Movie Review - Companion

Director: Drew Hancock
Genre: Science Fiction/ Thriller
Runtime: 97 minutes
Year: 2025
Starring: Sophie Thatcher, Jack Quaid, Lukas Gage, Megan Suri, Rupert Friend, Harvey Guillen
 
Description: A weekend getaway with friends at a remote cabin turns into a chaos after it’s revealed that one of the guests is not what they seem.
 
Review: “Companion” is a crazy genre mix full of plot twists and ingenious jokes. So it goes without saying that the film is best enjoyed without any prior knowledge.
 
A group of young people go away for the weekend to a remote house, where things don’t go as planned. The sweet, somewhat naïve Iris is tagging along with her new boyfriend Josh to spend it with his friends. It becomes clear early on that the film is set in a near future. AI has taken off an become an integral part of society. Josh has a self-driving car, that is operated by his voice. The on-board computer does the rest. It takes a bit longer to realize that there is more than a hint of unease in the relationship between Iris and Josh. While she idealizes their relationship as a model of romantic perfection, he is more of a rough-and-ready type. When Irisi indicates that she is a little nervous about meeting his his friends, who don’t really like her, Josh dismisses her concerns with a lighthearted ‘everything will be fine, just don’t be weird’.   
 
The tone is set for the weekend when they arrive and here to come are many plot twists. And when you think there can not be anymore surprises, there are. Jack Quaid is really good I his role, as a bit of a jerk to the mostly likeable characters he usually plays. But a round of applause for Sophie Thatcher. What a wonderful performance!
 
I really loved this film, it’s unique and original and just kept surprising. And Thacher really stole the show. But please, go see this film without watching the trailer.
 
Rating: 4,5/ 5

Movie Review - Jurassic World: Rebirth

Director: Gareth Edwards
Genre: Adventure/ Action/ Science Fiction
Runtime: 133 minutes
Year: 2025
Starring: Scarlett Johansson, Jonathan bailey, Mahershala Ali, Rupert Friend
 
Description: An expedition braves isolated equatorial regions to extract DNA from three massive prehistoric creatures for a groundbreaking medical breakthrough.
 
Review: It’s hardly a surprise that another Jurassic World movie is hitting theaters. Although the trilogy that began in 2015 became increasingly criticized as the movies progressed, those films still managed to earn billions.  

This new installment is set on an yet another island with a lot of dinosaurs. Scientists of Jurassic World experimented with creating new, mutated dinosaurs. Apparently, a Tyrannosaurus Rex is no longer interesting enough for the general public, so different species of dinosaurs were created. It’s therefore up to the characters in “Jurassic World: Rebirth” to collect the blood of three of the largest dinosaurs still roaming the planet.

This setup is a great excuse to bring a whole lot of different dinosaurs back to the big screen, but is also manages to surprise us with the human characters we follow. Doctor Henry Loomis, for example, is a nice mix of Alan Grant’s love for dinosaurs and Ian Malcolm’s view of the place of humans alongside the animals. Both Scarlett Johansson and Mahershala Ali give their, basically fairly simple, mercenary characters a deeper layer, making it easy to empathize with them. I didn’t really care much about the family in this group though. Even though they are part of one of the coolest scenes in the movie, starring good old T-Rex, I didn’t care about them as much as the original group. When they were clearly added to the story for that specific reason.

The films offers new things, but it does still mostly feel like a repeat exercise. There are many moments that step back in familiar territory, scenes that feel the same as ones we’ve seen in the others movies. But then just slightly different. The most clear example is a scene that strongly resembles the iconic kitchen scene in “Jurassic Park”.

Reviews aren’t nice, but I believe that it’s invalid. People are expecting that it could top or just even be close to the original masterpiece from Steven Spielberg. “Jurassic Park” had so much more to it and is a timeless film. And to be honest, it will never get topped. Thus people should stop expected that. For what it is, “Jurassic World: Rebirth” is good looking, entertaining, adventure film, the perfect popcorn flick. And I’m a little biased, because I have loved everything in this franchise, because I love dinosaurs. I enjoyed it and liked it, you can’t change my mind!

Rating: 3,5/ 5

TV Show Review - Obi-Wan Kenobi (Mini Series)

Season: Mini Series

Genre: Adventure/ Action/ Drama/ Science Fiction

Number of episodes: 6

Year: 2022

Starring: Ewan McGregor, Hayden Christensen, Jimmy Smits, Joel Edgerton, Moses Ingram, Vivien Lyra Blair, Rupert Friend, James Earl Jones, Kumail Nanjiani, O’Shea Jackson,

Description: Jedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi (Ewan McGregor) has to save young Leia after she is kidnapped, all the while being pursued by Imperial Inquisitors and his former Padawan, now known as Darth Vader.

 

Review: Ewan McGregor has never made a secret of his desire to don Obi-Wan Kenobi’s Jedi cloak and take up his lightsaber again. At first, there was talk about a standalone film, but eventually the producers of the Star Wars series opted for a six-part miniseries. McGregor is visibly enjoying himself, but  is actually reduced to a supporting actor. The story, in fact, revolves mainly around the ten-year-old Princess Leia and the rise of Darth Vader. Nevertheless, for fans it is still a feast of recognition.

“Obi-Wan Kenobi” is set between episode III and IV, thus forming a solif bridge between the original and the prequel trilogy. You might even tentatively conclude that this series makes that hated second trilogy more palatable, as “Revenge of the Sith” is tied to this first trilogy opener, A New Hope.

It is a few years after the battle on the volcanic planet Mustafar, where Anakin Skywalker, who had turned to the dark side, came away from the battle battered. With all kinds of artifice we see how he recovers and has the iconic Darth Vader suit hoisted, which provides him with an artificial face provided by James Earl James (in his nineties now). It will lead to cheers for fans, and this puts even more puzzle pieces in place. In particular, a fight scene in the final episode will be able to please many because it brings together nostalgia and new angles.

Whereas “The Mandalorian” had its main charm offensive in the form of Grogy (aka Baby Yoda aka The Child), the creators of this series got to work with a ten-year-old Princess Leia. Unlike the viewer, she has no idea who her real parents are or that she has a twin brother, who grows up in anonymity on Tatooine. Leia is played by Vivien Lyra Blair, who steals the show in every episode. She is smart, witty, but not pedantic or irritating, like a lot of children in movies are.

It's a nice touch that continuity with the movies has been provided by having all the actors still available reprise their characters, even though some have visibly aged and other appear in only one scene.

 

Unlike previous Star Wars series, all sex episodes of “Obi-Wan Kenobi:  were directed by the same person: Deborah Chow. She also directed tow episodes of “The Mandalorian”, and this time around her work shows consistent direction in a series is still most remiscent of the prequel trilogy in terms of looks.

“Obi-Wan Kenobi” is a better series then “The Book of Boba Fett”, but doesn’t manage to climb over “The Mandalorian”, but it forms a finely rounded story. It lacks a real soul like in “The Mandalorian”, but for a Star Wars fan it is still a must-see.

10s Movie Review - A Simple Favor

Director: Paul Feig
Genre: Crime/ Comedy/ Drama/ Thriller
Runtime: 117 minutes
Year: 2018
Starring: Anna Kendrick, Blake Lively, Rupert Friend, Henry Golding, Linda Cardellini

Description: Stephanie (Anna Kendrick) is a single mother with a parenting vlog who befriends Emily (Blake Lively), a secretive upper-class woman who has a child at the same elementary school. When Emily goes missing, Stephanie takes it upon herself to investigate.

Review: Director Paul Feig is known for his comedies, like “Bridesmaids” and “Spy”, but also gave us the reboot of “Ghostbusters”. He decided to exchange the comedy for thriller. But he never manages to completely lose the comedy/ slap stick element, which changes the dynamic of this crime thriller.
Stephanie is a widow, taking care of het son Miles all by herself. To earn money, she makes ‘mommy vlogs’. When Miles wants to have a playdate with his school friend Nicky, Stephanie meets Emily. Emily is an upper-class woman with a sharp edge and a mysterious vibe. The two become friends. When one day, Emily asks Stephanie to pick her son from school, Emily disappears. Together with Emily’s husband Sean, Stephanie starts her own search for het new friend.
The best things about the film are actresses Anna Kendrick and Blake Lively. They shine in their roles and are perfectly cast. And they work very well together and apart.
The sloppy script and strange directorial choices make you forget about all that, sadly. The film is set up as a crime film, about a missing friend. But in between it has some comical touches here and there. Towards the end, it feels strange, especially because there was a very serious plot twist before. I don’t think Feig really knew where he wanted to got with the tone of the film, he couldn’t find a balance. He tried to much at once. And because of that it sometimes feels like a parody on the thriller genre. But without convincing comedy. I actually feels more like a very long episode of “Desperate Housewives”, only less enjoyable.
The film had a great set-up and a good start. And two fantastic actresses filling in the main roles. But sadly that wasn’t enough to save the film.

Rating: 2,5 / 5

Movie Reviews - The Death fo Stalin

Director: Armando Iannucci
Genre: Comedy
Runtime: 106 minutes
Year: 2017
Starring: Steve Buscemi, Simon Russell Beale, Rupert Friend, Jason Isaacs, Jeffrey Tambor, Andrea Riseborogh, Olga Kurylenko, Paddy Considine, Michael Palin, Tom Brooke

Description: Follows the Soviet dictator's last days and depicts the chaos of the regime after his death.

Review: It’s a rather bizarre story, that probably a lot of people don’t even know, but it’s worth it: the death of Sovjet dictator Stalin. Under his command, hundred thousand political opponents were executed or send to the Goelag. It seems that six to nine million people lost their lives under the command of Stalin. No wonder that, when Stalin was found unconscious in his office, help didn’t come running. With this starting point, director Armando Iannucci brings us the somewhay genius “The Death of Stalin”. A tragic comedy.
After Stalin was founf, it took another three days before he was actually dead. The stories of how he was pronounced dead are legendary. But the fight for power after the dictator’s death is also very interesting. These two subjects center this story. Iannucci based his screenplay on a graphic novel by Fabien Nury. And the way this film is styled is pretty remarkable and interesting. All the dialogue is in English and all the actors speak in their own accents, British, American.
The film is also filled with beautiful observations and detail. And in a dark way, this makes the film funnier. Especially the fight for power, after Stalin’s death, were there is a lot of betrayal and stabbing each other in the back. “The Death of Stalin” is sometimes painfully funny. Because you realize that most of it actually happened. The absurd fight for power and they way some situations go.
It’s not a film everyone will see the humor of, but I think for people who enjoy learning about history, it’s a film to watch.

Rating: 4 / 5