Where did it all go so wrong? After several era-defining movies, the Marvel franchise seems to be sputtering. Judging by the ill-conceived and frankly illogical The Marvels, it seems to have run out of ideas for these characters. The Marvels draws together Captain Marvel (2019), the Disney + mini-series Ms Marvel and a few scattered…
Adrenalin pumping action and a big-name cast feature in Fast X. The film is the tenth in the Fast and Furious franchise, which began in 2001. The pretence for Fast X goes back to 2011’s Fast Five. You might recall from the earlier movie that Dom Toretto (Vin Diesel) and his crew took out nefarious…
Deeply entrenched racism is at the centre of a drama in which the result is never in doubt and the journey is designed to provoke outrage. First up, there is the political issue of a civilised society condemning felons to death. Regardless of your position on that, it is difficult to feel too much sympathy…
[7:00 pm] I’m sitting with a drink and snack ready for Captain Marvel. The crowd at the (full) preview screening is buzzing. [7:02] Trailer for Avengers: Endgame. Seems appropriate. [7:05] Oh, they’ve done something cool with the opening credits. Nice. [7:15] Okay so Carol Danvers (Brie Larson) is known as Vers (pronounced “veers”) and is…
The Glass Castle is the film version of a true story that will baffle you. A film that balances between a romanticised comedy and a serious drama. It’s like an adventurous road-movie in which an apparently normal family travel around as nomads. But “apparently normal” is an understatement, because they lead a rather unusual life….
Is there really nobody else wondering why the female characters in a King Kong movie are so attracted to this giant ape? Honestly, I’m always asking myself the same question. Is it because Kong “King of all places he appears in” is such an impressive appearance, radiating power and protection? Or is it its primitive…
From the outset we just know the contention in the action-crime thriller Free Fire is one set to explode and it will inevitably end badly. Suspicion, ego and, above all, greed stand in the way of a cadre of crims in Massachusetts in the late ‘70s. That they are on opposing sides is almost of…
King Kong re-imagined as a horror-thriller adventure in Kong: Skull Island is fun, fanciful, clunky and inane, all at the same time. This is a world populated by massive dinosaur-like creatures, brought to the big screen by the producers of Godzilla. The film tells the story of a diverse team of scientists, soldiers and adventurers…
