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#586 – Goosebumps (2015)
Goosebumps (2015)
Film review #586
Director: Rob Letterman
SYNOPSIS: Zach Cooper moves with his Mother to the town of Madison, Delaware, where he learns he has a strange new neighbour. Things take a twist when Zach learns that his new neighbour is none other than R.L. Stine, author of the Goosebumps series of books, and the monsters from his books have accidentally been brought to life…
THOUGHTS/ANALYSIS: Goosebumps is a 2015 film based on the series of horror books by R.L. Stine. The film starts up in a very typical way, introducing teenager Zach Cooper and his Mother moving to a new town and having to get used to a new school and all of that: a situation you’ve seen in films plenty of times. Fortunately, the film doesn’t linger too long on it, and it’s somewhat necessary to provide the grounds for the film’s twist. Zach learns that his odd neighbour is none other than R.L. Stine, the author of the Goosebumps series, and the creations in his horror stories are very much real; as he finds out when the monsters are released from their books to terrorise the town. The meta-twist of the film, making R.L. Stine (played by Jack Black) a character and referencing the actual books is implemented well, and provides a good way of incorporating the different characters from the books. If you’re a fan of the series, you’ll appreciate the different monsters that appear, but even if you’re not familiar with them, it doesn’t impact the experience in any way.
What the film does well is – when it kicks off with the monsters being unleashed – that it keeps up an unrelenting pace and energy as it moves along without any real lulls. The different parts of the film aren’t really anything unique, but it never slows down enough to make it boring. Part of this is due to Jack Black’s portrayal of R.L. Stine, as he brings his usual energy to the role and to basically steal every scene he is in. If you’re not a fan of Jack Black, maybe you’ll have an issue with the film, but otherwise you can certainly enjoy the ride. The rest of the cast is fairly uninteresting and don’t really develop beyond their typical roles, but again it’s not that much of an issue since they aren’t really the ones driving the plot.
Overall, Goosebumps overcomes a predictable setup with a self-referential twist that works well, with a constant energy and entertainment that doesn’t give you a chance to get bored. Like the series itself, it is horror for kids, so there’s no real scares or frights to be had, but again, it focuses more on the action and self-referential humour that make the film work in it’s own right. Not perfect, but entertaining enough, particularly if you’re a fan of the franchise.
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#585 – The Big Step (2019)
The Big Step (2019)
Film review #585
Director: Antonio Padovan
SYNOPSIS: Mario heads to the countryside to deal with his estranged brother Dario, who has been arrested for arson. Dario is released into Mario’s care, as he struggles to deal with his brother’s confrontational and weird nature, and his big secret: building a rocket to fly to the moon…
THOUGHTS/ANALYSIS: The Big Step (Il Grande Passo) is a 2019 Italian film. Mario, who owns a hardware store in Rome, has to drive out to the Italian countryside to take care of his Brother Dario, who has been arrested, and must be released to another family member. Mario learns that Dario has been trying to build a rocket to fly to the moon, and the two brothers must try to get along after being estranged for so long. The film is essentially a drama film that focuses on these two brothers, as Mario tries to keep Dario out of trouble. It’s a fairly simple film without any bells and whistles, but does what it does well thanks to some good acting, writing, and accompanying musical score. The different lives of the brothers provides enough conflict to provide both drama and humour, and although the film ties all the little things together nicely, the ambiguity of the ending might be a little unsatisfying, and some things are left a mystery (such as the identity of the two men following Dario, the “creepy” guy at the store).
Overall, I don’t think there’s too much to say about this film: I could probably sum it up as “charming.” There is a familiarity in it that feels like you’re watching a story you’ve seen plenty of times before, but it’s always a comfortable watch every time you see it. There’s no big “funny” moments, but the ending is heartwarming, and the film as a whole flows nicely; it just doesn’t deliver a stand-out moment to make it memorable.
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#584 – Surf Nazis Must Die (1987)
Surf Nazis Must Die (1987)
Film review #584
Director: Peter George
SYNOPSIS: After a devastating earthquake reduces Los Angeles to rubble, the beaches become the battlefield for a number of gangs who want to rule the waves. After a group of neo-Nazis seize the beach, and a young man is killed, his Mother decides to take revenge on the Nazis that murdered him…
THOUGHTS/ANALYSIS: Surf Nazis Must Die is a 1987 post-apocalyptic film. The film’s title might sound completely off the wall and nonsensical, but actually refers to the neo-Nazis that existed around surfer culture in Los Angeles from the 1960s onwards. The film is set in a post-apocalyptic version of L.A. after a huge earthquake reduces the city to ruin…well, probably. We don’t really see the city in ruins to establish the location or context, and there’s also no real indication if just the city is in this post-apocalyptic state of lawlessness, or it is the wider world. Anyway, in this state of chaos, various surfer gangs battle it out for control of the beaches. While the film embraces some more outlandish elements that you would expect from the title, including the various surfer gangs of Nazis, ninjas, and the like, the film on the whole is fairly tame and subsequently, rather dull. There’s barely any other story other than Nazis just terrorising people, and every scene in which something happens is followed by long shots of people surfing, which by the time you return to a scene with dialogue or plot, you can’t really follow what happens from one scene to the next. There’s a story concerning some drug deals, a kid hanging around the Nazis to his Mother’s disapproval, and a Mother taking revenge on the Nazis for the murder of her son, but none of these elements really add up to anything, or come together in any way.
Despite the silly concept, there is an element of the film taking some things seriously: the Nazis radicalising youths, the preaching of their purity yet clearly engaging in deviancy; there’s some effort to write the bad guys as the bad guys , and to show their hypocrisy. Don’t get me wrong: this is not done in an overly impressive or interesting way, but it is there. probably the most memorable character and plot element is “Mama,” a middle-aged woman who is put into a care home after the earthquake, but always manages to sneak out to cause trouble, and her mission of vengeance which becomes the focus of the film when her son is murdered by the Nazis, is at least somewhat interesting. Not only is her straight-up approach to the Nazis being to call them out and hunt them down refreshing (because we don’t really need to have nuance in dealing with Nazis, I thin the film is trying to say), but having a middle-aged black woman as the main character is such a rare occurrence it almost makes the film feel fresh. Again, there’s still not much substance, but the no-nonsense approach the film takes is somewhat fun while it lasts.
Overall, Surf Nazis Must Die fails to live up to its bizarre name: it’s mostly dull viewing with barely any plot, and random footage of surfing that serves no purpose other than to extend the runtime breaks the film up into isolated scenes that serve no overall purpose. There’s some attempt to offer something unique with the “revenge” story arc, and dealing with Nazis in a straightforward way, but other than that, it’s a dull, low-budget flick that offers nothing really exciting or interesting.
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#583 – Kids of the Round Table (1995)
Kids of the Round Table (1995)
Film review #583
Director: Robert Tinnell
SYNOPSIS: Alex and his schoolfriends enjoy re-enacting the legend of King Arthur. Running away from some bullies, Alex stumbles upon a sword in a stone, which he pulls out and is revealed to be Excalibur, the legendary weapon of King Arthur. Merlin appears before Alex and explains how Excalibur may be used to give him the power to overcome his problems, but also that this power must only be used for good…
THOUGHTS/ANALYSIS: Kids of the Round Table is a 1995 film. The plot revolves around a kid named Alex who stumbles upon the sword in the stone from Arthurian legends. Removing the sword, Merlin appears to tell Alex that it is Excalibur, the sword of the legendary King Arthur, and will grant Alex the power to overcome his problems, but only if he uses the power for the right reasons. The plot of the film essentially revolves around Alex using the power of Excalibur, and the dilemmas that arise from it. It touches on a number of different points, but nothing with a depth that makes the plot points memorable or non-predictable. That said, there are a few scenes which explore the dilemmas with some strong and emotionally powerful dialogue, that give weight to what is happening.
A good portion of the film sets up a a love triangle between Alex, Jenny, and Luke, mirroring the same relationship between Arthur Guinevere and Lancelot in the Arthurian legends. Again, the dialogue that comes out of as a consequence of this is mature and impactful, and Malcolm MacDowell as Merlin offers some sage advice in a rare non-villain role. Despite this, a lot of the line deliveries, particularly from the kids and lesser known actors, are a bit flat. We never really get any depth from any of the characters, and they are just very surface-level personalities without a unique hook. The biggest issue the film faces is with the pacing: it has a fair amount going on at the beginning of the film setting out it’s premise then it just…stops. The film clearly has ideas, it just doesn’t push them at all. the finale of the film, featuring “Scar” (played by Michael Ironside) and his buddies taking Jenny and her friends hostage at her birthday party after the criminals have robbed a bank goes on forever: nearly half the film is dedicated to this part which unfolds so slowly it feels like a waste of runtime.
This film looks exactly like you would imagine a 90’s film would look like, and it doesn’t really distinguish itself in this way. One of the production aspects that definitely stands out is the score: the full orchestral pieces are really strong and moving, and again coupled with the emotional scenes, makes a good impact. Overall, Kids of the Round Table has some good moments and some decent cast members to support it, but seems to hold back in terms of fleshing out it’s concept more fully. This definitely has potential to be more than it is, but it keeps everything at a very surface-level exploration, as the characters don’t really develop into anything special, and the different setups don’t take advantage of the concept. Some good heartfelt moments, and a nice score grip the viewer at certain moments, but fail to add up to make the film something special.
