Savages (2012) - Blu-ray Review

Review:

*Originally written April 15th, 2016*

Even with the negative to mixed reviews surrounding Savages, I was still one of the people who were more positive about it and I still feel the same way about it. Also I can't believe this film came out 4 years ago? That's insane, it felt like I only just saw it as a new release. 

The story of two pot dealers who have get back their shared girlfriend who is kidnapped by the cartel is certainly uneven and messy in parts, but there is more than enough good stuff here that makes up for the bad.

I'll get the bad out the way first. The ending. What the fuck were they thinking? We essentially get two endings. One that is dark and violent that is more in tone with the film, then one that retcons that ending as some bullshit wish fulfilment of a lead character and then changes it for a much more strange and comedic ending which just felt bizarre. Neither of the endings are particularly great, but the fact they couldn't even commit to one ending is just a strange creative decision.

Oliver Stone is a director who's films have really been lacking as of late, this isn't amazing by any stretch, but it's a step in the right direction after such duds like World Trade Center and Wall Street 2. This feels more in line with his '90s work with it's beautiful and strange imagery and grizzly violence. All the action scenes pack a great punch and look visually interesting. In the particular the hijacking of a cash shipment and even the final scene, which is made pointless, but it had enough of an impact to sorta make it feel worth it.

The performances is are fine, no one was particularly amazing. Kick-Ass was serviceable, Taylor Kitsch wasn't terrible and Blake Lively was okay, but some of her dialogue in the narration is atrocious. This was a real line from the film "I had orgasms, he had wargasms", who on earth thought that was a good line? Actually Benecio Del Toro was pretty great as the psychotic cartel second in command? I'm not too sure what his role was actually, it's never really said. Either way, he was wonderfully disgusting and creepy, maybe it was just the paedophile 'stache.  

I will admit, I do have a soft spot for anything cartel related, so I was more than willing to forgive a lot of this film's flaws. I do still believe it is underrated though, and unfairly treated. It's messy, but I'm hoping to see it hopefully become something of a cult classic.

I also have to note, it has one of the best ringtones in film history, possibly even the best. Actually yes, this has the best film ringtone in history, I will never go back on that statement.


Savages is uneven, messy and maybe even a bit too long, but it's mostly a grizzly, violent and fairly entertaining cartel thriller with a somewhat return to form from Oliver Stone.

7/10 Dans

Savages is out now on Blu-ray and DVD in the UK
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Brigsby Bear (2017) - DVD Review

Review:

*Originally written January 15th, 2019*

It's such a shame that Brigsby Bear wasn't more popular than it was, an extremely sweet, funny and original comedy-drama looking at the power film and creativity has over us. It's a small indie-gem that so very little people have heard of. I was lucky enough to see it in cinemas a couple of years ago, but its release was extremely limited. 

I remember going into this having no idea what to expect. All I knew about it was the positive buzz coming out of its festival screenings and a couple of people comparing it to Me and Earl and the Dying Girl (Which I also loved). Plus Mark Hamill was in it and it involved a kidnapping plot. 

It's perhaps a farcical take on a subject matter that might have needed a bit more drama behind it, but it doesn't mean Brigsby Bear lacked in genuine moments of drama and maturity. The film follows James (Kyle Mooney) a man in his late 20s who spent his entire life unknowingly in captivity with only the show "Brigsby Bear" and the studies forced on him by his kidnappers (Who he believes are his parents). 

Brigsby is James' only thing close to resembling a hobby, it's all he's had as an escape his entire life. The problem is it's a made up show made entirely for him and once he's rescued, he has to adjust to the real world while all he knows is Brigsby, so with the help of his new friends and family, he sets out to finish Brigsby Bear in the form of his own homemade movie.

James is a little hard to get behind at first, he does get a little frustrating with his constant obsession with Brigsby, but it pays off in the end as his homemade movie gets going, leading to some wonderful scenes of them attempting to make their own film with next to no experience or knowledge how.

Brigsby Bear itself is a wonderfully creative invention, a no-budget homage to tacky kids and sci-fi shows of the '70s. Thinking back, this really tapped into nostalgia in a way that works, which is rampant in cinema at the moment. But the difference here is showing the importance of how nostalgia and love for art is a great escape from reality and you should be proud of what you made as long as you put heart and commitment into it. It's oddly like the same year's "The Disaster Artist" in reflection. 

I really have a soft-spot about films involving film-making and this was no different. It hits some familiar beats I've seen before in films like this, but it works all the same. Even the surprisingly emotional ending goes exactly where you'd expect, but after the journey we've spent with these characters, it still hits a satisfying spot and makes you wanna make your own film.


Brigsby Bear really is an underappreciated gem that I highly recommend seeking out. It's sweet, funny and only 90 minutes. I'm really interested to see what Dave McCary does next, because if its half as genuine as this, then I'm sold. Oh, and once again, no Blu-ray release in the UK? What in the fuck. No 4K release is understandable, but not even a Blu-ray release in these times is simply pathetic and unacceptable. 

8/10 Dans

Brigsby Bear is out now on DVD in the UK
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Upgrade (2018) - Film Review

Review:

*Originally written January 10th, 2019*

I wanted to like Upgrade more than I did, it was one on my radar for the past year that seemed right up my street. An ultra-violent, low-budget sci-fi film that riffed on things I know and love, and I while I enjoyed Upgrade to an extent, it's a bit of mixed bag.

Who on Earth is Logan Marshal-Green? And how does he look so much like Tom Hardy, but with none of the acting talent? It was actually quite distressing seeing this so soon after Venom, as the similarities are astonishing. Both are sci-fi action films about Tom Hardy (or his doppelganger) dealing with an extra presence attached to his body that also talks and sometimes controls him. 

I was actually pleasantly surprised by some of the aspects that I didn't know about going in. I had no idea about Green's robot implant actually having a personality of his own, I just thought this was a straight up action film about a guy who's wife is murdered, gets paralysed in the event and is given cybernetic upgrades to walk again and take revenge. 

It turned out to be a little more than that and the trailers also didn't give away how much of a black comedy this was too. It's surprisingly funny in the same way Venom was as Green's interactions with his robot implant "STEM" have some decent chemistry and lead to some fun lines about robots callous nature of being able to take a life. 

What surprised me most was that this was from Leigh Whannell, who's only previous film was the third film in the Insidious series, which I remember being fine, but this certainly shows more vision and promise than his previous film. His kinetic direction of the action scenes was surprisingly unique and interesting, especially the way the camera goes in motion with action on screen. It definitely had style and some of the gore is top notch and it's always a treat to see more practical steps used in creating some of the more disgusting moments.

The whole mystery of Green trying to find who murdered his wife is something we've seen many times before and was easily the most uninteresting aspect of the story, so it was a nice surprise to see the story actually go in weird places I didn't see coming, making way for a massively effective twist that I'd really like to see explored in a possible sequel.

While I appreciate there is definitely a great indie sci-fi film in here, it is let down by some less than great performances, including the lead, who really is just a stilted and uncharismatic Tom Hardy with weird and stilted delivery. I can't compare this to any of his previous performances, as the other things I've seen with him in it, I honestly have no memory of him being in it. 


For the most part though, Upgrade is definitely worth checking out and one that may go up on rewatches. It's a violent and fun ride with some really cool ideas that really makes great use of its low budget. I just hope it did well enough to justify a sequel. I'd just like to say fuck you to Universal for only going with a DVD release in the UK and no Blu-ray. Seriously, fuck you. 


6/10 Dans

Upgrade is out now on DVD in the UK
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Pacific Rim (2013) - 4K UHD Review

Review:

*Originally written January 10th, 2019*

I'd been meaning to revisit Pacific Rim for a while now, after the absolute train-wreck that is Pacific Rim: Uprising, I stupidly thought that "Maybe the original Pacific Rim is just a piece of shit too". Boy, how wrong I was, it's far from perfect, but Guillermo Del Toro's love letter to monster cinema is a big, dumb and fun piece of action. 

I don't enjoy it as much as most people, but there is so much to enjoy here. Del Toro delivers such wonderful and vibrant set-pieces (This is an absolute treat to watch on 4K, those neon colours really pop with HDR). It has a beautiful and cinematic look that is lost in the televisual sequel. There's such care and fluidity to make every single action scene memorable and exciting, it was such a lovely refresher on how great summer blockbusters can be both dumb, but extremely fun which seems rare these days and with 2018 just gone, it was a pretty painful year for blockbuster films aside from a select few.

The Jaiger and monster designs are all awesome and have their own unique feel. The neon blue blood of the creatures are a sight to behold, making the gore more entertaining and gorgeous to look at. I hate to bring up the sequel again, but the size and weight of these giant robots are completely lost there, in the original they feel huge and have weight to them and they are goddamn majestic to look at.

I just wish the script and story were as strong as the visuals and action. Charlie Hunnam is pretty bland as the lead (like he usually is), but he's serviceable for the most part and manages to carry the film. The side characters bring far more interest and charisma. Ron Perlman is just a delight in his short role and Charlie Day is pretty much playing Charlie Kelly from It's Always Sunny, but it's welcome. 

Idris Elba surprisingly steals the show here as the charismatic leader of the Jaiger pilots and his "Cancelling the apocalypse" speech is actually pretty awesome and I forgot how memorable it was. I'd honestly have preferred it if Elba had taken the lead role over Hunham, he certainly has far more charisma. Not as much as Jon Hamm, but damn he has charisma.


I'm definitely glad I revisited Pacific Rim despite it's flaws and got see see it in glorious 4K. I just wish they'd either waited for Del Toro to finish Shape of Water so he could have returned to direct 2, or just not made it at all. Either way, this still holds up as wonderfully entertaining and beautiful shot monster vs robot action. God bless cinema. 

8/10 Dans

Pacific Rim is out now on 4K UHD, Blu-ray and DVD in the UK
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Holmes and Watson (2018) - Cinema Review

Review:

*Originally written January 1st, 2019*

Holmes and Watson is everything I expected from the trailers, it's 90 minutes of brainless, lazy jokes and crude attempts at humour. A film so pathetic and lazy that it's managed to make the headlines because of the amount of walkouts the film had seen over its opening weekend. It really is that bad.

The idea of making a spoof of Guy Ritchie's Sherlock Holmes films feels outdated considering those films were a decade ago. Will Ferrell and John C Reilly are two actors I really like when they have a good creative team behind them. I wasn't a huge fan of Step Brothers, but this makes Step Brothers and Talladega Nights seem like masterful pieces of comedy genius in comparison.

There's just so little to talk about here, it's more interesting to talk about the news surrounding the film. Like the fact even Netflix turned this down after terrible test screenings. Netflix turned this down, the same company that release dozens of lazy and awful films every few months. Even they wouldn't touch this. 

Part of me does have a soft spot for really dumb comedies. I grew up watching the Ali G movie a lot and even the Daddy's Home films I adore, and if you want some insane genius, then John C Reilly's music biopic spoof Walk Hard is a work of art. But everything in this proved to be too much for me, aside from one moment in the opening of scene of Holmes tending a giant marrow he's growing and referring to it as a "Dirty bitch", I didn't laugh once, although the Victorian era equivalent of drunk texting was an fun idea, it was just executed horribly. 

Then there's the horrifically lame jokes aiming at Trump and contemporary issues brought up in a Victorian setting. It's brutal, there's selfie sticks, cringey hip-hop music and awfully on the nose visual gangs like Holmes wearing a red hat that says "Make England great again". Fuck my life.

What's most shocking about this mess is how it managed to attract this many talented cast members. It's a disaster almost on the scale of Movie 43. outside of Ferrell and Reilly we have Kelly McDonald, Ralph Fiennes, Rebecca Hall, Steve Coogan and Hugh Laurie. Was this just an easy paycheck for them, or did they actually think what they were in was funny? Based on their careers, I can only fathom they were in it for the cash grab.

Holmes and Watson is truly awful. One of the worst films of the year, a lazy and cynical attempt at comedy that isn't even worthy of being a Netflix original. Pathetic. 

2/10 Dans

Holmes and Watson is out now in cinemas in the UK
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Bumblebee (2018) - Cinema Review

Review:

*Originally written January 1st, 2019*

After ruining the franchise with 5 increasingly bombastic, racist and just downright horrible films, I doubt there was much audience faith left the Transformers franchise thanks to Michael Bay's "Contributions" to cinema. Thankfully, Bay's awful touch is nowhere to be seen in this sweet, touching and incredibly fun prequel film focusing on the mute yellow Transformer Bumblebee.

I was excited for this due to Travis Knight directing (I loved Kubo and the Two Strings), he'd never done a live-action film before, but he proved his delicate touch worked to make a genuinely sweet and focused Transformers film that is far better than anything that's come before it and stands with some of the best blockbusters of the year.

Hailee Steinfeld is a complete joy and is far more watchable than the annoying Shia LeBeouf and the weirdly racist Mark Wahlberg in the previous films. Her character is arc is simple and it works, and she is so likeable as a lead. Being set in the '80s gives way to a wonderful John Hughes tone and homages to his films, plus a killer soundtrack. 

The action is far more scaled-back and easier to follow, it's much smaller than the city destroying bombast of the Bay films, which in all honesty, makes me care more. It's still giant robots punching each other, but it's done with much more energy and emotional weight than the previous films, making us actually care.

At its core, it's a little similar to the first Transformers film, it's someone finding out their new car is a Transformer and having to deal with that while hiding it from the government searching for it. The difference here is, we actually spend a lot of time with Bumblebee and Steinfeld bonding, she shows him music of their era and gets him to watch Breakfast Club on VHS. It's wonderful and genuinely funny at times, thanks to their dynamic. And it's just so refreshing to watch one of these films without Bay's weird racism and perversion, which had no place in this franchise considering they are kids films after all.

It's helps being a full 40 minutes shorter than the last few films too and the Transformers themselves having their original designs and not those weird and creepy robotic lips which are just off-putting. Bumblebee flies by in no time and it's the first film in this series where I actually wanted more when it ended. The Transformers franchise is actually worth watching again, all it took was getting a new director and getting rid of every awful decision Michael Bay added.


I'm really hoping Bumblebee does well, because this new start for the franchise is far more worthy of 4 sequels than the previous ones are. I just hope we get Travis Knight and Hailee Steinfeld back for future films, because I actually give a shit about these things for the first time since I was about 11. A fun, fast and sweet ride, Bumblebee is one of the biggest surprises of 2018.

8/10 Dans

Bumblebee is out now in cinemas in the UK, with a 4K UHD steelbook available to pre-order from HMV

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Mary Poppins Returns (2018) - Cinema Review

Review:

*Originally written January 1st, 2019*

The way Disney is, I'm amazed this isn't the 20th Mary Poppins at this point, which at least a dozen of them being the straight to video sequels I've never watched. Anyway, I'd only seen the original Mary Poppins less than a few weeks ago in prep for this, and I absolutely loved it. Pure joy in film form full of energy and memorable songs. 

This belated sequel nowhere near hits the heights of the first, but it's still a pretty joyous adventure. I'll admit I went into this on very little slip and was nearly nodding off a couple of times throughout, but for the most part, I still enjoyed it quite a bit. It just really lacks most of the charm and magic of the first.

Emily Blunt does a fantastic job as the magical nanny. Bringing her own take one the character without just trying to do a Julie Andrews impression. She's the same sarcastic and charming character and every moment she's on screen is pure joy. It's just a shame that every time the film veers away from her to focus on other things, it loses a lot of momentum.

As much as I like Ben Whishaw and Emily Mortimer as the Bank's children grown up, they're stories really don't carry film, making their scenes without Mary Poppins just drag the film out, and there felt like a lot of scenes without the titular character there. The new generation of Banks children do a decent enough job, they're some of the better child actors I've seen recently, but they just don't live up to the originals.

Returns shines most when the more fantastical elements get involved. An extended scene involving 2D animation is absolutely beautiful and reminded me of Who Framed Roger Rabbit. It's so rare to see 2D animation mixed with live-action these days, but it looked amazing and vibrant. I can't wait to see how this will look on 4K. As a musical, it has a series of energetic numbers that in all honesty are quite forgettable. I'm really having a hard time remembering a single song from this, and I only saw it a couple of days ago.

It doesn't help that Rob Marshall's direction is mostly very flat and drab, but I'm think that might have been so that the fantasy scenes popped out more, but those only account for about a quarter of the film, leaving most of the film feel a little flat and lifeless when we're stuck in the real world. I could have done with a bit of trimming too, this whole thing goes on for a bit too long. Things like Meryl Streep's weird cameo and extended section could have been cut out without changing anything. 

On the villain side of things, Colin Firth is remarkably disappointing and just sort of there as a bank manager trying to posses the Banks house and his motivation is purely evil for the sake of being evil. It's a shame, because Firth is an actor I always like, so it sucks to see him given so little to work with. Hell, at least it was better than Mamma Mia: Here We Go Again, so at least he's ended his year on a higher note. 


Mary Poppins Returns isn't as good as I hoped it would be. It's overlong and lacks memorable songs, but Emily Blunt's charming performance carries the film and it still makes for very watchable entertainment. It just could have done with a better director and a bit of trimming. 


7/10 Dans

Mary Poppins Returns is out now in cinemas in the UK
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