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The Beekeeper (2024)

The Beekeeper (2024)


3/10


 Starring

Jason Statham

Emmy Raver-Lampman

Josh Hutcherson

Bobby Naderi

 

Directed by David Ayer

 

The Beekeeper is a Statham style action film for his fans. But do not be fooled by the ratings. This film is so bad it is borderline irritating. The dialogues are just what you get when you let chickens peck away on a keyboard. The overuse of the words, bees, beehives, and beekeeper is amazing, it was almost impossible for there to be a scene where dialogues are involved and one or more of these words are not said loudly. If you are a Statham fan and love this ridiculous action film style he does, then this film is for you, if you are like me and want to see a good film, then this is a miss.

The film plot is not manageable, and the execution is laughable. I understand that he must be a top-notch unstoppable guy, but there is a point when it started to look ridiculous. It got to a point where his replacement was sent to deal with him, and the fact that the person sent as his replacement was so useless in handling him was laughable. Everyone is a joke, which made the film annoying, he will work into a place where people got guns, and they are shooting (missing) and he will work up to them or sneak up and kill them.

Anyway, the film is about a character named Adam Clay (Statham) who as the film puts him is a beekeeper. Beekeepers are great killers the U.S. government created to handle things that are beyond the matters they can handle normally or covertly. Adam is retired, and he lives the rest of his life alone tending to bees. The idea that the character and his replacement are actually beekeepers is laughable.

Well, one of Adam’s friends and neighbour killed herself after she got scammed to wire money to scammers. So, Adam decided to track down the people who were responsible and kill them. I will blame the lady, who not only wired away her money, but money from a charity she chaired, if she did not kill herself she probably would have been sent to jail.

Sharing more of the plot will ruin the film for anyone who actually wants to see it, but I can tell you the film is not worth the time for anyone who just wants to have a good time seeing a film.

In the end, the film sets itself up for a second part, with many more insane things for Statham’s character to do. With the kind of money it made from the release, I believe a second part will not be far away from production.

Damsel (2024)

Damsel (2024)

 


5/10


Starring

Millie Bobby Brown

Ray Winstone

Nick Robinson

Shohreh Aghdashloo

Angela Bassett

Robin Wright

 

Directed by Juan Carlos Fresnadillo

 

Damsel is not one of the most spectacular fantasy films I have seen and even though the story lacks the needed plot lines and deep background to make you more able to be invested in the idea of it, it redeems itself a bit with the play hunt between the dragon and Elodie (Millie Bobby Brown).

Other than that, for a short film run (which is magnificent) the film has its boring moments. It is not well paced, and Millie seems to be the only thing good about this film. Her acting and investment in her character made the film bearable. She deserves a lot of praise for her role as a leading lady, for she carried this film.

The special effects were not the best in this film, but in the end, I will have to admit when the film introduction was out of the way, and she was in the dragon’s lair the film had my attention. It has been a while since I have seen a new film which made me stay to the end, and me not skipping to the end as this is Netflix production on their platform, I have such luxury.

The film’s plot is spread over the length of the film (to create a surprise feel), but I will give you a brief of what the Queen of the land where the dragon tortures shared.

The dragon she said has been terrorizing their village and killing its people, so the king went to the dragon’s lair to confront it with his men. The dragon killed them all as you would guess, but spared the king and made a deal with it, which is to revenge the attack on her lair by killing all the king’s daughters, from one generation to another.

So, if you have seen the trailer of this film, you already know how Elodie found herself in the dragon’s lair. If you have not seen the trailer, I will not share it here in case you want to be surprised on how she got there.

Once she was in the liar, she was in the dragon’s game of play hunt. The dragon has been doing this for generations to all the girls who are dropped in her lair. She chases them and allows them to think they can escape, then when she is tired of the taunt it catches them and burns them alive.

Elodie was lucky, when she was to be burnt, someone caused a distraction.

In the end, Netflix has a film that many will see if they have the time, even though I say it is an OK film to see, it will be very hard for me to recommend it.

Michael (1996)

Michael (1996)


3/10



Starring

John Travolta

Andie MacDowell

William Hurt

Bob Hoskins

Robert Pastorelli

 

Directed by Nora Ephron

 

When I was much younger and saw Michael, I could not fully understand or put my hand on it, what I did know was that the film did not make the same impact I expected from seeing a John Travolta film.

I blamed it when I was much older on my inability to fully comprehend and understand the film itself. Seeing the film now, with my adult eyes, I can say this is one of the most pointless film about an angel I have ever seen.

Are you trying to tell me that the archangel Michael is so jobless, that making two people fall for one another and be in a relationship was more important than other things in life.

The story is so lacking any form of cohesion that I cannot imagine I allowed my sister to talk me into seeing it, all to find out that she also did not find the film at all entertaining, and only wanted to see it because as children we were huge fans of John Travolta.

What is Michael about? That will be a question from anyone who is blessed to not have seen this film back when it was made.

Michael is about the archangel of the same name (played by Travolta) who came down to aid an old lady with her issues. That was the start of the film, as two popular journalists for the National Mirror were sent to get Michael to Chicago. It was when they meet him that we come to see that Michael had other reasons why he was here on earth, and why he specifically wanted to be chaperoned by these three from the National Mirror. Two of the people sent to pick him were popular journalist Frank and Huey, there were told by their boss to take along Dorothy, a lady who their boss claims is an angel specialist.

When they got to the location where Michael was, they were shocked by his behaviour and his manner of speaking.

Michael was staying with the old lady he came to help and decided to go along with them to Chicago.

He refuses to fly, settling for a road trip instead, or have his picture taken until they get to Chicago. The journey to Chicago is what the film is about, and we see soon that Michael, even though he is an angel, remove that thought of this claim being a lie, had other intentions and desires for this trip.

His behaviour and mannerism on this trip were not exciting, but borderline annoying, and their stops made no sense in the way Michael chooses to handle things happening around him.

It felt like a horny angel wanting to sleep around.

Avoid this movie by all cost to save your sanity and probably your innocence.

Ladyhawke (1985)

Ladyhawke (1985)


 
6/10


Starring

Matthew Broderick

Rutger Hauer

Michelle Pfeiffer

Leo McKern

John Wood

 

Directed by Richard Donner

 

I enjoyed this film more than I thought I could, and even though the film did not make full use of the cross between sword play and sorcerer, it managed to conjure an adventure romance that entertains. I liked how the film kept some secrets to itself, and only reveals them when you are halfway in.

Matthew Broderick handled the comedy aspect of the film, and his wisecracks at times always hits home.

The film has some nice visuals, and the cinematography is fun to see, the film’s story was what did not make this film go over the top as a classic and bring in the box-office money at the time of release, but it is worth the time I spent seeing it.

Set in medieval times when the church ran the country by using the fear of God, this film takes place in a land called Aquila. This film is about two lovers who got cursed, they cannot see one another from the moment their love is known. When the sun is up, one turns into a hawk and remains a hawk until the sun goes down, but the other than changes into a wolf. So, the two never meet in their human state.

Also happening is a thief named Phillipe Gaston (Broderick), who happens to fall into a hole and used that opportunity to escape from the dungeon he is placed in, on the day he was meant to be executed.

The bishop was not happy about this and sent the captain of the guard with some men to find Gaston and kill him. Gaston was sloppy, and he took his escape for guaranteed and when he was about to celebrate his escape by making an announcement in a bar in another town, it turns out the captain of the guard and his men were in that bar at that time in disguise as regulars. His proclamation of a toast to celebrate his escape, led to them jumping up with swords and catching him, when they wanted to kill him, he was rescued by a man named Etienne of Navarre, the former Captain of the Guard of Aquila.

His presence caused a stir among the men of the guards, and he helped Gaston to escape, he took Gaston with him and gave him the condition to help him find his way back into Aquila, as he has some business with the bishop.

I will be watching this film for a second time, as I enjoyed it that well enough to want to see it again.

Krull (1983)

Krull (1983)


 

2/10


 

Starring

 Ken Marshall

Lysette Anthony

Freddie Jones

Francesca Annis


Directed by Peter Yates

 

Krull is one of those good ideas gone rogue. It starts with a pointless claim about the future saviour, which plants a seed that this film will have a future jump. Then we are dropped into a battle where the good guys carry swords, and the bad guys shoot lasers. In case I forgot to mention, there is no future jump, so the introduction talk was pointless.

This is a film set in another galaxy and time, where our hero’s planet Krull is invaded by aliens. The visual effects of this film made in the 80s are very glamorous and impressive. The story is so silly and ridiculous, I cannot for the life of me understand how someone or anyone would have thought this was worth shooting and not a re-write.

First, we are told, there is a princess who will bear a child that will save the world, then that whole thing is made irrelevant. The princess is captured by the alien leader, and you will not be able to guess why.

The alien leader sent his men to the wedding of the Prince and the Princess, as they wanted to wed to strengthen their kingdoms. After the wedding ceremony, the battle begins and it was a slaughter, as swords have no impact on men with laser guns.

Somehow everyone but the prince survived this ordeal and without any form of character background a man is seen, in the next scene, taking care of the prince’s wounds.

Who is this man, you ask; he is called the old one. That is all the character background we have on him, something you can see or hear if you are blind.

He drops all the hints of follow me to meet a man who will tell us where to go to stop these aliens. So, they head out, and meet someone else, another pointless individual to the whole film.

Then they run into some bandits, how he was able to convince these men to join in his quest, is a miracle only the writer can explain because his words to them made no sense at all.

With these men, they head out to get the needed direction so they can go ahead and stop these aliens from wiping them all out of their planet.

The film’s plot played like when my little niece sits on my lap and tells me a story of a princess. Knowing that a part of my life was wasted seeing this film, is depressing.

Dragonslayer (1981)

 Dragonslayer (1981)



5/10 

Starring

Peter MacNicol

Caitlin Clarke

Ralph Richardson

John Hallam

 

Directed by Matthew Robbins

 

I do not know what to think about this film, it was not boring and even though I felt some of the characters needed more development, I did not feel the need to stop watching.

If I want to look at the effects in comparison to what I recall seeing back when I was younger, I will praise the effects for being classy.

The movie had its own way of creating its hero and it also had its own way of killing the villain, something you will not be able to guess from the start, but you will appreciate as it carries on developing.

Each of the characters in the movie strike their own gong of presence and command their own way to be remembered, but I can bet you, the part each will play towards the death of the dragon is not easily guessed.

The film starts with the introduction of the last sorcerer, Ulrich of Cragganmore, who we see practicing magic and with him in his home is his apprentice, Galen Bradwarden. They were visited by a group of people led by Valerian, to come to their aid as their land Urland, is being terrorized by Vermithrax Pejorative, a 400-year-old dragon.

Ulrich agreed to help, but his assistant and helper, tried to talk him out of following this expedition back to Urland, because Ulrich was old and they did not believe he will be able to make it.

But he packed up to follow them, and then one of the king's captains showed up at Ulrich's home before they all set out. He called Ulrich a fraud and doubted his abilities.

 

Ulrich, decided to allow the man to test his abilities, he called Galen, gave him his wizardry amulet and present himself to be tested.

 

How Ulrich with the aid of Galen were able to get to Urland and then take on the dragon are path best left unsaid so that you can watch this movie and enjoy the discovery of it.

In the end, even though the film was ok and worthy to be enjoyed when it was released in 1981, the movie was not a box office success.

This was the first movie to use ILM (industrial light and magic) for its special effects outside of Lucas Films. It got nominated for an Academy Award for best visual effects and lost to another ILM film of that year, Raiders of the Lost Ark.

I do not know if this movie falls in line as one of the classic dragon movies, but it was a fun ride and I worth seeing if you will not be bothered by the effects being from 1981.

Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom (2023)

 Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom (2023)



3/10


Starring

Jason Momoa

Patrick Wilson

Amber Heard

Yahya Abdul-Mateen II

 

Directed by James Wan

 

I do not know what this film was meant to be, but interesting is not one of it. It is boring and very hard to enjoy as the film itself seems to be breaking in all forms of continuity and the story it is riding on seems half-baked.

Time wasted in building a brother bond, jokes that never seem to land, and the film wants so bad to be action fantasy comedy, but the comedy makes you yawn in disappointment.

I felt the first Aquaman (2018) was ok, but this sequel is boring to the max, and you can see very much that they cut of Mera (Amber Heard) out of the film as much as they can.

Jason Momoa lack of comedy awareness or good landing is a problem more of the writing than the actor himself. I have never been able to see him do the comedy well anyway, but when the story and crafting is well done, and all he needs to do is to deliver the lines, then he should be able to get it right.

This is the 15th and final film in the DC Extended Universe (DCEU). As Warner is planning a reboot of the entire franchise, which will be run by James Gunn, and it will be called DC Universe (DCU), which will kick off with Superman: Legacy in 2025.

The film starts with us seeing Arthur Curry (Aquaman by Jason Momoa) trying to live the normal human life as a father. Spending half his time on land and the other half running Atlantis as their king. We then see David Kane who is trying to get himself together, fix the Black Manta armoured suit and go after Arthur in revenge for his father in Aquaman (2018).

David’s quest led him to discover a trident which was crafted by the king of the lost kingdom. The trident overpowers David’s will and even tough killing Arthur and his family was still the focus of David, the trident wanted to use this goal to free the king and the people of the lost kingdom.

I wonder how the new DC universe will play out with reboots of all the characters, and we can see if James Gunn can create around him a team that will match what Marvel has created in the MCU. I do not have that much faith in their capabilities, but I am very curious to see the film of the new universe.