Bria Lou Reviews

Hey Guys x I was really excited to see Birds of Prey (and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn) when it first came out, due to the fact that I really enjoyed the introduction to the character that Suicide Squad gave us. However, because I loved Harley Quinn so much as a supporting character, I didn't know if I'd love her as much when she took centre stage. Harley Quinn (Margot Robbie) has just broken up with Joker, which leaves her in a very dark, vulnerable place. But when she helps, and inadvertently bonds with, young pickpocket Cassandra Cain (Ella Jay Basco), in order to save the girl's life, Harley has to team up with three unexpected allies: Black Canary (Jurnee Smolett-Bell), The Huntress (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) and Renee Montoya (Rosie Perez). I really wanted to like this film a lot more than I did.  For a start, the beginning of the film comes across as really cheesy, mainly due to the voice over - and this relates to the fact that the entire film fee...

Hey Guys x I don't remember hearing about this movie much before it came out, apart from the fact that my sister really wanted to see it. We had planned to go to the cinema, but it seemed to have a really limited release so we didn't get the chance.  A group of people are invited to a mysterious island with the promise that their fantasies will come true. But when their supposed fantasies start to turn into nightmares, will the group be able to work out the secrets of the island, and escape, before it's too late? I had seen the reviews for this before seeing it, so I expected it to be really bad, and I didn't think I'd enjoy it at all. Because of this, I was really pleasantly surprised by how much I liked the film. For a start, I loved that there were no unnecessary backstories for any of the characters - everything that happens in the film advances the plot, and even the things that don't seem that relevant are still entertaining. Each of the characters had an ...

Hey Guys x This film came out in the UK last Saturday, on the Sky Premiere channels. I had heard about it quite a while ago, mainly because I'm a huge fan of Hugh Jackman, so it was on my 'to watch' list for a while. Frank Tassone (Hugh Jackman) is a school superintendent who is practically worshipped by students, staff and parents alike. But when a student (Geraldine Viswanathan) uncovers an embezzlement scandal, no one has any idea how high up the truth goes. I really really enjoyed this film. It actually took me by surprise, I definitely didn't expect to like it as much as I did. For a start, the film has really good character development, mainly for the character of Tassone. And the reason that it achieves this so well is because it makes sure to emphasise that Tassone is a 'good man'. It shows us the good things he does, doesn't paint him as a villain, and puts him up on a pedestal that makes his fall truly shocking. In addition ...

Hey Guys x This film came out on Netflix ages ago now, and while I don't usually watch romance movies like this on Netflix, I had some time to kill, so I thought I'd give it a try. When a travelling rodeo arrives in a town that thinks all rodeos should be banned, cowboy Colton (Josh Swickard) has to convince the town councilman (Casper Van Dien) to let the rodeo go ahead. But this becomes complicated when he falls for the councilman's daughter (Lorynn York). As you can probably already tell from the description of the film, it's basically a Hallmark movie. A simple love story that you can watch easily enough without having to become invested. The male protagonist of the movie, Colton, is immediately likeable and endearing, while the female protagonist, and his love interest, Tracy, isn't. You don't quite know from the beginning why there is attraction between them. I found that you don't have to care about either the rodeo, or the vegetarian vs meat eater de...

Hey Guys x I had pre-ordered this book as soon as it became available to do so because I was, and am, such a huge fan of O'Leary's first book, 'The Flat Share'. I really liked her writing style, so I definitely thought that I could take a gamble on her next novel. Leena has been ordered to take a two-month sabbatical from work after messing up an important presentation. At her wits end in London, she decides to go and visit her grandmother in Yorkshire. But when she gets there, she finds that her grandmother, Eileen, is almost as disillusioned with her life as she is. So Leena proposes the two switch places - she will stay in Yorkshire and carry out all of her grandmother's tasks, and Eileen will take Leena's place, living in London for the first time in her life. But as they both discover sides of themselves that they never knew existed, will the Switch change their lives for good? I really enjoyed this book. To be honest, it took me a while to get in...

Hey Guys x This is a film that I didn't really know that much about before putting it on. But I really liked the idea of it, and was feeling starved of new horrors, so I thought, why not? Kate (Mackenzie Davis) takes a babysitting job, hoping to do some good in the world. But neither the gothic mansion, or the children, are what she expected. And when Miles (Finn Wolfhard) and Flora's (Brooklynn Prince) behaviour starts to match the strange, sinister energy of the mansion itself, Kate soon discovers that nothing about this house is as it seems. Normally when I don't like a film or a book, I say that I really wanted to like it, but didn't. With this, because I knew so little about it, I had no prior feelings about wanting to like it - and even still, somehow, I was disappointed. How do you disappoint someone with no expectations? I thought the premise of the film was really interesting. Babysitting horrors have been done to death with varying levels o...