(film review) - The Oddysey

As some of you may know, Christopher Nolan is one of my favourite directors. Bar two films, I've seen everything he's directed, and I'll get around to those eventually. What I never thought I'd say, though, is that I'd be halfway through a Christopher Nolan film thinking, "Yeah... this one isn't for me."

Don't get me wrong, I really liked 'Oppenheimer', and I enjoyed 'Dunkirk', but neither reached the heights of 'Tenet' for me. I know Tenet divides opinion, but I absolutely loved it. Yes, Nolan maybe pushed audiences a little too hard with that one, but I was completely on board.

This? Halfway through, I genuinely wasn't. Something just wasn't clicking. I couldn't put my finger on what it was, but I remember thinking, "This isn't connecting with me at all."

Then something happened. It's like someone flipped a switch.

By the time the credits rolled, I'd gone from questioning whether this was for me to walking out saying, "That was amazing." Let me explain.


The story opens on a beach, where Elliott Page's character encounters advancing soldiers near the Trojan Horse. Fatally wounded, they manage to utter one final warning—that the horse is a gift. Naturally, the Trojans accept it. From there, Nolan does what Nolan does best, jumping across timelines as we're introduced to Odysseus' home, his family, the aftermath of the war, his legendary bow, and the trials he and his men must endure on their long journey home, all while exploring his defiance of the gods and the consequences of his choices.


I'll be honest—I don't know The Odyssey particularly well. I know bits and pieces, but it's been years since I've revisited the story, and I genuinely wondered whether my lack of familiarity was hurting my enjoyment. Maybe it was that. Maybe it was simply the way the narrative unfolded. Whatever it was, I wasn't invested... until I suddenly was.

By the final act, I was completely hooked. In fact, if one particular moment had gone the way I feared it might, I'd have wanted to flip a table in the cinema. There weren't any tables, thankfully, but the rage would've been real.

I genuinely have no major negatives.

The Cyclops sequence was the first moment that completely floored me. Without venturing into spoiler territory, the design alone was enough to make me feel genuinely uncomfortable. It was unlike any Cyclops I've seen on screen before, and it was honestly terrifying.

Then there are the giants in the forest.

You've seen them in the trailers. You've seen them on the posters. Trust me... you haven't seen them. That entire sequence is astonishing.

But the standout moment of the entire film comes later. It's graphic, brutal, incredibly tense, and, in my opinion, the best scene in the entire movie. I was completely captivated. Matt Damon's Odysseus has spent the whole film trying to get home (like other Matt Damon films — trying to get home), and for the first time, I genuinely believed he might not make it.

The remaining trials are all handled brilliantly. Some are visually stronger than others, but every challenge feels distinct, memorable, and cinematic.

Performance-wise, everyone turns up.

Regardless of where people stand on Elliott Page personally, their performance here is exceptional. There's one particular scene that absolutely had me invested emotionally and reminded me just how talented they are. The only thing that didn't quite work for me was one brief running sequence at the end of it, which I did not buy, but that's about as nitpicky as I can get.


Matt Damon is excellent throughout, while Anne Hathaway, Himesh Patel, Charlize Theron, Tom Holland, Jon Bernthal, and Robert Pattinson all bring their A-game whenever they're on screen. The cast is stacked, and it absolutely delivers.

Ludwig Göransson's score is phenomenal. At this point, the man simply doesn't miss. Every emotional beat lands exactly where it should.

If you've seen Christopher Nolan's work before, you'll know linear storytelling isn't exactly his thing. Even Tenet, arguably one of his more straightforward films structurally, literally plays in reverse. The Odyssey is no different. It jumps around, trusts the audience, and never spoon-feeds you.


Visually, though, this might be one of his most breathtaking films yet. The crashing waves at the beginning instantly reminded me of 'Inception', while the forests, landscapes, and sequence involving Elliott Page are absolutely stunning. You can also tell just how much of this was achieved practically. Yes, CGI is used where necessary, but Nolan's commitment to doing as much as possible in-camera gives the film a scale and authenticity that's becoming increasingly rare.

The giants alone left me wondering, "How on earth did they pull that off?"

What surprised me most is just how much this film grew on me. I genuinely thought I was watching my least favourite Christopher Nolan film... only for it to completely win me over.

I'm already considering seeing it again.

And if this really is only the beginning of Nolan's take on this world, then I want him to direct every single sequel, spin-off, or connected story. Because if history has taught us anything, it's that when Christopher Nolan commits to a world, you're almost guaranteed something ambitious, unforgettable, and worth watching.

(trailer review) - Nobody 2

It is really bad for me to admit this, but I saw the first Nobody movie and really enjoyed it. That is not the bad bit. The bad bit I am now admitting is that I even wrote part of the review for it, and I had been trying to finish my review and post it here. Days turned into weeks and weeks turned into a couple months, and I was still going to post it and back-date it, but, it is only until this trailer and now that I write this review about the sequel to the movie I really enjoyed, is when I realised that I never finished my review for the first movie. I feel bad now, and I just went to double-check to see if it is still sitting in drafts, and it is! With that said, this trailer is great, and it seems it will follow the lead the first movie (the one I really enjoyed) took and is completely running with it. I mean, if it isn't broke...

So, it is another day and the protagonist, John Wick's uncle (let me check out Nobody's name), Hutch! You know, as soon as I read it, I remembered hearing it! Anyway, Hutch is going on a family vacation with Doc Brown in tow, and it seems like, whilst on vacation, he stumbles into hurting a bunch of fools, while he cracks the backs of all those he touches. That elevator scene is definitely a homage to 'Captain America: The Winter Soldier', but did you see that Harpoon gun arrow thingy-ma-jig? Maybe it is not a harpoon gun, but whatever it was, it is a "now you are very messed up and possibly dead-gun or thingy-ma-jig". The Whack-a-Mole, the environment being used to mess these guys up. THIS trailer is what this film is about. Pure unadulterated violence in a way, very few movies can do and have done. And it seems like a really good popcorn flick! Let's just hope Derek Kolstad has done it again. And if you do not know what I mean by that, here is a hint...he is the writer for John Wick 1-3, the first Nobody movie and a few episodes of 'The Falcon and the Winter Soldier'. Whenever you get him or any of these two, Chad Stahelski or David Leitch, we are onto something very entertaining.

(trailer review) - Monkey Man

The "younger" British talent seem to be stepping up and taking things a little further from simply just acting to directing and I love it! We all remember little Dev Patel from Slumdog Millionaire, right? He has come a long way from acting in what we Brits remember as a character from the TV show, 'Skins' with fellow actors Nicholas Hoult and Daniel Kaluuya, I have not personally seen him in much unlike the other two actors, but he is a decent actor. 'The Green Knight' was cool and very different, and I have heard so much about him in other shows and films as being really good, so seeing this trailer has brightened up my day. I have not seen many or any Bollywood movies, but when I watched Ms. Marvel, I loved the settings and scenery we got to experience in that show. Extraction with Chris Hemsworth was similar and even in a cartoon-like Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, it was and is simply, a breath of fresh air from seeing New York all the time, L.A, Florida or the occasional London. Maybe this is one of the reasons as to why I like watching Mission Impossible movies because we are always in a different location and it is nice to see. With that said though, this looks spectacular.

A man, driven by the vengeful pursuit of justice against the rich and corrupt elites, possibly responsible for his mother's death, transforms into a vigilant protector, the White Monkey, determined to safeguard his community from oppression. Whereas, John Wick was simply seeking revenge for the killing of his dog which was the last connection he had with his dead wife who gave him the dog as a puppy upon her death. This is definitely my type of vengeance movie and my type of action. A thriller with moments of levity. This film looks great. The run and jump at the window you see in films all the time that break and shatter the glass when a body is thrown at it, but here, it does not and he just bounces off, amazing. That moment got a huge laugh out loud from me. The action looks very Jason Bourne, John Wick and Nobody-esk, but that is a good thing. The camera styles and angles also look great. I do not need to be sold any more on this, because if I am honest, I did not know Dev Patel had this in him, but with that said, it would be nice to have a trilogy from this character, if the movie is as good as this trailer, that is. Moneky Paw Productions...fitting.

(trailer review) - The Super Mario Bros. Movie

(Teaser Trailer)

First of all, this looks like fun. Second of all, this looks like FUN! What I definitely will say though, are they throwing every single thing in Mario lore into this, because it sure looks like it. I am yet to see Mario Paint, Dr. Mario, Mario Tennis and maybe a few other things, but it really does look like EVERYTHING is in this movie. Could they have space for a sequel and include new things? I mean it IS all about franchises, right?

Third of all, WAS THAT CRANKY KONG!? It was definitely a blink-and-you-will-miss-it moment, so if true, seeing Diddy and Dixie Kong will absolutely blow my mind! I am an old-school gamer (not that old, like Atari) but NES, SNES etc and although I do not remember beating Donkey Kong Country or Donkey Kong Country 2, these were platform games of a generation lost. It was not that long ago I was wondering if these platform games can return as the gaming industry is being swept up by genres that include shooters, RPGs, racing and sandbox open-world games. Unless I am mistaken, where are those classic platformers you remember from the '80s and '90s?

This trailer definitely brought a smile to my face when I saw the racoon suit, whilst the fire flower was pretty much standard. I had a few laughs and the nostalgia was at an all-time high. It would be interesting to see if there are ways that Mario could potentially "die" but not die, but what can cause him actual harm as we saw the fish latch onto his face, though, if you were playing the game, you would have died, no? Also, will we see Mario eat a sacred mushroom which will enable him to grow double in size? It was great to see the dinosaurs running (I am assuming Yoshi's species) and the introduction of Mario Kart which seemed a little out of place, but whatever! I am sure it will make sense in the movie. Also, considering how Wreck-It Ralph was excellent and how they celebrated computer games, as well as elements of Ready Player One which did the same, I am wondering how they will handle Luigi though, because Luigi has always been second fiddle nobody really cared about...and it IS called Super Mario Bros.

(trailer review) - The Super Mario Bros. Movie

Ok, ok, ok! Bowser coming in hot! This is just a teaser trailer but this looks great. When this film was announced with Chris Pratt doing the voice of Mario, I rolled my eyes. Like, why Chris Pratt? It could have been ANYONE other than Chris Pratt. I mean, it could have been an actual Italian actor. So, now that the trailer is actually here, we can voice out our opinions on how terrible Pratt sounds, how it was terrible casting, how he doesn't even sound like Mario, that we think the "Itsa me, Mario" is too hammy, but guess what, this works! This actually works!

The trailer is only a teaser, but having Bowser coming in wrecking shop and having these blue "Twitter birds" defending themselves with honour only for Bowser to further destroy the castle himself, is excellent. A goon! A fire-spitting monster that looks like, if Godzilla had a turtle shell. I liked this little intro. Then having been introduced to Mario, in a strange new world, meeting Toad and actually hearing Chris Pratt's voice and he actually doesn't sound like Chris Pratt, reminds me of how Bradley Cooper doesn't sound like himself as Rocket Raccoon in Guardians of the Galaxy. This looks good. A slight Lego Movie feel, slight...but this could actually be really good.

(trailer review) - Nobody

When I saw Bob's face on the thumbnail of this trailer, I thought to myself "oh, that's the guy from 'Better Call Saul' and 'Breaking Bad!'" (two great shows by the way) and then my immediate thought was, "oh, is he in a film?".  You see, it's one thing having someone acting in TV series, but to see them in film, you do often think if the film would be any good because acting in film and acting in a TV series are two completely different things.  For the most part, most or quire a few TV shows are character driven so you need a great director who will be able to pull out an actors talents and what they are known for or what they excel at in TV, so I instantly thought that maybe this trailer could be interesting.  Ultimately, it could be rubbish.

Upon watching this trailer, like most films of this ilk, it starts off a little slow giving you a little of the character's current life situation.  Then we are hit with the switch and what changes the character.  Then a little history on what the character used to be in his past before he settled down and became a family man while at the same time, wrecking havoc and messing up fools.  If you liken this to John Wick, well...David Leitch is the producer who is responsible for Atomic Blonde, Deadpool 2, Hobbs & Shaw, so yeah that guy is behind this.  And although this can be seen as a tired trope and "Yeah, I've seen this all before", it really is about the acting and execution and Ilya Naishuller brought us music video and Hardcore Henry?

This looks great.  Bob is fairly comical as he has a comedic background so I can see some witty and clever lines woven into this script, along with situations, but I can assure you (well at least i think), if you like John Wick, you are likely to like this with a very slight comedic element to it but with all the seriousness of a Wick film or better yet, an action thriller.  I don't think it will fall flat or at least I hope it doesn't.  Nice to see Christopher Lloyd in this too.

Directed by Ilya Naishuller and starring Bob Odenkirk, Connie Nielsen, RZA, Aleksei Serebryakov & Christopher Lloyd

(trailer review) - The 355

*Insert 90's movie trailer voice* From the studio that brought you Jason Bourne. 

Unfortunately, this trailer feels lacking and I'm not quite sure what it is.  I'd like to see it but the trailer for Jason Bourne had more fighting in it I'm sure.  Or maybe it seemed more high-octane.  There was a small small explosion in the trailer and Jessica rapels down to the lower floor but, show me something cool like bigger stunts or more of that motorbike chase.  So essentially, Oceans 8 meets extraction and a touch of Mission Impossible.  The climbing on the outside of the building is definitely a call out to Ghost Protocol though and I like that.  I feel like saying from the studio that brought you Jason Bourne has skewed my view before I even started getting into it.

I just don't know.  I just don't want this to be a Charlies Angels as this definitely has potential and I'm loving the diversity, I mean, Lupita is black and British.  Representation matters.  It feels like I'm going to have a lot to say about this movie because it would seem Simon Kinberg the director, the last and only other film he directed was Dark Phoenix (X-Men movie), but he has helped to produce many other movies, some good some not so good and he's written for some movies I really liked like, Jumper, Mr. & Mrs. Smith, This Means War and Guy Richie's Sherlock Holmes, but also written for some duds.  We will see.

Also it's all good saying from the studio that brought you Jason Bourne, but it is the same studio that brought us Bourne Legacy, I mean, let's keep it real.

Directed by Simon Kinberg and starring Jessica Chastain, Lupita Nyong'o, Penélope Cruz, Diane Kruger, Bingbing Fan, Sebastian Stan & Édgar Ramírez