Film The Redcafe Movie review thread

Broken City
In a city rife with injustice, ex-cop Billy Taggart seeks redemption and revenge after being double-crossed and then framed by its most powerful figure: Mayor Nicholas Hostetler. Average local political thriller. Saw it yesterday, thought it was ok, barely remember much from it 4/10
 


Seems like the critics are very much enjoying themselves with their Cats reviews. I noted a zero star slating from The Telegraph earlier, which must be a joy to write.
 
sullydnl said:


Seems like the critics are very much enjoying themselves with their Cats reviews. I noted a zero star slating from The Telegraph earlier, which must be a joy to write.
Click to expand...


I once saw the stage show in the 80's. It was really terrible.
 
6 Underground

So seeing the shit get kicked out of it on here, I finally got round to watching it this evening. Yeah it's typical Michael Bay fare. It's arty, it's pretentious, it's gratuitous, it's brash, it's loud, it's too long, it's incoherent....but I kind of enjoyed it. That being said, the film is riddled with flaws, continuity gaffes and ropey editing. Basically, it's a modern day A-Team movie with a smacking of the Fast and Furious franchise thrown in. Ryan Reynolds leads an elite group of mercenary vigilantes who dedicate their lives to taking out the real bad guys creating havoc in the world. We never know their names as they are simply referred to as 1, 2, 3 etc., but you don't really care for them anyway. They're just vehicles for the film.

Michael Bay uses his trademark cinematographic style, rapid cuts, slow-motion shots and grandiose set pieces to leave his dirty fingerprints all over this film. Netflix or whoever commissioned the film gave him £150m to put this overblown fiasco together. Don't get me wrong though, it did have some redeeming qualities but surely that money could have been better utilised elsewhere. The locations were great. The action sequences were very impressive and realistic....and Melanie Laurent was smoking in this.

I was also half expecting Optimus Prime or Bumblebee to make an appearance because this film just had that vibe and to be honest if they replaced the actors with Autobots and Decepticons, this would have made one serious Transformers movie. Still, someone needs to have a word with Bay. Too much of the same is not necessarily a good thing. I did manage to get through it though and was more entertained than underwhelmed. It's not the worst thing I've seen this year.

I'm giving this a 6/10.
 
Star wars IX

Went at 100 mph to try and cram everything in, leaving a sequence of events and exposition that felt too clustered together with no time for the characters to breathe. This alone was pretty bad, then you also have a bucketload of fan service and cloying nostalgic stuff added in to try and please everybody and it reached a point where I was actually laughing at it.

A poor film.
 
The Room

Matt and Kate buy an isolated house. While moving, they discover a strange room that grants them an unlimited number of material wishes. But, since Kate has had two miscarriages, what they miss the most is a child.
Interesting film, not seen another one quite like it.
I enjoyed this, well worth a watch.

7/10
 
47 Meters Down Uncaged
Four teen girls diving in a ruined underwater city quickly learn they've entered the territory of the deadliest shark species in the claustrophobic labyrinth of submerged caves. Not sure why this needed to exist. Stupid characters, same plot as the one before. Just boring and pointless. At least it looked quite nice in places 2/10

The Gallows: Act II
When Auna Rue transfers to a prestigious new acting school, she encounters a malevolent spirit after participating in a viral challenge. What a pointless atrocity of a film. Not a single redeeming feature. The main girl looked like Stiffler 1/10
 
Trick

A no-nonsense detective tries to track down a mass murderer named Trick, who is terrorizing a small town.
Plenty of blood, gore and killings , just what you want from a slasher film.
It was much better than expected, but still not fantastic, some of the acting is dreadful.

6/10
 
Theresa + Allison (2019)

Available on Prime Video. I came across the trailer which peaked my curiosity whilst at the same I must say stirring up a considerable amount of apprehension. Gory horror flicks are really not my thing so I was reluctant at first but with remote firmly in hand and finger firmly poised on the STOP button, I jumped straight in. Theresa + Allison is what you would call a vampire movie and whilst the usual elements are there, it's actually a movie played from a different perspective.

The story revolves around one of the titular protagonists, Theresa whose drunken night out takes a very dark turn for the worse. Realizing that she has been turned into a vampire, she later struggles to come to terms with her new status and identity. This is where the film maintains most of its focus as her gradual descent into the depravities that unfortunately go hand in hand with her new enforced lifestyle become increasingly harder to accept. Her inner conflict is made even more difficult by the alluring and immortal Allison with whose charms she is finding harder to resist.

Theresa + Allison is a somewhat fairly unconventional movie and is both cerebral and provocative. In the great pantheon of vampire flicks, this one will sit in a very exclusive category. Apparently it's an offshoot of the 21st Century Demon Hunter series. Relative newcomer Arielle Hope does a decent job displaying the angst of a reluctant blood sucker and the brilliantly named Sarah Schoofs is pretty solid as Allison. The other characters are pretty much hit and miss with some bordering on the camp. The colour palette gives the film a low budget film but to label it in that way would be doing it a disservice. It avoids all the cliches, which is refreshing allowing the story to just speak for itself. The strength of this film is the low key approach adopted by the director. It may not be to your liking but you'll certainly have an opinion on it.

At just under two hours it didn't drag, though it arguably could have been shorter. Whilst there is a fair amount of nudity, it doesn't feel salacious or gratuitous. It also wasn't as graphic as I expected but a lot of the gruesome bits are implied rather than thrust in your face. With a nice build up to a dramatic if somewhat inevitable climax and great ending, overall you should find the viewing experience a memorable one. Just be sure to stick around for the post credits.

I'm giving this a 7/10.
 
Matewan (1987)

Very good drama flick about miners trying to unionize.
 
Last edited:
Marriage Story
A couple get into a messy divorce but try to get things to a better place for the sake of their son. A very realistic portrayal of how a divorce can become toxic even if it begins from an understanding of keeping things as clean as possible. Brilliant performances from Adam Driver and Scarlett Johansson 7.5/10
 
Ramos said:
Code 8

Canadian low-budget sci-fi with a distinct X-Men feel to it. Pleasantly surprised by this, didn't expect too much. Story isn't super original, you've seen it before, but the execution considering the budget they had to work with was good. Decent action, special effects that do the job, tight direction and not too long. Nothing spectacular but enough to keep me entertained for 90 minutes. People that really like sci-fi action movies, even if it's not a blockbuster, should give this a shot.

7/10
Click to expand...
I second this.

Despite superpowers and stuff, they have to make this realistic without any comic'y elements. Same old plot but screenplay, acting and direction rocks.

Sci-fi fans must watch this.

7/10
 
Dirty Schwein said:
Marriage Story
A couple get into a messy divorce but try to get things to a better place for the sake of their son. A very realistic portrayal of how a divorce can become toxic even if it begins from an understanding of keeping things as clean as possible. Brilliant performances from Adam Driver and Scarlett Johansson 7.5/10
Click to expand...
It's too theatrical to be truly realistic but the acting is good indeed.
 
American Son
An estranged interracial couple wait in a police station for details of their missing son. Whilst I didn't mind the setting, this really felt like a video way written by a student. Very heavy handed, to the point it felt like propaganda. The lead character was annoying as shit... A walking, talking race card. Massively over-acted. I did enjoy the final act though 5/10

Spotlight
A group of investigative reporters uncover the truth behind church paedos. Great movie. Not sure why I waited this long to watch it 8/10
 
One Cut of the Dead (2017)
カメラを止めるな! Kamera o Tomeru na!
Http0Mx.jpg


Things go badly for a hack director and film crew shooting a low budget zombie movie in an abandoned WWII Japanese facility, when they are attacked by real zombies.

Very charming film, couldn't stop grinning for the last half of it. If you think first thirty minutes is weird or bad, just stick with it, it's very well worth it.
 
Just out of Cats.

Jesus Christ. The worst film I've ever seen.
 
21 Bridges

Reminds me of police thrillers from the 90's, I enjoyed it.

3.5/5
 
Denis79 said:
21 Bridges

Reminds me of police thrillers from the 90's, I enjoyed it.

3.5/5
Click to expand...
Didn't mind this one when I saw it. Quite a lot of the dialogue was your typical police procedural stuff and some of the character decisions were pretty hard to track, but the way a larger narrative built in the background of the case and then revealed itself in the last half hour was a really nice idea. Not sure why it's called 21 Bridges because they're hardly ever mentioned, but I didn't mind that much. Chadwick Boseman holds the whole thing together really well.
 
Mrs Smoker said:
One Cut of the Dead (2017)
カメラを止めるな! Kamera o Tomeru na!
Http0Mx.jpg


Things go badly for a hack director and film crew shooting a low budget zombie movie in an abandoned WWII Japanese facility, when they are attacked by real zombies.

Very charming film, couldn't stop grinning for the last half of it. If you think first thirty minutes is weird or bad, just stick with it, it's very well worth it.
Click to expand...
I've been looking for this for nearly a year. Where did you find it? I only found it on Shudder but that service doesn't work properly for me...
 
Jippy said:
Did you sit through the whole thing? Why is it so bad?
Click to expand...
Yep, all the way to the end.

I've been going to the cinema once or twice every week for three years now, and this was the first time I'd ever taken my jumper off to use as a pillow because I decided that waking up with dry contact lenses stuck to my eyes was preferable to enduring this utter bilge. I'm genuinely stunned by how bad it is. The stories of the CGI patch have overshadowed just how fundamentally inept it is at the most basic elements of storytelling. It's a lifeless, plotless, directionless nothing, devoid of any deeper meaning or drama. One of the most unsettling, boring, tiresome, torturous, bizarre, frightening experiences I've ever had in my life, never mind a cinema. An utterly revolting movie that's nauseating to observe and absolutely impossible to feel for. Apathy turned to laughter turned to hatred. It's cursed, wretched, horrible.
 
robinamicrowave said:
Yep, all the way to the end.

I've been going to the cinema once or twice every week for three years now, and this was the first time I'd ever taken my jumper off to use as a pillow because I decided that waking up with dry contact lenses stuck to my eyes was preferable to enduring this utter bilge. I'm genuinely stunned by how bad it is. The stories of the CGI patch have overshadowed just how fundamentally inept it is at the most basic elements of storytelling. It's a lifeless, plotless, directionless nothing, devoid of any deeper meaning or drama. One of the most unsettling, boring, tiresome, torturous, bizarre, frightening experiences I've ever had in my life, never mind a cinema. An utterly revolting movie that's nauseating to observe and absolutely impossible to feel for. Apathy turned to laughter turned to hatred. It's cursed, wretched, horrible.
Click to expand...

Which is presumably what someone who pays to see Cats at this point is hoping for?
 
robinamicrowave said:
Yep, all the way to the end.

I've been going to the cinema once or twice every week for three years now, and this was the first time I'd ever taken my jumper off to use as a pillow because I decided that waking up with dry contact lenses stuck to my eyes was preferable to enduring this utter bilge. I'm genuinely stunned by how bad it is. The stories of the CGI patch have overshadowed just how fundamentally inept it is at the most basic elements of storytelling. It's a lifeless, plotless, directionless nothing, devoid of any deeper meaning or drama. One of the most unsettling, boring, tiresome, torturous, bizarre, frightening experiences I've ever had in my life, never mind a cinema. An utterly revolting movie that's nauseating to observe and absolutely impossible to feel for. Apathy turned to laughter turned to hatred. It's cursed, wretched, horrible.
Click to expand...
I'm morbidly curious to see it, although admittedly the cat things are unpleasant looking and I loathe musicals nearly as much as I do James Corden.
 
The Good Dinosaur
In a world where dinosaurs and humans live side-by-side, an Apatosaurus named Arlo makes an unlikely human friend. Not Pixar's best but still better than many other animation movies. Looked superb 6/10

The Lighthouse
Two lighthouse keepers try to maintain their sanity while living on a remote and mysterious New England island in the 1890s. Great acting, liked the overall story and the symbolism that I was able to connect but think a lot of things went over my head so probably need to view again in the future. Was good but nowhere near the same level as the VVITCH 6.5/10
 
Mrs Smoker said:
One Cut of the Dead (2017)
カメラを止めるな! Kamera o Tomeru na!

Things go badly for a hack director and film crew shooting a low budget zombie movie in an abandoned WWII Japanese facility, when they are attacked by real zombies.

Very charming film, couldn't stop grinning for the last half of it. If you think first thirty minutes is weird or bad, just stick with it, it's very well worth it.
Click to expand...

I knew what it was going in but still really enjoyed it, was so much fun. It's a little puzzle box trying to work out how many teams of cameras and how many seperate shots there are for each section of the film.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.