A Busy Month at The Movies

Este artículo se encuentra participando en el Desafío Peliplat de Mayo 2025.
https://www.peliplat.com/es/article/10055478/a-busy-month-at-the-movies

Last April, I had the opportunity and time to take advantage of the special ticket price for the entire month and went to the theater every weekend, resulting in a total of five films. Incredible. It took me almost five years to do what I used to do before the pandemic crisis.

This really made me reflect, as survivors, everyone here right now whether reading this article or just hanging out, is truly blessed to be alive, and being alive should not be taken for granted but with respect and awareness, because others were not as fortunate as we were.

So, Yes, it is important not to forget and to always enjoy life at much as possible and in my case, I ended up enjoying thanks to the following April’s releases:

A Working Man

I really enjoyed Beekeeper; therefore, the second collaboration between director David Ayer and Jason Statham will be almost as good as their first, and that’s due to not being the typical action vehicle for Statham. Well, it was in a certain degree but with feeling as it almost made me cry at the end.

It reminds me a lot of Liam Neeson’s Taken, and it certainly shares his spirit and formula. But it is clearly inspired by John Wick’s criminal underworld, in reference to the villainous group he must face to save her boss’s daughter. Judging by the ending, I wouldn’t be surprised if a sequel is greenlighted. If that is the case, I will probably go just for pure entertainment.

Sylvester Stallone’s influence on the script is a great help, in a way, the sentimentality is noticeable, offsetting the bloody violence that Ayer often unleashes. Every moment is well coordinated and each character is stronger, even the kidnapped woman proves to be as tough as her captors.

In addition to a balanced performance, Jason benefits from his interactions with David Harbour, who plays a blind ex-marine. Harbour is becoming a fan favorite because he is adept at balancing seriousness with comedy. I would have love it to see him in action, but writing him as blind was a bad decision, as he would have been a perfect sidekick.

In any case, I was expecting less and, in the end,, I got more in terms of performance, action and story. It is not a spectacular film, but it is enough to entertain, even if you get mad about police corruption. In a good way, it serves as a seriously reminder to always keep an eye to our love ones, especially women, who are always in the crosshairs of criminals.

The Amateur

I was expecting more from The Amateur and instead, A Working Man was the unexpected surprised. I say this because the rescue plot felt more powerful until the end, rather than Charlie’s personal revenge, which started to weaken in the middle of his quest. Not only did the screenplay feel generic, but also did James Hawes’s direction.

The physical fights are messy and not as believable as a I would have liked but the film’s strengths lie in the technology and its implementation thought Charlie’s tactics. Furthermore, Rami Malek needed to express more emotion or suffering for the audience to connect. Instead, Laurence Fishbourne ended up stealing the show thanks to his charisma, as did Jon Bernthal, who was only there to distract us for a quick moment.

Caitríona Balfe as Charlie’s anonymous contact, was wasted. Dead or alive, it did not matter because what began as a revenge story it drastically changed into an unmasking of an espionage conspiracy without adequately developing the circumstances that gave rise to it. The same could be said of our protagonist’s transformation from cryptographer to “vigilante”.

But it is not Rami’s lack of personality, but rather an unconventional adaptation with a much-needed rewrite at his core to justify the means to an end. At least it is entertaining thanks to the supporting cast, but I have seen better “spy” or “revenge” movies. Taking into account that it only grossed $ 37.5 million on a $ 60 million budget, I can easily understand why it wasn't the only one who thought this.

Sinners

Oh my God! What did a just see? My eyes! Oh, my eyes! They burn! They are really burning!

Honestly, I had my doubts regarding this period horror but director Ryan Coogler and his main actor Michael B. Jordan showed us why they are masters of what they do. Having made Black Panther and Creed, who would have thought that they had team up once more to deliver a bloody and fascinating vampire movie?

It is not an easy genre, but they approach it with great ease and with mastery in every aspect. I am even dare to predict it is a sure candidate for the upcoming Award Season. I am thinking of nominations in categories such as Film Editing, Cinematography, Visual Effects, Sound, Score, Make up, Production Design and even original screenplay and Best Picture. Hey, I believe everything is possible for this bloody and horror film.

The reference of how the music can summons spirits from the past and the future worked at its best due to a sequence where we see people from other generations dancing together. Racism and segregation were used to justify the vampirism purpose. Therefore, it is worth mentioning that the villain’s intentions are reasonable to a certain degree.

It even felt like a biography because of the way it ended, so it is very important that you stay after the credits because there is an epilogue that you would want to missed. It was disturbing seeing how everything you know changed in a matter of seconds.

As a special shout-out, Michael B. Jordan deserved a lot of credit for portraying the twins. I am not a fan of actors who play these types of roles, but he did perfectly. The same goes to Jack O’Connell as the Irish Vampire Remmick whose performance sent chills done my spine. Kudos to newcomer Miles Caton, who cements himself as the film’s soul, and who can forget the sassy and sexy Hailee Steinfeld. This girl’s career is getting better thanks to her mature and risky characters.

Warfare

What a ride! Alex Garland and Ray Mendoza direction deserves to be seen at the big screen because visually is stunning and it is such a faithful historical account of Mendoza’s experiences during the Iraq war as a U.S. Navy SEAL. Said that, it is impossible not to feel anxiety and anguish for all the physical pain and psychological suffering this platoon had to endure in the wake of the Battle of Ramadi on November 19, 2006.

I am not going to lie; this is a WAR movie and a very powerful one at that. I’d even go so far as to put it in the same league as Saving Private Ryan and Lone Survivor. We don’t need an explanation to get a sense of what is really happening. It is all about surviving for these soldiers, following rules and trusting their comrades, that is all a soldier needs to accomplish any mission and live to tell the tale, as was the case with Mendoza.

War is not pretty and directors Mendoza and Garland make sure to portray this side of terror unfiltered. The twenty minutes before the battle begins serve to introduce us to this squadron, of which Joseph Quinn and Charles Melton proves to be the true protagonists thanks to their amazing performances. Don’t get me wrong, the rest of the cast is brilliant in their diverse portrayals. Being impossible not to care for each one of them.

In the end, we don’t need to know what is happening or why, this is a bloody and tense modern war film that we will never understand, and that is good and necessary. Plus, the entire movie takes place inside a house. So, the directors deserved a lot of credit for getting the most of that location. I was restless the whole time, and for a 90-minute ride, it felt uncomfortably long.

The Accountant 2

Nine years after the first installment, not only Ben Affleck returns as Christian Wolf but also Jon Bernthal as his brother Braxton in this better than expected sequel, which follows the secret investigation left unfinished by former FBI agent Raymond King (J.K. Simmons) after his sudden murder. It is up to Deputy Director Medina to uncover the terrible truth that only Christian can see thanks to his condition.

The entire original cast, except one, returns to this sequel under Gavin O’Connor direction but now under Affleck and Matt Damon’s Artist Equity Productions. This time the story revolves around human trafficking in Los Angeles and Ciudad Juárez. This compels me to confess that it was somewhat unexpected, as it had recently become a “popular theme” not only in movies but also in television series, to mention the second season of Lioness.

At least here it was achieved with heart and plenty of military action. Especially in the final act, where we see together Christian and Braxton giving it their all to fulfill their unsanctioned mission. It helped that there was more buildup between Affleck and Bernthal characters, as they shared incredible chemistry that makes it impossible not to laugh at how different they behave. One tough, the other sensitive, but both equal on the fight scenes and shootouts.

But it is not all men, women dominate here too, as Cynthia Addai-Robinson is amazing as also Daniella Pineda, who steals the show as Anais. Their physical combat felt so brutal and real: I love how different they are, their expressions are pure gold. I am looking forward to seeing more from these actresses in The Accountant 3, hoping that their stories continue in the same way that Allison Robertson’s role got expanded from the first.

By the way, great editing. Richard Pearson relied on his previous work on The Bourne Supremacy and Quantum of Solace to developed a technological sequence were Justine and the autistic children break into a civilian home just to steal an important photo. That, along with the fantastic fight sequences, also makes the story dynamic and enjoyable. It is a good sequel, but I still preferred the first one.

In conclusion, it was a good month to go to the movies because I enjoyed every film, and I hope the fun continues to accompany me this summer. If I had to choose a movie, I think I would go for Sinners although Warfare wouldn't be that far behind.

Thank you.