Jungleland

Fighting for your life ... almost literally speaking in this case. Two brothers, one goal. And yet their relationship is shaky. Or at least it is vulnerable on many things. Trust, having given up so many things ... expectations ... wanting the best for your brother and so many other things. Add a woman and her own issues to the mix ... and it becomes an almost explosive cocktail of sorts.

The acting is more than decent and the story moves along nicely. I reckon you can guess a few things or most depending on how much you invest in thinking ahead of time. Still this is quite the enjoyable movie, where the fight scenes work as much as the dramatic scenes. There is heightened reality to it to ... and an ending that I reckon is bittersweet at best ... or maybe you feel different about it.

Although Max Winkler's directing was decent, his story was slow, depressing, unsatisfying, and basically the story of every person who wasn't raised with a silver spoon. So you'll get nothing out of this except for a reality check on the lemons of life. I just wish the story had more punch than what the fists were giving. There were flaws, plot and technical issues in the screenplay. The 90 min runtime felt almost 3 hours long with the slow pacing. Performances however where outstanding, and the cinematography and score on point. It's a generous 7/10 from me.

I put off watching this because the plot felt underwhelming but if you're a fan of cinema this film was beautifully shot and directed.

Really great cast and characters as well. Loved the pacing of this film.

Watched it on a whim since comedian Nick Mullen had a stupid two minute role and going by the trailer, I reckoned it had something concrete. It just blew me away. Charlie Hunnam's chops are Christian Bale (The Fighter) level here, minus the weight loss. The two younger characters are extremely well cast. If you liked "Warriors" , this is reminiscent of that film although on a smaller budget and non existent fanfare. The sentiments run high, carried along magnificently by that haunting soundtrack. When The Boss croons to signal the finale, you're gonna be all in!

I don't usually write reviews but after seeing the criminally underscored rating, I decided to. In short, this film had me drawn in with the talent, hooked with the plot, invested in the characters and satisfied with the ending. A pleasure to see O'Connell, Hunnam and Jessica Barden give stellar performances side by side in beautiful cinematography.