Film Review Club

Brought back to life by an unorthodox scientist, Bella Baxter runs away with a wealthy lawyer and embarks on a wild journey of self discovery across the continents. Poor Things satire comedy works brilliantly alongside the peculiar artistry that is the movies cinematography. The director Yorgos Lanthimos illustrates the toxicity of men in such an approachable and enjoyable way. The underlying themes of the film are actually really dark but Emma Stone’s Bella Baxter and her naivety to the world,  make those themes hilarious at times. Now, that wouldn’t be possible without the impressive performances from the entire cast, in particular Stone and Mark Ruffalo, who work really well together. I understand why Stone is in contention for the awards now, she illustrated incredible range in her acting ability, going in so many directions with just one role! The movie does take some time to hit its stride though, with the first 20 minutes feeling quite slow, it was only when you sort of came to

Toy Story meets the Gremlins as Toys come to life as a result of a military micro chip and an unsuspecting family soon finds themselves victims of a war between the Gorgonites and the Commando Elites. Small Soldiers is the ultimate nostalgia film for me, my old VHS tape was played relentlessly when I was a kid and it was one of my favourite movies growing up. Toy Story was my favourite film as a toddler so moving on to this just felt like real maturity when I was a few years older. The plot is actually quite realistic because let’s be honest, a multibillion dollar company risking lives for the sake of a few bucks by making the best new toys with military software… I wouldn’t put it past them! Small Soldiers is the ultimate 90’s film, iconic soundtrack and more than a few familiar faces and voices. If you haven’t seen this one yet then be sure to check it out, it doesn’t disappoint, but I do have nostalgia bias working in my favour too. Overall (8/10) Thanks for reading. Callan

11 year old Riley, moves to San Fransisco with her parents, Riley and her five core emotions; Joy, Anger, Fear, Sadness and Disgust struggle to cope with the stresses of such a life change. Inside out was a really interesting concept for Pixar, coming to terms with one’s emotions, with the conclusion being it’s okay to be sad can be really helpful for kids growing up today, so it’s a powerful, yet enjoyable film! I must admit Sadness was really testing my nerves throughout the film but the way they U-turned that with their finale worked really well. There’s a lot of creative landscapes to enjoy and although some parts were quite predictable, I certainly had a fun time. I arrived late to this one but I’ll be looking forward to the sequel when it arrives later this year. Although I’m still not sure if I want to brave a cinema full of loud and disruptive kids again. Overall (7.5/10) Thanks for reading. Callan

Young Asha makes a wish so powerful that it’s answered by a cosmic force, a powerful star that will help her defeat a corrupt sorcerer and King of the Kingdom. Wish was a pleasant surprise for me, having read a lot of negative reviews. It’s a simple storyline but I like the themes that run through it, the idea that we all should take our dreams into our own hands and rely on no one but ourselves to make them come true. That’s a powerful message for young people! Not all of the songs roll off the tongue like some other Disney movies but there was still a couple to really enjoy. The animation looked good and the visuals were easy on the eye, it’s a shame my cinema experience was butchered by parents being unable to control their misbehaving kids, so I think that’ll be my last Disney movie in the theatres for a long while. But definitely one to watch when it arrives on Disney+. Overall (7/10) Thanks for reading. Callan

Following teenage Priscilla Beaulieu as she meets Elvis Presley, who is already at the heights of his fame. The sweet, caring rockstar however, soon fades in private.  Priscilla is definitely a movie that needed to be made, Elvis is often glorified in every project he’s featured in but in reality there were a lot of questionable actions that need to be called out, Priscilla does this. With Mrs. Presley actually acting as executive producer on the movie. However the execution was pretty disappointing, I found myself bored pretty quickly and that feeling continued until the end of the film. Like with most movies spanning across a large timeframe, the pacing was all over the place and although the subject matter was interesting to know, it wasn’t enough to stop me from wishing it would end sooner rather than later.  Overall (5.8/10) Thanks for reading. Callan