EvilPhoEniX

One of this year's most expensive Netflix movies is a decent genre one-off, but given the budget and the cast, I was expecting a bigger load of excitement. I was kind of hoping for something in the vein of 6 Underground, but the PG-13 rating alone kind of bugged me. It's a bit of a variation on Indiana Jones, James Bond and Ocean’s Eleven, but in neither can the film hold a candle to those franchises. As expected, Red Notice is an entertaining, expensive and nicely made film, with The Rock, Gal Gadot and Ryan Reynolds doing their thing again, and a few of the jokes are good. Unfortunately, the action is a disappointment, there isn't a single memorable action scene and the finale is delivered in a more intimate than monumental way, which is a big downside. There is one unexpected twist that’s quite good, and the heist antics aren't bad, but that's not enough for me. The two hours are bearable, and Red Notice is certainly worth recommending, but it should and could have been more consistent and wilder. Story 3/5, Action 3/5, Humor 3/5, Violence 0/5, Fun 4/5 Music 4/5, Visuals 4/5, Atmosphere 2/5, Suspense 2/5, Emotion 3/5, Actors 4/5. 6/10.

Marvel is rolling out a new story, new characters and new adventures and it's not downright bad, but after the Avengers it seems to me that they are weakening and DC is getting stronger. Suicide Squad 2 is still one of the contenders for movie of the year, and next year I have no doubt that The Batman will be fighting for the top spot. The Eternals is a bit of an unusual Marvel movie, but the question is whether Marvel even heading in the right direction. The Eternals introduces a few heroes, but you can't remember the name of any of them after it's over. And I'm also tired of all the new characters having a different look and costume, but the same or similar abilities. In anime and games you have so many interesting options that here it feels poor in comparison. I didn't trust Chloe Zhao, because someone who’s never made a move I want to see in my life doesn't inspire much trust in me. In the end I expected it to be a bit worse. Occasionally, there was some humour, but by Marvel standards there is probably the least of it. There is not much action either, and it doesn't really stick out too much, it's an inoffensive standard in almost every aspect. The film doesn't outright offend, but at the same time it doesn't excel at anything and its pacing makes it feel literally eternal in places. If I had to single out something, it would definitely be the impressive historical flashbacks and the rather surprising body-count, but that's not enough for a higher rating for me, especially when after watching it I still have no idea who the main character actually was. Story 3/5, Action 3/5, Humour 3/5, Violence 0/5, Entertainment 3/5 Music 4/5, Visuals 4/5, Atmosphere 2/5, Suspense 2/5, Emotion 3/5, Actors 4/5. 6/10.

The skilful Scott Cooper tried to make a horror film and I actually bought it all. I was looking forward to Antlers for a long time and surprisingly I didn't mind the intimacy and slower pace, because the film drew me in from the beginning and, thanks to the very depressing and gloomy atmosphere, I was entertained throughout. It’s beautifully shot, with excellent music, convincing performances, an attractive mythology and legend around the wendigo, and most importantly, there is really disgusting and unpleasant gore; the shots of the dead are a treat, they played around and there were some minor and one downright heart attack scare, so I am satisfied. The final appearance of the monster is so awesome that it beats even Alien, I haven't seen anything better, more disgusting, bizarre and original. For me, it was almost full worthy of a full score, I enjoyed it a lot, and every horror scene was a blast, spiced up with an amazing musical score. Story 3/5, Action 3/5, Humour 0/5, Violence 4/5, Fun 4/5 Music 5/5, Visuals 4/5, Atmosphere 4/5, Suspense 4/5, Emotions 2/5, Actors 4/5. 8/10.

The Bustillo and Maury's do it again! When they made their debut Inside fifteen years ago, they awakened in me the hidden dark essence of evil, not only did they make me love and intensely watch horror movies, but they also awakened in me a taste for gore, for extremes and for crossing boundaries. Although their subsequent films were not as winning as the first one (though I still rank Livid, Among the Living and Leatherface as better than average), they are directors who are not dedicated to any other genre, they have been sticking to horror for fifteen years, so their new release, Deep House, was highly anticipated, but damn, I didn't expect that there would be a repeat of happened fifteen years ago to happen! This year unofficially marks the start of the new French Wave, after Meander, the French strike again and Deep House is the most effective horror since The Conjuring 2! Amazing work. I was scared, I wasn't breathing, I was sweating, I was in insane awe of every other scare, and I immediately rank Deep House as one of the hot contenders for Horror Film of the Year. Deep House has everything a proper horror film should have and in a wonderfully generous running time of 80 minutes! There's only a 20 minute introduction and you're immediately in for an hour of intense and atmospheric scares of the highest quality. It has an original premise in the form of an underwater haunted house (suddenly originality goes by the wayside for some), and it’s also found footage and survival, so the film is original in three sub-genres at once. No one has ever done that. Furthermore, the film has two likeable protagonists that the viewer really cares about. There is one interesting twist, top notch cinematography, visuals and music, and the scares are damn uncomfortable – one would think what the hell more could anyone possibly want and have the audacity to want more! An one-hour long heart attack that really made me feel sick and my hair bristled almost nonstop. The actors and the script play a completely minor role here and anyone who after 100 years hasn't got it by now, please switch to a different genre and direction, horror It's not for you. The only thing I kind of missed is proper gore, but I'll forgive anything for such an awesome haunting. Deep House has hit the ground running. Now we just have to wait for The Sadness. Story 3/5, Action 3/5, Humor 0/5, Violence 2/5, Fun 5/5 Music 4/5, Visuals 4/5, Atmosphere 5/5, Suspense 5/5, Emotion 2/5, Actors 4/5. 8.5/10.

A solid, period, gothic Stephen King series with 19th Century vampires, led by the Oscar-winning Adrien Brody. It's almost ironic how similar Chapelwaite is to Midnight Mass, except that this is Stephen King and Mass is just playing at King, and of course this is better in every way. There are several reasons to watch this and avoid that boring shit. There are no TV and amateur actors, but a terrific Adrien Brody. It doesn't take place in a boring time, this is honest to goodness 1850's grime. The vampires don't go on a rampage until the last episode, but they come on very early and the make-up effects don't look ridiculous, but very authentic and uncomfortable, and definitely command respect. Rather than endless dialogue from the Bible, Chapelwaite focuses on an engaging plot, interesting characters and a great atmosphere (each episode is well balanced in terms of plot and action). It's pretty brutal in places, visually it has just the right amount of grittiness, and you can feel Stephen King in every direction. It doesn't deal with any of the irrelevant stuff that you just don't want to hear in a horror movie, and by that I mean alcohol therapy, endless masses, family trauma, abortion, etc. Chapelwaite can be pretty mysterious and enigmatic (wonderful hallucinogenic visions, and the home invasion episode is one of the best). Well, I could go on for a long time with superlatives like. In a nutshell, in terms of acting, visuals, story and atmosphere, it is considerably more substantial, entertaining, suspenseful, and mysterious horror that downright mocks Flanagan and shits on him. Story 4/5, Action 3/5, Humour 1/5, Violence 3/5, Fun 4/5 Music 3/5, Visuals 4/5, Atmosphere 4/5, Suspense 4/5, Emotion 2/5, Actors 4/5. 7.5/10.

The French took the current theme of Covid and gave it a comedic twist. With Dany Boon in the lead, it sounded like a hot candidate for comedy of the year, but unfortunately they kept it a little too grounded at times. Not that there aren’t a few funny scenes. Dany steals it for himself again, but doesn't get enough space, and I found Francois Damiens as the janitor the funniest ever. Too bad the film is more drama than a pure crazy comedy, and relies more on emotions towards the end (they are effective, but I'd rather laugh than cry). A nice film on a topical subject that suffers from a two-hour running time, which is simply too much for a film of this nature. 6/10.

An incredible romp that is not far from a full score! Bugger me! Comedy of the year, perhaps. Vacation Friends seemed very low-key, but it won me over from the opening minutes. John Cena is awesome here, he was having an incredible time the whole movie and delivers one-liners as if his life depended on it. (I don't know anyone who smuggles drugs into Mexico!) The script is brilliant, there are great comic scenes, amazing lines. The scene with the sponges is legendary, several times I rolled on the floor with an unstoppable fit of laughter! The Americans shocked me, this humour really suited me and this is a comedy I will definitely watch more times. Meredith Hagner is rocking it here too. Crazy couple as they should be. 8.5/10.

Ryoo Seung-Wan is a highly acclaimed Korean director, he has made films such as The Berlin File and Veteran, and the highlight of his work is The Battleship Island, so of course I look forward to every new film from him. Escape from Mogadishu promised to be a candidate for Korean film of the year according to early reviews, but unfortunately, for me it is a slight disappointment. The story focuses on a dramatic situation in 1990, in Somalia, where a revolution has broken out and respected families from North and South Korean are stranded there and must work together to escape under adverse circumstances. It's kind of a Korean variation on Ben Affleck's Argo. The direction is obviously perfect; the cinematography, the music, the actors, the story, all of this is top notch and it's certainly not a bad film, except that I was kind of looking forward to something along the lines of 13 Hours, and that didn't quite happen. There is action, but it's more with Somali rebels attacking, and none of the Koreans hitting back (I wanted a proper shootout like in Commando, but unfortunately that didn't happen). So the action left me cold and I wasn't too entertained. Worth mentioning though is the finale, with one very impressive and stylishly shot car chase, but that's not enough for a higher rating for me. The storyline missed me, I guess Koreans or people interested in the issue will like it more.It's not exactly my cup of tea, but the film definitely has its qualities and deserves a chance to be seen. Story 4/5, Action 3/5, Humour 1/5, Violence 2/5, Fun 3/5 Music 3/5, Visuals 4/5, Atmosphere 4/5, Suspense 2/5, Emotion 2/5, Actors 3/5. 6/10.

One of the most expensive Dutch films has landed on Netflix and fans of war movies will be delighted, although it probably won't take anyone's breath away. The fate of three heroes is set against the backdrop of a military conflict that most people probably haven't even heard of. The film has a slower pace, but it is well shot and acted, there are a few suspenseful moments and you are interested to know how it all turns out. The film culminates in a 30-minute shootout, which lacks proper R-rated action, but it is well shot and it is not a disgraced compared to the competition. It's a bit of a shame that the emotions don't work too well here, more could have been made out of it for sure, but there there hasn’t much competition in the field of WW2 war films this year, so let's be glad for this one at least. Story 4/5, Action 3/5, Humour 1/5, Violence 2/5, Fun 3/5 Music 3/5, Visuals 4/5, Atmosphere 4/5, Tension 2/5, Emotions 2/5, Actors 3/5. 6/10.

Denis Villeneuve is certainly a director who has a lot to offer to the film industry, but unfortunately I wasn't enchanted by Dune. I don't know the book or the original film, so I didn't know what to expect, but I'm not too happy with the final result. At first glance Dune seemed attractive, it presents an interestingly imagined world, though it's definitely not another Game of Thrones or Lord of the Rings. more like another Star Wars, only more sophisticated. Visually, Dune was impressive until the action came along; unfortunately, but I've seen nothing worse in that regard. The fights looking like something out of The Power Rangers (those red and blue flashing shields on the characters was a heavily distracting element for me), making the already lackluster PG-13 action even more distracting. The second installment is supposed to promise a spectacular battle. Well, if it's going to flash like it did here, they'd better stick to the politics, because that was far more interesting. The Sand Worm looked nice, but considering that it took two years to make, I expected more than a 30-second shot. I have to praise the cast, even if there wasn't much left for the second part. The music didn't impress me much (did bagpipes play during the battle?), the pace is very slow, it drags awfully especially in the second half, the emotions are missing, the plot is not completely stupid, but it's almost impossible to pick up all the genders, names and titles without knowing the source material, and I won't watch Dune again voluntarily. I'm afraid this new world-building will pass me by, as there wasn't a single WOW scene that made me want to watch Dune again, and I don't even have much to show my friends. I'll stick with a neutral unenthusiastic 3 stars for the visuals and the actors who played their part. Story 4/5, Action 1/5, Humor 1/5, Violence 0/5, Fun 3/5 Music 3/5, Visuals 4/5, Atmosphere 4/5, Suspense 2/5, Emotion 1/5, Actors 4/5. 6/10.