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MarkLotinga-1064
Reviews
Smile (2022)
Words almost fail me, this is so poor.
The release of Smile in 2022 completely passed me by, it is therefore a shame that we have Smile 2 as I may have gone a further period, ideally forever without being aware of or even watching this film.
As is often the case nowadays when a sequel is out at the cinema the previous film or films is/are featured on TV, this being the case here.
The film is succinctly described thus: "after witnessing a bizarre, traumatic incident involving a patient, a psychiatrist becomes increasingly convinced she is being threatened by an uncanny entity."
Clearly "inspired" by The Ring and It Follows, both superior films, we have this insipid effort coming in at just short of two hours.
I am taking the tag line of "once you see it it's too late" to heart as now that I have seen Smile it's now too late to get those two hours of my life back.
It would be fair to say that I did not warm to nor care about any character in this film, especially the unconvincing lead.
I have absolutely no idea how this acquired a, what seems to me "generous" IMDB rating of 6.5 nor how it generated a sequel.
Well, in all honesty to the latter I do, again somehow beyond my comprehension this film made a tonne of cash, just goes to show that you can fool enough of the people just enough of the time.
This film required more than a suspension of belief, it requires a suspension of all brain activity whatsoever, it is dumb, the script is dumb as is much of the awful dialogue.
It is not frightening and there is zero tension, and it was obvious that the lead would eventually die.
The only bit that mildly amused me was the cat in the box, it sure beat a jack in the box.
I really disliked this film and would urge that it be avoided at all costs.
Hammer: Heroes, Legends and Monsters (2024)
Hammer Horror Lives!
I love Hammer films, always have, always will, ever since I was a lad.
I have watched the main thrust of their horror output multiple times over and have several books detailing the history and the films of Hammer.
I was unaware of this brand-new documentary until it popped up on Sky Arts.
Always great to see new Hammer content even if a lot of this in terms of archive clips I had seen before.
The talking heads amongst which were Joe Dante, John Landis, Tim Burton and Jon Carpenter seemed to be genuine fans, I enjoyed hearing what they had to say.
It was also terrific to hear from Martine Beswick and especially Madeline Smith, who has always been a favourite of mine.
Although I was shocked to hear what Maddy had to say about how badly she was treated by one person in particular and I am sorry that she was put through that all those years ago.
It clearly left its mark on her.
One thing new that I did learn was about the talks with Marvel and Stan Lee in the 1970s, the potential slate of characters and films had me thinking "if only"!?
Perhaps my only gripes with this documentary are the clunky title and the awful CGI/AI version of Peter Cushing at the end.
This makes his earlier "return" in 2016's Rogue One: A Star Wars Story seem like a work of genius.
To dream of a return to the halcyon days of Hammer is unrealistic, however one can hope, it will be interesting to see what new owner John Gore is actually able to achieve with this fabulous brand.
And on a final note, fascinating to read on IMDB that the hooded Tarot Dealer was none other than the delicious Valerie Leon!
Recommended for fans both new and old.
Fisk (2021)
Definitely not another glamourous legal show!
Once again thanks to the Netflix algorithm I was provided with the opportunity to catch up on Fisk which already had two seasons under its belt.
Season one being released in 2021 with the second season following in the latter part of 2022.
Fisk is briefly summarised thus: "fast-paced comedy about high-end contracts lawyer Helen Tudor-Fisk, who is forced to take a job at a shabby, suburban law firm following a humiliating marriage breakdown and a professional fall from grace."
The show was created by Kitty Flanagan and Vincent Sheehan, with Kitty playing Fisk.
Although the small ensemble cast are very good, Flanagan as Fisk is great, she makes the show as she stumbles through life's trials and tribulations deflecting the various slings and arrows of outrageous misfortune that are directed her way.
The trick if you will with this show is that it is so relatable, the fact that it is set in a lawyer's office is almost an irrelevance, what we come for is to see Fisk interact in her own quirky and yet well-meaning way with other people who are often quite "quirky" themselves.
This is typically understated Aussie humour, uncomfortable in parts and dry in others, with its share of laugh out loud moments but mostly conveying an almost constant level of bemused amusement throughout each episode as Helen awkwardly handles clients and her life.
Gems like this deserve a wider audience, and sure it will not be everyone's cup of tea, but it is mine, and I don't even like tea.
Each episode I am rooting for Helen to win and all be it in her own way she generally does.
The good news is that season three starts airing next month and I imagine that sometime early in 2025 this will become available via Netflix, roll on that day say I as I will be tuning in to watch the further exploits of Helen within the newly renamed Gruber & Fisk solicitors!
Hit Man (2023)
All filler, no killer.
I am coming to the conclusion that Netflix, cannot reliably do to two things, comedy and in this case movies.
Hit Man is the latest non-event that I have spent two hours on.
Allegedly based on the true story of Gary Johnson, how true it is or not I am not in the slightest bit motivated to find out.
The film is described thus: "a professor moonlighting as a hit man of sorts for his city police department, descends into dangerous, dubious territory when he finds himself attracted to a woman who enlists his services."
Hit Man is brought to us by Glen Powell, who stars, co-wrote and produced whilst Richard Linklater directs, co-wrote and produced.
So no on else is to "blame" for this save Powell and Linklater, neither of whom I am familiar with.
Apparently this is a rom-com, well it may have had some rom, but it was very short of com, at no stage was I amused, in fact at no stage was I overly engaged.
The reality is, I paused this film multiple times which is never a good sign.
Trying to pick out some positives, there was decent chemistry between Powell and Adria Arjona and Austin Amelio gives a good turn as the sleezy Jasper.
After all this the only thing I am left wondering is, what does Gary Johnson make of all this?
In any case, that's all I've got, this premise deserves a better film, we didn't get it, I cannot recommend, for there is nothing to recommend it for.
To turn a phrase, all filler, no killer.
James Blunt: One Brit Wonder (2023)
Much more than a one Brit or indeed one hit wonder
Last night I had the choice of watching what turned out to be a turgid England game at Euro 2024 or watch James Blunt: One Brit Wonder, I chose James Blunt, which is not a phrase I ever thought I would ever utter.
I made the right choice, this was a fun and interesting watch.
Ostensively, this is a documentary where we follow James across Europe during his much-delayed Greatest Hit Tour of 2022, yet it is much more than that.
At the outset I have to say that at times this comes across as a mockumentary which I think reflects James' own very dry sense of humour.
Aside from the obvious one "hit" and what a hit it was, I knew next to nothing about James but from watching this I came to the conclusion that he is a thoroughly likeable, decent and deeply self-effacing character.
This covers his life through from the boarding schools days where he was packed off at the age of seven through his army times, including the harrowing periods in Kosovo.
Eventually bringing us to the beginnings of his musical career as aided and abetted by the likes of his Manager Todd Interland and Linda Perry.
It seems that near-constant touring followed with the long-suffering Tour Manager Bobble at the helm, it also seems that James has a devoted following.
And from the comments made by the band, around those "pretty girls" who received golden tickets much fun was to be had in the after parties during the earlier days of that touring!
Speaking of the band, they really do seem to be a close-knit bunch.
I have to also say that both his wife and his slightly eccentric parents come across as being really lovely and again, a strong and close-knit unit.
He is a man that has been unfairly maligned, after all what did he do?
He proudly served his country, putting his life on the line, he also and amongst many other things created Back to Bedlam in 2004 which became the best-selling album of that decade, featuring of course, You're Beautiful.
His music isn't for me and it may not be for you, but that doesn't matter.
And lest I forget as he now moves to become a national treasure, he is also a Twitter aka X legend, with over two million followers.
How many famous account holders on X would have this in their bio: "cockney rhyming slang for the good stuff; Proof that one song is all you need."?
None, other than James I would venture.
So, there it is, James Blunt a man who is much more than a one Brit or indeed one hit wonder, I would happily recommend this for a watch.
Jimmy Carr: Natural Born Killer (2024)
Netflix Born Filler
I cannot profess to being the biggest fan of Jimmy Carr, nonetheless as his new Netflix special, Natural Born Killer was available I decided to give it a watch.
As likely as not I have not watched anything by Jimmy since his previous special His Dark Material in 2021.
Well, aside from laughing out loud around three or maybe four times, this was thin gruel, it really felt like he was trying very, very hard to be offensive and funny, and ended up being neither to any great extent.
It just did not work for me.
The show almost settles into two halves as around or just beyond the half-way point and with the aid of the audience Jimmy seems to loosen up, it becomes more fluid and is a bit funnier all be it in a comparative sense.
I felt for the audience who I presume had paid good money to see this, it felt that they just weren't that into it, maybe it was just one of those nights but this Aylesbury audience did not seem to be having the best of times.
I guess it is mildly amusing to see Jimmy's face, teeth and hair evolve over time all with the aid of modern surgery and dentistry but beyond that there is little to recommend here.
Jimmy needs to have a long hard think about his future career or there may not be much career in his future.
Weird Science (1985)
"So, what would you little maniacs like to do first"?
Weird Science was a lot of fun, a perfect light and frothy 1980s movie.
Although, having said that it is quietly subversive and more than a little risqué, it is unlike the other Directorial works of John Hughes.
In a nutshell, whilst two high-school nerds are watching a colourised version of Frankenstein, they hit upon the idea of using a computer program to literally create the perfect woman, who promptly turns their lives upside-down.
In a scene that echoed the earlier WarGames and perhaps foreshadowed AI our nerds tap into non-specific massive computing power via a dial-up modem!?
In any case, that perfect woman turns out to be Kelly LeBrock at the absolute peak of her powers, and not only does she do a bang-up job as Lisa she also seems to be having an absolute ball.
Aside from the year before's The Woman in Red the rest of Kelly's career was rather a non-event, which on this showing seems a shame.
The film also contains very early appearances for Bill Paxton and a pre-Junior Robert Downey.
We also have Vernon Wells relatively fresh from his rather similar role in Mad Max II, who then went on to appear in the following years Commando up against Arnie.
Last of note is Michael Berryman, best known for playing Pluto in the iconic The Hills Have Eyes.
These latter two actors have gone on to have prolific careers racking up more than 100 movie appearances each.
Of the two lead actors, only Anthony Michael Hall's's career amounted to much, his co-star Ilan Mitchell-Smith went on to do very little else.
I mention all this to illustrate just how varied and fickle this business we call show can be.
As Lisa's classic first line goes, and these are words to live by: "so, what would you little maniacs like to do first"?
The Greatest Night in Pop (2024)
Exemplary documentary making, a must watch!
I am not going to lie, I always regarded We are the World by USA for Africa as very much the poor relation to Band Aid's Do they know it's Christmas?
And although they are vastly different types of song in the main I still hold that view.
Having now watched this documentary I can at least hold this effort in higher regard.
This is not quite riveting stuff but close to it, I was a bit 50/50 on adding it to my list, could something really be referred to as The Greatest Night in Pop?
My answer is, quite possibly, yes.
Over just shy of 100 minutes we are taken across the journey of this song from Harry Belafonte's first "idea", through the pivotal roles that Lionel Richie, Michael Jackson, Quincy Jones and Stevie wonder played.
Through to the tortuous execution in that room at A&M studious that went on "all night long".
Excellent contributions from Lionel in the main, Bruce Spingsteen, Huey Lewis and Cyndi Lauper, it always helps to hear from the people that were actually there at the time.
The extensive archive footage was invaluable too!
Of special note and I am far from Bob's biggest fan, the seemingly impromptu speech that Bob Geldof gave before recording started was about as spot on as one could imagine or hope for.
The talent on display here dwarfs that on hand for Band Aid by some margin, so many genuine icons and legends.
Last but not least, facts are facts, Bob Dylan cannot sing and I still do not know why Dan Aykroyd was involved.
All in all, this is exemplary documentary making, a must watch!
#TheGreatestNightInPop.
Muscles & Mayhem: An Unauthorized Story of American Gladiators (2023)
An unexpected pleasure!
I was never a fan of Gladiators in the UK let alone American Gladiators which was the original show that went on to spawn the international versions.
Therefore my decision to watch Netflix's mini-series Muscles & Mayhem was a highly speculative one.
Having now watched all five episodes I am glad that I did watch, I found this to be a genuinely interesting, entertaining if "unauthorised" take on the once hit series.
I will take most of what I heard as gospel as it came from the mouths of the major gladiators themselves, and as they were there, they sure ought to know what went on!
Perhaps rather surprisingly I warmed to the featured gladiators almost without exception and felt genuinely sorry that they did not share in the vast revenues that were generated.
Goes to show how important either having a good contract or a better agent is when it comes to this business called show.
Their sacking from the show no doubt precipitated the show's demise and can be seen in retrospect as the beginning of the end.
Nonetheless, it was a show that went on to "inspire" many other shows that followed in its wake.
I would recommend this series without hesitation.
American Nightmare (2024)
A rollercoaster ride that challenges preconceptions.
"After a harrowing home invasion and kidnapping in 2015, a couple is accused of staging the ordeal when the woman reappears in this true-crime docuseries".
This top line review of American Nightmare does not even begin to scratch the surface of what is in some ways an astonishing yet also deeply depressing story.
Astonishing as in truth can be stranger than fiction, and depressing as in, the Police and indeed FBI were both less than open-minded and diligent.
I am not normally someone that watches these true crime docu-dramas but something about the way this was described drew me in.
And having been drawn in I watched all three episodes back-to-back which again is unusual for me as I am not an habitual "binger".
I wouldn't want to get into the details too much or risk any spoilers, for me this series is best seen with minimal knowledge beforehand.
However, amongst many "villains", there are two undoubted "heroes", primarily Denise Huskins and Misty Carausu of Dublin Police Department.
And as to why they are heroes, well you will just have to watch, something which I would strongly recommend.