The Baby is one of those series I had on my BingeList (conveniently on Binge, in Australia) saw the other day and thought, today is the day to take on The Baby.
It's a genre bending, British horror comedy limited series. Landing on HBO on 24 April 2022, the series consists of just eight, short episodes.
When 38-year-old Natasha is unexpectedly landed with a baby, her life of doing what she wants, when she wants, dramatically implodes. Controlling, manipulative and with violent powers, the baby twists Natasha's life into a horror show. Where does it come from? What does it want? And what lengths will Natasha have to go to in order to get her life back? She doesn't want a baby. The baby wants her.
Rotten Tomatoes reportedly gives The Baby an 82% approval rating. I also approve, take a look below.
With the world needing more 20-30 minute horror/comedies (think Shining Vale, also on Binge) this was a super easy watch. Sitting down from Saturday night to Wednesday night just smashing through this in-between all my other shows. The Baby could be the easiest watch of winter, 2022.
I am not a huge British TV watcher, so to dive straight into this HBO/Sky Studios co-production, I was surprised how easily this was to consume.
With enough comedy mixed in with the horror (even a little gore), this evil baby really keeps you hooked in till the very last scene.
One flashback episode was a little dry, however the eight episodes, the plot all moved along at a steady ass pace.
Totally give this one a go, it's different, it's nice, it's very unusual.
Elvis is a long ass film, but that is nothing new for Baz Luhrmann.
Austin Butler as Elvis Presley alongside Tom Hanks as his manager Colonel Tom Parker, with Olivia DeJonge, Helen Thomson, Richard Roxburgh, Kelvin Harrison Jr., Xavier Samuel, David Wenham, Kodi Smit-McPhee & Luke Bracey in supporting roles.
Filming began in Australia in January 2020, but paused from March through September following the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Filming wrapped over a year after it began, in March 2021.
Elvis premiered at the Cannes Film Festival on May 25, 2022, then was released on June 23, 2022.
The film received generally positive reviews from critics, with the musical sequences and Butler's performance garnering widespread acclaim.
Alongside Elvis hits, it was announced that Doja Cat would contribute an original song for the film, Vegas which incorporates elements from Big Mama Thornton's Hound Dog.
The soundtrack also features variations on Presley material by Måneskin, Kacey Musgraves, Eminem and CeeLo Green on a new track titled The King and I which will be produced by Dr. Dre. With Stevie Nicks, Jack White, Diplo, Swae Lee, PNAU and Austin Butler's renditions of Presley's songs, as well as actual recordings by Presley himself.
The first half of the film was amazing, visually spectacular with some incredible musical sequences. The second half through dragged a little as the film does clock in at almost 160 minutes!
You don't need to be a music fan to love Elvis. You do need to appreciate music, the lengths artists go to, to showcase their artistry. It's a hard watch at times with Colonel Tom Parker clearly only caring about himself.
Elvis didn't have a great life, his struggle with pills, being stuck in Las Vegas along with a clear bad diet by the end. At 42 Elvis had appeared on TV, film, while making songs still popular on various radio stations right now.
The soundtrack is a good listen to with Doja Cat's tune Vegas growing on me by the day. Is there anything Doja can't do? I am completely obsessed with her!
Anyway is Elvis worth using your last Dine or Discover voucher? Yes!
I enjoyed it, it is long, however it's the Luhrmann way. 3.5 Stars.
From Friday, the latest feature albums, some music videos, some odd posts will be coming here. It will be like the old days, like back on Monday, April 1, 2013 when the blog first started.
It's only a short break while we all freeze in Winter. The blog will be back once we all defrost.
Movies, TV reviews will still continue to live here. I will post an Elvis review soon, along with some music stuff next week. For now, how about when two worlds collide. Here are some highlights (musical) from the new Elvis film.
Love, Victor has now concluded. Following the 2018 film Love, Simon, the third & final season premiered on June 15. I smashed it, in a night and a morning. Following not sleeping well for a week, this was perfect therapy.
This season, Victor and his family and friends deal with new situations as they consider their futures after high school.
Michael Cimino is Victor on Disney+'s Star he stars alongside, George Sear, Rachel Hilson, Bebe Wood, Anthony Turpel, Isabella Ferreira, Ana Ortiz, James Martinez, Mason Gooding & Mateo Fernandez.
The 8-episode third & final season holds a 91% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes. It is a truly sweet farewell, with some happy endings, some new beginnings with most plot lines wrapped up.
This show is really and truly one of the easiest watches/binges around. Each season just got easier and easier to watch.
It's fairly wholesome, whilst being a little bit naughty in the third season with meeting a new guy at his new church. Random right? Well random, but sweet all at once.
It includes a great final montage with Touch Sensitive's Pizza Guy playing out as Victor takes us through the final five to ten minutes.
Is this show perfect? Hell no, is it full of beautiful people? Yes, but it is a great little watch. If you are looking for something to watch now Mayans MC, Obi-Wan Kenobi and Kung Fu have finished? This could be the perfect warm + fuzzy binge. Until next time. PS not getting off to see Elvis till mid next week, however the soundtrack landed (including Album of the Year artist Doja Cat) today. Review for that next week. Plus Winter TV Finales pieces on Superman & Lois along with The Flash.
Obi-Wan Kenobi is the latest Disney+/Star Wars streaming miniseries.
Starring Ewan McGregor as Obi-Wan Kenobi, reprising his role from the Star Wars prequel trilogy.
Set ten years after the events of Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith (2005), the series follows Kenobi as he sets out to rescue the kidnapped Princess Leia (Vivien Lyra Blair) from the Galactic Empire, leading to a confrontation with his former apprentice Darth Vader (Hayden Christensen).
The first two episodes of Obi-Wan Kenobi premiered on late May, with the subsequent four episodes release weekly until today.
Ten years after the events of Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith, in which the Jedi were destroyed by Order 66 and Obi-Wan Kenobi's apprentice, Anakin Skywalker, became the Sith Lord Darth Vader—Kenobi is in hiding on the planet Tatooine, watching over Anakin's son, Luke, when he is called on a mission to rescue Anakin's daughter, Leia, after she is kidnapped by the Galactic Empire's Jedi-hunting Inquisitors in a plot to draw Kenobi out.
This leads to a confrontation between Kenobi and Vader.
I think I enjoyed this loads more than the recent The Book of Boba Fett miniseries. The six episodes sped by in roughly five weeks.
Disney+ have loads of TV out right now. With Love, Victor on my watch list right now, Ms Marvel around halfway through its run with more Star Wars series on the way.
Obi-Wan Kenobi filled in some very big blanks between Star Wars films. McGregor shines as the lead. If you need something to stay warm with under the blanket this winter, maybe give this Disney+ a go.
We Own This City is not the best HBO miniseries of recent times, while at times it also felt more like a documentary rather than a drama series.
Based on the nonfiction book of the same name by Baltimore Sun reporter Justin Fenton. The six hour series premiered on HBO on April 25, concluding late last month. So it just missed my Autumn TV Finales series.
The six episodes detail the rise and fall of the Baltimore Police Department's Gun Trace Task Force & corruption surrounding it.
The story centers on Sergeant Wayne Jenkins, one of eight officers who were convicted on various corruption charges in 2018 and 2019.
Rotten Tomatoes reports the show a success, at 94% approval rating.
Streaming on Binge, We Own This City is a story we have seen before of crooked cops, on the take, abusing their powers.
If you feel like some more true crime, it's six hours of true crime, with a side of corruption.
Why are the streaming films of late generally better than the films getting a cinema release. Excluding The Black Phone of course.
Fire Island is streaming now on Disney+. Yes a gay film, about a gay sex island is on Disney+. I know right! Remember how much I loved the Netflix film, Senior Year recently? Well Fire Island is also totally solid gold fun!
Directed by Andrew Ahn, written by and starring Joel Kim Booster, Fire Island showcases all sides of being gay, young and looking for love (or sex).
Bowen Yang, Conrad Ricamora (How to Get Away with Murder) along with comedy legend, Margaret Cho also star.
Inspired by Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice, with a lot more speedos and waxed chests. Booster and Yang, who are both out gay Asian comedians and "life-changing" friends, were set to play fictionalized versions of themselves. The final script incorporated humorous topics the filmmakers had long shared as friends.
On Rotten Tomatoes, 95% of 91 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 7.30/10. The website's consensus reads, "Brought to life by a tremendously talented cast, the breezily entertaining Fire Island proves there are still fresh ways to update Austen."
I really loved this. Joel Kim Booster is totally adorable, good looking, full of fun pop references with Yang, who also slays in Awkwafina is Nora from Queens, which ironically has been renewed for a third season.
If you need a feel good romance, with a twist, some fun music and lots of sexual references, Fire Island is a super easy under two hour watch.
It's refreshing to see a nice young, diverse, smart cast. Like Senior Year before it and The Black Phone, this scores highly. 4.5 sun soaked, sexed up Stars.
