Tag Archives: Movie Reviews

Drama, No Spoiler Reviews, Romance, War

THE AFTERMATH (2019): The Things I Liked…

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The Aftermath (2019), Keira Knightley, Fox Searchlight
The Aftermath (2019), Keira Knightley, Fox Searchlight

Set in Hamberg, Germany; in director James Kent’s post-WWII drama The Aftermath, Jason Clarke plays British colonel Lewis Morgan. 

Morgan is assigned to live in Hamberg where his wife Rachael (Keira Knightly) reluctantly agrees to join him. The house provided to the colonel is occupied by German architect Stephen (Alexander Skarsgård) and his daughter, both of whom now have to move out with the arrival of the British couple. It’s the resultant tensions between the film’s characters inside and outside the house that helped keep me interested in Kent’s film.

I like the way parts of Kent’s movie are lit, shot and edited. The latter, particularly regarding the truth of the nature of Morgan’s relationship with his wife.

Even though The Aftermath is set during quite a sad time for many of the characters, I didn’t find the experience of watching the movie to be especially depressing, which is probably thanks to all the romance. I mean, they do say that there’s nothing quite like love to lift one’s spirits.

In addition to the romance, I adored the gorgeous main house in which several scenes are shot. It certainly proved a welcome contrast to all the bombing rubble outside. Another highlight I noticed at the trailer stage is Rachael’s attire. It seems as though Knightley always gets to wear great clothing in her movies. Perhaps it’s written into her contract. Either that or she just has the ability to make clothes look fantastic. The latter definitely seems more likely.

Watch The Aftermath if you’re curious. It’s not perfect but there are things to like about it. One thing you may realise by the end is just how perfect the film’s title really is – considering all the various ‘aftermaths’ within.

Happy Film Loving,

G

Action, Comedy, Drama, No Spoiler Reviews

MURDER MYSTERY (2019): The Things I Liked…

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Murder Mystery (2019), Jennifer Aniston, Adam Sandler, Netflix
Murder Mystery (2019), Jennifer Aniston, Adam Sandler, Netflix

There’s no denying that Murder Mystery, the latest movie from Jennifer Aniston and Adam Sandler gave me some laughs. The Kyle Newacheck-directed comedy about an American couple who find themselves framed for murder while on a European vacation definitely brought the Sandler/Aniston on-screen magic. 

To elaborate, even though the murder investigation scenes barely proved engaging, I really liked the moments when it was just Aniston and Sandler’s characters talking to each other. Their comedy dynamic as a married couple is great. In fact, I’m almost certain that if Murder Mystery had just been Aniston and Sandler’s characters finally taking a vacation in Europe, bickering among themselves, enjoying and learning about the billionaire lifestyle, but definitely minus the murder mystery elements, I’d probably have liked this movie much more.

There was certainly room for the murder mystery to be better executed. Because that portion of the story just proved too cliché for me to appreciate. Nevertheless, I have no regrets because of the moments I did enjoy. Moments that also include the joke on the plane about the alternative earplug suggestion and the scenes with Aniston and/or Sandler that featured Luke Evans’s very charming Charles Cavendish character. 

Last but not least, one more key highlight is when I saw British comic David Walliams show up on screen. A truly joy-inducing moment for me personally because his character transported me back to the times when I watched his great work in the BBC’s hit comedy series Little Britain. 

I say watch Murder Mystery if you’re curious about the highlights mentioned above. Maybe you’ll love it all, even though I couldn’t.

Happy Film Loving,

G

Biography, Drama, Musical, No Spoiler Reviews

THE GREATEST SHOWMAN (2017): The Things I Loved…

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The Greatest Showman (2017): Rebecca Ferguson
The Greatest Showman (2017): Rebecca Ferguson

The fact that musicals aren’t my favourite genre is the reason I still haven’t seen even half of the very highly rated musicals out there, and I doubt I ever will. Yet, against all odds, I’ve found my most loved musical to date in The Greatest Showman.

Based on the true story of P.T Barnum, a visionary who rose from nothing to create the mesmerising spectacle known as the circus, I found so much to love about director Michael Gracey’s film. The music, of course, the costumes, humour, choreography, performances and themes; I simply enjoyed it all.

I appreciate The Greatest Showman even more because of the way it speaks to the part of me that chooses to live life on my own terms, regardless of what society expects of me. Gracey’s film is one about a person who took the risk and followed his vision to make his dreams a reality. In this way, The Greatest Showman belongs in the same entrepreneurship-loving space that Jon Favreau’s Chef (2014) occupies in my heart.

It’s generally no secret that the real P.T. Barnum wasn’t exactly a perfect human being. Additionally, not every character in this film actually existed. Yet, my, oh my, is this version of the story beautiful.

Zac Efron, Hugh Jackman, Zendaya and Michelle Williams all deliver good performances. As does Rebecca Ferguson. Particularly, the moment we all get to hear her character’s singing voice. A scene that is arguably the most arresting. A true wow moment. 

You’ve very likely already seen this beautiful film, but if you haven’t, watch The Greatest Showman at once! And do it for all the seemingly endless reasons above, because you may just find yourself inspired. 

Happy Film Loving,

G

Comedy, No Spoiler Reviews, Romance

SOMEONE GREAT (2019): The Things I Liked…

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Someone Great (2019), Gina Rodriguez
Someone Great (2019), Gina Rodriguez

Someone Great stars Gina Rodriguez as Jenny, a young woman who just went through a devastating break-up. She becomes determined to enjoy one last night in New York City with her friends, before moving to San Francisco for work. 

After you watched the trailer for this movie, just in case, like me, you were thinking that half the film would be set in New York City and the other half in San Francisco, you’d better forget about it. Someone Great happens entirely in New York, and there are zero gorgeous images of the Golden Gate Bridge to be enjoyed here, sorry. 

Now that I’ve delivered the bit of news that probably only I care about, I enjoyed writer/director Jennifer Kaytin Robinson’s film more than I thought I would. In fact, I’ll even go as far as to say that this is my favourite of Rodriguez’s roles. She did a good job of selling the romantic connection, the devastation that followed when it all fell apart, as well as the bond between Jenny and her best friends, played by DeWanda Wise and Brittany Snow.

Nicely edited and paced, Someone Great captures well, though semi-briefly, the highs and lows of a passionate relationship in one’s twenties. I also enjoyed the sisterly, non-toxic female friendships, plus the music and dancing. The talented LaKeith Stanfield’s performance as the love interest and Rosario Dawson’s small role were also highlights.

The only thing that frustrated me during Someone Great is when the momentum slowed down a little and I found myself thinking, ‘OK, OK! You’ve already established the intimacy between the three friends. So please move the story along!’ I may or may not have said that out loud.

The part I liked most overall is actually the voice over towards the end because it’s so beautifully written.

Watch Someone Great for the writing… and all the other reasons mentioned above.

Happy Film Loving,

G

Comedy, No Spoiler Reviews

LITTLE (2018): The Thing I Liked…

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Little (2019), Issa Rae, Universal Pictures
Little (2019), Issa Rae, Universal Pictures

Little, the comedy about a woman struggling with the pressures of adulthood, who somehow gets to relive the life of her younger self, is a movie that did not live up to the promise of its great trailer. I enjoyed the Little trailer so much that for a few days, I confess to playing it instead of uptempo music as I worked out.

Starring Issa Rae, Regina Hall, Justin Hartley and Marsai Martin, I knew things weren’t great when I found myself losing interest approximately 12 minutes in. The disappointment was so real for me that I actually became quite impatient for Martin’s young character’s arrival; all in hopes that my feelings about director Tina Gordon’s film would improve.

They did not. Instead, I felt a strong sense of disappointment coursing through me. Okay, maybe ‘coursing’ is a tad strong but I definitely wasn’t happy. In fact, I’d best describe Little as mostly flat and bad, with moments of dodgy dialogue including some ‘definitely could have been better acting.’ 

I’m sure it didn’t help that once again, near enough all the best bits were featured in the trailer, leaving not much else to enjoy. And since the premise is far from fresh, the chances that Little would be a great experience weren’t the best. I still like Hall and Rae. I’m just not pleased with this movie that they made.

In terms of what I liked about Little, that would be everything before the twelfth minute, when I was still hopeful. I also enjoyed the back of Hall’s character’s striped blue shirt – including the joke that’s made at its expense. 

If you like Tom Hanks’ 1988 classic Big, the film that inspired Little,  watch it again instead, unless you really need to see Little for yourself. Who knows, perhaps the end result would have been different, in a good way, if Martin had been a teenager, as Hanks’ character was in Big. Perhaps.

Happy Film Loving,

G