Categories: Movie and Series Reviews

True Detective: Season 4 (2024) 2.5/5

Categories 2.5/5, Crime, Drama, Horror, Movie and Series Reviews, Mystery, Thriller

Season 4 of True Detective benefits a lot from its cast, with everyone involved turning in great performances. Kali Reis and Jodie Fosters, the leads this go around, give nuance to their characters that make them compelling to watch. Reis has to play it a bit more straight while Foster gets to come across more as an antihero, and it is legitimately fun to watch. Reis does get an interesting romantic relationship though that flips what we are used to seeing and that was exciting.

Not all of the supporting cast can say they get as much to do. Christopher Eccleston is a presence that is around until he suddenly isn’t, and Fiona Shaw is mysterious and underdeveloped for the role that she plays. Again though, nobody does poorly with what they get.

The first episode sets high expectations and is truly unsettling. Unfortunately it did not pay off, and the final episodes explanation just made me wonder if these were really True Detectives if so much went unnoticed. What is worse is the use of horror-like elements sometimes come across cheap. An orange can be a powerful way to connect ideas together and imply something going on with a persons mind, but what are we to think of random spirits behind our characters that they never see? There is no story there, unless the implication is that the audience is hallucinating or going through something spiritual.

Benefiting the show is its cold atmosphere, set in the remote town of Ennis, Alaska. The sets are great and become a bit of characters themselves. Visually, the show should be commended. It really sells this cold setting and the cast leans into it.

Jodie Foster’s character asks people around her to ask the right questions, but you aren’t rewarded for doing that here as the audience. Why was there a need for secrecy in these two peoples relationship? There wasn’t. Why did that guy sit up in his bed and say what he said? Spooky vibes. And on and on. The show wants to be really smart, but it does not stand up to even the most basic questions.

By the end of it all, I felt a bit cheated. It never reaches Lost levels of not paying off, but it doesn’t slouch either and its final explanation and whimsical sendoff did not feel good. This is a story that promises a lot and delivers very little. If you can survive on vibes alone though, they are there and they are good. I’m not really mad, just feeling a bit let down. For a show that started so strong, and felt like it had something to say, it could have gone with a much stronger writer to make it all feel connected. I may never know who wrote, or had the time to write, “we are all dead,” but I certainly died a bit from the lack of cohesion.

Alien Romulus (2024) 3.5/5

Categories 3.5/5, Horror, Movie and Series Reviews, Sci-Fi, Thriller

Alien Romulus is ahead of the third, fourth, fifth, and sixth films purely by not being upsetting. There is probably reason to be upset for some, in fact I am sure of it, but not for me.

The cast are doing well with what they are given, even if some side characters feel purely like stand-ins setup to die and little else. Everyone has the benefit though of not being asked to say or do stupid things compared to prior films in the series.

There is a scene I would strongly like to change. I’ll stay vague, but it uses a piece of dialogue that is famous from the third film and it should have just stuck to using half of the line to feel more honest to the new character. As well, there are two instances of face-to-face with an alien that lasts some seconds too long. The film could do with some more immediacy to the dangers within it.

My final hope is that the Weyland Corporation is shown a little differently next time. Aliens (Alien 2) showed the Corporation as unpleasant as ever, but I did not have the sense that they could casually double workloads. The mustache twirling takes away from the tangible evil of the corporation, done better even in the franchises lesser films.

All that having been said, I like Rain and Andy. I actually am open to seeing more of these two if that is the direction it goes. Andy is inherently interesting and Rain is flawed and could become more compelling. More importantly, both actors were enjoyable to watch. I may even be tempted to get the Rain skin in Dead by Daylight at some point, if only though because Ripley does not look like Ripley.

Overall, I feel this is the most honest Alien sequel since the first two. Is it perfect? Definitely not. Is it even amazing? Not really. However, it didn’t offend me in any glaring ways and that is the most that I can say about an Alien movie in a long time.

The Knick: Season 1 and 1/2 of Season 2 (2014-2015) 3/5

Categories 3/5, Drama, History, Movie and Series Reviews

The Knick is treated to an excellent cast and some incredible direction leads to scenery that is captured in fantastic ways. However, I couldn’t bring myself to finish the series even after so much time invested. It was just sitting there, and I did not want to look at it.

There is an interest in the first season that is inherent. Seeing medicine in a period of time and without reservations is compelling. The drug fueled medicine feels unique, even in a world where House exists. Clive Owen, the shows center-focused lead, is both awful and endearing as he threatens to sew a nurses mouth shut. None of the other cast members are slouching either.

Still though, season 2 just was not the same for me. The concerns of the show seemed to have changed and my interest went with it. I think I deserve credit for sticking it out, I believe, a good five or six episodes before sort of wandering off. I had the time, but I just did not want anymore. Perhaps if it were sewn as tightly as the first season.

The Deep House (2021) 1.5/5

Categories 1.5/5, Horror, Movie and Series Reviews, Thriller

It is actually very shallow. After watching the flick, a quick search showed that the leads are as follows: someone who primarily identifies as a model and Jagger’s son. She does a serviceable job. He does something else. I really needed to know why he seemed so out of place, and that explains it enough for me.

What is worse, is the wastefulness of the setting. The movie initially holds some promise. How exciting is it to do a haunted house film underwater? That is a great idea! So why then is the whole house experience cliche after cliche! It is absurd because the setting actually works and the film stands a little taller despite what may have been a smaller budget, and yet it inflicts self-wound after self-wound while trying its best to sap out any originality that held promise.

Also, why are the only two characters for the majority of the movie constantly calling out to each other by name? Even underwater, wired directly to one another, they constantly speak to each other in this weird way. You would think that they had just met, not that they were partners.

I’m mostly just frustrated after watching The Deep House. A great idea does not make a film alone, and the execution here just is not it. Not the direction, not the script, and the cast is tied down. The movie is haunted.

Creature Commandos: Season 1 (2024) 4/5

Categories 4/5, Action, Animation, Movie and Series Reviews
Creature Commandos

The major plot points do not shock or surprise in Creature Commandos, but the journey is fun nonetheless. If you are familiar with James Gunn’s recent works, then you will know what to expect here. The lovable weirdos prove themselves to be lovable once again through his careful telling.

I think if the show had a bit more time with characters, it could go even a bit further. Some back stories do feel a little rushed and one feels a bit inappropriately placed. However, it speaks to the quality of the show that wishing for mostly more is a complaint. The attention to details in mannerisms from the script to the animation are to be applauded.

There is a lot of stand out work in the voice acting as well. Sean Gunn is a joy as G.I. Robot and once again as Weasel, Shohreh Aghdashloo shows up briefly as a Madam, Alan Tudyk is magnificent as Doctor Phosphorus, really nobody phones it in. I think David Harbour is probably the only character, as Frankenstein, that it was a little tougher for me to not hear the actor instead of the character. I get it though, Gunn wants to cast characters who can also fill in as live action versions of their characters and I would be on board seeing Harbour treated to a muscle suit in a good movie this time.

I hope Gunn can figure out a way to keep the outlandish and the weirdos functional in a mainstream way, because this gave me hope for vibing with comic book movies again.

Silent Night (2021) 2.5/5

Categories 2.5/5, Comedy, Movie and Series Reviews, Thriller

Silent Night is a dark holiday drama that throws comedy, apocalyptic tones, and moral themes into a blender. The idea of the movie is interesting, and the cast is here for it, but the inconsistencies in how it is all dealt out—like how some characters get so little development—are what hold the movie back from being any sort of Christmas contender.

Some more commitment to being darkly humored, or to the melodrama it wants to be, would go a long way toward fully appreciating this English countryside slow-caper. The cast is not slouching, as I genuinely wanted to see more from some, but they never quite go far enough.

On the note of dialogue, abundance of expletives do little to fill the rooms here and it doesn’t really convey what I think was intended — a world that is ending, with societal shackles dropped. Especially when the movie flip-flops between the humor of maintaining a clean household and being nonchalant because, well, end of the world.

The staging, the aforementioned English countryside, holds a lot of opportunity but is little more than a place where the movie happens to occur. Silent Night never feels like it takes full advantage of what it has. The initial reveals of the where, who, and what are legitimately interest! This makes it all the more unfortunate that, in the end, the movie feels wasteful. So much promise meets an unfortunate ending that, in the final act, feels forced and sadly unsurprising.

 

Kraven (2024) 2/5

Categories 2/5, Action, Movie and Series Reviews, Thriller

I wanted to like Kraven, I really did. Watching Aaron-Taylor Johnson punch windows is an enjoyable way to spend time. The problem is, nothing is gained here. I have no more faith in Sony to make anything solid with the Spider-Man villains than I did before. The writing is atrocious, and the visual spectacle, in a sea of visual spectacles, doesn’t really impress.

That is a large part of the problem with Kraven summed up. Everything feels like it has been done better elsewhere and with better sense. Simply being less egregious than Madame Web is not enough, nor should anyone use that metric. If you put together a capable cast like Kraven did, then you should bring a script and direction that makes something not immediately forgotten after viewing. Russell Crowe is a very capable actor, but he feels wasted here, and everything you think is going to happen is mostly what happens. It is unbearable.

I really wish there was some common sense in the writing most of all. This is Kraven, and him being a bit naughtier would have been a welcome thing. Like when Kraven asks what the magic juice—the source of his power—is, maybe wrap that around the idea that he wants more power, he is… craving it. The visuals also imply a movie that wants to be edgy but then pushes back against itself. Why go for an R rating if it is just to knock off a few goons and then contrast that with PG-13-style displays of Kraven getting tossed around? The blood and violence never feel truly integrated into the world around them, as they appear and vanish instantly. There is a helicopter scene that gets close to cool, but while doing more, it somehow feels a lot less than Captain America: Civil War and its helicopter-wrangling. That is the whole movie though, making you wish you were watching something else.

The villains are just there in Kraven, and the setup for familial conflict—both within the film and for its high-hoped sequel—is exhausting and often feels unearned.

Red One (2024) 2.5/5

Categories 2.5/5, Action, Comedy, Movie and Series Reviews

Shining brightest when leaning into unique ideas on mythology, Red One also does little with what it makes. That being said, Kristofer Hivju’s portrayal of Krampus is kind of awesome beyond the rest of the film. Unfortunately, Christmas magic seems to be missing from Red One. Visual effects, while serviceable, drain a lot of the movies energy with their overly abundant presence. You can feel the green screen imposing upon cheer, lurking. Like the sweet-sapping presentation of a “where it all began” sign, hanging off of a CGI creation of Santa’s original workshop.

Dwayne Johnson is Dwayne Johnson and Chris Evans is Chris Evans with a little bit of Ryan Reynolds in spirit. Both of the leads are likable, but they do not leave such a mark as to feel attached to the movie in any irreproachable union. Watching Evans get rag-doll thrown around in action sequences feels awkward at times, lacking any special powers, and left me wondering if the film forgot he is not playing Captain America.

The movie is not a pure misfire like the poster would leave you to expect and I would never say it is a lump of coal, but it could be a padding gift at the bottom of a stocking. The originality is mishandled, but somehow the film still sneaks in as average. I credit Krampus and his large hands. If you are into action flicks and mindless holiday viewings, then maybe consider Red One. Just be prepared, because the movie runs about half an hour longer than it deserves.