Cinema Effect

We got you! We got you! Matt Reeves' The Batman has been one of the most highly anticipated films in years, and it is finally playing in your local cinema. Thus, it would be kinda silly if we didn't review it (sorry Hulk). Robert Pattinson stars as Bruce Wayne, a millionaire living in a city called Gotham, who dresses up as a Bat and beats the crap out of criminals at night. Quite an interesting o...

One of the most beloved sequels of all-time, and the film which is often credited as saving Twentieth Century Fox in the 80s, is Aliens. James Cameron strikes back after his success on The Terminator with another sci-fi action blockbuster. Upon waking from cryosleep, Ripley is tasked to return to the system she escaped in Ridley Scott's original to investigate a disturbance with the local colony....

Before they were world famous, Aussies Guy Pearce and Russell Crowe starred alongside NAME REDACTED in Curtis Hanson's LA Confidential. Exploring the inner workings (and deep seeded corruption) of the Los Angeles police department in the 1950's, the film is an excellent period piece which almost completely holds up in 2022. Not to mention features awesome performances and memorable moments all the...

There's certainly been some quite captivating media originating in South Korea over the last few years (ever heard of Squid Game??), and Train To Busan is one such example. The film follows a dickhead dad and his daughter as they navigate a zombie outbreak on a train ride. It's a simple premise, but executed surprisingly effectively. After the review, we have a meaty News Chat for you, filled with...

Dan Stevens stars in new Friend of the Show Adam Wingard's 2014 film, The Guest, which sees him play a veteran who returns home to visit the family of his fallen mate. But to put it simply, this dude's clearly a weird unit. Now we desperately tried not to discuss Dan Stevens and his beautiful eyes for this entire episode, so hopefully you enjoy our thoughts on the fun moments, action shot on a bud...

In 1979, Sir Ridley Scott actually made a quality film you may have heard of called Alien (thank god they didn't go with 'Star Beast'). The premise is pretty simple really. The crew of The Nostromo spacecraft investigate an unknown signal, leading to a deadly xenomorph invading their ship and killing them off one by one. Where the film shines, and undoubtedly holds up over 40 years later, is the w...

In 2008 legendary and innovative animation studio Pixar struck gold once again with their sci-fi adventure film, Wall-E. In the future, planet Earth is screwed thanks to a climate disaster (luckily that will never happen in real-life RIGHT?!) meaning the remaining humans must retreat into space, and leave behind cute Wall-E robots to pick up their rubbish. But after our hero meets EVE and evidence...

Cinema Effect is back for our third season! And there's no better way to kick off 2022 than by returning to the first franchise we ever reviewed, and discussing the brand new Matrix film, The Matrix Resurrections (NOT Reloaded). It's time to go back to The Matrix, and once again feel really confused about what's happening in the first act. Is Neo still alive? Was the original trilogy just a series...

This is the best Christmas present you'll get this year. We know you're all just dying to know what the Cinema Effect crew thought about that new indie Spider film. Let's break it down with full spoilers!

As the second season of Cinema Effect comes to an end, it is time to reflect on the year that was for film and TV, as well as our our own podcast. 2021 saw a number of high profile and quality releases. Listen to Liam, Zac, and Jayden each give their top recommendations for 2021, go over your comments and picks, before finally giving out the prestigious awards based on every movie reviewed on the...

It is the final review of the year, and it seems only feels fitting for Zac and Liam to discuss what was one of their most anticipated movies, Sopranos prequel The Many Saints Of Newark. There were plenty of reasons to look forward to the film. For the first time in 15 years there is finally new content based on the show. It comes to us from The Sopranos' creator David Chase. We get to witness the...

Denis Villeneuve's long anticipated adaptation of Frank Herbert's classic sci-fi novel Dune is finally here... and we've actually seen it! The film's scale is huge, both visually and in plot. But essentially Paul Atreides and his cool family move to the desert planet Arrakis, one of the most deadly and valuable worlds in the universe. It is there they face many threats including the emperor of the...

Witness the end of the legendary Raimi trilogy! Tobey Maguire delivers his final (for now) and most absurd performance as Peter Parker in Spider-Man 3. This time around Spidey must deal with new threats in the Sandman, and an alien Symbiote which landed on Earth coincidentally two feet away from him. Also, James Franco randomly gets amnesia. Needless to say there's a lot going on in this movie. We...

Whether we like it or not, Doug Liman has now become a friend of the show as we review his 2014 sci-fi blockbuster Edge Of Tomorrow. Tom Cruise tries to convince us he's not an action badass as he plays Cage, a regular dude thrust into the front lines of an alien invasion and inadvertently gifted the ability to reset the day upon death. From there he must enlist the help of Emily Blunt to video ga...

It's about time we review a Christopher Nolan movie and talk about some REAL cinema on this podcast! Nolan is one of the most influential filmmakers working in Hollywood today, and the scale of his often time-bending films has evolved dramatically alongside his career. And in this progression, The Prestige essentially finds itself right in the middle of his transition from indie projects to summer...

Studio Ghibli is no doubt a legendary force in the history of animated filmmaking, regardless of how you wish to pronounce their name. That's why it's so exciting to review Miyazaki's 1997 classic, Princess Mononoke. Ashitaka is our lone protagonist cursed by a demon and subsequently banished by his tribe. Accompanied by his amazing red Elk Yakul, he must embark on a quest to stop the conflict bre...

Our webslinger franchise reviews continue with Sam Raimi's 2004 sequel, Spider-Man 2. Peter Parker has terrible time management skills and feels he can't help significantly improve peoples lives as Spider-Man. So he gives it up and is immediately much happier. But when brilliant scientist Otto Octavius is turned evil by his (bizarrely) sentient robotic arms, a hero must step up to stop him. And I...

We welcome co-directors the Safdie brothers to Cinema Effect lore for the first time with their 2019 Netflix hit Uncut Gems. Howard Rattner is an obsessive gambler and jewel store owner in Manhattan who is in a lot of debt. That's all the setup you need in preparation to embark on an 135 minute viewing experience filled with constant chaos and stress. You've never seen Adam Sandler in a role like...

A film that seems to have found a following in the cult horror genre is American Mary. Released in 2012, the parents of the sibling directors remortgaged their house to help finance this movie. Was it worth it? Well that's up to you to decide... Who are we kidding, the movie isn't good. But I can't be bothered typing a summary here. Just hit play and we'll tell you all about the terrible audio, po...

Netflix is back at it again releasing an original picture from Antoine Fuqua, The Guilty. The remake of a foreign film and shot entirely during COVID (the director had to work on this movie entirely while in isolation), it follows Jake Gyllenhaal trying to stop and solve a kidnapping as an emergency services operator. The story is confined to a single set, and in essence involves the lead actor si...

Following a turbulent seven year production and multiple delays, a team of animators were finally able to bring their entirely hand-drawn anime film Redline to the screen. What's going on in this film you may ask? Well every racer in the galaxy wants to win the incredibly prestigious Redline. But a bunch of robots won't allow it, and will wage intergalactic war on the race itself. The art style co...

In 2002, Sam Raimi helmed a tentpole film in the history of the now incredibly saturated comic book genre, with his original Spider-Man. Tobey Maguire delivers a... divisive performance as Peter Parker, a dorky teenager who gets bitten by a radioactive spider. But you know the drill. After more reboots and interpretations of the character than anyone can keep straight, we go back to where it all b...

Steven Spielberg returns to the show as we review his 2002 crime biography, Catch Me If You Can. Based on true events, Frank (our mate Leo DiCaprio) is a very naughty young man who commits fraud and poses as an airline pilot, and surgeon, among other high ranking professions. But he's being chased across 1960's USA by FBI agent Carl (Jayden's favourite actor Tom Hanks). The story that follows capt...

Danny Boyle's Best Picture winning film Slumdog Millionaire released in 2008. A regular teenager from Mumbai performs incredibly well on 'Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?'. But how did he know the answers? Was he cheating? And why did he go on the show? All questions the movie answers, while providing the audience with an authentic look at suburban life for the lower class in India. And who could fo...

Prime Time is a new Netflix film which comes to us from Poland. Sebastian is a young maybe 20 year-old dude who decides to take a live television production hostage on New Year's Eve 1999. There's some great tense scenes in the movie, and it makes some bold choices in choosing to keep the main character's motivations vague, which we certainly had some thoughts about. Plus, we talk about all of you...