Although a load of new content appears on Netflix every week, I generally take the time to watch what interests me. I add it to my viewing list when it is announced and I often see it a few weeks after it has been released. However, last week was a week in which I could not wait until the releases of Triple Frontier (review will follow), season 2 of The OA and this series, Love, Death & Robots. With Tim Miller (director of Deadpool) and David Fincher as executive producers and a science fiction approach, I was very curious. I had not seen the trailer and I was totally unprepared for what I would experience, but when I started watching, I couldn’t get enough of it. Continue reading
Category Archives: Sci fi
Captain Marvel (2019) – Review
Just like the real one, the Marvel universe also continues to expand. And although Thanos movie caused a lot to change in this universe in the last Avengers movie, the ending was the first mention of a new superhero, Captain Marvel. This film tells the origin story of this character and how Nick Fury (Samuel L.Jackson) met her. Is this film a worthy addition to this universe? Continue reading
The Thing From Another World (1951) – Review
One of my favorite sci-fi/horror films is John Carpenter’s The Thing, in which the tension is high and you, like the characters, have no idea what is going on and who may not be the person you think they are. Yet The Thing was a remake and according to some, one of the best ever made. I had never seen the original version before, but I was curious about the similarities/differences. Continue reading
Alita: Battle Angel (2019) – Review
When I think of director Robert Rodriguez, I do not immediately feel that I should see every project he does. His first film El Mariachi was good, I have been able to enjoy the Spy Kids films for what they are and Sin City is perhaps his best, but the feeling of Grindhouse-like films that he has done a lot (eg. the Machete titles) prevails. I did not really have any expectations about Alita: Battle Angel, but the fact that this is a project that James Cameron wanted to make for nearly twenty years, besides Avatar, and he was also involved in developing this Rodriguez version, could result in something interesting. I decided to watch the film the best way possible, in a Dolby Cinema. Is Alita: Battle Angel worth it? Continue reading
Black Mirror: Bandersnatch (2018) – Review
When Netflix released the first interactive show on Netflix last year, Puss in Book: Trapped in Epic Tale, I was very curious about the concept. But when I played this short film, I did not get any interactive options. I did not investigate it any further, but the concept (which incidentally has also been used for some movies in the cinema) of leaving making choices about what happens to the viewer, is fascinating. Is it still a movie? Or is it more a game? Last Friday, Netflix released the first Black Mirror film, Bandersnatch, which also uses this concept. Again I did not get it working. Since Black Mirror is one of my favorite series and I had to see it, I decided to find out how you can watch it. My phone did not work (probably because it does not have a standard Android version), a Samsung tablet did not offer the option either. Apple TV, Chromecast and a Samsung smart TV were all the same story and the Netflix site does not offer an extensive list of supported devices. Eventually it worked on another smart TV from Samsung and after a lot of frustration I finally managed to enter the world of real interactive TV. Continue reading
Upgrade (2018) – Review
Every year there are only a few films in which there are shots that amaze me. Moments where I wonder how they are made or that overwhelms me visually (but that might be a subject for a separate article). When you watch a lot of movies it’s much more difficult to get wowed and you hope to see inventive imagery that feel fresh/new. Initially, I had no idea that Upgrade would be a title that had such characteristics. It starts as a fairly average science fiction story, but from the moment above I could not wait to see what else the film had in store. Continue reading
Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom (2018) – Review
Sequels should only be made if you actually have a good idea that could work. Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom is an example of a movie where this obviously isn’t the case. After the park went out of control in the previous movie, the island has been abandoned and the dinosaurs lived as free animals. As that isn’t an interesting setup for a movie, they are now threathened by a vulcano on the island that will wipe them out once again. Problem solved you could say, but the government is thinking about rescuing them and not letting them go extinct. Claire Dearing (Bryce Dallas Howard) is running the Dinosaur Protection Group in support of this plan. When the government decides against rescue, she is approached by Benjamin Lockwood who has a plan to relocate the dinosaurs to a new location where they can live “in peace”. She must convince Owen Grady (Chris Pratt) to join her. Once she does, they head to Isla Nublar and things don’t exactly go as planned. Continue reading
The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension (1984) – Review
On this year’s blindspot movies list I had added two eighties movies, which both had to do something with aliens. I decided to check out The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension first. There is something about movies from the eighties which I really appreciate which isn’t only because it is the era in which I grew up. The movies from that time have a certain feel and CGI wasn’t a big thing yet, which would mean a lot more creativity to realize some ideas. Because of that some things feel a lot more real and actually have weight as things were physical. This is also the case here. Continue reading
The Cloverfield Paradox (2018) – Review
The promotion of new movies has become very predictable. Months in advance you can see the first set photos, followed by teasers, different trailer versions and the stars appearing in talk shows near the release. I basically ignore all of it and find it an extremely tiring way to promote a product and create hype. Earlier this year Netflix proved it could be different with this film. It was originally called The God Particle and was delayed. During the Superbowl commercials Netflix premiered the trailer and also announced it would be available immediately after the game. A marketing strategy which I would love more companies using. Continue reading
Solo: A Star Wars Story (2018) – Review
Up till now most people I talked to about upcoming Star Wars movies, responded that they were looking forward to them. That changed when it came to Solo: A Star Wars Story. Personally I never had a huge connection with Star Wars (only watching them for the first time on VHS in my late teens) but I have been enjoying most of them (forgetting about the first three prequels), so to me this would just be something along the same lines as Rogue One only this time with a character we already know.
Of course Han Solo is one of the most iconic characters in history and maybe that’s the reason people were hesitant about a film looking at his backstory. As we’ve seen with for example Alien: Covenant, sometimes you don’t want answers to some questions. I personally didn’t need an explanation how the Xenomorphs came into being. They should remain a mystery as that just adds to the legend of a character. Some people had the same idea about Solo. But the film is now here so we can find out if this is a film that should have been made and if it indeed demystifies the legend that is the man who did shoot first. Continue reading