Tag: movies

Film Review: Hong Kong Goes Ballistic

~ Peter Kanelis ~ Leave a comment

Hard Boiled is a Chinese action film that was released in 1992 and directed by John Woo. It’s a ridiculous piece of cinema, but it isn’t bereft of merit. The screenplay was written by Gordon Chan and Barry Wong.

Chow Yun-Fat leads the cast which includes Tony Leung Chiu-Wai, Teresa Mo, Philip Chan, Anthony Wong, and Philip Kwok.

Gun smuggling in Hong Kong is at the center of the chaos in this film. Chow Yun-Fat portrays a jazz-loving, hard drinking inspector for the Royal Hong Kong Police. He comes across an undercover cop while in pursuit of a major gun smuggler named Johnny Wong. Inspector Yeun has some scores to settle with Wong but does not want to jeopardize this newly discovered colleague. Tony Leung plays the undercover detective named Alan and is also pretty good. Of course, what follows is a plethora of acrobatic fights and shoot-outs that culminate in some gruesome deaths for both cops and killers.

The movie attempts to have a somewhat nuanced plot, but the crazy amount of violence makes it hard to keep it all straight. At times, I was losing track of for whom I was supposed to cheer other than Chow Yun-Fat.

Chow Yun-Fat is rather fun to watch. I remember this guy from a few decades ago, and I understand the appeal. He’s not a bad actor in spite of some dubious dialogue at times. He does not have the hardened look of someone who can be quite so lethal, but he sells it quite effectively regardless. He was a great choice as the lead for this one.

The fight scenes were pretty well staged as well even if they required a massive amount of suspense of disbelief. The action sequences did seem drag on quite a bit, particularly the final confrontation at a hospital. Woo was definitely out to test his audience’s tolerance for all the insane amount of gunfire and assorted bangs and flashes depicted here.

There were some attempts at some interesting character moments between Inspector Yeun and Tony Leung’s undercover cop character. Although there were some moments of cringey dialogue, not all of it was worthy of derision. It’s also likely some of my reservations with this film may have to do with my lack of viewing of Chinese cinema. I’ve seen the occasional snippet of this genre, but my experience here is pretty sparse.

A family member describes it as the greatest action movie of all time. I would not go that far, but the overall experience was amusing and enlightening. Although I have some objection to the politics and governing practices of China, it was still worthwhile to get a taste of their culture with this style of cinema.

Also, I initially described this film as being ridiculous, this time I meant that with some affection. If there is a good chance this film isn’t going to induce some kind of seizure or panic attack, I would recommend seeing it. You may want to bring some ear plugs to muffle the noise, however.

Film Review: Murder At West Point

~ Peter Kanelis ~ Leave a comment

The Pale Blue Eye is an intriguing period gothic thriller written and directed by Scott Cooper. It was based on a novel written by Louis Bayard. Christian Bale stars as a retired detective who is asked to look into the mysterious hanging of a military cadet in 1830. Another cadet with the familiar name of Edgar Allen Poe, played by Harry Melling, is on hand to assist in the investigation. Other cast members include Gillian Anderson, of X-Files fame, Toby Jones, Timothy Spall, and Lucy Boynton.

As mentioned before, it is 1930, and a West Point cadet has been hanged. The detective is a retired alcoholic named Augustis Landor and is asked to start an investigation. A young but shrewd Edgar Allen Poe is enlisted to assist in this investigation. Also, a cow and a sheep turn up butchered.as well. Then, a second cadet is found hanged and mutilated. There seems to be some involvement of black magic, and Landor and Poe find their investigation taking them into the darkest of paths where there is little that is as it seems.

This turned out to have some interesting ideas, although I am not sure it was necessary to include Poe in this otherwise piece of fiction. The cast was well chosen so that certainly helps. The twist is a little too unexpected but not that bad. Some of the annoying plot holes are somewhat diminished by the talent of the cast. Bale is almost always quite compelling to watch and helps me forgive a lot of poor movie making decisions.

The set design and atmosphere were pretty well constructed. It has a great look and seems to fit the genre well.

The film is a bit on the gruesome side, but that doesn’t particularly bother me unless it fails to serve a purpose or just feels like it’s just there to test my stomach exclusively.

The film failed to keep me enthralled throughout, but it was not devoid of some worthy aspects to keep me at least mildly interested.

I suspect, unsurprisingly, that I would enjoy the book better if I happened to come across it. The movie didn’t really motivate me to seek it out.

Film Review: A Housemaid Cleans House And Discovers The Secrets

~ Peter Kanelis ~ Leave a comment

The Housemaid is a pretty average adaptation of a bestselling novel by Freida McFadden, directed by Paul Feig. Rebecca Sonnenshine is the screenwriter who came up with the script that was helped by a pretty talented cast.

Sydney Sweeney stars as the seemingly hapless maid, Millie Calloway. Amanda Seyfried, Brandon Sklenar, Elizabeth Perkins, and Michele Marrone are also included in the cast.

I had just read the novel a few days ago, so my impressions of the film are probably somewhat influenced. Spoiler alert…the book is better.

Millie Calloway is recently paroled after serving a decade in prison for manslaughter. She has unbelievable luck when she lands a job as a live-in maid at the Winchester household. The luck seems to be a false flag when Mrs. Winchester seems to be quite mentally unstable. Millie seems to have an ally in the husband, but that gets complicated as well. Not only that, Mr. Winchester has his own agenda. Of course, neither knows that Millie is not exactly as mild-mannered as she appears either.

The film is mostly faithful to the source material. It does gloss over some important background information a bit more than necessary. This is another film where I question the editing. Also, certain details were altered a bit that I thought was unnecessary.

I will acknowledge that the cast was well-chosen. Sweeney is a very beautiful woman who also happens to have some talent and charisma. Seyfried does quite well as the seemingly erratic housewife. The two women work well together in their antagonistic roles.

Anyway, the talent of the cast does make it a watchable film, but it still falls short of great cinematic ingenuity.

I guess it’s just the risk I take when I read the novel just a day or so before seeing the movie. At least, it was not a terrible film.

Film Review: The Knives Are Not As Sharp This Time

~ Peter Kanelis ~ Leave a comment

Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery is the unimpressive third film in the franchise that stars Daniel Craig as private detective Benoit Blanc. Rian Johnson wrote and directed this somewhat lackluster sequel. Daniel Craig returns as the enigmatic Benoit Blanc.

More big Hollywood names are in this case. Josh Brolin is the one who gets knifed in the back as Monsignor Jefferson Wicks, a rather fiery and ferocious church leader with a not so holy agenda. Josh O’ Conner, Glenn Close, Mila Kunis, Jeremy Renner, Kerry Washington, Adam Scott, and Jeffrey Wright are also included in the cast. So, there is a lot of talented and prominent names here whose talents are just wasted.

Benoit Blanc is asked to help out in investigating the murder of a monsignor who was stabbed in a storage near the pulpit of a church while services were being done. Blanc finds a peculiar group of suspects and is assisted by a young priest who was once a boxer. Suspicion falls on the young priest, and Blanc is not so sure he will be able to solve the case.

First of all, Johnson lets his political preferences shine throughout here in the writing of his script. He just couldn’t stay neutral on matters of religion or much else. That’s to be expected with most of the sludge coming out of Hollywood these days.

The story was not that interesting, and the film ran too long for the genre. Only a few of the cast members had interesting roles. Benoit Blanc had nothing new to show his audience. Daniel Craig was fine in the role, I suppose, but he was not as compelling as usual.

Adam Scott, who is best known as Jim Moriarty in Sherlock, was sort of fun to watch. A few other cast members had enough talent to sometimes be interesting.

Overall, the mystery itself was not that interesting. I didn’t really care about the murder of this monsignor. The film was obviously just a venting session against religion or any conservative viewpoint, which is to be expected these days from Hollywood, but Johnson just failed when it came to clever subtlety in the writing.

The movie still isn’t what I call terrible because the cast is just good enough to keep it within the range of mediocre. There was enough to represent basically my genre where I can’t say that I absolutely hate this film, but there were facets that were just annoying and unnecessary.

I will acknowledge there was some redeeming qualities toward the end. Johnson didn’t quite veer off into some overly heretical road, but he did enough limit my enjoyment of what could have been a compelling murder mystery.

Unfortunately, aspects of my personality will likely compel me to keep an eye out to see if another installment is forthcoming, and I do find the lead character Benoit Blanc to still be somewhat interesting. Better luck next time, guys!

Film Review: The Wizard May Not Be So Wonderful

~ Peter Kanelis ~ Leave a comment

Wicked: For Good is a reasonably enjoyable film that brings the curtain down on the cinematic adaptation directed by John M. Chu. Winnie Holzman and Dana Fox are the scriptwriters, which is ultimately inspired by Gregory Maguire’s novel. The stage play was written by Holzman and Steven Schwartz.

Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo continue to do well in carrying as the lead roles of Glinda and Elphaba, who are more familiar in L. Frank Baum’s The Wonderful Wizard of Oz as Glinda the Good and the Wicked Witch of the West. Jeff Goldblum gives his usual distinctive, offbeat performance as the Wizard himself. Michele Yeoh, Jonathan Bailey, Ethan Slater, and Marissa Bode are also included in this extravagant cinematic feast for the senses.

This piece of the story picks up a year after Elphaba has defied the Wizard and fights for the rights of the animals of Oz. The famous Yellow Brick Road is about to open. Glinda is about to be married. A lot is going on as Glinda and Elphie’s friendship is tested to its limits. Meanwhile, a young girl has crashed into the mystical land when a storm brings a house hurling through the sky. This young girl and her little dog become unwitting key figures in the tumultuous destiny of Oz.

So, I finally saw this conclusion to this latest attempt at an epic cinematic experience. It does fall short of being a mind-blowing theatrical experience, but there are quite a few bright spots that keep me from regret.

Erivo and Grande do have a pretty distinct chemistry. Ariana herself seems to have surprisingly astute comedic instincts. I was also impressed with Erivo’s singing during her musical moments. Goldblum remains to be an interesting presence whenever he appears. There is no shortage of real talent in this cast.

The artistry in the sets, which makes heavy use of CGI, is also quite visually appealing. I am not sure how much was actually physically built, but I think I would have loved to hang out on the set if I were a part of this project.

The performances were pretty good on the whole. The writing was not great but not outrageously bad either when compared to much of what Hollywood has been peddling lately.

The film still felt a little too padded at times with scenes that droned on longer than needed. I am not sure that talking animals really needed to represent the oppressed populations when one could come up with the notion of using a group of people.

The idea of making traditionally villainous characters as being merely misunderstood is getting a little stale.

The film still left me with the sense of it lacking in real originality in many ways. I saw it and had my curiosity satisfied, and now I can shrug it off and go on to the next one…after I complete this blog of course.

I will grant it with one admission though. I am now a bit more intrigued enough to read the book by Gregory Maguire at some point and may actually follow through on that.

Film Review: Missing Children And A Strange Visitor

~ Peter Kanelis ~ Leave a comment

Weapons is one of the few recent horror films that contains some semblance of creativity from writer and director, Zach Cregger. The cast includes Josh Brolin, Julia Garner, Alden Ehrenreich, Cary Christopher, Benedict Wong, and Amy Madigan.

This film takes a somewhat non-linear path in its laying out of the story as it shifts perspectives among the characters. Very early one morning, seventeen children suddenly flee from their homes into the darkness running in a most unusual manner. They are classmates in a particular elementary school, and only one child named Alex is accounted for. The teacher, Justine Gandy, is suspected to be somehow behind the mysterious disappearances. An aggrieved father, played by Brolin, is the main accuser. Alex’s aunt, Gladys, has also been visiting and turns out to be a practitioner of witchcraft. Justine has to endure a particularly savage attack as she and Alex’s father come together to discover the truth behind the frightening and supernatural intrusion into their community.

First of all, Brolin remains as compelling as ever as Archer, the grieving and angry father of one of the missing children. Garner and the rest of the cast are also well selected for their roles. Amy Madigan as Gladys does well with making such an outlandish presence creepy and menacing as well.

There were also some pretty sly moments of dark humor that I found to be cleverly planted throughout the script.

There is quite a bit of brutality in this movie that makes it a little hard to watch. I am not normally a squeamish movie-watcher, but some of the scenes tested by nerve a bit.

Some of the characters feel a little cliche at times, but the strong performances help me find some forgiveness there.

It’s an effectively disturbing film, as it was intended. Although I doubt it will achieve any sort of iconic cinematic status, this film is one of a rare breed in today’s cinema in that it was actually pretty compelling.

Classic Film Review: The Strange Women of Limmeridge House

~ Peter Kanelis ~ Leave a comment

The Woman in White is a mystery drama film that was released in 1948 and is actually quite impressive in regard to the look but is a little slow on the plot development. Peter Godfrey is the director of the film while the screenplay was written by Stephen Morehouse Avery. The film was based on a well-known novel by Wilkie Collins, which was written in 1860. That could explain why the film feels a little slow at times.

Included in the cast are Alexis Smith, Eleanor Parker, Sydney Greenstreet, Gig Young, Agnes Moorehead, and John Abbott.

A man hired to tutor a woman on drawing walks from a train station to an estate known as Limmeridge encounters a woman in white in the night. The woman vanishes when a carriage approaches. The man, Walter Hartright, is told of an asylum nearby, and that a woman had just escaped. Hartright makes it to the house and meets the residents. He then meets Laura Fairlie, who bears a striking resemblance to the woman he encountered during his late-night walk. Hartright begins to learn some strange secrets of the house, including a cousin who disappeared some years before. There is a fortune at stake, and Hartright finds that he may have to free a woman wrongly imprisoned within the asylum and figure out which member of the house is capable of murder to protect their secrets.

Okay, this is a pretty strange and convoluted plot. The acting was pretty good though. I also was impressed with the set design considering the time when this film was produced.

It feels a bit of a slog to sit through this thing at times because I had a hard time staying focused on the gist of the story.

It is a film that take some concentration at times.

The costuming and set design were remarkably well done. It’s a very pretty movie to watch in spite of it being in black and white. That alone may be enough reason to give this another viewing.

Anyway, there are some challenges when it comes to understanding the motivations of the characters and some elements of the story, but it’s still a film worthy of some time.

Big Finish Audio Review: The Doors To Dark Gallifrey Should Remain Closed, But Where’s The Fun In That?

~ Peter Kanelis ~ Leave a comment

Big Finish Productions begins a new trilogy of Dark Gallifrey audio plays with The War Master: Part One with David Warner and Lisa Bowerman an alternative Unbound Doctor and Professor Bernice Summerfield. James Goss is the writer with Scott Handcock serving as director.

The supporting cast is comprised of Jason Forbes, Chris Lew Kum Hoi, Tariye Peterside, and Homer Todiwala.

Bernice Summerfield is traveling with a Doctor from another reality. Warner has previously played this version in a series called Doctor Who Unbound. Benny is intrigued by the prospect of unlocking the secrets of something known as Dark Gallifrey, however she and the Doctor have yet to discover a familiar adversary also has his eyes on the same prize.

This play is somewhat interesting, but it’s a little confusing on the first listen since it basically unfolds backwards. Bowerman and Warner are a good match since they are both so experienced as actors. Bowerman has been around Big Finish pretty much since its kickoff in 1999. Warner is just British acting royalty at this point. This was apparently one of his last projects since he died in 2022.

The performances were solid, but it’s hard to really understand what is going on due to the method of experimenting with basic storytelling. Trying to tell a story backwards just seems to work a little better on a more visual medium.

Derek Jacobi has yet to make an appearance in this first installment of the trilogy, but I am looking forward to his entrance.

I found this to be an underwhelming start. but not because of the caliber of performances. I just don’t like too many mental gymnastics going on in just trying to follow a plot.

Anyway, the sound effects are fine. The other actors seem to be well-considered in their casting. The technical demands are admirably met.

Hopefully, the next installment will have more Jacobi, and Warner’s take on the Doctor will become more engaging for me.

Film Review: An Exorcism For The Road

~ Peter Kanelis ~ Leave a comment

The Conjuring: Last Rites is a decent enough send-off to this branch of the horror franchise that starred Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga. The film is directed by Michael Chaves, and the screenplay is written by Ian Goldberg, Richard Naing, and David Leslie Johnson-McGoldrick with James Wan sharing story credit.

Wilson and Farmiga reprise their roles as Ed and Lorraine Warren, the reputed paranormal investigators who allegedly conducted several exorcisms over the years. Mia Tomlinson plays their only daughter, Judy Warren. Ben Hardy, Elliot Cowan, Rebecca Calder, and Steve Coulter are also included in the cast.

The Warrens have largely stepped away from exorcisms and major investigations in favor of writing and lecturing due to Ed’s heart issues. Their daughter gets drawn into the supernatural plight of the Smurl family, who have been dealing with various ghostly manifestations for several months that seen to be centered around a strange-looking mirror that was gifted to one of the daughters. Judy is also recently engaged, and the young man is pulled into this last dance with the demonic.

This film is actually pretty good. It is somewhat predictable, but I have come to enjoy the chemistry between the two lead actors here. I am not sure that I really believe in the legend of the Warrens, but I like the portrayal put forth by Wilson and Farmiga. The film also strangely seems to promote the benefits of a loving, committed marriage and even manages to not bash the Christian faith.

The jump scares are pretty standard but well done. The background of the spirits menacing the Smurls is pretty standard. Not much is done here to break new cinematic ground, but I didn’t necessarily mind that.

The performances were solid enough, and I felt sympathy for the people involved. It’s pretty obvious that quite a bit of artistic license was used, but the film worked well enough to shrug that off.

This film is not really any sort of masterpiece of the horror genre, but it gets the job done as far as being a reasonable diversion from the daily stressors of life. That’s just fine with me. Go see it with my blessing, for all that is worth.

Film Review: Meet The Thursday Murder Club

~ Peter Kanelis ~ Leave a comment

The Thursday Murder Club is a charming mystery film that manages to stay pretty faithful to the novel written by Richard Osman. The screenplay is written by Katy Brand and Suzanne Heathcote. Chris Columbus is the director of this piece which stars Helen Mirren, Pierce Brosnan, Ben Kingsley, and Celia Imrie as a group of retired residents in a village who meet on Thursdays to review cold murder cases. David Tennant, Tom Ellis, Naomis Ackie, and Daniel Mays are also included in the cast.

A small group of residents in a rather swanky retirement village meet once a week to review cold cases. Mirren plays Elizabeth, who once worked for MI6. Brosnan plays a rather brash former union leader named Ron. Kingsley is the empathic psychiatrist, Ben, and Celia Imrie rounds out the group as the recently recruited retired nurse named Joyce.

They are examining a case from 1973 in which a woman was apparently shoved out the window. While the small club is searching for new information, one of the owners of Coopers Chase is murdered nearby. The Thursday Murder Club have their first fresh case; however, they also learn that there are plans to redevelop their village into more luxurious apartments. Not only is there a killer lurking; the club has to find a way to save their new homes.

It’s hard to go wrong with the main cast. I am less familiar with Imrie, but she did great alongside the more familiar names such as Mirren, Brosnan, and Kingsley. Imrie may not have quite the same name recognition as her costars, but she is certainly no slouch when it comes to her charisma and ability. She certainly does have a lengthy filmography herself, so she should have no problem continuing her career.

I had read the book fairly recently, and the movie does follow it fairly closely.

Brosnan and Mirren are as reliably charismatic as ever, while Kingsley still maintains that quiet, yet powerful dignity that also makes him compelling.

In spite of some of this being somewhat of a comedy, there are plenty of somewhat poignant moments that are handled quite well.

Even though I knew the solution to the crime, the film may be worth a rewatch to just admire a group of long-time actors who can still appear to be at the top of their game.

I was just pleased that there were not enough alterations from the source material to evoke real annoyance.