al1-3 Reviews

The Old Way (2023)

Oh dear, formulaic and wooden

[3/10 · 15 January 2023]

Please no, I think Nick belongs in those action movies, such as Gone in 60 seconds or something, this isn't his forte. Just one of those actors that always sound and act the same, not his fault.

The script, well, wait your turn before speaking lines, a plot that was pretty much thrown at you in the trailer and you have it all. Man seeks revenge, dons old gear after retirement, same old same old.

As someone else described here, the skies change frequently, continuity is bad in this one. The scenes are nice but really do nothing but act as filler material and show us this is indeed out west.

Save yourself 1hr:35mins and go out to dinner.

Midnight in the Switchgrass (2021)

Made for tv at best

[5/10 · 31 July 2021]

Forget the fact BW is in it, obviously to draw in a crowd of BW fans or give the movie more credence. His part in this is small/mediocre and just one many movies he's been in lately with a lacklustre performance.

The breaks in this make it seem like a made for TV/midday movie, and while there are many good films done this way, this one is amongst the alsorans.

Ok for if you are sitting there knitting and don't care for too much brain activity. I hope this wasn't a cinema release, that's all I can say.

The Comeback Trail (2020)

yep, all the funny bits are in the trailer

[5/10 · 17 April 2021]

You saw it all, why watch the whole thing when it's just padding around what you saw in the trailer? And they wonder why streaming services are taking away crowds from the cinema. Gimme a break. And make of it what you will with the 10/10 reviews!

Midway (2019)

Murica reigns supreme

[3/10 · 5 February 2020]

Oh dear, some badly out of scale cgi and much abused in many scenes, yet years ago pre-cgi they could convincingly blow up airplanes/models with much realism. Sadly the contrast between effects and green screen are glaring in this movie. I was hoping in this day and age this movie was about to put the record straight about the reasons Japan went to war with the US, it started to touch on these aspects right at the beginning then unforgivably threw it all away to rush straight to the action. The war started way before Pearl Harbour and too many times the uneducated cite this as the only reason the US took action on Japan, like that nation had just woke up one day and said, 'hey, let's go bomb Pearl Harbour, it looks like a fun thing to do'. :-( Actors were great as you would expect being the veterans they are but some cringeworthy dialogue does creep in here and there, the victors do write history after all. Why they needed to cover the Dolittle raid is beyond me, that was done excellently in another movie with great detail, it was almost a 'let's list all the great things we did in the war', conquests abound, I can imagine Trump giving his seal of approval as this being one of those times he speaks of when 'America was great'. For some it seems, maybe not the boot polisher down in Mississippi ;-) At a few moments I felt this was more akin to a made for TV movie, gung-ho midday action flick along the likes of The Wild Geese or similar, passable, fun, forgettable... Oh well, it's entertaining and doesn't require too much brain power. Like a car chase movie filled with 2 plus hours of exploding action, there's far worse on the screen I guess.

Birds of Passage (2018)

Reviews you can trust

[8/10 · 5 June 2019]

I only respect one reviewer here after sifting through many obviously related reviews to some movies and others who have a personal bias for or against them. The fake reviews have almost killed this site but one I look forward to and feel assured of a quality, non-biased review is by Ferguson-6, reviewing this very movie in fact. The others, well, meh, you can spot the fake reviews but it's a pain in the proverbial to wade through the crap. Keep safe in the shadows Ferguson-6, I tip my hat.

Last Breath (2019)

Tense and emotional

[10/10 · 16 May 2019]

I liken this to the other great docu style movie, Touching the Void. Passing back and forth between the people that were there, some reconstruction and real footage, it never lets up from the start. Emotions run up and down as various people recount what happened, it's easy to get swept into it and feel their pain. A simply amazing story and I don't see a better way of telling it.

Human stories such as these help remind you how we take each day for granted, until unforeseen events like this come around and everything and everyone become so much important again. Take care.

The Great Indoors (2016–2017)

Oh the humanity!

[1/10 · 28 October 2016]

Stephen Fry's lines would be the best thing this show has to offer but even that won't keep it from drowning in the sea of mediocrity. The worst thing I've seen for some time and certainly the worst thing I've seen Stephen in I'm sad to say. From the canned laughter to the cringe worthy banter, I won't be bothering to see if there's more to come. I'm not a fan of so called comedy soap shows from the US generally but I was curious to see it as I imagined Stephen Fry would only put his name to something worthy.

Blimey Stephen, there's no need to stoop this low, take some more pills and call your agent, stick to your proved track record of challenging the audience with mental health issues or such, you are better than this!

Frankenstein's Army (2013)

Your best imaginings come to life

[9/10 · 14 May 2016]

The whole movie felt like the best bits of Doom and Wolfenstein characters rolled into a 'found footage' movie. I thoroughly enjoyed the movie, the action cam effect works great in a movie such as this. I was looking forward to what new creation was around the next corner, they are so well done. If you know Wolfenstein's premise then you know that a lot of the creatures in it are lab experiments that were created for Hitler's army. Undead zombies and creatures that have guns and cutting implements molded to their arms and torsos. Lots of blood and gore to please everyone! Enjoy it for what it is, entertainment, both humorous and dramatic throughout and an overall solid presentation. One to watch a few times to appreciate the effort gone into the gorgeous detailed monsters.

The Bag Man (I) (2014)

Add some big names and stir...

[3/10 · 5 March 2014]

All too frequently these days, directors throw in some highly respected and recognised actors to lift their movie out of the quagmire of also-ran movies, but fall flat on their face. I've begun to lose respect for Deniro these days as he seems to be added to the cast just to guarantee an audience, his role is often minor and he must have a cash-flow problem if he's signing his name to the likes of this detritus. Now I steer clear if I see his name mentioned in the cast, what a shame the industry has gotten this bad. I would give this one a miss unless you are an inmate of green acres and non cerebral plots do it for you...