'Mother's Day' Review

From the creator of 'Pretty Woman' and 'Valentines Day' comes 'Mother's Day'. Maybe its just cause I'm in the UK but do many people do such extravagant things on this day?

Sandy (Jennifer Aniston) is a single mom whose troubles are made worse when she finds out that her ex-husband is marrying a hot twenty-something. Meanwhile her friend Jesse (Kate Hudson) continues to refuse to tell her family that she has a family with a man of South Asian descent as her sister also doesn't let it be known that she has a lesbian life partner. Bradley (Jason Sudekis) is a widower who now has to try and raise his two daughters on his own whilst dealing with the loss of his wife. Miranda (Julia Roberts) is a well known personality and author who chose a career over a family which led her to give up her daughter. Kristin (Britt Robertson), Miranda's daughter now has abandonment issues and won't allow the father of her child Zak (Jack Whitehall) to marry her until she deals with it.

As you can see from that synopsis, you can see that it is a pretty filled to the brim film. And this does really hurt the film as it tries to give each of the characters their fair share of screen time. The characters are thrown in and out of the film so much that you struggle to grow to care about any of them really as the disappear for large chunks of the film. A lot of the main focus seems to be on Jesse's (Hudson) family full of insecure adults who struggle to be able to come clean about their true and harmless lives. The family aren't the greatest people in the world which doesn't really want you to see as much of them.  Most of the jokes throughout the parts of the film with this family are borderline offensive especially with the only minority being the target of racial stereotypes to make the parents seem charming.

This also doesn't allow the likeable actors and actresses to shine like they should. I've enjoyed previous films with Jennifer Aniston and Jason Sudekis and this film really disappointed me with how it used them. It hinted in the trailer that they would come together but it just drops it entirely until the ending. I would have liked to have seen more focus on this story as they were easily likeable and much more entertaining to watch. They could've scrapped everything else and made this just as a romantic comedy with an interesting premise of the two coming together with their past experiences and both sets of children. However they decided to go with more stories which became overcrowded very easily.

The films main purpose looks to celebrate motherhood. However the mothers in this film are just complaining the whole time and we only see one time where a mother does something that is actually good. They don't do anything that is worth celebrating. One doesn't let their family know of their child. One abandons her child at birth. One wants to look better than her ex rather than just being a good mother. And the worst one is racist. So not exactly making these mothers worth celebrating to be perfectly honest.

When I was in the cinema seeing a pre screening of this movie, it was filled with casual viewers and has been one of the most packed of the Cineworld Unlimited screenings I've been to. And for the most part, the audience seemed to really love it. They were laughing out loud quite a lot. However this really wasn't the case for me. I seemed to be the only one not having a good time which seems to have been the case for most comedies this year. The jokes really aren't that great as they mainly try to shock you but they end up failing. This is mainly down to the writing with a lot of the characters having some terrible dialogue. I hope Jack Whitehall didn't write his own stand up routine in this film as it was way below his standard.

Final Verdict = 

'Mother's Day' really isn't that great of a film as it spends too much time focusing on some awful characters. Some terrible writing doesn't help this film at all either. However it has been proven to me that some may really enjoy this but unfortunately wasn't really the case for me.

So have you seen 'Mother's Day'? If so what did you think of it? I hope you enjoyed this review and if you go see this film, I hope you enjoy it more than I did! Once again thank you for reading my review, it is much appreciated!

By Angus McGregor

'The Angry Birds Movie' Review

With 'Warcraft' recently disappointing showing that video game movies still struggle to work, The Angry Birds stepped up to try and bring a bit of credit back to video game movies however on a different scale, as a feature length kids movie. 

Red (Jason Sudekis) is one of the few flightless birds who does not follow the others of leading a happy life. Daily annoyances lead to Red having to go to anger management where he meets fellow strugglers Chuck (Josh Gad) and Bomb (Danny McBride). As pigs come to the island of the birds, this aggravates Red even more and when it turns out that he was right about them, he and his new acquaintances will team up to save the islands precious eggs.

The Angry Birds Movie seems like it really should of came out a few years ago, right? It was huge when it burst out onto the scene with it gaining huge popularity and you could hardly escape hearing about the simple destructive game. Nowadays, it seems to just be another game and isn't mentioned nearly as much as it once was. It must still be a massive hit with younger audiences as for everyone else, the magic has seemed to have disappeared. 

And you can clearly tell that this film is made clearly for kids. An abundance of jokes coming from bird puns fills the movies as well as jokes mainly about the characters. The traits of Red, Chuck and Bomb are constantly used as jokes throughout the film. The humour used is mainly very childish and is based towards that target audience quite clearly so the general audience may not get as much enjoyment out of this as their kids would.

In recent years we have been lucky enough to have great animated movies like 'Inside Out' and 'Zootropolis'- or Zootopia depending where in the world you are- entertain both adults and children. Now not every movie is going to look to do this and have a deeper message that will bring the adults more enjoyment than the kids will. But then you have the likes of the Kung Fu Panda series which had its third instalment earlier this year that doesn't try to do so as much. This series looks to entertain younger audiences much more than anything else which is fine. My point in saying this is that this movie does simply try to entertain younger audiences but even still, it does not do it to the same standard as others out there. It might be unfair to compare it to an established franchise but that also had to start off somewhere but without the luxury of having a well known brand behind it. 

The main part of the Angry Birds games is the destruction as you have to figure out how to cause maximum damage to the pigs settlements as you retrieve the eggs. Doesn't really seem like the most solid idea for a movie and it shows in the movie. There isn't much to the film as you will just be waiting for the moment where it all kicks off. This only actually happens for a short period of time in the film as the first hour is a basic story that is once again catered to children and is oh so predictable. The eventual destruction is quite entertaining but isn't enough unfortunately to make up for the rest of the film.

High praise has to go to the animation within the film. Now most animated films all look incredible today as we really are quite spoiled when it comes to these visuals. Angry Birds does not let down with this. What amazed me in particular was the detail that went into things like the individual feathers on the birds and also the blades of grass. They looked phenomenal in the film and were very detailed giving them near realistic looks.

Final Verdict = 

The Angry Birds follows a very predictable plot and has its jokes clearly aimed at younger audiences. The bright colours and characters as well as the final act will be enough to entertain your kids for the run time but won't do so nearly as much for adult viewers.

So have you seen 'The Angry Birds Movie'? If so what did you think of it? I hope you enjoyed this review and found it useful for if you were planning on seeing the movie! Once again, thank you for reading my review, it is much appreciated.

By Angus McGregor

'The Nice Guys' Review

Shane Black directing a buddy cop film starring Russell Crowe and Ryan Gosling. It really didn't take much else for me to be sold by this film.

Jackson Healy (Russell Crowe) is a hired enforcer who makes his living by hurting people. One of those unlucky victims is Holland March (Ryan Gosling) a private investigator. In a strange twist if events, the two will now have to team up as they look to find the missing Amelia (Margaret Qualley) before she is killed. The investigation puts their lives in danger as they face trouble everywhere the case takes them.

'The Nice Guys' is probably the best start to the summer season of movies that I could of asked for. This is by far one of the most fun films of the year and its mainly due to the two leads within the film. Crowe and Gosling work incredibly well together and it creates a very enjoyable viewing. The two are most definitely an odd pairing which leads to some hilarious scenes as they try to work together. The combination is one of the highlights of the film with the performances not letting the audience down. Black's previous successful work in creating a similar duo is evident as he pulls it off incredibly well once again.

Not only does Black create the odd pairings relationship very well but also each of their individual characters. Both of the leads characters are shown to be quite tough with their job but are layered with quite troubled backstories. Crowe's character Healy is the muscle and makes his living from causing pain but all he really wants to do is to be able to make a difference for the good of people. However circumstances have not lead him to be able to do so which does seem to bother him. A fairly good change rather than the muscle having no remorse whatsoever.

The same can be said for Gosling's Holland March. March has to deal with the struggles of losing his home as well as his wife, leaving him to protect and provide for his daughter all by himself. He continuously blames himself which leads to him turning to the booze which takes its effect throughout the film. A layered back story for arguably the main cause of humour in the film was perfect and fantastically written character. Huge credit must go to Black and co-writer Anthony Bagarozzi for achieving this.

As well as being incredibly funny, the film does not let down with its action and even incorporates some of the comedy within it. The action is done to a very high standard in the film with a good mix between hand to hand combat and combat with automatic weapons. The scenes are pulled off incredibly well and are incredibly easy to keep up with as they progress. Thoroughly entertaining throughout and really helps elevate the movie.

Although the film is a blast with great comedy and action, it also leads to causing a bit of a problem for the film. As the film has a sequence which is highly entertaining, it does slow down which causes it to lose some of its momentum. It is a very small critique but it could have possibly been transitioned a bit better. Another problem that I have with the film is that the main story does end rather abruptly. You spend most of the runtime following this story and it doesn't seem to really deliver as well as you would like it to do. There aren't really any big issues with the film which helps to make it that more enjoyable.

Another thing that makes this film so great is that everything within it has a purpose. Something may seem quite odd and out of place but later on, it fulfils its purpose of being in the film. It doesn't waste your time or try to fill the movie with just complete nonsense which also is a credit to the writers. 

It was very clever how the film handled its villains by not ever giving too much away throughout the film. It leads you to believe certain things and as the story goes on, it becomes trickier to see who really is the enemy. It's not obvious from the start how this will pan out and with each of the characters being introduced, you aren't entirely sure who or what to believe.

Final Verdict = 

A fantastic buddy cop, action comedy that delivers throughout the whole film. The two leads are fantastic and create a great on screen duo. Well worth seeing!

So have you seen 'The Nice Guys'? If so what did you think of it? I hope this review was useful for if you were deciding to go and see the movie. I'd also like to know what are your favourite movies featuring a strange partnership? Once again, thank you for reading my review, it is much appreciated!

By Angus McGregor

'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

Month in the Movies: May

May is the last stop before summer movie season arrives and the blockbusters flow out into theatres. This month I was lucky enough to catch 12 films this month with a wide range of genres within the list.  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 started with number 12!

12. Warcraft

The adaptation from a highly successful video game series contained bland characters and a messy story. The search for a good video game movie continues as Warcraft was a huge disappointment. Fans of the franchise may enjoy it but not one for the casual audience.

Final Verdict = D

Check out my review for Warcraft here

11. Bad Neighbours 2

I seem to be in the minority when it comes to this film. Many have enjoyed it but it just didn't connect with me. The rivalry wasn't close to that of the first one and due to that the comedy never quite hit with me. I really struggled with this film and it wasn't a pleasant viewing for me.

Final Verdict = D

Check out my review for Bad Neighbours 2 here

10. Alice Through The Looking Glass

The new film in Underland was better than the first but that isn't saying much. The film is visually beautiful but has some terrible performances and a messy story that heavily hinder it. An opportunity missed to get the franchise back on track which was missed.

Final Verdict = C-

Check out my review for Alice Through The Looking Glass here

9. Our Kind Of Traitor

A spy thriller that seemed to lack both the spy and thriller parts. An average film which gets fairly boring at times due to it being pretty uneventful. Some decent performances help the film as well as some great cinematography.

Final Verdict = C

Check out my review for Our Kind Of Traitor here

8. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows

Another film that is better than the first instalment but again mainly due to the lack of quality in the first one. However the film does build on things it desperately needed to to make the franchise better overall. It does let itself down by rehashing parts of the first film and with some of its human characters too.

Final Verdict = C

Check out my review for TMNT: Out of the Shadows here

7. Demolition

Jake Gyllenhaal tries his best within this film but it doesn't reach the standard of his latest films. Some plot points shoved in for extra unnecessary drama with an ending that seems pretty odd. An enjoyable watch though with some good comedy within it.

Final Verdict = C+

Check out my review of Demolition here

6. Whiskey Tango Foxtrot

Tina Fey and Martin Freeman shine in this comedy set in Afghanistan. The two create a very enjoyable viewing with some truly funny moments. The film struggles at times to follow a clear story which does hinder it.

Final Verdict = C+

Check out my review for Whiskey Tango Foxtrot here

'Alice Through The Looking Glass' Review

When you talk about sequels that are better than the first instalment, it can sometimes be hard to find one that people universally agree on. However we may of found one in Alice Through The Looking Glass. After the first instalment it wasn't really that hard though.

Mia Wasikowska is back again as Alice who after a while has returned to Underland. She is greeted by familair faces and the terrible news that the Mad Hatter (Johnny Depp) is dying due to being haunted by his families death by the Jabberwocky. He is sure that they are still alive and believes only Alice can help get them back and restore the Hatter to full health. Alice will need the help from Time (Sacha Baron Cohen) to go back in time to save the Hatters family.

In the trailers of the film, it looked to be setting the character Time up to be the villain in the film. And at first it does seem to try and do so as Time pursues Alice and tries to stop her after she steals the Chronosphere that allows her to travel into the past. There is no real motivation for Time to be the villain here as what Alice is doing is potentially dangerous to the existence of their entire world. The film could've done with an actual villain throughout the whole film. Due to this the film does become quite a bit of a mess and loses focus at times. It isn't entirely sure what way it wants to go and it does hurt the film.

In saying that, I did enjoy watching the character Time played by Sacha Baron Cohen. He was entertaining throughout the film even with quite a ridiculous German accent. His eccentric ways and comedic timing actually was a highlight of the film. He interacts fairly well with the other characters especially with his own minions that create some enjoyable moments. Along with Wasikoswka, Cohen was the stand out in the film.

Wasikowska and Cohen stand out

It wasn't hard for Cohen and Wasikowska to stand out really as the film is filled with some awful performances. Johnny Depp is not in this film as much as the first but he is just as bad to watch. After the criticism received from the first film and his performance in 'Black Mass', I was hoping that Depp was maybe turning a corner and would've tried to have made things right in this film. Unfortunately he does not and his wacky ways of the first one as just as unenjoyable this time around. Just as bad once again is Anne Hathaway and Helena Bonham Carter. This is actually quite depressing as all three of these performers are capable of wonderful things and have done so in the past.

In 2011, Alice in Wonderland won two Oscars for Best Art Direction and Best Costume Design as well as having another nomination for Best Visual Effects. It is highly possible that this may happen once again as it is a truly beautiful film in the terms of it's visuals. Everything looks fantastic once again and is so appealing to the eye. I seen this in IMAX and it was worth it as it added to the effects and made them look even better than they normally would. This does make the film that bit more bearable but unfortunately can't completely save the film.

The concept of time travel and the characters within the Alice franchise really should great something that is great fun. It has potential to be a very fun film and due to it not succeeding at this, it makes it hurt even more so. A real opportunity missed to get this franchise back on track which it sadly failed to deliver.

Final Verdict = 

A very nice looking film with a couple of good performances. Unfortunately the other performances let this down as well as the story not working as well as it could have. Better than the first which I guess is a positive.

So have you seen the latest instalment in the 'Alice' franchise? If so what did you think of it? Once again thank you for reading my review, it is much appreciated!

By Angus McGregor

'Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows' Review

As TMNT 2 started, I was fairly optimistic. I don't mind the first film and don't get the total hate some people have for it. The trailers even excited me a little with their being moments that stood and got me looking forward to the film. This soon all went out the window when Michael Bay left his mark on the film as Megan Fox came out in a skimpy schoolgirl outfit leading me to fear for the worst. The track record for this hasn't exactly been great so you can't blame me.

When the Turtles returned to the big screen in 2014, it didn't exactly get the reaction it had hoped for. Sitting at 22% on Rotten Tomatoes and disappointing fans worldwide, the turtles had a lot to make up for in its sequel. A lot of weight was already on the shoulders of the film to succeed. And at times it really did. It had built upon what needed fixed from the first one. However, it most definitely has its negatives that weigh it down as well.

One of the biggest parts of the film that they did well was building on the turtles. In the first film, there were glimpses of how great they could be. Unfortunately it was only really in short bursts and held back the true potential that the turtles had. Thankfully in 'Out of the Shadows' they do continue this and it is very entertaining to watch. From the turtles joking around and playing pranks on unsuspecting humans it brings out the true characters within our heroes. The film can definitely take pride with making the turtles enjoyable to watch and also, for making them the main focus rather than on boring humans.

Speaking of the humans in the films, there isn't really much to say about them that is great. Megan Fox is just the same character that she always seems to play. Stephen Amell as Casey Jones was disappointing to say the least. He was nowhere near cool enough and that may be down to him not being given enough time to do things that will get the audience interested in the character. For fans of the franchise this won't be a problem due to Jones being a fan favourite. However for casual viewers, it is just another guy around the turtles. The film also used most of his time to try and flirt kind of with Fox's character April O'Neil which isn't good to watch at all. The film used Will Arnett pretty well though only using him for short moments to try and use his comedy. He wasn't as big a part as in the first one and didn't spend a lot of time on screen which did benefit the film.

Casey Jones (Stephen Amell) and April O'Neil (Megan Fox)

There are certainly some great moments throughout the film to again boost it. The scene with the aeroplane which then leads to the turtles facing off with Bebop and Rocksteady- who we'll talk about later- was a great scene with enjoyable moments and action. The action throughout is fairly good and isn't hard to keep up with creating an enjoyable viewing. The action doesn't disappoint and is one of the better parts of the film.

Shredder is back for TMNT 2 and thankfully, he is a lot more different. He no longer looks like a transformer covered completely in knives but is now an actual human character who has trained ninjas at his command showing his power and control. It did seem to be setting up for a big confrontation between Shredder and the turtles with Shredder possibly looking for revenge. However the film shoves Krang in quite abruptly. This happens early on  and then Krang disappears for most of the film,, only to show up again at the end to become the villain for the turtles to face. It wasn't a good enough of a build up for what seems to be leading up to one of the most powerful villains in the franchise.

Our new villain, Krang

Two villains in particular that succeeded for me were Bebop and Rocksteady. These two were a whole load of fun throughout the film as two brawn and no brains criminals who have their lives changed drastically. Stephen Farrelly- also known as Sheamus- and Gary Anthony Williams deserve credit for their work as they hit the comedic notes very well and made two characters that could've easily been flops into some of the most entertaining parts of the film.

The ending really falls flat and this is all down to it being almost a carbon copy of the first film. It was quite unbelievable seeing that they chose to do the same ending at the second chance of trying to establish this universe and to create a great ending. I have no idea to why they decided to do this and you do sit through the finale shocked that they have rehashed the ending from the first film.

Final Verdict = 

A step forward for the TMNT franchise. There is potential for these to be great fun and I really hope it eventually gets there. Unfortunately it just doesn't quite happen in this instalment.

So have you seen TMNT 2? If so what did you think of the film. I hope you enjoyed this review and found it useful for if you were planning on seeing it. Once again thank you for reading my review, it is much appreciated!

By Angus McGregor