Bastard (2015)

Summary 
Five strangers - newlywed serial killers, a suicidal cop, and two runaways - become suspect and victim when a masked murderer makes its presence known in an isolated mountain town.

Genre : Horror
Country : USA

Cast : 
Ellis Greer : Hannah

Dan Creed : West
Tonya Kay : Rachael

Director : Powell Robinson, Patrick Robert Young

My opinion 

"You should've killed him.
Yeah, I know. But it's your turn."

At first sight "Bastard" is just another horror of the slasher genre. But with the eccentric characters and their strange behavior, one tries to depart from well-established patterns used in this genre. In the third part of the story they are trying to bring up a very crazy twist. Surprising? Yes. But in my eyes a bit exaggerated and too far-fetched. This was a minor disappointing aspect in "Bastard". The storyline was a bit exorbitant. The first time it was shocking. The next moment it felt pretty laughable.

Feel free to call "Bastard" in one breath weird, kooky, and richly overdone. So, if you're looking for a horror with lots of abnormalities, in such amount that you start to wonder if there's anyone sane playing in it, this film is the right thing. The atmosphere feels great from the beginning. A dusty road with two seemingly innocent, stranded tourists hitchhiking. Lets meet Hannah (Ellis Greer) and West (Dan Creed), a newlywed couple. Soon you'll come to the conclusion that they are completely crazy. A kind of a "Natural Born Killers" duo. Especially Hannah is an explosive barrel full of insanity. One wrong word or too much ogling at her richly filled T-shirt is enough to make her explode. The flirtatious behavior of the driver in the car that just stopped, immediately gives rise to a heavy hammer being planted in his forehead (after which the victim is expertly cut into pieces along the way). And thus the tone has been set.

After this, the other protagonists are introduced. First West gives two youngsters hitchhiking along the way a ride. Betty (Rebekah Kennedy) and Jake (Will Tranfo) seem to be an innocent-looking couple. But at the same time you know something isn't right. Betty is the somewhat timid shy type, while Jake is the slightly smoother talker. If it was up to Hannah, who thoroughly starts hating the two teenagers from the first moment, they would end up in pieces in the trunk of the car. After this, Michael (Burt Culver) is introduced. A gay police officer with a serious drinking problem and suicidal tendencies. Unfortunately you won't find out why Michael is suicidal. Let alone you will find out why Hannah and West have become such brutal serial killers. Not that it matters, but it would be an interesting addition.

The second act takes place in Rachael's (Tonya Kay) bed and breakfast. Rachael is a not so bad-looking hostess who quickly makes it perfectly clear, to Hannah in an explicit verbal way, that she isn't someone to mess around with. Nevertheless an odd way to show hospitality. That same evening Michael warns them that some teenagers have disappeared. That can't prevent them to organize a trek through the forest the next day. Oddity number two. Next we get a sort of "Friday the 13th" where you'll be wondering who'll be the next victim and who's the perpetrator. After seeing the part where the local bartender undergoes a spine transplant,you know what to expect. This fragment also shows the used absurd humor in this film. When the bartender ventured into a romp with his horny girlfriend (enough reason to leave the bar unattended. Oddity number three), you weren't expecting that his girlfriend would pull out a purple strap-on dildo. And even less, that this object would be a convenient means of defense.

The denouement in the third act is absolutely bizarre and disturbing. A complete deranged development and disclosure. Something I totally didn't expect. Before I knew it, some deformed nipples were hurled back and forth in front of me and a totally derailed conspiracy was unfolded. But I must admit that it was a highly entertaining movie. Not only because of the bloody and sometimes intense scenes (that spine), but also because of the acting. It was surprisingly well done. Especially between Hannah and West the chemistry was obviously present. And the humor used was rather subtle. The interplay between Ellis Greer and Dan Creed was simply magnificent. Perhaps the end was a bit "over the top". But it surpassed all the typical slashers which are presented nowadays. A must for the fans!

My rating 6/10
Links : IMDB

The Legend of Tarzan (2016)

Summary 
Tarzan, having acclimated to life in London, is called back to his former home in the jungle to investigate the activities at a mining encampment. When they arrive a man named Rom who works for Leopold attacks the village they are at and captures Tarzan and Jane. With the help of Washington, an American who accompanied Tarzan, he escapes and sets out to rescue Jane by going across the jungle and Washington joins him despite being told that he might not make it.

Genre : Adventure
Country : USA/UK/Canada

Cast : 
Alexander Skarsgård : Tarzan/John Clayton

Samuel L. Jackson : George Washington Williams
Margot Robbie : Jane Clayton

Director : David Yates

My opinion 

“Bring it to me.
Bring him to me.
And you shall have your diamonds.”

Once and a while my mother allowed me to choose a comic strip at the store when I was a small boy. I always opted for a Tarzan comic strip. It appealed very strongly to my imagination at that time. That ruler of the jungle who used lianas to travel and who ruled over those wild fellow residents of the jungle. Even films from the old days with Johnny Weissmuller captivated me. Weissmuller was more impressive compared to this Tarzan. I'm talking about the size of his thorax and those developed biceps and triceps. Tarzan in this movie is a tad less muscled and he's already adapted to modern society. No "Me Tarzan.You Jane" conversations. He rather listens to the name John Clayton (Alexander Skarsgård). A distinguished English gentleman who walks around gallantly on two legs and speaks eloquently to his fellow men. He's civilized, in other words.

And then there's Leon Rom (Christoph Waltz) who explores Africa while looking for valuable diamonds to fund the expansionism of the Belgian King Leopold II. Rom is a determined globetrotter who won't let anything stand in his way so he can reach his goal. There's one obstacle between him and the valuable diamonds. And that's Chief Mbonga (Djimon Hounsou) who only wants one thing in exchange for those precious diamonds. And that's Tarzan. Time for Rom to forge a plan and lure the lord of the jungle in a clever way to the dark African continent. The jeering jungle dweller is being accompanied by his lovely wife Jane (Margot "Focus" Robbie). Something else to be worried about.

Is "The Legend of Tarzan" a bad movie? No, not really. But it isn't an excellent movie either. It sometimes looks a little bit out dated. Even though Tarzan is placed in a totally different zeitgeist and his attitude towards the natives in Africa isn't so explicitly authoritarian anymore. Even Jane isn't such a sensitive screaming blonde in distress, who runs out of the jungle the moment a tiny wild animal shows itself. Ultimately, the film unfolds itself like a typical Tarzan story in which the terror of the jungle has to rescue his wife out of the hands of the bad guys. That's how it also was portrayed in comics and the older movies. Lets say, it's not such a legendary movie.

Admit it. Tarzan doesn't look like he could withstand the primal force of the Mangani and actually he should have ended up as a comfy carpet in some hut in the bush after receiving such hammer blows of this fearsome attacker. But I could live with that. After all, he's a legend. This film is about THE legend. An unassailable and invincible superhero whose status reached iconic proportions. Clearly noticable was the unconvincing look of the group of gorillas. Compared to "The Jungle Book", the CGI of the wild animals sometimes really looked miserable. Then again, the flock of ostriches advancing in a "Jurassic Park" kind of way, were beautifully designed. The thing that went over my head (probably because I'm thinking with a rational mind), was the way they were chasing the speeding train. The way those lianas made sure they caught up with it, was mindblowing. What ingenious system was constructed to achieve this? I couldn't figure it out immediately. But it still looked really ridiculous.

"The Legend of Tarzan" is suitable material for a cozy movie night . There's sufficient action to enjoy. And Samuel L. Jackson has been recruited to provide the comic relief. Margot Robbie looks breathtaking again as the "lady in distress." And the confrontation between Tarzan and the tribe of Mbonga was brilliant until the digitized gorillas appeared on screen. The easiest part was played by Christoph Waltz. He just had to play himself again. A great actor, but he's stuck in the same routine lately. Despite everything, Tarzan was,is and remains a vibrant legend.

My rating 5/10
Links : IMDB

Capsule (2015)

Summary 
Guy is an experienced British fighter pilot who is in command of Britain's first manned mission to space. He has trained for this for three years at the height of the Cold War and now he is alone in space with a malfunctioning capsule. He has limited contact with the UK, some unusual communication with the US and some unorthodox communication with Tyuratam deep in Soviet Russia. Who will help him? Will he make the right choice?

Genre : SF/History
Country : UK

Cast : 
Edmund Kingsley : Guy Taylor

Lisa Greenwood : Charlotte Taylor
David Wayman : Harry

Director : Andrew Martin

My opinion

“I realize I’m stuck up here now.
And missed my re-entry point...
but my oxygen is down to 14 percent.
What the hell am I supposed to do?”

Looking for an action packed movie, full of thrills and spills? Such a film full of swirling action scenes or unprecedented conversations? Well just skip this movie then. The film is limited to an impressive solo performance, on board of a manned space capsule launched by the United Kingdom. The spacecraft looks as if Bob the Builder has put together this absurdity. And this indicates that this launch took place long before high-tech space shuttles occupied space. And not only the spacecraft looks primitive, but also Guy Taylor's spacesuit (Edmund Kingsley. Yep son of!) looks as if it's pieced together by the local carnival association. No wonder the amateurish structure starts to show some flaws, which leads to Guy finding himself in a hopeless situation with his capsule out of control and a lack of oxygen causing devastating effects.

Respect to the creators of this low-budget film. It's a considerably low budget, as I could notice during the movie. Except for the opening image of the capsule in space and earth in the background. That looked promising. Unfortunately it's the only spectacular fragment used in the entire film. From then on it's limited to the few square meters available to Guy. And his interactions are also fairly limited. First there is the ghost of his lovely wife Charlotte. Then there's a certain Harry,  from a space center in England, Guy has contact with. And finally he has radio contact with the Russian intelligence service, the CIA and NASA. Apparently the secret services of both superpowers follow this unknown manned space object. Probably they are impressed that a puny, small country such as the U.K., could achieve this. And at the same time they are full of suspicion since we are in the midst of the Cold War.

Kingsley's acting was impressive at times. Then again, there was no one he had to compete with or someone he could surpass when it comes to acting. That was the easy part when you look at it that way. But it was still an admirable piece of work. He effortlessly went through a whole palette of emotional feelings. Panic, euphoria, determination and desperation seized him at the appropriate time. Besides a few stiff looking Russian soldiers, there was nobody else to be seen throughout the film. There were a few implausible moments as well. Especially Guy's clumsy behavior. He looked like a sort of hobbyist and space enthusiast, who applied for the job and indiscriminately pushes a few buttons and randomly replaces a fuse.

All in all this was a fairly boring movie. Not only by the total lack of variety, but also because the outcome was quite disappointing. Granted, you can start fantasizing whether there is some truth to that legend about the success or failure of a manned space flight by England. Even if it sounds credible, with the serious-sounding text during the end credits, I don't believe it's based on true facts. I think this would have made public after the cold war, so the U.K. could take the credits for the first manned spacetrip. As a short film this story would be more appropriate. The duration of the film was too long to fill it with this limited story.

My rating 3/10
Links : IMDB

Independence Day : Resurgence (2016)

Summary 
Two decades after the freak alien invasion that nearly destroyed mankind a new threat emerges. This Alien mothership is more than twice the size as the last one and once again, the world's armies must band together to save the world. Do they have enough firepower or will this battle change and will aliens take over?

Genre : SF
Country : USA

Cast : 
Liam Hemsworth : Jake Morrison

Jeff Goldblum : David Levinson
Bill Pullman : President Whitmore

Director : Roland Emmerich

My opinion

“Are we dead?
We're okay.
You peed in your pants?
Uh, yeah.
Yeah, me too.”

I never thought I would miss Will Smith in a movie. Well, for everything there's a first time. And damn, I missed our friend Smith in this sequel of the blockbuster from 1996. Not because of his acting talent or his good looks. But because of his dry humor and his sometimes hyperactive behavior. Smith was honored by the brief display of a picture somewhere in a presidential corridor. His absence in this film was due to a fatal accident during a test flight (Personally I think the paycheck was a disappointment to him). As a worthy successor his stepson Dylan (Jessie T. Usher and fortunately not Smith's son Jaden himself) is summoned to help.

The big difference with its predecessor, is the total lack of credibility and excitement. In the blockbuster of 1996, the alien invasion was so brilliantly portrayed, that if we ever expect something to happen like this, it'll look exactly the same. In this movie everything is so over the top and out of proportion, that it starts to look ridiculous. For instance the dimensions of the alien ship. This giant ship covers almost a quarter of the planet. The advantage is that the devastation and ravages are so immense that the images of destruction are really impressive. I'm sure the CGI department was asked to get the maximum out of their computer systems. When those immense landing gears of the colossal spaceship dig into the earth's surface, it provides hallucinatory images. Quite some mainland is plowed and a huge tsunami hurtles across the continents. Compared to this, the one in "San Andreas" was a tiny wave.

 

About the story itself. Don't expect too much content or groundbreaking innovations compared to the previous one. It's more or less a second attempt of the alien warlords to conquer Earth and plunder resources. The only difference is that by studying the extraterrestrial material, left behind after the first confrontation, mankind has been able to develop their scientific knowledge drastically. The result is a mega plant on the moon in order to counter new attacks. The creation of a futuristic-looking society. A defense system around our planet by means of armed satellites. And the technology for intergalactic traveling at light speed. However, they didn't realize that twenty years ago a distress signal was sent from an alien ship, situated in the African desert where African rebels waged a long war against Martians which were wandering in the desert. They researched  alien technology  thoroughly. But the disorder in the X-band frequency detected the moment the mother ship was destroyed, apparently was a hard nut to crack . The result is a second attack. An unstoppable attack according to former President Whitmore (Bill Pullman) : "They are coming back. And this time we won't be able to stop them”.

The cast is a mixture of veterans who appeared in the old movie and a new generation. So you can see Jeff Goldblum, Bill Pullman, Judd Hirsch and Brent Spiner again, as their twenty year older alter ego. Their appearance reminds you again how fast years flew by. Their intelligence is still as fresh and spry as before. Most problems are solved in an instant by shrewd proposals and intuitive inventions. A little too quickly in my opinion. This made it quite implausible. And this way the tension was completely ruined. Furthermore, I couldn't really appreciate the sometimes corny humor. All in all, this second film is a little bit of a setback. Granted, the images look spectacular. The special effects are majestic (but that was to be expected). And the action scenes are phenomenal. But there was no magical moment in this film. It wasn't really that impressive. But when you fancy a visual spectacle, this blockbuster should be on your bucket list. I just hope the descendants of those pesky aliens won't come up with the same idea in 20 years.

My rating 6/10
Links : IMDB

River (2015)

Summary 
A medical practitioner gets himself involved in a crime which happens in a unexpected way. Filled full of guilt, he tries to escape from the cops of Thailand but finally gets captured for a while, then gets a approached to go back to his own country.

Genre : Thriller
Country : Laos

Cast : 
Rossif Sutherland : John Lake

Sare Botsford : Dr. Stephanie Novella
Ted Atherton : Patrick Reardon

Director : Jamie M. Dagg

My opinion

“Your face. What happened?
I was very drunk last night.
I was riding a bicycle, and I fell.”

Can you imagine this. One moment you're standing in an operating room amputating someones leg with a saw. The other moment you're running like a madman through Laos trying to outrun the authorities. This happens to John Lake (Rossif Sutherland), a hard-working doctor, who's sent on a well-deserved holiday after a discussion with the head doctor. At his destination (It surely isn't a five star all-inclusive resort) he's having a few drinks one evening, accompanied by an over friendly bartender. On his way to his humble hut he witnesses an assault on a local girl by a drunken, noisy Australian. And in a split second he makes the wrong decision. Before he knows it, he is a fugitive who's wanted for murdering the son of an Australian Senator and raping a native girl.

The result is an intense manhunt for the guilty western doctor by the local police. And he's guilty. That's a fact. The only thing John has in mind, is not to go on trial in Laos itself. "River" is a film in which desperation, fear and guilt are palpable presence. John, sweaty, bloodied and bruised, is constantly on the run. A boat ride with a local resident. A lift from a couple dodgy looking men. A bus trip which happens to be controlled by a police patrol. It doesn't matter in what way he travels, as long as he stays out of the hands of the authorities and manages to reach a US Embassy. He even has to make a certain decision in the end, that goes against his moral principles. The result of this nerve-racking race, is that the film never pauses for a moment. The pace is blistering (probably appropriate for the climate there) fast and exhilarating.

Rossif Sutherland (son of Donald and brother of Keifer Sutherland) acts convincingly. You can see the desperation and fear on his face. A chaotic flight where he relies entirely on his survival instinct. The intensity is unbearable and because of the sultry environment it's as if you can smell John's pungent body odor in your living room. Although the story is fairly straightforward and obvious, the ending is still surprising. Let me put it this way. It has a high "Oh come on" content. A bit against the flow compared to the rest of the movie. I guess the sense for justice presented itself to John suddenly. It's probably a personal trait. John can't resist to do good for others over and over again.

My rating 6/10
Links : IMDB

Ithaca (2015)

Summary 
Fourteen-year-old Homer Macauley is determined to be the best and fastest bicycle telegraph messenger anyone has ever seen. His older brother has gone to war, leaving Homer to look after his widowed mother, his older sister and his 4-year-old brother, Ulysses. And so it is that as spring turns to summer, 1942, Homer Macauley delivers messages of love, hope, pain... and death... to the good people of Ithaca.

Genre : Drama
Country : USA

Cast : 
Alex Neustaedter : Homer Macauley

Sam Shepard : Willie Grogan
Meg Ryan : Mrs. Macauley

Director : Meg Ryan

My opinion

“Okay, the faster you deliver messages, the more you can deliver.
The faster you pick up outgoing messages, the more we can send.
The more we can send, the better our chances of beating western union and staying alive.
We're postal telegraph.
We get there swiftly.
We're polite to everyone.
We take off our hats in elevators and above all things,
we never lose a telegram.”

"Wow!" I thought for a minute. A drama with Meg Ryan and Tom Hanks demonstrating their skills once more. Is it a sequel to the masterful romantic comedy "You've got mail"? Well, it's about sending messages for sure. But Tom Hanks won't send a lot of messages anymore. Or he's sending them from the afterlife. It's the era before the internet even existed. These were the happy days without spam or ransomware. But to deliver the telegram within an acceptable time frame, the telegraph services needed young boys who could ride a bike swiftly enough. And since "Ithaca" is situated during the 2nd World War, with lots of American boys fighting on the European continent, it's no surprise most of the messages brought no good news.

And that's something Homer Macauley (Alex Neustaedter) is facing. He's betting his life on being the fastest courier on bike ever. Despite the fact that he's racing back and forth like a kind of Cavendish the whole movie, the film on its own is rather slow. Biggest surprise was the rather limited contribution by Tom Hanks. Was he doing Meg Ryan (debuting here as a director) a favor? Or was it just to stir up the former movie chemistry? In contrast, the film was hugely predictable. I could guess early on in the film wich fate Homer was quickly sprinting towards. I know it wasn't the intention to create a mysterious puzzle. But I was hoping for a little surprise. Ultimately, it's once again about fear and hope. Left behind families waiting for some news from their sons who are sent to war. And this combined with the story about a boy, who's confronted with the less pleasant events in life, while delivering these messages.

Because of the short playing time, Meg Ryan failed to unravel the fragile personality of Homer in an orderly manner. His leap to adulthood is fairly abruptly after the death of his father and the departure of his older brother. A brother who writes terribly long letters while on his way to the front, in such a prosaic writing style that it seems as if he wants to win a Pulitzer prize. The occasional reading of excerpts from these letters probably was meant to bring drama into the film. Eventually, I thought it was quite disturbing. A short playing time with a variety of storylines results in unfinished and "fast dealt with" pieces. The loss of a father figure, the responsibility as the eldest son, dutifully performing a job as a courier, the disastrous reports, war scenes, the drama of an old telegraph operator and a mother who occasionally experiences "Sixth Sense" situations. And then there are a few minor (but briefly quoted) secondary plots. It's all a bit too much.

The acting isn't really bad. But it seems like everyone is groping in the dark about his character. Especially Homer's boss Tom Spangler (Hamish Linklater) is such a blurred figure. We can be brief about Ryan and Hanks. As brief as their actual playing time. It's negligible. I only enjoyed the performances of Alex Neustaedter (obvious of course), Sam "Midnight Special" Shepard and the cute Ulysses (Spencer Howell) whose cuddle factor is very high. Especially Shepard makes a momentary impression. A brilliant and intriguing character. Eventually this coming of age story during the war makes a fairly comatose impression. It isn't really vivid.

My rating 4/10
Links : IMDB

The Shallows (2016)

Summary 
When Nancy is surfing on a secluded beach, she finds herself on the feeding ground of a great white shark. Though she is stranded only 200 yards from shore, survival proves to be the ultimate test of wills, requiring all of Nancy's ingenuity, resourcefulness, and fortitude.

Genre : Thriller
Country : USA

Cast : 
Blake Lively : Nancy

Seagull : Steven Seagull

Director : Jaume Collet-Serra

My opinion

“I'm not totally alone.
I've got this little dude, Steven Seagull, here keeping me company.”

When you succeed in attracting more attention as a puny little seagull than a large oversized shark, you deserve an honorable mention at any reputable film festival. Never before was I charmed by poultry. A confident, wounded animal and certainly pleasant company. Not even one silly word came out of his beak. A fellow victim in the same life-threatening situation. Steven Seagull was an ingenious contribution to the movie. That way Nancy (Blake Lively) wasn't compelled to talk to herself a large portion of the movie. Because, believe me, a cozy chat with the bloodthirsty shark that swam circles around her, wasn't part of her schedule.

And so we arrive at the following participant out of the world of fauna. The six-meter long psychotic shark who wasn't satisfied with just the rotting carcass of a whale. Apparently this carnivore doesn't like to be disturbed while eating. The comparison with the famous shark "Jaws" is inevitable. Anatomically it's probably all very accurate. Only in "The shallows" this predator is completely computer generated, while the Jaws model was a mechanical and electronic model. Not that sharky in this film seemed fake or anatomical wrong. But in "Jaws" you got the impression that it was a lifelike trained shark. When I was a youngster, I won a plastic shark at the fair. He had gaping jaws and looked quite menacing to me. Until you shoved him to the ground and his gaping mouth was double folded. This plastic monster looked much less threatening when doing that. Rather laughable. Wait for the denouement in "The Shallows" and you'll understand what I mean.

Between all this fauna there's a female human being in a tiny bikini. Nancy is a ravishing appearance who needs a moment of reflection in her life after the death of her mother. Nothing is more fun than to travel to a Mexican bay where her mother used to go once. Blake Lively was unknown to me, but after seeing her trained body and perfect-looking female parts, I'm planning to watch the other movies she participated in. I'll be honest. Lively lying on her surfboard with a camera strategically focusing on her tightly shaped buttocks, was a breathtaking sight. Kudos to Collet-Sera to make this film in such a way that my attention was diverted from these bodily temptations, even though she was wearing a bikini the whole movie. All praise for Lively as well, because she plays almost the entire movie cavalier seul. Not a simple task and she does it with gusto. And this thanks to the excellent cooperation of Steven Seagull.

In terms of story, it actually wasn't that big of a deal. Exotic blonde visits a beautifull beach and surfs in azure blue water. According to a shark, she looks like a snack. And she ends up on a piece of rock situated too far from the beach and a buoy. Her task is to get to safety, while the highly intelligent shark is patrolling nearby. Not very original. What remains are the beautiful images. Both the slow motion footage of the waves, as the underwater clips, look sublime. Perfect images that would fit in a "Bounty" commercial. And then there's the steadily increasing tension. It's waiting for the shark to show up, the fatal attack and whether Blake Lively will manage to stay alive (again an appropriate name) and escape. All in all a lot of positive things in this film (except the totally whacked ending) with a simple story. Yet Steven Seagull remains the brilliant highlight of "The Shallows".

My rating 6/10
Links : IMDB