Eleanor Reviews

Director:  John Krasinski Cast:  Emily Blunt, Millicent Simmonds, Cillian Murphy Where can I watch?:   A Quiet Place Part II is in cinemas now Rating:  4/5 Review: A Quiet Place Part II ( AQPII , as no one's calling it) is one of those sequels that you didn't know you wanted or needed until you actually see it. Set both before and after the events of A Quiet Place , John Krasinski's much-delayed follow-up reunites us with the beleaguered Abbott family - only this time, we see the world through the eyes of Regan (Millicent Simmonds) instead of Evelyn (Emily Blunt). It's a clever decision and one that brings another dynamic to the story; through the use of her cochlear implant, Regan has the chance to continue her father's work and potentially save humanity, but at what cost?   The opening sequence is dedicated to 'Day 1', the moment the monsters arrive. Through an excellent use of sound scaping and suspense, Krasinksi expertly pulls us back into the wor...

Director:  Shari Springer Berman, Robert Pulcini Cast:  Amanda Seyfried, James Norton, Natalia Dyer, F. Murray Abraham Where can I watch?:   Things Seen & Heard  is streaming on  Netflix Rating:  3/5 Review:  You know the story: middle class white family swap their happy city lifestyle for a dilapidated, slightly creepy house in the depths of the countryside. Of course, the house has a gory history, but the overly-enthusiastic husband convinces his sceptical wife that all will be well... Until it isn't. Admittedly, Things Seen & Heard , adapted from Elizabeth Brundage's novel All Things Cease to Appear , isn't even remotely original and, when it does attempt to throw some additional ingredients into the mix, the narrative becomes something of an uneven, overstuffed mess. Indeed, there is so much going on here that many of the more interesting topics barely get a look in, while some reveals tip the scale from highly unbelievable to downright abs...

Director:  Mike Rianda, Jeff Rowe Cast:  (voices) Abbie Jacobson, Danny McBride, Maya Rudolph, Mike Rianda Where can I watch?:   The Mitchells vs the Machines is streaming on Netflix Rating:  5/5 Review: Sometimes, you come across a film that leaves you with aching cheeks from smiling so much at the screen. It's a rare occasion, and one that should be sought out, which is why I wholly recommend that you seek out The Mitchells vs the Machines . 'But, it's a kid's film,' I hear you cry, but I care not - sometimes the movies rated 'U' and 'PG' are more sensitive, more creative, more intelligent than anything daubed with a bright red '18' certificate.   The story of a dysfunctional family, their unidentifiable dog and a worldwide machine takeover, The Mitchells vs the Machines marries painfully accurate family interactions with clever animation and... wait, is that a Furby? It's brilliantly bonkers stuff, but the heart of the film is all abo...

Director:  Simon McQuoid Cast:  Lewis Tan, Jessica McNamee, Josh Lawson  Where can I watch?:   Mortal Kombat is streaming on Prime Video Rating:  2/5 Review: Dear reader, you won't be shocked to know that my knowledge of the Mortal Kombat universe is based heavily upon watching gamers punch buttons at house parties. However, I do appreciate (and respect!) that, for some, Mortal Kombat (both the games and previous movie outings...) is a significant part of their leisure time. And why shouldn't it be? A variety of flamboyant avatars fighting for their lives in a series of arenas is indeed a fun and engaging way of passing the time... It's just a shame that this latest version of the gaming franchise is neither of those things. It starts off with a fairly promising opening montage: two foes grapple with each other in a fast-paced, well-executed fight sequence that also includes an emotive murder - it all seems rather good. However, to say that the film goes downhi...

Director:  Ilya Naishuller Cast:  Bob Odenkirk, Aleksey Serebryakov, Connie Nielsen Where can I watch?:   Nobody  is streaming on Prime Video Rating:  4/5 Review: There was a moment, in the first 15 minutes or so, when I thought Nobody might be a genre-defining film, one that took the age-old notion that 'the man of the house should defend the house' and subvert it, so that the movie was a study of what it means to be a man in the 21st century. Dear reader, Nobody is far from an essay on society's obsession with 'the strong man' - it's a gun-toting, ass-kicking, Russian-beating action movie that's entirely enjoyable. Bob Odenkirk is Hutch Mansell - his everyday life is mundane, his marriage is on the rocks and his teenage son is, well, being a teenager. Then everything changes, and the bodies start piling up higher than even Boris Johnson would be comfortable with.  There are obvious comparisons to be drawn with the John Wick series - a suburban man, a l...

Director:  Joe Penna Cast:  Anna Kendrick, Daniel Dae Kim, Shamier Anderson, Toni Collette  Where can I watch?:   Stowaway  is streaming on  Netflix Rating:  3/5 Review: Your Philosophy and Ethics classes get a spacey update in Joe Penna's tale of three Mars-bound astronauts who discover a fourth person concealed on their vessel, sapping their precious oxygen supply. It's hardly an original premise, but Stowaway offers plenty of initial promise, something of a searching character study into three individuals who felt compelled to leave their families behind and spend two years on a mission through the stars. Unfortunately, few of these expectations are ever realised, and Penna's film begins to struggle under its lack of conviction very quickly. There are plenty of themes that are touched on briefly and then dismissed; the faint crackle of remote voices from Earth appears to symbolise both the astronauts' isolation and their disconnect from society, and...

Director:  Lee Isaac Chung Cast:  Steven Yeun, Yeri Han, Alan S. Kim, Noel Cho, Yuh-Jung Youn Where can I watch?:   Minari  is streaming on  Prime Video   Rating:  4/5 Review: If 2020 taught us anything, it's that life is far from predictable: best-laid plans come to nothing; hopes and dreams can seem unattainable; and decisions that once seem certain are thrown into question. Luckily, even in the toughest of times, there is still joy to be had. A film that very much encapsulates the 'every day' feeling of life, Lee Isaac Chung's beautifully understated  Minari follows a South Korean family as they settle into their new home in Arkansas; Jacob (Steven Yeun) has a dream of starting his own farm and immediately sets out cultivating the land, while his wife (Yeri Han) and two young children navigate their new surroundings. Into this uneasy mix lands Grandma Soonja (Oscar winner Yuh-Jung Youn) and her quirky home medicines. It's hard to pinpoint exact...