mbpaterson-1 Reviews

Top Gun: Maverick (2022)

Big ticks in big boxes

[8/10 · 3 June 2022]

A hugely fun and highly satisfying sequel. Superb action, great pacing, and cleverly weaves in elements from the original. You would need a heart of stone not to enjoy it.

tick, tick... BOOM! (2021)

Bittersweet and well-paced

[8/10 · 30 December 2021]

A lovingly made musical biopic of Jonathan Larson, who look the long road to success as a Broadway writer, with an unexpected twist. Fans of Lin-Manuel Miranda whose entry point was Hamilton are more likely to enjoy this than In The Heights.

Don't Look Up (2021)

Almost plausible

[8/10 · 29 December 2021]

Bleakly amusing, this well-observed end of days satire highlights the idiocy of much of the general population when it comes to social media and sources of truth.

Our Friends in the North (1996)

The Bohemian Rhapsody of British TV drama

[10/10 · 5 October 2021]

Sprawling, epic, jaw-dropping, moving: OFITN is unparalleled. Eccleston, Craig, McKee and Strong lead a stellar cast on top form in an episodic saga that visits the central characters at key moments in British history from 1964-95.

Mad Max: Fury Road (2015)

Stylish but dull

[4/10 · 8 May 2021]

Looks great but it lumbers along with too much gnashing of teeth and waving of car-mounted harpoon guns at the expense of plot or character development. We are a family of five including three teenagers and we gave up on it after half an hour, by which time no character had made us care about them at all.

Vacation (1983)

Sour

[3/10 · 8 May 2021]

A sour comedy that has aged badly. Chevy Chase plays a toe-curling oaf. Most of the set pieces fall flat and the best jokes raise little more than a laugh. Not a family film. Pales into comparison with the superior later offering National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation.

The Other Guys (2010)

Almost brilliant but too patchy

[6/10 · 1 May 2021]

Some fantastic set pieces but too much flab. Like many comedies, it should have been edited down to 90 minutes. Less is more.

One Night in Miami... (2020)

Goes nowhere

[4/10 · 20 April 2021]

Promises much and delivers little. Well cast and attractively shot but very little happens. No tension. The four central characters go round in conversational circles. None is portrayed as particularly likeable.

You Don't Mess with the Zohan (2008)

Patchy. Avoid.

[3/10 · 12 March 2021]

Starts strongly and then descends into a series of samey and puerile crotch-related gags.