JohnLamberio Reviews

Prey (I) (2022)

Finally, the best predator since the original.

[8/10 · 5 August 2022]

Full disclosure, massive fan of the predator and its lore. But even so, I was disappointed with most of the films since Predator 2.

However, Prey is a fantastic return to form for the franchise, and surprisingly too.

The production os of good standard with a great score and some decent cgi.

The acting feels realistic and very believable. Female lead actor might put some off as woke, but it really actually works. The structure too, is classic predator. Great popcorn flick and my heart weeps with joy to finally have someone make a decent predator film.

Kudos to the director, the writers, the score makers, artists, and cast. Well played!

Couple in a Hole (2015)

One for the Terrence Malick fans out there.

[7/10 · 12 April 2016]

A tragic story set in the French/Swiss Alps, about a distressed couple seeking refuge from grief. They "hole" up in the forest and avoid contact with the outside world, attempting to overcome their pain and mourn in solitude. Survival is about foraging and hunting, living off the land.

The acting from Kate Dickie and Paul Higgins as the couple is top notch, showing real emotive zeal without the pretentious overacting some actors often portray. It is thoroughly believable, in spite of the gorgeously shot film itself.

There are some of life's harder questions like how do partners deal with loss? Couples can't always manage equally, despite the equal loss. And this film magnifies the question right up until it's ending. It's not uplifting, but it's all the better for its melancholy. By which time you'll likely agree, that this a gorgeously shot film. The utilisation of the environment is spot on, and the landscapes give you a great sense of solitude, reflection and slower pace...which is likely what the director was after.

7/10 for me with high marks for the direction, shooting and acting.

11.22.63 (2016)

Superb show, intriguing and beguiling with massive potential.

[9/10 · 3 March 2016]

I've rarely left reviews for TV shows, but this has me hooked with it's premise. The ability to change history, for the better. But each time you go back, history resets itself to the original timeline. And regardless of how long you stay in the past, when you come back...only 2 minutes will have passed in the present! Saving John F. Kennedy is the primary motive for "Mr Amberson" (Played impeccably by Franco). Yet will it result in a better world should he succeed? Massive questions and plenty of unpredictability. Franco is beset by a number of moral dilemma's, trying to make sense of doing a bad acts which will benefit the greater good. But the moment he comes close to changing the future, time itself pushes back in emphatic fashion.

Stephen King's fingerprints are all over this, a good thing. The usual King cliché's of it being set in Maine, centred around a divorcée/loner/Average Joe and some rather humorous dialogue apply, but only for a while as there is an underlying sense of unknown that draws the viewer in.

My fear with this series is that it will only be a 1 season run, because the amount of narrative, plot and sheer depth of potential needs to be exploited fully over a number of seasons. But from the early going, 9.5/10.

Metro Manila (2013)

Harsh, unforgiving masterpiece.

[9/10 · 2 April 2015]

I headed into this film with a glowing recommendation off a mate of mine. And it really delivers as story told where the viewer feels the crushingly powerless plight of the family, specifically the Husband. It also has a wider value in the commentary of urbanization of the modern world and the subsistence farmers being forced into leaving their livelihoods and traditions behind. It could double as a documentary!

It begins with the rice farming family not being able to make ends meet with their harvest for the season. They are forced to leave their home and find a means of feeding their children due to substantially lower prices being paid for their crop.

Upon arriving in Manila, a world away from their accustomed lifestyle, they are fish out of water. The hustle and bustle of city life makes any progress hard for them. Even when it seems progress is being made, corruption and greed stifle it.

Both the husband and wife find ways of making money, although the husband is not fond of the wifes choice...he understands from the desperation that no job is too immoral.

The films takes a couple of turns until its absolutely grandiose finale. And what an extraordinary end it has. I'm a heart of steel kinda guy, but this? This had me teary eyed and fully empathizing with the characters...

Brilliantly done, and I highly recommend it. 9/10

From the Dark (2014)

Decent, if flawed Horror.

[6/10 · 2 April 2015]

My hopes were not particularly high for this, yet I came away suitably impressed by the acting, production and pace of the film. There are flaws, but mostly forgivable ones.

The opening sequence is fantastic, very original and keeps the audience suspended and guessing in a tense eerie atmosphere. Gradually things go south with the introduction of the couple being stranded on the road deep in god-knows-where.

Without spoiling to much, the "evil" that lurks is viciously affected by light of any sort. Be that a mobile phone, a torch, a candle or even a match. Throughout the tense stand offs(there are many), why did it not cross the scriptwriters mind to set the buildings ablaze? More light, and no messing about with flimsy matches(of course, they run out of them too) the blazing house will provide enough light until Dawn.

This was the only pretty much unforgivable hole in the story. But you just can't ignore it.

So while I enjoyed the film, it would have scored higher if something a tad more thought out was served. The acting is top notch though, you are never in any doubt as to the actor's peril. So go forth IMDb'ers, enjoy a decent film, forgive it it's idiosyncrasies and you will be rewarded.

Lost Time (2014)

Aptly titled, and not for good either.

[1/10 · 20 September 2014]

There are some films I can forgive for having a small budget. Excuses the iffy make up, lighting and other foibles. This however is not one of those.

Some laughable attempts at arty slow burning shots that are shot down to pieces with the cheesiest music that has ever passed my ears. Naff dialogue, and a lamentably shocking storyline amplify the bad factor exponentially. I can tell you, root canal treatment is marginally less uncomfortable than sitting through this rubbish.

I have asked myself several times WHY? Why did anyone bother to make this film? So heed this warning carefully, do not watch this film as it so bad it will leave you with ectoplasm for brains.

Starred Up (2013)

A window into the reality that is British society.

[9/10 · 22 July 2014]

Firstly, this is not an uplifting or feel good film, nor was it ever intended to be. If you like your film gritty and pulsatingly realistic, you'd be going back years to find a film that stands up to this.

From the outset, it is clear our young protagonist is fighting not just for survival within a hardened prison wing, but also demons that reside within. Hope is offered in the shape of a freelancing counsellor, which is initially met with disdain during a group meeting. The film then continues to show(graphically), the complex arrangements within the prison walls, and how relationships can often start badly, but develop into a more meaningful co-existence ad friendship because of it.

The usual bad prison warden is on offer too, but is done so delectably well. The anger the viewer feels at certain points in this film is palpable from the sheer heartlessness of the authorities. Prisoner's are not viewed with any great sense of humanity, dependant on stature within the the Prison of course. The unfairness of it all had me wanting to wring the neck of certain characters, all due to the powerlessness of the our protagonists position.

Does the young charger hold back? Never. Like a bull ramming it's horns against an immovable wall, he keeps the pressure on inmates and authorities alike. It's a ferocious watch, and superbly realised by Jack O'Connell playing Eric, a star in the making for certain.

Terrific acting, superb directing, eye-watering set pieces and an emotive experience of life on the inside. Simply does not get better. 10/10