Film Review: In the Heart of the Sea

Genre: Action, Adventure, Biography

Cert: 12A

Director: Ron Howard

Screen writer: Charles Leavitt (screenplay)  and Rick Jaffa (story) & Amanda Silver (story)
Nathaniel Philbrick   ... (book "In the Heart of the Sea: The Tragedy of the Whaleship Essex")  

Starring: Chris Hemsworth ,  Benjamin Walker, Cillian Murphy, Brendan Gleeson , Ben Whishaw , Michelle Fairley , Tom Holland , Paul Anderson , Frank Dillane , Joseph Mawle , Edward Ashley , Sam Keeley , Osy Ikhile, Gary Beadle , Jamie Sives

Running time: 122 min

Parents advised to read before viewing film as some scene may contain scenes unsuitable for younger viewers.

Sex & Nudity: No nudity in this film.

Violence & Gore: The film contains scenes depicting sailors cutting up a whale carcass into pieces and extracting oil from the animals blubber. In one instance, a young boy is told to scrap off the last bits of oil from the carcasss cavity. The boy squeezes through a small opening on top of the body and lands in a puddle of oil that is mixed with the animals blood.

The film also contains some intense sequences where a whale is seen assaulting a ship and harassing the boats that are carrying survivors. During these assaults, some sailors are thrown overboard and killed by the whales attacks. The attacks are somewhat prolonged and depicted with some bloodletting.

Profanity:  Damns, hells, 1 bullshit, the Lord's name is misused a few times. 

Alcohol/Drugs/Smoking: Periodic smoking and drinking. 

Frightening/Intense Scenes:  The film contains verbal references to cannibalism. It is implied through a survivors dialogue that the stranded crew had committed cannibalism as a last resort to preserve their lives. The survivor briefly describes how they had prepared the body and eaten the heart first. At one point, out of desperation, the survivors are seen drawing lots to determine the next person to be sacrificed.

Story: In the winter of 1820, the New England whaling ship Essex was assaulted by something no one could believe: a whale of mammoth size and will, and an almost human sense of vengeance. The real-life maritime disaster would inspire Herman Melville's Moby-Dick. But that told only half the story. "In the Heart of the Sea" reveals the encounter's harrowing aftermath, as the ship's surviving crew is pushed to their limits and forced to do the unthinkable to stay alive. Braving storms, starvation, panic and despair, the men will call into question their deepest beliefs, from the value of their lives to the morality of their trade, as their captain searches for direction on the open sea and his first mate still seeks to bring the great whale down.

Likes : I did some digging on this film i actually found out this is based on true events that inspired the fiction story of moby dick to be written. Clearly most everyone know the story of moby dick a massive whale that ahab called the great white devil of the sea who he was hell bend on killing & taking the beast down at the cost of his own life.
Well this story is a telling of true events that happened in 1820 that no one back in the day could believe, my theory is that what they encountered was a prehistoric whale maybe the last of it kind.
The film itself is compelling in a way that it draw you in not once do you eye stray from the film, as it heart pound intense moments when you see the attack happen to the courage of the survivor determination to make it home alive.
 Out of the 21 men who made it out alive in the true event, only eight eventually survived the ordeal in the open sea, and there are accounts from two – one, the ship's first mate Owen Chase; and two, a 14-year-old cabin boy named Thomas Nickerson who waited 55 years to write his side of the story which ended up lost until 1980.
This is an incredible story in the nature of the sea & how so many ways it can kill you, specially the special effect & visual effect really sells the film content story makes for a brutal gripping adventure of trying to survive the attack of a relentless beast of the sea.
This truly is worth check out & a film recomend watching iver at the cinema on Dvd / blu-ray you wont be dispointed.

Dislikes : Nothing wrong with this film.

Overall : Compelling story of survival & courage, great acting, Brilliant C.G.I work

Rating: 5 out of 5 for entertainment / 8.2 out of 10 for concept

Film Review: Creed

Genre: Drama, Sport

Cert: 12A

Director: Ryan Coogler

Screen writer: Ryan Coogler (screenplay) & Aaron Covington (screenplay) Ryan Coogler (story) Sylvester Stallone (characters)

Starring: Michael B. Jordan , Sylvester Stallone , Tessa Thompson , Phylicia Rashad , Andre Ward , Tony Bellew , Ritchie Coster , Jacob 'Stitch' Duran , Graham McTavish , Malik Bazille , Ricardo McGill, Gabe Rosado , Wood Harris , Buddy Osborn, Rupal Pujara. 

Running time: 2h 13min

Robert Chartoff producer of Raging bull, Rocky & Creed passed away June 10, 2015 (age 81) R.I.P

Parents advised to read before viewing film as some scene may contain scenes unsuitable for younger viewers.

Sex & Nudity: no nudity, no sex (implied once but only lead-up intimacy shown - not really applicable under the title of this section)

Violence & Gore: The film contains several boxing matches between Adonis and his opponents.

During matches that take place in the early half of the film, boxers would trade punches with each other but no detailed injuries are depicted. In the latter half of the film, which features the highlight fight between Adonis and his key opponent details such as blood and injuries are depicted.

For example, when Adonis is punched across the face, he is sent crashing to the floor and blood spills from his mouth. Other injuries suffered by Adonis include a swollen left eye that is completely shut; rendering him blind

Profanity:  There is a single utterance of the expletive 'f**k' where a boxer expresses his frustration after a sparring session at a boxing gym.

Alcohol/Drugs/Smoking: none

Frightening/Intense Scenes:  Creed is much more intense and gritty than most of the original Rocky films.

Story: Adonis Johnson is the son of the famous boxing champion Apollo Creed, who died in a boxing match in Rocky IV (1985). Adonis wasn't born until after his father's death and wants to follow his fathers footsteps in boxing. He seeks a mentor who is the former heavyweight boxing champion and former friend of Apollo Creed, the retired Rocky Balboa. Rocky eventually agrees to mentor Adonis. With Rocky's help they hope to get a title job to face even deadlier opponents than his father. But whether he is a true fighter remains to be seen....

Likes : Im actually impressed with this film, i have heard nothing but good things about this film but you know what people are like they seem to just like anything these day, so i kind went into this film lowing my expectation, but it actually surprise me in being good.
I was wonder when they said they were making this film how they would introduce creed son into this film, i was expect that it was gonna just be thrown in to the story it would feel out of place but i like the way they did it.
Introduction of creed son in to the film is well handle so not to feel out of place throughout the film, show Adonis creed as young boy which work in introducing him to the story, then skipping a few year to a more grown up creed.
Michael b jordan performance playing this role was a perfect casting, he took on this Role with class he performance showed it, as you can see on screen he become the character of apollo son with a cock attitude but the will & strength to be a champion like his father with the help of rocky.
Sylvester Stallone reprising the role as rocky didn't feel like it was milking the franchise, it felt like he was past the torch down as he take up the role of mickey as a trainer, even though Stallone is looking old he still got the rocky character in him.
Alot of people probably feel like this is milking the franchise, i honest dont feel that at all, this is a great start to a future creed franchise passing the torch from the rocky to creed franchise if they do another creed film.

Dislikes : The boxing fight t at the ending felt a little uninspiring but still a great film.

Overall : Pass the torch feel, great acting, good start to a creed film franchise

Rating: 5 out of 5 for entertainment / 8.7 out of 10 for concept.

Film Review: The Revenant

Genre: Adventure, Drama, Thriller

Cert: 15 cert

Director: Alejandro González Iñárritu

Screen writer: Mark L. Smith (screenplay) & Alejandro González Iñárritu (screenplay)
, Michael Punke (based in part on the novel by)

Starring: Tom Hardy , Domhnall Gleeson , Leonardo DiCaprio , Will Poulter , Paul Anderson , Lukas Haas,  Brendan Fletcher , Grace Dove , Kristoffer Joner , Javier Botet , Brad Carter , Kory Grim , Forrest Goodluck , Joshua Burge , Melaw Nakehk'o 

Running time:  2h 36min

Parents advised to read before viewing film as some scene may contain scenes unsuitable for younger viewers.

Sex & Nudity: There is a scene of sexual violence in the film where a man is seen forcing himself on a woman, thrusting her from behind. No nudity is depicted and the act is interrupted when the rapist is stopped by another man who appears on the scene with a gun. Following this, it is implied that the victim castrated the rapist as the latter is seen with some blood between his legs
 A nude man climbs into a horse carcass

There is also a fleeting scene of male full frontal nudity in the beginning of the film where a full body shot of a naked man appears in the horizon before a battle breaks out.

Violence & Gore: The film contains some scenes of violence, most of which occur in the context of attacks between the hunters and the natives. These scenes feature brief shots of men being pierced in the neck by spears or shot by arrows or bullets with some bloodletting visible

There is also a scene towards the end where [spoiler]two men can be seen struggling in the snow with brief shots of one of them being stabbed in the arm and leg, and in the stomach with some bloodletting visible

]In addition, there is a fairly prolonged scene of a man being attacked by a bear [spoiler]with shots of the bear mauling and biting the man before he shoots it, with some bloodletting visible

Profanity: Mild to strong language 

Alcohol/Drugs/Smoking: Drink alcohol in a bar 

Frightening/Intense Scenes:  Due to the strong portrayal of violence in the film, it is recommended for persons aged 15 and above

Official MPAA Rating: Rated R for strong frontier combat and violence including gory images, a sexual assault, language and brief nudity

Story: Inspired by true events, THE REVENANT captures one man's epic adventure of survival and the extraordinary power of the human spirit. In an expedition of the uncharted American wilderness, legendary explorer Hugh Glass (Leonardo DiCaprio) is brutally attacked by a bear and left for dead by members of his own hunting team. In a quest to survive, Glass endures unimaginable grief as well as the betrayal of his confidant John Fitzgerald (Tom Hardy). Guided by sheer will and the love of his family, Glass must navigate a vicious winter in a relentless pursuit to live and find redemption

Likes : The Revenant is a 2015 American biographical western thriller drama film directed by Alejandro G. Iñárritu. The screenplay by Mark L. Smith and Iñárritu is based in part on Michael Punke's 2002 novel of the same name, which was inspired by the life of frontiersman Hugh Glass. The film stars Leonardo DiCaprio, Tom Hardy, Will Poulter, and Domhnall Gleeson.
Development of the film began in August 2001 when Akiva Goldsman purchased Punke's manuscript with the intent to produce the film. The film was originally set to be directed by Park Chan-wook with Samuel L. Jackson in mind to star, and later by John Hillcoat with Christian Bale in negotiations to star. Both directors left the project, and Iñárritu signed on to direct in August 2011. In April 2014, after several delays in production due to other projects, Iñárritu confirmed that he was beginning work on The Revenant and that DiCaprio would play the lead role.

This isnt the normal fast pace action adventure film that most people are use to, this is a very slow pace burning story driven concept of survival & revenge based on a true event of legendary explorer Hugh Glass.
The story as a whole is very compelling has you see one man extraordinary will power of survival against all odd's with the wildness & weather not to mention the savage land's to seek revenge on those who left him for dead amongst other things.
The cinematography is stunning in places but lacks in others, the acting from Tom Hardy & Leonardo DiCaprio as well as Will Poulter & Domhnall Gleeson performances are great despite the pacing of the film, which leads to a very strange & weird ending to a film which leave you puzzled.
Despite the film being slow this is a film that worth checking out even if it only for one time vie for its compelling storyline that some how keep you griped to the film.

Dislikes : The only two problems i had with this film is the fact of the pacing, the film is extreme slow for a 2hr 36 min film, i feel for its pacing the film should have been shorter.
The other things as well which ruins the feel of the film, is some of the camera work in curtain scene, seem amaturtress where breath, ice & blood hit the lense, i find when this happens it takes the realism & concept out of the set time period it meant to be portraying.

Overall : Great compelling story, slow pace story driven, great acting.

Rating: 4.3 out of 5 for entertainment / 7.2 out of 10 for concept.

Film Review: Star Wars 7: The Force Awakens

Genre: Action, Adventure, Fantasy

Cert: 12A

Director: J.J. Abrams

Screen writer: Lawrence Kasdan (written by) & J.J. Abrams (written by) and
 Michael Arndt (written by)  George Lucas   ... (characters)

Starring: Harrison Ford , Mark Hamill , Carrie Fisher , Adam Driver , Daisy Ridley , John Boyega , Oscar Isaac , Lupita Nyong'o , Andy Serkis , Domhnall Gleeson , Anthony Daniels , Max von Sydow , Peter Mayhew , Gwendoline Christie , Joonas Suotamo , Pip Andersen

Running time: 2h 15min

Parents advised to read before viewing film as some scene may contain scenes unsuitable for younger viewers.

Sex & Nudity: In a cantina an alien woman lounges seductively in the arms of a massive brute.

Violence & Gore: Violence: Science-fiction violence including:

A village is wiped out by Stormtroopers.

A defenseless old man, a leader of the village, is mercilessly struck down and murdered.

A Stormtrooper is shot and he leaves a bloody handprint on the helmet of another Stormtrooper.

Several characters are held against their will and mentally tortured to the point of extreme pain or exhaustion.

Numerous Stormtroopers are shot and fall down throughout the film. The presumption is that they are dead.

Several characters are eaten by multi-tentacled beasts.

Several fights occur where characters are struck in the face, body and legs.

Numerous chase and dogfight scenes between the spacecraft of the Rebel Alliance and the First Order.

Planets are exterminated by a Star Killer Base and the inhabitants see it coming.

Several building are destroyed, either by exploding or by being fired upon.

Gore: A character drinks out of a dirty trough, lapping up filthy water alongside a hog-like creature
Profanity:  In the vein of the original trilogy, there is some mild profanity.

2 uses of hell and 1 use of damn.
Alcohol/Drugs/Smoking: Some characters in a cantina may be imbibing alcohol and may be smoking but it is not overt.

Frightening/Intense Scenes:  Confirmed MPAA rating: PG-13 for sci-fi action violence

Story: Three decades after the defeat of the Galactic Empire, a new threat arises. The First Order attempts to rule the galaxy and only a rag-tag group of heroes can stop them, along with the help of the Resistance.

Likes : MAY THE FORCE BE WITH YOU !!!!! First of all im gonna be honest im a huge star wars fan always have been since the age of 8 when i first watch the original star wars movie, although the first three film phantom menace,attack of the clone & revenge of the sith were to over driven with to much c.g.i, im happy to say that they didn't repeat that same mistake with force awakens.
The acting is pretty solid special from Daisy Ridley playing the character Rey, her performance complete stole the lime light of the film, which is great as she reveals some interest things with her character as the story progresses.
John Boyega also dose a great job with this character Finn, although i was expecting more from his character it didn't feel as if he was the main focus of the film which is a shame.Oscar Isaac portraying the best fighter pilot which his character really dosent shows off he just come across as the best as you will see in this film. Adam Driver come's off pretty well as Kylo Ren with some pretty revealing story subplot of who he actually is in the film, which leads to a pretty bold move from disney put this one scene in the film which actually shocked me but felt to soon to happen this early in the new trilogy of film's (those that have watched the film will know what i mean).
It was good to see the old favourite characters like Han sole (Harrison Ford) , Princess Leia (Carrie Fisher), C-3PO (Anthony Daniels) R2-D2 (Kenny Baker) Chewbacca (Peter Mayhew) return for a few short scenes, some scene were funny.
As for the film visual effect vast improvement over what was done with 1,2,3 films of stars using more prop effect & less c.g.i which yes this film dose have but not over bearing which actually helps the film.


Dislikes : Sadly this film wasnt all that great, dont get me wrong the acting was great, the visual effect are great, its leads to the next film well, but this film was lacking in so many way's in storyline.
This is what a feared from disney when they brought the franchise, it didn't feel like star wars, its like that take the essence of what star wars was out of it just made the film in a different direction.
What i mean by that is instead of following where return of jedi left off it skips a go 40 years on which comes off really bad in the story, it felt rushed there wasn't much character development happening.
Special with Kylo Ren his character felt rush nn the writing for the character, he supposed to be the villain of the film he just dont come off on screen with that villain presence like darth vader did, he come off as this weaker version which didn't sell the character at all. i feel more could have been done John Boyega character than the way it was done in the film, there was a missed opportunity for a character development. Which sadly the only person hold up the film was Daisy Ridley with her performance, i feel this film could have been done better it just felt like disney milking the franchise instead of it being a wow factor film it could of been.

Overall :  Great acting, great visual effect story is a bit meh!!! not the greatest star wars film but still entertaining

Rating: 5 out of 5 for entertainment / 7.5 out of 10 for story continuity 

Film Review: Miss You Already

Genre:  Comedy, Drama, Romance  

Cert: 12A

Director: Catherine Hardwicke

Screen writer: Morwenna Banks (screenplay)

Starring: Drew Barrymore , Toni Collette , Dominic Cooper, Paddy Considine , Tyson Ritter , Mem Ferda,  Noah Huntley , Jacqueline Bisset , Janice Acquah , Charlotte Ubben , Shola Adewusi , Honor Kneafsey , Anjli Mohindra , Ryan Lennon Baker , Joanna Bobin 

Running time: 112 min

Parents advised to read before viewing film as some scene may contain scenes unsuitable for younger viewers.

Sex & Nudity: There is an implied sexual scene where a couple is kissing, and the man subsequently removes the womans underwear and turns her around. Nothing else is shown and the scene does not contain any depiction of nudity.

In another scene set at a party, a man is seen standing closely facing a woman. Some hand movements below the frame are seen, this is followed by the woman running to her friend to announce that she just had sex.
Violence & Gore: none

Profanity:  4 uses of the expletive 'f**k', two are mumbled, but voiced by a child.

Constant uses of the expletives 's**t' and 'a**' throughout.

Characters also flip 'the bird' throughout the film.

Alcohol/Drugs/Smoking: Drinking is seen by main characters

Frightening/Intense Scenes:  The central plot revolves around a pair of good friends whose friendship is tested when one learns that she has breast cancer. This thematic element can be intense for some viewers.

Story:Milly and Jess have been best friends forever. They've shared everything since they were kids - secrets, clothes, laughs, substances, boyfriends... now they are trying to be grown-ups. Milly has a high-flying job and lives in a beautiful townhouse with husband Kit and their two kids. Jess is a town planner and she and her boyfriend Jago live on a bohemian houseboat on a London canal. Their friendship is as rock solid as ever. That is until Jess struggles to have a much longed-for baby and Milly finds out she has breast cancer. How do you share that?

Likes : I went into this film not expecting much in story but this story really draws you in, it kind of reminds me of a british version of beaches as they have similar concept in story of two friends that have a bond for life when tragedy strike the story goes from a heart warming & a tear jerker that really hits you hard.
For anyone that been thought this type of concept knows just how hard it is to loss someone, the way this film comes across is beautiful dont so not to shove it in your face like most films do, it slowly builds itself as two friends have their ups & downs through life as most friends do, i think Drew Barrymore & Toni Collette played these role perfect to really sell the film & bring the emotional high's & low's to bring this film a real feeling of true friendship & love.
The directing behind this film is brilliant down to the way its written the way the characters are written & performance on screen really bring a uplifting but emotional rollercoaster film that will leave you in tears by the end, when a film can truly make you feel these emotion, its show alot of heart & effort has gone into the film to make it look real as possible. This is a film i recommend watching great melodrama that really pulls on the heart strings.


Dislikes : None this was a perfect film.

Overall : Rollercoaster film of emotions that will have you in tear by the end.

Rating:   5 out of 5 for entertainment / 10 out of 10 for story

Film Review: Wolf Warrior

Genre: Action, Drama, War

Cert: 15 cert

Director: Jing Wu (as Jacky Wu)

Starring: Jing Wu , Scott Adkins ,  Nan Yu  , Kyle Shapiro , Christopher Collins , Ziyi Deng , Sona Eyambe , Dahong Ni , Zhaoqi Shi , Samuel Thivierge , Sen Wang , Zhu Xiao

Running time: 90 min

Parents advised to read before viewing film as some scene may contain scenes unsuitable for younger viewers.

Sex & Nudity: none

Violence & Gore: Bloody violence throughout the film

A man has his arm shot off with bloody results

Profanity:  2 uses of "f-ck", 1 use of sh-t

Alcohol/Drugs/Smoking: none

Frightening/Intense Scenes: none

Story: A Chinese special force soldier with extraordinary marksmanship is confronted by a group of deadly foreign mercenaries who are hired to assassinate him by a vicious drug lord.

Likes : I first saw this film on a trailer which i actually thought it looked a pretty good film, but apoun viewing the film i wouldn't say dispointed in the film it dose have its quality in action & fighting but curtain aspects of the film were putting me off watching it.
 i can say this China is renowned for delivering outstanding martial arts movies from time to time, which would be an understatement, but sadly this is anything but a little over rated, Wolf Warrior, does not continue the tradition of most martial art film's in action which is shame because this film could have been better.
 Though the words 'breathtaking martial arts' appears on the top of the dvd art ,ive got to be honest in saying that this to assure viewers of this statement is inaccurate to what the film is showing . It is unfortunate the fight sequences failed to convey anything original, however, the addendum that these scenes only comprise less than five minutes of the feature's entirety, only add to the film failures.

Dislikes : The one problem this film had was the lack of option to select the speaking language option's because one minute the film is speaking chinese with english subtitles then speaking english, it jump back & forth between this i feel the film should of been english dub as an option with normal chinese language as the default for the film .
With the subtitle moving so fast you find yourself watching the subtile more than the film itself which took the focus away from the film which is a bad move for the film unless your hard of hearing. The film felt more slap stick action than a serious film which is a shame because this could have been so much more than what it is.

Overall : Not the greatest film, but its ok for a one time view or just avoid the film altogether.

Rating: 3.2 out of 5 for entertainment / 4.2 out of 10 for concept.