Tag 20th Century Fox

Alien Romulus is the latest in the Alien franchise, this time returning to the survival horror roots that launched it!

20th Century Studios has returned to the roots of the Alien franchise with Alien Romulus, featuring the likeness of Ian Holm, who played Ash in the original film. With the exception of the original film, I have always felt that the franchise was less horror and more sci-fi action film. I have literally seen every seen every Alien film in the franchise. I’ve virtually enjoyed them all, even the Aliens Vs Predator films. Romulus truly is the return to its roots.

Taking place about twenty years after the original, Weyland-Yutani is up to their usual shenanigans and have been searching for the organism that was responsible for nearly killing the entire crew of the Nostromo. As they usually are, they were successful and began experimenting on the creature, but not before it woke up and killed a bunch of the crew. On the nearby mining planet, a group of teens learn about the space station and believe it has been decommissioned. They decide to raid it for supplies to allow them to travel to a planet that is not under the control of the company. As expected this is when things go awry.

The cast was beyond fantastic, especially the two leads that played Andy and Rain, Cailee Spaeny and David Jonsson. Set designs, costumes and effects were perfect but were outshined by the brilliant use of lighting and ambient sounds to REALLY set the tone for the film. Overall this is the second best film in the franchise and that’s because you just can’t beat the original, especially on that first watch.

Today we take a look at Kinds of Kindness from the same director behind of Poor Things and much of the same cast, including Emma Stone.

Some films come and completely change how you viewed the genre or create a new bar to hold all cinema to. Kinds of Kindness is one of those films for me. From Searchlight Pictures and Director Yorgos Lanthimos, the film is broken up into three short films, each more deranged than the last. This film was one of the most difficult I have ever reviewed. I literally spent more than a week just staring at the screen, trying to figure out how to voice my thoughts on the film. For me it was beyond difficult. I even called friends to voice my feelings on the film but even they couldn’t help me voice my thoughts in a constructive manner.

In short, this was probably the worst film I have seen all year, BUT it’s clear, I am not the target audience for the film. The cast, editing, literally everything in the production was done with expert skill, beyond what most films do these days. It just wasn’t a film FOR ME. Now, I have no idea who the target audience really is but they’ve managed to do something great with the film, despite my lack of enjoyment. They proved that a film unlike any other out there, using truly original ideas and stories could not only be well received but also be brilliantly executed. It proves that not all films have to be for everyone. I used to believe that if someone watching it can’t enjoy it even a little then they screwed up. After seeing the film I can respect what they’ve done and what they’ve tried to do and still not enjoy it. If you’re someone that watches a film for the directing, the acting or some other technical aspect then you will love this film. If you focus on the uniqueness of the story then this is the film for you, but if you’re looking for a great story at the same time this one may just fall short.

The Team at 20th Century Studios have rereleased three of M. Night Shyamalan’s most famous films including Signs, the Sixth Sense and Unbreakable but we’re only looking at two of them.

The folks at 20th Century Studios sent us copies of both Signs and The Sixth Sense, both of which were written and directed by M. Night Shyamalan. The Sixth Sense was the first film I had ever seen by Shyamalan and was the first film with a major twist I had seen. I remember just seeing the faces in the crowd with me freaking out at the huge reveal. It was brilliantly executed and STILL holds up. Ironically, about a week before we received our review copies I was telling my oldest I would love to watch this film with her and now we have that chance. The Signs was released about three years later and followed a similar story progression but the subject of the story was centered around aliens and not the badass xenomorphs from Alien.

When Signs was first released, I had seen it in theaters and was disappointed. Having watched it again in 4k I have a couple notes. The first is that the visuals were clean and much more crisp than some footage I’d see online recently of the original release (same for The Sixth Sense). The second is that the story was much better told than I had remembered but the overall story still left me wanting more. The Sixth Sense though still holds up as a fantastic film and thoroughly enjoyed getting to share it once again with my family.

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is the third installment in the Planet of the Apes reboot franchise and the first we’ve seen.

The folks at 20th Century Studios were kind enough to send us a copy of Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes for the purpose of this review. Humans are nearly extinct from a virus of their creation leading to the start of the film. The film truly starts with three apes searching nests for eggs to collect, ensuring to leave at least one behind in each nest. this is for a bonding ceremony. After losing his egg, one of the apes ventures out that night to try for another, accidentally leading a group to his village, condemning them to death and giving our protagonist a reason to venture beyond his village.

The imagery of the world and the film is a more organic version of a dystopian landscape where everything that had fallen to disrepair has now been covered over or removed removed entirely by green. Reminds us that nature is just waiting for the chance to replace us and return what we’ve built to the land it could have been and it is beautiful. The dialogue is a bit disjointed through most of the film but I suspect that is intentional due to the still evolving nature of the apes and the de-evolving nature of the humans or echoes as they are referred to in the film. The story itself was well told but the voice acting and dialogue seemed to detract from the film as a whole. It felt incomplete like there were scenes cut that would have made the story much better. Now this could be because I hadn’t seen the previous films since the reboot and barely remember the classic versions but it just felt like it was missing some big pieces that would have helped made the story much stronger if they had been there.

Between King Kong teaming up with Godzilla and the latest Planet of the Apes film, 2024 may just be the year of the ape but let’s hope it would be more of the former than latter.

Check out the trailer for Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes:

Next Goal Wins is based on a true story about the American-Samoa football team and their attempts at a comeback.

Next Goal Wins in the latest biopic in theaters, this time centered around the American-Samoa team. The team is most known for their game that they lost with a devastating 31-0. With the World Cup Qualifiers approaching they hire a coach with the intention of bringing them a victory. The premise, while true sounds exactly like that of one of my childhood favorites- Cool Runnings. Searchlight Studios and Director Taika Waititi spearheaded the project with top billing going to Michael Fassbender who plays Coach Rongen. To clarify, this is a film about a football team and not the NFL kind.

Sports movies or shows typically fall flat for me, that is unless they are full of humor. Cool Runnings and Shoresy being two of my favorites, for very different reasons and styles of course. I also am typically a fan of every film Waititi has been tied to so my hopes were higher than normal for this one. I found the film fall a little short in terms of hilarity but it was still quite enjoyable. The story was well told and I felt you got a better understanding of the characters than most other directors would have managed with the same story. If you are looking for a film to watch as a family about an underdog you want to root for then this will be a great choice for you.

IT IS RARE FOR ME TO SEE A MOVIE WHEN IT’S STILL IN THEATERS BUT THANKS TO 20TH CENTURY STUDIOS I WAS ABLE TO CATCH UP ON A FEW THAT I MISSED.

Recently the fine folks at 20th Century Fox (now 20th Century Studios- their home page is here) had sent me codes to several of the movies I missed so that I could share my thoughts on them with you. Part 1 was all about Underwater and Part 2 focused on The New Mutants. Part 3 we talked about The Personal History of David Copperfield. Part 4 discussed The Empty Man. Part 5 talked about Nomadland and Speed 4K Ultra HD. Part 6 discussed The Night House and Free Guy. Part 7 focused on The Eyes of Tammy Faye and Part 8 had The Last Duel. Part 9 discussed Ron’s Gone Wrong.

Part 10 talked about The King’s Man and Summer of Soul. Part 11 discussed Nightmare Alley and West Side Story. Part 12 highlighted Death on the Nile and Part 13 talked about The Bob’s Burgers Movie. Part 14 highlighted Barbarian and See How They Run. Part 15 discussed Amsterdam and Part 16 talked about The Banshees of Inisherin and The Menu. Part 17 shared our thoughts on Empire of Light and Part 18 with Avatar: The Way of Water. Part 19 had Avatar in 4k and Chevalier. Part 20 shared The Boogeyman and  Part 21 had Theater Camp. We have returned for the final part of this series (future reviews for 20th Century will be done differently than you’re used to) with A Haunting in Venice and The Creator!

A Haunting in Venice

Hercule has been living in Venice, enjoying his retirement and decides to attend a seance where the guests start dying. Death seems to follow wherever he goes, he might need to stay home more but I digress. He has always been a man of logic and the events of this night have him questioning his stance on the supernatural. Branagh’s acting and directing are superb as always and this was a fantastic, albeit much darker addition to the Poirot-verse and I hope we continue to get more!

The Creator

This film follows the creation of Artificial Intelligence, the war that followed and a mission to eliminate the head of continued AI development. A weapon is created that could stop all further fighting, allowing AI to win and it is up to Joshua to find it and destroy it. This film was absolutely brilliant with brilliant performances from everyone. From taking an entirely original look at artificial intelligence to further proving that man will ultimately cause their own downfall, this is a must watch for sci-fi fans and anyone tired of the AI will destroy the world trope.

IT IS RARE FOR ME TO SEE A MOVIE WHEN IT’S STILL IN THEATERS BUT THANKS TO 20TH CENTURY STUDIOS I WAS ABLE TO CATCH UP ON A FEW THAT I MISSED.

Recently the fine folks at 20th Century Fox (now 20th Century Studios- their home page is here) had sent me codes to several of the movies I missed so that I could share my thoughts on them with you. Part 1 was all about Underwater and Part 2 focused on The New Mutants. Part 3 we talked about The Personal History of David Copperfield. Part 4 discussed The Empty Man. Part 5 talked about Nomadland and Speed 4K Ultra HD. Part 6 discussed The Night House and Free Guy. Part 7 focused on The Eyes of Tammy Faye and Part 8 had The Last Duel. Part 9 discussed Ron’s Gone Wrong and

Part 10 talked about The King’s Man and Summer of Soul. Part 11 discussed Nightmare Alley and West Side Story. Part 12 highlighted Death on the Nile and Part 13 talked about The Bob’s Burgers Movie. Part 14 highlighted Barbarian and See How They Run. Part 15 discussed Amsterdam and Part 16 talked about The Banshees of Inisherin and The Menu. Part 17 shared our thoughts on Empire of Light and Part 18 with Avatar: The Way of Water. Part 19 had Avatar in 4k and Chevalier. Part 20 shared The Boogeyman and we are back with Part 21 with Theater Camp!

Theater Camp

The overall story of Theater Camp follows the decline of a camp full of drama students after the proprietor enters a coma and her son takes over. Done as a fake documentary, or mockumentary, the film has a bit of a dry humor that is more subtle than viewers may be used to. There are two things that will help make this more enjoyable for you- if you have experience in the theater or camps like this and lastly if you enjoy the dryer British style of humor. If either of those fit you then this film will be a great choice for you, if they don’t there is still enough humor for everyone else that you should be satiated. Overall the passion for this world of theater is evident and was even more clear once I learned that three of the film’s leads helped to write the film, using their own real experiences to inspire the story. Usually a film like this with a budget that is next to nothing that is purely for the passion of those involved and done so at the start of their careers. It was nice to see what could be done with a proper budget and the experience behind it to make it really shine.

IT IS RARE FOR ME TO SEE A MOVIE WHEN IT’S STILL IN THEATERS BUT THANKS TO 20TH CENTURY STUDIOS I WAS ABLE TO CATCH UP ON A FEW THAT I MISSED.

Recently the fine folks at 20th Century Fox (now 20th Century Studios- their home page is here) had sent me codes to several of the movies I missed so that I could share my thoughts on them with you. Part 1 was all about Underwater and Part 2 focused on The New Mutants. Part 3 we talked about The Personal History of David Copperfield. Part 4 discussed The Empty Man. Part 5 talked about Nomadland and Speed 4K Ultra HD. Part 6 discussed The Night House and Free Guy. Part 7 focused on The Eyes of Tammy Faye and Part 8 had The Last Duel. Part 9 discussed Ron’s Gone Wrong and

Part 10 talked about The King’s Man and Summer of Soul. Part 11 discussed Nightmare Alley and West Side Story. Part 12 highlighted Death on the Nile and Part 13 talked about The Bob’s Burgers Movie. Part 14 highlighted Barbarian and See How They Run. Part 15 discussed Amsterdam and Part 16 talked about The Banshees of Inisherin and The Menu. Part 17 shared our thoughts on Empire of Light and Part 18 with Avatar: The Way of Water. Part 19 had Avatar in 4k and Chevalier. We have returned for Part 20 and The Boogeyman.

The Boogeyman

The film follows a father and his two daughters dealing with the loss of their mother and his wife, each coping in their own ways or in the father’s case, not at all. The father is a psychiatrist and sees patients in his home and seems to only really connect with them instead of his own children. That is until a new patient arrives without an appointment who shares a story about all of his children dying. When the psychiatrist steps away, the patient hangs himself in the house, unleashing the boogeyman on the unsuspecting family. The basis of the story is quite simple, an evil entity preys on a family suffering through grief and they must work together to save themselves. The kids were great in their roles but the father’s performance was something else. It was obvious he was meant to be disconnected but the actor took it further and made it fully robotic. I also felt the lack of music or ambiance was a mistake but my wife tells me it improved the suspense for her. The effects and sets were absolutely fantastic but the father’s acting made it more difficult to enjoy.

IT IS RARE FOR ME TO SEE A MOVIE WHEN IT’S STILL IN THEATERS BUT THANKS TO 20TH CENTURY STUDIOS I WAS ABLE TO CATCH UP ON A FEW THAT I MISSED.

Recently the fine folks at 20th Century Fox (now 20th Century Studios- their home page is here) had sent me codes to several of the movies I missed so that I could share my thoughts on them with you. Part 1 was all about Underwater and Part 2 focused on The New Mutants. Part 3 we talked about The Personal History of David Copperfield. Part 4 discussed The Empty Man. Part 5 talked about Nomadland and Speed 4K Ultra HD. Part 6 discussed The Night House and Free Guy. Part 7 focused on The Eyes of Tammy Faye and Part 8 had The Last Duel. Part 9 discussed Ron’s Gone Wrong and Part 10 talked about The King’s Man and Summer of Soul. Part 11 discussed Nightmare Alley and West Side Story. Part 12 highlighted Death on the Nile and Part 13 talked about The Bob’s Burgers Movie. Part 14 highlighted Barbarian and See How They Run. Part 15 discussed Amsterdam and Part 16 talked about The Banshees of Inisherin and The Menu. Part 17 shared our thoughts on Empire of Light and we’ve returned for Part 18 and Avatar: The Way of Water!

Avatar: The Way of Water

The first Avatar film was an epic story about a Marine that is filling in for his dead scientist brother to move his consciousness into the body of an Avatar. Avatars are clones of their own human DNA mixed with that of the Na’vi. This is to allow them to integrate into the communities and improve relations. Jake Sully soon learns that the Na’vi are not the problem on Pandora and helps lead a revolution against his own species, driving the invaders from the planet. That brings us into the sequel. Jake and Neytiri have prospered and added their own children to the tribe but of course the good times wouldn’t last. I won’t go into specifics about the story because I’d hate to spoil it for anyone and this is a film that you should watch. The first film was visually one of the best films I’d ever seen and still holds up to this day- we still watch it regularly as a family. There was no way that The Way of Water could do better, or so I thought. Visually this film is stunning but some of the fights may be just a little too graphic for younger audiences, our seven year old enjoyed it but was freaked out by a few scenes. Overall I feel like this installment in the series far surpassed the original and even though it took what felt like forever to get this film, I still can’t wait for the finale.

IT IS RARE FOR ME TO SEE A MOVIE WHEN IT’S STILL IN THEATERS BUT THANKS TO 20TH CENTURY STUDIOS I WAS ABLE TO CATCH UP ON A FEW THAT I MISSED.

Recently the fine folks at 20th Century Fox (now 20th Century Studios- their home page is here) had sent me codes to several of the movies I missed so that I could share my thoughts on them with you. Part 1 was all about Underwater and Part 2 focused on The New Mutants. Part 3 we talked about The Personal History of David Copperfield. Part 4 discussed The Empty Man. Part 5 talked about Nomadland and Speed 4K Ultra HD. Part 6 discussed The Night House and Free Guy. Part 7 focused on The Eyes of Tammy Faye and Part 8 had The Last Duel. Part 9 discussed Ron’s Gone Wrong and Part 10 talked about The King’s Man and Summer of Soul. Part 11 discussed Nightmare Alley and West Side Story. Part 12 highlighted Death on the Nile and Part 13 talked about The Bob’s Burgers Movie. Part 14 highlighted Barbarian and See How They Run. Part 15 discussed Amsterdam and Part 16 talked about The Banshees of Inisherin and The Menu. We have returned for Part 17 to share our thoughts on Empire of Light!

Empire of Light

This film centers around a cinema in the 1980’s where the white manager falls for her black employee and dealing with the racism and hate of that time period. The overall performances are fantastic despite the depth provided for those characters. The film felt like it was more meant to showcase the experiences of the black male and not on the person himself. Overall this film missed the mark and was quite dull in terms of story but I appreciated the quality of the performances.