EvilPhoEniX

A solid crime thriller based on true events. The bodies of three young children are found naked, mutilated and tied up in a lake and the suspects are three teenagers who listen to heavy metal music and are believed to be Satan worshippers. Since they are facing the death penalty and there is no direct evidence, Colin Firth offers his services for free and tries to help them at any cost. Bleak atmosphere, great actors, awesome trial scenes and a shocking finale. I have no idea why I ignored this six year old film for so long, but it's definitely worth a watch. 7/10.

The Spaniards come up with another chilling and disturbing thriller! The protagonist travels home from work in the middle of nowhere in the evening to catch his daughter's birthday and, tired, closes his eyes for a few seconds only to accidentally hit a drunken teenager who was loitering by the side of the road. The problem arises when her friend turns up and the protagonist is left with only two options: confess and go to jail, or kill them both and save his family. A very unenviable situation that the Spaniards handle with a chilling atmosphere. Suspenseful, bleak, rather unpleasant and even though it doesn't whip up twist after twist as is usual with the Spaniards, it is a very decent piece. 7/10.

We move from Iraq to Venezuela and it's again very decent and timely. John Krasinski is traditionally excellent and of the new characters, Noomi Rapace and Tom Wlaschiha as a professional hitman (the Man of a Thousand Faces from Game of Thrones) are really good. There is a bit more action than in the first season and the shootouts in the middle of the Venezuelan Jungle in particular are awesome. The storyline is engaging and the series definitely doesn't get boring. The first season, however, is a little bit better. 75%

Christian Alvart, who directed Pandorum and Case 39, makes his presence known after ten years with a decent German thriller. The story revolves around a pathologist who finds his daughter's number in a corpse that has been kidnapped by a sadistic psychopath, unleashing a cat and mouse hunt where the protagonist will have to search for clues to find his daughter. It stars the traditionally excellent Moritz Bleibtreu, one of the best actors in German cinema, and there are some nicely depicted viscera, especially during the autopsy. The overall experience was spoiled for me by the jumbled subtitles and it's perhaps a little too long, but otherwise decent. 65%.

After the failure of Independence Day: Resurgence, Roland Emmerich restores his reputation and serves up a decent war film that won't make a dent in the world, but thanks to familiar faces, dynamic pace and almost uninterrupted action, it's sure to entertain in the cinema, as long you don’t think too much. Of the actors, Ed Skrein stands out the most as the bold and brash pilot who steals most of the scenes for himself, but Luke Evans, Woody Harrelson, Patrick Wilson and Aaron Eckhart are also good, so there are more than enough familiar faces. It's just a pity that they don't work too well with emotions, because there are so many characters that it's almost impossible to form a relationship with any of them. The action is very decent albeit 80% through a green screen, but if you don’t mind a CGI orgy you will get over it. I don't think plane crashes and aerial gunfights have ever been so entertaining and gripping, and I was entertained by the behind-the-scenes of the Japanese. There hasn't been a WW2 war film in the cinema this year, so fans of the genre should be grateful and not hesitate to go. 75%

The story revolves around young entrepreneurs who have their own nightly stream and broadcast a fake exorcism, but trouble arises when a real demon enters their show and they suddenly can't handle it. The idea is definitely unusual and at least it brings something new to the sub-genre, the make-up effects are okay, the humour works occasionally, there are scares and the film doesn't get downright boring, so it's good for killing time. Fans of exorcisms can add an extra 10%. 50%

Travis Fimmel (Ragnar from Vikings) is commanding 108 inexperienced Australian and New Zealand soldiers against an entire Vietnamese battalion, and it's a decent wartime carnage for the first time in a while. After a brief opening, the action hardly lets off the gas and, although it's not a big production, it looks very good, the characters are likeable and the emotions work too, especially at the end. The only that disappointed me a bit is that they didn't have the courage to add gore, there are none of those raw scenes from Hacksaw Ridge, but still it's an engaging and entertaining piece for war movie fans. 75%

A film based on real events. A bus full of children is hijacked by Somali terrorists just outside the Somali border and a French special unit is sent to the scene to resolve the situation. The first hour is slower and offers a couple of moments we've seen before, but the last half hour breaks down into a solid action-packed carnage full of headshots and some nice sniper shots. Definitely decent and the beautiful Olga Kurylenko is always a delight. 65%

The follow up to the successful British series is finally here and although the initial Wow effect has slightly disappeared, it is still a tasteful, blackly humorous revenge genre stuff. Alyssa is still properly sassy and her constant "what" still amuses me and the new character with a good motive is decent too. Thanks to the short episodes, the show doesn't slacken in pace and the hotel scene and the pre-finale in the cafe are the biggest highlights of the second season. 80%.

I can’t remember the last time I saw Eddie Murphy, so I was curious about his comeback. It’s a decent black biopic based on the 70s blaxploitation star Dolemite. The main character makes his living as a stand up comedian and doesn't do too well at first, but once he hears the funny stories of the local homeless people he adapts them, passes them off as his own and it becomes an unexpected hit and a quest for fame. Wesley Snipes and Keegan-Michael Key are are very good, and Snoop Dog and Chris Rock make cameo appearances in smaller roles. I unexpectedly had fun. 80%.