Mac's Movies

UK Release Date:   15 May 2019 Certification:  15 Director:  Chad Stahelski Cast:  Halle Berry, Mark Dacascos, Asia Kate Dillon, Laurence Fishburne, Ian McShane, Lance Reddick, Keanu Reeves Rating:   83 % "Guns, lots of guns." Review: John Wick: Chapter 3 - Parabellum is the third movie in the John Wick franchise and it's another brilliant addition.  Keanu Reeves is an excellent action star. He was amazing 20 plus years ago in The Matrix and he's still just as good well into his sixties. There are many corny lines that would sound awful if said by anyone else but Reeves can pull them off and make them work. At points the danger he's in is relentless and Keanu Reeves sells that sense of urgency. Halle Berry also excels in John Wick: Chapter 3 - Parabellum . She had clearly gone through months of training to prepare for the movie and that really shows here. My only complaint is that I would have liked to see her involved a little bit more. Ian McShane and Lan...

UK Release Date: 17 February 2017 Certification: 15 Director: Chad Stahelski Cast: Common, Laurence Fishburne, Claudia Gerini, John Leguizamo ,  Ian McShane, Lance Reddick, Keanu Reeves, Ruby Rose, Riccardo Scamarcio Rating: 73 % 'Never stab the Devil in the back'. Review: Keanu Reeves is brilliant as the title character.  John Wick was largely responsible for the 'Keanussance' and his revival, h e does the majority of the stunts himself whilst in his mid fifties which is testament to the type of actor Reeves is. He's suave and brutal but can also give an emotional, depth performance at times. And in all honesty he's just really cool. On the other hand, I didn't like Riccardo Scamarcio at all as the main villain. He didn't feel imposing, menacing or much of a threat at all and he was a bit annoying. Laurence Fishburne also didn't work for me - he didn't do anything wrong - but seeing him in the same movie as Keanu Reeves isn't a John Wick ...

UK Release Date: 15 December 2005 Certification: 12A Director: Peter Jackson Cast: Jamie Bell, Jack Black, Adrien Brody, Kyle Chandler, Colin Hanks, Thomas Kretschmann, Evan Parke, Andy Serkis, Naomi Watts Rating: 75% "It was beauty killed the beast" Review: Peter Jackson's direction is the reason King Kong works as well as it does. He's well known for his extraordinary CGI work in The Lord of the Rings and that is no different here.  Despite some of the movies flaws  King Kong  is a technical marvel to behold.  Whether it's giant insects, dinosaurs or of course Kong himself. Andy Serkis obviously motion captures Kong and he adds emotional depth the character. It's the most humanised Kong has ever felt and I loved it.  The rest of the cast may not match Serkis' performance but there are a few standouts. Jack Black is an incredible villain (I  believe he's the main antagonist of the movie). You love to hate his character, failing...

UK Release Date: 25 August 1995 Certification: 18 Director: Bryan Singer Cast: Suzy Amis, Stephen Baldwin, Gabriel Byrne, Chaz Palminteri, Kevin Pollack, Pete Postlethwaite, Kevin Spacey, Benicio Del Toro Rating: 83% "The greatest trick the devil ever pulled Wass convincing the world he didn't exist" Review: Bryan Singer's The Usual Suspects is a brilliant but unexpected 90's crime classic. From it's terrific cast to the intelligent ending I was always entertained.  Despite Kevin Spacey's controversial allegations he's a talented actor. And as always he's amazing in The Usual Suspects as Verbal Kint. He can pull off vulnerable cripple and he can pull off evil mastermind. He deservedly won an Oscar for best supporting actor due to the emotive range from facial expressions alone, It's an incredible performance. Gabriel Byrne perfectly suggests the conflict between a straight life and returning to a life of crime. Benicio Del Toro chews the s...

UK Release Date: 13 January 2021 Certification: 15 Director: Monika Mitchell Cast: Alison Araya, Matthew Finlan, David Lewis, Alyssa Milano, Sam Page, Emilie Ullerup, Malachi Weir Rating: 10% Don't waist your time watching this movie. Review: Brazen is best described as an hour and a half of my life I will never get back.  The acting is honestly dreadful. It feels like something people in drama school would produce, and that's being kind. Alyssa Milano may play the most bland character ever put to screen, she has absolutely nothing interesting about her and doesn't have a personality. Like she's been in movies before but you genuinely wouldn't be able to tell. Sam Page is dull and no more than a stereotypical detective. Malachi Weir's performance was similar but he had cool hair (either an afro or a man bun) so there's that. Every performance is monotone and nobody seems like they're even trying to have fun on set.  To help the movie's case they de...

The Terminator franchise is such a mixed bag of films. It contains some of the most iconic action sci-fi movies of all time as well as some of the worst. Being honest, I don't think there was a legitimate need to make a movie once James Cameron left the franchise, he's the reason these movies are as good as they are. Below is my ranking of The Terminator movies: 06. Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines 05. Terminator Salvation 04. Terminator Genisys 03. Terminator: Dark Fate 02. Terminator 2: Judgment Day 01. The Terminator "I'll be back" A lot of people may argue that  Terminator 2: Judgement Day  is an improvement upon the original but my favourite is  The Terminator . James Cameron is forced to work on a limited budget but is able to produce the perfect combination between horror, sci-fi and action that has aged like a fine wine.  

UK Release Date: 05 October 1980 Certification: 15  Director: Stanley Kubrick Cast: Scatman Crothers, Shelley Duvall, Danny Lloyd, Barry Nelson, Jack Nicholson, Phillip Stone  Rating:   92 % "Here's Johnny!" Review:  The Shining is an exceptional, suspenseful horror movie that is left open ended and up to interpretation due to it's brilliant but ambiguous ending.  The Shining  is my first exposure to iconic filmmaker Stanley   Kubrick, with a filmography containing movies such as; 2001: A Space Odyssey , Paths of Glory and Dr Strangelove or: How I learned to stop Worrying and Love the Bomb . His unique style is what makes the movie really work. He'd have actors shoot several takes until they became unhinged, displaying the effect The Overlook Hotel would have on them. Some of his imagery is utterly beautiful which isn't expected in a horror movie making the film utterly unique.  Jack Nicholson is mental, and I mean that in the best possi...

UK Release Date: 25 June 2014 Certification: 15 Director: Jon Favreau Cast: Emjay Anthony, Bobby Cannavale, Jon Favreau, Dustin Hoffman, Scarlett Johansson, Robert Downey Jr, John Leguizamo, Sofia Vergara Rating: 73% "I may not do everything great in my life, but I'm good at this." Review: The ensemble cast assembled for  Chef is excellent. Jon Favreau shines as struggling chef, Carl Casper, trying to restore his passion. His relationship with his estranged son, Percy - played by Emjay Anthony - is the beating heart of the movie. The bond the two form is both engrossing and sweet. John Leguizamo is entertaining as Carl's sous-chef, Martin. He adds a distinctive, spice to the movie that's fresh to see on screen.  However, I didn't enjoy Scarlett Johansson or Robert Downey Jr. in this movie. I'm not slating their performances in fact RDJ's quick cameo was my favourite aspect of the movie but that's all it was.  If they were given a bigger role, ...

UK Release Date: 19 November 2021 Certification: 12A Director: Jane Campion Cast: Benedict Cumberbatch, Kirsten Dunst, Kodi Smit-McPhee, Jesse Plemons Rating: 81% A definite best picture contender.  Review: I think the best way to describe The Power of the Dog is that it's an interesting film. A character based psychological thriller that takes a while to really get going but once it does never slows down. The tension created by Jane Campion is excellent and it keeps you guessing throughout the movie as to what is really happening and who is in control.  The Power of the Dog is full of Oscar worthy performances. Benedict Cumberbatch plays a sadistic cattle rancher, Phil Burbank, who bottles up his feelings in a character study about masculinity. In all honesty, Cumberbatch is a class above the rest, it's easily his best performance to date and I believe, alongside Andrew Garfield, he's the frontrunner for best actor. He portrays so many emotions throughout the course ...

UK Release Date: 18 November 2021 Certification: 12A Director: Jason Reitman Cast: Carrie Coon, McKenna Grace, Logan Kim, Celeste O'Connor, Paul Rudd, Finn Wolfhard Rating: 80% "I ain't afraid of no ghost" Review:  For a point of reference, I'm not the hugest fan of Ghostbusters (1984) but after the buzz around Ghostbusters: Afterlife I was excited to see a third try at a sequel. And in all honesty I preferred this movie to the original outing.  Firstly, Ghostbusters: Afterlife is an intimate film that is treated delicately and with care. The movie is directed by Jason Reitman, son of Ivan Reitman - who directed Ghostbusters - and  you can tell. He cherishes his father's source material choosing to honour it in almost every turn without the fan service feeling tacked on. And of course, the movie is dedicated to the late Harold Ramis who played ghostbuster, Eg on Spengler. It's a touching tribute that is done brilliantly by never making Egon speak a li...

UK Release Date: 03 September 2021 Certification: 12A Director: Destin Daniel Cretton Cast: Awkwafina, Fala Chen, Ben Kingsley, Tony Chiu-Wai Leung, Simu Liu, Michelle Yeoh, Meng'er Zhang Rating:   67 % "I speak ABC" Review: Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings is the MCU's take at a martial arts story inspired by movies like Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon . The movie isn't void of it's MCUisms but it's a decent o rigin story that expands the world and introduces a new likeable character.  Shang-Chi is played by Simu Liu in his breakout role. He's charismatic, caring and I'm very excited to see him as a new leading man in the MCU. But  Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings focuses on the villain and   Tony Chiu-Wai Leung is brilliant playing the real Mandarin. Destin Daniel Cretton did a good job working around the racial stereotypes that are often associated with the comic book version of the character.  He sells every emotion and  wa...

UK Release Date:   04 October 2019 Certification:  15 Director:  Todd Phillips Cast:  Zazie Beetz, Frances Conroy, Brett Cullen, Robert De Niro, Joaquin Phoenix Rating:  92% "Smile, though your heart is aching." Review: Joker  tells the origin story of Arthur Fleck who through the tribulations of society becomes the Joker. It's brilliant use of the unreliable narrator leaves you thinking about what truly happened for weeks to come.  There's only one place to start when talking about Joker and that's Joaquin Phoenix - It's his movie. His performance is one of the greatest that I've ever seen and he's still no where near as good as Heath Ledger was. I think he just about deserved his Oscar over Matt Damon for Ford v Ferrari - who somehow neither him or Christian Bale received a nomination for their roles.  It's uncomfortable to look at Arthur, he's so lean but so menacing - I can totally buy his descent into madness and depression. ...

UK Release Date: 14 September 2007 Certification: 15 Director: James Mangold Cast: Christian Bale, Russell Crowe, Peter Fonda, Ben Foster, Logan Lerman, Dallas Roberts, Vinessa Shaw, Alan Tudyk Rating: 81 % Christian Bale and James Mangold, what's not to love. Review: Westerns has never been my favourite genre   because most of the time they feel really slow so the performances have to be top notch. And they certainly are. Russel Crowe is the best he's ever been - disregarding Gladiator of course. He plays outlaw, Ben Wade, with such a terrifying arrogance and swagger that instantly drew me in to the movie. But at the same time he's charismatic, charming and cunning which makes him such a divisive and conflicted figure. Christian Bale is one of my favourite actors so I'm always interested to watch whatever he appears in. In the role of simple rancher, Dan Evans, he makes a great adversary to Ben Wade as someone who's courageous and persistent. However, 3:10 to Y...

UK Release Date: 26 January 2018 Certification: 15 Director: Nicolai Fuglsig Cast: William Fichtner, Chris Hemsworth, Navid Negahban, Michael Peña, Trevante Rhodes, Michael Shannon, Geoff Stults Rating:   52 % The Declassified True Story of the Horse Soldiers. Review: 12 Strong is a true story about 12 special forces soldiers who attempted to take down the Taliban in three weeks  following the events of 9/11 - a mission that was predicted to take two years.   The performances are really solid during the course of 12 Strong . Chris Hemsworth is likeable in the lead and it feels that for once he's playing a character who's nothing but a muscle man, instead a character who can be a bit more emotive at times. Michael Peña also impressed, with his limited screen time, as he was able to shift away from his type cast comedic role a little. Similarly, Michael Shannon is also stellar in the role. Saying all that, Navid Negahban stood out. I totally bo...

I personally believed that 2021 was a brilliant year for cinema - a return to form after the pandemic. 2022 looks set to do the same with it's heavy realise schedule. For example, DC movies such as; The Flash , Black Adam and Aquaman 2 all missed out on this list even though I would still like to see them.  If a movie has had a trailer released at this point the it will be linked below.  10. Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore (UK Release Date - 08 April 2022) 09. Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (UK Release Date - 11 November 2022) 08. Nope  (UK Release Date - 22 July 2022) 07. Avatar 2 (UK Release Date - 16 December 2022) 06. Mission: Impossible 7 (UK Release Date - 30 September 2022) 05. Knives Out 2 (UK Release Date - Expected 2022) 04. Thor: Love and Thunder (UK Release Date - 08 July 2022) 03. Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (UK Release Date - 06 May 2022) 02. Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse - Part One  (UK Release Date - 07 O...