MadS (2024) Film Review!

Eighteen-year-old Romain has just graduated and makes a stop at his dealer’s place to try a new pill. As he heads off to a party, he sees an injured woman on the side of the road and decides to help her, but when she gets in his car, she suddenly smashes her own head against the dashboard, bleeding out until she dies.

Mads is directed by David Moreau director of Them (2006), The Eye (2008), It Boy (2013), Seuls (2017) and King (2022).

I knew very little about MadS going in and after watching all I really have to say is don’t do drugs kids!

No but seriously MadS is quite something, it’s a chaotic French horror film that really goes all out with so many disturbing elements. The film itself is impressive being that it was done in one long take, hearing the film does that is already impressive. But once you actually sit down and watch the film it’s even better, due to just how much is going on in this film and the amount of chaos that unfolds.

The performances are all around quite good, strangely enough MadS ends up being one of the more realistic zombie films that have come out recently and that’s largely part thanks to the characters and the atmosphere of the film. The characters while on a lot of drugs end up giving the film tons of creative sequences as well as giving this interesting perspective of being in the mind of someone who is completely high on drugs. It’s genuinely terrifying and really leads to so many disturbing moments of the film.

The atmosphere is absolutely haunting, between the characters slowly morphing into these zombie like creatures (creature design is excellent) and the feel that your looking into the film’s version of hell you have yourself a very disturbing film. Witnessing all of this really does make you feel like you are right there with the characters watching this unfold, the build up to the finale is well worth it. There really isn’t much in the way of character moments, but from what’s presented it’s more than enough to get an idea of who the characters are.

MadS is much more focused on building atmosphere, showing how the camera itself can create haunting moments by utilizing film being one long take to its advantage and the slow transformations. The one long take makes the film feel like you really are with the characters on this drug tripped nightmare that only gets more and more terrifying as the night goes on.

Go into MadS knowing as little as possible, it’s the best way to experience the film by far. The film might not be for everyone but I still do highly recommend this one.

MadS is available on Shudder

9/10 A

Transformers One (2024) Film Review!

Optimus Prime and Megatron, as former friends, bonded like brothers. Their relationship ultimately changes Cybertron’s fate forever.

Transformers One is directed by Josh Cooley who previously directed Toy Story 4 (2019).

By this point there’s been a ton of Transformers films after so many live action ones a new animated one takes the stage. Do not let the trailers fool you this is actually a really great Transformers film.

Transformers One sort of serves as an origin story and focuses on the friendship of Optimus Prime and Megatron and how they drifted apart, the way the film executes this is surprisingly quite great. This could have easily went completely wrong and even come across as silly or nonsensical, but the script and the direction the film takes has a lot of passion behind it and these characters are well developed to make the whole idea work.

The voice cast all around are quite great Chris Hemsworth as Optimus Prime and Brian Tyree Henry as Megatron are the standouts by far, seeing the two’s back and forth is truly investing and their voices gives these characters so much power and depth. The two have great chemistry and really make a lot of crucial scenes shine, Keegan-Michael Key as Bumblebee is a fun performance, Jon Hamm as Sentinel Prime makes for a great villain and Steve Buscemi as Starscream is just excellent casting. Even if he doesn’t get a lot of screen time he absolutely embodies Starscream and is a dead ringer to Chris Latta’s version of the character.

The animation is actually quite great, it takes a bit to get use to how the characters look but as the film goes on it becomes more clear that this art direction was the best move and incredibly fitting. The film has some gorgeous moments that really do make it shine and capture the world of Transformers. Plus the visuals do a very good job of building the world of the film, combine that with the dialogue that does not over explain itself and you have yourself a simple yet beautiful world.

The film exploring the friendship between Optimus Prime and Megatron plus leading into the downfall of it is the film’s main strength. It’s very reminiscent of Star Wars Episode III: Revenge Of The Sith (2005) and I mean that in a good way, you get the excellent action scenes, some really powerful dialogue that reflects the two’s bond and how much it’s slowly being broken. There’s a lot of loud and quiet moments between the two and it’s enough to get the viewer invested in these characters, although we know what’s going to happen it’s still incredibly powerful and well written.

There’s of course minor flaws such as Sentinel Prime being a very obvious villain from the start and some of the jokes don’t quite land. But those are nowhere near enough to take away how much fun and overall well written Transformers One really is.

Transformers One is available on all VOD platforms.

9/10 A

Blitz (2024) Film Review!

In World War II London, nine-year-old George is evacuated to the countryside by his mother, Rita, to escape the bombings. Defiant and determined to return to his family, George embarks on a journey back home as Rita searches for him.

Blitz is directed by Steve McQueen director of Hunger (2008), Shame (2011), 12 Years a Slave (2013) and Widows (2018). Blitz is a fictionalized war film about the real “the Blitz” which was a German bombing campaign against the United Kingdom from September 7th 1940 to May 11th 1941 during World War II.

Blitz is a pretty interesting one, while it’s not one of Steve McQueen’s absolute best films as it is flawed. The positives definitely outweigh the negatives, there’s so much to love about this film and although fictionalized the film captures the horrifying real event incredibly well.

The performances are excellent here, Saoirse Ronan once again shows why she’s one of the best actresses currently working today. She plays Rita a mother who adores her son George (played by Elliott Heffernan) the mother and son bond between the two is very captivating and the heart of the film, this only becomes heartbreaking when the two are separated and have to find each other. Ronan shows so much emotion and you can easily see the fear and pain in her eyes as she looks for her son, one particular moment before the chaos is Ronan actually singing which she has a beautiful singing voice. It really captures the beauty of her acting and is easily a very memorable moment from the film. Her performance should definitely earn her a best supporting actress nomination when it comes time for the Oscars.

Elliott Heffernan is also fantastic, we get to see his perspective of the war. The eyes of a child witnessing people around him lose their lives and overall destruction, it’s bad enough when an adult sees death and chaos now imagine a child’s reaction. That’s what the film really does a good job at, showing different perspectives and George’s is perhaps the most terrifying one. Heffernan gives one of the best child actor performances in a while, this is also his acting debut. I really can’t wait to see how Heffernan’s career is going to go in the future.

Although Blitz does suffer from some characters being a bit undercooked, the perspective from the other characters is still welcomed. The way they try to keep being hopeful and positive even though their homes are being destroyed, the way they support each other and to keep everyone alive. These are all very human moments that truly are beautiful that Steve McQueen captures exceptionally well, not every single of these moments leads into something powerful or interesting, but the fact they are there at all and actually do come off as genuine really helps the film in the long run.

Overall Blitz might be flawed, but I do think between the performances, the different perspectives and the filmmaking there’s so much to love here.

Blitz is available on Apple TV+

8/10 B+

Out Of My Mind (2024) Film Review!

Melody Brooks is navigating sixth grade as a nonverbal wheelchair user who has cerebral palsy. With the help of some assistive technology and her devoted allies, Melody shows that what she has to say is more important than how she says it.

Out Of My Mind is directed by Amber Sealey director of A Plus D (2008), How To Cheat (2011), No Light and No Land Anywhere (2016) and No Man Of God (2021).

Every once in a while you will get a Disney+ original film that really hits out of the park, Out Of My Mind is one of those films. It’s such a shame this is barely getting any advertising because out of Disney+’s original film catalog this is among one of the absolute best.

Out Of My Mind tells the story of Melody Brooks a sixth grader with cerebral palsy played by Phoebe-Rae Taylor who does have cerebral palsy making this film feel that much more authentic. Taylor’s performance is incredibly well done, she plays a character who is bright, intelligent, funny, sad and angry. Just seeing her display these emotions is absolutely fascinating and leads into the emotional moments of the film. Melody Brooks uses a tablet to be able to speak, the very first time she uses it her father Chuck (played by Luke Kirby) breaks down in happiness. It’s such a beautiful moment that really captures the spirit of this film very well.

The film does such a fantastic job of informing the viewer about cerebral palsy and that a person with it can still be a fully functional person as well as just not judging people with it. The film never comes off as preachy it’s incredibly authentic and is genuinely moving as well, filming might not be anything special but the direction from director Amber Sealey makes up for it and gives the film that raw nature it needs.

There’s also the message of just being a good person, help others out when needed and respect people for who they are. This has been said multiple times before, but here it feels it’s coming from a much more honest place, especially when you have authentic casting and don’t end up being incredibly preachy.

I really do hope we get to see Phoebe-Rae Taylor again in another performance because this was a fantastic first impression, Out Of My Mind is a sweet and powerful film that I think so many people especially kids with cerebral palsy will truly appreciate!

Out Of My Mind is available on Disney+

8/10 B+

Magpie (2024) Film Review!

Ben and Anette’s young daughter lands a co-starring role alongside a glamorous movie star. However, when Anette suspects that Ben has become infatuated with the actress, secrets and lies threaten to come to the surface and destroy them all.

Magpie is directed by Sam Yates which is his directorial debut.

2024 has really shown how strong and talented Daisy Ridley is as an actress, between the powerful Sometimes I Think About Dying, the inspiring Young Woman and The Sea and now the thrilling and investing Magpie she really has a nice range of films under her belt. Going into Magpie I really did not know what to expect all I really knew was Daisy Ridley was in it, luckily I watched it because Magpie is one of the more underrated films of the year.

Daisy Ridley is absolutely fantastic here and is the driving force of what makes the film stand, even when the film starts to blend several different types of thriller sub-genres such as neo-noir or erotic. Ridley is able to capture all of those in her performance and land some very exciting results, she also once again shows how much she can completely embody her performance. In this case she gets to show off the many emotions of Anette a woman who gets trapped in this role of being both as a mother of two children and a wife to Ben (played by Shazad Latif) a man who does not care about her. Ridley’s performance shows a balance of trying to hide the pain and trying to be happy, the way this is portrayed is very grounded to the point where it’s almost scary. When you mix Ridley’s performance with Latif’s who does an excellent job as well, you get some really fantastic results.

Sam Yates does an excellent job directing, it’s hard to believe this is his directorial debut because the way he directs both Ridley and Latif is nothing short of investing and amazing. The interactions between Ridley and Latif are very well written thanks to writer Tom Bateman both Ridley and Latif have this dialogue that you feel like at any given moment something could happen. Yates and Bateman combined together pain this thrilling and at times chilling picture that you can never look away from.

Magpie admittedly does take a bit to get going, but once you figure out exactly what’s going on here you will start to really love the choices the film goes with. The end result is quite solid, I don’t think it’s as grand as the movie makes it out to be. However what makes it strong is the build up, the atmosphere and Ridley’s performance that only gets better and better. It’s a satisfying result that makes the viewer walk away happy with.

Overall Magpie is incredibly solid, this is one I definitely recommend checking out. Sam Yates is definitely a director to keep an eye for to see what he does next.

Magpie is available on all VOD platforms.

8/10 B+

Piece By Piece (2024) Film Review!

LEGO bricks tell the life story of singer/songwriter and record producer Pharrell Williams — from his childhood in Virginia to his success in the music and fashion industry.

Piece By Piece is directed by Morgan Neville director of Won’t You Be My Neighbor? (2018), They’ll Love Me When I’m Dead (2018), Roadrunner: A Film About Anthony Bourdain (2021), Mickey: The Story Of A Mouse (2022) and a lot of others.

Piece By Piece is a documentary about the life and career of Pharrell Williams, going into this documentary I had very little knowledge of Williams. Of course I knew he sung Happy but I really did not know his early career or his early life. Walking out of this documentary I feel like I know so much about him and part of that is the very clever move Pharrell Williams and director Morgan Neville chose…tell it all in LEGOs.

I’ve always found LEGO animation charming and that’s no exception here, to put it simply the use of LEGOs here is absolutely beautiful and leads to some really neat visuals and very creative sequences that really make the documentary that much more fun. The LEGO animation reflecting the certain moods such as happy and sad is also quite solid, the use of color along with having this investing energy makes it all the more worth it.

Piece By Piece is also not your traditional documentary, while yes there are interviews (mostly from Williams’s family and peers) there’s also biopic like elements that are used quite uniquely. It’s a balance of a documentary and a music biopic that is told incredibly well, part of that is due to Pharrell Williams actually doing a really good job when it comes to storytelling. There’s so many moments where you feel connected to his story and completely get yourself drawn in, this is something I most certainly was not expecting going into the documentary.

Director Morgan Neville continues to show how his documentaries not only can be really good documentaries but they tell a story and bring the viewer in as quickly as possible. We see the rise of Williams, the bumps in the road he had to get through to achieve his dream and how he’s doing now. It’s a journey that Neville and Williams do such a fantastic job of making as creative and interesting as possible.

Overall Piece By Piece is incredibly creative and stands out among a lot of music documentaries, anyone who’s a fan of Pharrell Williams or LEGO will love this one.

Piece By Piece is available on all VOD platforms.

8/10 B+

The Piano Lesson (2024) Film Review

The Charles family grapples with family legacy and difficult decisions as they determine the fate of their heirloom piano, exploring deeper themes along the way.

The Piano Lesson is directed by Malcolm Washington which is his directorial debut.

The Piano Lesson is another stage play by August Wilson that has been turned into a film Fences (2016) and Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom (2020) were two of these films both of which were fantastic. While I don’t think The Piano Lesson is as good as the two mentioned I still do think there is a lot to love here.

The best thing the film has going for it is the performances, the cast does such an incredible job of putting in the work and combining their talent to give some incredible acting moments some of which are the best of the year as well as an incredible acting ensemble that you are going to remember even when the film ends.

Danielle Deadwyler is the standout here. She gives easily one of the best performances of the year and really captures the tone of the film and gives a very striking performance. Especially when you listen to the interactions and conflict between Bernice Charles (played by Danielle Deadwyler) and Boy Willie Charles (played by John David Washington) it’s filled to the brim with emotion, pain and passion. Deadwyler is the heart of the film and really holds everything together, she’s always a fantastic performer to watch and listen to and here is no exception. She is an absolute must when it comes to Oscar nominations.

John David Washington is also quite fantastic here, he definitely gives a performance is both fitting and very stage like, while some may argue that’s a negative I do think Washington makes it work due to the passion and emotion behind his voice. His moments with Danielle Deadwyler display this incredibly well and the two really bounce off of each other effortlessly, Washington as an actor really has grown and I can’t help but feel like his performance right here really shows how much he‘s grown.

Everyone else is quite great, Ray Fisher gives a surprisingly nuanced performance. He definitely has some more quiet moments but I do think they fit for what he’s going for. Although Samuel L. Jackson is largely in the background he’s still pretty solid and much like everyone else he delivers and helps build the end result.

As for the film itself, The Piano Lesson does have its bumps in the road. These bumps largely come from the middle portion of the film where it rambles a bit and repeats itself, the pacing isn’t exactly great in that area either which does slow the movie down. However once the third act rolls around that’s when things get back on track, the film becomes much more focused and even throws in some horror elements that actually work decently well. The piano takes on this supernatural role spirits of the past haunting it, it’s very fitting for the story being told.

The piano itself gets a ton of different perspectives from the characters, Boy Willie sees it as economic reasons, while Bernice sees it as the weight of their family’s heritage. It’s a very interesting conflict that revolves around the piano which in a way gives the piano its own character moments. Learning the history and legacy of the piano is incredibly investing and the story being told even if it repeats itself during the middle portion still interests you on what you will learn next about this piano.

Overall The Piano Lesson is an interesting film that for the most part lands, even if the middle portion is on the weak side. There’s no denying that the performances shown here plus the third act are incredibly strong and leave the viewer feeling stunned.

The Piano Lesson is available on Netflix.

7/10 B

Azrael (2024) Film Review

Years after the apocalypse, a devout cult of mute zealots hunts down Azrael, a young woman who escaped her own imprisonment.

Azrael is directed by E.L. Katz director of Cheap Thrills (2013), A is for Amateur from ABC’s of Death 2 (2014) and Small Crimes (2017).

Azrael is an interesting one filmmaking wise, outside of a few moments (and I mean very few) there is absolutely no dialogue. It’s an incredibly bold move and I really have to say they really nail it down.

The performances are all great but nobody comes close to Samara Weaving who really goes all out here and shows how great her facial acting and body language when trying to communicate is. She hits it out of the park and captures the dark and post-apocalyptic atmosphere the film has all over it, her interactions with the other characters without speaking a word are incredibly investing. They lead to suspenseful moments that truly capture the darkness of the film’s world where anything can happen at any given moment.

The atmosphere as I said is incredibly suspenseful and it remains that way throughout the film, the writers depicting their version of hell adds so much to the film especially with the creatures running around. It’s a world where anything can come right out of nowhere and chase after you, the no dialogue just adds to the terror of the film. The religious horror elements that are added later on in the film mesh well with the final moments of the journey and give you a pretty good idea of its meaning.

The gore is really great as expected, Samara Weaving is once again covered in blood (like in many of her previous films) so you know that means a ton of gore is going to be included and you would be correct. The gore combined with the creature designs is truly fun and ups the more action like moments, a balance of fun and suspenseful is all the film really needs to bring the viewer into these moments. Especially when you have some nice camerawork from Mart Taniel who does a really nice job of showcasing the world of the film.

Azrael does suffer from some genre cliches during the middle of the film (some moments being a bit too convenient) and paper thin written characters outside of Azrael (played by Samara Weaving) which is kind of the negative of choosing to have no dialogue at all. However seeing as how the film is more interested in building its world and moving along at a solid pace, the lack of character stuff doesn’t really hurt the film all that much.

Overall Azrael is both fun and suspenseful, not exactly anything brand new going on here but between the world building, the performance from Samara Weaving and the gore this is one worth watching!

Azrael is available on Shudder

7/10 B

Music By John Williams (2024) Film Review

An exploration of composer John Williams’ story, with insights from filmmakers, musicians, and others he has inspired, along with rare behind-the-scenes glimpses into the making of cinematic history.

Music By John Williams is directed by Laurent Bouzereau who’s directed documentaries such as Faye (2024), Mama’s Boy (2022), Five Come Back (2017), Steven Spielberg & John Williams: The Adventure Continues (2017) and a few others.

John Williams is a name that really does not need an introduction, he’s one of the greatest and most recognizable film composers of all time. From Star Wars to Jurassic Park, Indiana Jones, ET, Superman, Schindler’s List and many others ( I do love that Born On The Fourth Of July was mentioned.) His music is very recognizable and Music By John Williams serves as a tribute to this legendary composer.

There might not be anything new being said here, but the documentary isn’t simply just a run down of his career. In between all that the documentary explores Williams’s role in popularizing classical music, his influence, just how much he inspired people and the joy he brought. The documentary also discusses the friendship between John Williams and Steven Spielberg. Which leads to some great moments of Williams and Spielberg discussing the work they have done together and how proud of each other they really are.

We get tons of interviews including his family, Spielberg, George Lucas, Ron Howard, Chris Columbus, JJ Abrams and a few others. Chris Martin from Coldplay is also here and Seth MacFarlane. Each of which share their experiences with Williams or how he inspired them, it’s truly neat to see so many people with great careers share their experiences some of which are truly powerful and investing to listen to.

Overall there really isn’t much else more to say, Music By John Williams is a beautiful tribute to a legendary composer and just an incredibly solid documentary. As I said before there might not exactly be anything new here but I do have to give it credit for not being just a run down of his career. Any fan of John Williams will appreciate this one!

Music By John Williams is available on Disney+

7/10 B

Spellbound (2024) Film Review

When a powerful spell turns her parents into giant monsters, a teenage princess must journey into the wild to reverse the curse before it’s too late.

Spellbound is directed by Vicky Jenson who co-directed Shrek (2001) and Shark Tale (2004) she directed Post Grad (2009) by herself.

I think if Spellbound came out 10-20 years ago it would be a lot more acceptable, but due to the bar being raised over the years with animated films this movie falls flat.

The positives mostly stem from the message being told and Rachel Zegler, the message of how adult problems or broken homes can affect kids is a beautiful one and for the most part it’s executed decently. Combine that with Zegler’s performance that is genuinely sweet and quite fun and you would think you would have solid movie.

Unfortunately the rest of the movie is just very standard kids movie elements blended into one, why this was musical I will never understand. The songs were not horrendous or anything they just had no real reason to be there, none of them are memorable at all either. They songs felt like they were there to draw out the running time, none of the characters outside of Zegler’s character Ellian aren’t particularly interesting and don’t quite get enough character moments they really need.

Finally there’s the animation which is just okay, there really isn’t anything groundbreaking going on here. But at the same time there isn’t anything particularly bad here either. It’s nice and colorful and does tell parts of the story well enough but that’s really about it.

There really isn’t much else more to say about Spellbound it’s fine distraction for children but for everyone else this is a bit of a snoozefest.

Spellbound is available on Netflix

4/10 D+