Tag: Last Breath

2025 Film Awards: Day Two

On By troubledproductionsIn AwardsLeave a comment

Best Performance

Nominees

A Real Pain – Kieran Culkin

Truth is, everybody in this movie is superb, and it was incredibly difficult to choose between the two leads. Culkin JUST edges it. Eisenberg nearly clinched it with the scene in the restaurant, and if he had been given more chances, he would have won it. But Culkin’s consistency wins out. Throughout the entire runtime, he is a ball of depressed confidence. Someone who seems confident but is racked with self-doubt and who you can easily imagine committing suicide the second he leaves a room after telling a joke.

Bring Her Back – Sally Hawkins

Anybody who watched The Shape of Water knows how good Sally Hawkins is. But anybody who watched Godzilla: King of Monsters knows that she is sometimes wasted. That’s not the case here. I was not a fan of this movie, but even I could see how magnetic her performance was. Her face is so expressive that it’s essentially an emoji.

Companion – Sophie Thatcher

Androids/aliens that present as humans are always weird things for actors to play. They need to be human enough that people would believe them as human at first view, but have a weird otherness to them that you can buy that they’re not human. So when someone does it as well as Sophie Thatcher does, I believe that has to be commended.

Last Breath – Woody Harrelson

I’ve liked Woody in a lot of stuff I’ve seen: Money Train, Cheers, Zombieland, etc. But I’ve never seen one of his performances and thought “now THAT’S an actor”. Not that he’s ever been bad, but he’s never really been the most impressive performer. Which is why Last Breath surprised me so much. This was one hell of a performance. He plays the usual Woody character, but when shit gets serious, he impresses. He gives one hell of a performance, showing SO much emotion. It’s truly impressive, and I don’t know where he pulled it from, but I want to see more.

Mickey 17 – Robert Pattinson

He plays multiple versions of the character, but it’s the two that lead the film where he earns his acclaim. You can see a still image of him playing both characters, and know which one is which due to his body language. Both of them are so profoundly different that it really allows Pattinson to show what he can do.

Winners

Sinners – Michael B. Jordan

Anybody who watched the Creed movies knows just how good he is. But I believe Sinners is the movie where it becomes undeniable. His dual role shows just how good he is. Similar to the Pattinson example: you can see a still image and know which one he is due to body language. In 2019, I adjusted the way I list awards; instead of having “best actress” and “best actor”, I’ve had “best performer”. Here are the winners since then:

Cailee Spaeny (Civil War/Alien: Romulus)
Stephanie Hsu (Everything, Everywhere, All At Once)
Lily Gladstone (Killers Of A Flower Moon)
Julia Sarah Stone (Come True)
Elisabeth Moss (The Invisible Man)
Lupita Nyong’o (Us).

A wide variety of performers and performances, but they all share one thing in common: they’re all women. Officially, Michael B. Jordan is the first person to win a gender neutral acting award on this website. Is it as big a boost to his career as an Academy Award nomination? Only time will tell. (spoilers; it will definitely not)

Best Character

Nominees

A Real Pain – Benji

Again, it was difficult to choose between the two leads. It could genuinely be any of them. In the end, I went with Benji because of the inner conflict going on. He’s just slightly more interesting. It’s also possible that I related to them a bit more; he’s funny, charming, and people like him, but underneath, he’s a complete mess who’s barely holding it together. If you remove the parts about being funny, charming, and liked, then he’s exactly like me.

Captain America: Brave New World – Isaiah Bradley

I’m uncertain about placing this here because he was a character in a TV show first, but I haven’t seen that show, so my opinion is based entirely on his characterisation in Brave New World. It’s always fascinating when series like the MCU hint at a wider world, and Isaiah is a great example of that: a superhero who has been discarded and mistreated by his own government.

Companion – Iris

It’s impossible NOT to root for Iris. A feminist icon for the AI generation. It all feels genuine and unforced. Compare this to the way that Endgame did the “girl power” moment that felt deliberate and shoehorned. Iris is a fantastic character; strong, independent, smart (after the adjustment), and importantly, she wins. She is sexualised by the characters, who refer to her as a sexbot, but she’s NOT sexualised by the film itself; the character isn’t made to bend over suggestively for the camera under the guise of “well, she’s a sexbot, she would do that”. The film treats her with respect, and that’s depressingly refreshing.

Love Hurts – Marvin Gable

Sometimes it’s good to see somebody who is just nice. No cynicism, no evil, just kind. Okay, he was a ruthless assassin, but the film does SUCH a poor job of showing us that, so his evil side never really comes through. Marvin is not on the level of Paddington, but it’s the closest of the year.

Novocaine – Novocaine

This character could have been terrible. “He can’t feel pain” could have just been dumb, and met with lots of people being like “it would be so cool to have that, I’m jealous”. Novocaine really stresses how horrible that condition actually is. It doesn’t make you a badass superhero; it makes you unable to know when you need to pee, it makes it so you can’t eat solid food because if you bite through your tongue, you wouldn’t notice, it makes it so you won’t know if you step on a nail until your shoe fills with blood. It’s a very mature take in a movie that didn’t need to be as mature as it was.

Opus – Alfred Moretti

Opus has a lot going for it, and while it isn’t great, it would be a lot worse if Moretti weren’t believable. The audience needs to forget that he’s John Malkovich and believe he’s a larger-than-life musician. He’s written so well that that’s easier to do. It’s not just him, it’s the way the other characters respond to him. He’s built up to be a huge deal, but not in an obvious “characters talk about him” way. We’re not just TOLD he’s a big deal, we’re shown he’s a big deal. It also helps that the songs are great.

Winner

Superman – Superman

In a world where not being a dick is seen as “woke”, kindndess is punk as fuck. I will admit, for a lot of my life (especially when I was an angsty dickbag), I didn’t “get” Superman. But films like this demonstrate why he is as beloved as he is; he is good. Not heroic, good. Someone who is driven not by his strength and powers, but by his inherent desire to do good.

Worst Character

Black Phone 2 – The Grabber

This is entirely down to how they change him between the films. In the first one, he was a serial killer, but still human. In this, he’s basically Freddy Krueger. I like Saw, I like A Nightmare On Elm Street, but if A Nightmare On Elm Street were a Saw sequel, it would make me like both a lot less. Normally, horror movies wait until the 5th movie before they get supernatural and stupid.

Happy Gilmore 2 – Happy Gilmore

I liked Happy Gilmore when I was a teenager. But despite what my level of maturity tells me, that was a long time ago. I’ve matured (kind of), grown up, Happy hasn’t. He’s still the same character he was at the end of the previous film. Yes, he now has kids and a dead wife. But personality-wise? He’s still the same. That kind of shtick works when you’re in your 20’s, as someone of his age, it’s just kind of pitiful, like when you see a man in his 30s drinking in a park.

One Of Them Days – King Lolo

When you watch the original Friday (which is the closest comparison anybody can make to this movie, Deebo looms heavily over everything. Even when he’s not onscreen, you are aware that he can come in at any time and fuck everyone up. You never really feel that with King Lolo here. For most of the runtime, he’s forgotten.

Urchin – Mike

It’s not fun or interesting to watch someone repeat the same mistakes and not learn anything.

Y2K – Eli

He’s an entitled incel-in-training,

Winner

Kinda Pregnant – Lainey

Maybe this film would be better if the lead character were likeable. The trouble is, her logic is so stupid, her motivation is so insincere, and her actions are so ridiculous, that it’s hard to root for her to win. You don’t necessarily want her to lose or suffer harm, but you’re not really made happy by seeing her in moments of joy. It’s a shame as there are fleeting moments where her character does work, the initial meeting with Josh is very sweet and cute, but that sweetness doesn’t make it to the rest of the film.

2025 In Film: Day 10 (The Amazeballs)

On By troubledproductionsIn Year round upLeave a comment

A Real Pain
Ups: Emotional. This film will hit you harder than Mike Tyson, and with less mercy.
Excellent use of time. It somehow packs so much into a short runtime.
It’s nice to see Jennifer Grey again. She’s one of the most underrated performers of all time.
Downs: Visually, it could be a little more interesting.
There are fleeting times when the lead characters seem kind of dicks.
Best Performer: Kieran Culkin. Eisenberg is up there, but Culkin JUST about edges it.
Best Moment: Okay this is difficult. There are at least 4 choices. I suppose I have to go with the group posing for pictures with a statue. It shows everything that works. The character interactions, the warmth, and the sadness. You can show that scene and instantly know the characters.
Worst Moment: The ending. The rest is brilliant, and the actual closing shot is good, but it does seem to lose momentum in the final few minutes.
Opening: David leaving A LOT of voicemail messages. A good way to show his character.
Closing: Back at the airport.
Best Line: We’re on a fuckin Holocaust tour. If now isn’t the time and place to grieve, to open up, then I don’t know what to tell you, man
Original review here

Eternity
Ups: The chemistry between the performers.
Will make you feel things.
Unique.
Shows the difference between young/carefree and lifelong love.
Will inspire discussion and self-introspection.
Downs: Won’t appeal to everyone.
Tries to have every possible ending.
Surely this isn’t the first time it’s happened?
Best Performer: Da’Vine Joy Randolph. Everyone else is great as part of an ensemble; she’s great on her own.
Best Moment: The first trip into the archives. Very sweet.
Worst Moment: The fake Dean Martin. It’s very funny, but it stretches credulity that Anna wouldn’t tell Larry that it was an impersonator.
Opening: Larry and Joan are driving to a party, arguing, but in a way it’s clear that there’s no malice behind it. Larry then dies.
Closing: Joan and one of her husbands decide on their Eternity. Very sweet.
Best Line: Love isn’t just one happy moment, right? It’s a million. And it’s bickering in the car, and supporting someone when they need it, and it’s growing together, and looking after each other.
Original review here

Fackham Hall
Ups: Utterly ridiculous.
Perfect casting.
Some truly classic jokes.
Downs: Some of the jokes are made by the characters long after the audience has made them.
The plot isn’t that great.
The detective subplot feels wasted.
Some people may expect it to be a bit more mature/offensive.
Best Performer: Katherine Waterston.
Best Moment: “Watt’s his name”? Yes, it’s an old routine, but it’s classic.
Worst Moment: The section where he’s arrested feels like it could have more jokes.
Opening: Showing the family. Sets up the jokes incredibly quickly.
Closing: “What happened next”, every joke a winner.
Best Line: “I’m here regarding the murder of Lord Davenport”
“I’m afraid you’re too late; it’s already been done”
Original review here

Last Breath
Ups: Tense AF
Anchored (lol) by great performances.
Barely any time wasted.
Emotional
It’s nice to see people who are good at their job.
Downs: Could occasionally a better job of explaining to the average audience member why certain things are done the way they are.
Needed better advertising.
Best Performer: Woody.
Best Moment: When the umbilical cord is disconnected. Caused genuine gasps in the cinema I was at.
Worst Moment: The computer being reconnected. Isn’t explained enough.
Opening: Drone footage of an unconscious diver convulsing on the sea floor. Along with text saying how dangerous the work is. Almost like a horror movie.
Closing: Footage of the main characters wedding in real life.
Best Line: Back in the day, though, you know, when I was starting out, you only needed two things: little common sense and a good bottle of Scotch.
Original review here

Sinners
Ups: A completely transcendent experience.
Phenomenal music.
Some great performances.
Unique.
Downs: Takes a bit too long to get to the point.
The post-credits point is too important to the plot
Best Performer: Miles Caton.
Best Moment: Come on, really? It’s when Sammie plays in the bar and we see it conjuring spirits of the past and future. It’s a good thing nobody was close to me at the cinema, otherwise they would have heard me say “That? That’s fucking cinema”.
Worst Moment: Some of the deaths in the bar aren’t that clear, visually.
Opening: Sammie drives to his fathers church and stumbles in, bloody and beaten, clutching a broken guitar.
Closing: It’s the 90’s; Sammie performs at a club. Great that Coogler managed to get Buddy Guy in. Kind of weird that ALL of this happens during/after the credits as it feels very important to the plot.
Best Line: white folks, they like the blues just fine. They just don’t like the people who make it.
Original review here

The Naked Gun
Ups: Hilarious.
Damn near perfect casting.
Pays tribute to the original, but not too much that it overshadows the narrative.
Downs: Misses some joke opportunities.
Few too many pop culture references.
Not as quick as the originals.
Best Performer: Liam Neeson.
Best Moment: The cavalcade of “did you get that?” scenes. Utterly stupid but brilliant.
Worst Moment: The snowman scene. It’s very good, but it goes on too long.
Opening: The bank scene from the trailer. Then (and this is the most offensive part), they DON’T do the cars POV for opening credits.
Closing: Freeze frame shenanigans!
Best Line: Like an idiot’s completed jigsaw puzzle, I was being framed.
Original review here

The Roses
Ups: Incredibly funny.
Good chemistry.
Has much more heart than you’d think
“FFS, communicate” is an important message.
Far too relatable.
Downs: A few moments that don’t go anywhere.
Sometimes it feels like characters improv too much.
Best Performer: Olivia Colman.
Best Moment: The final scene. Caused an audible reaction from everyone.
Worst Moment: The almost murders near the end. Seems too far. The marriage counselling scenes also don’t seem to go anywhere.
Opening: The two are at marriage counselling. Allows a perfectly natural “how we met” flashback.
Closing: The two reconcile. Awwwww. Then almost certainly die in a house explosion that we don’t see.
Best Line: If you need a shoulder or an inner thigh to lean on…
Original review here

Last Breath (2025) Review

On By troubledproductionsIn ReviewLeave a comment

Quick Synopsis: The true story of Chris Lemons, a deep-sea diver stranded at the bottom of the sea with no oxygen.

There are some films which challenge every notion you have; films which are so complex and fascinating that it feels like you need to make notes during it just to follow. Those are fine, and it can be very interesting to see those complicated plots reveal themselves in front of you. Then there are films like Last Breath, films are so ridiculously simple you have to wonder how they can make it into a feature (similar films include Fall, Buried, and a third one I can’t be bothered to think of because I’m sleepy). Sometimes those films fail because they can’t maintain such a simple story (as in the case of Night Swim), but when they work? They’re superb.

Last Breath is a simple film, but it’s a great one. What it lacks in clever plotting or twists, it makes up for in tension. From the moment the breathing tube breaks, right to the final credits, you will be on the edge of your seat. It’s pacey, getting to the main plot very quickly, but not so quickly that it feels rushed. Crucially, you’re given enough of a reason to actually care about the characters. This is essential, especially since one of the characters (played brilliantly by Finn Cole) spends most of the film runtime unconscious on the ocean floor, so you can’t really get much character development done for him (unless you utilise flashbacks, which will break up the tension too much). So a lot of the introduction is spent on him, giving us a reason to care about him. The rest is logically spent on the other characters, all of whom are likeable, realistic, and (crucially), competent. The disaster isn’t caused by mistakes, stupidity, or carelessness. It just happened. In some ways that’s good, because it would be weird if incompetent characters were in charge of important things like that, it would be like having someone high up in government who adds journalists to online message groups where they discuss war, it would just be unrealistic and make them seem stupid. On the other hand; it makes it more terrifying. The idea that no matter how well prepared you are, no matter how many precautions you take, you can still die alone at the bottom of the sea just because of bad luck?

Make no mistake—everyone in this is DEEPLY competent, to the point where the competence is entertaining in itself. There’s something to be said about watching a group of people being VERY good at their job, it’s sort of like the opposite of watching BBC Parliament. Even decisions which in lesser films would make someone the villain (such as when a character decides not to drop anchor so they can stay near the abandoned diver), are displayed in a way that you know the character making that decision is uneasy about it, only doing so because they fear dropping the anchor will sever a pipeline.

If I’m being critical, Last Breath could do a slightly better job of showing WHY they’re doing certain stuff. You can pick up on a lot of it due to context clues or previous knowledge of diving safety equipment. But there are still some moments where the audience is seeing stuff happen, but aren’t told what the purpose of it is. It’s a minor criticism because I’m not sure HOW they could have done it without some ham-fisted dialogue. The ending also suffers from being nowhere near as interesting as what comes before it. Last Breath knows how to keep you interested during the dive, but it’s not quite as good at making the post-dive moments feel like anything other than a needless coda.

Those are minor criticisms though. Last Breath is genuinely one of the best films I’ve seen this year. The performances are great (Woody in particular has never been better), the visuals are striking in how sparse they are undersea, and the soundtrack is majestic without ever overshadowing the visuals. I’ve liked some films more than this, but Last Breath is the best movie I’ve seen with wide mainstream appeal.