My Review of The Lion King (1994)

 

Written by Irene Mecchi And Jonathan Roberts And Linda Woolverton

Directed by Roger Allers And Rob Minkoff

Simba: "Oh, I just can't wait to be King."

It's been a good thirty years since the release of this movie. In that time we've had straight to DVD sequels/prequels, a live action reboot (on my list to review this month) and a live action prequel also about to hit cinemas this month. Okay, not a unique situation for a Disney movie.

Anyways, this movie was something I loved as a child and every single often, I find myself coming back to as an adult. The movie itself opened with the birth of Simba (Matthew Broderick/Jonathan Taylor Thomas) with both parents Mufasa (James Earl Jones) and Sarabi (Madge Sinclair) being proud of their new addition.

Of course Simba's a bit of a boisterous cub, causing exasperation to his father's majordomo Zazu (Rowan Atkinson) but also Simba had a friend and future mate with fellow cub Nala (Moira Kelly/Niketa Calame). Yes,Simba had a flair for mischief and an uncle named Scar (Jeremy Irons) who was more than eager to use that to his advantage.

Now we've seen Disney villains being mean and murderous all the time but for some reason, when it's Scar, it felt that bit worse. Recruiting hyenas Shenzi (Whoopi Goldberg), Banzai (Cheech Marin) and Ed (Jim Cummings) to help kill Mufasa along with also trying to get rid of Simba. Yes, Scar felt that tiny bit more evil than other villains when in reality he's about the same.

Of course it does boil down to the performance and the calculated way in which Scar made Simba believe that the latter was responsible for Mufasa's death. Simba's long exile did result in his friendships with Pumbaa (Ernie Sambella) and Timon (Nathan Lane) and those two are the absolute best friends anyone can have in a Disney movie.

Speaking of Scar, that confrontation between him and the adult Simba as the latter reclaims the pride that Scar took over and diminished was the best part of the movie. Scar's comeuppance was suitably dark, even with the movie ending on a brighter note with a new generation born into the pride.

- A character I liked a lot in this movie was Rafiki (Robert Guillaume), the Shaman of the Pride Lands.

- One of the few Disney movies ot based on an adaptation of sorts.

- Standout music: Circle of Life, I Just Can't Wait to Be King, Be Prepared, Hakuna Matata, and Can You Feel the Love Tonight.

- Chronology: An unspecified time in the Pride Lands of Tanzania.

The Lion King would definitely be in my Top 5 of all time Disney movies. It's just a joy to watch from start to finish with a sympathetic young lead, a fantastically camp and menacing villain, great supporting characters and memorable songs. What more could you want?

Rating: 9 out of 10 

My Review of Les Miserables (2012)

 

Written by William Nicholson And Alain Boublil And Claude-Michel Schönberg And Herbert Kretzmer

Directed by Tom Hooper 

Gavroche: "This is the land that fought for liberty, now when we fight, we fight for bread... here is the thing about equality, everyone's equal when they're dead."

Yesterday, I looked at the epic misfire that was Cats, so as a counterbalance, I also went back to look at Tom Hooper's success with this musical adaptation. I really love this one.

Based on the Victor Hugo of the same name and the stage production, the film initially focused on the impoverished Fantine (Anne Hathaway), a single mother, trying to make ends meet in a factory. Jealous co-workers and an distant boss in Valjean (Hugh Jackman) see Fantine's life take a turn for the worst.

She's had to give up her daughter, Cosette (Isabelle Allen/Amanda Seyfried) to a horrible innkeeper couple, Thénardiers (Sacha Baron Cohen and Helena Bonham Carter) and was forced to sell herself on the streets. Brutish clients, sickness and the overzealous police inspector Javert (Russell Crowe) all added to Fantine's misery before dying.

As for Valjean, his history with Javert came to the forefront when he stepped up to adopt Cosette and while the two of them moved up in the world, Javert was adamant in his pursuit of justice. That was in spite of the new philanthropic role that Valjean has set up for himself.

The second half of the movie very much moved into the revolution side of things. There's a love triangle between Cosette, activist Marius Pontmercy (Eddie Redmayne) and the Thénardiers daughter, Eponine (Samantha Barks) during this, which does offer sympathy for the latter. 

Between betrayals, blackmails, executions and sacrifices from our remaining players, this last act of this movie was a triumph. There's certainly plenty of sad moments as well as happier ones with both Cosette and Marius by the end of this storming adaptation. 

- Several actors from previous stage productions such as Fra Free, George Blagden, Julian Bleach, Kate Fleetwood and Hannah Waddingham appeared in the movie.

- A lot of Fantine's characteristics came from Hugo's own encounter with a real life prostitute being accosted by a customer in public. 

- Standout music: Valjean's Soliloquy, I Dreamed A Dream, Master Of The House, Suddenly, On My Own, One Day More, Bring Him Home and The Final Battle.

- Chronology: 1815 to begin with as well as 1823 in Montreuil, Pas-de-Calais 1832 in Paris.

Les Miserables definitely was a triumph for Tom Hooper. He took the stage adaptation and managed to make it into a more accessible movie with some genuinely spellbinding performances from everyone on board. Easily my favourite musical adaptation and it's aged pretty damn good too.

Rating: 9 out of 10 

My Review of Cats (2019)

 

Written by Lee Hall And Tom Hooper 

Directed by Tom Hooper 

Grizabella: "Touch me! It's so easy to leave me! All alone with the memory of my days in the sun. If you touch me, you'll understand what happiness is! Look, a new day has begun."

It's coming up to five years since this chaotic misfire of an adaptation was released and I cannot lie, it hasn't improved with time. Sometimes there are movies that are just fascinating disasters to watch. This would be one of them.

Taking Andrew Lloyd Webber's iconic musical, giving to the same director who successfully brought Les Miserables to the big screen seven years prior and loading it with a star cast that included the biggest pop star on the planet. This had all the ingredients to be a massive success and yet the exact opposite happened. What went wrong?

For starters, the actual designs on the cats themselves certainly didn't help and maybe just maybe mainstream audiences weren't in the mood to see how freaky these particular felines could get. That I think covered the main reasons for this movie crashing as it did.

As for the story itself, you've got newcomer Victoria (Francesca Hayward). She got abandoned by her owners and soon came into contact with the Jellicle cats Mr. Mistoffelees (Laurie Davidson), Munkustrap (Robbie Fairchild), Cassandra (Mette Towley) and Demeter (Daniela Norman). They're preparing for the grand Jellicle Ball, which had a rather unique prize of being granted reincarnation.

Of course there was other cats vying for that prize including the like of Jennyanydots (Rebel Wilson), Rum Tum Tugger (Jason Derulo), Bustopher Jones (James Corden), Skimbleshanks (Steven MacRae) and the theatrical Gus (Ian McKellan). Also, Taylor Swift as Bombalurina in one of the worst performances from this movie. Sorry Swifties but you know I'm telling the truth here.

Yes there's a lot of cats in the movie and if the ones I mentioned weren't enough, there's also the villain of the piece, Macavity (Idris Elba), the disgraced Grizabella (Jennifer Hudson), both of whom are actually the highlights of this misguided venture. Them and of course Judi Dench's Old Deuteronomy, adding a little of gravitas to the whole debacle. 

The movie took big swings but mostly missed as the completion heated up and only one winner could ultimately get the prize while the villain revelled in being such a baddie. As for Victoria, she might have been abandoned by one family but she certainly gained another by the end of this movie.

- Other cats included troublesome duo Mungojerrie (Danny Collins), Rumpleteazer (Naoimh Morgan) as well as Growltiger (Ray Winstone) and Plato and Socrates (Les Twins).

- The CGI problems are horribly blatant in a lot of the scenes. 

- Standout music: Jellicle Songs For Jellicle Cats, Old Deuteronomy, Beautiful Ghosts, Macavity: The Mystery Cat and Memory.

- Chronology: A very wintry and magical London at night.

Cats truly was an epic misfire of a movie but as bad as it is, I can't help but find the whole thing fascinating as hell. It had everything in its favour that it should've been a triumph, yet it completely fell to pieces. It's a movie that will stay with you as a viewer but not for the reasons you'd want it to.

Rating: 5 out of 10 

My Review of Dune: Part Two (2024)

 

Written by Denis Villeneuve And Jon Spaihts

Directed by Denis Villeneuve 

Paul: "I am Paul Muad'Dib Atreides, Duke of Arrakis. The Hand of God be my witness, I am the Voice from the Outer World! I will lead you to PARADISE!"

Having watched both these movies days apart, I'm still not entirely as enamoured with this space saga as many others have been but I can admire the scale and ambition of this movie franchise.

From the previous movie, prophet Paul Atreides (Timothee Chalamet) and his mother, Lady Jessica (Rebecca Ferguson) had managed to fall in with the Freman tribe and become allies with then in their quest to get back at those who betrayed their family. It was a quest that would inevitably bring out a much darker side to Paul.

Of course there was also the romance between Paul and Chani (Zendaya), the latter who was very much against prophecies and being controlled by destiny. I'll admit, it's a strong enough aspect of the movie with Timothee Chalamet and Zendaya giving it their best. However their romance also hit a major complication towards the end of this one.

When Chani wasn't brazenly defying destiny and disturbing customs, Paul found himself betrothed to Princess Irulan (Florence Pugh). Irulan was the daughter of Emperor Shaddam IV (Christopher Walken) and he was directly responsible for Paul's father being killed and House Atreides almost being taken off the map. 

With Paul and Chani somewhat at odds, one of the strengths of this movie would be the furthest expansion of the Bene Gesserit. The Reverend Mother (Charlotte Rampling) conspired while both Princess Irulan and Lady Margot Fenring (Lea Seydoux) were revealed as members. Lady Jessica underwent her own ascension within the ranks and even Paul got subjected to his own ascension to boot.

Then there was House Harkonnen. They somewhat paid for their attempts to dismantle the Atreides. This movie saw both the Baron (Stellan Skarsgard) and his nephew Rabban (Dave Bautista)  get taken down along with the odious Feyd-Rautha (Austin Butler). The latter character was a delightful addition, though surprisingly not as prominent as I thought he would. He does however manage to get a decent confrontation with Paul before his demise.

- Anya Taylor-Joy appeared briefly through visions as Paul's unborn sister, Alia. She would be born in 10,191 A.G.

- It was revealed that Jessica was the Baron's daughter, making Paul cousins with both Rabban and Feyd-Rautha. The latter seemed amused by that revelation.

- To complete this trilogy, we'll be getting Dune: Messiah by 2026 (or more likely, 2027)

- Chronology: Not long from where the first part of the movie left off. 

I did slightly enjoy Dune: Part Two a little more than the first but I also found it overlong with certain parts almost dragging out too much. The new characters were interesting as was the way both Paul and Chani's relationship progressed and devolved throughout.

Rating: 7 out of 10 

My Review of Creature Commandos: "The Tourmaline Necklace"

 

Written by James Gunn

Directed by Sam Liu

The Bride: "Sorry."

Nina: "Go. Fuck. Yourself."

Okay, this one was better and it had two bizarre sex scenes in it. It also had two brilliant fight scenes and a really fun exploration of The Bride Of Frankenstein to boot.

If the first episode was about setting up the team, then from this episode onwards, we're clearly getting the proper backstories for each member of Project M. First up, The Bride herself.

Yes, she was created by Victor Frankenstein (Peter Serafinowicz) in order to be the perfect partner for the more entitled Eric but she hated him on sight. Even worse for Eric was the Bride's love for Victor, so Eric ended up killing him and a centuries long feud between the Bride and Etic has been a thing ever since.

In the current day though when the Bride wasn't sniping at Nina and looking for the titular necklace, there was the issue of Circe. Yes, Circe knew how to make an entrance and the violent smackdown between Circe and The Bride was something to behold. The fight sequences in this show have been astounding so far,

By the end of the episode, Circe and her incel Sons of Themyscira losers had captured both The Bride and Nina. While that was happening, Flag Sr was getting more intimately acquainted with the Princess and Phosphorus was more aggrieved that he couldn't do anything right according to Flag Sr.

- This episode had G.I. Robot mistook Phosphorus for a Nazi. Phosphorus also seemed to understand Weasel.

- Circe hitting The Bride with an iron rod did remind me of something involving two other characters. 

- Yes, we got a sex scene between The Bride and Victor Frankenstein. 

- Chronology: The flashbacks spanned from 1831 to 1991 for The Bride and her attempts to get away from Eric.

The Tourmaline Necklace certainly added a newish spin to The Bride and Frankenstein while giving a series of excellent fight scenes to match. Overall, a stronger episode than the first one.

Rating: 8 out of 10

My Review of Creature Commandos: "The Collywobbles"

 

Written by James Gunn

Directed by Matt Peters

Amanda: "This is your new task force, Flag. Let's call it Project M. M for monster, also known as -"

It's been a year since the DC Extended Universe ended on an underwhelming note with Aquaman And The Lost Kingdom. Now its the DC Universe and we're off to something of an animated start with Creature Commandos. 

Depending on how you feel about The Suicide Squad and Peacemaker, your mileage may vary with this show. It's very much within James Gunn's wheelhouse, for better and for worse. Also, it heavily references his works in the former DC continuity.

No longer able to use humans for her dangerous missions, Amanda Waller (Viola Davis) has enlisted Rick Flag Sr (Frank Grillo) to work with a monster squad. The squad being The Bride (Indira Varma), Weasel/G.I. Robot (Sean Gunn), Dr Phosphorus (Alan Tudyk) and Nina Mazursky (Zoe Chao). Yup, it's very much within the Gunn wheelhouse so far.

Their mission involved the fictional European country of Pokolistan where the Princess Ilana Rostovic (Maria Bakalova) needed protection from Circe (Anya Chalotra) and her insufferable Sons of Themyscira. Yay for one half of that villain team up. The quicker the second half become a livestock, the better.

While Circe's role wasn't as large in this one as hoped, we did have some moments with Flag Sr and the group in Pokolistan. There's some cringey flirting between Rick Sr and the Princess but a fight scene between the former and Phosphorus was actually a delight to watch.

Also a delight was G.I. Robot. His desire to kill Nazis to one side, there's a rather sweet potential romance with him and Nina bubbling under the surface. There was also The Bride heading back to the place she was born and with that, a rather creepy ending involving Eric Frankenstein (David Harbour).

- Weasel has killed 27 children but was largely treated like the group dog. G.I. Robot did think he was a Nazi at one point.

- Flag Sr became a father to the deceased Jr at 18 and gew to resent his ex-wife. 

- The title sequence, while not as good as Peacemaker did actually feature James Gunn in it.

- Chronology: Two years since the events of Project Starfish.

The Collywobbles does a decent job establishing the main characters, giving hints at each of their backstories. The weakest part was the Flag Sr/Princess subplot but other than that, a good start.

Rating: 7 out of 10

My Review of Dune: Part One (2021)

 

Written by Jon Spaihts And Denis Villeneuve And Eric Roth

Directed by Denis Villeneuve 

Paul Atreides: "That's the future. It's coming. Holy war spreading across the universe like unquenchable fire."

To venture into territory that has previously been ventured. Frank Herbert's reputable sci-fi book series has already been a previous big screen offering back in 1984 and a miniseries in 2000/2003. However this adaptation has managed to become the definitive take, in spite of it's release during the pandemic.

I've never read the book or watched the previous adaptations, so I'm going in blind with this one. Our lead protagonist, Paul Atreides (Timothee Chalamet) has a destiny and one that he's not quite prepared for or even understands that much. During the first part of this saga though, he had a fair amount of shit to deal with.

First of all, he kept seeing a Freman woman named Chani (Zendaya) in his dreams but it wasn't until the end of the movie that he actually encountered her and the tribe led by ally Stilgar (Javier Bardem). I know aspects of their love story but here, it definitely did not seem like love at first sight between Paul and Chani.

Of course, the main plot of this movie involved spice and Paul's father, Leto (Oscar Isaac) being assigned the job ofreplacing Baron Vladimir Harkonnen (Stellan Skarsgard) as the fiefholder of Arrakis and with that, came trouble. It didn't take long for Leto to become a casualty and it didn't take long either for both Paul and his mother, Lady Jessica (Rebecca Ferguson) to be almost taken out either.

Paul's relationship with his mother was the thing I found the most interesting from this movie. Jessica's a consort rather than wife to Leto and came from a sisterhood named the Bene Gesserit, who have their own unique abilities. It's also interesting that while Jessica was instructed to bear a daughter, she defied the matriarchal group by having a son instead.

There's a lot of characters and machinations to keep afoot with in this movie and it's cast are definitely it's biggest strength. There's strong supporting performances from the likes of Charlotte Rampling as Reverend Mother Mohiam, Jason Momoa as Duncan Idaho, Dave Bautista as Glossu Rabban and Josh Brolin as Gurney Halleck to name a few.

- Sharon Duncan-Brewstsr appeared as Dr. Liet Keynes, a character who's usually male in the source material. 

- The Part One part of the movie was almost hidden from the marketing even though this clearly was meant to be a two part saga.

- The brief showing of sandworms did look cool as did that spider creature. 

- Chronology: Distant future, mainly on Arrakis.

I got to admit that my experience with Dune: Part One is something of a mixed bag. On a technical level, there's a lot to like with it. It looks stunning, the acting's certainly not lacking and the script tried to make the dense material accessible but there's something a bit cold about it that made me struggle to care as much as I should. 

Rating: 7 out of 10 

My Review of Black Christmas (1974)

 

Written by Roy Moore 

Directed by Bob Clark 

Billy (to Jessica): "Just like having a wart removed."

To think, it's been fifty years since the release of this movie. Fifty years and two remakes later. It's also a first time watch for me and yes, I hope to catch up with the 2006 and 2019 versions this month as well if possible.

Somewhat based on the urban legend of "the babysitter and the man upstairs", this movie took place within a sorority house. A group of sisters being tormented by a heavy breather on the other end of the phone.

A heavy breather who when he wasn't been lewd and sexually threatening also was going about killing these sisters, one by one. Our protagonist of the piece was a young woman named Jessica Bradford (Olivia Hussey). She was the one mostly interacting with the killer on the phone.

Of course, Jessica had other issues besides being stalked by a killer. There was the fact that she had fallen pregnant by her boyfriend, Peter Symthe (Keir Dullea). She wanted to have an abortion and Peter was dead set against the idea. Peter's overzealous attitude towards Jessica also led to the belief that he was the killer, only for the last scene to disprove that theory.

As for other characters, they're there as fodder. There's some screen time afforded to house mother, Mrs Mac (Marian Waldman) and bitchy sister, Barb Coard (Margot Kidder). Both are given rather brutal deaths by the killer while John Saxon has a decent supporting role as Lt. Kenneth Fuller. 

What about the killer? For a guy who spent the movie tormenting and killing as many women as he could, very little was actually revealed about him. We just know by the end of the movie, he wasn't actually caught and his name was Billy (Nick Mancuso). Though not in the movie itself. It's an interesting to keep the level of ambiguity for the character.

- The iller is credited as The Moaner and along with Nick Mancuso, both Bob Clark and Albert J. Dunk also played the character.

- The movie was inspired by a series of murders that happened in the Westmount area of Montreal in 1943.

- Standout music: Some eerie score music from Carl Zittrer as well as Christmas carols used during Billy's attack on Barb.

- Chronology: Christmas time in the 1970s.

Black Christmas certainly maintained an eerie atmosphere throughout. The ambiguity with the killer and his fixation on Jessica definitely upped the tension and while other characters weren't as fleshed out, this movie certainly has earned its cult status among horror fans.

Rating: 7 out of 10 

My Review of Superman And Lois 4x10: "It Went By So Fast"

 

Written by Brent Fletcher And Todd Helbing

Directed by Gregory Smith

Clark: "What do you think Superman and Lois Lane will be remembered for?"

Lois: "I'd like to think truth, justice."

Clark: "And a better tomorrow."

When it comes to the Arrowverse (and yes, I consider this show to be a part of it), we've had some hit and miss and unintended series finales. This one on the other hand was on another level of sheer brilliance.

Last week, it looked like we getting Superman killed by Doomsday yet again and I said this episode would subvert that overdone story. I was right and it did. Doomsday didn't kill Superman, even though he came pretty damn close to it during the episode.

Instead we got a rather poignant sacrifice from the character in space with Superman watching his end. I felt bad for poor Doomsday but he got a rather poignant exit. Easily the best handling of the character since the eighth season of Smallville.

As for Lex Luthor, that guy burned every bridge and then some. He got his ass handed to him by Lois, a public downfall courtesy of Amanda, another ass whooping by Superman and oh, once back in prison, he had to contend with Bruno Mannheim being in charge. Should've just left the Kents alone when everybody told you to, Lex.

All of that happened within the first half of this series finale. The second half was for family and community. We had Lana and John tying the knot and Kyle and Chrissy enjoying the parents of boys. There's a rather lovely exchange between Lana and Kyle as well as Jordan and Sarah. 

Of course, there's also Clark and Lois themselves. They talked about their legacies and we got to see them grow old together, use their influence to save so many lives, see both Jordan and Jonathan become adults, get wives and have many children. Then there was the gut wrenching final five minutes.

I bawled my eyes out when Lois died for real and then Clark living a bit longer without her, getting his own dog named Krypto and then there was his death too. This season was leading to it all along but it still floored me. The final shot especially was one of the most beautiful moments from the show. If you don't well up during those last few moments, you've got a heart of stone.

- Isn't it fitting that the WB/CW DC era (2001-2024) began and ended with Superman?

- I was right about David Giuntoli appearing in this episode but I thought he was going to be Batman. Instead he played an older Jonathan.

- Did Lois see her father before dying? It's a pity we didn't get Dylan Walsh back for one scene.

- Lois in the red dress, she looked stunning. Thematically, it made sense that's how Clark would see her in the afterlife.

- I loved the shot of Superman, the Super Sons, Steel and Starlight working together.

- Chronology: 32 years passed as we got towards the end of this episode.

It Went By So Fast certainly was an apt title for this episode. Four seasons, 53 episodes and some of the best storytelling in the Superman mythos ever. This was an incredible series finale and both Tyler Hoechlin and Elizabeth Tulloch gave us the best modern version of these characters to date. I couldn't be more happier with this episode, even though it made me cry.

Rating: 10 out of 10 

My Review of Emily (2022)

 

Written And Directed by Frances O'Connor

Charlotte: "You deserve for someone to see."

Emily: "Someone did! Someone did see them! You!"

Ah, a Gothic tale about one of the most influential literary icons and a tiny bit of creative licencing from a first time writer/director but long time actor? Colour me intrigued. This movie certainly made for an unsettling affair.

The Brontë sisters are icons and that's not hyperbole, they genuinely are. This movie however was pivoted around the strange one also known as Emily Brontë (Emma Mackey) and it began with a death. The death being Emily's of course.

From there onwards, the movie delved back into the past. Emily was the odd out in her family, often at odds with both her father, Patrick (Adrian Dunbar) and sisters, Charlotte (Alexandra Dowling) and Anne (Amelia Gething) as well as her aunt (Gemma Jones). None of them seemed to get Emily and her peculiar ways.

Emily did however managed to have had a better relationship with her similarly creative brother, Bramwell (Fionn Whitehead) and the two certainly got into mischief. However Branwell's fondness for married women became his own downfall and the two siblings eventually grew more distant as the movie progressed.

Of course the most prominent relationship explored in this movie was the one that Emily had with new curate, William Weightman (Oliver Jackson-Cohen). Their relationship went through the gamut of pure antagonism towards one another, a tempestuous love affair, an even worse break up and of course, death for both parties.

Despite being historically inaccurate, Emily and William's love/hate relationship really drove the narrative of this movie and the best scenes were usually the two sparring with each other. However, it's a doomed love story with a very gloomy ending in a movie that's not exactly a barrel of laughs throughout.

- Originally both Joe Alwyn and Emily Beecham were cast but left before filming began. I'm assuming the former was originally set to play William.

- The scene where Emily used a mask to impersonate her dead mother really veered into pure horror territory. I hope that's a genre Frances O'Connor delves into with her next movie.

- Standout music: Nocturne No. 2 in C Minor, H. 25, performed by Elizabeth Joy Roe.

- Chronology: Going by Emily's death, the movie began and ended in 1848.

Emily takes some creative liberties with the Wuthering Heights scribe but it's an impressive debut from writer/director and Emma Mackey gave an absolutely superb performance as Emily Brontë. It's not an easy watch but it's definitely a worthwhile one.

Rating: 8 out of 10