Oliver Battershall

The Omen (1976) 4/5
What it lacks in sheer sense of dread (at least in comparison with its counterparts in the “my kid’s the devil!” genre of horror) it makes up for in gloomy atmosphere, an element of mystery (albeit one that I think should’ve been explored more) and a few very memorable deaths.

Animal Farm (1954) 3/5
A decent adaptation of a novel I really liked as an early teen, though towards the end there’s a few omissions of plot points as well as a completely different ending which I thought was strange.

Ron’s Gone Wrong (2021) 3.5/5
The kind of film I’d never have watched if I hadn’t surrendered myself to the sanctity of the random movie picker I found a few weeks ago that’s decided 90% of everything I’ve watched ever since. It’s been so many years since I saw a regular kids’ movie that it felt very weird to see very real current social media and Internet tropes as the main subject and it not be some fantastical prediction from 20 years ago. It’s got a definite charm and warmth to it among the inevitable clichés, though it’s maybe hard to get wrapped up in the world building when it’s only one very short step from where things already are with kids online.

10 Cloverfield Lane (2016) 4/5
My first time seeing John Goodman in an antagonist role that isn’t just jokey, and he’s as good as always. Great tension throughout, though it really is funny how much this didn’t need to be a Cloverfield movie.

The Hangover Part II (2011) 3/5
A better sense of action and mystery than the first one, but with slightly less charming characters. Still pretty funny.

Robin Hood: Men in Tights (1993) 4/5
My favourite of the three Robin Hood films I’ve seen, and one of the better uses of Mel Brooks’ joke-a-minute formula. Great cast, fourth wall breaks that didn’t get old, and a take on the story I’ve heard a million times that managed to stay fun and memorable.

The Gray Man (2022) 3/5
Perfectly decent, if very familiar, Netflix action fare. Gosling reliable as always and Evans I didn’t find as annoying as I usually do. A few cool drone shots aside, nothing remarkable and a little long but I was rarely bored.

The Secret of NIMH (1982) 4/5
Great vocal performances, expressive animation and graceful music that all easily rival Disney standards. Where it trumps Disney is the engaging story with a general maturity and slight grit. We all love a deep-voiced furry villain with bushy eyebrows and sly eyes don’t we.

Best in Show (2000) 4/5
Slightly preferred this to Waiting for Guffman, mostly because of the even better ensemble cast. Silly fun, can’t imagine anyone not liking this.

Wonder Woman (2017) 2/5
I remembered a lot of the online hate for this when it came out seemed like simple blatant misogyny, and it’s now fairly well reviewed, so I gave it a go. Overall quite bland with little engaging action that isn’t marred by iffy CGI. Gal Gadot is pretty wooden and only knows one facial expression (slight incredulity) and I don’t buy glamourous Chris Pine as a guy from the 40’s. Spud from Trainspotting also tags along for some reason. On a positive note, I liked the various villains. Dr. Maru’s design is cool, the movies long for Richard Harrow from Boardwalk Empire.