The Accountant 2

Vampire Owl: It is time Uncle Dracula gets his own vampire accountant.

Vampire Bat: Why would he need an accountant when there is no cash here?

Vampire Owl: But he travels through human world for quite a long.

Vampire Bat: Can’t he get a vampire forex card instead?

Vampire Owl: We are now having forex cards here?

Vampire Bat: Well, there should be a way to convert blood money to cash.

Vampire Owl: So, the vampire blood bank accounts can be converted to currency?

Vampire Bat: Yes, even though the value after conversion is really low.

Vampire Owl: At least Uncle Dracula is the richest man in the realm. So, no problems.

Vampire Bat: Still, not that rich as the family of elders.

[Gets two orange cream biscuits and three cups of elaichi tea].

What is the movie about? :: Former FinCEN director Raymond King (J. K. Simmons) arranges a meeting with a mysterious assassin known only by the identity Anais (Daniella Pineda). While tracked by different gunmen who seems to be ready to shoot at them at any time, he asks her for some help in locating a Salvadorean family with an old photo of the parents and the son. Anais tells him that she usually just assassinates people, but do not harm children, so not sure if she would take this mission involving children either. As different gunmen open fire, King is killed, but Anais is able to escape from trouble without much problems as if she never really visited the place and nobody knows even her real name or further identity. King’s protege and Deputy Director of FinCEN, Marybeth Medina (Cynthia Addai-Robinson), identifies his body, and sees a message which goes as “find the accountant” written on his arm, and decides to do something about his death, as there seems to be something sinister about it.

So, what happens with the events here as we just keep looking? :: Marybeth is forced to contact Christian Wolff (Ben Affleck), even though she doubts him for his illegal activities. Christian organizes a collage of information and tells her that the family in the photo fled from El Salvador to Los Angeles illegally, facing different hazards along the way. At the same time, Burke (Robert Morgan) further asks his enforcer Cobb (Grant Harvey) to somehow kill Anais, as she holds a grudge against him, and might end up killing him instead. Christian invites his estranged brother, Braxton (Jon Bernthal), working as an assassin, to help him with the case, as there is so much to be done. Justine (Allison Robertson), Christian’s old friend, works with a group of children to hack into different networks to help Christian. They manage to find a photo of Anais from a selfie which was taken by a woman who was present at that time – they are able to find her face, but are unable to identify her with any matches. Uncomfortable with their illegal methods towards truth, Marybeth breaks from the group and visits a hospital mentioned in one of King’s reports to find haunting secrets about Anais which would change their whole idea about the situation.

The defence of The Accountant 2 :: The film does have a nice twist as the movie nears the end, and the revelation here works nicely unlike what people have been expecting from what have been put in front of them. The movie has some intense gun fights, tactical combat and well-choreographed action scenes instead of the mass action scenes which are usually used, and this means that the movie remains more believable and never comes up with an overdose of the usual flying action stuff. The expansion of the world of the first movie works really well, as the returning characters and the relationships that come in between are explored further, and often with more detail. The combination of financial crime investigation with action and adventures, remains something that strikes different for a thriller with some classic divergence from the usual. There is physical action and there is intellectual action, both working so well around here. Everything that is required to create a big world of action filled with assassins and twists can be seen here, and this is one protagonist that we would continue to love.

Positives and negatives :: This also makes me remember Jason Statham’s Mechanic, both signifying professions, but meaning much more from the background. Well, some heroes do their work perfectly in more than one field, and we surely like to see them around. The movie does lose a little bit of power in the pacing in between, as this one is a reasonably long movie which has a lot of dialogues, some of them just providing deviation to the movie itself. There is also some complexity related to this movie, and those who wish to have things go direct, might have some other opinions about this particular movie. The originality might be a little bit lost around here with the base so much on the earlier flick. The final fight scenes are really catchy, and the talk about having pets, with the final adoption of a cat works very nicely for the movie, which also develops some emotions along with humour on the way. The sibling bonding idea had already set the premise for such proceedings. The combination could continue to score if there is a sequel, as the stage remains there to get more movies in the franchise.

The performers of the soul :: Ben Affleck once again plays the quiet, highly intelligent accountant who is also an assassin convincingly. His work as a socially awkward, but highly capable man with multiple missions remains the big highlight of the movie. I have always loved him as Batman, and found him to be the perfect superhero of the dark in the DC Universe, and also his different avatar in Gone Girl and that classic divergence in Deep Water. Well, here he is the accountant closing a financial account when all the transactions are finished, but also closing the accounts of life with a few people – that surely works with much effectiveness. Yet, the one whom we miss the most in this movie is last one’s Anna Kendrick who remained its soul then. But Jon Bernthal as Braxton surely with the action here, along with some brotherly bonding that brings the humour. Daniella Pineda is a lovely assassin by the way, and we hope to see her going through such missions in sequels too. Cynthia Addai-Robinson comes in, and just adds the minimal here. Allison Robertson adds on further while J. K. Simmons is missed rather too early in this one.

How it finishes :: When watching the second movie after watching the first one ten years ago, there would be something which would have been missed, but this one surely feels like good enough for a stand-alone film. The release of this particular movie has surely been missed by us, and most probably it never really came to the local theatres here, despite being a franchise with so much class over the usual mass – for now, it is on Amazon Prime Video, and it is good to see it around there. The movie will not come up with those big action sequences though, as it keeps closer to reality, and still around there, we have the action going on with the assassins wandering around and gunmen sent by crime bosses and gangsters also having a say. The basic idea of the movie itself had our attention, as it is something that provides a Hitman-like feeling, and even a little bit of John Wick seems to wander around here, as there are so many incidents happening in the background of a seemingly normal world here, with the man at the centre and his brother bringing something else too. This should be a long franchise like John Wick – I would love to see it going through the same as there is always scope for the others beyond such well-known assassins.

Release date: 25th April 2025
Running time: 92 minutes
Directed by: Gavin O’Connor
Starring: Ben Affleck, Jon Bernthal, Cynthia Addai-Robinson, Daniella Pineda, J. K. Simmons, Allison Robertson, Grant Harvey, Andrew Howard, Lombardo Boyar, Michael Tourek

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✠ The Vampire Bat.

Black Phone 2

Vampire Owl: Are they talking about the only phone in the castle?

Vampire Bat: It is one phone that has never worked.

Vampire Owl: But the vampire elders used to call Uncle Dracula with it.

Vampire Bat: Vampire elders always had their telepathic powers.

Vampire Owl: You think that nobody including Uncle Dracula ever used that phone?

Vampire Bat: The phone is meant to be more of a presence.

Vampire Owl: You mean to say that it has served as an afterlife presence.

Vampire Bat: It cannot be considered undead though.

Vampire Owl: Yes, there cannot be electronic undead, I guess.

Vampire Bat: Why don’t you ask your super-best friends?

[Gets a chilli porotta and three cups of Darjeeling tea].

What is the movie about? :: A few years had passed after Finney (Mason Thames) had killed the psychopath known by the name Grabber (Ethan Hawke), but his sister Gwen (Madeleine McGraw) begins having dreams and nightmares where she sees certain incidents and also the murders that happened at Alpine Lake Camp in 1957, leaving her mostly sleepless. Their mother Hope (Anna Lore) is also known to have had similar dreams at the time of the murders, and this has Gwen worries, while Finney has not come out of the trauma which unfolded in front of his eyes due to that psycho killer unleashing himself after abducting him four years ago. Gwen convinces both Finney and Ernesto (Miguel Mora), her best friend who has a crush on her, to travel to Alpine Lake Camp and find solutions to her problems with mysteries to be solved. Her father Terrence (Jeremy Davies) also gives permission despite early reluctance. They hope that this would solve her problems, even though she is not that sure.

So, what happens with the events here as we just keep looking? :: Despite a planned journey, a heavy blizzard traps them, but the supervisor of Alpine Lake camp, Armando (Demián Bichir) and his niece, the young and energetic Mustang (Arianna Rivas) shows them the way. Two camp employees are also there, in the form of Barbara (Maev Beaty) and Kenneth (Graham Abbey). As Finney receives a call on the camp’s dead land phone from the Grabber, he goes into panic. Speaking from hell as it seems, the Grabber vows revenge on him and his family by brutally murdering Gwen. Soon, Gwen is violently attacked in her dream by the Grabber, but the group manages to save her in the last moment from being thrown into fire. Barbara feels that Gwen is possessed by a demon, especially with the young girl having no control over her tongue, using curse and sexual words. The group feels that they have to find the dead bodies of the Grabber’s victims to loosen his hold over the dream realm, and hope that Gwen sleeps less. But can they do it without Grabber knowing or attacking them with a better plan?

The defence of Black Phone 2 :: The way in which the movie expands the original lore and adds new supernatural elements beyond the simple horror is something that should be appreciated, as we feel the creativity behind all of these in a world when horror has always struggled, especially after the ConjuringAnnabelleNun trio had started losing power from that memorable beginning. The world has been nicely built for the same and the evil being stronger than ever and almost invincible, keeps the strength of horror at a higher level. The exploration of trauma and the related character growth with an emotional side works well. The visual style with the support of snow and ice all around, is something to be noted too. For most of us who are not that familiar with blizzards and such snow brings further horror with the dialogues from the antagonist about ice of hell and the burns that it delivers – the dialogues further elevates the terror, and there are some unexpected horror moments which keep the world strong.

The claws of flaw :: The movie takes too much time to get interesting, and by the time it provides that feeling, it would have gone through half of its runtime. One feels the need to see why it takes so much time in showing dreams and hallucinations, when all of these could be over in a few minutes, as many moments like those are just random and not that much scary. The dream sequences, especially the initial ones often struggle and do not go on making the impact as Freddy of Elm Street would make. The quality of the same is also something to be questioned here, as it also remains tiring for the eyes. The horror in there do not feel real or dangerous until some time passes in the movie. This asserts the fact that the movie was about twenty-five minutes more than what it should have been. The emotional side and random fears do not raise the movie during the beginning stages. For those who have not watched the movie will also find themselves in a receiving side of some confusion which leaves rather late.

The performers of the soul :: The movie’s biggest strength is Ethan Hawke, the antagonist who takes it to the next level, despite not showing that much of his face – the mask itself would be remembered by the horror fans for long and could become iconic, thanks to his performance. Well, it is not limited to Freddy, Jason, Michael, Chromeskull or Ghostface. This has not been the kind of role in which we have been seeing him, but the movie reminds us that we should be. Madeleine McGraw whom we have seen more in the younger child roles in American Sniper, Ant-Man and the Wasp and Pacific Rim Uprising, gets to be the scream queen here, and despite some struggles in the repetitions of the first half, manages to finish so well. Mason Thames is the other main lead, and he also manages the same nicely. Miguel Mora also follows well. Arianna Rivas as Mustang remains nicely noted here, and is a lovely presence. Demián Bichir also has a strong and responsible role which is managed well, while Jeremy Davies adds well. Anna Lore’s small presence is memorable.

How it finishes :: I was not aware of the existence of a first movie, as this is not the kind of movie which has become known among the horror fans of this part of the world. This one surely deserves better attention in this part of the world, but its lack of attention towards the usual slasher elements got it pulled back a little. As one watches this one it can be said that this is a visually stylish and ambitious sequel that benefits from Ethan Hawke’s strong performance and its darker, and a dream-like atmosphere. Still, the drag in the beginning, uneven pacing, repetitive elements, and missing scream queen elements got this one in some struggle at times. The added supernatural elements might not feel positive to everyone, especially the fans of the first movie. Well, we can always have some divergent horror here and there. The scope never goes low for this one, as there is something that comes up strong at every moment – the idea seems to have been worked with nicely with different elements, and this would indeed remain an engaging watch.

Release date: 17th October 2025
Running time: 114 minutes
Directed by: Scott Derrickson
Starring: Mason Thames, Madeleine McGraw, Jeremy Davies, Demián Bichir, Ethan Hawke, Arianna Rivas, Miguel Mora, Maev Beaty, James Ransone, Anna Lore, Simon Webster, Shepherd Munroe, Chase B. Robertson

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✠ The Vampire Bat.

Zombieland: Double Tap

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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@ Cemetery Watch
✠ The Vampire Bat.