Ant-Man and The Wasp
With the memories of Infinity War still fresh in our mind, this Marvel film takes a minor detour with comedic characters and a scattered background story for the villains. The first Ant Man film was more of a heist where as this sequal is a rescue operation. Saving Pym's wife who has been missing in the Quantum realm for decades, now (apparently) is the time to fetch her back. As Scott is still under house arrest following the events after Civil War, the comedic timing is ramped up, as well as the emotional family connections. Its a fun fast paced ride to the happy conclusion BUT the mid credits scene literally takes all that away. 3/5
Skate Kitchen
Full review over on My Film Club which can be read
HERE. 5/5
To All the Boys I've Loved Before
Of all the Netflix (original) films out there, this is the one that I watched twice. Its a romantice teen drama and sometimes these seem like they are overcrowding the streaming service BUT this felt a little different. A shy girl who writes secret letters to her crushes, has a close relationship with her sisters and has more to offer than a soppy tale about unrequited love. She teams up with her past crush, Peter so it isn't awkward between her friend (also past crush) Josh who recently broke up with her sister, to make Peter's ex-girlfriend want him back. Its complicated but it doesn't have to be. In thinking she's pretending, Lara Jean, actually falls for Peter who has fallen for her long before realisations are shared. You could untangle this and say it was all rather pointless and a quick conversation with an old friend could have fixed everything BUT then you wouldn't have this adorable film to enjoy. 4/5
The Meg
After a billionaire funds a deep sea research lab, they dive into the Mariana Trench, the deepest point in the ocean, believing that the trench is far deeper that realised. The diving team breach the trench but they encounter an ancient giant shark, Megalodon, allowing it to swim through the barrier. The scientists then, with the help of Jason Statham, capture or kill the shark. In Empire magazine this month there was an article about the art of the 'big dumb movie' and of course 'The Meg' should have been just that BUT alas, the film was trying too hard to be 'clever'. Although I did laugh at some awkward attempts at trying be rom-com, I wasn't as entertained as I had hoped. I think I might read the book instead. 2/5
The Awful Truth
A screwball comedy about a married couple who are cheating on each other so decide to divorce as they can't trust the other but then become jealous of each other when they try to move on, stop me if you've heard this one before. Cary Grant and Irene Dunne play the hopless couple who are still in love with each other to perfection. Its very silly in places but you'd expect that from a 30s screwball. Its not as good as others but scenes where people keeping hiding the bedroom and the final scenes in the cabin are very amusing. 3/5
Public Schooled
I missed the screening of the film at EIFF so luckily its on Netflix so I didn't miss out. Socially awkward Liam has been home schooled by his overprotective mother, Claire, and is about to take his SATs early so he can go to Cambridge University as they both planned. But when he sees a pretty girl with one leg, Liam decides to enroll at public school for the remainder of the semester. Claire believes he is rebelling and teaches him different ways to rebel, getting it out of his system. Its sweet in places and Judy Greer is just brilliant, its fun film that doesn't have nice neatly tied up ending but rather chooses the realistic path with a bit of hope sprinkled in. 3/5
BlackkKlansman
The first African American police officer of the Colorado Springs department infiltrates the local Klu Klux Klan chapter, based on a true story is a story I am very much intrigued by. With the help of a caucasian officer, the two men go under cover, in person and on the phone. It seems wrong to only sum up this film is a few sentances apart from saying how brilliantly the film is constructed, with John David Washington as Ron Stallworth giving a performance not of anger but a true detective making this more than a great story. Everyone has talked about the ending which shows the current state of America, showing how things haven't really changed, which is a better note to end the film on as the story, the case had a successful ending. 4/5
Crazy Rich Asians
Correct me if I'm wrong about this not passing the Bechdel Test.
Moving on, I loved this film! Fair enough, I did see it at a preview with the cast of the film. This film is not only groundbreaking and hoping this will help change things for the better but the story and characters are also well put together. Rachel is a college professor, she isn't struggling in life or have bad relationships with friends or family, she is well grounded and in love with Nick. Nick, who is very much in love with Rachel, wants her to meet her family in Singapore. Nick had kept it secret that he comes from a literally crazy rich family and also, literally throws Rachel into the whole crazy rich life. Its a baptism by fire as Rcahel meets family, deals with jealous ex-girlfriends and Nick's overbearing mother who claims she wants the best for her son but doesn't see that Rachel is that. Its essentially a rom-com but with a hell of lot of pizazz! There are of course stand outs of the film, Awkwafina steals every scene she is in as Rachel's friend Goh Peik Lin, she was also hilarious at the preview too. Gemma Chan is also so subtly brilliant, conveying a heartbreak amidst such happiness. I really hope this film continues to be a huge success in the UK as it was in the US. More films like this please! 4/5
