Prime Time: Aquaman And The Lost Kingdom (2023)

It's odd now to finally get around to watching one or two particular movies that were a part of the attempt to create a DCEU to rival the MCU phenomenon. I left it this long to watch Aquaman And The Lost Kingdom because this particular cinematic series was already pronounced dead by the time the film landed in the home rental market. In fact, I only kept this on my radar because there was a pleasingly cheap bundle on both Aquaman movies that I decided to purchase digitally. It just sat there though, like some unfinished novel written by a family member buried a few years ago.

The strange, and slightly irritating, thing is that this isn't too bad. It's a bit messy, particularly when you think of how it started compared to the finished product (I don't want to rehash all of the stuff about Amber Heard, but she certainly suffered in a biased court of public opinion that intertwined with superhero movie fanboys to create a toxicity you can almost feel emanating from the editing decisions made here), but it's fun.

Aquaman (Jason Momoa) is now a father, and rules his kingdom alongside his lovely wife, Mera (Heard). Unfortunately, Black Manta (Yahya Abdul-Mateen II) still wants revenge for the death of his father. He has a new weapon to help him, a Black Trident, and a plan that involves a lot of Orichalcum, a power source that creates huge amounts of greenhouse gases when used. Aquaman needs to figure out where Black Manta is based, as well as how to stop him. He can't do it alone though. He is going to need the help of his imprisoned brother, Orm (Patrick Wilson).

Writer David Leslie Johnson-McGoldrick may be working solo this time around, although helped by a few others (including Momoa and director James Wan) when it comes to the main story ideas, but he does well to make this feel like a decent continuation of the story we got in the first movie while allowing Aquaman and Orm to have enjoyable bickering between them that keeps a lot of the film firmly in the realm of the buddy action flick.

Wan can handle the scale of the film, and certainly seems keen to include a number of homages to other movies (I loved the moments that called back to some classic Harryhausen works, and there's even a wonderful little audio nod to one of the greatest horror movies of all time), but he lacks some clear direction. This is a distraction, nothing more and nothing less. Black Manta never feels like a big enough threat, individual episodes are just that, and the ending is just a waiting game until everything pans out exactly as you know it will.

Momoa is still fun in the main role, his casting was one of the better choices made during this time, and Wilson works well alongside him, the two having great rapport that feels as brotherly and fun as it needs to. Abdul-Mateen II does well with what he's given, but he's not given enough. Heard feels like she's making occasional cameo appearances, Randall Park is fun as Dr. Shin, someone caught up in the unfolding Black Manta scheme while trying to figure out how he can get out of it, and there's room for returning appearances from Temuera Morrison, Nicole Kidman, and Dolph Lundgren, as well as amusing voice performances from Martin Short and (also returning) John Rhys-Davies.

I doubt I will rush to watch this again, but it was just about on a par with the first film. It's a shame that nobody had the confidence to lean into the sillier and weirder elements, which is where the film works best, but we can enjoy the fact that those elements were at least given some screentime. 

6/10

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The Conjuring: Last Rites (2025)

And here we are, at last, with the last entry in The Conjuring movie series. Yeah. Sure. If you believe that then I have a lovely bridge to sell you. But let’s take things at face value for now.

You should know what to expect by now. People are affected by spooky shenanigans. Ed (Patrick Wilson) and Lorraine Warren (Vera Farmiga) eventually turn up to help them, and the Warrens have never encountered a ghost that they couldn’t actually label a demon. The movies allow them to be presented as Super-Exorcists. Meanwhile, reality has left viewers more and more equipped to see the Warrens as con artists, at best, and very dangerous and exploitative abusers, at worst. This time around they are assisted by their equally "gifted" daughter, Judy (Mia Tomlinson), and it's the Smurl family who are at the mercy of horrible demons.

I could spend the majority of this review mentioning the screenplay by the three writers (Ian Goldberg, Richard Naing, and David Leslie Johnson-McGoldrick, none of them strangers to the extended Conjuring cinematic universe) . I could throw a bit of shade at director Michael Chaves, who has been allowed to helm this after two of the weakest movies in that aforementioned selection of films. I could also point you towards The Haunted, the 1991 TV movie that generally does a better job of showing the real-life case this film is based on. That film has lead roles for Sally Kirkland and Jeffrey DeMunn, has Stephen Markle and Diane Baker portraying the Warrens, and is a more completely satisfying telling of the tale.

I could do all of those things, but it would only allow me to delay myself admitting that this is decidedly okay. I would probably enjoy it a lot more if it didn't seem so determined to get us all to buy into the "cult of the Warrens", but there are some individual scares that are effective and fun. There's also a lot of stuff that will have you rolling your eyes, and I thought it was bordering on parody to have Ed Warren uttering multiple warnings to people about their special relic room chock full of allegedly haunted and cursed objects.

Wilson and Farmiga can do this in their sleep by now, but they never feel as if they're sleepwalking through the whole thing. The dialogue is bad, and there isn't a scene that isn't overstuffed with ridiculously melodramatic lines about demons and souls and love, but both Wilson and Farmiga play it all as admirably straight as they have done throughout the other movies in this series. Tomlinson also does well, and Ben Hardy works nicely alongside her (he's a young man brave enough to consider marrying into the Warren family). As for the Smurl family members, the cast all do well enough, but are overshadowed by the shadows and spectres whirling around them for most of the runtime.

I didn't like this. I wouldn't recommend it to horror fans. It's hard to deny that it works how it is intended though. It's a mainstream chiller punctuated by some jumps and spooky moments, and many will consider it a perfect viewing choice when looking for something to watch and be thrilled by on a dark night in front of the TV. I just wasn't impressed. Maybe the next movie in this series will work for me. Oh, of course, I almost forgot that this was the last one. Hmmmmm. We'll see. Don't be surprised if we hear news in the next few years that we're getting something titled "The Conjuring In Connecticut".

4/10

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Annabelle Comes Home (2019)

There are many people who believe that they need to watch a movie at least twice to firmly form their opinion on it. I am not one of those people. I do have times when I am forgetful though, which leads to a gap of a year or two in between viewings, which makes me very late in actually offering up a full review. Bizarrely, my opinion usually remains about the same as it was during my first viewing. Sometimes, although it is very rare, my opinion changes. Having first seen Annabelle Comes Home a few years ago, I forgot to review it and thought no more about it, other than to dismiss it as a slick and silly mainstream horror. Having just rewatched it as part of my spooky season viewing choices, I actually now think it’s a pretty good film. Many hardened horror fans may roll their eyes and protest my opinion, but I stand by it.

The plot is quite simple. It all starts with the Warrens (Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga turning up to remind you that this is part of a connected horror movie universe) taking possession, no pun intended, of Annabelle the doll. Locking her up in a glass case in their room of forbidden and dangerous thingummybobs, all seems well. But, gosh darn it, they head out one evening and leave their young daughter (Mckenna Grace) in the care of a couple a teen babysitter (Mary Ellen, played by Madison Iseman, who is then joined by Daniela, played by Katie Sarife). You would expect nothing to go wrong, especially after the Warrens specifically say “do not go into the room of forbidden and dangerous thingummybobs, it will not end well.”

Oops.

The only film to date directed by writer Gary Dauberman (and you have to think this is a reward for his work in helping to grow such a popular horror “franchise”), Annabelle Comes Home throws a lot of spooky stuff again at the wall here, and Dauberman can take comfort in the fact that at least some of it sticks. Although Annabelle herself remains the central baddie, there’s a variety of spirits out to terrorize and trick our young leads (even if some do a lot worse than others, with a certain canine presence being a rather dire addition to the roster).

Dauberman may not have the knack for clarifying the set-ups and geography of the location, those two things have helped James Wan maintain his position as a fan favourite to many modern horror fans, but he puts everything in place, provides a handful of decent characters, and crafts one or two moments that feel impressively creepy.

Grace, Iseman, and Sarife are all likeable in their main roles, even when breaking rules that have been given to them for a very good reason, and Michael Cimino ends up being equally enjoyable in the role of Bob (a young man who has a crush on Mary Ellen, and inevitably turns up at the house when he would really be better off staying as far away from it as possible). Although not onscreen for long, Wilson and Farmiga have a couple of good scenes, and I didn’t mind the way they were used to effectively bookend the main story.

If you want something unique or terrifying then you already know to look elsewhere. This isn’t going to shake you to your core. It’s an enjoyable “ghost train” though, and makes great use of Annabelle by allowing her to be joined by a fresh selection of malevolent entities. Safe and somewhat predictable, admittedly, but also enjoyably atmospheric and spooky enough to make it a decent choice when you’re after some polished mainstream horror fun.

7/10

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Insidious: The Red Door (2023)

If watching Insidious: The Red Door has helped me fix a major blind spot then it was all worthwhile. I was setting up my review template for this (which is when I usually double-check cast and crew names) when I realised that I had been mis-spelling Leigh Whannell’s name for over a decade. Over a decade. Please, I implore you, if you ever read anything from me that contains such a constant error, please let me know. Sometimes the brain tricks you into thinking you are spelling things correctly, which can create the habit of a long-standing error. This long-standing error has now been corrected, with me editing every one of my online reviews that I could still access, after seeing Insidious: The Red Door. Which probably means that I got more from this film than most people.

I really enjoyed Insidious. While many people were underwhelmed by it, and quite a few were in a rush to refer to the main demonic figure as Darth Maul, I thought it was an excellent horror movie with some perfectly-executed scares. Despite the ups and downs of the series, it stays just ahead of The Conjuring movies, and is helped by not having to be beholden to central characters we know were actually viewed by many others as self-serving fraudsters. If Insidious: The Red Door is the last in the series then it is a very disappointing end, but I would prefer the series to end here than to try and limp through another instalment or two.

Everyone returns to their main roles, but the focus of the film is on the strained father and son relationship between Josh Lambert (Patrick Wilson) and Dalton Lambert (Ty Simpkins). Having had their most traumatic life experience wiped from their minds, there seems to be something else missing between them. Josh and Renai (Rose Byrne) have separated, and Dalton is leaving the nest aka heading to university. Go figure, something happens that triggers something in the mind of Dalton, leading him on a path to remember his past and face his demons. Literally. Helped on his journey by a new female friend (Chris Winslow, played by Sinclair Daniel), Dalton soon realises that he is in a lot of danger . . . and he might have to reconnect with his father to find a way back to something resembling a more normal, and much safer, life.

Written by Scott Teems, continuing song the path set out a long time ago by Leigh Whannell, Insidious: The Red Door is just about as redundant as movies get. There’s nothing new here, nothing to care about, and no  decent scares. As well as reprising his onscreen role, Wilson has been allowed to direct this, and it feels like a way to thank him for being part of two hugely successful modern horror movie franchises. That’s all well and good, but perhaps studios could just send him a wine subscription next time. Although competent, Wilson shows that he knows the basics of film-making without having noted the ways in which geography and set-ups are worked together to craft the best scares. The best moments here are, dare I say it, Wan-esque, but they are slightly mishandled in a way that makes you wish you were watching one of the earlier films in this series.

As for the acting, Wilson and Simpkins are both fine, and Byrne does what is required of her, but the only person to really stand out is Daniel, who provides a much-needed shot in the arm to the film, which would otherwise have been full of scenes showing one young man being glum, an older man being glum, and sometimes the two of them being glum together. 

Nobody is helped by the script, with Teems seeming far too nervous to stray from the central path that should lead to the end of the series, but the pacing and infrequent moments of humour help to make it more bearable than it could have been. Despite bringing to mind more memorable moments, callbacks to the first film generally work well, and there’s a middle section that allows Simpkins and Daniel to almost have some fun before everything descends further into darkness and peril.

It’s not good, but it’s not exactly awful either. I doubt I will remember it by next month though, and I certainly won’t want to ever revisit it.

5/10

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Moonfall (2022)

Despite strong competition from a couple of other blockbusters from the past decade or so, including at least one other film also from director Roland Emmerich, Moonfall is the dumbest mainstream release you will see this year, and perhaps even the dumbest mainstream movie you will ever see. It is so dumb that it at least makes it easier to forget about following the plot and just concentrate on the spectacle of the whole thing. In fact, I think it might be dangerous to try keeping your brain fully switched on while watching this.

Basically, in the way of almost all Emmerich movies, something happens at the start that teases the mass devastation due to come along later in the movie. The very basic premise is, as the title tells you, the moon changing orbit. Earth has about three weeks to figure out a solution. The only hope for humanity lies with Jocinda Fowler (a top bod at NASA, played by Halle Berry), Brian Harper (a disgraced ex-astronaut, played by Patrick Wilson), and KC Houseman (an amateur . . . skywatcher, a label I will use to avoid spoilers, played by John Bradley). Meanwhile, tsunamis start destroying major cities, gravity is changing, and people seem remarkably unconcerned about the threat of super-werewolves.

Co-written by Emmerich, Harald Kloser, and Spenser Cohen, here is a film that almost gets things so right, but ultimately ruins the third act with an overdose of CGI madness that makes it genuinely hard to see, or even know, what is going on. The fun ideas set up in the opening act become less fun as things met become more relentless. And there are only so many times you can look at a supermoon in the sky before it becomes worthy of little more than a shrug (once, one time is all you need).

Emmerich can direct this kind of stuff in his sleep, but he seems to get very easily distracted by the toys at his disposal. He is a man who doesn’t believe in “less is more”. More is more, and more on top of that, and even more. It’s tiring, especially by the time you get to a final act that manages to be overlong and surprisingly unsatisfying.

The cast do what is asked of them, and their performances are in line with the material. Berry comes out of it best, having to be the level-headed lead of the mission, and Wilson tries hard, despite being weighed down by the many clichés that he’s given (washed up, no money, a beer in the morning, a son he hasn’t always been as close to). Bradley is a mixture of comic relief and Mr. Exposition, he does well enough in his role, but his character is an odd one to turn into a hero, for obvious reasons. Charlie Plummer plays the son of Wilson’s character, Michael Peña is the stepfather you suspect may end up moonstruck to pave the way for a reconnection between Wilson and Carolina Bartczak (as his ex-wife), and Wenwen Yu is absolutely wasted in a role that feels horribly undefined.

If you need something that will provide spectacle without taxing your brain then this might just fit the bill. Personally, I would recommend (re)watching past glories, pick from either the fantastic The Day After Tomorrow or the silliness of 2012. Pick Independence Day (not exactly the same kind of movie, but the template is similar enough). This isn’t as good as any of those. But it still isn’t as bad as Geostorm.

5/10

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The Commuter (2018)

One of a number of generic action vehicles that director Jaume Collet-Sera made with star Liam Neeson, The Commuter has very little to recommend it. And yet, surprisingly, there are treats hidden away within it.

Neeson plays Michael, an ex-cop who now works for a life insurance company. Well . . . worked for them. He is let go, which means his train ride home may well be his last commute for a while. He ends up engaged in conversation with a woman (Vera Farmiga) who makes him a hypothetical offer of thousands of dollars to identify an individual on the train. The offer is less hypothetical than it first appears, however, and Michael ends up trying to find this person while also trying to save the lives of everyone on the train.

As preposterous and predictable as you think it’s going to be, The Commuter is also, like a number of other Neeson-led action vehicles, easy entertainment when you want something pretty brisk and silly. A lot of that is thanks to Neeson himself, of course, and many people will know in advance whether they want to see another action thriller barely indistinguishable from the many other action thrillers he has made over the past decade.

The script is nonsense. It’s hard to believe that three people - Ryan Engle, Philip de Blasi, and Byron Willinger - came together to complete this. Engle is the one with a few other decent titles to his name, including another Neeson vehicle, but this is very much “paint by numbers” around the star, and Collet-Sera directs it as one. There’s one genuinely tense moment, involving Neeson being stuck under the train at one point, but everything else plays out in a way that people will find completely unsurprising. Which may make it a comfortable viewing choice, as it was for me. 

The supporting cast is where you get some treats to make this worth your time. As well as Farmiga, there’s a supporting role for her long-time onscreen hubby (Ed Warren), Patrick Wilson. Sam Neill has a very small role, and he is always welcome. Jonathan Banks is as good as ever, as are both Andy Nyman and Florence Pugh. Clara Lago, Ella-Rae Smith, Roland Møller, Colin McFarlane, Kobna Holdbrook-Smith, and Adam Nagaitis all do well enough, playing a variety of characters put in peril by the wild scheme that has Neeson at the heart of it.

Absolutely inessential, absolutely forgettable, and absolutely ridiculous, this is also a film that is absolutely easy to choose to watch when you are searching for something that won’t challenge you or cause you to overthink anything. You could even watch it during your own commute, if you have the time. 

4/10

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The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It (2021)

Is this the final film in The Conjuring cinematic universe? I hope so. If not, it should be. Mainly because there are only so many times viewers should be made to swallow another horror film that posits the Warrens (Ed and Lorraine, played here once again by Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga) as shining beacons of goodliness helping to save innocent souls from the clutches of demonic forces. That's not me deliberately "forgetting" any other horror franchise that maintains the same leads throughout, but I cannot think of any other characters within the genre who are painted as being so constantly right and slightly above everyone around them.

Let me get to describing the plot here. The Warrens are helping a young boy who has been possessed. That young boy is in serious trouble, but his older brother (Arne, played by Ruairi O'Connor) tries to save the day by offering himself as a vessel for the evil. Ed Warren has a heart attack, but has to get himself fit as soon as possible, and he and Lorraine want to help save Arne from a death sentence when he is arrested after murdering his landlord. Things play out as you expect them to play out, all underlined by that fear-inducing selling point that it is all "based on a true story".

There are a few things working against this third Conjuring movie, but the main one may be the fact that it's no longer James Wan directing. That role has been handed to Michael Chaves (the man responsible for the massively average The Curse Of La Llorona). Say what you like about these movies, or the widening cinematic universe they have created, but Wan knows how to best execute scares, and he is a master at laying out the geography of sites in order to set up atmosphere and jumps later. Chaves, to put it bluntly, does not. There are some lovely shots here, and a lot of the cinematography by Michael Burgess is better than the weak material deserves, but there aren't any good scares. And there's a disappointing lack of anything that reinforces the period, or even the locations of the various set-pieces. That's not to say that the production design doesn't set out to replicate the early '80s, or Connecticut, but the films is so focused on the Warrens, or the force they are battling, that nothing else in the film feels like anything other than the minimal amount required of setting required for the main events.

The second thing working against the movie is the script by David Leslie Johnson-McGoldrick. Having worked with James Wan on a couple of previous movies, I suspect that Johnson-McGoldrick had his hands tied here, with Wan helping in the story department and obviously wanting to maintain the value of a horror franchise that has now been able to sell itself as much on his name as the actual onscreen content.

Last, but by no means least, there's an over-familiarity here, and it feels like a big mis-step to try and move away from the haunted house horrors of the two main films that preceded it. I'd rather watch an imperfect haunted house movie than a dull story that mixes demonic possession with a big court case. The latter now feels overdone, mainly thanks to the many films that have mixed horror with standard drama/thriller tropes over the past few decades (and, while it has been over 15 years, The Exorcism Of Emily Rose has cast a long shadow here, for better or worse), while the former can always work well, even if far too familiar, by providing some easy spookiness and scares.

Wilson and Farmiga do well in the lead roles, very comfortable in the skin of these characters, and they arguably bring more to the material than it deserves. They are both very likeable, and completely believable as a couple in love for all of their time together. O'Connor is good, but has to deliver a performance that is overwhelmed by jerky movements and crackling sound effects when he's in the throes of the possession. Nobody else really matters, which is a shame when you have decent supporting turns from John Noble, young Julian Hilliard (playing David, the first victim of possession), Sarah Catherine Hook, and Keith Arthur Bolden. 

It starts off feeling like a film you have seen many times before, with even a strong nod to The Exorcist (and it's a brave film that so blatantly references THE iconic shot), and then stitches mediocre moments together from many other films you have seen before, leading to a finale that inevitably feels like, well, you've seen it all before. Because you have. Sometimes in movies within this very cinematic universe.

Competently done, in terms of the standard drama, but ultimately a disappointing end to a number of Warren-based movies that have exemplified the cinematic law of diminishing returns.

4/10

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Aquaman (2018)

Look, let me be clear, I don't have a dog in this fight. I have never been massively into comic books, with the exception of a couple of fun omnibuses that I had as a child (and the Knightfall storyline for Batman, which remains one of the best things ever), so I am not a person who has to stay in either the Marvel or DC camp. Having said that, it's almost impossible to argue with the fact that Marvel have set the gold standard in cinematic superhero adventures. I had heard good things about Aquaman though, so I was optimistic.

Hmmmmmm, yeah, that didn't last long.

Jason Momoa once again plays Arthur Curry, the half-Atlantean superhero who just wants to live his life peacefully, when he's not crashing into submarines that have been overrun by pirates and beating up lots of baddies. Unfortunately, plans are afoot underwater to wage war against those on land who have been polluting and changing the seas over the years. Those plans are being hatched by King Arm (Patrick Wilson). If only someone could turn up that has the potential to overthrow him and become the rightful heir to the throne. Mera (Amber Heard) knows that Arthur is that someone, even if he doesn't think it himself.

Although it has a runtime of over two hours, the best thing I can say about Aquaman is that it fairly flies by. The pacing is perfect, with the set-pieces nicely spaced out in between moments that showcase some fun exchanges between Momoa and Heard. Director James Wan, working from a script by David Leslie Johnson-McGoldrick and Will Beall, has a knack for making the potentially ridiculous into something enjoyable and entertaining, and he does it here once again.

Momoa is great in the lead role, Heard does well alongside him, and Wilson is suitably cold and dangerous in his villainous turn. Alongside those main players, you get some decent moments for Willem Dafoe (an advisor to Wilson but his loyalties may still like with Momoa), Nicole Kidman (being enjoyably badass in her few scenes), Temuera Morrison (the human father of Arthur), Dolph Lundgren (being Dolph), and Yahya Abdul-Mateen II as an extra villain, Manta, seeking revenge.

I can see why some people really enjoyed this, and why some were saying it was the best DC film yet. The fun parts are more . . . fun than most of their live-action output has been so far. The world-building is impressively epic, a lot of lovely details are scattered throughout every scene, and the action beats aren't all dark and gritty. But all of that comes at a price. For every gorgeous moment (and few are more aesthetically pleasing than a scene in which Momoa and Heard fight back some dangerous fishmen as they dive into the depths of a dangerous underwater trench) there are many that aren't. Either due to the screen being too busy or just some bad cinematic choices, far too many scenes are just messy. People can't always use the right eyeline when it comes to looking at whatever is supposed to be in front of them, some of the design work is unintentionally laughable, and so much is made snazzy and complicated when it could so easily have been kept clean and simple.

While this is far from the best of the recent DC movies, at this point I am tempted to pick Suicide Squad as my own favourite, and to hell with the adverse reactions (although Batman Vs Superman: Dawn Of Justice got more right than wrong), it's also not the worst. That honour stays with Man Of Steel for a little while yet (although, for the sake of perspective, I rate both that movie and this one the same, with all of the others just edging a point ahead).

6/10

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Stretch (2014)

It's the kind of thing that we've seen many times before. A film that features a character having one helluva bad night. This particular misadventure is written and directed by Joe Carnahan (who hasn't done wrong by me yet), and stars Patrick Wilson as the poor sod whose night just looks set to go from bad to worse to absolute worst ever.

Wilson is a stretch limo driver, hence the name of the movie. He actually wanted to be an actor but that doesn't seem to be panning out for him. Which leaves him driving a limo, struggling to make enough from each pay check to pay back the debts that he incurred when he was addicted to alcohol and gambling. As someone new has taken over the ownership of those debts, Stretch (as he is nicknamed) suddenly has until midnight to get together $6,000. Or things will be broken. That's not good. His one chance to make some big money lies in keeping a big customer satisfied. Roger Karos (a bearded Chris Pine) is an eccentric who can often drop some major tips. Unfortunately, he also requires people to sometimes go way above and beyond the call of duty to earn their money. Which leads to Stretch getting thrown in to a few dangerous situations. Perhaps his acting skills can actually start to help him now.

Stretch starts off strong and never really lets up once the premise is established. Carnahan has obviously set out to have as much fun as possible, and that fun is infectious, thanks to the direction, pacing, and cast. It plays out, I guess, much like an action comedy created by John Hughes. This is wish-fulfilment stuff, but that doesn't make any of it any less satisfying. The soundtrack, often sounding like some alternate tracks considered for Drive, also helps to make this an easy pleasure.

There are a couple of fantastic cameos (including one that I can't possibly mention here because the surprise factor helps it to be even funnier than it already is), a rare decent turn from Jessica Alba, playing the main office controller trying to help Stretch achieve his goals for the night, and James Badge Dale is perfectly fine as Laurent, a man who could either help or seriously hinder Stretch in his attempts to keep Karos happy. The two performances from Pine and Wilson allow them to go over the top and entertain in a way that they haven't really been allowed to before now. Okay, Pine had his fantastic turn in Smokin' Aces, which this film should remind you to check out, but I've not enjoyed Wilson this much since he made such a strong impression on me in Hard Candy. Ed Helms, playing the spirit of a deceased limo driver, also does well, despite the fact that his character feels like one quirk too many.

Don't think, however, that I'm overlooking its flaws. Oh no. I've just mentioned that "one quirk too many" problem, which will irritate others much more than it bothered me, and there's also the feeling of overfamiliarity with this kind of scenario. Also, the ending is just a bit too neat and tidy, another factor that makes this feel like a John Hughes movie aimed at an audience just a bit older than the usual selection of teenagers.

Judging by the word of mouth, Stretch is finding a decent little fanbase since arriving in download/shiny disc form. It deserves it. Nothing ground-breaking, by any means, but there are plenty of laughs provided here. And that's all it really sets out to do.

7/10

http://www.amazon.com/Stretch-Patrick-Wilson/dp/B00NG3YQXU/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1419278908&sr=8-2&keywords=stretch+movie

Insidious: Chapter 2 (2013)

After an interesting, and spooky, prologue, Insidious: Chapter 2 gets straight down to business by continuing on from the events at the end of the first movie. Josh (Patrick Wilson) and Renai Lambert (Rose Byrne) have their son back, after rescuing him from supernatural entities, and everyone hopes that things will get back to normal. But that's just not going to happen. There's a murder to be investigated, and there are also some strange things still happening to the family. Renai is at the end of her rope, Josh doesn't want to believe that anything else will try to harm them, and granny Lambert (Lorraine, played by Barbara Hershey) eventually pieces enough together to re-enlist the paranormal investigators, Specs (Leigh Whannell) and Tucker (Angus Sampson).

James Wan returns to direct, and Whannell once again multi-tasks as he acts onscreen after completing his duty as the writer of the screenplay. The two work well together, creating horrors that mix atmospheric moments with jump scares and unnerving imagery. Still, if you didn't like the first movie then you're not going to like this sequel. It's more of the same, and even reworks a few scenes in a nice wrinkle added to the standard paranormal activity.

The cast do what's asked of them, but the acting on display here isn't really the best that you'll see. Mind you, it's pretty good stuff compared to what viewers CAN be made to endure within the horror genre. Wilson has some fun, Byrne does well while not being allowed to relax for a minute (spending the entire movie with frayed nerves, bless her), and Hershey is good enough to help make the weaker moments work. Whannell and Sampson will annoy everyone who was annoyed by them the first time around, but I enjoyed the comic relief that they provided. Lin Shaye gets to return, playing Elise Rainier, albeit a changed version of her. Although she's not onscreen for that long, her character is shown to be, arguably, the most important one caught up in the whole situation. Steve Coulter is a new addition to the team, playing another paranormal investigator named Carl, and he does well with his role, particularly in a tense scene that sees him challenged over his method of divining results.

Perhaps not quite good, or intense, enough for more experienced horror fans, the Insidious movies definitely contain enough thrills and chills to scare plenty of money out of mainstream audiences. While I can see flaws in both movies, I must admit that I'm happier to see a film like this succeed than yet another remake of some '80s movie that someone erroneously thinks needs a big dollop of CGI to improve it. There are some big plot points here that will either please or turn off viewers, but you have to give the film-makers some credit for trying to twist the material into something a bit more interesting and unique. Okay, you don't HAVE to give them credit. But I do.

7/10

http://www.amazon.com/Insidious-2-Blu-ray/dp/B00FG5L2OC/ref=tmm_blu_title_0?ie=UTF8&qid=1405227344&sr=8-2