Category Archives: Movie Reviews

The Impossible Mission in Fallout? Keeping up the series’ good work

The Mission Impossible franchise has been an on-and-off staple of the action genre for my entire life essentially. Ever since my days as young child, Tom Cruise has been jumping on moving trains, wearing masks and getting punched in the face. And despite the series’ ongoing commitment to putting Tom Cruise through the ringer, I must admit that it wasn’t until the fourth entry (MI: Ghost Protocol) that it won me over and solidified my fan status. Ever since then, the franchise has embraced a kind of sure-footed action-fueled mania combined with humour and levity topped off with a committed lead actor and ensemble cast that made it hard to dismiss. In addition, these efforts allowed the series to join the select ranks of a few recent action franchises, that like the titular lead, does not show its age but instead seems to get better and more potent over time. Does MI: Fallout return to echo this trend or pull off its mask to reveal a broken and tired series?

Morné Venter
Morné Venter

Emerging artist and lecturer working in South Africa. Interested in messes, horror, existentialism and the creative process. Ink is my spirit medium.

http://putdownness.com/
Continue Reading →
Posted on

VIDEO: Ant-man and the Wasp Resensie #FliekInAfrikaans

Ant-man and the Wasp is die opvolg tot Marvel se kleinste superheldfliek van die laaste vier jaar – maar moenie dat die held se grootte jou afskrik nie!

Floris Groenewald
Floris Groenewald

Floris sometimes writes things when he’s not watching movies or playing video games or editing videos or folk-rock singing/songwriting.

http://www.theflow.co.za
, , , , , , , , ,
,
Posted on
Ocean's 8

Ocean’s 8 has a head for numbers

It’s easy to get confused. But Ocean’s 8 isn’t the eight movie in the series. It’s a spin-off from Steven Soderbergh’s 2000’s Ocean’s Eleven series (which were numbered sequentially up to 13) – originally a remake of the 1960 Rat Pack-starring heist film. This time there’s only a hint of original protagonist Danny Ocean (George Clooney), as the reins have been fully taken over by his sister Debbie (played by Sandra Bullock).

Floris Groenewald
Floris Groenewald

Floris sometimes writes things when he’s not watching movies or playing video games or editing videos or folk-rock singing/songwriting.

http://www.theflow.co.za
Continue Reading →
Posted on
The Incredibles 2

Does The Incredibles 2 have any relevance after a 14-year wait?

There are many that would claim that The Incredibles may just be the best Pixar film ever made (I do not fall in that camp for clarity sake but I thought it was a great film anyway). This is the Internet we are talking about so it must be true, right? It has been years. There have been tweets. There have been posts. If the Internet is to be believed, there is a large fanbase, presumably now somewhere in their 20s or 30s that anticipated the sequel to the first film with bated breath. Now, only 14 years later, we are treated to the follow-up to the 2004 classic. Will the internet masses be satiated with the return of this fantastical family in The Incredibles 2?

Morné Venter
Morné Venter

Emerging artist and lecturer working in South Africa. Interested in messes, horror, existentialism and the creative process. Ink is my spirit medium.

http://putdownness.com/
Continue Reading →
Posted on
Hereditary

Hereditary is almost exactly what I am looking for in a horror film

The revival of horror on the mainstream circuit in the last couple of years is something I am certainly grateful for. The recent upsurgence has all but restored the waning audience faith in a genre long thought to have run its course among everyone except the most stalwart of fans. All of a sudden, we are reminded of what a horror experience at the cinema can be and it paves the way for new and old directors alike to explore this dark horse genre.

However, even amongst the positivity I harbour for this new movement in horror, I struggle to escape the feeling that the candidates responsible for this particular resurgence are still held back from being truly extraordinary by convention and a certain pop culture pandering. If one was charged with putting together a compilation of our current horror zeitgeist and call that collection ‘NOW that’s what I call Horror!’ one could easily place Get Out, A Quiet Place and IT on that pantheon and people would generally agree that they deserve their place. However (continuing on this metaphorical trend), if these films are our current pop-star darlings then Hereditary comes along like a fresh genre-bending band that tears through the popular imagination and shows us what a scam the pop industry has been all this time.

Morné Venter
Morné Venter

Emerging artist and lecturer working in South Africa. Interested in messes, horror, existentialism and the creative process. Ink is my spirit medium.

http://putdownness.com/
Continue Reading →
Posted on
Jurassi World: Fallen Kingdom. (C) Universal Studios and Amblin Entertainment, Inc. and Legendary Pictures Productions, LLC.

Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom falls short but roars loud

In Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom, Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard is back as Owen and Claire, but they’ve split up and need to reconcile. They head back to the dinosaur island to rescue the doomed creatures from a volcano with a newly assembled surrogate family (but are they new? The nerds are awfully similar to Jake Johnson and Lauren Lapkus’ characters from the last movie).

Floris Groenewald
Floris Groenewald

Floris sometimes writes things when he’s not watching movies or playing video games or editing videos or folk-rock singing/songwriting.

http://www.theflow.co.za
Continue Reading →
Posted on
Solo: A Star Wars Story

Solo or: How Han doesn’t fly alone

I like to proclaim myself The Mildest Star Wars Fan in Universe™. I feel about the franchise the same way I feel about a beer every now and then, a trip to the hairdresser or a vegan meal. There are many things I am very fanatical about but Star Wars is unfortunately not one of them. Even though I am lukewarm on the franchise, I have seen all the films (except Rogue One) and I liked them for the most part. And now I find myself in the precarious position of having to review the newest film in this never-ending, ever-expanding franchise. I am going to try and approach this review from two separate lenses: the die-hard Star Wars fan and the layman casual who may or may not care about the fact that this is a Star Wars movie (that’s me).

Morné Venter
Morné Venter

Emerging artist and lecturer working in South Africa. Interested in messes, horror, existentialism and the creative process. Ink is my spirit medium.

http://putdownness.com/
Continue Reading →
Posted on