Rogue 1: A Star Wars Story

Exactly 12 months the to date, I was sat in Bolton Cineworld ready to embark on a new journey. Mr Abrahms had taken the Lucas mantle and retold a familiar story for a new generation, and he had done exactly what needed to be done.  Due to the success of The Force Awakens, a new hope was given to Star Wars and the future of the franchise.

Even with all this, I still sat with a Phantom Menace fear for this new direction.  Another prequel in the universe, but this time with no focus on the Skywalker lineage, this time we look at one line from the opening crawl of the 1977 film that started all this....

Gareth Edwards at the directorial helm was a concern due to his (in my opinion) failed approach to the established Godzilla franchise recently, and so much of the planned future films in the Star Wars universe rests on the shoulders of this first endeavor.

Rogue 1 is a slow starter but considering it is introducing a whole new crew, whole new worlds and setting the scene for future events it does have a lot to cover.  The start of New Hope take a long while to actually get going, but it is because we are so attuned to the farm boy and the princess that seasoned fans just watches without concern.

This is film that I can highly recommend, but do not want to review much further than this.  The final 40 minutes is a fantastic war film set in the Star Wars Universe that had me glued to the screen with no sure outcome every moment is tense.

My only damming thoughts to the film are the Uncanny Valley is somewhere that I think should have been avoided on two definitive occasions and there is a question on rapidly diminishing skill sets that I will have to discuss in person with you rather than spoil everything on here.

Oh, and two words...Pondo Baba!

Arrival

I have not been completely destroyed by a films opening gambit since Disney's "Up" gave me a super sweet introduction and then took it all away in the most harrowing way.  Arrival'a first scene nearly had me a blubbering wreck in minutes and it keeps that same theme going through the whole film.

I don't want to give anything away about this film, and think that if you have any interest in watching this then I would suggest avoiding all potential spoilers out there on the interwebs

After the arrival of huge monolithic pods in 12 non-strategic locations around the globe, language specialist Amy Adams is called upon to try and communicate with the inhabitants and try and understand their intentions.  Joined by Jeremy Renner it is a race against time to solve the riddles before governments decide the right course of action.

It is a discover as the characters discover type of film, the audience has to follow and evolve with the protagonists learning as each letter unfolds.  It is interesting to see, in the current world climate, how countries band and work together (or not) in the race to be the first to crack the conundrums.

As soon as I left the cinema, i raced hope  to give my sleeping baby daughter a kiss.  This was definitely not an easy watch but a film worthy of veiwing

Dr Strange

I was not really a Doctor Strange fan in the comic book form and early 90's Spider-man Cartoons, but that being said, Iron man and Thor were not high up there too and they are doing ok at the moment.  I just found the good doctor to have far too many powers that were always "just what the doctor ordered".  I like my heroes with flaws, one main power, potentially corruptible.  Superman is one of those characters that I will never truly like, because he is anti-everything I have just mentioned.

I went to watch Doctor Strange with an open mind because recently my predisposed thoughts on some characters had been instantly dismissed (Ant-Man/Cap America Civil War (Black Panther))

After a serious car accident the only person suitable to recover the hands of the greatest surgeon known to man was in fact the person involved in that accident.  After they are repaired to a sub par standard Doctor Stephen Strange goes to find a more mystical solution in the hills of Nepal.

He is given insight into a magical realm of existence, which is protected by Sanctums around the globe, a mirror world which battles can ensue without human casualties an a whole hoist of mystical gubbings and gimmicks.  Being the world greatest mind, Strange soon becomes a sorcerer supreme and ready to defend against a corrupted magician, Kaecillius.

Whilst being visually stunning, there is not much more on offer in Marvels newest adventure, it feels very similar to the Thor side of things.  Far too mystical and not really grounded.  It is with these super powers that you begin to question the whole Marvel Universe, all previous encounters could have been resolved in seconds if Dr Strange would have been there.  I feel that this is Marvel's weakest entry into the Cinematic Universe, but that may be down to recently seeing Civil War

Magnificent 7

The Seven Samuari is a film still pending to be watched in my IMDB Top 250 films, and one that I am saving for a long, rainy day.  The remake of the 60's was a fan favourite of my granddads and one that I saw a few years ago and based on the caliber of the cast list, it is always one I wanted to return to on a nostalgic base as well.

When the remake of the remake was announced I has a little trepidation, how do you replace Bronson, McQueen, Vaughn, Coburn, Wallace? Who could do this justice? Well of course you cast the ever infallible Denzel Washinton, the lovable Chris Pratt, the amazing D'Onofrio to name a few.

I was thoroughly entertained from the word go, Denzel played the main part excellently and Pratt as his support was just divine.  The stand out for me was D'Onofrio.  I was not expecting the monstrous grizzly bear of a man to have the voice that was emitted, just perfect.

Some great gun fights and exciting sieges make the Magnificent 7 (2016) a very entertaining couple of hours

I have a little secret passion for westerns, one that I didn't realise I had until watching this remake (of a remake),  I came home with an urge to watch Young Guns, The Good The Bad & the Ugly, Back to the Future Part II, ok, so I may not have the best choice of western but it is still a great genre, Without it we would not have the Wilhelm Scream!

The Purge: Election Year

Why do I never learn?

I am a horror film fan, but over the last few years I am repeatedly let down time and time again, only for a few fleeting gems to give me hope once more.  Each time Igo to watch a "Purge" film I am instantly reminded as soon as the Micheal Bay "Platinum Dunes" logo appears on screen, these films are terrible.

Each year, the Purge is a 12 hour period in which all crime, including murder is permitted.  There are no repercussions for your actions and no police interference.  The rich hide behind fortresses and the poor are left to either defend what is theirs or claim something on this fateful night.  This year may be the last as a new candidate up for election hopes to end the Purge as she once was a victim to it's malevolence. Thankfully, and coincidentally, her chief bodyguard is a previous purger who was stuck out all night a few years ago (in the previous film).

This is a run of the mill, nothing new, nothing interesting, mishmash of a film.  With a running-manesque cyber terrorism group hoping to stop the poor being obliterated, unlikely gang of heroes for hire and Frank Grillo being gruff and butch throughout.

This is also a film that gave away pretty much everything in the trailer, so what little surprises it thought it had were already hinted at in the 2:27 version of the film (more entertaining than the full length version)

Hopefully, this franchise is now done and dusted, but more than likely we will be continuing to be disappointed each year

Don't Breathe

When three unlikable characters break into a blind veteran's home under the pretense that he is hiding some serious amounts of money, you have an idea of what to expect.

Don't Breathe was not what I expected!

From the director of the Evil Dead remake/relaunch (which I was seriously impressed with recently) I should have been expecting much darker than I had originally thought. Each character in the film has a darker underside that only becomes evident as the film progresses.  There were moments of real tension where I found myself also holding my breath just in case.  There are a couple of plot twists to shift your love of the main characters and my most hated trope of the jump scare was put to good effect and rarely used.

This is one of the rare horror films at the moment that actually does what it intends, is more focused on its characters rather than fancy effects and no story.  4 people trapped in a house together does not give much hope of enough content to fill 90 ,mins, but Don't Breathe packs the run time to the max.
I am definitely looking forward to Fede Alverez's next outings

Blair Witch

I was one of those people lucky enough to see The Blair Witch Project when the hype was at it's highest.  When social media was in it's infancy and it was inconclusive as to if the footage was actually real.  This 1999 film sparked a revolutionary change to the cinematic horror experience, one that has been copied and spoofed so many times but very rarely recaptured.

Re watching the film years later, it does not hold the same gravitas as original viewing, but there are certain points that still send shivers up my spine.  I have always been a fan of unseen horror.  Your own mind will always conjure the most horrific personal haunt better than any hollywood director could ever muster, and The Blair Witch Project never discloses that antagonist, this is left solely to the imagination of the viewer.

In 2016, The Blair Witch remake/reboot/sequel (yes, I am ignoring The Book Of Shadows) completely ignored all that made the original special and just got lost in it's own legacy.

The characters were far less likable than the original cast, if that is even possible! The suspense is thrown straight out of the window when Mrs Blair turns up within minutes of entering Black Hills and the CG effects, ones that would not have even been considered based on the originals viewing just look terrible.

This just goes back to the argument of limitations, with such a small budget and limited capabilities, the Blair Witch Project achieved so much more than this multi million dollar collaboration.

A complete let down that tarnishes the first outing