Rhys Reviews

Tag: movies

  • 28 Years Later Review

    Aaron Taylor Johnson and Alfie Williams in 28 Years Later

    9/10

    The zombie sub-genre is at the height of its popularity in the modern day, with the frequent releases of Walking Dead continuations, but come the 2000s, the sub-genre was essentially dead in the water. Originally made popular by the release of Romero’s Night of the Living Dead, and its following two sequels, zombies were a backbone of the horror genre in the 80s and 90s. The undead did not come back into popularity until the release of 28 Days Later in 2002. Danny Boyle’s entry into the horror genre stood out specifically because of the spins it took on the long-dead sub-genre, focusing on character-rather than specifically horror, introducing the concept of fast-running zombies and the specific focus on handheld direction that made it stand apart.

    Followed 5 years later in 2007, 28 Weeks Later was released, a film which has become more synonymous with the general direction of the zombie sub-genre, focusing on action, kills and general horror of the zombies rather than what Days Later spearheaded forward. The film featured no direct involvement from original director Danny Boyle, or screenwriter Alex Garland, with Boyle and Garland leaving to work on their own projects, and 23 years later, they are back.

    28 Years Later is the return to both the zombie sub-genre and the 28 Days Later franchise for both writer and director. The film seemingly ignores the events of 28 Weeks Later, with the 2007 sequel ending with the tease that the rage virus had reached Paris, taking the action outside of the United Kingdom. This film however confirms that the virus has been contained to the United Kingdom, ignoring the closing moments of the previous non-Boyle directed film. This film follows a group of isolated survivors who live on a small island disconnected from the mainland and from the threat of the mutated rage virus victims. When one member of the island must leave onto the mainland on a dire mission, the survivor must contend with the undead, but also with the wonders and reality of the world that once was.

    This long-awaited threequel feels like a return to form for the zombie sub-genre once again, as it revives the character-focused direction the original film had focused upon, and brings alive the film through its directional choices. At times, it feels like an outlier in the modern swerve of horror content, feeling more stylistically connected to the original and the works of Danny Boyle since the release of that film, foregoing a generic tonal distinction and instead working as a chaotic, yet always working tonal collection.

    At heart, the film can be boiled down to a family drama, about the relationship between a son and his parents, and about the world that the son has never seen, compared to the world that his parents have seen become destroyed. You have also all the horror and action tones you would want from narratives revolving around zombies, featuring some bloody kills, impactful jumpscares and freak-out imagery. All amongst that however, there is also genuine moments of heart and humour, moments that seem to stick out like a sore thumb in such a serious film, but become even more memorable and important because of this.

    Aaron Taylor Johnson and Alfie Williams in 28 Years Later

    An important factor of this film is its focus on humanity. Memories of the original Boyle film seems to be clouded in the modern day of zombie films, with memories of the film being overly serious when that is never the truth. The film is warm and humorous throughout, even ending with a over-the-top action sequence where the main character pretends to be a zombie to defeat a army of soldiers. A key sequence where the characters dance and laugh when robbing a supermarket, essentially roleplaying the life they can no longer live highlights the film’s focus on hope and positivity in the face of death and danger.

    28 Years Later continues this theming, with characters reminiscing about the world that once was, teaching the young about items, places and people that they never knew. Killing the undead has become a sport and a way of life, balancing the danger of the situation with humanity, it is only human to find humour and positivity in the darkest moments.

    The film deals with multiple running themes throughout its runtime, namely the importance of memory in times of crisis. However, it also questions, is it beneficial to try and recreate exactly how society used to be, or is it more beneficial to attempt to create something new and removed from those mistakes? Selective memory also comes into play in what is sure to be a controversial ending, dealing with our memories of the past and how we perceive what may have been bad as something that is good.

    Ralph Fiennes and Jodie Comer in 28 Years Later

    An emotional third act also hinges on the engaging family drama aspect of the film, as the film seeks to question what is the meaning of death in a world where nothing really stays dead? There is an importance to honouring death, a beauty in the finality of it that becomes the focus when looking at the performances from the core cast featured in the film. Jodie Comer, Ralph Fiennes, Aaron Taylor Johnson and newcomer Alfie Williams all deliver powerhouse performances that only continue to emphasise the importance of these themes here.

    Danny Boyle’s directorial style comes ahead various times across this feature, the straightforward nature of zombie films is not present at all. The first act composes itself using a variety of archive footage to set both the tone of this world and give a sense of structure to the worldbuilding. There is a common use of both handheld footage and IPhone shots across this film as well, which is common to Boyle’s work, used to emphasise the effect of the kills. This really gives the film a sense of style, an authorship that is not common to something as stock as the zombie sub-genre.

    28 Years Later is bound to not be a film for everyone, it is an outlier in a world where the most popular zombie project is currently The Walking Dead. Its chaotic, in both direction and in its classification of tones and genres, but the chaotic nature of it makes for a memorable experience that seems to compliment the film rather than hinder it. It’s follow-up releases, known as 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple, releases January 2026, and is surely going to be a must watch after this release.

    Alfie Williams, Jodie Comer and Ralph Fiennes in 28 Years Later

  • Lilo and Stitch- Review

    Voice of Chris Sanders in Lilo and Stitch

    When being released in 2002, Lilo and Stitch used the compelling marketing gimmick of placing the film’s lead into classic Disney movie posters, conveying the outlandish nature of the picture and how it stands out amongst the crowded world of Disney princesses. Now, 23 years later, Disney have attempted the same marketing gimmick, making this live action film attempt to standout from the endless live action remakes that the studio has been putting out. Unlike the original however, which felt like a challenging new family-friendly film from the studio, this new live-action attempt feels just like more of the same.

    Following on from the success of Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland remake, one of Disney’s most profitable new endeavours has been live-action adaptations of their beloved animated classics. Between the years of 2018 and 2025, there have been fourteen animated remakes released, highlights including Jon Favreau’s The Lion King, Guy Ritchie’s Aladdin and the recent release of Marc Webb’s Snow White. A clear decline has been conveyed in the popularity of these remakes, going from billion-dollar grosses to Snow White barely being able to break-even.

    Voice actor Chris Sanders and Maia Kealoha in Lilo and Stitch

    These remakes are marked commonly by being almost shot-for-shot remakes of the original, with very little changed made at all. Some, like Disney+ streaming original Mulan, make sweeping changes that fundamentally change the narrative from the beloved original.

    Lilo and Stitch sits somewhere in the middle, following the same narrative as the original, following escaped experiment Stitch, as he finds himself on earth hiding from his creator. He attempts to hideout with a struggling sister-turned surrogate mother, and a troubled child, who may soon become his new family.

    The film really nails the dynamic in the family bond between Nani and Lilo, played by Sydney Elizebeth Agudong and newcomer Maia Kealoha respectively. Kealoha works well in bringing alive the chaotic energy that Lilo had in the original feature, some of her violent tendencies seem to be lessened for a live-action world, but the heart of the character is there. Agudong brings alive the struggle of being forced into the role of a surrogate parent, forced to work to provide while wanting to pursue her own dreams.

    Director Dean Fleischer Camp’s breakout feature Marcel the Shell With Shoes On conveyed a charming family adventure with cutesy characters and a promising exploration into adult themes of loneliness and grief. The cutesy characters are still present in his follow-up feature, the marketable nature of Stitch is still present, sure to sell hundreds more collectables in his new live-action form.

    Voice of Zach Galifianakis and Billy Magnussen in Lilo and Stitch

    However, the mature storytelling seems surprisingly absent from this slightly watered-down version of the narrative. The animated original was very mature in its exploration into family trauma and the grief of a young child, but the alterations made here seem to lessen that message or altogether remove it. Events happen the same as the original, but with crucial alterations to dialogue, removing a crucial line about Lilo mentioning her family’s accident, or making Nani unaware of the adoption of Stitch, where it was her idea in the original to give Lilo a friend.

    Standing out was the key to the success of the animated original, but removing crucial character beats only serves to water down this iteration, and removes any of the adult edge the marketing wants to make the audience believe. Originally conceived as an original to their streaming service, Disney+, the movie portrays itself as a family-friendly film through and through.

    The Disney+ release can be seen even more frequently through the use of human stand-ins for original film characters Jumbo and Pleakley, played by Zach Galifianakis and Billy Magnussen here respectively. In their effects-created forms, the characters are accurate but come-close to the uncanny valley. Presumably because of a lower-streaming budget, the characters are instead commonly shown in human forms, giving the film a comedic slapstick energy, even if some questionable character decisions will leave fans of these characters confused in their new narrative directions.

    It is hard to state that Disney’s new Lilo and Stitch is anywhere near a bad film, when its DNA is so instinctively tied to such a satisfying 2000’s Disney classic, but what it suffers from is a lack of creativity in its own vision or changes that only serve to undermine the original. Both lead performances are strong, and a stronger focus on the sisterly bond leads to more charming family moments, but the emotional and complex adult themes are lost in the edit. Stitch is always marketable however, brought to life in such glee.

    Maia Kealoha and Sydney Elizebeth Agudong in Lilo and Stitch

  • Mission Impossible- The Final Reckoning Review

    Tom Cruise in Mission Impossible-The Final Reckoning

    The mission seems to be over for Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise), as Mission Impossible- The Final Reckoning arrives in theatres, advertised as the final outing for this long-running franchise. Following on from 2023’s Dead Reckoning, The Final Reckoning sees the rogue AI known as the Entity rising to a higher form of power as it takes over each Earth superpower one by one, and the only one who can be trusted to save the day is Ethan Hunt and his IMF allies. Released in 1996 and based on a television series of the same name from 1966, the original Mission Impossible created a unique brand for itself in the spy genre, and became a juggernaut of the genre, crossing over 4.5 billion at the global box office across its 8 films. Bringing this franchise to an ambitious end comes with a couple of clear pitfalls, but The Final Reckoning comes out as a strong end to the long-running spy franchise.

    Clocking in at nearly 3 hours in length, the film’s first hour comes as its weakest. The film’s opening act comes with many of the same problems that plagued the opening of its predecessor, an overreliance on exposition. Opening with a staple of the franchise, a video being relied to our franchise lead, as the President (Angela Bassett), conveys the mission for the film, but this one is even more expositional. The opening serves as the film’s chance to convey the entire plot of the previous film in case the audience member missed its events, and also the entire narrative events for the franchise. As stated previously, this is a common aspect of this franchise, but it over-compensates heavily through its visual exposition.

    Tom Cruise, Simon Pegg and Hayley Atwell in Mission Impossible- The Final Reckoning

    Each time the film relays information from a prior film, the film also conveys this information visually by flashing the character, moment or item on screen through archival footage. This is clearly done to keep people up to date with the information outside of this sole film, but the editing choice comes to worrying heights when it done so frequently, flashing the same footage more than once, and once editing in a flashback to footage from this very film to remind the audience what happened mere moments ago. This editing choice leaves the film once it enters its second act, only returning once again for a sentimental call-back to the franchise.

    Once the film hits into its second act, the fast-paced action and engaging character-work the franchise is known for comes to ahead, and that’s where the stunts the franchise is known for becomes involved. The submarine escape sequence and the plane battle with antagonist Gabriel (Esai Morales) are two thrilling sequences that can stand toe-to-toe with some of the most thrilling moments from the franchise’s past. They convey the commitment Tom Cruise has to this franchise, delivering some of the most jaw-dropping cinematic moments and all on a practical level.

    Hayley Atwell, Simon Pegg, Pom Klementieff and Greg Tarzan Davis in Mission Impossible- The Final Reckoning

    Tension is key to a film contained in the spy genre, and the ticking time-clock element of the film, with the entity slowly taking over each countries’ nuclear arsenal is a compelling tension-builder. The stakes have always been high in this franchise, but this is end of the world stakes, and director Christopher McQuarrie knows how to mine the most drama out of these stakes. The movie is unlike the typical summer blockbuster, its sombre and dramatic, with the tone being more reminiscent to Cold War era war films than anything else released this year.

    Larger stakes comes with a massive improvement in scope and cast. Returning franchise mainstays like Benji (Simon Pegg), Grace (Hayley Atwell) and Luther (Ving Rhames) are given enough to do in this entry, spending most of their screentime together as a team in a secondary plot, given most of the heavy-lifting comedy-wise.

    The new characters introduced here are where the bigger cast becomes more of a mixed bag, Hunt spends most of the middle act travelling between locations, meeting new characters for a short sequence. Hannah Waddingham is an example of this, appearing in one scene where she doesn’t leave much of a splash, but then Severance star Tramell Tillman steals every sequence he is in. Various new characters also make up the new team surrounding Hunt, namely Paris (Pom Klementieff) and Theo (Greg Tarzan Davis), who have very little to do in the hustle and bustle surrounding the narrative.

    Tom Cruise in Mission Impossible- The Final Reckoning

    The film wins its sentimental conclusion, coming out with an overpowering final action sequence, paired with tension-filled character beats, marking a strong end to a winning franchise. Through various twists and turns, the movie connects itself to the very beginning of the franchise, creating a complete package out of this once-episodic franchise.