ethanbresnett

My one and only wish with this Superman film was that it entertained me and gave me a fun time at the movies, and thankfully my wish was answered.

There are a number of things that Superman does well, starting with the casting.

I'm not going to get dragged into meaningless discourse about who is the best Superman etc. All I will say that is that David Corenswet is a very good one. He has gravitas and presence as Superman, and charm as Clark Kent. Both personalities bleed gently into the other, and he balances both incredibly well. Rachel Brosnahan is fiery and impactful as Lois Lane, sharing great chemistry with Corenswet. Nicholas Hoult as Lex Luthor knocks it out of the park, bringing the exact level of maniacal energy that you want from a comic book villain. Supporting turns from the likes of Nathan Fillion, Skyler Gisondo, Edi Gathegi and more are all brilliant. Not a single casting decision felt out of place, which is no surprise given the stellar superhero ensembles Gunn has assembled in the past.

Then there is the story. Gunn made the brilliant choice of not making this an origin story. Everybody knows who Superman is and what his powers are, so this would have felt very unnecessary. Instead, we are just thrown into the story and the characters and it works. Whether it works as well with the other characters like Mr Terrific, Hawkgirl, and Green Lantern depends on your existing comic book knowledge. If you've never seen a superhero movie before you might feel a little lost from an ancillary character perspective, but never to the detriment of the enjoyment of the movie. Things are all relatively self explanatory for the most part in terms of getting the hang of characters powers and dynamics etc.

The story is really fun, with lots of classic comic book story beats. It throws a few curveballs in there, and has a good amount of action, humour, emotion, and drama crammed into it. On reflection, it is a marvel that so much is crammed into a relatively tight runtime of only 2 hours. Everything just feels right for a Superman movie, from the tone through to the character arcs to the set pieces. It all just clicked.

Another great thing about this movie is that it clearly sets up a wider universe and is going to sprawl out into the newly emerging DCU, but none of it felt forced. The original DCEU, and more recently the MCU output, is often forcing connections and multiverses and crossovers. All of that felt quite natural in this film though which was great.

So ultimately, if you have been lamenting the state of the comic book movie of late, Superman will do his bit to restore your faith. Gunn has produced a fun, vibrant, and entertaining film that promises great things to come.

I feel like 'Deep Cover' had potential to be a but of a car crash, but instead it ended up being a solidly funny film with a great concept that followed through well.

The film follows three improv actors as they find themselves falling deeper and deeper into a simple sting operation. Bryce Dallas Howard plays the experienced improv tutor Kat. Orlando Bloom plays the Daniel Day Lewis style method actor who gets lost in his own performance. Then Nick Mohammed brings up the rear as a newby to improv just trying to find a purpose and some confidence. Together they make for a great trio, all bringing a different energy to the film and gelling well. Individually the performances are all really fun, particularly Bloom who surprised me with his comedy chops.

The humour is very solid throughout. It's a ludicrous plot so that itself gives a good amount of space for humour, and mixing this with improv style comedy makes for a fun time. The plot also works pretty well just as an exciting crime story. Cliche in many parts but still very effective.

Overall I was very decently impressed with this film. A fun comedy that has a good, unique concept that will give you plenty of laughs.

I'd never heard of this film before but I was scrolling through Netflix and saw Clooney, Roberts, and O'Connell and thought it was worth a go. Although it doesn't particularly reinvent the wheel, it makes for a compelling thriller that will get you hooked and keep you entertained.

The story follows Finance and trading news broadcaster Lee Gates, and a disgruntled trader who lost everything following his advice. What follows is a tense hostage scenario played out on live TV. It's a pretty neat set up with plenty of potential for tension and drama. The story generally follows the familiar beats and pacing of similar style thrillers, but the scenario is unique enough to keep it fresh.

The whole thing is held together well by the top performances of Clooney, Roberts, and O'Connell, who ramp up the tension very effectively through their performances. A few small supporting turns from the likes of Giancarlo Esposito and Dominic West are most welcome as well.

Some of the twists and turns in the story are a little too telegraphed, and the final act maybe gets a bit out of hand as the tightness of the story starts to slip away, but things do come to a satisfying if predictable conclusion.

Overall a very enjoyable and effective thriller that is well acted, paced well, and will have you on the edge of your seat at times.