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Gareth von Kallenbach (980 KP) rated Long Shot (2019) in Movies
Jul 2, 2019
When his small paper is bought out but a large media conglomerate the free-spirited journalist Fred Flarsky (Seth Rogen) quits rather write for a company he believes has a low moral compass. His best friend Lance (O’Shea Jackson Jr.) takes him out on the town to drown his sorrows. They decide to go to a charity function to get free drinks and watch Boyz II Men. As chance would have it Fred’s babysitter from high school, Charlotte Field (Charlize Theron), is also there. Charlotte happens to be one of the most powerful women in the world. She is currently the Secretary of State and has her eyes set on the on the White House. But she recognizes Fred and they connect for a few moments. This chance meeting seems fortuitous for both. Fred needs a job and Charlotte is in need of a writer to help punch up her speeches. Fred also gets the chance to travel the world with his high school crush. Even though Fred isn’t your normal member of a government official’s entourage, dresses like a child, has a scraggly beard and looks high even when not, he can write. So he gets the chance to write entire speeches. As his role increases he needs to get to know this version of Charlotte a little better, rather than the girl he know in high school. They begin to spend more and more time together getting to know each other. Then a near death experience in Manilla leads to a wild night between the odd couple. But rather than a onetime thing the two begin sneaking away together. But as Charlotte heads toward a Presidential Campaign it seem inevitable that this secret relationship needs to end or go public.
This Jonathan Levine (The Night Before, Snatched) directed romantic comedy is predictable with flares of originality. The cast is great. Rogen and Theron have good chemistry and do well. The supporting cast, O’Shea (Straight Outta Compton) as well as June Diane Raphael (Blockers, The Disaster Artist), Ravi Patel (T.V. series Wrecked, Grandfathered), Andy Serkis (Black Panther, The Lord of the Rings Trilogy) and others, all have fun moments. Bob Odenkirk (T.V.’s Better Call Saul) is very funny in his role as President Chambers. The comedy is fun, but raunchy at times. There were definitely laugh out loud moments. But some of the jokes were predictable and other good jokes were spoiled by the trailers, so avoid if possible. The story was also pretty predictable with the outcome never really in doubt but the ride was fun and had both really good moments and some that fell flat. It blended what could be believable politics with some things you know would not be, or you really hope couldn’t be, done by someone in a powerful government position.
I thought the film was good but it did run a little long, 125 minutes. I think it would be a good date movie but definitely leave the kids at home due to prevalent drug use and raunchy moments. I went in with low expectations and that could also help. But if you need a laugh or non-super hero movie to see this is worth the ticket price.
This Jonathan Levine (The Night Before, Snatched) directed romantic comedy is predictable with flares of originality. The cast is great. Rogen and Theron have good chemistry and do well. The supporting cast, O’Shea (Straight Outta Compton) as well as June Diane Raphael (Blockers, The Disaster Artist), Ravi Patel (T.V. series Wrecked, Grandfathered), Andy Serkis (Black Panther, The Lord of the Rings Trilogy) and others, all have fun moments. Bob Odenkirk (T.V.’s Better Call Saul) is very funny in his role as President Chambers. The comedy is fun, but raunchy at times. There were definitely laugh out loud moments. But some of the jokes were predictable and other good jokes were spoiled by the trailers, so avoid if possible. The story was also pretty predictable with the outcome never really in doubt but the ride was fun and had both really good moments and some that fell flat. It blended what could be believable politics with some things you know would not be, or you really hope couldn’t be, done by someone in a powerful government position.
I thought the film was good but it did run a little long, 125 minutes. I think it would be a good date movie but definitely leave the kids at home due to prevalent drug use and raunchy moments. I went in with low expectations and that could also help. But if you need a laugh or non-super hero movie to see this is worth the ticket price.
Sarah (7799 KP) rated Amazon Echo Dot (3rd Generation) in Tech
Nov 4, 2019
Wonderfully useful and functional
I’m one of those people who often takes a while to get into and accept new technology. Not because I’m a technophobe, in fact I’m a massive techie and often the go to person for tech related issues within my family and friends. My issue is that I find a lot of technology is encouraging people to become lazier or become out of touch with basic home skills (like smart ovens or washers, I just don’t get it!). I’ve often lumped smart speakers like the Echo Dot in the same category in that I just didn’t see the point in them when most people still have functioning old school speaker systems. However I can honestly say my mind has definitely been changed for the better on the Echo.
Firstly it looks and feels great. I was expecting a rather flimsy feeling speaker but in fact it feels quite weighty and substantial, and the Sandstone version that I’ve bought looks rather sleek. It stands out and looks good but at the same time isn’t at any time the focal point in a room. The speaker aspect is rather good too and has a decent sound quality. I’ve placed this in my kitchen, as I have a fairly open downstairs and the sound easily reaches the entire floor - I can even speak to Alexa from my living room which is a good 7+ metres away with only a standard sized doorway for sound to reach through. Admittedly I had to mute the TV, but I’m still impressed she can hear me from there! The Echo Dot links up seamlessly with my Spotify account and I’m surprised it plays so well and doesn’t encourage you to try and sign up to Amazon Music instead.
The thing about the Echo Dot is that it isn’t just a glorified speaker and it’s only from owning one that I’ve truly appreciated this. As well as music, Alexa also helps out with so much more like reminders, timers and the weather as well as a whole host of fun features. There are so many fun things you can ask Alexa (google it if you haven’t already), too many to name although one of my favourites is “Alexa, find Chuck Norris”. There’s also the rather sad fact that as I live on my own, Alexa provides a rather welcome conversational partner and definitely less one sided than talking to the cat! I’m also a rather forgetful person, so having the ability to ask Alexa to set reminders when I can’t do something at the time (i.e. remembering to take the bins out when I’m in the middle of making dinner) is a god send. I’m surprised at how well the voice recognition works too. I’ve often experienced issues with voice recognition on mobile phones, because it doesn’t appear to like the northern accent, but Alexa so far has not had any issues. Maybe I need to speak “proper” Northern and see how she reacts...
I love this that much that I’m looking at buying a second Echo Dot for my upstairs so I have full coverage in my house, and can then take advantage of using Alexa as my morning wake up call amongst as well as being able to link both together to act as a multi room speaker system. Fingers crossed I’ll be able to get a bargain during Black Friday in a couple of weeks!
Firstly it looks and feels great. I was expecting a rather flimsy feeling speaker but in fact it feels quite weighty and substantial, and the Sandstone version that I’ve bought looks rather sleek. It stands out and looks good but at the same time isn’t at any time the focal point in a room. The speaker aspect is rather good too and has a decent sound quality. I’ve placed this in my kitchen, as I have a fairly open downstairs and the sound easily reaches the entire floor - I can even speak to Alexa from my living room which is a good 7+ metres away with only a standard sized doorway for sound to reach through. Admittedly I had to mute the TV, but I’m still impressed she can hear me from there! The Echo Dot links up seamlessly with my Spotify account and I’m surprised it plays so well and doesn’t encourage you to try and sign up to Amazon Music instead.
The thing about the Echo Dot is that it isn’t just a glorified speaker and it’s only from owning one that I’ve truly appreciated this. As well as music, Alexa also helps out with so much more like reminders, timers and the weather as well as a whole host of fun features. There are so many fun things you can ask Alexa (google it if you haven’t already), too many to name although one of my favourites is “Alexa, find Chuck Norris”. There’s also the rather sad fact that as I live on my own, Alexa provides a rather welcome conversational partner and definitely less one sided than talking to the cat! I’m also a rather forgetful person, so having the ability to ask Alexa to set reminders when I can’t do something at the time (i.e. remembering to take the bins out when I’m in the middle of making dinner) is a god send. I’m surprised at how well the voice recognition works too. I’ve often experienced issues with voice recognition on mobile phones, because it doesn’t appear to like the northern accent, but Alexa so far has not had any issues. Maybe I need to speak “proper” Northern and see how she reacts...
I love this that much that I’m looking at buying a second Echo Dot for my upstairs so I have full coverage in my house, and can then take advantage of using Alexa as my morning wake up call amongst as well as being able to link both together to act as a multi room speaker system. Fingers crossed I’ll be able to get a bargain during Black Friday in a couple of weeks!
Emma @ The Movies (1786 KP) rated Jumanji: The Next Level (2019) in Movies
Jan 9, 2020
Time for more fun in Jumanji? You didn't even need to show me a trailer, I was in.
Life has moved on for everyone since they escaped Jumanji, but Spencer isn't having the same great life that the others are. When he doesn't turn up to their mini-reunion, Martha, Bethany and Fridge head over to his house to check on him. It doesn't seem like he's in but Grandpa Eddie invites them in, nothing seems untoward, that is until they hear the drums that lead them to the basement and the reconstructed remains of the destroyed games console.
I enjoyed the twist of these tales. We went from board game to video game and successfully gave the whole thing a modern update and as the title suggests we go to the next level of the game to freshen up the similar storyline to the last instalment. It felt like a really good way to progress the series but going forward it may cause some issues which I'll mention more later.
This is firmly in the "if it ain't broke don't fix it" camp, Welcome To The Jungle was great fun and so hopes were high for this, it didn't disappoint. Our in-game character actors get to flex their muscles in new ways and it managed to keet the body-swapping element entertaining without feeling like we'd already "been there, done that".
The new characters had me a little worried, DeVito and Glover are great but I wasn't sure how they would translate into Johnson and Hart, and I find Awkwakina to be very Marmite, so when I saw her in a clip I was on the fence. All was well though. Johnson and Hart interacted just right as Eddie and Milo and Awkwafina made a great job of her switched up role. Jack Black brought me the most joy though as he got to take on Fridge's persona.
Jumanji: The Next Level has some fun little touches here and there but my favourite has to be the Bond girl exit, you'll know it when you see it but I don't want to spoil it for you if you haven't seen the film. So much of this film was entertaining and even when I wasn't laughing I was smiling.
The only real drawback was that I worked out fairly early on what was going to happen, it didn't take away from the film though and I thought it ended up giving us an excellent storyline to play out. And damn it if I didn't cry.
Everything comes together really well, the effects were never overly obvious, the sets and costumes were great, and it all gives you a solid, fun film. It's here for entertainment and it delivers.
Where does it go from here? We're left with a solid lay up for a third (fourth depending on how you look at it) film. On the one hand I like what that set up is doing, but on the other, it could be leading us to a dead end. I don't know what the plans were for these films as a series but I don't think that the quality could persist for much longer. Hopefully we won't have to see it overplayed.
I'm hoping to get a rewatch of this in at the weekend, having not already done so, I would say I didn't like it as much as the first outing... but it was still a great adventure.
Originally posted on: https://emmaatthemovies.blogspot.com/2020/01/jumanji-next-level-movie-review.html
Life has moved on for everyone since they escaped Jumanji, but Spencer isn't having the same great life that the others are. When he doesn't turn up to their mini-reunion, Martha, Bethany and Fridge head over to his house to check on him. It doesn't seem like he's in but Grandpa Eddie invites them in, nothing seems untoward, that is until they hear the drums that lead them to the basement and the reconstructed remains of the destroyed games console.
I enjoyed the twist of these tales. We went from board game to video game and successfully gave the whole thing a modern update and as the title suggests we go to the next level of the game to freshen up the similar storyline to the last instalment. It felt like a really good way to progress the series but going forward it may cause some issues which I'll mention more later.
This is firmly in the "if it ain't broke don't fix it" camp, Welcome To The Jungle was great fun and so hopes were high for this, it didn't disappoint. Our in-game character actors get to flex their muscles in new ways and it managed to keet the body-swapping element entertaining without feeling like we'd already "been there, done that".
The new characters had me a little worried, DeVito and Glover are great but I wasn't sure how they would translate into Johnson and Hart, and I find Awkwakina to be very Marmite, so when I saw her in a clip I was on the fence. All was well though. Johnson and Hart interacted just right as Eddie and Milo and Awkwafina made a great job of her switched up role. Jack Black brought me the most joy though as he got to take on Fridge's persona.
Jumanji: The Next Level has some fun little touches here and there but my favourite has to be the Bond girl exit, you'll know it when you see it but I don't want to spoil it for you if you haven't seen the film. So much of this film was entertaining and even when I wasn't laughing I was smiling.
The only real drawback was that I worked out fairly early on what was going to happen, it didn't take away from the film though and I thought it ended up giving us an excellent storyline to play out. And damn it if I didn't cry.
Everything comes together really well, the effects were never overly obvious, the sets and costumes were great, and it all gives you a solid, fun film. It's here for entertainment and it delivers.
Where does it go from here? We're left with a solid lay up for a third (fourth depending on how you look at it) film. On the one hand I like what that set up is doing, but on the other, it could be leading us to a dead end. I don't know what the plans were for these films as a series but I don't think that the quality could persist for much longer. Hopefully we won't have to see it overplayed.
I'm hoping to get a rewatch of this in at the weekend, having not already done so, I would say I didn't like it as much as the first outing... but it was still a great adventure.
Originally posted on: https://emmaatthemovies.blogspot.com/2020/01/jumanji-next-level-movie-review.html
Gareth von Kallenbach (980 KP) rated We Bought a Zoo (2011) in Movies
Aug 7, 2019
From the director of Jerry Maguire and Almost Famous, Cameron Crowe has brought us a great new film starring Mat Damon, Scarlett Johansson, Thomas Hadden Church and up and coming star Elle Fanning. Packed with amazing talent; “We Bought a Zoo” is a heartwarming true story of a man who wants to start over and in doing so, he provides a new life for his young family and his new friends.
Benjamin Mee (Mat Damon), a widowed father of two young children Dylan (Colin Ford) and Rosie (Magie Elizabeth Jones) are in need of a new start. Benjamin’s brother Duncan (Thomas Haden Church) has always provided Benjamin with useless and impractical advice. Only this time he strikes the nail on the head by telling his brother that he has to start over. He teams up with Mr. Stevens (J.B Smoove), a first time real estate agent and his daughter Rosie to find the perfect home to start there new future. When they come across the perfect house it comes with some big responsibilities. The Mee family have just become the new owners of a struggling Zoo (Rosemoore Wildlife Park). The Zoo is run by Kelly Foster (Scarlett Johansson) head zookeeper, Peter, Robin and her cousin Lily (Elle Fanning).They are in need of someone to take charge of the Zoo or it will close forever. With over forty seven animal species, the Zoo is in need of someone with lots of heart and determination to keep it from closing. Although everybody has doubts about Benjamin, even himself, he never gives up. Benjamin and his family are able to start fresh and after an argument here and there among father and son, are able to leave the past behind and look forward to the future.
“We Bought a Zoo” is such a heartwarming true story that will leave you with inspiration. The film is filled with vibrant colors, great cinematography, amazing actors and filled with such inspiration that I would be surprised if it is not in this years Oscar line up. Mat Damon surely delivers in his portrayal of Benjamin Mee. Most children actors don’t go far in the showbiz but great things come in small packages with Magie Elizabeth Jones. At her very young age of seven and her performance in this film I would be surprised if she doesn’t end up being a big star. Elle Fanning and Colin Ford make the perfect young couple and were perfectly paired up as the roles of Colin and Lily and like her sister Dakota Fanning she is becoming a great young actress. I wasn’t very impressed with Scarlett Johansson in this film as she always in my opinion plays the same sort of character in most of her movies with the exception of The Black Widow in the Iron Man films. Though having a somewhat small part in this film, Thomas Haden Church always seems to live up to the characters he portrays especially as Duncan.
This film is one that definitely can not be missed and is a perfect film to kick of the new year. If you love animals and are wanting to see a heartfelt film you will with out a doubt love this film and is definitely Oscar worthy. I left the theater feeling inspired and wanting to help animals that are going extinct. Big cats are disappearing at an alarming rate and with our help we can cause an uproar. To help go to causeanuproar.org to help.
Benjamin Mee (Mat Damon), a widowed father of two young children Dylan (Colin Ford) and Rosie (Magie Elizabeth Jones) are in need of a new start. Benjamin’s brother Duncan (Thomas Haden Church) has always provided Benjamin with useless and impractical advice. Only this time he strikes the nail on the head by telling his brother that he has to start over. He teams up with Mr. Stevens (J.B Smoove), a first time real estate agent and his daughter Rosie to find the perfect home to start there new future. When they come across the perfect house it comes with some big responsibilities. The Mee family have just become the new owners of a struggling Zoo (Rosemoore Wildlife Park). The Zoo is run by Kelly Foster (Scarlett Johansson) head zookeeper, Peter, Robin and her cousin Lily (Elle Fanning).They are in need of someone to take charge of the Zoo or it will close forever. With over forty seven animal species, the Zoo is in need of someone with lots of heart and determination to keep it from closing. Although everybody has doubts about Benjamin, even himself, he never gives up. Benjamin and his family are able to start fresh and after an argument here and there among father and son, are able to leave the past behind and look forward to the future.
“We Bought a Zoo” is such a heartwarming true story that will leave you with inspiration. The film is filled with vibrant colors, great cinematography, amazing actors and filled with such inspiration that I would be surprised if it is not in this years Oscar line up. Mat Damon surely delivers in his portrayal of Benjamin Mee. Most children actors don’t go far in the showbiz but great things come in small packages with Magie Elizabeth Jones. At her very young age of seven and her performance in this film I would be surprised if she doesn’t end up being a big star. Elle Fanning and Colin Ford make the perfect young couple and were perfectly paired up as the roles of Colin and Lily and like her sister Dakota Fanning she is becoming a great young actress. I wasn’t very impressed with Scarlett Johansson in this film as she always in my opinion plays the same sort of character in most of her movies with the exception of The Black Widow in the Iron Man films. Though having a somewhat small part in this film, Thomas Haden Church always seems to live up to the characters he portrays especially as Duncan.
This film is one that definitely can not be missed and is a perfect film to kick of the new year. If you love animals and are wanting to see a heartfelt film you will with out a doubt love this film and is definitely Oscar worthy. I left the theater feeling inspired and wanting to help animals that are going extinct. Big cats are disappearing at an alarming rate and with our help we can cause an uproar. To help go to causeanuproar.org to help.
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Bob Mann (459 KP) rated Ghost Stories (2018) in Movies
Sep 29, 2021
In that sleep of death, what dreams may come.
“Ghost Stories” is based on the spooky London West-End stage play by Jeremy Dyson and Andy Nyman who both write and direct the film version. I didn’t know this until the end credits, but began to wonder in the final act where the action suddenly becomes very “stagey” in nature. The screenplay was always bound to be both bizarre and intriguing, since Dyson has been a past contributor to TV’s “League of Gentlemen” and other equally surreal programmes and Nyman has been a major collaborator with the stage-illusionist Derren Brown.
Nyman himself plays TV paranormal debunker Professor Goodman who receives a surprise message from a respected colleague, long thought dead, who on his death bed wants Goodman to investigate the three cases from his career that he was never able to debunk. The first concerns Tony Matthews (Paul Whitehouse, “The Death of Stalin“) as a night watchman at a spooky old asylum; the second concerns Simon Rifkind (Alex Lawther, young Turing in “The Imitation Game“) as a freaked-out young man with a forest breakdown; and Mike Priddle (Martin Freeman, “Black Panther“) as a rich broker with parenting issues. As Goodman investigates each case weirder and weirder things start to happen: is this his mind playing tricks as his faith is rocked, or is there something more sinister going on?
The primary issue I have with this film is its portmanteau nature, harking back to similar films like “The Twilight Zone: the Movie”. Having three segments, loosely linked together, feels like a clunky device for a feature film…. (“Why are there three cases to investigate? Well, two would have made the film too short, and four would have made it too long!”).
That being said, the overall story arc and the drawing together of the strands for the unexpected (although not terribly original) conclusion, is intriguing.
The film looks and feels like a British-made horror film, which is both a compliment and a criticism. Who doesn’t like the jump-scares and the vague tackiness of a Hammer horror? But if you care to compare the production values on show here versus “A Quiet Place“, there is no comparison. The location-shot scenes (which are most of the scenes) seem to be very poorly lit: and that’s the non-spooky ones where you are supposed to see what’s going on!
The cast seem to be well-suited to their roles, with Paul Whitehouse in particular being impressive as the ‘on the make’ Matthews, who always feels like being on the knife-edge of violent outburst. I particularly liked Alex Lawther who does “spooked” extremely well! The script also seems to be well-tuned to the characters, with a number of laugh-out-loud lines. “****ing O2” exclaims Simon as he waves his mobile in the air… something the marketing department at the telecoms giant must have loved!
The critics seem to have been overtly positive about this film, which I can’t quite match. Apart from one or two scenes towards the end, all of the jump scares were pretty well signposted in advance. But it’s still as fun as a slightly tacky ghost house ride at the fairground, if you like that sort of thing, and is certainly a much more interesting and better watch in my book than some recent and much higher budget horror films like “It“.
Nyman himself plays TV paranormal debunker Professor Goodman who receives a surprise message from a respected colleague, long thought dead, who on his death bed wants Goodman to investigate the three cases from his career that he was never able to debunk. The first concerns Tony Matthews (Paul Whitehouse, “The Death of Stalin“) as a night watchman at a spooky old asylum; the second concerns Simon Rifkind (Alex Lawther, young Turing in “The Imitation Game“) as a freaked-out young man with a forest breakdown; and Mike Priddle (Martin Freeman, “Black Panther“) as a rich broker with parenting issues. As Goodman investigates each case weirder and weirder things start to happen: is this his mind playing tricks as his faith is rocked, or is there something more sinister going on?
The primary issue I have with this film is its portmanteau nature, harking back to similar films like “The Twilight Zone: the Movie”. Having three segments, loosely linked together, feels like a clunky device for a feature film…. (“Why are there three cases to investigate? Well, two would have made the film too short, and four would have made it too long!”).
That being said, the overall story arc and the drawing together of the strands for the unexpected (although not terribly original) conclusion, is intriguing.
The film looks and feels like a British-made horror film, which is both a compliment and a criticism. Who doesn’t like the jump-scares and the vague tackiness of a Hammer horror? But if you care to compare the production values on show here versus “A Quiet Place“, there is no comparison. The location-shot scenes (which are most of the scenes) seem to be very poorly lit: and that’s the non-spooky ones where you are supposed to see what’s going on!
The cast seem to be well-suited to their roles, with Paul Whitehouse in particular being impressive as the ‘on the make’ Matthews, who always feels like being on the knife-edge of violent outburst. I particularly liked Alex Lawther who does “spooked” extremely well! The script also seems to be well-tuned to the characters, with a number of laugh-out-loud lines. “****ing O2” exclaims Simon as he waves his mobile in the air… something the marketing department at the telecoms giant must have loved!
The critics seem to have been overtly positive about this film, which I can’t quite match. Apart from one or two scenes towards the end, all of the jump scares were pretty well signposted in advance. But it’s still as fun as a slightly tacky ghost house ride at the fairground, if you like that sort of thing, and is certainly a much more interesting and better watch in my book than some recent and much higher budget horror films like “It“.
Lee Richmond (19 KP) rated Halloween (2018) in Movies
Mar 5, 2019
Face your fate.
It's 1999 and my twenty years younger self is spending the entire year getting hyped for The Phantom Menace. That movie dominated my year. I had queued at ToysRUs when they released the new figures just to get my hands on a Darth Maul and a Podracer. I had brought the CD of John Williams Soundtrack. I had seen every trailer countless times and as soon as they were put on sale I brought two tickets so that I could watch the movie twice on the same day. I sat in the theatre as the Lucasfilm logo appeared and thought 'this is it'. Then the end credits rolled and I left the movie and headed to get something to eat before the next showing, all the while trying to convince myself that I had loved what I had just watched. Truth is I couldn't do it. I hadn't loved it at all. It left me deflated and all I could think was that I had to sit and watch it all again as all that excitement turned to shit with every clunky piece of dialogue and every scene featuring Jar Jar fucking Binks. It hurt and I promised I would never get so hyped for a movie again.
Fast forward to 2018. I had been excited for the prospect of Halloween since it was announced. Jamie Lee was involved and it was a direct sequel. Both of these things had me invested. Then the trailer dropped and that old familiar feeling of hype that I had promised to forgo started to creep over me once more. Now I should add that John Carpenters original 1978 movie is one of my all time favourites. I love that movie. To me it is an example of perfect horror story telling. It's simple yet incredibly effective at doing what it says on the tin and I rewatch it every year on Haloween as a tradition.
Time came for opening night and I had purchased my ticket in advance (but only one this time just in case) and as we sat waiting for the movie to start even my wife commented that I appeared nervous. I was nervous. I had every right to be nervous because the mishandling of something that means so much to me would mean major disappointment. I am a movie geek. Movies mean so much to me, especially Halloween and I take disappointment pretty badly. So the movie played out. That old familiar score played over the top of bright orange titles against a black background as a pumpkin seemed to unrot and I loved it. I loved the steady build to Michaels escape. I loved how being locked up for so long just seemed to make him more relentless. Once he was out and let loose on Haddonfield I was hooked. The killing spree that followed as Michael went from house to house on a rampage fueled by 40 years of incarceration had me mentally punching the air with happiness. Jamie Lee Curtis though was something else all together. Her portrayal of Laurie suffering from four decades of pent up PTSD was nothing short of brilliant. I could really feel for this character that I have adored for so many years. Laurie will always be my number 1 final girl. She survived the original Halloween because she was smart, and wasn't distracted like her sex mad, airhead friends. Seeing how the events of the first film had effected her life so dramatically was like watching an old friend going through a really hard time. The closing twenty minutes literally had me on the edge of my seat as Laurie searches one dark room after another, the hunted becoming the hunter. You know Michael is there lurking somewhere, but where? The final image as a trapped Michael stares up at his escaping prey, so fixed on Laurie that he fails to even notice that he is being engulfed in flames really stuck with me after the credits rolled.
Now I'm not going as far as to say this film was perfect. Some of the humour fell a little flat and felt out of place and I hated the new Dr Loomis character and his plot twist. It felt crowbarred in and completely unnecessary. Had the rest of the film not been as tight it would have taken me out of the movie completely, but thankfully that was not the case. A lot of love and passion went into making this movie. Clearly the film makers are fans of the original and that really comes across on screen. It really honours Carpenters movie and evidently comes across as a love letter more than a cash in. I know this movie divided people. You either loved it or hated it and I am definitely in the camp of the former. Do I want another sequel? If the quality of this one is maintained then hell yeah. Halloween 2018 has taught me that allowing myself to get a little hyped now and again can sometimes be rewarding. Not everything has to be The Phantom Menace.
Fast forward to 2018. I had been excited for the prospect of Halloween since it was announced. Jamie Lee was involved and it was a direct sequel. Both of these things had me invested. Then the trailer dropped and that old familiar feeling of hype that I had promised to forgo started to creep over me once more. Now I should add that John Carpenters original 1978 movie is one of my all time favourites. I love that movie. To me it is an example of perfect horror story telling. It's simple yet incredibly effective at doing what it says on the tin and I rewatch it every year on Haloween as a tradition.
Time came for opening night and I had purchased my ticket in advance (but only one this time just in case) and as we sat waiting for the movie to start even my wife commented that I appeared nervous. I was nervous. I had every right to be nervous because the mishandling of something that means so much to me would mean major disappointment. I am a movie geek. Movies mean so much to me, especially Halloween and I take disappointment pretty badly. So the movie played out. That old familiar score played over the top of bright orange titles against a black background as a pumpkin seemed to unrot and I loved it. I loved the steady build to Michaels escape. I loved how being locked up for so long just seemed to make him more relentless. Once he was out and let loose on Haddonfield I was hooked. The killing spree that followed as Michael went from house to house on a rampage fueled by 40 years of incarceration had me mentally punching the air with happiness. Jamie Lee Curtis though was something else all together. Her portrayal of Laurie suffering from four decades of pent up PTSD was nothing short of brilliant. I could really feel for this character that I have adored for so many years. Laurie will always be my number 1 final girl. She survived the original Halloween because she was smart, and wasn't distracted like her sex mad, airhead friends. Seeing how the events of the first film had effected her life so dramatically was like watching an old friend going through a really hard time. The closing twenty minutes literally had me on the edge of my seat as Laurie searches one dark room after another, the hunted becoming the hunter. You know Michael is there lurking somewhere, but where? The final image as a trapped Michael stares up at his escaping prey, so fixed on Laurie that he fails to even notice that he is being engulfed in flames really stuck with me after the credits rolled.
Now I'm not going as far as to say this film was perfect. Some of the humour fell a little flat and felt out of place and I hated the new Dr Loomis character and his plot twist. It felt crowbarred in and completely unnecessary. Had the rest of the film not been as tight it would have taken me out of the movie completely, but thankfully that was not the case. A lot of love and passion went into making this movie. Clearly the film makers are fans of the original and that really comes across on screen. It really honours Carpenters movie and evidently comes across as a love letter more than a cash in. I know this movie divided people. You either loved it or hated it and I am definitely in the camp of the former. Do I want another sequel? If the quality of this one is maintained then hell yeah. Halloween 2018 has taught me that allowing myself to get a little hyped now and again can sometimes be rewarding. Not everything has to be The Phantom Menace.