Peter Pan's Neverland Nightmare Review

 

Yep, I'm reviewing another one of these. What can I say? Brandon Tenold is the Godzilla guy, Shady Doorags is the King of the Hill guy, AVGN is the LJN guy, and I guess I'm the childhood public domain horror movie guy...? Enough of this stupid opening let's get to it.

Peter Pan's Neverland Nightmare is a British indie horror movie and is the third installment of the Twisted Childhood Universe. Production was done ITN Studios and Jagged Edge Productions and distributed by Iconic Events Releasing. Scott Jeffrey both wrote and directed.

The story is, adults have been getting murdered and their children have been kidnapped. One of the kids that have been taken is Michael Darling. Now, his older sister Wendy goes on a quest to find him, but first she must survivor the killer behind all of this, Peter Pan.

Initial Reaction

Now as I've stated before, I've been reviewing these types of movies for quite awhile, so what's the point of stopping? But I also wanted to see this because Peter Pan can be a horror movie. Yeah if you read the original J.M. Barrie story it's messed up and a far cry from the Disney flick.

Cons

I've got nothing.

Middle Ground

We've got not one, not two, but three gray areas with this one. Starting with the pacing. It wasn't too bad but we do have moments were things are slow then speed up for the better, then slow, and then speed up. So the pacing can be a bit of a roller coaster ride. Then we have our characters. Some are okay but I think the one that got the worse was sadly Peter Pan. I get they wanted to keep things a mystery and that's perfectly fine. Not every horror villain needs e every aspect of their backstory told, but we got nothing, absolutely nothing. So it's not gonna be surprising to hear that people had a hard time understanding Peter's character cause they weren't given anything. Then there's the story. Yes, it's very typical. You're not given something groundbreaking BUT, there is some fun to be had. Whether it's because you actually like the movie or you & your buddies just riff on it like Mystery Science Theater 3000/Rifftrax, you'll have some sort of fun.

Pros

There's two things going for the flick. That's makeup and special effects and the kills. Now the kills might not go on a top ten list but they're very brutal. So don't say I didn't warn you. Then there's the special effects and makeup. After the first Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey movie it's very refreshing to see the makeup is given a huge upgrade, even if that budget is only in the hundred-thousands range. But hey, the magic of wise money management and makeup artists am I right?

Much like the previous installments, Peter Pan's Neverland Nightmare isn't perfect but as long as you're entertained then you won't be bored.

My final rating is, Okay.

That's all for now. Come back on Saturday, Jan 18th, for yet another horror movie review only this time with Wolf Man. Until then, enjoy the rest of your day.

Road to Captain America: Brave New World - Captain America: Civil War Review

 

Well folks here we are, the last part of the Road to Captain America: Civil War. Let's get to it.

Captain America: Civil War is a comic book movie loosely based on the Marvel Comics' miniseries Civil War. The movie serves as a sequel to the first two flicks and is the 13th installment to the MCU. Marvel Studios produced while Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures did distributing. The Russo Brothers returned to direct and also writing to write was Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely.

The story is, after an explosion killed several humanitarian workers during a mission the U.N. has had enough of heroes doing their own thing. They pass the Sokovia Accords which will oversea and control the Avengers. Because of this, Captain America and Iron Man have not only gone head to head with each other, but have also started to bring in others in their war as well.

• Negatives

I've got nothing.

• Mix

There's quite a few slight issues, one being the use of humor. Now in some instances it's very effective and can get a laugh out of you. But there's other times when it's just not needed. Like for instance Black Widow and Hawkeye are fighting, but instead of the exchange being heated it's just them cracking jokes at each other even though this is supposed to be a war of both physicality and ideologies. So if there was ever a time when the humor factor should've been very very very low, this was one of those movies.

Then there's the villain. Yes while the heroes are fighting each other there's a villain pulling some of their own strings. And I gotta say this guy needed more development. I liked that pulling the string factor that was good, but we don't get to know a single thing about him until the third act and by that time the movie's wrapping up. I get the writers wanted to do a whole shrouded in mystery thing but we could've have gotten information sprinkled throughout. 

Lastly there's the story. Let's talk about the good. I liked how Captain America and Iron Man got great development. We get to know how they feel about the Sokovia Accords, and why Tony supports it and why Cap is against it. And much like the graphic novel the question is brought up about how much control should the government how over something like superhumans. Those parts were truly the best and I loved that stuff. However we do got two other problems. One being the structure. Now we do get a couple of moments to breath and see a debate between Iron Man & Captain America. But then in what felt like a snap of a finger we're in action scene and then another action scene. It's like they couldn't decided whether to a serious political thriller with bits of action or have an action flick with some slight slow moments. So they thought "Hey let's try the best of both worlds". Then there's character development. Now like I said before Cap & Tony great stuff, everybody else not so much. Okay not everybody everybody. Black Panther has a good revenge arc and the story between Wanda & Vision is alright. But other than Steve, Tony, Black Panther, Wanda, and Vision, others don't have much to do. Some are just standing around waiting for the next thing to happen or they'll be shoehorned into the story, *cough Spider-Man cough*.

• Positives

Alright I'll get this next part brief cause you're probably winded after my mix feelings. One positive is the Russo Brothers' directing. I mentioned in my Captain America: The Winter Soldier review I said they weren't the flashiest directors. I misworded. What I should've said was they weren't the flashiest for that movie. Here, there were a lot of good looking shots. So with this movie while not having the strongest story, I think I saw the Russos' step up, like they took the next step when it comes to style.

The last thing I'll touch on is the action. I can't deny it, I will debate about the story until the end of time, but I won't deny that the action is awesome. The airport fight and Iron Man vs. Captain America & Bucky being the biggest highlights. Especially Iron Man vs. Captain America & Bucky, that had some great, intense emotions put into along with some great fighting.

While it has flaws I still enjoyed Captain America: Civil War. It's serviceable and if somebody whether it'd be friends or family decided to watch it with me, they won't hear any arguments.

My final rating is, Okay.

So that's all for now. Come back on Thursday, Jan 16th, for my review of Peter Pan's Neverland Nightmare. Until then, enjoy the rest of your day.

Civil War Review

 

Just wanted to say, great variant cover by the late and underrated Michael Turner.

Civil War was a 2006-2007 crossover storyline published by Marvel Comics. It consisted of seven issues but as the per usual case with these big crossovers, there were many tie-ins. Mark Millar wrote the story arc, with Steve McNiven being the penciler.

The story is, after a huge battle causes an explosive that kills more than 600 civilians, people's perspective on superhumans is changing. Soon a Superhuman Resignation Act is put into action, now heroes supporting the act and heroes rebelling it are at war with each other.

• Negatives

I've got nothing.

• Mix

If there's one mixed feeling I have it's with the story. First let's start off with all of the good, because there's plenty of it. For instance there's a very realistic reason for why the resignation act is put in place. It was all because of a fight that escalated. And by fight I don't mean something cosmic or anything. It was a simple heroes vs. villains. Then there's how much character work was put into this. We get to understand why Iron Man and Captain America are chose which sides they're on. And we're left debating who's side would we pick. Not to mention put we also get other points of view. Some characters we know and some we don't know. We especially dive into how Spider-Man's all conflicted, and he winds up being the heart of the matter. Then there's how we see both Iron Man and Cap get desperate and both are falling from grace. Now we get into the mix bags. One being the pacing. Sometimes the pace is good, it goes by perfectly. But then there'll be times when things do rap up quickly. The biggest example being the final fight. I don't mind the character's reason for surrendering, but it did feel like the two leaders are fighting then it's stopped, and we're wrapping up the story. I think the ending would've been better had it been eight issues. Issue seven can be the big brawl for all, then we end with a cliffhanger on the character being shocked by their actions, then issue eight can be the ending. Oh and there's also this weird cyborg clone thing with one of the original founding members of the Avengers. I bring this up because even though we get a prison from another dimension, the story was, for a majority of the time, mainly feeling very grounded. So this whole robo-clone did feel a little weird, for me anyhow.

• Positives

Now for the real praises. Let's start off with the rising tension. From back to issue one you just feel the escalation starting to build, and the more and more it builds you know this isn't gonna end pretty. I also like how this story had stakes. Usually these big crossovers are just a way for the big two [DC & Marvel] to make the comic book version of a popcorn blockbuster. Which I don't mind. Because unless it's something huge like a multiverse crisis or a big monumental invasion then yes the entire universe should feel this. However here, it's not either of those two. This story effected the Marvel universe because the resignation was such a big deal. It divided friends, co-workers, couples whether they're married or not. Hell, Civil War did what some, not all, but some crossover events don't do. It had ramifications. The last but best praise goes to Steve McNiven's art. He's phenomenal. His art makes the characters feel and look real, we see how they feel with just facial expressions, and the way he draws action can be pretty brutal. And sometimes, it can just look really cool. Just look.

And I didn't even show half of the incredible work Steve did. At best that was bare minimal and even then that's a stretch to say that's the bare minimal.

Civil War does have some issues, but honestly I just can't help but love it. Cause there is quite a lot of good in it.

My final rating is, Good.

So anyways, come back on Thursday, Jan 9th, for the last part of my Road to Captain America: Brave New World, with my review of Captain America: Civil War. Yeah, much like Winter Soldier I figured I'd review the comic story before the movie, as a way to get you interested in my review. So until then, enjoy the rest of your day.

My Most Anticipated Movies of 2025

 

Alright! New year, new movies, and new anticipation lists. Let's do this!

First up is Wolf Man. I want to see this because of one man, Leigh Whannell. I swear when he's directing you're gonna get something great. He absolutely killed it with the remake of The Invisible Man, and I think he's gonna kill it again with this one.

Next is Dog Man. Now I didn't read any of the Dog Man books, I'll make sure to do that later but, having seen the trailer and getting a few good laughs out of it, I'm gonna give it a chance.

I don't typically get excited for a movie because of a studio, but because 87North Productions is the one behind Love Hurts I just can't help but be excited. When it comes to making action flicks this studio hasn't disappointed me or anybody else. Everybody loves the John Wick films, I liked Nobody, Bullet Train was awesome, Violent Night is one of my newer Christmas movies to watch during the season, and The Fall Guy was pretty good too. So fingers crossed we get another entertaining movie.

Not counting Spider-Man: No Way Home, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, and Deadpool & Wolverine, lately the MCU has either just been decent or terrible. Hopefully Captain America: Brave New World is one of the better ones. The trailers have been really good and they've sparked my interest. So once again, fingers crossed.

Next we have The Gorge. Much like Wolf Man the reason for wanting to see this is because of who's behind the camera, in this instance it's Scott Derrickson. He did great with his last film [The Black Phone] so I'm very excited to see what him and his cast and crew have in store for this one.

Here's a movie I'm looking forward to because it felt like it took forever to find a distributor even though Warner Bros. themselves could've been the distributor, but I digress. Anyhow, I'm looking for to The Day The Earth Blew Up. It seems like it could be funny, it couldn't possibly be worse than Space Jam: A New Legacy.

Then there's The Electric State. I think the Russo Bros. have done a great job both with the MCU and outside the MCU. Then I saw the trailer and got even more hyped. It looks like it could get pretty crazy and I'm all for it.

The next movie is titled A Working Man (formerly called Levon's Trade). This one is packed with talent. We've got Sylvester Stallone writing, we've got David Ayer directing (by the way #ReleaseTheAyerCut), and we've got Jason Statham starring! With just those three names alone how could I not be excited?!

Moving onto The Accountant 2. I like the first movie, I think it's underrated, and it feels so good to know we're finally getting sequel after so many years of waiting.

Next is Karate Kid: Legends. I'm a fan of Karate Kid, so much so that I'm watching the old movies, then later on reviewing them, and catching up on Cobra Kai, so let's hope we got a good one.

Onto The Life of Chuck. The director for this is Mike Flanagan. He's done great work within the horror genre with movies such as Hush, Ouija: Origin of Evil, Gerald's Game, and Doctor Sleep. So I'm very interested in how he'll be going out of his comfort zone with this sci-fi drama.

Then there's Ballerina. It may not have John Wick in it but I'll be interesting to explore more of the world that John Wick lives in.

Our next movie is 28 Years Later. The first two movies [28 Days Later & 28 Weeks Later] are just phenomenal, and we've been waiting for the third movie for almost eighteen years. Holy f@#k did I feel old writing that, anyways, and lastly that trailer...wow. I don't know who made that but he or she better have gotten one hell of a paycheck.

I don't know what is about racing movies but as of late then seem to be a winning formula for Hollywood. First Ford v Ferrari and then surprisingly Gran Turismo. So because of those fun flicks I'm hoping F1 will be another great time at the theater.

Now for another horror movie, that one being M3GAN 2.0. Simply put, I thought M3GAN was a fun horror flick, especially if you saw the unrated cut, so naturally I'd be excited for the sequel.

Next on the list is Jurassic World Rebirth. I want to see this because yes I love the Jurassic Park franchise, but mainly this is curiosity. Because after Dominion where else are you going to go with the story?

Yeah I bet this one totally caught you by surprise (I am of course using sarcasm). Yes I'm planning to see Superman (2025). Now I'm highly skeptical about James Gunn's DCU, I'll explain in July when we're closer to the movie being out in theaters. But, I'm a fan of this character and that trailer did give me just a tiny itty bitty piece of hope. However I'm still gonna skeptical.

Next one is The Naked Gun (2025). Now I'm primarily going to see because I suspect that Liam Neeson has done comedy before, but after the Taken movies I'm so use to seeing Neeson being a serious guy that seeing him in a full blown comedy might just be an experience.

First it was Dog Man, now we have another animated movie with The Bad Guys 2. I enjoyed the first movie, thought it was pretty fun, and I'm hoping the sequel will be that same enjoyable vibe.

There's also gonna be a sequel to Nobody. Much like The Bad Guys, I found enjoyment out of the first and became of that I'm planning to see the sequel.

Apparently Scott Derrickson thought he didn't have enough work to do, because not only is he giving us The Gorge but he's also giving us The Black Phone 2. The first Black Phone was very well done, I thought it was one of the better horror movies to come out of 2022. So hopefully the sequel can recapture that magic.

Now to move forward to Mortal Kombat 2. The first one was very much flawed but I felt like there was potential. So hopefully the filmmakers heard the constructive criticisms and deliver something good. And hopefully they gave Cole Young a personality.

Next up is Predator: Badlands. Other than Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem, I haven't been fully disappointed with this franchise. Yes, some installments are better than others but for me nothing has gotten me truly mad other than the previously mentioned AvP: Requiem. So I'm looking forward to this, especially since this time around we're going to wasteland with this one's story.

2025 will also bring us a remake of The Running Man but were not gonna have just any director for this, we'll have Edgar Wright. Wright has made some great films such as Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz, to more recently Last Night in Soho. So I think Edgar is gonna bring it.

The last one is Avatar: Fire and Ash. I thought the first two were very well done, so I'm looking forward to where James Cameron takes the story this time around, obviously a fire tribe but you get what I mean. And better yet, we didn't have to wait over a thirteen years for this 😆.

Alright so that was my list. Hopefully I can review at least half of these, but that's all for now. Come back on Monday, Jan 6th, for my review of Civil War...the Marvel comic book series not the movie that came out last year. Until then, enjoy the rest of your day.