A “QUICK!” Review of “Gladiator II (2024)”

Gladiator II is a disappointing, unnecessary, and inferior sequel. The story is a complete retread of the first movie, with the revenge plot, evil rulers to overthrow, and a gladiator who rises up to inspire the people. The only real difference is that everything is just worse.

Paul Mescal is fine, but he’s not as great as Russell Crowe. The evil emperors are fine, but they’re not as great as Joaquin Phoenix. The music score is fine, but it’s not as great as what Hans Zimmer did for the first. The cinematography is fine, but it’s not remotely as gorgeous as it was in the original. The film lacks any real originality and keeps leaning on flashbacks and dialogue from Maximus in the first movie. I just couldn’t care about any of the characters.

It does have some cool gladiator battles, and Denzel is a pretty fun villain—but that’s really it. Do better, Ridley Scott!

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A “QUICK!” Review of “Boy Kills World (2024)”

Bill Skarsgard in an action movie? Yes Please! The story is a generic revenge flick with an interesting concept of a mute and deaf protagonist. The main character has an inner voice which is voiced by H. Jon Benjamin of Archer and Bob’s Burger fame. This sounds interesting on paper but the problem is that the lines are so obnoxious and there are too many. It is always some kind of stupid quip or stating an obvious. It has a lot of comedy but most didn’t land for me. However, you are here for the action and it delivers on those. It has a lot of gore, gunplay, martial arts and over-the-top set pieces. It really shines in the 3rd act in both the story and the action. The final fight is a top-tier choreographed fight. In the end, Boy Kills World knows what it is and gives you exactly that. A bloody, fun action comedy!

A “QUICK!” Review of “Twilight of the Warriors: Walled In (2024)”

When I found out after watching, that this was based on a Manhua (Chinese Comic book), it started to make sense. Characters that feel straightforward, the action scenes that defy physics in every way, the power of friendship, straight-up superpowered abilities, and countless flashbacks. The film suffers from juggling too many things. We have this fish out of water, self-discovery story with our main character. We have this gang conflict between those in the Walled City and the Triads. We have a revenge plot. We have a man dealing with his past—the growing of bonds. Unfortunately, the story is all incredibly predictable and lacks real depth. The constant talk about the past conflict sounded more interesting than the main plot. The ending is lacklustre and the final fight is so weird with the unexplained superpowers. However, if you like martial arts movies then there is certainly fun to be had here.

A “QUICK!” Review of “Rebel Ridge (2024)”

Netflix marketed Rebel Ridge as a cool action movie. If you came in expecting that, you are going to be disappointed. Rebel Ridge is not an action movie. It has just one proper action set piece near the end. What Rebel Ridge really is, is a slow-burn thriller mystery. Aaron Pierre absolutely delivers as the main lead. He is calm, collected and incredibly charismatic. He totally sells on a character that is secretly a badass. I like the twist in that the character doesn’t kill, even if they are corrupt cops. This gives the very few action set pieces a unique element to it. The mystery itself is a little convoluted and the movie does go on for 10-15 minutes too long. The ending is quite rushed and unsatisfying as well. Still, this is a pretty interesting film and I do recommend people give it a chance.

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