Category: Netflix

Film Review: Christine (1983)

Rating: 18
Length: 1hr 50
Release: 2.3.1984
Dir: John Carpenter
About: Arnie restores an old car and names her Christine, but he is unaware that she has an evil presence within her. When anyone tries to come between her owner and her, they are not spared.

The Good

  • Visually, the opening is awesome. The birth of Christine is something quite unexpected. While there’s no real explanation as to why its that car in particular, it still hooks you in.
  • Christine riding around on fire looks absolutely amazing. I also do really like that those who are singled out by Christine are those who ‘attack’ her and also have issues with Arnie; allowing you to question how involved Arnie actually is.
  • I really liked the hints to Dennis being gay. They were subtle and, had that thread been followed through, could have added a layer to the plot and given us a better insight into the character.
  • Harry Dean Stanton as the detective. I don’t know what it is about Stanton, but I really like having him appear in films. He has that ‘granddad’ stature, almost. The scene in which we’re introduced to him is quite possibly my favourite in the whole film. Not for the dialogue, or for him being involved, but for how the cars are in the frame.

The Bad

  • Totally not the film’s fault, but the song ‘Bad to the Bone’ by George Thorogood and The Destroyers for me is synonymous with Al Bundy and Married … With Children. In fact, I’ve just gone to google the connection hoping to find a clip to illustrate my point and it promptly informed me that it’s considered almost as Al’s theme song. For those who aren’t familiar with Al Bundy or the tv show he inhabits; it’s a comedy show that ran for 11 seasons over 10 years. By having this association, it throws off the tone of the film for me, right from the get go.
  • Keeping with this song as the opening number, there is another clash. This time between the song and the era that is presented on the screen. The film opens in September 1957, however the song is from 1982. Yes, some songs are timeless. Bad to the Bone is not one of those. It’s a very 80s number, and for a film that is firmly set in 1978, it just doesn’t fit for me.

The Ugly

  • I don’t get the character of Arnie. I don’t like him and find him a bit of a dick, even before his involvement with Christine. His negative interactions with anyone other than Dennis means what is meant to be a massive personality shift just doesn’t translate to the viewer. While his fate is as it should be, I don’t like that we don’t see the final moments of his relationship with Christine. This is more frustrating to me, as I feel it is his relationship with his car that’s the core of the story.
  • It’s so not scary! In fact, at times, it feels ludicrous and boring. The only thing bringing it up to the 18 rating is the use of language which feels gratuitous at times. That’s from me who has spent the last three months trying to make HanCOCK happen.
  • Why is everybody so pissed about the car?! Dennis’ apprehension could have been explained by the feelings he has for Arnie. I certainly feel it was hinted at that Dennis may have been gay and attracted to his best friend. However, its almost abandoned half way through.

Final Thoughts

A great concept that just falls short of its potential. There’s not enough horror and its a rather flawed plot to really rate highly for me.

Film Review: Flipper (1996)

Rating: PG
Length: 1hr 35
Release: 2.8.1996
Dir: Alan Shapiro
About: Sandy is distraught when, having saved Flipper by pulling out a spear, his father insists the dolphin be released. A grateful Flipper, however, returns the favour when Sandy is threatened by sharks.

The Good

  • The strength is most definitely in the characters and the relationships. Both Paul Hogan and Elijah Wood are brilliant in their roles and bounce off each other and the supporting cast.
  • I love Marvin and I adore how Paul Hogan’s Porter describes him when Sandy asks what is wrong with the young boy. “He’s just shy.” Porter informs him before making sure Sandy knows Marvin’s strengths. I just love it. While it may seem as if Marvin is on the spectrum, I really like the way it’s handled.
  • I really laughed at the cigar sequence between Sandy and Porter. Mainly because my dad once told me that both him and my uncle had to do something similar.

The Bad

  • The plot is a little ropy. Well, not ropy as such. It’s shit. The reason for Sandy being there for the summer is shit. The toxic waste B-plot is shit. The using of the dolphin to locate said waste after him being brought back from the brink of death? shit.
  • “A man should never hurl in front of his woman!” Hogan says to Wood regarding his habit of getting sea sick and his crush on the teen love interest. 1. what the fuck, toxic masculinity much? 2. She’s not even where Hogan is nodding at seeing as she arrives in the next scene.

The Ugly

  • Did we need to see Hammerhead-Jaws eat the bird?! Like, it was a real bird and a real shark and totally the kind of shit that would make me turn off a nature programme.

Final Thoughts

While the location is a dream, and the leads are charming, the plot is very much a dud and as lifeless as the animatronic dolphins used.

The Last Laugh (2019)

Rating 15

Length 1Hr 38

Release 11.1.2019

Director Greg Pritikin

About: Retired talent manager Al reconnects with former client Buddy, a comedian who gave up performing decades ago, and urges him to go back out on the road.

The Good

  • Chevy Chase and Richard Dreyfuss make for an excellent double act that takes the Odd Couple on the road. Dreyfuss really brings the humour for the bulk of the movie, which makes Chase’s straight man performance a refreshing change.
  • On the whole its a funny film with a sweet centre, even if it is a little ‘American Pie does Old Folks’ at times.

The Bad

  • It really takes a while to get going and for the first 40 minutes, I have no idea where its going. I actually almost switched it off as that slow preamble to the main plot switched me right off; which is a shame because it could stop people seeing what a fun movie it actually is.

The Ugly

  • It’s bookended with some depressing shit. Like really sour. My reason for almost turning it off? The time spent in the old folks home was so dour, and my father seemed a little triggered, that I wasn’t sure we’d picked right for a Saturday night movie. It’s a shame because those middle acts where really cool.

Final Thoughts

Yeah… On reflection it was perhaps a bad idea to chuck on a film about ageing dudes sent into a home when my father had begged me two days earlier to not ‘lock him up’. Bad daughter!

Bird Box – 15

Length- 2 Hr 4

About- When a mysterious force decimates the population, only one thing is certain — if you see it, you die. The survivors must now avoid coming face to face with an entity that takes the form of their worst fears. Searching for hope and a new beginning, a woman and her children embark on a dangerous journey through the woods and down a river to find the one place that may offer sanctuary. To make it, they’ll have to cover their eyes from the evil that chases them — and complete the trip blindfolded.

The Good

Sandra Bullock is able to hold her own in Bird Box. She’s long been considered leading lady material, but it’s taken her time to break out from the romantic comedy role or plucky positivity hound. The sour and angry demeanour that once seemed so alien and forced in some of her performances fits her like a glove. She is scary and heartbreakingly detached from the children in her care and I don’t think that was something I would have seen as a convincing role from Bullock even 5 years ago.

Let’s face it, this film is A Quiet Place with a different bodily sense being the focus. That in itself isn’t significant or would encourage those who’ve seen the John Krasinski directed film to watch this approach. However, what I will say this has, that A Quiet Place perhaps lacks is the body count. A Quiet Place feels stifled by its limited cast, while Bird Box allows you to explore the aftermath as a society, rather than a family.

It’s a curious story, which an ending that is much more hopeful than I was expecting. I’ve heard talk of A Quiet Place gaining a sequel, which is odd as I don’t think there was enough to it, or characters sympathetic enough for me to wish for more. Bird Box, on the other hand, is well set up for a sequel.

The Bad

It is a little too derivative. Something that I feel is more to do with timing than anything else. It’s A Quiet Place meets Mom & Dad; both films that were released earlier this year. Mom & Dad is in itself a sudo remake of the 1976 Who Can Kill a Child? Sometimes, with films like these it doesn’t matter which is better, just which one got there first.

It was a sensible thing to have it released on Netflix rather than a theatrical release. I’m not sure people would have dropped the money on a film that, on paper, seems to be A Quiet Place bandwagon jump.

The Ugly

Its a violent affair and it all comes at once. I’m not a squimish person, but I found a number of scenes just a little tough to handle. At the root of this, is perhaps the fact that when faced with this sort of situation, the mob mentality in our own society would result in this sort of violence.

Final Thoughts

It’s a decent watch and I’m always grateful to see Sandy Bullock on the screen but I can’t see it jumping to people’s most loved films. However, if I’m watching films of this ilk; I’d rather watch Who Can Kill a Child? again.

Star Trek Discovery S1 ep7: Magic to Make the Sanest Man Go Mad

Star Trek Discovery
S1 ep7: Magic to Make the Sanest Man Go Mad
From IMDB:
As the U.S.S. Discovery crew attempts to let loose at a party, an unwelcome visitor comes aboard bringing about a problematic and twisted sequence of events.

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My favourite episode so far; it takes an old school Trek idea and makes it feel fresh and new.

The Logical

This is the first episode where the ‘previously on…’ and the title sequence run one after the other. Immediately I feel like something different is going to happen this episode. This then leads naturally into Michael’s ‘ship’s log’. It does feel a little bit like a homage to the recent films, but it still is a nice touch.

We get a party. A proper party. Not one of the stuffy things of Trek of old. There’s alcohol, there’s loud music and there is fraternisation. We get a drunk Tilly, and its genius.

Michael and Ash are being established as a romantic couple. It’s not subtle, it’s beautifully organic and totally fun to watch. Especially as the episode progresses and Michael is able to explore her emotions.

The plot develops around a returning fan favourite; using the good old trojan horse trick to get on board. However, it’s not the only old trick in the book that the episode uses. Henry Mudd, seeking his revenge uses a temporal loop to gain information about Discovery. It’s delightful and fun. And you know what makes it different from other shows that use this plot device? We don’t follow the character that is exempt from the loop. It’s our resident Stamets! I did tell you I loved him, right? When asked about the second run through, Stamets has to correct them:

“Multiple times actually, and I’ve yet to get a win for the home team.”

If you loved Stamets before, you’ll be bursting with love after seeing be all positive and joyful. Even more so when you see how he responds to Michael. The best part was watching him teach her how to dance.

The time loops develop to a musical crescendo and by the episode’s time runs out, everything is resolved and Mudd is sent off with a beautiful wave from Stamets.

The Illogical

Call me cynical, but was the Gormagander the alien of the week to coincide with the release of series 2 of Stranger Things?

 

Final thoughts
No Klingons and, surprise surprise I loved every minute of this episode. I’ll let you into a secret; I didn’t have any illogical points and I think the timing of the episode was genius.