HELLBOY (2019)
This movie has been (so far) hated. At the moment it's sitting at 15% on Rotten Tomatoes, people do not like this film. I have watched reviews for the film and they don't seem good either. So what did i think of the film? Its (in my opinion) not a bad film; neither a good film. It's a dumb film for you to enjoy, which oddly enough i found myself doing.
The story has a stereotypical plot where the villain is resurrected and wants to take over the world... however the story is all over the place, its starts off strong and goes on a straight line, then after 20 minutes into the film, that straight line starts to get messy. Throughout the film, the story tries to stay coherant by adding in exposition left, right and centre for most of the character developments, which makes the film very incoherent.
However, what i enjoyed most about this film is the actor who played Hellboy (David Harbour). When he's on screen, I felt sympathy for him, as he is different to everyone, he has been protecting the world for a long time. Humans on the other hand think he is a threat. That's when i felt sympathy for him. When it comes to the marketing for the film, I really didn't like the make up on the actor, as you can't hear him under all that make up. Luckily, in the film it didn't annoy me, i actually forgot he was under all that make up as the performance was amazing.
NEIL MARSHALL
Neil Marshall was the Director of this film. This is my first movie that i have seen that he has directed. From re-search, his previous films "The Descent", "Tales of Halloween" etc have a horror/ gothic look. Already i can see that this director was a perfect choice, as he's done horror/ gory movies before.
There is a scene in Hellboy that uses a "one take", which means the camera follows the actors in one take (no cuts).
the scene involved giants and Hellboy himself. This scene (thinking back now) is probably my favourite scene, as it's memorable to me in my opinion.
WHAT I WOULD CHANGE
I think what i would change about this movie, is to make sure that the audience understand the story, so having a 121 minute movie that goes off track isn't going to help at all. So i would say, if they cut out some scenes that is unnecessary and re-shot them so it follows the plot, understand more of the characters. This movie could of been the same length with better character development and a smoother story line.
6.5/10
AVENGERS: ENDGAME (SPOILER REVIEW)
WARNING: This review will contain heavy spoilers for “Avenger: Endgame”. If you have not seen the film and are planning to see it, do not read this review.
This movie had everything I wanted in a movie. It had heart, emotion and action. This is for sure my favourite MCU movie, and that says a lot, as throughout the past few years (before "Thor: Ragnarok”) I wasn’t a huge fan of the MCU. The story is about the remaining Avengers figuring out a way to bring back the people they cared for after getting dusted in the previous movie “Infinity War”. They need to time travel so they can collect the infinity stones from the past, as Thano's (the villain) destroyed them in present day.
After watching Endgame, it made me respect more for these movies and I understood where the story was leading up to throughout the 11 years since the first Iron Man movie. The movie is dark as well, (which you can expect as 50% of the universe has turned to dust in “Avengers: Infinity War”). However, what they did in this movie is unprecedented e.g. Thor went for the head! When I saw this for the first time I was shocked that they went there, even for a Disney movie; to the point where I’m thinking this is close to a 15. But throughout the film; it gradually gets lighter due to the humour from Professor Hulk (played by Mark Ruffalo). I love the idea that Banner figured a way to merge Hulk and himself into one during the 5 years alone. Think Shrek but physically stronger. It gives him more character development, as he said in the film that he stopped treating Hulk like a disease and more like a cure.
The director's of this film was “Anthony and Joe Russo”. They have made Marvel films before e.g. "Captain America: The winter solider", "Civil War" and the previous "Infinity war". I'm not a huge fan of the Russo’s, as they like to heavily use humour a lot, which can affect (in my opinion) the tone of their movies. Is this a serious movie? Is this a wacky comic book movie? But luckily for “Avengers: Endgame” the humour is on point. The tone itself is the focus, which is the sense of our superheroes losing for the first time.
My favourite character in the movie was Hawkeye. The first scene you see in the movie was him teaching his daughter how to fire a bow & arrow. After this, Hawkeye’s family turned to dust, leaving Hawkeye with grief and emotionally changing into someone else: “Ronan”. It sets the tone for the film and to show that this film is not like any other Marvel film we have seen before. Its not everyday a comic book movie starts off with the superhero’s losing. You see how his character changes, as he's killing bad guys left and right. Roadie even says in the movie that “part of me doesn’t even want to find him” due to him leaving a graphic scene. That made me quite frightened about his character; which is great, as your suppose to know what he can be like when the people he cared for gets taken away from him. There is a beautiful one take set in Tokyo where Ronan (Hawkeye) is killing people that's guilty. It's like Robocop mixed with the Terminator; no emotions, just gets the job done.
The 3 acts in the movie were also phased very well. The first act is all about the after math from “Infinity war” 5 years on, dealing with grief from different characters. The second act is focused on going back in time to collect the infinity stones (with some twist and turns along the way). Then the third act, the best act in the movie was not only intense; but also visually beautiful. The way they built up to this moment made me tear up; and yet the battle hasn’t even begun. This is by far the best story Marvel has put out. I saw Endgame twice and both times I wanted to cry, it was that good.
Thor in this film as well is very different to previous films. He is obese. Almost like he hit rock bottom emotionally. He lost everything that he loves e.g. his parents, his brother, his planet and now half of his people. At first, you can say his first appearance (five years on) can represent for humour and to lighten up the movie e.g. when Korg is playing Fortnite and Thor helps him out. But really; it doesn’t, as you understand throughout this film that he is guilty that he lost, and he isn’t emotionally strong enough to keep that in anymore. Almost like he's overwhelmed e.g. when Banner says the name “Thanos”, Thor gets triggered emotionally and told Banner to never mention that name.
However, the movie does have it flaws. This is just my opinion but a lot happens in the first 20 minutes of this movie, we spend 5 minutes in the space ship that Tony & Nebula are in. That was disappointing for me as I expected more from it. Even the marketing for this film tells us it’s the main focus, but sadly wasn’t. What made up for it however is the way Tony treats Steve when he comes back. What disturbed me was when Tony took his reactor core off his chest and puts it in Steve’s hand and told him to put it on and hide. It shows that Tony is scared after what happened in Infinity war, he lost not once but twice.
The colour palette is beautiful for act 1 and 3. Act 1 starts off grim and gothic. My favourite shots that the colour palette shines in is the extreme long shots of the city completely empty, showing how catastrophic the snap was and how it effects certain people e.g. Captain America, Black Widow, Hawkeye etc. Act 2 however, isn’t so much a beautiful act. Its more bland than colourful (even when they time travel to different time zones). Its almost like picking an ice cream and all they have is vanilla, its not the best but not the worst. However, the Vormir scenes were beautiful, it definitely shines as the best use of colour in act 2 e.g. the use of colour for the sky. It makes you believe that Black widow and Hawkeye are on another planet! When it comes to the 3rd act, the use of colour was brilliantly used e.g. Thano's and his army coming to earth from the past and walking out from their space ship, whilst Captain America standing in front of them is like watching a world war 1 battle and you have Captain America in the middle of no man’s land, the sense of hope that Captain America desperately needs; which he gets. It’s probably the best use of colour in the MCU. What really gave me goosebumps is the sense that everything is concluding and they're giving it everything they have. This is by far the true Infinity war we were waiting for.
Aside from a few minor negatives that I had about this film, it’s very close to being a perfect film. It gives you an emotional weight and makes you care about these characters. Even if you did care for them anyway, the movie finds another way to make you feel that these characters are special to you e.g. Iron man, as he gets the send off he deserved. He dies in battle fighting for his planet, and I won’t lie I cried. In “Infinity War”, Doctor Strange saw 14,000,605 outcomes and they only win one, which was Iron man dying protecting his planet. After knowing this, watching the two movies back-to-back feels like it’s foreshadowing the moment that’s coming, Iron man’s fate.
Thanos (portrayed by Josh Brolin) was great. Thano’s has a main goal and he will do anything to collect all of the stones. Throughout the film, his past self realizes that in the future when he does wipe out 50%, the Avengers are not going to be happy on what they have left, just on what they lost. So Thano’s changes his goal and wants to wipe out earth and re – build it for himself. Thanos in Endgame was frightening, as you know he is unstoppable with or without the stones, so when it came to the last battle; it got really intence.
The run time is over 3 hours longs (181 minutes) which for me is brilliant because you need that run time to conclude 11 years worth of story telling. For the first time for a 3 hour film; I was hooked from start to finish. You can also tell the audience don’t mind the run time, as the box office worldwide has now reached 2.78 billion dollars! If this movie were to be less than 3 hours, the movie wouldn’t be the same, as you need to conclude all the plot holes from the past 22 movies that they have been setting up. My favourite one (that I forgot about that blew me away when I first saw Endgame) was the mystery if Captain America can lift Thor’s hammer in “Avengers 2: age of ultron”; is he worthy? It gave me Goosebumps when seeing Captain America spinning the hammer towards Thanos.
The soundtrack as well is well used, however it’s not the best use of music, as we heard certain music notes multiple times in different movies. It would have been nice if we heard something new for the Avengers (Especially for the final battle) as hearing the same use of music can get a little bland. If you were to ask me which moment in the movie that the music was the highlight, it would be the moment when Captain America summoned Thor’s hammer. The way the music built up was really intense and made my jaw dropped.
For me saying I highly recommend this movie is like yesterday’s news. People are seeing the movie and are loving it.
9.5/10
Rocketman spoiler review:
WARNING: THERE WILL BE SPOILERS IN THIS REVIEW!
The movie is a biopic/musical on the singer Elton John and how he emotionally gets worse and worse as his career goes on. It starts off with Elton John (portrayed by Taron Egerton) seeking help. He talks to a group about himself and how his life changed from having piano lessons in the 1950’s (from early age) all the way to being the most iconic singers of all time.
What I absolutely love about this movie; is the script. Elton sits in a circle at the start of the film and admits his issues e.g. being an alcoholic , drug misuse etc. It sets the tone on what this film would be. When walking out of this movie, I felt that this was a more personal film than a biopic. As you see throughout the film that his parents weren’t great parents e.g. his dad, when he was growing up. I also love the narration throughout the movie. It cuts back to Elton John in therapy and talking about a scene we just seen e.g. when Elton visits his dad (when grown up). Elton was ready to give his dad a second chance; however, his dad wanted to make his son(s) happy and ask for an autograph. The sense of heart break was really impactful because his dad was treating him more like a pop star than his own son.
The use of music was brilliantly used as well throughout the movie. The director uses Elton John’s music e.g. “Saturday nights alright for fighting” to narrate on what’s happening in the scene and less on how he made his songs. I love this idea as it becomes more thrilling to watch. The only time when the music is shown from Elton John’s early days of his career; is when he sings “crocodile rock” in Las Vegas. That entire scene let alone is A) so much fun to watch and B) so strong as you can see from your own eyes on how Elton John can steal the whole stage when wearing weird clothing (which has now become in modern day his iconic look when going on stage). Singing wise as well, Taron Egerton is such a gifted singer as I honestly thought it was Elton John (when I was listening to the original “crocodile rock” to this version). His acting and his singing is flawless. I also love how there isn’t much lip syncing in this film, compare to Bohemian Rhapsody where Rami Malek did lip sync when portraying Freddie Mercury (which isn’t a problem as singing can be challenging).
All of the actors in this movie did such a great job. The 2 actors before going into this movie that I did know they were in; was “Bryce Dallas Howard” and “Richard Madden”. Bryce Dallas Howard played Elton John’s mum and Richard Madden played John Reid (Elton’s music manager). In my opinion (aside from Taron Egerton), Jamie Bell stole the show for me. His role was “Bernie Taupin”, he writes his songs with Elton John in his early days of his big career. But most importantly, he was his true friend that cared so much for Elton. Compare to John Reid and Elton’s mum where they didn’t care about him, and thought very negative about Elton. Elton thought he loved John Reid, but really John Reid was just focusing on his deal with Elton. Which almost makes him feel like the villain in this movie, as he went from being Elton’s love to Elton’s demon on his shoulder.
The director of this film was “Dexter Fletcher”. He directed “Bohemian Rhapsody”. But he wasn’t the original director of that film, the original director was Brian Singer for Bohemian Rhapsody. So really, Rocketman is his first music biopic movie. In both Rocketman and Bohemian Rhapsody, the cinematography is purely breath taking. From looking at both movie posters, he likes to use purple quite a bit. But I think Rocketman’s poster looks better as the use of purple is more in the background where as Bohemian Rhapsody’s poster is covered in purple. Its not a problem, but would love to see a variety of different colours (which you do in one of the Bohemian Rhapsody posters). As a directing standpoint, I love how he uses a one take for “Saturday nights alright for fighting”. It goes from Little Elton John singing the song then goes straight into older Elton John (Taron Egerton) whilst still singing in one take. Dexter Fletcher knows how to make a musical movie after seeing this movie; as he's telling a story from a different perspective. It makes me hope he does another musical movie (and that says a lot, as really I’m not a musical person). My favourite shot was a close up shot of Elton John looking at himself through the mirror with pure sadness but trying to smile even though he’s not happy (after being punched in the face by John Reid).
In the trailers for Rocketman, I was a bit uncertain about how the CGI looks e.g. the way the audience looked when he sings with a cricket bat, as it looked like in my opinion unfinished. Luckily when seeing the movie; the CGI looks great! I also really liked the use of black and white when older Elton follows younger Elton to the past in the beginning of the movie. The only colours you see is older Elton’s clothes as he is wearing a devil costume.
I also really like the little details in the movie; as in the beginning of the movie he wears a devil costume, and as the movie continues on; he takes the devil costume off piece by piece (almost like he is getting better and better when he is in therapy). At the end of the movie, you see him wearing his costume from the music video “I’m still standing “ (which also ends with the video itself but with Taron Egerton).
When it comes to flaws, its not really a big problem; more of a nitpick. I wished the movie was a bit longer, as its runtime is 120minutes (2 hours). Take this negative as a really positive thing about this movie, as I came out of the movie wanting more. Aside that, the movie is near perfect. Rocketman was very well phased and it took its time. Where as Bohemian Rhapsody felt a bit rushed for the first half of the movie (and yet that movie was longer; which was 2hrs 15mins).
Go out and see Rocketman!
9/10
MIB: INTERNATIONAL (SPOILER REVIEW)
WARNING: This will be a spoiler review.
“Men in Black: International” is the fourth installment in the series which started back in 1997 with Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones. This installment has a new cast and a new director. The cast being Chris Hemsworth and Tessa Thompson with a well known director called F. Gary Gray. He’s done other well known titles such as the recent “Fate of the furious” and “Straight outta Compton”.
The story for MIB: International is Tessa Thompson’s character “Agent M” trying to find the men in black. When she was little, she witnessed not only her parents being neuralized by the MIB; but also encountering her first alien in her house. Since then, she has been on the hunt for 20+years to find the MIB and to be recruited by them. Continuing the story, Agent M teams up with Chris Hemswoth’s character called “agent H” to save the world by a deadly threat known as “the hive”.
The first 5-10 minutes were great! It’s starts off in Paris, the year being 2016, with Chris Hemsworth and Liam Neeson locked and loaded to stop “the Hive” on top of the Eiffel Tower. Instantly I was hooked. It sets the tone to this film as it has a running gag relating to Chris Hemsworth’s character telling a civilian to propose to his girlfriend at the bottom of the lift whilst neuralizing them more than once. It was handled very well and set the tone perfectly. But I do think we needed more of the opening as its cuts straight to young Tessa Thompson right before the main action itself. It left me scratching my head on how awkward that cut was.
I thought the character development of Tessa Thompson’s character was rushed. After she witnesses her first alien encounter at a young age; it cuts straight to 20 years later of her finding the MIB. The phasing was too quick. I wanted more of her finding the MIB, in New York City. As it would of shown how much it means to her as a character. I liked how we see her briefly going from the police force to the FBI as it shows what she’s capable of (when working in the force). I did over look this problem, as the film continuous it’s story but I would of loved more character development of agent M, as I would have been even more invested in her character.
I thought Chris Hemsworth’s character didn’t have much character development either. From my first viewing (and only viewing so far), what I learnt about his character throughout the movie is other characters telling him that he’s changed. He once was a great agent in the past e.g. the attack of the hive in 2016. Now in present day, he’s very immature and says idiotic things e.g. wanting to test a very deadly alien weapon in the desert. He’s trying to prove himself to Liam Neeson that he’s still that great agent they remember. When it comes to the 3rd act of the movie. Agent H discovers that Liam Neeson’s character had neuralized him back in the opening of the movie. I love the twist they took for the movie and how the movie had a misdirect throughout, and you discover at the end what really happened. It then came clear to me to why there was an awkward cut in the opening before the fight. However I still think they should of extended the opening scene, as then the audience would understand the mystery throughout the movie. Did they really stop the hive?
I think the concept of the story is great, but the execution to how they handled the story either by script or editing could have been handled a lot better in my opinion. The movie is also 1hr 55minutes long. I think that’s a reasonable run time but I think it should have been longer as the phasing for the first 20-30 minutes of the movie was too fast. By the time it came to Agent M and agent H being attacked by “the hive” outside the club, that’s when the phasing was starting to slow down (in a good way). As i start to understand the story more.
However, there is a lot to love about this movie. I thought the acting by Chris Hemsworth was brilliant. I found him very funny throughout the movie. Tessa Thompson as well was brilliant and I found the chemistry between her and Chris Hemsworth was handled very well. The villain (which turned out to be Liam Nesson) was good, but I would appreciate the villain a lot more if the story was executed better.
The CGI in this movie was flawless. I love the way “the hive” looked throughout the movie. My jaw was dropped every time I saw them. Their eyes were bright blue with there body looking like the universe, with outlines of there body shape. They looked very menacing as well which made certain scenes intense in the movie. What the movie hits home run with is the weirdness of men in black universe. The aliens would look either very scary, weird or just very cute. I love how this movie isn’t a reboot as it’s a continuation from the last 3 movies. You can tell that it’s another men in black movie from the intro itself.
When it comes to action sequences, I thought the choreograph was handled very well. My favourite fight scene was when agent H fights a gang of aliens whilst a 3 headed snake is on the loose.
When it comes to the 1st act to the 3rd act. I found the 2nd and 3rd act easier to watch as the phasing wasn’t too fast and it took its time, whereas the 1st act was too fast. The cinematography felt like the movie was reincarnated for modern day viewers to watch. The cinematography is at its best when the characters travel around the world e.g. London, the desert, New York etc as it feels more open than just staying in one location throughout the movie. Chris Hemsworth has said that it’s continuing what the first Men in black movie have started, but making it more international. Which in my opinion they did a beautiful job at.
So overall, I think this movie is very entertaining to watch. It does have its flaws but overall there are more positives about this movie than negatives. I recommend you watch MIB: International with a low expectation, as you will enjoy it even more.
7/10
DOCTOR WHO: THE MOVIE (1996) MOVIE REVIEW:
“Doctor who: the movie” is written by Matthew Jacobs and is directed by Geoffrey Sax. The movie is all about the master wanting the doctor’s body; as the doctor can regenerate and heal himself whereas the master can’t, as he’s used up his regeneration cycle. Time is running out and the Doctor has no sonic screwdriver to help him.
At the start of the movie, the 7th Doctor (portrayed by Sylvester McCoy) is badly injured from a gunshot and has been taking into hospital. The master on the other hand, escapes the TARDIS as a gooey snake and is on the hunt for a temporary body to stay in whilst the doctor is injured. The movie takes place in San Francisco in 1999 set in New Years Eve. The co – stars of this movie is Daphne Ashbrook and Yee Jee Tso. Yee Jee Tso plays “Chang Lee”. Chang Lee is a character that looks for trouble. When he’s running away from a group of misfits that want to hurt him; the TARDIS lands in front of him and protects him from the bullets… but doesn’t protect the 7th Doctor when walking out. Chang Lee takes the Doctor to the hospital whilst wondering what just happened. The master (portrayed by Eric Roberts) persuades and lies to Chang Lee to help him find the doctor so the master can take his body. Daphne Ashbrook plays “Dr. Grace Holloway”. She’s a Doctor at the San Francisco hospital who operates on the 7th Doctor and discovers that he has two hearts. When the 7th Doctor dies; people don’t believe Grace that he had two hearts, therefore people think she‘s gone crazy. When the Doctor regenerates into his 8th incarnation (portrayed by Paul McGann); he finds Grace and has to persuade her that the world is in danger whilst discovering who he is.
When I finished the movie, I found all the actors great including Sylvester McCoy as he had the hard job, which was to set the tone for this movie whilst building up stakes for the first 20 minutes of the movie. Paul McGann was brilliant as the 8th Doctor. I found his interpretation as the 8th Doctor very likeable and full of charisma. For an 85-minute movie; that’s really impressive to accomplish, as it can be difficult for actors who are portraying the doctor to persuade the audience that they ARE the doctor e.g. Peter Capaldi as the 12th Doctor. For the co – stars, I think they did great job on building the atmosphere that the movie takes place in e.g. Dr. Grace Holloway goes through a break up and Chang Lee sees the world as a playground due to getting into trouble with the wrong crowd. Eric Roberts portrayed the master beautifully as there are scenes that are very intense and scary in a few places E.g. when the master takes over a body, his eyes turn green. When watching this movie, you can almost compare it to the “Exorcist” as the actor acts like he’s possessed for the first 5-10 minutes of the movie after the master takes over, which is really entertaining to watch, as the film takes the character to a different approach.
Due to this movie being aired on BBC1 in 1996; I was really impressed with the CGI in the movie. My favourite shot that includes CGI was the TARDIS flying in the time vortex. The time vortex is also really colourful which I love, as it persuades me that it’s real including when The TARDIS zooms in and out of the shot whilst spinning. The only time when I thought the CGI could have been handled a bit better is when the 7th Doctor regenerates into the 8th, as you see lightning strikes around the Doctor. But saying that, I really appreciate that the 7th Doctor morphs into the 8th instead of using CGI. It can also be a nod to the first Doctor regenerating into the second as back in 1963; they heavily focus on the use of morphing the actors.
Overall for the story; I think the first 2 acts of the film were handled very well. For the first act it relies on introducing the characters (including the 8th Doctor) and the second act focuses on developing our new doctor e.g. where he’s from, what his name is etc. Its more of a who am I story whilst time is running out. The greatest strength to this movie is putting the whole “who am I” story-line in the background and focuses heavily on the master’s plan and how to stop him. When Doctor Who came back in 2005; writers like to put the whole “who am I” story line as the focus so then the audience knows this incarnation of the Doctor more. I am really happy that in this movie its in the background, as for people that have never seen Doctor Who before, can be really entertained in the story and not be bored with the post regeneration stage.
The weakness to this movie is the third act. In my opinion it got really silly and they over blew it e.g. they turned back time just before new years day when beating the Master. What was really silly was the idea of the “eye of harmony” in the TARDIS (which is used to swap bodies with). It was really unnecessary and put me off the third act of the movie as it feels like the 1984 “Ghostbusters” movie. To top of it off, the Doctor knows about the eye of harmony; but has never used it… why was it in the TARDIS in the first place? For the script, I feel like it needed a re write for the third act as the dialogue in certain areas was terrible and has a weak conclusion. I also (as a nitpick) don’t like the relationship between Grace and the eighth Doctor, as the Doctor shouldn’t fall in love with a human that easily.
The soundtrack to this movie is awesome. I love the intro theme when the title card comes in, as it turns the 1963 theme into a blockbuster theme: which works. My favourite moment is when the TARDIS is crashing and the music starts to kick in e.g. "dun... dun dun dun dun". It almost sounds like the Doctor Who theme, but changed to raise the stakes more, which works well for 1990 movie.
The cinematography in this movie is beautiful. It reminds me of different movies like Ghostbusters, the exorcist etc as the movie as a whole takes place at night. My favourite shot is the way the interior of the TARDIS looked as it captures use of colour and how dark the room is, almost like an ultraviolet blue look.
So overall, I think this movie was really good up until the third act. But coming out of this movie when putting the disc back in the case I thought it was really enjoyable to watch and had a lot of fun with it.
8/10
DOCTOR WHO| SERIES 11 REVIEW (PART 1)
When the eleventh series of Doctor Who came to a close on TV; I thought it was a bit of a mix bag. Some episodes were great! And some episodes were bland. Now that I have the blu ray box set of Series 11 including having my own website, I want to review the series as a whole. This section is focusing on episode 1 and 2, whilst the next section focuses on my overall thoughts on Series 11 after re- watching all episodes.
So, back in 2018 before episode 1 of Series 11 aired, I knew a few facts about the series itself e.g. Chris Chibnall (show runner) and Matt Strevens (executive producer) has said that each episode will be standalones. Therefore each episode will be new stories to tell for each week. After hearing this, I was a bit worried if they won’t include a story arc, as having an arc throughout the series gives it more weight and a sense of purpose. The best example I can give is series 5 of Doctor Who as that heavily focuses on the Pandorica. So for each episode, they will tease to the audience to what’s to come for the finale.
I also knew that there would be no returning monsters in series 11. I was really excited after hearing this news, as Doctor Who since it came back in 2005; has at least had 1 or 2 returning monsters for every series, which can be boring after now and then. So the idea on having brand new monsters in the new series really excited me as it’s becoming more original.
Episode 1: The woman who fell to Earth review:
Episode 1 of series 11 is written by Chris Chibnall and is directed by Jamie Childs. It stars Jodie Whittaker as the 13th Doctor, Bradley Walsh as Graham O’Brien, Tosin Cole as Ryan Sinclair, Mandip Gill as Yasmin Khan and Sharon D. Clarke as Grace O’Brien. The story is about Grace and Graham helping Ryan to over come his dyspraxia by riding a bike properly. Ryan is sick and tired about trying to over come his dyspraxia; like all hope is lost, whilst his grandparents keep him positive, so hope is still within him to overcome his dyspraxia. Ryan stumbles across an intergalactic shape that came out of nowhere. After he touches it, it disappears. That’s where our story begins. As it continuous on, that one simple touch from Ryan gives permission to a new alien species known as the Stenza, to come down to earth to hunt for a human being to take back to their planet as a trophy, leaving that human being to suffer.
This episode for the most part, was really good. I understood the story the writer was telling, and I was really invested in the characters, especially Ryan. The opening scene sets the tone for this episode, as it’s all about over coming your fear. So for Ryan its dyspraxia, for Graham its losing Grace at the end of the episode, and for the crane worker it’s heights. But, the 13th Doctor has to over come the biggest fear out of them all: change. As of right now after she crashes into the train, she has to help these unknown strangers she’s never met before whilst discovering who she is after regenerating. Jodie Whittaker gives an excellent performance in this episode. Not only was she full of energy, but also full of hope. As during the episode, the 13th Doctor pushes her new friends so she can face Tim Shaw (the Stenza). This includes Ryan climbing a ladder. When he does reach to the top of the ladder his reaction was not only shocked and surprised, but also had given Ryan hope again. All of the actors did a great job on setting the tone for this new era of Doctor Who. The villain was ok at best. The actor who played Tim Shaw did a great job on what he’s given, but the writing did let him down and i would love to see more of him in this episode.
The negatives towards this episode, is the phasing. In my opinion it was going a bit too fast for the first 30 minutes, as it doesn’t give you much time to breath. What doesn’t help is the run time being 60+ minutes, I think it should be 75 minutes, so the phasing is better. I’d say the phasing started to calm done by the time the Doctor builds her new Sonic Screwdriver. The other negative I had with this episode is the script. There are certain moments in the episode that are not explained very well e.g. Graham says to Grace that “ their train leaves in 20 minutes”… to where? I feel like it needed one piece of dialogue from either Grace or Graham to say where they were going so the narrative is fleshed out a bit more.
But aside from that, there’s A LOT to love about this episode. The two standouts in my opinion from the episode are the cinematography and the CGI. The cinematography is breathtaking, as it changes Sheffield from a beautiful town in daytime to a frightening, disturbing town when it hits nighttime due to Tim Shaw on the loose. When it does hit nighttime, it reminds me of Gotham City, as a lot of villains come out, and makes the city dangerous. The CGI is not used all that much for 90% of the episode. The only time the CGI is used in the episode (excluding the ending) is to A) design the electrical ball that sends Tim Shaw a signal and B) to also show off Tim Shaw’s weapon. For both occasions, the CGI was really impressive. But most of the episode was relied on practical affects, which I loved. At the end of the episode, the Doctor is now on the hunt for her TARDIS. When she gets transported to the TARDIS coordinates, she accidently takes her new friends with her! Which means they are now stuck in space. I loved the CGI here as it captures what space looks like with the Doctor and her friends floating. The sound as well in the background really builds up a lot of stakes when the music slowly starts to rise up, and makes you want to find out what happens next in episode 2 “The ghost monument”.
The new composer “Segun Akinola” did a brilliant job on making the soundtrack very atmospheric and very much in the background whilst giving more weight to the episode. My favourite score in episode 1 is “Sonic Screwdriver”. This score starts when the Doctor begins to craft her new Sonic Screwdriver. I love how the music repeats the same notes, which made the scene more thrilling to watch and I also love how they given the Sonic Screwdriver a memorable theme, to add more development between the Doctor and the Sonic, like a friendship between the two.
Overall, “The woman who fell to earth” is good, with some negatives along the way but I had a lot of fun with this episode.
8.5/10
Episode 2: The Ghost Monument review:
“The Ghost Monument” is written by Chris Chibnall and is directed by Mark Tonderal. It stars Jodie Whittaker, Bradley Walsh, Mandip Gill, Tosin Cole and 3 special guest stars which are Susan Lynch portraying “Angstrom”, Shaun Dooley portraying “Epzo” and Art Malik portraying “Ilin”.
The story is a continuation from episode 1 where this time we find out how the Doctor and her gang survive space from transportation. Angstrom picks up one half of the gang whilst Epzo picks up the other half. Angstrom and Epzo are on a race against time by competing in a competition hosted by Ilin. Other competitors have lost; therefore it’s just the last 2 of the warriors. The last round of the competition is set in a planet called “Desolation” where the task is to reach to a certain section of this planet known as “The ghost monument”. When the Doctor and her gang reunite after Angstrom and Epzo met and set off; their personal task is to also reach to the ghost monument as the Doctor discovers that the TARDIS is shifting in and out at the finish line.
Before the episode starts; the brand new Doctor who intro plays, and its brilliant. I love how it starts off as a purple gooey ball getting bigger and bigger, then absorbing you into the vortex. I also love how the new intro is quick and simple, as it doesn’t go off on a tangent where as the other intros for previous Doctor’s do, which isn’t a bad thing as it’s showing off the TARDIS in space and a sense of fun for the episode. But this new intro in my opinion heavily relies on the music and a sense of adventure for the episode that’s about to come. I love the intro music Segan Akinola has made, as it’s a retrospective of the iconic 1963 theme… but this time the bass drops, which is fantastic as its never been done on Doctor who before.
The opening scene sets the tone for this episode again, as it starts off with our gang in two different space ships. One lands safely on Desolation whereas the other one crashes into Desolation. The theme I would say best fits this episode is a sense of survival, as the planet “Desolation” is not safe for anyone to stay in. I love how the stakes are high, right from the word go when the episode begins, the episode is almost like the movie “Cast away” as that movie focuses on survival.
Episode 2 in my opinion is slightly better than the first episode, as the issue I had with the first episode is the phasing being a bit too fast for the first 30 minutes. In episode 2 however, due to the narrative being the strong point; the phasing wasn’t much of an issue, which is great! As episode 2 took its time to develop Angstrom and Epzo whilst the clock is ticking. Angstrom wants to win the competition so she can see her family again, whilst Epzo is the stereotypical character that thinks he can win by himself and not learn anything. Both Susan Lynch and Shaun Dooley performed brilliantly here as throughout episode 2, I cared for them (more for Susan Lynch due to her tragic past with the Stenza).
My favourite shot in this episode, is the first person shot at the beginning of the episode. You can see a lot of medical equipment around Ryan from his perspective. The beginning of the episode almost treats itself like a horror episode. I LOVE the idea of Doctor who being treated like a horror cause then the villains would stand out more e.g. weeping angels. Tim Shaw would of worked IF there were more frightening scenes of him in episode 1.
Jodie Whittaker in this episode is brilliant. When I watched this series for the first time back in 2018, it had taken more than 2 episodes to like her as the Doctor (round about episode 4). When it comes to re watching the entire Series 11, Jodie Whittaker’s performance in episode 2 persuaded me that she IS the Doctor. You can tell throughout this episode that the Doctor is under pressure, due to A) making a promise to her friends to get them back home and B) to find her TARDIS. Jodie Whittaker exceeded my expectation when re watching this episode.
The issues I had with “The Ghost monument” is the script. Some of the dialogue occasionally in the episode doesn’t make sense e.g. the doctor having a pair of sunglasses in her pocket when she JUST said that she needs to put stuff in her empty pockets. In my opinion, the script just needed a few re writes just to make sure continuity is still there. My other issue I have with this episode is the “menacing” cloth in the 3rd act of the episode. The voice actor did a brilliant job on making the cloth sound menacing, but the execution could have been handled a lot better in my opinion. They didn’t really do much throughout this 50 minute episode, they could have added a scene showing how deadly they are on the planet “Desolation”, but didn’t.
However, the issues I have with this episode isn’t massive; they are only nitpicks. I LOVE this episode, not only because the stakes are high, but also it’s the conclusion to a 5 arc story, starting with “World Enough and time” (back in Series 10 with Peter Capaldi) all the way to this episode.
Graham and Ryan also had beautiful moment in this episode as they talk about Grace. Grace died in the first episode, and Graham & Ryan are going through grief about it. Graham talks about Grace like she’s there with them. Bradley Walsh is excellent in this episode as you care for him including Ryan.
By the time the episode comes to its conclusion, the Doctor finds her TARDIS! In my opinion; this is the best-looking TARDIS we have had on Doctor Who, from the exterior of the TARDIS to the interior of the TARDIS. When the Doctor enters the TARDIS, the cinematography is in the spot light; the filmmakers not only captured the atmosphere of the TARDIS with beautiful cinematography and background noises, but also made the interior of the TARDIS very ancient due to how A) the console looks and B) the walls look with repeating patterns. I love the idea on having crystals powering the console by going around it, it can almost be a nod to the 10th Doctor’s TARDIS, as it has a similar look.
Overall, this episode is great! It improves my issues with the first episode and has a better narrative than the first episode.
9/10
NEXT SECTION FOCUSES ON SERIES 11 AS A WHOLE.
DOCTOR WHO| SERIES 11 REVIEW (PART 2)
Upon re-watching the rest of Series 11, I found this series as whole very enjoyable; but has its flaws. Due to series 11 not having a big story arc, it focuses on character development instead. In episode 1 “The woman who fell to earth”, Graham O’Brien and Ryan Sinclair are going through grief due to losing Grace at the end of the episode. Grace was not only Graham’s wife, but also Ryan’s Nan. I found Ryan Sinclair and Graham O’Brien to be best part of series 11 as you can emotionally connect with them and be invested in their characters. To help with there grief, Ryan and Graham travel in the TARDIS with the Doctor to see the universe and to form escapism. Ryan however, can’t accept Graham to be his step – Grandad, so we spend throughout the series watching Ryan getting closer with Graham, to the point where in “Resolution” Graham acts like Ryan’s dad, due to Ryan and Graham bonding with each other.
However, not all characters are developed well. I found Yasmin Khan a bit bland throughout the series, not because of Mandip Gill acting; more of how she was written. You get brief references to her personal life when she’s traveling with the Doctor… but that’s it. The only episode that relates to Yasmin Khan is episode 6 “Demons of the Punjab” where it focuses on her Nan. By the time Series 11 finished, I wasn’t invested enough in her character. She felt very much like a background character in this series, and I hope in Series 12 she gets more development. Mandip Gill worked very well on what she was given, but the writing let her down.
Last but not least, Jodie Whittaker as the 13th Doctor. I found Jodie Whittaker’s incarnation of the Doctor (for the most part) great! What I love the most about her Doctor is bringing a sense of joy and heart towards her new friends in the TARDIS, but this is where my issues come in. The Doctor in my opinion is a character that may show joy and heart from the outside, but from the inside; the Doctor is full of rage and discomfort due to losing Gallifrey in the time war. Series 11 has brief references of the Doctor’s past, but its not enough for me to think that she IS the Doctor. The best Doctor’s in the show is when they earn the title of “The Doctor”. I loved Jodie Whittaker’s performance throughout this series, but the writing not so much.
Unfortunately, the biggest issue I have with Series 11 is the writing. Chris Chibnall has worked on Doctor who before e.g. in David Tennant’s era and in Matt Smith’s era, so he knows how to write for Doctor Who. His best episode was the new years day special “Resolution” as the story was compelling and felt like a character driven story coming to an end (with Ryan’s actual dad coming home to see Ryan). It almost annoys me that “Resolution” was great because that 60-minute episode was way better than series 11 itself. Even though I said that its great to not have returning monsters for series 11, due to how the script has been from episode 1 – 10 of series 11; it needed a returning monster in order to feel like Doctor Who. For Chris Chibnall’s improvements for series 12, I would say more intergalactic episodes than historic episode (even though the historic episodes are great), less cringy dialogue, and more compelling villains for the Doctor to face.
But aside the writing, the CGI and cinematography is breath taking in this series. Even for the more poor episodes like “The Tsuranga Conundrum". The cinematography makes Doctor Who look like a blockbuster movie which I absolutely love and the CGI makes certain aliens (like the Pting) very realistic.
Arwel Jones who makes the props, has done an excellent job making the Sonic Screwdriver and the inerior of the TARDIS look very ancient and alien tech.
Overall, I appreciate the series a lot more (including the finale). I appreciate that they want individual stories for each week so new viewers can tag along, but in my opinion, its better to have a story arc so then the series feels like it has a purpose. Its a good series with some great elements throughout.
7.5/10
"OBLIVION" (2013) SPOILER REVIEW:
“Oblivion” is directed by Joseph Kosinski and is an adaptation of the graphic novel “Oblivion”. It stars Tom Cruise, Morgan Freeman, Olga Kurlenko and Andrea Riseborough. The story to Oblivion is about Jack Harper collecting resources down on earth after successfully winning a major war. Throughout the movie, Jack starts to question who he is and what happened in his past, after rescuing a survivor who knows more about Jack than himself. After watching this movie, I re-searched the graphic novel on Google and discovered that the author of the graphic novel “Joseph Kosinski” directed this movie. This had increased my appreciation towards this movie, as it shows care to the source material.
What I love about this movie the most is the cinematography and CGI. It’s beautiful to watch. It visually reminds me of 2 things, the movie “Wall-e” due to how messy earth looks in the future, and the game “Destiny” as visually the weapons Jack Harper uses look very intergalactic and out of this world. But what helps with the cinematography and CGI in the movie; is the script. The movie takes place in a post apocalyptic world; earth is badly damaged with no hope on fixing it. The moment I was persuaded that earth is now a battleground, is when Jack Harper (Tom Cruise) is in a damaged stadium talking about the very last super bowl match. That persuaded me that everything changed since. Tom Cruise gives an excellent performance to carry the weight of the tone from pages to screen. And in my opinion, this is his best performance (aside his role in the MI franchise). What I love about this movie as well is seeing a different perspective in a post apocalyptic world. Usually in movies you would focus on the outcast perspective. But in this movie; you focus on the higher level perspective. What the writers achieved in this movie is showing how Jack Harper (a higher level character) had misunderstood on the outcast on earth. Throughout the movie, Jack Harper realizes that the outcasters are people. This is one of Jack’s reasons to go rogue. The other reason is seeing a survivor that turns out to be his wife from 60 years ago in his past, that he can’t remember well enough. From a scale of 1 to 10, the writing for “Oblivion” is 9/10.
From an acting standpoint, all actors do a great job. However, Morgan Freeman (who plays Malcolm) doesn’t have much screen time, which was a massive let down in my opinion as I was hooked every time he was on screen. What was also a big let down in this movie, was the writing towards a character called “Sykes” played by “Nikolaj Coster-Waldau”. I have no issues towards his acting, he works well on what he's given, but there isn’t enough character development towards his character which was disappointing.
Now, I’ve only watched the movie once and loved it. But from a first viewing towards this movie, I found the biggest issue I have to “Oblivion” is the narrative in the 3rd act of the film. I understood that “Jack Harper” is a clone to many other versions of himself. But what really confused me, is when he’s in space listening to himself in a spacecraft. That whole scene confused me; as in my head I thought that was Jack Harper in the past. I feel like the movie is better on a second viewing, so you can catch the little details and understand the narrative better, but from a first viewing it can be confusing at times.
Overall, aside my issues towards this movie. I loved it! It’s exactly what a science fiction movie should be… but better. I also love the soundtrack to the movie (which was composed by “M83”, “Joseph Trapanese” and “Anthony Gonzalez”). “Jack’s dream” in the beginning almost sounds like Ridley Scott’s “Alien”. The rest of this score sounds dramatic and sinister, so it can set the tone. “Waking up” as well has an awesome rhythm at the beginning. This score in my opinion sounds like a survival theme, which is perfect for this movie, as the movie is set in a world where earth is now no man’s land.
I highly recommend watching this movie. It's a movie you need to pay attention to so you won't miss anything that maybe important to the story.
8.5/10
"JOURNEYMAN" MOVIE REVIEW:
“Journeyman” is written and directed by Paddy Considine. It stars Paddy Considine, Jodie Whittaker, Anthony Welsh, Tony Pits and Paul Popplewell. The story is about a boxer named “Matty Burton” (played by Paddy Considine), he’s been through a boxing match which lead him to a serious brain injury. As he recovers through his injury; he can’t talk properly, walk properly and can’t remember properly. Jodie Whittaker plays his wife called “Emma”. Emma supports him through his recovery whilst she looks after their daughter called Mia; but that’s only making Matt worse. Emma decides to take a break from Matt and takes her daughter somewhere else. Matt’s old friends enter his life again after a long period of time to help him get though his recovery to show Emma he’s getting better.
Before reviewing the movie, I want to give major props to Paddy Considine for not only starring in the movie; but also directing it and writing the script for it. Not only does he act brilliantly in this movie; he’s also such a great filmmaker and a talented writer. He said in an interview that he didn’t want to act in the movie; but he also said that deep in his heart he knew he had written Matt for himself, and had came out of the movie having a great experience.
The film’s biggest strength by a long shot is the script. Paddy Considine manages to bring down a fictional well-known boxer to a personal level. The film’s story is about the after effect of a boxing match; but the heart and center of the film is about a boxer fighting his injury so he can have his wife and daughter back in his life. The film is also VERY emotional and sometimes hard to watch; but that’s good in my opinion; as I care for not only Matt; but also his wife, daughter and oddly enough the fighter in the ring that caused his injury. Paddy Considine manages to make you care for everyone in the movie, which is a big achievement.
I also love the little details in the film e.g. the use of foreshadow at start of the film where Matt’s antagonist says to him in the ring that this will be “a life changer”. There’s also a moment in the movie where Jodie Whittaker’s character looks at Matt in two different perspectives. One is set in the evening where she’s looking at him with joy, proud and happiness due to Matt winning the fight. Then the next morning after Matt had his operation, she look’s at him at the exact same spot full of concern, fear and discomfort; with Matt also sitting where he was the night before, showing two different meaning towards the same shot.
Jodie Whittaker does an incredible job in this movie. Her performance persuaded me that these 2 characters love each other e.g. during the film, there’s a scene where Emma is looking at Matt in bed whilst he's asleep; she whispers “where are you my baby, I feel so alone, I need you back now”. That adds more weight towards her character and a sense of loss, almost like she is looking after somebody else. This is in my opinion Jodie Whittaker’s best performance.
The composer for Journeyman is Harry Escott. The music doesn’t have a big role in the movie, but when it is in the movie; it almost plays out like an emotion towards the characters, which I really like; as its different. But overall, the movie achieves to set a tone while caring for the characters without relying on music, which was awesome to see and was handled beautifully.
The film’s narrative is also very clear. The first act of the film focuses on Matt training for his boxing match; which leads into his match. The second act of the film focuses on the after effect of his brain injury; and how it affects not only Matt but also Emma, to the point where she can’t cope. Then the last act of the film heavily focuses on Matt pushing himself to get better for Emma. The editing & phasing towards Journeyman is pitch perfect. I never felt that a certain act was dragging on or going too fast. The phasing was at the right speed it needed to be.
The cinematography was beautiful to watch. In certain scenes of the movie; it looks moody, which is great because of 2 reasons. 1) The film was shot in the UK; which you can visually see due to how colours palette look, as it looks pale (in a very good way). And 2) the dark, pale, moody colours help with the more “hard to watch” scenes and sets the tone.
The overall message I got from “Journeyman” is about connection with people, either from a friendship point of view or from a love point of view. From a friendship point of view, I really loved seeing Matt’s old friends support him through hard times. It sends a lovely message about friendship. The actor’s who played Matt’s old friends did an excellent job. The emotions they brought to screen made a huge impact on the film.
If I were to pick out any nitpicks towards this film, I would love to see where Jodie Whittaker’s character went off to when leaving Matt. It’s not a flaw towards the film; it’s more of a mystery, as you do get brief scenes to where she went off to.
Overall, aside from that little nitpick I have; this movie is perfect. It’s more than just perfect; it’s actually my favourite film of all time, as it plays with your emotions from start to finish. This film also reminds why I want to be a filmmaker; it’s because of the audience and making them care for fictional characters like Matt and Emma in this movie.
10/10
STAR WARS: THE RISE OF SKYWALKER REVIEW:
Star Wars: The rise of Skywalker is directed by JJ Abrams. It stars Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, Adam Driver and Ian Mcdiarmid. The story for the most part, focuses on concluding the Star Wars saga. Rey (played by Daisy Ridley) has been training for a year since “The last Jedi” to become the new Jedi, whilst also discovering more about her past life such as who her parents were and discovering secrets she never knew about. Kylo Ren (played by Adam Driver) is hunting for Rey, mainly so she knows everything about her past… from the wrong person. Which gives her the urge to turn to the dark side of the force.
Ok, before reviewing this movie. I wanted to see it a few more times after the first viewing. Overall, I’ve seen the film 3 times at the cinema. I’m very happy to inform you that I really like this movie; a lot. Although, I don’t think it’s great. What I really like about this movie is the nostalgia towards the original and prequel trilogies. It felt like it was all building to something. I also LOVE the action sequences in this movie. My personal favourite action sequence was when Kylo Ren and Rey were fighting outside the death star. It almost felt like Kylo Ren was testing Rey and seeing how she can control her rage; seems very unlikely during this fight, which was great! I think all the cast members did an excellent job on portraying their characters. My personal favourite was Billy Dee Williams portrayal as Lando Calrissian. When he’s introduced in the movie; I couldn’t help but smile. Unfortunately, due to Carrie Fisher passing away a few years back, she wasn’t in the film as much. But the writers (Chris Terrio and JJ Abrams) managed to end her story beautifully. In my opinion that’s very impressive. For only 8 minutes worth of screen time, it never felt messy nor rushed. FUN FACT! They actually used deleted scenes from “The force awakens” in this movie, mainly for Princess Lea. At first, I was concerned on how that would work; but as I was watching the film, I couldn’t even tell the difference; which was beyond amazing.
Poe (played by Oscar Isaac) did a great job on his portrayal. His character develops as the movie goes on. I love the scene where Lando gives Poe advice on being a “general” and how it goes back to the original trilogy. I also love the dynamic between Poe and Finn (played by John Boyega).
Here come the negatives towards the movie, and unfortunately, it’s mainly down to the script. Remember how I said earlier that the nostalgia towards the movie felt like it was building to something; well… the execution was very weak. The main villain for the movie was Emperer Palpatine (played by Ian McDiarmid). As the movie comes to its conclusion, he was killed off very easily; which was very disappointing for a major character. For Finn’s character, he wasn’t used very well. The only time he had character development was when he was talking to another Stormtrooper that went rogue. Even looking up the cast for this movie; Naomi Ackie doesn’t even have a character name. It would have been great to have more development from both Naomi’s character and John Boyega’s character.
I also thought the movie was very complicated. The big reveal was that Rey was the granddaughter of Palpatine; which makes her a Sith. In my opinion, I’m glad they took this risk, but the execution was so poorly done, it left me very confused. Kylo Ren is actually the last TRUE Skywalker but chooses not to be one. Rey is the last TRUE Sith lord but chooses not be one. It almost feels like swap over character development between them. However! What I do like about Rey’s arc in this movie, is trying to hear the other Skywalker’s that came “before” her. At the end of the movie, she can hear all of them! Which include multiple voice actors from almost everyone from past film's from the original trilogy and the prequel trilogy.
However, the big giant problem I have with the movie is unanswered questions. What was Finn going to tell Rey? How did Palpatine survive? Who is Poe’s ex-lover? A few of these questions have been answered by the writers/director. If they’re answering these questions, it clearly shows that script isn’t as strong OR the scenes that answers our questions have been cut out in the editing room. By now, you know that I’m very passionate about the run time of a movie. “The rise of Skywalker” is 140 minutes (2hrs: 20 minutes). At first, I thought this was enough time to conclude not only the sequel trilogy, but also the Star Wars saga as a whole; I was wrong. This movie should have been longer. I would love a 2hr: 40-minute movie, as then it gives you enough time to flesh out certain characters. It worked for “Avengers: Endgame” as that movie was a 3-hour movie, and it could of worked for Star Wars.
What helps the movie, is the score from John Williams. It’s beautiful. I love the sense of scope towards the score. It feels very mystical PLUS with the original Star Wars theme. Everything about the score is great! I listened to “Battle of the resistance” on my I-pad and it’s great! NOTE: I didn’t listen to every song on the soundtrack, mainly just “battle of the resistance” and a few others.
Overall, I think “The rise of Skywalker” is a very good movie, but it could have been better. The sequel trilogy as a whole didn’t really have a plan, as “The rise of skywalker” was mainly correcting what “The last Jedi” did, and unfortunately it suffers from creative freedom towards JJ Abrams and Chris Terrio.
7.5/10
"MAN OF STEEL" (2013) MOVIE REVIEW:
SPOILERS!
“Man of Steel” is directed by Zack Snyder. It stars Henry Cavill, Amy Adams, Michael Shannon and Russel Crowe. The story focuses on the origin story of Superman (played by Henry Cavill), primarily how he becomes Superman and also discovering where he comes from and also why he was sent away to earth. However, General Zod (played by Michael Shannon) wants to re-build Krypton, which will cause an invasion on Earth.
Before reviewing the film, I just wanted to take a moment to tell you why I wanted to review “Man of steel”. This movie came out in June 2013, which is nearly 7 years ago! This movie has a special place in my heart, as I went to see it in the cinema when I was 11, remembering the amount of Goosebumps I had throughout the film either from the soundtrack point of view, action sequences point of view, or both! Now that 7 years has passed, I wanted to re-watch the film, to see if the movie ages well. I am so happy to say that this movie not only ages well, but also gives me a different perspective towards the film (in a good way).
The screenplay was by “David S. Goyer”, his previous credits are “Batman Begins”, “Blade” and also “The Dark Knight”. However, Christopher Nolan does also take credit with the story. The first half of the story focuses on Superman’s perspective of Earth, primarily where he fits into it. We see him going from job to job due to him not fitting in well with humanity. However, Superman’s character development throughout the film is being told in a non-linear way, which I love! However, a lot of the non-linear narrative in the film comes from Superman’s stepdad “Jonathan Kent” (played by Kevin Costner). His role is to protect Clark (Superman) from showing his abilities to the public, as Jonathan feels that humanity isn’t ready for the public to know. Not only does Superman’s character development comes from Jonathan Kent but also shows us where Superman’s inspiration comes from, which is Jonathan Kent’s belief in humanity accepting Clark Kent at the right time in life.
However, the second half of the story focuses on General Zod’s perspective of Earth. Zod sees planet Earth as a second chance to rebuild Krypton. However, as you start to discover General Zod’s perspective and motivation; he becomes very three dimensional. This is great in my opinion, as the story treats the villain like they’re the hero of the film, which is frightening in itself. However, when watching the third act of the film (when Zod brought down the world engine to Metropolis) the film did start to feel like your typical blockbuster “end of the world” film. Luckily, when re-watching the film AGAIN (just to make sure I didn’t miss anything), It started to make sense. What made sense to me was seeing Zod’s perspective more rather than Superman’s perspective. I’m glad that it started to make sense, but it would help if the message was clearer, so then the audience don’t get lost when watching this film.
This does lead into my issues I have with the film. In my opinion, there’s not enough context in the first half of the film e.g. Clark Kent going from job to job within the space of 15 minutes, and Clark Kent finding a space ship without knowing how it got to Earth (unless I missed a piece of dialogue from Jor-El (played by Russel Crowe) that gives a bit of exposition.) Also, when the film is showing flashbacks of young Clark Kent, some of the scenes don’t mix as well when telling in a non-linear perspective. It’s not a massive issue, it’s more of a minor issue as it just leaves me thinking “how does this relate back to present day?”, “what was the meaning towards that flashback?” etc. This only happens when Clark Kent talks to the priest, as it shows flashbacks of young Clark Kent being bullied. I do LOVE this flashback, but it does leave me thinking to how it fits in the narrative.
Hans Zimmer was the composer for “Man of Steel” and he did a FANTASTIC job. The soundtrack was not only memorable and iconic but was also “on point!” during the fight sequences e.g. the Kansas fight sequence. The moment when General Zod was threatening Superman’s mother was intense, as you knew Superman was coming at any second due to the score by Hans Zimmer building up. That’s probably my favourite scene in the movie. However, my favourite score in the soundtrack is “DNA”, mainly due to how grand and epic it is. Plus, “flight” and “What are you going to do when you are not saving the world” are also amazing with or without the movie.
The director “Zack Snyder” back in 2013 was best known for “Watchmen” and “300”. In my opinion, he’s not only done a great job on “Man of Steel” but also makes small shots very effective e.g. close up shots of the washing line, the swing etc. To me, these small shots makes the movie even more special to me, as it makes Superman’s world very atmospheric and calming. However, when watching “Man of Steel” on Blu-ray, I did notice that the picture is very pixelated up close. I don’t know if that’s my Blu-ray or the film itself, but it did look very grim with the amount of pixels. However, from a distance the quality was a lot better, so it didn’t take me out of the movie.
As for the cast, most of them did an amazing job e.g. Henry Cavill, Michael Sheen, and Russell Crowe. I even found Laurence Fishburne as “Perry White” excellent in the film. However, the weakest part about the cast is Amy Adam’s as “Lois Lane”. In my opinion, she was quite bland in the film from an acting point of view, as all I saw when she was on screen was Amy Adams; not Lois Lane. Amy Adams is a great actor overall, but she didn’t show enough enthusiasm.
Overall, I love this movie. To me, this movie not only shows us the origin story of Superman, but also brings the fictional character in reality and explores the theme” acceptance”. Would humanity accept an alien living among them or will they reject him, which shows how significant Jonathan Kent’s role is in the film.