December 2022
All movies I saw in the cinema for first time during the month of December 2022 ranked from worst to best.
(SPOILER WARNING FOR ALL 4 FILMS PICTURED ABOVE)
#4. Matilda: The Musical
This was my final cinema trip of December 2022 and this year in general.
I would've waited until January 2023 to see this on Netflix, but chose the cinema primarily because I wanted to bump the cinema trips of this month to 4...and also I didn't want to see Avatar II, at least until next year.
I think the most I've saw of this film prior to release was the clip of the girl with the red cap dancing through a hallway, it was shared relentlessly on Tiktok to the very point of it being tiresome everytime it came on my FYP.
*
This was surprisingly enjoyable and was a perfect theatrical translation of a stage musical. Definetley worth seeing a cinema before it arrives on Netflix in a couple of weeks. It was surreal seeing a theatrical version of the opening Netflix logo.
There was not a single bad performance. Alisha Weir, Lashawna Lynch as well as Emma Thompson were the standout performances and elegantly carried the film through it's nearly 2 hour runtime.
I loved the set and production design, with food wrappers (such as CurlyWurly and Golden Wonder) being from that time period.
The songs composed by comedian Tim Minchin were great and occasionally toe-tapping.
After seeing this I'd love to see more stage adaptions of Roald Dahl's work turned into big budget musical films.
7.1/10
I would've waited until January 2023 to see this on Netflix, but chose the cinema primarily because I wanted to bump the cinema trips of this month to 4...and also I didn't want to see Avatar II, at least until next year.
I think the most I've saw of this film prior to release was the clip of the girl with the red cap dancing through a hallway, it was shared relentlessly on Tiktok to the very point of it being tiresome everytime it came on my FYP.
*
This was surprisingly enjoyable and was a perfect theatrical translation of a stage musical. Definetley worth seeing a cinema before it arrives on Netflix in a couple of weeks. It was surreal seeing a theatrical version of the opening Netflix logo.
There was not a single bad performance. Alisha Weir, Lashawna Lynch as well as Emma Thompson were the standout performances and elegantly carried the film through it's nearly 2 hour runtime.
I loved the set and production design, with food wrappers (such as CurlyWurly and Golden Wonder) being from that time period.
The songs composed by comedian Tim Minchin were great and occasionally toe-tapping.
After seeing this I'd love to see more stage adaptions of Roald Dahl's work turned into big budget musical films.
7.1/10
#3. Strange World
This was my first film and cinema trip of December 2022.
When the film was first announced I sorta expected/hoped it to be based on Earth during the 1940s/50s akin to the game 'Destroy All Humans' but from the human perspective evading Aliens, that would've been really cool, especially with the Disney CGI.
Instead it's just following a group of explorers on an Alien planet.
*
I honestly did not expect 'Strange World' to be a beautiful film on not only climate awareness but also fatherhood.
Visually, the film is spectacular. I loved the steampunk-esque design of the vehicles/town and the floral living world, it reminded me alot of the video game that came out last year 'The Gunk', which was also about rescuing a dying planet. The short oil painting sequence showcasing what Clade's dad done for the past 25 years was amazing.
Dennis Quaid really surprised me with his voice performance in this film, I could definetley tell he enjoying playing the adventurer Jaeger Clade.
7.5/10
When the film was first announced I sorta expected/hoped it to be based on Earth during the 1940s/50s akin to the game 'Destroy All Humans' but from the human perspective evading Aliens, that would've been really cool, especially with the Disney CGI.
Instead it's just following a group of explorers on an Alien planet.
*
I honestly did not expect 'Strange World' to be a beautiful film on not only climate awareness but also fatherhood.
Visually, the film is spectacular. I loved the steampunk-esque design of the vehicles/town and the floral living world, it reminded me alot of the video game that came out last year 'The Gunk', which was also about rescuing a dying planet. The short oil painting sequence showcasing what Clade's dad done for the past 25 years was amazing.
Dennis Quaid really surprised me with his voice performance in this film, I could definetley tell he enjoying playing the adventurer Jaeger Clade.
7.5/10
#2. Violent Night
I first heard about this film when the first trailer/poster was released a couple weeks ago, and I was instantly intrigued to watch it.
David Harbour seems like perfect casting for a brutal, badass version of Santa Claus. I loved his portrayal of Hellboy back in 2019, regardless of what critics or even he says about the film.
*
'Violent Night' was epic in the most gorey, Christmas way possible. Harbour without a shadow of a doubt stole the show with his performance.
From now on, Santa should only alternatively portrayed as a bad-ass, sorta anti hero (the default being jolly, obviously). No more evil Santa! That shtick is so gimmicky, especially after the recent robot film featuring him.
87North produced yet another film with awesome action set pieces this year, the first being the Brad Pitt lead film 'Bullet Train'. I loved the hammer sequence in the stable and also the bottomless present sack, that was pretty creative in making scenes seem unpredictable. That Mortal Kombat esque final kill involving a chimney was very brutal too.
Perhaps the absolute highlight of the film for me was the wholesome/somber talks with Santa and Trudy through the walkie talkies.
8/10
David Harbour seems like perfect casting for a brutal, badass version of Santa Claus. I loved his portrayal of Hellboy back in 2019, regardless of what critics or even he says about the film.
*
'Violent Night' was epic in the most gorey, Christmas way possible. Harbour without a shadow of a doubt stole the show with his performance.
From now on, Santa should only alternatively portrayed as a bad-ass, sorta anti hero (the default being jolly, obviously). No more evil Santa! That shtick is so gimmicky, especially after the recent robot film featuring him.
87North produced yet another film with awesome action set pieces this year, the first being the Brad Pitt lead film 'Bullet Train'. I loved the hammer sequence in the stable and also the bottomless present sack, that was pretty creative in making scenes seem unpredictable. That Mortal Kombat esque final kill involving a chimney was very brutal too.
Perhaps the absolute highlight of the film for me was the wholesome/somber talks with Santa and Trudy through the walkie talkies.
8/10
#1. Living
I saw this during one of the last few days of it's short theatrical run (at least at my local Cineworld, anyways).
The concept of the film did seem quite intriguing. An ex army vet (played by the great Bill Nighy) after becoming ill/fatigued post-war begins to do something with his work and life.
*
This had me spellbinded from beginning all the way to the end, such a beautiful story. Without a shadow of a doubt, one of the best films visually I've saw this year. The 4:3 aspect ratio was an excellent choice. I feel like this easily could've been in black/white, the lighting seemed perfect for that colour grading, with all the sharp and dark shadows.
The editing was quite powerful at times, the couch flashback sequence is a VERY notable example, showcasing Bill's character had more years behind than in-front.
Bill was absolutely exceptional in 'Living', such a mature performance. Two little pieces of dialogue spoken by him did have me almost tearing up. One being the scene with Miss.Harris, with him stating "I want to be like one of those one day..." the silence following that line was so deafening. The other line being "I don't have time to be angry anymore."
While I did enjoy this film, I do wish it ended a little sooner. After the train sequence, it should went straight to the night time conversation with the Police Officer following Mr.Williams letter about finishing the playground.
9.5/10
The concept of the film did seem quite intriguing. An ex army vet (played by the great Bill Nighy) after becoming ill/fatigued post-war begins to do something with his work and life.
*
This had me spellbinded from beginning all the way to the end, such a beautiful story. Without a shadow of a doubt, one of the best films visually I've saw this year. The 4:3 aspect ratio was an excellent choice. I feel like this easily could've been in black/white, the lighting seemed perfect for that colour grading, with all the sharp and dark shadows.
The editing was quite powerful at times, the couch flashback sequence is a VERY notable example, showcasing Bill's character had more years behind than in-front.
Bill was absolutely exceptional in 'Living', such a mature performance. Two little pieces of dialogue spoken by him did have me almost tearing up. One being the scene with Miss.Harris, with him stating "I want to be like one of those one day..." the silence following that line was so deafening. The other line being "I don't have time to be angry anymore."
While I did enjoy this film, I do wish it ended a little sooner. After the train sequence, it should went straight to the night time conversation with the Police Officer following Mr.Williams letter about finishing the playground.
9.5/10
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