TV Review: Game of Thrones - Season Six Episode Five "The Door" SPOILERS

"Hold The Door..."

Oh my. If previous events on Game of Thrones had the power and the gusto to make the hardest of people break down and cry, then this week's episode more than deserves its' place in the Game of Thrones hall of fame for a final scene which ranks up with the most heartbreaking scenes in the entire history of the show so far. The Red Wedding? Intense and shocking. The fall of the Viper? Left me shaking for days on end. The revelation of Hodor? Genuinely sob-inducing, a scene which brought all the ambiguity regarding the origin of Hodor to a close whilst letting go one of the shows' most beloved characters in the most heroic way possible; holding off a wave of white walkers in order to protect Bran who finally realised his part in a Doctor Who-esque bootstrap paradox which was to blame for Hodor's minimalistic range of speech. Powerful to say the least, "The Door" proved to be the best episode of Season Six so far, with its' final scene ranking up there with the best of them over the course of the shows' run so far whilst continuing to highlight why we just can't stop watching. Hodor is gone, yet the force and origin of the White Walkers was both reminded and explained this week, with the most patient army in existence still warning the audience that they are there to stay. And oh yeah, another direwolf is gone too. Damn. 

Elsewhere, Braavos proved their own evening entertainment was the best place to go to for a quick recap of events which occurred in Season One, much to the despair of Arya whose newest assassination target was at the centre of the acting circle responsible which also included a rather strange cameo from Richard E. Grant, a cameo immediately recognised after hearing his distinct and overly British, lavish voice. Awkward scene of the week was seen within the North when the reunion between Sansa and Littlefinger was greeted with a less than warm response, whilst the Iron Islands gave way to a new King, one with blood lust for both remaining direct Greyjoy siblings. In Meereen, Tyrion was greeted by the areas's own version of Melisandre, one who obviously shops in the same aisle as her Northern familiar, and one who decided it was best to remind Varys of his early experience of becoming a eunuch. Nice. Finally, Dany was at last grateful for the heroic attempts of Ser Jorah, who in return produced the ever-growing rate to which the greyscale is taking over, something of which a tearful Dany orders him to fix before it finally takes over and becomes too late. "The Door" proved to be a excellent episode of Game of Thrones, one that most definitely proves to be the high watermark for the season so far and ultimately one that concluded with perhaps the saddest event in Game of Thrones thus far. So long Hodor, it's been emotional. 

Overall Score: 10/10

Film Review: Everybody Wants Some!!

"We Came For A Good Time, Not A Long Time..."

Hands up who has watched Dazed and Confused? No, not the 30 minute extended jam featured on Led Zeppelin's The Song Remains The Same which included Jimmy Page finding a hermit on top of a mountain and playing a six minute guitar solo with a violin bow, but instead Richard Linklater's coming of age drama released all the way back in 1993 which featured a young Ben Affleck, Milla Jovovich and Matthew McConaughey in possibly his earliest iconic role with the three famous words of "Alright, alright, alright". Oh yeah, we love it and although the first time I watched Dazed and Confused was within a double header of it and American Graffiti, the slightly better of the two, watching it began my love affair with coming of age dramas, films which took the everyday notions of childhood, college, school and friendship and made something which many could connect to on a very personal level indeed. Now with Everybody Wants Some!!, the self proclaimed spiritual sequel to both Dazed and Confused and Boyhood, Richard Linklater has once again managed to achieve that sense of sheer joy that resonated within me the first time I watched films like The Breakfast Club and American Graffiti. Gear up your vinyl's, grab your record player and follow Mr. Linklater into the 1980's. 

Alerting us of the era straight from the get-go, Everybody Wants Some!! begins with the riff-laden pop-rock of The Knack's "My Sharona", accompanying Blake Jenner's Jake as he rides into college territory and swiftly gazes with sheer disbelief at the female population within the confines of his new home. Arriving at his living quarters, we are introduced to the posse of baseball obsessed teens that encompass the entirety of the movie's runtime, a collection of personalities of which gives everyone in the film a sense of three dimensional characterisation. As Jules in Pulp Fiction states, "personality goes a long way" and the sheer delicacy to which Linklater has created the wide range of characters within the film is a testament to himself as both writer and director. If Jenner's sometimes creepy lead character can sometimes be regarded as somewhat of a mild mis-step, then the simply charming selection of characters such as Glen Powell's Finnegan and Quinton Johnson's Dale more than make up for it in the long run.

Add into the mix the vast array of cracking 1980's tunes with contributions from a range of genres ranging from Blondie to Van Halen, Chic to Pink Floyd and Queen to Pat Benatar, Everybody Wants Some!! is most definitely Linklater's ode to college life of that time, with each minor details, from handshakes to fashion sense, creating a sense of immense personal pride. Where the film may draw detractors is in the film's portrayal of women, with all but one character in the film having more than just a two-dimensional reason for inclusion yet the entire purpose of the movie is to draw on Linklater's own experiences and memories, with anything other than being minimally factual being ultimately not part of the plan. It's college in the US from the point of view of testosterone-inflicted teenagers, what do you expect? With continual laughs all the way through and a deep sense of wanting to spend more and more time in the company of our competitive heroes, Everybody Wants Some!! is a real coming-of-age treat, one that carries on the memory of Dazed and Confused rather effectively and impressively. Seek it out. 

Overall Score: 8/10

Film Review: X-Men: Apocalypse

"I Was There To Spark And Fan The Flame of Man's Awakening, To Spin The Wheel of Civilisation..."

Like the complete cinematic geek I am, Tuesday night at my local world of cine offered the chance to not only witness the midnight showing of the latest Marvel offering but to watch a riveting triple header of mutant goodness beginning with X-Men: First Class and X-Men: Days of Future Past and then leading smoothly into the UK release of X-Men: Apocalypse, the newest feature from the mind of Bryan Singer, the worldwide proclaimed saviour of all things X-Men when it comes to the big-screen after the superhero mess which was The Last Stand. I mean come on, Vinnie Jones? Watching all three on the big-screen once again gave the opportunity to see who was victorious in the realms of mutant supremacy and after watching almost seven hours of Marvel mayhem, I can safely say that Apocalypse is most definitely not the best of the X-Men canon, with that torch still indeed belonging to the far superior Days of Future Past, and in a month where the release of Captain America: Civil War emphasised the staying power of a franchise as gargantuan as the MCU, X-Men: Apocalypse is somewhat of a let-down, a let-down with a whole lot of CGI destruction intertwined with moments of greatness which only remind you how previous entries into the X-Men canon have been in the past. 

Amongst the crazy amount of plot lines thrown into Apocalypse, including the introduction to a young Jean Grey and Scott Summers, played by Game of Thrones' Sophie Turner and Tye Sheridan respectively, our ever-growing team of mutants led by Charles Xavier (James McAvoy), now living life in the early 1980's, soon have to face the growing threat of the powerful Apocalypse (Oscar Isaac), the world's first mutant, who has risen from his tomb after centuries of being preserved and hidden from the outside world. Capturing the powers of Magneto (Michael Fassbender) as well as a young Storm (Alexandria Shipp) to fuel his destruction, Apocalypse believes the only way to save the Earth is to first destroy it and recreate it in his own image. Cue CGI mayhem and major mutant face-offs, intertwined with rather rushed introductions to a wide range of new mutants, Apocalypse almost seems the complete opposite of Civil War, a film which rather brilliantly manages to juggle its' eye-watering cast and the introduction of new players, with the former struggling to keep up with the extraordinary demands it places upon itself. 

One of the main reasons Apocalypse falters in this regard is the titular Apocalypse, a villain with only a shallow background to start him off and a motive of destruction which seems flawed to say the least. Add into the fact it was difficult to look at the character without laughing due to the rather rubbery amount of make-up leathered on Oscar Isaac, an actor of whom I would pay to watch in anything I might add, and Apocalypse can only be regarded as having the worst villain of the series so far. Even Kevin Bacon was better. A re-hash of the slow-motion Quicksilver scene from Days of Future Past halfway through the film only strengthens the claim that after four films in the directorial chair, Bryan Singer may indeed be running out of ideas on the mutant front with Apocalypse seemingly being the end point for the man who began the franchise all the way back in 2000. As Jean Grey states after a trip to watch Return of the Jedi during the course of the film, "the third film is always the worst", and ironically, Apocalypse adheres to this assumption rather disappointingly. Civl War, you are still in the lead.

Overall Score: 6/10

Film Review: Our Kind of Traitor

"Never Before Have We Had An Informant This High Up In Russian Organised Crime..."

Following on from the hit BBC miniseries The Night Manager starring Hugh Laurie and Tom Hiddleston in essentially what was a pretty strong audition tape for the now seemingly vacant role of Bond after this week it was reported Daniel Craig had turned down a rather lucrative amount of money to carry on as the famous spy. Our Kind of Traitor is an adaptation of the same-named best selling novel by John le Carré, the author whose novels have indeed caught the eye of both the small and the big screen rather recently, with 2011's Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy featuring a near perfect performance from Gary Oldman, being arguably the best of the big-screen adaptations to date. Featuring Ewan McGregor and Stellan Skarsgård, Our Kind of Traitor is one of those strange cases of a film not entirely having much wrong with it, but it is no doubt seemingly a film which is too televisual and nuanced to have the spark many of the similar examples of the genre have had in the past, particularly when held up against The Night Manager, a much more interesting and complex thriller than that of the latest John le Carré adaptation. 

During their holiday in the far reaches of Marrakesh, married couple Gail (Naomie Harris) and Perry (Ewan McGregor) become embroiled in a Russian mobsters' plot to defect from his native country and find safe haven in the UK in return for handing all information regarding the illegal finances that split right through the heart of the organised crime syndicate. Although at first reluctant to help in fear of their own safety, Perry and Gail soon realise the lives of not only themselves but the lives of 

the traitor Dima (Stellan Skarsgård) and his family too. During the course of the movie, it is inherently hard to watch the acting talents of people such as Naomie Harris and Damian Lewis and wonder whether actually what you are indeed watching is a mix between Bond and Homeland, particularly in regards to the notion that much like The Night Manager, Our Kind of Traitor is a story that essentially belongs on the small screen, but by some rather miraculous achievement has instead managed to gather financial backing and the talents of McGregor and Skarsgård to be placed upon the big screen. Our Kind of Traitor is by no means a failure, it just doesn't seem to have the dramatic quality to render its' stay within the cinematic spectrum a necessity and whilst Skarsgård devours the scenery around him, less can be said about others around him. McGregor! Not bad, but not exactly remarkable. Watch with a cup of tea and a ginger biscuit. At home. 

Overall Score: 6/10

TV Review: Game of Thrones - Season Six Episode Four "Book of the Stranger" SPOILERS

"Winterfell Is Mine, Bastard, Come And See..."

Oh Ramsey, you salty dog you. Hands up for worst creature in Westeros since the events of the Purple Wedding? That's right, with a letter and a whole lot of curse words, war is set to embrace the North with the battle of the bastards set to wet the appetites of almost every single Game of Thrones fan who, unless completely mental, will be backing Lord Snow to finally end the torment of Ramsey Bolton, the vicious loony tune that he is. Amongst all the talk of eye spooning and rape however, the long-awaited embrace between long lost siblings Jon and Sansa inevitably had the entire world in tears. It's been a long time coming, so long in fact that Jon must have not believed his eyes regarding the ways in which Sansa has transformed from the helpless squib to the mighty force of strength that she is today. Talking of strength, CGI moment of the week came during the closing scene in which Dany decided it was best to burn each of the Dothraki leaders to death rather than be continuously raped by them and their horses. Good decision I believe. With perhaps the forces of the Dothraki army now under her command, who is to stop her against the forces of the masters back in Meereen?

Fist pump moment of the week no doubt came within the Vale with the return of my favourite Game of Thrones character. Oh Littlefinger, it has been way too long. With his suave sophistication and faultless dress sense, it didn't take too long before his influence over the kooky Lord of the Vale became rather apparent. Remember guys, without Littlefinger, there would be no Game of Thrones. Whilst Tyrion attempted to make peace with the slave masters, much to the anger of literally everyone around him, the rulers of King's Landing finally decided to man up and start talking to each other, ending in a final decision to mark the High Sparrow for dead with the possible result of civil war within the city being something of a afterthought. Hey, at least they might be safe right? With Littlefinger back and a war in the North looking rather inevitable, Game of Thrones continued to pick up a notch this week with some interesting plot developments throughout Westeros all continuing the return to form Season Six has finally embraced. War, what is it good for?

Overall Score: 9/10

Film Review: Son of Saul

"You Have Forsaken The Living For The Dead..."

If anything, Son of Saul is one of those sad indicators of modern cinema. Sure, anyone can go and watch the latest blockbuster, the latest superhero movie, the latest sequel, prequel or remake, yet when it comes to independent, foreign hidden gems, regardless of critical praise across the globe, such films are particularly hard to find, unless, like me, you are one of those crazy cinephiles who would traverse the plains of England to try and find them. In the case of Son of Saul therefore, never before have I seen a film so visceral and utterly heartbreaking, a film that encourages you to witness the appalling acts of the Holocaust without exploiting them to a winding degree and ultimately, a film which indeed has a sense of independence and singularity, a film which rewards you fully in your attempts to seek it out, even if at times, events on-screen may indeed be too much for some to handle yet not through a sense of exploitative means, but rather through a sense of Son of Saul being perhaps the most accurate and horrific tale of recent histories' most awful tragedy to have graced our screens since well, forever. 

Following a day in the life of Hungarian-Jewish prisoner Saul, played in sheer majestic fashion by Géza Röhrig in his first on-screen role, Son of Saul attempts to show us the true horror of the events at Auschwitz with Saul's role as a member of the Sonderkommando being fully embraced and materialised in a cinematic fashion that combines the stark horror of reality without attempting to dislodge and alienate the viewer by means of certain overkill and bad taste. This success is primarily captured by means of the film's cinematography with the film's choice of having an incredibly shallow depth of field and the camera being a constant companion of our titular hero both giving the impression of ambiguity regarding certain events that occur on-screen, suggesting Saul's own blurred mentality, one that accepts events that are going on around him yet decides to not fully embrace them, whilst also showing enough to capture the essence of sheer madness that encapsulated the events that took place. The film is not one that attempts to dramatise, it simply portrays the horror of reality and the wrongfulness of the past, something of which reminded me of films like Apocalypse Now, with madness being at the root of the evil presented throughout.

As a piece of cinema which acts as a debut for both director László Nemes and actor Géza Röhrig, Son of Saul is a remarkable achievement, one which rightly deserved the Academy Award for Best Foreign Picture and one that should not be forgotten any-time soon. Writing this review after watching the film more than a week ago, the thought of the movie leaves me with a rather weird feeling of this indeed being a film incredibly important and innovative whilst also being a incredibly hard film to sell to the majority. Son of Saul is a particularly hard watch, one that will ultimately leave the viewer with a down-hearted sense of either hatred or sadness, or perhaps both, yet the fact that such a film can lead to such emotions only enhances the many strengths throughout the course of the film. Yes indeed, it is a hard watch and that alone may distract the lay cinema goer, yet for cinematic purposes and from my personal point of view, Son of Saul is perhaps the greatest tale of the tragedy of World War II, one that will not be forgotten by all that attempt to seek it out and one that inevitably will be one of the best of the year so far. 

Overall Score: 9/10

TV Review: Game of Thrones - Season Six Episode Three "Oathbreaker" SPOILERS

"My Watch Has Ended..."

Whereas I thought the resurrection of one Jon Snow might ultimately not actually occur within the show, after realising I was completely and utterly wrong regarding such, I soon began to believe the process of Jon's return to form may indeed be a long-winded and drawn out process, much like Arya's plot-line regarding her ridiculously violent and tortuous training regime. How wrong I was once again, with Lord Snow regaining not only his life, but a new sense of plain-faced coldness, one that may have indeed stopped the hanging of young Ollie once before in the past, but now, only reinstates one idea that this reincarnated Snow may indeed be the bad-ass he needs to become in order to truly take control in the land of Westeros. Adding to my sense of sheer face-palm was the fact that within the episode this week, Arya's story did actually begin to go somewhere with cheers heard across the globe when she was finally granted her eyesight back. Phew, no more of those vicious training schedules I hope. Snow and Arya; the two saviours of Westeros perhaps. Who'd thunk it?

Alongside updates across the region, Bran continued to dissect the legacy of his upbringing, resulting in a long staring contest during the battle between his neatly shaven and younger version of father Ned Stark and the notorious Arthur Dayne, ending in a classic fairy-tale notion that not all stories from your father may indeed actually be true. Father Christmas, take note. Kudos to Max von Sydow for not laughing when proclaiming he was just and old man in a tree, whilst one can also mourn the butchery of another dire wolf after Rickon was captured and brought to Winterfell. Although last week's episode was indeed the flashiest and fist-punching episode of the season so far, "Oathbreaker" only continued the strong course of the story after a less-than perfect start almost two weeks ago. With plot-lines unravelling to a more pessimistic extent, Westeros may indeed see a shift in not only tone, but one in leadership and stature over the next seven weeks. I'll be with you all the way.

Overall Score: 9/10

Film Review: Captain America: Civil War

"You've Operated With Unlimited Power and No Supervision. That's Something The World Can No Longer Tolerate..."

Being in a time of comic-movie mayhem, where every year there seems to be more and more live-action superhero goodness, or blandness in the case of Batman v Superman, Captain America: Civil War, the third in the Captain America saga within the Marvel Cinematic Universe, could be forgiven as being just another piece of the everlasting jigsaw, an attempt perhaps to grab the cash while they can before the riskier projects come to fruition, particularly with the ambiguous Doctor Strange on the horizon, yet with a character list that basically includes almost everyone and anyone associated with the MCU, Civil War was an interesting case of whether one, it could be as poorly executed as BvS, a film with similar parallels in terms of plot and overarching themes, and two, whether the extensive cast list would endanger the film into becoming overtly baggy and long-winded. What a joy it was then to witness the best superhero movie of the year so far, with Civil War only continuing the promise of the Russo Brothers' work on The Winter Soldier, with it being a marvellous thrill ride from start to finish, if not being as crisp and spellbinding as the previous entry on first glance. 

What makes the film so great I hear you ask? Firstly, It's cool. I mean ridiculously cool. A fanboy's dream indeed featuring bad-ass coolness throughout. Acting? Superb and on point, particularly from Downey Jr, Evans and a stand-out newcomer Chadwick Boseman as the rip-roaring vigilante Black Panther whose brief back-story element leaves the standalone movie to do the hard work and for Civil War to show how brilliant he may become in the future. Action? Breathtaking, with the Russo's having a clear and dedicated vision of attempting to make the fight scenes as realistic as possible with choreography that could make the creators of The Raid weep in joy. I mean seriously, both Captain America and The Winter Soldier in this were just rock solid to a laughable extreme that at times I just sat and gasped at the speed to which the action scenes took place. Clearly, someone at Marvel HQ had been watching Daredevil and thought, yeah, this is the direction we need to go. What a decision it is, with the ground-based fights making the last two Captain America's arguably being the best in the series so far. 

Although rather ironically, Civil War does feature plot lines remarkably similar to BvS, the connections between the two films stop there. This is how you make a superhero movie Mr. Snyder, this is true, full-blooded entertainment. Although slightly too long in places and the almost inevitable fact that some characters just some rather shoehorned in for the sake of it, particularly that of Paul Rudd's Ant Man and Martin Freeman's character, endanger the film in becoming not quite as good as The Winter Soldier, the film's saving grace belongs to it's final twist, one that was not given away so easy and one which created the real civil war between our two leads at the conclusion of the film after the comical, if rather splendid, battle between our two teams within the confines of a empty airfield. Captain America: Civil War does what it needs to do and does it superbly. Richly entertaining and breathtaking in places, the Russo Brothers have my complete and utter backing for the behemoth of a project which is Infinity War. Good luck to you gents, my faith is completely in you. And oh yeah, wasn't Spider-man cool? 

Overall Score: 8/10

TV Review: Game of Thrones - Season Six Episode Two "Home" SPOILERS

"Every One Of Us Is Poor and Powerless. And Yet Together, We Can Overthrow An Empire..."

Okay guys, I'm sorry. After disbanding all hope of resurrection in my review of last week's Season Six premiere, it was only just that this week Game of Thrones succeeded in pulling off one of the least-shocking shocks in the history of the show. That's right guys, Lord Snow is back, and hopefully, with a full-blooded vengeance, one that has the chance to change the course of the show's branch into nothingness by sieging a full-on war against the roots of evil across Westeros with the magically restored bastard of Winterfell helming the charge. After months of fans hibernating into the reclusive nature of a depressive with the loss of their curly haired beefcake, surely now is the beginning of redemption, a reincarnation of hope that after six seasons, Westeros can finally change for the better. Speaking of evil, what on earth is wrong with the Westerosian psycho that is Ramsey Bolton? I mean it's bad enough stabbing your own father in the heart, but letting the dogs lose on your mother-in-law and newly born brother? Another level dude, another level. Now I know that Roose Bolton was not exactly Mother Theresa, but to be killed off like that? Some would say karma, I say butchery.

Adding to the violence count this week was our first real glimpse of the newly zombified Mountain, dead-bodyguard to the illustrious Cersei, who took offence at the ramblings of a drunkard and swiftly bashed his head in rather too easily for any living being. Be scared. Being cut from the payroll too this week was Balon Greyjoy whose long lost brother tempted him to strike out and in return become fish food after falling off the least stable connecting bridge I've seen since Harrison Ford tried to escape the child capturers in Indian Jones and the Temple of Doom. I mean seriously guys, where did brother Greyjoy come from? Another example of a character popping up without prior warning and then doing something in order to look bad-ass. Strange. Elsewhere, Tyrion this week found out that sometimes childhood ambitions aren't always the safest things to live out, with his confrontation with Dany's dragons seemingly scaring the life out him, resulting in the episode's funniest quip. Obviously Jon Snow's resurrection will take the headlines with his return resulting in a superb episode, one that hopefully will shake the foundation of the show to its' core. 

Overall Score: 9/10 

Film Review: Green Room

"I Can't Die Here With You..."

Of all the previews released into my local world of cine this year so far, Jeremy Saulnier's latest splatter-fest Green Room, is by far the least publicised and most unknown entity I have ventured into seeing, being one of the few rare times in which I begin a film without an inch of prior knowledge, a rare commodity if ever there was one in this day and age of stuffed-down-your-throat propaganda-esque trailers and endless streams of publicity both on the large screen and the small. Not recognising the director's name at all until the end of the movie when my overused IMDB app was swiftly opened up, Green Room was indeed the work of a mad-man, one who has an obvious love of blood splatter B-Movie greatness, harking back to the days of grindhouse pictures, whilst having an uncanny knack of relieving tension in the most horrific of scenes with the jet-black comedy element blending seamlessly with the complete and utter carnage that occurs on-screen throughout the film's more than modest 90 minute run-time. If you can handle sharp objects, killer dogs and death, lots of death then continue to read on; Green Room is one of a kind.

Following in the footsteps of recent B-Movie blood-splatter gems such as the brilliantly comical You're Next and even last years' Marmite picture Knock, Knock, Blue Ruin director Jeremy Saulnier brings to life a fusion of punk rock sensibility to the genre, with Anton Yelchin's power quadruple being caught within a rather sticky situation after performing at a isolated Neo-Nazi clubhouse ran by Captain Picard himself, Patrick Stewart. What follows is a tension-filled gore fest with explosions of violence that can hold up against anything in its' respective genre in terms of shock value, yet the undercurrent of comedy helps to differentiate the film from being a proper downer of a movie in line with something such as Eden Lake, a movie with no laughs whatsoever, with a recurring joke about desert-island bands being particularly humorous right up to the final scene. Twists and turns, blood and guts, Green Room most definitely isn't for everyone but if you are like me and enjoy the twisted nature of B-Movie greatness, check it out. Just don't east beforehand. 

Overall Score: 8/10