masonsaul

Reality is an unrelentingly uncomfortable, satisfyingly concise and tightly paced fact based thriller. It's the kind of film that has some genuinely effective facts and statistics in its closing moments whilst using the archive footage to reiterate its point. It's easy to see how this would have naturally worked as a stage play instead; however, the overall premise and clean execution still lends itself to a feature length film adaptation.

This is Sydney Sweeney's best performance so far in a role that gives her plenty to work with in a subtle fashion. She's in a bad position from the start and has to really try to maintain her composure as things continue to escalate with serious consequences. Every small detail of her performance says so much and the lack of anything big makes it more impactful. Josh Hamilton & Marchánt Davis are suitably off putting and hard to pin down.

Tina Satter's clinical direction brings a few creative visual flourishes to work around redacted material but mostly allows proceedings to unfold in a way that feels as realistic as possible. The smart decision to use real transcripts of the recording for dialogue only enhances the film's relevancy, making it an eye-opening experience. The blocking also puts you on edge since characters stay too close for too long.

The Long Walk is a highly investing and suitably bleak thriller. It stumbles slightly towards the end but everything before then is either deeply human or unrelentingly tense. The premise is simple yet extremely effective, explained in a concise fashion and told with an unflinching commitment to showing the dark logistics of the long walk. Once the title bluntly appears after an extended opening, it just doesn't stop and has a righteous anger.

Cooper Hoffman gives a great lead performance that brings ample empathy and determination. He also has wonderful chemistry with a phenomenal David Jonsson, who hides his pain beneath a genuine kindness that steals the whole film. When the two of them are with Ben Wang and Tut Nyuot, they form a strong core four so the emotional beats really land and their banter offers some much needed humour.

Director Francis Lawrence is a fitting choice to helm this and turns the seemingly mundane act of constantly walking into a never ending nightmare where the brutal violence arrives quickly and in disturbing detail without revelling in those shocking sequences. JT Mollner's tight screenplay keeps the characters mostly focused on the next moment and composer Jeremiah Fraites brings a sombre and emotional score.

Spinal Tap II: The End Continues is a worthwhile comedy sequel that has some gaps between really successful jokes but it still has plenty of them overall. It's a loving return with all the expected absurdity contained in another efficiently brief run time. There's a few fun cameos from music legends to counterbalance the incredibly brief appearances from original supporting cast members which feel pointless.

Christopher Guest, Harry Shearer & Michael McKean retain their endearingly awkward rapport. Chris Addison and Kerry Godliman are wonderful new additions who match the film's energy like their predecessors did. Returning director Rob Reiner brings the same lovable energy in his performance and his direction still understands how to be a mockumentary with the best decision being to keep the film going throughout the credits again.