QUICK REVIEW: Alien Covenant

Howdy ladies and gents, time for another review and today I’m talking about Alien: Covenant. Now I wasn’t the biggest fan of Prometheus (review available here), I’ve only seen that film twice I think and while really beautiful, the story and characters didn’t grab me at all. So when Covenant began its marketing I wasn’t overly keen, but the trailers did pique my interest. Now that I’ve seen the film I’m ready to pass judgment.

The story can be described as the following:

“The crew of a colony ship, bound for a remote planet, discover an uncharted paradise with a threat beyond their imagination, and must attempt a harrowing escape.”

The story did well to get back to the basics of what made Alien and Aliens so much fun by having a plot that was more familiar and straightforward, but in addition to that this film took certain plot elements from Prometheus (the previous film), and attempted to answer some of the lingering questions that film left up in the air. What I liked about this film was not only how it strengthened some of the plot elements from the last film but also made both feel naturally connected rather than forgetting what had come before. It was suitably dark and mysterious and brought up some interesting themes about the morals and ethics of creation, life and death and the need for humans to prolong their existence. It is unfortunate that not all of the answers from Prometheus were answered and there were certain plot details that Covenant brought up that weren’t properly clarified or felt left out in the main story. Plus this story doesn’t do much in the way of creating new material for this universe, sure there are some minor interesting additions to the mythology, however this is a story and set of scenarios you’ve seen before so if you were hoping something fresh you may be a little disappointed.

As for the cast there were fine, for the most part I liked this cast more than the Prometheus crew minus David, however, these characters were fine to forgettable as you can tell a good few of them are going to die at some point and sure enough they do. There are only a handful of people that stood out. Michael Fassbender once again was the best of the cast playing both as David and Walter, the android from the first film and the current android with the Covenant crew. Fassbender did well to portray these different characters both with different personalities and agendas, and I just loved watching him. Katherine Waterston was better than I expected as Daniels “Dany” Branson, since watching the trailers I thought the film was setting her up to be a Ripley-like character and while she does embody some of the those traits, Dany was a little more unique and she went from being someone a little dull to being quite captivating towards the end of the film. And Danny McBride was a surprise standout as Tennessee, I’ve never really like McBride, I’ve always found him annoying and repetitive in most of his comedic roles. But this role was very serious, aggressive and grounded and he was engaging in a way I never expected.

When it comes to the presentation it was pretty damn good. Just like Prometheus this film looks incredible, the art direction, cinematography, digital and practical effects was incredible. I also really liked the gruesome nature of the violence and action and the sound design really helped with that. As for the film score by Jed Kurzel it was pretty effective, channelling feelings of wonder, tension and discovery, while not always as effective as I would have liked, overall it was good.

In conclusion Alien: Covenant was not all bad and was actually better than I expected. While it didn’t do much to reinvent the wheel, it was a solid film much more in line with the first two Alien films with good violence, grim atmosphere and a great performance from Michael Fassbender. If you’re curious give it a watch. 🙂

So have you seen Alien: Covenant and if so what did you think of it? Did you like this film more or less than Prometheus? Whatever your thoughts are be sure to drop them in the comments below and I’ll see ya on the next review, laters! 😀

 

QUICK REVIEW: Assassin’s Creed (It Sucks!)

Howdy ladies and gents, time for a film review, the first of 2017 and how does one kick off the new year of film watching in the cinema? By watching a terrible film like Assassin’s Creed that’s how! Now I knew the film would be bad, I heard the reviews coming out of the US, but I didn’t think it’d be THAT bad, but good gravy what I endured yesterday was on another level of bad. I feel like I need to rant about this film a bit so sit back and check out my small assessment of this film.

The plot for the film can be described as the following:

“When Callum Lynch explores the memories of his ancestor Aguilar and gains the skills of a Master Assassin, he discovers he is a descendant of the secret Assassins society.”

So Assassin’s Creed, where do I begin? The film is tedious, long, nonsensical and boring. And let me reiterate, BORING! The worst offence a film can commit is to be boring and good god man this film put me to sleep. The film has come minor interesting elements when focused in the past during the Spanish Inquisition, but we only spend a limited amount of time there and most of the film takes lace in the present and all of that material is dull and tiring. Half of the time I had no idea what was going on and when I was following the plot I was questioning the logic and decisions of all of the characters. The plot’s already pretty ridiculous with some of the history and mythology, and the people behind this film did a poor job of engaging you in the world but also buying into the concept of what was happening. After a while I just stopped caring, and I thought the film would end at least 3 times before it finally stopped and if the film didn’t feel long before you definitely felt it in the last quarter of the film where the film felt like it was dragging its feet. It was insufferable.

The cast try their best with the material but even they can’t look good in this film because unless you are Michael Fassbender, Marion Cotillard or Jeremy Irons, you were irrelevant or used to further the plot. Most of the secondary characters have no depth or development which makes you wonder why they were in the film in the first place. Fassbender probably was the best as Callum Lynch and Aguilar de Nerha, but that’s probably because he has the most screen time, this might be the worst I’ve seen from him but this was probably more so the script than his acting.

Oh and the presentation, so lacking. Visually this film had some decent action scenes, but they should have been better, they lacked creativity, style and the sound effects for the punching, slicing/cutting of weapons and explodes felt lacking. The use of CGI was bad, far too many characters or locations were done using special effects and while some of it was unavoidable, at the same time it felt overused and since it wasn’t very polished, when it was bad it was really noticeable. Also whoever edited this film needs to be sorted out, not only was there too much editing within the fight scenes, but sometimes the quick edits during conversations or certain scenes was off-putting. The film score from Jed Kurzel was just bad, and had no impact, besides one track that I could remember towards the end, everything else was bad.

In conclusion Assassin’s Creed was just bad, not the worst film I’ve seen, but just incredibly underwhelming and unremarkable. The film had glimmers of goodness and utilized the game’s basic elements, but at the same time it failed to bring the best aspects to forefront while creating all new issues for the film adaptation. Don’t waste your time with this film even if you’re curious, it’s a waste of time.

 

EPIC REVIEW: X-Men Apocalypse (SPOILER-FREE)

Howdy ladies and gents, time for another new film review and today I’m talking about the latest X-Men film in the form of X-Men: Apocalypse. Now I’ve gone on record stating that I wasn’t wowed by the trailers for this film, but have been cautiously optimistic about it and after seeing it last night I’m ready to pass judgement!

So the story goes down like this:

“In this latest X-Men chapter, the ancient being who is said to be the first mutant known as Apocalypse rises after years of slumber of cleanse the Earth of the humans and create a new world for mutants. So it is up to the X-Men to stop Apocalypse from completing his nefarious plan”

The story of X-Men: Apocalypse is one of intrigue, surprise and familiarity. The tone is dark and grim with some very dramatic and emotional stuff, however there is also a good deal of humour and light-heartedness to slightly balance things out. What we have is another world-ending adventure, but it was the small character moments in between and the build up which was the most engaging material for me. What this film did well was to introduce Apocalypse and his history in the world, and introduced us to new and returning X-Men characters in a great way (with some having better appearances than others). Also for long-time X-Men film viewers there’s some awesome throwbacks to previous X-Men films which were so delightfully sprinkled throughout. The issues I had with the story was that it felt a little larger than life when compared to the previous X-Men films which were a little more grounded, certain plot points don’t completely pay off, and even though the X-Men timeline is messed up already, this film doesn’t help make things better either. And with director Bryan Singer at the helm I really love it because he helped craft this film world and has a certain style with his direction which makes me smile, but at the same time some of the issues I have with the way he handles these films haven’t been rectified yet, and makes me wish someone else mix things up (like Matthew Vaughn did with First Class).

As for cast it is a pretty large ensemble and for the most part everyone was great in their roles, though some were definitely short-changed. Firstly James McAvoy and Michael Fassbender kill it once again as Professor X and Magneto. Since First Class both of these characters have had very important and captivating story arcs and that continued into this film. I really enjoyed seeing more of an older Professor X with him teaching and still trying to co-exist with humans, but what was much more interesting was Magneto’s arc as he continued to be one of the most tragic and complex characters in the film series with all the drama and conflict he faced. As for Jennifer Lawrence as Raven/Mystique she was fine, the arc that they gave her in this film felt logical and made me understand her motivations, even though several times she felt a little schizophrenic at times. Also Oscar Isaac as Apocalypse was good but also a little underwhelming, I liked the character motivations and what he represented at first, however he was hard to engage/relate to because he felt so alien/robotic. Evan Peters as Quicksilver was certainly a more fully formed character than before with more development and screen time, and luckily he’s just as delightful as he was in his previous adventure except much better in this latest appearance. Oh and Wolverine’s appearance (it’s not a spoiler since he was technically shown in the last trailer), loved it, was a great sequence.

Nicholas Hoult was good as Beast and the return of Rose Byrne as Moira MacTaggert was welcomed too, and Josh Helman was good and had definitely gotten more settled in his role as William Stryker. And then there’s the new versions of the old characters. Of all of them Sophie Turner fared the best as Jean Grey, he character felt fresh and yet familiar, and Turner brought a lovely energy and presence to the character which felt similar to both the comics and films. Tye Sheridan as Scott Summers/Cyclops was also very good and had a lot more of a presence and charisma than what we’ve seen in the past, and I really liked Jean and Scott’s interaction, felt like they had a good introduction and nice chemistry. Kodi Smit-McPhee did great as Nightcrawler, he was able to capture the spirit of what Alan Cummings brought to the role in X2, but added a whole new level of youthful charisma and humour to the role. And Alexandra Shipp as Storm was decent, but the least interesting of the new X-Men as she felt a bit plain and lacking flair.

And then there were was everyone else. Olivia Munn as Psylocke, well, she was alright I guess. I mean maybe I was expecting too much, but I didn’t get to know much about her and she didn’t do much beyond what was seen in the trailers, that being said Munn handled her action scenes well. Ben Hardy as Angel/Archangel was fine, but he felt very plain and undeveloped, while Lana Condor was good as Jubilee but for all the hype that was made about her being in the film her part was incredibly minor. And Lucas Till returned as Alex Summers/Havok had some really good scenes but was in the film much less than I liked.

When it comes to the presentation it was pretty good. Visually the CGI was good with some good attention to detail with the special powers and crazy large-scale action sequences (shout out to the Quicksilver sequence), but I will admit that some of the fight scenes weren’t that exciting and it didn’t help that several of the action scenes were shown in the trailers. And the film score by John Ottman was great and maybe his best work in the X-Men film series so far, this music was diverse, intense, dramatic and was always relevant with what was happening on-screen.

In conclusion X-Men: Apocalypse is another solid film in the X-Men film series, it was not only better than what I’d expected considering that trailers didn’t wow me, but it also featured some of my favourite moments in any X-Men film so far. However there were a few story and character motivation issues that just prevented this film from being greater.

Rating: 7.5/10

So have you seen or are you going to watch X-Men: Apocalypse? Whatever your thoughts are be sure to drop them in the comments below and I’ll see ya on the next review, laters! 😀

 

QUICK REVIEW: Steve Jobs

Good day to you ladies and gents, time for another film review and today I’ll be talking about Steve Jobs. This film has had quite the interesting tale when it comes to the development stages of production with the changes in actors and directors, so after everything got confirmed and ironed out I just had to see how this film would turn out.

The story can be described as the following:

“Steve Jobs takes us behind the scenes of the digital revolution, to paint a portrait of the man at its epicenter. The story unfolds backstage at three iconic product launches, ending in 1998 with the unveiling of the iMac.”

The story was this film was pretty fascinating tale. The film chronicles three major points in the life of Steve Jobs; 1984, 88 and 98 giving us a look at the man behind the magic, showing his vision for Apple and his other business ventures, but also showing his complicated family life and the problematic relationships he had with his coworkers too. I really enjoyed the amount of drama, emotion and tension this film was able to produce from mainly just characters talking. Whether they were arguments or casual conversations, there were some really wonderfully written scenes and bits of dialogue, oh and I was not expecting the film to be as humourous as it was as well. Now with this being a biopic there is only so much of this that can be taken as truth and at several points I could see certain elements that were played up for the dramatization of film, but it wasn’t too bad that it bothered me. If I had any issues with the film it would be related to the fact this film only highlights the early days of Jobs’ career and didn’t highlight some of the significant contributions he brought to Apple later down the line or how some plot/character elements are never fully explored or concluded. That being said the film did have to focus on specific periods of time or this film would have gone on forever.

When it comes to the performances all of the cast do such excellent jobs in their roles. Let’s start with Michael Fassbender who was just magnetic and intense as Steve Jobs. This film definitely paints Jobs in a specific light, he’s this visionary, dedicated and hard-working individual who strives for perfection, but he’s also a douchebag to anyone who does things to impede his progress. Jobs for the most part is strategic, mean, manipulative, selfish, overconfident and is the worst person to be on the wrong side of as he’s verbally abusive to everyone when shit hits he fan. But behind it all there is a man with a heart and long-term issues which few people know about and Fassbender did such a fantastic job at bringing the man to life. Just as impressive was Kate Winslet as Joanna Hoffman, this woman was Jobs’ number two, she did everything for him and had to deal with so much negativity from the man, and yet was the only one who could stand up to him and give him a reality check. Winslet was so good in this role and I thought she handled her accent well too.

Seth Rogen continues to surprise me as he did well as Steve Wozniak, this character had an interesting history with Jobs and it was great to see how that played out, and Rogen while I don’t care for him in his comedies seems to be far more engaging here. Jeff Daniels was also great as John Sculley, Michael Stuhlbarg was almost unrecognizable to me as Andy Hertzfeld and I loved his performance as he was so vulnerable and yet likeable as one of the core members of Apple who had quite the adventure with Jobs from the early days up until the end of this film. I also liked Katherine Waterston as Chrisann Brennan, the three actresses that played Lisa Brennen-Jobs (Perla Haney-Jardine, Ripley Sobo, and Makenzie Moss) and Sarah Snook as Andrea “Andy” Cunningham.

So in conclusion Steve Jobs was an entertaining and dramatic film with terrific performances and really good dialogue. I enjoyed the film far more than I thought I would, but I am glad that I saw it and it was one of the better biopics I’ve seen in recent times. While there were a few things I would have changed or would like to have seen more of, in the end it was engaging where it needed to be.

Rating: 8/10

So have you seen Steve Jobs and if so what did you think of it? Please be sure to comment below and I’ll see you on the next film review, laters! 😀

 

LATE QUICK REVIEW: Macbeth

Howdy people of the internet, I come to you with a film review and today I’ll be talking about Macbeth. This was a film I wanted to see purely based on the epic trailer I saw online which was so visually striking and dramatic, and even though I saw the film this before Crimson Peak Wednesday I kind of had to delay the review til now because it was hard to sum up my thoughts on the film. So was the film good or not? Well read on and find out!

So the story can be summed up as the following:

“Macbeth, a Thane of Scotland, receives a prophecy from a trio of witches that one day he will become King of Scotland. Consumed by ambition and spurred to action by his wife, Macbeth murders his king and takes the throne for himself.”

Macbeth was my favourite Shakespeare story in school because of its otherworldly nature, aggressive tone and death, however most of the story I’ve unfortunately forgotten over the last 12 years since I last read it. Parts of the story I recalled during the film, however most of it was lost to my memories.

The story was pretty interesting with the deception, death, madness and strange/supernatural-feeling elements. The tone was suitably dark, disturbing and unnerving, from the beginning the film was engaging and even though the pacing was on the slow side, once certain aspects came into play things started to get more intriguing. However, for me I don’t feel like I enjoyed the film as much as I could have because of the dialogue. Unless you’re a fan and are very familiar with the Shakespeare dialogue then you’ll be a little lost. I know I was. I got the gist just of what was going on but I would have been more invested in this film if standard english dialogue.

The cast all did a great job, however for me it was all about Michael Fassbender and Marion Cotillard as Macbeth and Lady Macbeth. With Fassbender as Macbeth he was great, this was a man who was strong, ambitious, but also corrupt and deluded too. Fassbender brought a great deal of passion, drama and power to the role and this may be his best dramatic performance to date. Cotillard was just as Lady Macbeth, she was strong, confident and cunning, I thought Cotillard did a great job not only with her accent but also with her physical performance and interaction with Fassbender. I also liked Sean Harris as Macduff, Paddy Considine as Banquo, Jack Reynor as Malcolm, Elizabeth Debicki as Lady Macduff and David Thewlis as King Duncan.

 

As for the presentation it was really good. Visually the film was beyond incredible, I mean wow. I love the way this film looked. The environments were shot well when it came to the interior and exterior locations, and a good deal of landscape looked great. But it was the battle sequences which really caught my eye. They were handled with such care, intensity and intimacy. The use of slow motion, close up shots, lighting and dramatic colours like red and orange really add to drama and chaos. I cannot stress enough how great these sequences came across and my words really can’t do them justice. Also Jed Kurzel’s film score is suitably atmospheric, dramatic and desolate and matches the action on-screen.

In conclusion Macbeth was a very dramatic and interesting film with great performances and incredibly beautiful visuals. Unfortunately because of the pacing and Shakespearean language barrier I couldn’t enjoy it as much I would have liked. I’ll probably be labeled as being ignorant for my thoughts and will be in the minority, but hey that’s why we all have different opinions right?

Rating: 7/10

So have you seen Macbeth and if so what did you think of it? Be sure to leave your comments below and I’ll see ya on the next review, laters!

 

Inglourious Basterds Review

Howdy ladies and gents, today I come to you with an unexpected film review. So last night I had film session with my mum, sister and cousin and the film I decided to watch was Inglourious Basterds, a great film I hadn’t seen for a while and after the film ended I just felt the need to talk about it on this blog. 🙂

So the story for this film can be described as the following:

“In Nazi-occupied France during World War II, a plan to assassinate Nazi leaders by a group of Jewish U.S. soldiers coincides with a theatre owner’s vengeful plans for the same.”

I love this story. What makes it so compelling is the real world setting, most educated people know the history of WWII, so to see this unique story unfold and change what we know is very interesting and hilarious. As a war film the structure, pacing and style is so unique and unconventional and that’s thanks to Quentin Tarantino, the man is so good at using his talents for storytelling and crafting such smart and sophisticated dialogue. The key features that make the film work for me is the tension, drama and humour. This film makes me feel uncomfortable, so many of the scenes just involve people in conversations that can be calm and civil, but then can switch to being aggressive, intense and awkward as hell. They are situations you wouldn’t want to find yourself in and they are executed wonderfully. In addition to the emotional material, the film’s incredibly funny with some awesome one-liners, witty conversations and humourous moments that are unforgettable. I will note that the plot can be a little hard to follow when the subtitles come into play and if you can’t read them quickly like myself, but if you can get around that then you’ll be fine.

And then there’s the cast who all around do fabulous jobs in their roles. Before I get into this film, it troubles me that I forget that people like Michael Fassbender and Daniel Brühl were in these films long before they became better known in X-Men: First Class and Rush respectively. Let’s start with Brad Pitt as Lieutenant Aldo “The Apache” Raine. Aldo is confident, cocky driven and hilarious individual on a mission to take out his enemies and do it with style. Pitt killed it in this role, before this film I didn’t care for Pitt as an actor at all, but here he was incredible. The man was super charismatic, engaging, funny and the ascent alone was just the best thing ever. However, Christoph Waltz as SD Standartenführer Hans Landa steals the film. Landa, what a man, he is a guy who is charming, warm and multilingual, yet he’s extremely cunning, smart and terrifying and he can turn on a dime. Waltz is magnetic, he steals every scene he’s in and he’s really funny but also quite monstrous at the same time. Mélanie Laurent as Shosanna Dreyfus is another strong performance. Shosanna has such a traumatic experience and because of it she becomes hardened, cold and crafty, and I really liked Laurent’s performance as she’s strong, fragile and ambitious.

Michael Fassbender as Lieutenant Archie Hicox is bloody great, here Fassbender is demonstrates his talents in humour, wit and aggression. Hicox is a smart and talented individual and has some really memorable moments. Daniel Brühl is also great as Private First Class Fredrick Zoller, this character has an interesting backstory and seems like a nice guy who doesn’t just want to be associated with his war exploits, and when he attempts to engage with Shosanna you can’t help but feel for him a little, and Brühl acts with such heart, humour and charm. Eli Roth is another person I love as Sergeant Donny “The Bear Jew” Donowitz, like Aldo, this character had a charm, sense of humour and screen presence that made him fun and memorable and this is the film that makes me want to see more of Roth as an actor more so than a director because he was quite good here. Diane Kruger as Bridget von Hammersmark is very nice, she’s very pretty and nice, but also has a great deal more to her character beyond her acting career, also August Diehl is awesome as Major Dieter Hellstrom, this guy is one of those characters who comes out of nowhere and has one of those performances that is striking, intimidating and funny. Til Schweiger as Sergeant Hugo Stiglitz did say much but left a big impression, B. J. Novak and Omar Doom were good as Private First Class Smithson “The Little Man” Utivich and Private First Class Omar Ulmer, Mike Myers’ appearance as General Ed Fenech was nice, Martin Wuttke did a good job as Adolf Hitler and even Léa Seydoux, another person I forgot was nice to see Charlotte LaPadite.

When it comes to the presentation this film succeeds on many levels. Firstly the film looks lovely with the cinematography, editing and nice interior and exterior locations. Also the costume design and make-up is really good as well. In additional to that the action is awesome, there are some well-choreographed scenes with guns, knives and baseball bats that are full of violence, blood and chaos, and it is a gorgeous spectacle. Also the soundtrack is perfect, as usual Tarantino has assembled a collection of music that doesn’t fit the time period, but has the right emotional and dramatic sounds to match the action on-screen. A lot of it sounds like it belongs in those old western films and love it, but what surprised me was the use of a David Bowie song, I love Bowie’s music and I’m surprised I’ve missed it that last few times I’ve seen in this film.

In conclusion Inglourious Basterds is one damn good film, thanks to a great story, a great deal of tension, action and suspense, and stellar performances from the cast involved. This is easily my favourite film in the war genre and one of my all-time favourite films as well, it has all of those beautiful elements that make a Tarantino film worth watching, but it is the unique setting, script and characters that make it special. This is a film I highly recommend.

Rating: 9/10

So have you seen Inglourious Basterds and if so what do you think of it? And how do you feel it compares to Tarantino’s other films (personally this is my favourite), whatever your thoughts are, drop them below and I’ll see ya on the next review, laters! 😀

 

QUICK REVIEW: X-Men: Days of Future Past – Rogue Cut

Good day to you ladies and gentlemen of the world, its time for another film review and today I’m gonna be talking about X-Men: Days of Future Past – Rogue. Now I loved Days of Future Past last year, it was a wonderful experience in the cinema and when I heard about the extended cut that was going to be released with Rogue included, I was hyped! So I eventually got it on Blu-ray recently and now I’m ready to pass judgement! Oh and before I do this review, I won’t repeat myself by talking about the same aspects of the film, instead I’ll talk mainly about the differences. Minor spoilers to follow for people who haven’t seen Days of Future Past…

So the story goes something like this:

In the future the machines known as Sentinels have taken over the Earth and enslaved mutants and humans alike, and many have lost their lives fighting for justice. Now Professor X, Magneto and group of other mutants are the only survivors and the only way for them to save the future is to change the past. So Wolverine is sent back in time to the 1970’s to get the younger versions of Professor X and Magneto to band together and stop the Sentinel programme from coming into existence.

The plot for the film is essentially the same as the theatrical release, with one major change; the inclusion of Rogue. Now Rogue was absent from theatrical version of this film besides a quick cameo, but here in the future she has a more significant presence as her whereabouts are disclosed and she actually gets to contribute to the main mission. It was definitely nice to see Anna Paquin again as Rogue, however, I don’t feel like she added much to the film, more like her appearance offered an alternative take on some of the future timeline. What I did appreciate was the additional scenes in the future, while they were mainly scenes of additional dialogue, it really added to the plot, developed some of the characters a little more and felt like a positive inclusion. I loved the additional scenes with older Professor X and Magneto, the small yet important scenes with Bobby and Kitty and the extra scenes for the new mutants like Bishop, Sunspot, Blink and Warpath. In the past, the plot doesn’t change, rather there are a few variations on certain scenes or some additional scenes added, but these don’t really add anything to the plot and feel unnecessary. Even one additional scene with Beast and Mystique/Raven, as good as it is, again doesn’t really feel entirely needed.

Beyond the changes, everything that you liked about the original version of the film is intact and awesome. I still love the action, drama and the performances from the cast involved. And on Blu-ray everything looks very sharp, clean and pretty. Some of my issues with the film haven’t been ironed out like the use of the 70’s Sentinels and the lack of really badass screen time for Storm still bothers me.

In conclusion X-Men: Days of Future Past is a great alternative to the theatrical version and if it is your first experience of the film then it should be a good time regardless. That being said I believe that some of the changes and additions to this extended cut aren’t necessary or superior to the original and some of the additional scenes actually ruin the pacing of the film too. It really depends on how much you love the X-Men film universe and whether the new stuff adds or detracts for you personally, I’d say its good version, but not a better one.

Rating: 8/10

So what do you lot think of the X-Men: Days of Future Past? Have you seen it and if so which version do you prefer, the Rogue Cut or the theatrical version? Leave your thoughts in the comments below and I’ll see ya on the next review. Laters! 😀

 

My Thoughts on the First Image of Michael Fassbender in Assassin’s Creed

So Assassin’s Creed, it feels like the talk of this film being adapted into live-action has been going on forever, however after various setbacks and talk, this film is finally going into production and has a pretty solid cast. But we’ve yet to see what Michael Fassbender would look like in the popular assassin attire, but today an image dropped online and feel the need to talk about it.

So here’s some information on the film and the image below from ComicBookMovie:

After being in development for many years due to minor setbacks, the Assassin’s Creed movie is finally moving forward and is all set to commence principal photography on Monday, August 31. And now Yahoo has even released our first look at the big-screen video game adaptation which features leading man Michael Fassbender as Callum Lynch, an original character. Instead of retelling stories from the games, the film will apparently bring all new characters to that world, per Yahoo:

Callum Lynch (Michael Fassbender) discovers he is a descendant of the secret Assassins society through unlocked genetic memories that allow him to relive the adventures of his ancestor, Aguilar, in 15th Century Spain. After gaining incredible knowledge and skills he’s poised to take on the oppressive Knights Templar in the present day.

So let’s talk about that image above first. Okay, looking at this objectively or as a person who is not well-versed in the Assassin’s Creed series, they may find this first image of Fassbender pretty cool. I mean the costume is pretty badass, is really detailed and looks similar to the original. But then there’s the only side of the coin, if you’re a hardcore fan your first impressions will probably be one of disgust. Fassbender doesn’t look like Altair, Ezio, Conor, Edward or Arno and the costume doesn’t match any of theirs either, and so far on a few sites I’ve seen most fans dismiss this image completely and think that the film is doomed indefinitely. As for me I’m not a hardcore AC fan but I have followed the series from what my friend has shown me and what I’ve researched over the years, so when I saw this image I had a good look stare. And my main impression is: Nice. I mean Fassbender looks a little slim in the costume when compared to the assassins in the games, but overall I like the pose, the costume and the placement of the hidden blades. This is one of those “inspired by” costumes that feels like an amalgamation of what’s come before but also like its crafted something of its own.

As for the story, considering how long the series has gone on for and the amount of mythology that now exists, this film would have plenty of material to draw from. However from the description it would seem like the filmmakers have decided to create and original story and characters, but are keeping the core elements of the game intact. I was hoping for a more direct adaptation of the games with the Italian era of Altair and/or Ezio, but I guess we’re going to Spain instead. I just hope the story is good.

In the end I’m down for this film, I’ve always been curious and costume makes me a little more interested in the film. Though I am curious to see how the fans take to it online and whether they’ll warm up to the film or if they’ll tear it apart. So people what do you think of the first image of Fassbender in Assassin’s Creed? Please be sure to comment below and I’ll see ya on the next blog post, laters! 😀

 

X-Men: Days of Future Past Review

Good day to you ladies and gentlemen of the world, its time for another film review and today I’m gonna be talking about the next big film of the summer in the form of X-Men: Days of Future Past. Now the X-Men film series has had a bit of a rocky road but for the most part it has been good and in recent years it has been getting a bit of a resurgence and now we have Days of Future Past, a film that intends to bridge the gap between the X-Men films new and old. So has it succeed? Well read on and find out!

So the story goes something like this:

In the future the world is pretty much in pieces, the machines known as Sentinels have taken over the Earth and enslaved mutants and humans alike, there is no happiness or hope, only pain, suffering and death. Many have lost their lives fighting for justice and now Professor X, Magneto and group of other mutants are the only survivors and the only way for them to save themselves is to change the past. So Wolverine is sent back in time to the 1970’s to get the younger versions of Professor X and Magneto to band together and stop the Sentinel programme from coming into existence.

The story in this film is very good, smart and entertaining throughout, sure there’s the occasional plot hole and some head-scratching elements that’ll leave you with some unanswered questions, but overall this film has its heart in the right place. The themes of changing fate, rewriting history, bonds of friendship and having hope in the face of adversity are on display in a wonderful and powerful way and I loved how things in the past were relevant to the future and vice versa. This film also doesn’t hope back on the level of loss and devastation caused by the Sentinels in the future, there is a lot of drama and emotion and you buy that this is not a world anyone wants to live in and I love how the stories of the past are just as interesting with characters being so different and having all of the politics involved with mutants and the dawn of the Sentinels through Trask Industries. But the best thing about this film is that it feels right, this film pretty much rectified a lot of the mistakes of this franchise and gives you something that feels good, fresh, fun and by the end of the film you feel like you’re in a happy place with yourself, well I know I did.

As for the cast they are all on top form with some giving us some of their best performances to date. So let’s start with the young cast first. James McAvoy is still great as Charles Xavier, like in First Class you’re still seeing sides of him that you never knew existed and it only makes his character more layered and easier to relate to. In this film Xavier in the 70’s is a mess and for good reason, but it is seeing him deal with his pain and then journey back the place where he needs to be which is so rewarding. Michael Fassbender is still killing it as Erik Lehnsherr/Magneto, if you thought this guy was cool in the last film then wait til you see this one. This Magneto definitely has more of the McKellen side of the character in him in the way in which he acts, speaks and uses his powers and just like Xavier he’s in a very different place than his older self and seeing the emotions with him and choices he makes only makes him more badass. Jennifer Lawrence returns as Raven/Mystique and she too have never been better. This is more in line with the character we knew from the old films, but still with the emotional conflict and beauty we got from her in First Class. I liked how agile, cool and acrobatic she was, but more so than that, I liked how much of a central role she had in the film, it made me smile so much. I also really liked Nicholas Hoult as Hank McCoy/Beast, he was funny and whenever he was in blue mode he was awesome, but I also liked how he’s still there for Xavier and is really smart.

Now let’s talk about the veterans. Firstly there’s Hugh Jackman as Logan/Wolverine and do I really have to say how good he is in this film? Come on its Hugh Jackman, he’s automatically awesome. Again this film gives us fans what we love with all the smug, cool and humourous elements of the character, but rather than making the only character that matters, others are given screen time to develop, grow and have action moments in the spotlight, sure this guy is at the center of things a lot, but not as much as he has been before. Ian McKellen and Patrick Stewart are still fantastic as old Professor X and Magneto, both of them have a screen presence and gravitas about their acting that is impossible to not enjoy, but beyond that you believe in their connection and there are some really emotional moments between them. Ellen Page gives her best performance as Kitty Pryde/Shadowcat as she is much smarter and serious in terms of her personality and use of her powers, she has a central role to this film and the way she is handled was carefully done. Seeing Shawn Ashmore as Iceman again brought joy to my heart as this was the Iceman I’ve wanted to see for so many years, he was cool and had some lovely moments. I was also glad to see my man Daniel Cudmore back as Peter Rasputin/Colossus, he was a joy to watch and it was nice to see him get some screen time even if he didn’t say much, and Halle Berry returns as Storm and while she doesn’t really do much beyond what we’ve seen in previous films, she is still has her moments to shine.

Now let’s talk about the new people. Peter Dinklage as Bolivar Trask is very good, he is a man who is anticipating the future and wishes to keep the world save and in his mind he is the good guy for doing what he’s doing and creating the Sentinel programme. He’s smart, determined and kind of smug when it comes to his research and technology and Dinklage is just awesome. Evan Peters as Pietro Maximoff/Quicksilver was actually one of the best parts of the film, while the costume still looks a bit off, his performance and use of his character was very effective. Omar Sy as Bishop was really cool, I don’t really know anything about this character from the comics but he had a cool and badass screen presence and liked a lot of his action scenes. And finally Fan Bingbing stars as Clarice Ferguson/Blink and Booboo Stewart stars as James Proudstar/Warpath were lovely additions to this film universe, while there was a lot going on with other cast members I was happy that the got a decent amount of screen time too.

When it comes to the presentation it is very, very good. Visually the film is impressive, firstly you can also tell that this is a Bryan Singer film, the look, style of camera work and the use of visual effects is just like the stuff he did with the first two X-Men films, and I can tell you this guy knows his stuff. The action sequences are beautifully shot and framed, there are sequences both in the past and future that are worth talking about and they all look lovely. As for the soundtrack John Ottman returns to score the film and I can say it is nice to have him back, he gives this film the trademark film theme back which was a welcome return for me, however his soundtrack was just alright and doesn’t reach the epic and emotional heights of Henry Jackman’s work on First Class.

In conclusion X-Men: Days of Future Past is a great comic book film, it takes the source material, adapts into a film format that bridges to worlds of X-Men films while also setting up for future X-Men films. While not everything works and some people cold have used more screen time, it is hard for me to criticise a film that gave me everything I could have wanted and then some. I left the cinema thinking to myself “I feel good about that film and I can’t wait for the sequel.” I highly recommend this film as it is X-Men in probably its finest hour. P.S. All I can say is thank god Bryan Singer didn’t mess this up, Mr. Singer you are alright again. 🙂

Rating: 8.5/10

So what do you lot think of the X-Men: Days of Future Past? Have you seen it or are you gonna watch it? Also if you’re a fan of the series did it meet your expectations or were left disappointed. Leave your thoughts in the comments below and I’ll see ya on the next review. Laters! 😀

 

X-Men: Days of Future Past Trailer #2 Review

Good day to you ladies and gentlemen of the world, its time for another trailer review and today I’m gonna be talking about the second trailer for X-Men: Days of Future Past. Now the first trailer was pretty good, but since then it has sort of slipped away from my mind, weighed down by all the other trailer releases like Godzilla, Captain America 2 and Amazing Spider-Man 2. So how does the second trailer look? Read on and find out!

But first have a look at the trailer below:

So my first thoughts after seeing this trailer? Damn! I am pretty impressed yo.

Now the first trailer did well to establish the tone and feel for this new X-Men film giving us visions of the past and future and when the two intervene. But this trailer just takes it to a whole new level diving deeper into the drama, emotion and chaos that will take place.

Straight from the beginning you know shit is serious when you see this desolate, dark, post-apocalyptic city  with scenes of the past and future Professor X and Magneto and Storm looking like she’s about to get stabbed by a Future Sentinel? I looks mental. Along with this wonderful look at the future we get a off-screen monologue from Patrick Stewart’s Professor Xavier talking about how many battles have gone done but nothing like what him and the mutants are experiencing in the future. He questions whether the future is set or whether you can change it and I think that’ll be one of the main themes of the film; can the future be changed?

It seems like mistakes were made somewhere between the current point in the X-Men franchise and the future because the mutants are being hunted by what seems to be massive ships full of robot Sentinels flying all over the place like swarms of bees. So to rectify this old Professor X wants Wolverine to convince the younger version of himself to unite the mutants and save the world from the future, however he and Magneto know it won’t be an easy task as now in the 1970’s both men aren’t on the same page and are on totally different paths. I like how young Magneto is totally hands-on-deck and is proactive, whereas young Professor X is in a depressed, moody kind of place and Wolverine has to shift him into gear.

There is so much to take in that is easy to miss the subtle things. So here are a few of the things that stuck out for me:

1. Old Magneto’s Lament: It is interesting to see old Eric admit to Charles that fighting him for all those years was a wasted effort. Just to see him in a position of regret is surprising and quite beautiful.
2. Wolverine’s Lost People: Just hearing that Wolverine has lost people in the time where he’s from means that things must be real bad and the way he said felt really heartfelt. So I’m curious to know just who bites the bullet.
3. Young Charles and Eric Bickering: Charles says that Eric took everything from him, to which Eric says that he should have fought harder. That is a great moment for me and I think Charles may be referring to Raven among other things, but I like how Eric does give a fuck and is more serious.
4. Bolivar Trask Talks Mutants: Trask knows of the mutants existence and seems to have a weapon ready to take them on, the Sentinels.
5. Mystique Picks A Side: It seems like Raven aka Mystique is fighting against the humans and from her lines in the film it seems like we see where her more hateful side comes into play.

I love the montage towards the end of trailer with all this dramatic scenes of action and emotion. People shout, buildings fumble, Future Sentinels are running amuck and several mutants are running around doing mutant things, its kick ass yo. And while the visuals look a little questionable in clarity and sharpness, I assume they’ll be fixed up in the final film. But what they do have on display is awesome. I love the look of the Future Sentinels, the X-Jet looks sexy in the night sky, the effects used on some of the mutants especially Mystique and finally seeing Bobby Drake in full-Iceman mode, also a lot of additional special effects added to some of the scenes that were shown in the last trailer look so much nicer.

If I had one nitpick it would be near the end with the Future Sentinel head beam attack, I’m pretty sure it was ripped straight from the Destroyer Armour from Thor, it is almost exactly the same. But hey that’s just a tiny thing.

In conclusion X-Men: Days of Future Past looks pretty awesome and I can’t believe that I had sort of written this film off beforehand. Days of Future Past is back on my radar and I can’t wait to see it. All that being said, I’m still cautious of this film, it has the potential to be the best or worst X-Men film ever, but it all depends on the execution and whether Bryan Singer can make it work again. I pray that this film is as good as the trailers make it out to be.

So what do you lot think of the second Days of Future Past trailer, sound off your thoughts in the comments below and I’ll see ya later. 😛