Barbarian Gives Horror Fans An Unconventional Yet Fun Descent Into Terror

       

NOTE: This review contains mild SPOILERS

      The best kind of horror films are those whose stories are unpredictable along with being extremely entertaining and genuinely creepy. In addition to terrifying audiences, these films aim to misdirect with random twists and turns which challenge their original perceptions of the story. That's certainly what 20th Century Studios aspires to do with Barbarian with the newest horror flick taking audiences on a bizarre thrill ride that keeps audiences guessing as to what's transpires next. The end result is an entertaining horror experience that'll surprise horror fans with its creativity along with its ambition in attempting something different. 

      Barbarian has a young woman (Georgina Campbell) discovering that the rental home she booked is already occupied by a stranger. Going against her better judgment, she decides to spend the night but soon discovers that there's something scarier occupying the rental than just an unexpected host. Barbarian's plot is one that's unpredictable and jaw-dropping as it takes major turns with the direction of its story. When audiences think that they know what to expect from things as they unfold, the filmmakers take a sharp turn while keeping things connected. Although it's unconventional form of storytelling may pose as being confusing and polarizing for audiences, Barbarian has much to offer as being a clever and darkly humorous ride that subverts expectations in the most interesting and unexpected way. 

      One of Barbarian's most powerful assets in making it so effective as a horror story is the performances from its cast which mostly rank as being impressive overall. Georgina Campbell shines as the films main female character Tess Marshall, whose staying in Detroit for an interview and ends up sharing the Airbnb with the stranger occupying it. Campbell makes for a likable and sympathetic character whom audiences want to see make it to the end of the film. Bill Skarsgard is terrific as stranger Kieth Toshko, who double books the Airbnb with Tess. Skarsgard does a fine job of building up mystery surrounding his character with audiences going back and forth on whether his character is sinister or just strange. Justin Long shines as cancelled sitcom actor AJ Gilbrid, who owns the Airbnb and finds himself becoming apart of the terror. Long excels in playing an unlikeable narcissist, who believes that he's done nothing wrong to anyone. The rest of Barbarian's cast deliver solid supporting roles with Matthew Patrick Davis giving an absolutely chilling performance as the films antagonist, The Mother. Richard Brake also proves effective as the houses original owner Frank, and Jaymes Butler as Andre. As a whole, the cast does a fantastic job with making audiences believe in the films brilliantly terrifying scenario. 

      Barbarian's directing by Zach Cregger is commendable with how he establishes an atmosphere, which falls within the category of being both tense and creepy. In addition to surrounding the films key characters with rooms consisting of dark shadows to emphasize the mystery surrounding the rental, the cinematography presents the daytime scenes as being almost dream like with its use of sunlight. Some of the films gruesome bits include a head being bashed against a wall until it becomes a bloody pulp, eye-gouging, and an arm being ripped off and being used as a club. The editing has the story flying by relatively quick for its 103 minute running time with the foreboding soundtrack propelling the suspense. As far as directorial work goes, Cregger skillfully crafts an extremely dark and creepy horror piece that'll undoubtedly keep audiences at the edge of their seat in terms of what happens next, though they may find the ultimate reveal of the sinister force that's occupying the rental to be disappointing.

      Along with Barbarian's skillful directing, the writing works as being fairly strong with the script building up the mystery behind the Airbnb with its ultimate reveal being shocking. The story is broken up into multiple chapters for the audience to unpack with the first half covering Tess and Keith's encounter before switching over to Long's character being introduced and revealed as the owner of the Airbnb with his character attempting to solve the mystery behind the previous occupiers (Tess) disappearance. The film also introduces a flashback to show the origins of the rentals previous owner who kidnapped and locked women in the basement. Although the numerous chapters and different character subplots may appear disorganized at first, they ultimately snap together and show that they're all connected with the events introduced in the films first half with the latter brilliantly establishing the characters as well as themes consisting of paranoia and mistrust, particularly in regards to the male and female dynamic in the films opening. The audience isn't sure what to make of Bill Skarsgard's character in terms of whether he's a trustworthy person or someone plotting something sinister given that Tess is sharing the rental. The audience is also kept in suspense in regards to whether Long's character is redeemable given the heinous accusations being leveled against him. The films third act consists of bizarre moments, which will both confuse and disturb audiences such as an intense horror sequence involving breastfeeding. Overall, Barbarian's writing carries a clever mixture of old-school suspense and buildup of tension that makes it a unique catch for horror fans, though the films third act will test whether they're appreciative of the films non-conformative style of filmmaking. 

      If one goes into Barbarian expecting a horror experience that's twisty, creepy, and ultimately fun to watch, they'll have a blast watching it because they have the right expectations set for it going in. However, if horror fans are expecting a straight-forward narrative that's easy to follow then they're in for a genuine surprise as Barbarian pulls no punches in its desire to take horror fans on a non-traditional horror-filled ride. There's no denying that Barbarian's concept is one that makes it both mysterious and intriguing with horror fans being given an experience that's undeniably smart, surprisingly funny, darkly terrifying, and ultimately worthwhile.

Final Verdict: A must see for horror fans, though ext the story to take a different path about midway through before returning to its original form.

Images Courtesy Of 20th Century Studios

Disney's Pinocchio Remake Is Watchable But Also Proves That Some Classic Stories Don't Need Retelling

      When it comes to live-action Disney remakes, the most common and reactionary response that fans have is "Why bother"? Since Disney began it's stream of classic animated tales transformed into live-action form, the results have been mixed with the latest hybrids leaving much to be desired with audiences. Whereas ones such as Cinderella, The Jungle Book, and Beauty And The Beast left audiences generally satisfied, others have left them largely underwhelmed like Guy Ritchie's Aladdin, 2019's The Lion King and 2020's Mulan. Unfortunately with Robert Zemeckis Pinocchio, the latter trend continues as the newest live-action Disney adaptation despite being a passable remake, ultimately lacks the magic of its classic animated predecessor.

      Bearing the same storyline as its animated counterpart, Pinocchio has the wooden puppet being brought to life by a Blue Fairy and striving to be a real boy while seeking a life of adventure. His life is turned upside down when he leaves his father to follow the circus. As far as plot goes, Pinocchio stays relatively close to the animated creation with minimal differences. Rather than taking the story and starting from scratch, the live-action Pinocchio repeats all of the originals key beats with it often feeling as if it's going through the motions. While it doesn't dishonor the original film, it also never seizes the opportunity to build on it and feels like a generic by-the-numbers live-action adaptation that falls within the category of being so-so, ultimately doing nothing innovative with its story. 

    

      With the performances, Pinocchio's cast proves effective with the actors doing a believable job of establishing the real-life version of the characters world for audiences to witness. Despite the cast being well-assembled, it's the performances of Tom Hanks as Geppetto and Benjamin Ecab Ainsworth as Pinocchio that are key here. Hanks completely immerses himself in the role of kind-hearted Italian woodcarver Geppetto, who wishes for a real boy and makes Pinocchio to be his real one. While Hanks feels underused here, he crafts a unique version of the character that stays true to his animated form. Ainsworth appears to be perfectly casted as the voice of Pinocchio with him embodying all of the characters classic traits in desiring to become a real boy. Joseph Gordon-Levitt also impresses at voincing Jiminy Cricket who acts as Pinocchio's "conscience", as well as being the stories narrator. The rest of the cast deliver notably strong performances including voice actors Keegan-Michael Key as the red fox "Honeet" John who cons Pinocchio, Lorraine Bracco a seagull named Sofia who befriends Jiminy. Other live performers in the film include Cynthia Erivo as the magical Blue Fairy who brings Pinocchio to life and promises to turn him into a real boy if he proves himself, Luke Evans as charismatic owner and operator of Pleasure Island, The Coachman, and Giuseppe Battiston as the abusive puppeteer, Stromboli, who forces Pinocchio to perform onstage for profit. Overall, Pinocchio's cast delivers fine work regardless of how one feels about the film as a whole.

      As far as directing goes, Oscar winner Zemeckis brings the world of Pinocchio to life on the screen in a way that feels darker than the 1940 animated classic which also carried its own share of intense moments. With how visually stunning the world of Pinocchio appears, the use of CGI for the character himself appears uneven at times despite the overall look and design of the character being spot-on. Along with the films beautiful cinematography, the editing keeps the story fast-paced like the original with composer Alan Silvestri incorporating several musical numbers which include iconic songs like When You Wish Upon A Star, this time performed by Cynthia Erivo as The Blue Fairy or Tom Hanks performing When He Was Here With Me. With Pinocchio, Zemeckis does a solid job of crafting a live-action world which the characters can both live and breathe in, despite CGI work on Pinocchio.

      When it comes to live-action Pinocchio's writing, many of the original films themes are present including faith, hope, greed, desiring fame, loneliness, taking control of ones life, love, and family. Much like the original, Pinocchio learns to follow his conscience while distinguishing right from wrong in addition to resisting temptation and proving himself to be brave, honest, and unselfish. Despite carrying the originals story-structure and themes, Zemeckis's Pinocchio can't shake the feeling that it feels a bit shallow at it's core. The film comes across as feeling like a paint by-the-numbers Disney remake that aims to deliver on its promise of providing audiences with tremendous amounts of nostalgia while not doing anything significant to upgrade the story. The films strongest moments are the ones which include both Geppetto and Pinocchio, though those moments are too few and far between. What ultimately holds back Zemeckis Pinocchio from being a truly remarkable live-action remake, is that audiences never truly feel that they're witnessing the main character learn the difference between right and wrong throughout his journey to becoming a real boy. The thrill of that discovery is largely absent here with the script often feeling like it's going through the motions and checking off all the key events of the animated film in hopes of not upsetting Disney fans. The scriptwriting for Pinocchio never seizes the opportunity to explore the life lessons its predecessor taught generations of audiences. 

      What made the original Pinocchio a classic was not just it's groundbreaking animation but how clever, playful, witty, and moving it was with the remake missing some of those key components. Whereas Pinocchio's nose was shown to often stretch whenever he told a lie, the remake has it reduced to only one scene. With how Disney's been inconsistent with adapting its classic animated tales in live-action form, fans question the need to redo something that's already perfect, especially if you can't recapture the originals magic. The saying goes that if something isn't broke then you shouldn't try to fix it. One certainly wishes that Disney listened to that logic and applied it here. 

Final Verdict: Watchable if you're a fan of the original, though one shouldn't expect the same kind of enchantment from the remake.  

Images courtesy of Disney

Bullet Train Gives Audiences An Insanely Fun Train Ride Worth Taking

      What makes a solid action movie is the stylistic directing and unique form of storytelling that's brought to the film, along with a plot that's engaging. Add to that a terrific ensemble cast such as the one that Sony Pictures Bullet Train possesses. Featuring the acting talents of Brad Pitt, Joey King, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Brian Tyree Henry, Andrew Koji, Hiroyiki Sanada, Michael Shannon, and Sandra Bullock, Bullet Train takes high-octane action to the next level with delivering an action-packed experience that serves as an appetizer while awaiting for the next installment of the John Wick franchise. 

      Bullet Train's plot has unlucky assassin Ladybug (Brad Pitt), encountering several other assassins from around the globe on a high speed train with their separate objectives all connecting together. Whereas the films storyline isn't one that's particularly deep or thought-provoking, it serves as being an effective vessel in delivering brainless high-speed action with cleverly witty humor. Although it won't blow anyones minds, the film carries enough thrills to provide audiences with a fairly decent action comedy thats boasted by its colorful cast.

      Much of Bullet Train's power comes from the charismatic performances of its ensemble cast, particularly Brad Pitt who largely carries the film with his performance as seasoned but unlucky American mercenary, Ladybug. Pitt puts his charismatic talent on full display here with him crafting a character whose extremely fun to watch. Joey King shines as young female mercenary, The Prince, who pretends to be a British schoolgirl. King does an impressive job and steals the show when Pitt isn't on the screen while managing to hold her own against the rest of the cast. Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Brian Tyree Henry are terrific as British assassins and adoptive bothers Tangerine and Lemon with the latter sharing a love for Thomas the Tank Engine which becomes an ongoing humorous gag between the two. The duo provide much of the films comedy that makes it well-balanced with its action. Other noteworthy performances include Andrew Koji as Yuichi Kimura, a Japanese member of the White Deaths criminal organization with Hiroyiki Sanada as his father and former Yakuza, The Elder. Michael Shannon as usual, delivers a strong performance as Russian leader, The White Death, and former KGB operative. Benito A Martinez Ocasio excels as Mexican assassin The Wolf, along with Sandra Bullock as Ladybug's contact and handler, Maria Beetle. The cast for Bullet Train shows great enthusiasm in playing their characters with each person not only fitting into their roles, but also having a complete blast in doing so. Their efforts add a tremendous amount of energy and charisma to the film, ultimately making the experience an enjoyable one.

      Directed by stunt coordinator David Leitch, who helmed Atomic Blonde, and Deadpool 2, Leitch delivers an exceedingly violent story to audiences that comes across as feeling comical. Such violence shown includes gun and sword usage, heavy blood sprays, characters faces being blown off and impaled with meat hooks and poisoned characters bleeding from their eye sockets before dying. With the films 120 running time, Leitch keeps things constantly stopping and going with flashbacks incorporated to add backstory to the characters in terms of fleshing out their motivations without it feeling forceful. As far as cinematography goes, Bullet Train's is visually striking with the Japanese cityscape and usage of different colors being shown making the films visual landscape enticing for audiences. The costume design shown cleverly fits the distinctive personalities of each character, even after fight scenes. With its score, composer Dominic Lewis adds to the intensity of the action scenes by delivering musical mayhem along with twisty tunes to make the plot more thrilling. Known for making gleefully violent action fate, Leitch doesn't disappoint here and crafts a serviceable action fare that's exciting to watch and appealing on a visual front regardless of whether one feels that the story is a bit shallow.

      When it comes to writing, Bullet Train keeps things straight-forward and relatively easy to follow while providing twists and turns throughout the speedy train ride. The films concept regarding criminals and murderers attempting to kill each other while staying alive on a high-speed Japanese train is appealing despite not bearing much depth. A key point which the story drives is that keeping things simple is always better as emphasized by Brad Pitt's character. The latter acknowledges that things don't always go the way he expects them to when things switch up or become complicated with him admitting that he prefers things to go smoothly. The area where the script thrives is placing its numerous trained fighters against each other with the films real suspense coming from characters returning from certain defeat like being thrown off a train, jumping back onto it and trying to find their way back inside. The script also delivers clever pop up moments such as the planting of a poisonous snake emerging and catching the audience by surprise. Each character receives just the right amount of development to make them palatable to audiences with cleverly humorous bits included such as Henry's character having a strong fascination with Thomas The tank Engine. While the characters are appealing overall, it's Ladybug who adds heart to the story with his laid-back persona making him less of a fighter and more of someone whose trying to make things easier for himself. As hard as the rest of the film appears to be in terms of being violent, Ladybug's character brings moments of charm in between as well as Henry. 

      Although it can be said that Bullet Train's script isn't the most innovative and relies heavily on its impressively choreographed action scenes and the charismatic appeal of its main cast, there's enough of what works to make it a satisfying action-packed experience despite not reinventing the wheel. If entertainment is the destination then Bullet Train meets it while presenting itself as being an efficient time waster that's absurd, funny, flawed, and ultimately worthwhile. 

Final Verdict: A must watch for action fans. 

Images Courtesy Of Sony Pictures

DC League Of Super-Pets Delivers Refreshingly Fun Entertainment That The Whole Family Can Enjoy

      Making a fun-filled experience that the whole family can enjoy is quite an undertaking but Warner Brothers admirably pulls it off with their 3D computer animated superhero flick, DC League of Super-Pets. Boasting the voice acting talents of Dwayne The Rock Johnson, Kevin Hart, Keanu Reeves, Kate McKinnon, and John Krasinski, DC League Of Super-Pets provides families with an experience that's colorful, funny, charming and places its own fun spin on the classic characters in the popular comic book universe. 

      Based on the DC comics Superhero team Legion of Super-Pets, the story has Krypto the Super-Dog ( Voiced by Dwayne Johnson) and Superman being not only inseparable best friends but fighting crime side by side in Metropolis. When the latter is kidnapped along with the rest of the Justice League, Krypto sets out to save them with the help of a ragtag group of animals whom he helps discover their newfound powers. Given that the DC cinematic universe is known for being increasingly dark and gritty, it's especially noteworthy that League Of Super-Pets takes a complete opposite approach that contains well-balanced humor for both young children and adults. The film carves its own path in exploring the universes characters with surprisingly fun twists, important messages for young children to absorb, and a tremendous amount of heart. 

      When it comes to voice performances, League Of Super-Pets cast deliver fantastic work with Dwayne Johnson being perfectly casted as Krypto/Superdog. He effectively conveys his characters loyalty and love towards Superman, along with his confusion and jealousy over the latter spending more time with Lois Lane. Matching Johnson's charismatic presence is Kevin Hart as boxer Ace/Bat-Hound, who ultimately teams up with Crypto and carries super strength. Both actors share tremendous chemistry as two dogs who form the unlikeliest alliance. Kate McKinnon is brilliant as the main antagonist, Lulu, an evil hairless guinea pig who desires to take over the world with Lex Luthor. Other strong supporting roles include John Krasinski as Kal-El/Superman with him embodying the traditional witty version of the character that fans know and love. Keanu Reeves is a complete blast as Batman/Bruce Wayne with him sharing a hilarious twist with Ace/Bat-Hound after both discover that they have more in common in regards to their reclusiveness from society. Other notable mentions include Vanessa Bayer as potbellied pig PB, Natasha Lynne as Merton/Terrific Whatzit, Diego Luna as paranoid red Squirrel, Chip, Mark Maron as the villainous Lex Luthor, Olivia Wilde as Lois Lane, Jameela Jamil as Wonder Woman, Jermaine Clement as Aquaman, John Early as The Flash, Daveed Diggs as Cyborg, Dashcam Polanco as Jessica Cruz/Green Lantern, and Keith David as Kryto's father, Dog-El. Overall, League's ensemble is brilliantly assembled and bring much energy to the story.

      As far as animation goes, director Jared Stern provides the film with 3D animation that's immersive for young audiences to watch. The real thrill that comes with the crisp animation is seeing all the familiar DC characters brought together in animated form with the newer Super-Pets team. Despite feeling generic, the films cartoon violence is still handled in a way that makes it engaging to watch. One visually striking scene in particular involves Crypto battling a gigantic version of the antagonist and flying to the sun to get maximum strength in order to defeat his opponent while the Justice League team up with the Super-Pets back on Earth to fight the main antagonist. While such a sequence isn't one that screams innovativeness, it fits right at home within the wide-scale action of the DC universe. At 105 minutes, Super-Pets is fast-moving though always prioritizes its more intimate character-driven moments. The soundtrack beautifully captures the whimsy of the super-pets while delivering chills for older fans with the inclusion of John Williams classic Superman theme and Danny Elfman's Batman music. With League, stern does a noteworthy job of bringing the DC universe to the screen in animated form while giving it a feel good tone. 

      Some of the films key themes are friendship, family, love, sacrifice, feeling left out, loving unconditionally, world domination, and jealousy with the films overall message being that there is no justice without truth. The heart of the story is the relationship between Superman and Crypto both the latter ultimately understanding and accepting Clark's prioritizing of his relationship with Lois. Each member of Crypto's team gets their respective moments to shine with minimal information presented to give insight into how they obtained their special abilities. The Justice League team feels not only true to their real character personas, but also pay homage to their live-action DCEU counterparts. The scripts humor consists of risque innuendo and clever Easter eggs with references for older audiences to pick up on, while also poking fun of both Marvel and DC with the story carrying a touch of social commentary that's directed towards calling out billionaires. The stories real thrill is seeing Crypto's new team form with each animal coming to terms with their own powers. As a whole, League's screenplay is well-rounded with it having something for young kids and adults not just in regards to the films humor, but also the themes it explores with a surprising amount of maturity and thoughtfulness.

     With DC's cinematic future being in a limbo as fans wait to see what the future lies, Super-Pets takes the initiative here with richly satisfying results. What makes League Of Super-Pets an above average addition to the universe is the refreshing, funny, and heartfelt way it goes about presenting it's story combined with its wonderfully talented cast. The film strikes the right chord with how it entertains young kids and adults while doing its own thing with absolute confidence. DC fans will find League Of Super-Pets to be a genuinely crowd-pleasing experience that fills the universes temporary void for some good old-fashioned superhero entertainment that's charming as well as nostalgic. As the film shows, not everything has

to be dark and gritty to be a worthy comic book adaption. 

Final Verdict:  A must watch for DC fans as well as general audiences.  

Images Courtesy Of Warner Brothers.