Change Your Image
harrymcmahon
Reviews
Meg 2: The Trench (2023)
Leave your brain at home
I have no problem with 'brainless' action / monster movies, as long as they are done right. The first Meg was a decent enough bit of entertainment. The sequel is a very pale immitation.
There are is a pointless eco=polution sub-plot that I assume are included to pad out the story. They add nothing to the story, plus they are really badly done with obvious villains who are revealed too early and have very predictable deaths.
As other reviews have pointed out, what little Meg action there is takes place in darkness with average cgi. The acting is phoned in by most of the cast.
The movie kicks into overdrive in the last act, where all hell breaks loose and we get a series of multi-monster / bad-guy action scenes. Even here, all logic goes out the window.
It also doesn't help that this was made before the events of the Titan submersible disaster and anyone watching this will have a passing knowledge of the effects of incredibly deep submersion on the human body, so the entire underwater action in the first half is ridiculously stupid.
This just isn't silly enough to make it worth a few hours of your time.
Reacher (2022)
Enjoyable
I'm a fan of the books and I've read the novel this series is based on. I've only watched episode one, but so far it's pretty good. Alan Ritchson looks as close to how I imagine Reacher would be and he certainly has the physicality to handle the fight scenes. Luckily he won't have many emotions to convey, which may suit the actor.
I read how other reviews complain about a convoluted plot, well if they stick to the novel, then that's hardly the fault of the script writers.
I'll happily give the rest of the series a chance.
Nobody (2021)
A decent John Wick copy
It's an entertaining show that feels like it could have done with a few more passes through the writing / editing process.
The ending is a fairly standard shoot out that doesn't feel like a clever solution, rather than an increase of the movie's existing gun play ramped up to 11.
Hutch appears to have an almost superhuman ability to withstand serious injury and pain, which detracts a bit and makes his survival seem inevitable...
That said, tune in, switch off and enjoy a bit of bonkers action.
Doctor Who: Fugitive of the Judoon (2020)
40 minutes of set-up
Compared to other episodes of the current incarnation, this was a bit better, but that's not saying much.
Whitaker has toned down her performance to something resembling normality, a lot less '5-year-old on a Skittle high,' to one fighting not to go to bed. The sonic doesn't leave her hand for most of the episode, but at least she isn't brandishing it about like Hermione Granger. Gone are the gurning face-fulls every 30 seconds because she's being written like an idiot who's an hour behind the script, however, still absent is any hint of a commanding presence in any scene. The antagonists only respond because the script requires it and not because the performance or demeanour would force them to.
The companions have absolutely nothing useful to do in this one, other than pat the Doctor's fragile emotions at the end. They might as well not be in it and the episode works better for it. Ryan is still portrayed like an emotionally stunted teenager who spent far too much of his early years sniffing glue and is now reaping the rewards of that. Tosin Cole's delivery of his lines are utterly painful to the ears. To compare him to a plank is being unfair to the titular character in the classic Eric Sykes/Tommy Cooper movie from the 60's.
Mandip Gill can at least emote, somewhat, but it's still not good. She's trying to be assertive in her scenes, but comes across as obnoxious, as she lacks any subtlety that would allow her to convey the correct tone. Other than mouthing off a few times, she (like the rest) are irrelevant.
Bradley Walsh looks like he's caught on that he's working in an absolutely awful show, and seems to be almost to the point of phoning it in. He gives the speech at the end of the episode, which is almost good, but the writers (again) lay it on so thick that it comes across like they copied it from some tween drama.
....Spoilers immediately below....
So, the plot (such that there is) revolves around The Judoon searching Gloucester for a fugitive, who turns out to be another Time Lord and not just any Time Lord, no it's another Doctor.
We are introduced to a black woman, Ruth on her birthday. Her white husband, Lee, is of course useless because he didn't get up in time to make her her birthday breakfast. So off she goes to 'work' as an unsuccessful tour guide, who also comes across like a children's TV presenter. A side character (another white male) who runs a coffee shop and is obsessive about Ruth, raises suspicions about her husband and tries to present her a dossier (yes, really) on him. We are lead to suspect that he is this mysterious fugitive.
The Judoon beam down, place a force-field around the town and proceed to catalogue everyone. The same 'compensation' joke is used when they disintegrate an old woman's knitting, but she then runs off into the force-field and gets disintegrated. They soon identify the flat belonging to the couple from before and set up some kind of temporal canon to contain the occupants.
Meanwhile, 'The Fam,' are investigating.and Graham gets beamed up and we eventually get the guest appearance of Captain Jack. The same trope as before is used whereby the assumption that Graham is The Doctor is used and John Barrowman must have been on whatever Whitaker was drinking in previous episodes because he is way over the top. Hardly any coherent delivery of what passes as dialogue comes from him. So he rambles on excitedly for, in total, about 10 minutes, but ultimately contributes nothing of substance except for a warning message at the end. The episode would have been improved if Yaz & Ryan had been 'scooped' first, leaving Bradey Walsh with more to do with The Doctor.
Back on Earth (for the 5th episode in a row) The Dr. manages to trick the Judoon (psychic paper) into allowing her to arbitrate with the fugitives. They go to the flat and demand that they get answers. Ruth hasn't a clue, but her husband Lee seems to know what's going on. Their genius plan is to sneak Ruth out the fire escape, while Yaz & Ryan confront the Judoon out front. Clearly, intergalactic police don't surround buildings or seal off all possible exits. There's a confrontation inside the flat with Lee, the Judoon and a woman who's in charge, called Gat. Much is mad of a small silver jewellery box as it's established that it isn't from Earth, but nobody opens it (until the end of the scene) and we are lead to believe that it is a chameleon arch like The Doctor's fob watch in Family of Blood. Yet, despite The Doctor knowing it isn't from Earth, she doesn't open it nor investigate further. It is ultimately left to Gat to open it, revealing a medal inside. Lee manages to text Ruth a message to 'Smash the glass.." Some babble about it's unique properties is issued, before he gets disintegrated by Gat, just after she calls him a, 'Good companion.'
Next, Ruth and The Doctor arrive in Gloucester Cathedral... Why??? Trying to hide? Utterly pointless, other than to have a confrontation with Judoon, who suround them and confirm Ruth is the fugitive. Ruth reads the message and is suddenly transformed into Jason Bourne, kicking the crap out of the Judoon Captain, and commanding them (presumably) to leave, and they do!!! 6 armed Judoon just beam away without avenging the assault on their Captain, when previously simply pushing one receives an immediate death sentence. Plot armour is strong with this one.
The Doctor and Ruth drive to the coast, and to an old lighthouse where Ruth says she grew up. Ah, but what about the force-field? Not explained, other than, "The Judoon have changed tactics." Again with a convenient plot device. Why would such a barrier be removed? They know the fugitive is in the cathedral. They could narrow it down to an area of 100 square meters. But, no. Let's allow their quarry to roam freely.
At the lighthouse the Doctor discovers a buried... TARDIS! While she's doing that, Ruth smashes a glass box on the wall (like a fire alarm button) and the chameleon arch transmits her Time Lord persona back into her. Outside, The Doctor digs away the soil to reveal a Police Box. Her TARDIS, in fact. Turning around she's met by Ruth, who has changed clothes, (priorities) and introduces herself, "Hello. I'm The Doctor." This news has been hinted at vie a online forums and YouTube channels, but the series has gone full woke by introducing a black, female character as one of the incarnations of The Doctor. More on this at the end.
They beam into Ruth's TARDIS, which is smaller inside and similar to Hartnell's in design. They are immediately tractored up to the Judoon ship. Ruth's Doctor is portrayed a bit like a grumpy Hartnell, dismissive of Jodie and unwilling to explain anything. This is even when it is clearly established that they are one and the same person. SO why the secrecy? There's another confrontation on the ship with Gat, who is also revealed to be from Gallifrey. Jodi mind-links with her to show that she has seen Gallifrey destroyed, as Jodie is from their future. Gat thinks it's trick and tries to shoot Ruth. The gun backfires (Ruth's doing) and Gat is killed. This prompt the Judoon to arrest Ruth for Murder, but according to her they have been in interstellar space at the time of the incident and there are,.. no laws in interstellar space, therefore no crimes!!!' WTF???
Anyway, Ruth & Jodie depart in Ruth's TARDIS, this is despite being (again) surrounded and the contract still active. Ruth is hostile to Jodi and wants her off her ship. The complete lack of curiosity on display from Ruth is incredible. That she is confronted with her future self who claims not to remember her should be a huge problem, but she just wants rid of Jodie, who in turn, accepts this meekly and is found by Yaz & Ryan walking along like she just got dumped.
The episode closes with a snarky Doctor telling her 'Fam' that they don't know her at all, which prompts the clunky, "We're with you all the way," dialogue from Graham. The warning from Capt. Jack is to, "Not give the lone cyberman what it wants." If you've been following anyone from the Fandom Menace, then you'll realise who this will turn out to be.
They are alerted to 3 simultaneous events happening on Earth so they go off to investigate, setting up the next episode.
Let's deal with the destruction of the canon of 53 years...
Ruth's Doctor CANNOT be from the current regeneration cycle. She CANNOT precede Hartnell. Every regeneration has been accounted for from Hartnell to Smith regenerating into Capaldi. So, perhaps it's a whole new regeneration cycle that, somehow, nobody knows about. OK, we can stretch it that far, but why does Ruth's TARDIS look like a Police Box? It's already established that the chameleon circuit broke when Hartnell's Doctor first lands on Earth after leaving Gallifrey. So, why does Ruth's look like that? There is the suggestion that Chibnall has gone fully woke and introduced an all-female regenerative cycle of Doctors that precede Hartnell. He has neither the imagination nor writing skill to pull this off in the remaining 4 episodes.
The only alternative is a parallel universe, but then wouldn't Ruth or Jodie's Doctor realise one of them was in the wrong one?
Do I care that it's a black, female actor playing the character? On face value, no. I was excited to see how Jodi would play the character, but it's been very poor. She has been terribly serviced in terms of script, and her presentation of it is manic. So I don't care about the gender or race or the actor. I want good scripts and no CLUNKY identity politics. The show has always had some form of social commentary, but these in your face, poorly written, stereotypical tropes have killed a show that has endured over half a century, and Chibnall has yet to bury the corpse. Time for this show to die and be regenerated in a few years.
El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie (2019)
Padded out DVD extra
It's good, just not 2 hours worth of good.
The story follows the efforts of Jesse immediately after the last scene of Breaking Bad as he tries to get out of the country and start a new life. The film tries very hard to ramp up tension in several set pieces, but you never feel as if there's any real jeopardy, no 'edge of my seat' moments such as we were swamped with in the original series. It all feels more like a quest movie; Jesse has to find an item, then he has to find a character who sets him onto another quest. There are conflicts, but none feel like he's going to lose.
Many original cast members appear in flashback scenes, none of which do anything to propel the story, with one exception.
If it were cut to 60 minutes, it might still feel slow, but at least you've only wasted an hour.