Mainstream

 Gia Coppola impressed me a few years ago with Palo Alto, she kept herself pretty lowkey after that. Her sophomore effort is Mainstream, and it ups the style and the actors are great but after the first 30 minutes the film crumbles. It is supposed to be a takedown of internet culture, vloggers, people on their phones, but it not only begins to point the finger at everyone with a phone but it soon becomes a film where the characters themselves become those they hate....which is odd cause they kind of start off that way too. There really is no character growth, just a narcissistic trust fund baby/sociopath that mocks life yet wants nothing more than fame. While the acting is great the characters are awful, intentional sure but the story doesn't warrant it.   

Seance

 Ever since A Horrible Way to Die i have been wanting Simon Barret to direct a film. All of his work with Adam Wingard has been excellent for the most part so i awaited what he would do. Seance did not disappoint. A huge ensemble all delivers, the bitches truly make you hate them, the protagonists make you want to see them survive. With it's great gore and kills, especially towards the end,  it also crosses subgenres, part supernatural part slasher, but it tonally feels like it'd fit the same universe as the rest of the Barret/Wingard gems. 

Star Wars Visions

 Star Wars Visions is the animation that Disney should embrace for Disney Plus. Where as Bad Batch was a chore and What If is a mixed bag, this here tries. Sure not every episode works but each one is like 15 minutes so no time is wasted. I'm not an anime guy but i loved how it used various anime techniques and styles. Some of it felt like the eye rolling anime, others were badass. This is Star Wars anime for the Animatrix fans among us! 

Chaos Walking

 I don't know what the fuck i watched....but that seemed like a high concept with poor execution. Chaos Walking is Doug Liman's latest genre film, much like Edge of Tomorrow the concept is brilliant but unlike Edge of Tomorrow, this is a clustered & convoluted experiment gone wrong. The idea of a planet without women is great, the idea that men's thoughts can be heard is great, an Earth women landing on said planet? Greatness right? No, maybe in other hands, and this is not a knock on Liman, i love alot of his work, but this felt like a Sy Fy channel movie with some A Listers and attempting to take itself seriously. THe plot is thin, the gimmick runs thin and the thinness bleeds over to boredom. 

Wrath of Man

 Wrath of Man is both a solid follow up to The Gentleman and a return to(poor form). I love the tone and style, it feels like a B Movie action film but sicne it stars Jason Statham it is in theatres, i mean all of that in the best way, and i love the way to story is told. The story however is quite convoluted and contrived. It's all over the place and thinks it is smarter than it is, it wraps up nicely but there is still a solid hour where nothing makes sense. It's fun and entertaining and definitely better than Ritchie's blockbusters but still lacks the punch of Lock Stock, Snatch, Rock N Rolla, and the Gentleman. 

Profile

 Timur Bekmambetov is an interesting director but not one i love. I was a fan of Night Watch and Day Watch but i have always wanted something as visual as Wanted. Profile is a 2018 film released in 2021 and it feels like it. The concept is great but it has been done better with horror films over the past few years. Alot of the dramatic moments come off as wooden or humorous which is not right for a film like this. The message in the film is blurry too. I honestly got more political tones from Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter. 

Georgetown

 When i read that Christoph Waltz was going to be directing a film i was stoked. The plot sounded iffy and the trailer looked meh but i was stoked all the same.The film while well crafted, is quite the bore. Waltz as always does great acting but he smokes everyone else. It's a short and a quick watch but it honestly feels way longer than it is.