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Reviews
Look Away (2018)
An excellent look into family values, love and lust.
For those saying the ending was absurd, I think it's safe to say that the next scene would've been the cops coming, and I'm sure in one of the versions that didn't go to print - that did happen.
But the fact is, it didn't need to be shown. A great film or show isn't always what you see, it's what you don't see.
Maria's mother (Amy) is half comatosed with alcohol and prescription meds because she's a mother who was forced to part with her "deformed Ariam" which was Dans decision... and she hated herself for it. Yet she was the one who Ariam went to in the end, and she didn't kill her because she knew that her mother loved her.
I agree that the nudity was a little too much at times, especially when the scene where she was naked with her dad. So it's definitely not for anyone under legal age.
I enjoyed watching it, I'm sure most will enjoy it. It's a decent low budget horror/drama that has enough about it to stand up.
Skinamarink (2022)
So poor
The concept is interesting, but that's as far as it goes regards any praise.
The style could've been done for any horror script in the last 50 years, but the fact is the script isn't great, and so the filmmaker hides this cleverly inside the whole "what you can't see will frighten you" premise.
I saw the trailer and was intrigued because it's different, but upon watching the film I realised it was a snapshot. I didn't get past 30 mins as I was getting frustrated.
Could be like marmite, but I hate marmite so this is one man's opinion against millions.
Watch it all or don't. I'm glad I didn't.
Fawlty Towers (1975)
Best British therefore one of the best comedy shows of all time
Some shows don't age well, but this one didn't really care for that. It's easy to understand that it's set in the 70s, so we don't need constant reminders.
This is all about the perception of little Englanders like Basil, towards age, sex, race, language, class and morality.
Prunella, Connie and Andrew are amazing, but the peripheral and one episode only characters have just the right amount of back story to intrigue.
If you've never watched this, give it a try. Surrender yourself to the decor and fashion. John Cleese made the bold decision to stop after 12 episodes. It was and still seems to be a case that a comedy of 2 series generally is best to retain god like status.
Enjoy ;)
Resident Evil (2022)
Resident awful
Played all the games. Watched all the films. Now there's this...
Someone should be sacked. Can't believe they got Lance too. Always loved him for his role in Fringe.
This series is too bad.
Dexter: New Blood: Sins of the Father (2022)
People need to chill
I loved Dexter the first time I watched it, and back then I didn't use IMDB. So the final episode of the original one, I thought was very sad but still decent television. Ok it had some plot holes but it wasn't bad!! So I saw the ratings again recently and decided to rewatch it all. Loved it, but the last episode bothered me more the second time round, probably because I knew the ratings on here.
So when I saw the final episode of this series had a 4.4, I honestly thought wth could they have done so badly!
The episode was good, the pacing and the relationship of Dex & Harrison was painful but showed love. Dexter finally had closure knowing he was loved by his son, and his son showed that he wasn't like his dad at all
The only down to this episode is that it's him that kills Dexter. I felt a few options were much better.
If I'm gonna criticise the show at all, I wil say I was disappointed that a few of the characters in the original series weren't there. Like Lumen, Hannah (felt the old "she died" thing could've been hiding something else so it didn't have much impact on the show), and Quinn.
Anyway, we have closure and it was a brave call by the writers. He couldn't go on indefinitely and the morality of it all made sense.
The Late Late Show with James Corden (2015)
Horrible man
No need for anything else to be written here.
The world is upside down.
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Ufufudufucucykdoyso Supxoyxoyxhlxhk) lnotudigufif
Hchcufudufucibjcufucjtdkydkydjcm me I'm FCC M I'm M Dec M I'm C in I'm C hun V I'm on oh s B.
That Peter Kay Thing (1998)
Not enough people are aware of this.
It's hard to find this anywhere, but if you do - give it's second viewing.
Some of the sketches are golden, some are quite raw and some you can see why PK didn't follow through (dirty minded swines) with.
Either way. I've always enjoyed learning about someone or something before it becomes mainstream.
The fact that not many know about this, just makes it the more enjoyable for me to view without relying on tens of thousands of reviews telling me what I should watch.
A bit like this one then 😂
Anaconda (1997)
Don't get the low scores
I watched this as a teenager in the cinema.
Ok so it's a pretty corny script at times but just look at the ensemble of great actors here.
I feel a 4.8 is harsh.
I would give this a 6 but I'm saying 7 just to give it a little boost lol.
If you want to watch some entertaining, slightly OTT horror film, then you'll enjoy this. Just don't expect it to be anything more than it is.
FUN.
Mrs. Brown's Boys (2011)
Very funny. If you're an amoeba
The worst show I've ever seen.
It's ghastly, and thankfully no one I know likes it, because if they did then I'd disown them.
UTTER GARBAGE
The Office: Finale (2013)
Just finished watching this...
Although Friends has a lot better jokes, The Office was immensely entertaining and also it's probably the nicest series ever. It's just morally right and every episode brought a smile to my face. It was love personified
Leave (2011)
Mind the step, this ones gonna hit you!
Minor spoilers.....
Is it the fact that it deals with some of the biggest questions we have as humans, and people don't want to talk about it???
I thought this film was absolutely beautiful, incredible pacing and cinematography... some of the shots were so clever, especially when you get the eureka moment about what the film is trying to say.
I got this moment at about the 50 minute mark, when his brother had just made him a lovely meal and he woke up the next day in pain..... and when you reach that moment, you realise exactly what the story being told is.
I don't think a film has hit me emotionally like this one did, for a very very long time and because of the questions it asks, makes you the viewer start to reflect on the world around you and wonder if this is all but a dream as well. They say the mind is a very powerful tool. I had a near death experience 8 years ago, and who knows, I could still be in the hospital right now.
Mind blowing.
Watch this film.
Must Love Dogs (2005)
Wonderful feel-good film, what's to hate?
There are some films that no matter what the plot holes are and the glaring errors... you just have to watch simply because it's a lovely film.
This film is that.
Wonderfully simple, great casting and a superb energy about it. If you love dogs and romance, you'll love this.
Reminds me I need to get with someone again :)
While She Was Out (2008)
I normally only write reviews for good films.....
However, this piece of trash has the weakest storyline I've ever watched.
How the hell they got Kim Basinger and Lukas Haas to do it I will never know, they must've needed money for groceries or something.
Where to begin.
Well firstly, I found the start interesting and it portrayed Della as this suburban housewife who'd sort of lost her way and was living the dream, or rather nightmare of having two kids and a husband who seemed to be hell bent on physically and mentally abusing her... so that bit of backstory tied in with what happened next.
But.... it was just soooo bad :/ I'm not surprised to see the writer and director of this film hasn't done anything else with her career. Take the L and maybe leave it to the professionals.
There's a few things in the film that made me want to write a review, just because they sucked so much. Here they are:
After being confronted by 4 adult males who appear to be low life scum, have you ever seen a woman push, shove and lash out in that situation? Neither have I
Then there's the situation with the guard, who is killed so ruthlessly you would kind of think they'd be just as ruthless with her? Nope, they seem to be void of any brain cells when they eventually catch up to her, corner her and then ask her to open her toolbox.
Question, what is in any normal toolbox?
That's right, tools. Spanners, Flares, Car Wrenches.... the usual. Oh but wait, surely they could be used as weapons? Nah... silly thought.
Then there's the hysterical situation of 4 20-30 year old men running after her and bouncing off tree stumps, being out manoeuvred by a 53 year old and out fought in 1v1 hand to hand combat...
Then she gets ahead and decides to stop, and apologise to the stream...
before peeing in it!!!
Then shouts "where are you god" which would SURELY be heard in the woods where there's no other sounds...
Surely enough they hear her and catch upto her and start shooting at her while she's 50 feet away, when all they'd have to do was catch upto her - physically force her to the floor and shoot her. Nope, wasting bullets seems best.
It gets worse...
Lukas Haas can smell blood from 40ft - Hannibal would be proud !
Respects her for killing his friends "One tough "b***h"
And then they make out..... oh my...
It's like "how should I end this, ahh sod it let them make out and she'll pretend to be into it and then kill him"
You know, I wrote that last part before they'd even got to the 1v1 scene. Unbelievable, soooo lacking in any creativity!!
And then it takes 50 mins for ambulance to take the dead guard away ... yep ok, poignant moment :/
And then of course the last scene, checks her children are fine sleeping and points a gun at her husbands head.... because that's what any caring mother would do... traumatise her kids for life !!
Only watch this film if you wish to laugh at the terrible script, and overacting by Basinger.
Otherwise it's a waste of your time
Coldplay: A Head Full of Dreams (2018)
A Rush of Blood to the head...
The title has two meanings,
Firstly that's how it felt watching this, euphoric and nostalgic look back into how they all began...
it can also be used to define perhaps what happened to BarryJames-mc just before he posted his cynical, drivel-fuelled "review".
I mean has the guy actually listened to the other music Coldplay has made? It stinks of envy, perhaps the MC in his name relates to that time he sang at his cousins wedding, drunk and talentless... maybe he could've been the missing link that Coldplay must've needed (according to him)
The truth is, Coldplay have adapted. I bought their very first album after hearing Shiver on the radio and thinking "These are unique" and they've released hit upon hit upon hit.
I didn't become a fan of them because it's Coldplay, I became a fan because their music took me to a place emotionally that I didn't think was possible.
I've been to 7 live performances by them, and they hold a place in my heart.
This film is for fans of Coldplay.
Those who aren't fans, please stay that way.
There's nothing worse than a talentless, tasteless person getting up and shouting "I hate Coldplay", if they're so bad, then why are you talking about them?
Go listen to something else, it's very easy!
10/10.
Girlhouse (2014)
Much more enjoyable than you'd think!
Well made, solid casting (some great performances) especially by the killer and lead actress and a modern take on a slasher film. Normally I'll judge a film on whether it wasted my time or not, and if not then I will start to take notice & sometimes a B movie turns out to be a gem.
This film was much better than I thought it would be.
Give it a go
Grey's Anatomy: Now or Never (2009)
Licence to Kill - Oh My....
Warning : Spoilers (You have been warned)...
I have a career in medicine and love my job so am attracted to dramas involving medicine, so I subsequently have watched E.R., House, and Casualty/ Holby City.... I started watching Greys Anatomy when it first came out but only got to the end of season 4, and in 2008 there was no way to stream it back so I've left it, until now.
Over the past month I've binge watched the entire seasons of 1-5, and this particular episode had me bawling like a baby, not for the first time in watching the show, however it hit me hard when all was revealed at the end.
A brief synopsis, the episode starts off with Izzie waking up from her surgery and seemingly has some memory deficits. Alex struggles with this initially but gradually throughout the episode we, as viewers, get to see just how much he loves her as he never gives up on her.
George announces to Bailey that he's going to join the army as a trauma surgeon - Bailey does what she does best and questions his decision,
whilst Izzie still has memory issues so Alex improvises and makes post it notes with information on to jog her memory... and she also has Hyperkalaemia (Raised Potassium) which can cause heart arrhythmia or even death.
In one of the next scenes it focuses on a John Doe - a man pushed a woman out of the way of a bus that was going to hit her and he ends up in its path and is dragged down the street. He suffers horrific injuries for this, and his face is badly damaged as a result so they can't ID him for the N.O.K.
The woman who he saves, realises what an amazing man he is and calls him her "Prince Charming" and it's obvious she is prepared to stay with him and hopefully be there for when he recovers. He tries to write something down, but Meredith realises how weak he is and comforts him by saying "You can tell me tomorrow".
The gang all discover off Bailey, that George is looking to join the Army and each one suggest he will end up as cannon fodder, so they decide that at 6pm they will all go speak to him and try and change his mind.
Meredith and Derek exchange vows in a very non traditional way, and John Doe appears to be stable yet still very critically ill following some emergency surgery.
When it gets to 6pm, they go into see the Chief who was supposed to be performing surgery with George, yet find he was sent home early morning by the Chief and told to go visit his mum.
Then Izzie tells Yang that Alex offered to "Put a pillow over her", to which Yang asks "where's the note"? On realising Izzie isn't reading off the post it notes and has in fact recalled the memory from earlier, Yang goes to tell Alex who rushes to her bedside.
Meanwhile, John Doe suffers complications from the earlier surgery and a CT shows a re-bleed so he requires more surgery. Meredith tells him how wonderful he is, and how he's got a friend for life. He then grabs her hand and starts writing on it. "O O 7".... Meredith reads it back to him as Oh Oh Seven and then says "Double Oh Seven" and John Doe squeezes her hand and looks at her, to which she suddenly realises that John Doe is in fact George O'Malley!
They rush him to the O.R. and he flatlines, while Alex rushes to Izzies bedside and her Hyperkalaemia also causes her to Flatline at the same time. Alex ignores Izzies DNR (Do Not Resus) and the Chief agrees and they attach Defib paddles and try to bring her back, as George is on the O.R. table also fighting for his life!!
So, on reflection the signs were there quite early on that something was going to happen to George. A lot of very successful TV series tend to use foreshadowing to help prepare viewers for traumatic events; Glenn seeing a pic of brains bashed in by Lucille in The Walking Dead as an example. On at least 5 occasions, Georges colleagues all say in one way or another that George will die if he goes to Iraq. Also the fact the show suggested he wouldn't be in it anymore by dropping the Iraq "bomb" helped with this foreshadowing. Saying that, I still didn't see it coming until George spelt 007 on Merediths hand, and it hit me exactly like it hit her at the time.
The pacing, acting, cinematography and especially the score/music (Greys has amazing music) was 10/10 for this episode and although I've yet to watch the next episode, I know it's going to be painful to see what happens as I've grown to love the people of Seattle Grace Hospital.
If another episode hits me like this one, I'll write another review. :)
Nightcrawler (2014)
Never have I watched a film that left me breathless
Let me start by saying, that this film is amazing.
When people see a car crash, they always slow down and want to see what's happened to the passengers..... that's exactly what watching this movie feels like.
You know it's wrong, yet you're compelled to watch. Jake Gyllenhaal has made a career out of playing roles in which he stretches the boundaries of what's considered moral.
In this film, all morals are out the window and left very very far behind. He portrays a sociopathic, intelligent but disturbed "human" who only sees people as news, nothing more and nothing less.
Not going to spoil it for you, just be warned that it will contain "graphic content so viewer discretion is advised".
He deserved an Oscar for this, breathtaking performance and the cinematography is outstanding as well as the score.
Miracle Mile (1988)
To think I'm 40 years old, a huge movie aficionado and never seen this...
Until today!! Minor Spoilers (basic plot)
Stumbled across it while looking for hidden gems on Netflix and was always a huge fan of Anthony Edwards in ER and Top Gun.
This film is superb and I won't spoil it, but I was very tense watching it.
It's a romance with a twist, Anthony Edwards picks up a phone call from a booth and is told there's going to be a Nuclear bomb coming.
What's so clever about this film, is that it makes you doubt everything you see.
The acting in my opinion is top notch, and the story is very believable and just shows how something like this could happen.
Highly recommend this film, yes it's an eighties movie but you can accept the lower budget special effects because that is part of the romance - eighties films were like that, and that's ok.
Extraordinary: The Stan Romanek Story (2013)
What on Earth....
Oh my.... this is a disgrace to my intelligence.
The acting by Stan during these visitations... why are you lying? It's sad and pathetic to see this, no doubt he's made some money out of it.
Watch this if you want proof that aliens don't exist, because it sure fire won't make you believe after watching this utter trash.
Btw, I do believe that there are non human entities living on earth that aren't explained. This isn't one of them.
Bohemian Rhapsody (2018)
Killer Queen!!!
Breathtaking.
I grew up listening to Queen and the songs are a part of my childhood... my only wish is I was born 10 years earlier so I could've seen them live, because by the time I was able to goto concerts without my parents... sadly Freddie had succumbed to AIDS.
Anyway, Rami Malek is absolutely superb in his portrayal of Freddie. He's obviously spent a lot of time method acting, getting every single mannerism perfected.
The film had me laughing, and then selling up with tears. It's a wonderful tribute to the band and of course the great man.
Even if you don't like their music, the story is wonderful. Watch with friends and family.
Derren Brown: Sacrifice (2018)
Sometimes, I feel he gets it wrong...
And although this show was mighty close to crossing the line, the empathy I had for Phil during the show was tremendous. I feel like I've just watched a miracle happen. Really good show, always been a fan of Derren Brown and this is one of his best experiments by far!
Bravo 👏
Calibre (2018)
Noir Mirror style, gripping thriller!
Warning: Some minor spoilers.
As the title states, this film reminded me greatly of some of the Black Mirror episodes, minus the technology.
The grittiness and very believable storyline makes this one of the best British films I've seen in a while.
The film is about two mates who decide to go up into rural Scotland to do a bit of hunting.
Whilst there, they drink, snort drugs and cavort with two women on a night out.
The next day, a bit worse for wear they go out hunting. On finally plucking up the courage to shoot a deer, Vaughn takes aim and shoots just as the Deer moves its head to reveal a small boy is behind it.
I won't say much more about the plot from now on, suffice to say from that point on things turn sour for the pair.
The acting is real, dark, and full of suspense.
Particular mention to the man who plays Vaughn (Jack Lowden) who looks terrified for the rest of the film, and one of the locals - Logan played by Tony Curran comes across as fair, almost sympathetic and filled with many different emotions.
Its easy to understand why the two outsiders behaved the way they did, as the community was so close knit, one big happy family.
The ending was satisfying, with a slight twist.
Very enjoyable, which is unusual for a Netflix original (I often steer clear of them).
Avengers: Infinity War (2018)
Wow, just wow!
I will not provide any spoilers here, so you're welcome to read on.
So where to start?
There's great comic moments, interspersed with some very tragic moments and the best action scenes I think I've ever seen in a film.
Josh Brolin is tremendous as the super villain, Thanos. You kind of half feel sorry for him, his voice coming across as someone hell bent on achieving the aim of collecting all the stones - almost as if it's his destiny and only way to achieve some sort of everlasting piece. There's times when he appears to show empathy and remorse yet still continues on his path.
If someone wants to flag that as a spoiler ^ that's fine. All I'll say is he is the best villain in any comic book movie, ever.
All of the other characters are fantastic, with particular mention to Dave Bautista for some of the funniest lines in the movie.
You will love it, hate it and most definitely will be hiding behind your hand on quite a few occasions.
Only 3 films I've seen are better: Shawshank, Inception and Dark Knight. That's how good this is!
I'll definitely be watching it a second time.
10/10.
Chappie (2015)
Great Sci fi flick that tries to answer questions of what makes something conscious
So.. Because of the critics giving this film such a bad write up i have steered clear of this film for a while. Thanks "critics" for making me wait so long to see a wonderful heartfelt film about a robot who becomes "conscious". It is a cross between Robocop and Short Circuit and what makes it so great is the human characteristics Chappie learns.
I hate spoilers so I'm keeping this short and sweet. The acting was spot on, it was a well paced film and Hugh Jackman was excellent in a supporting role.
If you like Sci fi films I highly recommend this. It's gritty, fun and at times its quite emotional. An easy 8 stars out of ten from Mr