leonblackwood

Review: This is one of those movies that I actually went to the cinema to watch, but I ended up falling asleep after the first half an hour. When it finally got released on steelbook, I decided to give it another watch, and once again, I ended up falling asleep. Now, the thing that was great about the first 3 movies that were released in the saga, was the simplicity of the plot, and the brilliantly written humour, which made us feel for the characters, but every film thereafter, was a complete shambles. This movie, which is supposed to be the last in the franchise, was a poor way to bow out because the characters were weak and it lacked humour. It seemed like a constant goose chase from the beginning to the end, and the average action scenes, mixed with an uninteresting plot, was a terrible way to see the Star Wars saga end. When the big revelation of Rey's grandfather is revealed, I was left thinking, "was that it?", and the big battle scene towards the end, didn't have the punch and shock value that the first three movies did. On a lighter note, I loved the little puppet that erased C3PO's memory, Babu Frik, and the Princess Leia scenes were emotional. It was also good to see the return of the Death Star, which brought back some memories, and I was glad to see Han Solo & Luke Skywalker make a small appearance, but if you were to ask me what stood out in the movie, I really couldn't say. After watching the two and a half hour bonus material on the disk, I appreciate the effort that was put into directing and producing this epic film, but I must admit, I did find that more interesting than the movie. It did answer all of the lingering questions that Star Wars experts were asking, but it still didn't do it for me, especially after all of the time and anticipation I invested in this saga. Average!

Round-Up: This movie was directed by J.J. Abrams, who also brought you Mission Impossible III, Star Trek, Super 8 and Star Wars: The Force Awakens. I know that he is a highly respected director, but I personally thought that he had made more movies. After watching some of his interviews, he does have a unique style of directing, with a touch of Spielberg, and a huge passion for film, but I'm yet to see why he's such a huge name in Hollywood. With that aside, he does have over 100 producer credits to his name, with over 50 in the pipeline, including 2 Mission Impossible movies, so he's definitely keeping himself busy. I know that taking on the last movie in the Star Wars saga and rebooting the whole Star Trek franchise, must be a huge burden for a director, but I do wonder if he was guided more by his heart and not by the fans. Enough Said!

Budget: $275million Worldwide Gross: $1.07billion

Genre: Action, Adventure, Fantasy, Sci-Fi Cast: Daisy Ridley, Adam Driver, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, Carrie Fisher, Mark Hamill, Anthony Daniels, Naomi Ackie, Domhnall Green, Billy Dee Williams, Ian McDiarmid, Richard E. Grant, Lupita Nyong'o, Keri Russell, Joonas Suotamo and Kelly Marie Tran. 5/10

Review: When I heard that Guy Ritchie had returned to his old style of directing with this movie, I was excited to see it, especially when I heard that Hugh Grant was playing a cockney geezer, but I must admit, I was pretty disappointed with the final product. It didn't have that funny and clever wit, that we have all grown to love from Guy Ritchie's earlier films, and the swearing seemed inappropriate and over the top in places. The back and forth of the storyline spoilt the flow of the film, and it felt messy in places. Although people were praising the cast's performances, I thought that all of them was a weird choice for there roles, and I must admit, I fell asleep halfway through the film. There were a couple of strokes of genius, like the freezer scene towards the end, and when McConaughey saved his wife, but most of it wasn't that memorable. Personally, I would have used Colin Farell's character much more throughout the film, and there should have been more character building because I couldn't care less who lived or died. It really reminded me of Get Shorty, in terms of McConaughey trying to correct his mistakes in life, but the fact that comedy element was missing, really let the movie down. In all, it's another one watch in my eyes, and I personally think that Guy Ritchie has lost his touch. Average!

Round-Up: This movie was directed by Guy Ritchie, who also brought you Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, Snatch, Swept Away, Revolver, RocknRolla, Sherlock Holmes, Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows, the Man from U.N.C.L.E., King Arthur and Aladdin. Like Quentin Tarantino, he seems to have lost his passion for movie making of late, after a boost to the big time with his earlier movies, and I personally can't see him making another film that will touch them. As for this movie, he did try his utmost to bring back the golden years, with the cockney gangsters and heavy soundtrack, but it was a right mess. With another Aladdin movie in the pipeline, along with 2 other films called Empire Rising and Cash Truck, I personally can't see them pushing him back into the big leagues, which is a shame because I can still watch his earlier movies, over and over again.

Budget: $22million Worldwide Gross: $115.2million

Genre: Action, Comedy, Crime Cast: Matthew McConaughey, Charlie Hunnam, Michelle Dockery, Colin Farrell, Hugh Grant, Jeremy Strong, Lynne Renee, Henry Golding, Tom Wu, Eddie Marsan, John Dagleish and Jordan Long. 5/10

Review: Although the cast is pretty amazing, I did find this film to be a pretty average "whodunnit", which is a shame because it started off pretty well. Once the main character, Marta (Ana de Armas) reveals the true story behind the death of Harlan Thrombey (Christopher Plummer), I didn't really see the point of the film, and it seemed to go round and round in circles, which I found pretty annoying. It's obvious that there was more to the plot because of how early the "suspense" element goes straight out of the window, and I knew that Chris Evans (Ransom) would play a big part in the conspiracy because he is one of the biggest names in the cast. As for Daniel Craig (Benoit Blanc), he certainly wasn't in the same league as Sherlock Holmes or Poirot, especially with that weird Southern accent, but he produced a touch of genius towards the end, which saved the film. Like most Agatha Christie type movies, everyone is a suspect, and one of the fun and amusing aspects of this film is the interrogation of the suspects at the very beginning, but even that was short-lived. I did like the chemistry between Daniel Craig and Ana de Armas towards the end, and all of the family members in the house put in a great performance, which is why I was expecting more from the film. You do end up sticking with the plot because your expecting something amazing to happen, which it kind of does towards the end, but it's isn't memorable. It just seemed like an episode of Quincy with some fancy actors. Anyway, I personally think that it's only worth a one watch because once the plot is revealed, I cant see people rushing to see it again. Average!

Round-Up: This movie was directed by Rian Johnson, who also brought you Brick in 2005, The Brothers Bloom, Looper, 3 episodes of Breaking Bad and the Last Jedi. It's been announced that there will be a Knives Out 2, after the profit that this movie made, so with Daniel Craig not playing Bond anymore, I'm sure that he will step up to the plate to play Benoit Blanc once again. Although I found this film to be overrated, I still think that it's cleverly pieced together towards the end, but not that surprising. And what was it with the whole doughnut analogies? Anyway, I got the moral of the story, that good always outdoes the 7 sins, but I still thought it was slow and predictable in places.

Budget: $40million Worldwide Gross: $309million

Genre: Comedy, Crime, Drama, Mystery, Thriller Cast: Daniel Craig, Chris Evans, Ana de Armas, Jamie Lee Curtis, Michael Shannon, Don Johnson, Toni Collette, Christopher Plummer, LaKeith Stanfield, Katherine Langford and Frank Oz. 6/10