Smashbomb

Search

Search results

All (5000)

Content

LeftSideCut (3776 KP) rated Titans - Season 1 in TV

Sep 26, 2019 (Updated Jan 7, 2020)

Titans - Season 1

2018 | Action, Crime, Drama

8.2

(10 Ratings)

TV Season Rating

A silly good surprise

Contains spoilers, click to show

In a world awash with CW shows based on DC comics (don't get me wrong, I have a small space in my heart for the 'Arrowverse'), who would have thought that a live action series based on Teen Titans would absolutely smash it out of the park!?

When the trailers dropped for Titans, I was intrigued, slightly worried that it would be linked to the sub par DCEU - it's not by the way, and it's also seperate from CW universe, allowing Titans to do its own thing, and do it well.

Titans is both gritty and colourful, both humourous and emotional, and hugely enjoyable.
The main cast are introduced slowly, but it doesn't take long for the group to matter to you.
Brenton Thwaites (Robin), Teegan Croft (Raven), Anna Diop (Starfire), and Ryan Potter (Beast Boy) form the core team and are all extremely likable.
Alan Ritchson and Minka Kelly (Hawk and Dove respectively) drop in from time to time to flesh out the team, and provide some of the series more emotional moments. In fact, one episode is dedicated entirely to their origins and how they met, and it's one of the seasons strong points.

Another great episode early on introduced us to the Doom Patrol (who includes bloody Brendan Fraser!) providing the jump off episode for the Doom Patrol spin off show. This episode is probably the funniest episode in the series.

Elsewhere we are introduced to other DC characters such as Jason Todd, Wonder Girl, Trigon, Superboy, and the Nuclear Family, and it shows that Titans has been able to establish a far reaching universe in the space of 11 episodes.
The season finale is a real treat, which is sort of based in Gotham. We are treated to Batman references galore, given glimpses of his rogues gallery, and absolutely crazy climatic action scene involving the Bat himself.

Titans is drenched in bad language, and moments of nasty violence, flexing itself as an adult show from the get go, and it's a huge strength.
I can't wait to see where it goes in the future!

Kudos

Neon's Nerd Nexus (360 KP) rated It: Chapter Two (2019) in Movies

Sep 6, 2019 (Updated Sep 6, 2019)

It: Chapter Two (2019)

2019 | Horror, Thriller

7.5

(55 Ratings)

Movie Rating Watch

I am the eater of worlds, and of children.

IT Chapter2 feels like a ride you've been sat on all day, immense fun but a tad repetitive & a little tiresome after awhile. Now I can't remember the book much to be honest so im going by the films here alone & I personally think its all one giant metaphor for child suicide with the clown just being one big easy to relate to combined metaphor for fear, grief, guilt, betrayal, depression, negativity, loneliness, abuse, anxiety, torment, worry, instability & stress of growing up in a town thats had a lot of tragic events happen in it & in a world where things such as bullying, paedophilia, murder, arson, death, accidents, incest, mental illness, fear mongering, love and having no friends can also be against you and playing on your mind. Watching it in this way is where the real terror lies & everything had a logical explanation to it too (especially watching both films back to back) making these films that much more powerful, relatable, meaningful & heartwarming. Watching these kids/adults unite together to battle everything life throws at them to conquer & overcome the darkness while still trying to have fun and enjoy youth at the same time is so empowering and uplifting its just a shame this new film retreads to much old ground feeling a tad to repetitious of what we've seen before already. That being said the character drama is great & theres clear love here for the source material/films from the past that have since become cult classic. A genuine nostalgia vibe is present here too with the film feeling very lost boys meets the goonies & theres even elements of evil dead & john carpenters the thing too. Acting is fantastic with a near flawless adult cast & special effects for the most part are creative, creepy, disgusting & good looking with a few seemingly rushed bits here & there. Its a good film dont get me wrong it just feels like it needs a trim as the lulls at times can make your mind float off elsewhere (especially during some side plots). Overall IT 2 has great depth, fun horror elements & well developed characters its just a shame the comedy & repetitive structure spoil it.

Kudos

Lenard (726 KP) rated It: Chapter Two (2019) in Movies

Sep 9, 2019

It: Chapter Two (2019)

2019 | Horror, Thriller

7.5

(55 Ratings)

Movie Rating Watch

It: Chapter Two continues the story of the malevolent cosmic being that appears mostly as a clown named Pennywise. In 1989, a group of seven friends nicknamed The Losers' Club ended the reign of terror of It, swearing a blood oath (seen in both chapters) that if It returned they would come back. They had an unearthed a twenty-year cycle of terror so one would assume that they would be extravigilent in 2016. But you know how it is. You move away from your hometown, you lose track of your friends, the horrible things that happened to you when you were 13 tend to take on a glossy foggy shade of its former memory. As an adult, you forget about some of the things you did when you were younger, keeping only the happier memories of your childhood unless you were mercilessly abused and keep hold on the childhood traumas you escaped. Bill, Stan, Eddie, Richie, Bev, and Ben have no memories of the weird events of that summer. But sometimes the past comes back to haunt you or in this case, your old friend from back then, Mike calls you up and reminds you that you made a pact.
Now, The Losers' Club reunite to defeat the evil force that overtakes their town of Derry, Maine. Like any good Stephen King adaptation, the supernatural being that terrorizes is not such a huge component. It is the story of friends and the way they are able to colloborate and grow. It: Chapter 2 is a sort of The Big Chill if a murderous clown connected the friends. Bev and Ben rediscover old feelings. Richie hides a secret from his friend, Eddie. Bill is a writer who can't write an ending until the novelization of his childhood traumas are written. Stan is (spoiler alert) Kevin Costner, but still serves an important purpose for the Club to triumph.
The movie is a blueprint for horror movie direction. Andy is a master horror visual storyteller. The movie is not very scary if you are susceptible to that. It is more a terror than fearful. I thoroughly enjoyed the movie even if it did tend to drag in areas.

Kudos

Neon's Nerd Nexus (360 KP) rated Dora and the Lost City of Gold (2019) in Movies

Aug 21, 2019

The last crusade

Dora And The Explorer And The Lost City Of Gold maybe this years biggest shocker. A mix of Tomb Raider & Indiana Jones this one really does hit you right in the nostalgia gland. After not knowing anything about this character what so ever I was seriously expecting to walk out this movie shortly after it began, so imagine my surprise when just 15 minutes in I found myself not only highly entertained but actually full on laughing constantly at all the jokes too. Ok so Im not really sure who this movie is aimed at to be honest as theres not much in here that will apeal to young kids bar the strange inclusion of two horribly animated cgi characters (which I feel didn't fit at all with the look of the film & ruined the overall visual style of the movie). Dora the movie is also so self aware & full of strange adult humour/jokes that seemingly mock its own source material too which found hilarious. This along with how the overall tone was handled made such a fun & fresh aproach for a kids film that made it exciting & enjoyable to watch. Visually its beautiful with such vibrancy & vastness that sets feel alive/exciting to explore. They really captured the sense of adventure & discovery here & although most of the film is just a re-skin of Indiana jones and the last crusade it never felt stale or any less thrilling bringing back the same feelings I had while watching those films way back when I first saw them in my youth. Cast wise everyone one does a smashing job at over acting which only adds to the tone & humour with Michael Pena owning every scene he's in with his energy alone. Miles better than the last Tomb Raider & Indy films & filled with such randomness, strangeness, 4th wall breaking & fun Dora is a film recent Disney movies could learn a thing or to from, its genuinely hilarious, has great production values, a decent sense of threat, positive messages about leaving your comfort zone & a smart self awareness making it a really enjoyable watch. Oh & that Danny Trejo cameo 😂