THEGAYUK

Tag: Film Review

All the latest film reviews for LGBT themed films and others.

  • FILM REVIEW | The Greatest Showman

    THE GREATEST SHOWMAN – The already award-winning musical of the original showman PT Barnum celebrating the birth of show business itself with all original songs including the best new gay anthem in 30 years… and it is now climbing up the pop charts.

    Nutshell – The greatest entertainer of all time in a classic rags to riches story of how he discovered that ‘freakshows’ and different people were of interest to the paying public if presented with fantasy and imagination and how he gave them all respectability. It goes from bankruptcy to the most famous three-ring circus shows of all time in Victorian era New York. With 11 songs that will be new to your ears which is unusual in this Mamma Mia, Chicago, Disney Musical era but many of them soon grow on you especially the big set piece ones. The movie Hugh Jackman has waited his whole life to make.

    Running Time – 105 minutes – PG.

    Tagline – ‘From The Writers and Producers Of La La Land‘.

    THEGAYUK Factor – Well it is a musical to start with and visually spectacular a la Moulin Rouge and this is about outsiders with public taste campaigning against them like black trapeze artists, midgets and bearded ladies with a good-looking penniless orphaned hero. It all comes together in the incredible new gay anthem “This Is Me” which will replace “I Am What I Am” from La Cage Aux Follie as the ultimate gay anthem from a musical in no short space of time. This movie is as gay as Kylie in drag belting out “It’s Raining Men” as she enters the Big Brother house.

    Cast – Hugh Jackman, Michelle Williams, Zendaya, Rebecca Ferguson and the king of the abs fresh from The Baywatch beach Zac Efron.

    Key Player – The three men here Justin Paul, Benj Pasek  who together wrote all the numbers and Jackman who carries most of them off with aplomb. There is not really a bad tune here and all 11 have now entered the pop charts with the gay anthem getting the highest spot straight in the Top Ten even before it started picking up awards.

    Budget – $84 Million but it looks a lot more expensive maybe some good CGI. Brokeven in seven days and like all musicals, it tends to find its real home on DVD and TV with repeat viewings – this is the first money spinner of the New Year.

    Best Bit – 0.59 mins; The big set piece showstopping number “This Is Me” which has already won The Golden Globe for Song Of The Year and will now be the surefire Oscar winner in a few weeks time. The film’s misfits belt out these great gay-friendly lyrics and boy does it build, as Alex Zane announced on Sky it is the first key change ever that made him weep. Download this song now before every drag queen in the land gets their hands on it.

    Worst Bit – 0.05 mins: There is a lot to get through here and this leads to a slightly rushed finish and more annoyingly a mega rushed jerky beginning which simply does not engage. The rest is pure heaven.

    Little Secret – Barnum’s American Museum was so popular that crowds stayed too long and he could not squeeze new paying punters in so he tricked them with signs saying “This way to the Egress” which the audience thought was a new attraction not realising it means exit until they found themselves outside on the street. In January 2017, the Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus announced that their doors were closing forever, due to decreased attendance and protests by animal rights activists. Their last shows were in May 2017 they did not last to see the opening of this movie.

    Further Viewing – Moulin Rouge, La La Land, Les Mis, Hugh Jackman’s warm-up musical, The School Of Rock, Hairspray, Phantom, Dreamgirls, Fame and Into The Woods if you must.

    Any Good – The Golden Globe and now the BAFTA nominations don’t lie this is a great piece of film and a labour of love for the main star. Will the songs become evergreen favourites? Well, we hope so and they are a lot better than the 11 dirges in La La Land. If it starts picking up Oscars watch that soundtrack sell big time as already it is beating Sam Smith and Ed Sheeran. Jackman is ace and Efron learned his singing craft down at the High School Musical so you are in good hands here. If you like musicals this is a great addition and you don’t get many nowadays if not then stick with The Darkest Hour, Jumanji or Star Wars who will all happily take your money off ya instead.

    Rating – 70% out of 100.

  • FILM REVIEW | Jumanji: Welcome To The Jungle

    JUMANJI: WELCOME TO THE JUNGLE – A modern version of the book and 22-year-old Robin Williams family favourite movie original now in up to date computer game stylee featuring studs The Rock and Nick Jonas.

    Nutshell – Four very different teenagers get zapped into the former jungle board game, now all modern and digitised to the hi-tech gaming world. They have to work through the levels and team up to escape meanwhile their numbers of lives are diminishing fast. The key is that the avatar characters they are in the game are entirely different and even the opposite sex from the ones they are in the outside world. Comedy chaos is the obvious result as the wildlife and baddies attack in ever increasing numbers of mayhem. Pure family fun with added sweating bulging man muscle.

    Running Time – 119 minutes

    Certificate – 12A.

    Tagline – ‘The Game Has Evolved’.

    THEGAYUK Factor – This is so good as you get two of the hottest men around from opposite spectrums. For the muscle and masculine fans, you get the largest man on the planet Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson and also the sexiest young pop star around the oh so doable Nick Jonas. Both show tonnes of skin and they sweat all the way through.

    Cast – Johnson and Jonas lead the eye candy, but you also get the comedy genius of Jack Black, the UK’s very own Karen Gillan who has done so well for herself since stepping out of the Tardis plus Kevin Hart, Bobby Cannavale and Flight Of The Conchords Rhys Darby.

    Key Player – Jack Black steals yet another movie. Here in the game, he is a geeky middle-aged man but he is inhabited by a sexy mobile phone addicted brainless school slutty girl, and this is manor from heaven for our favourite short-assed comedy genius.

    Budget – $90 Million and it is all on the screen. By New Years Day it had already made twice that back in the USA alone – worldwide over $350 Million, so obviously this is the family film that everyone wanted who is not into the activities in a galaxy far far away. Hopefully, we will get loads of sequels with Dwayne topless in all of them.

    Best Bit – 1.17 mins; Not an action scene but proof that the winning factor here is the characters chemistry. The slutty airhead girl has to teach the virgin geek girl how to flirt with two guards to cause a much-needed distraction, and it is the best comedy sequence by far, and you will scream at the transformation – think Sandy in the final sequence from Grease done for comedy value.

    Worst Bit – 1.22 mins; The big action sequence with a dangerous helicopter chase with very dodgy King Kong style CGI and highly unrealistic pieces helicopters cannot fly sideways even in video games guys!

    Little Secret – This is not shot in Africa but the same Hawaii locations as many of our favourites such as Jurassic Park and the TV series Lost and it looks like it. There are endless references to the Robin Williams’ character and the first film and no doubt that will increase in the inevitable sequels. Rather than the obvious Guns and Roses welcome song being used as the theme tune the leads offered to sing it instead which is not new for Jack Black and Jonas but is a new venture for Johnson, Hart and Gillan. Of course, this is the second film starring The Rock called Welcome To The Jungle so be careful if searching online for it.

    Further Viewing – Jumanji, The Legend Of Tarzan, Tomb Raider, Romancing The Stone, Tron, Raiders Of The Lost Ark, The Jungle Book, George Of The Jungle basically anything with the word Jungle…

    Any Good – That Box Office does not lie. A lot of it will be from good word of mouth. This should have been a CGI car crash but due to the characters outside the game picking the opposite character types in the game which is a comedy masterstroke seeing The Rock as a wimp and Hart as the sidekick etc. we get a hilarious action adventure, and the casting is spot on. This film won’t change your life but you will be an awful lot happier from seeing it, and boy Dwayne’s body just seems to be getting bigger and hotter. Just imagine that shagging you in bed.

    Rating – 71% out of 100.

  • FILM REVIEW | Star Wars: The Last Jedi

    STAR WARS: THE LAST JEDI – The eighth film from a galaxy far far away, bigger, better, longer, more convoluted and with added gay appeal as the new Darth Vader gets his kit off. These films are not just for kids anymore

    FILM REVIEW | Star Wars: The Last Jedi

    Nutshell – This film picks up from the end of the Force Awakens so there is no need for character introductions or background info so we can get straight into a very good twisty turny story with endless action and so many strands to follow in future. Han Solo is pushing up intergalactic daisies, and the rebels lead by Carrie Fisher’s Leia in her final acting role before she sadly passed have finally located Luke Skywalker, and he is not a happy bunny. The new bad guys the First Order are in control of the entire Galaxy, and the good guys are down to a few hundred, and they are hotly pursued, is this the end – strap yourself in for a great roller coaster ride through hyperspace and beyond – this will be very big indeed.

    Running Time – 150 minutes The longest Star Wars film to date by a considerable margin but there is a lot of story to get through here; Certificate – 12A.

    Tagline – Doesn’t need one if you don’t know what is going on here after 40 years then you never will.

    THEGAYUK Factor – There has been nothing gay in the Star Wars universe to date and then suddenly here the new Darth Vader Kylo Ren for no plot reason whatsoever starts walking around shirtless… it is very eyeopening and slightly jarring. He looks really good and the unnecessary scene lingers on, even one of the other characters tells him to get some clothes on and cover himself up but we were happy with it. There are no other apparent studs here like say early Harrison Ford, but we hope for more gay angles in future maybe next time Chewbacca will get a blowjob from a hot Ewok or perhaps C-3PO will get into fisting.

    Cast – From the original series you get Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher with a much more significant part than you may expect, Anthony Daniels and Frank Oz. They are joined by the new team of Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, Adam Driver, Oscar Isaac, Andy Serkis, Laura Dern, Benicio Del Toro, Game Of Thrones Gwendoline Christie even Ade Edmondson turns up, and of course, Prince William and Prince Harry are there as stormtroopers.

    Key Player – George Lucas has not been involved for five years, but he got so much right with the first film(s) that this and all future SW films are slam dunks – probably impossible to screw up. You get some real crowd-pleasing new stars in the Porgs which take to nesting in the Millenium Falcon amongst other places. The fox-like Crystal Critters and BB-8, the new fan favourite droid, gets a bigger part and he steals the movie. Disney knows better than anyone what they are doing with franchises and product placement and every kid and big kid will buy anything with these characters on.

    Budget – $200 Million and already in 5 days it has made $450 Million and is heading towards the Top 20 of all time. Repeat viewings will push it to the top of that list hopefully with huge profit unless the competition steals screens from under it namely Ferdinand, Pitch Perfect 3, The Greatest Showman and Spielberg/Hanks/Streep’s The Post all within ten days of SW opening. Disney currently reportedly makes $2.5 billion every year from the brand in memorabilia, so the film is a big money-maker.

    Best Bit – 2.11 mins; The final battle is one of the best of the entire series but every appearance of BB-8 is a winner and the Porgs double act with Chewbacca throughout is priceless.

    Worst Bit – 1.02 mins; Some editing would have been nice as we could do with less Jedi training and not as much time spent on an unnecessary Casino planet. That you can live with but when Leia is blown out into space and goes all Marvel superhero – there is a serious problem – it is a rare mistake in a great addition to the saga.

    Little Secret – There is only one Star Wars film on the biggest box office chart of all time, and that is The Force Awakens in third place behind Titanic, and Avatar and they are the exclusive three members of the Two Billion Dollar club. High hopes for this one to get up there but that running time will limit the number of shows per day, and that competition is coming for its screens with gusto and no fear. The Last Jedi‘s first record target is to beat Fast and Furious 8 the biggest movie of the year to date, and it is way behind that at present. Its other big Achilles heel is that Star Wars is just not popular in Asia unlike Harry Potter, Lord Of The Rings, Pirates, Jurassic, Transformers, Avengers and Fast and Furious films and that is a bloody big market.

    Further Viewing – Star Wars 1-7, Rogue Nation, Spaceballs, Star Trek’s 1-13, Avatar, Buck Rogers, Flash Gordan and Battlestar Galactica.

    Any Good – It is wonderful and so entertaining. New fans maybe should steer clear as there is so much past knowledge needed here. Great effects, several wow moments, sad bits, laugh out loud bits and something for all ages and plenty for geeks and those that just want a great Friday popcorn night out to forget their working woes. On now to next year’s Han Solo origin story, but do not miss this one in the meantime.

    Rating – 87% out of 100.

  • FILM REVIEW | Daddy’s Home 2

    DADDY’S HOME 2 – The relatively unwanted sequel to the standard 2015 family comedy but STOP PRESS, shock horror this is really good – hell has just frozen over and pigs are landing at Heathrow & Gatwick.

    Nutshell – The modern family two fathers one mother is ramped up a notch by the arrival of the stars two hugely different dads in Mel Gibson and John Lithgow and obviously comic mayhem soon follows. Now what makes this so much better than the original is the decision to make it a full on Christmas movie. It is happy, funny, entertaining and hugely engaging only diminished by association with its average predecessor movie which may put of some. As a standalone this is great.

    Running Time – 100 minutes; Certificate – 12A.

    Tagline – ‘More Daddies, More Problems’

    THEGAYUK Factor – The muscle hunk Marky Mark Wahlberg himself just oozes sex appeal and here he plays the hard real man to Ferrell’s weaker boy which is hot. Mel Gibson has the DILF thing down for sure and reeks of someone here who probably bats for both sides but best of all you get everyone’s favourite WWE wrestling sex god John Cena known in true horny fashion as The Marine.

    Cast – Will Ferrell, Mark Wahlberg, Mel Gibson, John Lithgow, John Cena’s ass, John Cena’s bulging packet, John Cena’s huge muscles, John Cena’s massive chest and some women actors too.

    Key Player – This is the boys’ film, Wahlberg is Exec Producer and Ferrell is the main Producer and they just do these movies for fun apparently which is infectious as that is what comes out of the screen. Everyone seems to be having a laugh rather than there for the paycheck Cumberbatch, Affleck or Hardy style.

    Budget – $69 Million way up on the first film and boy was that a good move with it making its costs back in two days and now sailing way over $100 million and off towards the top 250 grossing films of all time list at a rapid rate of knots.

    Best Bit – 1.02 mins; The destruction of a live model nativity scene and post-fight is a real hoot and great set-piece but this movie is much more about small jokes than big slapstick moments. Do people really dress up as nativity statues – that’s a new one on us.

    Worst Bit – 0.33 mins; A snowblower goes haywire and destroys a never-ending set of outdoor Christmas lights and then property and vehicles just like the motorbike in the original. Too slapstick and overlong and a bit childish here in a film where the kids are away getting pissed on eggnog and shooting guns.

    Little Secret – Mel Gibson plays Mark Wahlberg’s father. although he is only fifteen years older than him cue greying up Gibson’s hair and softening Marky Mark’s but who cares. Originally the two dad’s were going to be Chevy Chase and Robert De Niro which would have been about as successful as a Trump presidency or Prince Harry getting the stag-do he actually wants.

    Further Viewing – Daddy’s Home 1, All four of the Meet The Focker‘s canon, The Anchormans , Blades Of Glory, Elf and Mel Gibson’s previous comedic roles in The Lethal Weapons and What Women Want as he has great comedy timing – who knew Mad Max had a budding Robin Williams, Jim Carrey in him all along.

    Any Good – This won’t win any Awards in the next 3 months of the trophy season but it is just truly great fun and a very happy film with loads of great Christmas music and may even see Band Aid back in the charts for the 5th time. A massive step up from a film that originally just got lucky with a clever release date counterbalancing a Star Wars film two years back. It’s now a winning franchise to follow and one of the biggest and nicest surprises of the year as it should have been a shit cash in but instead, it delivers on every level and some.

    Rating – 74% out of 100.

  • FILM REVIEW | Beach Rats

    ★★★★ |  Beach Rats

    A young man plays it very cool with his friends while he hides his true sexuality in the new film Beach Rats.

    19-year old Frankie (Harris Dickinson) lives with his mother and dying father in Brooklyn, New York. His mother constantly nags him to get a job but he spends his days doing drugs and hanging out with his gang of homeboys. They are all very macho and straight and while away the hours hanging out on the boardwalk and chatting up local girls. But what they don’t know about Frankie is that he secretly spends his time on gay hookup sites and meets other men at a local cruising spot for sex.

    There is one girl, however, from the neighbourhood (Madeline Weinstein) who he hooks up with – he really likes her and she really likes him, but expectedly it doesn’t go anywhere. And when he gets involved in an incident with his friends that involves a gay man his life suddenly takes a turn.

    UK born Dickinson is very good as Frankie. He nails down the accent and the attitude almost perfectly. With no previous film credits, he’s a natural and very compelling to watch on the big screen (and boy is he sexy)! Director Eliza Hittman gets almost everything right in this film, with the exception of the last 20 minutes that gets a bit too unbelievable. But it’s Dickinson you’ll remember when the screen credits go up. He’s on to bigger and better things.

  • FILM REVIEW | The Justice League

    THE JUSTICE LEAGUE – The biggest superheroes in the DC Universe come together Avengers Assemble style as earth is under a massive alien threat yet again and the Marvel lads are all on their hols but can Batman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, The Flash & Cyborg be able to work together and are they in time…

    FILM REVIEW | The Justice League

    Spoiler alert the answer is No!

    Nutshell – After the death of Batman in the previous film, sacrificing himself saving humankind, Batman is inspired to recruit a reluctant team of superpowered latex clad buddies to deal with an unprecedented outer space threat. The Justice League is formed and after the destruction of Wonder Woman’s island paradise and Aquaman’s submerged home the global chase for three all-powerful MacGuffins is on, watch out for the big surprise guest appearance.

    Running Time – 120 minutes; Certificate – 12A.

    Tagline – ‘Justice For All – You Can’t Save The World Alone’

    THEGAYUK Factor – OMG it’s full of great looking guys in hot fetish gear. Led by the fittest guy ever from Game Of Thrones Jason Momoa who is a new gay icon – for us muscle lovers – as Aquaman and his outfit is stunning and boy does it show his ass off along before the many times he strips down to swim. We cannot wait for his stand-alone movie which will be two straight hours of pure Grade A handy shandy material. Add the bulging spandex crutches of Ben Affleck, Henry Cavill, Ezra Miller and Ciaran Hinds and you get one horny film with the bonus of the new queen of camp Gal Gadot and her ring of truth which only makes us think of Momoa’s ass once again.

    Cast – Affleck, Gadot, Momoa, Cavill lead the league but we also get Jeremy Irons, Diane Lane, Connie Nielsen, JK Simmons and Amy Adams playing the least sexy Lois Lane – ever – for your ticket price plus another huge star at the end of the final credits.

    Key Player – The saviour of the DC universe Wonder Woman holds all the attention here and always draws your eye line from the sleep-inducing Affleck’s Batman, he is about as entertaining as finding sand on your favourite dildo. She saved the Bat Vs Supe’s film with just 3 scenes, her own film is the second biggest moneymaker of the year and she is top dog in the League by far.

    We have no idea why we loved this film so much… oh so much…

    Budget – An absolutely massive $300 Million which is less than many countries earn in a year – its a cliché but most of it is on the screen with very big production scenes maybe more should have been spent on the script though, which brings a whole new meaning to the word formulaic.

    Best Bit – 0.21 mins; When Aquaman strips off for the first time showing his many tatt’s and boy does he take his time otherwise the battle and chase of Wonder Woman’s Amazonian tribe on horseback is by far the best action beat.

    Worst Bit – 0.19 mins and 0.34 mins and 0.48 mins…..; Basically every time the Flash comes on the screen, he is weak, his scenes are weak and he is less Premier League and more like Southern Conference League up against everyone else here and anyway Superman is faster so whats the point of him? He probably suffers from premature ejaculation too.

    Little Secret – Already there is a hugely successful big budget gay porn version out of this Justice League from Men.com where Batman rodders Superman, Cyborg gives a good going over on the The Flash, Wonder Woman is played by a drag queen and Aquaman humps every guy in the film repeatedly… sign me up. It is already controversial for adding other characters like The Green Lantern everyone’s least favourite superhero (Thanks, Ryan Reynolds) and also the only black character in either the Avengers or League teams is… oh dear – played by a white porn star – racism in gay porn so what’s new?

    Further Viewing – Really!!! With over 50 films featuring the superheroes above just go to Google and type in stretched spandex over bulging crutch movies and whilst you are there just search for Marvel or DC Comics and you will have two weeks worth of identical movies to watch with everyone saving the world each and every fucking time in just under two hours.

    Any Good – This is a very expensive perfectly adequate film, you will smile, laugh, get excited and be entertained throughout, the trouble is it is just so damn generic and we have seen it all so many times before. A magical object is hidden on earth that can now destroy us all and good guys/bad guys with whatever powers they need to survive 50 rounds of unrealistic fighting and nobody ever seems to get injured or hospitalised. It’s all about as realistic as a Donald Trump promise to protect LGBT+ rights. Do stay right to the end of the credits as the last secret scene is well worth the 10-minute screen scroll wait and it gives a huge clue as to where we are all going next as if six superheroes in one film weren’t enough?

    Rating – 62 out of 100.

  • FILM REVIEW | The Florida Project

    ★★★★★ |  The Florida Project

    From filmmaker Sean Baker, writer and director of 2015’s critically acclaimed film Tangerine, comes another film about living life on the edge in the bittersweet The Florida Project.

    Tangerine, which was shot on iPhones, told the story of two trans sex workers surviving by any means possible in Hollywood. The Florida Project, shot on 35mm, has a similar trajectory involving a single mother and her adorable 6-year old daughter surviving by any means and barely eking out a living in a rundown motel on the tacky fringes of Disneyworld in Orlando, Florida. It’s an area filled with cheap motels (with tacky names such as Futureland Inn) and even cheaper and tackier gift shops and fast food restaurants (Orange World). And like in Tangerine, Baker uses non-professional actors in this film.

    Bria Vinaite is excellent as Hailey, a single young mother who struggles to find money to pay the weekly rent and to care for her very adorable six-year-old daughter Moonee (an excellent and natural Brooklynn Prince). Moonee has made friends with all of the little children at their motel complex (appropriately called The Magic Castle) in an area where Disney did not sprinkle magic dust on. The children spend their days getting up to no good, causing mayhem wherever they go, much to the annoyance of the motel manager Bobby (Willem Dafoe – in an award-worthy performance). Hailey’s downstairs neighbour Ashley (Mela Murder) works at the nearby Waffle House and gives them free food, but after an incident that involves her son and Moonee, she forbids her son to hang out with Moonee, and severs her friendship with Hailey. One thing leads to another and slowly the magic seeps out of The Magic Castle.

    The Florida Project is just fantastic. While it doesn’t quite come close to Tangerine with its sarcastic and biting humour, it nonetheless is a cute and charming movie of childhood through a little girl’s eyes and the hard truths that reality will eventually rear its ugly head. And the cast are just superb. Baker, who co-wrote the script with Chris Bergoch, has another winner on his hands.

  • FILM REVIEW | Paddington 2

    PADDINGTON 2 – Your second favourite bear after that hairy muscled gay bloke you met in the darkroom at XXL or Brut is back for a sequel and this time he falls foul of the law and is eating porridge rather than marmalade sandwiches.

    Nutshell – The most polite Peruvian ursine returns and is in a battle with Hugh Grant’s baddie for a special book with a hidden treasure trail that Paddington needs as a very special family present. Things go amiss when he gets framed for theft and is sent to prison for 10 years which is a long time in bear years, can he escape, find the book & treasure and save the day in probably the happiest film of this and any year?

    Running Time – 103 minutes

    Certificate – PG

    Tagline – ‘Free Paddington’ and ‘It Takes A Bear To Catch a Thief’.

    THEGAYUK Factor – This is probably the most perfect family movie ever so nothing “gay” here… move along. This is the movie to take your Mum to or your little nephew but you will probably enjoy it the more than any of them. If you want gay smut just wait 7 days for the Justice League as there is hoards of it there.

    Cast – Hugh ‘Downton Abbey’ Bonneville, Julie ‘Acorn Antiques’ Walters, Hugh ‘Four Weddings’ Grant and every other major Brit you can think of such as Joanna Lumley, Brendon Gleeson, Jim Broadbent, Ben Miller, Michael Gambon etc etc plus Peter Dr Who’ Capaldi for good measure.

    Key Player – Ben Whishaw as the voice of Paddington is perfect you cannot imagine anyone else doing it now he has the friendliest tones imaginable and can make you care, laugh or cry with just a simple turn of phrase.

    Budget – $80 Million. The first film was a huge surprise hit making $250 Mil worldwide – this with pre-brand recognition will make a lot more as, whisper it quietly, this is an even better movie. The first film is the biggest money-making independent family film of all time expect that record to have gone well before Christmas here.

    Best Bit – 1.14 mins; There are three very sad and dark sequences here and the last one is a real doozy and it comes right after some great laughs and a huge action sequence and it will hit you like a sledgehammer – superb filmmaking, taking your hankies.

    Worst Bit – 1.27 mins; There are two sequences in the final credits the first one is a Hugh Grant song and dance number that is just screaming for a much hookier better song. The only hiccup in this whole enterprise – rare for a sequel indeed.

    Little Secret – The creator of the character and books Michael Bond was told that the sequel had been greenlit on his 90th birthday. He sadly died at 91 on the exact same day as the last day of shooting, he never saw the finished film but adored the first one and we know he would love this even more. He published the last ever Paddington book in April of this year… that is active in your old age.

    Further Viewing – Paddington 1 obviously, Mary Poppins, The Railway Children, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, Labyrinth, Witches, any quality British family film of the last 50 years or any of the 10 great Muppet movies.

    Any Good – It is so rare for a sequel to be better than its predecessor as there are so many traps and issues with sequels. We rate this alongside the great step-ups like Aliens, Terminator 2, The Two Towers, Star Trek 4, Return Of The Jedi and Fast & Furious 5. Let’s make it simple, this is marvellous, perfect entertainment for everyone, very funny, great action and an instant classic… with fur on to be watched with a smile on your face for years to come. Be prepared to be taken back to your childhood in spades.

    Rating – 94% out of 100.

  • FILM REVIEW | Body Electric

    ★★★★ | Body Electric

    Life is one big party for the characters in the new film Body Electric.

    Elias (a sexy Keiner Macedo) is the assistant manager in a factory somewhere in Brazil. He’s only 23 and quite young to hold such a responsible job, but his female boss, who is always jet-setting from here to there on business, trusts Elias completely to run the factory while she’s gone. It’s a factory that makes clothes, and Elias sees his fellow employees not just as co-workers but as friends, and they all spend lots of time hanging out with each other after work and on weekends.

    They’re all friends, very close friends. And when a new employee starts work at the factory, a West African man called Fernando (Welket Bungue), Elias welcomes him into the fold and nothing much changes for these happy-go-lucky group of people who work hard and play much much harder.

    And play is just what Elias likes to do. He’s openly gay at work and in his personal life, and there appears to be no issue with his colleagues when he takes up with fellow young co-worker Wellington (Lucas Andrade). Wellington introduces Elias to a gaggle of drag queens with a queen bee who wonders out loud where all the fabric Wellington and Elias brought to them comes from. But it doesn’t matter for these folks, life is one big party, and with that comes alcohol and sex.

    In Body Electric, director Marcelo Caetano relies on lots of lingering shots to portray his cast in ways that make them look and feel so real, it, at times makes you feel like you’re eavesdropping on their lives, and loves. But Body Electric is all about Elias and how happy he is, and how happy his co-workers are who toil away at the factory day in and day out, and we are very happy for all of them.

    Available to buy from Amazon

  • FILM REVIEW | Thor Ragnarok

    THOR RAGNAROK – The Third official Thor film stays largely in outer space this time and is all the better for it and this time he has the Hulk for company too.

    Nutshell – Our hero loses a battle against his evil Sister Hela and is imprisoned across the galaxy with evil brother Loki (What a family!) on a gladiatorial planet where his next opponent is a truly p*ssed off Incredible Hulk his former Avenger mate. He has to escape the inescapable planet, travel 100,000 miles and defeat the uber b*tch to save his home planet of Asgard but he is way too late and whose side is Loki actually on?

    Running Time – 130 minutes; Certificate – 12A.

    Tagline – ‘No Hammer, No Problem’ yes the big hunk of spunk loses his massive weapon for the whole of this movie.

    THEGAYUK Factor – Chris Hemsworth taking his shirt off over and over again here and his body is better than ever. This Aussie studfukka is top of most guys wank bank list just ahead of his equally hot younger brother (see below) and you get Idris Elba too here in a very very tight top.

    Cast – Chris ‘Come to bed eyes’ Hemsworth aided and abetted by a bunch of superstars including Tom Hiddleston, Cate Blanchett, Mark Ruffalo, Idris Elba, Anthony Hopkins, Jeff Goldblum, Benedict Cumberbatch now that is one serious cast and a huge load of hot talent.

    Key Player – The whole cast of Guardians Of The Galaxy‘s 1 & 2 who have added humour to the Marvel Universe without getting cheesy. The massive success of those 2 movies since the last muddled Thor film are present in the ingredients here; this film is so funny and comes out like Guardians 3 and that is a very good thing indeed…now if we can only get the Guardian’s Chris Pine and Hemsworth in the same film we will never watch gay porn again.

    Budget – $180 Million as there is no such thing as a cheap Marvel or DC Comic film these days as they all make huge amounts of cash (Unless they are called The Fantastic Four). This will make as much as any of them and set up next May’s Avengers Civil War which could easily be the biggest film of all time.

    Best Bit – 0.49 mins; The big gladiatorial battle been Thor and Hulk finally kicks off and boy is it good and with real threat as Hulk is a real bad boy here. The battle looks really nasty and Thor seems like a real gonna. Don’t be late as the pre-credits action scene in Ragnaroks hell-like dungeon is just as good.

    Worst Bit – 0.14 mins; The pointless and overly stylised appearance of Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) is just unnecessary and comes over like showboating by Marvel studios which sometimes seem a bit cameo happy.

    Little Secret – On the subject of cameos in one scene where we get Matt Damon, Sam Neill and Chris Hemsworth’s hot sexy little brother Liam Hemsworth all appear. Thor’s hammer is smashed here and he doesn’t get it back and won’t it is gone for good. The original Hammer destruction scene was meant to be in New York with Brisbane standing in and can be seen in the trailers but the director changed it to a random field at a later date in re-shoots which is what makes it into the film.

    Further Viewing – Guardians 1 & 2 and anything else from the Marvel universe to start with but as this is the comic book film set entirely in space it also reeks of the Star Wars prequels too which is definitely no bad thing so try The Phantom Menace, Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith also.

    Any Good – This is a very good Marvel film and a step up from Wonder Woman and Doctor Strange and it is also the best Thor chapter yet. You get Thor with sexy long hair and even sexier short hair all for your £8 ticket price. Yet It is the humour that makes it special of course there is a tonne of action and visual effects but Thor sure owes those Guardians a drink or two.

    Rating – 80% out of 100.

     

    Pre-Order from Amazon | iTunes

  • FILM REVIEW | Call Me By Your Name

    ★★★ | Call Me By Your Name

    FILM REVIEW | Call Me By Your Name

    There is a gay-themed film that has just been released that is getting rave and five-star reviews. And while it is very good,  it’s also not your typical gay relationship film.

    Call Me By Your Name tells the story about an adult who has an affair with a younger man. The adult in question is the actor Armie Hammer (who in real life happens to be 31, but looks older, and in this film he is playing a 24-year old) who is playing is Oliver. The young man in question is Elio, played by Timothée Chalamet (who happens to 21 in real life but plays a 17-year old in the film but looks a lot younger). The story, based on the 2007 book of the same name by André Aciman, is about a sexual relationship between Oliver and Elio.

    Oliver, you see, has been hired by Elio’s parents, wealthy couple the Perlmans (Michael Stuhlbarg and Amira Casar), to help Mr. Perlman with his archeological work. But what happens is that the closeted Elio (who is wooed by the local girls who vie for his attention) becomes enamoured with, and by, Oliver. Oliver, who is a man’s man, with a chest full of hair, is a very confident man who can practically have anyone he wants. He, however, enters into a relationship with Elio. It’s really hard to believe that a man of the world like Oliver could be sexually attracted to Elio. And while Elio is a good-looking young man, he’s still quite young for someone whom Oliver could fancy.  So it’s a bit inappropriate for a man like Oliver to be sexually attracted, and to sexually satisfy Elio, in various locations, including having interludes in the Perlman family home where they conveniently have adjoining rooms which allow for lots of loving glances across their rooms. Elio’s parents do realise what’s happening and turn a blind eye to the relationship and let nature take it’s course.

    Call Me By Your Name is a beautiful and lush film, directed with care by Italian director Luca Guadagnino. It lovingly highlights the Italian countryside and the small cityscapes of Lombardy; the film has beautiful camerawork and the acting by all involved is top notch. Chalamet is a real find – his Elio commands the screen. Chalamet looks very very comfortable in front of the camera, clothes on or off (there is absolutely no full frontal nudity in this film, though some of the sex scenes look all too real). Hammer is also very good in this role – a role that is not a typical role for him to play. And there is scene, which you must have heard about by now, that involves a peach. Yes, a peach, which Elio uses, and which involves Oliver, that was a bit too much for me. But it’s the scene where the credits roll up at the end of the film where you can’t leave your seat or avert your eyes – it’s these few minutes where Chamalet as Elio will mesmerize, and seduce you. So it’s at this point that you think that perhaps you can’t blame Oliver for falling for him because it’s at this point you will do the same as well.

    In selected Cinemas now

    Pre-order from Amazon | iTunes