Netflix And Chill: Enola Holmes (2020)

AKA The Adventures Of Sherlock Holmes' Smarter Sister. Okay, maybe not quite. But that's what they're going for sometimes.

Millie Bobby Brown plays the titular character, younger sister of Sherlock and Mycroft, in this adventure mystery based on a book by Nancy Springer. There's the obvious source material from Sir Arthur Conan Doyle to be acknowledged, but writer Jack Thorne delivers a screenplay that keeps the focus on the spirit of sleuthing and being curious, instead of staying far too beholden to the many exploits of Sherlock himself.

Things really get going when Enola's mother (Eudoria Holmes, played by Helena Bonham Carter) goes missing. Once her brothers have returned home and made little effort to solve what appears to be a great mystery, Enola decides to set off and find her AWOL parent. That's how she ends up encountering a young man named Tewkesbury (Louis Partridge), which brings her to the attention of some dastardly villains, particularly the murderous Linthorn (Burn Gorman).

Director Harry Bradbeer works well enough with easygoing escapism that relies on the star power of Brown, as well as the familiar faces in supporting roles (Henry Cavill is a considerate Sherlock, while Sam Claflin plays the more abrupt Mycroft). The runtime is predictably nudging right against the two hour mark, but it has just the right levels of energy and fun to make everything pass by briskly enough. 

And a large part of that energy and fun comes from Brown herself. I am not always a big fan of her work, and think she got lucky to land her Stranger Things role that fast-tracked her to stardom, but she’s very good here as a young woman with the brains and strength to make things very complicated for the many men who would rather she just stayed quiet and stayed out of their way. Partridge is a good pairing for Brown, the two work well enough in the scenes that they share, and Gorman makes a reasonably fun baddie. While Cavill is a bit too caring and considerate for a typical portrayal of Sherlock, he does well enough to make his casting work, and Claflin is enjoyably aloof as Mycroft. Carter is enjoyable in her relatively short amount of screentime, and you have support from the likes of Frances de la Tour, Susan Wokoma, Claire Rushbrook, and Adeel Akhtar (playing the familiar character of Lestrade).

I had fun with this while it was on, but it doesn’t quite do everything it sets out to do. The puzzles are a bit too easy to figure out, the action is never as thrilling as it could be, and viewers have to accept the fact that the main character often breaks the fourth wall to deliver extra details and exposition. I doubt I will rewatch it any time, but I am definitely happy enough to watch the sequels.

6/10

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Mubi Monday: Ali & Ava (2021)

Some people can still feel lonely when surrounded by crowds of people. Some people can hide that loneliness as they work hard to make the day better for other people. Some people only start to realise how lonely they have been when they meet someone who makes them feel seen. Ali & Ava is a film that looks at loneliness, in a number of ways, but also looks at class, culture, and what it takes people to connect at a time in their lives when they may feel very weighed down by accumulated baggage from their past.

Written and directed by the fantastic Clio Barnard, the most basic summary of Ali & Ava is that it's about, well, Ali (Adeel Akhtar) meeting Ava (Claire Rushbrook). Ali has to come to terms with the fact that his marriage is over, but he still urges his wife to be cautious as she looks to begin/continue a new relationship with someone that others may deem an unsuitable match. Ava is a single mother, having to spend some of her time tip-toeing around a son, Callum (Shaun Thomas), who is still struggling to deal with the death of his father. When Ali and Ava meet, they start to become fast friends, which means they may want to take things to another level. It's just a shame that not everyone around them will root for a happy ending.

Barnard really does great work in this territory. She has the ability to present British characters from working class backgrounds that never feel exploited, treated in a patronising way, or used to simply present a lesson about the crushing inhumanity of the societal mechanisms that have been built over time to grind down bodies and souls with equal consistency. None of the characters here feel like they are there just to be pigeon-holed, they're just very real people who happen to live with less opportunities and more hardship than others may have.

Barnard is helped by the fact that her lead cast members are so good. Both Akhtar and Rushbrook easily hold your attention while acting separate from one another, but it's crucial that they seem to give each other a boost to make them shine brighter when keeping one another company. Thomas may just be the angry young men causing tension for most of his screentime, but he does it well, and presents an ugly pushback against happiness that helps to keep willing for everything to improve for Ali & Ava. While not being given too much to do, Ellora Torchia, Vinny Dhillon, Macy Shackleton, Ruby Lowther also do good work, as does everyone else helping to populate the small pockets of personal space shown here.

Nothing is overdone, from the performances to the way everything is presented, and Barnard keeps everything grounded while also delivering one or two moments that are surprisingly cinematic. Ali being a bit of a DJ allows for some bursts of lively music here and there, as well as some interesting shots that show him enjoying a dance move or two in an isolated spot that he uses for his own "silent disco". 

It won't ever feel like essential viewing, but you may be very glad that you made time for it as the end credits roll, especially when you realise how much more time you could happily spend in the company of two characters who do such a great job of uplifting one another. 

8/10

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Netflix And Chill: Murder Mystery 2 (2023)

As many people will already know, I have been a Sandler apologist for much longer than most people. I understand that a lot of his comedy vehicles over the past few decades have been neither big nor clever, and he leans heavily into choices that guarantee people will love or hate him, but I still tend to find enough in them to have a few chuckles. There have been a couple of absolute stinkers, but I can generally go into a Sandler movie with the knowledge that I'll at least not hate it. Judge all you want. While he may no longer tickle the funny bone as well as he did with the likes of Happy Gilmore, Billy Madison, and The Waterboy, Sandler still aims to please his fanbase, usually while he assembles a group of people that he enjoys spending time with and gets them a paid vacation in some beautiful and sunny foreign climes.

Starting off with some narration that briefly recaps the first movie and shows viewers what Nick (Sandler) and Audrey (Jennifer Aniston) have been up to for the past few years, Murder Mystery 2 then allows our characters to head off on another, long overdue, vacation, this time as special wedding guests of their friend, the Maharajah (Adeel Akhtar), who is delighted to introduce them to his bride-to-be, Claudette (Mélanie Laurent). Unfortunately, the wedding is ruined by the Maharajah being kidnapped, and the circumstances of the kidnapping lead Nick and Audrey to suspect a small handful of other guests. There's Claudette herself, a womanising ex-footballer named Francisco (Enrique Arce), the Maharajah's sister (Saira, played by Kuhoo Verma), and Countess Sekou (Jodie Turner-Smith). There may be others involved in the scheme though, and a super-agent named Miller (Mark Strong) comes along to show everyone how an investigation and hostage negotiation should be done.

While it's now Jeremy Garelick in the director's chair, who had what I would consider a moderate success with his previous comedy, The Binge (hey, it did well enough to get a sequel), writer James Vanderbilt returns, the leads are reunited with a familiar face or two from the first film, and there's a feeling of nobody wanting to upset what they obviously consider as having worked well enough the first time around.

Sandler and Aniston once again work well together, the latter continuing to deliver the kind of genuinely great comedic performance that it's all too easy to forget she can do (despite her biggest success being in quite a well-known sitcom) and the former feeling believably, but lovingly, held in check during times when he might otherwise get carried away. It's a shame that the supporting cast isn't as much fun this time around, although everyone works with what they're given. Laurent and Verma aren't given enough to do, and Turner-Smith, her character accompanied by a toadying sidekick (played by Zurin Villanueva), is out of the picture far too soon, but both Arce and John Kani (returning to the role of Colonel Ulenga, now with one less arm than he had last time we saw him) deliver some good lines, and Strong has a lot of fun in the kind of role that is as familiar and obvious as it is entertaining. Akhtar is, of course, onscreen for a lot of the runtime, which isn't a bad thing if his character grates on you slightly, and Dany Boon returns as Inspector Delacroix in time for the third act.

It's been a while since I watched Murder Mystery (hey, I may not hate Sandler movies, but there aren't many that I rush to rewatch lately), but this sequel feels as if it is trying to deliver a bit more action and spectacle. From a lovely wedding dance sequence to an impressive high-speed drive through Paris, not to mention a surprisingly satisfying and memorable final set-piece, there's a better sense of balance between the gags and the actual central mystery being solved.

Very few people will agree with me here, and many won't even bother wasting their time with another Sandler vehicle, but I liked this a little bit more than the first film. Considering I liked the first film more than most, you may just want to discard my whole opinion on this one. It's entirely up to you, but you'll miss some wonderful scene-stealing from Aniston.

6/10

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Netflix And Chill: Robin Robin (2021)

I was really looking forward to seeing Robin Robin, and even the first announcement had me excited. A Christmas film from Aardman Animation dropping straight on to Netflix. Sign me up. Unfortunately, I failed to realise that this is a short film. It only lasts about 32 minutes, and I mention that here to help anyone else avoid my disappointment. 

Robin Robin is, unsurprisingly, the tale of a robin (Bronte Carmichael). Unlike other robins, however, this little bird has been raised by a family of mice. The mice try to teach Robin how to stealthily pinch leftover nibbles from human households, but Robin is far from stealthy. That doesn’t stop her from trying again and again, which puts her in the path of a dangerous cat (Gillian Anderson) and has her befriending a magpie (Richard E. Grant).

Let’s get the disappointment out of the way first. No, I am not once again on about the short runtime. While the animation style and detailing here are still quite delightful, they don’t feel up to the usual high standard that we have come to expect from Aardman. That may well be due to my attachment to their other, well-known, creations, but it was a disappointment nonetheless.

The next disappointment was the realisation that this short film also features a few depressingly unenergetic songs interspersed throughout. I enjoy an animated film that also features some musical moments, as many of them do, but nothing here felt tuneful or worthwhile, sadly.

The voice cast works quite well, with highlights being Grant and Anderson, the latter adding an appropriate hint of her Thatcher portrayal to her vocal performance. Carmichael may not be a familiar personality, but her voice works perfectly for a central character who is typically innocent and optimistic for this kind of fare.

Co-directed by Daniel Ojari and Michael Please (who both co-wrote the film with Sam Morrison), I don't want people to think that my own negative comments outweigh the positives. Although not to my preferred taste, the animation is cute and fluffy, the pacing is as brisk as you'd expect, and the short runtime makes it a perfect choice if you're looking for something to keep younger viewers seasonally entertained for a short time.

The very best of Aardman Animation is up there with the very best of animation, full stop. The fact that Robin Robin doesn't rival their best output isn't really a big surprise. It's just a shame that it sometimes didn't feel even close to their usual high standard.

6/10

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Netflix And Chill: Murder Mystery (2019)

A comedy that throws together Adam Sandler and Jennifer Aniston for a second time (after they were paired up in the enjoyable Just Go With It), Murder Mystery is a fairly enjoyable comedy thriller that allows the leads to work together just as well as they did the first time around. A lot of people will already be dismissive of it, Sandler's name nowadays is enough to make many steer clear, but this is a perfectly fine way to spend just over an hour and a half.

Sandler is Nick Spitz, a New York police officer who keeps failing the detective exam. He's really good at the detection part, sometimes, but is a lousy shot. Aniston is his wife, Audrey, and she is delighted to hear the "good news" when her husband cannot bring himself to admit that he failed the exam once more. As their wedding anniversary is coming up, it seems like the perfect time for that trip to Europe that had been delayed for years and years. And that's where they meet Charles Cavendish (Luke Evans), who ends up inviting him to a private party on a large and lavish yacht, which is when someone is murdered. And Mr & Mrs Spitz turn out to be very prime suspects in the eyes of Inspector de la Croix (Dany Boon).

Directed by Kyle Newacheck (who I am now familiar with after enduring Game Over, Man!) and written by James Vanderbilt (who has a filmography that includes the high of Zodiac and the low of something like Independence Day: Resurgence), I have to admit that my hopes weren't high for this. As much as I have tried to maintain my positivity when it comes to Sandler movies, his work over the past 10-15 years has been far from his best, to put it mildly. The fact that everyone pulls together to make something moderately entertaining is a very pleasant surprise indeed. Newacheck may not have the best eye, or any sense of style, but he does fine when it comes to keeping the energy building from scene to scene, allowing small gags to pile up in between the attempted bigger laughs (which don't work as well), and generally giving the leads room to play around with their interplay and physical comedy.

Vanderbilt hasn't crafted any kind of comedy classic here but he plays to the strengths of the cast. Sandler and Aniston have great chemistry together, Evans gets to be completely charming with almost every line he utters, and there is fun to be had with Terence Stamp being gruff, David Walliams being a bit catty, Gemma Arterton being a gorgeous actress, and, well, you can see what I mean.

The performances are all decent too, with the not-inconsiderate plus point of Sandler not putting on a "funny" voice for his main character. Everyone I've already mentioned does a good job, and there's also room for fun with John Kaji and Adeel Akhtar, as well as one or two others.

If you're a cynic then you could look at Murder Mystery and say that the thriller aspect isn't as good as it could be, the laughs aren't as prolific, and the set-pieces aren't anywhere near as ambitious as they could be. But that doesn't mean that any of those things are actually bad. They are all enjoyable, without reaching a level of greatness. And I know the fact that many aspects of this film are enjoyable makes the end result a lot better than most of you were expecting.

6/10

You could get yourself a boxset of Sandler movies here.
Americans can get a comedy collection here.

The Big Sick (2017)

Written by Kumail Nanjiani and Emily V. Gordon (husband and wife), The Big Sick is a romantic comedy loosely based on how . . . Kumail Nanjiani met and fell in love with Emily V. Gordon. What could have seemed smug and self-indulgent ends up being something fully deserving of all the accolades it has received over the past few months. On the poster and Blu-ray cover you can see phrases like "easily one of the best rom-coms of the decade", "romantic and hilarious", and "sparkling and heartfelt", as well as a few five-star ratings to help sell it. And all of those statements and ratings, originating from sources as varied as the likes of Variety and Glamour, are absolutely correct.

Very much in line with the other films that have been helped into creation by producer Judd Apatow, this is a mix of comedy and drama that gives characters room to breath in a two-hour runtime. Unlike some of the other Apatow movies I could mention, however, this doesn't ever feel as if it is overstaying its welcome.

That is down to the main performances, and the fact that Nanjiani and Gordon have such a great story to spin into cinema gold. Director Michael Showalter doesn't concern himself too much with adding any bells or whistles, happy to rely on the characters and the dialogue, which is a smart decision on his part.

Although Nanjiani happily plays himself onscreen, his wife is portrayed by Zoe Kazan. Kazan is fine, although she spends a large portion of the movie offscreen, or visible on a hospital bed (hence the title, the plot is basically Kumail and Emily having a big fight and then Emily ending up hospitalised and placed in a medically induced coma, which can make it a bit awkward to kiss and make up). Holly Hunter and Ray Romano play Emily's worried parents, and they are both excellent, which is something I never thought I would say about Romano, considering I assumed Everybody Loves Raymond was a deliberately ironic sitcom about one of the most annoying men on the planet. Anupam Kher and Zenobia Shroff are both very good, playing Kumail's parents, and Adeel Akhtar is Kumail's brother, Naveed. Other comics are represented by Bo Burnham, Aidy Bryant, and Kurt Braunohler, and there's nobody in the supporting cast who drops the ball, including many not mentioned here.

There aren't any major set-pieces here, and few of the laughs aren't BIG laughs, but the laughs are surprisingly consistent, entwined nicely with the drama and the heart of the whole thing. This is from the script and the presentation of the material, but it would be remiss to undervalue just how much of the film succeeds thanks to the sheer likeability of Nanjiani. He has been putting in fun performances for a good few years now, often in material that isn't really deserving of his presence, and I hope we can now see him in some more lead roles.

9/10

The Big Sick is out now. Buy it here - The Big Sick at Amazon.co.uk