Bria Lou Reviews

  This was a re-watch that I was looking forward to. I don't always love sci-fi, or sci-fi/horror, but this is an iconic film that I've seen a few times over the years and have grown to really like, so I was glad to have the opportunity to see it again. As always, I really liked this film. Jeff Goldblum and Geena Davis are iconic in these roles. They play the characters perfectly, and the characters themselves are so interesting and complex that you're invested in both of them from really early on. I loved the pacing of this movie. Things take a really gradual turn, you're invested in every single stage, and the crazier things get, the more interested you are because of the slow build-up. I also love a creature feature, and I definitely think this falls into that category. The way that the 'creature' is designed, and the stages of transformation, are so fascinating to see, particularly from a design standpoint. But in addition to that, despite being rooted in sc...

New mother Grace (Jennifer Lawrence) is slowly slipping into madness, leaving her partner Jackson (Robert Pattinson) worried about their future. I was looking forward to this one. Not only did I want to see Lawrence and Pattinson together after becoming interested during their press tour, but going into post-natal depression in this way had the potential to not only be interesting, but ground-breaking. Unfortunately, I didn't love the movie. From the beginning, it reminded me of 'If I Had Legs I'd Kick You'. Not only due to being about motherhood, but also in the way it was so chaotic and jarring that it just wasn't an enjoyable watch. And that's not to say that it should be enjoyable, just that both films evoked the same feelings. The somewhat single location does a great job of creating isolation. The viewer almost feels suffocated just watching it. The actors did a good job of portraying these characters, but I couldn't tell if they worked well together, ...

  I hadn't heard of this film before I saw it on the list, but based on the name alone I was apprehensive about it. I tend to find zombie movies hit-or-miss, and usually on the miss side. But when I like them, I really love them, so I'm always willing to give them a chance. And this one didn't seem like the usual zombie movie anyway. In terms of classic movies that have inspired contemporary movies, the zombie genre seems to be one that goes in and out of fashion. They're also a theme that transcends genres - despite having a horror background, they've also featured prominently in comedies and dramas, which seems to be why they stay relevant in popular culture. I liked this film, but I fall more on the side of it being average/good than good/great. This is a left-field observation but I found the depiction of the Caribbean really interesting. Despite it being the 40s, and the majority of the cast being white, the setting definitely has a significant influence, both ...

An undercover police officer (Tom Blyth) assigned to lure and arrest gay men is torn when he develops a connection with one of his targets. I didn't know much about this film before watching it but it came out around the same time as a few Oscar nominees, so I decided to check it out. I liked this film. For a start, the scenario in itself is really interesting. There's a lot of ways that the story could go and a lot of different character types that would be fascinating to see in this world. I really like the main character, Lucas. He's easy to sympathise with, enjoyable to watch and you're rooting with him from the minute you see him on screen. But in addition to this, he's played so well by Blyth. All of the actors in this film are fantastic and their performances alone make this film worth seeing. The best thing about the film is Blyth's performance. I loved the mix of shots between traditional filming and found footage. It really made things feel personal an...

  I hadn't heard of this film before but the premise was a really interesting one - it looked like true body horror and I was really looking forward to seeing how it would be done. I really liked this film. The film begins from a really intriguing place. It holds enough back from the audience that we're immediately interested in who these people are, and teases things out in a way that makes this interest grow and grow as it continues. As I mentioned, I liked the premise, and the more I saw of it the more I liked. When it comes to horror, sci-fi based horror is something that's hit-or-miss for me, and I really liked it here. The film is a mix of genres and it works so well. The film uses sound and dialogue really carefully - there are multiple scenes with no dialogue, there are scenes when the score feel too upbeat to accompany the scene it's used with, there are scenes where you can barely hear a sound, and all of this really changes the overall tone of the film. You...

  Two couples experience strange occurrences after unknowingly booking a mansion at the same time. I heard really bad things about this movie. It was essentially snuck onto streaming with no promotion, the reviews were terrible and the premise was way too vague. But it was James McAvoy and another improvised movie, so I was down to see exactly how bad it could be. And as the reviews suggest, it is a bad one. This is the second James McAvoy improvised movie I've seen, and the first one wasn't great either but it did have a better plot than this one at least.  From the opening credits of the film I could already tell how slow it would be. And it remained this slow the entire way through. But the main issue with this is that it never captures your attention.  Despite being improvised. which you'd think would make the dialogue feel more authentic, it actually has the opposite effect. You can see the actors trying to come up with something to say next, you can hear the awkward...