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Reviews
The Pod Generation (2023)
Enjoyable and subtle
If you're seeking an action-packed thriller/sci-fi, where horrors occur throughout and everything goes drastically wrong, this isn't the film you're looking for. I suspect the negativity in the reviews is based on this misconception and actually what we're presented with is a subtle, thought provoking film. It delves at various points into the complexities of becoming a parent, how that impacts our own ambitions, societies desire to progress and even a look at the long-held, patriarchal values amongst our peers and in the workplace.
I thought both leads were likeable and as a new parent myself, I can see how even with the flamboyant concept of the film, there is a subtly to the story, about a person's movement into parenthood; the questions you ask yourself about your life and career, as well as the biological changes it has on you.
It has speckles of comedy, more serious tones and a smattering of the downright bizarre. I do wish it had been broken down into a limited series so that they could have delved deeper into some of the concepts or even expanded further on the ending. Overall, however, I did find it enjoyable and did find myself transfixed until the end.
It's not going to rock your world in terms of action and pace but if you find subtle films that ask questions of where society is heading enjoyable, you may find fun in this little gem.
Collateral Beauty (2016)
A simple movie with an all star cast
Collateral beauty provides you with a fantastic all star cast with Oscar winners such as Helen Mirren and Will Smith heading up the line-up!
The construction of the story is fairly straightforward and uncomplicated - a child dies and her father is visited by time, love and death in order to process his grief (amongst other things).
There are plenty of one-liners throughout to enjoy and quote in the future. They offer the odd thought provoking moment and give you something to think about as the story unfolds. The lack of depth in the script; however, is the biggest flaw of the movie. There are almost too many mini sub-stories to make any real investment in any of the characters. Whilst I appreciate the parallels between the characters and their respective 'visitors', the audience's meetings with these concepts are so short, it is a 'blink and you'll miss it' type of relationship.
Overall not a terrible movie. I think it definitely hits deeper if you are a parent yourself and can relate to the depth of the love between the father and daughter. Otherwise, it's probably a little slow and cliché for most. The 'twist' at the end isn't so much a twist as fairly obvious but a nice outcome nevertheless.
Lastly, it is listed as a Christmas film. Unless you are REALLY paying attention, there isn't much that would distinguish it as occurring at Christmas time. There is the odd set of string lights and an illuminated Christmas tree in the background of one scene but otherwise, it's a pretty moot point.
The Noel Diary (2022)
Just an empty shell
The Noel Diary tells the story of a man whose mother dies. He goes to her house to empty out the contents on the premises, only to find himself being watched by a random woman. The random woman then inserts herself into the story and tells the man that she is looking for her mother who used to be his au pair / live in nanny, and gave her up for adoption. He somehow doesn't remember her.
They go on a slightly strange road trip. It's all very disjointed. They fall in lust and she cheats on her fiancé. There are some weird slow-mo scenes, some Christmas tree decorating to re-bond with his father after 35 years and some 80's pan out smiles.
There are a lot of issues with this film. The story could of focused on the two main characters and dug deep into the development of their relationship. Instead, the movie flits between characters, scenes, storylines and weird slow-mo flashbacks. It's really quite bizarrely shot throughout.
There is a large focus on how attractive the male main character Jacob is. Why? It's entirely unnecessary and doesn't endear him to the audience.
The female character Rachel comes across as erratic and seemingly without any real morals. She's engaged but doesn't seem to have an issue with casually cheating on her partner with this 'so attractive' man she has just met.
Jacobs father Scott - I loved the actor in Dexter but it is like he forgot how to act. Either that or the lines were so bad, he just gave up. At one point, he full on gave someone an over-the-top thumbs-up.
The ultimate goal of the film was for Rachel or find her mother and yet never meets her. She just decided to go home. Then Jacob goes and meets Rachel's mother instead for what I can only describe as a filler scene.
Honestly, I can't say much good about it so it's probably best I stop. The best characters were probably the neighbour (hello Bruce Willis' Die Hard Wife!) and the dog (cute and fluffy - double win).
If you want to laugh at bad cinematography, script writing and directing - this is the best film. If you want a good movie, look elsewhere.
The Woman in the House Across the Street from the Girl in the Window (2022)
It's not supposed to be serious
There are a lot of reviews along the thread of, 'I don't get it', 'it's too far fetched' etc.
To save the confusion, this is a parody - the whole series is taking the p*ss out other drama/horrors so yes, it is unrealistic and over the top - it is supposed to be.
6/10 for me as it is an enjoyable watch, I liked most of the characters and it had a few good twists thrown at it just to make it more bizarre!
Loses points for being slightly too long and doesn't quite take some of the jokes far enough. Would have liked a few more tongue in cheek moments, but that's just personal preference.
Overall, it's a good one to while away a few hours. Kristen Bell is always one whose acting I enjoy but if you're not a fan of hers, maybe avoid as it is 90% her on screen.
Mother/Android (2021)
Falls somewhere in the slightly better than ok arena
Mother/Android follows the story of Georgia and Sam, who find out that they're expecting a baby on the evening of the android apocalypse.
Georgia questions her relationship with Sam and whether she wants to be a mother but ultimately, they both end up at a Christmas party at the exact moment the android butlers in their homes haywire and now want to kill all humans.
Mother/Android is a slow burn. If you're looking for lots of action and a terminator style premise, this probably isn't the movie for you. It focuses more intensely on the relationship between our two main characters and their desire to find a place of safety in the days before the birth of their baby.
There are flaws for sure and parts of the film I wanted to know far more about so for me personally, it sits somewhere between meh and good.
Chloe does a cracking performance as an expectant mother (with the exception of the scene where she walks across the hospital room post C-section - yeah that's a NO!). I really felt her struggles and pain.
The relationship between the couple didn't feel that strong which seemed to stem more from Sam's character unfortunately. I liked him overall but for me he never seemed that invested or torn up by anything.
The ending was sad but it was expected and dealt with a bit haphazardly, so it lost a lot of the raw emotion of the moment. It almost needed to be more abrupt and fragile - more intense to capture what was really happening - not CGI buildings blowing up in the background.
The film was fairly long and some scenes were slow whilst others needed more depth, more length - just MORE.
5.5/6 overall
Don't watch this film if you're looking for action - this isn't that film. You need to be interested in investing in the feels of the film really.
The Unforgivable (2021)
Not bad, not great.
The premise of the film is fairly straightforward; felon is released from prison after serving 20 years for murdering a sheriff. Felon gets job(s) and goes in search of her impossibly young sister.
The acting is ok, some perform better than others here. There's a nice cast with familiar faces and the storyline is the sort that plods along.
There are a few issues - ok probably more than a few, but if you aren't looking for something spectacular then it will fit the bill. Sandra Bullock does a good job of looking like she has just been released from prison but the actress that plays her sister (older version), isn't quite as dynamic.
I like the 'twist' even if it is fairly obvious - it certainly adds a bit of emotion to the last 15 minutes or so, however the ending is as expected - anticlimactic.
I get it, I really do! I feel the director pumping up the feels but there were just one or ten too many flash back, slow mo scenes for me to really push this film into the 'winning' category. The writers missed out on making the ending explosive in favour of the standard Hollywood happy ending.
Life (2017)
Mediocre
I'm not going to waste too much time on this one. It's a great cast; nice well rounded group of actors, but the film itself is just boring. The soundtrack is contrived, the plot predictable; it's a z-list attempt at an alien style homage. The beauty of Alien was it was unique, well paced and had incredible suspense. 'Life' has none of that.
SPOILER ALERT - everyone dies - the Mars creature ends up on earth. Shock!
Grey's Anatomy: Leave a Light On (2020)
It made no sense
I love Grey's; we've watched each character grow and change over 16 long seasons. We've seen loss, love and deaths, but this episode is so far away from the Grey's that we all know and love, they may as well not have aired it.
This behaviour is so far removed from the character we have watched grow into an admirable man that this outcome is borderline ludicrous. What a way to destroy the journey of a beloved character so quickly!
I appreciate the developers/writers hands were tied in which way to end the story but there were ways they could have honoured Alex without betraying his character. The writers, I'm sorry to say, really missed the mark this time.
Can You Keep a Secret? (2019)
Let's be honest...
Ok, let's be honest here...it's just a bit crap...
Boy meets extremely neurotic girl on plane; neurotic girl spills every personal detail about herself to a complete stranger in an awkward word vomit moment; boy turns out to be her boss (shocker)!
It's formulaic and unoriginal. The characters are all a bit meh and the 'big secret' isn't really much of a secret. Our main protagonist is not particularly deep or interesting, making her not really worth watching. The only interesting character is the office boss, played by Laverne Cox but that's more a nod to how fabulous the actress is, rather than the writing itself. Just give it a miss.
Downsizing (2017)
What did I just watch?
Honestly, what was that? The first half of the film was interesting, funny and had promise. The second half of the film was confused, disorganised and ridiculous. It felt like someone took two very different scripts and cut them together. Bizarre!
All the Bright Places (2020)
Hollow
Being completely unaware of the book, I picked up All the Bright Places under my recommended section on Netflix. The character of Finch felt vibrant but also sad throughout the first half of the film. There were hints at what was going on behind closed doors but not enough to give you much of an insight. Violet on the other hand seemed uninteresting, flat and disappointing. Elle Fanning's portrayal felt forced and was partially unrelatable. The relationship between the pair didn't feel genuine and lacked any real chemistry between the actors. As the movie progressed, I was suddenly jolted to a confusing, out of nowhere climax. It felt rushed, confused and undeveloped. I've heard great things about the book but honestly, the film felt jarring (in a bad way) and hollow. Overall it seems like a missed opportunity.