailer

Synopsis

A Hybrid cyborg human, alongside Sarah Conner, must protect a young girl from a new kind of Terminator from the future, one which consists of newly modified liquid.

Cinema

ODEON

Run Time

Two hours, fourteen minutes (2h, 14m)

Movie Rating

67%

Cast

Sarah Connor – Linda Hamilton
T-800 (Model 101) / Carl – Arnold Schwarzenegger
Grace – Mackenzie Davis
Daniella (Dani) Ramos – Natlia Reyes
Rev 9 – Gabriel Luna
Diego Ramos – Diego Boneta
Carl’s wife – Alicia Borrachero
Mr Ramos – Enrique Arce
Rigby – Steven Cree
Maria – Cluadia Trujillo
Mexico City Cop – Mario de la Rosa
F-35 Pilot – Nick Wittman
Major Dean – Fraser James

Movie details

Mid – Credits: No

End – Credits: No

Review: So, I had to deal with an SUV driving up a “No Entry” lane in the car park and causing major congestion, another SUV with its hazard lights on and closing down a lane to exit via barriers as the driver or passengers had not paid to valid their parking ticket and an SUV forcing drivers of their lanes (no indicators used) and then illegally manoeuvring on the roundabouts (Again, with no indicators). The person sitting next to me frightened easily, all this before finally settling down to write this review. Phew.

So, Terminator: Dark Fate, the heavily advertised return of Sarah Conner, did not disappoint. From the very first Terminator movie in the franchise from 1984 to the current one, I have followed each of them (Granted the first Terminator movie arrived before I was born and my mother would’ve thought I was batsh*t crazy to want to watch Terminator 2: Judgement Day in 1991)

The movie itself brought back a feel I have when watching a Terminator movie: “So mankind has or will lose control of a machine, again. *Eyeroll*” You almost get the sense that Ultron (Marvel) may have influenced a more grounded killer machine, which is sent back in time to alter the timeline so the core (almost hive mind like) machine remains virtually unopposed.

The T800 that Arnold Schwarzenegger portrays has been moved aside in favour of a female hybrid type of machine to do the saving this time around. Quite a bit of humour involved, strong language and  CGI plays a heavy role, quite nicely as well. There have been hints of alternative timelines and the climax of the movie is left open.

There are also lots of subliminal messages in the movie regarding the state of technology and politics of certain countries in the current era. This movie kind of feels like a soft reboot in the mould the first Terminator and Terminator Genisys, but definitely upbeat and has more development of the story to come. 

GEMINI MAN, 11/10/19

GEMINI MAN

Trailer

Synopsis

An elite assassin, Henry Brogan suddenly finds himself a target of a mysterious operative who appears to anticipate his every move. Henry, to his horror, soon discovers that this operative that is trying to hunt him down and kill him, is in fact a younger, faster and a cloned version of himself.

Cinema

ODEON

Run Time

One hour, fifty seven  minutes (1h, 57m)

Current Rating

30%

Cast

Henry Brogan – Will Smith
Danny Zakarweski – Mary Elizabeth Winstead
Clayton “Clay” Varris – Clive Owen
Baron – Benedict Wong
Janet Lassiter – Linda Emond
Kitty – Theodora Miranne
Jack Willis – Douglas Hodge
Yuri Kovacs – Ilia Volok
Marino – E.J. Bonilla
Keller - Björn Freiberg

Movie details

Mid – Credits: No

End – Credits: No

Review: Well, Will Smith. I grew up on Will Smith dominating my childhood with showings like Men in Black and Fresh Prince of Bel Air. There's been ups and downs, but the anticipation to watch movies starring Will Smith still remains. Adding David Benioff of Game of Thrones fame and Jerry Bruckheimer of Lucifer fame, there was bound to be great sequences, and the poor rating doesn’t do the movie justice, unless it is aimed at the editing, then maybe I understand.

However, Will Smith plays a younger version of himself. I thought he did really well through the action sequences, when he isn’t making a black suit from Men in Black "look good", in a script that has been in limbo for nearly 20 years. Benedict Wong is fast becoming a decent supporting character, having impressed alongside Benedict Cumberbatch’s Doctor Strange.

It’s great to see Will Smith diversifying as he grows older. It is difficult playing your younger self, but I think Will Smith pulled it off. If you don’t mind the editing in that some of the action sequences were sped up, then the ratings definitely don't hold down.

JOKER, 04/10/19

JOKER

Trailer

Synopsis

Failed comedian Arthur Fleck seeks a connection as he walks the streets of Gotham City, forever alone in a crowd. Wearing two masks, one which acts as his day job as a clown and another as a futile attempt to feel like a part of the world around him. Feeling isolated, bullied and disgraced by society, Flecks begins a slow descent into madness as he transforms into the criminal mastermind, Joker

Cinema

ODEON

Run Time

Two hours, 02 minutes (2h, 02m)

Current Rating

77%

Cast

Joker / Arthur Fleck – Joaquin Phoenix
Murray Franklin – Robert De Niro
Sophie Dumond – Zazie Beetz
Penny Fleck – Frances Conroy
Thomas Wayne – Brett Cullen
Alfred Pennyworth – Douglas Hodge
Bruce Wayne – Dante Pereira-Olson
Gene Ufland – Marc Maron
GCPD Officers – Bill Camp / Shea Whigham
Randall – Glenn Fleshler
Arkham Asylum Clerk – Brian Tyree Henry
Gary – Leigh Gill
Social Worker – Sharon Washington
Guest – Justin Theroux

Movie details

Mid – Credits: No

End – Credits: No

Review: Heath Ledger’s take on the iconic Batman villain was always going to be hard to match, or even overcome. Joaquin Phoenix, whether people agree or not, is a success in a dark world with an R rating (15 in UK). Granted that an origin story for the iconic villain is not really needed given his popularity and as the comics (source material), have never really established his origins as canon. White Knight, an ongoing series by DC, but not canon / connected to the main DC Universe, establishes a Joker by the name of Jack Napier, similar to Jack Nicholson’s take on the character. 

With influence from The Killing Joke and The Dark Knight Returns, this movie is more a psychological thriller than simply reintroducing the villain to the wider audience (The screening I attended was full of teenagers, who abruptly, and shockingly ceased to make any noise when the movie started, which was very ominous). If you need some inspiration on how much faith is in this movie, look no further than one of its producers, THE Bradley Cooper, aka, Rocket Raccoon of Marvels Guardians of the Galaxy.

Intended as a standalone movie, there are elements that this movie could, in theory, span a sequel. It is possibly intended to kick start DC's Black Label (Formerly Vertigo) imprint, which is not linked to the main DC Universe as it is alternative story telling, but some elements could find their way through, if the story is strong enough. Arthur Fleck’s descent into becoming The Joker was very captivating. Some comments regarding the characters portrayal look as though they know nothing of the evolution of The Joker, from the 60s (Cesar Romero) to the current day. No Ace Chemicals involved, so this is more or less an imagined origin story.