Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order (2019) - PS4 Review

Review:
*Originally written November 19th, 2019*

There's no denying that EA has had a bad run with the Star Wars franchise since it became owned by Disney. Their 2 Battlefront efforts were slammed and hated (2 in particular, but, that has been fixed by this point and is actually quite playable!), but in all honesty, what people have wanted from a Star Wars game for quite some time now is a story focused action RPG that lets you be a Jedi and fills in the gaps between films. This is exactly what Jedi: Fallen Order delivers. It's far from perfect and feels a little unfinished, but my god, this is still the best Star Wars game we've had in quite some time.

Taking place between episodes 3 and 4, it follows Kal Cestis, a young Padawan who has been in hiding for 5 years since the events of Order 66, but gets put into an adventure involving a list of all the force sensitive children in the universe and must find the list before the Empire do. Along the way you meet a droid BD-1 who is your companion for the whole ride and a rag tag crew in the form of an ex Jedi Cere and her shipmate Greez.

Story wise, I was very impressed, Kal is a very likeable and easy to like character with a very strong motion capture and voice performance from Cameron Monaghan. We follow Kal as he slowly relearns his force powers and gets stronger throughout the game. His journey is personal, involving him having to overcome his guilt and trauma over Order 66 and goes to many places new and familiar within the Star Wars universe, I won't spoil some of the franchise cameos, but there's a few and they fit in quite nicely. But with the 20 or so hours I spent on Kal's adventure I really did grow to like him and honestly would not mind seeing him pop up in other Star Wars material down the line. Which is the only reason I assume they didn't give you the option to make your own character, as they want to use him in future films/Disney+ content. The dynamic with his droid BD-1 really is the heart of the game too, as most of the conversations as you're exploring is with him and the little droid is both adorable and filled with personality.

Technical wise, this game is a bit all over the place. Visually, it is pretty gorgeous and brings the Star Wars universe to life with excellent character models, environments, classic score and incredible sound design. What really lets it down is just how unpolished it feels at times. It's no surprise (Especially from EA) that a game has been released that is quite buggy with the intention patching it down the line, but it is no excuse and has become a complete frustration with this generation of games. The game crashed on me a few times in the second half, I was constantly finding issues such as just falling through the map, enemy AI's not even reacting as I was attacking them and them just randomly spawning right in front of me as I was walking. It would be a minor thing if this only happened a couple of times, but it was happening consistently, which is no excuse for a game of this budget and from a AAA developer.

Onto the good and great though. The combat is excellent and requires patience and actually learning the enemies moves and making use of blocking and dodging. It was very similar to Dark Souls, but obviously not as unforgiving. That said though, there are quite a few difficulty spikes that come out of nowhere, where even I had to reduce the difficulty just get through an area where they throw so many different type of enemies at you, it was more frustrating than fun. When the difficulty is fair though, encounters can be very rewarding and satisfying as you feel Kal get stronger and more experienced as you do working through the game. Mixing lightsaber play and force powers makes for some great fun as you can annihilate faces-less hordes of Stormtroopers with ease.

The boss battles make for some really cinematic and interesting fights. Like the combat with everything else, you're encouraged to think while you're fighting these bosses and simply button mashing will only end with you dead. The variety of bosses range from some Sith lords in the form of The Emperors underlings called "Sisters", the rest of the bosses are mostly a range of big creatures that are pretty intimidating to encounter at first, but you soon begin to realise they are pretty simple to take down once you know what you're doing. There is also some minor bosses littered throughout with random Bounty Hunter encounters, who, if you're not expecting it, can mess you up pretty quickly.

I was pleasantly surprised how much the game implores you to actually explore the world in order to progress, I spent so much time trying to figure out puzzles and gathering all the collectables I could (You can't sweep up straight away though, you have to unlock new powers in order to reach other collectables later in the game). It was just so much fun just to explore these beautifully created areas as BD-1 would point out items and really help you out. The structure of collectables was very similar to the Tomb Raider reboot, which isn't a bad thing, they took elements and changed it just enough to feel unique to itself. The problem with clearing up though is that the map you use from BD-1 is a complete mess and borderline incomprehensible, making it impossible to clear up collectables later in the game when I wanted to return to areas. The Dark Souls esque resting stations also lacked a fast-travelling option, which would have made things so much easier and saved so much time as it does get a little tedious to constantly have to backtrack (Which you have to do a lot). I really wanted to 100% this thing, but when the game made it this frustrating to just get back to the area where the collectables were, I did not care enough.

It has its problems for sure, but honestly, Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order is one of the best Star Wars games I've played in such a long time. It might be unpolished and filled with glitches, but when things are going smoothly, it is a blast to play and my 20 hours with it flew by thanks to the satisfying combat, engaging story and great new characters that earn its place within the Star Wars canon. All my problems are things that could even potentially be fixed with updates down the line, but I've got to judge what we were given at launch and the results are flawed, but still fantastic for the most part. I really hope EA continue to follow path of Star Wars games that choose story over multiplayer. Hell, I'd also kill for a remaster of Republic Commando at some point. Star Wars games might actually have a bright future again.

8/10 Dans

Star Wars Fallen: Jedi Order is out now on PS4 and Xbox One
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Zombieland (2009) - 4K UHD Review

Review:

*Originally written October 5th, 2019*

It's amazing to think that Zombieland is 10 years old now. A film I used to watch constantly when I was about 13. While my expectations for the sequel are pretty low, probably due to the fact Ruben Fleischer hasn't made a great film since this released and the trailers have been underwhelming to say the least, despite all the cast returning and still carrying the same wacky humour. I guess I'll find out in a couple of weeks.

I'd been wanting to revisit this for a while. Part of me wasn't sure it would hold up, but to my surprise, for the most part it's still great fun. I even watched it twice this week due to having to watch both the Blu-ray and the 4K for reasons. Some of the effects are a bit iffy as a lot of it is CGI that is very noticeable and out of place among the always much better practical effects that pop up every now and then. Everything else though, is pretty great.

Zombie comedies seem like something we get a lot, but for me nothing even come close to Shaun of the Dead when it comes to the horror comedy genre, Zombieland is still a worthy entry though. What really elevates this though is the excellent chemistry between the cast. Jesse Eisenberg, Woody Harrelson, Emma Stone and Abigail Breslin all work wonderfully well together as the dysfunctional make-shift family of strangers put together in this zombie apocalypse.

Harrelson is obviously the stand-out with his cowboy like personality and his deeply relatable quest to find a Twinkie (I remember this film kick-started my interest in Twinkies, which were impossible to find in the UK until well after this film released. Needless to say, once I had one, I understood why he wanted one). Eisenberg carries his usual dorky charm while being a pretty strong lead character as he works the audiences through his rules to surviving Zombieland. Then Stone and Breslin bring a lot of fun to their roles as they con their way through the Apocalypse. 

The balance of horror and humour is very solid. I was genuinely surprised at how well a lot of the humour still works 10 years on. A certain cameo is certainly the highlight and leads to a dark and hilarious resolution to that detour. Where the humour mostly works though is just the interactions between the leads as they slowly bond and learn about each other on their adventure. It even has just the right amount of heart, enough so that despite the poor trailers for the sequel and the fact the time might have passed, I'm still interested in spending more time with this group of people.

Forgot how stylish this was too. Fleischer's direction brings some unique visual touches, the opening titles to Metallica are wonderful and some of the slow-motion shots look really cool. I also love the use of random stuff going on around Zombieland like the "Zombie Kill of the Week" which is a great and funny gag, but it's never explained how anyone even knows about it, but it's stuff like that where Zombieland comes into its own and thrives on its unique personality. It's very clear that they wanted to expand the world, but it obviously never happened until now. Oh, and that cancelled Amazon Prime series no one ever talks about or remembers.


Zombieland still holds up very well thanks to its cast of fun and memorable characters, stylish visuals and solid mix of gore and laughs. The 4K disc is also another winner from Sony, who just continue to pump out amazing discs like no other studio. Great fun and always worth a revisit. 

8/10 Dans

Zombieland is out now on 4K UHD and Blu-ray in the UK with a 4K UHD Steelbook available from Zavvi
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Joker (2019) - Film Review

Review:

*Originally written October 5th, 2019*

This is a hard one to get into. The outrageous controversy surrounding this by fake woke Twitter who had made up their mind on this before even seeing it. It's kinda funny how an ironic and satirical movement of people online using Joker to mascot their joke about being radicalised incels become something the media deemed a genuine threat. In a way, it's the funniest thing about this all. What was interesting to me is the lack of awareness in people and how they couldn't see what these people were doing was satire. The whole Gang Weed thing is literally a joke, nothing more and the fools fell for it.

Getting to the actual film itself, it is a complete triumph. I had genuine concern that Todd Phillips had the maturity to make a film like this after the abysmal Hangover sequels and crappy comedies he usually does. Somehow he pulled it off. He's crafted an entry in the comic-book genre that is unlike anything that came before it. Joker is a character study first and foremost, as we see how Joaquin Phoenix's Arthur Fleck slowly starts to lose his mind and become the iconic Joker.

There was many risks involved in making this. The idea of demystifying on of cinemas greatest villains never seemed like a good idea, alienating fans of comic-book films who are so used to soulless CGI spectacle over anything close to substance that has more or less taken over the genre at this point and making such a dark, violent and adult film for a franchise that has mostly been aimed at teens and children. It was a risk for WB, one I'm glad they've taken, as I'm getting pretty sick of these interconnected universes and much prefer films that just tell their own story rather than trying so desperately to connect to other films and potential spin-offs. 

Going in, everyone pretty much knew the Martin Scorsese influences, which are pretty rampant. While Phillips pays homage to Scorsese's early films, this still has an identity of its own. This version of Gotham is a dark, ugly and unstable, much like the portrayal of New York in Taxi Driver. Crime is out of control, politicians are doing nothing to change the city and everyone is at breaking point. There is also a strong King of Comedy vibe (Robert De Niro even more or less plays the exact same character decades later).

While the political overtones of Joker are very apparent, the main focus really is on mental health. While there is no attempt to justify or make Fleck's actions anything close to heroic, it walks a fine line of showing what can happen if mentally unstable people do not get the help they need. There's no condoning their actions, but it's sad to watch and it's feels very honest, despite being an extreme portrayal. If people don't get the help they need before it's too late, then they lash out. 

That's the main thing Joker gets so right that could have gone painfully wrong. Fleck is not the hero of this story at all, you feel empathy for his descent into madness, but you never once see his actions as heroic or justifiable. It's very uncomfortable and horrible to watch as it just gets more extreme and out of control. This is far from the claims that the film is "Dangerous" and "Will encourage unstable loners to lash out" the media blew out of proportion for their ridiculous agenda. This film is a warning, not an encouragement. 

I should get to Phoenix himself. He's an actor I've always quite liked and has recently popped up in some films I've loved recently, so I was very interested to see how he would handle this role. To no ones surprise, he's quite incredible and is magnetic to watch. His performance is filled with so many ticks, physical transformations as he goes from, sad, funny, pathetic and terrifying with extreme ease. I know it's early to say, but this might be the greatest performance of The Joker we've ever had. Time will tell. Even with Phoenix being in nearly every scene of film, I was utterly compelled the whole way through as to where this was going thanks to his performance. I'd be amazed if an Oscar doesn't come his way next year, or at the very least, a nomination. I think it might be my favourite performance of the year. He takes a character that's been done to death and creates something new, tragic, beautiful and sad with it. 

While Joker does goes some places you would expect with the story, it does still go to some very surprising places, keeping me on edge pretty much the whole way. This is one of the most uncomfortable films I've seen in quite some time. The violence is messy, bloody and horrible to watch. The story also goes to some very interesting places as it builds up to its pretty shocking climax. 

While I haven't always been the biggest fan of a lot of Todd Phillips films, I've always given him credit for his visuals. His work always looks incredibly cinematic with a lot of stylish visuals and memorable imagery. Joker is no different, it's as gorgeous as it is ugly, making use of a diverse colour palette that and some disturbing imagery that is sure to become iconic down the line. There's even a weirdly comic dance number that worked far better than it should have. Oh, and I must give credit to Hildur Guonadottir's foreboding and tense score that really elevated the tension on screen. 


Todd Phillip's Joker is far more successful than anyone could have expecting, including me. It joins The Dark Knight and Logan as one of the few comic-book films I consider truly masterpieces. An unflinching, harrowing and deeply uncomfortable watch that features one of the best performances I've seen in recent years. I really hope Warner Bros continue to push the DC films in this direction because this really is something special and unlike anything in the genre. It might just be a game changer.

10/10 Dans

Joker is out now in cinemas in the UK with a 4K UHD Steelbook available to pre-order in the UK
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John Wick: Chapter 3 - Parabellum (2019) - Review

Review:

*Originally written May 15th, 2019*

The John Wick series is an unlikely series if I've ever seen one. Starting off as what could have potentially been VOD/straight-to-DVD trash ended up being one of the most creatively shot, entertaining and classy pieces of action cinema released in the past decade. Sure, it's Keanu Reeves going to war with the criminal underworld after the death of his dog, but it ended up being so much more than that.

The sequel only improved on things. Expanding this insane, comic-book like world and upping the stakes, delivering even more creative, brutal violence and a surprisingly dramatic story that felt like it had depth, even making way for an incredibly effective cliffhanger that leads into this inevitable third film. I wasn't sure just how they'd top the second, but my god, they did it. Those crazy sons of bitches did it.

Taking place instantly after the events of the second film, John Wick finds himself with a $14 million bounty on his head after murdering a high ranking criminal and breaking the rules of his underground crime syndicate, leaving him with nowhere to go and no one to help him. I wasn't sure what exactly to expect from the story here, after the first 40 minutes, everything I was expecting was pretty much proved wrong, making this one of those rare films where I had no idea what was going to happen. 

I knew this franchise was conceived as a trilogy, but with nothing but growing love and popularity for the series between films, part of me knew this wouldn't be the last we'd see of John Wick. I'll admit I'm a little disappointed at the direction taken here to not end the franchise and instead set up an inevitable fourth film, but then again, much like the Mission Impossible series, I'm always taken back at how they manage to up the ante, so I have faith they'll continue this series in the right way. In all fairness, without spoiling things, it does promise a very interesting direction to take the series. 

Even with that, everything story-wise was a genuine surprise. It takes some strange routes to get there, even stopping off at Casablanca for an entire act, but it's always intriguing and makes use of its trademark action and black humour while continuing to grow this ever expanding world of underground assassins with their unique honour system, rules and code. 

Among the returning cast of supporting characters, we also get a whole variety of new faces, most of which are very welcome additions.  A few of the actors from the Raid series get their chance to shine, after having their talents wasted in forgettable cameos withing huge Hollywood films (There's even a great homage to The Raid 2 thrown in here). Halle Berry makes a excellent use of her screen-time in her first good role in years as an ex-assassin with ties to Wick and has two adorable dogs that even get involved with the action. I'm really hoping one of the spin-off films around this series has her in mind.

Of all the new faces, the main one that sticks out is sadly once again the villain. This series has always had a problem with forgettable villains and this might just be the worst of the lot. Mark Dacascos "Zero" gets some brutal and extended fight-scenes, which he does well in physically, but in terms of character, there's very little there. There's a couple of fun jokes about him being a big fan of Wick, but that wears off pretty quickly and he kinda reminded me of Randall Park in Ant-Man and the Wasp. Take from that what you will.

Franchise returners all get much bigger and expanded roles. Ian McShane is still a delight as the owner of the "Continental", although some of his character choices are questionable towards the end. Lance Reddick has much more to do and even gets involved in some action this time around. Then, Laurence Fishburne is still just awful as "The Bowery King", chewing his scenery to unbearable levels in his brief appearances. 

Then there's Keanu Reeves as John Wick himself, a role that's as tailor made for him as John Wick's suits are for him. He continues to expand his range with while playing the cold-hearted assassin with just enough humanity to make him feel like a real human being. His dedication to performance his own stunts and physical work is only rivalled by possibly Tom Cruise. Reeves gives it his all. Many accuse Reeves of being wooden, but he's far from it here, showing Wick his more depth and range than the previous two films combined. 

Now, what you're all here for with a John Wick film is the action, and yes, the film delivers this in levels that I could barely take in with just one watch. The third film in this series is absolute carnage brimming with creativity. It's beautifully shot with no shakey-cam bullshit, it's relentless and feels absolutely brutal. Wick makes use of whatever he can to kill someone, from guns, knives, books, his hands and even a horse (All within the first 40 minutes). It is utter carnage.

Each set-piece expands upon itself and ups the stakes to near comical levels, Which is what you should expect at this point. Once you embrace how absurd this world is and how deranged the violence gets, you really do learn to love it. I miss films like this, brutally violent action films with just enough budget to accomplish huge action scenes without having to tone it down for a family friendly audience. These really are the films we should be supporting. 

I'd argue that Parabellum is exhausting, but in a good way. It rarely slows down from the action, kind of similar to Mad Max: Fury Road or Mission Impossible: Fallout, it's exhausting, but so rewarding by the end of it and while you're sitting there just taking it all in, it's a transcendent experience. I never thought I'd say that about a film series that started with a retired assassin avenging the murder of his dog.

Amongst all the incredible action, this is also a gorgeous and beautiful looking film. Even the smaller scenes have a cinematic flair to them, but this series loves neon and continues to do so. Some of the sets and designs are absolutely stunning, brimming with interesting details, lighting and colouring. It must be said how underappreciated Tyler Bates score is too, reusing and remixing previous tracks from the series and bringing in some pulsating and tense music to accompany the already insane action scenes.


If you're a fan of this series so far, I can't imagine you'll be disappointed by what's been put on display here. A gorgeous visual feast of creative violence and carnage that manages to be one of the best action films of recent years in a series that just gets better with each film. I'll be amazed if 2019 gives us a better action film than this. 

9/10 Dans

John Wick: Chapter 3 - Parabellum is out now in cinemas in the UK
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The Expendables 3 (2014) - 4K UHD Review

Review:

*Originally written March 10th, 2019*

For many, this entry in the Expendables franchise killed it, and to be honest, I can see why. It ditches what people loved about the series so far. The gimmick of these films are the nostalgia of throwback, violent action with the faded action heroes of the '80s and '90s. So it really is bizarre for them to release the third film in this series as a toned down, cleaner entry that sidelines the characters in favour of a younger cast of unknowns.

 Based on this, it's not hard to see why this was received so poorly and has left the franchise dormant for 5 years now (With on and off reports that The Expendables 4 is happening with an R rating again). Despite all the things they just got plain wrong, I still kinda had a good time with this. Sure, the blood, swearing and tone is mostly gone, but it's still head and shoulders above the awful original and it's hard for me to not just take this for what it is and just enjoy it.

The series continued to improve its villains with each entry and this was no different, Mel Gibson is an absolute, scenery chewing maniac here and it is wonderful to see. This came along after he disappeared for a while after his legal troubles and phone call leaks (You can listen to them of YouTube, essential stuff). It's just sorta nice to see him here having a good time and hamming it up, he's the perfect sort of addition to this series. Would love to see Danny Glover in a future entry. 

In terms of the new cast, they are mostly just brutal. A bunch of nobody actors I'd never heard of, aside from Ronda Rousey, who is just awful in everything she does. The whole MMA fighter turned actor thing rarely works, and this might be the best example of that. It's just disappointing what they do with the original Expendables, Terry Crews is quickly written out for most of the film and Jet Li is nowhere to be seen until the end, but he does at least get a surprising pairing with Arnie that is far funnier than it should be. Oh, and Harrison Ford pops up too, who seems to be having the most fun he's ever had on a film in decades. Remember when that guy used to have charisma before giving up? Which reminds me of Bruce Willis's curious absence from here and a few characters just mentioning he's a dick. What happened there?

The action does lose the violent impact of the first two and suffers from some terrible quick-cut editing in order to work around some of the more brutal kills. Why even keep Jason Statham's character as a knife specialist who stabs people brutally if you're just going to cut away? There is some cool stuff going on, the relentless wave based assault on Mel Gibson's compound at the end certainly held my attention for longer than I expected. I'm pretty sure I watched the uncut version too, which did very little to leave an impact on the violence.

Outside of a few choice action scenes, there really is very little here, but it is oddly quite fun, I can't quite put my finger on it. I should absolutely hate this, but I still enjoy it. I think I might even be oddly invested in these characters too, I hadn't seen this in about 4 years and I was strangely compelled and interested by Stallone's Barney Ross here dealing with a ghost of his past. Stallone does a merely okay job conveying emotion, but for what this is, it's fine. 

I was also pretty torn over this 4K release too. On one hand, the detail is extremely strong, pretty much reference quality consistently throughout, but the HDR is a complete mess, colours looked off and weird, blacks looked more like a dark grey than the usual deep and inky blacks I'm used too. It's just a shame, as the detail is so sharp, but someone really fucked up the colour grading of this release. 


The Expendables 3 is far from great, but it's the third in the series of B movies starring faded action stars and it lacks a bit of what made the second entry the best in the series, but it's still good fun and Mel Gibson is endlessly watchable as the villain. Hoping they sort out The Expendables 4 soon. It's been 5 years. I'm ready.

6/10 Dans

The Expendables 3 is out now on 4K UHD, Blu-ray and DVD in the UK
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Alien (1979) - 4K Cinema Review

Review:

*Originally written March 7th, 2019*

It's always pure joy for me to get to see one of my favourite films of mine at the cinema. Even better when it's presented in a gorgeous 4K remaster like the one displayed here. I've had a long history with the Alien franchise, I used to frequently watch Alien and Aliens on DVD on repeat as a kid, but I always liked this one more than Aliens. I just prefer the slow-burn slasher aspect of this to the more action-heavy sequel. The less said about Alien 3 and Resurrection the better though.

Being it's 40th anniversary, this still holds up extremely well. This is Ridley Scott on the top of his game. There is so much detail in every part of the production design, from intricate Nostromo ship to the foggy alien planet, everything is a feast for the eyes. Made even better with its reference quality 4K transfer. One I will be buying when it hits disc in late April.

It carries a very simplistic plot. A crew of a spaceship investigate a distress signal on a planet while on their way back to Earth, but end up bringing in an Alien entity that slowly starts to pick off the crew one by one. 

What helps most is how likeable the crew are at the beginning. We spend a good 50 minutes or so with these characters before the chaos starts. The cast all work well off each other, making for some surprisingly decent bursts of humour that I had completely forgotten were in this film. Sigourney Weaver is obviously the most developed of the characters, but it's a stroke of genius that she doesn't become front and centre until very late into the film, making me appreciate how much of a surprise her survival and role must have been back when this released. Weaver herself is fantastic though, a strong female lead that takes control of the situation and is never once a damsel in distress, making for one of the most iconic characters in sci-fi.

The Alien itself is still an absolute masterclass in creature design. The practical costume looks incredible and is used just enough to keep it mysterious and intimidating. It really shows that less is more, using the shadows and dark areas to hide various parts of the costume is a smart move that pays off in spades. I wish the franchise would go back to its roots and use suits like this again, as this holds up far better than the overly CGI look of the creatures in Alien: Covenant, which was only 2 years ago. 

I won't lie when I say some things just do not hold up. It's easy to make fun of a film made 40 years ago, but I could see why some people could find some of the effects a bit cheesy and laughable. In particular, after the alien bursts out of John Hurts chest, it runs across the table, and it looks a bit dodgy to say the least. Then there's the scene where Ash starts to malfunction and make weird sounds while all I could think of is he might just puking up lots of cum. 

I also miss what a talented filmmaker Ridley Scott used to be before having one of the most hit-and-miss careers of any director I can think of. He uses everything to his advantage here to rack out tension from nearly every scene. It's such a shame he's never managed to live up to this high standard as he continues to try continue the Alien franchise, but never coming close to what made this original film so great.

The sound design is utterly insane here too. Jerry Goldsmith's score is one for the books and seeing this in a loud theatre with surround sound was such a treat. It made me appreciate just how important sound design is to a film like this and how much it brings to the tension and dread of the whole thing.


Alien is still a defining sci-fi horror classic and easily the peak of the series. One of my favourite films of all-time brought back to life with a gorgeous 4K transfer that makes me appreciate a film I already loved so much. The peak of the franchise and possibly Ridley Scott's career. Pure cinema. 

10/10 Dans

Alien is out now on Blu-ray and DVD in the UK with a 4K UHD release due out April 22nd with a steelbook available from Zavvi to pre-order

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Cold Pursuit (2019) - Cinema Review

Review:

*Originally written February 26th, 2019*

You kinda know what to expect when it comes to Liam Neeson action thrillers by this point. Aside from the Taken sequels, they are perfectly serviceable pieces of throwaway entertainment. I was very much expecting this to be more of the same, but instead, it is far more out there, weird and surprisingly different to his usual revenge films.

There are so many strokes of such weird broad comedy littered throughout. I mean, it can be a bit of a mess at times, I rarely knew when I was meant to just be laughing, taking it seriously or just meant to take in the gonzo randomness of it all. At the very least, there are some very strong moments of broad, strange humour that do land, I just wish it was a little more consistent for the most part.

Neeson is as reliable as he usually is, once again playing a man who is avenging the death of a family member. In this case, the family member being his son, who is found dead of a heroin overdose despite the fact he was never known to be a drug user, so see goes on a quest to figure out who did it. Even in his older age, Neeson is still a competent action star and they use his age to the films advantage, never getting him to do insane stunts or anything to unrealistic for a man his age. He does also display some nice touches towards the beginning as a man distraught of the loss of his young son, probably helped by his own loss of family in real life. 

While being an action film, there's never really any massive memorable set-piece for the most part, aside from one final shootout that barely even has Neeson in it. It's mostly a series of cold executions from Neeson, as he makes his way from target to target, gathering information and coldly killing anyone involved with his sons death. I was a little reminded of Taken, which I always appreciated for him just coldly murdering anyone who got in his way and the take no prisoners attitude.

As entertaining as this all was, there's a lot added subplots that really don't add up to much. The weirdest of which being Laura Dern as the wife of Neeson's character, who really just had no purpose in the film and is quickly written out of the film with a brief and pointless role. Then there is also the inclusion of two cops who you'd assume would be tailing Neeson's exploits, but the two stories barely come together and also just feel like needless padding. The removal of both of these could have easily given the film a much brisker run-time, not that 2 hours is completely unreasonable.

There is also a decent amount of the run-time dedicated to the villain, which is rare for a film like this. I honestly could not tell you anything about the bad guy in a previous Liam Neeson action film. Thankfully, Tom Bateman's "Viking" is a fun piece of eccentric villainy, a camp, pantomime performance filled with weird little ticks and characterisations that really steal the show.  

I was also unaware this was a remake of a Norwegian thriller "In Order of Disappearance", also directed by Hans Peter Moland. I'm not sure how this compares to the original, but I am very interested to check it out at some point. In all honesty, I am shocked this wasn't another collaboration between Liam Neeson and Jean Collet-Serra. They do so many action films together, that I just expect every new Liam Neeson thriller is directed by him.

So I guess that's why I was so surprised by the weird and unusual tone for such a film, but for all of the films tonal messes, Moland has directed a genuinely great looking film, making use of its gorgeous snowy town in a fictional town in Norway. Thinking about it, this might actually be Neeson's best film since The Grey. It's not quite up to the level of that masterpiece, but I think with rewatches, this could grow on me as I adjust to the weirdness and tonal awkwardness.


Cold Pursuit might not be what you would expect from a typical Liam Neeson thriller, but is all the more better for it. Neeson is reliable, the action is cold and brutal, and it's surprisingly out there and weird. It's a shame it's done so poorly, as it's one of Neeson's best in years.

7/10 Dans

Cold Pursuit is out now in cinemas in the UK, with a 4K UHD Steelbook available to pre-order from Zavvi

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Destroyer (2018) - Film Review

Review:

*Originally written February 21st, 2019*

Well, looks like I'm in for another year where my favourite films of the year don't play anywhere near me in theatres. Meaning I either need to wait for a watchable torrent or a Blu-ray/4K release down the line. This is the state of cinema in the UK outside of huge cities at the moment. Unless it's Star Wars, Marvel or award contending Oscar-bait, I do not get to see the film at the cinema. Leaving me to wonder why I even bother any more.

Destroyer is already one of those, and it's only February (It was released here in January, but like I said, showed nowhere near me. Despite being heavily advertised at the Guildford Odeon. Honestly, the month leading up to its release, any film rated 12A or above showed the trailer for this. Then its release date came and nothing). 

I'm amazed how overlooked this has been this awards season. Nicole Kidman is absolutely on fire here, in her most volatile, heartbreaking and ferocious turn I've ever seen from her. There's obvious comparisons to Charlize Theron in Monster, where they "Ugly" themselves up to look barely recognisable. It works here incredibly well, making for not just the best performance of Kidman's career, but one of the best of 2018. It is a travesty this was overlooked at this years Oscar's in favour of more baitey performances. 

Outside of Kidman's performance, this is still an incredibly effective and uncomfortable corrupt police thriller that spans multiple time periods. Karyn Kusama balances everything with such care, delivering some powerful storytelling with bleak and brutal violence, leading to a surprisingly poignant ending (Although I'm not sure about that final shot).

I was instantly reminded of some of Taylor Sheridan's works throughout. Being a coldly told and bleak story featuring gorgeous cinematography and bursts of harsh violence. I'm amazed this came from the director of films like Jennifer's Body and the atrocious Aeon Flux, it's rare that a director can move on from films like that to create something far more meaningful and worth watching. I'm very impressed and once again she's shockingly overlooked along with several other female director's who failed to be nominated at this years Oscars.

We've seen corrupt police dramas told many times before, perhaps peaking in FX's series 'The Shield", but I really have a soft spot for films about these broken people who use their abuse of power in order to earn some kind of redemption down the line. While Kidman's Erin Bell is definitely not one of the most evil of corrupt cops we've seen in media, she is definitely one of the more interesting. Her handling of guilt after the events decades before the film begins which we learn through flashbacks throughout makes for some genuinely compelling viewing, leading to how she ends up the way she is.

Then there's the lengths she'll go to cover up her crimes and how that effects the relationships with the people around her. The relationship with her daughter is a little cliched, but Kidman's sincere performance certainly makes something we've seen before work, especially with help of the excellent script. 


I'm really surprised this was completely slept on. I know I have a soft spot for these sorts of films, but it really is something special that really deserves seeking out. Kidman's performances carries a film that is excellent in all other aspects of its own right. A tight, compelling, beautifully shot piece of harrowing police drama that will most certainly be in my top 10 of 2019. 

10/10 Dans

Destroyer is out May 27th, 2019 on Blu-ray and DVD in the UK
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How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World (2019) - Cinema Review

Review:

*Originally written February 4th, 2019*

I was very late to the game with the How to Train Your Dragon franchise, I'd initially dismissed the films as more generic kiddie crap, but when I actually watched them, I was surprised to learn these were some of the best animated films of the decade, rivalling even Disney and Pixar. I'll admit it took me a little while to warm to those first one, but I was instantly won over by the sequel.

What's surprised me is how long this final entry in the trilogy and franchise (For now) took to make. It has been five years since HTTYD2 came out, which is a shockingly long time for most sequels to get churned out. So I really appreciate they took their time and effort to perfect this finale and it really shows. It might go places you'd expect, but this is an extremely effective and emotional end to Toothless and Hiccups story.

We're once again given some of the most beautiful animation in recent history. Bursting with such insane attention to detail, creative and incredible creature and location designs. I absolutely loved every bit of animation on display here. Every scene just popped and sparkled to a degree I did not expect. I really can't wait to see this bad boy on 4K in the future.

The focus here is once again on Toothless and Hiccup as they search for a hidden world where the dragons can live in piece without the threat of humans hunting them, while at the same time they are hunted by a deranged hunter obsessed with killing Toothless (The last of his kind) and Toothless finds himself a love interest.

The way Toothless is brought to life on screen is so easy to make you love him and care about his relationship with Hiccup, he's just so damn adorable. Plus it's great to see how much Hiccup has changed throughout the series, I'd recently rewatched both the previous films in preparation for this and the character really has grown and matured. Turning from the embarrassing child obsessed with killing a dragon to a man trying to bring peace to his late father's land and live up to his legacy.

The real only gripe I have with this whole thing is the villain, who is just pretty bland and uninspired. He's just another bad guy evil for the sake of being evil and having very little in the way of motivation. There is at least some cool stuff in the form of him having a few controlled and evil dragons, leading to some insanely fun set-pieces that live up to some of the best this series has seen.

I'd also seen a lot of people calling this easily the worst of the trilogy, which is fair enough, but for me I found it easily the most engaging, emotional and fun to watch out the three. It might help that this is the only one of the trilogy I've actually seen in theatres, but this all popped for me. The final scene is pretty up there in terms of endings for kids films. You're probably a monster or dead inside if you felt nothing at the end of this.


How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World is a triumph in animated film making. A beautiful, insanely creative and touching, heartfelt end to the story of Toothless and Hiccup that we've been following for nearly a decade. I really hope they just let this series lie and stop here though. This was something special that I didn't see coming. It's only February and animated films have had a seriously high bar set for 2019.

9/10 Dans

How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World is out now in cinemas in the UK
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Robin Hood (2018) - Cinema Review

Review:

*Originally written November 28th, 2018*

From the Disney animated classic to Ridley Scott's 2010 adaptation and even the BBC series that I quite liked as a kid, I've been exposed to the Robin Hood legend a lot, but I'm always up for seeing this story told again, for whatever reason. Sadly, this absolute mess that doesn't know what it wants to be is a misfire on nearly all fronts.

After Guy Ritchie's King Arthur, a completely insane and interesting colossal flop from last year failed to get audiences attention, it's incredible to me that a studio put so a ludicrous amount of money into giving Robin Hood the same treatment, but without Guy Ritchie's direction at the forefront, just some TV director jobber trying to emulate his style. 

What's frustrating is just how by the numbers this facade is and how it does absolutely nothing to justify its existence. It's a bit more light-hearted and arguably more entertaining than Ridley Scott's slog of an epic, but it's nowhere near as interesting and does exactly what that tried to do, but dumber. I'll always have a soft-spot for the Robin Hood legend as he is the true communist we need in such a capitalist world. I was almost cheering when Robin gave his speeches about the rich stealing money from the people who actually do the labour to make the profit. Preach, brother. We have nothing to lose but our chains.

I was shocked when this finished and I discovered it was only 100 minutes, it felt like at least 2 hours. Which is probably due to having seen so much of this before. It's just so charmless and bland. Not even a solid cast can save it. Taron Egerton is one of these recent actors who seemed well suited to the role, but he's just so generic and bland here, he lacks any real kind of charm or charisma. Oscar winner Jamie Foxx is cast as an Arabian (For some reason) and he is so over the top and silly, he felt like something from a different film. Eve Hewson is the generic damsel in distress as Maid Marion, a character defined entirely by her cleavage. Tim Minchin brings a little bit of distracting humour to his role as he does a bizarre Bill Bailey impression.

Ben Mendelsohn is a fantastic actor, so it's such a shame to see him falling back into the same boring villain role he seems to get cast in all the time these days. A menacing and forgettable cliche that chews the scenery, but lacks anything close to resembling a character. His career reminds me very much of Christoph Waltz after Inglorious Basterds. They saw he could play a good villain, so they just kept casting him in the same role with diminishing returns each time. Between this, Rogue One and Ready Player One, I could not tell you a thing that separates Mendelsohn's characters.

The action shows some signs of style here and there, but is consistently butchered by hacky editing and annoying slow-motion that feels insanely outdated in 2018. The Matrix was 19 years ago. Get over it. It was fun to see Robin's insane bow-play now and then though, I honestly wish they did some of the action in the vein of John Wick's "Gun-Fu", but with bow and arrows. How much better would that have been?

It's also pretty clear that they wanted to hire Hans Zimmer for the score here, but instead just got someone in to create a knock-off of his Dark Knight score. I was in disbelief at how similar it sounded to his work. Zimmer needs to start a lawsuit here. It was laughable. 


This whole thing just does not know what it wants to be. It opens with "Forget anything you know about history", but then goes on to tell a story we've seen several times with no changes. It even has a shameless sequel bait ending for a film that will never see the light of day considering this is tracking to be one of the biggest bombs of the year. It's no loss. Can't wait for the next Robin Hood reboot in 2028 mimicking the style of whatever's popular then.

4/10 Dans

Robin Hood is out now in cinemas in the UK
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The Girl in the Spider's Web (2018) - Cinema Review

Review:

*Originally written November 28th, 2018*

I suppose I might have expected a little too much from this. A sequel to one of David Fincher's masterworks where he did't return and neither did the cast. It's more a soft reboot than a sequel, but I had high expectations with Fede Alvarez chosen to direct. Especially after his solid Evil Dead remake and masterfully tense Don't Breathe. 

Sadly, this feels very far removed from the Girl in the Dragon tattoo series that I know. I'd only ever seen the original Swedish film and Fincher's remake. Despite the involvement of Alvarez, a director who thrives with grotesque content and extreme violence and gore, this sequel feels remarkably toned down and different in order to appeal to a much more mainstream audience. It honestly feels more like a James Bond film than what came before. The similarities between this and Spectre are striking. 

Fincher's film opened with stylish James Bond knock-off opening credits and this one follows that tradition too, but something just feels off and not right with it. Maybe it was the lack of a memorable song or visuals, and the fact it so brief and didn't fully commit to it. I can't quite pinpoint why that didn't work for me.

What's most disappointing is just how formulaic this all seems. It feels like an extended episode of TV where everything goes where you expect it to. Dragon Tattoo was an exhausting and complex mystery film, whereas Spider's Web feels more like a dumb action film where Lisabeth Salander has to get back an experiment government programme that has been taken by her evil albino sister who now runs a terrorist organisation. It just felt so tonally off from the more grounded and real evil that haunted the previous films.

As disappointing as this was, it does show flashes of genuine tension and enjoyment. Alvarez delivers some really disturbing and weird visuals that can't live up to Fincher, but they do a damn close job at times. As much as the script is an utter mess, the visual style is on point. There's even some decent and creative action scenes, they just lack the visceral brutality the series is known for.

Claire Foy does a good job as Lisabeth, she has the cool, ice cold demeanour with a lot going on there if you know the character, it's just the script fails to explore the character at all, leaving her a bit one-note. Despite the events of what she goes through, by the end of the film she's pretty much the same person and goes through very little development, leaving the whole thing feel a little pointless if they plan to continue this franchise (They won't, this bombed). 

Lisabeth's thought dead sister played by Sylvia Hoeks was just ridiculous. She looked and felt like some comic-book villain with an anime character look. It's just completely out of place in this world. I just don't know what the hell they were thinking. Despite being such a prominent part of the marketing, she doesn't even really appear properly until the last 20 minutes and completely derails every scene she's in.

I was at least pleasantly surprised to see British comedian Stephen Merchant appear in his first fully dramatic role and was not just the comic relief, which I feared when I saw his name in the credits. His role is brief, but he actually does a really good job at drama. I'd really love to see him star in his own drama series at some point and see how he does there.


While The Girl in the Spider's Web is very much a letdown in many regards, it's still perfectly decent and watchable thriller that shines when Alvarez's style is allowed to shine through, it's just a shame its hampered by such a inane and silly script that feels tonally off from anything that's come before this. Since this is isn't doing so well, I'd say the best thing they can do is once again reboot this series and return to the dark horror its known for.

6/10 Dans

The Girl in the Spider's Web is out now in cinemas in the UK
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Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald (2018) - Cinema Review

Review:

*Originally written November 17th, 2018*

There's a lot to take on here. The second in the series of five Harry Potter prequels tells a far more interesting story than the first one, while managing to make a few very misguided and questionable decisions. It also has that annoying thing of setting up a lot of things that they're planning to resolve in future films rather than just work with what they've got. Now, I've not got a huge problem with this, as I know this will all play better once all five films have been released and will flow better, but it's still a little frustrating.

Tonally, this is far more darker than the first Fantastic Beasts. There is a lot of harsh stuff in here for a kids film. For a sequel to a film that played it pretty lighthearted, it's a bit jarring. I'd only rewatched the first film a day ago, so it was odd to see thing go from Newt making animal noises and gestures to a fantastical animal to full blown child murder and mass murder within the space of two hours. They really try and go for an Empire Strikes Back vibe here as all the characters are split up and left in a much worse place by the time the credits roll.

I much preferred this tone and it is far close to the later Harry Potter films in terms of style rather than the earlier ones and the First Fantastic Beasts. The transition is far from perfect though, for a film that takes itself so seriously, it's weird that they shove in these strange moments of comedy between Newt and his creatures right in the middle of things for brief scenes that feel tacked in and have no flow the overall story. It reeked of re-shoots added in for "More comedy". I'm sure that wasn't the case, but that's honestly how these scenes played to me.

I was extremely worried that these five Fantastic Beasts films would play like the Hobbit films compared to the Lord of the Rings, a hollow CGI fest that lacked the charm of any of the films that came before it. And while it can be argued that this is true, I still feel more connected to this than I had any of the Hobbit films. Despite feeling like the middle film in a series, I was constantly engaged by the story and was really into it, even with a lot of the issues the film had, and there are a lot. 

There's a lot of odd moments that feel out of place and overlooked. The return of Dan Fogley as Jacob and Alison Sudol's Queenie is much appreciated and welcome, their return is a bumpy ride that did not sit right with me at all. Their first scene back it's revealed that Queenie is using basically the Wizarding World equivalent of a date rape drug to keep Jacob from leaving her. It's not said how long she's been using it, but that's gotta be rape right? He's hypnotised and doing whatever she says without any free will of his own? But this is played for laughs, it's odd and a bit sickening.

Either way, once that stuff is brushed off as a misguided attempt at humour, Jacob and Queenie have surprising character arcs that really left me surprised at how this is going to go in the series. It's probably one of the few things I actually understood in the final act as the film juggles so much and delivers so much exposition that it leaves things as a bit of a confusing mess. 

That's marginally where some of my problems come from. The final thirty minutes are a bit of a mess with such confusing editing and mix of far too many things being juggled. I know a lot of this will make sense to huge Potterheads, but as someone who grew up watching the Harry Potter films, I was left muddled and not sure what the hell and just happened aside from a few key beats.

I'm also confused as to why this film is called "Fantastic Beasts" too. That title made sense for the first film, as it was actually about Newt and his creatures, but here they are merely background devices used to remind audiences that "Oh, yeah. Newt loves animals". Don't get more wrong, I'm much more interested in the plot of Grindelwald and Dumbledore than a series of films about Newt going country to country finding creatures. I just don't know why they haven't dropped this title. Oh, the Marvelization of the Harry Potter series was pretty rampant from the giant "WIZARDING WORLD" logo that opens the film, which honestly would have made more sense as the title. 

I did at least appreciate the Harry Potter universe references that I understood based on my knowledge of the films. There's some fun name drops, locations  and characters involved that I'm sure Potterheads will be creaming over. While his screen-time was brief, Jude Law made for a fantastic young Dumbledore and I can't wait to see him more in future films, I just hope they actually have the balls to explore his sexuality rather than just tease it like they do in this one. 

Eddie Redmayne is still interesting as the lead of this series. I saw an article before seeing this saying that Newt might be autistic, and once I had that in my head, it was all I could see. The mannerisms, social awkwardness and obsession with animals was all there. I do not have a problem with this at all, in fact if they reveal he is autistic, then I'll love it even more. It's a ballsy and rare move to have an autistic character as the lead of a huge franchise. 

There was a lot of controversy over the casting of Johnny Depp after his abuse allegations and while his reveal in the first Fantastic Beasts is  laughable and off-putting, there was a lot of work put in here to undo a lot of that damage. Depp actually plays it pretty sinister and intimidating, it actually feels like he's trying again after a decade of embarrassing roles where plays a bunch of zany, over the top characters. He's responsible for some of the most violent and disturbing acts so far in the Harry Potter franchise, from the opening escape to the finale, he's pretty damn good and not overused at all.


So that's Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald, a darker and more compelling sequel that suffers from a few tonal issues and a convoluted final act as it tries to juggle far too much for one film, but overall it's definitely a step in the right direction for the series and I really hope it continues to improve with each film.

7/10 Dans

Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald is out now in cinemas in the UK, with a 4K UHD Steelbook available to pre-order from HMV

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Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol (2011) - 4K UHD Review

Review:

*Originally written November 3rd, 2011*

For many people (Including myself) Ghost Protocol is the first film in the Mission: Impossible franchise that found a formula that launched the franchise from good to great. The first three films all had their own unique style and voice, for better or worse (MI2 is appalling), but they were lacking something. Thankfully Brad Bird came along and gave us an action film that rides the right line between action thriller and cartoony set-pieces.

It's so great to see that Tom Cruise still hasn't changed in 7 years. The set-piece on the tallest building in the world is just outrageous and exciting, the best the series got until this years Fallout. It's always just a treat to see Tom Cruise performance these stunts himself. He really gives it his all while delivering a charismatic and easy to root for Ethan Hunt.

This is also the first one that introduces Simon Pegg as the one of the main team members. He was in the third, but only as a tiny part, so it's much more interesting to see him in the field this time and bouncing off Hunt so well. It's strange to see Paula Patton leave such an impact in this film, but then never appear in another, there was a lot more chance to explore her character and whatever reason they didn't.

The only real weak spot of the team here is Jeremy Renner, who amounts to absolutely nothing. There's an intriguing backstory for his character that we learn throughout the run-time, making way for a very unearned and weird twist at the end. It's pretty easy to see why wasn't in Fallout and no one really noticed, because I nearly forgot he was in this one. It's weird just seeing a team work so well together, then Renner in the middle just having absolutely no chemistry at all with them.

The plot is what you'd come to expect at this point, it doesn't twist the formula massively, but it does what it tries to do so well. Ethan's team have to stop terrorist with nuclear codes while going country to country. It's fine. All absolutely fine. It's just a shame that the villains are very under-cooked and wasted. The only one that leaves a lasting impression is Lea Seydoux as an assassin responsible for starting the chain of events that kicks off the plot, so it's a shame she's written out pretty quickly to make way for a far less intimidating bad guy. 

There was a point where Ghost Protocol was my favourite Mission: Impossible film, but maybe due to the laws of diminishing returns or just preferring the slightly darker tone they went for in the next two films, I still really like Ghost Protocol, but don't quite love it. Watching it on 4K was at least a treat, an extremely impressive transfer that really showed off those yellows and Tom Cruise's gorgeous face. This is also the first time I'd notice just how poor some of the CGI in this was. The Kremlin explosion and nuke launching look utterly atrocious. 


Ghost Protocol starts the formula that has made the next few Mission: Impossibles so great. It's not perfect, but Brad Bird does a great job delivering us an extremely entertaining spy-thriller with a familiar plot, but insanely exciting set-pieces made even better with Tom Cruise's total commitment. 

8/10 Dans

Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol is out now on 4K UHD, Blu-ray and DVD in the UK
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