Within in Europe (and probably elsewhere too) there have been people who decided to go to Syria to fight there, usually with a religious motivation. Some return and the news about them is usually negative. But what do you do when you find out someone within your own family was seen last in Syria? That’s the idea behind Brothers (Broeders). Continue reading
Tag Archives: movie
Ocean’s Eight (2018) – Review
When the George Clooney version of Ocean’s Eleven (a remake of the 1960 original) came out, it was a hit and got great reviews. Director Steven Soderbergh managed to create a movie that was fast paced, slick and fun. It’s sequel stumbled and Ocean’s 13 in 2007 managed to be pretty good as well. Eleven years later there is Ocean’s 8, which doesn’t star (well, almost) any stars from the trilogy and isn’t set before the other ones as the title might suggest. This new version changes things up and replaces the cast with an all-female lineup who are planning a heist. Continue reading
Bad Genius (2017) – Review
For everyone there has been a moment while you were attending school where it was very attractive to cheat in order to pass that difficult exam. To make sure you don’t get caught, you think of ingenious ways to bring along information that’s hard for others to discover. When you eventually decide to actually use it, it can lead to some very tense moments. You feel like a secret agent who can’t stand out and has to copy some information. If you would translate that feeling to a movie, you’d end up with Bad Genius. A mix of The Breakfast Club and Ocean’s Eleven… Continue reading
The Florida Project (2017) – Review
The environment in which you grow up as a child feels normal to you. It doesn’t matter in which situation you grow up, whether good or extremely bad, to you that’s the way the world is. It’s your world in which you find joy with the people around you, even if it might not be the safest or cleanest place. That’s also the case for six-year-old Moonee (Brooklynn Prince), who lives in a bright purple motel together with her single mom Halley (Bria Vinaite), very close to Disneyland. Like many other families who live there, they have to make ends meet in order to be able to pay the rent at the end of the month. To Moonee the motel is her playground, where she does the naughty things children do together and sometimes gets into trouble for it. Continue reading
The Villainess (2017) – Review
As soon as you start watching The Villainess, it immediately becomes very clear that this is a tough as nails action movie. You witness a fight which is best described as a mix between the first person view of Hardcore Henry and the famous hall fight in Old Boy. It’s tightly choreographed and extremely violent. Just like Park Chan-Wook’s classic this movie (originally called Ak-Nyeo) is also South Korean. It’s been directed by Byung-gil Jung. Continue reading
Gods of Egypt (2016) – Review
When I announced my list of blindspot movies for 2018, I got the most reactions (both here and on my Dutch site) about why I added Gods of Egypt. Why would I want to see this film? Some told me it’s a movie you want to switch off after 20 minutes. Of course I knew about the criticism the movie got, but that made me even more curious. So it was the first movie I watched on that list. Did I start out right? 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
Making Fun: The Story of Funko (2018) – Review
If there is one pop culture item which has seen a true explosion of popularity it probably is the Funko Pop characters. The big-headed, cute-eyed figures which are available for almost every pop culture character available can be bought almost everywhere and they are a great way for fans to show their love for something. This Netflix documentary is part looking at how the company became as big as it is and part just a look into the lives of some Funko collectors and the special place these figures have in their lives. Continue reading
Darkland (2017) – Review
The revenge film. It’s a simple concept, which can be executed in various ways. It can be raw and violent (Death Wish) or more subtle (The Invisible Guest. There is so much to choose from (including the Park Chan-wook revenge trilogy). This Danish film chooses for a simple approach, which of course can work effectively 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