copperpress

[SPOILER ALERT: This review contains spoilers.]

No Hard Feelings is perhaps misunderstood because of its uncomfortable premise. To me, this is really a comedy that takes shots at the worst stereotypes of generational cohorts: our Gen Z character who is self-infantilising and trapped in a gutless digital culture, and our trashy Millennial character who is ageing into circumstantial failure and looked down upon by the young and old alike. There are plenty of laughs here, mainly awkward comedy, but there's an underlying tone to this story about how we can find ourselves needing to "grow up" at any age, and sometimes more than once.

Jessica Biel plays Liz, a woman who is adamant she doesn't want to be around any man who gives her any sort of weirdo vibe, even for a moment. Yet, somehow, she ends up the love interest of Cris played by Nicolas Cage-- a bouffy-haired psychic magician whose behaviour and appearance is tapping into enough weirdness to alert the FBI. This is a badly written film with some laugh-worthy dialogue, providing some entertainment and laughs, although possibly not as the filmmakers intended. The later part of the film culminates in some surprise, before finishing with a disappointing and lazy conclusion.

Too much of this film is spent aggravatingly building up to the main event, stretching out an already thin concept. The comedic potential is then wasted, and in its place, an attempt at a heartwarming storyline that doesn't really work (with its many loose ends crammed into a credit sequence). It suffers from Paul Rudd playing Paul Rudd, and Steve Carell having not fully kicked his Michael Scott era.

It's a mostly amusing albeit average film, which is unfortunate considering the talented cast. They held back on the full comedic potential of the premise, with a few outrageous moments sandwiched between far too much mediocre writing.

A stale late entry in the wave of 2000s parody films riding the coattails of Scary Movie. It quickly loses steam during its drawn-out "Gnarnia" sequences. These types of films tend to age badly but Epic Movie fares a lot worse than others, due to a lack of general comedy and jokes, coming off a little too weird and dumb. It's just not that funny or entertaining.

1408 has become something of a 2000s classic when it comes to horror. There's a growing tension and intrigue that comes from an odd place; an unusual kind of scary that plays with something more subtle. The film builds into some great moments, but leans more on its atmosphere and scares rather than brilliant writing, with most of its greatest moments peaking earlier on. The issues there might also explain why we ended up with at least a few alternative endings which substantially change the conclusion and tone of the film and fumble with the characters.

It's silly but heartwarming, and that's a good thing here. If you allow yourself to believe in its uncomplicated adventure, there's a lot to like: Hailee Steinfeld's performance works just right, and Bumblebee is depicted with a smart balance of emotional warmth and battlefield coolness. Unlike Bay's Transformers films, CGI-overload is swapped for visually-clearer fight scenes and a story that nurtures the characters rather than the bigger picture-- this is super refreshing. If your inner-child enjoys Transformers, you'll enjoy this on more than one level.

It's a good murder mystery, and for better or for worse, it's less reliant on Daniel Craig to pull the story through and a fair bit darker compared to the other Knives Out films. Overall I enjoyed it, but in exchange for a more serious subject matter we do lose some of the fun value and personality that gave the other Knives Out films a playful edge.

Branagh is of course carrying this film with his performance, and also quite literally as director and producer, now delivering us a third installment of his take on Poirot. It's got everything you expect as a sequel, but this time, some paranormal novelty to boot. Unlike Death on a Nile, it feels like a more precise effort, and one that's way more entertaining overall.

The uneven pacing, odd casting choices and somewhat unsatisfying core mystery (both in its buildup and conclusion) make it my least favourite installment of Branagh's Poirot series. Still, it's not without some value: Branagh has been consistently good, and there's still entertainment to be found in the novelty of the location and the characters. There's also a certain comfort to the familiar formula, even if it did get a bit bungled this time.

It may not be the most honest or accurate account, or the most convincing caricature of Hitchcock, but I enjoyed it as a film and found Hopkins' and Mirren's performances to be very entertaining. At the heart of it, it's a biographical film of sorts with some touching moments.

It may be dated, but there's something about it that endures; the unique horror of the disaster still inspires tension, and a desire to see the survivors prevail through their trust and perseverance despite their differences -- in that sense, a timeless tale.

It's got a fair share of laughs, tilted towards the absurd, kept light and fun by an uncomplicated plot line where the "twists" serve more as a gag than anything else. A few surprise (albeit brief) appearances by some notable actors adds to the charm.

It's something of a slick albeit dreary British gangster thriller, blending the usual grit and despair of its subject matter with an early-2000s stylishness (something which has made the film more distinct in character in retrospect) pulled off by Daniel Craig in his proto-Bond era.

It's a pleasant film with a good cast, and it's not without its charms, but it's not the most compelling mystery put to film and it runs on way too long to stay interesting.

It's a darkly funny film with great performances, especially by Olivia Colman who was the reason I was drawn into the film to begin with, but Emma Stone and Rachel Weisz nail their roles as well. It delivers on captivating rivalry, wrapped within a period setting which plays with history at the expense of accuracy-- all the more entertaining for it.

Ready or Not suffers from the usual sin of being stuffed with tension-building filler, while having a protagonist that can't decide if she's a badass or a damsel in distress as she fumbles about making eye-rolling mistakes. It's not funny enough to be a comedy, not smart enough to be commentary, and gives up too much plausibility to be truly scary. Ultimately, it's just stressful and annoying.

I enjoyed this a lot. It's a film that keeps you hooked in by dropping in the unexpected and flipping your perspective on the events and characters as they unfold; I defy those who criticise the runtime when you consider the structure and presentation and what it's trying to achieve. It's fun and a little crazy and I admit it caught me off guard more than once. The cast, style and cinematography are also good.

This film is a very narrow snapshot of Springsteen's life and artistry, specific to a particular time and a few particular moments. Even with such a reduced scope, it somehow feels like not much is happening here.

It's tense, disturbing, paranoid and occasionally violent at a perfect balance, delivering enough doubt and distraction to maintain some surprise and poignancy. It has the bones of a psychological horror film but goes the other way into black comedy territory, resulting in an entertaining and unusual watch.

It holds back a little on the comedy to make way for some heavier moments. The nostalgia elements of the 00s hit me more than I expected. That aside, it's a bizarre "true story" that keeps you wondering how it will resolve. I enjoyed it.

Great visuals and soundtrack. Jared Leto and Greta Lee both give decent performances, and the story is decent enough for those wanting another adventure from the Grid in all its stylishness. It's not a continuation of Legacy and it's best enjoyed with that in mind. It's a good sci-fi adventure and an audio and visual spectacle.