brandonsoler-14775 Reviews

Cobra Kai (2018–2025)

Really Great!

[7/10 · 28 December 2020]

I really enjoy this show, its an excellent addition to the franchise, far better than that horrible movie with Jayden Smith.

Nostalgia colours every scene and there is a tonne of great humour throughout.

The acting from some of the younger actors leaves a bit to be desired, but it's not so bad that it ruins the show.

Zabka completely steals the show though!

Bill & Ted Face the Music (2020)

Just chill and enjoy it

[6/10 · 16 December 2020]

I mostly watched this to see Keanu go from John Wick to revising his surfer dude persona.

He looks like he's having loads of fun and I'm deliberately ignoring all the usual crap Hollywood writers did to promote "women good, men bad" as that is just going to be a trend we put up with until producers are sick of losing money.

This is a silly movie, with a silly plot, with actors enjoying being silly. I had a good time watching it for what it was.

Ava (IV) (2020)

It was ok, but could have done more

[5/10 · 30 November 2020]

After watching this movie, I was left a bit conflicted and tried to think about what I liked about this movie, and what I didn't like.

Essentially, the story introduced a number of plot points that never went anywhere, which lead to a movie with no real motivation for the characters to really do anything.

Why did the big boss have such a massive hard on for killing Ava? Because she went a bit off script?

Why did Ava question earlier assassinations? Was there a shady agenda and she was killing the wrong people?

The fight scenes were really well choreographed and the acting of the main characters was fine for this sort of movie.

Common's acting in this was wooden and felt very much like he was going through the motions.

I think if the plot was tighter and had more direction this could have been great. But unfortunately it was just ok.

Bloodshot (2020)

Enjoyable

[6/10 · 13 June 2020]

I gave this movie a 6, it was filled with clichés and 2 dimensional characters, but was still a decent ride. Wiguns was the best character in the movie for me.

Screen Rant Pitch Meetings (2017– )

Wow wow wow wow...wow.

[10/10 · 12 May 2020]

Ryan George's pitch meetings are basically the only content from ScreenRant that I actually watch.

He is hilarious while cynically breaking down stupid decisions and oversights writers and studio execs make in some of the movies they put out.

Always good for a laugh.

The Mandalorian (2019– )

Thank you Jon Favreau!

[8/10 · 5 March 2020]

I thoroughly enjoyed this series. It's great to see the (on-screen) lore expanding without contemporary politics interfering with bad story telling.

It's really cool to see more of the star wars world where the force and the jedi/sith are very much tangential to the plot, so we aren't seeing the same formula dragged out again. It's an original story, so no one feels like their favourite characters have been crapped on.

This feels more like the Lone Ranger in Space, and I'm here for it!

The Jackal (1997)

An Enjoyable Watch

[7/10 · 15 January 2020]

This was a fun movie to watch, good action, good acting.

Rambo: Last Blood (2019)

So Awesome!

[8/10 · 18 December 2019]

I love that Rambo: Last Blood comes full circle with First Blood where we see John Rambo setting up a whole bunch of traps to take out hoards of enemies.

The plot is simple, yet delivered with Sly's signature take on the world-weary Vietnam vet. You can feel his rage, self-loathing and depression dripping from every line of dialog.

It's what has always set Rambo apart from other Action protagonists. You always feel that he wants to be the better man, and then yet again, the world lets him down, and he unleashes the beast within.

The action and violence are intense, but don't feel needless, it shows the intensity of his rage being taken out on an over-confident enemy. It hits you viscerally, that first time you see him blow a guy's head clean off with a sawn-off shotgun is a real "woah!!" moment.

If you're looking for Shawshank Redemption, this ain't it. If you're looking for a solid action film that ticks the boxes and doesn't have a padded runtime, I definitely recommend.

The Hustle (I) (2019)

Some genuine funny moments

[7/10 · 23 August 2019]

I enjoyed this movie for what it was.

I had some laugh out loud moments and, even though this wasn't Oscar material, I don't think it deserves the low ratings people have been giving it.

Aladdin (2019)

I enjoyed it!

[8/10 · 11 August 2019]

There's a tonne of bad reviews here which I think were pretty harsh. So I thought I would pop a review in to provide some balance.

Firstly, Aladdin, Jasmine and Genie were well cast (for the non singing parts, only Naomi Scott had a decent voice) and I thought they did a great job.

I actually really enjoyed the bollywood-style dancing in some parts of the movie and felt that the quality of dancers was incredible.

The CGI animal companions (and carpet) were really well done.

I also enjoyed that the sultan wasn't quite such a buffoon as he was in the original Al animation.

Jafar was the only character I didn't really buy into, I think he could have been better cast.

All in all, it was a fun, enjoyable movie. Lighten up and have a good time everyone!

Robin Hood (2018)

Unfortunately this sucked.

[2/10 · 9 February 2019]

I wanted to like this movie, but it essentially crapped all over any attempt at staying true to the time period. Costumes were ridiculous, the action was over the top and most of the acting was just crap.

There are some decent actors in this movie who's talents were just wasted.

At one point there's an RPG crossbow...bloody hell.

Fyre (2019)

Interesting Doco

[7/10 · 31 January 2019]

This is a pretty interesting look at what happens when someone who is an "ideas guy" doesn't consult with the right people, deludes themselves as to their level of competence and manages to delude everyone else until it's way too late.

Pretty hilarious to watch it all unfold!