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Mission: Impossible - Fallout (2018)
Mission: Impossible - Fallout (2018)
2018 | Action, Adventure, Thriller
Hunt on the edge… again.
2015’s “MI: Rogue Nation” was one of my favourite films of that year, so of all the summer blockbusters this was the one I was most looking forward to. Was I delighted? It’s a slightly qualified “YES!”.

The film neatly follows on from Rogue Nation with arch terrorist-in-need-of-a-razor Solomon Lane (Sean Harris) being extraordinarily renditioned (probably not a valid phrase!) between multiple countries who want to torture/punish him. But his followers – “The Apostles” – are still active and on the trail of plutonium that could devestate key sites, with religious centres being the top of the target list. Since Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) originally caught Lane, IMF Director Hunley (Alec Baldwin) despatches Hunt to intercept the plutonium.

But CIA director Erica Sloan (Angela Bassett) has no faith in the IMF, or trust that the organisation has not been infiltrated, and she insists that her ‘heavy’ August Walker (Henry Cavill) goes along for the ride. But they are not the only parties in play, for Isla Faust (Rebecca Ferguson) is also involved. But who is she working for?

What makes these films a cut above your average action adventure is the stunt work, with the knowledge that Cruise is at the centre of the action. In “Skyscraper” you KNOW Dwayne Johnson is standing on the ‘edge’ in front of a big green screen. Similarly here you KNOW Cruise is standing on the edge of the Tate Modern tower – probably without a safety line – as the camera goes 360 degrees around him. This makes all the difference to the adrenalin count.

There are some outstanding set pieces in the film, with extraordinarily spectacular shots from a ‘halo jump’ and a dramatic helicopter finale. But it is some of the smaller stuff that really impresses: a dramatic edge-of-the-seat car and motorbike chase through central Paris is one of the most impressive and terrifying things I’ve seen on film for many years; and Cruise’s literally bone-crunching run through London is also extremely exciting, with Simon Pegg adding good humour in his regular role of Benji. By the way, series regulars Ving Rhames, as Luther, and Michelle Monaghan, as Hunt’s ex-wife Julia, also make welcome returns but Jeremy Renner is missing this time.

Tom Cruise at 56 (he’s just 15 months younger than I am, damn it!) will eventually meet a Roger Moore-like Bond cliff when his Hunt role is no longer credible. But he’s not there yet! Rebecca Ferguson is again outstanding as Faust and as a newcomer in a similar role Vanessa Kirby (memorable as Princess Margaret in “The Crown”) impresses as the “White Widow” – someone with a familial link to a villain from the past!

Unusually, for a film series which has traditionally been kept fresh by changing directors and composers at each turn, Christopher McQuarrie (“Edge of Tomorrow“, “The Mummy“) returns following “Rogue Nation“, and he also writes the screenplay. The composing baton is handed over this time though to Lorne Balfe (“Churchill“, “Terminator: Genisys“) and for me this was a bit of a step down from the “Rogue Nation” soundtrack by Joe Kraemer which I really enjoyed.

Is it sufficiently fresh though? Let’s be clear here, I was enormously entertained throughout, and this should be near the top of your summer watch list. But it did ultimately feel at times a little like a light retread of “Rogue Nation“. Some of the stunts – notably the Paris and London scenes as above – were a step up for me, but there are some annoyances in McQuarrie’s script (see the spoiler section below the trailer), so for me the rating plateaus at the same as “Rogue Nation“.
  
Mission: Impossible - Fallout (2018)
Mission: Impossible - Fallout (2018)
2018 | Action, Adventure, Thriller
Real action (3 more)
Real stunts
Fantastically scored
Beautiful locations and cinematography
Pay the admission, accept this mission!
(Review from www.thechairport.com)When the Mission Impossible film franchise started it had a slightly rocky start. After a great first film, the second film fell short of the mark. Watching those first two films now you can see how different they are to the Mission we know now. Ever since the second Mission film, ever since JJ Abrams and the Bad Robot team took over, the Mission franchise has been ageing like a fine wine. Actually, it’s been ageing like Tom Cruise. Fallout, the sixth film in the Mission franchise is the best yet and easily one of the best action films of all time and it’s all thanks to its real action.

Mission Impossible: Fallout follows Ethan Hunt as he and his crew lose some plutonium they are trying to recover. The bad guys trying to use the plutonium are The Apostles, a spin-off group from Rogue Nation’s Syndicate. This time the IMF team are joined by a ruthless CIA agent, Walker played by Henry Cavill, who is there to ensure that the team retrieve the plutonium. The bad guys this time around, The Apostles, follow Solomon Lane’s thinking that to get peace the world must first experience a great suffering. With that line ringing throughout the IMF’s ears, the team is off on a race against time to stop The Apostles.

Fallout is filled with action and as far as action movies come, this film really takes the cake. Tom Cruise is just the man that everyone wants to be, as in he really seems like he can do anything. In the current state of cinema any other filmmaking team would’ve made this film with CGI effects all over yet Cruise and Fallout’s director, Christopher McQuarrie, have decided to do everything for real and it’s that element alone that makes the film.

There are moments in Fallout where you just sit there astonished by what you’re seeing happen in front of you. You feel shivers and the need to applause at the opening ten minutes of the film, your eye’s dash across the screen as you’re watching Cruise’s Ethan Hunt race through oncoming traffic in Paris and you’ll find yourself simply flabbergasted as you watch Cruise do anything at all in the helicopter sequence that you’ve definitely already heard about.

Mission Impossible: Fallout isn’t just simply an insane action blockbuster, it is more than that. Every actor on the screen knows that what they’re in is going to be something revolutionary for cinema and every actor really pulls their weight. Simon Pegg’s comedy is on point, Alec Baldwin’s acting as someone in charge is as good as ever, Henry Cavill being absolutely brutal is scary and cool at the same time. Fallout also has a good amount of female characters in it with Rebecca Ferguson and Michelle Monaghan bringing a lot of well-needed emotion and Vanessa Kirby’s Black Widow bringing a funny yet creepy vibe to the whole occasion.

The story is fairly simple as McQuarrie doesn’t want to isolate the audience, you can definitely see it if you haven’t seen other Mission Films. It’s McQuarrie and his team’s filmmaking that really make the film what it is. The cameraman who does the HALO jump with Tom Cruise deserves many awards and I would be surprised if the film, and its team, didn’t win any awards for filmmaking. If you’ve got free time too then look up how the film was made because it is quite interesting. I mean it’s rare that an action blockbuster would even be nominated but as of right now Fallout is my favourite film of the year, both for how good it is and then researching how it was made. People just don’t put in as much effort as the Mission team have done in films anymore.

Mission Impossible: Fallout is a must-see film. It’s a long film but never really feels like it. It’s a constant chase that will keep you on the edge of your seat and it has twists and turns that you won’t see coming. I was recently reading about how Christopher Nolan wanted The Dark Knight to bring back film instead of everyone filming digitally. Fallout sings a similar message and but its message is for real-life stunts. Mquarrie has evolved in a similar manner to how Nolan evolved between Batman Begins and The Dark Knight. Fallout gave me similar vibes of excitement and intensity and Fallout will leave its mark on you, I’m not sure how I’ll feel watching CGI action from now on. All I know is that making everything real instead of fake isn’t impossible but to repeat the magic that Fallout has, well that’s only something the Mission team can do. Mission accomplished Cruise, mission accomplished.

Score: 5/5
  
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Daniel Boyd (1066 KP) created a post

May 18, 2018 (Updated Jun 12, 2018)  
E3 2018 Predictions


Don’t know how many fellow hardcore gaming fans are on here, but I normally have a podcast to do my predictions for my favourite event of the year, (yes even better than Christmas,) but since my podcast has been on an extended hiatus, it means that you guys are getting my predictions for 2018’s Electronic Entertainment Expo on here.

I have chosen to go with seven predictions for each conference, as I feel that 10 is too many and five just isn’t enough. There are obviously going to be more than seven announcements from each conference, but I’ve tried to keep it to things that people actually care about and that will get gamers excited, rather than playing it safe by ‘predicting,’ obvious shit, like Sony bringing up the Medievil remake or a trailer being shown for the next COD game. The predictions are in no particular order either, just as I thought of them. I am not cocky enough to start predicting when each prediction will happen in their respective conferences.

I have also included a total shot in the dark prediction for each conference. This is something that has a small sliver of hope of coming true, but realistically it is more something that I want to happen rather than something I actually think is going to happen.

Also, I am in no way a professional video game writer. This is a list of predictions written by a video game fan based on information I’ve heard on gaming podcasts and various gaming subreddits. This is just a bit of fun for me, don’t take anything that I’ve written below as gospel.

Enough rambling, my predictions for E3 2018 are as follows…


EA:
1. Fifa and other sports games will be announced with release dates.
2. Trailer shown for Battlefield V, WWII setting
3. SSX reboot, sequel or remake will be announced
4. Bioware will announce updates for Anthem and maybe announce some sort of Mass Effect DLC
5. Dice will promote Solo update & DLC for Battlefront 2
6. Some sort of new Star Wars game will be announced to replace the cancelled Amy Henning Star Wars game
7. Respawn will announce the title of their Star Wars game and announce Titanfall 3

Total shot in the dark prediction – New Burnout or Dead Space game announced


Microsoft:
1. Crackdown 3 gameplay demo will be shown and 2018 release date will be announced
2. New Halo game announced
3. New Gears Of War game announced
4. Borderlands 3 officially announced with gameplay trailer and release date for late 2018/early 2019
5. Cuphead DLC announced
6. Cyberpunk 2077 trailer shown
7. Some mention of PUBG, Sea Of Thieves and Forza

Total shot in the dark prediction – A new Fable game announced


Bethesda:
1. New IP announced, probably Starfield with fall 2018 release date
2. Doom sequel announced with trailer and 2019 release window
3. Standalone DLC announced for Wolfenstein 2, possibly Prey as well?
4. Rage 2 shown and release window given
5. Some sort of Dishonored follow up teased
6. Updates about ESO and Quake
7. We are teased with the other game that Bethesda game studios has been working on

Total shot in the dark prediction – a new Fallout or Elder Scrolls spinoff announced, something similar to New Vegas


Square Enix:
1. Just Cause 4 announced with trailer and release window
2. New Shadow Of The Tomb Raider gameplay trailer
3. Hitman Season 2 announced with trailer and release window
4. Final Fantasy 7 gameplay trailer shown and announced for multiple consoles with release date given
5. Kingdom Hearts 3 shown with new trailer and release date
6. New IP announced from People Can Fly
7. Trailer shown for Avengers game

Total shot in the dark prediction – New Deus Ex game announced


Ubisoft:
1. New Assassin’s Creed revealed, hopefully with a 2019 release date
2. The Division 2 announced with cinematic and gameplay trailers
3. Skull and Bones trailer shown and release date given
4. New Splinter Cell announced with Michael Ironside returning
5. Sequel to Rainbow 6: Siege announced
6. New trailer for Beyond Good & Evil 2
7. Maybe Watch Dogs 3 announced?

Total shot in the dark prediction – A new Prince of Persia, Driver, Brothers In Arms or Call of Juarez game announced. I doubt we’ll see any of them, but I would be buzzing if any of the above were even teased.


Sony:
1. Gameplay trailer given for Death Stranding
2. The Last Of Us 2 gameplay shown
3. New Spiderman gameplay trailer
4. New Ghost of Tsuhima, Dreams and Days gone trailers
5. Rocksteady announce new Superman game and show trailer
6. Shadows Die Twice revealed to be Tenchu game and new trailer is shown
7. Devil May Cry 5 officially announced and trailer shown

Total shot in the dark prediction – Bluepoint announce MGS trilogy remastered


Nintendo:
1. New Pokemon game for the Switch
2. New Smash gameplay trailer
3. New trailer shown for Bayonetta 3
4. New trailer shown for Fire Emblem
5. New trailer shown for Yoshi
6. New trailer shown for Metroid
7. New Mario Maker game announced

Total shot in the dark prediction – Fallout 4 announced for Switch


Comment below and let me know if you agree with my predictions or if you think I am talking a load of nonsense. One of the reasons I love e3 so much is because of the discussion and speculation around it, so let’s get a discussion going.

Also check back here on Wednesday the 13th of June once e3 has finished where I’ll go through my predictions in a comment below to see how many (if any) I actually got right.


Cheers,
- Dan
     
Show all 6 comments.
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Daniel Boyd (1066 KP) Jun 12, 2018 (Updated Jun 12, 2018)

Ubisoft's conference was next up and it was pretty disappointing in my opinion. Let's see how well I did with my predictions for the show:

1. New Assassin’s Creed revealed, hopefully with a 2019 release date. - Assassin's Creed Odyssey was announced just prior tp the conference, (following a leak beforehand,) but unfortunately it got a 2018 release date. This means that the franchise is reverting back to yearly releases, which will undoubtedly lead to a decline in quality for the series. 0.5 point.

2. The Division 2 announced with cinematic and gameplay trailers. - The Division 2 was announced and we got both cinematic and gameplay trailers for the game. 1 point.

3. Skull and Bones trailer shown and release date given. - We saw a trailer for Skull and Bones and were told that we'd see the game release in 2019. 1 point.

4. New Splinter Cell announced with Michael Ironside returning. - The rumours turned out to be false and we saw no mention of a new Splinter Cell game. 0 points.

5. Sequel to Rainbow 6: Siege announced. - A Siege developer did take to the stage to give some updates, but no new game was announced. 0.5 point.

6. New trailer for Beyond Good & Evil 2. - We saw a new cinematic trailer for Beyond Good & Evil 2. 1 point.

7. Maybe Watch Dogs 3 announced? - There was no new Watch Dogs announced at the conference. 0 points.


Sadly there was no mention of a new Prince of Persia, Driver, Brothers In Arms or Call of Juarez game as I suggested in my fantasy prediction.


4/7 points for Ubisoft's conference, I did slightly better here than I did for Square's presentation.

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Daniel Boyd (1066 KP) Jun 12, 2018 (Updated Jun 12, 2018)

Sony's was the penultimate keynote of the expo and they showed exactly what everyone expected them to and nothing more. As a Playstation-centric gamer, this should have been my favourite conference, but honestly I feel like Microsoft had me excited more often this year. Below is a list of my predictions and whether I got them right or wrong.

1. Gameplay trailer given for Death Stranding. - Yes, we finally saw gameplay for Kojima's intriguing new story. 1 point.

2. The Last Of Us 2 gameplay shown. - We also saw gameplay for TLoU2. 1 point.

3. New Spiderman gameplay trailer. - We saw more of Spidey's new game and more gameplay during the conference too. 1 point.

4. New Ghost of Tsuhima, Dreams and Days gone trailers. - While we did get an extensive look at Ghost of Tsuhima and Dreams was featured in a couple of sizzle reels, I don't recall seeing anything for Days Gone during the showcase. 0.5 point.

5. Rocksteady announce new Superman game and show trailer. - We saw absolutely nothing from Rocksteady at any of the E3 press conferences. 0 points.

6. Shadows Die Twice revealed to be Tenchu game and new trailer is shown. - A trailer was shown for this game and while I was right that it wasn't Bloodborne 2, it sadly isn't a new Tenchu game either. 0.5 points.

7. Devil May Cry 5 officially announced and trailer shown. We did get DMC5 announced with a trailer, but it was at Microsft's conference rather than Sony's. 0.5 point.

And unfortunately it doesn't look like Bluepoint well be announcing a remastered MGS trilogy any time soon as per my bonus prediction.


4.5/7 points for the Sony conference. Quite happy with that result, but I really wish that the conference was better.

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (2012)
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (2012)
2012 | Action, Sci-Fi
8
7.4 (31 Ratings)
Movie Rating
Following the Lord of the Rings Trilogy was going to be no easy feat. The series not only made incredible amounts of cash at the box office worldwide, but also garnered an Academy award for best picture for the final film in the series. In the years since the trilogy, writer-director-producer Peter Jackson has not overwhelmed at the box office. His big-budget remake of “King Kong” performed below expectations and the high-profile collapse of the “Halo” movie to which he was attached, as well as the underwhelming box office of “The Lovely Bones” made many people question if Jackson had peaked and was better suited for the lower budgeted independent films that first gave him his start.

When it was announced that a film version of “The Hobbit” was in the works and that director Guillermo del Toro would direct the film as well as help write the screenplay and that Jackson would produce, the fans’ interest level was definitely piqued. But after a long state of pre-production, del Torro decided not to direct the film as he was unwilling to commit the next six years to living and working in New Zealand. Jackson then took over the film and soon after it was announced that it would be stretched into three movies to form a new trilogy.

For those unfamiliar with the story it was actually the first book written by J.R.R. Tolkien, which sets the stage for what was to follow in the Lord of the Rings even though it was originally conceived as a standalone story. The film opens with an older Bilbo Baggins (Martin Freeman), writing a memoir while preparations for a party are underway. Bilbo discusses how there was one story that he had not disclosed and sets pen to paper in order to chronicle his legendary journey 60 years prior.

Gandolf Wizard (Sir Ian McKellen) visits the younger Bilbo and suggests he go on an adventure. Bilbo immediately declines, as being a Hobbit, he has no desire to leave the creature comforts and serenity of The Shire, much less face the dangers that exist in the world beyond. A group of dwarves arrive’ that evening and despite their gluttonous appetites and loud behavior, Bilbo has a change of heart the following morning and accompanies them on their quest.

The group’s goal is to travel to the dwarves’ kingdom of Erebor to reclaim their stronghold which was lost many years earlier to a vicious Dragon named Smaug. In the decades since, the dwarves existed as people without a home, forced to live as nomads taking work wherever they can find it. Along the way the group deals with all manner of threats and dangers ranging from trolls, goblins, orcs, and other supernatural elements. Of course there were some internal tensions and conflicts within the group as it marched towards a finale that sets the stage for the next film.

The movie has a runtime of nearly 3 hours and there were times that I caught a couple members in press row dozing briefly. While I enjoyed the film more than I did any of the Lord of the Rings movies, it was clearly obvious that things were being stretched out in order to justify a third film in the series. There were countless scenes of the band walking over hills and across the countryside so much so that at times I felt that I was watching the longest commercial for New Zealand tourism ever created. We get it. It’s a long journey. They travel near and far. I got it. I don’t need to see it every 10 minutes.

There were also several scenes that were done almost as if in aside that truthfully did not add much to the story but seem to exist as nothing more than time fillers. In the subsequent films it is learned that characters and scenes that did not appear in the book will be inserted into the film. Once again I have to question this as I do believe they could have easily cut an hour out of this movie and not lose much of the necessary narrative.

There’s been a lot of talk about the higher frame rate 3-D that was used to create the film. There have been claims that it was distracting, jerky, and detracted from the movie. I on the other hand found it absolutely captivating because it did not have that movie look to it, and it felt like I was watching an HD television. Even during the CGI heavy sequences, it did appear as if the performers were literally right there in front of me and I got the impression more of watching a play than of watching a movie.

The visual effects in the film were quite stunning. The live-action and computer-generated elements were absolutely amazing, especially during the latter part of the film when we meet Gollum (Andy Serkis), and during the battle and the goblin stronghold. Although the book is considered a children’s novel, I would really have to think twice about bringing young children to see this film as there is a lot of action and violence in the film as well as potential scares in the form of the monsters that abound.

The film could have definitely used some star power to it. While the cast does a solid job, they are fairly generic and almost interchangeable during certain segments of the film. That being said, the film works because despite its issues, it’s a visually spectacular masterpiece that, if you can endure the long periods of inaction, pays off especially well during the film’s battle sequences.
  
Godzilla (2014)
Godzilla (2014)
2014 | Mystery, Sci-Fi
The cast especially Bryan Cranston The Action sequences Godzilla and the Mutos The suspense The score The Cgi (0 more)
Needed more Bryan Cranston (0 more)
"let them fight"
This film is an absolute masterpiece. Not once did I find myself getting bored or losing track of the plot - something that happens commonly when I watch longer movies - and I was gutted when it was over. Not because I was disappointed, but because I desperately wanted more. Gareth Edwards' film takes monster movies to a whole new level, with some nice twists to the usual "Godzilla" story lines, a fantastic cast and some of the best action sequences I have ever had the pleasure of seeing.

The first thing to mention about this film is its cast and its focus on the human characters, played mainly by Aaron Taylor-Johnson (Lieutenant Ford Brody), Elizabeth Olsen (Elle Brody, Ford's wife), and Bryan Cranston (Joe Brody, Ford's estranged father). Bryan Cranston is only really in the first half, portraying his character as a very outcast, yet very determined former nuclear engineer who is searching for the truth about his wife's tragic death. He was fantastic in the role delivering each line with emotion and conviction he was the best character in the film and I wish he was in the film longer. His theories beautifully foreshadow the events to come, and he drags his son, Ford, right into the heart of the trouble. Thankfully, this means that we get to see lots of the brilliant Aaron Taylor- Johnson, a courageous explosive ordnance disposal technician who comes face-to-face with Godzilla several times. Literally. Aaron Taylor-Johnson really is the star here, and the scenes with his wife, Elle, and son, Sam, before any of the action starts makes his actions later on all the more respectable and courageous as he risks his life to save them and the entire city. Elizabeth Olsen isn't used as much as I would have liked, as she is fantastic in the scenes in which we see her. Having said that, she does appear a fair amount, as the strong wife and mother holding back her terror in order to stay and help. Her scenes with Aaron Taylor- Johnson are great too, and make for some very believable characters. The other main character is Dr Serizawa (played by Ken Watanabe), a scientist monitoring Godzilla and the MUTOs. He doesn't really do much apart from look very worried in every shot and say tense or shocking one-liners, but Ken Watanabe makes sure that it's never cringe-worthy or boring.

Secondly we have Gareth Edwards' directing - wow! I need to see more of this guy! Every shot looks as good as it could possibly be, and the first reveal of Godzilla is brilliant. There's a MUTO smashing up an airport. Cue plane exploding, followed by the one to the right, and then the one to the right, and then… a foot. Silence. Another foot. Cut to a shot of the MUTO roaring, and then back to the feet. Up the camera pans (for quite a long time!), leaving us with a beautiful high-angle shot of the beast himself. And then comes the roar. There's another great shot of Godzilla making his way across the Pacific to San Francisco, and another in the city itself of… well, there's no other way of putting it – Godzilla and a MUTO having a good old' fashioned fistfight, which culminates in a pretty fantastic and well-timed tail slam from the big guy. The skyscrapers don't really bother them. It's just a long shot, and in it we see two giant monsters ripping each other to shreds and obliviously destroying the city below. Another great shot (or shots) is during the HALO jump, as we see the city in flames, the men falling through the clouds and the burning skyline and a close-up of a Godzilla vs MUTO fight.

Now I'll move on to the plot and the headline acts – the MUTOs and the big guy himself, Godzilla. The plot is very straightforward. A MUTO hatches in Japan, one hatches in Nevada next to Las Vegas, and this is all because they've been feeding on humanity's nuclear waste and radiation. Oh, and by the way, the MUTOs look brilliant. Imagine a metal praying mantis crossed with a four-legged spider, as tall as a skyscraper. That's a MUTO. Anyway, Ford joins the fight to stop the creatures, and as they make their way to San Francisco the military plan to destroy them with their most powerful nuclear weapon. Godzilla is closing in too, and when the pesky MUTOs steal the nuke and build their nest around it, Ford and a group of soldiers must go into the city to detonate it. However, Godzilla and the MUTOs are also in the city, smashing everything (including each other) to bits. It's very odd that, for once, we end up cheering Godzilla on, as the two MUTOs begin to overwhelm him as he is seemingly hurt. And then he is actually made out to be the good guy (a twist I enjoyed), as he saves Ford in a spectacular way from a MUTO and the media call him " the saviour of our city?". 'Zilla looks amazing too. "Massive" is probably an understatement, but the spikes on his back, the battle scars on his body and his terrifying face make him look awesome. Also, his roar had me jumping up and down with excitement, as did his surprise for the MUTOs: his atomic fire breath.

All in all, "Godzilla" is one fantastic movie. No longer a mockery, but terrifying, tense, and, unlike many monster movies, it is complex. Complex in that it has multiple characters with interesting back-stories (that are all explored) and gives Godzilla a new personality and purpose. Everything looks great, it feels epic, and I enjoyed every moment. This is a movie that would appeal to anyone.