First Man (2018)
Genre: Biography, drama
Director: Damien Chazelle
Starring: Ryan Gosling, Claire Foy, Jason Clarke, Kyle Chandler, Corey Stoll, Ciarán Hinds
Duration: 138 minutes
Class: 12A
KRS Releasing Ltd

Damien Chazelle (La La Land) breathes humanity back into a story documented extensively on newsreels, but which never had quite the impact on the lives that made it possible.

First Man is primarily a drama where the lens is pointed at Neil Armstrong (Ryan Gosling) and the personal toll commanding the Apollo 11 mission took on his life, shouldered equally by his wife Janet (Claire Foy) and their children.

A quiet man dogged by personal tragedy, Armstrong is steadfast in his determination to land his crew on the moon. He buries his head in his work even as his family unit quietly begins to unravel in his absence and the uncertainty of the mission.

Despite being embedded in a historic moment, the film is an intimate portrayal of a heroic American figure against the exhilarating backdrop of space flight and exploration.

First Man has received overwhelmingly positive reviews, with praise for performances and tight camera work, but cite an air of emotional indifference in a person focused work.

Owen Glieberman from Variety called the film “so immersive in its glitchy, hurtling, melting-metal authenticity that it makes a space drama like Apollo 13 look like a puppet show,” and “ redefines what space travel is, the way it lives inside our imaginations, by capturing what the stakes really were”.

Mark Kermode of The Observer said of the performances that “while Gosling plays everything close to his chest, it’s Foy who invites us into the unfolding drama with her wonderfully empathetic performance”.

Ratings
IMDB: 7.7/10
Rotten Tomatoes: 88%
Empire: 5 stars

Goosebumps 2: Haunted Halloween (2018)
Genre: Adventure, family
Director: Corin Hardy
Starring: Wendi McLendon-Covey, Madison Iseman,
Duration: 100 minutes
Class: PG
KRS Releasing Ltd

A sequel to 2015’s Goosebumps, this new entry into the universe’s canon introduces a new cast of characters on another creepy caper.

Friends Sonny and Sam discover an abandoned house belonging to R.L. Stine during their after school job. While exploring, the happen upon the author’s unpublished manuscript, a tome titled The Haunted Halloween.

The house also yields the discovery of Slappy, the nefarious ventriloquist dummy who comes to life. Despite helping the boys at first, by using his magic to ward off bullies and grant their wishes, Slappy’s intent and machinations are not to be trusted.

Haunted Halloween didn’t quite live up to the hype of its predecessor, receiving mostly average reviews. The consensus cited a promising concept that faltered in execution and wasn’t quite as entertaining for an older audience.

Bilge Ebiri of Vulture said the film had “a great set-up to fill the screen with visual humour and creepy-crawly creatures, much as the first film did” but “the chaos isn’t chaotic enough, and the monsters not particularly monstrous”. His final verdict of the movie was “undercooked on every level”.

Witney Seibold of IGN said of the plot “merely straightforward” with a “dedicated and appealing” cast. However he found the tone to be “jaunty”and “never scary.” He called the film “fun in stretches” but low stakes and robbed of “necessary edge”.

Goosebumps 2: Haunted Halloween will be released locally this Friday.

Ratings
IMDB: 6.2/10
Rotten Tomatoes: 40%
Empire: N/A

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