Wonder Woman (2017) - Movie Review

As a means to contrast the enduring sense of dread I had in the lead-up to the release of Baywatch (you know, before I ended up liking it), today’s film has been a long and steady process of chanting “please don’t suck” over and over again every time I saw the marketing for this film. Knowing what DC is capable of in terms of stories, and how much their recent efforts have been underwhelming (I didn’t give nearly enough flack for the whole Granny’s Peach Tea insanity from BvS: Dawn Of Justice when I first reviewed it), I seriously wish that they would stop falling under their own strain and just make the DC Extended Universe worth watching. The closest we’ve gotten so far is Suicide Squad, and even then it ranks up there in terms of the most bewildering fanboy rage quits in recent years; it honestly seems like I’m one of the few people who was willing to give that film a chance.

 

So, in the wake of this film’s alarmingly warm reception, am I going to join the crowd for once or am I going to be the lone jackass wondering what the hell everyone else is seeing? Only one way to find out.

T2: Trainspotting (2017) - Movie Review

1997’s Trainspotting, directed by the previously-lauded Danny Boyle, is one of my all-time favourite films. As much as a retooling of A Clockwork Orange as it is a bladed lower-middle class answer to it, it is a pitch-black comedic look at addiction, what it means to be a junkie and how “getting a fix” extends to using people as much as your chosen drug. Through its incredible acting and acknowledgement of the misanthropic tendencies of its main characters, it stands as one of the greatest drug films ever made. The fact that it put both Boyle and lead actor Ewan McGregor on the map is laudable but barely a footnote in comparison to how enthralling it is on its own. You better believe, even knowing what happened with Boyle and writer John Hodge’s last 90’s throwback collaboration, that I was eagerly anticipating this follow-up. With how my scepticism never wanes even in the presence of promising works, let’s see how well this decades-removed continuation turned out.