After leaving the business one year earlier, battle-scarred stuntman Colt Seavers springs back into action when the star of a big studio movie suddenly disappears. As the mystery surrounding the missing actor deepens, Colt soon finds himself ensnared in a sinister plot that pushes him to the edge of a fall more dangerous than any stunt.
The Fall Guy is directed by David Leitch director of Atomic Blonde (2017), Deadpool 2 (2018), Hobbs & Shaw (2019) and Bullet Train (2022). The Fall Guy is loosely based on the 1980s TV series of the same name.
The Fall Guy is definitely one of the bigger surprises of the year so far, that’s mostly due to the trailer being incredibly underwhelming and Leitch’s last movie Bullet Train being a huge disappointment. The Fall Guy definitely has its flaws but I think a lot of what the movie is going for works pretty well.
The performances are a lot of fun, Ryan Gosling, Emily Blunt and Aaron Taylor-Johnson in particular. All give pretty charming and exciting performances that do lead to the movie being a pretty solid crowd pleaser, the characters are also quite entertaining especially when the film explores stuntmen and how pretty incredible they really are in film. Gosling really does a fantastic job in particular here and completely captures the actions and heart of a stuntman quite well.
Although the humor is on the weak side outside of a few chuckles, there’s this sense of a certain level of charm that works. David Leitch’s humor is often a very hit or miss with me but it for the most part works here, why that’s the case I’m not exactly sure maybe it’s due to the subject matter, the joy of seeing a bunch of characters create a film and celebrating stuntmen or Ryan Gosling’s charm whether the case may be it works well enough to leave you with a smile.
There’s a few stunts here that are quite incredible as well, I would even go as far as to say they are probably some of the best in any of David Leitch’s films. Mainly due to just how grand they are and the context of which they are used, a film about celebrating stuntmen and shows the passion of these stunts, how hard they are to execute and much more.
I don’t think The Fall Guy is one of the best films of the year, but it is a surprisingly fun one that I’m glad I watched. I can easily this film gathering a dedicated fanbase in the next couple years which is always a great thing.
The process of excavating an ominous grave unleashes long hidden secrets and dreadful consequences buried underneath.
Exhuma is directed by Jang Jae-hyun director of The Priests (2015) and Svaha: The Sixth Finger (2019).
Exhuma is an interesting one, it’s built around exorcism and possession with a complex mythology that truly is very interesting. But it also attempts to be this epic of the supernatural horror genre, which even if that doesn’t quite work I absolutely respect Jae-hyun for the commitment.
The performances are all quite fun to watch, the interactions they have with each other are engaging, the character moments aren’t anything grand but they are solid enough to give a really good idea about who our main characters are. The script is also pretty solid, there is definitely some issues with the third act which mostly stems from the running time being way longer than it needed to be. But there are some really well written moments here that have this whole mystery to it that’s pretty satisfying.
I definitely think this film is a case where the build up is stronger than the actual reveal, but that doesn’t really stop the movie from being a whole lot of fun.
After their car breaks down in an eerie small town, a young couple is forced to spend the night in a remote cabin. Panic ensues as they are terrorized by three masked strangers who strike with no mercy and seemingly no motive.
The Strangers: Chapter 1 is directed by Renny Harlin director of Die Hard 2 (1990), A Nightmare On Elm Street 4: The Dream Master (1988), Cliffhanger (1993), Deep Blue Sea (1999), Devil’s Pass (2013), The Legend Of Hercules (2014), The Bricklayer (2024) and many others! The Strangers: Chapter 1 is the third film in The Strangers series and the first installment of a standalone trilogy not having anything to do with The Strangers (2008) or The Strangers: Prey At Night (2018). So The Strangers movies have always been divisive, The Strangers (2008) definitely has a lot of fans but there’s a lot of people who really did not like it. I’m someone who really loves it all though over time I do have my criticisms of it. The Strangers: Prey At Night (2018) at the time when it came out was torn to shreds (outside of everyone agreeing the pool scene was excellent). Which I could see why, it had a drastically different atmosphere than the first movie, where as the first movie was going for this brutal, dark and more grounded approach Prey At Night went for more of an 80s slasher approach. Luckily over time Prey At Night has gotten its flowers and it’s become a cult classic in its own way, I personally liked it when it first came out. But now I really like it even more. That leads us to the first of a trilogy The Strangers: Chapter One a movie that attempts to take the series back to its roots by going for an atmosphere more like the 2008 movie…only problem here is by doing that it’s just the 2008 movie all over again but somehow so much worse.
The couple we follow in this movie are just not interesting at all, Madelaine Petsch really tries her best with such a bland script but it’s ultimately nowhere near enough to save this movie from being a disaster. There’s a few fun chase sequences that are solid, but that’s all you can really say about them. They really have nothing going for them at all and are serviceable at best. That in itself really shows just how little care or creativity went into this mess.
I can usually excuse dumb decisions in horror films as long as it doesn’t generally hurt the movie so much it never recovers or if the movie itself isn’t trying to be realistic. The couple in the 2008 movie made some dumb decisions but it wasn’t enough to hurt the entire movie. In this case however there is so much dumb decision making that it almost becomes a parody, one thing I will say is the kills here aren’t that bad. They definitely have this brutal nature to them this pretty nasty which is probably the most fun this movie has to offer.
The major issue here is that there really isn’t much of a difference from the 2008 film and Chapter 1, both have the same sort of atmosphere yes but the 2008 film has the suspense, build up and strength to push through to the finish line. The couple in the 2008 film while yes flawed when it comes to the writing, were at the very least interesting enough for the viewer to follow. Heck at the time the film creeped out a lot of people so that has to count for something. Chapter 1 however comes off as trying to replicate what made the 2008 film great but completely forgets a lot of key parts, the atmosphere doesn’t have the suspense since we have really seen this all before. The couple in this movie as I said before are not interesting at all and lack so much personality that fails to connect with the viewer. Finally the build up is incredibly lacking, we get some fine enough chase scenes but that’s it. We don’t get anything we haven’t seen before anything worthwhile.
Overall The Strangers: Chapter 1 is not a promising start to the trilogy, I’m not entirely sure how they are going to be able to really recover from this mess but I guess we will see.
The Strangers: Chapter 1 is available on all VOD platforms.
Los Angeles pool cleaner Darren Barrenman is approached by a femme fatale to help uncover corruption in a shady business deal.
Poolman is directed by Chris Pine which is his directorial debut.
I heard about Poolman from the many walkouts and terrible reviews that came from the Toronto Film Festival in 2023. I was very interested to see just how bad this could really be and well…it sure is bad that’s for sure. Maybe not as horrendous as expected but still quite baffling.
I actually found the supporting cast to be decently fun, Danny DeVito, John Ortiz and Annette Benning are pretty entertaining in their own ways, plus I do think the movie’s bizarre atmosphere that for the most part often misses actually works well for their characters. There’s a few line deliveries from the three that are genuinely pretty funny and did get some laughs from me.
Outside of that however Poolman is a very baffling mess, it’s clear Chris Pine wanted to make this some sort of Chinatown (1974) and The Big Lebowski (1998) style noir comedy which sounds like an idea that could be fun. However the main issue here is that it’s quite dull, the movie very early on is very hard to follow on what exactly is going on and definitely not in away that makes the viewer want to explore the movie. The humor outside of a few moments is just not funny at all, a lot of the jokes are very overwritten or are just cobbled together and have very little build up.
Chris Pine clearly does have love for the noir genre as there are several references to it throughout the movie, but references really don’t cut it when your movie is very poorly written and your viewer has long checked out by the time the movie is over. Chris Pine’s performance is very unremarkable, there has definitely been far worse, but what a way to make the viewer instantly not care what is going on from the start.
Overall Poolman is a mess, while it’s not as bad as expected. That really isn’t saying all that much, this might be a “so bad it’s hilarious” type of movie for some but definitely not for me.
A classmate introduces teenage Owen to a mysterious late-night TV show — a vision of a supernatural world beneath their own. In the pale glow of the television, Owen’s view of reality begins to crack.
I Saw The TV Glow is directed by Jane Schoenbrun who previously directed We’re All Going To The World’s Fair (2021).
Ever since I saw We’re All Going To The World’s Fair back at the 2021 Sundance Film Festival I was incredibly excited to see what Jane Schoenbrun would do next as that film become one of my favorites of 2021 and over time I’ve loved it even more. I’m really happy to say that I Saw The TV Glow is truly fascinating and absolutely breathtaking in every single way possible.
I’ll start with the performances which are all fantastic but Justice Smith and Bridgette Lundy-Paine are the two that really shine here. Justice Smith gives a career best performance, this is a drastically performance by him than the viewer is used to and it’s incredibly effective. There’s a few particular moments where Smith’s character Owen is just broken and you the viewer feel that shattering moment especially during the final of the moments of the film where it hits you like a truck. Speaking of which Owen is such an interesting character, he seems like any other teenager yes but strangely enough he has that familiarity feel, like you might have known a person like Owen when you were growing up. Perhaps in your school, neighborhood ect it helps that Owen is written quite realistically as well, I completely buy what’s happening to him, his issues or when he talks to the viewer it’s a storytelling device that really works well here.
The other half of this film is Bridgette Lundy-Paine they truly give a fantastic performance that really compliments the film’s tone. The many exchanges they have with Justice Smith are investing and incredibly raw, exchanges you would hear from friends just hanging out, talking about TV shows and much more. There’s also the monologue Paine gives which is truly beautifully done, it’s a meaningful monologue that hits you like a truck the more you think about it and is quite important to the film’s many themes. Together Justice Smith and Bridgette Lundy-Paine are a striking duo who really go all out with their performances, they both do as much as possible to connect to their characters Owen and Maddy and never go down from there. No doubt two of the best performances so far this year.
There’s many themes going on here, I Saw The TV Glow is one of those films where there can be several different interpretations of what exactly is going on here. There’s a sense of nostalgia like reflecting on the past and how things might not be as good as you remember them being, there’s figuring out your identity whether you are trans, gay, bisexual ect there’s a lot of beautiful and meaningful moments that share this and then there’s this sense of loneliness a favorite of mine which might be a bit biased since I’ve said in the past that I really do love this theme and use it a lot in my photography.
The whole sense of loneliness theme really comes into play during the middle portion of the film, there’s definitely a few moments where Owen talks to us the viewer with fourth wall breaks which shows this ominous and sad nature of the film, this theme of loneliness really kicks in during the film’s last moments that really do show this lonely world that Owen lives in. The final moments of the film actually made me shed some tears due to just how powerful they really were, it’s definitely one of my favorite endings from a film so far this year so I won’t say much more about it as I do think it’s that more effective when you see it for yourself. One last thing about loneliness in this film is the world the film takes place in really does seem like a small place, from the atmosphere, the cinematography and the VHS feel to it you really start to get that feel throughout the film.
Finally there’s the technical parts of the film such as the score, cinematography and creature designs all of which are top notch, the creature designs have this classic power rangersesc feel to them which is incredibly charming and the score completely matches the tone of the film. The atmosphere is beautiful yet sad at the same time which all adds up to such a beautiful experience.
Overall I Saw The TV Glow is a masterpiece, this is truly one of the best films of 2024 so far and one of the best films of the 2020s. It’s such a beautiful film that I am So happy exists. Make sure to watch this one!
I Saw The TV Glow is available on all VOD platforms.
Pregnant from a one-night-stand, Eden leans on her best friend and mother of two, Dawn, to guide her through gestation and beyond.
Babes is directed by Pamela Adlon which is her directorial debut.
Look I’m most definitely not the target audience of this film, but even if you aren’t I still think there is so much to like about this one.
For starters I do love Ilana Glazer and Michelle Buteau, the performances the two give are truly exciting and actually quite raw. Especially the two’s friendship in the film. You really do buy their friendship throughout the film especially from their characters Eden (played by Ilana Glazer) and Dawn (played by Michelle Buteau), they bounce off of each other incredibly well and really do come off like best friends.
The humor while not every single joke lands is decently funny, there’s this whole inside joke type of feel which I do think captures the spirit of what this film is going for. The whole best friend type of feel that you can make so many different type of jokes, that included plenty of raunchy jokes which will be a hit or miss depending on who the viewer is.
The film absolutely does have that Bridesmaids (2011) feel as well, but at the very least the film only borrows from Bridesmaids and puts it’s own twist on it. The only major flaws here are the movie running for a bit too long and it does sort of start to become a bit repetitive towards the end which in turn doesn’t really allow the film to stick a great landing.
Having that said I enjoyed Babes for what it was, it’s decently fun with a charming friendship that does leave the viewer satisfied.
British Prime Minister Winston Churchill and a group of military officials hatch a daring plan to neutralize Hitler’s fleet of German U-boats during World War II. Made up of a motley crew of rogues and mavericks, the top-secret combat unit uses unconventional techniques to battle the Nazis and change the course of the war.
The Ministry Of Ungentlemanly Warfare is directed by Guy Richie who previously directed The Gentlemen (2019), Aladdin (2019), The Covenant (2023), The Man from U.N.C.L.E. (2015) and a few others.
The Ministry Of Ungentlemanly Warfare sure is Guy Richie movie, this time around Guy Richie attempts to go for an Inglorious Bastards (2009) type of style which I will admit makes for a decently fun movie. In a lot of ways someone can easily see this as diet Inglorious Bastards and you would be absolutely correct, the movie does have a lot of what made Inglorious Bastards so great such as the action. But doesn’t quite pull the same punch.
The performances are pretty decent all around Henry Cavill, Alan Ritchson, Alex Pettyfer, Eiza González, heck even Hero Fiennes Tiffin manages to pull a solid performance. Nobody here gives a bad performance they do what they’re supposed to and it gets the job done well enough to keep the viewer engaged with what’s going on screen. What is great is that the cast does seem like they are having a blast on screen, which is always extra nice to see!
I definitely think the movie goes on for a bit too long being just 2 hours long and you can really feel that with the pacing during the first act of the movie. Which is painfully slow at times, but the movie does pick up the pace as it goes on. Plus the action scenes really do help the pacing in the long run, they have this special flare to them that makes them energetic which in turn gives it a bit of a way to standout.
Honestly the best way to describe this movie is it’s one of those first person shooter games that has shoot a ton of bad guys and that’s really about it, it is not trying to be anything more than that or say anything impactful it’s just there to be fun. Sometimes that’s just what you need and The Ministry Of Ungentlemanly Warfare does that incredibly well. It’s not one of my favorite movies by Guy Richie but it’s still quite a fun one and I appreciate him going for a different action style.
The Ministry Of Ungentlemanly Warfare is available on all VOD platforms.
In Tudor England, Katherine Parr reluctantly agrees to become the sixth wife of the tyrannical King Henry VIII. Her consent to marry him carries great personal risk, given her predecessors are either vanquished, beheaded or dead. Perceived as a threat by Henry’s courtiers, they start to cast doubts about her fidelity and turn the increasingly paranoid king against her.
Firebrand is directed by Karim Aïnouz director of Invisible Life (2019), Mariner Of The Mountains (2020), Futuro Beach (2014) and a few others.
Really not much to say about Firebrand unfortunately, I appreciate it for trying a few different things but a lot of it is really holding it back from being anything particularly memorable.
Honestly the best thing about this movie are the performances Alicia Vikander is really solid here (although there is a bit more to be desired with her performance) and Jude Law’s performance is sort of chaotic which doesn’t make sense yet it does at the same time. In certain scenes he goes off the rails which I do think is some of the movie’s better moments, there’s one scene in particular that definitely feels straight out of a horror movie that I think Jude Law perfectly nailed.
The rest of the movie is fine enough historical drama that has great costume design and solid acting. The writing unfortunately is a bit of a mess that while it explores some neat ideas the movie itself really doesn’t do anything with them. The last half does become a bit of a slog to sit through and ultimately really does not do much in the end.
At the very least this was better than Jeanne Du Barry
Rex, a Florida party girl, turns out to be the only hope for the NASA space program after a fluke puts her in training with other candidates who may have better resumés, but don’t have her smarts, heart, and moxie.
Space Cadet is directed by Liz W. Garcia who previously directed The Lifeguard (2013) and One Precent More Humid (2017).
Every now and then during the year you get those handful of movies that come out and are universally mocked online or in general such as Madame Web, Unfrosted, Nightswim or Atlas. Well Space Cadet is one of those movies and it’s not hard to see why.
For starters this entire movie really seems like it was originally supposed to be a Disney Channel original movie but somehow adults got casted instead of kids and Amazon decided to release it. Second this movie is a Legally Blonde (2001) wannabe it tries to capture what made the movie so likable but fails miserably. It’s as if you took out all the personality, likability or fun that Legally Blonde (2001) had and you get this movie.
The performances are not good here including Emma Roberts which is just another addition to her long line of terrible performances from the last several years. The movie doesn’t even bother to tell an interesting story as you can already guess what happens within the first 10 minutes, the movie tries to have emotional depth towards the end with Rex’s deceased mother but completely forgets to make the viewer actually care about Rex (played by Emma Roberts). She’s about as interesting as a terrible Disney channel movie main character and often times really feels like she was supposed to be one when you look at the writing.
There’s maybe one or two enjoyable moments in this movie them being Emma Roberts wrestling an Alligator and making a girl fall off a treadmill by singing Call Me Maybe by Carly Rae Jepsen. Is that exactly funny? Not really, is it far more entertaining than anything else in this disaster? Absolutely which is probably the reason why it gave me a laugh, which kind of shows the exact problem with this movie. It has to rely completely random events to get some semblance of a good moment.
I really got nothing else to say here, Space Cadet is exactly what you think it’s going to be. A movie that uses the whole “follow your dreams” type of plot but doesn’t do anything meaningful or interesting with it. You are better off watching a bad Disney Channel movie.
After his daughter’s life is threatened, wisecracking Detective Axel Foley teams up with a new partner and some old pals to turn up the heat on a conspiracy
Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F is directed by Mark Molloy which is his directorial debut. The film is the fourth installment in the Beverly Hills Cop series and serves as a sequel to Beverly Hills Cop III (1994).
After the disaster that was Beverly Hills Cop III (1994) the series stayed dormant for 30 years and luckily Axel F is a far better film than it’s predecessor, it’s more in line with the first two films and does a pretty decent job of complimenting and celebrating said films.
Admittedly this is a nostalgia fueled legacy sequel but that really does not take away from it at all. First off the performances are quite great, seeing Eddie Murphy, Judge Reinhold, John Ashton, Paul Reiser and Bronson Pinchot again is just truly exciting and they all do excellent in their respective roles. Even if some are given more to do than others it’s still great to see them interact and only adds to this installment’s celebration of the series in general. Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Taylour Paige and Kevin Bacon are great additions to the series and are able to easily blend in with the rest of the cast, together this cast is really strong and is just overall a lot of fun.
The humor, camerawork and soundtrack were all pretty strong as well, granted they weren’t anything groundbreaking but they all fit the nostalgia theme and celebration of the series the movie was going for. They even got Crazy Frog into the mix which usually would be a negative but in this case it’s used well and the movie puts its own twist on it.
The action scenes are quite great here as well, for a first time director Mark Molloy manages to really give some quite solid action scenes and keeps up with Axel’s rapid fire repartee it’s fantastic stuff and moments like those that really do make this installment special.
Overall there really isn’t much else to say about Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F is a very solid installment to the series, it might not be doing anything for the series or anything groundbreaking. But at the very least it’s fun, well acted and greatly crafted.
Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F is available on Netflix.
Jerome Reviews... 