Category Archives: Action

Red Letter Day

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Vampire Owl: I have always loved letter with some colour on them.

Vampire Bat: You are talking about those letters which were dipped in blood?

Vampire Owl: We are now getting bloody letters through the usual platform?

Vampire Bat: Yes, the usual letters are no longer used, especially after he had that iron mask.

Vampire Owl: Is this a new method of identification?

Vampire Bat: Yes, for the letters which are meant for the Dracula Castle.

Vampire Owl: I thought that he no longer accepts letters.

Vampire Bat: You don’t know Uncle Dracula well enough.

Vampire Owl: What is there to know now? We have been with him for very long.

Vampire Bat: There is a lot more that we don’t know, and much more to be found out. Uncle Dracula will remain a mystery for longer than we can expect.

[Gets a mango cake and three cups of mixed tea].

What is the movie about? :: Melanie Edwards (Dawn Van de Schoot) had a divorce just recently, and has moved into a new neighbourhood with her daughter Madison Edwards (Hailey Foss) and her son Timothy Edwards (Kaeleb Zain Gartner). It seems to be an interesting neighbourhood, even though they don’t make many friends out there. Things go even further weird, as they receive mysterious letters asking them to kill the neighbours mentioned in their letters, or they will be killed. Melanie is surprised that she is asked to murder Alice Huang (Arielle Rombough), a girl living a few houses away, whom she admires a lot, and are of mutual help. Timothy finds out that he has to murder a strange man who doesn’t talk much, but is seen outside regularly while walking his cat. Madison finds it to be the strangest, as she is asked to murder her boyfriend who is supposed to be a lot older than her, and lives a strange lifestyle – her parents always disapproved of him.

So, what happens with the events here? :: Melanie feels that she could make things better by visiting Alice and her husband Lewis Huang (Michael Tan) who becomes suspicious about her due to a knife pointing out of her bag, and it leads to an exchange of words, and later a fight which leads to Melanie stabbing Lewis on the neck while Alice looks helplessly with her toddler. Meanwhile, the man whom Timothy was supposed to kill reach their home, and after looking at it for some time, starts making attempts to break the door and get in. Madison escapes through the window to find her boyfriend, while the man almost kills Timothy, only for Melanie to intervene, and kill him instead. Now, the question remains about what would happen to them with the whole town going berserk. Who will be killed, and who all can manage to survive without killing anyone? A group known as The Unknown takes responsibility for the problem, and police finally decides to take things seriously. But how many people will be dead by then?

The defence of Red Letter Day :: The idea is the one that strikes us the most as far as Red Letter Day is concerned, and the rest only follows. The thoughts about what people would do for survival, and when having the feeling that the family itself is undergoing a terrible crisis, is something that one needs to think about. But what becomes more scary is that this idea of murdering people is not just for survival as everyone in the movie are concerned – some people just seem to do the same for fun, with inherent evil in humans showing the presence. It proves that people are intrinsically bad, and do not trust others – violence is part of nature, as many poets have proven. Some moments are funny, and it makes the slasher feeling light. As this is quite a short movie, the plot which is too simple and doesn’t have much in it could be handled well enough. There are also very less number of characters, and so the complication is not there at all.

The claws of flaw :: There is a little bit too much blood and gore in this movie, which might not have been the right thing to do, when we consider the fact this was not really supposed to be of slasher genre. People might find it difficult to believe that something like this would happen – that people would just kill each other because of some letters, as they won’t accept the inherent evil. It is the same kind of people who keep questioning movies like Forensic without the true understanding of human nature. To be evil, human beings need no reason, because the tendency is always buried in between. The motive of a psycho killer needs to be the motive itself, for otherwise, it will only be a case of revenge, like shown in movies like Anjaam Pathiraa, making him just another killer. There is also a little bit of missing with the performances in this movie, and gory elements seem to be added with no reason at all. The movie could have also established it in a better way.

Performers of the soul :: Dawn Van de Schoot plays an interesting character, as a mother in the main role, and defending the family. Still, she doesn’t get that much to do around here. Hailey Foss who plays the daughter gets even less to do, and Kaeleb Zain Gartner gets limited too. Arielle Rombough did seem to have an interesting character in the beginning, but later gets limited to almost nothing. Michael Tan’s character is rather the strangest of them all. An attempt to create something like The Purge in the neighbourhood certainly needed better characters, and all of them needed more to do better. Within an hour and a quarter of time to get things going, focus on the characters was less, and it leads to most of the cast suffering, with not able to get their characters going. A movie like Red Letter Day which got the premise and the idea well and working, should have taken care of the same in a better way to help its cast to work further.

How it finishes :: Red Letter Day is not really the horror movie that you expect. It is supposed to be horror comedy, but there is a good amount of blood and gore in this violent movie, and that should confuse many people about the genre. But this one surely makes an effective experience, and we also get a glimpse into the psyche of people, as they think about killing people without thinking too much about it. The inherent evil and the survival instinct in people begin to work, and there seems to be a certain amount of need to move away from law and order to embrace chaos, which can be seen here. Fear might be a catalyst, but in this movie, we can say that it is not really the same – there is distrust and a certain amount of desire to kill that makes people do this in this particular flick. You can watch this one hour and fifteen minutes movie to get that feel. With its short run-time, Red Letter Day doesn’t bring wonders, and just has enough to keep you interested in the idea.

Release date: 5th November 2019
Running time: 76 minutes
Directed by: Cameron Macgowan
Starring: Hailey Foss, Dawn Van de Schoot, Arielle Rombough, Kaeleb Zain Gartner, Roger LeBlanc, Tiffany Helm, Michael Tan, Peter Strand Rumpel, Ryan Irving, Greg Spielman, Josh Bertwistle, Marni Reisig, Cameron Gerlitz

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@ Cemetery Watch
✠ The Vampire Bat.

Brightburn

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Vampire Owl: Do you know that Superman is originally an evil entity from space?

Vampire Bat: Yes, I know that aliens are mostly bad, and this one also had to be evil.

Vampire Owl: Well, this movie seems to establish him as pure evil.

Vampire Bat: The movie of the usual alien invasion is to conquer or destroy Earth, and so we cannot be surprised about it.

Vampire Owl: I used to wonder how evil an alien can be. Can they be more evil than humans?

Vampire Bat: Why not? It is exactly why there are no vampire aliens. They are incapable of bringing the balance like the Earthlings.

Vampire Owl: I think that some aliens are immortal, like those myths.

Vampire Bat: They exhibit fake immortality, and will die soon enough.

Vampire Owl: Do you remember the portal which Doctor Frankenstein opened, so that we could cross over to the other planets and galaxies.

Vampire Bat: Yes, silly humans are still using those outdated spaceships. They will never learn, even after the lock-down. Let them walk through some tall grass to have sense.

[Gets a masala dosa and three glasses of mango juice].

What is the movie about? :: Tori Breyer (Elizabeth Banks) and Kyle Breyer (David Denman) do not have a child, and they are hoping for one, or at least adopt someone. It is then that the house shakes and they see a spaceship crashlanding in their yard. They find a child in the spaceship, and adopts him as their own son, without letting anyone else know. They hide the spaceship, locking it down in the barn so that nobody including the child finds it, letting this to be their own secret to keep for life. The couple just tells others that they had adopted a child, and everyone including the family and people of the small town of Brightburn accept him as their own. Everything goes smoothly for years, but it changes for a twelve year old Brandon Breyer (Jackson A Dunn) who are no longer the same, innocent child as he used to be – he is no longer the beloved son who loves his parents and obeys them, as he is called by the spaceship.

So, what happens with the events here? :: The spaceship which is locked inside a door within the barn keeps calling for him, and sends signals to him. Soon, he ends up finding his superhuman strength as he ends up throwing the lawnmower a long time away, while trying to start it, and finds his superhuman endurance as the motorized blades of the machine destroyed are by his hands which are not affected at all. His classmate Caitlyn Connor (Emmie Hunter) is the only who remains somewhat friendly to him, as everyone in the class and the whole school despised him due to his show of over-intelligence. But when he tries to enter her house at night, it causes a rift which leads to him breaking her hand, and also leading to Tori telling him the truth. This causes him to develop his next superpower, heat vision, and understands the message of the spaceship loud and clear while understanding the fact that he is special unlike the weaklings around him. Now, what will he do?

The defence of Brightburn:: There are some good scenes of horror in this movie, and the idea that Superman can be evil, always gets to scare us – especially when there is no Kryptonite to exploit his weakness. It uses some jump scares and there is that feeling of fear which is always there, as we are having an alien entity which cannot be stopped by anything that humans have. The idea of an evil child always works well enough, and we have inherent evil here, which is not of this world, but from another planet, from a far away galaxy. The child here becomes pure evil after the call of the spaceship, and there is not stopping this danger which is horrifyingly real. The superhero genre has its other dimensions here, and sets up for a sequel with what would have happened if Superman was really a threat in Batman vs Superman: Dawn of Justice, or how he was after he woke up from death as a different person.

The claws of flaw :: There is too much of blood and gore associated with Brightburn, and one often thinks if it was what required the focus around here. The focus should have been on the main character, the alien child’s character development, but the same is not there, as we see him change to become the slave of the spaceship, listening to all which is murmured to him. Even though the development of his superpowers can be seen, there is not much of a development in him as a person. There is that predictability which runs through the movie all the time. We know what is to happen next with this so called alien child from outer space, and in showing the same, the flick uses brutality the most, and depends on it rather than anything else, as if it is a certain kind of weakness it possesses. Within its short run-time, it shows very less of everything else.

Performers of the soul :: Jackson A Dunn plays the alien child, and he seems to be pretty good at it – the evil look comes to him well, and it will be interesting to see how he can work in a possible sequel, as this movie doesn’t explore his character that much expect for the being that evil alien child. Elizabeth Banks stays at the core of this movie, and she plays the lady with an extra dose of motherly love, which prevents her from understanding what kind of an evil demon her son was becoming. Even after so many years, she is someone whom we can always trust as long as horror movies are concerned – well, she was also there in The Hunger Games and its sequels and most of you do know her. David Denman is also pretty good as the husband and father. Emmie Hunter who plays the girl at school is also to be noted, as she has that Eva Mendez look, and does a good job.

How it finishes :: The idea of the alien who became the savior of Earth ending up bringing another idea that he became the exact opposite, is something worth thinking about. It is an interesting concept with the ant-superman super-villain finding his superpowers and using them against humanity, which has no defence against him at all. There are no superheroes, and only one terrifying villain who has not even grown up yet. The ending of this movie has enough to set up a sequel, and as of now, the movie works pretty well with its idea to set things for whatever is to come next. There is enough in this movie to keep the audience interested, as violent horror gets a thumbs up. Just like Corona virus these days, you know that evil always finds a way, and this alien creature does find the evil within, and maybe it is an advanced form of inherent evil in the child.

Release date: 24th May 2019
Running time: 90 minutes
Directed by: David Yarovesky
Starring: Elizabeth Banks, David Denman, Jackson A Dunn, Matt Jones, Meredith Hagner, Emmie Hunter, Jennifer Holland, Christian Finlayson, Abraham Clinkscales, Becky Wahlstrom, Anne Humphrey, Steve Agee, Gregory Alan Williams, Stephen Blackehart

<— Click here to go to the previous review.

@ Cemetery Watch
✠ The Vampire Bat.

In the Tall Grass

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Vampire Owl: How tall can the grass around the castle get?

Vampire Bat: They surely can’t be taller than us, because we have to use those fields for daily exercise, sports and other activities.

Vampire Owl: The grass in this movie surely looks scary even for vampires.

Vampire Bat: It is based on Stephen King and his son Joe Hill’s 2012 novella with the same name, and so it had to be scary.

Vampire Owl: I didn’t know that Stephen King’s son was also writing horror stories.

Vampire Bat: Yes, and there are film adaptations based on his works, like The Horns which had Daniel Radcliffe and Juno Temple in the lead.

Vampire Owl: That is something not well known, I am sure.

Vampire Bat: The television series NOS4A2 is also based on his novel of the same name, and is pronounced Nosferatu.

Vampire Owl: So, he is also a master of horror, only of a later and new generation.

Vampire Bat: Yes, his original name is Joseph Hillstrom King, and his brother Owen Philip King and mother Tabitha King are also authors.

[Gets a ghee roast and three glasses of grape juice].

What is the movie about? :: Becky DeMuth (Laysla De Oliveira) is a young lady, six months pregnant, who seemed to be becoming a mother before he was prepared for it, and due to the same reason, the child’s father Travis McKean (Harrison Gilbertson) is no longer with her, leading her to think about not having this baby or leaving the baby behind after giving birth. Her brother Cal DeMuth (Avery Whitted) is in charge of driving the car all the way to San Diego so that she can live with her aunt there, and with Travis gone, he considers himself to be the protector of his sister and her child. Traveling through an empty road, they stop at an empty space near what seemed to be an abandoned old church. Some other vehicles were also parked nearby, but there was nobody around. It is then that they hear the voice of a child from the field nearby, which has very tall grass, and they also hear the child’s mother calling.

So, what happens with the events here? :: The two gets concerned, and enters the grass field, and begins searching for the mother and child. The sound seems to close, but they are not able to get to the father and child, despite moving quickly towards them. In the process, Becky and Cal are also separated from each other. There is no network connection in the mobile phone, and they are not able to find each other despite being able to hear the voices. In the process, they meet the members of a family who are all trapped in here. The boy whose voice they had heard is Tobin Humboldt (Will Buie Jr) who had entered the grass field chasing his dog, and his father Ross Humboldt (Patrick Wilson) and mother Natalie Humboldt (Rachel Wilson) had also entered the space following him. Now, the family is separated just like the brother and sister. It seems that there is no way out, or is there at least a slight chance?

The defence of In the Tall Grass :: The movie scores the best with its visuals. With the tall grass, and a mysterious rock in the open area which seems to be the middle of the grass field. This open space with the rock is as grand a visual as the tall grass which seems to have no end. There are separate feelings provided during the day and night, and we look back to a past which modernity cannot understand – something which goes to time before American colonization and the earlier tribes settling down, as the modern world looks at its people in confusion. There are those minutes in the beginning which serves the best to bring the terror, as the two siblings jump once to see each other close, and then with the next jump, they are nowhere to be found. The movie is also of a short length, and with only tall grass all around, it is a good thing, bringing no elongation.

The claws of flaw :: The humanization of the grass is rather underused, and the movie doesn’t have even a monster to use when caught in such a strange, supernatural world with creepy grass, a strange rock and darkness – it has a loop, and so much of mystery, but never chooses to reveal them. The background of the characters are not explored much either, and we don’t know why one character is acting different from another. The characters go out of control, as we don’t know who is dead, and who will end up killing someone, and also about who all are real, and belonging to what kind of loop. It is the kind of confusion that comes in the middle, but thankfully, things get solved in the end. But the movie could have used a post-credits scene, because this is the kind of horror film that will make people ask the questions, and they need to answer them.

Performers of the soul :: The movie has a collection of unknown actors and actresses trying to escape the tall grass field. Patrick Wilson of The Conjuring, Annabelle and Insidious fame is the only person whom most of us know. The actor who was also there in A-Team, Aquaman and Watchmen continues to be the one who makes the most impact, even though his character is so less developed, even though it was the one which needed the most of such development. Laysla De Oliveira is another actress among all others whom we are seeing for the first time, and she comes with a good performance as the pregnant lady caught in between some tall grass with no hope for escape. Will Buie Jr, the kid shows the hopeless and creepiness of those caught in such a situation very well. Harrison Gilbertson was there in Need for Speed, but we would be noticing here for the first time, and he is fine, and so is Avery Whitted. Rachel Wilson’s role is too small.

How it finishes :: The movie has you in a situation from where there can be no escape. The rules of the world, its physics won’t matter inside this strange field of tall grass, and it is a scary place to explore, and the movie has used this setting well enough to create the needed horror impact. But it has to be noted that there is not much of work done beyond that, and there is also a certain amount of confusion here, as everything is not that clear as far as In the Tall Grass is concerned. There are many things which this premise could have had, but as it is now, the whole thing looks good, and catches your attention – there are some nice visual moments of glory too. In the Tall Grass is surely not the movie which would make horror feel great, but is enough to keep it going, staying strongly within the genre, and using the tall grass to its advantage.

Release date: 4th October 2019
Running time: 101 minutes
Directed by: Vincenzo Natali
Starring: Laysla De Oliveira, Harrison Gilbertson, Avery Whitted, Will Buie Jr, Rachel Wilson, Patrick Wilson, Tiffany Helm, William Frater

<— Click here to go to the previous review.

@ Cemetery Watch
✠ The Vampire Bat.

47 Meters Down: Uncaged

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Vampire Owl: There is no shortage of movies which have these people fighting the creatures and surviving.

Vampire Bat: Yes, they fought and survived a group of alligators in Crawl.

Vampire Owl: Two people survived in that movie, right? So, maybe two of them will survive this one too.

Vampire Bat: The movie had family bonding between a father and a daughter. It seems that this one has sisters.

Vampire Owl: The first movie had sisters, and it is just natural for the second movie to have sisters too.

Vampire Bat: The immediate setting seems to have some changes being made, but not the complete location.

Vampire Owl: I think that this one is a vampire shark.

Vampire Bat: I don’t think that there are vampire sharks because we, the vampires are not fond of water.

Vampire Owl: Maybe, it can walk on the land after becoming a vampire.

Vampire Bat: I don’t think that they can be included in our schemes.

[Gets a ghee cake and three cups of mixed tea].

What is the movie about? :: Mia (Sophie Nélisse) and Sasha (Corinne Foxx) are stepsisters who have just moved to a new school in Mexico, and they don’t really have much of an interest in each other’s matters, living like random acquaintances in their houses and going to school together without talking much. One day, Catherine (Brec Bassinger), one of the well-known bullies and proud girls of the school pushes Mia into a swimming pool in the campus while Sasha just looks, and moves on. Mia’s father Grant (John Corbett) and step-mother Jennifer (Nia Long) who understands the situation, plans a boat ride for the sisters in a glass-bottomed boat, during which they can see the great white sharks, and spend some sisters’ time together. Grant reminds Mia of the moments when they used to scuba dive together, and also leaves her with the tooth of a shark. Sasha is not really happy about this adventure, as she was planning to go out with her friends from school.

So, what happens with the events here? :: While waiting for the tour to open, Mia is depressed to see Catherine and her friends also there for the tour. It is then that Sasha’s friends Alexa (Brianne Tju) and Nicole (Sistine Stallone) arrive, and ask them to come with them to an unexplored place instead of going for this usual trip which everyone in the town are taking during weekends. They go a long way outside the town to what they called a secret lagoon, and spends their time at the place. It is then that Alexa tells them that the lagoon has a secret entrance to a Mayan city which was submerged in water, a long time ago. Grant and his two assistants, Carl (Khylin Rhambo), and Ben (Davi Santos) are working to make the place suitable for a group of archaeologists who are going to visit the place during the following week. Ben who is also Alexa’s boyfriend had taken her there during one of their secret adventures. The girls decide to see the place, but they don’t realize that there is something more than a city down there.

The defence of 47 Meters Down: Uncaged :: The movie seems to be directed towards one aim, that which is more or less about the sharks, and the environment also adds to it. It works even without the shark not given that much attention with the CGI. The Mayan city underwater with its walls and sculptures are all well designed to catch our attention – there is a certain underwater beauty here with the design. Even outside, with the girls enjoying the short amount of time, there is a beautiful world all around, and it is the kind of place where everyone would want to go with all the natural beauty around. There are some nice moments out here, which are related to not just danger, but also concerning people and the surroundings. The final moments show elements of real danger, as they seem to move towards death, and then towards escape, but then we know that they are not out of it yet – it goes on till the final moments.

The claws of flaw :: Just like many other movies which has a creature crisis at the core, 47 Meters Down: Uncaged remains predictable, and you can easily guess who all are going to survive the attack of the shark – at least that could have been arranged to be changed. In a movie which focuses on the shark, the humans and the story-line related to them suffer, because that goes just the usual way, with two sisters bonding – sometimes, it is the father and daughter, at other times, we have son and mother, or maybe two brothers, or one brother and one sister. These are times when we end up thinking that the shark came with such a beautiful motive of uniting them. In the case of this movie, it could have had the girls having more fun rather than taking them to the submerged city and the shark just after they get to the place.

Performers of the soul :: The movie, just like the previous film comes from Johannes Roberts who is going to direct the upcoming reboot of Resident Evil series, and we can be sure that the new version will bring more horror unlike the earlier versions which were more of action thriller flicks. Sophie Nelisse leads the way here, and the common audience hasn’t known her much except for playing the child in Mama. We can say that she is only beginning, and we need her in a full horror movie. Corinne Foxx, the daugher of Jamie Foxx manages to be okay. Sistine Stallone, the daugher of Sylvester Stallone also has her first movie here, and its a good work for a debutante. Brianne Tju plays the next friend, and she also does well, making the supporting cast do very well, almost the same as the main characters here. John Corbett’s short stay is good.

How it finishes :: Being someone who didn’t watch the first part, I would leave the comparisons behind, even though we do know what happens with the sequels as they struggle to bring more in the next title, and fails to do so. Sharks have always tried to bring more out of horror, and other than crocodiles, alligators and large snakes, nothing have inspired such huge survival flicks – we have seen how well The Shallows turned out to be even though there was one young lady and a shark in the sea for the most of the time. You cannot expect 47 Meters Down: Uncaged to be that good, but within the world of these man-eaters, being caught with one inside a space connected only through tunnels through which escape seems near impossible, the movie will keep you interested. After all, we are all facing crisis of survival more during these days.

Release date: 16th August 2019
Running time: 89 minutes
Directed by: Johannes Roberts
Starring: Sophie Nelisse, Corinne Foxx, Brianne Tju, Sistine Stallone, Davi Santos, Khylin Rhambo, Brec Bassinger, John Corbett

<— Click here to go to the previous review.

@ Cemetery Watch
✠ The Vampire Bat.

Doctor Sleep

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What is the movie about? :: The terrifying events in the haunted Overlook Hotel which formed the movie The Shining has passed, but Danny Torrance (Ewan McGregor) hasn’t taken himself out of it completely. When he was a child and lived with his mother Wendy Torrance (Alex Essoe), he had the worst of the visions, but could manage to lock down the the spirits from the hotel in an imaginary space in his mind with the help of Dick Hallorann (Carl Lumbly), a benevolent spirit from the hotel which continued to help him, even after many years. As the hotel had closed down after the incidents, the ghosts, if let out, would try to feed on his psychic ability, his “shining”, as they are left with no other options. He is also warned that he should only keep his ghosts there, and not the memories. But this doesn’t go well for Danny with his life, as he gets to a new low with alcoholism, as it seemed to help him suppress his pysychic abilities, and he decides to escape from this lifestyle.

So, what happens with the events here? :: As he moves to a new town, a much smaller one, he finds a good friend in Billy Freeman (Cliff Curtis) who was also an aloholic, and sponsors him with a job and a place to stay in. He makes new friends in a group meant for the alcoholic survivors, and manages to begin as an entirely new person there. He becomes an attendant for the elderly, and becomes known as Doctor Sleep, as he helped the old people to die in comfort as they reached the end of their days, with his shining. He also begins receiving some messages through telepathic communication from Abra Stone (Kyliegh Curran), a young girl who seems to have a shining which might be more powerful than anyone ever lived during his time, as she reaches him from a long distance away. Her parents are afraid of her abilities, but manage to raise her as a usual child, due to her skills in hiding her shining in front of others outside, including school. Danny and Abra continues to make connection by telepathy.

And what else follows with the happenings? :: It is then that the True Knot, a group of psychic vampires led by Rose the Hat (Rebecca Ferguson), who extend their lives towards immortality by the psychic power of young children, gets short of the much needed essence, and decide to go on hunting all around the nation. With the shining essence which serves as the steam for their existence facing a shortage, she and her partner Crow Daddy (Zahn McClarnon) adds the teenage psychic Snakebite Andi (Emily Alyn Lind) to her group, as she has an expertise in cheatign people, and because they can use their skills of manipulation. They turn her into a psychic vampire after feeding her the steam of Violet (Violet McGraw), a young girl whom they murdered, and had stored her essence for later use. While the group finds another boy with shining, and brutally murders him while feeding on his essence, Abra finds them, and she comes face to face with Rose, an act which sets the vampires on her trail. Danny feels the need to save her, but can he fight this centuries old cult of vampires?

The defence of Doctor Sleep :: There is balance being maintained in Doctor Sleep, as instead of getting into horror, which was the easiest step, the movie chooses to build each character really well. The case of the mind is nicely told, and we understand what each character is going through, and at the same time, we know their worlds really well. Unlike The Shining, the movie has different people and different world coming together, and we see the minds too, in an adventure which seems to be so well-designed to suit the taste of more than one kind of audience. That doesn’t take away the horror elements from Doctor Sleep, as they are present, and so are those thrilling moments. The different settings used by the movie, from the outskirts to the hotel with the spirits, are really good. The final fight scene of the movie is brilliantly worked out, and Rebecca Ferguson shows mastery out there as the psychic vampires rise above the blood-thirsty ones here.

Positives and negatives :: There was a challenging task ahead for the director here, to keep the movie close to the 2013 novel by Stephen King and the 1980 movie which deviated from the Stephen King novel – it was a difficult task, but it seems to have been done with some extra care. But the movie would have done better if it had followed the 2013 novel, because the younger audience who watch these movies more do not care that much about a 1980 version, and some others might have forgotten about the movie – if it had shortened its length and had stayed close to the 2013 novel version, there was chance for better success for this flick which didn’t come close to staying in the theatres as much as we wanted. The number of release centres which it had managed were also less, and it didn’t reach some towns at all. The movie might feel too long for some, but unlike some of other adaptations from novel which turn out to be too long, this one doesn’t drag.

Performers of the soul :: Ewan McGregor nicely makes the character a favourite, as we get to know the child from shining shown as the adult, and he fits in very well. Rebecca Ferguson plays the antagonist here, and this is one villain that you don’t need to miss, as he works this one towards perfection. When you are in a horror movie, there are antagonists which you imagine, but not this one, as she plays another character whom we get close to, someone who is not the usual evil prey. Most of the audience know her the best from Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation and Mission: Impossible – Fallout; she was also there in the science fiction horror in space, Life. The Swedish actress would be someone perfectly suited for thrillers, whether action thrillers or horror thrillers, and we see her becoming the character in such a way that we can’t separate her from the antagonist. Kyliegh Curran as the girl with the most shining is solid, while Emily Alyn Lind adds a beautiful evil charm.

How it finishes :: It is not easy to come up with something like a perfect sequel after a long period of time, like thirty nine years after a movie releases. If you have watched It, you know that the sequel came in just a few years, and the second chapter never really came close to being as good as the first one. Pet Sematary, with its sequels and reboots have also just managed to be good enough. But Doctor Sleep, the sequel of The Shining has excelled in doing the job. It is indeed a shining sequel, and it might be the best, a movie can have as its sequel, especially a psychological horror film. Even Hannibal couldn’t get such a sequel, and we know where The Ring franchise went. The Conjuring had the best one as the first movie, and so did Insidious. Therefore, what Doctor Sleep has achieved with one of the best movies of the year is something that we need to appreciate. Here is one psychological thriller you shouldn’t miss even in the name of Corona virus.

Release date: 8th February 2019
Running time: 181 minutes
Directed by: Nicholas McCarthy
Starring: Ewan McGregor, Rebecca Ferguson, Kyliegh Curran, Cliff Curtis, Emily Alyn Lind, Zahn McClarnon, Carl Lumbly, Jocelin Donahue, Bruce Greenwood, Robert Longstreet, Alex Essoe, Carel Struycken, Zackary Momoh, Jacob Tremblay, Henry Thomas, Bethany Anne Lind, Catherine Parker, Violet McGraw, Selena Anduze, Met Clarke

<— Click here to go to the previous review.

@ Cemetery Watch
✠ The Vampire Bat.

Crawl

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What is the movie about? :: Haley Keller (Kaya Scodelario) who studies in the University of Florida hopes to gain new heights as a swimmer, and she had been trained for the sport by her father Dave Keller (Barry Pepper) since childhood, when she used to break all challenges underwater. It is during one of those swimming training sessions at the university that she comes to know about a Category 5 Hurricane Wendy which is on a collision course with Florida, as her elder sister Beth Keller (Morfydd Clark) who lives with her family in Boston calls her, and advises her to get out of the state as soon as possible. But it turns out that she can’t reach her father, and she decides to go to her family home, make a quick visit and leave the state with him. As she gets close to her hometown, Wayne Taylor (Ross Anderson), a police officer and Beth’s ex-boyfriend asks her to go back as the cops are trying to lockdown the place.

So, what happens with the events here? :: Even though most of the roads on the way are partially flooded with heavy rain still coming down, she quickly takes a deviation, and goes to her house much to the dismay of Wayne. She gets to the place where he was supposed to be staying, but finds only their dog, Sugar. Then she leaves for the family home where she grew up, hoping to find him there – she also takes the dog with her, and finds the water level on the roads to have risen further, and the rain not seeming to lessen at all. She finds his truck at Coral Lake house, but he doesn’t seem to be anywhere in the house, leading her to search in the basement. There, she finds her father wounded and without consciousness. But she is attacked and is cornered by a group of alligators seemingly arriving there due to flooding. Now, their exit is locked, and there is no option of calling anyone.

And what else follows with the happenings? :: The mobile phone is destroyed in the process, and everyone in the neighborhood seems to have left the place due to flooding, and the hurricane expected to pass through the middle of the town, with further flooding almost there. More water comes into the basement, and the place starts getting flooded, making their safe corner behind the pipes to be accessible for the alligators by swimming. Both are injured, and Haley being a swimming champion seems to have a better chance of swimming out of it, but not with the alligators around. Through the window, she gets the attention of three young thieves (Anson Boon, George Somner and Ami Metcalf) who are stealing things from the flooded petrol pump and shop on the opposite side of the road. But as they look to the other side, they are caught by another group of alligators and killed. Now, Haley and her father are left with just the option to swim – but isn’t that suicide?

The defence of Crawl :: The movie does provide thrills with some nail-biting moments, and we are with the protagonists from the beginning itself, as a natural disaster along with some alligators are coming to get her and her father. There is her skills in water being focused with all the action, and the father-daughter bonding is also there to be taken. The atmosphere of the movie is very well done, as the flooding, the dark clouds and the powerful wind creates the feeling of the impossible escape throughout the flick. The same can be said about the characters whom we can relate with, especially as we have had our lockdown, and an invisible enemy in the form of a virus instead of the alligators. There are some quick scares with the alligators around, and there is the blood and gore associated with alligator attacks. The alligators coming out of nowhere adds to the much needed scares and there is fear present through out the movie.

The claws of flaw :: Crawl might still pale in comparison to grand survival movies like The Shallows. But this one doesn’t have that much of a perfect realism to go with it, as our protagonist fights many alligators and ends up surviving while that movie was one true survival flick with the main character taking days to final get rid of one shark. So, there is a little bit of extra added here in Crawl as far as surviving is concerned, and there it goes in the path of movies like Jaws. It could have also had more deaths to add to its tally, or at least some dead bodies to add to the scary moments. If these moments of fear had also lasted longer regarding the in-movie time, that would have also been nice – the movie is also very short in total run-time, and this is the kind of alligator attack that we can go through if we have less than one and half hours to spare, thus never dragging or wasting time.

The performers of the soul :: Alexandre Aja, the director is known for violent French slasher cult movies like Haute Tension, and master horror movies in English like The Hills Have Eyes and Mirrors. There is horror staying on here, with his skills. Kaya Scodelario does a fantastic job here as the protagonist. She seems to be perfectly suited for this role in more than one way. I remember seeing her for the first time in The Maze Runner, and she was a special addition there. Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales also had her presence, and she surely has one performance to remember. There are some fine dialogues and her moving through water evading the alligators as the apex predator – the moments that rise above all. Barry Pepper also has his moments as the father. The rest of the cast members don’t have much to do except for being food to the alligators, or being part of the world outside.

How it finishes :: During the time of Corona Virus, Crawl becomes another movie to watch with another natural disaster causing people to face the wrath of nature and its creatures. At these times, we have faced terror in one way and went to lockdown, and with this movie, lets see what awaits us in bigger size, as we become nothing facing mother nature. The movie has nicely captured the fury of nature, not just with the creatures, but also with the flooding and the coming hurricane. The special effects make sure that we are engaged to this atmosphere in more than one way – well, flooding is coming during these monsoons in different parts of India just like last years, and this movie is something that we can watch again during those time. With the climate changes, we always have to be ready for more.

Release date: 12th July 2019
Running time: 87 minutes
Directed by: Alexandre Aja
Starring: Kaya Scodelario, Barry Pepper, Morfydd Clark, Ross Anderson, Anson Boon, Jose Palma, George Somner, Ami Metcalf, Annamaria Serda, Savannah Steyn

<— Click here to go to the previous review.

<— Click here to go to a recent Hollywood review.

@ Cemetery Watch
✠ The Vampire Bat.

Zombieland: Double Tap

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What is the movie about? :: Years have passed after that incident which involved a case of mad cow disease mutating into mad person disease transforming people into zombies, an event which started in the United States of America, but spread to the whole world in a short amount of time. The virus had turned the nation into a wasteland, where people struggled to survive against the creatures while finding the supplies from here and there, as people used the names of places as their own nicknames, not being attached to anyone. But there were a few exceptions for that case too, as it was seen in the previous movie. Ten years have passed after Tallahassee (Woody Harrelson), Colombus (Jesse Eisenberg), Wichita (Emma Stone) and Little Rock (Abigail Breslin) had started living like a family while making their way through a zombie infested nation. The team have become experts in zombie hunting and finds their new home in the abandoned White House.

So, what happens with the events here? :: Colombus takes the idea of starting a new family very seriously, and proposes to Wichita with the Hope Diamond from Smithsonian Museum, an act which doesn’t go well with her, who is afraid of getting attached to him during the time of a zombie pandemic. She begins to value her freedom more when listening to the proposal. Meanwhile, Little Rock is not happy about Tallahassee playing too much of a father figure and considering her as a little girl, not allowing her to find a lover and start her own family. Wichita and Little Rock leave the place, after placing a note there. Tallahassee is not that unhappy about their decision to leave, but Colombus is devastated. One day, in a mall, they meet Madison (Zoey Deutch), a girl who survived the zombie apocalypse alone by hiding most of the time inside a freezer, having absolutely no contact with other humans or zombies for many years.

And what else follows with the happenings? :: Colombus manages to find a lover in Madison after the heart break, despite Tallahassee saying that the only reason the zombies spared her life was that she had no brain for them to eat. As Colombus and Madison spends the night together in Lincoln’s room in the White House, Wichita makes a return to find them together. She looks forward to finding Little Rock who had left with Berkeley (Avan Jogia), a pacifist and a hippie with lots of weed and a guitar which he keeps playing. The team of Tallahassee, Colombus, Wichita and Madison takes a minivan, and starts the journey searching for Little Rock and her newfound love interest. Madison finds the journey as her long awaited road trip, and during this travel, there would be more zombies to deal with, including more agile, powerful and durable super-zombies that takes multiple gunshots to kill, named T-800 after the machines of the Terminator franchise. Can they survive it all?

The defence of Zombieland: Double Tap :: There is enough fun in store here as zombie attacks lead to some fine action sequences, with a touch of humour. The funny side remains strong, and the new characters only add more here. The fans are going to consider this to be a very good sequel which goes on the same path as the first movie had chosen, and there is nothing much that deviates. The best of funny moments relate to Zoey Deutch, as the character leaves the best potential for the comic side, starting from the freezer and going for the zombie infested road trip. The zombie hunts are nicely done, we do have some family bonding going on here, as the group is even extended. In the end, movies on virus pandemics are of more interest these days due to the Corona virus, and it doesn’t matter what happens to the patients of this zombie virus as long as its in a fictional world of a movie.

The claws of flaw :: Zombieland: Double Tap doesn’t apply much of brains to the brain-eating zombie movie, but one has to say that it was rather expected. The first movie had explored the idea of zombie comedy and the premise really well, leading to not much being left for this particular sequel. Therefore, we only have a little bit of innovation, if that can be found after some searching done. Zombies are also losing their significance, and this movie needed more of the creature action – more attacks were to happen considering the fact that there are better and improved zombies in action here. The beginning part of the movie also seems to be forced, so that there can be a reason for them to keep running, that too after finding a fine home in White House. This is where Zombieland: Double Tap can make things better with another sequel, if there is one.

The performers of the soul :: Woody Harrelson leads the way here, with the funny moments as well as the action sequences naturally. Jesse Eisenberg follows the same here, as things don’t really change much for his character here. Emma Stone once again has that fine character which she performs with ease, and Abigail Breslin has let to do in comparison, thus having no trouble in doing the same. The movie also have some nice additions which can be taken over to the next sequel, and the best of them is undoubtedly, Zoey Deutch who handles the funny side so well that all her moments bring the best humour to be remembered. Rosario Dawson also makes a pretty good addition, even though her character is just another one expected to be there in a setting like this. Avan Jogia doesn’t add much, as any minor character could have done the job, or even a photo.

How it finishes :: This second movie in the franchise might not be as satisfying as the original Zombieland, but it is still a lot of fun, with the zombies, and the fact that the movie has kept all the original characters played by the same actors, along with adding some interesting characters makes things even better for the fans and admirers of that zombie comedy which even inspired a lot of people to watch the Bollywood zombie comedy, Go Goa Gone. With the end finally coming for the Resident Evil franchise, we have missed the zombie pandemic, and Zombieland is the answer to our need for the zombie virus. During the time of Corona virus, as it spread through the world, there is always room for another virus, especially for a zombie pandemic. After all, most of the nations all around the world are in lockdown even without the zombies. So, lets have more of such movies.

Release date: 18th October 2019
Running time: 99 minutes
Directed by: Ruben Fleischer
Starring: Woody Harrelson, Emma Stone, Abigail Breslin, Jesse Eisenberg, Zoey Deutch, Rosario Dawson, Avan Jogia, Luke Wilson, Thomas Middleditch

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<— Click here to go to another zombie pandemic movie.

<— Click here for some good old zombie apocalypse animated.

@ Cemetery Watch
✠ The Vampire Bat.

Escape Room

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What is the movie about? :: Six people from different background, unrelated and unknown to each other are given puzzle cubes which they are supposed to open. The names include Zoey Davis (Taylor Russell), a Physics student who is an expert in her subject, and can’t stop talking about it even when she is not at the college, much to the dismay of the fun loving room mate who rarely understands anything that she says related to science and technology. Another name on the list is Ben Miller (Logan Miller) who is responsible for replenishing the stock at a shop, someone who is an introvert and has almost zero friends. Meanwhile, Amanda Harper (Deborah Ann Woll) is an Iraq war veteran, traumatised from her experiences there, but a perfect lady soldier who thinks she can go through anything. Jason Walker (Jay Ellis) is a stock trader who spends his time thinking about how to please his clients and make money. Mike Nolan (Tyler Labine) is a poor truck driver who wishes to earn some quick money.

So, what happens with the events here? :: The last one in the group is someone who is a gamer mad about the idea of escape rooms. Danny Khan (Nik Dodani), a man of South Asian descent, has gone through such experiences before and is excited to be part of this particular escape room game, which would provide the winners with ten thousand dollars, an amount which none of the group members would leave behind. They go to a floor at the top of the building and await further instructions from the game master. When Ben tries to open the door, the door knob falls off, seemingly showing that the game had already begin. They start looking for clues to escape from there, but the discovery of one clue only leads to the heat in the room to rise, and now they have to escape the place before they are fried alive in the first challenge itself. But this won’t be the toughest of their challenges, as many more rooms are to come.

And what else follows with the happenings? :: Even though they manage to find an opening to escape that particular room, there would be tougher challenges awaiting, and some of these tasks would have connections to their past, something which would come to their own mind at regular intervals while going through the escape procedure. There is no doubt about the fact that Amanda Harper, as an Iraq war veteran, would have a troubled past to remember from her time in the Middle East, but the question remains about what kind of past other participants would be hiding. What might be the reason why these six people who are not related to each other, and with nothing to connect them were given the puzzle cubes? Is it a game which itself has a past which had all of them together at a point? Are there some elements which make sure that these people have what it takes to survive, whether the brains or the muscles?

The defence of Escape Room :: The movie makes a fine treat within the genre, as there are puzzled to be solved, and very personal problems to be taken care of. The movie is a psychological as well as action thriller, and it also has the elements of drama with the characters’ past catching up quite fast. It can also be considered to be a part of a type, strangers-in-a-room subgenre, where only the toughest and the smartest can survive. We have seen such a situation before in The Belko Experiment, and during the times of Corona lockdown, this movie will surely catch one’s attention. There are some interesting rooms designed here even though we would have wanted even better ones. There are some nice situations being brought here for the protagonists too. We will also have some twists around here too, even though not that many of them.

The claws of flaw :: If you had watched the trailer, you would be expecting more from the movie. It does reveal a little too much of the movie, and as this one is of short run-time, there is less number of rooms. The movie could have started earlier with the action because here it starts twenty minutes in the film. There was scope for one more room to be squeezed in here with the same run-time, and with a slight increase in the same, another one could have been there. This idea has been tried and tested a lot, and it could have had something special as we see it being repeated here, but the same is not done. There is also some predictability which comes into the picture in the final stages, and the movie just tells us the names of the characters who are to survive towards the final stages – the three characters of whom we have had a few minutes of introduction, which was rather unnecessary addition to an unnecessary revelation. The ending is also ordinary.

The performers of the soul :: There is another movie in 2017 released with the same name, and what seems to be keeping this flick better could be the performances, as setting, puzzles and characters of the 2017 seems to be better from the trailer. In the 2019 version here, the one actress who looked perfectly suited for the role was Deborah Ann Woll, who played the Iraq war veteran in a very convincing way throughout the movie. The next one to make an impression is Taylor Russell who plays the character who has the most screen space, and it comes off without any difficulty. Logan Miller is natural in a usual person kind of role, and Jay Ellis suits here like Will Smith does in most occasions. Tyler Labine and Nik Dodani are the lesser players here, as we don’t get to notice them much except for the latter coming up with a funny side which is cut short too soon.

How it finishes :: With the premise that it had, Escape Room is a movie which could have achieved something bigger, and maybe it can with the upcoming sequel. The movie has its moments with the rooms, and keeping the audience at the edge of the seats trying to figure out who all will go to the next level, and how they can figure out the puzzles and survive each stage. With six people facing circumstances beyond their control, there was always going be thrilling fun, and this movie is no exception here. I was wondering that during these times of Corona, you can create yourself an escape room with puzzles. After all, we are all under lockdown, and going out is nothing less than a terrible violation against our own countrymen. So, lets play a game or two, decode some puzzles, answer some riddles, and create our own escape rooms in the house.

Release date: 4th January 2019
Running time: 100 minutes
Directed by: Adam Robitel
Starring: Taylor Russell, Logan Miller, Deborah Ann Woll, Jay Ellis, Tyler Labine, Nik Dodani, Yorick van Wageningen

<— Click here to go to the previous review.

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@ Cemetery Watch
✠ The Vampire Bat.

The First Purge

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Vampire Owl: Do you remember those moments when this was first implemented in the werewolf territory?

Vampire Bat: What are you talking about?

Vampire Owl: The day when werewolves brutally murdered each other.

Vampire Bat: How can I know? I am not spending my time looking at whatever happens in that territory.

Vampire Owl: Well, you should know that it was not that bloody as it would be if humans implemented it.

Vampire Bat: I know. Nobody I know is as blood-thirsty as an average human.

Vampire Owl: Because it is quite natural for them to be evil. They choose it with ease, while we are declared to be evil because we are undead.

Vampire Bat: I have never been that fond of their categorizations.

Vampire Owl: It is more or less, the divisions.

Vampire Bat: The divisions guide them towards eternal hate.

[Gets three cups of masala tea with Arrowroot Biscuits].

What is the movie about? :: We remember that the New Founding Fathers of America, a totalitarian political party, came into power after an economic collapse. There was the law that sanctioned an annual Purge for twelve hours each year, when all types of crime, including murder, would be legal, with emergency services being unavailable. It helped the United States to become nearly crime-free with the unemployment rate dropping to the lowest ever. Earlier movies had mentioned those families and people who struggled during these times to survive against the chaos which was unleashed. This movie goes a few years back from there, as there was the time when this was beginning to be attempted on a trial basis. This experiment would be taking place on Staten Island, which is the southernmost as well as the westernmost of the five boroughs of New York City.

So, what happens next? :: New Founding Fathers of America (NFFA) members Arlo Sabian (Patch Darragh) and Dr. May Updale (Marisa Tomei) announce a social experiment which is to take place in the island. It proclaims the twelve hours of purge, an activity during which the residents could be involved in anything illegal, including, robbery, rape and murder. There is also the offer for the residents of the Island to have $5000 to stay in their homes during the experiment and also a suitable compensation for those who would be participating in the brutality. There would be no ambulance or police, and the criminals would be on the streets with those who wish to go illegal. The participants would have tracking devices and contact lenses with cameras, so that whatever activity they do, can be tracked, and some of them can be even shown in the television channels. There are also those drones which would be monitoring everything from the sky.

And, what is to follow next in the adventure? :: Among those who leads the purge is a drug addict known as Skeletor (Rotimi Paul) who also manages to draw the first blood with a brutal murder, and tries to follow up the same with raping women and murdering anyone whom he finds on the street. Nya (Lex Scott Davis), an anti-purge activist who fails to stop the experiment, joins her friends Dolores (Mugga), Luisa (Lauren Velez), and Selina (Kristen Solis) in a church which they find to be the safest place on the island. Most of the people in the church had decided to stay because they are very poor and the amount of 5000 meant that they could have three meals a day after a long time. Meanwhile, the purge keeps getting stronger on the streets, and Skeletor leads the kill count by randomly attacking purge parties held all around the island. It is then that the drug lord and Nya’s former boyfriend Dmitri (Y’lan Noel) finds out that there is something strange about the purge – then, things change.

The defence of The First Purge :: The human impulse to go towards savagery against civilization, continues to be shown in this purge movie too. We are reminded of humanity’s inherent evil, and the never-ending desire to be free by punishing and murdering others and having extreme joy out of it. The First Purge also boasts about a lot of action in store, and we can see the experiment in the lines of The Belko Experiment taking place here, with some bringing death and the others trying to survive. There is some intense action in the final stages of the movie, and there is he reflection of what the politicians and the government has always tried to achieve, to divide and rule people, as well as make sure that the poor are among the dead, more than any other category, thus lessening poverty, hunger and unemployment to a level which can be managed. The First Purge has that idea which has a lot of truth, and it meets our soul once again as it did with other Purge flicks.

The claws of flaw :: One might feel that this version of purge might be the weakest of all similar movies. With the idea already established, and three interesting movies already made, we would expect the franchise to do better this time, but it doesn’t, as long as this particular movie is concerned. The cast is also not that strong, even Lex Scott Davis stands above the rest, and Y’lan Noel does have his moments. With the purge, there is always the chance for further innovations, but this one stands behind in that case. There no further venturing into that idea which could gather a lot of appreciation if used in the best manner. As we have watched all other purge movies, this one has more of repetition rather than anything else. The atrocities committed with this purge could have portrayed further, with humanity’s nature being questioned in a stronger and shocking manner.

How it finishes :: The Purge franchise has made all of us think, and with The Purge, The Purge: Anarchy and The Purge: Election Year, we have all been thinking about its basic idea, and relate it to humanity, society and the inherent evil in man which forces one to achieve catharsis in one way or the other. In our world, we have bandhs and harthals were political goons try to destroy property and people stay at home fearing this. Further north, there have been communal violence and riots in the name of dead cows, and all of these are options for those who need to take law into their hand and commit all kinds of atrocities. The Purge has one tale to tell in a part of the world, and another somewhere else. The whole humanity is driven towards that idea which William Golding showed in the 1954 novel, Lord of the Flies – The inherent evil becomes the truth, and committing all kinds of atrocities can be done naturally by humans.

Release date: 4th July 2018
Running time: 97 minutes
Directed by: Gerard McMurray
Starring: Y’lan Noel, Lex Scott Davis, Joivan Wade, Steve Harris, Mugga, Christian Robinson, Lauren Velez, Kristen Solis, Marisa Tomei, Cindy Robinson, Patch Darragh, Maria Rivera, Chyna Layne, Siya, Melonie Diaz, Mo McRae, Rotimi Paul, Kevin Carrigan

<— Click here to go to the previous review.

@ Cemetery Watch
✠ The Vampire Bat.

Venom

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Vampire Owl: This creature is known to me from a long time ago.

Vampire Bat: Which one exactly are you talking about?

Vampire Owl: The one with the twisted tongue and bad teeth, coloured black or really dark grey.

Vampire Bat: That was a creature summoned by the Northern Witches. This is an alien we have here.

Vampire Owl: I don’t think that the creatures among these are less alien.

Vampire Bat: The portal to other dimensions is closed now, and so I don’t think that there is the need to discuss this matter.

Vampire Owl: Well, I had this vision. The portal is no more in ruins.

Vampire Bat: You have no gift of dream vision!

Vampire Owl: Well, there is one that goes with the nightmare visions.

Vampire Bat: You will need to prove it after watching this movie.

[Gets three cups of cardamom tea with Tiger Biscuits].

What is the movie about? :: A bio-engineering corporation known as Life Foundation has been sending probes into space, as it would stop at nothing to find the unknown. There is something sinister about the organization and its CEO Carlton Drake (Riz Ahmed), who is known to be a man of mysteries with many allegations related to human rights violation made about him. He is still one of the richest and the most powerful men in the nation though, who tries to keep a clean image in more than one way. It is during those times that one of the corporation’s probe finds something which it cannot control. With four symbiotic life forms, it crashes in the remote area of Malaysia, and one of the symbiotes known as Riot escapes to the wilderness, possessing different people at different times, as it made its way towards the Head Quarters of the Life Foundation, leaving a trail of dead bodies.

So, what happens next? :: The three remaining symbiotes are transported to San Francisco, where the Head Quarters and the main research facility of the corporation are located. There, Carlton goes on to remake the human body with a combination of the two, as the creatures can’t live without human support and he believes that it could make humanity better. But he finds out that it resists and kills the human host on most occasion, and this process known as symbiosis is really difficult to achieve. Meanwhile, investigative journalist Eddie Brock (Tom Hardy) reads about these human trials in a classified document which is with his lover and fiancee, Anne Weying (Michelle Williams) who is a lawyer. He confronts Carlton regarding the same, and he is fired from his job. At the same time, Anne is also terminated from her job for leaking classified information, and there, the relationship between the two ends.

And, what is to follow next in the adventure? :: Wandering in the streets without doing anything substantial, Eddie is approached by a Life Foundation scientist Dora Skirth (Jenny Slate) who reveals the the horrors that have been happening in the research facility of the corporation, and asks him to do something about it. He is initialliy reluctant as he is no longer a journalist, and feels that he doesn’t have enough resources to expose him. He asks her to contact the police or someone with high influence, but she is not someone who would give up that easily. Finally, he decides to break into the facility with her help, and find clues to how the illegal activities are going on there. There he tries to help Maria (Melora Walters), a homeless woman who is one of the subjects, and has a symbiote inside her. The result is that the symbiote which identifies as Venom gets into him, and everything begins to change.

The defence of Venom :: Venom is the anti-hero that rises to the occasion yet again – without the silliness of Deadpool, this one opposite to Spider-Man is certainly the better anti-hero compared to Wolverine’s opponent in his origins story. Our hero of Mad Max: Fury Road, Tom Hardy is no stranger to the chaos which can be seen on the big screen. The Dark Knight Rises had him bringing chaos as Bane, and here we have the internal chaos at work. Michelle Williams is a fine addition too, and she even gets to become the Lady Venom herself – that was one of the best moments in the movie. There is also the big symbiotic fight by the end of the movie, and by that time, we already had some big fights in between with Venom taking over and fighting through the mortals of Planet Earth with ease. Riz Ahmed makes a fine villain, a controlled one at the same time too.

The claws of flaw :: It is to be noted that Venom doesn’t maintain the same pace throughout the movie, even though it could have easily done that with Tom Hardy and Michelle Williams around. The symbiotes are worth more than this, as more experiments could have made the whole setup darker even while keeping the lighter side there. The beginning of the movie could have been better too. You see how well the other Marvel characters have turned out to be with their solo movies – Captain America, Iron Man, Spider-Man, Ant-Man, Thor – all have had their appreciation, and Venom had to stand out to reach that level, considering the fact that it came later. We would have always wanted more of Lady Venom, which is special in its own way. Maybe, a sequel could do the trick by adding more of this creature, and could focus further in a world unknown too.

How it finishes :: Venom doesn’t just manage to be better than the other anti-hero Deadpool, but it also proves to be better than its own nemesis Spider-Man in Spider-Man Homecoming. Compared to a matured Venom, those two are not of much significance. The team of the host and the parasite makes a lot of fun in store, as this one should defeat the new Spider-Man at some point, and bring another reboot with our older Spider-Man movies. It is the next level of hope that we all have. Until then, enjoy Venom as the two personalities in one, half-alien, half-earthling, and with Tom Hardy and Michelle Williams who power the same. Marvel continues its winning run, and whatever they make, seems to be of more significance than those made by anyone else. At the same time, one can keep wondering about the possibility of having Venom with the Avengers – can’t they let this alien save the world in a big way too?

Release date: 5th October 2018
Running time: 112 minutes
Directed by: Ruben Fleischer
Starring: Tom Hardy, Michelle Williams, Scott Haze, Reid Scott, Riz Ahmed, Jenny Slate, Melora Walters, Chris O’Hara, Sam Medina, Sope Aluko, Scott Deckert, Marcella Bragio, Michelle Lee, Mac Brandt, Christian Convery, Ron Cephas Jones

<— Click here to go to the previous review.

@ Cemetery Watch
✠ The Vampire Bat.

Jumanji: The Next Level

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What is the movie about? :: Spencer Gilpin (Alex Wolff), Bethany Walker (Madison Iseman), Martha Kaply (Morgan Turner) and Anthony Fridge Johnson (Ser’Darius Blain) have gone separate ways after that one adventure with the Jumanji video game where they returned the Jaguar’s Eye, a magic jewel to the shrine where it belonged. They had saved the day, and then did decide never to go back to those video game avatars again. After a long time, they plan to meet up in Brantford, and everyone except Spencer is very much interested in seeing the team back again. He had put his romantic relationship with Martha on hold, and was living a rather dull life, as this call for a meeting reminds him not to see his old friends, but to go back to Jumanji, where he was special, and could save the world – that was the only way for him to become important again, with three lives inside a video game, fighting evil and making a difference yet again.

So, what happens with the events to follow? :: Fridge, Martha and Bethany meet up at the cafe sharing some happy moments of re-union, and are concerned when Spencer doesn’t show up, not even bothering to leave a message for them. This leads to them going to his home, and meeting Spencer’s grandfather Eddie Gilpin (Danny DeVito), who is currently recovering from hip surgery, and his former friend Milo Walker (Danny Glover) with whom he has issues over their former partnership cafe business which is no more. The three friends realize that even his grandfather has no clue where he is. But then they hear the drums of Jumanji, and down in the basement, everyone in the house except Bethany are sucked into the video game as the playable character while she is left rejected. The other four reaches inside the game, confused with their avatars, except for Martha who manages to get her same character as in her previous outing inside the Jumanji world.

And what else is to follow in this adventure beyond? :: So, as the four people become characters in the video game, Eddie becomes Dr. Smolder Bravestone (Dwayne Johnson), Milo becomes Franklin Mouse Finbar (Kevin Hart) and Fridge becomes Professor Sheldon Oberon (Jack Black). Martha continues to be Ruby Roundhouse (Karen Gillan), the martial arts expert. They are confused about the change of situation, and the new location while the non-playable character Nigel Billingsley (Rhys Darby) briefs the new and advanced mission to them. He informs them that a ruthless warlord Jurgen the Brutal (Rory McCann) has stolen a magic necklace called the Falcon’s Heart. The land is in drought in its absence, and there is an immediate need to bring it to the sun so that everything can be restored. Without it, the whole of Jumanji would turn into a cursed land with no hope. Now, with a few confused people, the question remains if they can succeed in this and bring Spencer home.

The defence of Jumanji: The Next Level :: Jumanji and its related movies have always entertained us, and this film is no exception. The coordination here is wonderful, and the world created here is also worth our attention. There are some fine scenes of action and adventure that can be seen here too. The humour is also nicely created, and the comic side gets a boost on many occasions. There are some scenes that will stay in the minds, one including a series of moving bridges and a group of monkeys, and another one is about body switching between characters. The humour doesn’t begin and end at exact places, as it is present throughout the film. It does know where to place all these, and in the end, the movie is never long, and never does it drag – with its shorter length, it makes a fine watch with ease. The audience for this movie could only increase in the next few days.

The claws of flaw :: There might be the feeling of repetition for some, even though the difference is certainly there. Any feeling of not liking this movie is mostly linked the absence of an understanding of it, as the crowd seems to be less for this one in this part of the world. Still, there is no doubt about the fact that this could have had even more adventures with extra additions of traps here and there. Light-hearted fantasy adventures can never have more, and this one limits its collection. Also, I have always had the opinion that this one should have had one more female playable character in the game. Here, it doesn’t have a competitor from Hollywood, and so, the flaws will most probably be forgotten. Anything missing can be added in another possible sequel, and we would definitely need one with the same cast returning, and bigger adventures happening.

The performers of the soul :: This is certainly a movie of fun performances. Dwayne Johnson a.k.a. the Rock is once again fantastic in this kind of role, and he brings a lot of fun as well as action in the best possible ways. We had just seen him, the man who has been Hercules, in Fast and Furious: Hobbs and Shaw were he excelled. Karen Gillan who is best known for playing Nebula in Guardians of the Galaxy and Avengers series of movies, is seen in an even better avatar, something which can make one recommend her for a Tomb Raider movie over all other actresses. The way she swings on the ropes and poles, and jumps on the walls reminds one of those Tomb Raider and Prince of Persia video games – she is one perfect video game character and is joy to watch. The looks support what she does. Jack Black brings a lot to the funny side. Danny DeVito and Danny Glover makes a fine combination too. Kevin Hart makes a fine avatar too. Morgan Turner leads the way with real-life forms of the young game characters.

How it finishes :: I remember having loved the 1995 movie of the same name, and then the 2005 movie Zathura: A Space Adventure, both having children in trouble when they are playing board games which are more than just games. I had missed Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle, and it is something that I regret after watching this sequel which is one interesting adventure, rising far above what was shown in the trailer. It is the kind of adventure that anyone would love to watch, and The Rock has always been good with this kind of movies, with an adventure having a funny side, and just like Journey 2: The Mysterious Island which was an adaptation to remember. Many of us have wanted to be a part of a video game, living through them as if the character which we play are us – it is more applicable in the case of Role Playing Games, and this movie lets us live through one of such games, and it is a very enjoyable ride.

Release date: 13th December 2019
Running time: 134 minutes
Directed by: Jake Kasdan
Starring: Dwayne Johnson, Karen Gillan, Jack Black, Kevin Hart, Nick Jonas, Awkwafina, Alex Wolff, Morgan Turner, Ser’Darius Blain, Madison Iseman, Danny Glover, Danny DeVito

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@ Cemetery Watch
✠ The Vampire Bat.

Terminator: Dark Fate

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What is the movie about? :: The movie is set after the events of Terminator: Judgement Day, as three years after defeating the T-1000 and preventing the unleashing of the artificial intelligence Skynet, Sarah Connor (Linda Hamilton) and John Connor (Jude Collie) are spending some time on a vacation far away from home, so that nobody can find them. They live with the feeling that there is no immediate threat from the future as they made sure that there would be no Skynet as the reason for the same no longer exists. Suddenly, another T-800 Terminator (Arnold Schwarzenegger) sent from the later time line before Skynet’s fall in the future, arrives and kills John in front of her. Meanwhile, with Skynet no longer a threat, the future is altered significantly, as in present time, two more people are sent from the future with assigned missions.

So, what happens with the events to follow? :: An advanced Terminator model, the Rev-9 (Gabriel Luna) is sent back in time to Mexico City with the mission of murdering one girl, and an a cybernetically-enhanced soldier Grace (Mackenzie Davis) is also sent to the present from the future to protect her. The two people from the year 2042 converge on one girl Daniella Ramos (Natalia Reyes) who is the new target. The machine kills her father Ramos (Enrique Arce) and brother Diego (Diego Boneta), but Grace manages to save her only to be attacked by the highly advanced terminator’s cybernetic endo-skeleton and shape-shifting liquid metal exterior, cornering them on a motorway. But they are saved by Sarah who arrives there in time, and sends the terminator to the backfoot, but fails to finish it off, as it moves to access the database to plan a more accurate attack.

And what else is to follow? :: With the terminator not on their direct trail as of now, Grace, Daniella and Sarah locks themselves in a room, and have a better understanding of the situation. Sarah has been hunting terminators who arrive from the future, as she would be texted their location from some unknown private number and coordinates which were also written above Grace’s abdomen. Grace comes from an altered future in 2042 in which there is no John or Skynet, but there is an advanced artificial intelligence known as Legion which was particularly designed for cyber-warfare. With Legion taking control of all servers resulting in a nuclear holocaust and the death of most of the population, the machines started hunting the surviving humans. With no food, shelter or hope to stand against the highly advanced machines, there is a new resistance, and Grace is a soldier who was seriously injured in a fight and was turned into a cyborg – now she has the toughest mission ahead!

The defence of Terminator: Dark Fate :: Arnold Schwarzenegger returning as the favourite Terminator never gets old, as it has had a great role to play in our childhood. With him returning, Terminator: Genisys was also a lot of fun. Here, the terminator stuff continues to be there with the same strength. There are those high powered and intense action sequences which are there throughout the movie. There are fights on the motorway, inside a factory, on a dam, and even in the air, with an airplane at the centre. The visuals are all nice, and there is also some humour with this one. The idea of the machines having a conscience is also there. The visions of a devastated future is nice, even though we have already seen things like that before, not just with Terminator movies, but with other action and science fiction titles. This movie does keep the Terminator franchise going well, and bring more sequels within this time line.

The claws of flaw :: We can see the case of repetition here, as the Terminator franchise struggles to add anything new to what was already there. There is the feeling that we have seen all these before, and we keep wondering if there would be different artificial intelligence systems known as Skynet, Genisys and Legion along with different people to be protected like John Connor and Daniella Ramos, known just by different names, varying only by ethnicity, gender etc. The idea is very close to expiry date if something innovate is not added – machines taking over the world and time travel are two very common things unlike how it was during the time of Judgement Day and Rise of the Machines. There is the need to take this to the next level with an advanced level of thinking rather than keeping the same thing happening again and again – maybe the time travel idea can be done with, and we can move to that future infested with deadly machines.

The performers of the soul :: Arnold Schwarzenegger once again carries another movie of the franchise on his shoulders – he has been doing this forever, except for being a very small part of the Christian Bale and Sam Worthington starrer, Terminator: Salvation. Arnold once again makes this movie better, and he never ceases to amaze us in the franchise. As he makes a return to the screen later in the movie, things get even more interesting. The same can’t be said about Linda Hamilton though, as her character and dialogues are badly written. Using the lines of the terminator, and fighting terminators at that age is absurd, unless you are a machine like Arnold plays. The character is too much of an exaggerated version, even though that can be added to some dumb fun. Mackenzie Davis is delightful to watch though, and she makes a great character, and fantastic during action sequences, proven from the first moment she lands. Natalia Reyes excels as the chosen, confused girl, even though not that much as the leader. Gabriel Luna makes another good terminator.

How it finishes :: The Arnold Schwarzenegger – Terminator childhood nostalgia should be the one thing that keep the audience here interested in the movie. But the audience is still limited, and in towns like Kothamangalam, there is zero female audience for this movie, as it was with movies like Aquaman – a surprising case which makes one wonder if the Hollywood movies except the Avengers stuff have been reduced to male audience in towns further away from Cochin. Well, if the focus was given on Arnold instead of getting Linda Hamilton more screen time, the problem would have been solved in this part of the world. After all, the effect that Arnold had created is greater than the same created by any other superstar has been creating these days. With Terminator: Dark Fate, it would have its audience for sure, and the same would have higher numbers in the multiplexes in the cities, as the Terminator franchise can grow from this with the new time line, moving towards the future.

Release date: 1st November 2019
Running time: 134 minutes
Directed by: Tim Miller
Starring: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Mackenzie Davis, Natalia Reyes, Gabriel Luna, Diego Boneta, Linda Hamilton, Alicia Borrachero, Enrique Arce, Steven Cree, Tom Hopper, Jude Collie

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@ Cemetery Watch
✠ The Vampire Bat.

Hobbs and Shaw

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What is the movie about? :: The movie begins in London, with a group of MI6 agents trying to recover a deadly virus, Snowflake, which is good enough to cause a global pandemic, bringing humanity closer to the sixth extinction. As they retrieve it from the global terrorist organization Eteon, Brixton Lore (Idris Elba), an Eteon soldier fitted with advanced cybernetic implants arrives and kills all agents except for their leader, Hattie Shaw (Vanessa Kirby). She injects Snowflake into herself to keep it away from others’ reach and escapes from the scene. Brixton frames her as a traitor who killed her team and stole Snowflake, and it leads to her being on the run from more than one intelligence agency. Both Luke Hobbs (Dwayne Johnson a.k.a. The Rock) and Deckard Shaw (Jason Statham) are given the duty to track her down and find Snowflake before it gets to Eteon or some other terrorist group.

So, what happens with the events to follow? :: It turns out that Hattie is the younger sister of Deckard, and after talking to their mother Magdalene Shaw (Helen Mirren) in prison, he finds it his duty to protect her. As expected, Luke and Deckard can’t get along, and that does cause problems as far as the mission is concerned. They do find her in the end, and even though she is taken to the CIA office, Brixton arrives with his team of mercenaries and captures her. Luke and Deckard manages to save her after trying to defeat Brixton in hand combat without any success. They manage to get away, and decide to find a way to get the virus out of Hattie who only seems to have a few days remaining. They figure out that she has to be killed needs to use an extraction device from the Eteon factory in Ukraine. Meanwhile, Brixton frames them as terrorists, and makes things further difficult.

And what more is to happen? :: For the same, they are helped by Madam M (Eiza Gonzalez), who is Deckard’s old flame, as well as a robber who lives in Russia – she also provides them with some special, powerful weapons. This leaves them with even lesser amount of time to get the virus out of Hattie. Brixton is also searching everywhere for the virus that he feels will change the world forever. With no option to save her, and after getting all the information from the creator of the virus, Professor Andreiko (Eddie Marsan) they decide to have her transferred to Brixton and then go after her in the factory where it was created, as it is the only place where it can be extracted. With time running out, they get their resources ready, while Andreiko is captured by Brixton. It is a tough task ahead for the two people who just don’t want to see each other – can they defeat Brixton, the man who is more like a superhuman with all the implants, or will death be unleashed on common people?

The defence of Hobbs and Shaw :: This is one movie in the Fast and Furious franchise that could do without its “FF” tag, as it has a story which can stand alone, and with its main characters and all the action around, has such great strength beyond the franchise. It is so good even without those scenes of racing in the streets, even though there are also present. The great action sequences go a long way beyond our expectations. The movie has the chases, hand to hand combat, a vertical walk and a grand final battle which has a group of cars against a helicopter. The best thing about the movie is that it knows where to draw the lines, and how to make things believable, helping the willing suspension of disbelief – it is something that some of those dumb masala Bollywood movies can never do. This one begins well and ends well, and in between has a lot to remember. The visuals are stunning, and the best is in store in the end, at Samoa.

Positives and negatives :: The movie has a certain amount of humour in there, and not all the comedy works here. Sometimes, the comic side tries to come in when not needed and the least expected – sometimes, we just love to avoid it as not being part of this grand adventure. All parts of the movie are also not at the same level, leaving us with ups and downs. The use of family idea gets repetitive, but is once again used effectively with the scene shifting to Samoa bring one more family together. Well, we know how much Fast and Furious 6, Fast and Furious 7 and Fast and Furious 8 talked about family, and that is one element which comes up in anything related to the franchise. There is also the talk about people being above technology, and regarding the final setting and The Rock who comes up with such a situation, it becomes believable. There are moments when we feel that it is this movie that needs the sequel and not the original series – Vanessa Kirby might be one strong reason for that.

The performers of the soul :: Fast and Furious franchise is known for its protagonists who have no hair on their head – this one does the job without Vin Diesel though. This is that kind of an occasion where it works perfectly without him – the contrasting styles of the two actors playing the two real different characters become perfect here. Dwayne Johnson brings the power of the Rock or rather Hercules in the last few scenes as we also have Roman Reigns joining in to give a reminder of that WWE world which we have loved for long. Jason Statham’s protagonist who comes with a different style of action has us asking for more. Vanessa Kirby is too good in the action sequences too, as she brings everything into the scene perfectly – Mission Impossible: Fallout had here doing less action, but not this time, as she has some fine sequences of action which we are going to remember. She can surely have a lot more action movies. Idris Alba does a great job playing the villain too. Elza Gonzalez has a small, but noticeable role.

How it finishes :: We have always wanted more of the Fast and Furious franchise, and this one makes sure that there is more, and that too with the two superstars who could be even bigger than the whole movie. With Dwayne Johnson and Jason Statham launching the right punches, this one offers even more than what we thought it would deliver. A complete entertainer from the beginning to the end, Hobbs and Shaw is a movie that you shouldn’t miss, as far as you are looking for a grand action thriller. There will be more fast and furious movies coming up, but this one will be remembered for what has brought to the screen in a grand fashion. We are gladly past the boring street racing saga to aim at something higher. Creating a spin-off out of a successful franchise and making it as big as the original series requires some fine skills, and here the same is on display. Hobbs and Shaw will keep the expectations high until the next movie in the franchise arrives.

Release date: 2nd August 2019
Running time: 135 minutes
Directed by: David Leitch
Starring: Dwayne Johnson, Jason Statham, Vanessa Kirby, Idris Elba, Eiza Gonzalez, Eddie Marson, Helen Mirren, Cliff Curtis, Roman Reigns, Josh Mauga, John Tui, Lori Pelenise Tuisano

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@ Cemetery Watch
✠ The Vampire Bat.

Spider-Man: Far From Home

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What is the movie about? :: In the Mexican city of San Juan Ixtenco, there was unnatural storm which devastated most of the place – people are known to have said that there was a face in the storm, and Nick Fury (Samuel L Jackson) and Maria Hill (Cobie Smulders) investigate the case while coming across a creature, an Earth Elemental, which derives its powers from Earth. At the same time, a super-powered man Quentin Beck (Jake Gyllenhaal), arrives to fight the creature. In New York City, the Midtown School of Science and Technology restarts its academic year to take in those students who were affected by the events of Avengers: Infinity War. There is a two-week summer field trip to Europe, starting at Venice, Italy. Peter Parker (Tom Holland) plans to confess his love for classmate MJ (Zendaya) there. Meanwhile, Harold Hogan (Jon Favreau) contacts him to provide the news that Nick Fury is looking for him, and will give a call soon, regarding a mission.

So, what happens with the events to follow? :: Peter is forced to carry the Spider-Man costume by his aunt May Parker (Marisa Tomei) despite trying to keep away from superhero deeds post the death of Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr). He even ignores the calls of Nick Fury, who finds him at the hotel in Venice, after escaping the attacks of the Water Elemental which almost destroys the major tourist areas of the city. The students including Peter’s best friend Ned Leeds (Jacob Batalon), Flash Thompson (Tony Revolori) and Betty Brant (Angourie Rice) along with the teachers, Roger Harrington (Martin Starr) and Julius Dell (JB Smoove) are terrorized by the unexpected attacks. After tranquilizing Ned, Fury gives him Stark’s glasses equipped with the artificial intelligence EDITH, providing access to all databases of Stark Industries and with command over large weapon supply. He also introduces him to Quentin Beck, a man with magic powers.

And what more is to happen? :: Even though mistaken by many as Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch), this new hero is known to people as Mysterio, a man who is supposed to be from another Earth, which was consumed by the Elementals. He hopes to avenge his family, and destroy the Elementals, and Fury hopes that Peter would be part of the mission at Prague, but he declines saying that his school team is going to Paris and he can’t be seen in the Spider-Man costume when he is in Europe, as it would lead to doubts that he is Spider-Man, revealing his identity. But as their trip itself is re-routed to Prague, Peter is left with no option, but to fight the most powerful of the Elementals, the Fire Elemental. To add to it, he has to fight it in the middle of an on-going carnival, and his friends are also around. Can the friendly neighbourhood Spider-Man live up to the legacy that the Avengers lead by Iron Man, Captain America and Thor has left?

The defence of Spider-Man: Far From Home :: It is a difficult task for another Spider-Man movie to stand strong in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, considering the fact that the greatest film of the franchise, Avengers: Endgame has finished strong, and is looking forward to become the highest grossing flick of all-time. Spider-Man: Far From Home has managed to do that well enough, and has also improved its status from Spider-Man Homecoming – this one is bigger in scope and impact, and we also have the superheroes doing better, in the presence of better villainy. The action sequences continue to impress, and the perfect settings are used, which makes things even better – the visuals and the special effects with illusions play a major role in making the fights more interesting. The movie also maintains a certain amount of humour, and it remains light-hearted, as a friendly neighbourhood movie. There is also something in the end to make sure that we have something to look forward to, after the movie.

The claws of flaw :: The emotional strength of the earlier Spider-Man movies continues to be absent in this version, and this comes too late after all the superhero overdose. We have had only one Spider-Man movie before Avengers: Endgame, and that is too little – now, this one requires a lot more sequels, but they will be too late. Also, the movie’s twist is rather predictable for those who are familiar with the tales of Spider-Man, and something more could have been added to get it deeper. Some of the jokes in the movie also go some other way, and fail to create any impact – there is the case of things getting repetitive here. The superhero himself hasn’t learned much after going through all the fading away, and losing his mentor – there is no realization that is added here. Being a better hero doesn’t seem to be an option here. Spider-Man won’t get to that level of The Amazing Spider-Man or The Amazing Spider-Man 2 here either, and we have to wait for the sequels to hope for that.

The performers of the soul :: Jake Gyllenhaal is the one who stands apart in this movie, and we know what he has been capable of with the psychological thriller movies like Enemy and Nocturnal Animals. The role of Mysterio stays safe with him, and we see how well he can handle the two sides of a character. Tom Holland continues to play Spider-Man as he used to, and it gets better than the previous movies in totality. Zendaya playing his love interest makes one interesting character from the beginning itself – she is indeed the most interesting character in the whole team of school children, and lets hope that the character is not replaced by other love interests of Spider-Man in any later movies. Cobie Smulders is there doing what she has been doing well. The others in high school team do a pretty good job including both the teachers and students.

How it finishes :: We have finished most of the main part of the Marvel superheroes, and Spider-Man: Far From Home seems to come as a bonus or an add-on post that biggest battle that happened in Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame. Spider-Man is the hero whom we have always loved, he has been there with Superman and Batman at this part of the world even before the rest of the superheroes like Thor, Captain America, Iron Man, Hulk, Black Widow, Hawkeye, Black Panther, Captain Marvel, Aquaman, Cyborg, Flash, Green Arrow – all of them came later. Therefore, it is only fair that we hope for an even better movie. But this one also keeps us interested and entertained, and Marvel once again has everything working in its favour, even after its best movie done.

Release date: 5th July 2019 (India); 2nd July 2019 (USA)
Running time: 129 minutes
Directed by: Jon Watts
Starring: Tom Holland, Zendaya, Cobie Smulders, Samuel L Jackson, Jon Favreau, JB Smoove, Jacob Batalon, Marisa Tomei, Jake Gyllenhaal, Martin Starr

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@ Cemetery Watch
✠ The Vampire Bat.

Dark Phoenix

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What is the movie about? :: In the year 1992, when a space mission seems to be in trouble, while facing a solar flare, the X-Men lead by Professor X a.k.a. Charles Xavier (James McAvoy) decides to help the humans, and once again prove that mutants and humand are to co-exist. But it is a risky mission, as the plane is ready for a journey into space. But the team including Jean Grey (Sophie Turner), Nightcrawler a.k.a. Kurt Wagner (Kodi Smit-McPhee), Storm a.k.a. Ororo Munroe (Alexandra Shipp), Quicksilver a.k.a. Peter Maximoff (Evan Peter), Mystique a.k.a. Raven Darkholme (Jennifer Lawrence), Beast a.k.a. Hank McCoy (Nicholas Hoult) and Cyclops a.k.a. Scott Summers (Tye Sheridan) go on the mission despite having the doubts. The situation seems under control as Nightcrawler’s teleportation and Quicksilver’s high speed seems to be enough to finish the job.

So, what happens with the events to follow? :: But it is revealed that there is one more person to be saved, and they decide to go back. With Jean holding the space shuttle together, Nightcrawler takes the remaining person out, but is unable to take Jean back as the solar flare covers her. But he is able to recover her body after that, and surprisingly, she wakes up. The X-Men are hailed as heroes by the public, and the bond between humans and mutants gets to be stronger. But there is something different about Jane after that incident. Hank finds her energy to be beyond comprehension, crossing all borders. Scott also feels that there is something different about her. At the same time, Raven is not happy about Charles leading the mission to a point from which a return becomes near impossible; she feels that making a future with the deaths of mutants won’t be fair.

And what more is to happen? :: Jean seems to unleash herself at a point, and collapses. Unable to get into her head for the first time, Charles uses the Cerebro machine, and with it at high power, finds that the bad memories that he had shielded in the mind of Jean, are now out in the open, and she won’t be the same again. With memories of her distant past coming back to her, Jean leaves, and the X-Men follows here – they won’t have anything positive to find there though. Her actions there would turn both mutants and humans against her, with no chance to return to the previous state. At the same time, certain aliens from outer space have also reached Earth, searching for the Phoenix Force within Jane. They are lead by Vuk (Jessica Chastain) who serves as the leader of this shape-shifting alien race, called D’Bari. This would lead to time running out for Jean, before she could be herself again.

The defence of X-Men: Dark Phoenix :: The action sequences surely score with this movie, and so does the visual beauty. The action on the train in the final moments are among the best so far in any X-Men movie. There are also a few others which offer something similar. The special effects are used well, and we see the mutant powers being used nicely. CGI is used nicely by the movie, as the desire for another superhero movie after Avengers: Endgame has been provided in the form of X-Men: Dark Phoenix. The path that the movie takes seems to be interesting, and ready to bring further twists, even though this might be the final movie of this film with these characters in the main roles. The premise is a wonderful one for sure, even though the movie doesn’t really use the same to the best of effects. It has also released in India earlier than the original release date, and it should serve the movie to get better collections here.

The claws of flaw :: The movie is unable to prove to be better than X-Men: The Last Stand which was the movie which dealt with the same story thirteen years ago, and still managed to better at that time. It was not a fantastic movie in any way, but it had somehow managed to do better, not just with its story, but as a whole – it is only with the final moments of action that this movie holds more power. The titular character is also not explored in the right way, as her being all-powerful just goes too much beyond the border, as we get tired of the same quickly. We also know what is to happen with this tale, and how the same person does the job in the end is ridiculous – this is where the previous Dark Phoenix movie served better, with weakness in between the all-powerful; think about Superman without the idea of kryptonite there, and it is easier to understand. The movie also slows down in the middle, and the emotions go weak on a number of occasions.

The performers of the soul :: Sophie Turner from the Game of Thrones fame, has been an interesting addition to the film series – we see her continuing her form at a number of moments, but not as a whole, as things get repetitive. We wouldn’t get to see her as we had seen her in the popular television series, with the avatar itself being different around here. It would have been nice to see her as the earlier and more vulnerable Jane better. Jennifer Lawrence is completely wasted in her short stay there, and there is nothing that she does except for coming up with some unnecessary dialogues. The one who comes up with some of the best moments is Michael Fassbender, who shines as Magneto once again, rising above his good friend and leader of X-Men – James McAvoy who plays the leader is a weakened figure going too strange this time. Alexandra Shipp and Nicholas Hoult come up with pretty good job here. Kodi Smit-McPhee is memorable, while Jessica Chastain and Tye Sheridan are not.

How it finishes :: There is something about X-Men that we have always loved, going back to the childhood memories of watching that animated series. There is not much of a reflection of the same around here though, as the level has certainly come down from the predecessors X-Men: Days of the Future Past and X-Men: Apocalypse – it can’t even stand against the single mutant centered tales which came earlier, like Deadpool, Deadpool 2, The Wolverine and Logan. But it is enjoyable up to an extent, thanks to the action sequences where the mutants go for the full scale display of their powers. We are not going to miss the X-Men after this as we already miss Wolverine, and so lets watch a movie of the series one more time, and enjoy the good parts, while we will also have The New Mutants releasing next year as an extra addition. It will have Anya Taylor-Joy and Maisie Williams as young mutants, making it something to look forward to.

Release date: 5th June 2019 (India); 7th June 2019 (USA)
Running time: 114 minutes
Directed by: Simon Kinberg
Starring: Sophie Turner, Jennifer Lawrence, James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender, Nicholas Hoult, Tye Sheridan, Kodi Smit-McPhee, Alexandra Shipp, Evan Peters, Jessica Chastain

<— Click here to go to the previous review.

@ Cemetery Watch
✠ The Vampire Bat.