Bria Lou Reviews

  After picking up a hitchhiker on a deserted road, young newlyweds April and Eddie soon find themselves haunted by a string of unsolved murders. The premise of this book was such an interesting   one that I really couldn't wait to get into it. Before I opened the book, I thought it would make a great movie or series based on the description alone. I really liked another of the author's books, The Sun Down Motel, so this was on my list immediately! Unfortunately the actual story was a bit disappointing. But it was great that we get into things right away. The characters are picking up the hitchhiker in maybe the first chapter and that first section is really intriguing and genuinely creepy. Then from here, things start to go downhill. Rather than staying with the scares and creepiness, the story pivots to 'the police think our heroes are the killers', and it stays here for way too long. I get why it went in this direction, it definitely made the story feel more authenti...

  I think everyone has heard of this film, horror fan or not. But I've never actually seen it so I'm really glad it's on the list! I liked this film! I loved the opening scene. It captures the essence of the horror before you even understand what's happening and you're immediately invested. Despite the depiction of the zombies themselves being quite old-fashioned compared to modern versions, they're still scary and intimidating, while also being fun to watch. It's really well written. Everything said feels authentic and real, and you truly believe that these characters are really going through this. And speaking of characters, they're all great. We only get to know them in the context of this situation but that's enough to feel like we're on this journey with them. Ben in particular is such a great hero. He's the character you want to follow, he's the one you're most interested in and he's played really well by Duane Jones. The st...

  After escaping from prison, Jeffery (Channing Tatum) breaks into a Toys R Us and finds a way to live there for months in secret. But when he falls for employee and single mother Leigh (Kirsten Dunst), his secret becomes compromised. I'd heard really good things about this film, so it was the first one I watched once the Oscars were over. And I agree with all the good things, I liked this movie more than I initially thought I would. Your impression of the film is entirely based on how you feel about Jeffery as a character, and I loved him. I found him really endearing and fun to watch. You can really root for him. The opening scene sets the tone of the whole film really well, particularly when it comes to the humour. Despite the subject, the film has an overtone of joy and whimsy, and that makes it such a great watch. You can forget the characters' pasts, forget what might happen to them in the future, and just focus on the present. It took a really interesting direction. It...

  I'd heard of this movie in passing but never knew what it was about so it was a bit of a random pick! I had really mixed feelings about this film. I completely disliked the first hour, but by the end I liked it more than I thought I was going to. It took a little while for me to really get into this. It can be hard to work out exactly what's going on, and even when you get it, you're left wondering what it can actually be about. There's a lot going on here, especially in the first 30 minutes or so - it's hard to keep up with all the characters and how they fit into the story. I didn't really know how to feel for a really long time. I didn't feel anything for the characters, the story itself wasn't particularly gripping, and a couple of unexpected scenes just bothered me to the point where I ended up with a negative impression of the film as a whole. It moved slowly and quickly at the same time. So much happened that I felt like I couldn't keep up, ...

After being left at the altar, Matt (Kevin James) decides to take his honeymoon solo, and finds more than he ever expected. This film was mainly on my radar because of the actors involved - the premise was one that could go either way but I was hopeful! Thankfully, I liked the film. The introduction to the main character, Matt, was great. We get to know him quickly, he's likeable right away, and it's great to be on this journey with him. You're invested in the story from really early on. I loved the group of characters that we're introduced to. The film also stars Nicole Grimaudo, Alyson Hannigan, Kim Coates, Jonathan Roumie and Julee Cerda, and they're all really great and believable in their roles. It's the kind of friend group that you can imagine watching a sitcom about! I loved the way the new friendships were portrayed. They almost had a found-family feel to them, which was really sweet to watch. I thought the overall tone of the film would be funnier, mos...

  This isn't one I was looking forward to. I wrote in my review of 28 Years Later that I didn't like the first film in the franchise, this film. While that's probably true, it's been so long since I saw it that I couldn't even remember many of the plot details, all I could really remember before this re-watch was the feeling of not liking it. So I did try to go into this re-watch with more of an open mind. And thankfully, I did like it more than I did on my first watch. I think the characters are great. We only see them in this perilous situation but we get to know so much about them purely through their looks and interactions with each other. And most of this is down to how good the acting is - all of the actors do a great job with their characters, though they're also well-written, which helps. I also liked the character relationships, which is something that each movie in the franchise does well. It's really interesting to see the way the characters conne...