VOD: The Little Things (dir: John Lee Hancock, 2021)

"I'm kind of a crime buff."

This long-gestating serial killer police drama finally hits the screens and proves to be a rather sombre and almost melancholy affair.  It certainly delivers on the acting front with an excellent lead cast of Denzel Washington, Rami Malek and Jared Leto all delivering terrific character work, and the film is directed and written with a very careful, steady precision that keeps a tight rein over the unfurling story (and back-stories) as Washington's washed-up older officer is sent on a simple evidence run to Los Angeles and becomes caught up in young star detective Malek's hunt for a repeat killer that may have links to Washington's own dark past.  Thomas Newman's haunting score shines, and whilst the film may feel a little underpowered, the quality and polish is very evident.

VOD: How I Became A Super Hero (Comment Je Suis Devenu Super-Heros) (dir: Douglas Attal, 2021)

"Good or bad news?"
"Both."

This adequate French film is an interesting hybrid of superhero and urban police drama, which pairs a lone-wolf detective in Paris with an female rising star officer, who are charged with cracking a breakout of superpower drug-peddling in shadier sectors of Paris.  The characters are reasonably nuanced with decent performances, and there are sufficient twists to fairly standard storylines to create some interest it does fall back on tried and trusted tropes too ofetn (it comes as little surprise that the mismatched cops hate each other at first but you can guess how it ends up), and whilst the film flags occasionally it passes its time satisfactorily overall.
 

VOD: America The Motion Picture (dir: Matt Thompson, 2021)

"You sucked the gas out of my arm-chainsaws while I was sleeping?!!!"

American history is filtered through this sweary and violent animation led by Archer kingpin Matt Thompson and delivered in the same visual style, together with anachronistic modern references and the current TV-animation vogue for shouty rapid-fire dialogue.  Whereas Archer had a wonderful knowing wit, America The Motion Picture is completely silly, only about a third of the jokes actually work and its tests viewer patience over its full-length running time.  This is the kind of film that undemanding 12-year-old boys will find hilarious without having any idea why.
 

VOD: Major Grom - Plague Doctor (dir: Olg Trofim, 2021)

 "What's going on?"

The warning signs are present in the daft pre-titles sequence and the totally overblown nonsensical Bond-style CGI title sequence, and this Russian semi-blockbuster improves as it goes along but never quite delivers fully.  A cool but oddly uncharismatic maverick 'Police Major' and his underwritten by-the-rules rookie partner seek out a masked vigilante (the so-called Plague Doctor) with seemingly varying motives (cleaning up the streets, wreaking vengeance, getting justice, etc).  Cultural differences aside, the film is too plodding for an action film, too unfunny to be a comedy and too lightweight to be a drama, so as a whole Major Grom fails to land an identity, although it does pull off its main plot twist effectively.  A cut-down slick and breezy American take with Jason Statham in full self-parody mode could just work, but as it stands Major Grom - Plague Doctor proves rather long and drawn out to sit through, right down to the predictable sequel-baiting mid-credits and end-credits sequel-baiting sequences.

VOD: Fear Street 1978 (aka Fear Street Part 2 - 1978) (dir: Leigh Janiak, 2021)

"One way or another, you're going to die tonight."

The start of this film (reminiscent of Friday The 13th Part 2) continues directly from Part 1- 1994 as the framing device and then throws us back to the Summer Camp massacre of 1978 for a lively and energetic love letter to the stalk-and-slash/masked killer genre films that originated at that time (in commercial terms).  It is interesting to see how the 70s/80s tropes are used here alongside modern film-making sensibilities, but like the first film in this trilogy the 18-rated violence sits slightly uneasily with a seemingly younger teenage target audience (and here, victims within the film).  The world-building and mythology is impressive as it links seamlessly with the first film through events and characters, and whilst the movie is hardly-earth-shattering, for horror fans it is a well-made and very lively contemporary entry into the cycle.

VOD: Yesterday (dir: Danny Boyle, 2019)

"Have you got any more songs?"
"One or two..."

With a simple story-driver - a struggling musician has an accident and wakes up in a world where no-one remembers The Beatles and passes off their songs as his own - Yesterday is a pleasant and easy watch.  It's two main virtues are an utterly engaging central performance by the wonderful Himesh Patel and some wonderfully self-aware moments of comedy from Ed Sheeran playing himself, but overall this is a solid piece from both director Danny Boyle and writer Richard Curtis that never quite manages to be up there with the best films of either film-maker.

VOD: Fear Street 1994 (aka Fear Street Part 1 - 1994) (dir: Leigh Janiak, 2021)

"Have a nice night!"

The first of a linked trilogy of movies set in three different time periods based on the popular R.L. Stine novels, Fear Street 1994 sets up a wealth of backstory very efficiently, as a persecuted witch from centuries past returns again to wreak murderous havoc in the doomed 'murder town' of Shadyside.  The Scream-worthy opening gets straight to the action in a well-executed sequence in a shopping mall at night, and the film mostly maintains a brisk pace and plenty of ideas and action that moves the story forward.  Although very much aimed at the teenage market, the film does not hold back on violence and gore, including one spectacularly creative death in a supermarket bakery department! Fear Street 1994 is a surprisingly strong opener to the trilogy, deliberately but strongly and lovingly generic yet presented with enough energy to be enjoyable for genre fans and its target audience age group in particular.

 

VOD: The Tomorrow War (dir: Chris McKay, 2021)

"We are food...and they are hungry..."

Taking high concept into the stratosphere, soldiers from thirty years into the future are sent back to the present to recruit and send people to fight in the future war with alien invaders that mankind is on the brink of losing.  It is pleasing to see an original, large-scale and unapologetically sci-fi actioner being made in the current climate, and the film does not hold back on its huge set pieces, excellent effects work and the relentlessly vicious alien creatures.  Inevitably this film hangs on its central star, and Chris Pratt delivers the role of father/ex-soldier with the expected sincerity and commitment (if a little more subdued than usual).  The director has cited the first two Alien films as big influences, but there are nods to the whole Alien/AvP series as well as other sci-fi classics such as The Terminator, Starship Troopers and, er, Independence Day - Resurgence.  This is a solid sci-fi action entry, which really comes alive in the excellent big set pieces, although at times its over-seriousness comes across as a little too pompous. 

VOD: Barb & Star Go To Vista Del Mar (dir: Josh Greenbaum, 2021)

"I like looking at wicker but I don't like sitting on it."
"Hmmm."

Written by its stars, Kristen Wiig and Annie Mumolo, Barb & Star is one of those modern comedies that looks as if the actors had a much better time making the film than the viewer will have watching it.  The initial premise bodes well, as its two-middle-aged protagonists' world comes crashing down around them and find salvation in the promise of the excitement of the Vista Del Mar resort, but as they get thrown into a truly bizarre and silly plot of a criminal mastermind intent on wreaking revenge on the (very specific) holiday town, it falls flat very quickly and scenes blur into a parade of oddly kitschy, camp and gaudy pointlessness.  Whilst there may be some mileage to be had in the two friends' characters and their relationship, the oddly weightless tone of the performances here is very unengaging, and the antagonists mostly come across like those moments in the Austin Powers movies when Mike Myers hangs on to a joke for far too long (and Jamie Dornan clearly out of his comfort zone).  A strange film, Barb & Star really struggles to hold interest.

 

VOD: The Witch Files (dir: Kyle Rankin, 2018)

"Guys - didn't we WANT something to happen?"

With a style and feel rather like Josh Trank's Chronicle, this ultra-low budget camcorder-reportage-style teen thriller does very well for its obvious limitations. Location work is used well, low-end VFX are used sparingly but quite effectively, whilst the central cast of the the five friends who gain magic powers to increasing personal cost look somewhat old for the roles and are a collection of clearly-defined stereotypes. It becomes more uneven towards the end, including some performances, but overall The Witch Files makes a decent attempt to punch above its weight and occasionally succeeds to some extent.

VOD: The Seventh Day (dir: Justin P. Lange, 2021)

"If you don't mind me saying so, you do look a little worse for wear."

The Seventh Day follows the well-worn path of demonic possession movies, pairing up a relatively new priest  with an older, experienced exorcist to fight an increasing tide of cases.  The major mid-movie 'twist' reveal that gives the movie a narrative edge is unfortunately rather obvious to spot early on, but it nevertheless provides some slight variety in plotting to play out in the second half.   This whole dynamic was covered to greater effect (and performed better) in the first season of the recent TV reboot of The Exorcist, as even an actor of the calibre of Guy Pearce here rarely hits full form in this occasionally lively but often grindingly familiar movie. 

VOD: Fatherhood (dir: Paul Weitz, 2021)

"You're strong, you're confident, and you'll get through this."

On the one hand, Fatherhood does everything you would expect from a fairly mawkish sentimental family drama with its central story of a suddenly-widowed father trying to bring up his very young daughter, but it does boast a surprisingly solid serious turn from Kevin Hart in the central role and the expected powerhouse precision acting from Alfre Woodard giving the movie some class.  It knows how to push the emotional buttons - ten minutes in you will be welling up, and one joyously heartwarming moment later in the film really hits the mark - and the central relationship between Hart and his young daughter  (Melody Hurd) is nicely played out.  Whilst neither surprising nor of any real significance, Fatherhood is well-made and effectively played for its genre.