When a young loner becomes the gestational surrogate for a single man in his 40s, the two strangers come to realize this unexpected relationship will challenge their perceptions of connection, boundaries and the particulars of love.
Together Together was one of the movies I originally was going to see at Sundance but had to cut it out of my schedule due to being way too cramped. So I was pretty excited to see it and it’s pretty solid! Easily the best thing about this movie is the chemistry between Patti Harrison and Ed Helms, without them I don’t think this movie would have worked nearly as well. Both of them just share so much while on screen together, your invested in both their characters and care what they do and how they act. There’s some genuine great humor in here as well (sometimes it can go a little too overboard) the writing is really sweet and has this certain charm to it that’s really nice to listen to. The movie does have a very abrupt ending that I do feel does take a bit away from the movie when it comes to potential areas the movie could have explored, but the rest of the movie is incredibly solid and very well put together! I definitely recommend giving this one a watch!
Jack, a man desperate to improve his life throws away his beloved childhood plush, Benny. It’s a move that has disastrous consequences when Benny springs to life with deadly intentions.
Benny Loves You is another one of those “killer objects, animals who wouldn’t normally kill or killer holiday icons like Santa Claus (Santa slay)” movies and it’s a pretty humorous one as well. What helps this movie is that it knows what it’s trying to be and doesn’t sugarcoat it, it doesn’t try be anything more or anything less. It’s a killer toy causing mayhem and it’s just so much fun to watch! It does have parts where the movie does have some awful pacing (mostly the first act) but otherwise everything else really works to bring a very entertaining movie. The acting and writing aren’t actually that bad, they aren’t good but I definitely expected a whole lot worse and they could have easily been worse. Very decent movie.
Aliens take over the body of a drug addict and take it for a joyride through Cape Town.
Fried Barry is definitely a very weird acid trip that’s quite entertaining! There’s so much going on in this movie between some very strange scenes and camera angles that feel incredibly raw it almost weirdly feels like a personal film, the acting was quite great Gary Green does a very solid job as the leading role and actually creeped me out quite a few times. The film itself heavily reminded me of Rolf de Here’s Bad Boy Bubby but Fried Barry is much different I just got the same vibe, there’s some humor that I thought strangely worked in the film. It’s definitely a breath of fresh air to see a recent very solid horror comedy, the direction from Ryan Kruger is really solid as well. He puts a lot of focus on the characters and dives into Barry’s character so that the audience can know more about him. It’s definitely one of the most entertaining movies I’ve seen so far this year definitely check this one out.
In this cautionary tale, three people struggle to preserve their identities as they form an eccentric love triangle within the fast-moving internet age.
Mainstream has a interesting concept but good lord the execution is quite awful, look I love Andrew Garfield and Nat Wolff both are very solid actors who do a fine enough job in this movie but the rest of it feels like watching an obnoxiously edited slideshow. The best way to describe Mainstream is this…do you remember in computer class you had that one kid in your class who makes so many flashy effects on to their slideshow they have to present to the class? Well Mainstream would be the result if that kid made a movie, the editing and the style is seriously overdone to the point where it becomes incredibly obnoxious which really takes away from the movie. The whole social media aspect is interesting but as I said is not used at all, a lot of it feels incredibly outdated and doesn’t hold a candle to other films that had social media themes such as Searching, both Unfriended movies, Eighth Grade, The Social Network, Ingrid Goes West, Nerve and a few others all far better films. It doesn’t help that the movie feels like a chore to sit through (seems like a theme I’ve been running into lately), the pacing is way too slow and the direction is very disappointing. Which is a shame because Gia Coppola previously directed Palo Alto which while I thought it wasn’t anything groundbreaking I thought it was at least interesting. But Mainstream is just not interesting, it has nothing to say and as I said it’s obnoxious. Give this one a skip.
A quirky, dysfunctional family’s road trip is upended when they find themselves in the middle of the robot apocalypse and suddenly become humanity’s unlikeliest last hope.
Part of the reason it took me a bit to review The Mitchell’s Vs The Machines is because I truly didn’t know what to give it (in the best way possible) it’s such a fantastic film that actually blew my mind. Which myself and many other people were certainly not expecting, Mitchell’s Vs The Machines was stuck in release date limbo for a little bit due to COVID-19 eventually Sony and Netflix decided to partner up and it was released on Netflix! Which I truly think was a very wise decision giving this fantastic film more of an audience, anyway let’s talk about the film! First off the characters are quite incredible, I was really impressed with how fleshed out they were, how relatable they were especially the father and daughter relationship between Katie and Rick. It feels very realistic and truly dives deep into it, the movie makes you feel for them both showing each side and how they feel. It’s truly an incredible breath of fresh air to see this type of family relationship done right, Abbi Jacobson and Danny McBride absolutely nail it with the voice acting they truly bring so much emotion, depth and passion to their roles and show their talent! One thing I didn’t know until after watching was Monchi the pug character was actually voiced by Doug The Pug which I find to be quite great. Speaking of which usually animal sidekicks for the main characters in a lot of animated movies tend to be annoying or just flat out bad. Monchi is one of those rare exceptions, I found myself laughing and actually really liking the character! The animation is absolutely beautiful it has this style to it that feels very unique, it’s incredibly fast paced with a lot of different graphics and color all blended into one beautifully done film. It’s truly a wonderful film that captures the eye really well, the humor is also really great as well! The movie doesn’t heavily rely on pop culture jokes to be funny it’s funny in it’s own way and is just so much fun. Lastly the film does a perfect job of combining the several emotions throughout the film and the character development, the end result is just beautiful and something that truly brings you into the film! Overall The Mitchell’s Vs The Machines is one of the biggest surprises of the year and truly one of the best films so far this year, make sure to watch this one!
The Mitchell’s Vs The Machines is now available on Netflix!
A stowaway on a mission to Mars sets off a series of unintended consequences.
Stowaway is a very serviceable Netflix Original movie and really not much else. The cast does a decent job Anna Kendrick and Toni Collette being the standouts, Daniel Dae Kim and Shamier Anderson both do a solid job as well. The visuals are great combined with a solid atmosphere that does give the movie some beautiful scenes. What ultimately stops Stowaway from being anything other then decent is the running time and the pacing, it has a 116 minute running time that could have easily been trimmed down. Take out 15-20 minutes of the movie and it wouldn’t change a thing, the pacing is very slow and the movie itself does become a chore to sit through once you reach the final act. Not much else to say here, a decent first time watch for a movie I don’t think I’ll ever revisit again.
6/10 C+
A crew of hardy road workers, led by a bickering Father and Son, must survive the night when they accidentally awaken an ancient Irish vampire.
Chris Baugh (director of Bad Day For The Cut) is back with Boys From County Hell and I have to say this wasn’t too bad. It’s another decent modern Vampire movie that manages to combine the humor with the atmosphere and actually do it quite well. It does take awhile to get going which ultimately does hurt the movie, there’s a ton of scenes that really did not need to be there. However once the movie gets going it’s well worth it, it’s a lot of fun with some pretty great scenes and vampires! Sure it might not be super original, it does use a lot of elements from other better films. But at least Boys From County Hell has fun while doing it which can’t be said for some other movies, in terms of acting and writing it’s nothing crazy. It’s better then expected but nothing really noteworthy which is perfectly fine in this case. Overall it’s a decent vampire movie, I still prefer Jakob’s Wife by a lot (when it comes to Vampire movies that came out this year). But I still recommend giving this one a try if your a fan of the genre.
In a world where supervillains are commonplace, two estranged childhood best friends reunite after one devises a treatment that gives them powers to protect their city.
It seems like every single person and their grandmother is throwing their hat in the ring when it comes to superhero movies, so here’s Ben Falcone’s attempt at one because why not? Thunder Force starts out promising enough but then quickly falls into the typical Ben Falcone Melissa McCarthy comedy, every single element, joke and more are in this movie that were in his previous movies. Thunder Force might not be as painful as Tammy or as bad as Superintelligence but oh god that doesn’t mean anything. Octavia Spencer does a fine enough job heck even Melissa McCarthy isn’t too bad this time around. The problem is the writing plus just how forced and terrible it really is, all of the jokes are the exact same thing it’s either Melissa McCarthy falling over (wow we have never seen that before!) or a joke that goes on for a painfully uncomfortable amount of time to the point where it just gets awkward. Jason Bateman gives a “it’s so bad it’s funny” performance which I guess is welcoming because the rest of this movie is just not funny. The superhero elements aren’t anything interesting either a lot of it is just very surface level which is fine I wasn’t expecting anything incredible. But the movie doesn’t do anything fun with it, there could have been something here if there was an entirely different handling this movie. But it’s basically another Ben Falcone plus Melissa McCarthy comedy…
At a Jewish funeral service with her parents, a college student runs into her sugar daddy.
Shiva Baby is one of the most chaotic, stressful and anxiety inducing films I’ve seen in quite awhile and I mean that in the most positive way possible. The film captures so much In only 77 minutes and manages to be quite chaotic, first off the acting is just incredible. Every single performance feels authentic it was almost like you were at the funeral service. However the performances that stood out to me were Rachel Sennott who I’m sure is going to go on to have a excellent career and Molly Gordon! Both have incredible chemistry with one another and like everyone else feel very authentic. Especially with Rachel Sennott’s performance she puts so much strength to her role and it eventually builds up to scenes with tons of anxiety inducing scenes that feel claustrophobic, which I actually related with quite well. You know that feeling at a gathering and too many people are talking to you at once, so you zone out and then just break down? That I related to so well, it’s happened to me multiple times before and the way Shiva Baby portrays that very situation is just as anxiety inducing and chaotic as it really is. Emma Seligman does a flawless job as the director and writer, she brings as much realism as possible to this film. Seligman takes a gathering and makes it as real as possible, a majority of Shiva Baby is set at a Jewish funeral service and really does fantastic job of showing each and every detail. The combination of the film exploring bisexuality and anxiety is masterful, there’s so much care and careful analysis the different situations that take place during the film and Rachel Sennott’s character Danielle. It’s worth noting that Emma Seligman is Jewish and bisexual herself so that would definitely explain why there was so much care put into this film, it feels like it’s a personal film. A story that Emma Seligman is telling you about to me those are some of the best type of films. While the writing is chaotic and anxiety inducing there’s a lot of hilarious moments in the film that I was definitely not expecting. It’s a real nice balance between humorous moments and the stressful moments, there’s a little bit of everything in the film which makes it standout from a lot of other films that try to do the same thing. Overall Shiva Baby is so far my favorite film of 2021, it’s truly a beautifully made film that has some of the best character development, writing and use of several themes of 2021! I highly recommend giving this one a watch as soon as possible!
When a possessed pair of jeans begins to kill the staff of a trendy clothing store, it is up to Libby, an idealistic young salesclerk, to stop its bloody rampage.
Who knew a film about a killer pair of jeans would be better than some other films so far this year that want to be taken seriously. I feel like what makes Slaxx work is the movie knows it’s stupid and actually has fun with the premise. I will say the movie takes a bit to get going, the pacing is ridiculously slow at the beginning and made the first act incredibly pointless. However once the killer jeans come in that’s when it gets good, some of the kills are actually quite good (although it does get annoying with some off screen deaths). The movie is also a social commentary which is not what I expected. The acting is bad but at least it’s a lot of fun, the same can be said with the writing. It knows what it wants to be and for the most part it succeeds, overall this is something that could have easily been a whole lot worse. So after several weeks of very bad movies Shudder gives something quite okay! if you know what your getting into you will most definitely enjoy this movie! I say give this one a watch.
6/10 C+
As a couple goes on a trip to find their way back to each other, a sideshow artist and his shady entourage emerge from the woods, terrorizing them, luring them deeper into a maelstrom of psychological terror and humiliating slapstick.
I heard about this one quite a lot before watching it, so when I saw it was coming to Shudder I was very interested and the end result is actually quite great. The best way to describe this movie is it’s a dark fairytale with a ton of slow burn horror movie elements. The several shots in this movie when the characters are in the car are compelling and quite beautiful, there’s this organic atmosphere to the movie that adds so much to the film and really brings out so much rich dark atmosphere. It does take a bit to get going and to get the plot in order but once the film does that it truly shines, by the end of the movie it’s all worth it mostly due to the atmosphere and acting! Overall it’s a very solid horror movie that I recommend giving a go!
A mom and dad who usually say no decide to say yes to their kids’ wildest requests with a few ground rules on a whirlwind day of fun and adventure.
Yes Day is pretty much another example of a family movie that felt like it came out in the wrong year. A lot of it feels like something straight out of the early 2000s family movie era, there’s one scene in particular that has The Gummy Bear song which hasn’t been a thing for at least 9 years now. Which leads to something that completely kills some movies is adding memes into their movies, no matter what meme it is it’s going to age like milk, memes for the most part are very short lived and people move on from them. The Gummy Bear song was funny maybe the first time you heard it but then got old after every other time you heard it. As for the rest of the movie it really does not have a whole lot going for it, the acting from Jennifer Garner is passable as well as Jenna Ortega but everyone else completely falls flat. The direction is about as interesting as looking at a white wall, the direction is from Miguel Areta who previously did Boss Level (which was garbage) and did Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day. Which despite the movie having no relation to Alexander they feel like almost identical movies. The best way to sum up this movie is if you have seen Alexander Very Bad Day then you have already seen Yes Day. Sure the plot is tweaked a bit but there is really nothing new here. Yes Day might entertain kids but with very below average writing it’s not going to keep the interest for that long.
Jerome Reviews... 