Fury

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Fury is without a doubt one of the grittiest and most disturbing depictions of war that has been released recently. I would give Fury an 8.5/10.

Fury unveils an amazingly shot and edited glimpse at the horror of warfare. One of the things that really struck me was how the camera would linger on scenes of carnage; such as a young girl hanging by the neck from a building or the treads of a tank running over a dead body. The music within this film was harrowing and really gripping; essentially the perfect score for this film. The overarcing plot itself was brilliant in that it got under your skin, it pushed you into this mindset of being so horrified and uncomfortable that watching this film unfold was a shock.

Shia LaBeouf, who played Boyd 'Bible' Swan, was a character that won you over; his faith and his deep love for his fellow soldiers made him the heart of the film. Logan Lerman, who played Norman Ellison, surprised me in this film; he went through such extreme character development and had the most disgusted reaction to the warfare going on around him that he quickly became one of the best performances in the film. Jon Bernthal, who played Grady 'Coon-Ass' Travis, was an intimidating bully who had really become a brute thanks to the war he was fighting in; a supremely well done performance.

The best performance of the film was Brad Pitt, who played Don 'Wardaddy' Collier. Pitt led this film without overshadowing but clearly excelling. He brought an intense presence with a deep tortured soul that has really shown the depths that Pitt brings to characters he plays.

The first half of this film felt like it was quite unnecessary, namely that it was crammed with content to make the film longer. In some ways this film would have flowed better with at least half an hour cut out.

Michael Pena, who played Trini 'Gordo' Garcia, was the weak link of the cast; he didn't do a very convincing time period performance nor did he seem very convincing as a soldier.

This Is Where I Leave You

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A film that got caught up in it's number of varying plots but ultimately left me quite impressed. I would give This Is Where I Leave You a 7/10.

This Is Where I Leave You had a fantastic understanding of satirical comedy, most every punchline hit it's mark well and truly. I also really appreciated this film for the drama and character developing plot lines. Each and every character was constantly explored thoroughly and we came to empathise with each of them in a different way. It's the kind of film where everyone who watches it will come out with a different character for their own reasons. I also really liked the use of music for comedic effect; it was really well done.

Jason Bateman, who played Judd Altman, did a great job as the film's lead; he really set the tone for the entire the film in how well he balanced a dramatic and comedic performance. Tina Fey, who played Wendy Altman, rocked her role; she kicked ass but she also had such a personal struggle in finding her lack of happiness being at home that really set her character apart. Jane Fonda, who played Hillary Altman, was incredibly compassionate; she also had some of the better comedic moments within the film. Rose Byrne, who played Penny Moore, really was a fantastic romantic interest; seriously you don't get amazing romance moments as much as you used to and the relationship Byrne created between Judd and Penny was brilliant. Dax Shepard, who played Wade Beaufort, his smug and arrogant character was tempered with a brilliant amount of comedy; he also slotted into the dramatic plot perfectly and precisely in the right way.

Adam Driver, who played Phillip Altman, really was the most stand out performance in this comedy. Driver captured the young and arrogant Phillip in one of the most outstanding comedic portrayals. His antics onscreen were some of the more enjoyable and he easily got the most laughs from me.

The editing and cinematography within this film didn't go to any great extremes to be outstanding, the film had a very standard look. I also thought the film was crippled by it's vast number of subplots that drowned the story itself. There was too much happening at once and it felt that way when the big twist at the end of the film was revealed and it really didn't make a lot of sense.

Corey Stoll, who played Paul Altman, wasn't a funny character and his role in that dramatic side of the film wasn't very engaging. Kathryn Hahn, who played Annie Altman, was a bit over the top in her performance; her storyline was strange and shouldn't have been included. Connie Britton, who played Tracy Sullivan, was a boring role and a character that you didn't really feel for. Timothy Olyphant, who played HorryCallen, gave a rather awful portrayal of brain damage; and his relation with the other characters wasn't the best established. Debra Monk, who played Linda Callen, ushered in the worst plot twist of the film and I really wish her character hadn't been included. Abigail Spencer, who played Quinn Altman, was a really awful character to the point where you felt guilty for hoping that she lost her baby; she was an awful awful person. Ben Schwartz, who played Rabbi Charles 'Boner' Grodner, wasn't all that funny and really had no clear relation with the family in the film. Aaron Lazar, who played Barry Weissman, wasn't a very strong actor and had very little screen presence. Cade Lappin, who played Cole, wasn't a very good child actor and had no real strong role within the film.

Love, Rosie

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This film decided to cut effective storytelling for well...um...did anything even happen in this film? I would give Love, Rosie a 3.5/10.

What I enjoyed about Love, Rosie was the music; it had a really good sense of how to use music for both serious and comedic moments.

Jaime Winstone, who played Ruby, really was one of the few funny things about this film; she brought a lot of energy to a film that was rather lifeless.

Lily Collins, who played Rosie Dunne, really carried the film as it's lead. She portrayed an amazing range of emotions and really showed that despite being cast in a film that begged 'death of career', she still has talent in spades. Time and again she'd win you over in a scene and it really did become her story alone.

This film had some of the most basic and dull editing and cinematography that I have ever had to suffer in a film. More than that the film was quick to make something happen and move on. Everything in the film moved too quickly that you never became emotionally attached to the film or it's characters, There was a lot of exaggerated plot points, unfortunate circumstances and rom com stereotype that you felt basically flogged with.

Sam Claflin, who played Alex Stewart, gave a really dull performance; it felt like he was going through the motions of a script without giving himself to the character. Suki Waterhouse, who played Bethany Williams, was a very generic airhead and her entire character arc was completely unrealistic. Tamsin Egerton, who played Sally, really played up her role to the point where you couldn't take her character seriously at all. Christian Cooke, who played Greg, was bland and brought back into the script for necessity sake. Lily Laight, who played Katie Dunne, reminded us all that not every child actor was good at acting; in fact she reminded us the stereotype is that child actors generally suck.

Get On Up

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This film's going to go down in history as the film that killed the funk. I would give Get On Up a 4.5/10.

I suppose a biopic about a famous musician has to have very well done music, so let's put that up there to begin with: Film. Music. Good. Also the cinematography and editing between flashbacks and moments within scene was incredibly well done; very smooth and effective with some truly harrowing shots.

Dan Aykroyd, who played Ben Bart, was just incredible; this incredibly funny blundering man who wound up be lead through scenes by James Brown was brilliantly done. Viola Davis, who played Susie Brown, had one of the darkest and arguably hardest roles to play and she excelled in her role as an abused mother trapped in an awful life. Octavia Spencer, who played Aunt Honey, had so much power in her role; she hit the screen with this mother figure image and she owned her time onscreen.

It was Nelsan Ellis, who played Bobby Byrd, that really shined in this film. Ellis created a supporting role that you really felt for. Dragging himself behind Brown's shadow for the entire film that the climatic split between the two friends became one of the best scenes in the film.

This film did the James Brown story poorly. The use of flashback and fourth wall breaking really let this entire film down and forcefully threw and audience member out of the experience. It was confusing and had no sense of good storytelling to it.

Chadwick Boseman, who played James Brown, was not a good leading actor; his performance was all over the place and you couldn't understand every second sentence he said. Lennie James, who played Joe Brown, excelled at playing the most two dimensional father figure role I have ever seen; he needed a lot more work if he wanted his character to actually feel like one. Jill Scott, who played DeeDee Brown, wasn't great; a performance that felt dead as soon as it was put onscreen.

A Walk Among the Tombstones

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Liam Neeson has done some great psycho-thrillers over the past year! I would give A Walk Among the Tombstones a 7.5/10.

A Walk Among the Tombstones had some really stunning cinematography and editing; it was dark and very noir in how it was constructed. I also thought that the film score was quite haunting, a perfect ensemble to the film. The story as a whole was also great, the entire blurred lines between moral right and wrong was incredibly well done.

David Harbour, who played Ray, did a brilliant job as a criminal psychotic; his performance had a cold humour to it and he was terrifying in the casing of his victims. Dan Stevens, who played Kenny Kristo, was a great criminal as well as avenging husband; his violent swings between moods gave him heart and his tendency to display strongs showings of love for his wife was what made his character. Astro, who played TJ, was a great comedic relief role; he also gave the lead a sense of conscience which I thought was very crucial to the film. Olafur Darri Olafsson, who played Jonas Loogan, was a great character and portrayal; he felt shady but when he revealed his character in more depth he became someone a lot easier to connect with.

It was Liam Neeson, in the leading role of Matt Scudder, that really stood out in the film. There was a lot to the role that Neeson put a lot of work into portraying. Scudder's efficiency and knowledge immediately was worth noting. Furthermore the amount of guilt he had over shooting a child accidentally in the past kept bleeding through into the present character in an incredible acting display.

This film dispensed with action a lot and dwelled in backstory and trivial facts too much; as such the pacing of this film became affected and the entire film got dragged out. The dialogue also wasn't carefully written there were some great scenes and then there scenes like the ten stages of alcohol anonymous narration which dragged on way too long.

Adam David Thompson, who played Albert, was probably hired for how creepy he looked and not his proficiency as an actor. Boyd Holbrook, who played Peter Kristo, was not a strong performance and the acting didn't hold a candle to the rest of the cast.

Pride

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This is the type of film we should be seeing more and more of for the next few years! I would give Pride an 8/10.

Pride has the kind of story that needs to be heard. It treats LGBTQIA representation incredibly well, it represents AIDs in the correct light, the poverty line, acceptance in general and the importance of family. I mean really even though this will not be the highest rating I give a film this month I still would tell you to see this film above all others because this type of film is important. Furthermore the music in this film was brilliant and I really think set a great atmosphere.

Ben Schnetzer, who played mark, really spearheaded this film in a major way; he absolutely led a lot of the major themes within this film and I can't wait to see him in more things in the future. Andrew Scott, who played Gethin, was a little underused but his talent shines through; he really was enough to melt your heart in this film. Faye Marsay, who played Steph, was a great character; she really had a lot of bite and spirit. Paddy Considine, who played Dai, was just incredibly good at playing this character brimming with support; what was great is how realistic he felt while on screen. Jessica Gunning, who played Sian, was brilliant; she came barreling into every scene with power behind her words and for that she was brilliant. Lisa palfrey, who played Maureen, was the perfect kind of antagonist for this film; someone who was so intolerant that she couldn't even accept help from someone wanting to do the right thing. Imelda Staunton, who played Hefina, was just hilairious and incredibly powerful of a role. Bill Nighy, who played Cliff, was a great role; this man who wasn't quite confident to raise his voice but who wanted change like nothing else.

Dominic West, who played Jonathon, was this spectacular character who won me over so so much. His antics on camera were uplifting and he insured this film wasn't just one serious drama but rather a bit comedic too.

Pride lacked interesting cinematography and editing, it was all a little basic but that didn't take away from the film heaps.

George MacKay, who played Joe, was a rather camp protagonist; his acting wasn't good enough to keep up with the rest of the talent in the film. Joseph Gilgun, who played Mike, wasn't a very good character; he was there to add a bit of information and didn't really feel like a contribution to the story. Menna Trussler, who played Gwen, was a character who's humour was shown in the trailer and that was all to her in the film; she was rather deadpan and uninteresting.