stevenrotherforth
Joined Jul 2012
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Copshop
Copshop does what all good stories do. It takes its own sweet time to tell.
Starring the always likeable Gerard Butler and the massively underrated Frank Grillo. It is perhaps Alexsis Louder as Rookie cop Valerie and Toby Huss as the psychopathic hitman Anthony Lamb who really steal the show. In fact the character Lamb is hilarious getting all the best lines.
Copshop doesn't break the mould but is utterly satisfying with some colourful and charismatic dialogue, Intense and graphic violence with action scenes that remain grounded. (Grounded for the most part, there's the odd moment here and there where characters survive the unsurvivable).
On the run from a lethal assassin, a wily con artist devises a scheme to hide out inside a small-town police station-but when the hitman turns up at the precinct, an unsuspecting rookie cop finds herself caught in the crosshairs.
Copshop was a pleasant surprise managing to keep me entertained for its entire 1hr 47min runtime. It's a good looking movie too. One that should look sublime in 4K. I watched in 1080p and was rather impressed. There's no film grain. A slick presentation that reveals wrinkles, pores and the finest of detail.
For the Home Theatre connoisseur, sound is decent too with plenty of bang for your buck when the action ignites.
Good low budget action movies such as this are becoming harder to find. Director Joe Carnahan is usually pretty reliable when it comes to this sort of thing and this is another highlight in his movie career.
Copshop does what all good stories do. It takes its own sweet time to tell.
Starring the always likeable Gerard Butler and the massively underrated Frank Grillo. It is perhaps Alexsis Louder as Rookie cop Valerie and Toby Huss as the psychopathic hitman Anthony Lamb who really steal the show. In fact the character Lamb is hilarious getting all the best lines.
Copshop doesn't break the mould but is utterly satisfying with some colourful and charismatic dialogue, Intense and graphic violence with action scenes that remain grounded. (Grounded for the most part, there's the odd moment here and there where characters survive the unsurvivable).
On the run from a lethal assassin, a wily con artist devises a scheme to hide out inside a small-town police station-but when the hitman turns up at the precinct, an unsuspecting rookie cop finds herself caught in the crosshairs.
Copshop was a pleasant surprise managing to keep me entertained for its entire 1hr 47min runtime. It's a good looking movie too. One that should look sublime in 4K. I watched in 1080p and was rather impressed. There's no film grain. A slick presentation that reveals wrinkles, pores and the finest of detail.
For the Home Theatre connoisseur, sound is decent too with plenty of bang for your buck when the action ignites.
Good low budget action movies such as this are becoming harder to find. Director Joe Carnahan is usually pretty reliable when it comes to this sort of thing and this is another highlight in his movie career.
The Matrix Resurrections is a movie too late to the party. Probably the reason why it has bombed at the box office. I think Warner Brothers have miscalculated the real interest in this franchise.
However I believe myself to be a fan but even I was sceptical especially considering how dire the sequels were. Resurrections is no better and whilst it starts out promising it soon becomes apparent that this whole concept is a tired one that has run its course, relying heavily on nostalgia. Even Keanu Reeves as Neo couldn't be bothered to get a shave and a hair cut for his character showing the lack of enthusiasm that this movie generates.
Resurrections is a bunch of old ideas repackaged to look like it is cutting edge.
Whilst Lana Wachowski may have had a few inspired ideas here and there they never come to any fruition and this movie will be forgotten by the time credits roll.
It's sad really, especially for fans of the original movie like myself.
If you haven't had the chance to see the remastered 4K Blu-ray of the original Matrix then I suggest you save your cash on a movie ticket for Resurrections and go out and buy the original on 4K.
It was nice to see Keanu and Carrie back in their famous roles but the absence of Laurence Fishburne and Hugo Weaving in their respective roles certainly didn't go unnoticed. In fact I believe that this was just another nail in the coffin as to why this film fails. Nostalgia is all well and good and the creators rely heavily. Sad that they neglected to bring back two of the movies major players replacing them with two sub par forgettable performances by actors I haven't really heard of.
I apologise for my negativity. I really wanted to love this but there's nothing here to get a fans juices flowing. Even the action scenes are stale.
Neo constantly repeats his ability to stop bullets to the extent where Keanu spends most of the movie with his arms out in front of him like he's startled by headlights or trying to push an imaginary gate open. Even the Kung Fu scenes offer little joy. Choreography is sparse as if Reeves is saving his energy for the forthcoming John Wick 4 movie.
To sum up The Matrix Resurrections is a pointless retread down memory lane. Sadly someone has gone and built a sewage plant down there resulting in one big pile of crap!
However I believe myself to be a fan but even I was sceptical especially considering how dire the sequels were. Resurrections is no better and whilst it starts out promising it soon becomes apparent that this whole concept is a tired one that has run its course, relying heavily on nostalgia. Even Keanu Reeves as Neo couldn't be bothered to get a shave and a hair cut for his character showing the lack of enthusiasm that this movie generates.
Resurrections is a bunch of old ideas repackaged to look like it is cutting edge.
Whilst Lana Wachowski may have had a few inspired ideas here and there they never come to any fruition and this movie will be forgotten by the time credits roll.
It's sad really, especially for fans of the original movie like myself.
If you haven't had the chance to see the remastered 4K Blu-ray of the original Matrix then I suggest you save your cash on a movie ticket for Resurrections and go out and buy the original on 4K.
It was nice to see Keanu and Carrie back in their famous roles but the absence of Laurence Fishburne and Hugo Weaving in their respective roles certainly didn't go unnoticed. In fact I believe that this was just another nail in the coffin as to why this film fails. Nostalgia is all well and good and the creators rely heavily. Sad that they neglected to bring back two of the movies major players replacing them with two sub par forgettable performances by actors I haven't really heard of.
I apologise for my negativity. I really wanted to love this but there's nothing here to get a fans juices flowing. Even the action scenes are stale.
Neo constantly repeats his ability to stop bullets to the extent where Keanu spends most of the movie with his arms out in front of him like he's startled by headlights or trying to push an imaginary gate open. Even the Kung Fu scenes offer little joy. Choreography is sparse as if Reeves is saving his energy for the forthcoming John Wick 4 movie.
To sum up The Matrix Resurrections is a pointless retread down memory lane. Sadly someone has gone and built a sewage plant down there resulting in one big pile of crap!
Alone
Movie 7.5/10
Whilst the title may lack in creativity 'Alone' is a solid kidnap movie elevated by the two lead performances and some thoughtful direction by John Hyams.
Hyams is a master at B movie fodder but this latest offering is somewhat of a step up in quality. Hyams has crafted a tense taught thriller that takes its own sweet time to tell the story.
There's the odd common trope of the genre scattered throughout but for the most part this movie delivers what it intends to do.
Our main character is the victim, Jessica played believably by Jules Willcox. Her performance is never over sold. Instead Willcox plays her character as vulnerable and frightened but with tremendous resolve.
Marc Menchaca is the villain. A creepy unnerving individual. Menchaca's turn here reminiscent of Ted Levine as Buffalo Bill in 'Silence Of The Lambs'. I'll say no more as this is high praise indeed.'Alone' once getting into its stride is a good addition to the genre. It doesn't break any new ground but remains believable even in the final act where most movies of this type tend to fall down. It's a movie worthy of your time and available on Sky Cinema at time of writing this review.
Picture quality 8/10
Here's a turn up for the books! An actual Sky Cinema 1080p presentation that isn't marred by compression issues. There's no sign of banding and dark scenes manage to come across effectively.
'Alone' looks sublime even in HD. Detail is razor sharp considering the platform usually falters unless viewing in UHD. Motion is handled well with Bird's eye views of the forest below looking very clean. Colours of surrounding vegetation is impressively rendered making for a pleasant viewing experience.
Sound quality 7/10
The vanilla 5.1 mix on offer here gets the job done but it's not one to showcase your new home theatre system. Most of the sound stage is steered front and centre with the rear channels left to convey atmospheric sound.
I up-mixed the Dolby Digital 5.1 mix using DTS Neural X. This helped push some effects up above. The sounds of chirping birds and creaking trees could then be heard overhead. This elevated the sound mix (pardon the pun) to dramatic effect.
LFE on the other hand is a mixed bag.
The bass drop which accompanies each chapter of the movie as it is displayed onscreen has real impact, as does the dramatical music score. It is dynamic effects that lack a little. Gunshots are deprived of weight but this is nitpicking. Overall the mix is adequate and mirrors the tight budget constraints of the movie.
Final Thoughts
'Alone is a good looking movie with some fantastic performances from the two lead performers. The film burns slowly at first before igniting into something of a real surprise.
Movie 7.5/10
Whilst the title may lack in creativity 'Alone' is a solid kidnap movie elevated by the two lead performances and some thoughtful direction by John Hyams.
Hyams is a master at B movie fodder but this latest offering is somewhat of a step up in quality. Hyams has crafted a tense taught thriller that takes its own sweet time to tell the story.
There's the odd common trope of the genre scattered throughout but for the most part this movie delivers what it intends to do.
Our main character is the victim, Jessica played believably by Jules Willcox. Her performance is never over sold. Instead Willcox plays her character as vulnerable and frightened but with tremendous resolve.
Marc Menchaca is the villain. A creepy unnerving individual. Menchaca's turn here reminiscent of Ted Levine as Buffalo Bill in 'Silence Of The Lambs'. I'll say no more as this is high praise indeed.'Alone' once getting into its stride is a good addition to the genre. It doesn't break any new ground but remains believable even in the final act where most movies of this type tend to fall down. It's a movie worthy of your time and available on Sky Cinema at time of writing this review.
Picture quality 8/10
Here's a turn up for the books! An actual Sky Cinema 1080p presentation that isn't marred by compression issues. There's no sign of banding and dark scenes manage to come across effectively.
'Alone' looks sublime even in HD. Detail is razor sharp considering the platform usually falters unless viewing in UHD. Motion is handled well with Bird's eye views of the forest below looking very clean. Colours of surrounding vegetation is impressively rendered making for a pleasant viewing experience.
Sound quality 7/10
The vanilla 5.1 mix on offer here gets the job done but it's not one to showcase your new home theatre system. Most of the sound stage is steered front and centre with the rear channels left to convey atmospheric sound.
I up-mixed the Dolby Digital 5.1 mix using DTS Neural X. This helped push some effects up above. The sounds of chirping birds and creaking trees could then be heard overhead. This elevated the sound mix (pardon the pun) to dramatic effect.
LFE on the other hand is a mixed bag.
The bass drop which accompanies each chapter of the movie as it is displayed onscreen has real impact, as does the dramatical music score. It is dynamic effects that lack a little. Gunshots are deprived of weight but this is nitpicking. Overall the mix is adequate and mirrors the tight budget constraints of the movie.
Final Thoughts
'Alone is a good looking movie with some fantastic performances from the two lead performers. The film burns slowly at first before igniting into something of a real surprise.
