Mousehold Mackem
Midfield
Watched ten minutes then gave up. HG will be spinning.
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SMB Film Thread 2025
- Thread starter Fletch73
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Watched ten minutes then gave up. HG will be spinning.
Speakeasy
Full Back
Bring Her Back (2025)
Horror movie from New Zealand with the fantastic Sally Hawkins in the lead role, plus a bunch of mostly young, unknown New Zealand actors. It's a powerful look at grief, motherhood and childhood trauma. And it's absolutely bloody terrifying! Very effective as a horror movie in that it wasn't just daft 'jump scares', it was proper uncomfortable, squirming in the cinema seat, 'watching through the fingers' levels of creepiness.
I've seen some reviews criticise the fact that there's not a lot of attempt to explain things, but to be honest I prefer horror films like that. Usually when they try and give full explanations in the third act for whatever weird shit is going on, the movie falls apart into nonsense. I prefer things left up to the imagination, just increases the creepiness IMO.
8/10
Horror movie from New Zealand with the fantastic Sally Hawkins in the lead role, plus a bunch of mostly young, unknown New Zealand actors. It's a powerful look at grief, motherhood and childhood trauma. And it's absolutely bloody terrifying! Very effective as a horror movie in that it wasn't just daft 'jump scares', it was proper uncomfortable, squirming in the cinema seat, 'watching through the fingers' levels of creepiness.
I've seen some reviews criticise the fact that there's not a lot of attempt to explain things, but to be honest I prefer horror films like that. Usually when they try and give full explanations in the third act for whatever weird shit is going on, the movie falls apart into nonsense. I prefer things left up to the imagination, just increases the creepiness IMO.
8/10
I really liked it, but for one thing that just felt off
the lad just died rather suddenly
Agree with this too.28 Years Later.
Been looking forward to this.
Heard 1st half better than second and that is certainly true.
Some pretty big plot holes etc.
Wtf was the last scene?
Enjoyed it anyway 7.2/10
Nowhere near the train wreck it’s claimed to be. But also nowhere near the original. I feel Rage now just seems to be caveman.
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Monty Pigeon
Striker
Half a Loaf of Kung Fu (1978) 6/10
Early Jackie Chan - here he plays a lowly acrobat who assumes the identity of a kung fu master. Low production values but a few good comic action sequences.
Two-Way Stretch (1960) 7/10
Peter Sellers is part of a gang planning a diamond heist the day before their release from prison, giving them the perfect alibi. A showcase for British character actors.
Swimming Home (2024) 5/10
A couple return to their Greek villa and find a woman they don't know floating naked in their swimming pool. Very weird adaptation of a novel by Deborah Levy.
Early Jackie Chan - here he plays a lowly acrobat who assumes the identity of a kung fu master. Low production values but a few good comic action sequences.
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Two-Way Stretch (1960) 7/10
Peter Sellers is part of a gang planning a diamond heist the day before their release from prison, giving them the perfect alibi. A showcase for British character actors.
You must be logged on to see media items
Swimming Home (2024) 5/10
A couple return to their Greek villa and find a woman they don't know floating naked in their swimming pool. Very weird adaptation of a novel by Deborah Levy.
You must be logged on to see media items
Doogie Hauser
Midfield
Yeah, Half A Loaf of Kung Fu is pretty typical for Jackie’s output in that era. It’s ok, but not a patch on his 1978 stuff under Yuen Woo-ping.
Just started Jurassic World Rebirth.
First impressions..they seem to have filmed this on pandora.
First impressions..they seem to have filmed this on pandora.
Doogie Hauser
Midfield
I quite enjoyed that in the same way that I enjoyed the third JP. It’s very stripped back. I wouldn’t say it was particularly thrilling or anything, but I liked its back to basics approach.
The problem with it is, it’s highly derivative. There’s brief callbacks to other films, sure, but I’m on about whole sequences lifted. And all it does is highlight what a masterclass Spielberg put on in the original. There’s a stalking scene indoors, which has zero tension compared to the kitchen bit in JP1, where he used reflections and careful editing to build a sense of menace.
There’s several moments where characters do something insanely stupid considering the situation, and it just grates.
The opening action scene on the boat is entertaining enough, but also highlights how much better Godzilla Minus One handled a similar situation.
It’s like Rebirth is a greatest hits parade of similar films, including from its own franchise, but all the originals did things more effectively.
Having said that, I respect the honesty of the film. It’s just an adventure on a dinosaur island, and I did enjoy it, for what it is, it’s fine. It’ll never recapture the thrill of the original, but it’s a canny enough entry, and doesn’t have the annoying chod of most of the last trilogy. I liked the way they didn’t make the whole thing about the D. Rex, whereas in the last trilogy, it would have been all about that.
So far it feels like Jaws more than Jurassic Park. Nothing bad about it so far although I do find the over FXed islands a bit much (hence the pandora jibe).
I could watch Scarlett Johansson smother shite on herself though so that helps
.
“I got the bag” is no substitute for “well, we’re back in the car again”
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Doogie Hauser
Midfield
So far it feels like Jaws more than Jurassic Park. Nothing bad about it so far although I do find the over FXed islands a bit much (hence the pandora jibe).
I could watch Scarlett Johansson smother shite on herself though so that helps
.
“I got the bag” is no substitute for “well, we’re back in the car again”
She pretty much holds the whole thing together, cast wise.
Well so far it’s well above any of the World films imo. Maybe that’s down to the cast and Gareth Edwards.
Doogie Hauser
Midfield
Edwards is definitely a factor. He has a decent understanding of kaiju-type stuff.
Yeah 100%, I even liked The Creator which I get was quite marmite.
3/4s through now and if I had to comment I’d say it’s my favourite after the original. As someone who hated Lost World, enjoyed JPIii as a daft alternate universe and then thought World was just okish followed by the pure rancid shite of Fallen Kingdom, that doesn’t sound like a ringing endorsement but aye, enjoyed this.
I’d call it an old fashioned blockbuster.
Doogie Hauser
Midfield
This is what I mean - it’s honest. It could never replicate the newness or tension of the original, but it’s a decent adventure that stays focused on one goal in a proper location (hence why I said it reminded me of JP3).
I liked Lost World when it first came out, but that final sequence is awful. The whole thing feels a bit rushed and unfocused. The best scene in it for me was the trailers over the cliff bit, because it was more in keeping with the original.
JP3 was very stripped back and streamlined. Part of it was in the style of a horror film, with the Spinosaurus seemingly stalking them, and the pterosaur sequence.
World was alright. The other two I’m not a fan of at all.
When I saw previews of this I was worried the young lass was going to be like Jeff Goldblums daughter in Lost World and do ridiculous gymnastics and that. Thank god they didn’t go down that route, she’s actually alright.
A few got funny about the mutants, but I don’t mind them, especially the raptor bit
Yeah have enjoyed this a lot. I think contained stories may the way forward.
Edit. Unless they do what I read suggested on Reddit - make the first two books faithfully on HBO and go all in.
I’d love that. Invisible Dino’s et al (read Lost World, it’s much much better than the basically unrelated movie).
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Doogie Hauser
Midfield
When I saw previews of this I was worried the young lass was going to be like Jeff Goldblums daughter in Lost World and do ridiculous gymnastics and that. Thank god they didn’t go down that route, she’s actually alright.
A few got funny about the mutants, but I don’t mind them, especially the raptor bit
Yeah have enjoyed this a lot. I think contained stories may the way forward.
I did like the mutants in Rebirth.
The D Rex is like some big lumbering rancor thing, and I liked the way it was a sideline. Just one final obstacle to be navigated. They’ve done the super killer thing already in World, so I’m pleased they showed the ugly nightmare creation as something that wasn’t just a super dino.
Aye totally agree.
Critics bemoaned it but there’s no coincidence it’s the biggest grossing of the summer blockbusters by some margin - currently 250m more than Superman iirc - which I enjoyed a lot.
Doogie Hauser
Midfield
When I saw previews of this I was worried the young lass was going to be like Jeff Goldblums daughter in Lost World and do ridiculous gymnastics and that. Thank god they didn’t go down that route, she’s actually alright.
A few got funny about the mutants, but I don’t mind them, especially the raptor bit
Yeah have enjoyed this a lot. I think contained stories may the way forward.
Edit. Unless they do what I read suggested on Reddit - make the first two books faithfully on HBO and go all in.
I’d love that. Invisible Dino’s et al (read Lost World, it’s much much better than the basically unrelated movie).
I read the two novels years ago but can’t remember much about them - apparently the daft bit form Rebirth was in the original novel, but there wasn’t even a flicker of recognition!
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