10s Movie Review - The Equalizer

Director: Antoine Fuqua
Genre: Action/ Crime/ Thriller
Runtime: 132 minutes
Year: 2014
Starring: Denzel Washington, Chloë Grace Moretz, Marton Csokas, David Harbour, Melissa Leo, Bill Pullman, Haley Bennett

Description: A man (Denzel Washington) who believes he has put his mysterious past behind him cannot stand idly by when he meets a young girl (Chloë Grace Moretz) under the control of ultra-violent Russian gangsters.

I WATCHED THIS MOVIE FOR MY 2021 MOVIE CHALLENGE
WEEK 49: A MOVIE THAT’S PART OF A SERIES
 
Review: Robert McCall is a good citizen who works in a hardware store. He has an obsessive-compulsive disorder, in which he does and arranges everything in perfection. He doesn’t sleep much, if at all. At night he goes to a café to read, bringing his own tea bag. During one night he meets a young prostitute Teri. She is ordered by her Russian boss Slavi to go with several rich and nasty men. After Teri is beaten into the hospital by Slavi, and old feeling comes to McCall’s mind and he tries to buy her off. Unfortunately, Slavi doesn’t take up the offer and that’s when Robert McCall’s true nature comes out. He decides to retaliate against Slavi and his accomplices on his own, much against the wishes of the head of the Russian mafia, who sends assassin Teddy to McCall. During the cat and mouse game that is going on between them, McCall has to pull out all the stops to stay out of the hands of this unapproachable killer.
The premise of the film is not all that original, but the execution is. Robert McCall is a character you can easily sympathize with, also thanks to Denzel Washington who plays him. The man can do no wrong.
The movie is action packed ad has a lot of tension, but also makes room for character development. Especially for McCall, who, like I stated before, is a very likeable character and you can’t help but root for him. I don’t think this movie would have been as good if McCall was played by someone else.
The final confrontation is amazing, I loved that part of the film. Bloody and violent, but very cool.
“The Equalizer” is a really good film that liked much more then I expected too.  

Rating: 4/ 5

Movie Review - The Devil All the Time

Director: Antonio Campos

Genre: Drama/ Thriller/ Crime

Runtime: 138 minutes

Year: 2020

Starring: Tom Holland, Robert Pattinson, Jason Clarke, Haley Bennett, Bill Skarsgård, Riley Keough, Sebastian Stan, Mia Wasikowska, Eliza Scanlon

Description: Sinister characters converge around a young man (Tom Holland) devoted to protecting those he loves in a postwar backwoods town teeming with corruption and brutality.

Review: “Do not condemn anyone, for we are all sinners”. In “The Devil All the Time”, evil lurks everywhere and in everyone. For most people, plagued by their human powerlessness, there is no escape. Nevertheless, their faith and trust in the Lord often remains as strong as ever, if only to be able to cleanse themselves of the necessary sins. Director Antonio Campos explores the good, the evil and everything in between.

Campos takes us to the remote countryside of Ohio and West Virginia, where people live in strictly Christian hamlets, or rather snake pits full of sinners, weaklings and religious extremists. In these dark surroundings Arvin Russell grows up as a man of good will, but poverty and violence also create some dark sides. His story is woven in and apart from that of his father, a tormented war veteran who only at an older age throws himself full of devotion to the Lord, a wandering serial killing couple that targets male hitchhikers, corrupt sheriff Lee Bodecker and a new pastor.

Campos knows how to tell a lot with only a few images. Effective to move the story forward, but it sometimes lacks tension. Still, this doesn’t do much harm to the film overall. The film adaptation of the literary novel by Donald Ray Pollock (who narrates the story) is very successful. Campos’ most important blessings are the beautifully shot images and atmospheric mish. And although not every character has been worked out in the same way, the strong ensemble cast effortlessly lifts the film to a higher level.

Tom Holland impresses as the skeptical young Arvin, who does everything he can to protect his loved ones and doesn’t hold back. We have not seen him in such a role before. Robert Pattinson, who plays the pastor Preston Teagardin, especially makes an impact. In recent years he has established himself as a character actor, and always manages to catch our eye. One of the strongest scenes of the film features both Holland and Pattinson. Other performances by Haley Bennett, Jason Clarke and Bill Skarsgård are also worth mentioning.

“The Devil All the Time” is gruesome, gloomy, not very hopeful, sometimes somewhat uncomfortable, but above all intriguing. This film is probably not for everyone, yet it would be a shame to not give it a chance. A true Netflix gem.

Rating: 4 / 5

Movie Review - Swallow

Director: Carlo Mirabella-Davis
Genre: Drama/ Thriller
Runtime: 94 minutes
Year: 2020
Starring: Haley Bennett, Austin Stowell, Denis O’Hare, Elizabeth Marvel, David Rasche, Luna Lauren Velez, Zabryna Guevara, Laith Nakli, Babak Tafti, Nicole Kang, Olivia Perez, Kristi Kirk, Alyssa Bresnahan, Maya Days

Description: Hunter (Haley Bennett), a newly pregnant housewife, finds herself increasingly compelled to consume dangerous objects. As her husband (Austin Stowell) and his family tighten their control over her life, she must confront the dark secret behind her new obsession.

Review: It all seems so perfect. Hunter married a rich man and she wants to do everything to make her Richie happy. Her in-laws bought them a house as a wedding gift and it turns out Hunter is pregnant. But it’s no fairytale at all, Hunter’s life feels oppressive. Everyone underestimates her, but most off all she does it herself. Hunter has to meet a lot of expectations and her life doesn’t feel hers anymore. Until she swallows a marble.
There is a disorder where people feel the urge to swallow objects that are normally not for consumption. It’s called pica, which sounds innocent. But for Hunter is anything but that. And since there is also a baby growing inside her it makes it extra risky. Or as her in-laws call it ‘the future CEO of the company’. Hunter doesn’t seem to be enjoying being pregnant, only consuming indigestible objects bring her little moments of joy. Horror and thriller have many forms. Whether it’s jump scares, gore, suspense, it does something to all of us. “Swallow” has none of these things, but because of its content it makes you shiver and cringe and there is this constant nervous vibe hanging over it. And it’s a very uncomfortable film that pays with emotions. Hunter finding a new obsession is one thing, but finding out what lead her to it is also pretty creepy.
The film is strong when it comes to style, with unusual frames and clean shots. This adds to the feelings Hunter is experiencing and the pressure she is feeling from her cold husband Richie.
“Swallow” is almost completely leaning on Haley Bennet, who doesn’t really feel at home in her new house. She has to be one-dimensional for the people around her, but to the viewers she has many layers. Bennet is excellent as Hunter.
“Swallow” is not an easy watch and has some disturbing images. And it’s also an uncomfortable watch, which definitely does something to you. In a very original way.

Rating: 4 / 5

Movie Reviews - The Red Sea Diving Resort

Director: Gideon Raff
Genre: Drama
Runtime: 129 minutes
Year: 2019
Starring: Chris Evans, Alessandro Nivola, Haley Bennett, Ben Kingsley, Greg Kinnear, Michael Kenneth Williams, Michiel Huisman, Alex Hassell

Description: Israel’s Mossad agents attempt to rescue Ethiopian Jewish refugees in Sudan in 1977.

Review: The new Netflix original film “The Red Sea Diving Resort” premiered on July 31st. The film tells the true story of a group of heroes that rescued big groups of Ethiopian Jewish refuges by working from a hotel in Sudan.
The Ethiopian civil war caused a lot of people their lives. It’s 1977. At the time, Ethiopian Jews could use the so-called ‘Law of Return’: they had the right to settle in Israel and become an Israelian citizen. In “The Red Sea Diving Resort” we see how a group of Mossad agents, led by Ari Levinson, save groups of Ethiopian Jews at the start of the 80s. Their cover: a abandoned hotel near the Red Sea, in Sudan. And since actual tourist start visiting the hotel, it’s the best cover they could ask for.
Netflix managed to assemble a great, strong cast. Chris Evans carries the film, as Ari Levinson, but is well supported by Haley Bennett, Michiel Huisman, Alessandro Nivola, Ben Kingsley and Greg Kinnear. Also worth mentioning is Michael Kenneth Williams, who also did a fantastic job in another Netflix jewel, “When They See Us”.
The civil war in Ethiopia is one of those “silent wars”, that no one was talking about and didn’t get attention. Simply no one really cared, even though a lot of people died here. The story can be compared to films like “Argo” and “Munich”, where they used an every day thing as their big cover, to rescue people. I think Ari Levinson and his group are the real heroes, also people that we never talk about. And they actually made a difference. At least to the many refugees that manage to find a safe haven because of them.
The film has a heavy theme, but manages to have some light moments here and there. For example the moment where they have to actually work in the hotel, when a group of tourists unexpectedly arrives. And there is a great montage in the film that shows how they manage to run a hotel as well as saving the refugees.
I think stories like this should never stay untold. And the perfect way is through film, because you will reach a big audience. I really loved this film, it’s a very solid movie.

Rating: 4,5/ 5

100 Movie Challenge 2016 - # 158: The Maginificent Seven

Director: Antoine Fuqua
Genre: Action/ Western/ Adventure
Runtime: 132 minutes
Year: 2016
Starring: Denzel Washington, Chris Pratt, Etha Hawke, Vincent D’Onofrio, Byung-Hun Lee, Manuel Garcia Rulfo, Martin Sendmeier, Haley Bennett, Peter Sarsgaard, Matt Bomer

Description: Seven gun men in the old west gradually come together to help a poor village against savage thieves.

Review: Remakes are dangerous and most often I don’t like them. The original “The Magnificent Seven” is one of my favorite classic westerns. This remake has a double risk. The original by John Sturgess was already a retelling of the legenday “Seven Samurai”, translated to a western. Director Antoine Fuqua doesn’t only have to fight the popularity of the 1960 film, but also has to refresh the well-known story. Luckily for us, “The Magnificent Seven” is not a bad remake.
Fuqua takes his time with the introduction and really focusses on the charisma of Denzel Washington, Chris Pratt and Ethan Hawke. All three are convincing. Washington as the calm bad-ass, Hawke as tence sharp shooter and Pratt as a cowboy with a sense of honor.
The violent opening sets a certain tone, but then “The Magnificent Seven” turns into a more standard western. Lots of action, pretty shots of landscapes and a big dose of testosterone. For the genre it’s good, but it never reaches the same level as the original.
The final battle of the movie is action packed and it’s one giant spectacle. Beautifully shot.
“The Magnificent Seven” is a good film when you think of it as an original film. When you compare it to the original, it’s better than average. Very entertaining and a good cast.

Rating: 3,5/ 5

100 Movie Challenge 2016 - # 140: The Girl on the Train

Director: Tate Taylor
Genre: Thriller/ Drama
Runtime: 112 minutes
Year: 2016
Starring: Emily Blunt, Haley Bennett, Justin Theroux, Rebecca Ferguson, Luke Evans, Laura Prepon, Allison Janney, Edgar Ramirez, Lisa Kudrow

Description: A divorcee (Emily Blunt) becomes entangled in a missing persons investigation that promises to send shockwaves throughout her life.

Review: “The Girl on the Train” has been compared to David Fincher’s “Gone Girl”. Both movie are adapted from books and are psychological thrillers, where the disappearance of a young woman is the focus. A comparison like this is dangerous, because you go in with very high expectations. For this reason alone, the movie will disappoint.
Rachel Watson is a divorcee that drinks away her tears. A happy couple that she passes every day on the train, is the only comfort in Rachel’s life. She fantasizes about their life. One day, Rachel wakes up coverend in scratches, bruises and blood. She has no idea what happened. And then the police show up, telling Rachel that Megan Hipweel went missing. The woman she has been watching on the train.
“The Girl on the Train” is a thriller that works best when you have no clue what’s it about. I read the book, so I knew what was going to happen. And director Tate Taylor stayed very close to the novel. The only difference is the location, he changed out London for New York. The movie is told from different perspectives, chapters and jumps in time. Thre is really no other way to tell this story, without giving away the twists the story has. So for the people who read the book, there are no surprises.
“The Girl on the Train” is more a plot drive film than a character drive film. The characters sometimes feel like pieces in a chess game, that are moving from one place to another until we get to the climax. The credibility of those characters is a bit lost sometimes.
Luke Evans, Edgar Ramirez and Rebecca Ferguson have strong supporting roles, but it’s without a doubt Emily Blunt that steals the show.
I read and saw so many bad reviews of “The Girl on the Train”. I liked the movie a lot, I just didn’t love it. Like I said before, it’s always dangerous to have such high expectations of a film.

Rating: 4/ 5