(film review) - Bullet Train

I heard nothing about this film whatsoever and just like that, a film starring Brad Pitt and pretty much, an all-star cast of very talented actors came together for this movie and the trailer gave us a little bit of an understanding of what this film is about. Having seen the movie, I will point out that the second trailer shows a lot of the movie, in a bid to sell you the film. For those who have seen the two movies in the Deadpool franchise, this is from the same people who brought us that. For those of you who remember and liked (or like me, loved Smokin' Aces, there is a high possibility you saw the comparisons in the trailer. If you add these combination with a little bit of an Guy Ritchie flare, this is what you get. But was the film any good? Well...

Lady Bug (Brad Pitt) is an assassin who has decided to go about his tasks provided by his handler (Sandra Bullock) in a different way to how he used to work. He had a different view of life now and he takes a simple job to collect a briefcase and deliver it to a destination using the Bullet Train for travel. However, what seemed like a simple job turns out to be one that not only puts his life in danger at every turn numerous times, but pulls him into a bigger plot for revenge. It is pretty much a game of, dodge the obstacles and threats.

Straight off, I LOVED this movie. A lot is happening and it is a little fast paced in places but the movie is very detailed while it flashes back and forth through time to explain the story which is fairly straightforward, it just incorporates various characters that are caught up seemingly by chance on a single train. Lady Bug just finds himself in the thick of it.

This film is gory. Blood everywhere. Ok, maybe not gory, but there are some gruesome deaths while inventive and some very comical. Some actor's roles are a blink and you'll miss it cameo whilst others are scene stealing, although they are in it for a short period of time. The interactions, dialogue, acting, these actors had fun and you can tell. Brad Pitt is, well...Brad Pitt, excellent...like, Mr. & Mrs. Smith excellent. The script is good, whilst the story is fairly straightforward with some elements being unbelievable and somewhat convoluted. "This" needs to happen for "that" to actually work and "this" person needs to be "there" and it pretty much all works out. Yeah ok!? It is a revenge tale at the end of the day, and a fun and enjoyable one.

The only thing I didn't like about the movie, was Brian Tyree Henry's accent. Whilst I loved his character. With Aaron Taylor Johnson, they made a great pairing as their banter was hilarious. Another thing I wanted, was just a little more with the side characters. Whilst I understood, some characters got did not require an in-depth backstory, a lot of these characters were just cool on their own and it would be a nice if there was a spin-off or sequel/prequel in the same vain as this movie.

I'd say, go out and watch it. It's fun in a good way.

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(trailer review) - The Last of Us

 

Last year I specifically went out to purchase a Playstation 5 because of 6 reasons, God of War, Unchanted, Spider-Man (I almost bought a Playstation 4 in 2019 because of this game) The Last of Us, Horizon Zero Dawn and simply because I have not owned a Playstaion since having my Playstation 2 before going onto owning an Xbox 360 Elite. But when Final Fantasy 7 Remake came out, I had to make that purchase...making that 7 reasons. It took me around a week to get a hold of one, but I have promised myself to buy these games and play them because I have been looking forward to them for a little while now. The Last of us though, I have heard great things over the years. And with reviewers, those who report on gamer news and other gamers who have sung nothing but high praise for this game and how it is very cinematic and possibly one of the best video games ever from a storytelling perspective, to make the decision to make this into a film? Debatable.

It is known in the movie industry that whilst computer games can be cinematic and can lend itself to the format of film and storytelling as it is soo heavily influenced by, there is not even a handful of video game movies that have been great. But in this short teaser, it is possible, somewhat possible with the great Pedro Pascal, he may crush the role, especially with that line delivery, but my fear is, will Hollywood do what they are known to do and "Jazz it up" to make the film more palatable to a broad audience and simultaneously mess up the entire show? Let's just hope they know what they are doing and they have a great team behind them. To be honest, HBO has not missed much!

(film review) - Prey

Some of you might not know about the original Predator movie starring Arnold Schwarzenegger. It was a very long time ago where some of you may not have been born. I only know about it from my cousin who was older than me but if I remember correctly, the Predator movie is a macho man 80's classic. A team in the jungle being picked off, one by one by an unknown enemy. Like I said, it is a classic. The film spawned a few other movies, Predator 2, which was not as great as the first but was alright, but a lot better than anything that came afterwards. Predators was OK and I might even have a review of that on this blog site, but when they started introducing the Alien franchise with Xenomophs, the Predator franchise got diluted and washed up. So calling this movie Prey was a step to somewhat remove itself from the Predator name, something we are all pretty much disgusted by at this point, to bring us a movie within that world and take it soo far back into the past, it is before the events of the first classic Predator movie we know and love. But was that a good idea? Is the film any good regardless of the slight disassociation? Is this film any better or worst than the previous movies that came before it but after the initial two since the 80's. Yes, yes and YES!!! I'll explain.

Naru (Amber Midthunder) is a young expert tracker from the Comanche Tribe who is trying to prove herself as a capable hunter. However, while her brother is the only person who will give her the chance to do so, the others believe she cannot and should stay back with the tribe. After noticing tracks that do not seem like normal everyday wildlife and finding animals that are skinned in ways unknown, Naru tries to tell the other members of the tribe, but she is not believed until The Predator picks them off, one by one.

Although I made attempts to watch this movie a few times on Disney+ (when I was too tired, why I did this, I do not know) when I finally got to the end of the movie, I loved it. The only thing I did not like, was the constant repetition of, "I see something, it is not a bear. I saw it, it is not a bear" and people not believing her and thinking she is talking nonsense. Whilst this is something that happens in the movies like this all the time, it annoyed me how much times she had to say it only for no one to really support her and back her up. He brother was supportive to an extent but I felt like while he was not dismissive, he still did not support her claims.  Another thing I did not like, was some of the forced dialogue and a few forced scenes, but other than that, the quality of this movie was great, from storyline to pacing, to music, to visuals.

The visuals in this movie is absolutely great. You get a grand feel of the great outdoors as the lands look beautiful as well as cold. There were a lot of visuals of the hunter and the hunted in this movie between different animals and I loved that. It was a reminder that in the wild, different insects and animals eat each other for survival. It also played a part in the storytelling for the movie. Whilst there were a few contrasting shots and a wilheime scream or two, when the 'intestines hit the fan', was when they try to capture the Predator and just when you think you have him, it was at that moment, you realised, that you messed up. Blood, guts, anything and everything, EVERYWHERE and it was marvellous! You get to see the full range of the Predator and it is glorious to see.

I remember when this was announced and while I was sceptical at first, the execution of this movie is how those previous movies should have been. Lower budget, personal and with little spectacle, because although as an audience, we love spectacle, sometimes a quieter and more intimate movie like this can work soo much better with a half-decent script. Amber Midthunder carried this movie on her back and she did a great job. I would not expect a sequel in this but. another quality Prey/Predator movie is needed to wash away all the trash from before.

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(trailer review) - Star Wars: Andor

 

There was a trailer not long ago for this, albeit a teaser trailer which gave us a little tease of what is to come from Lucas film and the Star Wars franchise. However, whilst I knew about this show a good while back, I was not sure if I really cared. Let us be honest now, the Star Wars franchise has not really offered anything that has been really really good. Of late and in reverse order, Kenobi was good, but not great, Boba Fett was ok until Din showed up and then it was great. The Mandalorian is really good, although the second season, even with the additions, felt a little bit like a fetch quest, but overall, this show pretty much wiped the floor with everything that has been Star Wars of late due to how it has been delivered. This trailer? This trailer looks like it packs quite a punch to force the franchise into a new and different direction and I am here for it. Furthermore, this trailer also makes the mind Boggle as to the quality and look of this show in comparison to Boba Fett, as an example.

Although I initially watched this trailer in silence, the trailer did enough to move my needle and get me interested in this show more than I even thought I would be. You saw 'Rogue One' right? A decent film although some elements of it was a little hammy, but I really enjoyed the war element to it. Also, with that said and having seen Rogue One, one of the issues with this show will be, anyone newly introduced is likely to die and anyone we already know (due to timelines and such) is likely to survive. But with that said there is an element of intrigued and this trailer plays on that a great deal. Let's just hope the execution of this is quality because it surely looks it, visually. If this delivers, fans will not complain a great deal and maybe, just maybe, we can have two projects to save the Star Wars franchise.