zenjunkie Reviews

Rebel Moon - Part One: A Child of Fire (2023)

Rebel moon - Fantastic Epic Sci-Fi

[8/10 · 29 December 2023]

What's with all the negative reviews???

I'm tired of all the whinging, complaining, sad individuals who have nothing better to do than bang on about how unoriginal, how boring, how bad the acting or the dialogue was, how long, how short, how they didn't like the ending, or the beginning, or whatever .. blah, blah, blah.... This current generation of online complainers more than likely spent most of their time on their phones typing up their complaints instead of actually watching the film, and obviously have the attention span of a fish.

IF they HAD actually watched this first part of this proposed trilogy, they would have enjoyed a fantastic start to an epic space adventure.

The overall 'feel' of the movie was overwhelming - gorgeous cinematography, fantastic characters and creatures, gigantic space battleships and brilliant GGI.

Sure, the dialogue was definitely not Shakespeare, but it was as good as any other movie in this genre. The acting itself was more than adequate and as for the plotline, although simplistic, it held together quite nicely without falling into plotholes or sillyness.

Reviewers, get over yourselves, stop being so nit-pickey!

And why complain about Sofia Boutella being able to fight off the bad guys in the movie just because she's female - her character is a super trained warrior and she can totally kick ass!

Guys... get over it!

In fact, the whole cast was very good. No complaints. Quite honestly, it was a treat to watch and left me wanting more... now!

I love sci fi movies and this is one of the good ones. If you liked Star Wars you will like this.

Sure there are similarities to Star Wars and a few other films (Seven Samurai for instance).

But, name one movie that doesn't borrow from or pay homage to other movies?

I mean, really - who cares!

And if you do - WHY?

Why, when the result is this good.

No complaints either with Zack Snyders direction - it was spot on.

Oh, and the ending was perfect, setting us up for part two.

Stop looking for the bad - pay attention and see the good.

You will be rewarded.

The Last Kingdom: Seven Kings Must Die (2023)

What a let down!

[6/10 · 14 April 2023]

The Last Kingdom had been a fantastic series - however this film has not been of the same standard.

The story is sketchy, jumping from scene to scene without a constant flow. It seems to me they have tried to fit too much into the time allowed.

Whereas the series had time to build up tension and develop characters, this feels rushed, the direction clumsy and sometimes disjointed.

It's further spoiled by continuous very loud background music which detracts from the story and is actually annoying.

It does have its moments, the last half being better than the first half, but is not as enjoyable as it was, feeling somewhat repetitious.

I had been looking forward to this film but was sadly disappointed.

Avatar: The Way of Water (2022)

What's not to like??? It's Fantastic!

[9/10 · 6 April 2023]

I LOVED IT!

Initially, I watched with some trepidation. Having read numerous reviews saying how disappointing it was.

Various critics marked the film down due to having "no story", "bad acting", "slow paced" etc etc.

This is utter nonsense!

The film was, of course, visually stunning! Everything was vibrant, scenes alive with colour.

You 'felt' the alienness of it all.

Yes, the story was quite simple. It picks up where the first film left off. The Sky People are back for vengeance and more!

Does it really need more plot than that!

Of course not!

This is not Shakespeare folks!

It's pure imaginative fantasy with plenty of action to keep you entertained for 3 hours and 12 minutes - which, by the way, seemed like half the time.

And as for the so-called slow moments... Well actually, thats where there was more of a story - if you have the eyes to see it.

How the Na'vi have that symbiotic connection to the whole of the planet and how it's crucial to their survival.

How the invading humans have no understanding, or empathy of that connection, which incidentally is worth more than any mineral or whatever they can harvest for profit... if only they had the eyes and the common sense to see it.

Fact. It is actually another form of the Gaia Principle many believe in on our Earth, as proposed by James Lovelock back in 1972, suggesting that: "living organisms on our planet interact with their surrounding inorganic environment to form a synergetic and self-regulating system that created, and ultimately maintains, the climate and biochemical conditions that make life on Earth possible".

Now that's what I call a story!

Back to the film... The CGI is fantastic!

The action is breathtaking!

The acting and story is absolutely fine for this genre of movie.

James Cameron also has a bit of fun here and there referencing his previous movies. And why not?

Go see this movie.

Watch with uncritical eyes.

Enjoy the exhilarating ride.

After all.... Thats what movies are for!!!!

Blue Lights (2023– )

Excellent dark drama

[8/10 · 28 March 2023]

Ignore any critics. This is really good.

It's a good insight into the type of incidents all police have to deal with. The added interest is that this is in Northern Ireland.

OK, the Troubles have been and gone, but trouble is still present.

Some of it is political.

As we all know, there are still additional problems present in NI, even though one person has criticised the BBC as depicting all Irish people are criminals.

Not so - but like everywhere else, Northern Ireland does have its fair share of criminals up to no good, and this programme is all about that element through the eyes of the NI Police Force.

There is absolutely no bias toward Irish people here. The critic that said that surely must agree that ALL of Great Britain has an abundance of criminals who are well portrayed in countless drama series.

Does he think Northern Ireland should be portrayed differently?

The programme is about criminality. Its gritty, well written and well acted with a lot of good characters.

An added bonus is that there is no irritating background music obliterating the dialogue.

Very refreshing.

It's definitely not biased toward the Irish as one critic has said. That's just rubbish.

If you enjoy the likes of Happy Valley you'll enjoy this too. I hope there's more to come.

Watch it.

Better (2023)

Good, but wrong ending

[6/10 · 14 February 2023]

Good cop gone bad variation. A good cast, especially the lead roles. Andrew Buchan (Broadchurch) is particularly excellent in his role as drug gang leader. Not seen much of Leila Farzad but she does well as the detective Lou Slack who is playing both sides. Also nice to see Anton Lesser (Endeavour) in a different kind of role.

It all starts off a bit on the slow side but picks up in episode 2. This is not a shoot em up cop drama but more of a slow slide into a moral dilemma. The deeper detective Slack slides into the vortex of corrupt cop the tenser it gets.

My only gripe with the programme is that, for me, it should have ended at episode 4.

That, to my mind, would have been a perfect and more realistic, ending.

Episode 5 tried too hard to tie up loose ends and ended up unnecessary and unrealistic.

That said, it was definitely worth a watch.

Ignore the unfair critics who have rubbished this programme.

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds (2022– )

Star Trek... reborn

[9/10 · 23 January 2023]

Finally, a Star Trek that resembles the original series.

Anson Mount as Captain Christopher Pike is a clever choice.

There is a lot of William Shatner about him....very reminiscent of our long missed Captain Kirk.

Forget everything between the original series and this.

It has the feel, enthusiastic characterisation and story-telling that made the Kirk era so enjoyable.

As for the bad reviews on this site... ridiculous accusations of wokism (yawn), unoriginality, boring, too much talking etc..., Just ignore these so-called critics, some people just love to whinge and whine.

This is Star Trek reborn.

Locke & Key (2020–2022)

Lost interest at Season 3

[3/10 · 11 October 2022]

Seasons 1 & 2 were really good. 7/10 Very watchable. Not brilliant, but full of originality, awe and magic.

Sadly Season 3 has lost that magic.

Episode 1 introduces a very annoying new guy after the keys and then there's Bode and his mum stupidly messing about with a new key without thinking first. And as for the 2 witchy women... they act and look like rejects from The Wizard of Oz!

Episode 2 couldn't resist the urge to tick a box and squeeze in an annoying gay wedding and yet another key is used without caution or any thought of consequences.

Yawn...

It's all getting a bit so, so... brainless! So twee.

All the cast seem to have lost their acting abilities, it has become so amateurish. The show itself seems to have morphed into a more light hearted younger kids programme.

I can't bear to watch any more.

So.... enough.

Another one bites the dust.

Where the Crawdads Sing (2022)

Simply beautiful.

[9/10 · 17 September 2022]

Where The Crawdads Sing really took me by surprise.

I'd had read the plaudits and the criticisms and wondered if it was a victim of the usual movie hype.

Not so.

I hadn't read the book so I came in fresh and felt intrigued from the start.

The story itself is very simple. A murder, a suspect, a court case, a back story, a verdict and an epilogue.

What's engaging about this film is how well the story is told.

A melancholic voice over adds to the charm, yes charm, of how Kya (brilliantly portrayed by Daisy Edgar-Jones) was abandoned by her family and her journey to becoming the ridiculed, recluse 'Marsh Girl'.

There's romance, but definitely not of the mushy kind. This is by no means a chick flick.

There are also some tough moments to watch as well, but always you are right there with her during this right of passage in an unfairly judgemental world.

Then there's the mesmerising and captivating, cinematography. The opening scene itself is filmed to perfection, and the breathtaking beauty of the swampland itself is gorgeous to behold.

Along with Daisy, all the actors in this gem of a movie are well depicted characters, notably Robert Strathairn as the Tom Milton, who is her defence lawyer.

There are smiles and tears to be had during the course of this movie and for me it ended all too soon.

By the time you get to the ending you'll feel this was a movie well worthy of a couple of hours of your precious time.

So ditch any cynicism and immerse yourself into this story and you will not be disappointed.

I will definitely be watching it several times more.

Thor: Love and Thunder (2022)

Death of a franchise

[1/10 · 14 September 2022]

After all the excellent Marvel universe movies, we've finally hit rock bottom.

This latest instalment feels like a National Lampoon parody of a Thor movie.

The story and script is awful. The so-called humour is embarrassingly unfunny. The actors are just wasted in this mess of a movie.

The film never engages you. It plays like a kids cartoon, of the worst kind. Childish in its approach to what weve come to expect from Marvel.

Nothing about this movie works. Even the CGI sucks.

Disney needs to up it's game and stop dumbing down this franchise or the Marvel universe will sink into its own pile of excrement.

This is a shameful abomination.

Avoid it at all costs.

The end is in sight.

The Lazarus Project (2022–2023)

More.... More.... More!

[9/10 · 19 June 2022]

At last Sky has put on a really good series that's worth watching.

Ignore all the bad reviews and the idiots who bang on about woke this & woke that. Ignore those who say there's no character build. Their individual stories unfold as each episode builds to its crazy end with a good opening for at least one more season.

It's all about TIME, and the ability to create a restart point should a man-made global catastrophe occur.

This series requires your full attention and commitment. If you have a short attention span - don't bother... watch adverts instead.

If, on the other hand, you're up for a good well written story with good acting, a decent script, Bond-like excitement, some dry humour and some very human dilemmas thrown in just to mess with your head.....then DO NOT MISS THIS.

Enough said Please SKY, give us Season 2.... NOW!

The Lost Symbol (2021)

Lame & Pretentious rubbish

[3/10 · 5 January 2022]

It caught my interest at first, then became nothing more than an unconvincing and overlong 'by-the-numbers', fake fact mystery drama, full of plot holes and unlikely scenarios.

Dan Brown, as always, would like us to be convinced that it's all for real.

But... come on, I mean...Really?

Truth be told, I generally do love a good ripping yarn, but sadly this is just a big... yawn!

Even more annoying is the repetitive dialogue, continuously explaining the plot over and over (for the benefit of the short attention span audience it's probably aimed at).

This becomes very tedious.

For me, one season was more than enough.

I thought I'd give it a chance.

I wish I hadn't.

It was not worthy of 10 episodes.

I'm actually surprised I made it to the end but I do confess there was a fair amount of FFWD.

Honestly, I wish I'd spent my time more wisely.

Bottom line..... it's OK to watch if you actually enjoy being bored.

Ghostbusters: Afterlife (2021)

....Are you a God!

[8/10 · 5 January 2022]

I LOVE THIS MOVIE...!

I watched this expecting to be disappointed.

Surprise!... it was a delightfully entertaining movie.

I won't give anything away, but if you enjoyed the original movies, this will fill you with joy.... with a welcome whiff of nostalgia!

There is a bit of a 'Stranger Things' vibe to it now and then - but in a good way.

The adventure of discovering the Ghostbuster legacy and what follows is pure cinema, as it used to be. The cast are excellent. The special effects are exactly what you'd expect and the soundtrack is spot on.

Watch it with young eyes. Ditch the cynicism, forget the real world for a couple of hours, munch your popcorn and enjoy the ride.

It's a fine feelgood movie. Well worth your time.

Red Notice (2021)

Fun, fun, fun....

[7/10 · 17 November 2021]

This film was a pleasant surprise.

A really good cast working well together, a decent script, a decent plot, lots of laughs, action and a good few genre references (Raiders of the Lost Ark included), finishing off with a twist or two.

Suspend reality for a while, sit back and just enjoy the ride.

Mare of Easttown (2021)

Perfection!

[9/10 · 31 May 2021]

Absolutely brilliant.

It must be said that Kate Winslet is outstanding in this drama.

In fact all of the cast are excellent, giving their all with perfectly fleshed out characters.

Top marks too for the script writers, who gave us this dark tale with slight shades of a 'Mystic River' atmosphere.

What we have here is a satisfying murder mystery with a beginning, a middle and an end. And a neat twist that you don't see coming!

Unlike so many other series finales, there are no annoying ambiguities to leave you scratching your head.

So don't believe the nay-sayers. It's the best series of its kind this year so far. Watch it.

Those Who Wish Me Dead (2021)

Not the best - not the worst

[6/10 · 29 May 2021]

Get your popcorn, suspend your disbelief, don't expect too much, enjoy the chase, enjoy the visuals. That's it really!

This movie is actually not worthy of the hate it seems to be getting. Having said that, neither will it win any Oscar nominations.

It's fairly exciting with a decent enough performance from GOT's 'Little Finger' as the main villain. Angelina, not at her best, just coasts along but there's a good performance from the kid she is protecting from the baddies.

It's all quite simple really, with not much going on story-wise but honestly, it doesn't matter.

In summary.

Not the best movie ever, and certainly not the worst.

Just enjoy it for what it is.

The Nevers (2021–2023)

Joss Whedons Circus is in town...

[8/10 · 19 May 2021]

I like this show...BUT...

It doesn't really know what it wants to be. It's a bit of a melting pot of plagiarism.

There are so many obvious copycat similarities to other movies and TV series, it's a petri dish of genre identity confusion.

Among many other ingredients, there's a big helping of Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children, a dash of Penny Dreadful, a sprinkling of X-Men, a dash of Buffy and Firefly, a drizzle of Carnival Row, a heap of steampunk, all stirred together with the gratuitous sex of Game Of Thrones!

So, what's not to like I hear you say.

Well, it's just not all that original.

The finished cocktail sadly, has no taste of its own.

It's a bit like taking all the best songs in the world, making a remix and calling it your own.

BUT... So far it is still very watchable.

Laura Donnelly brilliant portrays Amalia True, the main character. Another favourite is Ann Skelly. She is superb as the steampunk inventor Penance Adair. James Norton tends to play his character a little too overtly oversexed but hey... this conveniently allows rather a lot of sex to be thrown in to boost the viewing figures. 🙄

Strangely, Joss is reported to have now abandoned ship and left yet another series hanging (again).

Fallout from the recent allegations? Who knows?

The story itself is a little wild and confusing at times but it's just about hanging together and holds your interest.

This show is worthy of neither it's praise nor it's severe criticism - it's a watchable romp. Very Whedon.

But it could have been so much better.

Series 2 - Who knows...

Fargo: Welcome to the Alternate Economy (2020) Season 4, Episode 1

This is definitely NOT Fargo...

[1/10 · 10 May 2021]

Fargo.

3 seasons of excellence.

Then this.

There is nothing about this season that you recognise as Fargo.

It could be anything!

The dark humour mixed with bloody violence and absurd situations.

The crazy quirky characters.

The twists and turns of cleverly scripted story telling.

It's all gone, gone, gone.

And then there's Chris Rock... OMG! Please stop acting!

Just stop!

Its worse than your comedy routine.

There's no more to say.

Fargo is Dead.

Long live Fargo.

Intergalactic (2021)

Don't bother - It's utter rubbish!

[1/10 · 5 May 2021]

I downloaded all the episodes as I had been so looking forward to seeing this. Halfway through the 1st episode I couldn't bear to watch a moment more. It was that bad. Amateurish, poorly written, over acted rubbish. Sky have totally wasted the overpriced subscription money thats pouring into their coffers on this tripe.

Avoid at all costs. It has no redeeming features. I won't go into the storyline- there is none. Needless to say - I deleted the lot.

Intruder (2021)

Utter rubbish!

[2/10 · 10 April 2021]

It started out interesting... Intruders break into your house.

You end up killing one of them.

A Dilemma.

The intruder wasn't killed in self-defence.

This was murder.

So, you stage the scene to make it look like self-defence, then call the cops.

The story begins.... Its an interesting premise.

Sadly, it was all downhill from there.

The story quickly became ridiculously implausible and the acting was utterly deplorable.

In particular, Tom Meeten who played Sam was so bad he was almost comical. Except it wasnt funny, he was just incredibly annoying!

I have rarely seen such terrible acting.

The rest of the unknown cast were also extremely amateurish.

Only Sally Lindsay was remotely decent, but she was hamstrung by a crap script.

This ridiculous story could have been told in one episode.

Channel 5 should be ashamed of themselves for putting this rubbish on our screens.

This cannot be blamed on Covid!

The fact that it was drawn out into 4 episodes did nothing but make me livid that I persevered all the way to the lame, pathetic end.

Watch this at your peril.

Godzilla vs. Kong (2021)

CGI = 10 stars....... Script/Actors = 0 stars

[5/10 · 5 April 2021]

The CGI in this movie was definitely a spectacle. Well worth seeing for that... and that alone.

Unfortunately the film lacks a coherent plot/story and most of the acting lets the film down.

The Director has no idea of how to weave all the elements of film-making together to fully immerse his audience.

Millie Bobby Brown did her best with the lame script, but ultimately lacked conviction.

Brian Tyree Henry mumbled his way through mostly incoherent lines of garbage.

The mundane dialogue was made even more difficult to hear due to the never ending loud music score drowning out what little sense any of the script had.

In fact, it has to be said that more or less every single human being in this movie was irrelevant!

It was Kong and Godzilla that kept me in my seat.

As almost every review has already said, the effects were marvellous and plentiful.

But..... , it was almost too much.

Again, a sure sign that there was little story to be told.

Consequently, I have nothing good to say at all for the Director or the Writers.

So, if you decide to watch this movie, just get the popcorn out, sit back and enjoy the action.

Zack Snyder's Justice League (2021)

Fanboy movie / Aspect Ratio = 0 stars

[4/10 · 25 March 2021]

I'm going to be in a minority of one with this short review, but that doesn't worry me too much... The film itself is brilliant - but overlong. 3 hours would have been enough. Too much padding.

It's another Marvel movie, plenty of action, tons of CGI.

Generally, the kind of movie I love.

However... The 4:3 aspect ratio SUCKS.

For me - the movie was ruined.

I was so looking forward to seeing this version.

I now just feel the overwhelming need to share my disappointment regarding Zack Snyder's choice to present the movie only in 4:3. This decision ruined is completely distracting. Yes I've read all the adoring fanboy chatter waxing lyrical about his 'vision' of how it should be seen by audiences blah, blah, blah.... what utter claptrap!

It's a widescreen movie condensed into to a square box. So 1970s.

Especially now when we have no cinemas to go to, and all we have is TV - this decision makes no sense. (I watched this movie on SKY).

Zack, the world has moved on from 4:3 aspect to 16:9 because it's an old format and widescreen is a more immersive cinematic experience. This is such a retrograde step. It begs the question, why did you not go the whole ten yards and make it black and white as well? Anyway, there it is.

I felt cheated.

The movie I looked forward to - RUINED.

If a compressed small screen with black edges is your thing, well - fill your boots.

As for me, I have no more to say.

SAS: Red Notice (2021)

Utter nonsense!

[2/10 · 13 March 2021]

This could have been a good movie. It should have been a good movie. It really wasn't. Bad script. Bad acting. Idiotic story. I wanted to like this movie and I sat through it all, hoping it would get better. It didn't. Some of the action scenes were almost watchable - but they were completely spoiled by being overly long and very much over the top. Strangely, the movie seemed to be a vehicle for promoting Sky News, with so many TV live reports going on. I mean, really, as if they'd have access to such sensitive breaking news - in such detail - as they happen! I think not! Ruby Rose was diabolically awful (she really needs to find another profession). Andy Serkis was totally wasted in this. And how Tom Wilkinson was persuaded to get on board is a mystery! Everyone else was just hanging on for dear life until it was all over so that they could collect ther pay checks. The whole debarkle was a waste of 118 mins of my life. If this is an example of a Sky movie production, they need to stop - now! This is possibly the worst movie I've seen this year so far.

Monster Hunter (2020)

Disappointing.

[4/10 · 3 March 2021]

With a different director at the helm, a decent script and an actual plot, this COULD have been an OK movie. You'd have thought that Paul Anderson would have learnt a thing or two about directing by now. Sadly not. If anything his style is worse than ever. Scene after scene has been so ruthlessly cut, the continuity is all over the place. There is no character development and mostly awful dialogue. The 1st two Resident Evil movies were his best efforts, but since then, everything is just about keeping wifey Milla Jovovich in a job. The camera rarely strays away from her. I do love a monster movie and this does have a few moments in the 2nd half, but ultimately it disappoints. And as for the rubbish ending....

The Call of the Wild (2020)

Fantastic!

[8/10 · 17 February 2021]

What are the critics whining about? This is just the kind of movie the world needs right now. This wholesome adaptation of the Jack London book doesn't disappoint. What we have is a welcome departure from the totally over-the-top, 'here we go again', blockbuster action movie that Hollywood regurgitates over and over lately. Harrison Ford delivers as he always does. In fact, all the cast give excellent performances. The star, of course, is the dog. And, of course it's a CGI dog. You can't get a real dog to perform everything 'Buck' has to endure! People, stop banging on about realism! Its the movies! Its make-believe! And by the way, the CGI is brilliantly rendered. The CGI/human interaction is almost perfect. The cinematic scenery is breathtaking. During this well crafted movie, you'll laugh, you'll cry and thrill to the excitement throughout this hour and a half of excellent story-telling. Its a family film that delivers. This is a feel good movie that has no pretensions. There's a certain innocence that's sorely needed in the film industry right now. And it was well worth the time spent watching. I look forward to seeing it again. Give yourself a treat.

Resident Alien (2021– )

Fun, fun, fun...

[8/10 · 7 February 2021]

Against all the odds, this is so good! And so funny! The acting, the setting, the script. It's all good. Did I mention its fun! There nothing else to say. Watch it. Oh yeah!