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I’m 100% sure I have reviewed Contagion before… But I can’t find it anywhere so I must have only thought about writing about it. Anyway.
Contagion is almost like an apocalyptic film that explores what may happen in the event of a major epidemic that threatens to wipe out much of the population, similar to that of the Spanish flu that killed about 1% of the word’s population at the time (50-100 million people during 1918)… Continue reading
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Okay. So. In order to enjoy this movie to the max, I strongly recommend you view the two prequels before heading to the cinema.
The very first movie in this trilogy (look at me assuming there’s only going to be three…) is Unbreakable. This came out 2000 and actually has a stronger connection to Glass than Split.
The second movie was Split, and this is important to understand the backstory of the ‘villain’ (James McAvoy) and the ‘brain box’ (Samuel L. Jackson).
I’m so excited about this film, I don’t know where to begin… Continue reading
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This was one of those books that I just took a punt on: I plucked it off the shelf and bought it without any research at all.
I read the synopsis and was captivated enough to read the first page of it in the shop. Then the second. Then the third… So I bought it. (As Tim Weaver mentioned in an interview once, it’s important to find an author who writes how you like to read, and this author certainly does!)
What a find!
It’s another one to add to the Girl on the Train/The Couple Next Door/Gone Girl band wagon to be honest. It’s a psychological thriller with a twist (or two)! Continue reading
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Firstly, if you’ve seen A Quiet Place, then you’ve seen Bird Box. It’s quite comical how similar they both are.
Nevertheless, that is not an excuse not to watch Bird Box – especially if you enjoy an apocalyptic film.
It’s about a mysterious force that if seen, will cause people to kill themselves or harm others. This results in mass suicides, turning the world into a survival of the fittest. No one can go outside without being blindfolded for fear of seeing the nearly invisible killer… Continue reading
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It is a sci-fi horror about Ray (Tom Cruise) and his two children Rachel (Dakota Fanning) and Robbie (Justin Chatwin) trying to escape the alien invasion. The aliens are relentless and terrifying as they displace millions.
There’s no where to run, there’s no where to hide and there’s no way to kill the aliens and their machines.
Horrifying!… Continue reading
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What a shame.
I love The Sixth Sense. I love The Village. I love Split. Unbreakable was pretty cool. But how has Signs not kept up with the Shyamalan grade?
I love a good sci-fi thriller as much as the next person, but this had all the potential and none of the thrills… Continue reading
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The Sixth Sense is another Shyamalan creation that everyone must see. It’s about a psychiatrist called Malcolm (Bruce Willis) who tries to help a traumatised and anxious child named Cole (Haley Joel Osment).
Cole reminds Malcolm of a patient he failed to save back in the day, the patient killed himself and Malcolm became adamant that he will never fail another patient again. Therefore, he persists in helping Cole despite his reluctance, and eventually Cole confides in him: “I see dead people.”… Continue reading
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The Village is my favourite M. Night Shyamalan film ever. I must have watched it at an impressionable time, because I still catch myself daydreaming about it.
It’s about a 19th century village surrounded by woods. It is said that there are dangerous creatures – The Ones We Do Not Speak Of – in the woods who will attack if anyone goes into their territory. The elders of the village are in charge of keeping the rest of the community safe, ensuring nobody wanders into the woods… Continue reading
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I was expecting a lot from this movie because I had heard and read incredible reviews.
Without reading up about what the film was about – as I correctly thought this may giveaway too much about this thriller – I went in with optimism and excitement. I was about to be thrilled by my favourite actress, Emily Blunt.
It’s about a family who is living in the year 2020 among blind alien beings who hunt using only sound. Therefore, everyone must be silent if they are to survive. This dystopian future was brilliantly thought-out as the way of life changes significantly, from not eating with noisy knives and forks, to walking barefooted on sand rather than stones… Continue reading
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Why do I do this to myself? I read the book, then watch the movie. Of course I’m going to be disappointed.
As per the Gillian Flynn book of the same name, this is a story about a seven-year-old girl, Libby Day, who witnessed the massacre of her family. She testifies against her 15-year-old brother, who gets jail for life.
Basically, what was a layered and intriguing mystery in the book, becomes a simplified one-watch film. It’s really nothing special. It’s just a good-looking woman skulking about, and figuring out the mystery with very little effort… Continue reading
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Gillian Flynn’s first novel, Sharp Objects, is a medley of haunting and distressing themes, which frequently give-way to Flynn’s budding talent for telling crime stories.
Not going to lie, for the most part, Sharp Objects is sadistically dark for no good reason. It’s more of a scary horror story about mentally-ill characters rather than a cleverly-told mystery… Continue reading
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I was expecting ‘Desperate Housewives’, chick-flick kind of show on steroids… But Big Little Lies was so much darker than that.
It begins with a murder. We don’t know who died, and we don’t know who did it.
Big Little Lies follows the backstory leading up to the murder, and all the secrets and shocking circumstances leads you to believe that everyone is a suspect, and everyone is a victim.
It’s sort of like reality tv series The Real Housewives but as a thriller. It’s shocking, scary, haunting and mysterious, featuring beautiful (and seemingly flawless) characters against the fashionable backdrop of Monterey, California… Continue reading
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After finishing Murder on the Orient Express on holiday, I moved on to Dark Places; a natural choice as I loved Gone Girl so much.
This was certainly a very dark story. More horror than thriller in parts, particularly due to the satanic themes. So it’s not really a novel I would whole-heartedly recommend to everyone.
I certainly don’t think Dark Places should have a ‘if you liked Gone Girl, you’ll love this’ kind of review. Because they’re both rather different.
However, it still has Gillian Flynn’s genius way of writing… Continue reading
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Did anyone else not realise that Unbreakable is a prequel to Split?
As soon as we found out, we got our hands on the DVD since we loved Split so much.
You can tell it is an M. Night Shyamalan film immediately. The looooooong shots, the reflections in televisions and glass… The list goes on – it’s very Shyamalan-y.
Unbreakable is about Bruce Willis’s character who discovers he’s invincible. He’s essentially a superhero… Continue reading
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Another brilliant film from M. Night Shyamalan. It’s the best kind of story – the kind that you’ll be thinking about for days.
For me, Split is a return to Shyamalan’s trademark of well-rounded characters and fantastic storylines. It’s a film that echoes the genius of The Village and The Sixth Sense.
Split is about a man called Kevin Wendell-Crumb (James McAvoy, whose talent will be gushed upon shortly) who has 23 personalities… Continue reading
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Firstly, I will save the suspense and answer your call; ‘no’, it’s not as good as Girl on the Train. Nevertheless, it is a fantastic book in its own right. Keeping Paula Hawkins’s style of short chapters from different characters’ points of view, you’ll find your self on the final chapter without even realising it… Continue reading
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Within five days of reading it whenever I could steal an hour or two, I finished I Am Missing. I breathed a massive sigh of relief; I had been carrying a heavy burden over the last five days. I lived and breathed this story, and I felt as though I had experienced this mystery first-hand. Needless to say, I’m feeling emotionally exhausted now.
As the story is written in first-person (rather effectively too), I felt like I was walking in the protagonist David Raker’s shoes. After Raker meets the man without any memory, ‘Richard Kite’, I felt like I had reached a dead-end along with Raker – despite only being five chapters in. It’s a missing person’s case where the missing person is standing right in front of him… Where on earth do you start to figure out who he is and where he’s come from? … Continue reading
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The Girl on the Train is up there with Gone Girl! A mind-twisting psychological thriller, through the eyes of Rachel (Emily Blunt) – a frail alcoholic who is the last person to see Megan Hipwell (Haley Bennett) alive… Continue reading
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What I thought was going to be a quirky, enchanting, and uplifting story, turned out to be a dark and twisted tale.
Despite Kate Winslet’s beauty and surprisingly accurate Australian accent, this story was far from a sweet and innocent drama. The Dressmaker is about a woman returning home from Europe to the rural Australian village she grew up in. She endeavors to discover the secrets of her childhood… Continue reading
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I was so shocked by Rosamund Pike’s performance – she was fantastic of course – but I wasn’t prepared for her to pick this role.
Let’s be clear, this isn’t the mystery/detective/Midsomer Murders deal I was expecting. This is a story of a manic, psychopathic panther disguised as a house cat.
Pike’s character, Amy, is the wife to Nick (Ben Affleck), when she goes missing. They were a seemingly perfect couple who live in the suburbs, but how happy were they really before this tragedy happened?… Continue reading
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This film is by far one of the creepiest films I’ve seen. It’s not so much scary, but it does put you on edge and makes your skin crawl. I guess, hence the film title.
Jake Gyllenhaal with his goggly, baby-bird eyes and sharp cheek bones, is enough to make you squirm. Let alone the control he has over everyone. It is so captivating.
He lost more than 13kg (30 pounds) to play the ‘literally and figuratively hungry’ character, Lou Bloom. Gyllenhaal id so by running a lot and eating only kale and chewing gum. He said the diet was completely safe and healthy… Continue reading
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This movie is out of this world!
Ha.
I saw Gravity 3D and it was spectacular. The director, Alfonso Cuarón, said movies should be a visual experience – a lot of dialogue isn’t necessary to tell the story – and he certainly did that well.
Claustrophobia, agoraphobia, isolation, suffocation and death. This is terrifying movie, playing on our natural fears. It is a very ‘human’ film – it goes back to basics – which is extremely effective in such an alien environment.
I’m not sure how to describe the epicness of the visuals… It is inviolable. Simply spectacular. The shot of the Northern Lights from outer space, and of the sun emerging from behind Earth… Wow.
Ryan (Sandra Bullock) and Matt (George Clooney) were absolutely incredible. I am a huge fan of George Clooney anyway, who played a chatty and upbeat character. But I was pleasantly surprised with Sandra Bullock! She convincingly played a strong protagonist. Continue reading
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Soooo creepy! But in an awesome way. I have never seen anything like this film before.
Of course I was weary about Ashton Kutcher being in a serious thriller, but he was fantastic! Like, seriously convincing.
The Butterfly Effect is where a seemingly innocuous act can have a domino effect and create chaos.
It has been said that something as small as the flutter of a butterfly’s wing can ultimately cause a typhoon halfway around the world.
This film plays on this theory where Ashton’s character, Evan, has the ability or curse to travel back to predetermined points in his life. But every time he tries to make it better, something else goes terribly wrong… Continue reading
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I literally did not sleep last night.
I remember seeing snippets of this film when I was about 11, but I had not remembered how effective the horror aspect of it was! It is the best horror/psychological thriller I have seen in a very long time.
Three film makers go missing in the woods while covering the legend of the Blair Witch that supposedly haunted the area. The film makers were never found again, but their footage was, which makes up this film.
Pretty simple plot line with amateur filming which is very convincing! The idea of this horror is that the less you see the more your imagination runs a riot. You never actually see any witch or any sort of witch craft or… Continue reading
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The Prestige is an incredible movie with real mystery and thrilling themes, like nothing you have ever seen before. Its dark and haunting aesthetic with the ruthless, deceitful, cut-throat and competitive characters makes an extremely intense film.
It is the story of strong-willed magicians who guard their incredible tricks of illusions with their lives resulting in sacrifices way beyond their expectations as their hunger for dominance of rival magicians runs riot.
Of course, I can’t forget to mention the era that this movie is set in, the late 1800s. I wouldn’t mind living in those times… Only if I was very wealthy of course. Beautiful dresses, old school showmanship, horse and carts and the thrill of newly discovered electricity.
With the complexity of Nolan’s Inception, the grungy look of The Dark Knight, but with a hint of total tragedy, this is just another of Christopher’s incredible creations… Continue reading
NZ Film Freak 