It's been a long time coming. We've been talking about this film for several years now, and the book for even longer. We even went as far as to compile the Ready Player One Film Challenge which we attempted and failed not once, but twice. So, it's fair to say that we've been anticipating this one for quite some time. The book is a love letter to the 1980s and everything about being a nerd. Games, films, books, TV shows. All the things that I, and countless others, have immersed myself in over the last thirtysomething years.

Going into the film, I was nervous. Having seen the trailer and the posters, there were a few things that didn't sit quite right with what I knew of the source material, yet I wanted to remain open minded. 

The opening scenes do a good job of...

Building up to the next instalment of the MCU, I couldn’t help but have a few worries. Yes, Marvel make great movies but, also yes, they have a few reoccurring troubles which I wasn’t sure if this film would avoid or not. Rather than posting the concerns, I thought I’d review the film considering them. I’ve linked to the full details of those concerns in an appendix/footnotes style. A few very minor spoilers ahead but let’s get on with it.

Worry 1: the plot with be fragment and/or chaotic (1)

We are introduced to a Ragnarok storyline with a thoroughly well embedded Planet Hulk subplot. The two are weaved together nicely and Hulk’s story does not feel gratuitous in the slightest. The story itself gives us some idea of what Thor and Banner have been up to for 2 years as...

This film caught my eye upon first viewing the trailer. Having enjoyed biopics/semi-biographical films such as Creation (Charles Darwin), Finding Neverland (J M Barrie), and Black Mass (Whitey Bulger), the idea of a human story behind one of the most beloved childhood stories seemed a sure bet. What I experienced did not let down and whilst it was not perfect it was a warming, enjoyable, and emotionally engaging story.

We meet A. A. Milne post-world war one, despondent with the way people are acting as if nothing happened and sure of humanity repeating their mistakes. Through the struggles of family and the world, we experience the journeys of both Milne and his son Christopher which ultimately leads to the creation of the Winnie the Pooh stories. The principle characters are...

Set in the world of Godzilla (2014) but way earlier during the cold war, an unmapped island is discovered and a team set up to investigate it. Before long, they are accosted by giant gorilla and settle in to discover that the island is full of gigantic versions of animals, a peaceful human tribe, and ruled by Kong himself. Now…I wasn’t excited by this film (nor interested at all) as I’ve never been a fan of monster movies and the first in this universe quite frankly sucked (Broderik’s Godzilla is perhaps the exception). But a raving review from a trusted friend, a reasonable trailer, and a cast consisting of half of the Marvel universe persuaded me to give it a go. I was not only not disappointed but actually impressed with what followed, for reasons I’ll outline below.

Overall...

Despite a promising trailer, and the excitement which followed, I still approached Wonder Woman with tepid caution. Following on from the fragmented blandness of Man of Steel, the ‘two films badly cut into one’ of Dawn of Justice, and an altogether fun but with poor plot choice and horrific CGI Suicide Squad, I wasn’t sure what to expect. I half thought that we’d be treated to an awfully Snyderised rendition of Captain America and be left with no hope for DC’s movie universe. I could not have been more wrong in my suspicions for what I experienced was nothing short of one of the best superhero movies in the last few years (and those of you that know me know how much I love Logan and Civil War).

Its plot is absolutely on point. The entire film, though set in the past, is...

Walking in to the theatre I was filled with both excitement an apprehension. As a child of the (American) Power Rangers revolution I was unsure what they could have done to update this cheesy mixture of spandex-laden teenagers doing an unnecessary quantity of backflips. Turns out they can remove both the spandex as well as the backflips in place of awesome space suits and actual fighting. I was pleasantly surprised by what turned out to be a genuinely good film with some great updates to bring it in line with modern superheroes (the trailer, let’s be honest, is a better Fantastic Four film than any of the “Fantastic” 3 which have happened). It also provided more substance than the original by creating backstory amongst not only the characters but also in relation to true events on...

Well…what can I say about this movie. As short of words I am now I was equally gobsmacked at the start of the credits (and some 30minutes later). The film starts in a not-to-distant future, where mutants have all but died out, with Logan and Xavier on their last legs. Logan’s healing abilities have slowed right down and Xavier is suffering from some sort of dementia combined with seizures. Unexpected events as well as the fate of their kind send them on their last journey together and this was quite simply spectacular for a number of reasons.

Firstly, it provided the perfect ending to a journey which we have been following for some 17 years now. The mentoring-turn-brotherhood relationship of Logan and Xavier has taken them to their very limits. They have now reached a point in...

If you were to sit in the restaurant equivalent of the Hollywood script industry it would probably go like this.

You are shown to your generic NY diner style booth by a generic waiter and offered a menu that has been through a thousand hands before yours. 

‘Can I interest you in the specials today?’ 

‘Not today’ 

‘Can I get you anything to drink’

‘Yes, I’d like a standard diet cola please.’

‘Coming right up’

A few minutes later the drink arrives in a plastic cup with a lid that has a slot for interchangeable figures on it. Today, a plastic rabbit.

‘Are you ready to order?’

‘Could I get a Minions short to start please?’

‘And for your main?’

‘Yes, could I get a Lost Animal Tries To Get Home please...

First off, any concerns that the X-Men reboot trilogy would end with a repeat of the disaster that was X3:The Last Stand have been put to bed. Apocalypse is nowhere near that bad, on the contrary in parts it's actually pretty enjoyable; it's also not the end of this run of X-Men films.

Apocalypse, the world's first mutant, reappears on the scene thousands of years after an attack on his followers leaves him buried and forgotten.  He recruits four acolytes and then sets about his master plan to reset the Earth for only the strongest of mutants.  Rivalries, egos and fears all need to be put aside in order to defeat him.  It's a no-brainer popcorn movie at its finest.

As enjoyable as it maybe it does have a few flaws and, like ripping off a plaster,...

Ok, here we go...

Captain America: Civil War is a clever, tense and often emotional, rollercoaster ride of a film; charting the struggle within the Avengers as Rogers & Co. have the fallout from their actions laid out before them. Consequence is the over-riding theme of the film.

The chain of events from the previous films, added to the MCU's own version of the "Stamford Incident", leads to the Sokovia Accords, a piece of legislation that leads to a schism within the group. Stark is pro-registration and the belief that the Avengers need to be accountable to a higher power, whilst Cap is still very much for personal freedom and accountability, and fears that a higher power may send the team on missions that serve the ulterior motives of their new handlers.

The...