Enola Holmes (2020) - Movie Review

Time to close out our look at Jack Thorne’s screenwriting work for 2020, and quite frankly, this really could go either way. It could be another serving of bland nothing that feels like a shadow of a much better story, or it could be a solid, if uneven, breath of fresh air within its own genre. At either rate, I’m fully expecting every other aspect of production to be overclocked to make up for the weakness within the script. Well, nothing of the sort shows up here. It seems I have left the best for last by sheer happenstance, as this is easily Thorne’s most fully-formed script of the year.

Red Shoes And The Seven Dwarfs (2020) - Movie Review

You know a film’s marketing is bad when it manages to turn off potential audiences three years before they even get a chance to see it.

The Nightingale (2019) - Movie Review

Much like with Ari Aster and Midsommar, this review is basically going to be me admitting that I severely underestimated the director on their previous work. Except I can’t even blame the density of the material this time around; I legit just wasn’t experienced enough in cinema to give Jennifer Kent’s The Babadook its fair due.

For the incredibly unconventional and confronting work it was, one that dealt with parenthood and depression in a way that truly blind-sided me on first viewing, it really took me a second viewing to properly get over what were ultimately some rather minor grievances with the film’s tone. Or, more accurately, my inability to understand the tone. And much like with Midsommar, I’m not leaving anything to chance now that I’m fully aware of what this director is capable of. And oh boy, is this one hell of a follow-up to one of the greatest horror flicks of the 2010’s.

Adrift (2018) - Movie Review

The plot: While journeying by boat from Tahiti to San Diego, Tami (Shailene Woodley) and Richard (Sam Claflin) end up in the middle of Hurricane Raymond and both their boat and themselves end up bearing the brunt of it. As Tami tries to get the boat back into working order, and caring for Richard's post-wreck injuries, she must find a way to get to dry land before the sea claims them.

Their Finest (2017) - Movie Review

The plot: Screenwriter Catrin Cole (Gemma Arterton) is asked by Britain’s Ministry of Information to make a film about two twin sisters who take their father’s boat out to help in the evacuation of Dunkirk. As she works closely with writer Tom Buckley (Sam Claflin) and actor Ambrose Hilliard (Bill Nighy), they put together a film that they hope will meet the Ministry’s wishes for a production that will bring the nation together. However, as a series of uncontrollable events and mandates fall their way, up to and including being forced to include American Carl Lundbeck (Jake Lacy) into the film despite his lack of acting experience, they’ll have to work hard to make a uniting film before it tears them all apart.

 

My Cousin Rachel (2017) - Movie Review

Oh, this is going to be a tough one to talk about. What makes that statement weird though, considering I’ve reviewed a wide spectrum of releases on this blog before, is that it isn’t even for any of the obvious reasons. I’ve mentioned how old-timey costume dramas really aren’t my thing for some reason, and writing about them isn’t something I find easy, but that’s not it. I’ve shown a certain verging-on-dickishness when discussing feminist-centric notions, something that makes those topics not exactly my favourite thing to talk about, but that’s not it either.

 

Today’s film is a story involving incest between cousins, and to cut a potentially long and aggravating story short, I found out rather recently that apparently people still need to be convinced that incest isn’t exactly the most ideal thing to be doing with one's time. And yet, even that isn’t why this is going to be a tough review to get out there. Rather, it’s because when all three of these areas intersect with this film’s approach to framing its story, it results in a very all-over-the-place kind of production. Let’s get started and, hopefully, I’ll be able to explain why.

Me Before You (2016) - Movie Review

Time to look at another rom-com, and at this point, I’m more than willing to welcome the presence of a genre that is so consistently sweet to the point of diabetic as this. Not only does it mean that I can get away from the frankly depressing films that I have yet to watch for this year, it also means that I can take a break from any heavy topics… or, at least, that’s what I thought.

The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 2 (2015) - Movie Review

Every so often, the cinematic hype machine will transcend simply creating interest in a given film and generate a legitimate film event. Undoubtedly, the big film event for this year is the upcoming release of the latest Star Wars instalment but, for reasons I’ll get into when I inevitably look at that film, this is the one I was looking forward to more. This single film is a far bigger deal than I think even the fans and filmmakers realise: The progenitor for the latest trend in YA adaptations that will likely carry on for years after this has left cinemas, the finale to the most hyped film series since Harry Potter and the latest continuation of a franchise that has maintained the kind of quality control that most directors would sell their souls to maintain. Hell, I probably only qualify as a surface fan and I still reckon that this is probably the best young adult film series that we’ll get for a long while. But this is why I usually voice against hype on this blog: This could all be leading to sheer disappointment, much like what happened when The Hobbit ended. Time to find out if this ending only leaves us hungry for more… and don’t worry, I’ll whip myself for that one later.

The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1 (2014) - Movie Review

As I write this, I am also working on a presentation about film tastes for a class I’m taking. In it, among other things, I make mention of critical hype and how it can ultimately damage a person’s film experience: You build up too much hype about how good (or bad) something is and you could end up giving someone else expectations that cannot possibly be met; this is the Detox Effect at work. With how much I was looking forward to today’s film after my last review, as well as how much talk I’ve seen involving this movie both on and offline, I’d be lying if I didn’t say I was cautious.

Love, Rosie (2014) - Movie Review

One of the key events that lead me to watching new films as intently as I do was when my therapist recommended a movie for me to watch as part of my therapy. It was a British rom-com called About Time, which I thoroughly enjoyed and got me thinking more about the idea of movie-watching as a form of therapy, something I might revisit at a later date. Anyway, it was a short while later that I decided to go with my current plan of watching all the new releases, as well as revisiting as many of the movies from the last few years that I can, and with that I gained a certain… relationship with romantic comedies. While every other critic has cinematic PTSD, given how bad most rom-coms get, I look at new releases in the genre as a little reminder of something that got me to where I am now as a critic. Doesn’t hurt that today’s movie also comes from the same general geographic location.