aronharde

The title "Monster Island" is awfully generic and does not promise much, but I am a huge fan of creature features and therefore had to give this a try. We follow a Japanese soldier and a British prisoner of war who are stranded on a deserted island during World War II and have to put their differences and hatred aside to survive a creature that is hunting them.

The movie is somewhat of a mixture of Predator, since the creature is rather smart and can even heal itself during the hunt, with a design that resembles The Creature from the Black Lagoon. The effects were overall fine considering that this is a low-budget production, but it was clear that beneath the creature there was just a person in a suit, which took away some immersion at times. However, the design itself looked pretty good and there were also some really enjoyable gory moments with decent effects.

The premise sounds very interesting, but unfortunately the movie handled its themes rather shallowly and did not do enough with its unique character setup in my opinion. It is still enjoyable, and we get to see both of our protagonists shift their attitudes toward each other in order to survive and fight the real threat. The film also had some choppy editing that made certain scenes a little hard to watch and sometimes confusing, and the pacing was not always perfect.

Still, for a low-budget creature feature B-movie, this was certainly enjoyable, and if you like this kind of film you will probably find something to enjoy here, even with its awful title. [5.7/10]

Like I mentioned in the headline, I did not read the classic novel by Mikhail Bulgakov and therefore had absolutely no idea what I was getting myself into by watching this movie. The rating was very high and the few pictures and scenes I had seen looked great, so I thought I would give it a try.

It is quite hard to describe the plot of this movie because there are several time jumps and different stories being told. It was quite confusing at first, but overall I managed to follow most of the scenes, apart from a few connections. The cinematography is absolutely amazing and probably the standout aspect the movie has to offer. There are lots of great shots and well-executed scenes. The acting was also very convincing and the cast did a great job.

However, apart from these technical aspects that were definitely high quality, I think the movie had many scenes and moments that were still quite hard to follow. The film is quite strange and includes many scenes that felt out of place, random, and unrealistic overall. If I had read the book beforehand, these scenes might have made complete sense, but since I did not, I think the movie is a very tough watch without any knowledge of the novel.

The film has received lots of praise from people who have read Bulgakov's story and are happy that it seems to be a successful adaptation. However, I believe it should also be able to entertain viewers who are not familiar with the book. So my advice is that if you are familiar with the novel, this movie is probably a great watch and worth spending two and a half hours on. If you are not, you should think twice about investing that much time in a story that may not make much sense to you in the end, just like it did not for me. [4.4/10]

Even though I love medieval fantasy movies with a little horror sprinkled in, my expectations were very limited for this one. The poster looks rather unexciting, and the ratings are quite low at the moment. You could already tell that the movie did not have much of a budget. However, the cast and crew behind this flick managed to deliver a decently enjoyable film that looks quite good and manages to entertain throughout.

Despite my overall enjoyment, there are clearly some flaws. The editing is a little poor at times, and the pacing does not quite flow, which harms the storytelling. The story itself was enjoyable and fairly unique, and it actually convinced me that I would watch a second part if there ever is one, which I doubt. The movie features some decent gore, and the witches, demons, and other evil beings looked fantastic, especially considering the limited budget.

The acting from the two main protagonists was good and believable, and their characters were written well enough for me to root for them and enjoy their screen presence. This is definitely not a top-tier medieval fantasy film, but considering the limited resources, they really created something impressive. I certainly had a good time watching it, so if you are into this kind of movie, you should definitely give A Knight's War a try.

Also, it appears there are quite a few fake reviews that gave the movie ten stars, which are sadly countered by many people disliking those reviews. This makes it seem like the movie is not worth watching. Ignore the fake reviews and check the profiles of the people who wrote them to see if they are genuine viewers who simply enjoy these kinds of flicks without ruining them through fake reviews. [5.9/10]