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Oculus (2014)
Oculus (2014)
2014 | Drama, Horror
8
6.9 (17 Ratings)
Movie Rating
Mirror of misfortune
Oculus- a underrated horror jem that more people should watch.

It is spooky, thrilling, chilling, horrorfying, terrorfying, twisting, suspenseful, and overall a great horror film.

The plot: Haunted by the violent demise of their parents 10 years earlier, adult siblings Kaylie (Karen Gillan) and Tim (Brenton Thwaites) are now struggling to rebuild their relationship. Kaylie suspects that their antique mirror, known as the Lasser Glass, is behind the tragedy. The seemingly harmless reflections contain a malevolent, supernatural force that infects the mind of anyone who gazes into it. As Kaylie gets closer to the truth, the siblings become caught in the mirror's evil spell.

A highly reecordmend horror film.
  
Gods Of Egypt (2016)
Gods Of Egypt (2016)
2016 | Action, Sci-Fi
4
5.5 (15 Ratings)
Movie Rating
Entertainingly bad
Let's face it, you know a film with Gerard Butler in it is never going to be good. But at least with Gods of Egypt it's that bad it's vaguely entertaining.

It's take on Egyptian mythology is actually an interesting one and it's just a shame they decided to take some of it too far with over the top and pretty naff CGI. Gerard Butler hams it up and it's quite funny to listen to his accent constantly switching between English, Scottish and American. Nicolaj Coster-Waldau is a good actor but he's given absolutely nothing to work with here other than a terrible cheesy and stilted script. Brenton Thwaites isn't too bad either but he does seem to be playing a very similar character to that of the latest Pirates film.


This is one of those films you watch just to laugh at how bad it is. And fortunately for this, I've seen worse!
  
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Blazing Minds (92 KP) rated Maleficent: Mistress of Evil (2019) in Movies

Nov 1, 2021 (Updated Nov 3, 2021)  
Maleficent: Mistress of Evil (2019)
Maleficent: Mistress of Evil (2019)
2019 | Adventure, Family, Fantasy
Maleficent (Jolie) and her goddaughter Aurora (Fanning) begin to question the complex family ties that bind them as they are pulled in different directions by impending nuptials, unexpected allies, and dark new forces at play.

Most of the cast has returned for the sequel, with exception of the role of Prince Philip whos is now being played by Harris Dickinson who took over the role of from Brenton Thwaites due to scheduling conflicts with Titans (2018), but this doesn’t distract you from the film, let’s face it the previous movie was five years ago!

Maleficent: Mistress of Evil is a lavish-looking movie the opening sequence itself with the camera flying through the land across the water looks stunning on the IMAX screen, which really immerses you in the feeling of being there, the set designs really bring the magical world to life as do the myriad of faes that live in the magical kingdom.
  
Gods Of Egypt (2016)
Gods Of Egypt (2016)
2016 | Action, Sci-Fi
3
5.5 (15 Ratings)
Movie Rating
God Awful
Those of you who keep up to date with the goings on in the film world may be thinking Gods of Egypt was released way back in February; and you’d be right for thinking that.

The film, directed by Alex Proyas (I, Robot, Knowing) performed so poorly in America at the start of the year that its UK release was scrapped, until now. But is the resulting film as bad as its figures would suggest? Or are we looking at a future cult classic?

Good god no. From shocking dialogue to laughable special effects; Gods of Egypt is a dreadful dirge of a movie with practically no saving graces. It’s just that bad.

The survival of mankind hangs in the balance when Set (Gerard Butler), the merciless god of darkness, usurps Egypt’s throne and plunges the empire into chaos. Hoping to save the world and rescue his true love, a defiant mortal named Bek (Brenton Thwaites) forms an alliance with the powerful god Horus (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau) to stop Set before he destroys everything.

Thankfully, the plot itself isn’t too bad and has a vaguely interesting premise. The problem is how it is executed. Alex Proyas takes our protagonists on a rollercoaster ride of bland set pieces, populated by cardboard enemies and special effects that manage to look expensive and awful at the same time.

Gold, blood red, sparkling granite and deep, rich blacks all combine for a nauseating colour palate, only worsened by the cinematography. No shot is lingered on for any great amount of time – it’s like Alex Proyas was too terrified of allowing his audience to see the mess up close, shifting from frame to frame every few seconds.

Elsewhere, the acting is fairly inconsistent. Gerard Butler yet again channels his character from 300, while newcomer Brenton Thwaites looks po-faced as he spouts complete and utter drivel, a departure from his promising turn in 2013’s The Giver. The painful attempts at comedy fall flat on every single occasion and ensure no cast member leaves with their dignity intact.

2016 has thrown up some pretty bad films. London Has Fallen, Through the Looking Glass and Zoolander 2 spring immediately to mind, but this manages to outdo them by a country mile.

Overall, Gods of Egypt leaves you with more questions than it answers. Why is the Egyptian god of darkness Scottish? Why is it over two hours long? What on earth was Summit Entertainment thinking pouring $140million into this thing?

There is some good news at the end of this rather murky rainbow however. Your question as to whether you should go and see it may well be the only question that can be answered.

https://moviemetropolis.net/2016/06/18/god-awful-gods-of-egypt-review/
  
The Giver (2014)
The Giver (2014)
2014 | Drama, Sci-Fi
7
7.8 (6 Ratings)
Movie Rating
A Striking visual translation
Over the last decade, cinema-going audiences have had the treat of numerous adaptations of popular young adult novels. Some of them have been particularly great – the Harry Potter series the highlight – whilst others have been less than stellar – Twilight, I’m looking at you.

However, with The Hunger Games on the edge of its tantalising conclusion, director Phillip Noyce introduces teens and adults alike to a whole new world in The Giver, but can it seduce audiences which have already had numerous fantasy worlds to enjoy?

For the most part, yes. Noyce directs this adaptation with extreme visual flair and commands some great performances from the veteran actors, even if the young thespians pale a little in comparison.The-Giver-Brenton-Thwaites-character-poster-691x1024

The Giver follows a community dealing with the aftermath of a brutal conflict. The Elders (people in charge) have been forced to eradicate all feelings, emotion, colour and memories from the past to ensure that this doesn’t happen again. Unfortunately, the plan isn’t fool-proof and one person each generation must be tasked with storing information from the past to ensure the progression of the future.

The book’s intriguing premise brings a striking visual translation. The majority of the picture is shot in black and white which adds to the emotionless atmosphere – just how The Elders want it.

Meryl Streep plays the Chief Elder and despite her limited screen time manages to command each scene she is a part of – though we have come to expect nothing less from the woman who played Margaret Thatcher so beautifully. Jeff Bridges is the title character – The Giver, who manages to impart wisdom to the one teenager each generation.

The teenage characters, despite their constant presence on screen, lack the magic and sparkle of their older counterparts. Brenton Thwaites stars as The Receiver Jonas and is probably the best of the younger stars, though a decent turn by True Blood’s Alexander Skarsgard helps alleviate the offerings somewhat, and there’s even a small role for Taylor Swift.

Despite it’s reasonably small budget of $25million compared to The Hunger Games $78million, the special effects are all of a decent standard. Of course there’s a few lapses here and there in areas were most people would probably never notice, and a few larger issues involving unrealistic space ships – but there isn’t too much to criticise as the striking cinematography is were the eyes are drawn.

Overall, it’s easy to feel sorry for The Giver, it’s come at an awkward time when audiences aren’t ready to get invested in another young adult movie and therefore I predict its box office success will fall short of the quality of the film itself.

The acting is on the whole very good and it’s nice to see Meryl Streep getting her teeth into the role of a villain in a style similar to her role in The Devil Wears Prada, but it all feels a little unsure of itself. Is it a sentimental rom-com or a utopian thriller? Who knows, but it’s definitely worth a watch for the striking visuals alone.

https://moviemetropolis.net/2014/09/24/a-striking-visual-translation-the-giver-review/