Review: Playing upon the superstitious nature of sailors, ‘SEA FEVER’ pits science against unfounded fear and pride. 

SYNOPSIS: Siobhán’s a marine biology student who prefers spending her days alone in a lab. She has to endure a week on a ragged fishing trawler, where she’s miserably at odds with the close-knit crew. But out in the deep Atlantic, an unfathomable life form ensnares the boat. When members of the crew succumb to a strange infection, Siobhán must overcome her alienation and anxiety to win the crew’s trust, before everyone is lost.

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Imagine if your line breaks while fishing causing you to lose the fish. Professional anglers who depend on their income from tournaments pay careful attention to their fishing line. Most of them change their lines every day just to make sure they land a fish that could give thousands of dollars at the end of the tournament.

First you need to determine what type of fish you will be trying to catch. It is easier for you to land a fish if you know this beforehand. Catching different types of fish depend on the weight capacity and type of line you will be using. Every time your line is under heavy pressure it usually generates a lot of heat due to friction. Opt for a line that is able to stand extreme heat. Every line product comes with a “max pound test”. It is the weight the line can tolerate before breaking. Therefore, when you do deep water fishing using a 10 lb. line, chances are it will break as most deep water fish are more than 10 pounds. Additionally, the line has to endure the shock factor, which is when the fish makes a solid pull in order to get away.

The open ocean intimidates the hell out of me since my biggest fear is drowning. Am I afraid of walking under ladders and breaking mirrors? Guilty. Have I grown up to believe in fairy tales and old wives’ tales? Absolutely. Does my very own sister work in the maritime industry? You’re catching on here. Sea Fever exists to torment me.

Hermione Corfield plays Siobhán, a Ph.D. student placed on a fishing boat for her studies. What she lacks in interpersonal skills, she makes up for in brains and intuition. Battling the folklore of the sailors on board, she is faced with a creature of unknown origins that has an agenda of its own. The cast has instant chemistry and the setting of a confined and creaking ship makes for a skin-crawling experience on its own. Adding a “sea monster” element and all that comes with it makes for both a tragic and truly terrifying viewing experience. You will live in the claustrophobia of the scenario. The sound editing and cinematography combined with a cast doing complete justice to writer/director Neasa Hardiman‘s script is the perfect storm for scary.

Gunpowder & Sky, via their sci-fi label DUST, will release SEA FEVER  on Digital April 10, 2020. 

SEA FEVER stars Hermione Corfield (Star Wars: The Last JediMission Impossible: Rogue Nation), Connie Nielsen (Wonder Woman 1984, Gladiator), and Dougray Scott (Batwoman, Mission Impossible 2), and is the feature debut from BAFTA-winning director/writer Neasa Hardiman (Happy Valley, Jessica Jones).

Review: ‘Stratton’… Your Typical Mindless Action Movie

Stratton

Theatrial Release: January 5, 2018

Available On Demand & Digital HD: January 5, 2018

Guest review from Reel Reviews Over Brews

Stratton (based on the novel series of the ​same name), a Special Boat Service operative for MI6, and his American counterpart Marty, scope a laboratory complex in Iran in order to intercept deadly biochemical weapons. This most complex of missions goes spectacularly wrong however and in the mayhem Marty (Tyler Hoechlin) is mortally wounded. Stratton (Dominic Cooper) knows his trusted friend isn’t going to make it. Back at base Stratton is summoned by the big boss at MI6 (Connie Nielsen). She has received intel that a former Soviet operative, Barovski (Thomas Kretschmann), has gone rogue. Thought to be dead for the last 20 years, it is believed Barovski has plans to take revenge on his former paymasters by using stolen chemical weapons. From hereon in, Stratton and his team (Austin Stowell, Gemma Chan, Jake Fairbrother, & Tom Felton) must draw on all their training and experience to race against time and stop the unimaginable happening.

Stratton is your typical mindless action movie. Reminded us of a lower budget James Bond or Jason Bourne. We found ourselves getting caught up in the plot (at the time), but in a few days we’re sure it will blend into every other movie that’s similar and we’ll forget exactly what the plot was. It was nice seeing Malfoy (Tom Felton) in another movie, that isn’t Harry Potter, but it did lead us to make assumptions about his character in Stratton (and we weren’t too far off). Also in reference to the acting, Gemma Chan… give her more scenes! That certainly wouldn’t have disappointed us if she was more involved.

We’d recommend waiting for Stratton to hit Netflix or a free movie channel as opposed to paying to see it in theaters or renting through On Demand, but we do suggest giving it a watch. And to be honest, we wouldn’t be opposed to seeing a sequel.

Reel ROB Rating: 2.75 out of 5 stars

Post Credits Scene: No

We want to thank our friends at Reel News Daily for allowing us to do this guest review!

Review: ‘Justice League’

Hot off the wildly successful Wonder Woman solo film, Warner Brothers has released their first DC team-up film, Justice League, bringing together the biggest names in the comic giants universe. A once slam dunk project has been plagued with bad press, a sad and unexpected tragedy that forced Zack Snyder to leave the directors chair and lukewarm fan expectation that have stunted the excitement surrounding the film and has left the finished product in a tailspin. Does Justice League have enough to win over audiences and prove once and for all that the DC Cinematic Universe is back on track?

Following the events of Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, our heroes are learning to exist in a post-Superman world. Crime and uncertainty have swept over the world like a tidal wave and Bruce Wayne/Batman (Ben Affleck) is looking towards the coming storm. Fearing something bigger is upon us, Wayne looks to put together a team of extraordinary superheros to defend the Earth from the unknown. Already having fought besides Diana Prince/Wonder Woman (Gal Gadot) before, the two recruit Barry Allen/The Flash (Ezra Miller), Arthur Curry/Aquaman (Jason Momoa) and Victor Stone/Cyborg (Ray Fisher) to defend the three ancient mother boxes from falling into the hands of Steppenwolf (Ciaran Hinds) who intends to use them to destroy the Earth.

Justice League, on the surface, is a fun film with some enjoyable moments, but beneath the surface lies a total mess with a lot of flaws, amateur editing and a convoluted story that is painful to watch. Let’s first tackle what the film got right. Wonder Woman continues to be a bright spot for the DCCU. Gal Gadot is absolute perfection as the Amazon warrior, portraying the character with strength and charm, and providing the leadership this team so desperately needs. Jason Momoa was not my first choice for Aquaman, but after seeing him in this film, I have a better sense of the overall direction they are taking the character. Momoa‘s Aquaman is morally conflicted, but in tune with the sheer power of his legacy and the child-like nature of his personality which makes for amusing screen time. Henry Cavill continues to shine as Superman. Cavill understands the character and what it takes to don the tights and it’s nice to have him anchoring this franchise, along with Gadot, to hopefully help right this ship in future films.

And now, the bad. Ben Affleck’s Batman takes a huge step back in this film. While they try and lighten up the caped crusaders persona a bit, the entire transformation appears unnatural and painful for Affleck, who appears more awkward around his new super friends. Ezra Miller‘s take on Barry Allen falls short of expectations. The beloved character is relegated to comic relief in the film with the filmmakers electing for an immaturity angle which becomes tiresome not long after the bit begins. Warner Brothers election to rush this film to market instead of completing the origin films of each character beforehand, limits the amount of time the filmmakers can spend on setting up the characters in the film. With a short run time, horrific editing and a sub-par script, Zack Snyder and Joss Whedon (who reshot and rewrote some of the film in Snyder’s absense) left the audience handcuffed to just “buy in” to their explanations of the “why’s” and roll with the finished product. Lastly, the inclusion of Steppenwolf as the films protagonist made sense for his link to what we hope will be the inclusion of Darkseid in the sequel, but the election of a full CG portrayal was a horrendous decision. The character has some qualities that could have transitioned to the big screen, but all of that was lost from scene one when we were introduced to an amateur CG depiction that looked like cutting floor fodder from Warcraft.

Overall, Justice League misses the mark in a big way. We can only hope that Geoff Johns can take creative control over all of the DCCU and give back to fans the films that they rightfully deserve.

Stars:

2 1/2 out of 5

After Credit Scene?

Yes. One mid-credit and one post credit

Trailer:

Review: ‘Wonder Woman’

With the DC cinematic universe hanging in the balance, Warner Bros. put their faith in director Patty Jenkins and actress Gal Gadot to bring the long overdue first Wonder Woman movie to the big screen and deliver they did. The film is exciting, humorous, beautifully filmed and one of the best superhero films so far. If we’ve learned nothing else, we know now to never send a man to do a woman’s job.

The film opens with a young Diana learning the ways of the Amazonians. Raised by her mother, Hippolyta, Queen of Themyscira (Connie Nielson), Diana has been sheltered from the warrior ways of her people. Her Aunt Antiope (Robin Wright) is the finest general in the Amazonian army and determined to teach Diana to defend herself against her sister’s wishes. A reluctant Hippolyta agrees to Diana’s training as long as she is trained harder and more vigorously than any Amazonian before her. Now grown, Diana (Gal Gadot) begins to learn the challenges of her position and comes to understand that there is a power in her greater than she’s ever known.

A plane is shot down and crashes off the coast of Themyscira and pilot Steve Trevor (Chris Pine) finds himself rescued by Diana and faced with the explaining his uninvited entrance.  A German warship captained by general Ludendorff (Danny Huston) has followed Trevor’s downed plane to find Themyscira and the Amazonians, setting their sights on annihilation of the foreign foe. Driven back for the time being, Trevor must confide in Diana and the Amazonians as to why he is there and to the severity of his mission. Knowing she cannot sit by while a world she knows nothing about is destroyed, Diana sets off with Steve Trevor to enter the war and stand up for those who cannot help themselves.

And the film’s just getting started! What follows can easily be taken as a spoiler to some so we’ll stop the summary right there. Director Patty Jenkins has created a wonderfully empowering film for women everywhere, a rarity in Hollywood, and one that should and will be celebrated. Gal Gadot is the perfect embodiment of Diana Prince and a true treasure to behold. Gadot’s portrayal is a strong symbol of the importance of Wonder Woman in pop culture and the feminist movement and young children to look up to. Chris Pine is marvelous with his witty humor and his tried and true valor. Pine compliments Gadot’s performance perfectly and never overshadows.

Overall, Wonder Woman is a near perfect superhero film and a bright shining light in the dismal DC cinematic universe so far. A film that hearkens back to the spirit of Capatin America: The First Avenger while never feeling or trying to be a retread. Wonder Woman is a true gem.

Stars:

4 out of 5

After Credit Scene?

None

Trailer: