Reviews by Kyle Ellis

Wow, I was surprised at how brilliant this film was. It was funny and thrilling and had Eddie Murphy in his best role. It looks great, with the cinematography, scenery and editing all stylish, and the soundtrack is note-perfect, while the script is fresh, believable and funny with plenty of wit, and the story is thrilling and fast paced. The direction is assured, and the acting is great. Eddie Murphy is brilliant playing his most likable character to date, and shares a believable chemistry with Judge Reinhold, John Ashton, Lisa Eilbacher and Steven Berkoff who all match him without fault. In conclusion, greatly enjoyable, and much better than its sequel. 10/10 Bethany Cox

I loved the first film, and while a step down I enjoyed the second as well. The third film is tremendous fun from start to finish, and contrary to what the other reviewers say I prefer this over the second. Yes the storyline is mediocre in places, but Doc's romance was touching and the steam-train finale was phenomenally staged. The film is set in the Old West and gives the stars a chance to revel in the situations that made the matinée western serials such a delight for so many people. The script is as witty and clever as the ones in the first two films, the direction is once again excellent and I loved the casting of the old western favourites such as Harry Carey Jnr and Pat Buttram. And as always Michael J Fox and Christopher Lloyd are on cracking form as Marty and Doc. Overall, despite the occasionally mediocre story, this is a worthy end to a great trilogy. 9/10 Bethany Cox

I loved the first Back to the Future, it was fun, original and simply irresistible. Back to the Future 2 is a very good sequel, while considered the darkest of the three it is still quite bright in tone. It isn't as good as the first film though, moving a little too fast and a little too much crammed in such as the past, future and alternative universes idea. Still it is very enjoyable, with the acting from Michael J Fox and Christopher Lloyd as zany and as likable as ever before and the special effects even better than in the first film and that was a hard feat. The script is clever and fun, the direction is excellent and the sets are highly imaginative. Plus the score is great. Overall, a slightly inferior but very enjoyable sequel. 8/10 Bethany Cox

Just for the record, I loved the first Men in Black movie, it was funny, original and just enormously enjoyable. This sequel is not as good, but it is perfectly decent considering how awful some sequels have been. The stunts, special effects are gadgetry are just impeccable, as are the sets and cinematography, and Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones still make for a charismatic and entertaining duo. I also liked Rip Torn and Rosario Dawson. The pacing is also fine, not as fast paced but efficient enough, and the music was catchy. However, the script does have too many weak spots(some of Smith's jokes are somewhat amusing though) and while the plot starts off great it meanders. The direction wasn't as brisk or as innovative either, and the ending was a little too silly for me. Overall, decent sequel but not great. 6/10 Bethany Cox

As much as I don't like to sound opinionated, I personally don't understand the hate this movie gets. Sure Bicentennial Man isn't the best movie ever but it is a great and underrated movie that is unfairly dismissed for being overly-sentimental and cloying. Some of it can be slow, but a lot compensates for any misgivings. Bicentennial Man is beautifully filmed, with lovely cinematography and scenery, while the score is gorgeous. I also loved the end credits song, and Celine Dion couldn't have been the more perfect choice to sing it. The script does have a lot of touching moments but it also has humour as well, and good humour at that. The story about life and the human condition is sweet and engaging and the film is competently directed. I really liked the characters, especially the title character who is incredibly endearing. The acting was great, Robin Williams is wonderful and he is solidly supported by Embeth Davidtz, Oliver Platt and Sam Neill. All in all, this is a very good movie. 9/10 Bethany Cox

The BBC mini-series may have had a low budget, but overall it was excellent and captured the essence of the story wonderfully, which this film doesn't. The source material is so good, and deserves a much better movie and adaptation than this misfire.

The only redeeming merits are some of the effects, costume and set design(apart from the villains which were too grotesque and the Vogons look silly) and the performance of Martin Freeman. Joby Talbot's music is both good and disappointing, good in the sense of how well it is composed, disappointing in how it fitted with the film's moods.

My biggest beef of the film is how much the cast is wasted. This is a great cast. Helen Mirren? Alan Rickman? Bill Nighhy? Anna Chancellor? Sam Rockwell? Sterling actors, but wasted by quite a number of components, Rockwell especially is made to go over-the-top and it doesn't work at all.

So what was wrong with this movie? A lot of things is the correct answer. The book is so good, but impossible to compress into a 2-hour movie. I try not to be a purist, but this adaptation is far too condensed and pivotal elements are lost of their meaning and some especially the romance are shoe-horned and feel superfluous.

Other flaws are the confused storytelling, the tedious pacing, the embarrassing dialogue, characters that are devoid of any complexity and turned into walking clichés and less-than-mediocre direction.

All in all, a sad mess. 3/10 Bethany Cox

There have been critics who have been stinting in their praise for this movie, but others were quite condescending. This film is far from a masterpiece, and definitely not the best of the Superman franchise, but it was fairly solid considering what it could've been. First off, visually it looks amazing and I thought the special effects were extremely good. Same with the music score, full of those familiar motifs and some new haunting ones too. While Lex Luthor wasn't portrayed as the cold, shrewd yet somewhat lovable villain Gene Hackman played so memorably in the original movies, Kevin Spacey the competent actor he is played him very well. Also Bryan Singer's direction was able and had just the right edge, and I was intrigued by the film's concept. And I have to say, some of the action scenes were very exhilarating. However, there were elements that could've been better. One of the main problems I had with the film was the pace, I found it unusually slow and there are scenes like Clark listening in on Lois and Jason that dragged on for too long. And maybe I am in the minority who felt that it could've been half an hour shorter, and that the script was clunky at times. Also, I wasn't taken with the two leads either. Brandon Routh is handsome and he is charming but he isn't charismatic enough as Clark Kent/Superman, and Kate Bosworth left me cold as Lois. In regard to these two, the relationship between the two characters was underdeveloped. All in all, a solid and visually enthralling film, but it is let down by uneven pacing and a clunky script. 6/10 Bethany Cox

The first two Terminator films are fantastic films and both are among the best of the action genre. The third film, Rise of the Machines signalled the franchise's decline, but while flawed (mainly down to being unbalanced and too more-of-the-same) is not that bad a film. While Terminator Salvation is better than Terminator Genysis, instead of improving on the problems of Rise of the Machines it continues the stumbling block, not a terrible film, but a disappointing and not too great one, both in comparison to the first two and on its own.

Starting with the good points, Terminator Salvation is a good-looking film, with strikingly atmospheric post-apocalyptic scenery, stylish photography and slick editing that is neither too hurried or static. The special effects are of typically solid quality, some of them even excellent with the exception of some shabby-looking Terminators. Some of the action is very exciting and compellingly choreographed, without causing a headache or inducing a seizure, and the music is haunting and rousing. There are some fun references also to the older films without feeling forced at all, and a couple of performances are good. Coming off best is Anton Yelchin in a fantastically intense but also subtle performance, and while he does have his bland moments Sam Worthington does show some charisma and is not as bland as feared.

On the other hand, while some of the action is pulsating excitement, other action sequences are very loud but also very soulless, and it comes at the expense of any character development, which is skimpy at best, Marcus is the only one that really gets an arc that maintains some interest but even that's not completely attention-grabbing. The script is often awkward in flow, is overly reliant on sloppily written exposition and is too often too heavy-handed, and the story, apart from a reasonably smart twist half an hour before the end, can be convoluted, is more desperate than inventive (doing little with the post-apocalyptic atmosphere) and lacks the dark mystery, suspense and thrills of the first two. Credit is due for it not being more of the same and trying to be different, but one can't help thinking that it was rather too different, other than the characters' names it is basically unrecognisable from before and that might not be a good thing for some, and unfortunately the huge pile of clichés that the film has disallow it from having its own personality or doing anything new.

McG's direction is muddled and unfocused, the pacing generally could have done with more tightness and most of the acting is not that great. Bryce Dallas Howard fares the best of the ladies and does dependably but her limited material is beneath her, while Helena Bonham Carter is forgettable and out of place and Moon Bloodgood is vapid and could easily have been cut from the film and nobody would have noticed. Most disappointing is Christian Bale, he is an actor with a lot of talent but he phones it in and is incredibly stiff in a role that has very little to it other than talking/shouting into speakers and walkie-talkies, it's not just that it's not a good performance and a shameful waste of talent but also because of how badly written the character is. The CGI-ed Arnold Schwarzenegger is nice to see, but is a little clumsily incorporated and unnecessary at the same time.

In conclusion, not a terrible film but instead of being improving on the previous film, despite some good things, the Terminator franchise continues to stumble. 5/10 Bethany Cox

Kindergarten Cop was a surprisingly good film. I was not expecting it to work, and it worked so much better than I expected it to. Kindergarten Cop is a little overlong and the villains are perhaps a little too pantomime. However, the film does look lovely, and the score and soundtrack gives it its heart-warming sentiment.

The script also worked. It was funny, it was poignant and it was well-meaning, while there is also a heart-warming story, good direction and pacing and the action while sometimes intense is well-handled.

I was very surprised by the acting. Kindergarten Cop is not Arnold Schwarznegger's best film, but it does show that he can do comedy, and here he does do it well. He is suitably low-key and avoids being wooden as well. Penelope Ann Miller gives good support as well, and the chemistry between the two is convincing without taking over the film too much. The characters could have easily been stereotypical and unlikeable, but they aren't, instead they have a certain warmth to them, and this is including the kids.

Overall, not a comedy classic, but it works far better than it should have done. 8/10 Bethany Cox