Tag Archives: horror

Film Reviews: Don’t Breathe 2. CODA. Stillwater. Jungle Cruise. Amelie. Mary and Max. A Silent Voice. O Brother Where Art Thou? Captivated The Trials of Pamela Smart

22 Wednesday Sep 2021

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Don’t Breathe 2

When the villain becomes the protagonist. Don’t Breathe (2016) was an excellent entry to the home invasion genre with an amazing twist. Then The Quiet Place (2018) came out which followed some of the same patterns and everyone seemed to forget about Don’t Breathe. The sequel also has a crazy twist and is almost equally as brilliant. I’m devastated there won’t be another one.

7/10

CODA

I understand the pressure of being the kid who has to translate for their parents who don’t speak the language. Your family’s livelihood depends on you. It angered me when Ruby kept staring at her phone instead of interpreting for her dad. I know this is supposed to be a coming of age, teen movie, but the love plot was unnecessary. I was waiting for them to turn the sound off, and when they finally did, it was very much effective. Also, we all love Joni Mitchell, but Both Sides Now is not an audition song.

8/10

Stillwater

We’ve all seen that Amanda Knox documentary on Netflix and just by watching the trailer for Stillwater we can agree this is a rip off of her story. As shocking as Amanda’s story is, the film is even more unbelievable. They wanted to make it seem like a different story, by changing the location from Italy to France to start with and ended up going too far.

5/10

Jungle cruise

How is this not… a new instalment of the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise? If you’re in the UK, go see it at Odeon and don’t forget to pick up your A3 poster. It’s the nicest one they’ve had in a while.

6/10

Amelie

I could watch 10 hours of 6 year old Amelie’s adventures. Also, I’ve never noticed the ASMR in the opening credits before. Maybe Youtube isn’t as useless as I thought? The cinematography is beautiful, but the subject matter is too light for me to find the film to be of essence. Watch Kieslowski’s The Double Life of Veronique instead.

7/10

Mary and Max

Two lonely people from the opposite sides of the world become best friends. I haven’t had a pen pal since I was twelve and now I really want one. The ending is soul crashing.

‘You are my best friend. You are my only friend. Your American pen pal, Max.’

9/10

A Silent Voice

I don’t believe the bully could ever become friends with the bullied, but all the talk about suicide is what makes this animation wonderful.

9/10

O Brother Where Art Thou

This reminded me of The Defiant Ones (1958) with Sidney Poitier and Tony Curtis and it was funny at times, but why was Holly Hunter in only 2 scenes?

7/10

Captivated The Trials of Pamela Smart

An HBO documentary about the first televised trial. This girl clearly didn’t understand she could go to prison for hiring someone to murder her husband. I’ve always loved Gus Vant Sant’s To Die For starring Nicole Kidman and never knew it was loosely based on Pamela Smart’s story.

6/10

Film Reviews: Candyman. The Night House. Be Natural: The Untold Story of Alice Guy Blache. Frances Ha. Once Around. Battle Royale. 3 Faces. Legend. Little House: The Last Farewell

09 Monday Aug 2021

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Candyman

As glad as I am that this movie is a continuation of the 1992 film and not a remake, Candyman could really use another bonfire. I’m glad Tony Todd was in this one too, I was worried they had replaced him. I’m disappointed in myself for not figuring out the twist until the hospital scene.

7/10

The Night House

This may be the most tense cinema experience I’ve had in years, since Insidious probably. It’s scarier if you can’t see it. I liked the main concept, but the ending, although original, is a let down. On the other hand, the idea of a family member going to all that trouble to protect you is reassuring.

7/10

Be Natural: The Untold Story of Alice Guy Blache

If you’re a filmmaker or a film buff, you need to watch this asap. I will now go watch everything directed by Alice Guy-Blaché I can get my hands on.

8/10

Frances Ha

Frances is a typical millennial who wants to spend her 20s in New York, pursuing a creative career, but having to take various odd jobs to support herself. Frances Ha is a bigger love letter to New York than a Woody Allen film.

7/10

Once Around

Holly Hunter stars as a 20s woman in love with an old man. Her family do not seem to mind the age difference, but they sure hate his personality. I loved the idea of projecting old family videos on a baby bump.

7/10

Battle Royale

A story of Japanese teenagers forced to kill each other on a remote island. If you liked The Hunger Games, you have to watch this!

9/10

3 Faces

An Iranian girl got into an acting school, but her parents disapprove of such profession. Jafar Panahi is asked to help. I’ve been putting this one off since January, and finally found the time to watch it. The channel I DVR’d it from no longer exists too. I have now seen all of Jafar Panahi’s feature films and Crimson Gold is the only one I didn’t like.

6/10

Legend

Beautiful set design to a very average fantasy film. With long hair, Tom Cruise looks exactly like Camilla Belle.

6/10

Little House: The Last Farewell

What a depressing ending to the series. I wish they brought Harriet, Nellie or Mary back for the final episode/movie. Yes, my family did spent the entire summer rewatching nine seasons of The Little House on the Prairie.

9/10

Film Reviews: Old. Black Widow. The Forever Purge. Uncle Frank. The Silence. Images. Troop Zero. November. Aurora Teagarden Mysteries: Till Death Do Us Part. Framing Britney Spears. Paris When It Sizzles. Runt Page.

27 Tuesday Jul 2021

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Old

Old is the film I’ve been looking forward to the most this year. I do however have to question the kids’ mental growth. A simple non-spoilery example is a 6 year old wouldn’t know what sex or prom are. The biggest con for me was the pregnancy storyline, which felt extremely forced and plain ridiculous. Cropped faces is one of my biggest pet peeves and there’s a lot of this sort of cinematography going on here. While the young actress looked a lot like Thomasin McKenzie, the adult version didn’t, they even forgot to give her green coloured lenses. Despite the aforementioned, I loved the concept and this was a pleasing watch.

7/10

Black Widow

So Florence Pugh is getting her own Marvel film? If you’re in the UK, Odeon is handing out A3 posters of Scarlet Johansson as the Black Widow, I recommend you grab one with your ticket. I haven’t seen all of the Avengers, because I don’t normally watch superhero movies, so the post-credits scene was a surprise to me. I originally went to see Black Widow because it stars Rachel Weisz, but I ended up enjoying the film quite a lot. The opening scene was probably my favourite and the opening sequence made me emotional partially because of Malia J’s lovely cover of Nirvana’s Smells Like Teen Spirit, making me already more invested in the superhero film than I ever thought I could be. Black Widow features multiple strong female characters and I had a lot of fun watching it. The Nirvana cover is going straight into my playlist.

8/10

The Forever Purge

I love the Purge series despite all of its flaws. It’s a brilliant idea, and The Forever Purge is one of the best ones in a while. There are no rules and people no longer want the Purge to be limited to a single day. My favourite moment was when they said they would open the Canadian and Mexican borders to those unarmed, it made me tear up.

6/10

Uncle Frank

I’ve always been a huge fan of Six Feet Under, so naturally I’ll watch anything written by Alan Ball. I cried a lot during the last 30 min or so. The film is nominated for an Emmy this year.

I’ve got two words for you, “no problem”.

8/10

The Silence

I seem to fall in love with every Iranian film I come across. The Silence is a beautiful and tender film about a blind boy.

7/10

Images

While I would rate Nashville, The Long Goodbye, Short Cuts and a few other films directed by Altman higher than Images, it’s still a really good psychological drama.

7/10

Troop Zero

If you like David Bowie’s music, you’ll enjoy this. This film clearly waited years for its realese, Mckenna looks about ten here. Mckenna Grace has been in almost 60 films and TV shows including The Handmaid’s Tale and I, Tonya, and I’ve seen at least 15 of them.

5/10

November

Back in 2005 I bought this on Ebay, but there was something wrong with my disc and the film would freeze halfway through. I still have that DVD and never got around to finishing this film, until now.

5/10

Aurora Teagarden Mysteries: Till Death Do Us Part

Did I see Candace shamelessly holding one of her children’s books in an early library scene? While her dress was lovely, this was probably the weakest instalment in the series. Aurora Teagardens are officially tied with Lori Loughlin’s Garage Sale Mysteries at 16 films, this will soon change with 17th Aurora arriving next month.

3/10

Framing Britney Spears

For a group of journalists, they didn’t do much digging, did they?

4/10

Paris When it Sizzles

My whole family hated this. Did they really have to act out the character’s entire script?

2/10

Runt Page

Wait, so this series was all a dream? The first instalment wasn’t on Filmbox, so I ended up looking it up on Internet Archive. The dubbing is distracting and the storyline is poor. It’s one of the weakest ones, but definitely not the most disturbing one.

2/10

For more, add me on Letterboxd: letterboxd.com/joanneholly

Film Reviews: I Care a Lot. Kajillionaire. Amy. Tales From the Darkside. Strange Planet. Across the Universe. Return to Horror High. R.L. Stine Monsterville: The Cabinet of Souls. The Expecting

29 Thursday Apr 2021

Posted by in Julianne Moore, movies, Rachel Griffiths

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I Care a Lot

This could easily be mistaken for a sequel to Gone Girl. Rosamund sounds a lot like Geena Davis in this film. Pike has been in so many good movies since I first saw her in Pride and Prejudice. I was also surprised to see Alicia Witt in a non-Hallmark movie. I didn’t know being a legal guardian is an actual job, or that someone could be a legal guardian of someone they don’t know personally. Maybe we should all consider it.

‘You’re my guardian robber!’

8/10

Kajillionaire

I would watch more than fourteen episodes of Jane the Virgin if it was this gay. Seeing characters who cannot afford to shower never have greasy hair is one of my biggest pet peeves.

This is the 5000th film l’ve logged on Letterboxd!

7/10

Amy

This is touching, funny and very Australian. The script is flawed, the last 30 min has two extemely random and unnecessary plots, a drunk chasing the girl and random youth trying to kidnap her. I have now seen almost everything Rachel Griffiths has been in.

7/10

Tales from the Darkside

I’ve been watching reruns of Tales from the Darkside and thought I’d re-watch this in between. Julianne Moore stars and shines in the first 40 minutes of the film. While some stories are clearly better than others, it’s still an entertaining ride.

6/10

Strange Planet

I tried buying this on DVD five or six years ago, I got it on Ebay and the film I received was a different title (it was Next with Nicolas Cage and Julianne Moore, which I already had on DVD). I never complained, because I only paid a couple of quid, but it took me this long to reach for the film again.

6/10

Across the Universe

Some songs worked better than others, the film’s version of Come Together worked extremely well. The film looses its plot, literally, and turns into an abstract piece no one asked for. The differences between the US and the UK are jarring. Who would want to live in our tiny semi-detached UK houses, when there’s all that space in America? When this came out, my middle school English teacher spent a good month telling us about this film, and yet it took me 14 years to watch it.

6/10

Return to Horror High

This randomly played on TV and it seemed exactly like something I would have loved as a teenager. I loved 80s slashers, so I decided to watch this. Young George Clooney stars in a tiny role and his character is the first person to die. I was expecting something similar to Slaughter High, but got a very average horror instead. It still made me want to check out the first Horror High though.

5/10

R.L. Stine Monsterville: The Cabinet of Souls

There are three Fear Street movies coming to Netflix this summer and I’m looking forward to them. Goosebumps was my life as a kid, both the TV show and books. I have about 30 books somewhere in my parents’ house I will never give away. Letterboxd doesn’t even credit R.L Stine with writing the novel this was based on and I completely forgot this existed until it appeared on Netflix earlier this week. I will forever watch anything R.L. Stine. I remember watching the Haunted Mask and Slappy episodes of Goosebumps, among many others, like it was yesterday.

6/10

The Expecting

This was directed by Mary Harron, who directed American Psycho? I never would have guessed. I also would not have guessed that this is the role AnnaSophia Robb shaved her head for. The scene in the bathroom with blood dripping down AnnaSophia’s legs reminded me of the scene with Hilary Swank noticing blood dripping down AnnaSophia’s legs in The Reaping, 14 years ago. Also, Cassie from Skins is also in this.

First and last Quibi original I’ll ever watch. RIP, Quibi.

4/10

10 Best Films Watched in Cinemas in 2020

26 Saturday Dec 2020

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I watched 91 films at the pictures in 2019, but because of the pandemic, I’ve only seen 23 films at the cinemas this year. These are the 10 best. I’ve copied this list from my Letterboxd and thought I’d post it in here. Some of these have been reviewed on here throughout the year. If you’d like me to review any of them or any other film, please leave the title in the comments.

Check out my 2019 list: https://joanneholly.com/2019/12/10/30-best-films-watched-in-cinemas-in-2019/

Film Reviews: The Craft: Legacy. Horizon Line. Nobody Sleeps in the Woods Tonight. The Other Lamb. After-School Special. Scarface. What We Do In The Shadows. The House That Jack Built. The Turning. We Have Always Lived in the Castle. A Babysitter’s Guide to Monster Hunting. Conte D’Ete

09 Monday Nov 2020

Posted by in movies, sarah paulson

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The Craft: Legacy

I have a feeling other than myself and the 50 year old male in the audience, no one at my screening has actually seen the original The Craft, which is disappointing. Legacy would have been so much better if they chose to focus on what happened to the four girls from the first film, instead of creating a whole new story and then desperately try to make a correlation at the end. Also, I’m disappointed two scenes from the trailer weren’t used in the final film.

5/10

Horizon Line

Way better than I expected. The question here is, did you catch yourself imagining what you would have done if you were in the character’s shoes, while watching the film? If so, it means the film is a success. Last film watched at the cinema before the second national lockdown, possibly the last film watched at the pictures in 2020?

7/10

Nobody Sleeps in the Woods Tonight

Poland is known for its beautiful forests, among many things. The filmmakers took every slasher based in the middle of nowhere and put it into one quite entertaining watch. I think the slasher it made me think of the most is The Texas Chainsaw Massacre. Also, I really love the title.

6/10

The Other Lamb

The red and blue wardrobe sure reminded me of The Handmaid’s Tale. I loved this atmospheric horror from Polish filmmakers Małgorzata Szumowska and Michał Englert. The film is visually stunning. Disappearing from Mubi in 2 weeks.

8/10

After-School Special

I never would have guessed they were going to go there. This left me shocked and uncomfortable, but this short was supposed to do just that, so it worked.

6.5/10

Scarface

I’m a big fan of Brian De Palma, so obviously I love his Scarface remake. Today I finally got to see the original and I didn’t like it quite as much as the remake.

7/10

What We Do in the Shadows

This was my third attempt, successful this time, and I’m still not in love with it and I don’t really understand why.

6/10

The House that Jack Built

‘I couldn’t resist running that little old lady over.’

Lars von Trier’s return to horror. I can’t stop thinking of the hunting scene.

8/10

The Turning

I remember deciding not to see it at the cinema earlier this year, and yet I chose to waste my Halloween on it? What’s wrong with me?

2/10

We Have Always Lived in the Castle

Awesome title, average film.

5/10

A Babysitter’s Guide to Monster Hunting

I grew up watching Goosebumps the TV series, and I don’t think I would have enjoyed this film much as a kid, because it lacked scary parts. The hypnotising song was awesome though and I will still most likely watch the sequel if there is to be one. I’ve been following Oona Laurence’s career since her SVU episode and the brilliant film The Lamb.

5/10

Conte D’Ete aka A Summer’s Tale

I wish this wasn’t my introduction to Éric Rohmer, because it really put me off checking out his other films. Three of his films are on Mubi, and I was hoping to watch them if I liked this one, but now I don’t think I will. This was a required viewing for film school and there is no way I’m picking this film to write my next essay on.

5/10

Film Reviews: Chronicle of Amorous Accidents. The General. Carlito’s Way. The Accidental Tourist. This Changes Everything. Top of the Lake: China Girl. Ava. Wildflower. A Private War. Timbuktu. The Lost Room. Zing

13 Sunday Sep 2020

Posted by in Ellen Pompeo, geena davis, Jessica Chastain, movies, reese witherspoon, switched at birth

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I’m on my first holiday since February, and I’ve decided to rewatch at least one film from two of my most favourite directors, Andrzej Wajda and Brian De Palma. Keep reading to find out which films I chose to watch.

Chronicle of Amorous Accidents

My dad and I own 24 of Andrzej Wajda’s films on DVD at this point, after buying another 7 this week. My dad has been telling me about this masterpiece for years and I finally got to see it. Paulina Mlynarska left the industry after being traumatised by the nude scenes in this film she shot at just 14. That’s the difference between European and US or British cinema. How many French films feautured films with teenagers being exploited?

10/10

The General

Started off my holiday with this brilliant Buster Keaton film. I was enjoying it very much, then halfway through I got a text from my boss telling me to contact him, because he wants to throw me a leaving-do. It’s my first time abroad since February and yesterday I bought 32 DVDs for very cheap, so I think we can already class this holiday as a success?

10/10

Carlito’s Way

I’ve never noticed how much Naomi Watts and Penelope Ann Miller look alike until this film!

8/10

The Accidental Tourist

Back in the 7th grade I chose to write my book report on the book this movie was based on. I went to the bookstore and The Accidental Tourist caught my eye as it had the poster from the film on the cover. I only got this book, because I recognized Geena Davis from A League of Their Own and Thelma and Louise and I loved both of those films. It was an exceptionally boring read, and to think that most of my classmates wrote their reports on books from the Mary-Kate and Ashley book series while I committed to reading this drag. The book put me off watching the film, and It took me this long to finally reach for it, and…surprise, surprise, I hated it just as much as my younger version hated that awful book.

‘A business traveler should bring only what fits in a carry-on bag. Checking your luggage is asking for trouble. – – Add several travel size packets of detergent so you won’t fall into the hands of unfamiliar laundries. There are very few necessities in this world which do not come from travel-size packets. – – One suit is plenty, if you take along travel size packets of spot remover. The suit should be medium gray. Gray not only hides the dirt, but is handy for sudden funerals. – – Always bring a book as protection against strangers. Magazines don’t last and newspapers from elsewhere remind you, you don’t belong. But, don’t take more than one book. It is a common mistake to overestimate ones potential free time and consequently overpack. In travel, as in most of life, less is invariably more. – – And most importantly, never take along anything on your journey so valuable or dear, that it’s loss would devastate you.’

4/10

This Changes Everything

Let me get this straight, they got a male to direct a documentary about how Hollywood doesn’t want to hire female directors? Also, Geena Davis is a queen, and I’m a fan of most of these actresses and filmmakers.

‘The basis of your thinking is determined by the first images you see; whose values are important and whose stories are important, and that’s what we’re teaching little girls and little boys.’ – Reese Witherspoon

10/10

Top of The Lake: China Girl

How did Elisabeth and Nicole shoot their scenes together, seeing how Scientologist aren’t allowed to talk to ex-Scientologists? While season one was incredible, this is a mess. I watched the first 4 episodes 3 years ago when the season came out, and it took me until today to finish it I saw season one was discounted at my local DVD store for £2 and I’ve decided to buy it I didn’t like the second season and I won’t ever be rewatching it. I just bought season 1 on DVD for an equivalent of £2, and I have no need to ever rewatch the second one, so it was no brainer really.

6/10

Ava

There’s one scene in this that’s extremely uncomfortable to watch and must have been painful for Jessica to film seeing that’s how her sister died. This film stars Jessica Chastain and Geena Davis, but the script is bad and they can’t save it.

5/10

Wildflower

First film ever watched on Amazon Prime Video. That’s right, I finally caved in. Little Reese Witherspoon and young Patricia Arquette star in a film about abuse. I hate how no one wanted to get involved at first and accepted the abuse as something some people just do.

7/10

A Private War

I wish they showed us something about her childhood, why she left the US and what drove her to do this scary job.

9/10

Timbuktu

After four months of free Mubi, it’s time to decide whether to keep my subscription or to cancel my membership. Mubi has offered me an entire year 50% off and even though I know I won’t have much time to watch films starting next month, I think It’d be dumb of me not to take it. This is a fine example of why I should keep it.

7/10

The Lost Room

Expires from Amazon Prime in a few hours. I’ve never even heard of this mini series before yesterday, but I’m a huge fan of Six Feet Under and Parenthood, so obviously I had to watch it. It reminded me of Locke and Key and I’m not sorry I spent 5 hours watching it.

7/10

Zing

Suitable for ages 7 and up? Are you kidding me, this is a creepy short about death. Brilliant, but not for little children.

8/10

Film Reviews: The Platform. Black Water: Abyss. Anna Karenina. Rust Creek. Virus Tropical. Pom Poko. Alien Resurrection. Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar & Grill. Home Sweet Home

11 Saturday Jul 2020

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the platform abyss 2 anna

The Platform

Over 600 people are locked in a prison with 300+ floors. There is a lift carrying food delivering food starting from the 1st floor, all the way to the last floor. There isn’t enough food for everyone and the greedy people from top floors get more food and people from 200+ and below get nothing. Every 30 days prisoners change floors. If they’re lucky they move up, if not, they may end up below the 200+ floor. In the age when everything is a copy and it’s impossible to find an original idea, David Desola and Pedro Rivero came up with The Platform and what a beautifully depressing ride it is.

There are 3 kinds of people; the ones above, the ones below, and the ones who fall.

10/10

Black Water: Abyss

First new release at my local cinema since the pandemic and the first film I’ve seen at the pictures since mid March. I thought it was realistic enough and it made me think of The Descent and Steve Irwin, so I cannot complain. This is the second time this week I’m watching something with a crocodile in it. My family and I just finished watching reruns of the original Return to Eden mini series, which features a croc attack in the pilot. The fact that Black Water 2 took place inside a cave made it more entertaining than the first one. I enjoyed the ending too. I really don’t understand why people think it’s a good idea to explore caves, I just don’t.

6/10

Anna Karenina

Not the best adaptation, but not the worst one either. I watched death scenes from all 6 adaptations on youtube, and I think I liked this one the most, especially with the neck breaking.

6/10

rust virus pom poko

Rust Creek

A villain or villains chasing someone in the middle of the woods has been my favourite genre since I watched Wes Craven’s The Last House On The Left as a kid. The lesson we can learn from Rust Creek is to never get out of your perfectly working car when you’re in the middle of nowhere. Don’t leave the car to look at the map, you can do that from your car. And don’t stop your car in the middle of nowhere when you’re by yourself. Keep driving till you’re surrounded by multiple households. Also, don’t waste your phone’s battery on the recorder app. And always charge your phone while driving.

6/10

Virus Tropical

It’s good, but whoever called it Colombian Persepolis has clearly never seen Persepolis.

5.5/10

Pom Poko

It took me five days to finish this, which helped me realise maybe I don’t need to see all of Ghibli studio’s films. It’s about racoons getting their revenge on people for deforestation, urbanisation and gentrification.

5/10

alien lady day home sweet home

Alien: Resurrection

I just really felt like watching the first 4 Alien films. I gave Alien and Aliens 10/10 and 6/10 to Alien 3. This one sees Ripley come back after 200 years as a robot, I know right? Winona Ryder co-stars. Why so many flashing lights though?! I had to watch parts of it with my head down and considered fast forwarding. I will not be watching any other Aliens. Well, I would if Sigourney Weaver was back.

Hey, Ripley. I heard you, like, ran into these things before?
That’s right.
Wow, man. So, like, what did you do?
I died.

4.5/10

Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar & Grill

Audra’s acting is fantastic and the way she changed her voice so much and kept it that low through an hour and a half monologue of talking and singing is a masterclass in itself!

5.5/10

Home Sweet Home

So Candace Cameron Bure’s youtuber daughter is an actress now?

2/10