Quick Review: LAST NIGHT IN SOHO...

Earlier today, I watched Edgar Wright's supernatural thriller Last Night in Soho at the local AMC theater, and needless to say, it was another well-made film by the director of the exciting 2017 flick, Baby Driver!

Thomasin McKenzie did a great job playing Eloise...an aspiring fashion designer who also had the ability to see dead people. Ironically, McKenzie was born in 2000—one year after Haley Joel Osment saw dead people on the big screen as well in M. Night Shyamalan's 1999 hit film, The Sixth Sense.

Speaking of M. Night Shyamalan, one of the cast members in his movies, Anya Taylor-Joy (who appeared in Shyamalan's two thrillers Split and Glass, respectively) was amazing in Last Night as Sandie...a young singer who would sadly get involved with the wrong crowd (starting with a man named Jack, aptly played by former Dr. Who alum Matt Smith) in her quest to further her career.

Not to be overlooked in this exciting horror drama were talented thespians like Diana Rigg, Aimee Cassettari, Synnøve Karlsen, Michael Ajao and the venerable Terence Stamp—whose character was involved in one of Last Night in Soho's best plot twists.

Last Night in Soho had two great twists at the end; I was able to figure out one of them beforehand!

Can't wait to see what Edgar Wright has in store for the cinema next... Baby Driver 2 would be awesome. Have a safe and happy Halloween, everyone!

Quick Review: THE LAST DUEL...

A few hours ago, I watched the Ridley Scott-directed film The Last Duel...which was about the final government-sanctioned duel in France.

I enjoyed this flick for the most part...as it was fairly accurate to what I read about the actual event on Wikipedia beforehand.

I liked how this movie was divided into three chapters to tell the story of how this duel came to be from the perspective of the three individuals caught up in this medieval love triangle: Sir Jean de Carrouges (Matt Damon), Marguerite de Carrouges (Jodie Comer, who was awesome in this summer's hit comedy flick Free Guy) and Jacques Le Gris (Adam Driver).

As mentioned above, the duel was fairly accurate to historical accounts—though I read in the actual story that Carrouges and Le Gris had their helmets on till the very bloody end. Oh well.

And in case you were expecting the medieval battles that were peppered throughout this movie to be as exciting as those in Scott's Oscar-winning epic Gladiator, think again.

Just re-watch Gladiator for the amazing combat scenes, as well as Hans Zimmer's steering music in that film.

See The Last Duel to find out what happened in 14th-century France when you were accused of adultery and wanted to defend (to the death) what little honor you had. Carry on.

Quick Review: DUNE (Part One)...

Earlier today, I went to my local AMC theater to watch director Denis Villeneuve's adaptation of Dune.

Just like his previous movies such as Blade Runner 2049, Arrival, Sicario and Prisoners, Dune was a well-made and great-looking film...with an amazing cast to boot.

Like The Lord of the Rings trilogy for New Line Cinema, Dune was obviously meant to be Warner Bros' own version of the Star Wars saga (even though there's only going to be one more Dune film in this series). This is clearly the case as the original 1965 novel Dune, written by American author Frank Herbert, was one of George Lucas' major inspirations for the Original Trilogy.

Like in Star Wars, Dune's main character (Paul Atreides, played by Timothée Chalamet) possesses special powers like the ability to control other people's minds, and has a huge destiny that awaits him, like Luke Skywalker. And of course, you have the Imperial Army that invades the desert world of Tatooine—err, Arrakis...with an Emperor manipulating scenes from behind the curtain.

Oh, and Jason Mamoa's Duncan Idaho was supposed to be that movie's equivalent of Han Solo...however briefly.

I look forward to Dune: Part Two, which arrives in theaters nationwide two years from now. Will Paul Atreides build his own lightsaber and find out that Chani (portrayed by Zendaya) is his long-lost sister? We'll see.

Just kidding about that last part.

Filming Has Wrapped on TRANSFORMERS: RISE OF THE BEASTS!

Yesterday, it was revealed on social media that principal photography has wrapped on Transformers: Rise of the Beasts...which is a direct sequel to the 2018 Transformers spin-off flick Bumblebee.

In this movie, there is no direct war between the Autobots and Decepticons, but a conflict that arises between the Maximals, Predacons and Terrorcons after they come to Earth.

Optimus Prime, once again voiced by the venerable Peter Cullen, learns to become a leader of the Autobot resistance as he finds himself caught in the middle of this robotic alien war.

Hailee Steinfeld, Jorge Lendeborg Jr. and John Cena will not reprise their roles from Bumblebee in this new movie. Instead, Rise of the Beasts features a new cast that includes Ron Perlman (who voices Optimus Primal), Luna Lauren Velez, Dominique Fishback and Anthony Ramos.

Lorne Balfe, who created the music for 2017's The Lego Batman Movie as well as this year's Marvel film Black Widow, will compose the score for Rise of the Beasts.

Directed by Steven Caple Jr. (who helmed 2018's Creed II and 2016's The Land), Transformers: Rise of the Beasts arrives in theaters nationwide on June 24, 2022.

Video of the Day: The Newest Trailer for THE BATMAN...

"It’s not just a call... It’s a warning."

So says Bruce Wayne (Robert Pattinson) of the Bat-Signal that beckons him to be the hero that Gotham deserves in next year's The Batman.

Check out the newest preview for the Matt Reeves-directed film—which is about the Dark Knight Detective's quest to uncover a nefarious plot being hatched by Edward Nygma (Paul Dano) in Gotham City.

The Batman also brings in other classic foes such as Oswald Cobblepot (Colin Farrell) and Carmine Falcone (John Turturro), as well as allies like Selina Kyle (Zoë Kravitz), James Gordon (Jeffrey Wright) and trusty sidekick Alfred Pennyworth (Andy Serkis).

Just like with every other Batman film (well, except 1997's Batman & Robin), I'm absolutely stoked for The Batman! Not just because of the amazing cast and the gritty look of this movie, but also because of the cool music score that Michael Giacchino composed for the upcoming Bat flick!

I definitely plan to get The Batman's music score on compact disc next year...and yes, I still buy CDs.

The Batman arrives in theaters nationwide on March 4, 2022.

Movie Review: HALLOWEEN KILLS...

Earlier today, I went to the local AMC theater to watch Halloween Kills...the sequel to 2018's Halloween.

Clearly, this installment was supposed to be The Empire Strikes Back of this trilogy—with Michael Myers prevailing at the end of this flick and Jamie Lee Curtis being the Jedi who returns in next year's Halloween Ends, which I didn't know was already in production before I started working on this review!

As far as Halloween Kills is concerned, this movie was not scary but definitely gory. I felt bad for those firefighters who were the first ones to confront Myers as he remained trapped in that burning house [which is where Laurie Strode (Curtis), her daughter Karen Nelson (Judy Greer) and granddaughter Allyson (Andi Matichak) left him to die at the end of the 2018 film].

Well, I felt bad for all the characters who became Myers' hapless victims in this sequel. Myers came up with the most thorough and violent ways to dispatch each of the poor souls who dared confront him... One example being Allyson's ex-boyfriend Cameron (Dylan Arnold), whose noggin received a brutal thrashing against those stair banisters in Myers' childhood home before finally getting his neck snapped!

I look forward to Halloween Ends. Halloween Kills made it appear that Michael Myers got his supernatural strength and immortality through his mask (like Jim Carrey's character Stanley Ipkiss did in 1994's The Mask, shown below)—which I think will be his undoing.

I reckon that Myers' fate will hitch on Laurie Strode or Deputy Frank Hawkins (Will Patton) removing his mask in Halloween End's climax before finally ending his reign of terror...or simply beheading Myers with the mask still on.

We'll find out on October 14, 2022: Halloween End's nationwide release date!

Movie Review: NO TIME TO DIE...

Earlier today, I watched the newest James Bond flick, No Time to Die, at my local AMC theater. And needless to say, it was a very action-packed and emotional end to the Daniel Craig era as agent 007!

No Time to Die is the fifth and final installment where Craig played "Commander Bond" and worked with his buddy Felix Leiter (Jeffrey Wright) as well as fellow MI6 cohorts Moneypenny (Naomie Harris), M (Ralph Fiennes), Tanner (Rory Kinnear) and Q (Ben Whishaw). And this is the first and final time that Bond worked with Nomi (Lashana Lynch)...who became the new 007 while Bond was off the grid for 5 years.

And why was Bond off the grid for 5 years? He was laying low after feeling betrayed by the love of his life, Madeleine Swann (Léa Seydoux)—whose past would literally come back to haunt and threaten her, plus Bond and the rest of the world, after hiding in the shadows since Madeleine was a child. More on this later.

Along with Moneypenny, Nomi and Madeleine Swann, another butt-kicking Bond girl appeared in No Time to Die through Paloma (Ana de Armas)...who will hopefully return in future Bond films! Though I reckon she won't continue to beat the crud out of the bad buys while wearing a lovely black cocktail dress.

Going back to Madeleine's past, No Time to Die's main villain was a man named Lyutsifer Safin (Rami Malek). The opening scene of the film did a very suspenseful and scary job introducting this antagonist—who, surprisingly, wasn't initially after James Bond but Swann, her father Ernst Stavro Blofeld (Christoph Waltz) and his Spectre organization.

[No Time to Die also continued the unofficial tradition of having a newly-minted Academy Award winner as the Bond villain. Christoph Waltz won the Best Supporting Actor Oscar for Django Unchained in 2013 before appearing in 2015's Spectre, while Rami Malek won the Best Actor Oscar for Bohemian Rhapsody in 2019 before landing the role of Safin in No Time to Die.]

In regards to the music, No Time to Die's film score felt more epic than those in previous Bond flicks...and that's because none other than the great Hans Zimmer composed the music for the new installment! David Arnold, who conducted the music for 1996's Independence Day (one of my all-time favorite scores), worked on previous Bond flicks beginning with 1997's Tomorrow Never Dies and ending with 2008's Quantum of Solace, respectively.

Arnold's music in the Bond movies was commendable, but you can never go wrong with Zimmer! I'm thinking about buying No Time to Die's music score on compact disc soon.

In regards to the movie's opening song, I like Billie Eilish's No Time to Die...but Adele's Skyfall from the 2012 film of the same name will always be my favorite Bond song! I put Skyfall on loop through my Winamp MP3 player while I typed this review.

All-in-all, No Time To Die is a terrific film. It obviously remains to be seen who will replace Craig as James Bond. But once MGM Studios makes the announcment, here's hoping that the replacement will bring the same kind of grittiness and sauve to the role that Craig did since he first appeared in 2006's Casino Royale.

And as I said earlier, I hope Ana de Armas' Paloma will join Moneypenny, Nomi, M and Q in the next Bond sequel! Have a great weekend.

TOXIN: Speculating About a Future Friend and Foe of SPIDER-MAN and VENOM...

As an FYI, spoilers for Venom: Let There Be Carnage are included in this blog entry!

So the day after I watched Venom: Let There Be Carnage last weekend, I read a couple of articles (like this one) regarding the glowing pupils in Detective Mulligan's (Stephen Graham) eyes after he was left for dead by Shriek (Naomie Harris) atop that cathedral at the end of the film.

It turns out, this was a hint as to what Mulligan might become in the next Venom film should it get made...and that's him having his own alien symbiote that transformed into the anti-hero known as Toxin!

In the Marvel printed series Extreme Carnage, just like in Let There Be Carnage, Mulligan comes face-to-face with Carnage—who infected him with a piece of symbiote that caused him to become Toxin in the comic books. However, unlike Carnage (who is pure evil and tentacle-riddened savagery), Toxin isn't so villainous, but still tentacled...and actually formed a partnership with Spider-Man as Toxin fought his crimson-skinned creator and Venom himself.

If the ending of Let There Be Carnage is any indication, Spidey isn't the only foe that Venom will confront in his next cinematic appearance—but also an obscure villain who casual moviegoers (like me) didn't know about until we Googled about the various Easter eggs found in Venom 2.

I'm thinking that a really cool post-credits scene for this December's Spider-Man: No Way Home would be of Peter Parker (Tom Holland), MJ (Zendaya) and Ned Leeds (Jacob Batalon) kickin' it at Parker's apartment when someone comes knocking at his front door.

The visitor is none other than Detective Mulligan...who traveled all the way to New York City from San Francisco to ask Parker if he could help the detective confront a certain sharp-toothed nuisance that's been plaguing California's Bay Area. (Mulligan became aware of Parker thanks to news coverage of him regarding the Mysterio incident in the end credits scene of Spider-Man: Far from Home.)

Mulligan shows Parker the front page of a Daily Bugle newspaper, and of course, Venom made the main headline and photo!

Mulligan suggests to Parker that they should team up against Venom, which makes Peter skeptical. Parker himself knows that he could hold his own against Eddie Brock's (Tom Hardy) alien symbiote—what with Peter being an Avenger and all—but what does Mulligan have to offer in this fight?

It's at this moment that Parker, MJ and Ned watch in stunned disbelief as Mulligan nonchalantly transforms into Toxin. Before Peter himself can get up in arms in regards to the giant symbiote standing before him at the front door, Toxin assures Spidey that he is not the webslinger's enemy and asks for his help once more...extending a clawed hand, which reverts back to the human hand of Detective Mulligan, before Peter reluctantly shakes it in agreement.

MJ and Ned obviously continue to watch this in stunned disbelief.

Of course, LESS THAN ZERO PERCENT of what I just typed in the last four paragraphs will actually happen at the end of Spider-Man: No Way Home, but's it something fun to speculate about!

All I can say is, there's no way that director Andy Serkis would've included that final cryptic shot of Mulligan in Let There Be Carnage if that was indeed the last we saw of him. Spider-Man and Venom are both the good guys in their respective films, so it's unlikely that they'll have a protracted fight scene when they finally meet each other for the first time.

There's most likely an actual antagonist that will force Spider-Man and Venom to team-up and fight against...and if Morbius and all of the other classic Spidey villains are too predictable a foe, then Toxin will do just nicely! We'll see.

And yes, I'm gonna watch Daniel Craig's final James Bond film No Time to Die tomorrow! Carry on.

Movie Review - VENOM: LET THERE BE CARNAGE...

Earlier today, I went to my local AMC theater to watch Venom: Let There Be Carnage...and needless to say, it was much better the second time around!

I watched the Venom sequel for the first time yesterday, and it didn't help that I was spoiled by exclusive content that was posted on the movie's Facebook page over the past few days—specifically the video at the very bottom of this review showing the scene where Cletus Kasady (Woody Harrelson) transformed into Carnage for the first time. My expectations hampered my initial viewing of Let There Be Carnage.

It was during today's screening that I appreciated the tight storyline and editing that director Andy Serkis crafted for Venom 2. He doesn't beat around the bush in establishing the deadly relationship between Kasady and Frances Barrison, a.k.a. Shriek (Naomie Harris), and Kasady's attempt to create an equally-tense rapport with Eddie Brock (Tom Hardy).

Speaking of Eddie Brock, Tom Hardy once again did a great job conveying a humorous and conflicted portrayal of the struggling Bay Area reporter. And the writing team, of which Hardy was a part, did an amazing job expanding the ever-chaotic but warm relationship between Brock and his symbiotic alter-ego, Venom.

In regards to Anne Weying (Michelle Williams), Eddie's former fiancée, Let There Be Carnage apparently brought closure to her story in this film. Brock comes to accept that he will never get back with Anne, and watched as she and her new fiancé Dan (Reid Scott) rushed off into the night, together, at the end of the movie.

Dealing with Venom 2's visual effects, it was just as well-done as the FX in the original film. Although, I'm wondering how the CGI would've looked if the top dog of visual effects companies, Industrial Light & Magic, had worked on Let There Be Carnage. DNEG is the lead vendor that brought Venom to life in both movies, respectively.

As was the case with every Marvel flick except Sam Raimi's Spider-Man trilogy and Marvel Studios' Avengers series (somewhat), the music score was Let There Be Carnage's weakest point. Marco Beltrami—an outstanding composer—was apparently in no mood to create additional music for the end credits...with some rap song closing out the credits instead. (Compare this to the great end credits music by Hans Zimmer in each installment of The Dark Knight trilogy.)

Speaking of that end credits scene in Let There Be Carnage... Wow! I look forward to seeing Venom confront his classic foe on the big screen once again (the previous standoff being in 2007's Spider-Man 3)—though I doubt they'll have that many fight scenes against each other. (Don't forget the future Marvel movies that Sony Pictures has under its slate, like next year's Morbius.) Venom is, after all, the lethal protector. So why would one good guy continue to battle against another good guy after they've realized they're on the same superhero page?

Happy 2nd Day of October!