EvilPhoEniX

I freaking loved it! I finally got to see the film and after the mixed reviews, I have to say that I am absolutely satisfied and with only minor reservations. The first Kingsman is one my top 10 movies of all time, so of course I love the whole franchise, it's pretty close to my heart and setting it in WWI was a great idea. Matthew Vaughn is a director with a distinctive style and I enjoy his playful and creative direction immensely, definitely the direction I would go in if I were a director. The characters this time may not be as likable as in the original, Harris Dickinson is no Taron Egerton, and Ralph Fiennes is not as good as Colin Firth, but I could live with that. Visually, the film is again driven to technical perfection and absolute refinement, Vaughn's alternate history fascinated me (despite being obviously fiction, it felt believable and entertaining and the cameos by well-known historical figures were great). You have to wait a bit longer for the action, but once it comes, the director once again had me wrapped up around all his fingers. The action is always varied, well shot, insanely stylish to the point of being luxurious, and I'm tempted to do it all again after watching it. A crazy dance with Rasputin, a downright delicious fight with various combat weapons in the trenches (that had me screaming like a bitch), one of my new favorite action scenes, and then of course the half hour screaming finale that has everything I expect from a proper ending. It's a little disappointing that this time Vaughn tamed the gore and didn't add much humour either, but he pretty much made up for it with an uncompromising twist that no one expects. The villains also deserve praise (Rasputin was brilliant) and I found the whole spy story against the backdrop of WWI very entertaining and thoroughly developed. A few people complain about how slow it is, but I found it more brisk and action packed than The Batman, so high satisfaction for me, I could handle an extra 30 minutes. Story 4/5, Action 5/5, Humor 3/5, Violence 3/5, Fun 5/5 Music 4/5, Visuals 5/5, Atmosphere 4/5, Suspense 2/5, Emotion 3/5, Actors 4/5. 9/10.

A realistic, bold and authentic portrait of the American porn industry. A young 19-year-old Swedish girl travels alone to LA to fulfill her dream of becoming a porn star, but soon discovers that the road to the top will not be easy. From overcoming her own boundaries to battling with agents and producers and rivalries between other divas. It's a strange film, definitely one of a kind, but I was impressed. The film is very gritty in certain scenes, breaking cinematic taboos and it certainly doesn't shy away from nudity. All full frontal! I found it interesting that Mark Spiegler plays himself (he is an American talent in the lookout for up-and-coming porn actresses called the Spiegler Girls). The main character is likeable albeit naive, she acts great and is willing to do anything for fame, so some of the decisions are quite unexpected. The rawest scene from a shooting was probably the violent one, which is not very easy to watch. The film could be classified in the sexploitation subgenre and works reliably as a peek behind the curtain into the porn industry. 7/10.

The first official blockbuster from South Korea is spectacular and entertaining, but the low ratings and light tone make it more of a family-friendly adventure than a dark pirate romp, which is something I'd damn well welcome from the Koreans. I liked the first one a few years back, but this one didn't have that effect on me. The characters are very likeable (the central duo), the visuals are spectacular and the action is filmed decently (the sword-fight finale has a decent choreography, but unfortunately is not R-rated). Plot-wise it felt like another classic lost treasure hunt where the pirates look like they've just left the barber and beauty parlour, which doesn't make a very good impression, but it’s watchable for sure. 5.5/10.

More of a fun movie than a gag-filled ride, but I enjoyed it. It's got a decent and novel plot about three spoiled siblings who are enjoying their dream life. Their father is about to teach them a lesson and hatches a plan to make them lose all their money so that they can take on the roles of ordinary people. The characters are likeable and some scenes are very cool (the priest and the unemployment office!), it has a fine moral lesson and oozes feel-good atmosphere throughout. Not a big hit, but perfect for a boring evening. 7/10.

The first Netflix blockbuster of the year from Shawn Levy and Ryan Reynolds, who obviously hit it off, but sadly it’s just average for me. Free Guy was probably the director's peak that he won't surpass (maybe with Deadpool 3, we'll see). Anyway this sci-fi family adventure with a touch of Spielberg works story-wise and emotionally, but the humor is too family friendly and normal and the action is downright routine and uninteresting (for my taste), too family friendly. I found the first half entertaining, thanks to the novel premise and well explained time-travel plot, but the second half seemed kind of out of pace and I endured it until the end. I'm obviously not the target audience, the film will no doubt find its fans, but for me it unfortunately doesn't stand out on any level. Story 4/5, Action 2/5, Humor 3/5, Violence 0/5, Fun 3/5 Music 3/5, Visuals 4/5, Atmosphere 3/5, Suspense 2/5, Emotion 3/5, Actors 4/5. 6/10.

Excellent sci-fi action flick from South Korea. This is a throwback to 10 years ago when the greatest South Korean blockbusters were made. It has everything a fan can expect from this genre. It's got a great storyline about a main character who loses his memory, doesn't remember who he is and wakes up in a different body every 12 hours. While he's trying to figure out what's going on and why, there are some very bad people after him. I believe that with an even better director, even bigger find-fuck things could have been conjured from the premise, but the director bet more on the action and I'm happy with this one. The plot in question is explained clearly and there are a few plot twists, so by action standards I think it's very superior. The protagonist is likeable and he’s good in the fight scenes. It's very much Bourne style, with fast exchanges of moves, quick combinations, devastating blows, exactly what only Koreans can do, and he shows it here to a great extent. The finale, on the other hand, is a tribute to John Wick, with bloody headshots, the protagonist alone against everyone, various combat weapons, great music and awesome atmosphere. I was a bit disappointed with the final boss, I was expecting more destruction there, but I’m definitely satisfied on all counts. The traditionally excellent visuals and fine actors are already a given. I'm really happy about it. Story 4/5, Action 5/5, Humour 0/5, Violence 3/5, Fun 4/5 Music 4/5, Visuals 4/5, Atmosphere 4/5, Suspense 4/5, Emotions 2/5, Actors 3/5. 8/10.

An average chilling survival-adventure film from Netflix. A bit of a disappointment for me, unfortunately. This year's survival duel so far is won by Gold, which I found to be a class above in almost every way. Here I fell asleep twice at first and finished watching more out of politeness. Nikolaj Coster-Waldau is likeable and Joe Cole, after his excellent role in Gangs of London, seemed a bit underused here. The film is based on true events and that's one of the reasons why not much happens. Apart from the polar bear scene, which could have been more intense in the style of The Revenant, but it's still probably the best scene of the whole film, which is perhaps a little sad. The chilly atmosphere works, the production design is nice. and the plot isn't completely stupid, it's just unfortunately quite boring and the digression from survival in the second half didn't suit me at all. The film will definitely find its fans, but I'm glad it’s over. Similar to Mads Mikkelsen’s Arctic. Story 3/5, Action 2/5, Humor 0/5, Violence 2/5, Fun 2/5 Music 3/5, Visuals 3/5, Atmosphere 3/5, Suspense 3/5, Emotion 2/5, Actors 3/5. 5.5/10.

Sharlto Copley as the famous eco-terrorist Unabomber! Those who have seen the series about the Unabomber will appreciate the film less. I went into the film completely unfamiliar and I have to say I'm not all that happy with this biopic adaptation. Sharlto Copley puts on more or less a one man show and performs very well. As a probe into the soul of yet another twisted individual with a distaste for modern technology, it works in part, but the film definitely fails on the crime and disturbing side. The film focuses a lot on the main character's voice-overs, survival in the wilderness, and planning sabotages, which would have been enough for about half an hour, but to kill an entire film in two hours in that style is downright painful. If this was one of the greatest manhunts in FBI history, it's quite disappointing that there's no proper detective to hunt him down, in fact the viewer doesn't even get to enjoy proper explosions and dead bodies, so for me it's quite disappointing. Interesting yes, but also a bit boring unfortunately. Story 3/5, Action 0/5, Humour 0/5, Violence 1/5, Fun 2/5 Music 3/5, Visuals 3/5, Atmosphere 3/5, Suspense 1/5, Emotion 2/5, Actors 4/5. 5.5/10.

After the excellent Suicide Squad 2, James Gunn serves up an excellent spin off, Peacemaker, which along with The Boys is probably the best comic book ride ever. For anyone who liked SQ, I believe Peacemaker will not disappoint, as it has all the comic book props that go with it. John Cena is likeable and steals the whole show for himself (including the great Eagly!). Of the rest of the cast, I also liked Harcourt and of course the hilarious character of Vigilante, who fits like a glove here. Visually, the series seems poorer in places, but it doesn't matter because the cadence of humour is high and the action is of course awesome, and there’s plenty of it and it’s insanely to grotesquely brutal (there is definitely no shortage of proper gore). Surprisingly the Alien invasion plot itself works here, it is cleverly thought-out, and quite a few times the series managed to surprise me with various unexpected twists that had the right shocking effect. The finale is a decently epic carnage that can't leave anyone cold (limbs and heads literally flying through the air!). I must also praise the music, which is strongly rock and even though I am not a fan of this music, I have at least two songs from the series in my playlist, which is commendable. For me so far, together with Reacher, the series event of the year, I enjoyed it very much and I wish you the same. Story 4/5, Action 5/5, Humour 5/5, Violence 5/5, Fun 5/5 Music 4/5, Visuals 4/5, Atmosphere 3/5, Suspense 3/5, Emotions 3/5, Actors 4/5. 8.5/10.

This decadent and twisted teen series that is currently one of the most watched on HBO returns with a second season and it's solid again, though I have minor reservations. The first episode is probably the highlight of the entire second season, the gritty story of Fezco had that touch of a highbrow gangster drama and the visit to a drug den definitely managed to give me goosebumps. Episode 5 was also intense, with an unpleasant junkie bottom and the final police raid, and Episode 7 had a theatre form that was playful and creative in its direction, these are definitely the scenes that will stick in the memory the most. What I was a bit disappointed about, however, was that the introductory prologues of the various characters disappeared this time, as they did in the first series (there are still plenty of characters who deserve backgrounds, while not many new characters were added, which I also see as a shame), and I dare say the sex scenes were also lacking (a complaint?). But this is still decent entertainment, it's gritty, uncomfortable, disturbing with all the teenage angst associated with it. I'm surprised that the line with Zendaya and the dealers was left unresolved, and the last episode is traditionally the weakest, as in the first season. I'm curious about the 3rd season, but I'm not up to a full rating again. Story 4/5, Action 2/5, Humour 2/5, Violence 2/5, Fun 4/5 Music 4/5, Visuals 4/5, Atmosphere 4/5, Suspense 3/5, Emotions 3/5, Actors 4/5. 8/10.