Month: November 2020

Greenland (2020, Dir. Ric Roman Waugh)

Stray comets threaten the Earth leaving Gerard Butler desperate to save his family. Emotionless disaster thriller that feels edited in the wrong order. The cast look bored through some impressive CGI filled end of the world scenes, but it lacks heart and feels tonally deaf. A misfire.

Greenland (2020, Dir. Ric Roman Waugh) Official Trailer

Beyond The Gates (2016, dir. Jackson Stewart)

Chalk-and-cheese brothers encounter a mysterious VHS board game that may be linked to their father’s disappearance. Jumanji meets From Beyond, kinda, in this modest 80s-throwback fantasy-horror. Starts slow, and doesn’t have the resources to realise its premise, but fun for genre fans nevertheless.

Here’s the trailer.

The Mortuary Collection (2020, Dir. Ryan Spindell)

Horror anthology with plenty of gory antics. Very well realised, with a firm nod to its 80s and 90s contemporaries and featuring an older, though still glowering, Clancy Brown – who chomps his way through with some quirky dialogue. Not too serious, but so well made its worth a watch!

The Mortuary Collection, 2020

Mosul (2020, dir. Matthew Michael Carnahan)

A young police officer is co-opted into an elite SWAT team on a behind enemy lines mission in Mosul against Daesh. Compelling rookie’s eye view of a single day of combat, rendered in semi-documentary style. Plenty to appreciate, not least the refusal to overly Westernise the movie. Recommended.

Here’s the trailer.

Brave (2012, dir. Mark Andrews & Brenda Chapman, with Steve Purcell)

A headstrong tomboyish princess battles with her mother when she is to be betrothed for political reasons. Perhaps the most Disneyish Pixar movie to date, Brave benefits from its focus on mother/daughter relationships and from a dark magical turn that sits awkwardly with the knockabout stuff elsewhere.

Here’s the trailer.

As Above, So Below (2014, dir. John Erick Dowdle)

A driven archaeologist and crew investigate the Paris catacombs for a sacred alchemical relic. Decent location work, a photogenic cast, and a couple of unsettling early moments make promises that the movie can’t quite sustain, setting for straightforward face-your-demons stuff but no real story answers.

Here’s the trailer.

The Void (2016, dir. Steven Kostanski & Jeremy Gillespie)

A closing-down hospital comes under siege from cultists outside, and from monsters within. 80s-tastic lo-fi splattery horror, riffing on multiple John Carpenter movies and others, not least Phantasm. Plenty of fun in its own right, even if it tends to go for striking images over consistency in character and story terms.

Here’s the trailer.

And here’s Lemonsquirtle’s review.

The Senator [AKA Chappaquiddick] (2017, dir. John Curran)

Edward Kennedy’s presidential ambitions are destroyed because of his involvement in the death of Mary Jo Kopechne. Sober political drama focusing on ambition, hubris, legacy, and arrogance. Decent performances and production values help, though there’s awkwardness in the focus on the politician over the deceased.

Here’s the trailer.

Die Hard 2 [AKA Die Hard 2: Die Harder] (1990, dir. Renny Harlin)

John McClane intervenes to stop mercenaries from freeing a high-value prisoner from a snowbound airport. Messy serio-comic sequel that bends over backwards to link itself to the first film. It scrapes by on residual goodwill from its predecessor, but that’s about it.

Here’s the trailer.

Son Of A Gun (2014, dir. Julius Avery)

A young convict gets in over his head with a charismatic bank robber. Generally effective crime drama with a few black comic and slightly pretentious touches. Solid performances and a matter-of-fact approach to the action help.

Here’s the trailer.