In an effort to land the guy she’s been pining after since grade school, Abby hires a local stripper named Santa Monica to teach her everything she needs to know about confidence and sex.
Summer Of 69 is directed by Jillian Bell which is her directorial debut.
I was not expecting all that much from Summer Of 69 it starts out as a very traditional raunchy sex comedy but slowly turns into something surprisingly heartfelt, personal and actually quite honest at times. There’s a lot here that could be easily dismissed however I think there was just enough here to push this movie above the finish line.
The performances were not too bad here, Chloe Fineman easily steals the show, she’s able to surprisingly give a grounded performance at times that even brings the viewer into certain scenes. Her chemistry with Sam Morelos is also quite beautiful as well, speaking of which Sam Morelos makes for a charismatic and very likable lead even when her character makes mistakes which is to be expected for someone her age. Watching the two’s bond grow over the course of the film is genuinely touching and does make you really buy their friendship.
As far as writing goes it’s decent, some jokes admittedly fall flat and the movie does wrap up quite conveniently. However it’s the exploration of self discovery and self worth in this very relatable manner that makes the film worth the watch. Sure there’s raunchy scenes during the first half but there’s truly something quite nice here with the rest of the film, it’s not anything mind blowing but it does have this genuine warmth to it.
Overall Summer Of 69 is a fun little movie that does not overstay its welcome, it has its flaws but it’s a sweetly written film that gets its point across rather well. I’m unsure if this is something I will ever return to but it was still a fun watch!
Based on the real story that inspired William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, follows the greatest love story of all time, set as an original pop musical
Juliet & Romeo is directed by Timothy Scott Bogart director of Touched (2005) and Spinning Gold (2023)
Romeo & Juliet a story that everyone has heard at least once and here we have another adaption. What does Juliet & Romeo do differently than the rest? Well two things, for one Bogart tells us the “true story” that inspired the play and second he makes it a pop musical…which goes about as well as you would expect. It would be one thing if at the very least the performances were well acted and the songs were memorable which is sadly not the case here.
To start with the leads Clara Rugaard (who plays Juliet) and Jamie Ward (who plays Romeo) are the weakest of the cast. This is one of those movies where the supporting cast are actually far more interesting than the leads, which in some cases it could be debated that’s a good thing. However it’s most definitely not in this case, Rugaard and Ward don’t do a terrible job as the pair, they really try their hardest with what they have but the script is just not giving them an opportunity to make these characters exciting. Rupert Everett, Jason Isaacs and Derek Jacobi have some great moments but unfortunately don’t have a whole lot to do.
Then we have the songs which are hard to sit through, the best way to describe these songs is thinking of the most cliche portrayal of pop music you can think of. Whatever you just imagined is not far off from what’s in this movie, there’s some occasional neat set pieces and the movie itself is colorful which helps pop out at times. But these are small bits that do not overall really help this movie standout all that much. The music itself is also auto-tuned and a lot of the time feels very out of place, there’s times where you can really tell they tried to go for the feel of Jesus Christ Superstar but without any of the energy the play had.
I’m not entirely sure what the goal was here with Juliet & Romeo if it was to make the most dull adaption to the play then I guess it succeeded. Because with a runtime of 122 minutes this is an absolute chore to sit through and there’s very little to entertain the viewer with or bring interest.
Juliet & Romeo releases tomorrow in theaters and in UK Cinemas for one night only on June 11th!
A woman searches for a missing monster hunter, realizing she has an inextricable bond with the creature being pursued.
Kryptic is directed by Kourtney Roy which is her directorial debut!
Kryptic is one of those movies where it never becomes more interesting than the idea itself, it’s not all bad as there are some strong moments that at least hold some of it together. But it mostly ends up being incredibly forgettable.
The performances are not bad here, Chloe Pirrie is by far the standout as she’s given the most to work with and her commitment to the role is genuinely solid. She’s able to have this haunting stillness with some moments of intensity that really put in the work during certain moments, she’s able to carry the movie’s weight during times where the movie desperately needs to be lifted. Having that said due to the movie jumping around a lot between myth, memory and hallucination Pirrie’s character Kay has very tangled writing making it difficult to leave a connection to the viewer.
The dreamlike feel the movie goes for is admirable and every now and then you do get a moment where it does genuinely feel like you are in a dream. But often times it’s a complete and total mess, filled to the brim with way too many metaphors that the writing can’t seem to give the push they need to ultimately matter in the end.
The filming is admittedly pretty neat and the atmosphere is definitely there, it’s just a shame that the thrilling atmosphere is rarely given an opportunity to actually creep on the viewer. It’s stuck in this weird spot between concept and execution where there are some great scenes, nothing really comes of them and is ultimately written off by the viewer.
Overall Kryptic had an interesting concept of tackling memory loss, lore and hallucinations, but ultimately doesn’t build on its themes or ideas. There is a lot missing here of what could have made for a decent movie.
Trying to leave their troubled lives behind, twin brothers return to their Mississippi hometown to start again, only to discover that an even greater evil is waiting to welcome them back.
Sinners is directed by Ryan Coogler director of Fruitvale Station (2013), Creed (2015), Black Panther (2018) and Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (2022)
Ryan Coogler is one of those directors that I always look forward to see what he has to say with his films, which is why I was incredibly excited to see Coogler tackle the horror genre with Sinners but not only does he do such a great job with the genre but he also nails tons of themes as well as other genres such as thriller, a bit of crime, action, drama and even some period piece western type of feel that transports you back to parts of the classic cinema era.
To start with the performances are all top notch, everyone here is really bringing it their all. Michael B. Jordan throughout his career has shown how much he’s grown as an actor and here feels like the end result of that. Jordan gives a fantastic dual performance as Elijah “Smoke” Moore and Elias “Stack” Moore twin brothers who return to their hometown to start a juke joint for the town. Jordan is able to give both these brothers different personalities and really make them fun characters, the back and forth between the two is natural and Michael B. Jordan’s charisma as an actor is present throughout the film. He completely fits the atmosphere and pours so much power and energy into the performance, it’s by far one of the most striking performances of the year that completely feels natural from beginning to end.
Miles Caton gives an unbelievable debut performance, not only is his acting filled with passion but his singing voice is one of the film’s highlights. There’s a theme of music going on here and how it brings people together and how powerful it can be. Caton’s singing voice does just that and delivers one of the film’s best moments that is incredibly memorable (his singing voice really gave me chills at times) he also works so well with the rest of the cast and truly delivers a breakout performance that is absolutely going to put him into stardom.
Hailee Steinfeld gives one of the best performances of her career, she may not be in the film incredibly long but much like everyone else in the film she goes all out here, Jack O’Connell is given one scene in particular that’s a lot of fun, his singing voice matches the atmosphere of the scene taking place and he truly makes for such an excellent villain. Wunmi Mosaku, Omar Miller and Delroy Lindo are all fantastic here. Miller and Lindo provide some great comedic moments while Mosaku’s bond with Jordan is genuinely touching and her character Annie is very well written!
As I said one of the themes at play here is music and that is shown with a certain moment that I won’t spoil, but just know it’s one of the many moments where you see how powerful Ryan Coogler is as a director. It’s a very well done scene that kind of feels like the the heart of the film and I mean that when it comes to importance, it’s a look of just how grand in scale this film really is and as well as how beautiful done the film itself is.
The direction from Ryan Coogler is top notch, this is quite possibly the best direction of his career which is really saying something. He combines so many different types of genres together and they all fit naturally, this just isn’t another vampire film, it takes the idea of vampires and does something unique with it. You have the thriller, drama, action and some western elements thrown in here that all blend together to create a beautiful fun ride from beginning to end.
Overall Sinners is a brilliant film, from the cast, to the direction, to the large in scale feel. Sinners has everything that makes for a fantastic blockbuster and hands down my favorite film so far this year.
Stephanie Smothers agrees to travel to Italy to be the maid of honour for the devious and cunning Emily Nelson. However, she soon suspects Emily’s good will is part of an elaborate plan for revenge.
Another Simple Favor is directed by Paul Feig director of Bridesmaids (2011), The Heat (2013), Spy (2015), Ghostbusters (2016), A Simple Favor (2018), Jackpot (2024) and a few others. Another Simple Favor serves as a sequel to A Simple Favor (2018)
A Simple Favor (2018) is a film that I actually quite liked, I may not like it as much as when I first watched it but it’s still quite fun, has this humorous yet thrilling atmosphere and has some pretty solid performances from Anna Kendrick and Blake Lively who really sell the movie incredibly well. So I was interested when a sequel was announced mainly because I wondered where they could exactly go from here…this is not what I expected at all and not really in a good way.
Much like the first movie Anna Kendrick and Blake Lively steal the show here, their chemistry is just as solid as it was back in the first movie. The best moments always involved one of the two and the dialogue exchanges between the two are genuinely funny at times, Blake Lively actually plays a pair of twins with a dual performance (seems to be a common theme we are running into this year.) She plays Emily Nelson or Hope McLanden (from the first film) and Charity McLanden, Lively does a pretty solid job playing both performances here. There’s some genuinely entertaining moments that admittedly did give me a few laughs.
The costume design is the other part this movie nails, costume designer Renee Ehrlich Kalfus sticks with the theme and setting of the film and manages to create some admittedly quite stunning works. Particularly with Blake Lively which really captures her characters incredibly well, combine that with the production design from Martin Whist and the cinematography from John Schwartzman and you have yourself a surprisingly beautiful looking film. Considering how a lot of straight to streaming films tend to really struggle with trying to bring out a certain style or be visually appealing, this was a surprise and solid accomplishment.
Having that said what completely stops Another Simple Favor dead in its tracks is the writing, I actually thought the first bit of the film does a pretty decent job of setting up the atmosphere of the film then when we get to the third act that’s when things get incredibly ridiculous. This is like if you took Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery (2022) and instead of having the fun atmosphere you replace it with a very poorly written murder mystery that is nonsensical, admittedly there are times where it is so ridiculous that I bursted out laughing. But when it comes to a writing standpoint it’s a complete and total mess.
I get why they did this, they clearly wanted to avoid just repeating the first film again. Whereas the first film was more grounded, creative and fun (not in a completely over the top way), Another Simple Favor really jumps the shark constantly and leaves the viewer with a “what on earth just happened” and not in a good way. Everything is lazily thrown at the wall to see what sticks with barely anything doing so, the movie for some reason decides to make itself more complicated when it does not need to be and the dialogue from the other characters is forgettable.
Overall Another Simple Favor is a bad sequel, but you could do far worse. The third act for some can be a so bad it’s hilarious type of thing and in some cases it is. But when compared to the first film and when you take a look at the writing it’s a major step down.
Another Simple Favor is available on Amazon Prime Video.
After crashing their van of stolen gold into a river, ruthless gangsters hire desperate divers to retrieve it. But as a relentless bull shark hunts them below, they soon realize the greater threat may be waiting above the surface.
Fear Below is directed by Matthew Holmes director of The Biscuit Effect (2005), Twin Rivers (2007), The Legend Of Ben Hall (2017) and The Cost (2022)
Going into Fear Below I was expecting just another shark movie that would be forgettable almost immediately. While the movie is not perfect, Fear Below manages to differentiate itself from the very crowded shark movie genre.
The performances are nothing particularly special here, but they get the job done. They do well with the atmosphere that’s presented here, as far as characters go they have a bit more going than some others within this same genre. Hermione Corfield is the standout here.
I do like that the setting is 1940s Australia which is something we don’t usually get with these types of films, considering how low the budget was the movie does a pretty solid job of recreating the atmosphere of 1940s Australia. Between the weather and the bugs buzzing you can tell they did not just want to settle with the bare minimum
The main criticism comes from the editing which can be a bit choppy at times and the movie does get a bit repetitive towards the end, having that said the movie is still decently fun. If you are a fan of shark movies check this one out!
Well April sure did go by fast and I have to say it was a pretty strong start to Q2 of the year when it comes to films! I still have one more film to review that I saw in April (Sinners) but that will be coming very soon! May seems like it’s going to be a very strong month for films!
Like last time I listed the most anticipated films in alphabetical order since I loved doing that the last time!
Another Simple Favor – May 1st (Amazon Prime Video)
Bring Her Back – May 30th (Theaters)
Caught By The Waves – May 9th (Theaters)
Clown In The Cornfield – May 9th (Theaters)
Fear Street: Prom Queen – May 23rd (Netflix)
Final Destination: Bloodlines – May 16th (Theaters)
Friendship – May 9th (limited) and May 23rd (expands)
Hurry Up Tomorrow – May 16th (Theaters)
Kryptic – May 9th (VOD)
Lilo & Stitch – May 23rd (Theaters)
Mission Impossible: The Final Reckoning – May 23rd (Theaters)
A man revisits his childhood beach to surf with his son. Humiliated by locals, he becomes entangled in an escalating conflict that pushes him to his limits.
The Surfer is directed by Lorcan Finnegan director of Without Name (2016), Vivarium (2019) and Nocebo (2022)
The Surfer is an odd duck, at times it embraces its weirdness and is actually executed decently well. While other times it goes for this “lol random” type of humor that I’m not exactly sure why some films seem to think is so funny, which leads to a pretty disappointing film that had the right material just not very strong payoff.
Nicolas Cage gives a solid performance here, he’s one of if not the main reason to even consider watching this one, he has a few classic “Nicolas Cage” moments that are genuinely funny. I also do like that his character is just simply known as “the surfer” it oddly creates this mysterious atmosphere that is present throughout the film and builds intrigue towards his character. There’s not a whole lot going on character writing wise since the film opts for a more trippy direction (the filming and color palette really do a lot of the talking), but with what Nicolas Cage is given to work with he does a fine enough job it’s just not one of his best performances.
The filming is undeniably very well shot, it matches perfectly with the location and makes for some great thrilling atmosphere especially when it comes to the whole one location idea. The color palette that’s used makes this one very dreamlike, while also feeling like a very weird acid trip. Although the trippy and fun feel wears off towards the end of the second act and falls apart afterwards, what remains consistent is the filming and how great it is. It really does bring the viewer into the film and gives a sense of exploration, we slowly start to understand why this particular beach means so much to The Surfer. It’s very neat to see the filming and color pick up the slack of the writing.
With that being said The Surfer falls apart towards the middle of the second act and beyond, what started as a trippy and decently fun film starts to resort “lol random” type of humor. A lot happens for seemingly no reason at all, the plot really starts to become confused, the other characters such as the surfer gang/cult while an interesting concept at first they lack the necessary depth to leave the viewer with a lasting impression especially the leader.
I think what director Lorcan Finnegan and writer Thomas Martin were going for here was interesting, I really like the simple idea of The Surfer wanting to do whatever it takes to take his son surfing but the locals torment him. The added acid trip element at least makes this one standout, but as I said before the middle of the second act and the third act as whole are just not interesting. There is clear some inspiration from The Swimmer (1968) but whereas that film remained interesting throughout and kept the viewer in the film with a strong atmosphere, The Surfer fails to keep the audience invested the whole way through and while the atmosphere is still decently strong throughout it’s not quite enough to save the movie.
Overall I would not call The Surfer a terrible movie, I would call it a disappointing one. It had the right material to make a great film but unfortunately has a lot of missteps. I do think there’s going to be an audience for this one so if it does sound interesting to you I recommend giving it a look, you might just like it.
A man looks after his ailing grandfather while trying to make it in the world of professional bodybuilding.
Magazine Dreams is directed by Elijah Bynum director of Hot Summer Nights (2017)
If you know anything about Magazine Dreams took a while to release, to summarize and keep this short after allegations came out about Jonathan Majors (which he was found guilty of misdemeanor assault and harassment charges) the film was pretty much stuck in limbo until Briarcliff Entertainment picked it up.
Magazine Dreams was a very well received film when it premiered at Sundance 2023 and it’s easy to see why, while the film runs for a bit too long and the supporting cast are great but not deeply developed. Between Jonathan Majors’s terrifying performance, the acting in general, the very well executed theme of self-destruction and the script, the film manages to paint a pretty terrifying picture that is like a bomb ready to go off.
Jonathan Majors gives a fantastic performance, it’s a performance that right from the start you know is going to be a journey. Seeing the self-destructing behavior from his character Killian Maddox is terrifying, there’s a few scenes in particular that really capture this behavior in a painting (the dinner scene is one of them.) As the viewer we really get to see inside the mind of Maddox and the way Majors goes about this is fascinating, he doesn’t hold back from his tone of voice, to his body language it’s all incredibly intimidating. It also captures the physical and emotional drain of trying to chase something that is completely unattainable, there’s a lot of dedication here from Majors that really makes his performance all the more interesting.
The supporting cast while solid particularly Haley Bennett and Harrison Page are not deeply developed, there’s some strong moments such as their reactions to Maddox’s self-destructing behavior but that is really about it. I think Haley Bennett’s character Jessie gives a very raw reaction seeing Maddox absolutely lose it at the restaurant. A bit more development would have helped these characters.
The writing combined with the atmosphere is incredibly strong, the film takes influences from the whole theme of Eminem’s song Stan, Taxi Driver (1976) and Whiplash (2014) but manages to take these themes and make them its own. The atmosphere really captures this self-destructing behavior in a raw way that the viewer just can’t look away from, it constantly haunts the viewer throughout and really builds on Maddox as a character.
Through the writing we learn more and more details about Maddox and the more we learn the more it becomes clear that there is no return. Some paths are like brick walls ones you can’t go through, it’s devastating yet horrifying look at how self-destructing behavior such as what is portrayed here can not only hurt you but the people around you.
Despite some pacing issues and lack of writing for the supporting characters, Magazine Dreams is a very solid film that paints a terrifying picture of self-destructing behavior.
Magazine Dreams is available on all VOD platforms!
After a drug deal gone wrong, a bruised detective must fight his way through the criminal underworld to rescue a politician’s estranged son, unravelling a deep web of corruption and conspiracy that ensnares his entire city.
Havoc is directed by Gareth Evans director of Footsteps (2006), Merantau (2009), The Raid (2011), The Raid (2014) and Apostle (2018)
Havoc is a film I have been waiting to watch for a couple years now and unfortunately it’s a bit of a disappointment. While the action scenes are spectacular and Evans manages to recapture what made The Raid as it was when it comes to the atmosphere and action scenes. However it’s the character writing and story that really bring this one down quite a lot.
The performances aren’t bad here, Tom Hardy gives a solid performance as does everyone else. The problem here as I said before is the character writing is severely lacking, there’s no character drama that brings the viewer in. None of it is interesting enough to make the viewer connect with these characters, it’s unfortunate because I do think the performances from everyone is not bad, without strong writing these characters are stuck in limbo unfortunately. Hardy’s character is a badass sure but what else?
It goes without saying but the action scenes are very neat, Havoc is definitely a case of a movie trading in story with action scenes and at times it works fine enough. There is a few in particular that are quite spectacular which really makes you admire the choreography, filming and atmosphere that went into these scenes. The atmosphere really syncs perfectly with the action scenes, giving this giant scale of thrills where anything can happen. It almost feels like a first- person shooter video game (without the POV of course), it’s so much fun and really shows that Gareth Evans really knows his stuff when it comes to action and how to build thrilling action scenes.
The movie does take a bit of time to get going which unfortunately puts you through the story, while the story isn’t necessarily terrible. It’s quite generic as action thrillers go it’s very one note and does not offer anything new to a very crowded genre, however you could absolutely do far worse and at the very least you get some decent acting out of it.
Havoc might not have a whole lot going on story wise but it’s hard to ignore how great the action scenes and atmosphere really are, Gareth Evans is able to push the film just a bit above the finish line to make it work. The movie is a huge step down from Evans’s previous work but I still would not call this one bad. If you don’t care for story and just want really strong action scenes and a thrilling atmosphere this one is definitely for you, I actually recommend checking this one out!
Jerome Reviews... 