Reviews

I knew absolutely nothing of this story. But the synopsis intrigued me and I felt seeing it on International Women's Day felt right to check this out.

While there was nothing notably bad about it, it felt like a missed opportunity. The whole vibe felt more like a film made for television in every aspect. However, the content is interesting and you can feel the passion and drive the people involved are putting into this project.

If the film had more starpower in front of the camera and more capable minds behind it, this would be worth your time on the big screen.

I'd either find a documentary (if there is one) or wait until this is available to stream.

This was certainly the type of film I needed right now.

While it is billed as a comedy drama, I just wasn't expecting this much of a fun vibe to it.

It's a very grounded story with charismatic characters and memorable situations.

There are themes of our addiction of wanting to be accepted, still finding the positives in life at an old age, learning to love the life you already have and the importance of music.

The performances were great value. Both Sasson Gabay and Rita Shukrin had real sweetness and charm to their performances that felt highly engaging and very natural. Both by themselves and together, this was a lot of fun to watch and develop.

A couple of parts on the technical side surprisingly stood out. The lighting was effectively moody and the score and soundtrack was very memorable.

While I feel some parts could have been explored more and certain sub-plots didn't feel fully resolved, this ended up being a very pleasant watch. There's engaging characters and a good amount of comedy that had me laughing fairly regularly.

Whilst it is also funny, there is also an interesting story about old age and recognition. A crowd-pleaser that sadly will probably not get much notice for a mainstream audience. I hope not.

Stories about immigrants is becoming more and more common in the cinema. It's sadly an ever growing topic. But a lot of these films with this premise come from either one story or a series of stories from one particular country.

This particular tale has great authenticity both in its plot and homemade style with its hand-held camerawork.

There are some tough sequences and all of that along with sound character development makes for a tense and dramatic second half. It was almost like watching a documentary.

A lot of it is thanks to the two strong performances of Joely Mbundu and Pablo Schils. Their connection and on-screen friendship felt very believable and natural.

There's a lot they are having to deal and it paints a very interesting picture on how immigrants in this part of the world are treated.

I could be picky and say that the ending does leave a few loose ends and some of the choices felt rushed. But I didn't think it was a major drawback as it still some tense sequences that had me totally gripped.

I was surprised that it's just less than 90 minutes long given the subject matter. But I think what we got gave us enough of a glimpse into this dark and tough world.

Our investment is thanks to the two leads who give off strong natural sympathy and put us on their side early on.

The content is tough at times and the documentary approach gave it the rawness to make it work.

It still amazes me how evolved the documentary film genre has become over the years.

The amount of freedom you can experiment within a documentary has become more noticeable. In this one particularly, you see a bunch of different styles and even story branches.

There is a mix of themes such as topical activism, what can be classified as art, a determination for justice and accountability, a woman's struggling life and the power of family.

The central character I had no idea about and we certainly got a thorough look into her life both as an artist and as a daughter.

It felt very definitive as I felt it gave you the perfect portrait of this person's upbringing and how certain traumas lead to this groundbreaking change in the art world.

I also liked at how they told each aspect of her life in a parallel style. The timings of shift to a different part of her life felt well-timed and gave us a very satisfying conclusion.

This was pretty interesting and while I wasn't overwhelmed by it, I can see others feeling that way.

It's well made, the content and imagery is strong and the central character was not afraid to open herself up to her life story.

As an audience member, films that cover the topic of adoption, there are expected themes of identity involved. But instead we get more of a random style of set-pieces within the conventional moments that represented identity in a unique way.

For the most part, it worked for the character and the story. But there were some that I just couldn't get on board with and some were even so random they were unforgivable.

I really liked Park Ji-Min's performance. I enjoyed the attitude that she gave to the leading character and the spontaneous moments that she orchestrated were largely memorable and one of the strongest parts of the film.

I liked the overall look. It was able to give us some effective imagery in different environments and never feel like different films.

The pacing was gentle. There were some purposeful lingering shots which worked well for the most part. Also, the camerawork was respectful with its wide shots as it let the pictures do the talking instead of taking over and turning it into something that wasn't intended.

As mentioned, I wasn't invested with every decision made. Some of the choices in the narrative in the second half made no sense to me. There were others I appreciated, but just wasn't a fan of them.

Despite that, I thought this was still a good enough drama that was worth my time. It's got a solid leading performance that you're willing to invest in. It also poses some interesting representations on the themes of identity that I've not seen before.

I cannot forgive some of the random moments in the second half. But nevertheless, there was enough engrossing moments to keep me guessing how this would end.

When a film starts as joyously as this one, I was all set-up for something totally charming.

Everyone's happy, there's some sweet sequences and everything seems too good.

Then we get something truly terribly and gut-punching, and that is where the themes of this story start to develop.

We see topics of grief, isolation, the importance of communication and the complexity of family life.

However, there were some decisions made both in the casting and narrative in the second half that didn't work for me.

The introductions of certain characters seemed to conflict with how they were being talked about. Plus, some choices in the story felt out of place to me and made no sense as to why they would be happening.

While I appreciate the unexpectedness of the events of the second and final acts, they just didn't sit well with me for one reason or another.

The performance of lead Fumino Kimura is a particular highlight. There was great emotion coming from her even at her most subtle.

Even with those issues I had with it, this was still a pretty solid drama.

It brings out genuine heartbreak with added complexity in character development. It got a bit too contrived for me at times. But the good certainly outweighs everything else.

It's not often when you see a film that you just weren't prepared for.

This one is certainly one. It's strange that it's initial vibe was closer to a black comedy. Then it decided to be serious with its ideas and almost get philosophical. It also seemed to take pleasure in its gruesome violence which may put off some viewers It was strange at first. But I think them being fully on board with this creation shifted the tone in an effective way.

I did have an inkling as to how it would end and it managed to do exactly what I thought. That's always comforting as it certainly makes me feel like that I'm on the directors wavelength.

Throughout the film, I was seeing influences of Princess Mononoke, Full Metal Jacket, Bambi and 300. Those are the type of combinations that shouldn't even really be thought about and yet here we are.

I think what made it work for me the most was the mix of animation styles used. The colour palette is also very vibrant to the point where it's almost like you're in a fever dream. But I did notice the constant use of purple in every scene.

The whole thing ended up being weirdly captivating. The number of animation styles on show was great to see, the commitment to its ideas was much appreciated and it's themes of the horror of war, our ignorance with nature and competitive siblings were well presented.

I certainly won't be forgetting this one anytime soon.

While I am aware of the Chilean protests, my knowledge was barely surface level.

As soon as I saw this film documentary, I am fully aware of not just how it all happened. But also how pivotal this is for the country in every way.

This is my first experience of director Patrizio Guzman's work and I have heard good things and it shows how much they love their country. Especially when they've making documentary films about their country for the last half century.

From the word go, you are already into the action, on the frontline and hearing directly from the people involved.

There is a lot of energy coming from both the interviewees and the filmed footage. Along with a well structured narrative, you get a pretty thorough look at the many things the whole is fighting for.

There are also some astonishing images caught on camera that will stay with you.

I would have liked an aspect that saw the other side contribute to the documentary. But considering the circumstances was never going to make that possible, it wasn't a major gripe.

This was a very raw viewing experience and felt like a definitive look at this event. The first-hand account of the action makes the imagery striking and the interviews are compelling. It further shows how passionate this part of the world is and makes any outsider truly understand what is happening over there.

It's not often that we see a sci-fi film that doesn't have a big budget and not produced by a major studio.

Films within this genre naturally require a lot of money for the CGI and general production design.

However, there is occasionally the odd independent release that has decided to go this route.

This particular new release has got a strange concept that I'm not sure where it was going to go in terms of tone.

Now that I have seen it, it was like I was watching an arthouse version of Red Dwarf with an almost Big Brother environment whilst giving nods to 2001: A Space Odyssey.

The purposeful low budget sets and costumes gave us an effective grounded look to the story. This gave us time to concentrate on the characters and it's themes of achieving your ultimate dream both for you personally and as a species.

Steve Laplante was a very capable lead and I liked the journey his character went. He had a very likable screen presence and I think it was helped by his supports.

Larissa Corriveau in particular produced a lot of the films energy and Hamza Haq gave us some good comedic moments as did Denis Houle

I was surprised at how entertained I was. There's genuine laughs to be had amongst the surrealness of the situation.

You can see that the people behind making it loved the material and are fans of sci-fi.

If I was being picky, I think some of themes could have been better utilised. This would resulted in a more satisfying ending as there were some loose ends not quite tied up.

But even with those issues from a personal perspective, this is still a very entertaining watch. The concept worked, the characters are easy to invest with, the deadpan humour is great, the minimal production design enhances the grounded story well and there's a quirky charm to it that is very infectious.

It's not often when your debut feature not only gets in the festival circuit, but is also officially a student project.

After seeing it, you would never see this as at. Firstly, it's beautifully shot. There's a lot of fixed wide shots and it gave a great scale to the story even though most of the film is set inside a high-rise building.

As for the story and ideas, it felt topical and there was an noticeable influence to Greek director Yorgos Lanthimos, who is known for having a dystopian look with a dialogue close to a black comedy.

Leading the way was Ioana Iacob, who did a great job carrying this film. While there is a solid ensemble, Iacob showed great authority in her role and felt very measured.

What I got out of it what was a social satire that shows the power of paranoia and fear.

Not only it is really well shot, there's a haunting score to it as well.

It commits to its ideas and gives some sequences that certainly reflect moments that most of us will have experienced.

Some bits to get repetitive, but for what it was, this was pretty impressive. They made the most of its small budget, has interesting ideas and managed to get a very capable cast that utilised what was given to them.

This is a strong debut from Sinelnikova and her team and I hope this has given everyone involved the foundation for a major breakthrough into the industry.

It's not often that a making a film is such an achievement that literally everyone involved is not credited in the film to protect their identities. That's the situation we're in for this one.

I'll admit that I knew very little about the Myanmar military coup. But I was aware there are big conflicts happening in several South East Asian countries right now.

There are some powerful moments captured on film here to show how resistant the public are being to these current events. There are also some accompanied symbolic and poetic reconstructions of particular people's stories.

But for a documentary lasting around 70 mins, I didn't feel we got enough content worthy of a film.

I admit it's a harsh criticism and while I felt it was lacking in fundamental elements of a film documentary, what they managed to get out there still deserves recognition.

The footage and reconstructions explained the situation enough to give you an idea of what's happening and it makes you want to know more.

I'm not sure if it needed to be a film though. It would have done better as a TV special I reckon as it would get the word across the better. An important piece nonetheless.

It's not often that you see war films that experiment and become more of an arthouse piece.

But this one decided to shift tones dramatically and give us something not as straightforward.

The opening is quite dramatic with some brutal sequences and a great use of the landscape to make it almost feel like a horror.

Then we get something a little about the imagery rather than the narrative structure. It is different and I wasn't sure if I was on board with it.

There's not much to speak of from an acting side as there were no standouts. It's more of an ensemble piece and they all did a perfectly functional job.

It's honestly a hard film to sum up as the changes in its vibe and tone challenges you. It is certainly well made, very atmospheric especially in the opening act, contains a lot of strong imagery and gives you an idea of the true events it's portraying.

While it may lack in logic. This was more of a symbolic portrait of war with supernatural edges to it.

Doing a feature film for the first time can be tricky for many reasons.

One personal goal is having that commitment to your ideas and seeing it through to fulfill your vision.

That is what I felt director Carman Jaquier managed to do. After being part of a collaboration, Jaquier has gone solo with quite a visionary piece of work.

On paper, the story does lack originality as it's something we've all seen before. But it's the atmosphere that Jaquier creates that gives it some freshness.

The dreamlike state, out of body experiences and feeling like you have discovered something new to life that you didn't know was out there.

The leading performance of Lilith Grasmug worked well with Jaquier's style. Her striking presence is constant in this and she has a power of telling so much without seemingly doing anything.

Another performance worth mentioning is their choice of location in the form of the Alps. The way it was shot gave it so much life that it managed to feel like Grasmug's main support. That vast beauty and openness clashing with the themes of of being in a mental enclosure worked really well.

So while to some it may look like a simple coming-of-age story. The time period and tone gives you more than just that.

Jaquier's choice of staying with certain shots showed a lot of confidence in the thrmes driving this story.

That fear of being a free-thinking individual in a God-fearing society and the openness of the Alps landscape whilst still feeling trapped and enclosed. All of that along with the dreamlike atmosphere that makes it look like a Terrence Malick feature gives us a pretty solid drama with an immersive atmosphere that gives it a lot of life.

For a film called 'America', I was not expecting what I got in the end.

The narrative is certainly a melodrama. But the choices in its structure gave me a bit more sense of grandeur and scale.

It's quite poetic in its imagery at times to help enhance the themes a bit more.

But even though some of the content that was happening was dramatic and emotional, something felt off in its execution.

It's hard to pinpoint the negatives. But even though what I was seeing was an interesting melodrama, I wasn't blown away by it emotionally.

It does some unfamiliar choices in its story structures. But the result is something in so many drama's similar to it.

The performances from the main cast were solid for the most part. They felt like a strong trio all contributing in carrying this film and selling the story. But I also might be being a bit harsh on the performances here, but I felt they were lacking that look to help transcend their emotions to the audience.

There's a strong use of flowers in this story and this gave he film a lot of colour which was pleasing to see.

This is a strange one to sum up for me as there's nothing really wrong with it. The story has solid development, three central characters all pull their weight and it has enough emotion to make it worth your time.

Maybe I was in the wrong frame of mind, but it lacked that spark to be an exceptional drama for me. It's as if the film wasn't allowed to let loose and really go for it. It almost felt restricted in what it could do.

I've seen similar drama's done much better and also much worse. It's definitely above average. But I felt like something was missing to be what it should have been.

I have always said that the first 'Hocus Pocus' is the best Halloween film for kids. It's a lot of fun, exciting, has a good amount of energy, has the right amount of horror to not put the kids off it and just makes you smile. So I was glad to see that the love for it gave birth to a long awaited sequel.

With the excitement comes the caution as sequels from 80's or 90's originals have a low success rate. But like with something like 'Top Gun: Maverick' I knew that in the right hands if they committed to the concept rather than try and make it contemporary to keep the interest of modern audiences, then this could be as fun as the original.

There is a promising start that will certainly engage the fans of the original and while the structure as a whole is very familiar, it still never felt like cash grab. There was enough to keep the story going while paying homage to its predecessor which is fine as that is the reason why this film finally exists.

The action isn't really as physical as before. But as a few of our stars are a bit seasoned now, some of the changes that they made to accommodate that never made the film drag for me.

The finale is certainly the film's high point as there is one moment that will get the fans emotional. It certainly caught me off guard. It left me very satisfied, and I think it will get a strong positive response with other loyal members of the fandom also.

Seeing the trio of Bette Midler, Kathy Najimy and Sarah Jessica Parker was just great. They have not lost their touch or chemistry and Midler in particular can still put on a great show. It never felt they were phoning it in. It felt like they wanted to give something back to the fans which was wholly satisfying. It was also great seeing Doug Jones return. Jones is someone that does not get enough credit from people outside of the industry. You probably don't realise how much work Jones has done and his signature physical acting was put to good use once again.

As for the new cast, they weren't as instantly likable as the ones from the original. But they did a perfectly functional job to help the story move along and were thankfully never annoying.

It was great seeing parts of the original locations used and bringing back John Debney for that memorable score to be put to use once again. Some parts did look a bit too polished, too much like a set and never felt as dirty or authentic as its predecessor. The pacing is solid but could have been a bit more rampant to give it some adrenaline. The slightly longer running time doesn't help.

Other minor negatives to speak of was that the stakes never felt that big or consequential. I'm not totally surprised at this as Disney don't try to make things too scary or risky these days.

But that being said, the fun factor and energy is still there and despite its flaws I had a blast watching this. As a fan, it was great to see the gang bang together. While some of the nods, call backs and gags didn't all work, they largely were well executed. For non-fans, I feel this will remain a pleasurable watch. It does a good job celebrating its legacy and never tarnishing it. The emotional and highly satisfying finale proved that they were basically saying thank you to the fans for celebrating the original for so long.

I really hope I'm not the minority as I try to avoid seeing beloved projects through tinted eyes. But I think as a film it's perfectly fine with some nice moments that anyone can be invested in. But this will clearly satisfy the fans.

I must mention that there is a post credits scene. It's hard to not give a hint without spoiling it. So that's all say about it. It's there for you to discover yourself.

The film industry in Iran is becoming more and more noticeable over the last few years. The number of talented film-makers and actors coming from this part of the world shows a bright future for world cinema.

For director Majid Majidi, he has already shown a lot of promise with his back catalogue. As for this latest project, this one uses Iran's tough child labour as a backdrop to a moving drama.

The start sucks you into the story quite well and gives us many memorable character introductions and while the locations is within a third world environment, the brilliant cinematography gives it enough beauty to help enhance the visual story-telling side of the feature.

I was noticing a lot more emotional depth in every aspect as the film went on. The supporting cast are given a lot of nice development that help us discover some other topics the film is trying to cover. The story also covers education as well as Iran and Afghanistan relations, which I felt was executed rather well.

In the final act, we see the film pretty much turn into a tragedy and while the climax did make me feel very sad, it also felt very satisfying. It showed the films message come to an emotional high and it was a clever way of portraying the exploitative nature of child labour within Iran.

It's amazing to think most of the cast were recruited from the streets of Iran. There is so much talent to witness on screen throughout its duration. Rouhollah Zamani shows wonderful emotion as the leading character and authentic childlike sympathy that makes him instantly engaging. I hope this isn't just a one-off feature for him. I also have to give props for the other notable child actors Mani Ghafouri, Seyed Mohammad Mehdi Mousavi Fard, Abolfazi Shirzad and Sharmila Shirzad who showed wonderful maturity in her character.

What I liked about it the most is the many ways you can interpret this story. A long with the aforementioned themes, the way it is shot and edited also makes it feel like a heist or prison-break film. All of this I feel gives it strong rewatchability and make it appealing to a much larger then I would have expected.

I cannot quite get the film to a level of calling it a great film. I'm not quite sure what it lacked to prevent that. But I can safely say that I really liked the film's energy, charm, sincerity and how watchable it was. It never felt afraid to tackle the issues it was raising and so you could feel the confidence in the film-making.

Don't be afraid to check this one out when it becomes available. You'll be surprised how rewarding it is.

It had similar vibes of Ready Or Not, ideas and themes of The Purge and the unpredictability of The Cabin In The Woods. The first act is pretty strong and it really throws you off course as to who you think the main protagonist will be. That just set me up nicely for not having a clue of where it could go next. It moves at a good pace, the violence is brutal but cartoonish in its execution, the gags are solid and go down brave but potentially dangerous routes. I was fine with them. But it wouldn't surprise if some might offend the SJW cinema-goers. While the end was the most formulaic part of the film. The journey getting there made it a worthwhile watch.

For a TV movie, it was rather enjoyable. Rom-com is a genre that I personally find the least success in. But even though it covers a lot of cliche's and you exactly how it's going to end, there is a charm to it. The characters are likable and the writing has a sharp wit to it when it needs to.

When I realised the story was working-class centred, I felt optimistic as there is plenty of highly acclaimed films within this sub-genre that have been made in the past. The most notable directors making these are probably Ken Loach and Mike Leigh.

This film sees the directorial debut from Richard Bellingham, who seems to be showing his childhood from his upbringing in Birmingham.

What I liked about it the most was authentic look it had in every department. From the surroundings, to the sets, costumes and performances.

I was intrigued by the decisions in jumping from two timelines as wells as it got me wanting to know how the journey was going to develop into destination that we see in the opening scene.

The tone had mixes of comedy, strong British drama and some disturbing despicable moments.

The latter made it feel tricky to root for any characters as I just pityed them for the remainder of the film.

Then while the final act did mildly fill the gaps in the story from the opening scene, I just felt it could have been executed better and maybe be more impactful.

I didn't think much of it in the end. It is fairly solid throughout and there was nothing wrong in terms of the production department. The authenticity of the time period was the most impressive aspect and it was an interesting enough working-class story.

But finding it hard to feel sympathy for the characters and not feeling the story being completed made it also look a bit unfulfilled.

With many stronger directors out there showing similar stories, this particular feature I think could feel lost. But there is potential for a strong story to come out of Richard Bellingham both as a director and as a writer. So maybe see this a film as a work in progress.

Rating: 7/10

Boxing is a very well decorated sports sub-genre. You can list off a number of high-quality films from this category that have received high praise from the audience and been given a number of major awards. Two of them have even won Best Picture at the Oscars, Rocky and Million Dollar Baby. But nowadays, I think it's tough to make a really good one now. I feel it as a bit of a worn-out genre. There's not much else you can do different with it.

Now that I've seen Paddy Considine make and star in his own Boxing drama, the story certainly concentrates outside of the ring rather than in it. That's definitely a root that might refresh this genre.

But I felt to be really torn with this one in the end. It starts off with some potential. But I think the pacing of it and general look to it made it look pretty ordinary and dare I say more of a TV drama.

The second half does get better and by the end of it it was a heart-wrenching finale and that was all thanks to Considine.

Paddy Considine was great. It's hard to know what to think of his performance at first. But by the turn of the second half, that's when he truly shines and we get a couple of really emotional moments that did not have a dry eye in the house by the end of it.

Jodie Whittaker was a solid support and had great chemistry with Considine. But sadly, like with a lot of this film, her performance felt better suited to TV.

I've briefly mentioned this already, but the major problem I had with this film was that none of it felt cinematic. It felt more like an excellent one-off TV drama that would win many National TV awards. The story does fall into the trap of a what you expect in a TV movie, the forced themes and melodramatic presentation.

It is a real shame, because Considine's performance comes out really strong by the end of it and enhances everything around him.

Despite the high praise for his acting, there was very little exceptional content outside of that I'm afraid to say. After his incredibly powerful directing in Tyrannosaur, it pains me to say that this did feel disappointing. It's certainly made with good intentions and I think it is still worth seeing for Considine's acting. But maybe wait until you can access it from your home, as that seems to be where you get the best viewing experience.

Rating: 7/10

This was my shot-in-the-dark purchase at the Leeds International Film Festival. From what I read on the synopsis, it sounded like a documentary. But it was more like a feature film using lots of unseen archive footage.

It's only 1hr 18mins long and it was fascinating watching lots of old footage of various British activities such as farming, celebrating some of more obscure hobbies or festivals such as Morris dancing, maypole, the famous cheese roll at Coopers Hill. But was most fascinating, was the directors presentation.

To me, it felt like the director was showing the different sides of British society through the ages with religious tones told in a way similar to a fever dream. Seeing it done in that way makes me think that this director needs to collaborate with Darren Aronofsky in future projects as the aggressive nature to this reminded of things like 'Requiem For A Dream' and 'Mother!'.

But I think the main theme was showing how our society has treated are landscape and rural areas over time, which was book-ended by a character witnessing all of this from afar.

Whilst showing signs of some of Aronofsky's previous works, it also reminded of a film called Baraka that is a collection of clips showing human life and religion around the world.

While that was a more impressive presentation, this was still a enjoyable yet unique experience. I liked it's almost haunting way of showing its images with the accompanying score. It was presented in an almost aggressive manner, which could put people off as the director seems to be shoving his message down our threats.

While the way it was presented is perfectly functional but nothing exceptional, the story itself did its job.

The story is quite something and needs to be seen or at least read about.

As for the film documentary itself, it is perfectly coherent but not exceptional. However, it left me frustrated as there was never any conclusion.

But like I said, the story is unbelievable enough to check out.

It has been almost three years since The Lego Movie surprised us all.

Since then, the sky is the limit for many spin-off films, and we already have one with The Lego Movie's most memorable character.

Also the directors of The Lego Movie, Phil Lord and Christopher Miller are back. This time as producers. Instead, we have renowned animation comedy director Chris McKay, who is know for the Robot Chicken TV series.

There are always nerves with a comedy sequel. Will the jokes work again?

Thankfully, that is not the case at all. I had a complete blast with this. There's lots of high energy throughout this fun and exciting flick. From the start, you can dropped right into the action and it just does not stop. It does follow a similar structure and tone to The Lego Movie, and I am completely fine with that as I am still riding the coat tails of the 2014 feature. So that mean that as expected, the visuals are fantastic, the sharp colour scheme makes the film look gorgeous and the movement of the characters look stop-motion even though you know it's CGI.

It's biggest strengths is the comedy. The amount of references, self-referential jokes, sarcastic and ironic humor is ridiculous. Everything seems packed with so many jokes a minute. However, I must mention that it's greatest success, can also be its weakness at times. It does get a little frenetic at times, and it is hard to keep up with the gags. There are moments, where you feel so exhausted that you can't laugh at all of them. That is a very minor criticism, as you can't really put that down as a real negative.

I also really enjoyed the cameos by other characters that have been turned into Lego form. The amount is off the scale. Seeing the different franchises involved really opens the door to an infinite amount of Lego movies that have been to been made.

Will Arnett continues to be brilliant as the voice of Batman. He has really made it his own, and it is certainly one of the most memorable animated characters in the last 10 years. Zach Galifiniakis did a great job as the voice of The Joker, and like Arnett, he is a welcomed addition to the list of other iconic performances of this character. I also have to credit to Michael Cera (which is not often), Rosario Dawson and Ralph Fiennes. The notable voice performances from the cameos are Mariah Carey, Billy Dee Williams, Conan O'Brien, Zoe Kravitz, Channing Tatum, Jonah Hill, Eddie Izzard and Seth Green.

The only other negative that I care to mention apart from the gag over-usage, is the one slow moment. It completely changes the pacing, felt out of place and felt more like a time for you to rest and get ready for the rest of the remaining gags.

Apart from that, I had a great time. I don't think it's as clever as The Lego Movie. But I think it's consistently more fun. Huge props to the great talents of director Chris McKay and producers Phil Lord and Christopher Miller. This Lego movie franchise could be our best chance for a series of really good spoof movies. I don't think I could ever get tired of the tone that these films are going for. The film- makers knew what to make fun from previous Batman features and what to exploit. It came out great. It's constantly witty and sharp both in its visuals and writing. If they just harnessed the jokes and made the structure a little bit more free-flowing, this could have been something special. Also, it would be interesting to see if kids will like this as much as the adults, as the jokes may not get much of a reaction from the younger viewers.

I wasn't expecting this, but there was a Lego short before the film. It was rather funny and it is a nice teaser before Lego's next feature later this year.