therealjaysmoke Reviews

The Iron Claw (2023)

So heavy, I couldn't cry.

[8/10 · 11 May 2024]

This was one heavy movie. There are some movies that when you watch, you wouldn't even wish what transpired would happen to your worst enemy. This movie is one of them. It was sooooo heavy to watch, I FORCED myself not to cry. When the Bible says life and death are in the tongue, this movie encapsulates that. Roughly based on a true story, I can't imagine what that family went through.

Am trying hard not to spoil it for y'all so I don't want to reveal what happened but it's a must watch.

Zac Efron was, as always, brilliant and so were all the other casts. Definitely one for the book. Great job.

Godzilla Minus One (2023)

Love Story in a Godzilla movie?

[8/10 · 5 May 2024]

WOW this was an unexpected surprise. I saw the trailer and I was wondering how come I haven't not seen this movie. So I was excited when I finally got the chance to watch it. Even though it started out very slowly, I soon understood why they needed to tell the story of the pilot, the girl and the baby. Cause at the very end, these would be the pivot of the whole movie.

Even though it was about Godzilla, I really appreciated the story within that tragic story. A story of love, regret, forgiveness, and 2nd chances. It's a must watch. And I must say the Fx were solid. I wish they don't make Godzilla look so stiff and rocky, but I guess that's just my opinion.

Solid movie. Love it.

Infested (2023)

Don't watch if you are arachnophobia.

[6/10 · 5 May 2024]

Infested is about how spiders took over an apartment complex and started killing the tenants. I loved the cinematography, the acting was very good and also loved the Fx. I honestly couldn't tell if they were real spiders or fake. If you are arachnophobia, fasten your seatbelt cause you gonna scream alot.

I didn't like the ending though. It was rushed, didn't make sense and the conflict with the cops just wasn't necessary. I was hoping for some dope battle with the guys fighting and killing the spiders but it didn't happen. We just got this unexplained ending where the building was collapsed.

It is a good one watch movie. But am sure botanists will really enjoy it.

American Star (2024)

Complete and utter rubbish!

[1/10 · 1 May 2024]

This was a mighty let down. Sir Ian McShane, arguably one of the most renowned actors in Hollywood stares in this movie and it was because of him, that I opted to spend my valuable time to watch this movie. Honestly, I am so so disappointed. I never thought I would see Mr McShane stare in such a soulless, boring, piece of junk movie. But here we are and after spending almost 2hrs staring at the screen hoping to make sense of it all, nothing remotely worthy happened.

Total waste of time. Watch something else if you can, because this one won't rock your boat at all. It's a huge pass for me..........

Love Lies Bleeding (2024)

Worst of the Worst!

[1/10 · 26 April 2024]

Just when I thought I had seen the worst movie of the year, Rebel Moon Pt 2, this one comes along and manages to beat it to the top. It's unbelievably shocking to see a once A star actress like Kristen Stewart slump this low. It's really tragic watching her, I mean she's really trying so hard.

Anyways back to the movie. I honestly didn't know what was going on with this one. It was so discombobulated that I couldn't make heads or tails of it. And what was happening with Jackie? She took some steroids and now whenever Lou is in trouble, she becomes She-Hulk? 😂😂😂 Who wrote this thing? And what in the world happened at the end? I almost thought she was going to slip him into her p....y 😂😂😂 I cant beliebe Ed Harris really signed up for this garbage.

Man this was horrible in every way. All that lesbian drama wasn't appealing one bit neither. So disappointed in Kristen for real.

Immaculate (2024)

Terrible

[4/10 · 25 April 2024]

How a pregnant girl can do what she did is beyond reasoning. I completely became very bored and unsatisfied with the progression of this movie. You'd think that for such an important figure, you'd keep a close eye on her at all times, making sure she doesn't try to escape again. But nuuh, let's leave her to roam about freely even though she tried to run once.

And how long does your water break before you go into labor? This girl was able to run around, fight, kill people, literally hours after her water broke. Also why was there no one else looking for her apart from the priest? It's like there were no one else in that building except the two of them? This was very bad in every way possible.

Waste of space and time. Story had potential but as usual Hollywood has to ruin it with unrealistic plot and twists.

Rebel Moon - Part Two: The Scargiver (2024)

If I could, I'd give it a zero.

[1/10 · 24 April 2024]

As if the first one wasn't bad enough, Zack had to do a part 2? Was this even necessary?! Eh I think I've found my worst movie of the year! I can't believe this was directed by the great Zack Snyder. The same guy who did Batman vs Superman and Justice League? This is shocking.

Everything about this movie, and I mean everything, but especially the cast, was HORRIBLE. The lead actor, Sofia Boutella and villain, Ed Skrien was awful. And the whole premise was just a cheap copy cat. It's like Zack wanted to create his own Star Wars but he didn't have the budget to go full on. Even the Creator, which I felt was horrible, was far better than this.

Shōgun (2024)

Build up only to let you down hard!

[6/10 · 24 April 2024]

If this wasn't the biggest deception in TV series history, then I don't know what is. This show rode on the idea of a Shogun. In Japanese folklore, a Shogun was a very powerful military commander who was second to only the Emperor and he commanded a large army. And if you controlled the army, you almost nearly are in control of the country. So when this dude, Toranaga, who comes from a long line of Shoguns, is exiled and on the verge of being killed by the then rulers of Japan, we are taking on this journey of discovery. Will he become Shogun and take on these rulers? And if he won't, then what will be do?

After a long wait which spanned 9 episodes of boring, long speech, great cinematography and excellent acting we are presented with a poorly written, incredibly dissatisfying ending. Honestly it felt like we, the viewers, were the ones the trick was played on. There was no Shogun, there was no grand battle, there was no "crimson sky", there was no justice served, and the only deaths were those of his loyal followers who sacrificed themselves, all for what?!

If not for the amazing scenes, cinematography and acting, I would have given this a 3/10. The story just sucked big time.

Saltburn (2023)

Barry is probably the coldest villain in Hollywood right now.

[7/10 · 19 April 2024]

After watching this masterpiece, I just couldn't help but go and rewatch The Killing of a Sacred Deer. Similar plot but with a younger Barry. I don't think there's any actor that can play these roles better than Barry and he does them so well and effortlessly. If you enjoyed this movie and you loved Barry, then you should check it out.

Anyways back to the movie at hand. Cinematography great. Cast amazing. Story super interesting and very brilliant. It gave me that Twilight vibe and also Get Out but man was I wrong, very wrong to be surprise. The only drawback for me were the unnecessary nude scenes and what the heck what that ending all about? Smh.

Damaged (2024)

Great B Movie

[7/10 · 15 April 2024]

Ahhhh the slow fade! It's really nice to see how a veteran actor such as Samuel and Vincent would partner up with an international film crew to help them get their shine on. I mean trust me, if it had not been for these 2, esp Samuel on the covers, I would never have watched this movie and that would have caused me to miss out of some good Scottish actors.

With that said, this is clearly a high level B movie but that didn't take away from the quality of story and like I said, acting. I also enjoyed the twist at the end which was nearly ruined by the extended unnecessary ending. All in all, I liked it. I liked how unapologetic they were with the crime scenes. NB. If you can't stand blood or gore crime scenes, this movie isn't for you. 🤣

Heart of the Hunter (2024)

SA really getting better at this....

[6/10 · 14 April 2024]

Yooooo Botha, SA stepped up the game with this one man! So proud of them. I really enjoyed watching this. The cinematography was on point. The special effects was decent for an African production. But the acting was spot on from majority of the cast. I also loved the story, not many times do you get such mature and interesting crime story. I also enjoyed the Cape Town scenery. And no they didn't show table mountain.

The only drawback for me was the weak ending. That was a complete miss. The story could have done with a better ending honestly. It was cheap, it was very predictable and even though they were trying to pull that great spin off, it just didn't work and made the whole movie feel under developed.

If I had one advice for you, it would be skip the ending....cuz it will ruin the whole vibe.

Finestkind (2023)

Borefest of a movie

[3/10 · 11 April 2024]

What was nice about this movie?! Tommy Lee and Ben Foster. Everything else was just basic and that college boy character (Toby Wallace) was so annoying.

This movie could have been 1hr less. I don't understand why they needed to take a whole hour to build up the story. And what was that fake love story between those kids? Was that even necessary?

The storyline was too weak, unrealistic and very badly written. And not to even mention the end. I literally scrub through the whole movie, cuz the dialogue were long and really annoying esp from college boy and his girlfriend.

Miss me with all that.

Ordinary Angels (2024)

A movie with a soul...

[10/10 · 8 April 2024]

Oh wow! This is what humanity should be all about. Any movie that gets me to 1. Shed a tear, 2. Make me think, 3. Laugh out really loud or 4. Inspire me, 5. Leaves me awestruck...is definitely an amazing movie. Ordinary Angel is one movie is one of those movies and boy did I shed a tear.

This is a unbelievable TRUE story about one beautiful but flawed person helping a bereaved family out. What intrigues me is the fact that it's based off a true story. Had it been fiction, I'd have been like yeah right, but the fact that these things really happened is what blows my mind, in a good way, of course.

From the makers of Jesus Revolution, another great movie that got me shedding a tear, I have nothing but praises for the entire production. From the casts, Hilary Swank was amazing, to the directing and the cinematography. Absolutely Oscar worthy.

Bob Marley: One Love (2024)

Great but not enough

[6/10 · 24 March 2024]

WOW! This deserves a standing ovation fha real! I think the casting crew did an excellent job picking these guys and to think for a second that Jamaicans were upset that they didn't use Jamaicans to play the lead roles. I honestly think Lashana (Rita) and Kingsley (Bob) killed it. I really really enjoyed their energy. I also loved the fact that they shot several of the scenes in Jamaica with real Rastafarians. It certainly was a good movie.

But with that said, I felt this was extremely rushed. The storyline didn't even begin to scratch the surface as to who, what and how Bob Marley impacted the world. It just bruised right through significant periods in his life n that's it. Aside the scene outside the club where he had that heated dialogue with Rita, not much moved me throughout the whole movie. It lacked that connection and I don't blame the acts as much as I blame the script and directing. This could have been 2hrs 30min long and I don't think any one would complain instead it was a mere 1hr 30?

Maybe they will do a part 2 cause this didn't do justice to this enigma.

Smugglers (2023)

This was a delight

[9/10 · 22 March 2024]

This right here is what you call a perfect script. WOW! These Koreans have some reaaaally dope stories to tell. Am not a comedy person, so when this started it had that comedy vibe and I almost trashed it but I thought too myself, give it 15 min, see how it turns out and boy was I glad I did. It quickly went from comedy to serious stuff. When I say Action Comedy, this right here is exactly that. The comedy was well placed, but when it was time for serious business, they didn't play. Kinda reminded me of the very successful Korean movie, Parasite.

I can't think of what I didn't like about this movie, for real. The acting was great from all of the cast, even the extras. The cinematography was beautiful. And the story was perfect, I couldn't see any flaws anywhere. Maybe am just a sucker for women empowerment, who cares. There's just something cool about women outsmarting corrupt men. 😊😊

Argylle (2024)

This was sooooo bad....

[3/10 · 13 March 2024]

This was a joke of a comedy! From the beginning right through to the end, I couldn't stop laughing, not because it's funny but because the action scenes are so ridiculous it's funny. But what else do you expect when you have Bryce Dallas, Sam Rockwell, John Cena and Catherine O'Hara in it. I can't imagine how pissed off all those who saw Henry Cavill and Sam L. Jackson and thought this was some crazy action movie.

Really got me, I won't lie. I was hoping for some dope action movie. What a total let down. Aside from the slight comedic moments, there was really nothing to write home here, even the acting wasn't right and that's the thing with action/comedy. If not done right, you can't take anything serious even when it requires it. Unfortunately with this movie, even the action scenes had comedy undertone so nothing was serious.

Overall I wouldn't recommend this to anyone.

Damsel (2024)

It was ok until the dragon started talking

[5/10 · 13 March 2024]

I think am getting too old for this. As always Netflix pumps money into creating an amazing picture but forgot that it's the story that carries a movie not the amazing picture.

What turned me off was when the dragon started talking, literally. Like what? 😄😄 They should have learnt from GoT and Lord of the Rings. The lip sync was just off and honestly probably the worst I've seen in any dragon movie. Instead of actually talking by moving it's lips, they could have made it communicate telepathically. That would make more mystic sense than this terrible lip sync.

But I won't lie, I actually watched this to the very end and enjoyed it quite a bit, the girl did very well, and I have to say I enjoyed Angela Basset a little bit too. All it needed was a great storyline.

Dune: Part Two (2024)

Great but first one still takes the cake.

[8/10 · 3 March 2024]

WOW WOW WOW! That's how I felt after watching the sequel to Dune. Continuing from where Dune 1 left off, we see the Messiah, Paul fully embracing the prophecy and leading the Fremen to victory. I have to say even though I thoroughly enjoyed this movie, it fell short of what I expected and definitely didn't come close to what we saw in the first movie. With that being said, I have to give a massive props to the whole team for not letting us down. It's not easy to pull off a sequel that closely match up to the first.

One thing I appreciate about this series is the marriage between nature, science and spirituality. It is just so beautifully done. You can't pinpoint exactly what era they are in, there's amazing technology, yet there's also amazing spirituality yet they still live in complete unison with nature. It's perfect. Also the dialogue is just like music to my ears. It's not these washed up forced humor we see in most Marvel/DC movies. This was some intelligent, matured dialogue and I respect them for doing that. One thing I felt wasn't necessary was the fuss between Paul and Chani. They could have spared us all that childish drama. It just didn't fit esp for someone like the Messiah.

I totally loved the coming of age of Paul, it was so powerful. I loved the transformation of his mother into the Reverend Mother. I loved seeing Gurney back in the mix. It was a lovely reunion. I was quite disappointed in the Emperor. He looked so weak and his capture was laughable. But to see the Baron, his nephew and Glossu all killed was a very bold move. I honestly can't imagine what they have in store now for us in the third installation.

Overall, this was a good movie, not as great as the first but it's up there with the best.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem (2023)

That was quite entertaining

[8/10 · 24 February 2024]

I don't know what TMNT's backstory is. I haven't really paid attention to any of the comics or know much about these mutants except that they are Turtles and they fight crimes. I think that helped me to really appreciate this movie.

From a layman's POV, I find this very very entertaining. The music score was nice and nostalgic. The various voice overs were great especially Ice Cube's and Jackie Chan's. And the animation was very creative, reminded me of movies like Arcane and Spiderverse. The humor was great, I couldn't stop laughing like from beginning right to the end. The funniest moment for me was when the cab driver was pleading for someone to take the bag from him. That was dead hilarious.

Like I said, if you are a fan of TMNT, then maybe you won't like it simply because they shifted away from the original story. But if you are like me and don't know nothing about TMNT, and love a good animation, you gonna love this one.

Avatar: The Last Airbender (2024– )

Thank God for the forward button - snoozefest

[3/10 · 24 February 2024]

I was really hoping this was going to be a serious series but I was so wrong. I only kept watching because I could fast forward the when I wanted to and boy did I do that alooooot. There were more talking than action and the little action scenes were laughable. I guess that's because this is the first season, so they wanted to paint a backdrop for each character. But my gosh, it's so boring for us who already knows them or don't care.

I must say the Fx were better than expected. And the costumes were great but that's just about the only thing. The acting was subpar. And the Avatar kid sucked the most. Kyoshi was a better Avatar when she showed up, it was amazing. Maybe am just too old for their target audience ie. Kids.

Come to think of this, there was not one single black representation. WOW! I understand it's an adaptation from an existing story but based on comments, this isn't exactly a word for word adaptation so I don't think adding some black characters in there would have be an abomination.

Such a huge disappointment.

Land of Bad (2024)

That went by real fast.

[8/10 · 24 February 2024]

Yoooooo, what's there not to like about this movie. I love extraction movies and this one is up there amongst the best of the best. Liam Hemsworth, Chris Hemsworth (The Extraction, Thor) kid brother, joins Russell Crowe in this fast paced, star studded, action movie.

I think what sold me out on this was the amazing cast. In addition to Russel and Liam, you had Luke Hemsworth, the big brother to Chris and Liam Hemsworth, you had Ricky Whittle (Hero), and you have Milo Ventimiglia (American Gods). It couldn't get better than that.

The chemistry between Reaper and Playboy was beautiful. Kinda like a Father/Son relationship. The beauty was the unpredictability. Who dies, who doesn't. And seeing aging Russel Crowe play a non-combatant role, so well is pleasant to watch.

No nudity. No homo vibes. Just soldiers doing what they do best. And get this.....THESE GUYS ARE NOT REAL SOLDIERS, just actors but my goodness, they killed the role.

Reminded me of Special Forces. Now that's a Sick Sick movie.

My only drawback was the lack of depth for the villain and his lousy demise.

The Passenger (III) (2023)

When you have a 'pyschopathic' big brother.

[8/10 · 17 February 2024]

This was such a a powerful movie from start to finish. I don't understand anyone who could score this lower than 7. For me, Benson was that big brother who loves his kid brother so much, he is ready to do anything for him.

But this would have been extra emotional had Benson been his real pyschopathic brother, who just got out of jail, and realizing how fragile his kid brother has become, decides to help him grow up. I think they missed out on that.

But aside that, everything about this movie was well done. The acting, the pacing, the cinematography, the special FX, the storyline was spot on and I really enjoyed it....

They Cloned Tyrone (2023)

This was very bad!

[3/10 · 17 February 2024]

This was a great opportunity that was missed completely. You have to understand that for whatever impact this movie was suppose to serve, completely lost it when they added humor to the mix. I mean why must every black themed movie be comical? Why can't it be dead serious? It's so tiring.

Apart from that, I think the script was ridiculous. The premise was stupid. It made black people look dumb. The end justifies the means they say but the ending of this movie was arguably one of the worst in cinema history.

I honestly don't know how Jamie Foxx signed up for this peace of junk. Don't believe all the hype, this is one joke of a movie.

The Channel (2023)

It was ok but could have been great.

[5/10 · 14 February 2024]

If not for the B-Rated Production, this movie would have been a solid 10. I love me seeing unknown acts getting an opportunity to shine and in this movie, I saw quite a few unknown faces esp black actors and I have to say they really did great.

The story itself was a solid one, robbery gone wrong and 2 brothers running from the cops and ending up in a cross-fire with a gangster etc. The only let down for me like I said was the quality of the production and the make up and special FX was 50%. The blood was very fake. The gun shots were so unrealistic. But if you can overlook all that, you bound to have a grand time.

The Beekeeper (2024)

Everything was bad with this movie.

[5/10 · 3 February 2024]

How do you find in 30 min, a group of people, the FBI couldn't find for years? Am really toooo old for Jason's movie. It's really sad to see how bad Jason's movies have become ever since becoming a fan of Crank and The Transporter. I wish he could have found a franchise like James Bond and really utilize his skills but every year, he keeps re-creating the same character in different forms, same plot....some people does him bad, he goes to find them and beats them up. End of movie.

This movie is no different. What makes it worse is the horrible acting from everyone including Jason himself. John Wick wannabee.