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Nobody's Fool (2018)
Nobody's Fool (2018)
2018 | Comedy, Drama
Is this really a romcom? That's what I have to ask myself. It's amusing but beyond that I'm not a fan of whatever this movie seems to be.

Tiffany Haddish had grown on me after Night School a couple of months ago, I'm not convinced that this one is helping my opinion at all though. She's my favourite part of this film though along with Frank for the most part.

Danica's job plays a big part in the sub plot of this one and it reminds me a lot of How To Lose A Guy In 10 Days. Only in that it actually made sense and more than a little effort had been put into the execution.

Until about the halfway point I was enjoying the movie, but damn it if Danica wasn't a complete bitch. I wasn't exactly a fan at the beginning but it went swiftly downhill. She's got plenty of things that you should be able to identify with, but absolutely none that you want to. She's a surprisingly dislikeable character. It was honestly refreshing to have Frank tell her to f*** off. In most movies that situation is glossed over and given a narrative that is a bit more palatable.

A lot of us can identify with the perils of online dating, so for the briefest moment you can feel the pain she's going through. Charlie is a hideous culmination of experiences. I'm sure we all noticed something that made us a little queasy to see. There's definitely a good drinking game in there somewhere.

While my dislike of this film evened out for a while it was reinforced with that ending. It really made me hate Frank just a little bit, and want to actively boo the screen.

As a last note on the film I'd like to say that I love seeing Whoopi Goldberg again. She's in some of my favourite films and it was great having her back in such a funny role. Keep an eye out for her scene with Tanya at her house, best bit of the whole film.

What you should do

There are better romcoms out there to see. I'd suggest Think Like A Man or How To Lose A Guy In 10 Days instead.

Movie thing you wish you could take home

Despite my feelings for Danica she does have fantastic taste in sofas and I'd love one of those pink ones to curl up in.
  
Endless (2020)
Endless (2020)
2020 | Drama, Fantasy, Romance
Alexandra Shipp's acting is OK (1 more)
The British Columbian scenary
The script, the acting and the direction (0 more)
A Ghost "Ditto" - but without the star quality
Riley (Alexandra Shipp) and Chris (Nicholas Hamilton) are teenage lovers about to be torn apart... but not in the way you think. Riley is about to turn her back on her talent for comic book art to follow her parent's wishes: to study law on the other side of the country in Georgetown. Chris is from the other side of the tracks - aren't they always in these films? - living in a one-parent family with his mother Lee (Bond-girl Famke Janssen).

But fate is about to push them even further apart as - with an advert as to why drinking, texting and driving don't mix - Chris is killed in a car crash. Tragedy - when the feeling's gone and you can't go on! Can their love for each other reach beyond death itself, and if so, at what cost?

We've been here before of course with the Demi Moore / Patrick Swayze hit "Ghost" from 1990. That was an Oscar winner (Best Supporting Actress for Whoopi Goldberg and screenplay by Bruce Joel Rubin). Will "Endless" - a teen-love version - match this potential? Unfortunately, without a potter's wheel in sight, it doesn't stand a ghost of a chance.

It feels like it's not for the want of trying from the five youngsters* at the heart of the action, with Eddie Ramos and Zoƫ Belkin playing the lover's best friends and DeRon Horton being the limbo-trapped ghost-guide equivalent to the subway dropout from "Ghost". (* I say "youngsters", but most seem to be in their late twenties!) )

All seem to invest their energy into the project. Unfortunately, with the exception of Alexandra Shipp, the energy is not matched with great acting talent. Poor Nicholas Hamilton (the bully from "It") seems to have a particularly limited range, with his resting expression being "gormless".

None of the adult actors fair much better, with Famke Janssen being particularly unconvincing.

As I said, the exception here is Alexandra Shipp, who had a supporting role in "Love, Simon" and a more centre-stage role as "Storm" in the otherwise disappointing "X-Men: Dark Phoenix". Here she remains eminently watchable, but is hog-bound by a seriously dodgy script.

If you read my bob-the-movie-man blog regularly, you will know I reach for my flame-thrower at the appearance of voiceovers. And the start of this movie made me shudder with fear as a "tell, not show" approach was followed. It's a mild blessing that the script - by Andre Case and O'Neil Sharma - used this device purely as a slightly lazy way to set the scene and the voiceover didn't rear its ugly head again.

However, on a broader basis, the screenplay doesn't excite - predictability is its middle name - and it contains lines of dialogue that are absolute stinkers. There are whole sections of the movie that defy belief, with a police investigation in particular appearing completely incompetent. The result is that it adds neither drama or tension.

Through my career in IT I've had the great fortune to travel to a number of small cities in Canada, and all have appealed with their consistently picturesque qualities and consistently quirky individuals! Here we have the cities of Kelowna and Vernon in British Columbia playing California, and the drone cinematography (by Frank Borin and Mark Dobrescu) displays the dramatic lake-filled scenery to the full.

With so many cookie-cutter movies out there, it feels like the non-horror "Ghost" recipe (or "Heaven Can Wait" / "It's a Wonderful Life" / "A Matter of Life and Death" / delete per your preference) is well overdue for a makeover. Unfortunately, director Scott Speer's attempt just isn't good enough to fill the void. And that's a shame.

(For the full graphical review, please check out the bob-the-movie-man review here - https://rb.gy/mzq6jx . Thanks.)
  
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Pete Thompson (4339 KP) rated The Stand in TV

Feb 10, 2021  
The Stand
The Stand
2020 | Adventure, Drama, Fantasy
The music (0 more)
Casting of characters, changes of sex and race of characters, something as simple as a beginning, middle and end has now become the directors idea of being clever and jumping forwards and backwards (0 more)
I've never written a full review before as I let my score tell the story for the film/TV show in my view and don't like to influence people by what I write, simply put watch it and make your own judgement but with this steaming pile of crap I've had to do this just to get the anger and loathing off my chest.

I heard this was being redone and was looking forward to it having an update and a larger budget than the 94 version (which I love) I thought it wouldn't be as good but would be a solid installment.
 I listen to audio books now as I dont get time to read with work and my toddler keeping me busy so I got The Stand to listen to; to get the story back into my head properly and get the juices flowing. I had read it back in the 90s but had forgotten things about it and just had memories of the 94 mini series and had put the scenes from that into the book. Anyway the cast list came out with their characters and just looking through them I said the only 1 that might be ok was Whoopi Goldberg as Mother Abigail. The rest I wasn't keen on and in the case of Larry and The Judge being the wrong race and sex respectively made me irrate and Glen being too young but thought I better wait and see. Oh my god I was proven wrong not being keen was great until I actually watched this mess. Main characters that don't get much screen time Nick, Flagg, Tom, Mother Abigail, Larry and Stu compared to the book and 94 series. Harold gets waaaay too much screen time, Lloyd is just an irritating man child twerp, Tom needs to be punched whats with the hands together bow like he is chinese? And trashcan man oh my word who the hell thought that was the performance required? I can honestly say I wouldnt even swap the peripheral actors from 94 for the main cast in this.

The original story had a beginning, middle and end. The 94 series did it the same. Welcome to 2020/21 series and a director that thinks he's being clever starting the show at the midway point and having flash backs but only for certain characters at certain times in each episode. Even knowing the book and 94 series didn't help to keep track of where the story was and what time frame. I sst there getting more and more angry at the stupid style but what made it worse is the liberties taken to change the story no tunnel sequence for Larry now a sewer so 80s/90s horror cliche, Mother Abigail is in a retirement home not still living independently in her own home baking her own bread. Nick and Tom being in the same town from the start not meeting on the road in the case for Nick, no sherif and doctor that Nick meets after his beating on the road not in a bar as shown in this version. Video cameras being used by Harold to spy on the committee and to monitor his home were never in the book he read Franny' diary on the road and she breaks into his house 1st not Larry. Randall Flagg is supposed to be feared by the good side but this version is laughable as you barely see him and when he is there there is no feeling of threat and underlying malice from him, I expected a lot better from Skarsgard after his brother knocked it out the park with Stephen Kings IT remake. He just didn't seem to really be arsed about the character and was there for a paycheck.

Anyway sorry for such a long rant but loving the book and 94 series this pile of dog s**t should be scrubbed from all records and forgotten about the only redeeming things it has going for it is the music and thats usually a song just as the episode is about to end and the evil side looks a lot more like it would for people without moral compasses and surpasses the 94 series on this part only.

I give it a 2 / 10 and it only gets that due to the music. A very disappointing reboot when all you had to do was follow a great book with the right casting.
  
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Pete Thompson (4339 KP) Feb 10, 2021

I jumped the gun reviewing this when I did as I hadn't seen to the end. Oh my word talk about taking liberties with the story and also made me notice that The Ratman was now a Ratwoman and Ralph had also changed sex and race to a female Native American from a white male. Funny how no mention of the equivalent of white washing.