EvilPhoEniX

The survival of the year right at the turn of the year.A great debut and a great one man show from Zac Efron, who reaches the peak of his acting powers. The film has a simple story about two strangers travelling through the Australian desert. When their car breaks down they are forced to stop and by sheer chance they discover a huge nugget of gold and agree that one (Efron) will guard the gold and the other will go and get the tools they need to get the it out. It is a slower, but it meets the highest standards in its sub-genre and I think it holds up well on all fronts. Efron's performance is excellent (there’s an incredible transformation at the end of the film where the makeup artists must be commended). Apart from the great visuals and the rugged wildlife, I enjoyed the all sorts of trappings from wild dogs, snakes, hallucinations, a desert storm, scorching sun, running out of water and unwelcome guests. There is one twist that is readable throughout, yet I can't think of a better one. The Australian wild dogs give you incredible respect and goosebumps at the end. A film about greed, perseverance, dreams and hopelessness. Story 3/5, Action 3/5, Humour 0/5, Violence 3/5, Fun 4/5 Music 3/5, Visuals 4/5, Atmosphere 4/5, Suspense 3/5, Emotion 1/5, Actors 4/5. 8/10.

A Korean debutant tries a gangster film and has some well known names at his disposal although no big stars. Tough I felt a bit that the experience of other directors was lacking, it is certainly not bad. It's a kind of power struggle between two powerful men and organisations full of ambition, betrayal and conspiracy revolving around the construction of the biggest resort in Asia. There's no good guy, which bothered me a bit, there's no one to root for, and the plot just isn't engaging or appealing enough to keep me entertained, but when it came to the action, it was something to watch. At times the director wasn't afraid of brutal scenes (the first corpse!) and of course most often everything is solved with knives, so the last half hour is a a pretty decent gangster carnage, only in the previous hour, it lacked zest. Story 3/5, Action 3/5, Humour 0/5, Violence 3/5, Fun 3/5 Music 3/5, Visuals 4/5, Atmosphere 3/5, Tension 2/5, Emotion 1/5, Actors 3/5. 6.5/10.

A decent and original rom-com about time travel, which definitely makes the film interesting. Rachel McAdams doesn't play her typical hot chick role this time, she's dressed up to fit the main character. I was kind of hoping she would abuse her ability to go back in time more times and better, but it worked. Definitely above average within the genre. Well acted, nicely filmed with a few surprises and a sadder ending. 7/10.

An enjoyable Disney fairy tale that will neither disappoint nor offend. The good animation is par for the course, and the theme of an enchanted place called Encanto where every child in the family has a unique gift is fine, it's just a shame that no one uses their abilities properly. I missed a bit more menace, and at the same time the humour is surprisingly absent altogether. Surprisingly, the best part of the film is the music. Personally, I prefer the more action-packed stuff in the vein of Raya and the Last Dragon and The Mitchells vs. the Machines, this one seemed more for the girls and of course the little ones. 6/10.

Ridley Scott and his historic comeback! I put this film off for quite a while, but I'm surprisingly pleased with the result. Scott relies on an unconventional theme, which he tells from three different points of view, and since I love the courts, history and the actors, I did without yawning and suffering, which I feared due to the lack of action scenes. In the first third Ridley serves up a couple of shorter battles, wonderfully raw and brutal – even though they lasted barely two minutes, it was still a treat and I'm quite annoyed that he didn't extend them to at least five minutes. Technically, the film is top notch, the costumes, the sets, the locations are very believable. The dialogue is top notch, the actors give their best. Matt Damon is superb, Jodie Comer is impressive, and Adam Driver is sleazy as a snake (I'm not really into Driver yet, his film choices don't really suit me), and the tense trial and the incredibly intense final duel were also great, more or less demanding 5 stars because it had everything and lacked nothing. A solid historical film that I may even repeat once, but I give Ridley a minor slap for the short battles, next time I want the carnage! Story 4/5, Action 3/5, Humor 0/5, Violence 3/5, Fun 4/5 Music 4/5, Visuals 5/5, Atmosphere 5/5, Suspense 4/5, Emotion 4/5, Actors 5/5. 8.5/10.

Another miscarriage of justice from the Netherlands, based on real events. The main character is a 40 year old nurse who faces false accusations of seven murders (toddlers included), as a serial killer of innocent patients. The case is taken up by an ambitious and young prosecutor who wants to send the nurse to prison immediately. A film with a strong and chilling theme and makes the most of it. This is a very well known case in the Netherlands. Of course, there are also good performances, solid direction, a stifling atmosphere and one unexpected move by the prosecution. I'm a bit disappointed that there isn't much of the actual trial and it is not as gripping as in other films (for those who have a lot of experience in the genre). The French Guilty hit me more emotionally, but this one is also undoubtedly a quality film that shouldn't disappoint fans of the genre, even if it goes for a lot of safety. Story 4/5, Action 0/5, Humor 0/5, Violence 0/5, Fun 3/5 Music 3/5, Visuals 4/5, Atmosphere 4/5, Suspense 3/5, Emotion 4/5, Actors 4/5.

South Korea is back! The first action romp from South Korea this year and it's very good. It's such a mix of bullying, prison drama, zero to hero, revenge and martial art flick – all my favourite subgenres in one! The story focuses on a timid nerd who is bullied by a new boxer in his class, who provokes him by poking out one of his eyes with a pen and going to serve his sentence in a teen prison. The boxer then tells him that all hell will break loose when he gets out. The protagonist soon meets a local assassin, who, incidentally, is also a martial arts expert, and begs him for training, and the evolution of the fearful looser into an uncompromising one punch man can begin. 80% of the film takes place in a prison and it's very entertaining. The training is delivered very consistently, the action is shot superbly, the characters are great, the dialogues too, the drama and the relationship between the two protagonists works, and the villain is good too, so the film holds up on almost all levels. I might have added more action to make it more satisfying, but otherwise it's a great show. Story 4/5, Action 4/5, Humor 2/5, Violence 0/5, Fun 4/5 Music 3/5, Visuals 4/5, Atmosphere 4/5, Suspense 3/5, Emotion 4/5, Actors 4/5. 8/10.

Six years of my life crammed into a 90 minute film! Boiling Point is strongly emotional and a new favourite for me, it not only made me happy, but also swept me away. The entire film is shot in one take, taking place over the course of one evening during the busiest day of the year, and it's an adrenaline-pumping, stressful, suspenseful, realistic, superbly acted and emotional ride that made me anxious and uncomfortable at the same time. I've lived all the situations and several times, so I experienced the pressure along with the main characters. Stephen Graham's performance is excellent, but the rest of the cast doesn't fall short either, everyone has at least one highlight scene. I was slightly hoping for more build-up at the end, I could think of a few more escalate-it-all situations in my head, but I'm still satisfied. Definitely an original and unconventional film that should be shown in schools. Story 3/5, Action 0/5, Humour 3/5, Violence 0/5, Fun 4/5 Music 3/5, Visuals 4/5, Atmosphere 5/5, Suspense 4/5, Emotions 4/5, Actors 5/5. 9/10.

For me, a bit better than the first part. Yes, it's not as nice and touching as one user here cries, this is not a cartoon for princesses anymore, but for boys! The added action, the motorbikes, the Mad-Max style post-apocalyptic world in the first half is downright excellent, the animation is revolutionary again (where is Pixar, this is another level); overall high above standard. The second half flips into fantasy again and that's where the quality falters slightly, but I'm satisfied. I recommend adding it to the action genre, I haven't seen this much action in an animated film in a long time. 8/10.

I'd rather live a year as a tiger than twenty years as a turtle! After his last year’s How I Became a Gangster. True Story, Maciej Kawulski serves up another strongly narrative opus magnum and I think this guy is the Polish Scorsese, bobody currently has more form on the subject than this dude. Cinematically, this is a highly polished film, incredibly mature and timeless by Polish standards, the direction, the visuals, the music, the actors, the plot, all are of the highest quality. In three hours the director tells us the story of one of the greatest Polish gangsters, Nicodemus (he looks like Al Capone in the finale) and I have to say that a gangster with such character, respect, humility has never been seen in the film world. He wasn't a murderer or a backstabbing bastard, but a businessman/thief with intellect and class, and the whole story had me very captivated. My biggest complaint and a bit of a shame is that this isn't a classic gangster movie with murder, war, shooting, beating, which is what I like best and that is completely missing here, but there is so much sex, so many drugs, so much great music and compelling dialogue and great characters that it kept my attention completely without any problems even without action, something that happens to me about once a year, and I have to appreciate that. Netflix has been touting it since the beginning of the year and I probably won't see a better gangster movie this year. Story 5/5, Action 2/5, Humor 2/5, Violence 2/5, Fun 4/5 Music 5/5, Visuals 5/5, Atmosphere 5/5, Suspense 4/5, Emotion 4/5, Actors 5/5. 8.5/10.