In an effort to secure a global future, the newly elected President of the United States, Thaddeus 'Thunderbolt' Ross (Harrison Ford) aims to do two things; form a coalition to collect rare and valuable materials from the newly formed Celestial Island, and work with Sam Wilson (Anthony Mackie) to reform the Avengers. But when the coalition is threatened by an attack on the president - one that suggests his past may have caught up with him - Sam is forced to go it alone in order to find out what Ross is hiding before it destroys him, and prevent world war 3. Anthony Mackie's first turn at headlining a movie in the MCU , and he proves categorically that he is the right guy to lead this behemoth into a new era. Fair to say that both actor and the character he plays have big shoes to fill with their first solo outing, and they more than rise to the occasion. Sam may have accepted his promotion to 'Captain America', but he's still figuring out what it means for him a...

In the year 2164, the assassination of a popular political candidate will create an opportunity for a failed comedian to seek to become the Empathy party's nominee for President of the United States, and he will choose a genetically modified, super-intelligent, opium-addicted parrot as his running mate. Be aware, this show is disturbing, and despite the presence of talking parrots, it is not written for children. The Disposable Soma  - the brainchild of writer/filmmaker Zeb Haradon - began life as a series of books. Now, by utilising a variety of A.I. tools to generate the imagery and some sound, he has adapted his tale of our depraved and drug-addled future into a streaming series. Which brings us to an interesting question regarding the use of A.I. in filmmaking - a controversial subject, to say the least - and whether it's ever ok to use it. Is it acceptable in this case because Haradon is using it to share his own original idea through a different medium? Given that he has ...

A struggling video editor takes on a seemingly lucrative job for a mysterious client, only to find out that the films they have her editing are snuff films. Haunted by what she sees, and unsure of what to do, her world soon begins to fall apart. First off, it's worth pointing out that this is not a review of the John Cena/Alison Brie action comedy. No, this is a very different Freelance . It begins as  a sort of love letter to video editors and their often unappreciated craft, in much the same way  The Fall Guy  is to stunt workers. The opening credits made using editing software is a nice touch too.  And yet, at its heart this is a real mind-fuck of a movie. One that deals with some difficult subject matter, and what makes it really scary is it feels in some way possible. Thankfully however, director John Balazs and writer Michael Gerbino's approach to all this nasty stuff was to be authentic, unflinching and hard-hitting, without being excessive. Although,  if...

When a routine op goes wrong, Hellboy (Jack Kesy) and fellow B.P.R.D. agent, Bobby Jo Song (Adeline Rudolph) find themselves lost in a remote part of the Appalachians. There the pair cross paths with local man Tom Ferrell (Jefferson White), who has returned to the area to face his demon (Martin Bassindale). Sensing the evil that lurks there, Hellboy resolves to help Tom with his quest. Maybe I've just had my head in the sand, but the release of this latest Hellboy  reboot seemed to come and go unnoticed. I remember the trailer dropping back in July, and then radio silence until I saw it on iTunes . Unfortunately, now that I've watched it, I'm pretty sure I understand why.  Before getting into the bad I'd like to point out that Jack Kesy did not have an easy trench coat to fill, and he did a grand job. Naturally, he's the one driving this story, and there are times that if it weren't for Big Red you'd likely give up. His take on Hellboy is the perfect blend o...

The tragedy of Arthur Fleck (Joaquin Phoenix) continues... Two years after the events of Joker , Arthur is in Arkham State Hospital awaiting trial for his crimes. There he meets Lee Quinzel (Lady Gaga), and a chaotic relationship between the pair begins. But is it Arthur that Lee is interested in, or Joker? It's both strange, and hardly surprising that what felt like a perfect standalone movie, Joker , got a sequel. Joker: Folie à Deux  somehow manages to feel both engaging and rather unnecessary. There's no denying the interest that circulated prior to release - I was certainly interested to catch up with Arthur Fleck, even after Folie à Deux was met with great criticism. But even though I was interested in a sequel, I wouldn't say I was desperate for it to happen. And now there's quite a few people that wish it hadn't, although I'm not sure I'm one of them. Unsurprisingly, Folie à Deux  is a very different movie to its predecessor, even without the musica...

Los Angeles International Airport on Christmas Eve. For most a nightmare place to be. But for TSA Officer Ethan Kopek (Taron Egerton), it’s about to get a whole lot worse. An unknown assailant (Jason Bateman) has Ethan in his sights, and unless he allows a certain item of luggage through airport security, Ethan’s girlfriend Nora (Sofia Carson) dies.   Firstly, it’s important to note that Carry-On is not related to the famous series of British comedy films. Sid James is not going to pop out of a suitcase, or anything else, for that matter. Although I have been enjoying the references, jokes and memes that the title has inspired.   Thankfully however, Carry-On is a tense thriller that harks back to classics like Speed and Phonebooth… if – and it’s a big if – you’re willing to take it with a tremendous bucket of salt. Before you get to the thrill ride, the movie asks you to accept quite a lot. I mean, we’re talking Home Alone levels of ‘just go along with it’. But if you can do t...

When jolly old Saint Nick, A.K.A. 'Red One' (J.K. Simmons) is kidnapped, the head of his security detail, Callum Drift (Dwayne Johnson) is forced to work with Jack O'Malley (Chris Evans) - a freelance hacker/tracker who claims he can find anyone, anywhere. But will the pair be able to get along in order to find Santa and save Christmas? With Red One , Jake Kasdan attempts to do for Christmas what he did for Jumanji ... and misses. Where Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle  and Jumanji: The Next Level  were light-hearted, silly, and featured The Rock doing something a little different, Red One  takes itself way too seriously, is overly cheesy, and for a supposed Christmas movie it isn't all that festive. As for Johnson, well he's simply playing the type of character he usually plays; tough but straight. On the other hand, his co-star Chris Evans delivers a fine performance as the loveable rogue/Christmas sceptic, even though it feels like he's simply trying to escape ...