FBI

Bill O’Neal infiltrates the Black Panther Party as an informant for FBI Agent Mitchell and J. Edgar Hoover : I didn’t know much about the Hampton story going in so Shaka King’s Judas and the Black Messiah was as much of a history lesson as it was a fine slice of character driven, tense & moving story telling that is brilliant from it’s start to it’s unsavoury finale : along with it’s score, Chicago location and a rather brief yet compelling performance by Martin Sheen as Hoover, I’m still gushing over the intensity level that Daniel Kaluuya and Lakeith Stanfield brought to their respective roles, both actors are captivating on screen and how about the wonderful Dominique Fishback as Hampton’s girlfriend WOW what a strong & sensitive part she plays in giving heart to this true story set in the late 60s where there’s no real winner and the outcome was inevitable : I don’t know how much of King’s story is how it went down but the gunfight at the chapter office with O’Neal sneaking away, the scene in the car with O’Neal being interrogated by two BPP members suspicious of his antics and that sureal, heart stopping moment when Hampton and his Panthers meet with the Crowns are amongst the many highlights of this tremendous biopic : a MUST watch ★★★★

ANT-MAN and THE WASP : Peyton Reed
Paul Rudd, Evangeline Lilly, Michael Douglas, Michael Pena

Like most I’ve been a huge fan of Evangeline Lilly since Lost back in 2004 (shit !! is it really that long) and she absolutley nails it as The Wasp in Peyton Reed’s hilarious action packed sequel Ant-Man and The Wasp her action scenes, chemistry with Rudd’s Ant-Man and Daddy Douglas is perfection and I will be first to shout the loudest for a Wasp stand-alone movie – it was ALSO rad seeing the exciting Hannah John-Kamen play Ava aka: Ghost in what is an awesome twist on the comic books & one that works so well – And what about ANTonioBanderas damn I nearly fell off my seat laughing – Overall this sequel may not be quite as good as the first film but it comes bloody close, it’s pace at times is breathtaking, Paul Rudd combines everyday dad with superhero wonderfully well and once again surprises with his timing during the action pieces, in fairness he’s brilliant – the films overall look & CGI is stunning, the effects are like a mixture of Men in Black and Honey I Shrunk the Kids except TEN TIMES better SO if you love comicbook movies or just fancy 2hrs of pure entertainment then don’t wait for it’s bluray release (you know where the cinema is) ★★★★

MISSION IMPOSSIBLE: FALLOUT : Christopher McQuarrie
Tom Cruise, Rebecca Ferguson, Simon Pegg, Ving Rhames & Henry Cavill

HOLY HELL now that’s what I call an action movie – this is not only the third movie directed by McQuarrie that stars Cruise but it’s also their best work together – I loved every single second of this exciting thrill ride, full of the most insane stunts, car chases that make Bullit and The French Connection look amateur and a storyline that’s easily the best of the Mission Impossible franchise – along with Cruise’s Ethan Hunt we get more screentime for Benji and Luther and Fallout also sees the return of Ilsa Faust played by the exciting, beautiful and totally badass Rebecca Ferguson, but one of the highlights of this sixth installment has to be the injection of Henry Cavill who plays CIA operative August Walker an insane assassin and a bloody good one at that, amongst his best scenes in the movie is that most talked about bathroom brawl and I SHIT YOU NOT this has to be one of the best in the history of cinematic bathroom brawls IT’S BONE CRUNCHING AWESOME – along with Cruise’s energy and them incredible stunts he pulls off the guy is so infectious, his teenage-like smile and passion for what he does comes across on the screen and he’s an absolute joy to watch, and in Ethan Hunt he’s built in my opinion the greatest spy franchise there is, consisently great in every department – Overall Mission Impossible: Fallout IS A MUST WATCH on the Biggest and Baddest screen you can find, load your guns with popcorn & a beverage and get ready to be WOWED ★★★★½

MOTHER ! (2017) : Darren Aronofsky
Jennifer Lawrence, Javier Bardem, Ed Harris and Michelle Pfeiffer

a little Polanski, slices of Kubrick but mostly MOTHER ! is Darren Aronofsky at his twisted, nightmarish best – those who knock the creativity on the big screen then take a good look, admire and be blown away by this original slice of movie making, the big screen was made for this. Javier Bardem is great as the mysterious husband but who would have dreamt up Ed Harris & Michelle Pfeiffer as a married couple? Aronofsky did and let’s thank the gods, they ooze chemistry, drip intrigue and look so bonkers together it’s unreal. Overall Mother! is a powerful, emotional and stunning piece of original movie making – the star of the movie is Jennifer Lawrence who is in my opinion one of the screens modern great film stars, she captivates her audience with boundless energy, natural beauty and raw emotion – she truly does give Aronofsky’s Mother! it’s heart ★★★★½

WIND RIVER (2017) : Taylor Sheridan
Jeremy Renner, Elizabeth Olsen, Gil Birmingham, Jon Bernthal

WIND RIVER is directed by the talent that is Taylor Sheridan the filmmaker who penned Sicario and Hell or High Water – the film is based on a true story and covers the dark, terrifying subject matter of the disappearance of young women in an indian reservation town in Wyoming – although Taylor Sheridan deserves the plaudits for his smart script & direction kudos must also go to Ben Richardson for his photography that captures the harshness of the terrain and simplicty of each character – this is Jeremy Renner’s best performance since Hurt Locker, he really is a quality actor who gives a towering display playing this humble, loss driven wildlife tracker who finds the body of a girl in the snowy terrain – Renner is backed up onscreen brilliantly by the impressive, natural Elizabeth Olsen who once again demonstrates her ability to inhabit a character making it believable to us the audience, her FBI character is one of determination and will stop at nothing to uncover the truth – Wind River is a haunting, gutsy thriller ★★★★

IT (2017) : Andy Muschietti
Jaeden Lieberher, Bill Skarsgård, Sophia Lillis, Finn Wolfhard

I absolutley loved Stephen King’s IT and was a huge fan of the 1990 mini-series so when I heard that Andy Muschietti was bringing it to the big screen and the fabulous talent of Bill Skarsgard was playing Pennywise the Clown I was intrigued, excited and pretty much beside myself counting down the months to opening – well having now seen the movie I can honestly say that Muschietti has delivered the goods, not only does the film do justice to King’s novel but it will scare the holy moly out of you, it’s more brutal, uncompromising than the 90’s mini-series, it’s also jam packed full of typical King humor, great music and some inspired casting in the form of the Losers Club – for me Skarsgård deserves some award love for his dark, twisted portrayal of Pennywise the dancing clown, the menace of his vocals and his terrifying appearance certainly scared me and was actually pretty acurate to the book – I was also blown away by the lovely Sophia Lillis who is destined for greatness, her Beverly was played like a John Hughes character, sweet, aluring exterior with a gritty tough interior – them difficult scenes with her onscreen dad and the bloody bathroom were handled with a self assured maturity that will no doubt make her a huge star in the future and I must also mention the young Stranger Things star Finn Wolfhard who was dynamite as Richie, his expressions and funny one liners erupted the cinema in laughter on several occassions, he was so good – overall IT is a refreshing R Rated Horror Movie that will give you night terrors as you eagerly await it’s sequel ★★★★½

Imperium (2016) – Film Review

Posted by absolutebadasses on August 25, 2016

Posted in: Movie Reviews, Reviews. Tagged: cinema, daniel radcliffe, daniel ragussi, defend your nation, FBI, film, film geek, film review, imperium, imperium film review, imperium movie, movie, movie fan, poster, racist ideology, sam tramell, toni collette, White supremacy. Leave a comment

Daniel Ragussi’s directorial movie debut IMPERIUM is a solid, well written thriller with two good performances from Radcliffe and Collette and one exceptionally creepy one from True Blood’s Sam Trammell – the film’s subject matter is no doubt disturbing and is handled well by Ragussi but it’s darkness is too often conveyed by flashing images, often thrown together in a serious of video montages instead of being built into the film narrative, these montages work to a degree but for me personally I never felt Radcliffe’s character was in any serious danger and his cover looked more routine than it should have been – Overall Daniel Ragussi’s Imperium is a good watch and even though I felt slightly unsatisfied with it’s conclusion I would recommend it and look forward to seeing more from it’s director in the future !! ★★★½

THE WOLF OF WALL STREET (2013/4) – Movie Review ★★★★½

The Wolf of Wall Street stars Leonardo DiCaprio, Matthew McConaughey, Jonah Hill, Margot Robbie, Kyle Chandler, Rob Reiner, Jon Bernthal and Jean Dujardin – From the director of Taxi Driver and Goodfellas Martin Scorsese comes the true life story of stockbroker Jordan Belfort, a man living the high life that’s full of wild parties, wild women and shit loads of money but it’s also a life full of crime, deception and security fraud and a life that is being investigated by the FBI – VERDICT this is the fifth collaboration between DiCaprio and Scorsese and easily their best, if your looking for the Scorsese who brought us 2011’s sentimental, personal look at the magic of cinema in Hugo then you may find this picture a disappointment as The Wolf of Wall Street is a 3 hour orgy of black humor, drug taking and sexual undertaking that’s not for the faint hearted – DiCaprio commands proceedings, his energy and maturity is riverting taking center stage playing Jordan Belfort with a madness and a charm reminiscent of the great Jack Nicholson in his prime, he is that good that I can’t think of another living actor that could have done this role justice – DiCaprio is well supported by the likes of Jonah Hill now a two times Oscar Nominee who is delightfully funny as Belfort’s friend and partner in crime Donnie, Matthew McConaughey playing Belfort’s mentor Mark Hannah is both hilarious & mesmerizing and the emergence of the gorgeous, sexy Margot Robbie who plays Belfort’s wife is a revelation – there are too many fabulous moments in the movie so I won’t name them all but Belfort’s drug trip with Donnie and that drive from the club house to the mansion is genius and the moment when Belfort explains the name change to his employees “Stratton Oakmount” and sets about demonstrating on how to reel in a client is both hilarious & masterfully executed – Scorsese’s picture also includes some beautiful photography, a smart script by Boardwalk Empire’s Terence Winter and some well used musical soundbites that fit their intended scene in an exciting gorgeous fashion – overall Martin Scorsese’s The Wolf of Wall Street is a modern masterpiece that’s full of delicious humor, brilliant editing and full of dazzling, captivating performances – this may not be the best Scorsese picture I have seen but it would certainly make top 5….