(trailer review) - Sinners

So when this trailer dropped, the first thing I thought to myself was "Michael B. Jordan has been quiet for a little while, was he not meant to be working on a vampire film with Ryan Coogler?" As I watched the trailer, I saw the name 'Ryan Coogler' pop up and asked myself, "Was the film called Sinners?". I came to the quick realisation that I did not actually know what the film was going to be called, but this must be it and considering Ryan Coogler and Michael B. Jordan is the tag-team the black community has been longing for, this is going to be great, right? Fruitvale Station, Black Panther (although not the lead), Creed. Not to mention the fact that Ryan Coogler has not directed a film that was not great. So let's see what this film has to offer from this trailer.

Creepy! There are women out there who love Michael B. Jordan but do not like scary movies but will risk it for this movie, I am pretty sure about that. This film looks excellent and this is just the first initial trailer. It does not show too much, Michael B. Jordan is a twin, we have Wunmi Mosaku from Deadpool & Wolverine, Loki and other shows like Lovecraft Country. Speaking of Lovecraft Country, it did give me that feel, but most importantly, you do not see what they are scared of and are fighting to survive from, the mention of 'beast' and the preacher saying, "You keep dancing with the Devil, one day he's going to follow you home". I love it. It actually sounds like something a black grandmother would say to their child who always wants to be out late trying to have fun and partying. I cannot wait for a second trailer but either way, I am watching this because my boy Delroy Lindo is in this. It was such a crime he did not get anything for 'Da 5 Bloods.

(episode review) - The Penguin - Episode 1

I remember a time when many people did not like Robert Pattinson because he played a Vampire that sparkled. I watched a few Twilights and I must admit, they were ok, but when you want a story of a Vampire having seen Wesley Snipes play Marvel's Blade, and so well, might I add, you do not really want anything like a sparking vampire. So when Robert was announced as the new Batman after Ben Affleck who was meant to be the next Batman going forward after Christian Bale, people were upset. Nobody wanted the Twilight boy to be Batman because he is a "terrible" actor. But the thing is, you can be in a franchise where you may not like that character, TV show, theme etc, but that does not make the actor, a bad actor. I heard about Robert and his capabilities and he was excellent in Tenet, but playing Bruce Wayne, Year 2 of his career as Batman, while people had their discrepancies, Matt Reeves directed a great film with a great story and great actors. In that film, the character ' The Penguin', played by an unrecognisable Colin Farrell, was simply amazing, so hearing they would do a TV show, could only mean great things, right? Right!

This show does not waste any time letting you know what time it is and what you as a viewer are in for. Gritty, Dark, Gangster/Mob TV show in the vein of The Sopranos but with comic book characters no more than 10 minutes into the show, you fully understand the set-up where The Penguin is and what he might need to do next. Having watched the entire first episode, The Penguin shows us Gotham, the gangsters/mobs/crime lords who are vying to fill the power vacuum created after the events of the Batman movie. We find out his intentions and I will take a gamble that during the series, we will see The Penguin rise to prominence as a Mob boss in his own right.

There were only a handful of things I did not like about the show, such as Penguin's voice which seemed as though it sounded slightly different from the film, and there was some CGI used with the driving, but other than that, this show was really good. They highlight The Penguin as a character with impulse issues and someone who came from nothing trying to climb up the criminal ladder. It would be nice to see Batman pop in here and there or maybe see something in the skyline, but so far, the story of the Penguin is masterfully hand-crafted and a joy to watch because this character seems to simply, make mistakes, get caught making them, but manages to slip away. It's the, being able to take a Medium/Genre like Comic Books and mould/fit/craft them into another genre, like a crime drama, just like how Captain America: The Winter Soldier was a homage to a 1970s political thriller and look how loved that film was.