Reviews

How I managed to stay the course of season 1 is as great a mystery as the invading aliens' psychology but to hold your attention here I'll quickly state that season 2 was a marked improvement. The first instalment was painfully slow and devoid of any answers to the multiple layers of questions that arise from the unstoppable yet actually more stop/start invasion that is engulfing the planet. The characters are diverse, interesting 'enough' in their backgrounds, but erratically annoying at times, doing and saying stupid things. That said, there's a lot of original intrigue applied here to an otherwise hackneyed sci-fi concept with nice ethereal rendering that feels, or at least looks, reasonably plausible. Overall its plus points ultimately weigh up against its faibles. It's just a shame that sluggish direction and unrelatable character behaviour weren't remedied in the script or cutting room for the sake of viewing humanity.

Don't let the average rating dissuade you, as this is a worthwhile watch, especially for all fans of Flanagan. Despite its early heavy foreboding and very eclectic mix of story-telling, this is a very humanistic tale at heart. The character back stories are creatively built and acted with emotional conviction and with less camped-up flair as in Flanagan's 'Fall of the House of Usher' for example. However, the pace is a little off here and episodes can meander a little too much with an ending that leaves some questions unanswered. A second season was sadly cancelled but Flanagan's synopsis is available for those seeking those answers, if you didn't guess some of them yourself. Nonetheless The Midnight Club as a limited series works on the whole and offers an addictive cocktail of horror, humour and humanity that leaves you with a warm feeling rather than chills down your spine.

More than two decades on from the release of this sci-fi offering the bar has been raised ten fold. The Martian leaves Mission To Mars in the dust for one, albeit trumping science over fantasy. But this feels achingly dated whichever way you look at it. The acting is as lacking in life as the Martian soil and the soundtrack sounds like something out of the 1950s, which instantly evokes B-movie status. The concept is reasonable, but the execution is long and drawn out making it look like a tasty a rye bread sandwich but with a crappy processed meat filling in the middle in the form of boring meandering plot lines. The finally segment does finally get back to complete the circle of initial intrigue that the film initially tantalises with, but given the advancement of CGI (and indeed the move away from reliance on it these days) the big encounter is cringe-worthily laughable and undoes much of the progress that the film finally manages to claw back. To its credit, it manages to wrap things up neatly with an ending that's not terrible, but could've been better if the storyline was less flabby and superfluous and if the acting and score were less cheesy. That much older sci-fi movies still stand up to the test of time makes it pretty inexcusable that Mission To Mars isn't (or wasn't) better.

With a somewhat vague memory of the original Dark Crystal movie being darker and perhaps less enthralling that the other Jim Henson Company later offering: Labyrinth, it's intriguing to see this resurrection of a niche '80s classic. However, benefiting from a Stranger Things-led '80s revival, the Dark Crystal is bang on trend and with new technology to help the puppetry reach more credibility, the Dark Crystal's time to shine is now. Any doubts are swiftly cast aside when watching the first episode, which wastes no time in setting the story landscape in vivid colour and sinister undertones, as the evil Skeksis lords show their true dark and despicable shades of vulgarity, greed and wanton evil desire for power and immortality at all costs. Skeksis Chamberlain, amazingly voiced by Simon Pegg, is wickedly fantastic as the duplicitous politician among them, delivering more menace in his sneers and high pitched 'hmm' intonations than even his spoken lines. He is a guilty pleasure to behold and at times brilliantly comedic, while remaining egotistically evil, like an avian-reptilian Iago character.

Overall, the Dark Crystal does incredibly well to move quickly, never dragging or becoming stale in its story-telling, despite its ten episode duration. In fact, one is left wanting for more, although it certainly serves up a perfect reintroduction for viewing the 1982 original, even if it may inevitably struggle to match the modern motion effects of this series. One can only assume that Jim Henson would wholly approve and furthermore, it was a brave commission for Netflix to undertake, but one that has surely brought much joy to children of the '80s and now a younger generation of viewers.

On the one hand, Excursion is highly original, but on the other, the acting and scripting of this film are mediocre. It's shot in an apartment in Shad Thames, and it has the unfortunate feel of a local drama group deciding to act out a novel script in someone's flat and basement. (Watch Hoshii Mamoru 'University of Laughs', if you want to see a master class in how a single setting film can work brilliantly, by the way). The acting settles down a bit half way through, but the former is needlessly snail paced even for the context. Some fans laud the interesting twist on time-travel and this is indeed a refreshing take that suitably steers clear of cheap and needless special effects. However, trying to follow the threads of the timeline and paradoxes will drive you 'loopy' and despite feeding into a clever catastrophic twist, it struggles to really make any clear sense of the tangled ball of time and events, unless as one of the protagonists says, that you pull on a thread and some of the knots sort themselves out. For me though, pulling on the threads just seems to tighten the knots of confusion.

At 2 hours run-time you could be put off watching this when taking poor reviews into consideration and particularly if you expect the blindfolded concept to be an imaginatory stretch too far. However, with practical answers quickly offered up in the film as to the mechanics of apocalyptic survival without sight you can begin to suspend disbelief and settle into the plot development. Strong acting, and for that matter an incredible cast line-up, help it flow from a sluggish start to a rapid finish, like the river running through the film. Some critics pick up on the weak character development, but it's wrong to get too bogged down in irrelevant back stories that could just needlessly dilute the storyline. Bullock is a tour de force (as always) and certainly adds credibility to what could easily be a lame duck horror-thriller if acted out by unknown actors. The demons (or whatever spectre name they may be assigned) are, and remain, a largely unexplained mystery, along with a box of other miscellaneous loose threads. Nevertheless, the trick is to just go with the flow and not over-analyse what is overall a better than average B-movie.

Judging this movie for what it is, a fantasy film, it delivers well with reasonable acting (Kate Beckinsale's accent is even credible), good effects and a story-line writhes around enough to remain sufficiently unpredictable and suspenseful. With its veritable monster-mash of Dracula, his heinous brides, Dwerger minions and deranged servant Igor, as well as Frankenstein's monster and werewolves, all boxes are ticked and the character variety helps the plot from running dry at any point. Obviously there are moments of incredulity (such as constant falls from great heights), but what else would you expect from a fantasy fable and since the film doesn't take itself too seriously neither should you and just enjoy the fun.

Coming to Evolution just shy of two decades since its release you have to consider that it is a product of its time. The effects aren't bad, the story-line is fair, there plenty of gags to make you laugh, but the sexism is cringe worthy. You don't need to be a feminist to find the 'locker talk' between Harry and Ira a bit crass. An early scene where student Nadine is flaunting herself to secure a higher grade with professor Harry is a little dubious, but made all the more creepy for Ira's buddy banter afterwards. It's as if Reitman has tried to create parallels to Ghostbusters in Evolution with this scene designed to replicate Venkman's electric shock psychic card game where he cheekily manipulates the game to get a date with the girl with no ability and electrifies the poor chump actually guessing correctly, which is also probably sexist by definition but funny because the joke is on the guy and Venkman's connivance. Back to Evolution though we also have scientist Allison falling over and revealing a sexy suspender through a slit in her dress with no function to the scene and equally Allison has a propensity to fall and bump into things continuously as the bumbling brainy babe with no rationale behind it either. The characterisations feel very dated and there's also plenty of 'Black man' references, which although still perpetuated in films starring Will Ferrell or Kevin Hart for example, just aren't funny in the modern world outside of the US. What's worse is that Harry actually appears to be the only man of colour in the whole film, which makes the gags more poignant. It's perhaps ironic that Ghostbusters, made in 1984, has dated so much better (in a graceful way) and is still sharply funny and hugely entertaining movie. Evolution is still fairly fun to watch, but is a film that leaves you feeling indifferent to having watched it, i.e. neither particularly impressed nor disappointed.

Leave your expectations of a club scene exposé at the door with the bouncers, as despite Beat giving the viewer an introductory tour of Berlin's hedonism and his friend Paul's club, a sinister tone quickly descends upon Beat's carefree world. Murder in clubland suddenly drags our drug-addled drifter protagonist into a plot to go undercover to investigate something much bigger afoot and at that point you'd be forgiven for fearing a ludicrous plot lies ahead. However, like a good club track the story builds and builds, adding complex layers then stripping them back with reveals, but always taking you on a journey and this one is a dark thriller.

Watching in German language is the only way to do this series justice, as subtitles really do melt away under the acting power of Jannis Niewöhner as the affable but anarchic Beat and Alexander Fehling as the sociopathic Vossberg, among other convincing performances.

From a critical standpoint, the portrayal of the 'ESI' is perhaps a little unconvincing and at worst clichéd, Jasper's story-line falls somewhat flat of the wider plot and everything happens in a stage-managed environment where the media doesn't seem to interfere and the real police only show up when called upon. However, some suspension of disbelief is always demanded in all storytelling and the story grips hold of you and twists and turns until you feel some of the pain and dread of the characters themselves. This is where 'Beat' succeeds and earns its credibility as a surprisingly compelling and powerful piece of TV/cinema that just happens to be set against an edgy Berlin clubland setting. That it is is no bad thing though, as the setting lends itself to a great music score and gritty backdrop to this original and highly enjoyable epic.

Viewing with no knowledge of the storyline nor expectations, the Great Gatsby was an interesting and enjoyable watch and delivers visual delights that gloss over its flaws, but flaws it does have.

Firstly, if unfamiliar with the now 93 year old original novel, this vivid and slightly surreal adaptation presents a vision of 1920s New York that can lead you down a false path of wondering whether the tale is one big dream and if Gatsby is a figment of Nick's (our narrator and main protagonist) imagination or even whether Gatsby is perhaps some kind of conjurer magically manifesting his fantasy mansion and its entourage of characters into reality; notably as we first meet him flitting around his party sporting some kind of sorcerer's ring, which though the camera pans in on it on numerous times it receives no explanation other than latterly seeming to reflect with his obsession for the green light of the pier at Tom and Daisy's shoreline home. However, we should really take cue simply from Nick's first colourful experiences of New York City to understand that everything in the story is portrayed as larger than life and in the extreme. It is of course to be expected if (but only 'if') you know that Baz Lurhmann is at the directorial helm, with Moulin Rouge helping to explain the hallucinogenic hues of Gatsby's world, although this can be bewildering at times to the uninitiated viewer, especially when suddenly presented with Gatsby's yellow car darting around impossibly from West Egg to Manhattan like some cartoon car from Roger Rabbit (as others have suitably compared the scene).

Layered on top of the cotton candy dream-world is a modern soundtrack with notable use of Jay Z, Beyoncé and the XX. It's a bold move and challenge to established formats of period dramas being married to contemporaneous compositions. It's a fun rule to break, but the result is patchy in its application and the cynic within may wonder whether the score has been sold out to music execs pushing for that attractive soundtrack spin-off extra revenue. These things can be overlooked, as the ethereal feel of the film also somehow manages to mask a fairly substandard script (at worst when forced to listed to Gatsby's catchphrase of 'Old Sport' seemingly stuck on repeat, critical character underdevelopment (most notably with Elizabeth Debicki's intriguing but unexplored character of Jordan) and mediocre or hammy acting, of which nearly all the actors seem to be guilty of at some stage. When all is said done though, this is still a fun ride of a film and its imperfections are hidden with aesthetic distraction and its quick pace, despite clocking in at 143 minutes run time (although shorter if you deduct the soundtrack credit roll at the end).

Sitting somewhere between Deutschland 83 and Goodbye Lenin in cinematic and thematic feel, and also in run-time as neat six-part series that offers a happy medium between a standard film and longer series. It has an engaging authenticity and the acting is solid and credible with strong performances all-round, save perhaps for some of the English (American) spoken parts sometimes sounding a touch artificial. The pace is enthralling and the story-lines are simple enough to follow, but deep enough to draw you into the moral dilemmas and stark choices that life in the GDR/DDR forced its citizens to live with. It's a incredible period in time (of modern history) that is always fascinating to re-examine in film, though often risks becoming hackneyed if not done well. However, the Same Sky does it proficiently and brings in original themes, such as the consequences of sports doping and a surprising tolerance of homosexuality in the Eastern German state. The only big criticism is that the series finishes with almost everything left up in the air, open for interpretation. It's unclear if this is intentional (I.e. as a bridge to a potential second series) or purposely framed to leave the viewer to ponder upon how the lives of the protagonists will unfold by using one's own imagination and future hindsight knowledge. The latter perhaps (although not necessarily) leads to a fatalist conclusion that none of the stories are likely have happy endings, and thus all we really need is to bear witness to those characters dealing with formidable challenges, hopes and ambiguities of those moments in time.

Having really enjoyed 'Moon' it's been a long wait for Duncan Jones' latest offering with 'Mute' and perhaps the wait has been a little detrimental to this futuristic saga, as its release has been significantly eclipsed by not only the epic 'Bladerunner 2049' but also the lavish action-packed 'Altered Carbon', which both offer mind-blowing dystopic visions of the future. 'Mute', by comparison, is a much more humble slice of futurama and rather constrained in its ambition. While its futuristic Berlin metropolis is well decorated with neon lights and flying vehicles, it needn't really be a futuristic tale, as it is a simple murder mystery at its heart and certainly makes no social-political allusions to Fritz Lang's 'Metropolis', despite having Berlin in common (Jones' use of Berlin is likely more as a tribute to his late father David Bowie, who spent three formative years in the city) and its characters quirky statuses are largely coincidental to the plot. Its central protagonist, Leo, the mute bartender is a shy and unrelatable character to be introduced to and it takes a long time to warm to him and his plight, as his naivety is as frustrating to the viewer as it is endearing to his bar tender girlfriend. Surrounding characters are well written, but often clunkily acted and detach the viewer from the credibility of the tale. However, these initial kinks tend to iron out rewardingly as the plot unravels and Leo peels back the layers of the confounding web of relations that have led to the disappearance of his mysterious girlfriend. By the end of his journey, Leo has definitely won over the viewer and the satisfying ending does largely redeem and help gloss over some of the film's inherent flaws.

Goonies, IT, E.T., Stand by Me and Dungeons & Dragons... you name it, Stranger Things is an amalgamation of some fantastic legendary '80s adventure and coming of age movies. Spielberg and JJ Abram's Super8 film in 2011 did a similar thing (albeit set in 1979), but Stranger Things is more indulgent story-line given the full series treatment to tell its tale, then expand further in a richer and deeper second series (and now a third newly commissioned). What makes it so special is that it ticks so many boxes. The characters are well developed and very likeable (or suitably loathsome) and sourcing largely unknown actors (excluding Winona Ryder) works incredibly well at avoiding any preconceptions and typecasting. The music is simply fantastic, leading with its bassy electro intro credits it sets an eerily brooding and foreboding tone before hitting you with an 'old school type-font chapter screen that sucks the viewer straight back in time and into the damned village of Hawkins, just like the town of Derry in IT and from there it's a nostalgic mix of crude haircuts, BMX bikes, walkie-talkies, sneaking around parents, and strange goings-on that bond friends closer and strangers ever nearer in a supernatural adventure that presses all the buttons without ever feeling contrived or corny. Intelligent use of music, be it background tracks composed for the show or insertions of '80s classic hits proficiently build the mood, and when it comes specifically to moments of suspense its clever camera-work expertly delivers the thrills and shocks, even if you're expecting the monster or baddie to appear. All in all, it's just a fantastic nostalgic fun adventure.

Somebody once claimed that this is a stoner film and that tag probably best befits this quirky road trip (moreover rail trip) tale. Perhaps a toke on the green stuff should be a requisite to fully immense oneself into the sumptuous colours and sensory delights of this visually enthralling journey, as three unlikely and unruly brothers join up to cart their late father's belongs-filled luggage around with them as they set out to track down their estranged mother to a convent in the middle of nowhere in India. Peculiar, mostly comedic, but also humbling and spiritual experiences pepper this obfuscating journey to some sense of final fulfilment. However, unless one can let go of preconceptions of a plot needing to be neat and logical, this adventure will not sate the viewer's hunger. Ultimately, it is a pure adventure, while also being a hulking metaphor for life itself. It's no grand reveal to point out that the train is the train of life (with all its derivative connotations) and the luggage is the baggage that we carry with us along the way. Once understanding at least these two core themes, we perhaps forgive Wes Anderson's jarring under-use of Bill Murray and other seeming inconsistencies and frustrations that tend to mentally accumulate as we watch. Furthermore, the seeming randomness in the script can also be attributed to its three different writers, which is obviously intended to mirror the three very different characters of the brothers themselves. It becomes a much better film the more you reflect upon its intelligence and embrace its intentional non-conformity. Without wishing to overstate its profundity, it is ultimately a thinkers film and will definitely not appeal to all. It's also no Grand Hotel Budapest, which in my opinion is a work of art, but it's understandable how some people fall in love with this film even though I was personally left with an overall sense of indifference rather than a warm and fuzzy glow.

Without having seen the original Cloverfield, The Paradox can be reviewed on its own merits, and it's a fairly mixed bag. Cutting to the chase and calling this film out for what it is; it's a well presented B-movie. Its plot is a mix of discerning scientific projection (nicely rendered) pitted against The Twilight Zone and its resulting absurdities remain exactly that. It's not clear if its actually meant to be taken as a parody, but clichéd disputes between the space station's multi-national protagonists are exaggeratedly played out soon into the run-time before a quick succession of absurd events takes over with loose foundation and the cast inevitably soon after starts to get picked off one by one in time-honoured tradition. It references Event Horizon, Sunshine, Alien, 2010 and countless other films, and overall it's a relatively fun watch with decent special effects. However, the music score in the second half suddenly seems so overbearingly bored of the incredulity of the whole experience that it regresses to a 1950s score that makes you think you're watching a reincarnation of The Blob, and that's fine, perhaps even fun too, but it's an instant tell for a lame duck that simply can't fly under critical assessment. Part of the failure of this space epic, aside of the dreadful music score (which deserves criticising twice) is that its cast is so widely known in such weightier roles as the Night Manager (Elizabeth Debicki) and Goodbye Lenin/Rush (Daniel Brühl), or comedic roles such as the IT Crowd/Bridesmaids (Chris O'Dowd) that can't help detract from any sense of empathy out of normal character, and O'Dowd certainly shows no effort to break the mold. At the end of the day, the film is sloppy but entertaining enough to not come away cheated, although the end result really is a 50:50 affair that leaves you wondering how badly the film may have tanked on the big screen versus finding a more adventurous audience on Netflix.

Altered Carbon is an aesthetically sumptuous experience that feels like a quasi-extension of the Bladerunner universe with its neon-lit dank darkness and modified humanity. Ten hour-long episodes gift the viewer with a sci-fi feast for the eyes and brain, as one tries to follow and decode the digital landscape and its multi-layered and multifaceted society, with its illusions and ambiguities. For all its gargantuan ambitions to build a new sci-fi paradigm it hugely succeeds and visual nods to Bladerunner are to be welcomed rather than viewed as plagarism. Violence and nudity are used liberally but with frankness and honestly, as both serve to underline the degradation of morality, humanity, sexuality and intimacy in this brutal world where money equals longevity. These elements, combined with a polished soundtrack and costume/make-up makes for a slick production. Where a little fault may be apportioned is in the performances of the acting cast, as nearly all characters have sporadic moments of weakness that slightly crack the veneer of this illusory futuristic world. However, the cast are well selected for the characters and largely successful taken in their entirety and each have some smart and often humourous lines that keep us from taking it all too seriously and remember to just enjoy the ride and see the 'who dunnit' murder mystery plot through to its great reveal.

The old dilemma of which version of Bladerunner to watch was big enough (Tip: Final Cut first), before those who haven't seen it now having to grapple with the new quandary of which order to watch the old and the new 2049 sequel. As equally ambiguous as the question of Deckard's nature as human or replicant, there is no sure-fire answer. However, if choosing to watch the original after viewing the new, one might be surprised by the human lightness in the tonal darkness of the original, with Harrison Ford's performance echoing a little of Star War's Han Solo's acerbic wit for instance. 2049 to this end lacks humour (arguably befitting of the new story), save for Ana de Armas' lightly jovial warm charm thawing some of the coolness of the latest offering. It's perhaps ironic that the new Bladerunner comes out of the eternal night of the original and shows us some of the daylight world of the evolved dystopia, yet at the same time is a darker serving of film noir. Leto's menacing performance unflinchingly twists a knife into this darkness that reminds us that Roy Batty's commination in the original was still served up with a sardonic smile and while neither story tells of a happy place, 2049 shows a world where the existence of soul is as sapped as the attenuation of nature in dystopia's collpased eco- systems and smoggy Anthropocene environment.

The oppressiveness of Bladerunner 2049 overshadows some of the enjoyment of the original, as the original's music score was able to cut through and lighten the insalubrious world of 2019. To expect to be able to directly transpose Vangelis' majestically atmospheric sound track to the future incarnation is naive, in so much it is a near-impossibility. Instead, Hans Zimmer & Benjamin Wallfisch's score is giddily claustrophobic and gurning, in keeping with the oppressiveness of this new world, but they do still manage to successfully interweave sufficient traces of Vangelis' sound to evoke memories of the original at key moments. The synths of the original are missing - On the one hand, they would seem dated and retro to a modern audience, but on the other, fans of the original may be left searching for a 2049 equivalent of the aural (and visual) splendour of Zhora's crashing through the window in 2019. However, 2049 does gift us with a poignant parallel to 2019's 'Tears in the rain'.

Villeneuve undoubtedly succeeds with the poison chalice brief of delivering a true and organic sequel, although its pace can set it jarringly apart from Ridley Scott's original. Wide panning landscape cinematography perhaps unifies the two though and Villneuve brings his aerial down-panned camera tracking , present in Sicario, to build upon and vary the mode. One could also wonder if Villneuve used his alien-encounter offering, Arrival, as a stalking horse to test audience's patience for deliberately paused pacing in the story telling. It's ironic that Ridley Scott has recently stepped on accelerate with the lightening fast-paced Alien Covenant, erroneously seeking to satisfy audiences with a tighter film, whereas Bladerunner 2049 is daringly ballsy in its non-compliance and gratuitous play to the fans' indulgence - A move that perhaps hurt its box office takings, by restricting run times and turning off those lacking patience to sit through 2 hrs 43 mins of storytelling. Furthermore however, after enduring the cheesy Marvel trailer for Thor: Ragnarok before the title screen of Bladerunner 2049, one is eternally thankful that 2049 is not a similar 'crash- bang-wallop' high-speed CGI affair. 2049 has grit and CGI, but both are wholly intelligently used without notable artificiality or feeling of sensationalism or bombardment. And whilst 2049 truthfully does require patience at times with its plodding pace, it still offers high-octane satisfaction, selectively served up to strictly necessary ends instead of titillation.

One could argue that some of the acting performances take a moment to bed in. Take Arma's wooden voice in the background as we are introduced to her in K's apartment, but as with all new faces in this film, their delivery and demeanour soon find definition in their context. No more so than Gosling's performance, which shows indifference and superficiality, but also depth and dynamic range, all with narrative intention to the story that unfolds before the viewer.

In conclusion, 2049 is stylistically different but a clear extension of the original set in 2019 with parallels in tone, machinery, familiar faces and symbolisms. It's a blessing that the theatre trailer does not disclose enough to spoil the adventure that this new film offers, which the viewer can share through K's personal voyage of confounding discovery. The plot meanders with obfuse yet intentional purpose to wrap up neatly with a nice twist and satisfactory closure, while also setting a new dynamic in motion for the story to evolve in some future new chapter, be it earth-bound or off-world.

Not a film for the easily bored or sub-title phobic, as this film is a strictly dialogue based story between a comedic writer and his draconian censor set in pre-war Japan, where humanity is pitted against authoritarianism. As flat as that may sound, the dialogue that ensues between the protagonists is both incredibly comedic and emotional, and moreover brutally insightful into a dark period of imperialistic Japanese history that a Western audience has dwindling knowledge of. I cannot recommend this film enough, perhaps even best watched alone, which helps the viewer empathise more personally with the embattled comedic writer pitted against the brick wall of the state. This film will remain with you.