Jerome Pride

Exactly as you would expect from an airport thriller with Jason Bateman (bad guy) blackmailing Taren Egerton (good guy) to let him smuggle bio weapons onto plane otherwise girlfriend dies. You expect a three star flick, and that's exactly what you get. Mostly implausible (I've worked airport security), fairly predictable, familiar tropes, cookie-cutter plot points, pacing, direction, acting, script and score. If you haven't seen it and have no other options, give it a go, but don't get too excited, maybe finish those emails or play some chess or something...

It's easy to praise a great film, or tear apart a bad one; then there are films like this, with redeeming features but ultimately flawed. The main culprit here is the script. I was veering towards dismissing the lead, Jessica Belkin, as lacking in talent but with good enough looks to land the role - think Samara Weaving minus the chops - but ended up giving her a pass, due to the lack-lustre script she had to deal with. She is a young, attractive, rather entitled, and somewhat arrogant diner manager who gets victimized by a gang of masked youths when alone on a night shift. The first half of the film sustains an element of suspense and intrigue as to who these nasties are, but when all is revealed halfway through, we have to sit through their back story to get to where we all know we're going. Bad storytelling, hackneyed tropes, and obvious acting choices hamper what could have been a half decent thriller. 2.5 stars.

In terms of historical faction this is a fine insight into the Yom Kippur war, from the Israeli perspective. Helen Mirren is a magnificent actor, of course, and has prime minister Golda Meir's posture, gait and mindset down. Liev Schreiber, likewise, is great as the US Sec' of State - Henry Kissinger. It is well made, well shot, with attention to detail throughout... BUT... as a dramatic piece of work/art it does fall short in the entertainment factor. I did struggle with the dry, almost documentary style of the film, and, although I did get something from it information-wise, I would not watch it again.

Reasonable thriller about a deaf cop with a deaf girl trying to evade nasty crims in an old apartment block. What's not to like, right? Joel Kinneman is good, as is the deaf girl. Fairly predictable but enjoyable stuff, with a sense of suspense that keeps us engaged. 3 stars all day, every day, no more, no less. Get the tea and cookies and kick back with this one.

So the premise is of an ageing has-been (Demi Moore) rediscovering her youthful, beautiful self (Margaret Qualley) and subverting the stereotypical female body image blah blah... all the while, yes, you've guessed it, brazenly exploiting it. The male characters, Dennis Quaid and the neighbour, in particular, are two dimensional caricatures of toxic masculinity with no real relevance or redeeming features. Meanwhile the 'body horror' gore-fest continues with zero nuance or subtlety. Young, hot girl likes her new life (why not) at the expense, of course, of poor old Demi. Surprise, surprise, it's all been written, directed, co-edited and produced by the same person; probably why it comes off as a rather self-indulgent, overstated mess masquerading as meaningful art. Don't believe the hype.

Pretty good spy series set in London, with great central performances from Ben Whishaw (a hitman) and Keira Knightley (a spy). Stylistically similar to shows like 'London Spy', and 'A Very British Coup', this is a genre that the Brits do well. Black Dove refers to a deep undercover female agent with family and political connections - in this case, she is married to the UK Defence Secretary. One big drawback for me (as per the ubiquitous dramatic rules these days) there are a bunch of implausible set pieces/fight scenes where skinny lightweights (Keira and a couple of other female killers) beat the proverbial out of each other, as well as seasoned professionals twice their size, but hey, that's par for the course now, apparently. So, aside from the mandatory barrage of woke ideology, this is, nevertheless, a decent modern take on a traditional English espionage thriller series. 3.5 stars.

Any film about folks getting picked off overnight in a creepy mansion by a mystery murderer, and I'm in... especially when they are fairly obnoxious 20 somethings all kinda speaking with the same voice. Pete Davidson is a breath of fresh air here, adding some comic mileage to the otherwise bland, predictable character palette. Lots of one note performances. I did find myself more engaged than I had thought I would be - it is actually quite fun, until the last act, even though we've kinda seen it all before. Loses its way badly towards the end, but it works, just, if a tongue-in-cheek killer thriller is your cup of tea. 2.5 stars.

I enjoy every Liam Neeson movie, even if they are a tad predictable. This is a little different though. Billed as an 'action thriller' I found it to have more depth and would class it as drama, to some extent. The ageing gangster with severe cognitive decline tries to connect with his estranged daughter and grandson, and is initially rejected, of course. There is something strangely compelling about these lonely, disparate, warts an' all characters, which I liked. It reminds me, aesthetically, of films like - 'Out of the Furnace', 'The Yards', 'Dragged Across Concrete', 'Killing them Softly', and 'Beyond the Pines'. Although not quite in their league, it is worth watching. 3.5 stars.

Moody and atmospheric debut from M. Night Shyamalama-dingdong's daughter, Ishana; very much in keeping with his style - think, The Village. Dakota Fanning is awesome, as per usual - a young woman lost in the Irish woods, who meets with a few others in the same predicament. They are all trapped by mysterious unseen forces known as The Watchers. I love this stuff, I actually preferred it to her father's recent film - Trap. She has a voice, for sure, albeit drawn heavily from Daddy's aesthetic. Who cares? She's great, (not to be confused with her sister, Saleka, who plays Lady Raven in the aforementioned Trap). Suffice it to say, inyeresting chats over dinner, no doubt. Anyway, this works. It kept me engaged and interested, with an acceptable level of suspense and mystery. Nicely shot, with a good score, decent performances all round, and a compelling plot. Nice one. 3.5 stars.

Normally a big fan of Shyamalama-ding-dong's films, this does fall short of his usual high standard storytelling. The premise is fine - a seemingly normal middle-class family man taking his teen daughter to a pop concert, turns out to be a psycho serial killer (The Butcher) who has fallen into an FBI trap, having slipped up buying the tickets. M. Night is definitely pushing his daughter's career - she is the pop idol Lady Raven, and is clearly a very good singer/actor. The problem for me was Josh Hartnett's central performance as the Father/Butcher. He just seemed uncomfortable and stilted, overplaying every moment to let us know what he's thinking. A lot of the blame has to fall on M. Night as the captain of the ship, for letting this happen. I get the feeling his mind was elsewhere... on his daughter, perhaps. Not bad overall, quite engaging actually, but I wasn't enthralled, as I'd expected to be. Better than many others of this ilk, but sub standard for a director of his calibre. 2.5 stars.