Resident Evil

I had a big movie week with three films, so I figured I might as well pair them all together.

Resident Evil keeps the audience on their toes while still being a very fun time.

I will be entirely transparent in that I am not familiar with the games nor the other film adaptations of this franchise, but once I heard this was a reset directed by Zach Cregger, of Weapons and Barbarian fame, I was intrigued.

Luckily, I was not disappointed in the slightest it had Cregger’s incredible writing style, that manages to keep the horror aspects there while still being funny.

That writing paired with excellent delivery from lead actor Austin Abrams, who is the heart of this film. It centers solely on him with very few supporting actors, which I think is a very lofty task, but Abrams hands it masterfully.

I would like to applaud the time for their use of real human models of the monster, when watching the film, the thought of even attempting something like that would not have crossed my mind, so it is very impressive they went the extra mile.

The video game nods were hit or miss; there is one shot in the film which is a clear reference to video games that I think is a very clever reference while also shaking up the shots. I also loved that each scene felt like transitioning into a new save point. I also loved it felt you could see moments that would be the player making mistakes. The only thing I did not love was a running joke of lines plainly stating things like it is not like this in video games or go video games. It felt a tad cheesy to me.

I would like to note as an avid horror watcher jump scares do not tend to get me anymore, this film had one that was very well executed and did manage to get me. I think the scare level is very much dependent on what scares you personally, for me it was way more fun than scary, but in a good way, but for other people I could see this being scary for them. I think for most horror enthusiasts they will have a good time.

While this is not an awards contender by any means, I think it is a very fun blockbuster that absolutely exceeded my expectations.

Primetime

Primetime marks the first awards contender I watched during awards season, and I think we are looking forward to an exciting season. This film is packed with tension, spectacular performances, and insane levels of cinematography and editing.

The main topic everyone has been wondering about this film is this finally Robert Pattinson’s time to get that Oscar nomination, and I fully see that in his future. Pattinson as an actor is someone who has always delivered for me, he never fails to give his all to every performance, and this is very much highlighted here. He has a few major challenges in this film on being that anchor in being the lead, two playing a real person especially one who a good amount of the audience will be familiar with, and three handing this tonally. I believe Pattinson achieves all three.

Speaking of the tone it is far different than I was expecting, it has a different message than I was expecting going into the film. I do want to clarify I have seen people online falsely attributing the films message to supporting the predators on the show, and I believe that is very wrong, so if that was holding you back from supporting the film do not worry the film firmly states that the predators are wrong.

I really enjoy that the film makes you think. It is not a clear cut telling you what you should think personally, it’s begging you to question a bit more about certain factors of the show.

I do also want to highlight some of the supporting cast of this film Meritt Wever and especially Skyler Gisondo are both giving the performances of their careers. Gisondo’s performance acts as almost a foil to Pattinson and Wever’s in a way that sells the story, and I do not believe that would be achievable without him.

In the technical regard the editing and cinematography of this film make it entirely possible. Seeing the behind-the-scenes pictures of this film show that that aspect made the tone possible. It has a lot of creative uses of color and eerie framing that when looking at the filming process it completely changes the scene.

Overall, I very much enjoyed this film, this is one of my favorite films of the year, and absolutely one I will be riding hard for this award season.

Heart of the Beast

Heart of the Beast is a heartfelt journey that left many people in tears.

This is a rather straightforward concept for a film, which is far from a bad thing, I am all for stories that keep it simple. It is just a story about a soldier and his dog going through the struggles of the wild. If that concept has you intrigued, I think this film will absolutely be for you. If it is not striking you, this one might not be for you.

Two main selling points here are one obviously Brad Pitt, two a dog, and who doesn’t love dogs. Brad Pitt is great as he typically is, I do not think this is a standout performance from him but at his point in his career that would be very hard to achieve. He gives a great anchor performance as he is sole human actor for the vast majority of the film. The dog actor impressed me as well; I always am shocked how people manage to get a dog to perform especially when they are being asked to do something major like this. Pitt being able to show all the ranges of emotion I have absolutely come to expect from him, but a dog being able to match that is highly impressive to me.

One major flaw I have towards this film is the very first shot revealed the entire movie to me. While it leaves a tiny bit of speculation, for me someone who is pretty good at knowing patterns of films it completely removed all stakes for me. I am perfectly fine with films that focus on a journey rather than the destination though, many of my favorite films are that way. I just think in this instance removing that shot from the beginning would benefit the film greatly, but I am aware why it was included.

It is hard to not feel a bit emotional when the story is really about a boy and his dog, I think everyone can feel the true heart of that. Hearing that audience, I know it very much resonated with them, for me I found it a tad melodramatic at times, but overall very heart felt.

Overall, it was not my favorite film I have seen, but it was not bad by any means. I just really wish that scene was removed to keep the stakes high. I think if you watch the trailer and want to watch it you will love it, if you see the trailer and shrug you will possibly find it a bit more middle of the road. I think regardless of who you are everyone will love the dog.