"We're not critics. We're professional fan-girls." --- This blog is dedicated to movies and the entertainment industry. We use random selection to bring into light the best and worst of streaming films and entertainment news.
Streaming Services: Netflix Movie Name/Year: Enola Holmes (2020) Genre: Adventure, Crime, Drama Length: 123 minutes Rating: PG-13 Production/Distribution: PCMA Productions, Legendary Pictures, Warner Bros.
Pictures, EH Productions, Netflix Director: Harry Bradbeer Writers: Nancy Springer, Jack Thorne Actors: Millie Bobby Brown, Henry
Cavill, Sam Claflin, Helena Bonham Carter, Louis Partridge, Burn Gorman, Adeel
Akhtar, Susan Wokoma, Hattie Morahan, David Bamber, Frances de la Tour, Claire
Rushbrook, Fiona Shaw, Gaby French, Paul Copley, Ellie Haddington, Alex Kelly,
James Duke, Connor Catchpole, Sarah Flind, Sofia Stavrinou, Sophie Dixon, Mary
Roscoe, Tuyen Do, Esther Coles, Owen Atlas, Gianni Calchetti Blurb from IMDb: When Enola Holmes-Sherlock's
teen sister-discovers her mother missing, she sets off to find her, becoming a
super-sleuth in her own right as she outwits her famous brother and unravels a
dangerous conspiracy around a mysterious young Lord.
Cat’s Point of View: Where do I even begin? I have been fairly chomping at the
bit while waiting for Enola Holmes to
be released. The game was afoot the moment I watched the trailer. The concept
of this film is appealing to me on several levels. Needless to say, I was
excited enough that I have been hell-bent to get this review written for you,
whether I have pinched-nerve pain or not. (Thankfully, that’s all my arm issue
has been, and not something more lasting or dire.)
I am a Sherlock Holmes fan, even if not an up-to-date one. I
haven’t seen the BBC series of recent years, but I have watched previous
iterations as well as the 2009 and 2011 blockbuster movies. I think it was a
bloody brilliant idea for Henry Cavill (The
Man from U.N.C.L.E., Mission: Impossible - Fallout, Night Hunter) to step
into the role of the legendary gumshoe. His wit, charm, and native English
dialect lend themselves well to the role and made the casting choice rather
elementary.
The cast was also a large draw to this feature. Had the production team decided to give this film a theater distribution, it had the
potential to be a serious box-office draw under non-pandemic circumstances.
With that said, I’m ever so grateful that the decision was made to partner with
Netflix for the release. Production has slowed to a crawl or has been full-stop
delayed all-together for The Witcher
(2019-) Season 2 and Stranger Things (2016-)
Season 4, respectively, due to the pandemic. While I’ve been yearning for the
next installments of those favorite series to get into gear again, this movie provided
the perfect opportunity for the warm fuzzy feels from seeing actors from both
share the screen in the same production. (I’m having withdrawal, okay? It’s
been over a year for Stranger Things.
I’m used to getting a more predictable fix.)
Getting back to the point, I was excited to see Millie Bobby
Brown (Once Upon a Time in Wonderland,
Intruders, Godzilla: King of the Monsters) in the lead role here. I
honestly couldn’t picture anyone else playing the part of the titular
character. Some may not have enjoyed the occasional 4th wall breaks
sprinkled throughout the movie, but I found them endearing. I loved being
included in the shenanigans. Of course, I can’t forget Helena Bonham Carter (Ocean's 8, The Dark Crystal: Age of
Resistance, The Crown). Her presence as the Holmes siblings’ mother is
quite fitting. These two were the perfect pair to portray the fierce
independence of their characters amidst the feminist movement of Victorian
England.
Sam Claflin (The Quiet
Ones, Adrift, Me Before You) has no small part here, either. I almost didn’t
recognize him – but his performance was memorable as the more traditional and
set-in-his-ways judgemental brother.
I could ramble forever, but I’ll try not to digress too far.
The cinematography was excellent here. Everything flowed
really well and I nearly didn’t realize the passing of time at all. Another
draw to the film for me was the Victorian setting. I do adore a good period piece
now and again, and the production team absolutely nailed it. The locations and
ambiance were amazing.
I sincerely hope that Netflix expands this experience into a
franchise with at least a couple more sequels. Since the film is adapted from
novels, I imagine there’s plenty of material to fuel several further escapades.
There’s only one unfortunate kink in that prospect – the original author of the
books Enola Holmes draws from as well
as the production team for this film are all currently embroiled in a legal
battle with the estate of the late Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (1859-1930). The suit
is regarding copyright issues stemming from some aspects of Sherlock’s
personality shown in this movie. I am glad that it didn’t stop this from being
released – but its outcome certainly has bearing on whether or not there might
be future installments.
That being said, I can only heartily recommend this film and
intend to encourage all of my friends to give it a watch. Hopefully, a
settlement or ruling can be reached that will keep the movie available on
Netflix and allow many adventures to come. I’m crossing my fingers!
Streaming
Services: Amazon
Prime Video Movie
Name/Year: Vivarium
(2019) Genre: Comedy, Horror, Mystery Length: 97 minutes Rating: R Production/Distribution: Lovely Productions, Fantastic
Films, Frakas Productions, PingPongFilm, XYZ Films, Saban Films, Les Bookmakers,
Shaw Organisation, The Jokers, Ukrainian Film Distribution, Vertigo Releasing, A
Contracorriente Films, Concorde Home Entertainment, Lumix Media, Umbrella
Entertainment Director: Lorcan Finnegan Writer: Lorcan Finnegan, Garret
Shanley Actors: Imogen Poots, Danielle
Ryan, Molly McCann, Jesse Eisenberg, Jonathan Aris, Côme Thiry, Senan Jennings,
Eanna Hardwicke, Olga Wehrly, Michael McGeown Blurb
from IMDb: A
young couple looking for the perfect home find themselves trapped in a
mysterious labyrinth-like neighborhood of identical houses.
Selina’s
Point of View: It’s extremely
hard for me to write a review of this film. Mainly because I’m having trouble
staying awake. I’ve never seen such
a heavy sedative dressed up as a cinematic experience. My expectations
weren’t to blame, either. I wanted to see it. I figured it would have a slow
pace and lean a little more toward the cerebral. I was ready for it. I got the
recommended amount of sleep last night, I had a healthy breakfast, even my
sugar numbers are well within range. I made sure I was ready for something slower
that I would have to THINK about.
It wasn’t what I
expected. It’s not actually a thinker. It could have been, but the creators
took the story in a weird direction and it lost all the lessons it could have
held. The only way Vivarium
met my expectations was in its pacing – it’s very slow. It’s also not
nearly as original as I thought it would be.
Way too often, throughout
the film, I found myself wishing I was watching Episode 150 of The Twilight
Zone (1959-1964). “Stopover in a
Quiet Town” is one of my favorite episodes of the series and Vivarium feels
like a longer, boring, pointless version of the same story. Yes, the ending is different
– but the way “Stopover in a Quiet Town” concluded is much more fulfilling.
I don’t think we
needed Vivarium. If it had taken a more psychological look at the story,
we’d be having a different discussion. If you’re having
trouble sleeping, and Tylenol PM doesn’t do the trick, this might be the way to
go. If you’re actually interested in something fulfilling, just flip on the aforementioned
episode of The Twilight Zone. It’s shorter and a much better watch.
Streaming
Services: Netflix Movie
Name/Year: The
Devil All the Time (2020) Genre: Crime, Drama, Thriller Length: 138 minutes Rating: R Production/Distribution: Nine Stories Productions, Netflix Director: Antonio Campos Writer: Antonio Campos, Paulo
Campos, Donald Ray Pollock Actors: Robert Pattinson, Tom
Holland, Haley Bennett, Harry Melling, Bill Skarsgård, Riley Keough, Sebastian
Stan, Mia Wasikowska, Eliza Scanlen, Jason Clarke, Douglas Hodge, Given Sharp,
Drew Starkey, Lucy Faust, Abby Glover, David Maldonado, Cory Scott Allen,
Kristin Griffith, Michael Banks Repeta Blurb
from IMDb: Sinister
characters converge around a young man devoted to protecting those he loves in
a postwar backwoods town teeming with corruption and brutality.
Selina’s
Point of View: I have come to
love Tom Holland (Onward, Spider-Man: Homecoming, In the Heart of the Sea)
as an actor. That’s what primarily drove my interest in The Devil All the
Time, at least initially. Eventually I took note of the rest of the
phenomenal cast and watched the trailer – but none of that would have been
enough to keep me interested without Holland. Period piece
films, especially ones that are rooted in mainly drama, just don’t tend to
speak to me. On top of that, it’s long. It’s as if the writers took several different
films and connected them into one. All the stories converge eventually, but you
bounce back and forth a bit first. I had some suspicions that I might have
trouble watching. I was shocked
that they were able to keep things from being difficult to follow. I thought I
was going to get confused, but everything from the content, to the settings, to
the acting kept me sucked in. My attention never wavered.
The people
involved in The Devil All the Time were absolutely at the top of their
game. Every branch of the setting was in place. There was not a single
performance that was flawed. The writing was on point, except for one scene
that I felt was a bit gratuitous. There was one
particular death that was much harder to watch than the others, the third one –
I believe it was. There was no body horror, no torture involved. Something
about the way the scene was done just made it feel very real. The director
opted to go for a muted use of blood and music that caused everything to match
up to what you would expect to see at a real crime scene. That made it more
horrifying than any torture-based horror flick I’ve ever seen. Honestly, even
with how great the film is, a lot of it is difficult to watch and listen to. It
goes to some seriously dark places and there are triggers everywhere. Keep that
in mind if you’re interested in watching. And you should be
interested in watching. Netflix did a great job picking this movie for
distribution. It’s unforgettable.
Cat’s
Point of View: When
I see a movie labeled with the genres of crime, drama, and thriller; it tends
to set me up for an experience that will either hold me in suspense or pull me
into intrigue while I sit on the edge of my seat. I expect to be clawing for
hope that the protagonist skates by to whatever their story’s favorable
conclusion might be. When
“thrills” are promised, I expect time to fly by. If I
had to pick one word to describe The Devil All the Time, speedy would
definitely not be it. The not-quite two and a half hours of this film felt more
like three. I get it, though. The story spans several decades, after all. I
guess I just wish the pacing was a bit faster. I suppose feeling the passage of
time towards the inevitable conclusion could have been purposeful. My
take on this all-star Netflix original is that it gives us a reminder about
that phrase we sometimes bandy about – “it’s a small world.” Expanding on that,
the film also gives us a lesson in six-degrees-of-karma… or you could even
argue fate. I
appreciated how immersive into that bygone era between World War II and Vietnam
the film felt. The fact that the movie was shot on 35mm likely added to that
ambiance and was a risk that, hopefully, paid off for Netflix.
The
cast was amazing in their roles. I was invested in the characters regardless of
how intensely I felt the passage of time. Of course, the time period depicted
in the tale is, by nature, “slower-paced” in comparison to the “fast-lane” of
the “future” that we live in, today. If I’m
being fair, I have to admit, it is also possible that the pain I’ve been
experiencing in my right arm lately could also be coloring my perception of the
passage of time. (I have a doctor’s appointment later this week, thankfully.) I
expect that the production was fairly true to the novel that it was adapted
from, however; considering that the author of the titular book lent his voice
to the role of the narrator of this story. Donald Ray Pollock hasn’t
even voiced his own audiobooks before, so this seems to be telling for the
production’s benefit. Overall,
it’s a solid dramatic piece, and satisfying for the most part. I definitely
wouldn’t steer anyone away from the movie.
Rotten
Tomatoes Critic Score – 64% Rotten
Tomatoes Audience Score – 83% Metascore – 54/100 Metacritic
User Score – 7.9/10 IMDB
Score – 7.2/10 Trust
the Dice: Selina’s Rating – 4.5/5 Trust
the Dice: Cat’s Rating – 3.5/5 Movie
Trailer:
