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Reviews
Robots (2005)
Underrated Gem.
Surprised with the low audience score; I loved this film when it came out and I've just revisited it now over 17 years later.
The visuals still hold up really well, and even now I'd love to see it in 3D at an IMAX cinema. The cast is decent (Robin Williams, Halle Berry, Ewan McGregor) and it's an easy watch.
A few of the jokes are a bit cheesy and there's a tendency to depend on a lot of pop culture references (StarWars/wizard of Oz/Britney Spears etc) but I just see that as a product of its time. It is a family film with hidden adult jokes so it's to be expected!
Underrated in my opinion, it's a shame we never got a sequel.
Doom 3 (2004)
I initially didn't like this but changed my mind
I first played this in 2003 and was initially disappointed; I felt the developers used the Doom name on something completely different. I felt the original games were focused on running and gunning whereas this was a (literally) dark game with action sequences that felt far fewer in between. I didn't understand the PDF system as a 17 year old who found mountains of text exhausting/uninteresting!
I gave this game another chance a few years ago and LOVED it. I appreciated it for what it was rather than criticising its difference to the originals.
It is true to the Doom name in terms of atmosphere & feel, something I didn't initially appreciate. I wanted more "hell" levels in 2016 & Eternal too. It's one thing I think Doom 3 did better.
I did play with the flashlight attached to the gun this time around, which helped. Also the use of YouTube walkthroughs the few times I got stuck.
I learnt to appreciate the PDF systems too!
No doubt the black sheep in the series, but I don't think that's a bad thing.
Doom Eternal (2020)
Amazing but play Doom 2016 1st
Doom 2016 was absolutely brilliant, I couldn't wait for Eternal.
I was originally expecting more of the same but when I started playing I died early on A LOT. I felt like a complete failure and wondered why I couldn't just use my melee attack and why I was always low on ammo.
It was only because of my love for Doom 2016 (which was much easier game to get into), did I persist and get used to the new format of compulsory chainsaws/flame belt for ammo and armour pickups. Only then did I realise Eternal was a MUCH superior game to 2016.
There's complaints that having different guns stronger on certain enemies means you can't be creative, which couldn't be further from the truth. In 2016 you'd get in the habit of just using the exact same guns for every enemy. In Eternal you're encouraged to use your entire arsenal (not "forced", there's still 100s of other ways to kill enemies).
This has so much replay value (changing difficulty settings & prioritising different gun modifications) I've been playing this on and off for years, still perfecting my craft.
My only Con is that it's not a typical "pick up and play" game for brand new people to the series; I feel if I started with this instead of 2016, I would've felt disillusioned and given up early on.
The ironic thing is that Eternal's initial biggest weakness has turned out to be its biggest strength. It's 100% in my top 10 video games ever.
Thor: The Dark World (2013)
Very surprised by generous rating.
The first film was excellent; it was a great mix of humour, action and interesting characters with a strong storyline in the beautiful world of asgard (especially in 3D) I was really looking forward to the sequel but was bitterly disappointed.
Asgard and Thor's supporting characters made a very cameo appearances and much of the film was based on earth with Kat (Darcy Lewis), Jane (Natalie Portman), and Kat's love interest (who wasn't in the first film). I appreciate the inclusion of Thor's love, Jane, but the other two had too much time and I don't think are interesting enough characters.
The action scenes were short and none come anywhere near matching the opening fight scene with the frost giants in the first film.
Chris Hemsworth (Thor) and Tom Hiddleston (Loki) played their roles well but with a weak script it wasn't enough to save it.
Postman Pat: The Movie (2014)
Pleasantly surprised
I watched this on the plane back from America and thought it was a very nice and entertaining film.
It touches a lot into the privatization of the Royal Mail and Post Offices and the dangers this brings (as a twenty six year old, this was my interpretation of it anyway!). This is from a very analytical perspective though, I don't think it's purposely political and the emphasis is on humor throughout.
It was nice that the setting was in his hometown with the old characters instead of the lazy smurf films where 'the characters are warped into the real world'.
It was enjoyable and genuinely funny in a lot of parts. I would recommend to most people.