Review Roundup - Mimic

CAPTAIN MARVEL (2019)

There's a lot to be said for franchise fatigue a decade into the Marvel Studios film run. Films that seem to have the same tone, the same visual effects and the same cinematography can be... exhausting. But since many of them are at least above average I can often let it slide. There's a lot to be said for simple and effective hero's journey style adventures; stories that are often both fun and satisfying to watch. But what happens when structure is lacking and the pacing leaves a lot to be desired? Unfortunately in what should have been a heightened cosmic adventure this instalment often feels flat and incredibly bland, settling for dry deserts and grey concrete instead of having otherworldly aspirations.

Monster Bits - Gas Panic

THE HUMAN VAPOR (1960)

If there are any recurring ideas in the classic Ishiro Honda back catalogue, it's that he loves to mix crime thrillers with science fiction. Whether it's Godzilla movies that use assassins like Ghidorah, the Three-Headed Monster or the jewellery heist meets creature feature Dogora, this sort of mix and match approach appears fairly often. He might enjoy international co-operation and relatable human struggles, but there are also a lot of crooks with sunglasses. This is a prime example of these two worlds colliding as a man subject to a shady experiment becomes an unstoppable bank robbing murderer called 'the gas-man'. It might be a well worn idea but it's execution is very solid.

HCF Review - The Orphanage

DREAM NO EVIL (1970)

Time for some more weird super ’70s stuff courtesy of Arrow’s American Horror Project, a series in which a variety of strange and obscure features have been curated for your viewing pleasure. In this instalment I’ll be covering the sinister fantasies of an orphaned girl with Dream No Evil. Perhaps not the most original idea ever to be put into a screenplay, but an adequate starting place for plenty of odd goings on. I suppose the inclusion of a travelling faith healer and a lot of bizarre moments along the way help. If only the rest of the plot wasn’t so very familiar, even before an intrusive narrator spells out every plot twist ahead of time…

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HCF Review - The Net

DEMONLOVER (2002)

The internet, like most aspects of computer technology, is always a problem for film makers in one way or another. Whether it’s the hardware itself being laughable or online services looking more like those obnoxious ‘you wouldn’t steal a car’ DVD warnings they rarely resemble real life. So while a corporate thriller depicting a business trading in adult entertainment might seem edgy and modern, there’s always a kind of artificial and dated vibe to the whole story. Still, leaving aside questions about how these increasingly fantastic websites actual operate this is a fairly engaging story about cut throat executives vying for authority. At least until its sense of reality starts to crumble elsewhere in the narrative.

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Scorecard

JUNE

FILM OF THE MONTH: Carry on Screaming ☆☆☆☆