Film Review: The Marvels

Hello readers,

With cinema releases ramping up again for the end of the year, I thought I would turn my attention to my most recent watch: The Marvels. The sequel to the first film featuring Captain Marvel played by the brilliant Brie Larson, now includes her new companions Monica Rambeau (Teyonah Parris) and Ms Marvel (Iman Vellani).

It is wonderful to see Marvel evolving more towards female led films with the recent additions of Black Widow, Black Panther 2 and Captain Marvel. The expansion into television series on Disney Plus has also allowed for more female leads with Scarlet Witch in WandaVision; Jen Walters in She-Hulk and the upcoming Agatha: Darkhold Diaries and Echo both featuring female protagonists.

The Marvel Cinematic Universe started out led by male characters: Iron Man, Captain America, Thor and so on with women only serving as sidekicks or love interests, for example Pepper Potts, Peggy Carter and Jane Foster. Over the years, we have seen these characters all get their own storylines, hero moments and even television programmes. The inclusion of female superheroes, in my eyes, has expanded the audience that the Marvel films and shows attract. A younger girl can look at Black Widow or Captain Marvel or any of the other badass women and see someone representing them.

When people see themselves represented on screen by a powerful independent character that is the hero, it can help them to imagine themselves as a hero or even just someone who can make it through tough times. Representation has been expanding in terms of gender, race and sexuality but there are still huge leaps to be made in terms of equality. For Marvel, the source material of the comic books may have held them up at first as the stories of the 1950s and 60s featured mainly male heroes but with new storylines and characters written all the time, there is progress being made towards equity in the MCU.

The Marvels (2023)

Captain Marvel is one of the MCUs more mysterious characters. We know where she came from and how she got her powers but between the events of the first and second film there is a huge chunk of her life missing.

Carol Danvers may have been away from Earth for a while with a brief appearance in the Battle against Thanos but she has not been resting. Her aim is to solve the political unrest between the Kree and the Skrulls that she believes is due to her actions.

While Carol has been gone, new heroes have come to be. There is Monica Rambeau who we see in WandaVision (2021) gain her powers from interacting with the powers of the Scarlet Witch. Monica did appear in the first Captain Marvel film but as a child or ‘Lieutenant Trouble’ as Carol called her. Her mother, Maria was Carol’s best friend and unfortunately passed away during the Blip. Monica is now working with Nick Fury’s new venture, S.A.B.E.R in Earth’s atmosphere, only using her powers sparingly.

Ms Marvel, real name Kamala Khan is a Captain Marvel super fan and has posters all over her wall and is introduced in the Ms Marvel (2022) series. Upon donning her Nani’s bangle, she gains the ability to manipulate light and make it into solid matter. After being hunted by the Department of Damage Control (part of the former S.H.I.E.L.D), stopping the Clandestines and learning she is a mutant, Kamala suddenly swaps places with Captain Marvel.

The film kicks off where Ms Marvel ends with Carol appearing in Kamala’s room. The three way swapping continues as Carol was in the middle of fighting some Kree soldiers and they are accidentally transported to the Khans’ living room.

I thought the switching between the three heroes made the fight scene interesting and quickly reintroduced the characters to us along with alerting Fury and the Khans’ about the interlinking powers.

To minimise damage, Kamala and Monica join Captain Marvel on her ship and set out to stop Dar-Benn from decimating worlds to reawaken the Kree’s home planet, Hala. Kamala is obviously delighted with the plan much to the dismay of her mother while Monica is less keen given the history between her and Carol. She believes that Carol abandoned her on purpose with her dying mother and after the Blip, she then had no family left.

Carol also has to quickly learn the dynamic with an adult Monica with powers and teenage fan in tow. Having three female leads paved the way for more comedy and joviality than is typically seen in male led Marvel films. Kamala especially has not experienced the wider reaches of the universe and comes into new situations with a positive attitude and open heart. Carol acts as their guide and even stiff and stoic Monica begins to enjoy the quest.

I won’t go into what other things occur but let’s just say that if you’re looking for Easter eggs or clues for future projects, this is not a film to miss.

Another returning character is Goose. A sweet ginger cat who acts as Carol’s sidekick who just happens to be able to launch 30 foot tentacles from its mouth. Goose has been a fan favourite since his appearance in the first Captain Marvel film and the revelation that he was the one that gave Fury his eye patch. Goose’s new Flerken ability is revealed in the new film when he regurgitates items from the Khan’s living room. If you are a cat fan, then this film will feature a few more furry friends.

Overall, I really enjoyed Marvel’s latest outing. The grumpy/sunshine dynamic with Kamala and Monica played well against Carol who can be a mix of both. We got to see some favourite characters and meet some new ones. One funny scene sees Yusuf Khan give someone pension advice only to learn their real age.

There was a good balance of action, comedy, family interactions and heart especially with the reflections on Maria’s passing. It was great to see Kamala live her dreams of meeting her hero and learn that she is a fully fledged person and not just Captain Marvel.

I give this film 4.5 out of 5.

Happy Watching,

Robyn

Book to Screen Adaptations: How Loyal Should They Be?

Hello Readers,

Many great stories portrayed on screen, big or small start their journey as a previously published written work. Most of the time this is a book or graphic novel but could also be an interview for a biopic or an article in a newspaper/magazine.

Many people whose favourite work of fiction is about to be adapted visually want it to remain as true to the story as possible. This is not always practical due to the production company’s budget, the length of the tale, the nature of the story or trying to adapt something to fit with today’s society – more diverse and inclusive of different people’s characteristics.

Other times, the owner/author of the base for the project will work on the script and make changes that they approve and feel fit with the theme of their story. These changes are more likely to be accepted as they have still come from the imagination where the work was created.

I think that a project will always benefit from the original author being involved whether as an executive producer/consult or as the writer/showrunner. Things being changed to be less boring/more dramatic for the viewer is not always a bad thing but when that starts to erase the heart of the work and change the fundamental message, it can upset those who were looking forward to watching something they loved on the page be brought to life on screen.

I am going to cover a few examples and their different approaches to adapting for the screen. All of these are projects that I enjoyed first as a book/graphic novel which made it into cinemas or onto streaming services.

Red, White and Royal Blue (2023)

This book was very popular when it hit the shelves as Casey McQuiston’s debut novel in 2019. The story was their alternate reality to give themselves and readers hope after the 2016 Presidential Election. It is told from Alex’s POV, he is the son of the female POTUS with a Mexican father in congress and has a journalist sister. In the lead up to his mother’s re-election, he helps to uncover a plot to bring his mother down and works to flip his home state of Texas to blue. The heart of the book centres around his enemies to lovers relationship with Henry, the Prince of England. The two collide in a PR disaster at Henry’s brother’s wedding but when the two are forced to be best friends, a real friendship starts.

Henry and Alex carry out a secret friends with benefits arrangement whenever they happen to be in the same city with only their closest friends and sisters in the know.

The book was adapted as a film produced by Amazon Prime and released on streaming in 2023. Many fans loved the adaption as the director also a queer Latino man, focused mostly on Alex and Henry’s love story, a part that is often repressed in films. I did enjoy the adaptation and have re-watched it again but I felt there were a lot of changes to Alex and Henry’s story that altered their motivations and characters.

With so many characters and interweaving plot lines, I think this adaptation would have been better as a series. While the romance is a large part of the story, Alex figuring out his bisexuality and having the bravery to admit his feelings to someone not allowed to be gay in the public eye; the politics and his passion for helping Texas to become a blue state was an important part too. We still see Alex helping with the campaign and even having a working summer in Texas but the political story was diminished with characters being erased and bundled into one.

Fundamental changes to Alex’s persona include not having his parents divorce. In the novel, they broke up when Alex was 11 and his father moved to California to become a senator there. His mother lives with his stepfather, Leo in the White House who worked in tech but became a house husband so she could focus on becoming President. Alex’s sister, June is also not a character in the film and has been folded into the characters of Zahra, the President’s chief of staff and Alex’s handler and Nora, the Vice President’s daughter. Without June, there is no White House Trio and no Super Six when they party in LA.

Another fundamental change was the character of Miguel. He and Alex had hooked up in the film at a conference and Miguel was the one to leak Henry and Alex’s romance, partially out of jealousy. He may have been bribed by the President, Ellen’s rival but it’s not as clear. He does not exist in the book and while Alex did hook up with his high school friend who in the book has a boyfriend, there is no adult encounter for Alex until Henry. The character of Rafael Luna has also been erased. He was a mentor and role model of Alex who was gay and was an example that Alex could be himself and go into politics. Rafael was part of the plot to bring down Ellen but only under duress and in the end, he came to his senses.

As for Henry, his siblings, Philip and Bea are both present but their characters have been shrunk. In the book, Bea is presented as a wild musician who snuck out of the palace to play secret gigs and unfortunately had to go to rehab for cocaine addiction. This led to her being labelled the ‘Powder Princess’ and more of a recluse. The Bea of the film did not have this back story and is merely used as a plot point for Henry to be able to voice his feelings for Alex aloud. Henry’s mother is merely mentioned in the film but in the book is suffering from depression after her husband’s death. She is a key player in getting the Queen to agree to letting Henry and Alex be out and proud.

I do understand the change from Queen to King given the recent death of Queen Elizabeth and the way that Queen Mary is portrayed unfavourably in the book but I think Stephen Fry was not the right age for the King and as a well-known gay figure, I couldn’t imagine him objecting to Henry and Alex’s relationship.

Henry’s mental health challenges were also written out in the film. In the book, they are subtle until he confesses to Alex about suffering with anxiety and depression since his father’s passing. With his mother falling into depression and Bea going into rehab, he lost all his support system so when first meeting Alex in 2016, his self-esteem is at an all time low.

There were other smaller scenes taken out of the story for the film such as meeting at Wimbledon, going to LA, Alex’s graduation from university and Alex working in the campaign office in Washington but these did not affect the story as much as the above points. I still enjoyed the film as its own entity but in comparison to the book, the book takes it every time.

Heartstopper (2022-)

Based on a much loved web comic, Heartstopper has since graced the shelves in print form with the fifth volume of the graphic novel coming out this December. The author and artist, Alice Oseman has had a lot of creative control over the television series that debuted on Netflix in 2022. She has written all the episodes, served as creator and executive producer on the show and even done some of the art seen in the background.

This involvement has delighted fans and even with some changes, as Alice has made them herself for story or plot reasons, the fans trust her writing enough that the series has been very well received and was quickly renewed for a second and third. The third is currently in production now with all the cast still on board despite having become very successful in the last 2 years.

Heartstopper started as a spin-off project from Alice’s debut novel, Solitaire about Tory Spring and her dealing with undiagnosed depression all while starting a new school and tracking down a mystery blogger. Charlie, Tory’s younger brother and his boyfriend Nick are side characters in the novel who Alice decided needed their own story.

Now 10 years on there are 4 published volumes, 2 novellas, 2 companion books and 2 series of a Netflix show about the couple. The story starts with Charlie aged 14 meeting Nick, 16 at school. Charlie has a secret boyfriend, Ben and 3 best friends, Tao, Aled and Elle. Elle has just moved to the girls school as a trans woman and Tao is missing her. Charlie is then seated next to Nick, a typical rugby lad in his form group and falls head over heels for him. The problem is that everyone thinks Nick is straight. The two quickly become thick as thieves and after a kiss at a party begin another secret relationship. After Ben’s treatment of Charlie, Nick and Tao fight over Charlie’s wellbeing especially after he was bullied the previous year when he came out as gay.

The graphic novels and show deal with heavy themes such as trans/homophobia, assault, mental health issues, bullying and self-harm but overall they have a lovely warm tone and have really helped many LGBTQ+ teens and young adults realise that life is not all bad and that they are worthy.

The main changes in the show are Charlie and Tory’s younger brother being written out and the character of Aled changed for Isaac. The addition of Imogen as a barrier between Nick and Charlie was also a change but she was added for some drama. The characters of Ben and James in Series 2 were also expanded along with Isaac’s asexual storyline. More trans characters were added as Elle’s friends along with the possibility of her moving away to art school.

I think all the changes to the show have been well crafted and nothing has taken away from Nick and Charlie’s personalities. Charlie is still a geek who is good at maths, running and playing the drums. He still has mental health issues and struggles with telling people his worries. Nick is still a rugby lad with a love of Marvel films, hoodies and dogs. They move the conflict with Nick’s father to the second series but I think it works and I love that they kept the fact that Nick can speak French as a surprise for Charlie and the gang to discover.

Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief (2010)

One franchise that the fans and author both didn’t like is Percy Jackson. The first two books: Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief and Percy Jackson and the Sea of Monsters were adapted into big Hollywood blockbusters but with the author not being involved and major changes, it left the fans upset.

As a action-adventure film by itself it works: the actors are charismatic, there is some funny dialogue and the main plot points still exist with the presence of the Greek Gods. However, the age of the main trio was changed along with the ending of the first film. The second one had many, many changes that dumbed down the film.

In the books, Percy Jackson, a 12-year-old from New York discovers that his absent father was actually the Greek God Poseidon and the gods have been living in America for a few centuries. His mother sends him to Camp Half-Blood for protection where he meets Annabeth and learns that his best friend Grover is actually a satyr and his teacher is really a centaur. He learns sword skills and how to fight strategically but when fate comes calling he has to complete a quest to save society.

One of the major plot points changed was that Percy has a big fight on the Empire State building with Hades who wants to overthrow his godly family on Mount Olympus. The ending originally entailed Percy being betrayed by fellow camper Luke and bitten by a deadly spider and that is how the audience learns that the Son of Hermes has been lured to the dark side.

Another change was the chemistry between Annabeth and Percy. They are not meant to get together until the fifth book when they are 16 but in the film they have many flirty moments which totally negates their strong dynamic as friends first.

Luckily for fans, another adaption is happening as a Disney Plus series with the author, Rick Riordan now heavily involved. There have been a few changes to the ethnicities of characters which updates the series and helps the audience to see that people of all races can be heroes. Percy’s hair is also dark blonde, the actor’s hair but I don’t mind that so much as after seeing Walker Scobell in another film, I think he will make a great Percy. The actors are all also young and playing the ages of the characters in the books.

I was a big fan of the books and eagerly await the new series that is coming around Christmas time this year.

Good Omens (2019-)

This television series is based on an older book from 1990 by Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett. As Terry Pratchett is no longer with us, Neil Gaiman took on creative control and became the showrunner/writer/executive producer.

Series 1 follows the book with Angel Aziraphale and Demon Crowley uncovering a plot between Heaven and Hell to cause the Apocalypse and wipe out life on Earth. This series was very faithful to the original book with barely any changes to the characters other than perhaps diversifying a little.

For the second series, the show has gone beyond the books but Neil Gaiman assured fans that it was very much based on the ideas that himself and Terry had when discussing a sequel to the book.

I think Series 2 was great and without the Apocalypse storyline we got to see much more of Aziraphale and Crowley and their lives together on Earth for the last six thousand years. There is also the development of the love story that many fans had hoped for and based on the chemistry between the actors in the first series, fan art had already appeared.

With such a cliffhanger at the end of Series 2, the future of the series hung in the balance but the producers and Neil himself have pretty much confirmed its looking good for a third and final series of the show.

With a show going beyond its source material, there is not much to compare it to but as it has been written by and based on ideas by the original authors, I think one can consider it as faithful to the book.

There are many adaptions happening all over the world virtually every day, good and bad but remember if your favourite book gets an unfavourable one, then the book is always there to be re-read.

Happy Watching,

Robyn

What I Have Enjoyed at the Cinema This Month

Hello readers,

In the last few weeks, I have seen a few interesting and entertaining films at the cinema including at the London Film Festival so here is my review. While summer blockbusters are over, the rest of the year promises interesting releases both at the cinema and on streaming. So when the autumn weather finally does appear, there will be lots to watch on the big screen or curled up on the sofa at home.

The Creator (2023)

If you’re looking for a film that covers current world issues, then The Creator hits right on the mark. Hollywood writers and actors are just coming to a close on a historic union strike over the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and what it means for their industries. Studios have already been using AI to create title sequences and there were talks of using it to generate written content and scanning an actor’s likeness for unlimited use.

The Creator looks at a world where AI was invented and integrated into society much earlier than it was in reality. Mankind begin to rely on AI for many household tasks, driving them around, factory work and running the digital space. A devastating nuclear bomb hits Los Angeles killing over one million people and sparking a war between AI and humans.

There are two types of AI, those who fully look like robots and those with human likeness’ having been given the faces of real humans. They are more complex and can do many jobs that humans do not want to do.

In the film we see Josh (John David Washington) with his wife, Maya (Gemma Chan) in an unspecified East Asian country. America has outlawed AI and forced it into hiding on New Asia where AI is still used for the police, farming and the robots are accepted by the people as citizens.

American soldiers attack and while escaping, a pregnant Maya’s boat is blown apart. Josh was actually sent undercover to get close to Maya and her father, Nirmata (The Creator) who made the advanced version – simulants and is rumoured to have made a weapon designed to kill all enemies of AI. Torn with grief for his wife and unborn child, Josh goes back to America to live a quiet life.

Five years later, the American army come knocking. Their new weapon, NOMAD has been launched and flies over the world, scanning and destroying any AI robots it finds. They know Josh is the best connection to Nirmata’s location and filled with hope that Maya is alive after some convincing footage, Josh joins them.

What happens next is an all out war between the Americans, New Asia and its AI friends. Josh finds out that Nirmata’s weapon is a powerful simulant in the form of a child. Together they journey New Asia seeking Maya.

I loved the universe that was created for this film and it really showed what could happen if AI was integrated into society. It was interesting to see the Americans as the enemies, particularly as this is an American made film but after reactions to other attacks on national soil, I am not surprised by their retaliation. I thought the bond between Josh and the child was emotional and this connection only deepens as the film’s plot develops. There was such a mix of technology and old traditions, especially in the small villages that made the film feel realistic and also hopeful that if AI ever becomes sentient in that way, society could integrate.

Watching this film in IMAX made it much more intense and I felt that I couldn’t look away. There was plenty of action scenes but the quieter scenes were poignant and added a lot of heart to the characters. I would definitely recommend watching this one in the cinema and it was a great start to the autumn cinema season. I give it 5/5.

Maestro (2023) – Netflix in December

Bradley Cooper directs and stars as Leonard Bernstein, a New York City conductor and composer from the 1950s, 60s and so on who is known for West Side Story and conducting the New York Philharmonic Orchestra.

We see his rise to fame from age 25 as a wannabe musician to a global success with many bows to his string in a lovely sprawling New York Estate. Leonard is eccentric with wild hair and an untameable energy that he pours into his compositions. He also has a variety of male and female lovers with no strong direction until he meets Felicia.

He falls madly in love as they both rise to success, her as a Broadway star. In the later years, with three adult children, Leonard’s discreetness about his relationships with men starts slipping and Felicia is diagnosed with an illness.

The use of black and white and musical elements in the first act of the film helped to demonstrate to the audience how playful Leonard was and never took life too seriously. He saw it as a musical where he could act in any way he wanted with no real consequences. As soon as he gets his taste of fame, conducting the Philharmonic, he realises that to reach a certain level of notoriety, he must keep up appearances.

His later years are in full colour with some very impressive prosthetics showing himself and Felicia (Carey Mulligan) age into New York arts royalty. Bradley Cooper played the character with a lot of depth that is uncovered as the film goes on. His whimsical and spontaneous nature is paired down in public and that is reflected as we only see his public persona as husband and father, rather than his gay affairs.

They come back on screen when he grows to be around 60, turning grey and having had such a successful career that he starts to not care as much as to who knows about his proclivities. Felicia is worried about the children finding out, particularly Jamie (Maya Hawke) who is particularly perceptive.

Carey Mulligan always plays a good role and rather than choosing to see her as the victim here – a wife whose husband would rather play for the other team – I think she has chosen her life and only starts to become intolerant of Leonard’s lifestyle when it endangers the family image and how their children would view their father. She focuses on her own career on stage and screen and keeps close bonds with Jamie and Shirley, Leonard’s sister (Sarah Silverman).

The tone of the film often felt frenetic with Leonard’s intense energy and dramatic conducting scenes, leaving him looking as though he had just taken a bath. One of the best scenes for me was when he is conducting a large orchestra and choir in a church. You can really see his passion for music and tell how his directions make the piece better.

There were many laugh out loud moments, for example when Leonard runs into David (Matt Bomer), ex-lover and now new father in the street with his wife and child and joyfully tells the baby, ‘I’ve slept with both your parents’ and then runs away in glee. The film does take on a sadder tone at the end but Leonard’s gift for music and lust for life pulls you through.

I thought this film was excellent and really captured the spirit of the New York Arts scene at the time and painted a full and varied picture of Leonard’s life. Though brilliant, he had flaws and those are not shied away from. There were some industry heavyweights producing the project including Martin Scorsese and Steven Spielberg so there shouldn’t be any doubts in the quality of this film. It was amazing to see it on the big screen in the Royal Festival Hall at Southbank but if you haven’t managed to get tickets this year then the film will be coming to Netflix this Christmas along with a limited cinema release.

I give the film 5/5.

Priscilla (2023) – Mubi

While many people will have seen Baz Luhrmann’s Elvis that debuted last year to great reviews and Oscar nominations, we did not really see much of Priscilla Presley’s story in there. Sofia Coppola’s new film changes that.

Priscilla focuses on Priscilla’s relationship with Elvis and his treatment of her for the duration of their marriage. We don’t see anything of Elvis that Priscilla doesn’t see and most of the film is set at Graceland where Priscilla spends the majority of their relationship.

The story starts when Priscilla (Cailee Spaeny) is 14 years old. Her father has just been shipped out to West Germany in the late 1950s and she is bored. She goes to the diner and does her homework but hasn’t made any friends. Another soldier, Terry and his wife invite Priscilla to a party at Elvis’ house as he likes to meet people from back home. Despite the 10 year age gap, the two hit it off.

Priscilla is thrilled that a star such as Elvis would pay attention to her and manages to convince her parents to let her go to another party at his house. They start a sweet courtship and share a kiss before Elvis goes back to America. Priscilla thinks of him for the next two years. When she is 17, Elvis rings her up and sends for her. She goes to Graceland but after taking a pill, passes out for two days.

Unable to be apart from her rekindled love, she manages to convince her parents to let her permanently move there as long as she enrols in a good Catholic school. Elvis treats her like a queen with gifts and trips to Vegas but begins to control how she dresses and her appearance.

Priscilla then hears rumours of Elvis being involved with his various co-stars in Hollywood. He denies it but also gets angry at Priscilla and sometimes violent with her when she questions his commitment.

To a modern and educated audience, the relationship looks basically like grooming. Priscilla falls deeply in love with a man that is a different generation to herself and also absent for two years but she does start to gain more control when Elvis falls down an alley of drugs and performing.

From what I have seen, Priscilla Presley though she left Elvis, still holds him in great contempt, recently celebrating the 45th anniversary of his death at Graceland, their former home. This film was based on her own book and she was a producer on the film so even if she does not hate him for what he did, she wanted to tell her side of the story and explain why she stayed so long.

The casting of the film was excellent, particularly as Cailee Spaeny looked so young and small next to Jacob Elordi as Elvis and his various friends/cousins that they hung around with at Graceland.

While Jacob Elordi may not receive the praise that Austin Butler did for his portrayal, I think he did a brilliant job with showing the side of Elvis that Priscilla experienced. Even with her, we see his charming persona that many women went crazy for. I think with the hair and the voice, he had more of a look of Elvis than Butler did but this film was not about him.

It was great to see Priscilla find her own life in LA towards the end of her marriage but with the time jump between the situations, it was hard to imagine how a young isolated woman would have found the courage to make new friends and flirt with her karate instructor, all with a young baby and married to the biggest icon on the planet.

Overall, I enjoyed the film but it did leave me feeling quite sad for the life that Priscilla wanted and could have had if Elvis had not been cheating on her and taking all the drugs. It was interesting to only hear mentions of the Colonel in this film whereas in Elvis (2022), he is the narrator and basically the main character of the story. Perhaps this was to show that Priscilla didn’t really know the influence that the Colonel had or the control he wielded over Elvis. There was one time when the Colonel suggested that Elvis take some time for himself and Priscilla stayed at Graceland waiting for him without questioning it.

Looking into the story, some parts were concertinaed for the film so events weren’t quite as shocking as depicted in the film but as Priscilla was involved, the film was very accurate and you could feel her feelings in every scene as they played across Spaeny’s face. It is clear why she won Best Actor at Venice Film Festival. I saw the Special Presentation at the London Film Festival and Cailee Spaeny was there and read a great message from Coppola. The film will be hitting cinemas on Boxing Day and streaming on Mubi sometime in the future. I give it 4/5.

Happy Watching,

Robyn

What Should You Be Streaming Right Now?

Hello readers,

With autumn coming in and the heatwaves dwindling, we tend to spend more time indoors away from the rain and the wind with the company of TV programmes. Traditional TV seems to be a thing of the past with the best content out there available on streaming services. Even the original channels BBC, ITV and Channel 4 have upgraded their free catch up services to mirror those we pay money to access. Films will sometimes barely get time to settle in at the cinema before they are whisked away to be viewed from the comfort of the sofa and some never make it at all.

Television, however has always been something to enjoy at home and I am going to recommend programmes from the streaming services that I frequent regularly.

The Following Events are Based on a Pack of Lies (2023) – BBC IPlayer

Alice is living her life in Oxford: she works for a demanding boss at a boutique fashion shop; has a loving partner and child and lives in a cute little bungalow. The ghost of her past comes back to haunt her when she finds out her missing, presumed dead husband is in fact alive and has rebranded himself as a climate scientist working with Oxford University.

Robert Chance meets best-selling author, Cheryl Harker at his climate presentation and begins to wine and dine her. She is a widow living alone in her dragon-themed mansion and is taken in by him. The relationship moves fast and before she knows it, he has moved in and is sitting in on her work meetings.

Alice cannot let go that her former husband is alive and well so follows him and finds well-meaning Cheryl as his latest victim. She knows that Rob will repeat history and run away with Cheryl’s wealth so vows to get him locked up. This turns out to be trickier than she thinks and enlists her father to help track down more of Rob’s victims.

There were many interesting twists to this show and while some reviewers have not understood its tone, I think it straddles the comedy/drama genre well with the light, playful humour cutting through the harsh truths of Robert’s schemes.

The scenery of Oxford adds an authenticity to the tale with the backdrop of the famous sandstone buildings and academic gatherings. I think that Alistair Petrie (Sex Education) played a wonderful role as Rob/Robert and had such a strong demanding presence that made him very hard to counteract. A complete change from Mr Groff as we see him in the latest series of Sex Education.

I enjoyed this show and I disagree with the negative reviews that I have read. This show was very gratifying for women who have every felt overpowered or gaslit by men and the reviews I read were written by male journalists who probably did not understand how it read to women.

I give it 4/5.

Harlan Coben’s Shelter (2023) – Amazon Prime

Previous television adaptions from the mind of Harlan Coben have never disappointed and that streak does not end with Shelter. A story full of twists and mystery that will keep you guessing until the very end.

We find Mickey Bolitar back in the States after having lived abroad with his mother and father. In a tragic car accident, Mickey’s father, Brad passes away and his mother goes to a mental health facility to cope with her returned depression.

Shira, Brad’s sister takes Mickey to her childhood home while his mother recovers nearby. On his first day at Kasselton High, he meets Ashley, a fellow new student with a bubbly personality and aspirations for the cheer team. They agree to meet at the local diner after school for a date but then Ashley never shows.

This is not your normal teenage ghosting though as the next day, Ashley does not come to school and has withdrawn. Hearing the tales of the Bat Lady from Shira, Mickey goes to her for answers as she is rumoured to kidnap children. He learns about Dylan Shakes, his father’s best friend who went missing after a baseball game when they were 11.

At school, Mickey becomes friends with Arthur, who christens himself as Spoon and Ema, the school outcasts. The trio team up to track down Ashley and maybe solve the disappearance of Dylan, almost 30 years before. Spoon has access to a secret lair at school and a network of fellow janitorial offspring with Ema bringing resources that I won’t reveal.

Shira rekindles an old friendship with Hannah, also the mother of Mickey’s nemesis on the basketball court, Troy.

This show was a great mystery that kept me on my toes the whole time. I really love the dynamic between Spoon, Ema and Mickey and the supporting characters fit right in. The stereotypical ideas that you form about them: the jock; his cheerleader girlfriend; the scary neighbourhood foe; the cop’s wife and the make-up influencer all expand and unravel into much more complex human beings.

Most of the actors in this show are newcomers to the industry and they were all amazing in their roles with great comedic timing and even in darker moments, I was able to enjoy the nature of the show.

I give this show 5/5.

Only Murders in the Building – Series 3 (2023) – Disney Plus

For a show in its third series and featuring two old white straight male leads, this show has become one of the most loved on streaming. The dynamic between Charles (Steve Martin), Oliver (Martin Short) and Mabel (Selena Gomez) is something that most writers spend years trying to manifest but these three have such a great chemistry together its as if Selena has been part of the Martin and Short duo the whole time.

The third season is mixing things up a bit with Oliver producing a play and the introduction of some famous faces. The cliffhanger of the last season showed Paul Rudd as Ben Glenroy drop dead on opening night of Oliver’s new play, Death Rattle. We pick up at that moment in Series 3 and while Ben was not dead, he is very soon after crashing through the roof of the lift at the Arconia on top of Charles, Oliver and Mabel.

They immediately get their murder-solving hats on and start looking into potential suspects – the cast and crew of Death Rattle until a stalker is arrested by the police. The crime is seemingly solved but Mabel can’t let it go and starts some investigating of her own, this time without a podcast. Charles tries to focus on his budding relationship with Joy and Oliver reworks his play into a musical to draw attention away from Ben’s murder but the two cannot resist doing a little investigating of their own.

Meryl Streep plays Loretta, an ageing actress who despite being in New York City her whole adult life is finally getting her big break as the nanny in Death Rattle. Ashley Park plays Kimber, a potential suspect and fellow cast member of Ben’s who does a little beauty influencing on the side. Paul Rudd also appears in a number of flashbacks showing that Ben did not really get on with anyone in the show, making finding a suspect harder for Charles, Oliver and Mabel.

Mabel does start to get close to Tobert, a filmmaker that was hired to follow Ben around but has a suspiciously good knack for finding clues. Charles is with Joy and Oliver finds a connection with Loretta, it looks at first like their lives are becoming quieter. This series is filled with more twists than perhaps the first two combined and with the finale airing next week, it’s still all to play for with Who Killed Ben Glenroy?

I think this is a fun show and despite being about murder, it has a lightness to it that is shown by the hilarious and unfortunate scrapes that the trio manage to find themselves in. The Arconia is a beautiful old building and while much of the action is at the theatre this time, we still get to see some great NYC architecture.

Even though the series has not ended yet, I am going to give it 4.5/5.

Sex Education Series 4 (2023) – Netflix

This show has been helping teenagers and adults alike understanding more about sex and their bodies since its premiere in 2019. With two years since the last series, fans have been waiting for new content.

While the iconic Moordale school is now gone, our favourite characters are still muddling their way through sex and relationships. Otis and Maeve finally admitted their feelings but with Maeve off in America, learning how to write from Mr. Molloy (Dan Levy – Schitt’s Creek), herself and Otis have entered a long-distance situationship. Eric is moving on from Adam and quickly finds a new queer crew at new school, Cavendish College. We see two new trans characters, Roman and Abbi, dating and living together along with Aisha, a deaf girl.

Ruby has gone from top dog to underdog as without her posse, finds herself reconnecting with Otis and helping in his battle against O, another sex therapist on campus with maybe more knowledge than him.

Jackson and Viv are still good friends but with a new relationship for Viv and health scares and an identity crisis for Jackson, the two have a lot on their plates.

Aimee is on her healing journey and having switched to take art to help with her trauma, she finds a friend in fellow artist Isaac who finds himself in a war against the school with their poor accessibility infrastructure.

Cal has started taking testosterone and is experiencing the challenges that come with that while not feeling able to talk to their mum or new friend Aisha.

Adam has dropped out of college and starts working with horses at a farm with the patient stable hand, Jem. His relationship with his father is almost non-existent but Michael offers driving lessons to Adam and things begin to heal.

Without Jakob, Jean is struggling with new baby, Joy until her sister Joanna comes to stay although Joanna may be more of a hinderance than a help. Jean also starts a new radio show, run by Celia (Hannah Gadsby) helping the public with their sex and relationship queries.

Cavendish College has all the facilities one could dream of: a tablet for every student, a slide, fully stocked gym, an allotment and a free speech stage. The new age ideas make this final season really fun but with comments on society at large about the passive-aggressive nature that some people use to remind you to recycle or ride a bike instead of driving.

While this series still has its moments, I think the sex scenes are used for plot or humour rather than shock factor or gratuitousness as in previous series. The characters have all become really special fully realised people so we want more than anything to see things work out for them in their relationships. Even the new additions quickly fit into the existing cast.

Of course, not everything has changed: Otis is still being his awkward self and struggling to balance his time between his friends and Maeve; Aimee still has her interesting viewpoint of the world and Eric is still a beacon of glitter and positive energy.

This series deals with some really heavy themes such as depression; loneliness; suicide; rejection from your family/church; struggles with self-acceptance; death; drugs and assault but as these are spread throughout across so many characters, the darker stories feel like part of life rather than clouding the enjoyment of the series.

I am really glad that most of the main cast made it to Series 4 and that we got a good ending to the show. I will miss it and can’t wait to see the actors take off as some have already started to do.

I give this show 5/5.

The Morning Show – Series 3 (2023) – Apple TV+

The Morning Show has won many awards for a reason; it is a brilliant show. The new series is only a few episodes in but we have already had stellar performances from Jennifer Aniston and the other cast members.

The series picks up in 2022, two years after the last series ended. Covid is now a mostly distant memory and head of UBA, Cory is focusing on what he can do to improve the network, granted he gets permission from the board of course. Alex is still on the Morning Show with Yanko and new co-host Chris and Bradley has made a leap towards her own evening show. Her relationship with Laura ended in lockdown but she finally has an apartment in New York and is determined to broadcast meaningful stories.

Jon Hamm enters as billionaire Paul Marks, looking to strike a deal with Cory on the downlow all while promoting his new open to the public rocket ship. The drama does not stop as in just the first few episodes we have had hackers; internal conflict; racial bias; equity allegations and votes of no confidence.

Stella, Cybil and Cory try to keep things on track despite all of these with Stella needing to decide whether she is trying to fix the institution from the inside or if she is part of the institution.

With Mitch in the rear-view mirror, its interesting to see what scandals will bubble up at UBA and whether having women in positions of power both in front of the camera and behind it will be enough for the network to bury their history and forge a new more enlightened space.

If this series is going to be anything like the past two, I give it 5/5.

These are my highlights of what is streaming right now and look forward to seeing what the autumn schedule has to offer.

Happy Watching,

Robyn

2023: Summer of Cinema: Theater Camp

The theatre world has always been an inclusive place for outsiders and people that don’t feel that they fit into society or at least at school to find a home. Making the teachers the focus of the film was something I have not really seen before but it really honed in on the phrase ‘those that can’t do, teach’.

Hello readers,

Despite the sun coming back again for another heatwave, the summer cinema offerings are starting to wind down. Today’s post is the last one in my 2023: Summer of Cinema series and I will be looking at different topics including television and streaming shows together with some larger scale analysis.

For today, I turn my attention to Theater Camp, a funny, dry mockumentary celebrating the theatre camps of America particularly around New York. The camp in this film is run by the much loved Joan and a collection of other eccentric teachers that have not been able to find permanent roles in the theatre world.

Theater Camp (2023)

The film opens with Joan (Amy Sedaris) and Rita (Caroline Aaron) recruiting potential kids for the camp. In true mockumentary style, we get talking heads from the cast telling us their feelings and just giving extra details that they haven’t said in the scene.

When Joan unfortunately is stunned into a coma by a child’s performance in Bye Bye Birdie; her son Troy (Jimmy Tatro) with no experience and little appreciation for the theatre is replaced as camp leader. He quickly starts to make some changes but the teachers and students barrel on with their usual mayhem regardless.

The most closely followed teachers are Rebecca-Diane (Molly Gordon – also co-director) and Amos (Ben Platt) and their co-dependent dynamic. They were students at the camp and with no success in the business, they have committed their lives to being theatre camp counsellors and nurturing the next generation.

Among the other teachers there is Glenn (Noah Galvin) who covers all things stage management but maybe wants a chance at the spotlight; Clive, a traditionalist with a passion for dance; Gigi with the fashion know-how and Janet (Ayo Edebiri), a new hire with a forged CV trying to bluff her way through stage combat and mask work.

A complication to this little society comes when Troy finds out the financial issues that the camp is facing. He tries several methods of raising money, all more outlandish than the next. There is also the rivalry with another local camp and tension between long-time best friends and co-producers, Rebecca-Diane and Amos as they attempt to write Joan, Still: an original play celebrating the colourful life of their comatose camp director.

I have dabbled myself in musical theatre but the theatre camps of America really take the drama to the next level. This film highlights the great things about camp: making friends for life, learning great skills for future careers, gaining confidence and the delightful chaos of being part of something bigger than yourself. The film also has the ability to poke fun at the sort of personalities that this environment attracts and not just with the teachers.

The child actors were all great, effortlessly playing up to the stereotype that their character was given: the reluctant male star; the one with actual experience; the unexpected talent and the larger than life presence.

This film made me laugh out loud many times. The way they play scenes as serious whilst being highly unusual really made the humour funnier and the improvisational nature of the script meant that you never really knew what someone would say and do.

The theatre world has always been an inclusive place for outsiders and people that don’t feel that they fit into society or at least at school to find a home. Making the teachers the focus of the film was something I have not really seen before but it really honed in on the phrase ‘those that can’t do, teach’.

I thought this film was a fun venture into the land of the theatre camp and it would be great to see more films with this production team as they managed to make the humour look effortless and clearly cultivated a great safe space for the actors to try new things. I give it 4.5/5.

Happy Watching,

Robyn

2023: Summer of Cinema: Gran Turismo

It was amazing to me that this was also a true story as it seems impossible that someone can become a racer without training in real cars and not coming from a wealthy background. Jann learned all the right instincts from playing the video game and used things he has learned to his advantage in the real race such as overtaking. Jack was very doubtful at first but even he came to realise that Jann was born to race. I am pleased that there were women in the Academy too as racing has traditionally been a very male dominated sport with no female equivalent at the top level.

Hello readers,

With Barbenheimer out of the way, you may think Summer of Cinema is over but there are still a few films on my list and today’s one is all about racing. I grew up watching Formula One with my family so I’ve always enjoyed racing and subsequently racing films but the plot of this one was a little more unusual.

Gran Turismo (2023)

The film centres around Jann Mardenborough, a university dropout living at home and playing the video game, Gran Turismo on PlayStation. He has not found much passion for a career and spends all his free time and money towards the game in his room or at the local game centre. His father is not very supportive and as an ex-footballer is more interested in his youngest son’s blossoming football career.

When a unique opportunity comes from Nissan to find a driver with virtual experience rather than racing in real cars, Jann realises that he may have a chance to fulfil his dreams of being a racing driver after all. The team made up of Danny (Orlando Bloom) and ex-racer Jack (David Harbour) find the ten best sim players and put them through their paces. Among the drivers are Matty, Jann’s cocksure rival (Darren Barnet – Never Have I Ever); Antonio; Leah and Klaus (Maximilian Mundt – How to Sell Drugs Online Fast).

Jann has amazing instincts with the car and knowing all its parts which proves to Jack that maybe a sim driver could become a real racer. After winning the competition, Jann signs to Team Nissan and begins his career on the tracks. For me, the first half of the film did not have as much intrigue or emotion, particularly as they dived into the Academy scenes with a montage sequence but it really picked up when Jann started driving in actual races. I thought that Archie Madekwe who played Jann was well cast and in his driving scenes, you could see the emotion on his face. David Harbour was also good, leaning into his protective father figure character that we have seen in Stranger Things and Black Widow.

I thought the effects combined with the stunts made the races thrilling and exciting and they did not weigh them down with explanations of the types of cars or how many laps they did. I have never really seen this type of racing before but I didn’t feel lost or confused and just focused on the drivers.

It was amazing to me that this was also a true story as it seems impossible that someone can become a racer without training in real cars and not coming from a wealthy background. Jann learned all the right instincts from playing the video game and used things he has learned to his advantage in the real race such as overtaking. Jack was very doubtful at first but even he came to realise that Jann was born to race. I am pleased that there were women in the Academy too as racing has traditionally been a very male dominated sport with no female equivalent at the top level.

Racing fans or even Spice Girls fans will be surprised to see Geri Halliwell Horner make an appearance as Jann’s mother, Lesley. Many will know her as Ginger Spice but she is also married to Christian Horner, Team Principle of Red Bull for Formula One.

Overall, I enjoyed the film even though it was a little documentary like at first. Once you got to the racing part, everything started to fall into place. I give it 4/5.

Happy Watching,
Robyn

2023: New Perspectives: Prehistoric Planet 2

I thought the series overall was fantastic and I am not a big fan of documentaries but I really enjoyed the episodes. I think David Attenborough’s narration really added to the action. There were a few shots that didn’t look quite right but I know from working with the team that this would only be due to running out of time as everyone put in so much hard work for over a year in most cases.

Hello readers,

Today’s post is the second in my New Perspectives series. This week, I will be looking at Prehistoric Planet 2 and share how my perspective changed watching the show after having worked on it. I worked on Series 1 as well but more extensively on Series 2.

This was such a lovely show to work on with a great crew and I am glad that it has been so well received. When I joined the project in 2021, I had no idea really what it was but after hearing the names David Attenborough and Jon Favreau, I knew it would be good.

Each series has 5 episodes with the storylines split into environments. In Series 2 they are: Islands; Badlands; Swamps; Oceans and North America. Each episode contains a few interweaving stories about the creatures that lived in those conditions during the Cretaceous period – 66 million years ago.

Prehistoric Planet 2 (2023)

The first episode Islands included a few sequences that I worked on but not in depth so the story lines were a little more of a surprise. The way we worked on it, we got the vague storyline but not specifics and each sequence was strictly separated so I never saw how they all flowed together until watching the episodes. Seeing the creatures fully comped with look grades on top made them appear very life-like and I could really see the expressions on their faces, particularly with the Zalmoxes on the raft. I remember the Hatzegopteryx sequence where the male tries to woo a female and has to fight off a love rival was one of the first I saw for this episode.

Badlands was overall my favourite episode of Prehistoric Planet 2. I got to work on most of the sequences so I knew it well and I loved the plotlines with the babies having to migrate to safer grounds with the lava and black rocks in the background. I never knew that dinosaurs existed in those areas so it was interesting to learn about. The sequence where they move through the canyon was a tricky one to do and I remember lots of discussions of how to make it look cinematic and interesting but I think all the camera angles and hopping from creature to creature worked well and the end result was visually stunning and interesting.

Swamps again was not an episode I worked on much but I do remember the sequence with the Edmontosaur in the dark fighting the T-Rex being particularly tricky. There was also a fun sequence featuring a Beelzebufo, a returning toad-like creature from Series 1. While Swamps is just one environment, I feel like the episode covered a lot of different sub areas with a lot of different creatures.

The ammonites were a popular creature in Series 1 so they are back in the Oceans episode where we get to see their life cycle and a few varieties – Nostoceras; Baculites and Diplomoceras. We also see the hunting cycles of Hesporornis and the Phosphorosaurus hunting the lanternfish using their bioluminescence against them. The crowd team really pulled off something amazing making the shoals of fish and I think the end result was really great. Making something look realistic in water is an added challenge in VFX but I think the team really pulled it off.

The North America episode was the first one I worked on in Series 2 and I became well versed in the animation process of the Tyrannosaurus and Quetzalcoatlus sequence where they find the carcass of an old Alamosaurus. There were a lot of different beats featuring 4 different creatures and showing them eating was particularly tricky. The Triceratops fight and mating sequence was another interesting one to work on as there were a lot of individuals gathered making a spectacular scene. Triceratops have always been a favourite of mine, I think as they look so unique . I used to think they were gentle creatures but certainly not after this episode.

I thought the series overall was fantastic and I am not a big fan of documentaries but I really enjoyed the episodes. I think David Attenborough’s narration really added to the action. There were a few shots that didn’t look quite right but I know from working with the team that this would only be due to running out of time as everyone put in so much hard work for over a year in most cases.

This project was my first in the industry and was such a joy to work on. it was also my first on-screen credit which was exciting. If you haven’t yet caught the show, both series are on Apple TV+.

Happy Watching,
Robyn

2023: Summer of Cinema: Oppenheimer

In some of his films that are set in reality, Nolan claims to use no CGI. VFX is used to touch up the shots and are not always used to create computer generated elements but in this case, over 100 visual effects artists (about 80%) were not credited for working on Oppenheimer. As someone working in VFX, I see this often enough but to not credit people is to not support fellow workers in the industry.

Hello readers,

The day has come and gone for ‘Barbenheimer’ to hit the screens and according to Rotten Tomatoes, Oppenheimer is currently pulling ahead in terms of reviews, however Barbie is winning in terms of box office. This could be because Barbie is a 12A meaning children under 12 can attend with an adult and Oppenheimer is a 15 but there are also huge differences in runtimes, directorial style and plot.

I chose to see Oppenheimer second on the Monday and I did see it at an IMAX screening as the director Christopher Nolan intended it. I didn’t quite stretch to a 70mm screening as to tell the truth, it was sold out. I am glad that I did not see both Barbie and Oppenheimer on one day as the 3 hour long film did send me to sleep a little.

Oppenheimer (2023)

I will start off the review by saying that the film was objectively good. The story was something not many people know in depth; the cast were Hollywood A-List: Cillian Murphy, Matt Damon, Robert Downey Jr, Emily Blunt, Florence Pugh and even the supporting cast of lesser knowns were great. The overall look with the costumes, production design and the inclusion of physics really helped set the stage and the use of lighting, composition and colour made the film look visually appealing.

As a former film student, these facts are all clear to me but personally I did not enjoy the film as much as I had hoped. I found it too long and it did not keep my interest after about one and a half hours. The female characters were only there to serve the male plotlines and even Oppenheimer’s wife, Kitty (Emily Blunt) who was featured in a lot of scenes did not really say or do much apart from seem mentally unstable or supportive of her husband. Along with Jean (Florence Pugh) having a mental breakdown and Oppenheimer’s sister-in-law, Jackie (Emma Dumont) being blacklisted as a communist, there were not any positive depictions of the women in the story.

For a female audience or even a younger audience who have grown up with men and women being more equally represented on screen to enjoy the film, there should have been more depth to the only two leading female characters: Kitty and Jean. Florence was severely underused and every scene she appeared in involved sex. The sex scenes themselves were weirdly portrayed as a conversation and sex was a secondary element which to me shows that no one needed to be naked for the scene to happen. There was a lot of pointless female nudity that was not replicated for the male counterpart.

There was also a lack of female scientists. The only speaking woman who was involved in the Manhattan Project was relegated to secretary and only got that position as a biologist. In real life, there were more women assisting Oppenheimer and his team with creating the Atomic Bomb and that just wasn’t shown in the film which was a shame. Similar stories such as the space race in Hidden Figures (2016) or the building of the Enigma machine in The Imitation Game (2014) did not shy away from including the stories of real women that helped with these scientific/mathematic projects.

In some of his films that are set in reality, Nolan claims to use no CGI. VFX is used to touch up the shots and are not always used to create computer generated elements but in this case, over 100 visual effects artists (about 80%) were not credited for working on Oppenheimer. As someone working in VFX, I see this often enough but to not credit people is to not support fellow workers in the industry.

I will say that for me, Robert Downey Jr was the standout performance of the film and for his first big role since Iron Man’s story ended, he really embodied his character: Admiral Strauss. I liked the beginning of the film where we saw Oppenheimer’s background and how he got selected for the Manhattan Project but I think the film loosened after the actual explosion happened. Moving backwards and forwards through time was also a little confusing as black and white was used for present day and colour used for flashbacks.

The general tone of the film, particularly after the bomb was not of regret for making the bomb and using it on innocent civilians but rather Americans trying to excuse themselves for making and using the bomb. Oppenheimer himself was barely affected with two weak aftermath images and no one else seemed that bothered. There was a whole scene of people cheering after hearing of the bombing which felt like patriotic propaganda. Many American people would not have agreed with its use or war in general; when the Vietnam War started there were a lot of protests.

Part of what held my interest was the appearance of many actors in small cameo roles such as Gary Oldman as President Truman; Casey Affleck; Rami Malek; Jack Quaid; Josh Peck; Devon Bostick and Alex Wolff.

Overall, I think I was not the right audience of the film but I have seen other film critics agree with my thoughts so not everyone enjoyed it. I think Nolan is a good director, I have enjoyed other films of his: Interstellar, Inception, The Prestige, Dunkirk and Memento but on this occasion, the film just didn’t grab me. As always these are just my opinions and I would encourage everyone to see the film for themselves and form their own opinions. I give the film 3/5.

Happy Watching,
Robyn

2023: Summer of Cinema: Barbie

The film uses all of these controversies in their plot and makes sure that we know that they do not condone Barbie’s unrealistic body but rather celebrate her achievements. We start with the 2001: Space Odyssey opener that has been teased, letting us know that Barbie was the first adult doll manufactured for girls that did not just teach them to be mothers. We see stereotypical Barbie (Margot Robbie) wake up in her dream house and have the perfect day. All her fellow Barbie’s have success in their careers, winning Nobel Prizes, being the President, driving an ambulance and generally having a great time.

Hello readers,

The most anticipated film of the year has finally arrived: Barbie! There has been a lot of hype around this film thanks to the amazing marketing team and the enormous cast featured in the film, not forgetting legendary director Greta Gerwig. I myself have been eagerly awaiting this film and to sum it up, it did not disappoint.

I was able to see some of the Barbie European Premiere in London as they erected a giant screen for those who did not manage to get in. I will be posting some images on my instagram @film_fanatic00

While many clips of the film were released, little was known about the overall plot and I was pleasantly surprised when I sat down to watch. I thought I knew everything about the film due to the sheer volume of content on social media but they really kept the main story hidden. This will be spoiler free as I know some people have not yet had the chance to see the film.

Barbie (2023)

Barbie’s have always been a controversial topic: on one hand they promote feminism as Barbie has her own car, house, career without the help of a man. Her boyfriend Ken is a background character with no job/house/car of his own. The dolls were released at a time when women in America couldn’t even have their own bank accounts and most had the job of housewife so little girls seeing Barbie as a lawyer, doctor, author, scientist or homeowner, empowered generations.

On the other hand, Barbie’s have always kept a very slim, totally unrealistic body type. They have feet always ready to wear high heels, waists smaller than their heads and lipstick and mascara on their faces. While Barbie has been released as different ethnicities, she has not had a realistic figure and it wasn’t until 2019 that a Barbie in a wheelchair was put on the market permanently.

The film uses all of these controversies in their plot and makes sure that we know that they do not condone Barbie’s unrealistic body but rather celebrate her achievements. We start with the 2001: Space Odyssey opener that has been teased, letting us know that Barbie was the first adult doll manufactured for girls that did not just teach them to be mothers. We see stereotypical Barbie (Margot Robbie) wake up in her dream house and have the perfect day. All her fellow Barbie’s have success in their careers, winning Nobel Prizes, being the President, driving an ambulance and generally having a great time.

Barbie starts having some troubling thoughts and her feet lose their natural heel so she is sent to Weird Barbie (Kate McKinnon) for help. She tells her to go to the Real World to find the girl playing with her as she must be passing on her depressing thoughts. Ken, who up until this point has been side-lined by Barbie in favour of hanging with the girls and sleepovers, decides to join her on the trip.

The chaos ensues from there and we meet the humans Gloria and Sasha who assist Barbie in her quest towards the end of the film. I thought it was a great idea to incorporate Mattel into the film and shows maturity that they allowed Greta and Noah Baumbach (co-writer) to poke fun at them. Barbie also discovers that the Real World is not as perfect as Barbieland and that women are not in charge. Ken discovers the patriarchy and things start unravelling when he brings this revelation to the other Kens and Barbies (and Allan).

This film was a lovely celebration of female power and how women are always expected to be two things at once, for example they have to be decisive but not bossy, dress nicely but not too sexy and so on.

Barbieland itself was a wonderful playground filled with all the accessories one could want but I am glad we got to see the Real World too as that grounded the story for me. All of the costumes were amazing and there were so many details nodding to discontinued Barbie’s such as her sister Skipper and Midge, the pregnant doll.

Margot Robbie was amazing as Barbie, balancing human emotions perfectly but Ryan Gosling as Ken was a real standout. His comic timing and facial expressions were right on point and I would like to see him do more comedy.

Overall the film was a joyful over-the-top celebration of humanity, especially women and made you think about what makes us human. Beneath the pink and the costumes and excellent soundtrack, the film had real heart and emotion that Greta always injects into her films. I will most certainly be watching the film again ad I encourage everyone to go along to the cinema to see Barbie in action. As the film campaign has said: ‘It’s a film for everyone who likes Barbie and everyone who hates Barbie’. I give the film 5/5.

Happy Watching,
Robyn

2023: Summer of Cinema: Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One

The stunts were really amazing and the motorcycle/parachute jump that has been shared already was a real spectacle. I must say that I thought the story was a little weaker than past films maybe not helped by this being a Part One. It was still an enjoyable film but I think I will need to see Part Two before I fully make up my mind.

Hello readers,

This review is hot off the press as at the time of writing, I saw the latest Mission Impossible film last night and I am here to give my thoughts. First of all I want to say that it was a great film and everyone that worked on it should be proud. It had everything you need for a classic Tom Cruise outing complete with death-defying stunts, some romantic tension and of course bad guys.

This film has had a lot of hype, particularly as it was meant to be released last year. Bringing it forward to clash with Oppenheimer (and Barbie) was probably a decision to boost its box office figures or maybe to tweak those epic fight scenes. This review will be spoiler free for those looking forward to seeing it.

Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One (2023)

The film starts with a seemingly irrelevant scene on a submarine but soon we see that it is setting up the main plot. There is a key in two halves that unlocks some unknown item that is the link to stopping the Entity, a sentient AI taking over all of the digital space.

AI has always been a good villain: faceless, nameless and nationless but a distant possibility. With the recent introduction of AI to create images and scripts, that is not so far away. I think it was interesting to go for something threatening the collective secret services rather than a threat to civilian life as it is a more underground but personal mission.

We see Ethan Hunt reunite with his merry band of outcasts: Benji, Luther and Ilsa in a variety of locations but culminating in Rome in an epic car chase featuring a yellow Fiat 500. He also becomes entangled with a new associate, Grace (Hayley Atwell), master thief and someone living a step ahead of the law. They begin with a battle for the key but quickly team up to go against the Entity’s human representative, Gabriel and his henchwoman, Paris (Pom Klementieff).

I won’t say more about the plot but let’s say the train scene really kept my attention. I think the cast were great: Benji was his usual self, always worrying but being dragged along for the ride; Luther was calm and collected and started a side storyline that I hope we see more of in Part 2 and Ilsa was determined but becoming a team player. We see a return from The White Widow (Vanessa Kirby) trying to make a buck like usual by brokering a deal.

The stunts were really amazing and the motorcycle/parachute jump that has been shared already was a real spectacle. I must say that I thought the story was a little weaker than past films maybe not helped by this being a Part One. It was still an enjoyable film but I think I will need to see Part Two before I fully make up my mind.

Overall, I thought that this was a great film and a classic Mission: Impossible offering but the two parts may have weakened it a little. The stunts, car chases and end scene were stand outs. I give the film 3.5/5.

Happy Watching,
Robyn