VOD: Project Power (dirs: Henry Joost and Ariel Schulman, 2020)

"You alone?"
"Aren't we all?"

This Netflix blockbuster follows a cop (Joseph Gordon-Levitt, clearly having an infectious whale of a time), who teams up with an ex-soldier (the reliable Jamie Foxx) and a teenage rapper/dealer (Dominique Fishback) to take on the criminal minds behind a mind-altering new drug that gives users (unpredictable, and possibly even fatal) superpowers for five minutes.  This unlikely premise gives opportunities to mash-up genres to mostly good effect, and the unpredictability of the drug also creates tension and a sense of watchability.  The directors show some of the effects-laden visual flair they previously showed in Nerve, but the girl's rapping feels shoehorned in and unnecessarily irritating but will probably play better with younger viewers.  Ultimately, this is middling franchise-baiting fare that is a passable piece of entertainment.

 

VOD: Upgrade (dir: Leigh Whannell, 2018)

"He's got a knife!"
"I can see that.  We've got a knife too."

It is always a joy to see a B-movie punching well above its weight, with Upgrade delivering a lively, well-written, punchy and wry viewing experience.  Following a self-drive car malfunction and accident, technophobe Grey Trace (played with wonderfully gruff relish by Logan Marshall-Green) is left paralysed, but following a secret tech-augmented AI implant that effectively 'drives' his body, he sets out to avenge his wife's murder.  The near-future world is carefully and effectively drawn, Marshall-Green is terrific value in the strong action sequences and in his delivery of great deadpan humour, and the whole film barrels along in a very entertaining way.

 

VOD: Sonic The Hedgehog (dir: Jeff Fowler, 2020)

"To be honest, it feels like I've been running my whole life."

After the incredible internet backlash over the look of the first-release version of the titular character, what emerges is a polished, well-thought out and surprisingly enjoyable movie of its type.  James Marsden revisits Hop territory, playing effectively against a CGI Sonic in a real-world setting with his usual skill and charm, and the playing of Sonic as an enthusiastic and likeable young teenager works very well.  Jim Carrey does his usual panto-villain schtick, which mostly stays just about on the right side of watchable.  Overall, Sonic The Hedgehog is well-made and looks great, unusually has plenty of story for this type of film, the human and CG leads are both very engaging, and it is a lively and enjoyable if disposable watch.
 

VOD: The Lighthouse (dir: Robin Eggers, 2020)

 "Catch your breath, lad."

Like with The Witch, Robin Eggers displays a singular and captivating directorial voice in The Lighthouse that is both demanding and very satisfying for the viewer.  As two very dissimilar men tend to a remote and storm-lashed lighthouse at the end of the 19th Century, the viewer is placed right there with them every step pf the way to witness the players unravel, aided by the stark black-and-white cinematography and the claustrophobically tight screen ration.   Robert Pattinson and Willem Dafoe both give committed powerhouse performances which are utterly mesmerising, and clever sound design makes the whole experience very immersive.  The Lighthouse displays a very individual but impressive style of film-making that is well worth the effort.

VOD: Incoming (dir: Eric Zaragoza, 2019)

"That'll p**s them off!"

Incoming recalls the glory days of the cheap DTV bargain-bin sci-fi/prison offerings, with its low-rent action star lead, implausible mix of one-note characters, an eclectic international cast of wildly varying quality and low-end sets and effects.  With its limited setting and story options, the film does try its best but is stretched out somewhat repetitively and thinly, although the ticking-clock element of the story is effective.  This is the kind of movie that you come across on streaming service, decide to give it chance and end up wondering why.
 

VOD: Mortal (dir: Andre Ovredal, 2020)

"Maybe we're not meant to understand everything."

From the Troll Hunter director, Mortal is another Norwegian take on its mythology of the Norse Gods, recently also seen in the excellent teenage-led Norwegian TV series Ragnarok.  Here, a tormented young man's uncontrolled emerging powers see him fleeing from potential incarceration along with a sympathetic psychologist who is assigned to his case as his powers continue to grow.  Nat Wolff does well in the lead role, Ovredal directs with an assured hand, the location cinematography is wonderful, and for the budget the effects work delivers appropriately.   The only real jarring note is the speed at which Eric and Christine (his psychologist) fall in love in this situation, but apart from that this serious and grounded take on the concept is delivered reasonably well.

 

VOD: Fantasy Island (dir: Jeff Wadlow, 2020)

"This place ain't what you think it is."

This misguided attempt to turn a barely-remembered lightweight 1970s prime-time TV show into a horror-styled 2020 thriller goes for overcooked melodrama when perhaps slow-burn creepiness would have suited the approach better.  A lot of different stories and elements are seemingly thrown together, and the film makes the mistake of trying to explain everything in a very unconvincing manner.  Possibly trying to deliver psychological thrills, this take on Fantasy Island simply ends up being rather silly.  It is almost worth staying for the final scene/revelation, if only to witness the giving up of all hope (with a meaning that will be completely lost on viewers who do not know the original TV show)! 
 

VOD: Rambo - Last Blood (dir: Adrian Grunberg, 2019)

"You don't need to come back."

As the concept of retiring gracefully passes Stallone by, this final roll of the dice for his Rambo franchise moves into post-Taken territory as a serviceable but generic (and somewhat mean-spirited) actioner.  Stallone allegedly scaled back on the scale of action to make the film more personal and character-driven, which may explain how small the movie feels.   This is a bloody film with a high disposable body-count, but this twilight hurrah of a pop-culture character is ultimately rather mechanical and neither particularly interesting nor necessary.

 

VOD: The Peanut Butter Falcon (dirs: Tyler Nilson and Michael Schwartz, 2020)

"I want you to know about me."

The Peanut Butter Falcon is one of those small American slice-of-backwater-life dramas that gives a refreshing focus on story, character and relationships and has immense heart.  Zak, a young man with Down syndrome, escapes from his nursing home to find his dream wrestling school and hooks up with a very small-town hoodlum on the run, and their unfolding relationship is an absolute delight to watch, with Zack Gottsagen's lovely on-screen performance and Shia LeBoeuf giving one of his best and most genuine performances.  Cinematography and soundtrack are both beautiful, and the balance between comedy/drama and sentimentality/the real world makes The Peanut Butter Falcon a very appealing movie. 

 

VOD: The Grudge (2020) (dir: Nicolas Pesce, 2020)

"How did something like this ever happen?"

The Grudge franchise always somehow seemed better as a concept rather than the actual movies, but this latest entry is very weak.  With the action transported to the USA, a lot of the cultural interest has been lost and the horror elements never really hit the mark.  There never feels like a real grip on the tone, the pitch of the performances, or the through-line of the time-hopping (unlike the strong TV series Ju-On: Origins from this year also), making the film quite a test of patience to sit through.
 

VOD: Midway (dir: Roland Emmerich, 2019)

"Nobody wants a war."

Roland Emmerich's take on America's World War II is a big, noisy blockbuster that really does deliver in the action stakes and is not too shabby in other areas either.  The compression of the timeline makes for lively and engaging storytelling, as the film starts with the Pearl Harbour attack and keeps going from there.  Indeed, a lot of the visual vocabulary from the Michael Bay movie has become standard and is evident here, but a mostly strong cast humanises the unfolding events well, making Midway solid blockbuster entertainment overall.