Joe Bloggs About Films

Marvel’s First Family has finally arrived in the MCU with 'The Fantastic Four: First Steps' - and yes, the fourth time really is the charm. Matt Shakman delivers a stunning, retro-futuristic world that visually is Marvel’s best yet, elevated by outstanding costume and production design, as well another brilliant score by Michael Giacchino. Question marks surrounded some of the casting choices upon...

The DC Universe has officially launched under James Gunn's direction, and his first outing with 'Superman' is nothing short of remarkable. Gunn brings a fresh and heartfelt take on the iconic Man of Steel. 'Superman' delivers everything fans hoped for—epic action, strong performances from David Corenswet, Rachel Brosnahan, and Nicholas Hoult, and a perfectly balanced script full of warmth, humour,...

Joseph Kosinski returns with the high-octane and adrenaline pumping, 'F1 ' . Though I'm not a fan of the sport, nor did everything fully work for me within this release, it's hard not to be impressed with the films thrilling and up-close racing sequences, and the techniques used to capture them. Brad Pitt brings in another top performance, alongside a great supporting cast, delivering on drama and...

After the lacklustre 'Dominion', it seemed the Jurassic saga was set to go extinct. However, life indeed has found a way, as Universal and Gareth Edwards have unleashed the 7th instalment 'Jurassic World: Rebirth'.. and I had a pretty fun time with this one - even if the ride is a little bumpy. It's very much back to basics; dinosaurs on an island and the humans trying to avoid being chomped. It d...

Danny Boyle and Alex Garland reunite to bring the highly anticipated sequel '28 Years Later', thrusting audiences into how survivors are coping nearly three decades after the initial outbreak; and its excellent. '28 Years Later' highlights the beauty in human survival and the evolution of a community over time, shaped by their harsh environment. At the same time, it explores the surprising enduran...

Live action remakes are all the rage these days, and with that, DreamWorks have finally released their new reimagination of the fan favourite 'How to Train Your Dragon'... and it's just as great as the original. I wasn't overly keen on a live action adaptation for this story upon its announcement. The animation was pretty much perfect (as too was the whole trilogy, to be fair), but credit where cr...

Ana De Armas takes centre stage in this highly entertaining new spin off from the world of John Wick; 'Ballerina'. It's hard finding anyone that doesn't like at least one of the Wick films. They are full of incredible spectacles thanks to the sets, locations, and of course, action - and 'Ballerina' continues this trend, with de Armas showing off her skills for some terrific viewing. Though the sto...

The first season of HBO's adaptation of 'The Last Of Us' was met with mostly high praise from fans and critics. But much like the second game, the second season has been met with a lot of criticism... But I’m not too sure as to why. I might be in the minority, but I felt the second season was another incredible spectacle that delivered a brutal story of love, loss and revenge. It’s not a perfect s...

Tom Cruise is back as Ethan Hunt in what seems to be the finale to the pretty darn good Mission Impossible franchise. Aptly titled 'The Final Reckoning'. Cruise and his IMF team try to save the world from the AI entity known as.. well, the Entity. Cue death defying stunts, lots of running and a whole lot of exposition. I wasn’t the biggest fan of 'Dead Reckoning', and sadly, 'The Final Reckoning'...

'Final Destination' returns to the big screen with it's newest addition; 'Bloodlines'. This time, death is taking down a whole family tree due to their ancestor cheating death years prior. It certainly felt like a new and refreshing creative team were involved with this release. The franchise had reached a point of becoming stale and repetitive - afterall, there's only so many times you can watch...

Growing up, there was a good amount of horror/thrillers to choose from – but none more so impactful or impressionable, for my generation, than the 'Final Destination' series. Having originally been penned as a potential episode of 'The X Files', co-writers James Wong and Glen Morgan repurposed the story into the feature that we all love today – and the franchise has never looked back. The concept...

Marvel’s latest entry 'Thunderbolts*' is a much needed, and frankly brilliant, return to form. It wasn’t at the top of my anticipated list, but its certainly left its mark. Unlike most of the recent MCU releases, this feels raw and sincere with its narrative - whilst also being incredibly fun. The film tackles darker themes which allows for some excellent character exploration of its leads. It’s a...

Alex Garland teams up with Ray Mendoza for their new release 'Warfare'; bringing to the screen Mendoza's real life experience as a Navy SEAL during the Iraq war.. and it is brutal. This boots on the ground, real life/real time viewpoint makes this film stand out higher than any other war film you may have seen before. It is nerve-racking, anxiety inducing, as well as feeling extremely real due to...

Ryan Coogler's 'Sinners' is arguably the filmmakers most ambitious, yet impressive, to date. Diving into American history, the film fully explores those themes of oppression and freedom, whilst also leaving its mark with its bite. It's a film that sets itself apart from the rest due to the execution and talent both on screen and off. Michael B Jordan is tremendous in the dual role of twin brothers...

The directorial debut from Alex Scharfman 'Death of a Unicorn' is a bit of a mixed bag. It has some genuine thrills and comedic moments, but at times it feels that the movie doesn't know what it wants to be and thus doesn't fully stick the landing. The stand out in this one is its fantastic ensemble, including Paul Rudd, Jenna Ortega, Richard E. Grant, Téa Leoni and highlight Will Poulter - all of...

Jack Quaid stars as Nathan Caine; the man who feels no pain within Dan Berk and Robert Olsen's latest release 'Novocaine' - and my goodness is there a lot of fun, and blood, in this one. As action comedies go, this is quite a fresh and original concept. With no pain to worry about, there's also no fear for Quaid's character, as he goes on a one man mission to save the girl of his dreams. The film...

'Last Breath' is the terrifying and extraordinary true story of how deep sea diver, Chris Lemons, was left stranded 100 metres under the sea, with only his back up oxygen to save him. While this story maybe familiar to its audience, its the way in which director Alex Parkinson executes bringing this story to the big screen that is the most impressive. Filming techniques such as wide shots that is...

Returning to the FBI's basement to talk about yet another episode of The X Files. Joined in this revisit by fellow X Files enthusiast Tom Grant-Ward, as we discuss the controversial and only 'banned' episode of the show; Home. Premiering in October 1996, the episode was met with a mixture of applause and disgust due to the graphic nature of the episode and its themes. Horror fans loved it, your av...

Bong Joon-ho returns with his latest release 'Mickey 17'. The film follows Mickey, an expendable worker, that is sent out on dangerous missions and dying for research purposes. I do love some good sci fi - and 'Mickey 17' was neither good, nor bad, its somewhere in the middle that is basically 'ok'. Which given how the trailer made this look like it would be pretty special, it is underwhelming com...

Everyone's favourite serial killer is back... this time younger. Dexter returns to the small screen for the prequel series, aptly titled 'Original Sin', in which fans get an insight into the development of the killer with the code. Its not a show that I was overly keen to watch, nor very excited for - but boy, was I wrong to prejudge. The aesthetic and feel of the show is captured wonderfully, ins...

'The Monkey' couldn't ask for a better set of names attached to the project. Stephen King, the man behind the original short story and an all-round mastermind within the horror genre; James Wan, responsible for some of my all time favourite horrors; and Osgood Perkins, fresh off the back of the successful and unsettling 'Longlegs' from last year. It's a recipe for success, you might say - and 'The...

Captain America returns to the big screen with 'Brave New World'; the latest entry into the once great, now Meh-CU. And it was just fine. The film finally gives audiences the first feature length for Anthony Mackie's Sam Wilson, now firmly with his hand around the shield, as he looks to investigate a conspiracy surrounding the new president Thaddeus Ross. Though the film's leads are genuine stando...

From the creative team behind 'Barbarian', comes another very clever thriller that brings an AI twist to the cabin horror subgenre. 'Companion' delivers on a number of levels; the outstanding performance from lead Sophie Thatcher, Jack Quad too in here is devilish and psychotic, the script is tight, but its the films themes of consciousness, technology, as well as controlling relationships, that r...

Following the films premier at the 2024 Annecy International Animation Film Festival, along with its recent Oscar nomination, Adam Elliot's 'Memoir of a Snail' is finally making its way to cinemas worldwide; and it is simply excellent. This mature themed, tragicomedy presents the whirlwind journey for lead character Grace Pudel, from childhood to adulthood, all beautifully and perfectly captured t...

Everyone's friendly neighbourhood Spider-Man returned to the big screen in 2007, with the franchises biggest, and darkest story yet... and ultimately, the worst of the bunch. Though 'Spider-Man 3' delivered at the box office, becoming one of the highest grossing films ever at the time, it was severely criticised by fans and critics, entering into meme territory (thank you, Bully Maguire) thanks to...