Incarnate

#StokerScore 4/10

I think there was a time when an actor's name was enough to sell a movie. It's a bit like buying branded goods at the supermarket compared to the supermarket's own-label product, you just have a feeling that what you're getting is going to be better quality. But some own-brands are actually made by the same company whose quality product sits side-by-side on the shelf with its competitor. So what and who do you trust any more?

Well, if you see a movie title, say something like Incarnate compared with a poster saying Incarnate starring Aaron Eckhart, you're probably more likely to watch the second one because you remember how good he was in The Dark Knight and Thank You for Not Smoking. But then you'd go and remember the twoddle that was I, Frankenstein and Olympus/London Has Fallen. But then you'd think again and say that he was good enough to carry off that moustache in Sully so surely it wouldn't be that bad, would it? and all of a sudden you'd be in some sort of Mobius loop....

...this was how I ended up at the cinema, convinced by this argument and an interesting trailer. 

 Was the movie all bad? No, not really. The general concensus is that when it comes to religion the guy is a non-denominational exorcist. If you think about that it's actually surprising that it has never been done before. But it's also a bit of a lie, too. Eckhart's character is also wheelchair-bound, so that's also a bit different. The scares are generally ok but the mechanics and rules on which the movie tries to base itself are sometimes too silly.

I think as a one hour episode of a tv show it would have been better than what it turned out to be as a movie. Even with a novel premise, the movie was predictable and you just can't really forgive that.

Spectral

#StokerScore 8/10

Whatever your feelings are regarding Netflix, you can't accuse them of niche programming. Through their Netflix Originals brand, they have given us critically acclaimed shows such as House of Cards, Orange Is The New Black, and a variety of Marvel comic characters for television whilst they've also released a number of movies of which Spectral is the latest. I wasn't particularly impressed by the last Netflix Original movie that I saw, I Am The Pretty Thing That Lives In The House was a bit too ponderous for my taste but as I said at the beginning, they do seem to be trying to provide something for everyone.

Before watching Spectral, I vaguely remembered reading about it on IMDB earlier in the year and reminding myself to look out for it. However, this vague memory was challenged somewhat by the other movie poster I saw recently. In it, it looked to be more like a nod towards Aliens (this film does seem remeniscent in parts) or maybe even Starship Troopers, that was the vibe I got from seeing it. Certainly the tech looked less like a standard military battling ghosts, which is what I had been led to believe from an earlier synopsis.

In the end, Spectral is a mixture of things which I certainly won't go giving away here. The lead actors all do their jobs but James Badge Dale who I last saw kicking Robert Downey Jr's arse in Iron Man 3 didn't seem to be cast correctly as the Macgyver-esque engineer. It was definitely good to see Emily Mortimer again, I still love her role in The 51st State, and Bruce Greenwood always brings gravitas to whatever part you see him play. 

The 51st State

Sure at times it's a bit formulaic but I also liked the originality in the story too. It could have gone in a number of different directions but the one it chose was interesting, even if the bad guys were defeated a little too easily in what felt like a rushed third act. 

Spectral is an enjoyable movie with what seems to be a big budget to provide cast and effects. The story is so nearly perfect were it not for the at times predictable events. 

Underworld: Blood Wars

#StokerScore 3/10

International film distribution is a matter of pot luck in my opinion. Herte in Indonesia we sometimes get movies well in advance of the release dates in The UK and US, at other times we can be a long way behind. Still, whenever we get the advance screenings I can't help feeling a little priviledged, well, in most cases that is.

I can never remember if the Underworld franchise began as a movie that became a comic book, or a comic book which became a movie but what I do know is this; Kevin Gervioux, a Canadian actor and screenwriter-cum-bodybuilder with a voice that reminds one of a cross between the Bald Eagle on the Muppets and walking on loose gravel, created a visually excellent if not particularly well written account of a war between vampires and werewolves...and he was the writer! 

Coming out five years before the drivel that was the Twilight, Underworld had blood and battles, a fancy steampunk-ish/celtic visual, Matrix-style, fetishistic black leather and pvc costumes and Kate Beckinsale. The story, as I said earlier, was a little bit confusing with some plotholes and narrative devices that didn't warrant too close a scrutiny but dammnit the first couple were FUN.

With Blood Wars the whole thing just seems to be a mess. Internal politics in the Lycan and Vampire ranks are messy, the dialogue is messy, the plot is messy, and it's just NOT FUN anymore. I can tell this because none of the cast, even Cahrles Dance and Lara Pulver hamming it up, seem to be having any fun any more either. It's as if the whole oh-no-we-have-to-rid-the-world-of-vampires-/-lycans-again thing has just become too much for everyone and the end of the movie comes as a relief for both audience and cast alike. Sure they've left the door open for may more movies but I hope they can agree not to.