The Good Neighbour reminds viewers that just because a movie is a guilty pleasure, that doesn’t always indicate that it’s a bad movie. Stephan Rick’s thriller is far from great but, as far as meeting expectations, I had a lot of fun with his movie.
A family’s secret unravels in A Chiara, much to the surprise of a formally unaware titular teenager (played well by newcomer Swamy Rotolo, confidently leading the film). Chiara is worried and paranoid about her family’s safety, but she’s also angry that nobody will explain the situation to her. She receives reassurance, but that isn’t enough when she’s witnessed her father fleeing a scene before their family car was blown up.
Firestarter is not only a disappointment, it’s a strange disappointment. It promises to deliver on multiple levels and, yet, fails at every attempt. It’s billed as a horror, but it’s not scary. It’s billed as a thriller, but it doesn’t pull the viewer towards the edge of their seat. It’s also billed as a family drama and science fiction, which it certainly sports elements of, but neither genre is interesting or exciting in this movie….
In this efficient “hitman with a heart” tale from director Reem Morsi, The Last Mark is a confined thriller starring a conflicted crook (Shawn Doyle) and a kidnapped call girl (Alexia Fast) reeling for a “job” that went sideways after the escort witnesses the murder. The characters hide out at a safe house arranged by a fixer (Ashgrove’s Jonas Chernick) to escape the hitman’s unpredictable partner-in-crime (Bryce Hodgson). The dynamic between the unlikely fugitives is deliberately…
Woman In Car wants to be a compelling character study, but it never takes off because writer/director Vanya Rose wants to focus on the actions in the story rather than the people.
The Cursed (formally titled Eight for Silver) is a morality tale of sorts. Writer/director Sean Ellis (Metro Manila) tells a disturbing story about how shameful decisions made by an older generation can haunt the next of kin.
By: Trevor Chartrand Short film writer/director Blake Ridder is on the right track with his feature-length debut Help, but the movie struggles to tell a cohesive story. This neat little thriller is tidy and simple, but ultimately falls apart during its goofy, over-the-top final act. While the film has some decent visuals and an acceptable sense of pacing and style, it’s hard to take the narrative seriously.
