MovieRankingReviews

  The visuals are phenomenal with a wonderful practical set design and lighting that really illustrates the surreal nature of the backrooms. The cinematography and editing is also top-notch and captures the claustrophobic environment. The writing is where the problems lie though. The characters are quite under-developed, the plot is very minimal, and the 3rd act of the film is a bit of a drag with a weak ending. Still, for a directorial debut, this is extremely promising!

  It was basically 90 minutes of the “Leonardo DiCaprio pointing meme” for the whole runtime. No character development for any of the characters, unfocused and minimal story, unimaginative writing with no depth. At least they used more songs from the Mario games instead of pop songs so at least there is one improvement!

  The story is incredibly predictable and some of the lines are very cheesy. However, this doesn’t stop the film from being wonderfully heartwarming. Brendan Fraser gives a believable and empathetic performance as a struggling actor while having a great supporting cast. The film also gives a thought-provoking look into a small part of Japan’s culture while exploring the theme of lies, loneliness and connection. This is a worthy watch that leaves you with a positive message.

  The last 15 minutes is incredibly gritty, brutal and violent Punishing that is just a blast to watch! Jon Bernthal continues to deliver a strong and ferocious performance as the titular character. I was also genuinely surprise to also see such a powerful and emotional performance as well. It was also great to see Jason R. Moore return as Frank’s friend Curtis, even if it was just a hallucination. It was a shame that Amber Rose Revah nor Ben Barnes got to return as Madani and Billy respectively though. The villain Ma Gnucci is also sadly very underutilised. Plus, it can also be a bit repetitive to see Punisher repeat the plotline of giving up Punishing, only to return again. Still, for 45 minutes, this is an entertaining watch and I look forward to seeing more Punisher in the future!

  I had a lot of concerns when Daredevil was moved over to Disney. However, Born Again Season 1 ended up being better than expected. It was still definitely the weakest season of Daredevil , but considering the behind-the-scenes creative drama, the final product turned out surprisingly solid. With Season 2, though, the series was fully under the creative control of Dario Scardapane as showrunner. So, does Season 2 finally deliver a more promising follow-up? Yes, it does. The season is far more consistent visually, as well as in terms of quality and writing. It doesn’t suffer from the strange dips in quality or tonal shifts that Season 1 had. The story is much more focused and engaging, making it enjoyable to invest in Daredevil’s struggle and the resistance effort against Kingpin. Watching the characters slowly weaken Fisk’s forces, damage his credibility, and search for evidence makes for a far more entertaining season than the slower-paced nature of the first. There ...

  The first Mortal Kombat film in 2021 had some good elements and felt closer to the games. However, it had a lot of problems, and there were definitely some odd creative choices made. Still, there was potential for the sequel to be a major improvement. Is that the case with Mortal Kombat II? Right from the get-go, I appreciate that the director and writer listened to the feedback and criticism surrounding the first film. One of the major issues with the original was the boring and dull movie-original protagonist, Cole Young. This time, they have replaced him with the far more charismatic Johnny Cage and the more interesting Kitana, both of whom are actual characters from the games and are played wonderfully by Karl Urban and Adeline Rudolph. Johnny Cage serves as the fish-out-of-water character: a washed-up actor who is thrown into the Kombat tournament. He is funny, cynical, and charming, with a character arc that is far more enjoyable to invest in. Kitana acts as ...