Film Review Club

Venom: Let There Be Carnage is the second instalment featuring Hardy’s Eddie Brock and the symbiotic anti-hero Venom and is directed by Andy Serkis. Serial killer Cletus Kasady is visited by Eddie and soon becomes bonded to Venoms off spring Carnage, reeking havoc across New York. CAST & THE ACTING  Tom Hardy returns as Eddie Brock and although he does well to create really funny scenes even when he is the only actor in the shot, I do actually think I preferred his performance in the first film. Some of the voice over work he done for when Venom was in control didn’t quite match the tone of the scene in my opinion. For example there was the final battle scene where Venom has to get them out from under rubble when trapped, Eddie needs to spur him on from the inside and I don’t think the tone and emotion in the voice matched the nature of the scene. Woody Harrelson was Cletus Kasady and this was a much better take compared to the glimpse we saw in the end credit scene of the first Ve

Logan directed by James Mangold is Hugh Jackmans final outing as Wolverine. Set in 2029 Logan is now being poisoned by his on adamantiam and has now aged considerably. However the arrival of a young mutant forces him out of retirement as he escorts her across the country, fleeing from an evil corporation trying to kill her. CAST & THE ACTING  Hugh Jackman returns to his iconic role of Wolverine and I think it’s fair to say it’s his best performance out of all the X-Men films he has been cast in. He portrays the vulnerabilities of the character so well, illustrating the awareness Logan has, that he is not what he used to be. Patrick Stewart also reprises his role of Professor X and the same can be said for his performance, his portrayal of a man suffering from dementia was convincing and combined with the characters powerful abilities bought a new dynamic to the X-Men franchise. I must also mention the chemistry between the two actors because that really shone through, both have so

‘You’ is a Netflix original thriller series which follows Joe Goldberg, a man who will do anything for love, even kill. We see a modern day stalker, he uses social media and the internet to obsess over his crush as things seem to escalate further and further, until he removes every obstacle in his way to his ‘true love’. CAST & THE ACTING  Penn Badgley plays Joe Goldberg and he does brilliantly, capturing the creepiness of the character but also bringing a sort of charm as well. This is why, despite all of the horrible things Joe does in the show, people seem to be drawn to the character which is actually a pretty weird thing when you think into it. Elizabeth Lail plays his first victim Beck and she done well, she had to portray a complex character with so many layers and that takes a high degree of skill to pull off well. However the actress really on Badgley’s level is Victoria Pedretti, her performance helped create the biggest twist out of all 3 seasons and gave the audience an

Dawn of The Dead, directed by Zack Snyder is a film set just after the events of a virus outbreak that turns everyone into flesh eating zombies. Held up in a shopping mall the survivors have to battle the undead and deal with issues within the mall, all whilst plotting an escape. CAST & THE ACTING  The acting is actually pretty good in Dawn of The Dead, many films set in a zombie apocalypse include really cringeworthy acting that turns the film into more of a gimmick then a horror. However that is certainly not the case here, the actors performances creates a real sense of fear and realism which helps create a high stakes atmosphere. The cast includes Sarah Polley, Kim Poirier, Ty Burrell, Ving Rhames, Jake Webber, Kevin Zegers, Michael Kelly and more. I don’t think there is necessarily any stand out performances but I think that is because everyone was just as good as eachother. They portrayed their characters well and accurately showed all the types behaviours you would expect to

Midnight Mass is a limited series on Netflix, created by Mike Flanagan. When a new priest arrives on Crockett Island and miracles start happening more and more frequently the residents find a deeper love for faith. However what comes with these miracles are strange disappearances and occurrences across the island. CAST & THE ACTING  I think the acting was good across the entire cast, each character was portrayed convincingly and their performances really set the tone for the series. What I also enjoyed about Midnight Mass was that it seemed like the role of the ‘main character’ rotated as the series went on. Zach Gilford played Riley Flynn, a mentally damaged recovering addict and his performance does justice to such a complex character. He also had good chemistry with Kate Siegel who played Erin Greene, another character who had returned to Crockett Island. The pair created a really good relationship between Riley and Erin, which got you invested in their journey and it made the e

The Last Kingdom is a TV series based on Uhtred, a fictional Saxon raised as a Viking when he is captured by Ragnar and raised as his adopted son. Uhtred’s loyalties are put to the test as he is torn between his native people and those who raised him.  CAST & THE ACTING  Alexander Dreymon leads the cast as Uhtred and he delivers a fantastic performance, he brings charisma to the role and creates such a likeable character that audiences route for throughout all 4 seasons. He delivers dialogue confidently, portraying charm and confidence that personifies Uhtred’s personality but also has the ability to perform convincing combat choreography that creates some great battle sequences. Emily Cox plays Brida, once lover and childhood friend of Uhtred. I was impressed by her performance and the journey she takes us on with her character. Cox showcases her talent by portraying the drastic changes in Brida from season 1 compared to the end of season 4 which is ultimately like two completely

No Time to Die is the latest instalment in the James Bond franchise and is directed by Cary Joji Fukunaga. Bond finds himself living off the grid as he is approached by his old friend, CIA agent Felix Leiter, asking for help to save the world yet again.  CAST & THE ACTING  Daniel Craig returns to iconic role of James Bond and what I enjoyed the most about his performance was that he portrayed a more vulnerable Bond. Yes his combat choreography was great and he showcased those famous traits of the character but he also showed emotion like heartbreak, love and even slight fear towards the end of the film. This vulnerability emphasised the character development over the course of his 5 Bond films and was fitting for Daniel Craigs last outing. His chemistry with his other cast mates was also worth noting, usually we see a pair of actors with great chemistry in a film but Daniel Craig seemed to display that energy with everyone he shared a scene with, which only made it better. Léa Seyd