10 Cloverfield Lane

Sat in a very dark cinema my brain screamed "YAAAAS" at the performances from John Goodman and Mary Elizabeth Winstead.

TRIGGER WARNING: Imprisonment/Gore.
Can you have a trigger warning for Aliens?
Whoops, just gave away something big... well c'mon you should really have at least an idea of what Cloverfield was about.

And I mean it...

I can already tell that 10 Cloverfield Lane will be snubbed and underrated all year round. Let me just put it out there right now, John Goodman takes the god damn cocking biscuit with how well he plays his creepy yet somewhat adorable character. He plays Howard, who steals Mary Elizabeth Winstead, playing Michelle, off the road after crashing into her car. Michelle incidentally was running away from her boyfriend after a big fight. Then big old Howard comes along and locks her up, because apparently the 'air up in the normal world is contaminated'.

So yeah, it seems to be a hostage situation, until we meet Emmett (John Gallagher Jr.) stuck down in this bunker with the two. Yet he was trying to get in when the world was 'attacked'. So Michelle is opened up the somewhat psychotic, yet lovable world of Howard the conspiracy theorist.
And there's nothing I love more than a conspiracy theory.

I loved this film from start to finish, John Goodman is flawless as ever. If you are a fan of him like me, you should go into watching this with an open mind, because he is half the cuddly bear you wish him to be every minute of every day, and half a raging lunatic. The character of Howard is very manipulative, and I can promise you that that is the most scary and unnerving factor about this film.

All along I thought this was directed by J.J. Abrams, ah beloved J.J. (He only produced it).
But nah it was directed Dan Tratchenberg, and I have to say he really made it his own, and basically he's done very little else, so kudos to him for this... my first favourite film of 2016. Yeah, and y'know what, it comes above The god damn Revenant.
Anyway, if you like Sci-Fi and a lovely homey South American aesthetic, then make sure to go see this. If for any reason, I would say that the storyline is awesome and when John Goodman smiles in a certain way, your heart will just burst.
But, like one minute you wanna be shut down in the bunker with these poor people, next minute you want to punch Goodman's character in his face....

PLUS YOU GET TO SEE JOHN GOODMAN DO A LITTLE TWERKING!!!!
NSDFOSDNGPZXFNB;DXNB;XDNFB;DOFNG'DOIF

GET
ON
THAT
JOHN!

Can you tell that I'm a John Goodman fan? 

Spotlight

It's good... like really good.
Underrated even.

Why did it take me so long to publish this I'll never be fully sure... being a student is hard when you rarely get out of bed each day.

Spotlight tells the infamous story of exposing paedophilia in the catholic church, basically. I remember how big this situation was when it came out when I was younger. I didn't fully understand much of it, but I knew that it scared me. The unveiling of the catholic church's seedy underbelly in America is demonstrated with respect in Spotlight - and by that I mean towards victims and survivors.
We see a straight-faced Michael Keaton do a pleasing job as usual, as manager of getting the truth out. Keaton's team of co-stars reflect his talent just as well, the acting you will witness only adds to this film. What I am impressed with is that this delicate story is in no way glamorised, nor is this film a thriller, nor mystery... it tells the truth essentially.

Without becoming a documentary, the utmost respect is taken when telling the stories of the survivors. Spotlight also ensures that they are heard, however still shows that sexual harassment within the Catholic still occurs to this day. The fact that it took so long for the original story to be brought to light is portrayed perfectly thanks to director Tom McCarthy.

I realise that Spotlight is probably well on its way out of cinemas right now, but it is worth buying... and that's quite rare for me to claim those standards.
Mark Ruffalo outdoes himself as portraying the fire within the a force who is met with troubles of getting the truth out.
Rachel McAdams also shines through as our main female character, her acting more subtle than that of Ruffalo, however just as effective.

Spotlight will open your eyes to just what survivors went through, as well as how long it took for their stories to be heard.
An upsetting story, but one which needs to be told.
I am very glad it won at least one Oscar this season, the filmography is very pleasing if I do say so,


In other news, I shall be writing for FilmDebate as part of my work experience and as a chance for me to stretch my writing skills.
It is quite exciting for me actually, seeing as I'm going to be graded at the end of the day for doing something I love to do in my spare time.
It won't be me reviewing films however, but with hope my first article will be on my favourite female led films.
So if you like the theme of compilation, then take a trip over to http://filmdebate.co.uk/ and attempt to find my material soon. 

Deadpool

If you haven't gotten on top of seeing this yet... you better.

Already one of the more impressionable films I've seen this year. 

So let's just begin with me stating that I have not read any Deadpool comics, I am by far a massive Dead Head and Punisher fan. I love comics though, my collection is tame to say the least, but like c'mon some prices are not for a student's pockets.

Anyway, I knew about Deadpool due to just seeing him around the internet and comic book world, but never got a chance to read any of his stories.

But this film... right from the word go it will have you in stitches.

I knew it was going to be crude and in-your-face, but it still went in deep. I would say that are about two parts where paedophilia is joked about. But other than that it's not too rough on the triggers. 

Ryan Reynolds is perfection, and makes up for his first appearance as Deadpool in that sub-par Wolverine Origins film. I mean heck he even made up for Green Lantern... *shudders* 

Which brings up a discerning question of who is worse - Ben Affleck's Daredevil or Ryan Reynolds's Green Lantern.

But anyway, Reynolds pulls off the antihero's charisma and hilarity so well that you forget about anything you've seen him in before. 

I do love how the storyline is so simple, and yet you're sat there only to watch Reynolds tell you what he's doing and when it's going to happen. Little nods to the studio makes this film even more so enjoyable as well. Whether or not you are a Deadpool fan, this is a very good film. 

I urge you to go and see Deadpool, if for anything just to brighten your life up. 

Right from the credits it's funny, and the acting from everyone in it is pretty impressive. 

Also it's obviously Marvel, so for the love of god don't leave straight away with the ending credits, and look out for Stan Lee - now that bit surprised me...

Sorry this review is so short, but there's not a lot more to say other than that you will love this film.

Breaking fourth walls never pleased me more. 

The Revenant

First off, this film struck a cord with me due to frankly boredom and depression sending me into a pit of binge watching various documentaries. Some of these docs being about Native Americans, so I've been educating myself on the life in America before the white man entered. 

The Revenant may or may not be on the better end of how Native Americans are represented in the media. 

(Do not get me started on Pocahontas).

(Especially after days on end discussing it back and forth in my Animation essay... now that was a rocky road).

Basically, Leo is great in it... but I'll be the one to say it... TOM HARDY WAS BETTER! There we go, someone had to bring it up.
Let's face it, Tom Hardy is amazing at anything at the moment. Bane, Mad Max, Kray Twins, I feel that he's not going to blow over any time soon.
Hardy's performance, for me, outshone DiCaprio's perhaps. I want to make it clear though that Leo should get the Oscar, only so everyone WILL SHUT THE HELL UP ABOUT IT!
Just let the meme die people.

In The Revenant we see a lot happen within the opening, and trust me it's gruesome but awesome. And also there's a cool bear. And loads of death. And revenge. My type of film really. Director - Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu, I have to say has the most amazing vision. His take on filmmaking to me seems so unique, I for one haven't seen anything like his work before. Birdman shares many similar aspects as The Revenant, and yes I did love it.
I loved this film to a degree that I would say it should win Best Picture.
And that's a given and everything, but it does deserve it.
Inarritu should ave won more for Birdman in my opinion.
I say all of this and yet I've only watched half of Birdman, and nothing other than that and The Revenant... I appear to have not watched any of his other works....

Just watch the film, and then not watch it again for a very long time, so you can appreciate it better.
This 'review' has been pointless and unhelpful.
I am sorry.

The Hateful Eight

What I found whilst narrowly avoiding my Animation assignment on representation, was that this film was so so long.

Damn, it was long...

I mean it was entertaining, but I'll repeat the annual faux pas and say that yeah, it wasn't at all Tarantino's best.
I liked the narrator, and Samuel L Jackson is amazing as always.
It was good at the end of the day... just not amazing, and if I'm honest a little forgettable.
A fresh face among the old and ugly comes Channing Tatum, which was kind of nice... I mean I appreciate Time Roth as much as the next young girl with a thing for good actors, but alas his delivery was sub-par at best.

I've probably put a lot of you off, but as I said it was long and I figure that's a massive factor into a film which rarely changes scenery throughout.
However I'll say this, my most favourite part was Kurt Russell. I don't what it is, but with this and Death Proof, he always makes his characters somewhat likeable... even though they're horrible humans.
 Also Jennifer Jason Leigh knocks it out of the park with her part of Russell's prisoner. With all the amazing actors on set, the storyline still dragged a little and made me not too worried about purchasing it upon release.

Along with a small twist which you can figure out for yourself quite quickly, you'll find that it stinks of Hitchcock, and as much as I love Taratino films it's basically a repeat of a repeat.
Which I know is his style, but I'm bored of it, and no Quentin you would never have done a better job of directing Scream. (Just to put it out there). So let's all agree that this was to be appreciated for aspects you've viewed already within a different film, and get used to it, because The Hateful Eight appears as a spin-off from Django.
I'm so salty over this and I don't even know why.
Probably because I was expecting more, but it fizzled out.
Just leave me be Quentin... you've done enough.

Room

I've found my winner for Best Actress this Oscars season, by means that if I must in that list of yet again whitewashed actors and actresses.
TRIGGER WARNING: Mentions of rape & imprisonment.

Now this film tackles a sensitive issue, a woman is kidnapped and locked away for seven years. Out of those seven years, she gives birth to a boy within her first two years of being held captive. The man who imprisoned her to his garden shed rapes her every night and of course fathers the boy.
Let me say that this is hard-hitting, but not in such a blunt way as I expected, Room is quite poetic. We see through the eyes of 5 year old Jack, who is rather annoying, and loves Room where he has only known those fours walls all of his young life. He is annoying in the sense that he is a little bitch to his mother often, and won't help her with anything.

I mean you feel sorry for him, because how can he imagine a world he's never seen before.
Joy, his mother, suddenly uproots her storytelling of how a world outside Room does not exist. She's already told him that the people on T.V. are fake, everything they see on T.V. is actually fake. When she suddenly breaks and tells him she was lying and there are others in the world other than them, he becomes more annoying and is ruder than ever. You feel mostly bad for her due to his ignorance, but then again she put it in his head in the first place.

In short, Joy uses Jack to gain freedom from their prison, and they are rescued slowly but surely. It then begins to concentrate on their acceptance to the world Joy had left behind. With her parents divorced and the press hounding her family, Joy soon becomes unhinged and disregards her fragile son. Without providing spoilers, things become bleak, but the faith of one little boy brings Joy back to life and things become less stressful - for Joy and the audience.

Room stressed me out if I'm honest, but on the whole this was a very interesting film. I enjoyed it and took on board how emotional is was. You may cry, I sniffled at one point, only due to being close to home. The concept of this film, if you will, probably stems from how strong a mother's love can be. I dunno, something mushy like that.
Just be aware, when you watch this you may feel alienated to an extent.

Overall it's amazing acting, from both Brie Larson as 'Ma' and Jacob Tremblay as 'Jack'.
The acting from Jacob Tremblay especially, concerning his abilities to play an unappreciative yet innocent and generally impressionable little boy.
All I'm saying is that my hopes and predictions go to Brie Larson for Best Actress, because she outdid herself. 

Summer 2015.

In September this year, I returned to university to start my second year of Film Studies. When arriving back in Cheltenham I first thought that my feelings would somewhat lift, I felt that everything would somehow be lighter. 

I should now state that my summer of 2015 was very hard, during it I felt my mental health changing. 

Throughout most of my teens and young adult years, I have had trouble with my emotions. Managing my emotional well-being got to one point in my life that I had to begin therapy sessions when I was around 15. 

I'm typing this meaningless-to-you-post because I feel that my life has been switched up, in such a short space of time my mental health has just crashed. During the summer of 2015, I became increasingly reserved. I isolated myself, and ended up shutting myself off from the outside world. It became so bad that I got to the point where I couldn't leave my house without at least one person with me. And even then I was still very anxious. 

Anxiety gripped me unlike it ever had before. My past experience with therapy sessions proved very negative and had very little positive impact on me, so of course I withdrew more and shut down completely. 

My summer became bleaker in my mind - most probably due to problems within my family. My parents have been separated for approximately 2-3 years now, and yet still live in the same house together. Along with this I have problems between myself and other members of my family. My tongue however was held throughout the summer holidays, I bit my lip when I felt myself being pushed and frustrated by annoying traits. 

I stopped speaking to my mother, and depended on my boyfriend for almost anything. 

I felt like I became a burden upon those who I loved, and that pushing them away would be better than pulling them down with me. I limited my speaking with my cousin, and became petty and bitter about simple things. 

Deep down I was angry about my parents' situation, and that I was somewhat stuck between a family which never spoke about their feelings, and the world outside my house where I couldn't face others. 

I felt scared to leave my home, I constantly felt that something horrible would happen if I went anywhere alone. 

I took to avoiding others, and social situations. And to this day, I can't really give anyone a straight answer on why. I probably felt that I would be judged, I know that I thought I would be catcalled, mugged or abused. 

My anxiety spiralled out of my control. I worried about walking up my local high-street alone. And thus, daily chores became hard, and even getting out of bed or changed soon seemed impossible.

I exploded one afternoon at my mum, my feelings about the family situation flooded her ears, and I soon came out with the truth that I was suicidal. 

Since days of teenage years, I remember becoming increasingly depressed, along with heightened anxiety becoming apart of my life. 

I recall feeling hopeless and alone, I began counselling in school, and soon moved onto NHS therapy - which left me with little hope for ever taking part in therapy again. 

Soon, my confidence grew and I fell into a boring life. However I made lifelong friends, who I still cherish today. My life became normal again, even though in a period of time I failed many GCSEs, started a BTEC, and gradually failed to get into any choice of universities. 

Then I was thankfully accepted into Gloucestershire through clearing, by being egged on by my best friend. My life was renewed. I met my boyfriend of almost two years, and felt like I was moving on from my old self. 

However, summer of 2015 met me head on and brought back memories of a world I had forgotten. I felt like the 15 year old who shut herself out of people's lives. 

After a summer away from university, I hated being at home in Bristol. Thinking that my second year at uni would bring me out of my depression was wrong thinking as well. Nothing changed, I still felt low and a change of scenery only made me more unhappy about leaving my house alone. 

Finally, I was nudged to get help. My boyfriend promised me that it would be worth it. And he was right. The uni doctor put my on antidepressants, which would balance out chemicals in my brain and somewhat sooth my anxiety.

These were not overnight happy pills, they effected me severely and proceeded to me taking time off of lectures. My uni helped me a lot, and continue to do so. I was introduced to a self help service from the NHS, and now manage my depression and anxiety hand-in-hand with my medication.

I am not fixed. I still feel estranged from the world in some ways. I feel singled out, and often alone. 

However, I have come a very long way since hiding in my home all summer. 

I am still worried to this day, especially about relapsing. 

Yet, I am proud of the progress I have made. I still need time to get use to my new love for life, and yes I still have bad days where I can barely get out of bed. 

There is no cure for this.

But I am happy, and have been working hard in many aspects of my life.

This has been my feeble apology for lacking in posts of all the films I have seen in 2015.

There will be updates from now on. 

Reach out to me if any of you need to.