Film Review Club

Peter, a slave, escapes a plantation after being whipped within an inch of his life. He must escape his hunters and survive the Louisiana terrain in order to make it to safety where he can join the fight against slavery.  Emancipation, the first film for Will Smith since the famous Oscar’s incident, had me hoping that it would be yet another Academy Award contender for the actor. However, despite the impressive cinematography, the storyline falls flat and I found myself struggling to even finish it. Smith himself doesn’t perform badly, in fact the entire cast deliver pretty good performances but the screenplay really let them down. The main positive was definitely the overall aesthetic, with great on set locations, costume designs and a variety of impressive shots that really pulled the audience into the time period. The majority of the film was black and white, with the occasional use of colour. For example toward the end of the film the colour red was used, which shines through in co

Wednesday Addams is placed into Nevermore academy, a school for outcasts and the supernatural. Whilst navigating the social constructs of the school, Wednesday attempts to master her physic abilities, thwart a killing spree and solve a decades old mystery. I think it’s fair to say that Jenna Ortega steals the show throughout the entire season with her captivating performance and witty dialogue delivery. Unfortunately I found the storyline to be extremely predictable, a plot that is rather common across a lot of supernatural TV shows or films, especially when said project is set within a school for supernaturals! Now that being said, the cinematography for the show was very creative and for the most part, it was a real strong point. The only criticism I would have is the CGI for the various creatures wasn’t very realistic and looked rather out of place. I certainly appreciated the amount of close up shots used in all 8 episodes, especially for Wednesday Addams because it allowed us to s

The Way of Water regroups with Jake Sully on Pandora, having started a family and led the ‘Forest People’ for a number of years in peace. However as the Sky People return, Jake finds himself having to protect his family from the incoming danger. The highly anticipated sequel, 13 years in the making, certainly had a lot to live up to and I do believe it lived up to those high expectations. James Cameron, as frustrating as his recent bitterness has been, is one of the best directors in the world when it comes to world building and The Way of Water is clear evidence of that. We explored the forests of Pandora in the first instalment and in the sequel we are introduced to the wonders of their oceans, the creatures that inhabit them and the tribes that call it their home. The cinematography is amazing and the motion capture has clearly improved, the level of detail in simple things like the Na’Vi’s hands and expressions are simply outstanding. It’s difficult to accept the poor motion captur

Andor follows Rebel Spy Cassian Andor in his formative years prior to the events of Rogue One. We see how the fighting spark ignited within him and how he became aligned with the rebel forces. I had heard such high praises for Andor, with many calling it one of the best projects within the Star Wars Franchise. This did set a pretty high bar which I don’t think all 12 episodes lived up to but nonetheless, the show finished incredibly well and I could certainly see why everybody loved it so much. Despite being set in the ‘Galaxy Far Far Away’… it didn’t feel like the usual content from a Star Wars project and I mean that in a positive way. Its uniqueness is what makes it stand out, everything from the camera angles to the way in which the story unfolds, felt different and I certainly liked that.  The first half of the show was a little slow paced but I think that was needed, just to establish what the audience could expect and it also made the more action packed moments more impactful. T

Set in the underworld of LA, a series of incidents intertwines the lives of two mobsters, a gangsters wife, a boxer and two small time crooks.  Pulp Fiction is a Tarantino classic, that will always stand the test of time! A movie with captivating dialogue, executed by the amazing performances from its impressive cast. Now, it had been so long since I last rewatched this film and I almost forgot just how much I loved it, the first and second act in particular. Samuel L Jackson knocks it out of the park, his delivery of dialogue is pretty much perfect and I could listen to him give an explicit monologue all day long. My only disappointment was that we didn’t see even more of him! That’s not to take credit away from the other cast members because they performed well too. The chemistry between Uma Thurman and John Travolta was incredible and the entire section of ‘Vincent Vega and Marsellus Wallace’s wife’ was so entertaining. After all it did create that iconic twist dance scene that is s

This holiday special explores the beloved Guardians of the Galaxy in their new home over the Christmas period, as Drax and Mantis plan a wonderful surprise gift for Peter Quill.  James Gunn leaves his trademark humour all over this holiday special and although some of the dialogue was a little cheesy and almost pantomime esque at times, there is still plenty of guaranteed laughs to enjoy. The overarching plot doesn’t necessarily contribute anything to the MCU timeline but it does provide some context to the Guardians current whereabouts, whilst also giving fans an update on the characters. The special is heavily centred around Drax and Mantis which isn’t what I was expecting, but nonetheless, when those two share the screen I always find myself enjoying the chemistry between them. In regards to the cinematography, it follows the usual Guardians of the Galaxy style, although with the much shorter run time, we see far less of it. It does still include a pretty amazing soundtrack which is