EvilPhoEniX

I'm not a huge fan of the franchise, but I went to the cinema out of curiosity, as spies are trendy now, but Johnny English isn't going to make a dent in the world. Action-wise, there's nothing to stand on, the villain is awful (one of the worst I've seen this year) and the humor is alternately funny and lame. Rowan Atkinson in Bean mode is still fine and Olga Kurylenko is sexier than ever here, but it's nowhere near a cinematic spectacle. 55%

Drew Goddard, the director of the great The Cabin in the Woods, did not please me at all with this one and after a long time I left the cinema completely bored. (I guess the other four people in the cinema fell asleep and my friends said after an hour that if someone doesn't die and soon, we leave). I had high hopes for this film, the trailers were promising, there decent actors, an attractive premise, and there was also the similarity to both Identity and The Hateful Eight, which I liked, but this one unfortunately failed with me. The film is 142 minutes long and doesn't offer enough enticing material to fully entertain and satisfy the viewer. The hotel with a hidden secret was fine, the sets are nice, the music is great music, and at first I was even entertained by the unknown mystery, but it didn't really go anywhere. Most of the time is given to Jeff Bridges and Cynthia Erivo, who are probably the least interesting characters in the film, with only Dakota Johnson surprisingly pulling it off as an actor, and then Chris Hemsworth, but he shows up half an hour before the end, and that felt like a letdown. The twists and turns are unexpected but not shocking (Lewis Pullman slightly surprised in the ending), the dialogue is futile and the lack of blood and action scenes is a minus for me. There is only one shootout at the end and it's over before I could say shoemaker. Too bad the director didn't pull something in the style of The Cabin in the Woods, it would have fit nicely here. A tedious and not very entertaining film, but it has its own vibe. 60%.

The first half was very good, as I usually like heist movies a lot, but unfortunately the second half turned into a boring political negotiation game and I lost all interest in how it would all turn out. I liked the classically good Luis Tosar, but also unexpectedly few twists for Spaniards. I didn’t like this. 40%

A dark black-humor thriller with an excellent madman, Danny McBride, set during the 2009 housing crisis. Danny McBride goes to complain to a real estate agent about selling his apartment, but an accident and a murder occur at the same time, setting off a carousel of dead bodies where everyone dies by accident. It's both unexpectedly and enjoyably gory and nicely funny, and McBride is superb as the madman. As nice stuff to kill a dull evening the film serves well enough, it doesn't even try for more than that. 65%

A very enjoyable feel good retro drama about an introvert who befriends the biggest dude in school and they start dealing weed. The shy boy gradually becomes a different person who wants more money, starts dating the hottest chick in town and gains confidence, but it's a business where happiness blooms only for a short while. Great choice of actors, a solid Thomas Jane as the sheriff, cool jokes and allusions to other movies, a nice retro atmosphere and a fateful finale. Huge surprise. 80%.

It's a great pity that this rather unconventional and appealing premise is merely a drama, because there's something unpleasant hanging in the air the whole film and you hope that it will turn into a thriller at the end, but alas. I can't say I was bored, it was interesting to watch the escalating conflict between the two parents, but I couldn't root for anyone because the father was a bastard and the wife was a bitch and I was sorry the French didn't let go of their chains, the ending was just begging for a shocking finale. Good film but left me emotionally cold. 65%

Dennis Iliadis is a bum, Last House on the Left was probably his peak and he has been rather stagnant since. What was initially a rather interesting idea fizzles out into nothing after half an hour, and it’s followed by a bland vapidity that did absolutely nothing to interest me. Only Genesis Rodriguez attracts attention with her beauty, the rest I had to suffer through. 40%.

Paul Greengrass serves up a dense psychological drama about the July 22, 2011 terrorist attack in Norway that killed 77 people, and he perfectly captures the horror everyone there experienced. There was another attempt this year, from Norway, Utøya: July 22, but that one didn't work very well from my point of view, it's presented in an overly documentary and boring way, no one dies and they don't even show Breivik himself. Greengrass, in contrast, describes in detail how everything took place and literally draws the viewer into the film. The opening explosion and the subsequent merciless murder of the students on the island is excellent (here the director could have spent more time than 15 minutes, but emotionally and psychologically it affected me just the same). I also praise the performance of one of the survivors, Viljar, who survived five gunshot wounds and still has to live with lifelong consequences. The film culminates in a dense trial where emotions are not spared and the hatred towards Breivik is spot on. Solid stuff. 75%

For the first time without his brother, Timo Tjahjanto delivers another action gem that will definitely put a smile on your face, and as it works perfectly as a replacement for the cancelled The Raid 3. It's worth noting that Timo made his name with the horror film Macabre (still one of the most brutal exploitation films ever) so the primary fiddle is played by gore and violence, which is abundant here, and I really like his approach to the genre because he is one of the few to push the boundaries, show things that are taboo and shy away from absolutely nothing. That fascinates me because Americans can be quietly envious. Acting wise the film is top notch, it brings together a familiar cast, but it took me a little to get used to Iko Uwais being a villain, but thankfully Joe Taslim has charisma to spare, but surprisingly Julie Estelle shines the most, she immediately needs her own solo outing. The action hardly takes its foot off the gas it's one ultra brutal carnage where everyone is slashing with whatever is at hand, limbs are broken in all sorts of ways and multiple fighting styles are used. Tjahjanto revels in lethal destruction and I go crazy right along with him. The biggest highlight is definitely Julie Estelle versus two lesbians, and I don't think there has been a better female fight, and of course the finale, which takes the best of The Raid 2, and Joe Taslim versus Uwais as a battle of brothers was quite emotional, and of course the choreography can't be faulted. Not just to praise, there are of course some issues. I found the visuals rather average, at times I felt the characters were surviving the impossible and I was a little disappointed that there was no new action discovery. But these are irrelevant little things that didn't spoil the experience for me. Anyone who likes confident action, uncompromising and brutal films will be satisfied. Those who slept through Steven Seagal, Dolph Lundgren and Jean-Claude Van Damme will probably grumble. An action fan can't go below 3* here. I'm looking forward to May the Devil Take You and hope that in the years to come the Mo Brothers will continue to satisfy me, because there aren't that many smart filmmakers out there right now. 90%

David Gordon Green, director of the great comedies Pineapple Express and Your Highness, pays homage to and follows up the classic Halloween from 1978, and I don't think John Carpenter can be offended. While I should point out that the original Halloween is not one of my favourite films and more or less only became a cult thing because it was the first at the time and therefore shocking to people, due to the lack of blood and the few murders it doesn’t stand out with me as a slasher, but I'm exceedingly pleased with the 2018 version. Michael Myers rages more than ever and his work is definitely enjoyable to watch. Quite a few victims fall, blood is not spared and there are some very nice explicit scenes, but again, it's nothing the average viewer won't digest. The nostalgia is nicely buzzed by the original soundtrack and I really liked the new one, they complement each other perfectly. The atmosphere is great, especially the finale in the building is built up so that I couldn't breathe at times and the silence in the hall with the cinema packed was unbelievable. The acting is also very decent, led by Jamie Lee Curtis, who is quite physically fit for her old age and is quite good with guns. The role of the young black man is also great, as he lightens the dark atmosphere with humour for a few minutes. The downside for me was the slower pacing (before Michael escapes from the asylum it's a bit uninspiring), and also the absence of boobs, which were abundant in the original. All in all, I'm satisfied and definitely the best Halloween (sorry Rob Zombie and Carpenter) and of course another golden hit this year next to Hereditary and A Quiet Place. 80%