Movie Picks 31/5/18

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Den of Thieves - 8 out of 10

Expectations were low for this as I had heard some mixed reviews but I thought it was a great heist and crime movie. If you go in expecting this film to revolutionise the genre you'd be sadly underwhelmed, however this is everything you want and imagine from a good action based heist movie. I thought it was very entertaining with some pretty damn good characters which, shocked me and yet kept me hooked.

Gerard Butler is fantastic in his role as the bad ass cop, and Pablo Schreiber, his equal on the opposite side of the law. gave this movie a great pace and great presence. It had some brilliant action sequences thrown in that were superbly directed by Christian Gudegast. 

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 Hostiles - 7 out of 10

I do love a western, sadly we don't tend to get many good ones in the modern era. Thankfully this Scott Cooper directed movie provides a fairly decent one. I know full well this genre does not appeal to the majority, many find westerns a tad drab and dull, when I recommend them. But if you are a fan of the style then I think this one is more than worth the viewing. Christian Bale is excellent and provides great strength to a character who has to change his perception of what sort of man he is throughout the film, as he deals with escorting a native american across the state. 

Rosamund Pike also provides a great performance as the grieving wife and mother, This movie provides not only a good bit of action but some superb drama too. Overall though, it's predictable and steady, but don't let that put you off this adventure! It's still a very credible and watchable addition to the western genre.

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Game Night - 7 out of 10

Comedy films fall into two categories, those that actually make you laugh out loud and those other ones which are too cheesy with little laughs and, in the end, make you feel dirty for watching after. Well no need for a shower here, this is actually one of the good ones.

Jason Bateman and Rachel McAdams are excellent in this damn funny movie focusing on a couple who always host game night. I know, I know it sounds duller than the western I just recommended, right?

But on this particular game night, Bateman's brother gets taken hostage. At first the gang of players think it's part of a murder mystery style game, but it's real, and they whimsically carry on to try and solve the "fake" kidnapping, resulting in  ending up in a lot of dangerous situations. The key to any comedy is making me laugh and although this is a cheesy, comedy film, this one had me roaring at some moments, and overall, if i laugh like that, the films a damn entertaining one. Easily one of the best straight up comedy films I have watched for a while.

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Thoroughbreds - 6 out of 10

This movie focuses on the story of two young girls, former friends who reunite in a very awkward arrangement where one is paid by the others mother. But despite all of this, they form an unlikely bond leaing them to hatch a plan to solve their problems.

There is a very odd atmosphere to this movie that really I wasn't too sure about, I thought the two leads, Olivia Cooke and Anya Taylor-Joy, were utterly fantastic in their roles, but there was just something so utterly odd about it.

Perhaps it was the disjointed, and often distracting music, playing random times throughout. It wasn't exactly music, it wasn't exactly soundtrack, in fact it could have been mistaken for just someone washing pots and pans in the background out of shot. 

Despite the distractions and the weird vibe, the two girls did their utmost to keep the film funny. Yes, it underwhelmed slightly to the comparisons of "Heathers". Yet I would give it a pretty amicable 6. A decent watch, especially for the girls performances but this is not one I would be clambering back to. 

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Tomb Raider - 5 out of 10

Ok .... where do I begin, this isn't a terrible movie, not by a long shot, but it's also not a very good one.

Alicia Vikander for me really struggles to engage the audience to an already much loved character in Lara Croft. It's a bit of a muddled backstory to begin as it focuses on a missing father. Trying to show you her adventurous side in the city during a cyclist game of cat and mouse kind of set the tone for what would is a very average, underwhelming addition to the tomb raider franchise. 

Back in the day when i was a spotty teenager, I loved the Tomb Raider games, and if I am being honest, all this film did was make me long for my youth and dig out an old game. It was so predictable, and of course there were some decently shot action sequences. Notice many of them failed to flatter around the very basic storyline. The major plot points, meant to surprise you, are beyond predictable and actually made the film just look ridiculous.

But perhaps, most disappointing was the lack of Lara Croft's signature two pistol moments...poor form and that's why this gets a bang average "only watch this when hungover on a sunday" 5 out of 10.