Month in the Movies: June

The summer movie season has finally got underway and to say it's been a good start wouldn't be true. It's been a slow start this summer with not so many crackers hitting the big screen. Hopefully we're just getting the bad ones out of the way. However it would be unfair to say that there hasn't been some quality so far with a few films saving the season from being terrible.  If you aren't sure what this post is about, each month I look back at the movies I seen in that month and rank them based on a combination of how good the movie was and how much I enjoyed it. So lets get into the list!

10. The Boss

Simple as it is, 'The Boss' is the worst film I have seen so far in 2016. This was painfully unfunny to the point where I was so close to leaving the theatre. Peter Dinklage has the worst performance of the year within this film too which is painful to say but it is true. 'The Boss' is a disaster which for your sake, you shouldn't ever watch. Lets just hope McCarthy's next venture 'Ghostbusters' is much better than this turd. 

Final Verdict = F

Check out my review for 'The Boss' here

9. Gods of Egypt

For some people, this is their worst movie of the year and I can't blame them. A uninteresting story, bland characters, poor acting, mediocre CGI and terrible casting were only a number of things that went wrong in this 'epic'. 'Gods of Egypt' may become one of those "it's so bad, it's good" movies which isn't necessarily a good thing. 'Gods of Egypt' is truly awful but is lucky that there was a film I thought was even worse in the month of June.

Final verdict = F

Check out my review for 'Gods of Egypt' here

8. Independence Day: Resurgence

20 years after the original we got a sequel that people wanted back in the 90's. Unfortunately for us, the film came nowhere near the original in terms of quality. The film failed to replace Will Smith as the new characters were not interesting or charismatic enough. The heart of the original wasn't there either as 'Resurgence' became the 'Terminator: Genisys' of 2016.

Final Verdict = D

Check out my review for 'Independence Day: Resurgence' here

7. Mother's Day

A film about a holiday that here in the UK isn't celebrated to quite the same standard as shown in the film. There was potential for this comedy to succeed as it does have some characters whose stories would make for an interesting movie. However, it is filled with and focuses on some of the most terrible characters of the year who are the main focus which makes the film hard to watch at times. Like most comedies this year, it fails to create a funny movie which is unfortunate considering some of the cast members.

Final Verdict = C-

Check out my review for 'Mother's Day' here

6. The Angry Birds Movie

The movie based off of the hit mobile based game seems to have come a few years too late. The movie is clearly aimed for kids which may explain to why I didn't get that much enjoyment out of the film as it wasn't targeted to me. However there were a few decent jokes despite all the bird puns as well as some nice animation that the film deserves credit for.

Final Verdict = C-

Check out my review for 'The Angry Birds Movie' here

5. Mr Right

'Mr Right' is a really fun movie to watch with some good comedy and performances from the two leads. However the story isn't made that well with a lot of things happening only to allow the film to progress. It's a fun movie just to sit and switch your brain off with but no more than that unfortunately. I wanted more from this movie and although it is entertaining at times, there isn't a great deal of quality the whole way throughout the movie.

Final Verdict = C

Check out my review for 'Mr Right' here

4. The Secret Life of Pets

Much like 'The Angry Birds Movie', TSLOP is a film that is targeted for kids. This comes at no surprise as it comes from the creators of 'Despicable Me' and 'Minions'. However the difference between this film and TABM is that the comedy works a whole lot more in this movie. The jokes led by Louis C.K and Kevin Hart do land a lot more which does make this kids movie a lot more enjoyable to watch. It isn't one of the animated films that will blow audiences away but it is a fine movie to say the least.

Final Verdict = C+

Check out my review for 'The Secret Life of Pets' here

3. Me Before You

'Me Before You' is one of the biggest surprises I have had the cinema this year. I really didn't expect this movie to be good at all and was pleasantly surprised. The film is very charming and has some good comedy within it. The two leads do very well which creates an enjoyable viewing. The emotional parts could have been done a little better especially the finale which seemed to have been rushed. Regardless of that, 'Me Before You' was one of the better movies this month.

Final Verdict = B-

Check out my review for 'Me Before You' here

'Me Before You' Review

Whenever you're usually sat in a theatre with a group of childish and joking teenagers who are your friends and a romance film trailer pops up, the first reaction is usually to ridicule or turn it down immediately. This was the case with 'Me Before You' which unfairly became the target of our jokes. However the actual quality of the film doesn't deserve that leading to one of the biggest surprises I've had this year at the cinema.

Will Traynor (Sam Claflin) seems to have a great, adventurous life until he his hit by a motorcycle which damages his spinal cord and leaves most of his body paralysed. In order to try lift his spirits, his mother looks for a carer to come and help care for him and be good company. Desperate Louisa Clark (Emilia Clarke) is looking for a job and lands the opportunity to care for Will. Will is not good company at first but Louisa doesn't give up as the two grow closer as they deal with their own problems.

I really didn't expect to get much enjoyment from this film at all. It's not usually what would appeal to me and I was really sceptical going into this. Thankfully the film is a lot more entertaining than I expected. This is mainly due to the two leads in the film. Now do they produce the greatest performances ever? No, they are borderline bad at times throughout the film. However in saying this, they were entertaining for the most part of the film. Clarke's bubbly personality seems to have transcended over to this role which makes for a pleasant viewing. Her character is instantly likeable with her clumsiness and charming ways. Claflin's character Will doesn't gain as much sympathy as he should at the start but once he stops trying to distance himself from Louisa, he does start to become a more interesting character who you feel for as the story progresses.

From the genre, trailer and general synopsis, you expect this to be quite the emotional tearjerker. However the film seems to lose track of this at times and is mainly just a comedy. It loses focus at times which does effect the impact of the film as it starts to lose focus of the severity of what is happening. Although this does allow the film to be quite entertaining, it can't be denied that the impact does damage the film when it comes to those more emotional moments. 

The ending of the film really doesn't deliver as much as you would hope it would which may be in part to the large part of the film being joyous. It can also be said that the ending seemed slightly rushed into as they kind of just fall into the ending. The last scene featuring the two is pretty quick and doesn't create a situation that would leave members of the audience fully effected. I really feel that if they took a bit more time to maybe make this a complete a 2 hour feature film, it would have had a much more powerful ending.

In saying that though, the film does do quite well to make you care about the characters. Obviously it doesn't take much to feel for Will as it is clearly a very tragic injury. It does well to build on this as it shows Will previously being quite the 'action man' as he thoroughly enjoys travelling and completing extreme sports. Louisa also has her own troubles but this time at her home where her sister wants to leave home, her dad can't get a job and that she is the sole breadwinner despite wanting to break away from her mundane home. These aren't helped by her current boyfriend Patrick (Matthew Lewis) who is more interested in fitness rather than doing something nice for his girlfriend. Not quite the same severity of problems compared to Will but nevertheless something that ordinary people are more likely to relate to.

A great part this film that also helps the emotional sides of this comes with the soundtrack. Although the tone is misguided at times, some of the songs within the film do help bring the emotion to make up for it a little. Tracks from Jesse Ware and Ed Sheeran do a great job and are perfect in the moments they appear in. It does add an extra something to the film which you hope all soundtracks do. 

Final Verdict = 

The film could've been much more powerful and more focussed at times but I have to give credit where it's due. This film certainly entertained me and didn't feel too long at any time which made for quite the enjoyable viewing. One of the more surprising films I've seen this year.

So have you seen Me Before You? If so what did you think of the film? I hope you enjoyed this review and that it was useful for if you were planning on seeing the film. Once again, thank you for reading my review, it is much appreciated!

By Angus McGregor