Athanatos173

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Reviews

Hellraiser
(2022)

Trainwreck
Hellraiser is an absolute mess of a movie. I can't believe I wasted my time on this trainwreck.

The characters are all horrible. They're one-dimensional and unlikeable and undeveloped. I didn't care about any of them, and that made it impossible to get invested in the movie. The acting is also pretty terrible. It feels like the actors are just going through the motions and not putting any real effort into their performances.

Overall, Hellraiser is a disaster of a movie. It's poorly written, poorly acted, and poorly made. I wouldn't recommend it to anyone, not even if you're a die-hard Hellraiser fan. Save your time and watch something else.

The Banshees of Inisherin
(2022)

Superb Acting but Little Else
I sat down prepared for an outstanding movie, what I got was nothing close to what I was expecting.

As my title states, the actors could not be faulted in any way, as I found them to be superb, having me hooked with their interactions. Colin Farrell with the most screen time simply shines, having me wish he were more prolific in projects. Brendan Gleeson also does a stellar job, as does Kerry Condon. Even the other minor characters were well written and very well acted by their respective actors. I can't think of a single actor who did a poor job, heck even the animals did a good job. Excellent cinematography as well.

However, while the dialogue was extremely well written, the script itself was somewhat lacking. I kept waiting for the payoff during the movie that simply never came, making me wonder what I just watched.

Go in for the acting and you will not be disappointed, however the overall story might let you down.

Thor: Love and Thunder
(2022)

Lost Opportunity
A stellar idea that was mishandled to the point of absurdity.

This movie's flow is all over the place, seemingly schizophrenic in it's execution, unable to decide what it wants to be and wasting a story that could have been something "worthy".

Marvel seems to be suffering from an identity crisis.

From a soundtrack that is mishandled, further disrupting the flow with songs being misused, scenes going from deadly serious to absurd, a protagonist that although over a millennia old, acts childish and incompetent, and an antagonist that could have been a memorable epic villain, especially when it was Christian Bale playing him, to another Marvel throwaway villain.

It's nothing new, as Marvel has always shied away from serious issues in their previous movies, always following the few serious moments with a comedic scene, but this is on a whole other level of farcical.

Hopefully they will dump Waititi, who is simply too focused on the comedic aspects, and give a more serious director a chance at the character. This of course will be futile if they keep writing Thor as a buffoon.

Moonhaven
(2022)

Why?
My takeaway from 2 episodes of this show is that there must be very few talented writers working in the North American entertainment industry.

Horrible pacing, the acting was sub par, the writing was simply trash but the visual effects were somewhat decent.

Another complaint I have that is not limited to this show is scenes showing men fighting women and the women winning or withstanding extreme impacts. Impressionable women will possibly take this to mean that a woman can stand up to a man in a physical confrontation which will end in disaster. In this particular instance Joe Manganiello is 6ft5 fighting a woman that is 5ft4 at most. One hit would mean fractures at the very least yet we got this laughable confrontation.

All in all the trend of bad productions continues with very few new movies or shows being good.

Watch at your own peril, as this will put you to sleep fairly quickly.

Jiok
(2021)

A Bit Slow at Times
Korea is putting out more quality entertainment than Hollywood these days for the simplest of reasons, no agenda, and this offers what Hollywood movies used to, escapism.

Most rational people want to watch a series or movie just to unwind and lose themselves in a good story for a few hours without being beaten over the head with wokeness, and Korea gets that.

Now don't get me wrong, Hellbound, or Jiok, has it's flaws. It's very slow and meandering at times, there was an action scene where they won the shaky cam award of the year, some characters just vanish after the time jump with no explanation, but it did it's job of keeping me watching.

Hopefully there will be a second season as it does end on a very interesting cliffhanger.

Recommended as long as you have a good attention span.

The Wheel of Time
(2021)

And So the Wheel Turns
To start with, I have read the series of books and although they were not perfect, they were highly enjoyable and epic in their scale.

Now to the series.

A show or movies based on a book or series of books is generally bound to infuriate as the finished product cannot compare to the imagination of the reader, and there are not many examples of where this has been overcome.

So far I have been watching a show that has the main characters of the books relegated to supporting characters with little to no dialogue in some episodes.

There were over 2000 named characters in the book and they still felt the need to create new characters for the show that serve no real purpose.

The acting is fairly bad. With the amount of money spent on the cinematography, you would think they would have hired better actors.

I could see how someone who hasn't read the books would be confused as to what is going on, as the explanations as to what is going on are vague, which makes me wonder who this show was made for.

If it was to introduce people to the world that Robert Jordan created then they failed.

If it was for fans of the books, then they have again failed, as they have been changing things that didn't need to be changed and generally angering fans.

If you are going to adapt a series of books, then do so correctly, otherwise write your own original story and do what you want with it.

My positive takeaway from The Wheel of Time is that the cinematography is excellent, and unfortunately that is the only thing I find worthwhile.

Maybe it will get better, but I highly doubt it.

If you enjoy reading, I would recommend giving the series of books a glance, as this show is a pale reflection of the story Jordan wrote.

Leverage: Redemption
(2021)

Some Things Are Best Left Alone
Continuing from the original Leverage, this series unfortunately has lost a lot of what I loved about the original, even though it tried by using some of the tropes that the original had.

Hutton was an integral part of what made the original show so great and is impossible to replace, even though they brought in Noah Wyle, I kept thinking about Hutton and what a shame it was he wasn't part of this.

On a side note, I keep complaining about fake reviews for other shows and movies, and this show that is made by IMdB, is full of "10" reviews from new accounts, which is laughable.

Watch it but don't expect to be thrilled by the changes.

Justice Society: World War II
(2021)

Not Up to DC Standards
Not so long ago, DC animation was extraordinary, with great voice actors and amazing animation. And then came Justice Society: World War II.

A fairly uncompelling story with unsatisfactory voice acting and subpar animation. If you are a DC comics fan, you are probably aware of who all the characters are, yet they focused almost entirely on Wonder Woman, making me wonder why they bothered with a JSA movie and didn't just go for a stand alone Wonder Woman movie.

A forgettable entry into the DC animated universe, and with 36% of votes being a perfect 10/10, makes me question the standards of some viewers.

Invincible
(2021)

Great Show
Well written show that stumbles a little bit but still remains, at least so far, great overall.

Diverges a little bit from the comic but in this case it doesn't really detract from the story or quality.

It is good enough that I look forward to every new episode, especially now that the overall quality of most shows is in the toilet.

Good story and graphic violence, what else could you ask for from an animated show about a super hero?

Recommended.

The Falcon and the Winter Soldier
(2021)

Falcon and the White Guilt
An entire mini series devoted to the leftist racial agenda.

I don't want to come across as insensitive but enough is enough. We watch movies and shows to escape reality for a little bit of time, not to listen to the agenda of the writers.

What could have been a decent show was scuttled by a non stop cascade of preaching and extremely uninteresting antagonists.

Next time try to write a decent script and leave the agenda to the media.

Heroes
(2006)

Fall From Grace
A solid first season that descended into mediocrity and degraded to outright bad writing in subsequent seasons and a complete failure in the attempted revival.

Good acting for the most part and kudos considering the scripts they were given from season 2 on.

A true shame for had they not lost their way this might be remembered as one of the great t.v shows instead of the laughingstock it became.

The first season is recommended however I advise any first time viewers to stop there.

Once Upon a Time in Venice
(2017)

Better Than I Expected
I went into this one not exactly sure what I was going to get, considering Bruce Willis has churned out a phenomenal amount of bad movies at an astounding pace in recent years.

What I watched was, to myself at least, a movie that kept me laughing throughout as things just kept getting more and more complicated for Willis' character.

I must warn that if you are to watch this, don't expect the action star Bruce Willis, go in expecting something akin to Hudson Hawk, which is a guilty pleasure of mine that always gets me mocked by my friends.

Good comedic moments and fairly good acting for what it is.

Recommended.

Zack Snyder's Justice League
(2021)

Infinitely Better Than the Whedon Version
I don't particularly like Zack Snyder's vision of the DCU, with Superman being watchable and Batman vs Superman being a horrible movie, but hat's off to him for this movie.

I wasn't expecting much going into this movie, but it was a darker movie with most of the comic elements having been cut out, and just about everything was more satisfying and enjoyable and the Flash especially was written much better.

I have only 2 complaints. One is the runtime. 4 hours is a bit much and I found quite a bit of material that could have been cut. My amateur eye caught about an hour's worth that could have been cut with no negative impact on the film.

The second complaint is the aspect ratio. 4:3, really? I don't understand the thought process behind this at all. Most of us have fairly large televisions these days, and 4:3 is jarring when viewed on a large screen.

Despite my few complaints, I can recommend this movie wholeheartedly.

Superman & Lois
(2021)

CW Turning the Page?
I had sworn off the CW after the final episode of Supernatural and then they released this.

I can't believe this is a CW show as all they usually seem to do is pander to the woke crowd, but I suppose their lack of viewership has caused them to reevaluate their priorities.

This is a really good show, possibly their best new recent series since the first season of Arrow and hopefully it will not deteriorate the same way.

My only complaint is that for the supposed most powerful being on the planet Superman seems to get his behind kicked almost every episode.

This review is based on the first 3 episodes, should it change I will edit my review and rating accordingly, let's hope it doesn't.

The Blacklist
(2013)

Spader is Awesome
As with many people, the only reason I have made it to 8 seasons is the amazing acting of James Spader.

Unfortunately, I am in the same wheelhouse as many people with not liking Megan Boone's character and the actress unfortunately has no acting range whatsoever, and I am particularly annoyed and on the verge of quitting the show due to the direction season 8 has gone.

For 7 full seasons, Reddington was playing chess whilst everyone else was playing checkers, always 10 steps ahead, yet suddenly he is playing in a sandbox and drooling.

All I can say is that whoever pitched the plot for season 8 should be blacklisted themselves.

I could watch an entire hour of James Spader just sitting in a chair and reading a menu and actually would rather watch that than what they are producing at the moment.

Monster Hunter
(2020)

Only for Fans of the Game I Guess?
I have never played the game and know nothing about it at all. I guess I had to so I could understand what was going on and how everyone seems to have super durability in this movie. People were being hit by creatures weighing tons and getting up right after. I understand it's supposed to be a mindless action movie, but I guess physics don't apply in that world either.

There is some peripheral explanation as to what is going on but from what I could guess only people who have played the game would understand fully.

CONS: Very little dialogue, too many cuts during action scenes, no real plot.

PROS: Good visual effects

Some mindless fun to be had I guess but I wouldn't recommend this movie nor would I ever watch it again.

The Stand
(2020)

Badly Adapted
First off I will not compare the mini series to the novel as screen adaptations are almost always inferior to their respective source materials, as this was, nor will I compare it to the previous iteration on the small screen, which was also superior to this one.

As a stand alone story this mini series fails in almost every way, not really giving us an insight into who most of these people are, choosing to gloss over their origins before and during the outbreak, and unless you actually have read the book, you probably have no clue who these people really are. The writing is the problem with this mini series and leaves me wondering why they bothered remaking it. I will not go into the race and gender swapping they did to some of the characters as this is being done with every project and has been discussed ad nauseam.

In the end, I felt that although the mini series was about 9 hours total, nothing really happened and I came away with nothing as well.

Very badly adapted, some decent acting. You are better off watching the 1994 series.

Not Recommended

Outside the Wire
(2021)

Silly Movie
A fairly bad movie that feels like it was written by a teenager with no knowledge or life experience.

Anthony Mackie, though unimpressive, did a passable job, whereas I cannot for the life of me understand the casting of Damson Idris, who was fairly bad, having no presence on screen and seemed to be acting on auto pilot.

The writing was atrocious, seemingly trying to convey a message but falling short. The lead is supposed to have 56,000 hours of flight time which is also ridiculous, showing me how bad the writers actually are. 56,000 hours is 24 hours per day, 7 days a week, for over 6 YEARS...

In the end, it is a silly implausible movie that you will forget moments after you watch it.

Not Recommended.

Wonder Woman 1984
(2020)

What Was That?
After this disappointing year, I was very much looking forward to Wonder Woman 1984. And just like 2020, this movie was horrible.

It started off semi promising, with Kristen Wiig doing a good job in the first act and steadily going downhill as the movie progressed. Pedro Pascal is the only actor I actually thought did a good job, playing the camp to the max, everyone else was almost as disappointing as the script.

The writing was atrocious, and though I had some issues with the first movie, I still enjoyed it. Wonder Woman 1984 seemed to have been written by a 12 year old with no concept of reality. Even in a superhero movie, you can only suspend you disbelief so much, such as a pilot going flawlessly from a propeller plane to a jet with no discernable difficulties. I could literally write a short story's worth of how many flaws this movie had. Shame on them for writing such a bad script. DC had 2 good franchises in Wonder Woman and Aquaman, and they just sunk Wonder Woman. I hope they learn from this mistake, but I doubt it.

Officially in My Book for Top 5 Worst Superhero Movies

Not Recommended.

Monsters of Man
(2020)

Surprisingly Good
I went into this movie not having even seen a trailer and honestly with the current situation new releases are few and far between I have been watching movies recently that I never would have under normal circumstances.

Although fairly simplistic in it's plot, Monsters of Man was very good for what it intended to be with a good story, good practical effects, those robots looked good, and fairly good acting. A good action movie with shocking violence, including against women and children, which is almost unheard of, and makes those scenes a bit difficult to watch.

I didn't recognize any of the actors except for Neal McDonough, but I can't say that any of the actors did a bad job. My only complaint is that there is one scene where you can't tell the robots apart, I won't spoil anything, but not being able to tell them apart takes away from that scene.

Mark Toia had no credits for anything before this, but kudos, I was presently surprised, though it seems he is somewhat a narcissist, placing his name in the credits as Executive Producer twice and as Producer all before crediting the actors, so you basically see his name 5 or so times before the acting credits, all in the opening credits.

Recommended

Anything for Jackson
(2020)

Simple But Creepy
The horror gendre has been one of my favorites for my entire life, yet the production of good movies in said gendre has been lacking, to put it mildly, in recent memory.

The horror movies that are effective, for myself at least, are those which don't rely on jump scares and actually endeavour to creep you out, thereby instilling a lasting emotion when thinking about the film.

Anything for Jackson, although not outstanding per se, does a fairly decent job of being creepy.

The acting is fairly good, and though I admit I do have a soft spot for Julian Richings who plays Dr. Henry Walsh, the entire cast does a competent job. The writing was up to snuff as well, taking a very basic premise and fleshing it out, and the make up and effects department did a great job.

I would recommend Anything for Jackson for a decent 90 minute watch.

Run
(2020)

Extremely Predictable
I have to say that Run was, if anything, a very well acted movie. Sarah Paulson plays her part very well and Kiera Allen does a superb job.

What lets this movie down is the writing and directing. As my title states, the story was predictable and I knew what was going on from very early on, and the only thing that kept me watching was the actors. Not to mention quite a few things did not add up.

The directing/editing is also a letdown as some scenes are unnecessary and drawn out seemingly there just to get the runtime to 90 minutes.

I could recommend this for the acting, however the script fails in my opinion and most will figure out what is going on in about 10-15 minutes.

Fatman
(2020)

Ho Ho Ha
I had put this on my watchlist the moment I saw the trailer. Although it wasn't exactly what I was expecting, it is a fairly decent movie and did make me laugh out loud a few times.

Mel Gibson does a great job as Santa, as does Walter Goggins as the hitman with a personal vendetta, and Chance Hurstfield plays his role well enough that you despise his character. The acting overall was pretty good.

If I have any complaints is that there were certain parts of the storyline that made no sense other than to prolong the action. I mean Santa getting subsidized by the US government? And surely Santa had more powers than he used. And by no means do I want to come across as racist, but come on, a black actress playing Mrs. Kringle? If it changed the story in any way I could overlook it, but they just race swapped her to dot some I's and cross some T's on an equality form.

All in all the movie could have been better, but I still enjoyed it, though it ended quite abruptly.

Recommended for a few chuckles.

Attack the Block
(2011)

Attack of the Hoodlums
Below average alien film with bad acting from all the kids in the gang and nearly incomprehensible dialogue for people who are not from the UK. English is my native language yet I found myself unable to understand some of the dialogue during the movie, other than the 300 uses of guv and fam.

Another major negative is that all these kids are criminals and hoodlums, who start off the movie mugging a woman, which ends any chance of the audience rooting for them, and the whole situation that befalls them is of their own making due to their violent tendencies.

One of the positives is that the creature effects were pretty good, and some scenes had good moments of tension.

Not Recommended

The Wolf of Snow Hollow
(2020)

Could Have Been OK
Jim Cummings, who wrote, directed and starred in the movie manages to single handedly render it unwatchable.

He wrote a passable script, but had some directing flaws and his acting just kills this movie. He is way too over the top in most of his scenes and seems to have been absent the day they taught subtle nuanced acting in class. I'm not sure what his thought process was, but with his bad acting most of his scenes were him screaming dialogue.

It's unfortunate that this was Robert Forster's last appearance on screen, though his few minutes of screentime were good.

Not Recommended

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