Bria Lou Reviews

This is one that I was really looking forward to. I'd never seen the film but I had read the book, so it's been on my to-watch list for years! I loved this film. I'm annoyed it took me so long to watch it! For a start, because I read the book I had so many moments that I was looking forward to, and all of the moments were exactly like I wanted them to be.  I thought the actors were all great. Comparing to the books, the filmmakers made great choices.  But taking the book out of the equation, I loved every single actor and every choice they made. They all played their respective characters really well and made the audience feel invested. But another great thing about the actors was their chemistry, and the character relationships that were able to develop.  The length of the film was great - we get a good amount of time in each stage, we get to know the characters, and by the time things really start we're so engaged and invested that we can't look away until it ends...

  I hadn't heard of this film before, and deliberately went into it knowing as little as possible. I have to admit I don't always love films set in this period of time - in fact the ones I've liked are few and far between. So when this started, I was definitely apprehensive about it. And honestly, I can't say I loved it. But one thing I did love was the acting. It's really interesting to go back and watch Tom Cruise films outside of Mission Impossible and other completely action-based movies. It's easy to forget that he's a great actor as well as being a great action hero, and films like this remind you of that. And the film is filled with great actors who do a great job with their respective characters. Everything they say feels authentic and believable because they are all committed to embodying the people they're playing. The story itself didn't grab me. It definitely had some really interesting parts, but the overall product wasn't something ...

I'd never heard of this movie before seeing it on the bucket list, and when I looked it up the only thing I saw was how low it was rated, so I went into it both blind and with low expectations. The film was entertaining but left a lot to be desired.  From the start, even though I didn't know what the plot was, I liked the direction the story was going. I was immediately interested and excited for this to turn into a twisty mystery thriller.  I think the first red flag for me was the writing. The actors did the best with what they had, and most of the performances were good, but the dialogue between the characters doesn't work. In the dream/book sequences particularly every word hits the ear wrong.  And of course these parts aren't necessarily supposed to be as real as the rest of the film, but it doesn't feel like a story or a dream, it feels like a bad parody of something you didn't want to watch in the first place. And they last way too long!  It's interes...

This was a first time watch, but because it's been an inspiration for a lot of different films, including a couple from this year's bucket list, I already had a good idea of what it was about. Westerns have never been my go-to genre, but I did like the plot of this one, so I was looking forward to seeing it. I liked this film. For a start, as mentioned, I really liked the plot. It's an idea that has inspired many films because it's a somewhat universal tale of revenge and how far you'll go for family. The characters are really interesting. Obviously we are mainly focused on Ethan, as it is him that we follow, get to know and empathise with. But all of the characters in the film are well written, and even the ones with less screen time and dialogue are still written well enough that we can get to know them. Speaking of the writing, one of the best things about the film is the way it's written. This is a really well-rounded films that feels authentic and real. Res...

  I've been waiting for a Marilyn Monroe film to be on a bucket list and it finally was! I hadn't seen this film before but I'd heard great things about it. This is a great film, and very deserving to be on a bucket list. For a start, I just loved the plot and characters. It works because we feel so invested in these characters from so early on. We're rooting for them, and so the more outlandish the story gets, the most invested we become, and the more fun we have. The plot is one that has been done multiple times, probably off the back of films like this that popularised the idea. The idea keeps coming back to popular culture because if it's done well, it can be really fun and entertaining, and it definitely is here! One of the reasons I was most looking forward to this is that it's one of the few romances on the list, so even though I didn't really know what it was about, I knew that there was probably a good chance I'd like it. And while it wasn't...

  This was a first-time watch that I was looking forward to seeing. I'm not usually that excited about disaster movies, but not only does this one star Ben Affleck (who I'm a huge fan of) amongst a host of amazing actors, but it's one that is spoken about a lot in pop culture - for both positive and negative reasons. It's also the third and final Michael Bay movie on the bucket list, so I was looking forward to comparing it to Bad Boys and Transformers. The first thing I need to mention about this movie is the amazing cast! I didn't know who was in the movie beyond Affleck and Bruce Willis, so it was such a nice surprise to see so many recognisable faces, especially because they all did a great job with their characters. Unlike other space-based movies, I liked the fact that the movie has a significant period of time set outside of space. We actually get to know the characters and this world outside of that environment. Which was great for someone who doesn't lo...

  I'd never heard of this movie before seeing it on the bucket list, so I had no expectations. There aren't many comedies on the bucket list this year. Of the four they picked, I've seen and loved two, and not heard of the other two so it's a really mixed bag. From the very beginning of the film, it just didn't really work for me - probably because I'm not the intended audience. The fundamental issue for me, which remained the same from the beginning of the film to the end, was that I didn't care about either the characters or their mission.  But that being said, there were things that were done really well. For a start, the cast. You wouldn't think of putting Steve Coogan and Jackie Chan together in a movie like this but they both do a really good job. They worked well together, played off of each other well, and any comedy or humour in the film came from the characters being together. And then there are so many other unexpected great actors that show u...

I had never heard of this film before seeing it on the list, and even when I put it on I didn't really know what it was about.  Compared to last year when there was quite a few foreign movies on the bucket list, this is one of only a couple.  I enjoyed this film. I didn't love it, and it's not really one that I would watch again, but I had more fun with it than I thought I would.  It took me a little while to really get into the story, but what helped was that I liked the main character almost instantly. Not only is he a somewhat-underdog character that you can really root for, but he's just really likeable and fun. In fact, it was a bit annoying at the beginning when the film spent a lot of time on the characters that we didn't know or care too much about. But in saying that, one of the reasons I didn't get into the film as quickly as I wanted to was because I didn't really like (or care about) any of the other characters.  The movie is only 1 hour 25 mins,...

  I saw this film in the cinema when it first came out and haven't seen it since, so this was a re-watch that felt like a first watch! I love that there are a few horror movies on the list this year - and while I would have assumed they'd be older classics, it's nice that there are some newer ones too. I enjoyed this movie. It probably wasn't as good as the original (despite the first hour being essentially the exact same film), but it still told the story really well and changed some things to make it feel original. This is one of those films where you spend pretty much the whole runtime criticising the characters for making stupid decisions, and that's as fun as it is frustrating. It's fun to hate the characters, and as things get worse, they also get more entertaining. The downfall of this film is the length, and how long it takes for things to happen. It takes almost an hour for us to get into the main plot. And even though this version and the original are ...

  Transformers is a franchise that I've never crossed paths with. I've never seen any of the movies, I've never known more than a vague description of what it was about, and I've never been particularly interested in seeing it. Nevertheless, seeing it on the bucket list did make me more intrigued about it than I have been before. I actually ended up liking the film a lot more than I thought I would. For some reason I connected to the characters really quickly, and I think that helped. I was invested in their stories almost immediately. Plus I didn't really know the actors that were in it, so seeing so many recognisable faces was really fun. In fact, that's how I would describe the whole film - it's a lot of fun. Yes the robot-cars are taken extremely seriously, and yes the stakes are high, but it's a really entertaining watch - and a lot funnier than I thought it would be, but also a lot more emotionally charged. It almost makes you go through every emot...

  With the new Superman movie out, I was really glad this was on the list so I could see it before I saw the new one. I love the character of Superman so much and I want to see as many iterations as possible! This wasn't the first time Superman was ever on film, but this definitely feels like the blueprint behind all the more recent adaptations, as well as so many other non-Superman comic book movies. It was nice that the film took the time to explore a few different stages of Clark's life (though I wish we got to see teenage Clark a bit more while he was still on the farm). It was also great to spend time in Krypton to get a feel for that world too. This film actually felt like a couple of different Superman movies jammed into one space. I think this is because it was so new, but there was a bit too much going on for me. As much as I love Superman's origin, I feel like a TV show is the perfect format for that story. In a film there's always going to be too much happeni...

  Next up was a first-time watch. I already mentioned in a previous post that I'm not usually a huge fan of Jason Statham movies, so I wasn't particularly excited to see this one. But it was only 90 minutes and had an interesting premise so I was definitely intrigued. I do also tend to like driving movies, and this one starts off really well in that respect. The first scene is great, and whether or not it is an inspiration to films like Baby Driver and Drive, it definitely feels familiar. It didn't move as quickly as I expected it to, especially considering it's only 90 minutes. But the reason I think it works well above everything else is the characters and their chemistry. Even though we know practically nothing about them, we become invested in their lives. That being said, their chemistry would have been a lot stronger if it was given more time to develop. But it still worked. And for me, that was the only thing to really get invested in. The dialogue didn't fee...

  Next up was a first-time watch. I'd heard of this film, and I've seen the more recent adaptation, but I've never really had a desire to watch this. Not only is the story not a particularly interesting one to me, but I'd never heard great things. So I was kind of surprised to see it on the bucket list at all. I didn't love this film. It starts and builds quite slowly, which isn't great given the film's runtime of around 90 minutes.  There were some really interesting fights, action scenes and stunts. These in themselves were actually more interesting than the main mystery of the story. I would have much preferred 90 minutes of Lara Croft beating people up! Because despite the name of the film, there wasn't an abundance of tomb raiding, and the tomb raiding that did occur was a bit boring. The saving grace of this film is the cast, who are all great. Angelina Jolie embodies this character really well and brings an authenticity to this fantastical story. ...

  I saw this film around the time it first came out and loved it... and then I saw the similarly themed Rocketman and adored that so much that I didn't have any love left over for BoRhap, so I haven't watched it since I first saw it. That being said, it being on the bucket list is the perfect excuse to watch it again (though Rocketman also deserves to be on a bucket list). That being said, I did love this again on re-watch. I think I loved it so much because I was familiar enough with the music to really enjoy that side of things, but not familiar enough with the band that I already knew their story. So I could be really interested in both things at once and really become engrossed in the story. All of the actors are great, particularly the other band members (played by Gwilym Lee, Ben Hardy and Joe Mazzello), but Rami Malek is especially amazing in the role of Freddie. Not only do you love him, but you feel like you really know him. The creation of the song Bohemian Rhapsody, ...

  I saw this film for the first time years ago and, although I remember liking it, I never really had the urge to see it again. Nevertheless, because I don't really remember much about it, I was happy (albeit very surprised) to see it on the bucket list. The idea behind this film is really interesting because the plot could play out in a thousand different ways. Just taking the idea that someone takes a pill to open up 100% of their brain is unique and yet so open-ended that I'm surprised more movies haven't tried similar versions of films like this. The film does a great job of showing the effects of the drug. It makes good use of colour and it's written really well. The use of voiceover is particularly effective. My main issue with the movie is the character of Eddie. I think to really connect with a movie like this, you have to be able to connect with the character you're following. But not only was I not able to really connect with Eddie, I just felt absolutely ...

  I had heard of this movie before watching it, and knew that it was a classic, but never knew what it was about. And even after reading the premise, it still feels like I went in blind. I liked it a lot. The first thing I took in about the film was how good the acting was. Jack Nicholson is great as always, but he's really bolstered by the amazing supporting cast, which includes Will Sampson, Louise Fletcher, Danny DeVito, William Redfield, Sydney Lassick, Brad Dourif and Christopher Lloyd. They're all amazing in their respective roles and completely integral to telling this story. The story itself is a really interesting one. Even if you go in blind you're completely invested from the second it starts. But what makes everything about it so compelling, the story and the characters, is the writing. Everything about the film is written so well. The dialogue between and about the characters is powerful and allows the audience to truly feel a part of the story, and to get to k...

This is a first-time watch that I'd only really heard about in passing. I had no idea what it was about until I watched it. And honestly, the only thing that excited me about it, without knowing the plot, is that it stars and is directed by Sylvester Stallone, who I'm a huge fan of due to the Rocky movies (and now outside of them). I really liked it straight away, from the opening scene. The cast of this film is amazing. It feels unexpected, but also, every time someone new comes in, it just makes sense. They are all absolutely perfect for their roles and play their parts so well. No actor or character feels inauthentic or out of place, and recognising the actors goes part of the way towards us caring about the characters earlier than we otherwise might have. And you really do care about the characters from early on. They're such interesting people who are really well-written and feel authentic. Even if you don't know much about who they are outside of this story, you a...

This was one of my most highly anticipated re-watches on the bucket list this year. I have never been one to apologise for my love of Twilight. I was introduced to the books as the second movie was coming out and loved them so much I watched the movies too. I definitely didn't expect it to be on any kind of bucket list, let alone a bucket list of classic movies, but I can't say it's not iconic for one reason or another, so it definitely earns its place. One of the things the saga is most known for is for catapulting its main stars, Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson, into incredibly well-respected actors. Pattinson in particular is making amazing career choices and has done some amazing performances. The casting of the characters also felt really close to how the book described them. And even when things were a bit off, the actors were good enough and committed enough to make it work. This film feels so nostalgic. Watching it took me right back in time to when these movie...

  I saw this film for the first time years ago, and while I didn't remember any specific plot details, I remembered liking it, but also being a bit disappointed (though I couldn't remember why). I was surprised to see it on the list. When I first watched it, I watched it because it had an interesting premise, not because it was considered a classic in any way. And to be honest, I haven't really thought about it since that first watch. I thought this movie was great. Really intriguing and mysterious all the way through, and quite a fun watch too. One of the best things about it is the tension between the two characters. You're on the edge of your seat during each of their interactions, not knowing what will happen next. And this gets more tense as the film continues. The fact that it's only 90 minutes long makes it really engaging. Everything that happens is completely necessary so you don't want to look away for a second. I didn't remember it being as entert...

  Next up was a highly anticipated re-watch! This film was a staple in my house growing up. I can't remember the first time I saw it because I've seen it so many times! The thing that makes this film work above all else is absolutely without a doubt the chemistry between Will Smith and Martin Lawrence. They work so well together, they play off of each other amazingly and they're the reason the movie has become a franchise. But adding Téa Leoni into the mix just made everything so much more fun. Not only do we get to see the characters interacting together, but we get to see them interacting with, and from the point of view of, a third party. And in addition to that, taking the characters out of the equation, the film is hilarious. It's one of my favourite comedies because everything is written and acted so well. Every comedic moment hits exactly as it's supposed to, and there are pieces of dialogue that easily work their way into your everyday phrases because of how...