Netflix And Chill: Rebel Ridge (2024)

It's a familiar tale, especially when it feels as if it's paying homage to First Blood throughout, but Rebel Ridge is a solid and tense action thriller that deftly mixes some thought-provoking commentary with a full-blooded star-making turn from Aaron Pierre.

Written and directed by Jeremy Saulnier, things start off with Terry Richmond (Pierre) being harassed by a couple of small-town cops. He was on his way with bail money to keep a relative out of jail, but that money is seized by the cops. They are apparently allowed to do that, it's called civil forfeiture, but there's something fishy about the entire process, as becomes even more obvious when Terry tries to reason with the local Sheriff (Chief Sandy Burnne, played by Don Johnson). Terry doesn't have anyone around to lend him support, aside from a courthouse employee named Summer (AnnaSophia Robb), but the local police soon come to understand that Terry doesn't really need anyone to help him. He can handle himself, and he can handle the local police as they slowly figure out that they're in big trouble.

I can see some people being disappointed by Rebel Ridge because of what it doesn't do, but I hope more people really appreciate it for what it does. Saulnier maintains a great balancing act of keeping things tense and entertaining without ever resorting to the standard gunfights and combat that we've seen before. The hero here isn't just a man pushed to the edge and fighting back. He's someone who also has to think about the consequences of every word and move, well aware of how easy it could be for law enforcement to find an excuse to shoot a black man without anyone asking too many questions. The police, on the other hand, act in the knowledge that they can make a mess and figure out a way to clean it all up later. They are the only ones constantly using lethal force, and that's an important part of the message of the movie.

With no disrespect intended, I am glad that John Boyega ended up not being able to play the lead in this, paving the way for Pierre to come along and stamp his authority all over it. Pierre is cool, calm, and collected, but also looks as if he could find a dozen different ways to kill you while smiling and nodding politely as you get ready to shake hands. That's the essence of the character, and Pierre excels in a performance that allows him to be impressively physical, but also charming and able to handle an American accent disguising his native British tongue (which I only mention here due to my surprise when hearing him speak in some press interviews about the movie). Johnson is just as well-cast in the main antagonist role, his easygoing manner and charm covering an air of menace and growing discomfort. Robb gets a slightly trickier role, but the screenplay does well to make her a friend to our hero without forcing them into a full-blooded and passionate relationship. Various officers are played by David Denman, Emory Cohen, and Zsané Jhé, and all three enjoy roles that allow them to often be in the thick of any action, and James Cromwell plays a judge in a couple of scenes in which he delivers some exposition and mourns for the state of his town in that calm and measured Cromwell way he can do so well.

This isn't a throwback to the muscle-bound action films of yesteryear, which I think some may hope for when they hear First Blood mentioned as a main reference point, but it's all the better for it. Saulnier has honed his craft over the years, I have yet to see something from him that I didn't thoroughly enjoy, and I hope he keeps getting opportunities to tell the stories that he wants to tell. Few people do tension as well as he does (the sequence here with police waiting on an internet router being rebooted as they try to find out more about our hero is one of the most satisfying bits of setup and immediate payoff that I have seen in years). Every thing that he gets right here helps to overlook the slight mis-steps, such as the runtime and a slight problem with the tonal shift as things get darker and more dangerous.

8/10

If you have enjoyed this, or any other, review on the blog then do consider the following ways to show your appreciation. A subscription/follow costs nothing.
It also costs nothing to like/subscribe to the YouTube channel attached to the podcast I am part of - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCErkxBO0xds5qd_rhjFgDmA
Or you may have a couple of quid to throw at me, in Ko-fi form - https://ko-fi.com/kevinmatthews
Or Amazon is nice at this time of year - https://www.amazon.co.uk/hz/wishlist/ls/Y1ZUCB13HLJD?ref_=wl_share

Brightburn (2019)

Brightburn can be summed up very easily in one sentence. What if Superman was evil? That's really all there is to it. Comic fans will already have some idea of what happens in that instance, because it has been done on a number of occasions. I'm not sure if it has been done quite like this though, with the real turning point occurring with our main character as a child, just figuring out who/what he is and then immediately starting to use his powers to get revenge on people he wants to lash out at.

Elizabeth Banks and David Denman are Tori and Kyle Breyer, a couple who have been unsuccessfully trying to have a child for some time. So they think their prayers are answered when something crash lands near their farm and they find a baby. Years later, all still seems to be going well, and young Brandon (Jackson A. Dunn) is growing up much like any normal boy. Except he isn't a normal boy. And he is starting to figure that out. He cannot be cut by normal blades, he can blast heat rays from his eyes, he can be superspeedy, and, of course, he can fly.

Written by Brian and Mark Gunn (the former being a brother of James Gunn, the latter being his cousin), this is a film that would seem to have come along at the perfect time to entertain both those feeling that the superhero films are oversaturating the cinema screens and those who simply want an unpretentious, gory horror movie. Unfortunately, the timing hasn't been reflected in the box office, which was pretty poor when it opened over in America (although, to be fair, it was the much smaller film sandwiched amongst some big hitters). Whatever the numbers say, this is a pretty great twist on familiar material. The Gunns don't take long to start building the tension and, once the establishing scenes are out of the way, things move from one entertaining set-piece to the next, with young Brandon trying out his superpowers in different ways.

Director David Yarovesky hasn't done anything before this to make me take much notice of him, although he's definitely known members of the Gunn family for some time, with a couple of his previous jobs connected to the Guardians Of The Galaxy movies. He does well here, balancing a bleak horror aesthetic with imagery that feels akin to the iconography we have seen in comic book tales over the years. Brandon Breyer is a classic superhero-type name, in the Stan Lee mould, and the main character spends a good amount of time positioning his initials in a way that makes for an eye-catching emblem.

Banks and Denman are both really good as the concerned parents who see a situation spiralling dangerously out of control here, and Dunn is perfect in his role, wobbling between being confused about his place in life and absolutely determined to make the most of his superpowers and claim his position at the top of the "food chain", as it were. Meredith Hagner and Matt Jones are both good as the next two people closest to Brandon, and therefore the people in danger from him as he starts to leave death and destruction in his wake, and Emmie Hunter does well as a young girl who is the first to realise what Brandon might be capable of, thanks to his interest in her.

Not for the faint of heart, there are some moments of pain and gore here that will make even the most hardened horror movie fan wince, Brightburn knows exactly what it wants to be, knows what fans will want to see, and delivers everything you could want from it. I hope more people discover it, even if they wait until it's available for home viewing.

8/10

If you have enjoyed this, or any other, review on the blog then do consider the following ways to show your appreciation. A subscription/follow costs nothing.
It also costs nothing to like/subscribe to the YouTube channel attached to the podcast I am part of - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCErkxBO0xds5qd_rhjFgDmA
Or you may have a couple of quid to throw at me, in Ko-fi form - https://ko-fi.com/kevinmatthews
Or Amazon is nice at this time of year - https://www.amazon.co.uk/hz/wishlist/ls/Y1ZUCB13HLJD?ref_=wl_share 

Prime Time: The Nines (2007)

It's really hard to consider how to even begin writing a review of The Nines, a film that is quite often overlooked in the filmography of Ryan Reynolds. It was only brought to my attention just over a week ago, in the midst of an online conversation about Reynolds, and I'm very glad that it was.

Reynolds plays a number of characters, I think it is safe to say that. And all of those characters seem to be going through a bit of a tough time. He keeps meeting incarnations of Melissa McCarthy and Hope Davis, among others, and tries to piece his mind together, while viewers try to figure out just how, if any, of this makes sense. There IS an explanation, and it's probably not one you would see coming.

Written and directed by John August, there's plenty here to mull over as you start to wander deeper and deeper into a story that is either about deteriorating mental health or something less easy to explain. In fact, despite the end of the movie seeming quite clear, I would argue that you could view the whole film as a look at a deluded individual, someone seeing patterns that aren't necessarily there while creating a wild theory to explain everything.

Reynolds is superb in his multiple roles, even better than he was in The Voices (a film that many seemed to love, but I just liked), and he's matched by his co-stars. Davis does well, but it's McCarthy who almost steals the show, mainly thanks to a large portion of the film that sees her playing a version of herself for the purposes of the plot. Elle Fanning, David Denman, and Ben Falcone also do solid work in smaller roles.

August has a varied and interesting filmography, from his short film God to Go and on to the Charlie's Angels movies. This is much more in line with the former than the latter, and allows him to tell his own tale in his own way, rather than take part in the blockbuster machine. The fact that he found some quality names to go along for the ride, and it is a wild ride indeed, is a major bonus.

The technical side of things is a-okay, utilising a few special effects moments here and there when showing cracks in the reality around the main characters but mostly keeping everything grounded by the effectiveness of the script and performances. The dialogue is always lively, with one or two lines that brilliantly punctuate scenes at vital moments, and it's a film that will continue to entertain on rewatch, even if it doesn't become any easier to fully untangle.

Not quite a 9 but . . . 8/10

You can buy the movie here.
Americans can pick it up here.