The Adam Project

Posted on March 26, 2022 by Craig M

Viewed – 24 March 2022 Netflix

Ryan Reynolds continues to be one of my favourite movie stars of late and his brand of motor-mouth humour always proves fun. This latest, a time travel action comedy has him as a ‘Adam Reed’, a guy who travels back in time from 2050 to prevent the creation of time travel technology to stop a megalomaniac former colleague from wrecking havoc.

This was an interesting experience. I’ve always enjoyed these sorts of movies even if here, the time-bending elements are a bit weak. There’s still a lot to enjoy as Reed finds himself teaming up with his twelve year old self through much of the movie. Although a fun idea – the fact the movie forces Reed to interact with his younger self for the sake of the movie’s unique selling point rather than being necessary plot-wise – kind of makes it a bit unnecessary. However with decent support from Zoe Saldana and Mark Ruffalo and some heart-tugging scenes, I still enjoyed this.

Catherine Keener was rather bland and not that interesting as the villain, and with some dodgy de-ageing effects for her younger self, I couldn’t help feel the concept with being held back by either a limited budget or just poor effects. This carries over to some of the action which at times looks great, and other times looks like green-screen hell. Overall an entertaining movie with big ideas that doesn’t quite reach it’s potential.

Verdict: Good

Free Guy

Posted on October 7, 2021 by Craig M

Viewed – 05 October 2021 Disney+

Ryan Reynolds is quickly becoming my go-to actor for decent comedy these days, especially following his two hilarious turns as Deadpool. This latest outing has him as video game character ‘Guy’ who leads his life blissfully unaware he’s inside a game. However when a female character catches his eye, causing him to break free from his programming, he stumbles upon a programmers quest to uncover some stolen code hidden with the game world.

This vibrant and immediately enthralling concept really captures the wacky style of game worlds like Fortnite and Grand Theft Auto, whilst at the same time blending the concept of Ready Player One with The Truman Show. Reynolds is perfect as the loveable ‘Guy’ and is aided by a great pairing with Killing Eve’s Jodie Comer, as the real-world programmer and gamer who’s avatar in the game world is a gun wielding badass. Every second there’s something new to spot, references to music, games and pop-culture and although it may not be consistently funny, mostly down to a deliberate over-the-top approach, for me it’s was still a joy to sit through and take in.

Taika Waititi’s main villain does grate quickly and despite him being a character in the real world, his performance is very video-gamey. It is also a tad too sugar-coated as it ends, but these are small gripes in what is otherwise a genuinely fun time. Check it out.

Verdict: Recommended

Pokémon Detective Pikachu

Posted on September 26, 2019 by Craig M

Viewed – 24 September 2019. Online rental

I only mildly got into Pokémon last Christmas when I had Pokémon Let’s Go for the Nintendo Switch. The world and all the creatures within certainly fascinated me and so a live action movie definitely appealed. This somewhat weirdly has Ryan Reynolds as the voice of Pikachu, and follows a story set in the fictional Rome City (clearly influenced by many of the worlds cities) where a twenty something guy investigates the mysterious disappearance of his father, aided by his father’s former Pokémon. However as a strange gas begins to send Pokémon crazy the guy teams up with a plucky wannabe reporter girl to discover what’s going on.

Yeah this wafer-thin, at times confused plot is mostly an excuse for Reynolds to deliver his brand of one-liner wise-crackery and also showcase the endless varieties of Pokémon. It fails to truly delve into what Pokémon is and its intricacies, so newcomers should instead take this as simply high fantasy science fiction. Justice Smith playing the main guy is only passable and next to Reynolds razor-sharp (if family friendly) line delivery … comes off poorly. Kathryn Newton as the sort-of love interest is pretty and reminiscent of the games and anime but generally not much better. Veteran actor Bill Nighy lends a bit of personality as the head of a corporation that may or may not be sinister, and the fact the movie only hints at the inclusion of Pokémon baddies Team Rocket feels like a missed opportunity.

The CGI for the creatures, the city and various sequences on the other hand, is top notch and brought everything to eye-catching life, and as a casual fan this still ticked many boxes for how I’d imagine this sort of movie to turn out. Good fun, but ultimately a bit forgettable.

Verdict: 3 /5

Deadpool 2

Posted on May 25, 2018 by Craig M

Viewed – 23 May 2018 Cinema

I think most of us knew that the sequel to the unexpected hit that was Deadpool, would be bigger and better, A movie that was basically a one trick pony first time around, that of Ryan Reynolds’ wise-cracking, self-aware ‘merc with the mouth’ didn’t have a great deal more going for it as far as plot or an interesting villain. So coming into this I was hoping for more. Step up to the task Josh Brolin, fresh off his movie-stealing turn in the latest Avengers, he plays Terminator-like bad-guy ‘Cable’, sent from the future to kill some acting-out mutant kid who wants to blow up an orphanage and those that govern over him. Deadpool see’s some injustice in the kids plight and offers to help, along with his band of reluctant friends he awkwardly names ‘X-Force’.

Reynolds is on brilliant form and his wealth of one liners, observations and fourth-wall breaking piss-takes are often hilarious. Thankfully this time around he’s not the only pull this movie has, because Brolin is again brilliant and there’s also a few other colourful characters to keep things interesting (personal fave: Domino). Yet the child actor at the centre of the plot is somewhat lacking, has poor line-delivery and stands out compared to his more seasoned and entertaining co-stars. Yet we do get a wealth of at times very violent, bloody action that is utterly unrestrained but skilfully executed, showing director David Leitch is an assured replacement for the original’s Tim Miller.

Some rather cheap-looking CGI doesn’t look all that much better than the first movie (especially Colossus) and not all the gags hit home runs. However, this matters little when what’s presented is just so infectious. I haven’t had as much at the cinema in a long time as I had watching this funny, exciting and crazy ride … which may play to the juvenile kid in all of us, but sometimes that’s exactly what’s needed. Just go see it already.

Verdict: 4 /5

Life

Posted on August 17, 2017 by Craig M

Viewed – 15 August 2017 online rental

Science-fiction has become one of my favourite genres, with such gems as The Martian and Interstellar impressing me. There seems to have been a bit of a resurgence in such movies, albeit stepping away from the flights of fantasy we’ve seen and instead focusing on a more semi-realistic tone. The same can be said for this latest space-set thriller starring amongst others, Jake Gyllenhaal and Ryan Reynolds.

A team of astronauts orbiting the earth reprieve a probe that has been on it’s way back from Mars, and discover a life form within it’s gathered soil samples. Nurturing said life form in an incubator, the astronauts try to figure out how it responds and whether it’s harmless or deadly. I’m guessing you probably know the answer to that one, huh?

I got a serious Alien vibe from this but stripped down to actual realistic space travel and science rather than H R Giger inspired horror aesthetics. The creature, nicknamed Calvin is initially cute but eventually shudder creepy-crawly, and as the scientists attempt to contain it, this set into action some seriously well done thrills. It’s not a subject that breathes new life into a tired genre but it’s done well, has some genuinely heart-in-mouth moments and is topped off by decent effects work (but for the occasional obvious CGI monster) and great set design that transported me right there … and I didn’t want to be there. Gyllenhaal, considering his usual brilliance is a little side-lined and the star of this turns out to be Rebecca Ferguson who is very good. Ryan Reynolds seems like he’s just playing Ryan Reynolds, but the rest of the cast do a decent job. It’s also a movie, despite it’s familiarity that still managed to keep me gripped and wondering how it might end, and in this day and age that has to be commended.

Verdict: 4 /5