Pop Culture Guy episode 38: 5 Minute Reviews

For my 38th episode of my YouTube video web series, Pop Culture Guy, I did a series of quick reviews of a number of films I hadn't reviewed yet. I was inspired to do it in this style by the Fine Bros early videos, wherein they would tell the ending of certain films, television shows, or even YouTube videos in under a certain amount of time. Some I go into a lot of detail and others not a lot, and not sure if I will ever do it again.

'Spider-Man: Homecoming'

The first solo Spider-Man film set in the MCU and a collaboration between Marvel and Sony. Tom Holland captures Peter Parker's youth and inexperience that Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield didn't really do as well but they still had great performances. The writing is great at capturing both a superhero story and a John Hughes-esque coming of age comedy.

'War for the Planet of the Apes'

Follow up to Rise and Dawn, the third entry of the 'Planet of the Apes' reboot trilogy is dark, powerful, and perfectly grim. Andy Serkis proves you can do an amazing performance with motion capture.

'Dunkirk'

Christopher Nolan's war epic depicts the struggles associated with the Dunkirk evacuation during World War Two. It's told in three different timelines all leading to the end of the film where they intersect. There's no main character and that's what makes it work so as you can feel for everyone involved.

'It'

Based on the Stephen King novel that was previously adapted into a 1990 miniseries. Bill Skarsgard makes for a terrifying Pennywise and the child cast all have amazing chemistry. The film has a perfect blend of horror and fun and isn't afraid to show some really gruesome material.

'Kingsman: The Golden Circle'

Sequel to the original Kingsman involving the British spies seeking help from their American counterparts. Julianne Moore plays a fun and over-the-top villain, with the rest of the cast having great performances. While action scenes are fun too many of them occur one after another and the camera becomes too frenetic.

'Blade Runner 2049'

Denis Villeneuve directs the long awaited sequel to the original 1982 classic. Ridley Scott returns as producer with Harrison Ford reprising his role and Ryan Gosling introduced as a new protagonist. The story is told really beautifully and Roger Deakins once again proves what a great cinematographer he is. There are a lot of great slow moments, though a lot of times can feel padding.

'The Foreigner'

Jackie Chan and Pierce Brosnan star in this action thriller about a former Chinese special forces agent whose daughter was killed by IRA terrorists and goes on a revenge spree to avenge her. This is different from many of Chan and Brosnan's previous films as Chan delves more into drama while Brosnan is more of a antagonist. While it is a very usual action story, the whole point is how powerful and believable Chan's performance is.

'Professor Marston and the Wonder Women'

Connecting with Wonder Woman the same year, this biographical drama looks at the eccentric life of William Moulton Marston, the creator of the first lie detector and the man who came up with Wonder Woman. While it does take liberties with the actual history of his life living with his wife and mistress, it at least tells it really well.