What Movies or Shows Have You Seen Recently?

[westendboy]

Just a quick 4…

The inside scoop about Ballerina is that the movie was finished by Lens Wiseman more than a year ago, but Chad Stahelski took one look at the cut and realised he was watching a franchise ender. He then did a reshoot of some scenes, added a couple of new characters and action scenes, which all in all, looks like a legitimate John Wick-verse action movie that doesn’t look out of place with the other 4 John Wick movies.

I had a great time at the cinema and Ana de Arms as Eve is riveting to look at. Going in I tempered my expectations and my only requirement was “please let the action be cool” and it delivered in this aspect. John Wick appears in a couple of pivotal scenes which is always welcomed but frankly even without Wick the movie still works. However, plot-wise this is as threadbare as they come. Girl sees her dad gets gunned down, gets recruited into Ruska Roma, learns the skills to become a killer, chances upon the people who killed her dad and revenge.

The look and vibe of the movie feel like a page taken out of the John Wick movies, and the action is as sleek and painful as they come. There are some uber cool action sequences. Most notably the flamethrower one which is worth the price of admission alone. I also dug the kitchen fight and the one with loads of grenades. Most people will say it is over the top and I would say precisely, this being a Wick-verse movie. The world of John Wick gets expanded a bit and this is probably the last time we get to see Lance Reddick.

Where the movie feels weak is with the straight arrow linear narrative. There is simply no guile with the storytelling with one event leading into another. There is a kind of a-ha revelation at one point but that idea never gains any traction and that thread gets curtailed within 3 minutes after the revelation. I was bewildered – what’s the point? The movie is also not interested in giving answers to nagging questions – what’s the deal with the cult? What do they do? Why is the Ruska Roma so afraid of them? That said, in terms of cool action, the movie delivers and Ana de Armas brought her A game. (3.5/5)

Thelma was so fun to watch. I threw the blu-ray in not knowing what to expect and it kept making me laugh till my tears rolled and at some point it really moved me.

When 93-year-old Thelma Post gets duped by a phone scammer pretending to be her grandson, she sets out on a treacherous quest across the city to reclaim what was taken from her.

The comedy never steps into farce area and it is rooted in what old folks are physically capable of. June Squibb and Richard Roundtree are a stupendous duo force and they are testament that great actors can still be amazing late in their careers. The movie also has something to say about aging gracefully and the relationships between the young and old. You will want to watch this with your grandma or grandpa. (4/5)

Terrifier 3, depending on what you can stomach can be a wholotta fun. I am made of sterner stuff and I watched this while having lunch at home by my lonesome. Seeing Art the Clown wrap entrails around the Christmas tree while I munched on a chicken is delightful.

Five years after surviving Art the Clown’s Halloween massacre, Sienna and Jonathan are still struggling to rebuild their shattered lives. As the holiday season approaches, they try to embrace the Christmas spirit and leave the horrors of the past behind. But just when they think they’re safe, Art returns, determined to turn their holiday cheer into a new nightmare. The festive season quickly unravels as Art unleashes his twisted brand of terror, proving that no holiday is safe.

Some of the gory scenes are mini-masterpieces. The sick humour blends in with the uber gory scenes like a glove on a hand. I was counting the dead bodies but after 12 I gave up and some of the death scenes are so sick. This is not for the faint-hearted but if you are like me this can be pretty awesome. (3.5/5)

I am a huge fan of The Bear but S3 completely missed the bullseye. Shifting the focus to many of the secondary characters undermines the core narrative and it got so indulgent after a while.

The look and vibe of the show continue to be a class act and the acting is always top tier. But I felt this season’s writing jumped the shark. The dialogue feels so flippant and I don’t need 10 minutes of non-stop talking when I know the point of it in 1 minute. It feels like the writers just gave the actors some pointers on what to achieve in the conversation and just told the actors to ad-lib and it got so repetitive after a while. I have never fast forward any show I have watched but I did for one episode here – the one with Natalie and her mom going non-stop at the parking lot. It really got on my nerves. I don’t know man… this season feels so pointless with little growth for many characters. In previous seasons style never encroached into the main narrative, only serving to enhance it, but this season is style over substance from the get-go. I am not ready to give this up yet and I am praying that on the 25th of June when S4 drops it will get better. (3/5)

[petetherock]

Not sure if you’ve already seen Dept Q on Netflix, but it’s gripping in the same vein as Slow Horses, worth a watch especially if Slow Horses was up your alley. Cheers

[westendboy]

We are already halfway through. Should be done by tomorrow night.

[westendboy]

Just 4 which are worthy of words.

Netflix’s Dept. Q is the perfect antidote for people looking for an intelligent whodunnit. To be frank, this isn’t a whodunnit but more of a missing person case. The mystery is spellbinding, the storytelling is wonderful and the ensemble is solid.

DCI Carl Morck (Mathew Goode) is a brilliant cop but a terrible colleague. His razor-sharp sarcasm has made him no friends in Edinburgh police. After a shooting that leaves a young pc dead, and his partner paralysed, he finds himself exiled to the basement and the sole member of Department Q; a newly formed cold case unit. The department is a PR stunt, there to distract the public from the failures of an under-resourced, failing police force that is glad to see the back of him. But more by accident than design, Carl starts to build a gang of waifs and strays who have everything to prove. So, when the stone-cold trail of a prominent civil servant who disappeared several years ago starts to heat up, Carl is back doing what he does best - rattling cages and refusing to take no for an answer.

I love the Edinburgh setting, something I don’t see often and the accented English sounded like music to my ears. Written by Scott Frank (The Queen’s Gambit), expect to marvel at whip smart dialogue and refreshing character development. The ending of the ep1 caught me off guard and my jaw fell open. It was such a clever move that I fell hook, line and sinker into the proceedings. We soon get a recruitment of a motley crew of a has-beens, the handicapped and a forgotten, each with an interesting back story. They are zero individually, but together they are a formidable team. The investigation is always intriguing and two-pronged. We get two POV - Morck and team investigating the disappearance of Merritt Lingard, a solicitor and also Merritt trying to find out why she has been kidnapped.

The plot is dense with so many name dropping I was struggling to hold them in my head, but fortune always favour the ones who work hard and when the pieces start to fit the realisation hits like 7.5 seismic earthquake. The ending was so satisfying even though I could guess who the perpetrator is, I didn’t manage to grasp the intricacies.

However, I do question the need for 9 episodes with some plodding moments. There are also a couple of stuff that doesn’t feel logical to me - why imprison someone for years with the purpose of wanting the person to find out what crime is she guilty of? This isn’t Oldboy which has its own internal insane logic that made frightening sense. But what made this show go to the top tier is the ensemble and the exuberant energy they exude. This is one show I hope a S2 drop the following week. (4.5/5)

AppleTV’s Your Friends & Neighbours is a breeze to watch. At once, it is a satirical social commentary on the rich and their opulent lifestyles, a study of complex relationships and a cogitation on how one white-collar professional goes down the road of theft.

Andrew “Coop” Cooper is coming to terms with his divorce. He’s also a hedge fund manager who’s recently been fired in disgrace from his job. So to maintain his lifestyle, Coop resorts to stealing from the homes of his neighbors in the exceedingly affluent Westmont Village; only to discover that the secrets and affairs hidden behind those wealthy facades, might be more dangerous than he ever imagined.

With Jon Hamm in central focus, practically in the eye of the storm, everything swerves around him like a swarm of hornets gunning for the kill. Hamm is always riveting to ogle at and holds the plot tight around him. Like all budding criminals, it is always easy in the beginning and then you start to get addicted to the act of stealing like it’s cocaine. And like all addiction, it never ends well. As the dragnet closes in around him and everyone starts to doubt him, you will be so engrossed to see how he is going to get out of the quicksand.

I love the first two acts and watching Cooper dig a hole for himself so deep he can’t see light is fun, but the last act doesn’t quite sit down well with me. It feels too easy after all the intense build-up and it is also hard to believe all these wealthy folks have no security system for their homes, but that I can easily dismiss because they are so arrogant that getting world class security is beneath them. Still, this show has a fresh idea and milks the conceit for all it is worth. (3.5/5)

Disney+’s Predator: Killer of Killers delivers on the promise of the title. The bloody action is relentless and after a while you won’t even notice it’s an animated movie. There are 3 stories here from different times in history and each will feature a resourceful warrior who will fight a Predator with a unique look.

Dan Trachtenberg totally understands what makes a Predator movie works and finds a deft balance between the human and the Predator elements till the point you will feel for the human warriors who don’t stand a chance against a Predator on paper.

The animation feels brand new and doesn’t shy away from showing you the bloodletting. I mean how can you make a Predator movie kid-friendly. The fight choreography is outstanding and being an animated feature you will discount the logic of the physics, especially when the narrative is so absorbing. I like how all 3 segments feature a war which is honey for a Predator. There is one question that is nagging at me at the back of my head - how can all 3 warriors that hail from different historical time periods exist together? Did I miss the memo on this? Please share the answer please… (4/5)

Netflix’s limited series Mercy For None is badass through and through. The story is simple - a man who has been out for years is back to kill his way up the food chain to avenge the death of his brother.

Truth be told, we are not done with this yet but we will be done tonight with the final 3.5 episodes and we are going to make a deal of it. I will be switching this to my 110” screen with my 4K laser projector, the whole nine yards! And we will be knocking back burgers, fries and drinks while we watch Gi-Joon (So Ji-Sub) whack all the scumbags to kingdom come.

The story sounds simple but the plot isn’t as we go deeper into the underbelly of the gangster world. I just love it for what it dares to do - essentially a male-centric world without a hint of anything romantic. Every character is a different notch on the spectrum of evil but we respect Gi-Joon because his cause is noble and he follows a code.

The action choreography is awesome and the physicality feels real. I see the blows land and I can feel the blue-blacks all over my body. I sure don’t want to be at the end Ji-Hoon’s fist. The tone is unapologetically dark and you can forget about any humour. Get ready to be bombarded with relentless bouts inventive ultra-violence you have yet to see in Korean cinema. I told my friends in a chat group that if they were to buy a 12-pack and have a mouthful of beer every time someone’s face get smashed or their bones get broken, they would be drunk under the table by the end of ep2.

I have an idea of the ending - I doubt anyone gets to see the sunset. Get ready for some John Wick vibes and see how human bones can break in interesting ways. (4/5)

[petetherock]

Good boys, on Prime is a nice k drama.. not too lightweight but not too heavy a cop / romantic / comedy series
Accountant 2 was a simple brainless but exciting entry into the next chapter of the special needs accountant played by B Affleck. A step up from the Beekeeper but simple fare for my simple mind to take the edge off a busy week.
If you haven’t seen the former, Good Boys is a nice one… cheers

[westendboy]

Just a quick 4 we have seen recently at the cinema and also at home.

28 Years Later surprised me. 23 years after the iconic 28 Days Later, is there even a fresh new story to tell other than doubling down on zombie horror? Apparently there is. In Danny Boyle I trust and I was pleasantly surprised how he and Alex Garland have furthered the story first established in 28 Days Later. It is hard these days to do a fresh take on the zombie genre and they have done it yet again.

It’s been almost three decades since the rage virus escaped a biological weapons laboratory, and now, still in a ruthlessly enforced quarantine, some have found ways to exist amidst the infected. One such group of survivors lives on a small island connected to the mainland by a single, heavily-defended causeway. When one of the group leaves the island on a mission into the dark heart of the mainland, he discovers secrets, wonders, and horrors that have mutated not only the infected but other survivors as well.

The world-building is nifty and once again Boyle chose to use grungy cinematography to give it the same tone as the original movie. The setting is no longer a city but a small community of survivors who found refuge in a forested island with a narrow causeway the only access to the village. Boyle doesn’t quite do a social commentary critiquing a society but contends to narrow the focus on a close-knit family of three. It is a zombified coming-of-age tale as the father takes his son to the mainland to get his first kill. We soon learned that the zombies have evolved – there are the obese crawlers, the naked sprinters and the giant Alpha.

Yes, it is definitely a zombie movie and then it isn’t. The second half becomes a meditation on the memory of the dead and profound grief. It almost feels like Boyle and Garland are telling us we shouldn’t be getting high from killing the undead and we should in a sense mourn them. I have to say Ralph Fiennes is quite captivating as Dr Kelson who only appears in the second half. It has been more than a week since I saw this on opening night and some of the visuals still haunt me. If this is the first movie in a new trilogy, I am all game for the next installment next year. (3.5/5)

F1: The Movie, we saw last night in IMax and I have to say it is the best way to experience the movie. I sat in my seat feeling all jacked up for more than 2 hours and no other racing movies have ever given me such a visceral thrill.

The story is simple – A Formula One driver comes out of retirement to mentor and team up with a younger driver. Together they will give their team an adrenaline shot that no one saw coming, except the audience.

I will come right out and say it – the whole movie is all familiar tropes, everything you have seen in other movies, but yet it manages to be compelling and engaging as it is well crafted and it’s a great reminder that even the most familiar of tropes and genres can appear fresh when given a steady and strong directorial eye and a great cast.

The other thing going for it is the technical aspect – the movie gives you the exact view of what a F1 driver has in the cockpit. It felt exhilarating watching the racing scenes. This is ballet on wheels, literally Top Gun on intermediate tires. The sound design is top-notched and the music fits the scenes to a T. Sure, it is predictable but it is so entertaining with a swagger. (4/5)

G For Gap is about a loser. No, he doesn’t get the girl of his dreams or becomes successful in the end, but I enjoyed the movie tremendously. When it ended I felt like I just had a satisfying meal, not too full and no longer hungry. It wasn’t a 10-course Chinese dinner, just a few home cooked dishes that hit the spot.

Wu Di, a fragile man disheartened by setbacks in both work and love in Beijing, returns to his hometown feeling dejected. His sudden return disrupts the once-peaceful life of his family, forcing him to navigate the complexities of close-knit family interactions while searching for new possibilities for his future. After facing multiple struggles in reality, an unexpected encounter with his high school classmate Feng Liuliu presents a chance meeting that leads to unforeseen changes in his life.

The movie maintains an even tone throughout with no dizzying highs or low troughs and you can see all the actors did not give in to theatrics. There is even a death scene but its nonchalant treatment makes it feel so funny in a quiet way. That said, it is never boring and the wry humour has verve, something you can hardly see in Chinese cinema. I thought it is quite an accurate way of depicting this particular generation of youth who feel they are above the multitude and yet have nothing to show for it. Its keen observation of the state of youth is always captivating and thought provoking.

There is a dialogue-less scene right in the last act that is superb and it incapacitates what is in the Chinese title of the movie 走走停停, which literally walk a bit, stop a while. Wu Di and Liuliu are stuck in heavy traffic in separate vehicles and different lanes. He sees her, she sees him, but their eye-line never matches. It’s an awkward situation but it’s also a metaphor to mean their lives are no longer intersecting. What’s the point of talking? What’s the point of rekindling old feelings? Finally, Wu Di makes the move of severing fate. It is a very clever scene. (4/5)

We Live in Time boasts a couple of heavyweight acting by Andrew Garfield and Florence Pugh. In lesser hands, the movie would have been one maudlin sob-fest, but John Crowley and his two brilliantly natural actors make it a good movie.

I think it’s not a spoiler to say that someone dies at the end of the movie. I knew that going into the movie. I am fine with that. Sometimes a good cry can do me a world of good, but not one rivulet of tear happened. I can’t praise the acting enough but the creative choice of telling the story through a fractured back and forth timeline prevented me from being vested in the couple’s journey.

I have seen movies employing this narrative strategy and the ones that work are the ones who know how to edit the movie in such a way that the past will inform the future. Sadly, there is no evidence of this here. All the scrambled timeline feels so haphazardly edited and only succeeded in taking me out of the story. All in all, the movie left me feeling unsatisfied, a shame when both Garfield and Pugh gave such lived-in performances. (3/5)