The Empty Man (2020) - Movie Review

A few years ago, I looked at a film with the immediately-mockable name of The Bye Bye Man. I found myself in a bit of an odd situation after watching it as, while it initially caught my attention through contemporary critics lampooning the shit out of it, I ended up struggling to figure out if I hated it or not. Yeah, the acting was weak, the horror cred of the overall production was limp at best, and most of what it had to offer was watered-down material from other, better entries in the genre… but to this day, there’s still something about its approach to a supernatural killer that appeals to the kookier part of my brain.

I bring all this up because this film left me with a similar reaction, where I feel like I’m still having an argument with myself if this is a uniquely cool take on psycho-horror, or if it’s just an overcooked and under-seasoned casserole of a film.

Only The Brave (2017) - Movie Review

The plot: The Granite Mountain Hotshots, led by Eric “Supe” Marsh (Josh Brolin), are a group of first response firefighters. As they are sent all over the country to help curb wildfires, Marsh along with new recruit Brendan “Donut” McDonough (Miles Teller) begins to question why are they putting themselves on the front line and whether they have what it takes.

13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers Of Benghazi (2016) - Movie Review

Michael Bay: A name synonymous with Hollywood hackery, thanks in no small part to his generally woeful Transformers film series. And yet, at least in the last couple of years, I find myself defending the guy? Okay, let me rephrase that. I’m defending the guy’s recent output which, for various reasons, I can easily say shows some definite improvement from the guy who gave Deep Wang and “I’m directly below the enemy scrotum”. Between the genuinely great satire of Pain & Gain, the leap in the right direction of Transformers: Age Of Extinction and even the surprisingly decent Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles film, I can easily say that I was properly looking forward to this one. I mean, there is a place in the world for Bay’s style of bona fide excess of America, Fuck Yeah; I just wish that his latest would more resemble The Rock than The Fallen. So, are we gonna get another Shyamalan? Only one way to find out.

The Walk (2015) - Movie Review

There are very few filmmakers whom possess such a stranglehold on pop culture history as Robert Zemeckis. Whether it’s his audience-pleasing favourites like Who Framed Roger Rabbit and the Back To The Future trilogy, his critical darlings like Forrest Gump and Cast Away or even his cult classics like Used Cars and Death Becomes Her, the man likely owns a decent part of the collective cinematic mindset. Through his willingness to adapt not only to newer filming techniques but also to the Hollywood system at large, he has more than earned his place in the pantheon of directing greats. That, and he will also hold a very near and dear place for me personally, since he’s also one of the only directors still working today that has a consistently good track record in terms of effects work; it’s kind of astounding just how well a lot of his films have visually held up. So, when news hit that the king of dual role casting was behind a new release, it became clear that this is something I would be watching even without the whole critical routine.

Flight (2013) - Movie Review