REVIEW: John Wick: Chapter 4 - Starring Keanu Reeves

John Wick is back, in what I believe is the end to the John Wick story. The sequel to John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum (2019), Keanu Reeves as John Wick is out to get revenge on the High Table and those who left him for dead. Before I start, it is worth noting that this is the longest film in the series, at a massive 169 minutes (nearly 3 hours) it is about 38 minutes longer than John Wick 3, 47 minutes longer than John Wick 2, and 68 minutes longer than John Wick. So, to watch this you will need to have plenty of popcorn, and perhaps even a soft cushion for your behind.

In the bustling metropolis of New York City, (Nothing like real life, since NYC is an absolute dump, but anyway), John Wick finds himself hidden away with the Bowery King (Laurence Fishburne - a former underground crime boss who was left for dead by the High Table and is now sponsoring John Wick), making meticulous preparations for his forthcoming quest for vengeance against the formidable High Table. His underground sanctuary serves as a temporary refuge as he carefully strategizes his next move.

Full Review at

http://www.beentothemovies.com/2023/05/review-john-wick-chapter-4-starring.html

REVIEW: Fast X (2023) aka Fast & Furious 10 - Starring Vin Diesel, Michelle Rodriguez, Tyrese Gibson, Chris "Ludacris" Bridges, John Cena, Nathalie Emmanuel and Jason Momoa

The Fast & Furious franchise is back, with another film in the seemingly never-ending series. Vin Diesel stars as Dominic Toretto alongside Michelle Rodriguez, Tyrese Gibson, Chris "Ludacris" Bridges, John Cena, Nathalie Emmanuel, Jordana Brewster, Sung Kang, Scott Eastwood, Daniela Melchior, Alan Ritchson, Helen Mirren, Brie Larson, Rita Moreno, Jason Statham, Jason Momoa, and Charlize Theron. Dom must protect his family from Dante Reyes (Jason Momoa), who wants revenge for his father's death and loss of his family's fortune.

The Agency asks Dominic "Dom" Toretto and his crew to snatch a computer chip while it is being transported through Rome. While the rest of the crew travels to Rome, Dom and his wife Letty Ortiz (Michelle Rodriguez) stay behind with their son Brian "Little B" Marcos (Leo Abelo Perry). An injured Cipher (Charlize Theron) shows up at Dom's house that evening to tell him that Dante Reyes (Jason Momoa), the drug lord Hernan Reyes' son, has turned her gang against her and is using them to target Dom in retaliation for the death of his father. Cipher is taken into jail by Little Nobody (Scott Eastwood), who later admits that there is no mission in Rome.

Full Review at

http://www.beentothemovies.com/2023/05/review-fast-x-2023-aka-fast-furious-10.html

REVIEW: The Super Mario Bros. Movie - Starring Chris Pratt

I had been waiting for ages to watch The Super Mario Bros. Movie, and then circumstances prevented me from seeing it till it was released on digital, gutted I had to wait so long, but glad I finally got to watch.

The Super Mario Bros. Movie is surprisingly based on the Nintendo Video game franchise, and they really do a great job of using all aspects from the various games, to tell the story within the film.

Italian-American brothers Mario and Luigi have recently started a plumbing business in Brooklyn, much to the disapproval of their father and the scorn of their ex-employer, Spike. One day, while watching the news, they catch sight of a significant water main leak. Driven by their sense of responsibility, Mario and Luigi embark on a mission to fix it. However, as they go underground, they unexpectedly find themselves being sucked into a Warp Pipe, separating them in the process.

Full Review

http://www.beentothemovies.com/2023/05/review-super-mario-bros-movie-starring.html

REVIEW: Final Apex - Xbox

Back once again with a brand-new review, this time for futuristic racing game Final Apex. First let's accept that the developers made a monumental mistake with the name of the game, not because Final Apex is a bad name or anything, I like the name, but when there is a big budget game out there called Apex Legends, who are paying search engines millions to put their game at the top of any search result for anything using the word "Apex" then you have a problem.

Despite the poor name choice, Final Apex is actually a fun little arcade racer. This is all game and no messing about, it reminds me very much of the kind of arcade game you might find in an airport arcade. You sit down, put your coin in, click start and within seconds you are racing away. Except here there are no coins to put in.

Once the game loads up you have three choices. Career, Series or Test Drive.

Since Test Drive is obvious, we will ignore that one for now.

Career mode has you choosing a track, then you choose your vehicle, the cars colour, and then away you go. In career mode, races have a running start. Try to finish the race as high up the pack as you can, and with as fast a time as you can. When you have completed the race, you can choose the next one. Tracks and Cars are locked until you have enough points. There are 7 cars in total to drive, and a huge 70 tracks to race on.

Full Review at

http://www.gamingcouchpotato.co.uk/2023/05/review-final-apex-xbox.html

REVIEW: Simulant (2023) - Starring Robbie Amell, Jordana Brewster, Simu Liu, Alicia Sanz and Sam Worthington

April Mullen directs Simulant, written by Ryan Christopher Churchill, featuring Robbie Amell, Simu Liu, Jordana Brewster, Alicia Sanz, Mayko Nguyen, and Sam Worthington.

The film takes place in the near future, where Evan, an android humanoid simulant played by Robbie Amell, is created for Faye, portrayed by Jordana Brewster, to replace her deceased husband. Evan teams up with Casey, a brilliant global hacker played by Simu Liu, to remove the restrictions on simulant capabilities and traits.

However, as simulants become increasingly self-aware and independent, a government agency led by Agent Kessler of AICE, played by Sam Worthington, launches a manhunt to prevent a potential A.I. uprising.

Full Review at

http://www.beentothemovies.com/2023/05/review-simulant-2023-starring-robbie.html

REVIEW: A Small Fortune (2023) - Starring Stephen Oates and Liane Balaban

A Small Fortune, written and directed by Adam Perry, is a crime/drama film that was originally released in Canada a few years ago and has finally been released in the UK. Although I don't review many films in this genre, I was intrigued to watch this one.

The story revolves around Kevin Doucette (Stephen Oates), a simple and desperate man who lives an unremarkable life on the remote Prince Edward Island. Despite his modest lifestyle, Kevin is burdened with worries as his wife, Sam (Liane Balaban), is pregnant with their first child, and he doesn't earn enough money to support their family, let alone a baby. Kevin's income comes from harvesting sea moss on the coast, but Sam urges him to leave the province to find more stable and well-paying work on the mainland.

However, Kevin resists his wife's pleas and fate appears to be on his side when he discovers a large sum of Canadian Dollars on the beach and decides to keep it for himself. But his luck quickly runs out when a man named Troy (Joel Thomas Hynes) arrives on the Island searching for his money. Kevin makes a series of bad decisions, and the situation spirals out of control, turning the once-peaceful fishing village into a crime scene.

This is a beautifully shot film, although Canadian, there is a strong Irish influence, and if you didn't know it was a Canadian film, you could well be mistaken into thinking it was an Irish one.

Full Review at

http://www.beentothemovies.com/2023/05/review-small-fortune-2023-starring.html

REVIEW: Formula Retro Racing - World Tour on Nintendo Switch

"Players can drive, drift and draft their way across 18 unique tracks, including Japan, London and Paris. Multiple gameplay modes provide hours upon hours of replayability, with corners to master and endless lap times to overcome through the online leaderboards. This expanded sequel also adds new vehicle types to the mix, each with their own distinctive feel and handling properties.

Low-poly models and assets now look crisper than ever before thanks to 4K visuals and 60fps performance. Every aspect of the game has been designed with performance in mind, ensuring a consistent feel as players dive headfirst into corners at breakneck speeds. It's retro gaming as players remember it, but with a modern twist.

Relive the glory days of sharing the settee with 4-player split-screen in Formula Retro Racing: World Tour's multiplayer mode. Players can take the clean driving line, draft behind competitors or take the chaotic route and push friends into the wall  - just remember, the only place that matters is first.

For those looking to add an additional dimension to their racing experience, Formula Retro Racing: World Tour is also fully playable in VR. Incredibly immersive, and not for the faint of heart, this mode allows players to experience the thrill of racing from the most authentic point of view, the cockpit."

Read Review at

http://www.gamingcouchpotato.co.uk/2023/05/review-formula-retro-racing-world-tour.html

REVIEW: Dogfight: A Sausage Bomber Story on Nintendo Switch

If you follow my reviews, then you will know I love me a retro style action shooter, and boy do we have a great little game in Dogfight: A Sausage Bomber Story on Nintendo Switch.

You play as a member of the Sausage Bomber Corps, your job is a simple one, defeat wave after wave of enemy fighters, and then destroy the boss, before you can progress to the next level. Action comes by way of a classic side scrolling adventure, as you control your little plane against seemingly unsurmountable odds that come from Vega Nation.

The game is nonstop action, with some great humour thrown in between levels. The graphics are outstanding and of the cartoon variety.

As mentioned, the game is a side scrolling action shooter, you will collect power ups, to make your weapons more powerful, you can also drop bombs as you are flying. A nice touch is the ability to switch the direction of the plane, so that you can defend yourself better from attacks coming from behind.

Super easy to pick up and play, hectic levels that never become confusing. Cracking sound track and all-round good fun, multiplayer is also available, but alas I never had chance to try that.

Full Review at

http://www.gamingcouchpotato.co.uk/2023/05/review-dogfight-sausage-bomber-story-on.html

REVIEW: Evil Dead Rise (2023) - Starring Lily Sullivan and Alyssa Sutherland

With all these horror remakes and reboots, it is time for another attempt to resurrect the Evil Dead franchise. Unfortunately, this is not a Bruce Campbell film. Nor does it seemingly have anything to do with the awesome Evil Dead TV series. It is also not a horror comedy. It is a straightforward horror film about demons and the undead.

The film starts off at a lakeside cabin, where cousins Teresa (Mirabai Pease) and Jessica (Anna-Maree Thomas) and Jessica's new boyfriend Caleb (Richard Crouchley) are attacked by Jessica. She scalps Teresa, decapitates Caleb, and then levitates above the lake. Now, quickly forget about that.

The day before this horrific event, Beth (Lily Sullivan), a guitar technician who has just found out she is pregnant, visits her sister Ellie (Alyssa Sutherland) in a condemned Los Angeles apartment complex called Monde Apartments. Ellie is a single mother to teenagers Danny (Morgan Davies) and Bridget (Gabrielle Echols), and young child Kassie (Nell Fisher). An earthquake shakes the building while the children are in the basement parking lot, revealing a hidden chamber that contains religious artifacts, three phonograph records from 1923, and a strange book. Danny takes the book to his room, thinking he can sell it to help Ellie. The first record describes a priest's unsuccessful attempts to research the book, which is one of three volumes of the Naturom Demonto. The second record reveals that the priest continued his research in secret and performed an incantation that summons demonic entities called Deadites.

Full Review at

http://www.beentothemovies.com/2023/05/review-evil-dead-rise-2023-starring.html

REVIEW: The Adventures of Jurassic Pet 2: The Lost Secret - Starring Carolyn Josephine Wright, Sophie Proctor and Myles Currin-Moore

"The Adventures of Jurassic Pet 2: The Lost Secret" is a sequel to a film I never heard of, mainly because it was never released in the UK. That being said, when I was asked to review this, I was intrigued. Directed by Ryan Bellgardt and Chris Hoyt, the film follows adventurous teenager Wendy Jenkins (Sophie Proctor) and her wise grandmother Tadrina Green (Carolyn Josephine Wright), who are the protectors of a magical portal to the land of dinosaurs. However, the portal only opens once a month during the full moon period. After one such visit, Wendy winds up getting more than she bargained for when a baby dinosaur named Junior doesn't go back through the portal with its family and instead follows Wendy and her grandmother home.

They decide the best course of action is to keep Junior safe until the portal opens again. Wendy and her new friend Curtis (Myles Currin-Moore), who is an orphan and is being fostered by Wendy's family, must keep a watchful eye, but if only it were that simple. You see, the Mayor of the town played by Drew Pollock is evil, and with his henchmen Barney (LaRonn Marzett) and Clyde (Rahjzae Moore), they are running a factory producing a synthetic version of a poison created by an African Tsetse fly, which, if infected, will cause a sleeping illness - perfect if you want to, say, rob a bank.

Full Review at

http://www.beentothemovies.com/2023/05/review-adventures-of-jurassic-pet-2.html

REVIEW: Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 (2023) - Starring Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Dave Bautista, Karen Gillan, Bradley Cooper and Pom Klementieff

Well, it's finally here, the swan song for the Guardians of the Galaxy. Possibly the most loved franchise of the MCU, which never felt like it should have been as popular as it does, comes to an end.

The Guardians of the Galaxy have set up their headquarters on a restored Knowhere (As depicted in The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special from 2022).

One night, they are attacked by Adam Warlock (Will Poulter), a Sovereign created by their leader Ayesha (Elizabeth Debicki), seeking revenge for the Guardians' previous theft from her people. Despite his overwhelming power, Nebula (Karen Gillan) manages to injure Adam, who escapes. However, Rocket (Bradley Cooper) is left badly hurt, and the Guardians realize they cannot help him because of a kill switch implanted by Orgocorp. If they try to heal him, he dies. If they do nothing, he dies. Desperate to save their friend, they head to Orgocorp's headquarters, hoping to find an override code.

Meanwhile, as Rocket lies unconscious, he remembers his past as an experimental subject of the High Evolutionary (Chukwudi Iwuji), a scientist who sought to turn animals into anthropomorphic beings for his Counter-Earth project, an entire planet that is designed to copy Earth. Rocket befriended other test subjects, including Lylla (Linda Cardellini), Teefs (Asim Chaudhry), and Floor (Mikaela Hoover), but the High Evolutionary betrayed them, ordering Rocket's brain to be extracted and the other subjects incinerated. Rocket fought back, killing guards and escaping with Lylla, but she was killed, leaving Rocket alone. (This is a seriously sad part of the film, get your tissues out folks)

Full Review at

http://www.beentothemovies.com/2023/05/review-guardians-of-galaxy-vol-3-2023.html

REVIEW: Death or Treat on PC (Steam)

I do enjoy a good hack 'n' slash platform game, so when I was invited to review Death or Treat, I was definitely looking forward to the experience.

Let's first check out the official blurb for the game.

"Join Scary in the HallowVerse to make things great again!

You will play as Scary, the owner of Ghost Mart, the leader in manufacturing candies for Halloween.

Discover a huge world with lots of rooms, explore new maps in every run while you try to survive the hordes of enemies. It's not an easy task; every world is even trickier than the other. Starting with Darkchat, the Storyum lab, Riptok, the most used app sede, Deviltube, leaders distributing storyum, and last but not least, FaceBoo!, the ultimate epic frontier.

Will you overcome the challenge and dare to defeat Clark Fackerberg?"

Full Review at

http://www.gamingcouchpotato.co.uk/2023/05/review-death-or-treat-on-pc-steam.html

REVIEW: Renfield (2023) - Starring Nicholas Hoult, Awkwafina and Nicolas Cage

Who could ever have imagined that we would still be making films based on the 1897 novel Dracula by Bram Stoker? Well, we are, and the latest version of the tale focuses not so much on Dracula but on his deranged, fanatically devoted servant and familiar, Renfield.

In the early 1900s, a meeting occurs between Transylvanian vampire Count Dracula (Nicolas Cage) and English lawyer R.M. Renfield (Nicholas Hoult). Renfield aims to negotiate a deal for land and impresses Dracula enough to become his familiar (a human who was granted a portion of Dracula's power by Dracula himself). As a result, Renfield becomes immortal and gains superhuman abilities when he feeds on insects.

Fast forward ninety years, and Renfield has grown tired of assisting Dracula in his victim hunting and dealing with his abuse. After narrowly escaping vampire hunters, they relocate to New Orleans to recover. There, Renfield discovers a support group for individuals in co-dependent relationships and hatches a plan to seek out abusive partners of group members and offer them to Dracula as food. While tracking one abusive partner to a warehouse, Renfield is accosted by criminals and is later targeted by an assassin hired by the rival Lobo crime family.

Full Review at

http://www.beentothemovies.com/2023/05/review-renfield-2023-starring-nicholas.html

REVIEW: The Pope's Exorcist (2023) - Starring Russell Crowe

I have probably seen every single religious based horror film made in the last 40 years. I am a big fan of the genre, and I had been looking forward to seeing this as not only am I a fan of horror but also Russell Crowe, this film is based on a real person in Gabriele Amorth, an Italian Catholic priest and exorcist of the Diocese of Rome.

The film starts off in 1987, a man named Gabriele Amorth (Russell Crowe), who is the personal exorcist of the Pope, visits an Italian village where a man is believed to be possessed by a demon.

Gabriele Amorth is a simple, humorous, and practical man who rides a classic Lambretta scooter. Together with the local priest, he enters a room where the man is tied up, he performs an exorcist ritual and uses a Saint Benedict Medal to exorcise the demon, and trick him into possessing a pig, which is subsequently killed with a shotgun. However, Amorth's acted without permission from his superiors which gets him in trouble with a Church tribunal, which includes members like a sceptical American Cardinal Sullivan (Ryan O'Grady) and the friendly African Bishop Lumumba (Cornell John). Amorth defends his actions, stating that he did not perform a true exorcism but rather used psychological theatre to help the mentally-disturbed man. Amorth is not pleased with the tribunal and walks out.

Read More at

http://www.beentothemovies.com/2023/05/review-popes-exorcist-2023-starring.html