A thief breaks into a luxury SUV only to realise, too late, that he’s slipped into a deadly trap. This is the premise of director David Yarovesky’s latest psychological thriller, Locked, starring Bill Skarsgård and Anthony Hopkins.
Will this turn out great? I hope so. What I’m drawn to is the challenge of keeping audiences engaged when the main setting is a vehicle.
Locked also happens to remind me of my favourite movie that takes place inside one car, Tom Hardy and writer/director Steven Knight’s psychological drama, Locke (2013).
Michael Eklund, Navid Charkhi, Sofia Tesema and Emma Kombe also star.
New action/crime/fantasy, The Crow stars Bill Skarsgård, Danny Huston and FKA twigs.
Directed by Rupert Sanders; The Crow is the story of brutally murdered soulmates Eric and Shelley. Specifically Eric’s unexpected opportunity for absolute vengeance.
I’m quite partial to a good vengeance story. Still, I don’t know that I’m expecting a lot from this movie. Nevertheless, I want to watch and compare it to the original 1994 version of The Crow starring Brandon Lee, which I’m yet to see.
It looks pretty gory based on this trailer, but, I’m curious, are you also intrigued and have you seen the original?
Laura Birn, Jordan Bolger, Sami Bouajila, Karel Dobrý, Isabella Wei, David Bowles, Jim High, Paul A Maynard and Dukagjin Podrimaj also star.
Starring Keanu Reeves, Bill Skarsgård, Hiroyuki Sanada, Donnie Yen, and directed by Chad Stahelski; this fourth movie has Wick with an even bigger price on his head. A price so large that he has to seek out the most powerful players in the underworld, from New York to Paris, Osaka and Berlin.
I like the international setting of this one. However, I’m mainly showing up to take in the colours, thrilling action sequences, and definitely to watch Reeves look good in a black suit while doing very impressive movie stuff.
Another reason is Hiroyuki Sanada. He just has a way of standing out in a good way in each movie I’ve seen him in. Two such examples being Mortal Kombat (2021) and Bullet Train (2022).
Is there enough in this trailer to keep your interest? Or are you already done with the John Wick franchise? I can’t help but wonder just how many more will be made.
Laurence Fishburne, Shamier Anderson, Lance Reddick, Rina Sawayama, Scott Adkins, Ian McShane, Marko Zaror, Natalia Tena and Aimée Kwan also star.
Nine Days (2020), Bill Skarsgård, Sony Pictures Classics
Nine Days is a new drama/fantasy film about a reclusive man as he conducts a series of interviews with human souls, to determine which one can be born on earth.
From writer/director Edson Oda; Nine Days stars Bill Skarsgård, Zazie Beetz, Winston Duke and Benedict Wong.
I’m so curious to see how the topic of ‘pre-life’ will be covered because I have so many questions. For example, what is pre-life really like and why is life on earth so very appealing? To what extent can a soul know the type of life experience they’re likely to have once on earth? How much joy versus suffering? What kind of human being are they likely to become? And so on.
In part because of the premise, this trailer and the one for Sound of Metal are in my top five of 2020’s best indie trailers.
Tony Hale, Geraldine Hughes, David Rysdahl, Arianna Ortiz, John Forker, Perry Smith, Dave Bresnahan, Logan Smith, Rachelle Hardy, Lisa Starrett and Sammie Edgington also star.
Even though I definitely can’t say I had a great time during all of the two hours and forty nine minute run time of of director Andy Muschietti’s IT Chapter 2, the last hour or so was pretty thrilling.
Starring James McAvoy, Javier Botet, Jessica Chastain, Bill Hader and Bill Skarsgård, I had to watch this final instalment of the IT (1990)remake because the cast and trailers were great. I was also determined since this was essentially my last chance to see if I could find at least one of the IT movies scary, at all.
I had a lot of feelings throughout, but, unfortunately, once again, scared really wasn’t one of them. At the very best, I was very grossed out by the scene with the 8-plus-legged severed head. I enjoyed many of the visual effects and the acting. Unlike in the 1990 IT film, this time, both the children and their adult versions performed pretty well.
IT – Chapter 2 (2019), Jessica Chastain, Warner Bros. Pictures
As for the question of why the first hour and forty minutes of IT Chapter 2 weren’t great, it certainly didn’t help that, due to the editing and some characters looking similar, I didn’t find it easy to follow who was playing the adult version of whom. The other key reason is the pace. I know that much of the film is set in Derry, Maine, which is essentially a slower-moving place than a city, but that doesn’t mean the story had to move that slowly, surely? I remember that an hour into the film, I found myself disappointed to not even be halfway through the movie.
There were also, unfortunately, some moments where I couldn’t fully suspend my disbelief. Firstly, the biting of the little girl’s head; how on Earth did she not scream? Secondly, at the reunion dinner, how did it take so long for the restaurant workers to check on the disturbance, especially considering all the screaming and banging? Last but not least, the scene where Chastain’s character performs a certain feat of strength towards the end. I just don’t honestly believe she possessed the physical strength required to do what she did.
Overall, though, thanks to the good performances – particularly by McAvoy and Chastain, plus the fun special effects, IT Chapter 2 is worth watching, if you’re curious enough. Especially so if you have more patience than I.
Lastly, I couldn’t help but conclude by the end that Muschietti’s film seems to be quite a good advert for why therapy is important, and often, if not always, a good idea.
The Movie My Life 