Jurassic World: Dominion

I have been really excited for this film since the ending of Fallen Kingdom. What that film sets up just made me love the concept so much and the potential it had. To also learn we'll be getting the original cast back as well just sealed my excitement but unfortunately I left the cinema feeling disappointed.

But first starting off with the positives.

I think this is easily the best cast we've got in this franchise and yes that is purely because we got Sam Neil, Laura Dern and Jeff Goldblum back from the original film and mixing them in with Chris Pratt, Bryce Dallas Howard and Isabelle Sermon just gives us an ensemble cast with great chemistry and some pretty good dynamics.

But we've also got Campbell Scott who was a nice surprise to see, DeWanda Wise who I've never seen before, the actor who was in Archive 81 earlier this year so this is a really strong chemistry filled cast and there's one shot in particular with most of them together that I just loved.

As usual the special effects are spectacular and you get a lot of really good dinosaur action all throughout this film so this is certainly an entertaining film due to the dino action and there's different varieties as well. There's a fantastic chase sequence, a plane sequence, an explosive third act so you never feel bored by the film.

And my final positive is Maisies human cloning storyline gets some more depth than it did in Fallen Kingdom and by the end has a really nice resolution to it and had some strong emotional scenes as well.

Unfortunately we now have to move onto the mixed aspects of the film.

So first is the characters. Like I said it's great to see these characters again and they have great screen presence but with Claire and Owen, they lack any sort of development that advance their characters further and with Ellie and Alan, whenever they appear for the first half of the film, their scenes felt like the least exciting part of the film and with Ian, he doesn't feel like a needed part of the story until again after the first half and even with his first scenes, they feel confusing in motivations.

Now let's talk about the character of Maisie. When this film gets to a certain point, you do become invested in her character quite a bit and she gets a very good character arc as well. But when she first appears for the first act, she is very unlikeable especially when you take in the context of the ending of Fallen Kingdom and the beginning of this film.

Now this film also explores some new story ideas that I appreciate. I've always liked this trilogy is exploring new elements to the franchise and its nice to see the franchise go in a different direction but the problem is whilst some of these stories are good but they feel like they belong in a different film and at times it feels like we're watching a different film at times.

There's also some scenes in this film that are going to divide audiences and they will call these scenes respected callbacks or uninspired rehash moments and whilst for me, I saw them as callbacks, I couldn't argue with anyone who saw them as rehash moments.

Now onto the negatives, let's get the easy one out of the way. This film fails to deliver the premise that was set up in Fallen Kingdom that had me excited the most. It focuses on it for like 20 minutes, forgets all about it and goes in the least exciting direction.

The next big issue with this film is the script is all over the place and filled with unnecessary plotlines. I counted at least seven different plotlines going on and because of all these plotlines, this film suffers on a main focused story. In fact if you asked me after seeing this film, what is the story to this film? I couldn't tell you because I would be giving you some individual plotlines instead. It actually felt like someone was running down a hall with different scripts for different films, tripped and fell, got all the scripts mixed up and just handed them to the Dominion team.

The biggest disappointment though I feel are with the dinosaurs. This is the only film in this film where the dinosaurs don't feel like a focus in a film that's about dinosaurs. They've always felt like characters in each films of the franchise but in this film, they instead feel like background noise or plot devices. This film features insects that are more prominent in a film about dinosaurs.

There's also another evil cooperation in this film but I was so confused at what their motivations were and the dialogue just felt like mumbo-jumbo. Never once did I feel a clear motive within this company and the villain in charge who was the most predictable villain I've ever seen is one of the worst characters I've seen this year.

Finally the way this film ends just makes all the events in this film just feel like filler and the ending of Fallen Kingdom feel pointless. It doesn't help that we get some very cheesy scenes that feel like they're from a bad wildlife documentary.

I'll be honest, doing this review has actually made me drop my score for this film and I'm a little nervous to rewatch it. I've was always entertained by this film but now I'm wondering if I'll even like it if I see it again. It's got enough entertainment value and great actors to work with but with a lack of main focus, a messy script and a failure to live up to the hype, this is a very disappointing film and so far the film that has disappointed me the most this year.

⭐️⭐️

Top Gun: Maverick

I originally had no intention to see this film because I am not a fan of the first film. Nothing against it but it just wasn't for me but I heard a lot of buzz that this film was supposed to be better and some friends were urging me to see it. So hesitantly, I went to see it convinced I would be the one to say it was overhyped and didn't enjoy as much as everyone else.

So kicking off the positives, let's just cut to the chase; I loved this film, I thought it was a massive step up from the first film and did a fantastic job of taking an 80s classic, keeping what so many fans loved about up and expand on the foundation that the original film set up. This film raises what's at stake, keeps the story simple, easy to follow and does it all with respect.

What helps most is this film has a great cast. Tom Cruise is back as Maverick and I just love that whilst he's known for being a major action star, you kind of forget what a great actor he actually is, you've got Miles Teller who I haven't seen for a good while, Jennifer Connelly, Glen Powell, Jon Hamm, Lewis Pullman who I didn't recognise until after halfway through the film and Ed Harris in a very small role.

I mean that's only a handful of who I mentioned and this cast is really impressive. They handled well by director Joseph Kosinski, they all give great performances, no one is the weak link of the ensemble and they all have great chemistry amongst each other.

Now I wanted this to be a separate placement but let's discuss the Val Kilmer appearance. Yes Val Kilmer is in this film and his scene is treated with such professionalism and respect. Its well known Val Kilmer has been seriously ill and had throat cancer so now he has trouble talking properly and integrating his illness into this film was just a beautiful scene to watch. It was easily my favourite scene of the whole film.

The flight sequences are outstanding to watch. Because the actors are actually flying the jets themselves, you feel their struggles, you feel their fears and when you see their faces contort due to the velocity, you really feel it. You know anything could possibly go wrong and because of that, the tension of the film keeps rising up and never stops until its over.

This film also features some surprising humour. Not a huge amount, it doesn't take away the tone but there's some very funny dialogue and well timed humour at times. There's one scene where Maverick has to climb out of a window and what happens during that scene has the funniest scene but also one of the most sincere and genuine heartfelt moments of the film.

This is also quite a thematic film that takes on the themes of redemption, regret, wishing you could've done things differently. These themes help work when you have a bunch of complex and interesting characters to work with and the journey that they go on in this film makes the story that this film features ultimately a redemption story and we get a lot of hard hitting and emotional scenes that these great actors are able to pull off.

But what made me really fall in love with the film is the amazing 3rd act. First the action sequences are amazing to watch and stunning to visualise but what really makes it work is the amount of payoff this film has for the character arcs, it completes subplots for the characters and even redeems a couple of characters as well. The third act even features such a crowd pleasing moment, it's hard not to cheer out loud which I will admit to doing. Sorry I honestly couldn't help it.

And as my final positive, the song "Take my Breath Away" is nowhere to be heard during the duration of this film. Why is this a positive? Because the original Top Gun made me hate that song the amount of times it played throughout that film and I have hated it ever since.

But unfortunately this is not a perfect film so let's move onto the negatives.

And the biggest fault with this film is somehow the entirety of the younger cast know all the lyrics to "Great Balls of Fire" and I do not buy that at all.

Yeah I'll be honest I was struggling for the negative and that's the best I could come up with. This is an incredible film and I really can't think of another negative for this film. I was so genuinely surprised by how much I loved this film and can see myself rewatching it a whole lot.

Overall I highly recommend this film. This is a legacy sequel that will please old time fans and will bring in newer fans as well. It has a whole lot of heart to it and if I had another way to describe it, it would be respectful.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Men

My anticipation for this film has been similar to the previous A24 films - low expectations, not really knowing what I'm in for however, so far the first two that I've seen have reached my top 10 so I wondered what this film will do for me. And as of right now, I am still processing what I've just watched.

Starting off with the positives, easily the best thing about the film is the visual side of it. From the countryside setting which is beautiful to look at, certain imagery which can feel creepy at times and especially the ending where gory events take place, and I've no idea whether CGI or practical effects were used but it looked so real.

Next on my list, the performances are fantastic. Jessie Buckley is able to carry this film all the way to the end and she does an incredible job with it.

Rory Kinnear pretty much has the most work to do since he is playing so many different characters which I will further talk about later on but from an acting stand point, they were incredible to watch.

I also loved the sense of dread and atmosphere amongst this film. The scene tunnel that is usually featured on the posters is the best standout. Just that one scene was able to show the eeriness this film reaches and during the night scenes, you just get the sense of how bad things are going to get. Wherever Jessie Buckleys character goes, nowhere feels safe whether its day or night. 

Even the use of lighting I just loved. From the creepy use of colour, to the uncomfortable use of darkness.

Revisiting my thoughts on the film, I think I do actually like the writing and storytelling for the film. Without going into spoilers, the reasons for Jessie Buckleys character going to the country house, her experiences all throughout and the non linear style approach in particular enable the feeling of a very well crafted and at times clever and thematic story of guilt.

However I did have some big problems with this film but let's moved into the mixed aspects first.

The only thing to talk about here is the pacing. Now this is a very slowly paced film and that works in its favour for some well executed build ups of tension. Unfortunately some scenes seem to go on for longer than they should and the first half does feel a bit too drawn out.

Now let's move onto the negatives. 

Now as much as I really liked the storytelling style, one aspect I didn't get is Rory Kinnear portraying all the men in the village of the film. I don't understand the artistic merit in that. Now it does lead to some creepy performances but the different wigs, fake facial hair and prosthetics just lead to some unintentional humour and it just took me away from the film at times. It also features Rory Kinnears face badly CGI-ed onto a 14 year old and wow, that was so distracting

Next, as much as I loved the look, some of the imagery was a bit much for me. I have a very strong stomach and have seen some very gory films in my life but some of the imagery especially towards the end was a bit much for me, I'll admit.

My biggest issue with this film is it portrays every man in this film as a misogynist. 

Now please do not take my words out of context. I'm very supportive of women and equal rights. I'm not someone who gets offended by women's views on patriarchal issues and the fact that some men have a very negative attitude towards women. That's not the reason I did not like the approach in this film. The reason I didn't like it first of all is because Rory Kinnear is portraying nearly all the men in this film, it becomes very predictable.

Second, it creates a metaphorical message that all men are the same and it is not just because of the characters Kinear portrays. All the other men in the film commit acts against women and it would have felt refreshing to have at least one other man in this film who doesn't hold misogynistic views or commit such actions against women so that it would have evened the film out a bit more. 

Thirdly, and I do understand there are some horrible evil misogynist men out there in the world but imagining a woman watching this film, if they're able to understand it of course; I think it would be pretty damaging to view a film that tells us "Men don't respect women", and that alone.

It also doesn't help that some of the dialogue does feel very preachy at times, in particular with a scene between Jessie Buckleys character and a vicar and I do feel these sorts of stories are always best told in a more subtle way so audiences don't feel like they're being preached at.

And finally whilst this film does feel very grounded in reality, there's some supernatural and let's just say unrealistic events during the third act that felt very out of place.

Overall this is a frustrating film because it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. The more I think about it, I start to like it even more and there is a lot to admire performance wise, filmmaking wise and storytelling wise but it's mainly the message it attempts to convey, and certain creative choices that went a bit far for me and the third act does fall apart from reality.