Beetlejuice Beetlejuice
The ghost with the most is back baby! If the 1988 Beetlejuice movie somehow bypassed you in life, you need to get watching before you see Beetlejuice Beetlejuice because this is one you should not miss.
Winona Ryder returns as now grown up Lydia Deetz, who still lives a life full of ghosts, but is starting to be plagued by Mr Beetlejuice from the Netherworld once more. Her daughter, Astrid, is a skeptic and their relationship is nonexistent.
Astrid’s skepticism and naivety sees Lydia needing the help of Beetlejuice when Astrid takes a trip to the Netherworld.
I wish I could express just how much I love and enjoyed this sequel. There’s not many films in cinemas that I leave and want to see immediately again in the cinema, but this is one of them. It picks up right where 1988 left off, and it’s like the cast have just been waiting in Winter River for us to return to their lives.
It’s hilarious in its delivery. Michael Keaton returns as fast thinking and quick witted Beetlejuice, and he brings SO much to the film. Alongside this, the supporting cast bring physical and verbal comedy throughout. You can’t not like this film!
I love Beetlejuice and Beetlejuice 2 follows strongly behind it. I need MORE!!!
Blink Twice
Have you ever wanted a movie that feels like a mix of Midsommar, The Menu and Don’t Worry Darling? Well writer and director Zoë Kravitz delivers a new psychological thriller which does just that.
What starts as ‘a rich man meets woman struggling to pay rent and an impromptu group trip to a remote island movie’ soon turns into a situation more sinister than expected.
After drug and alcohol fueled days, Frida (Naomi Ackie) discovers somethings wrong when she can’t find her best friend, and no one else remembers her being there. The story further develops as more of the women start regaining their memory on what exactly is happening on the island.
For me it sits at a 3 star due to a very slow start. I checked the time roughly 50 minutes in, and from that point the movie explodes with story and excitement. The first 50 minutes spent too much time building on the ‘fun’ aspect of the trip - whereas I felt like it was very easy to understand the underlying story of the film.
Other than that, I loved it. The last hour or so were absolute brilliance. It was thrilling, engaging and had a lot of humour. Performances by Channing Tatum & Adria Arjona were my favourites. I am so happy to see Tatum in roles like this, as I think everyone views him as a comedy actor, but he has much more depth.
FYI: Theres a trigger warning at the start of the film regarding violence against women.
Kneecap
I’ve been a fan of Kneecap for a few years now, and am totally obsessed with their predominantly Irish language rap. There’s always been something that just tickles a part of my brain when I listen to them, and their new movie provides us with even more insight into who Móglaí Bap, Mo Chara & DJ Próvaí are.
The film isn’t a stereotypical film about Belfast. This film is about the people in Belfast. We follow the story of Kneecap as they discover their artistic talents with help of DJ Próvaí - even with the police and different groups knocking on their door to get them to shut up.
It’s fueled with drugs, music, Irish humour and of course the Irish language. It’s a blend of both English and Irish speaking, with subtitles for the scenes as Gaeilge.
What I loved about this film was that it didn’t shy away from the realities of what people in Belfast have and still do experience, but it emphasises how all of these events impact generations further down the line.
The movie was overall a good time. Proud to see it sat in the MAXX screens, and glancing over my shoulder the audience was made of people of all ages and backgrounds, all finding commonalities and humour in the film.
It Ends With Us
One of ‘Booktoks’ most famed books, It Ends With Us, by Colleen Hoover has been adapted to a movie format.. let’s talk about it. I’m going to begin by saying I have read this book, and the sequel ‘It Starts With Us’, so I am coming at the movie from an angle of knowing the story quite well.
We meet Lily Bloom (yes, that’s her name) who is opening a flower shop (yes, I am not lying). We see her meet Ryle, we see them have a meet cute, and fall in love over the course of a whirlwind few months. Unfortunately for Lily, her father’s actions towards her mother start to appear in her own home, as Ryle starts to domestically abuse her.
The film is beautifully shot. The set design, costumes, lighting and overall ‘vibe’ of the film is absolutely gorgeous. There were definitely some questionable decisions made around Blake Livelys (Lily) hair & costume, but overall I did feel like the book came to life sort of how I imagined it while reading. Cast performances from Jenny Slate (Allysa), Justin Baldoni (Ryle) and Brandon Sklenar (Atlas) were my favourites.
My gripes with this film is that the first 90 minutes focused on the ‘good’ times completely took time away from the serious theme of domestic violence throughout the rest of the film. It’s not a love story, and that’s what felt like was being pushed. Majority of scenes were millennial humour flirting between Lively & Baldoni, and I think anyone going into the film sans having read the book would have considered it a possible romcom to begin with.
It was sold out in my theatre, and the hype around the book over the last few years driven by the booktok community on TikTok show that there will be millions of people watch this, including those of a younger age (the book is on the Young Adults shelf in most bookstores). The film marketing should now be pushing support and guidance for those suffering of domestic violence.
Deadpool & Wolverine
Deadpool & Wolverine has crashed into our cinemas and has reawakened the love and excitement for the MCU universe we all had, which in recent times felt like it was dimming.
Deadpool is living a peaceful life, but the multiverse calls and he has to answer.
I genuinely think I spent majority of the film dabbing tears from my eyes with the amount of laughing I was doing. It’s the best Deadpool film so far. Reynolds comical performance is at its peak throughout the whole film, and as I saw in the cinema, the jokes will land with every age group.
This movie feels fresh and new, doesn’t shy away from self deprecating jokes or laughing at its past, and there’s a few familiar faces throughout which will evoke cheers from audiences. There are multiple 4th wall breaks alá Deadpool, and they are even funnier in this film.
In recent times it’s felt like the MCU was losing its way, but this movie has reinstated a sense of trust back in the MCU for all of us.
You have to see this, and even if you haven’t seen any Deadpool film previously, you’ll still enjoy it.
“There are 206 bones in a human body, but 207 when I’m watching Gossip Girl”
Twisters
Twisters is a standalone sequel to the original Twister (1996), with nods to the original throughout but with a force of its own, this is the movie of the Summer.
A total blockbuster from the moment it begins, we focus mainly on Kate (Daisy Edgar-Jones) and Javi (Anthony Ramos), who have reconnected after a traumatic storm event when they were younger. Javi is now working in a storm tracking company, and lures Kate back to Oklahoma to chase a tornado once more.
Kate arrives home to Oklahoma, and realises Javi’s intentions may not be as pure as she thought. Kate befriends famous tornado wrangler Tyler (Glen Powell) with an intent to make a positive difference to tornados.
This film felt like there was unlimited money to use and it was used in all of the right places. It’s exciting, thrilling, edge of your seat stuff which will make you 100% more frightened of ever being sucked up into a tornado.
Everything about it is brilliant, from the story to the cast and performances. This is the perfect film for Glenn Powell, he’s at his best in a cowboy hat and big ol’ truck, and the connection between everyone from Daisy to Anthony is palpable throughout.
Its left me wanting to chase tornados 🌪️ and speak with an Oklahoma sort accent, and that’s all you want from a movie.
About Me
Hi 👋 I’m Shannon Jones-Murray
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