Mary Poppins Returns - Movie Review

This film is a U, will be released on December 21st 2018, and this review will contain NO SPOILERS 

Before I begin, I'd like to point out that I was lucky enough to see this film at the European Premiere in London's Royal Albert Hall. It was such a wonderful night and atmosphere. Thank you to everyone who made it possible! Especially my Mum and Dad!

Introduction 

Mary Poppins from 1964 is undeniably a classic. That film is so joyous and uplifting and still holds up to this day. It is probably one of Disney's better live-action films of the 20th Century. However, it didn't immediately seem like it needed a sequel. There were many places that the story could go, but it had to be just right if it wanted to live up to the success of the original. Well, 54 years later, here we are.

Thoughts Going In 

Aside from the fact I was attending my first ever film premiere, I was very excited. You may find this surprising based off what I've mostly been reviewing / talking about recently, but I love musicals. The whole concept of suddenly bursting into catchy songs accompanied by frantic dancing is an idea I've always liked. And, with recent musicals like The Greatest Showman and Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again, both of which I really enjoyed and had me singing away, my excitement only got amplified. That and I love a lot of members of this cast. Emily Blunt, Ben Whishaw, Colin Firth and so many more. So, I had very high expectations and hoped it wouldn't all come crashing down and disappoint.

The Story 

Years after the original, Micheal Banks now has his own family with three cheeky children of his own. However, his wife passed away recently and he is going to lose his house due to financial reasons. Whilst he and his sister, Jane, look for a certificate of shares, the children stumble across Mary Poppins whilst flying an old kite. She has come to look after them and hopefully teach them a few things while their father sorts out his issues. Accompanying them is Jack, a rugged, but jolly, lamp-lighter. From then, the five of them go on many adventures.

What I Liked 

The thing I appreciated most about Mary Poppins Returns is that it got the perfect balance that any sequel should. Typically, sequels, especially ones made a long time after the original, tend to offer little to no new material and simply retread the same beats as its predecessor. This is because the sequel is being made to satisfy the audience that were captivated the first time round, and it'll appeal to them if they're reminded of the film they fell in love with. This film gets the right balance between respecting and paying tribute to the first film whilst also bringing plenty of new elements to the table, in a similar way to 2015's Star Wars: The Force Awakens. The tribute comes in the form of iconic imagery from the original, recurring gags and the general structure of the story. The new elements include new songs, actors doing their own variations of classic performances, and the message of the film. I am very happy this film got the balance so right because this means the film will both appeal to fans of the original as well as potentially bringing in new fans and audiences, especially children who weren't around when the first one came out.

The performances are some of the best of the year. Of course, the star of the show is Emily Blunt as Mary Poppins. What I find so amazing about Blunt as an actress is that she is so versatile. She can go from gritty action like Edge of Tomorrow or Sicario, to nail-biting horror like A Quiet Place, and then to universal and upbeat fun like this. She plays Poppins quite differently to Julie Andrews, but she is essentially the same personality-wise. Strict and uppity, but overall jolly and good-hearted. Additionally, she is a fabulous singer. The other stand out was Lin-Manuel Miranda as Jack, who is clearly adding some of his Hamilton-esque Broadway flair to Dick Van Dyke's classic role. He's charming, very likeable, and actually has a good cockney accent! Everyone else has their moment to shine and are just as good as you'd expect, especially the now 93 year-old Dick Van Dyke himself, who is still able to jump on a desk and do a little dance!

The musical numbers were my favourite parts of the film. What surprised me most was that  there was an absence of the classic songs like A Spoonful of Sugar and Let's Go Fly a Kite. However I am glad about this because it means we have more space for some new, equally as catchy, ones. They surely won't be replacing the originals, but they're such a joy to listen to that it had me smiling. The stand-outs for me were "Lovely London Sky", "A Cover is Not the Book" and "Trip a Little Light Fantastic". On top of this, what was happening in the film was also brilliant. The choreography of the dancing was my favourite kind, in which everything moves just like clockwork - perfectly in time and and synchronized. All of the songs gained a huge applause afterwords, and rightfully so. 

The last noteworthy thing, for me, is one sequence in particular. If you've seen the first Mary Poppins, you'll know there's an excellent scene which involves the characters entering a 2D animated world. Here, thank goodness, there is another one. What was so brilliant was the fact that they kept it as 2D animation. I'm so relieved they didn't just fully modernize it and make it all CGI. This is a true sign that the people behind the scenes of this film have huge amounts of fondness for the original and didn't want to ruin what made it special. I think we can all agree that the last thing Mary Poppins needs is CGI penguins. That and the sequence is really creative, it takes place on a ceramic bowl instead of a chalk painting and so the characters must be careful to not fall off the edge. The way it was executed was a lot of fun, and my favourite segment of the film. 

What I Didn't Like 

Oh, must I really find something to dislike? Well, in all fairness, Mary Poppins Returns is by no means a perfect movie. If I had to point out one issue that I had, it's that there are some scenes which are either elongated, unnecessary, or both. One or two of the musical numbers didn't serve much of a purpose and some scenes can occasionally be a bit too dragged out and perhaps longer than they should've been. But, despite these criticisms, any scenes that do drag on only do so because it is necessary. 

Another issue is one that didn't bug me personally, but I feel may irritate others. As much as I did praise this film for getting the perfect balance, there are times when the film can echo the original in not so subtle ways. The general structure is very similar and it does hit many of the same beats as the first. Sometimes it is more obvious than others, but I won't give any examples because you'll know for sure when you see the film. 

Conclusion 

Mary Poppins Returns is simply Supercalifragilisticexpilalidocious. I adore this film. I'm not just saying that because my experience watching it was amazing. I'm saying so because this film has wonderful performances, mesmerizing and catchy musical numbers, another creative 2D animated sequence, and it pays just the right amount of respect to its predecessor while bringing lots of new things to the table. But above all, it made me happy. And if a film can do that, then that is more than enough to satisfy me. I highly recommend you see this film as it is the perfect Christmas treat for the entire family and I'm sure it will become a classic in a few decades time, and while it may not live up to the magic of the original, it's still an absolute joy to watch. 

I'm going to give Mary Poppins Returns an E

Ralph Breaks the Internet - Movie Review

This film is a PG, was released on November 30th 2018, and this review will contain NO SPOILERS

Introduction 

Ever since Disney Animation converted from hand-drawn animation to CGI, they have chain produced some fantastic films. From the subversive and clever princess movie Tangled, the action-packed adventure Big Hero 6, the extremely clever and well-written story Zootopia / Zootropolis, and the visually dazzling musical Moana. All of them have been brilliant, except Frozen, which was way too overrated.

However, out of all of them, Wreck-it Ralph is by far the best. It's not just a terrific animated film from Disney or the 2010s, but it is one of my favourite films ever, and is heads and shoulders above everything Pixar has made this decade except Toy Story 3. The extremely genius and inventive world building, insane visuals and action, and the creative characters all made that film terrific. But, given how open ended the story seemed for potential expansions, a sequel seemed like it'd eventually exist. 

Thoughts Going In 

As I said, I adore the original Wreck-it Ralph and hold it very close to my heart. So, I was a little bit nervous about the follow up when the trailers were released. The whole concept of hopping between different video games in the original is so much more wacky compared to the idea of doing such but in the internet. That and I had my concerns that Disney would use this as an excuse to promote all their owned properties such as Marvel and Star Wars as well as popular internet apps / websites such as Snapchat, YouTube and Amazon. Also, internet culture moves faster than the speed of light and so any references they made to popular trends at the time of making the film would most likely be long outdated by the time of its release. But, the positive reviews had me thinking slightly otherwise. So I had my concerns, but regardless, I was still very excited.

The Story 

6 years after the events if the first film, the steering wheel on the Sugar Rush arcade game breaks, and consequently, the game is unplugged. Because of this, Vanellope is left without a game. However, a Wi-Fi router has just been plugged into the extension lead with all the games, so Ralph gets the ideas to travel into the internet and buy a new steering wheel from Ebay. But, it'll have to be paid for. So the two then try various methods to gain enough cash to save the game in time. 

What I Liked 

My favourite thing about Ralph Breaks the Internet was all the jokes they made about the internet. From pop-up adverts, to auto-fill, the dark-net, viruses, viral videos, comments, and so much more. However, the thing that I enjoyed most among these jokes were the meta Disney references. You've probably seen some of this in the trailer but so many Disney characters make cameos. The princesses, as I'm sure you know, but also Buzz Lightyear, Baby Groot, Stormtroopers, and even an animated Stan Lee. This was such a fun sequence and the self-referential humour made it all funnier. I'm glad this was only one scene because I didn't want an overload of this.

Another plus side was the fact that the film didn't rely on popular icons to make its story. There are some references to online sites and such but they are more blink and you'll miss it and don't weigh down the film. Much like the first which only briefly showed popular video game characters and spent most time in the fictional games, this only briefly showed well-known websites and spent most time in fictional ones, except for Ebay. I am happy the film wasn't just an advert for the app store.

The animation was also brilliant. The visual style of the internet is so fascinating. This was so dazzling to watch because so many things are happening at once. There's always people running around, vehicles whizzing all over the place, and pixels flashing. But, what's good is that all this remained in the background, allowing for the main story to always be front and centre and not letting the visuals distract. I appreciate that because it could've been so easy for this film to end up as just an array of literal flashy computer graphics. I'm glad that the animation was so strong, and that it was the right amount of mesmerizing. 

This film has a strong message. It's about accepting your friends having different dreams / ambitions to you. This is applied to the film because while in the internet, Vanellope begins to take a liking towards a new game called Slaughter Race, which has a similar concept to her game, Sugar Rush, but nobody is controlling her nor is it as predictable. But Ralph doesn't want Vanellope to stay because he wants the two of them to remain best friends. This leads to the climax where Ralph must come to the realization that he might have to let her go. This gives the film a very powerful and relatable message and it works naturally in the context of the story, and isn't just shoved in there for no reason.

What I Didn't Like 

There wasn't much I didn't like about this. The main issue that I had was that I just didn't enjoy the aesthetic of the internet as opposed to the arcade games. Something about going in and out of game worlds was so much more interesting than this. I don't think it is anything to do with the film making or anything but more just because it was cooler. Just because I saw Wreck-it Ralph as a young child and so I was mesmerized by everything about it, more so than I was about this. 

The film also suffers from being extremely predictable. This is usually an issue with many sequels as once the characters and their traits have been established in the previous movie, we can most likely find it easier to predict how they'll act in a certain scenario in the next one. However, this film has major issues with this. Ralph is still lovably dimwitted and you can guess how he'll respond to things easily. Vanellope is still a smart talking misfit and you can't really be surprised by much of what she does. This also means that major plot-points in general are easy to predict. It makes the viewing experience much less satisfying as you spend time waiting for your prediction to occur. It's even worse when you notice how the film hits many of the same beats the first one did, and only cements your guesses as certain. 

Conclusion 

Well, I am very happy with Ralph Breaks the Internet. It's a follow-up to one of my favourite films that has a powerful message with just the right amount of self-referential Disney and general internet humour which doesn't distract from the main focus of the story, all coated with some terrific animation. Despite this, it is certainly in the shadow of its predecessor just because it was less predictable as well as an overall more interesting, original concept. But in terms of this year, it is probably the best animated film I've seen so far. It's a much better sequel than Incredibles 2 simply because I'm more fond of Wreck-it Ralph than I ever was of The Incredibles. That said, I haven't seen Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse just yet, so lets not say anything is for sure...

I'm going to give Ralph Breaks the Internet an S

Avengers: Endgame - Trailer Thoughts

I never thought that I'd make a post in the style of this, mostly because I really don't like film trailers. They just tend to give away far too much and spoil the overall experience. However, when a new trailer for Avengers 4 came out, how on earth could I resist. That's right, I saw the thumbnail in the YouTube video and I couldn't resist, because I was convinced I'd go a bit mental if I didn't see it. However, that'll be the only time I see it. Not again. Probably. Maybe. Not really. Hopefully.

So, I don't think I need to explain where I stand regarding the end of Avengers: Infinity War because everything that I have to say has already been said. But if there is one thing that I want to point out, it's that it was the only film that ended on a cliffhanger that genuinely had me unsure as to what'd happen next. It all seemed pretty hopeless and I guessed that this would be of a similar tone. Well, now that Marvel has finally had the guts to release any form of footage from this upcoming film, what do we have? Well at least we have a proper title now.

Here are my thoughts:

Well, the start with Tony explaining his current situation in the form of a voice message that'll hopefully end up with Pepper, was really interesting. Tony was one of the two people on Titan who survived the snap. The other being Nebula. I don't know whether Nebula is on the ship too, but I think he said he was alone so I doubt it. I don't know what they're planning to do with Tony, perhaps he'll die on that ship. Although, that'd be the biggest anti-climax ever, considering where his character has been over the past 10 years. 

Regarding the rest of the characters, it was interesting that we only saw the original 6 Avengers (mostly). Tony, as I mentioned, Thor and Bruce Banner briefly, but mostly Cap and Natasha. It was also really nice to see Hawkeye is back! I was wondering whether he was alive or not. I can't say whether he'll be a huge help or not, but his presence is largely welcome. It was interesting to see that Ant-Man has made it out of the Quantum Realm, I guess that isn't a huge plot-point, but I am curious as to what he'll be able to do in the film, I have enjoyed every appearance of his prior to this. It was also interesting to see some absences. Not only are Rocket, War Machine and Okoye nowhere to be seen, but Captain Marvel is also out of the picture. This was a surprise because I, and presumably many others, thought she'd be the saving grace of this story, if the post-credits scene was anything to go by. But perhaps they're just keeping her out of the marketing for now until we've seen her actual film.

The aesthetic of the trailer seemed quite ordinary. The scene with Tony was thematically different and looked quite dark, but the rest of the trailer just seems to be as normal as ever. Not exactly a disappointment, but intriguing considering that half of humanity all died out, I thought earth would be a bit more of a wasteland. 

Regarding the title, Endgame, it was not a surprise. All the suspected titles like 'The Last Avenger' or 'Annihilation' seemed reasonable but are generally not as appropriate. I only say this because this title now clears up a lot. It means that what is happening in this movie, combined with the last 20 minutes of Infinity War, are what Doctor Strange saw as the only outcome in which the Avengers would come out on top. This is because after he sacrificed the time stone to Thanos, despite claiming he would always value its safety over that of Tony or any of the other characters, shows that he probably saw this outcome and knew he'd have to give him the stone to achieve victory. He also stated "We're in the endgame now" which implies that they were entering the time in which they'd reach their eventual triumph. So, a great title choice in my opinion. Plus it just sounds awesome. 

As a whole, I am super duper excited for this film now. Having seen this 2 minutes and 26 seconds worth of footage has enforced just how exciting the next chapter of the MCU will be. All I need to do now is not watch it again nor any other trailers or clips until the 26th of April. How hard can it be? 

"Part of the journey is the end..."

Robin Hood (2018) - Movie Review

This film is a 12A, was released on November 21st 2018, and this review will contain NO SPOILERS 

Introduction 

Nowadays, we see a lot of reboots coming from Hollywood. This is mainly because they're struggling for new ideas, but also because it's easier to find a fanbase and make money from a product that already exists. However, we do occasionally end up with tons of interpretations of one story. The classic folk tale of Robin Hood is a perfect example of this. The classic story of the thief who robs from the rich and gives to the poor has been put to the screen many times. 

But, in my opinion, the best interpretation was from Disney in 1973, which didn't even star humans! It was anthropormorhpic foxes and bears. I grew up with this film and it was one of those Disney films that lived in the DVD player. So, I don't think that there is much more left to explore with this character, but maybe I'm wrong...

Thoughts Going In 

I was excited for this film at first. I really like Taron Egerton and the trailers did make it look cool, to say the least. However, a swarm of negativity surrounded it over the past week, making me wonder whether it was actually worth my time or not. Well, it's the middle of exam season so I'll take a cinema trip whenever one comes about. My expectations were mixed for the most part.

The Story 

So, is there anything new that this interpretation shows us? Kind of. In this version, Robin begins as your average medieval tough guy who meets a girl named Marian. The two instantly fall in love but Robin has to go and fight in the Middle East. After a mishap where Robin almost betrays his leader, everyone believes him to be dead. However, he returns to England only to find that the Sheriff of Nottingham is ripping everyone off with their taxes, and Marian has found new love with a man named Will. So, Robin teams up with a fugitive named John, and the swashbuckling thievery begins. 

What I Liked 

The best thing about this film was Egerton as Robin Hood. I think his strongest points as an actor are when he brings charm, wit and humour to his roles, many will be familiar if you've seen the Kingsman films (2014 and 2017), Eddie the Eagle (2016) or Sing (2016). Here, while he doesn't fully utilise his strengths, he is still very likeable and has enough charm to be entertaining. He pulls off the tough guy performance well enough and was definitely a bright spot in the film. I should also mention that supporting roles from Jamie Foxx and Ben Mendelsohn were decent too. 

There is the occasional good action scene, but there is one in particular that I thought was amazing. It's basically a chase involving horse-drawn wagons through narrow streets of a mining town, along with a small tangent when Robin hops on one of the horses and begins to run around the rooftops. The choreography of all the fighting and various other set pieces was really well organised. It was the only scene that I thought was worth mentioning. 

What I Didn't Like 

My biggest issue with this film was the way it looked and was stylised. We're supposed to believe that this is medieval times, but the clothing and action seems so much like such from nowadays or even the last decade. As you may have seen from the trailers, there is a section in the Middle East. Nothing about this scene is specific to the time period. You could easily substitute the bows and crossbows for guns and it'd make so little of an impact. The costumes were also hugely distracting. There's so much leather, revealing clothes on women, fancy jackets, and an assortment of things you'd see people wearing today, as well as hair and make up which seems remarkably unrealistic. I think this film could've easily settled with this style if it set the story in the 21st century. That also would've given the film more of an identity, and make it stand out against the tons and tons of other versions of this story. 

The pacing of the film also seemed a little bit off. The beginning is not only extremely pretentious, but very rushed. We flippantly switch from introduction to characters, to the first bit of conflict, to meeting John and training with him, all in the first half an hour. This really undercut what could've been some really engaging scenes. If they had extended out all of this, we as the audience would have a much deeper understanding of who these characters are and how they came to be who they are in the second act. Because as it is, we're not really connected to these people and can't really connect to the struggles they face. I understand that they want to cut to the cool bits where we see Robin as a thief, but weirdly enough, the first 3 proper robberies he does are glossed over. We see a quick cut of action but not enough to enjoy ourselves. This is only apparent until the chase I mentioned earlier and the climax. So not only do we skip all the parts which are necessary for the story, but we don't even see many of the parts we came to see and get a kick out of.

Conclusion 

Robin Hood isn't exactly a disappointment. It further enforces why Taron Egerton is a strong talent, along with delivering some neat set pieces. But it can't decide what exactly it wants to be as well as glossing over what could be some really necessary and exciting moments. I think this film will pass the time just fine for anyone, but it isn't exactly anything great. As for me, I don't think I'll be watching it again any time soon, but I won't actively try to avoid it either. I think I'll just stick with the animated version for now.

I'm going to give Robin Hood an A

Hunter Killer - Movie Review

This film is a 15, was released on October 19th 2018, and this review will contain NO SPOILERS

Introduction 

In this modern age, there are plenty of films which are so good they're good, as well as so bad they're bad. But we also have many which are so bad that they're good. To me, I'd always take a good bad film over a good good film if I enjoy the former more. Most of these bad films include Olympus has Fallen, London has Fallen, and even though I haven't seen it but I'm sure it'd be included in this list, Geostorm. What all these films have in common besides being so laughably terrible that they're hilarious? A man named Gerard Butler. 

Thoughts Going In 

I didn't go out of my way to see Hunter Killer, but I thought it'd pass the time just fine and perhaps bring a few laughs with how stupid it was. Plus, Gerard himself is enough to make me know I'll enjoy a film. But regardless of how much I thought I'd enjoy the film, I had super low expectations.

The Story 

Gerard is a tough, but sensitive guy named Joe Glass. He's brought on to a mission to go to Russia where a submarine was recently attacked. After taking a few suspected criminals from the crash, the submarine he's in is called into save the Russian president after a series of convoluted events. Meanwhile, Gary Oldman is the admiral, shouting at a control room of people.

What I Liked 

In all fairness, this film isn't as poor as I thought it'd be. There is a lot of competence on display here from the director and the performances. The actions scenes are well crafted and do make you feel some basic form of tension. One involves the big, long submarine trying to carefully manoeuvre its way around sound-sensitive sea mines whilst everyone on board has to stay dead silent. It doesn't have you biting your nails, but you do feel what the characters are going through. There are other various ones torpedoes and missiles heading towards the sub as well as some mainland combat with soldiers. All do show this isn't the worst quality of film on display.

The best thing about the film is by far Gerard Butler himself. He isn't genuinely one of my favourite actors like Chris Pratt, Benedict Cumberbatch or Taron Egerton, but he's definitely a lot of fun to watch, especially in films where he plays the generic tough guy who shouts a lot. That is exactly what you have here. It isn't as entertaining as London has Fallen simply because the direction and script for that film was complete rubbish, but here he is trying to be the same character again and it was quite fun to watch and laugh at.

What I Didn't Like 

The film is too long. Not only is it too long, but it jumps back and forth from several groups of people we're supposed to feel tension about. But the way it jumps isn't consistent because it spends too long on one groups that when it has cut back to another one, you either forgot they were in the film or didn't want to cut back because the other group was more interesting. I don't think any groups could've been emitted from the film because they're all necessary to the plot, but if 20 minutes at most were cut, it'd be beneficial.

The film is also surprisingly dull. There's a lot of boring scenes where it's either an overly long tracking shot which adds absolutely nothing, or bland talking between characters which isn't as engaging as it thinks it is. Gary Oldman tries his best to make these more interesting by shouting at the top of his lungs in most scenes, but it doesn't do the job. I don't quite think this film knows that its audience are not going to be people that saw Darkest Hour, but rather those who saw every Gerard Butler film on Netflix. As a result, it lacks the guilty pleasure which I get from other good bad movies, and instead just feels like a poor attempt at a gritty action drama. 

Conclusion 

Hunter Killer is just bland, forgettable action. It has one or two neat scenes with Gerard doing his very best, but it doesn't do anything outrageously bad that's funny or serve as a guilty pleasure. Instead, it's a film I can imagine popping up on network television very soon. And it's also one I don't think I'll be rewatching soon. Hopefully Geostorm will do the job this film didn't. 

I'm going to give Hunter Killer an A

A Quiet Place - Movie Review

This film is a 15, was released on April 5th 2018, and this review will contain NO SPOILERS 

Introduction 

I can't say I'm really a horror person. Out of all film genres, horror films seem to be the ones which I struggle to engage with the most. I think it's probably due to me getting frightened quite easily and thus continuously telling myself it's all fake and as a result not getting full engagement. However, I do like a horror film if it does something clever with its storytelling, such as Alien as opposed to the rubbish that we constantly see nowadays. So when I saw the trailers for A Quiet Place, I got some interest.

Thoughts Going In 

Obviously I didn't see this film in the cinema as it came out at a pretty crowded time, but I recently saw it on DVD as I'd heard many great things about it and it was a huge success with audiences and critics alike. So I had very high expectations, regardless of the fact that it is still a genre which I'm not a huge fan of. 

The Story 

In the near future, aliens have invaded earth and seemingly taken out all of humanity. However, these aliens can only sense sound. So any noise somebody makes will mean death. Despite this, there is a small family with mother and father Emily Blunt and John Krasinski. They have got used to life with these aliens, but things are about to take a bad turn as Blunt's character is pregnant.

What I Liked 

Out of every film I've seen so far this year, this film is by far the best in terms of direction. This is especially amazing considering it is Krasinski's directing debut. He cleverly builds tension through clever camera movement and with an absence of sound, which heightens the audience's senses and makes for some truly scary sequences. The atmosphere is also so well established within the first 5 minutes that for the whole of the runtime, you have such a strong feeling of caution. I admire how this was done because it creates such an engaging world and allows for true horror, much like Alien. 

The perfermances are also terrific. Not just from Emily Blunt and JK, but the two children are great. They bring the action down to earth and add another layer of peril because them being children makes them more vulnerable to any consequences of these creatures. It's also worth mentioning that these people are all great physical actors. Because the dialogue is so minimal, their bodies have to express their feelings for most of the time. They were really compelling and the fact that they're just an ordinary family caught in the middle of this makes it all seem easier to understand. 

There are plenty of well organised action scenes. One with Emily in a basement with one of these vile creatures, which echoes the kitchen scene in Jurassic Park. Another in a huge container of corn (I don't know what they're called) with the children hanging onto some debris to avoid sinking and being attacked by the creature. They're well constructed and are very nail-biting.

What I Didn't Like 

The film does unfortunately have a lot of plot holes. This is somewhat inevitable for any film but A Quiet Place does suffer from many creative choices feeling questionable. For example, if the aliens are so sensitive to sound, why don't the humans just build a giant speaker and blast loud noises out to distract them? Or how do the family still have access to electricity? Or how are they able to make that particular noise and go down unnoticed? This may seem quite pedantic but whilst watching the film, during the slower scenes, I couldn't help but feel like there were better options compared to that which the film did. 

Conclusion 

You can easily pick apart A Quiet Place and point out many errors in the world-buidling and such. But there's no point because it's very well directed, filled with strong performances and stuffed with tense scares and moments. John Krasinski has a bright future and these children should have a lot coming their way too. But Emily stands out the most and I cannot wait to see her as Mary Poppins later on. I really wish I'd seen this in the cinema, as it would've been an interesting experience with an audience. I'm sure anyone who'd like something tense to sit through will get tons of enjoyment from this film. 

I'm going to give A Quiet Place an S

Venom - Movie Review

This film is a 15, was released on October 3rd 2018, and this review will contain NO SPOILERS but there will be a discussion of post credit scenes which I consider MINOR SPOILERS at the end.

Introduction 

You've heard me ramble on about superheroes and movies based off them for ages if you've been reading my reviews. And that's because I really enjoy them. You'll know I like them just because it's decent entertainment with enough heart and character to enjoy too. But 2017 and 18 have had so many hits in this sub-genre that all arguments about over-saturation feel redundant. It makes sense as there are vast amounts each year, but it's not a case of quantity over quality because nowadays, these movies have an incredible amount of passion put into them, and have even brought some indie directors to higher ground. But you can't have a genre without a dud, can you? This is where people suspected Venom would come in.

Thoughts Going In 

The trailers for Venom looked quite good. Despite not being linked to the MCU, it still looked like something I'd enjoy, and I do like Tom Hardy. But as the release got closer, I had some reservations. The reviews were awful with many critics I respect saying it was bad. Followed by a surprising 15 certificate and limited showings at many cinemas. I was keen to see what this movie was, so I had very low expectations. 

The Story 

Tom Hardy plays Eddie Brock, a reporter who loses his job after being too inquisitive in an interview. This also causes his relationship with Michelle Williams to end too. However, Eddie ends up in the life foundation where he lost his job and ends up with a substance called a Symbiote. This leads to a mysterious voice in his head, known as Venom. What follows is a Jekyll and Hyde style dynamic between Eddie and Venom as well as villainous plans to put a Symbiote in every human to prevent extinction. 

What I Liked 

Surprisingly, I did enjoy this film. There are enough well directed action scenes which keep it from feeling shallow. One in particular involves Eddie being chased on a bike as he discovers some of his new capabilities with the Venom powers. This involves some thrilling moments where strands of Symbiote stretch out and grab or swing from things and it is pretty creative. That was a stand out and the rest are decent enough too. 

Hardy's performance was something I didn't think would work out, but the way he interacts with his alter-ego of Venom was the best part of the film. The dynamic between the two is entertaining, as it leads to some comic moments of disagreement or just arguing. I'm not a huge fan of how Hardy acted at some points but I'll elaborate later. The main thing is that this play-off between these two different characters was what kept the film afloat for me, I just wish it was explored in more detail as it really only scratched the surface. But what we got was good. 

The visuals are amazing. The fluidity of the movement of the Symbiote strands was so mesmerising to watch. When Venom comes out to play by overtaking Eddie's entire body - like in the first transformation scene - or snaking out of his back to have a face-to-face conversation, it looks so beautiful. The details are so well refined and I really liked to watch it. There are some effects that don't work as well, but the small moments where nothing extreme or catastrophic is happening and we just see Venom being Venom, it had me transfixed. 

I think as a 15 the film works just fine. Obviously, it isn't as great as other 15 Marvel movies, most notably Deadpool or Deadpool 2, but like the latter, the certificate matches the tone of the film as it is quite brutal, occasionally scary and filled with horrific imagery, which would've been undercut with a 12. I appreciate the studio not playing it safe and trying to make something tonally different in terms of a superhero movie. There aren't that many horror-esque ones out there.

What I Didn't Like 

This movie is somehow rushed and bloated at the same time in the first half. I'm not joking, but the first whole hour was essentially Venom-less, or at least it felt that way. The set up before the powers meet the hero usually takes somewhere between 30 and 40 minutes. Here, it takes ages to get going. In the showing I was at, I knew what time it was due to finish, so when we had our first great action scene, there was literally about 30 minutes to go. That set up should've been condensed. But what's more crazy is the fact that the set up is badly paced too. It jumps from one thing to the next very flippantly. Symbiotes arrive on earth, Eddie has a good job, Eddie gets fired and breaks up, experiments with Symbiotes go awry, Eddie gets the Symbiote and then some action. It feels like there are some pieces that connect those scenes missing, to me. All I'm saying is that there is a good chunk of this movie in which we have no Venom, and it results in some boring scenes. I suppose that now we have the origin out of the way, any sequels will have more Venom.

Another complaint, THIS MOVIE IS SO LOUD!!!! There are action scenes where Venom fights another Symbiote called Riot (which leads to a cliche hero vs villain with similar suit / powers) and it is so noisy. It's either explosions, unnecessary roaring, giant blades slashing things, cars crashing and tons more. As a result, there is some fatigue as it gets tiring after a while to see more boom, crash, bang. Additionally, the effects on the big fights are weirdly less engaging than watching the slimy strands slither around at a very slow pace. Maybe I'm just fascinated by the little things. 

The direction is bad in places. Before I go on, I think Tom Hardy is brilliant. He is one of the most talented actors working today. The fact that he's British too is also nice for me. He can do so much with his material. For example, in Dunkirk he has a mask which obscures most of his face, but yet you still feel every emotion due to his expressive face and somewhat minimal dialogue. Here, I think he was directed badly. He's sort of doing the same thing as Mark Ruffalo in the Avengers franchise, in that he's kind of introverted, enclosed and awkward, all because he has a radically different alter-ego he doesn't want to come out. However, Tom overdoes it on some occasions. He goes a bit crazy in a restaurant in one scene and because he's not being very expressive with his movements, it feels restrained, as if he's holding back all he can really do. And in terms of comparison with Ruffalo, the latter is only better because those traits are more suited to him as an actor and the directing in all his film appearances is far superior to this. Again, Tom is great and I have no issue with him, it's the direction on him which I think is weak. I hope you understand what I'm trying to say. 

Conclusion 

Overall, I'd say people are being a bit harsh on Venom. Apart from some weak direction, noisy action scenes and a slow, bloated first half which makes for less Venom time, this is a perfectly fine watch with a good central performance, an interesting dynamic between the two characters, neat visuals and some stand out moments. Obviously I can't say it's an Infinity War level of film, nor is it Deadpool in terms of being in the 15 category, but it works well enough and doesn't fall into the common trap of having the need to kickstart a new universe throughout the whole runtime. If you're quite a jaded fan of Marvel comics then this will pass the time just fine for you, but as for me, I can't say I'll be rewatching this any time soon, maybe if it ends up on Netflix I'll stick it on. My friend made a good comparison with Solo: A Star Wars Story - they're both very much in the shadow of other movies with the same brand attached to them, but it works well enough as its own thing with some decent action and performances. And it isn't the dud of the genre this year to me, I think Aquaman will probably hold that title.

I'm going to give Venom an O 

Spoiler Talk 

Obviously, there are some post credit scenes which suggest different things for Sony's future with the Marvel licence. The mid-credits scene has a brief moment of the very talented Woody Harrelson who plays Carnage, who to my understanding is another Symbiote? Whatever it is, it sets up another film which I think will either be called 'Carnage' or perhaps 'Venom 2'. If so, I hope there is more fun action like the bike chase in this movie, along with less noise during so. 

The post-credits scene was weirdly an overlong clip from the upcoming Spider-Man Into the Spider-Verse. Not surprising considering that's another Sony / Marvel movie but odd when you factor in that it'll probably be a PG at most and thus for a very different audience than the main film people came to see. There was also a trailer for it beforehand. The first two trailers had me very excited because they looked different, a Sony Pictures Animation movie that looks like it'll have depth, emotion and some terrific visuals. But this new one scares me that it'll just be a generic kids movie, with bad jokes and too many characters, most of which will probably be a comic relief. But the long sequence after the credits seems visually interesting and the action is well directed, so not all hope is lost and I definitely will see it. 

Technically that last scene wasn't after all the credits, so I don't know if those two were all that was shown, because I left after the Spidey one. I can't missed much though, I'm sure that was all.