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The Running Man | Film Review

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  Desperate to help his sick daughter, Ben Richards (Glen Powell) is convinced to compete in a deadly gameshow. I was really annoyed to miss this one in the cinema because I was looking forward to it. Based on the promotional interviews, it seemed like it would be a fun popcorn movie, and even though the reviews weren’t great I was open-minded about it. And thankfully I really liked it! It was really quick to get into the action. We meet Ben, we meet his family, we get to know a little bit about him, but before we really get into anything he’s in the competition fighting for his life and we’re right alongside him. It gets your adrenaline going from really early on and doesn’t let up. The downside of this is that the concept of the competition wasn’t explained as well as it could have been. You get the gist of things after a while, but it would have been would have been great to know more earlier on. That being said, it doesn’t matter too much because you’re invested in Ben and his ...
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The Hills Have Eyes (1977) | 100 Movies Bucket List

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  Next up is some early Wes Craven! I saw the remake years ago and really liked it, but I'd never got around to seeing the original so I'm really glad it was on the list - it probably wouldn't have occurred to me to watch it otherwise. I liked this movie. I really enjoy the concept, so it wasn't a shock that I liked the original as much as the remake. I loved how classic this feels. When I think of old horror, this is the kind of thing that comes to mind - simple basic stories, obvious villains, actual scares. I love the way the genre has evolved over the years, and I can't wait to get into classic movies that are less obvious horror too, but I will always love things like this. Tension was created really well. Keeping the faces of the 'monsters' a secret until the last possible moment was a really great idea. It keeps the audience in suspense, and the longer it takes to see them, the scarier it gets. But even the amount of time it takes for the main plot to...
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Wake Up Dead Man | Film Review

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  A seemingly impossible murder inside a church causes Benoit Blanc (Daniel Craig) to become involved in a mystery that sees a close-knit community begin to turn on each other. I was really excited about this one! I didn’t love the movie that came before this, Glass Onion, but I loved the first Knives Out and the concepts of both, and I’ll definitely watch as many movies as they make. Unfortunately, and I think I’m completely alone in this, I was disappointed by the film. But one thing I really loved was the cast – this may be the best cast yet! All of the actors were amazing and did such a good job with their respective characters. I also liked the introductions to all the characters. This film goes back to the first of making the audience see all the characters from the point of view of an outsider, and that’s the best way to do these things. This was also the first time that Blanc wasn’t the most interesting character. It was funnier than I expected, and as with the other movies...
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HIM | Film Review

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  Injured quarterback Cameron Cade (Tyriq Withers) receives the opportunity of a lifetime when his hero, Isaiah White (Marlon Wayans) offers to train him at his isolated compound. This film was heavily marketed as a Jordan Peele movie, obviously in the hopes of getting people to connect it to his other movies. This marketing didn’t really work for me due to me not being a huge fan of Peele’s movies post Get Out, but even with that it’s an absolute disservice to connect this film with Peele’s previous works. This movie wasn’t for me at all. It took a really long time to have any idea of what this was about or what was happening. It doesn’t let the audience get to know the character as well as we need to to really care about the story and what happens to Cade. None of the characters felt authentic or realistic, but the story isn’t fantastical enough for this to be a filmmaking choice. So again, this is another thing that makes you not really care about them. Speaking of the character...
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Shelby Oaks | Film Review

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  A woman (Camille Sullivan) becomes obsessed with finding her missing sister (Sarah Durn), leading her to uncover a horrifying secret. The only thing I knew about this film was that it was a debut movie by a director who is also a movie critic that I’d heard of. I didn’t have any thoughts about this in terms of the perceived quality of the movie, but it did make me more interested to see it. I didn’t love this one unfortunately. The concept was really interesting, though when it starts it has a really similar feel to The Blair Witch Project, which makes it feel a bit less original than it probably should. It would have been nice to get to know the characters outside of Mia (Sullivan) and her sister, as I never really connected with either of them. And as much as you don’t need to care about them for the film to work, it would help. It probably would have been better to see this story from someone else’s point of view. I don’t think Mia brought much to the story. If we saw this fro...
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Wicked: For Good | Film Review

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  As Elphaba (Cynthia Erivo) fights for the people and animals of Oz after being branded the Wicked Witch of the West, she realises that she needs to reconnect with her best friend Glinda (Ariana Grande) to truly change Oz for good. This was one of my most highly anticipated films of the year. I absolutely loved the first movie, and being familiar with the theatre show, I really wanted to see how they’d translate the second part of the story to film. I loved this film. I went in with low expectations due to some negative reviews, but it was exactly what I wanted – the conclusion to this story with some songs that I’ve been waiting to hear! There has been a lot said about the casting choices, and I have to agree in some respects. There were a few people that were miscast, and a few instances where the singing could have been stronger, but for me this didn’t matter too much because when the casting works, it’s amazing. There is great chemistry in every corner of the film – particular...
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The Masque of the Red Death | 100 Movies Bucket List

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  This is a random one to start off the 100 horror movies bucket list! I picked it more due to availability than anything else. I didn't know what it was about so it was really interesting to go in blind. I really like this film! It starts in a fascinating place - giving us a villain from the outset and having the viewer follow him rather than the victims of his tyranny is a really great way to start things because we get to see the full spectrum of character development. He's also the most interesting character, and played so well by Vincent Price. Though in saying that, Francesca ( played by Jane Asher ) is also a really great character, and gets some great development. She is a completely different character from the beginning to the end. The story is really engaging from the very beginning, long before we truly get into the horror. The more characters we meet, the better the film gets. There are a really eclectic group of well written people who may not always feel authenti...
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