My Thoughts on Mission Impossible: Fallout

What did we do to deserve Tom Cruise? Yeah, he's the butt of pretty much every joke, and yeah, he's made some absolute stinkers, but honestly the guy is pretty fantastic. He's what keeps the Mission Impossible series fresh. Big budget blockbuster entertainment tends to have it's issues. I mean there's a lot  of things now that feel like corporate cashgrabs, and often end up mediocre at best and god awful at worst. Refreshingly though, Mission Impossible has kept it's flavour. I think that's down to two factors. First, the director shifts. Going from De Palma to Woo, to Abrams to Bird, and then to McQuarrie has given each one it's own flavour, and even with McQuarrie behind the camera again, it still feels wholly original. The second factor though, is Cruise. Tom Cruise is interesting because he puts so much passion into everything does. True, he has made some transparently money grabbing studio flops, but he's undoubtedly comitted to pretty much everything he's done. Regardless of how you feel about the guy, you've got to respect him, because he seems to care about every film he makes, and that really makes a difference

And he's what makes Mission Impossible: Fallout so excellent. The plot here follows Cruise as Ethan Hawke, tasked with tracking down some missing plutonium before it falls into the wrong hands. It's a fairly simple plot, but it absolutely works in how it facilitates all of the madness of the setpieces. And in a franchise known for insane action scenes, this one goes above and beyond to provide pure action madness. From the Halo jump to the helicopter chase, and every bathroom fight, foot chase, car chase and shootout inbetween, there's some truly jawdropping action here. Also, the plot has real consequences, and that's something that I feel has kind of been missing from movies like this; that feeling that if things go wrong, they're going to stay wrong. Fallout makes you aware of these stakes, so even if you have no connection to any of the characters, you still feel the peril. You're never distant from the danger, because you're always in the danger.

The plot also works in how it develops Ethan as a character. From the start, it's clear that there's more emotion and depth to him this time around, and that's pretty crucial to making us care about his exploits. It's refreshing to have a protagonist that we actually care about, and can become invested in. This investment pays off big time in the scenes of tension, especially in the genuinely suspenseful climax.

Another thing that makes Fallout stand out is the charm. The dialogue is fast and sharp, and any lighter moments really hit the mark. Ving Rhames and Simon Pegg as Luther and Benji are particularly perfect. They bring huge amounts of personality to what easily could have been generic. But it's the little touches in this film, the small pieces of charm and humour that make it work so well. They fit in with the jaw dropping setpieces so damn well, which makes the film incredibly entertaining as a result.

And you know what? I don't really have any issues with this one either. It achieves exactly what it sets out to do, and does it spectacularly. Especially in an age where studios pump out generic franchise fare, Fallout is truly something to behold. It's blockbuster entertainment done right. It's tense, it's funny, it's so fantastically watchable. Every little twist and turn this film takes reminds me why this series was great to begin with, and why it still works 22 years later. It sucks you in, and does not let you go right up until that unbearably tense climax. It's proper investment, and that makes a world of difference. Here's an example of a film that does exactly what it's needs to do, and elevates both it's franchise, and blockbuster cinema, to new heights in the process. God bless Tom Cruise

My Thoughts on Hereditary

Here's a confession: I'm not crazy about The Exorcist. Don't get me wrong, I think it's a fantastic film, and I definitely get the hype, but it's never been one that I've really loved. It's well made, and excellently acted, but it never had the same impact on me as it did on everyone else. So when Hereditary was billed as "this generation's The Exorcist", I was more than a little skeptical. When I saw Hereditary though, I was actually fairly impressed. No, I don't think that the Exorcist comparison fits too well, but more on that later. For now, let's talk about one of the most surprising and spooky films of the year.

Hereditary follows the Graham family after the death of their grandmother. What follows won't be spoiled here, because it does go to some really interesting places, and I think it's best experienced blind. The really interesting thing about Hereditary's plot is that so much of the horror and suspense lies in the trauma of the whole thing. It takes the impact that the grandmother's death had on the family and uses that as a catalyst to unearth all sorts of horrors. The film's real strength is how it uses the characters and their personalities as a link to something really scary, while never quite revealing what that is until the end. The gradual unpeeling of the horror makes Hereditary a very tense watch, and builds this phenomenal atmosphere of dread.

Ari Aster's direction also throws the audience off guard fantastically. The scares here are gradual but masterful, with one scene involving an allergic reaction being a near unbearable watch. But what really frightens are the ideas of trauma and mental illness, which linger long after the credits roll. Especially when the film suggests that these things are passed down through families. That's the truly scary stuff here.

The acting is also a highlight. Toni Collette is unbelievable here, and absolutely sells every moment of this film. She never feels like a horror victim, instead being someone who's genuinely struggling with trauma, grief and.... well, you'll see. She's a tragic character more than anything else, and she always feels human, even when she cranks up the terror and fury later on in the film. But it's not just her. Alex Wolff holds his own fantastically here, which isn't an easy task when Colette is on top form, but he really knocks it out of the park. He's also maybe the most sympathetic character here, and gives the film a really human edge, even during it's truly insane moments. And Milly Shapiro is pretty great here too. She excels at being both very unsettling and quite sad, and plays a huge part in setting up the film's disturbing atmosphere.

And if those three are fantastic, then I'm not quite sure what to say about Gabriel Byrne. I hate to say it, but he's definitely the weak link here. And it isn't that his performance is bad, it's just.... confusing. There were moments that I found his accent slipping, and there was definitely some overacting going on too. Again, he plays a crucial role, and he does act genuinely well, but for every moment that he pulls off perfectly, there's at least three that kind of took me out of the whole thing.

And on the topic of qualms, I have a few with the ending. I'm still not going to spoil it, so don't worry. I love the core ideas of grief here, and I think that they make the film so scary, but by the ending, there's just too much going on. There's a little bit of everything here, and it just feels bloated. Rather than feeling overwhelmingly scary, Hereditary's ending just feels baggy and unnecessary. That's a serious shame when the film had such a great atmosphere and such fantastic ideas. This should be gripping stuff, but it just lost me. And that's a serious shame. Because I wanted to love this one all the way through. It's not even the Exorcist comparison that puts me off, it's just everything that the film was working towards seems squandered on a mish mash of horror tropes.

And on the topic of The Exorcist. This film really isn't anything like it. The Exorcist approaches it's ideas from a spiritual standpoint, while Hereditary focuses on how grief and psychological trauma affect families. Even the way they scare you are totally different, with Hereditary favouring a quiet scare (for the most part), while The Exorcist's scariest moments generally aren't as understated. But also, comparing these films really doesn't do either of them any favours. I get the whole "if you liked this, then you'll love this" thing, but saying that this film is "this generation's The Exorcist" is kind of ridiculous, because The Exorcist hasn't lost much of its cultural impact over the last 45 years. Hereditary is this generation's Hereditary. The Exorcist is still The Exorcist.

But even then, Hereditary is still generally impressive. Any real issue I have with it lies in the last twenty or so minutes, and up until then it's pretty damn scary. I love that Ari Aster gets horror. He knows that it's not just there to scare, but explore the ideas that really make us human. His use of these themes and ideas in this film is deft and eloquent, and it's worth watching for those core ideas alone. The actors (generally) have no trouble expressing these ideas and emotions, and that results in some truly dynamite horror. I had my problems with this film, but I'd be lying if I said I didn't enjoy it, and it's definitely good. Go see Hereditary. Go see The Exorcist. Enjoy them both for what they are.

My Thoughts on Solo: A Star Wars Story

Okay, okay, I know I'm a little bit late to the party on this, but planning the Britcompilation took up a lot of time, so I couldn't write about Solo when it came out. But I guess this is as good a time as any to talk about the spin off about arguably the most beloved character from Star Wars, and maybe discuss whether or not it worked.

I like Star Wars. A lot. Yeah I know, it's a really problematic series, but I love it anyway. And so, I've actually really been enjoying the direction it's been going in lately. Force Awakens seemed unnecessary when it was announced, but actually turned out great. Rogue One was fantastic, and is my favourite of the newer movies. And Last Jedi was outstanding, and definitely doesn't deserve all the hate it gets. So Solo had a fairly strong foundation to build on. The three movies that came before it proved that Star Wars wasn't just financially successful, but was also well received. This didn't guarantee success for Solo, but at least it made sense that it was getting made.

But I'm not here to discuss the film's production, because we all know it. Lord and Miller were fired, Ron Howard took over and the film was a box office disappointment (relatively speaking). The thing about this film is that there's so much that works, and a lot that doesn't. I don't think that it's fair to say that everything that didn't work was because of the director change. Troubled productions are nothing new, and so many films have succeeded in spite of behind the scenes issues.

I think that the worst that the director change did was give the film a very uneven tone. The film can't decide whether it wants to be subversive and have fun with itself, or if it wants to be a little safer, and be exactly what you would expect from a movie like this. Unfortunately, it lands somewhere in the middle, and that doesn't do it any favours. The film just feels kind of bland as a result. There are definitely moments that feel subversive and cheeky, but overall, it's obvious that they didn't want to take too many risks with this one, and it really suffers for that. It's frustrating because sometimes it does get close to feeling like a genuine Han Solo film, one that really gets the recklessness and charm of the character. But that gets held back because the film the film doesn't want to take too many risks itself, and as a result, doesn't work as well as it could have.

The plot is actually pretty fun though. The whole heist thing is done well, and is relatively well paced. There's some fun twists and some genuinely emotional moments. The major story beats, like the Kessel Run and Han and Chewie's first meeting, are satisfying, if not essential. The story definitely held my attention, even if it did lack the heft of the last few films. But overall the plot's not bad.

The cast are also, for the most part, decent. Alden Ehrenreich plays the hell out of Han, and his performance genuinely holds up to Harrison Ford's legendary turn as the character. He's not just funny and likeable, but he's someone you do come to root for and believe in, and he's the core of everything that happens. That may sound obvious, but his performance is so good it actually makes a Han Solo origin story seem necessary. He's the film's heart and soul, and definitely elevates the whole thing that much more. Another standout is Donald Glover. This guy has been on fire all year, and his turn as Lando is also outstanding. He's got all the shit eating charm you would want from this guy, and is probably the most downright fun part of the whole thing. If Ehrenreich holds the thing together, Glover brings the fun. In spades. Speaking of insane runs, Phoebe Waller-Bridge. Her L3-37 is maybe the series most likeable drone, and she consistently brings the laughs here, as she strives for mechanical liberation.

If only the rest of the cast were as enjoyable. Emilia Clarke is far from bad, but she really doesn't get to do an awful lot in the film either. Woody Harrelson is fine, as is Paul Bettany. They're definitely not bad performances, but the characters they're playing are just so one note and flat, especially beside Han, Lando and L3-37. 

And I guess that's my main issue with Solo. It's definitely fun, and it's absolutely harmless, but none of it feels necessary. Even looking past the fact that we really didn't need a Han Solo origin story, nothing in this film feels essential. The plot's definitely fun and well paced, but the conflict never has any weight. I'm not asking for something on the scale of The Last Jedi, but having a relatively consequence free plot really doesn't help to justify this film's existence. But here's the thing: it's fun. It's fluff, but the scenes that are fun have genuine energy and humour. Nothing feels essential, but it succeeds in being an enjoyable, if forgettable time. This film excels at being light and breezy, and if you can roll with that and not demand anything else, you'll probably have a good time. If you want something on the scale of the last few entries though, look elsewhere. Overall? Flawed, but lots of fun.

The Britcompilation: Day 31- Bad Education

So, it's finally over. This month long voyage into the world of the British sitcom has finally concluded. I've really loved gushing over these series, because let's face it, all I need is an excuse to talk about how much I love comedy. It's been beyond fun to discuss how they've evolved over time, and it's been fun to revisit a lot of these shows. But the thing is, I hadn't actually seen all of the shows I've discussed this month before I started. See, I decided that if I was going to do this, I'd do it right, and check out some series that I hadn't seen before. Most of these ones were ones that I'd seen before, and knew I'd talk about, but I thought it'd be interesting to talk about some shows that I was unfamiliar with. Till Death Do Us Part, On the Buses and Extras were all ones that I hadn't seen before this, but safe to say that these discoveries paid off (mostly). And the other show that I checked out for this event was Bad Education.

Jack Whitehall is okay. In terms of comics that I like, he's one that I find funny, and I always like him in things. Like Fresh Meat, which I decided not to count because it's more of a comedy drama than anything else. But then there's Bad Education, an out and out comedy series, about a really terrible teacher in an equally questionable school. And the show is actually okay. Jack Whitehall is a pretty decent lead, and he sells the awkardness that this show kind of runs on. I think that everything in this show is quite hit or miss, so I'll just talk about what does and doesn't work.

First of all, let's talk about what's not good here. Some of the jokes are just in poor taste. And some of the crude jokes do work, but when a joke fails here, it just falls flat. What's especially bad is that the bad jokes are unnecessarily long, and become drawn out and painful over time. The plots themselves usually aren't too clever, and tend to be a little predictable. The flaws here are way too noticeable to ignore, and really drag the show down. There's a nastiness to this show that makes everything a little awkward, and not always in a good way. These issues really get in the way of this show, and never go away as the show progresses.

But, in fairness, there's good stuff here too. The principal is the standout here, and is the absolute saving grace of the show. He's legitimately hilarious, and he singlehandedly makes up for the shows shortcomings. The supporting cast is okay too. All of the students are essentially just jokes as characters, but they work okay. But the best thing in this show isn't a character, or an episode, it's a moment. The last episode is mainly just decent, but the scene where Jack Whitehall watches the video alone in the room at the end of the year is legitimately fantastic. There's no dialogue, no big joke, nothing stupid. The show just lets it sit, and it's genuinely great. I was expecting the show to ruin it some way, but it actually pulled a moment like that off fantastically. I was legitimately surprised by this, and I think that it almost makes up for the show's failings.

So do I recommend Bad Education? Maybe? It's fine. It has it's ups and downs, but I'd be lying if I said it was bad. I don't love it, but there is good stuff here, enough to reward curiosity at least. It has it's moments for sure, but it does have several issues holding it back. It isn't a bad show, and I'm actually glad that I checked it out. Though I definitely regret watching the movie. More on that another time, though

So, where is British comedy? Is it in good hands? You know what? I think we're at a great point. Okay yeah, so the current crop aren't like the classics, but that isn't necessarily a bad thing. Shows like Fleabag and Game Face prove that a fresh perspective makes a difference, while stuff like Catastrophe and Fresh Meat exhibit how much drama can enhance comedy. Derry Girls and The Young Offenders both debuted only this year, but have been so bold and fresh that they feel like revelations. And who knows? Maybe in years to come, stuff like Chewing Gum and Crashing will be held in the same regard as classics like Only Fools and Horses and Fawlty Towers. It's hard to tell how things will pan out, but I think that we're in an interesting time for British comedy. Only time can tell what will happen next, but I'm definitely up for seeing where we go next.

The Britcompilation: Day 30- Mrs Browne's Boys

And now for one that splits opinions. Some love it, some hate it, but everyone has an opinion on it. And I quite like it. Brendan O'Carroll plays Agnes Browne, the crass matriarch of an Irish family. Look, it isn't a particularly clever premise, it tends to rely on crass humour a bit too much, and by this point it's become beyond repetitive, but I actually have a soft spot for this one.

What I think it is for me is that it makes up for all of its shortcomings in very simple ways. It's not a clever premise, or an especially complicated one, but it compensates for that with how strong the characters are. Even if they are all played for laughs, the performances actually work like they're supposed to, and that really makes up for the simplicity of the whole thing. Yeah it uses a lot of crude humour, but it never feels nasty or mean spirited. Even when it falls flat, I always feel that it's heart's in the right place. Everything seems to be done with good intentions here, and there is a twisted warmth to the show that helps me forgive it when it puts a foot wrong. And if it ever feels repetitive (and it seriously does by this point), I'm willing to overlook that, because the cast do have a really interesting, believable chemistry (not surprising, considering that many of them are actually related)

Though this show's hallmark is that if someone messes up, they leave it in. Something like that could get annoying if handled poorly, but it's so ingrained into the ethos of this show that it rarely becomes annoying to me. Look, I get that not everyone is going to like this one, and I get why some people hate it, because it is love it or hate it. So yeah, I'm not going to say that this one is perfect, or that everyone is going to like it, but it is one that I do genuinely enjoy. Imperfect, but thoroughly enjoyable. I absolutely understand if you don't like it, because it is one of those shows, but I do enjoy this one.

But the movie is godawful. The chat show is okay though.

The Britcompilation: Day 29- The Inbetweeners

One thing that I find quite interesting about discussing comedy is that the more you do it, the more you start to see how it's evolved over time. That was one of my aims with the Britcompilation, to kind of give a general sense of where British comedy was, how it has changed, and maybe even get a sense of where it's going. The shows that I picked, for the most part, are ones that I think affected the landscape of comedy in a significant way. And I think that The Inbetweeners is a very good example of a show that shows how the Britcom evolved over time.

It isn't family entertainment, and it isn't general viewing, but I think that it does give a sense of how far things have come. Just like how Steptoe defined the kitchen sink realism of the 60s, and The Young Ones defined the anti establishment mindset of the 80s, I think that the laddish humour of The Inbetweeners will make it one of the standout Britcoms of the 2000s. Because it does make good use of this very crass humour, and it isn't afraid to be awkward, which I think is fitting for a coming of age series. It captures the general experience of being an awkward teenager very well. The four main characters are actually really realistic, and the performances are fairly believable.

Unfortunately, it's not one that I really enjoy all too much. Yes, it's a good coming of age show, and yeah, I think that it'll be a key sitcom of it's time, and one that probably will be looked back on as a landmark series, but I just don't enjoy watching it. I think that it's unnecessaryily crude. I don't have an issue with crass comedy, or cringe comedy (I love it when it's done well), but I personally I think that The Inbetweeners takes it further than it needs to. I think that it's cruder than it often needs to be. Like it has a legitimately funny situation, but then it'll make a joke that just feels like it's in bad taste, at least for me.

Yeah, I get the appeal, but I think that the jokes here are a little poorly timed, and a fair few of them feel like they're too much. For me, it feels like it doesn't know when to stop. Because the thing about cringe comedy is that the further you take it, the more you need to be able to handle it. And I think that this show just doesn't hit the mark for me. And while I do think that the performances are really good and authentic, I don't actually find any of the characters too likeable. I never find myself wanting to follow these guys, or being that invested in their adventures. Again, I think that it is a good show for defining the modern Britcom, but it just isn't one that appeals to me. It's not bad, I definitely get why everyone loves it, but I just don't care for it that much. Don't think I have too much more to say about it, except Greg Davies is pretty great in it. Yeah, that's kind of all I have to say about this one.

The Britcompilation: Day 28- The I.T. Crowd

And now for my favourite show by Graham Linehan, and one that I've actually talked at length about before. In case you don't know, I ranked every episode of The I.T. Crowd, so I'll just give a brief description of the show and my thoughts on it here. Check out my ranking for more details.

So essentially it's about the I.T. department at Reynholm Industries, a company that makes... something. In the basement, there's Roy the slacker, Jen the overly ambitious relationship manager, and Moss, who is just.... well, he's just Moss. Together with their boss Denyholm, and later his son Douglas, they go on some crazy adventures. What I love about this show is how much of the comedy comes from the characters. And you could say that about a lot of shows, because it isn't something unique to The I.T. Crowd, but it's something that I think this show really excels at, and so is one of the best examples of it. The situations here come from each of these characters ineptitudes. Again, it's not like this show invented this, but I think that it's something that really defines the show as a whole and makes it work as a result. When you factor in Linehan's knack for incredible awkwardness, you've got something pretty great. Like maybe Roy will want to get out of a situation because he's lazy. But his attempts to avoid doing anything will trigger incredibly uncomfortable things to happen. Like that disabled bathroom scene. Or maybe Jen will act on her aspirations, only for the world to remind her that she'll probably never get out of the basement. Lest we forget that it's just not for her.

And yet it's not a pessimistic show. Unlike something like The Office, which had a fairly bleak sense of humour, The I.T. Crowd is a show that feels very playful. Like as awkward as it's situations get, the show always maintains this gleefully silly tone that keeps it funny. It does contain some comically unfortunate setpieces, but it's willingness to acknowledge it's own ridiculousness makes it so awesome. As much as I love the acidity and cynicism of Black Books, I always find myself coming back to the generally more upbeat I.T. Crowd. It isn't afraid to use mean spirited humour, but it makes it fit in with the general silliness of the setups and situations.

This is a show that I absolutely adore. Yes, I'm not crazy about it's ending, but that doesn't affect its place in my favourites list. This is a show that I just love. It's got one of the best casts I've seen in a comedy show, the situations are usually clever and always funny, and it actually gets better the more I watch it. The quotes and jokes are burned into my memory. And holy shit, does this show have good jokes. The Internet, Moss on Countdown, Friendface, Jen speaking Italian, Aunt Irma, Gay! A Gay Musical, Spaceology, Dungeons and Dragons, the bomb disposal robot, a fire at a Seaparks, I could go on all day. I absolutely love this show. If you want to hear me gush about this show even more, check out my rankings of the show's episodes. But for now, just know that this show is phenomenal. If you've not seen it, correct that immediately.