Title: Underworld: Blood Wars (2016) Release date: Jan 6, 2017 (USA) IMDB Rating: 6.3/10 Writers: Cory Goodman (screenplay), Kyle Ward (story by), Cory Goodman (story by), Kevin Grevioux (based on characters created by), Len Wiseman (based on characters created by), Danny McBride (based on characters created by) Director: Anna Foerster Stars: Kate Beckinsale, Theo James, Lara Pulver, Charles Dance Genre: Action, Horror Production Companies: Lakeshore Entertainment, Screen Gems, Sketch Films Runtime: 91 mins
Review:
Hey, remember when everyone was obsessed with those ‘Underworld’ movies? I’ll bet you don’t because that never actually happened. Yet here we are, 14 years later, and there are still sequels being made. ‘Underworld: Blood Wars’ is the latest title in the franchise. It’s not particularly better or worse than any of the previous handfuls of nonsense. It’s just the same old crap refried and served up again.
It would be nice to say that this one is so bad that it’ll finally put an end to this ongoing cinematic nightmare. Sadly, this garbage fire will likely keep burning. Why? Who knows? I mean, bellbottoms once made a comeback. Stupid doesn’t die. It just gets stronger.
So what’s this one about? I honestly have no idea. On a certain level, the ‘Underworld’ mythology is brain dead simple. There are vampires and there are werewolves. They fight an ongoing war. Selene (Kate Beckinsale) is at the center because of fate or whatever. She has some sort of halfbreed monster daughter who’s a secret to something or other. That’s important. Just not enough for that character to be in this movie. That would allow the overall narrative to advance and this sequel is all about wheel-spinning. Instead of building new ideas, the flick just replays old ones. Once again, Selene is caught up in vampire politics, which I guess are bad. Once again, she fires handguns at werewolves and jump kicks some naughty vamps. Once again, it’s all pointless. Whatever. Who cares? Clearly not any of the army of ‘Underworld’ screenwriters.
Title:Suicide Squad (2016) Release date: Aug 5, 2016 (USA) IMDB Rating: 6.3/10 Writer: David Ayer Director: David Ayer Stars: Will Smith, Jaime FitzSimons, Ike Barinholtz, Margot Robbie Genre: Action, Adventure, Comedy, Sci-Fi Production Companies: Dune Entertainment, Atlas Entertainment, Warner Bros., DC Entertainment Runtime: 123 mins
Review:
The DC Cinematic Universe is back with its 3rd entry in its franchise.
Now if I’m honest, I am not the hugest Suicide Squad fan. I read a lot
of the comics, I have read most of their new 52 stuff up until New
Suicide Squad got boring and repetitive especially only having one
excellent story arc, and even then there were some problems with that. I
am currently reading the current Suicide Squad book though I am keeping
my options open as to whether I am going to continue reading it. DC is
clearly counting on this to be a massive success because they have made
it one of their twice monthly issues which has been reserved for
characters like Superman, Batman, Green Lantern, Green Arrow and Wonder
Woman and this could come back to haunt them, because if the film is not
a success it may not lead people to buy the comic. The film is also
coming off the back of Batman V Superman
which I recently reviewed for the site and as of when I wrote this
review I still had not seen the extended cut so I can’t give an opinion
on it just yet.
Title: Assassin’s Creed (2016) Release date: Dec 21, 2016 (USA) IMDB Rating: 6.4/10 Writers: Michael Lesslie (screenplay), Adam Cooper (screenplay), Bill Collage (screenplay) Director: Justin Kurzel Stars: Michael Fassbender, Marion Cotillard, Jeremy Irons, Brendan Gleeson Genre: Action, Adventure, Family, Fantasy Production Companies: 20th Century Fox, Regency Enterprises, The Kennedy/Marshall Company, Ubisoft, CatchPlay, Syncopy, New Regency Pictures, Hong Kong Alpha Motion Pictures Co., Latina Pictures, RatPac Entertainment, Alpha Motion Pictures, DMC Films, Ubisoft Entertainment, Mo Runtime: 115 mins
Review:
Assassin’s Creed is an American film about a criminal who, after
being executed, is brought back to life and used to tap into the
memories of his ancestor from the 15th Century, he discovers the history
of the secret Assassins society. The most important thing to know before reading this review is that
I’ve never played any of the Assassin’s Creed games, nor have I ever
felt any desire to. That said, there are all sorts of video game movies
that have entertained me even when I’ve never been invested in the world
before. Assassin’s Creed isn’t one of those movies, because it’s an utter
mess. Committing one of the worst sins an action blockbuster can do,
it’s simply tedious from start to finish, consistently failing to grab
my attention at any moment, and never even trying to do something
original or exciting to save the desperately falling wreckage from
ending in a fiery ball of disappointment.
Title: Deadpool (2016) Release date: Feb 12, 2016 (USA) IMDB Rating: 8.1/10 Writers: Rhett Reese, Paul Wernick Director: Tim Miller Stars: Ryan Reynolds, Karan Soni, Ed Skrein, Michael Benyaer Genre: Action, Adventure, Comedy, Fantasy, Sci-Fi, Thriller Production Company: Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation, Marvel Entertainment, The Donners' Company, TSG Entertainment, Kinberg Genre Runtime: 108 mins
Review:
In a world that is becoming flooded with superhero movies, “Deadpool” throws a whole new type of character into the mix but undoubtedly hurts its own creativity by not taking as great of leaps as it could with its plot and villains.
Ryan Reynolds stars as Wade Wilson, a mercenary-for-hire with a wisecracking mouth.
Wilson discovers that he is terminally ill with cancer. Desperate to find a cure so that he can stay alive with the love of his life, Wilson puts his trust in, and disappears with a sketchy throw-away henchman in a suit who claims that he knows someone who can cure Wilson’s cancer.
Title: Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016) Release date: Dec 16, 2016 (USA) IMDB Rating: 8.1/10 Writers: Chris Weitz (screenplay),Tony Gilroy (screenplay), John Knoll (story by),Gary Whitta (story by), George Lucas (based on characters created by) Directors: Anthony Russo, Joe Russo Stars: Felicity Jones, Diego Luna, Alan Tudyk, Donnie Yen Genre: Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi Production Companies: Lucasfilm, Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures, Allison Shearmur Productions, Black Hangar Studios Runtime: 133 mins
Review:
For a longtime Star Wars fan like myself, “Rogue One” was an
entertaining and worthy addition to the saga, though it left me wanting
the franchise to finally break free of nostalgia and actually explore
new ground.
Although the story is pitched as the first “standalone” Star Wars
movie, it is more of a prequel to “Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope,”
telling the backstory of how the Rebellion stole plans for the Death
Star. It folds rather neatly into the 1977 film, ending mere hours
(minutes?) before the start of the original movie.
The characters are mostly engaging, particularly the sarcastic new
droid K-2SO. No wooden dialog here, with spirited battles instead of the
inane romantic and political banter of the Lucas-directed prequels.
