What's in/on Your DVD/VCR/PVR etc

[Red Lenses]

The Umbrella Academy Season 3, rattled through the first 6 episodes (nightshift now so will take a few days to watch the remaining episodes) and every bit as good as the previous 2 seasons !!

Mother/Android movie from Netflix, robot uprising and not too bad 6/10.

[pxr5]

Finished The Boys series 3 last night. Remains a good show, but they need to mix things up a bit now I think. And it's a bit too crude sometimes. I'm no prude but some of the stuff is really cringe.

Next will be Series 3 of The Umbrella Academy.

[Matt2112]

Last Night In Soho

With Edgar Wright at the helm, gifted rising stars Anya Taylor-Joy and Thomasin McKenzie in the leads and very famous old hands in support, I'd have thought this would have enough talent involved that it couldn't fail.

This appeared to be the case in the film's first half, which established its intersecting London worlds of the present and the 60's with plenty of craft, striking visuals and an intriguing underlying sense of the uncanny.

Unfortunately, in the latter half all that great work gradually fell apart at the seams, mainly due to the script and storytelling, which relied far too much on horror/suspense cliches and anticlimactic, guessable revelations.

Wright has undoubted technical chops and everything he puts on screen has a formidable slickness to it all, but he's much, much better when there is as much comedy as horror in his movies - while I've got to admire the ambition in dabbling in other sub-genres, for me Last Night In Soho unfortunately ends up as less than the sum of its parts.

Rating: **

[Matt2112]

Midnight Movie Club:

The Brood

It seems the further back in time you delve into the filmography of David Cronenburg, the more there appears to be a disparity between his ideas and methods and the the resources to properly realise them.

This is a typical example, however its more infamous scenes (one of which was cut by censors pretty much across the board at the time) have lost none of their power to shock.  Oliver Reed is as intense as he always was but it's the remarkable performance of Samantha Eggar that stays in the mind far more than its occasional technical shortcomings.

Rating: ***

[Matt2112]

Midnight Movie Club:

The Brood

It seems the further back in time you delve into the filmography of David Cronenburg, the more there appears to be a disparity between his ideas and methods and the the resources to properly realise them.

This is a typical example, however its more infamous scenes (one of which was cut by censors pretty much across the board at the time) have lost none of their power to shock.  Oliver Reed is as intense as he always was but it's the remarkable performance of Samantha Eggar that stays in the mind far more than anything else, including the film's occasional technical shortcomings.

Rating: ***

[pxr5]

^ I remember the trailers for The Brood - it showed people fainting in the cinema. It was an OK movie, but looks quite tame these days.

Two recent movies for me:

The Man From Toronto - Kevin Hart and Woody Harrleson head the cast. I really like both these actors and what could have been a very mediocre movie was certainly lifted by having these 2 in it. The odd laugh out loud moment but it's a typical by-the-book Hollywood comedy film.  6.5/10

Men - Another 2 actors who I really like: Jessie Buckley and Rory Kinnear are in the prominent roles here (in fact Rory Kinnear plays half a dozen other characters). It's an oddball horror as Jessie Buckley's character rents a large country manor house after a personal tragedy at home where she meets male characters (all played by Kinnear). It's really weird and I admit to having no idea what it was all about. It was shot beautifully and Rory Kinnear was amazing as always, but they're about the only positives one can take from this mess. The end scenes are shocking, but bonkers, and then it ends. I did read an analysis but I'm none the wiser. So 4/10

[pxr5]

Jurassic World: Dominion. More of those roaring dinosaurs (did dinos really roar - doubt it?), It's long and I had low expectations after the lacklustre reviews, but it's actually quite good. I mean how can you mess up with CGI dinosaurs? It looks spectacular on an OLED TV in HDR10 and the spirited story keeps the momentum throughout. Laura Dern, Sam Neil and Jeff Goldum are back too, which is nice. 7/10

[R6GYY]

Ah I'm itching (literally) to get back to the cinema as it is blockbuster season, but a recent (just over 2 weeks ago) operation on my nose means that while it is healing, I try to wear my glasses only when needed.

Things are getting a bit better now, although my nose doesn't half itch from time to time - I take that as a good sign.

I plan to go tomorrow to a Cineworld, as it is National Hot Dog Day or so they say, and there is a free hot dog up for grabs on that day only for Unlimited card holders. But what to see? Minions: The Rise Of Gru is probably top of the bunch as not likely to be too long. I will check durations.

Then there is Thor, and Jurassic World and I don't know what else.

[pxr5]

I would imagine Thor and Jurassic World would look amazing in the cinema Reg. Alas my cinema days are long gone - I just can't be doing with all the other people anymore. Every year I can get 6 free cinema tickets through Lloyds Bank - I normally just give them to my son to use.

[Rufus_the_dawg]

The Reader- a very dark parable(?) set in Germany just after WW2 staring Kate Winslet and Ralph Fiennes.

[pxr5]

Nearly half way through Series 3 of The Umbrella Academy. It remains a well made, solid show and is still as good as previous seasons. The first episode was a blast, though I expect it was made at the end of season 2 as everyone looked different from the second episode of this series. This show is so much better than Doom Patrol, which is just too weird.

[R6GYY]

Just finished the Beeb's Sherwood. I have started a separate thread for it too. Terrific stuff.

[pxr5]

Finished Series 3 of The Umbrella Academy last night. I really enjoyed this series more than 1 or 2. Not sure why, but it felt a bit different and a great ending too. 9/10 this season.

[pxr5]

We are half way through Halo. I've played the game briefly with my son a few years back, but know little of any story arc. Maybe gamers will dislike it, but coming from my point of view, it's quite good. It's a bit cheesy and a little cliched but the scope and scale are impressive. The opening battle is very well done indeed. So pretty good so far. 8/10

[Red Lenses]

Titans Season 3 on Netflix, Iain Glen plays a good role as Batman throughout the seasons (8/10).

Not sure what will be next :-
Man Who Fell To Earth
The Boys Season 3
Stranger Things Season 3
Resident Evil
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds