About: Maveriq

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Revue of Top Gun: Maverick

Release Date: May 25, 2022

Directed By: Joseph Kosinski

Platform: Theatrical Release

Genre: Action/Adventure

Cast: Tom Cruise, Miles Teller, Jennifer Connelly, Jon Hamm, Glen Powell, Lewis Pullman, Charles Parnell with Ed Harris and Val Kilmer

Synopsis:

After more than 30 years of service as one of the Navy's top aviators, Pete "Maverick" Mitchell is where he belongs, pushing the envelope as a courageous test pilot and dodging the advancement in rank that would ground him. Training a detachment of graduates for a special assignment, Maverick must confront the ghosts of his past and his deepest fears, culminating in a mission that demands the ultimate sacrifice from those who choose to fly it.

Revue:

Top Gun: Maverick is a sequel to Top Gun (1986) and takes us back to the good old days of Testosterone fueled need for speed that prevailed in the 80s and if like me, you are a kid of that era, then this film is just for you! There was so much 80s infused music and championed by Hans Zimmer and Lady Gaga and this touch of the oldies ignited the nostalgic feeling that the producers of this film aimed for.

Talking about nostalgia, Top Gun: Maverick served us a good helping of it with the return of cast from the first installment except goose (of course). There was a lot of recreation of old scenes such as the Tom Cruise bike ride side by side with an F16, there was the volleyball scene by the beach etc. and this got me a bit nostalgic.

The highlight of this film has to be the high intensity aerial dog fights and aerial combat which will leave you white knuckled and out of breath. Frankly, we haven’t seen a film with aerial battles in a while and Top Gun: Maverick sure scratches that itch and takes us back to the good old days of films that show military might. Other than the dog fights, the plot wasn’t so bad either and it is engaging and manages to sync with the first installment. Particularly, I like how Val Kilmer’s characters is acknowledged and giving a befitting hurrah.

However, Top Gun: Maverick isn’t all rosy and I specifically picked a fault in the easy resolution of the conflict between Goose’s son and Maverick. Also the explanation why Maverick is still a Captain despite his class being Admirals is very suspect and unbelievable. Anyways, nobody watches Top Gun for the believable plot, do they?

Verdict:

Top Gun: Maverick is very entertaining and will definitely be one of the best films you will see this year. I thoroughly enjoyed it for the dog fights which I haven’t seen in a long long time.

Awesome-O-Metre Rating:

8.5/10- Recommended for super entertainment from the high intensity aerial combats. However, I STRONGLY advise that you see the first installment before seeing this, otherwise a lot of the backstory of the characters will be lost to you and will greatly impact your enjoyment of this film.

PS. What’s funny is how even as Top Gun: Maverick is a film about planes Tom Cruise still managed to include a scene that involved him running. LOL

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Revue of The Man of God

Release Date: April 16, 2022

Directed By: Bolanle Austen-Peters

Platform: Netflix

Cast: Akah Nnani, Jude Chukwuma, Dorcas Shola-Fapson, Osas Ighodaro and Ayo Mogaji

Synopsis:

Loosely based on the Bible story of The Prodigal Son, Man of God is the story of a young boy, Samuel (Akah Nnani) who endures a very harsh religious upbringing and decides to forsake his religious upbringing to live his own life by starting up a fake ministry while posing as a man of God.

Revue:

The synopsis and trailer for Man of God promised an intriguing plot and which piqued my interest and got me so excited to see the film. The first half of the film is very engaging with how Samuel backstory is woven as we navigate through his childhood experiences that molded his character. What got me further engaged is my anxiety as to how his story arc will come full circle to resolve the conflict…and that’s where the wheels start to fall off.

The producers of the film intended to follow the (admirable) unconventional direction of resolving the conflict without relying on the supernatural but unfortunately, this direction gave the film a rushed and unsatisfying conclusion. Most of the characters didn’t get satisfactory pay-offs and some even got away without consequences for their actions which sort of gave permissibility to their actions.

Verdict:

Man of God is a decent film with the actors being the highlight of the film. Each character puts in a good shift but more thought should have gone into the last 3rd of the film

Awesome-O-Metre Rating:

5.0/10- Mildly Recommended mostly for the acting and costuming.

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Revue of Blood Sisters

Release Date: May 5, 2022

Directed By: Biyi Bandele and Kenneth Gyang

Platform: Netflix (Limited Series of 4 Episodes)

Cast: Nancy Isime, Ini Dima-Okojie, Kate Henshaw, Wale Ojo, Deyemi Okanlawon, Gabriel Afolayan and Kehinde Bankole

Synopsis:

Bride-to-be Sarah (Ini Dima-Okojie) is days away from her wedding. To her family and friends, this should be the most joyful day of her life, but, deep down, Sarah knows she’s dreading this day because it means that the man who is violent to her behind closed doors will be in her life forever. Even still, to appease her loved ones, she continues with the plans to marry her fiancé. That is until he is freed from the mortal coil on the big day.

Revue:

So when I read the film’s synopsis, I expected Blood Sisters to be a whodunit film and the first few minutes of the film further embedded this idea but when the first episode already revealed the (alleged) killers, I was thrown off because I wasn’t sure what direction the film was going. Allow me to tell you that though this film is about a killing, it is so much more than that – Blood Sisters is multi-faceted addressing spousal abuse, human (parts) trafficking, corruption in the police and politics, among other issues. Frankly, this multidimensionality is the highlight of Blood Sisters.

Another win for this film is the characters. All the major characters brought their A game.  So much has been said about the Timeyin character who though is a newbie did justice to her role but for me, it has to be Uncle B’s character (Ramsey Nouah) who’s showed us how one can be a villain of little words. Talking about characters, I did suffer a jolt of reality when I saw Uche Jumbo and Kate Henshaw who were recently the chicks of Nollywood now playing the roles of parents but after getting over that shock, I can say that they killed their roles with their versatility and range.

To further compliment the acting is the over the top costuming of the characters, specifically Kate Henshaw’s that reeked of opulence and maleficence. The Make-up effects were also very good and believable and should win some kind of award.

Blood sisters did have some inconsistencies especially with the Timeyin character whose age seems not to correspond with her story arc.  Also, some incidents were too much of a convenient coincidence employed to move the story forward and requires the suspension of disbelief by the audience.

Verdict:

Blood Sisters is a worthy redemption for Ebony Life after the catastrophe that is Chief Daddy 2. The film does however have its draw backs from over acting and convenient coincidences which led to incredulity of some scenes. The producers (as usual)  followed the line of flooding the film with every actor and actress of repute even when all they had was a couple of lines.

Awesome-O-Metre Rating:

6.5/10- Recommended for some good entertainment. I must warn that there is some nudity and sexual suggestions in the film, so be prepared for some awkwardness if you are watching  with your parents.

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Revue of the 94th Academy Awards (Oscars)

The 94th Academy Awards ceremony, presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), honored the best films released between March 1 and December 31, 2021, at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles on March 27, 2022.

TALKING POINTS:

The Slap

Of course the outstanding point is that SLAP by Will Smith (the Slapor) to Chris Rock (The Slapee). Chris Rock had made a joke at the expense of Jada (Will’s wife) regarding her hair (or the lack thereof) and Will didn’t find it funny and walked to the stage and issued a slap that was heard live around the world. I did find it disappointing that Will did that but the most amazing part (to me) is how Chris Rock continued like nothing happened. Look ehn, I aspire to that level of composure because if na me, I for don burst bottle for him head.

The Hosts:

The ceremony was hosted by Regina Hall, Amy Schumer and Wanda Sykes. It was the first ceremony since the 83rd Academy Awards in 2011 to feature multiple hosts. I particularly liked how they joked that the Academy chose all three of them to host the ceremony as it was cheaper than getting one single host. Though a sarcastic joke, the message regarding pay disparity between actors and actresses was loud and clear.

Talking about jokes, the one targeted at Leornardo Dicaprio by Amy Schumer made me flinch. She said “He’s done so much to fight climate change and leave behind a cleaner, greener planet for his girlfriends”. TBH, that joke is more deserving of a slap than the joke at Jada.

All in all, the host did a good job keeping the event engaging and lively. Kudos to them.

The Awards:

Dune (deservedly) got the most awards carting 6 awards out of the 10 Oscar nominations. Dune scooped the Oscars for Best Cinematography, Best Film Editing, Best Original Score, Best Production Design, Best Sound, and Best Visual Effects.

My favourite of all the awards it won is the best original score award which was scored by the great Hans Zimmer. I don’t know why that award hasn’t been renamed the Hans Zimmer award for best original score??!! Hans is a legend and from the day I watched Dune, I knew that score was definitely wining for that category.

By the way Army of the Dead “won” in the category of Army of the Dead has claimed the inaugural Academy Award for the fan favourite film of 2021 as voted by film fans from across the world. Beating out a long list of hopeful blockbusters, including Snyder’s own cut of Justice League starring Henry Cavill, Jared Leto and Ezra Miller. However, what you need to now is that, No, this category is NOT a real Oscar award, it is just a way to make the ceremony to be more inclusive of popular films that aren’t technical or artistic in nature.

HERE IS THE FULL LIST OF ALL THE NOMINEES AND WINNERS OF THE 2022 OSCAR AWARDS

Best supporting actress

Jessie Buckley (The Lost Daughter)

Ariana DeBose (West Side Story) – WINNER!

Judi Dench (Belfast)

Kirsten Dunst (The Power of the Dog)

Aunjanue Ellis (King Richard)

 

Best costume design

Cruella – WINNER!

Cyrano

Dune

Nightmare Alley

West Side Story

 

Best sound

Belfast

Dune – WINNER!

No Time to Die

The Power of the Dog

West Side Story

 

Best original score

Don’t Look Up

Dune – WINNER!

Encanto

Parallel Mothers

The Power of the Dog

 

Best adapted screenplay

Coda (Sian Heder) – WINNER!

Drive My Car (Ryusuke Hamaguchi, Takamasa Oe)

Dune (Eric Roth, Jon Spaihts, Denis Villeneuve)

The Lost Daughter (Maggie Gyllenhaal)

The Power of the Dog (Jane Campion)

 

Best original screenplay

Belfast (Kenneth Branagh) – WINNER!

Don’t Look Up (Adam McKay, David Sirota)

Licorice Pizza (Paul Thomas Anderson)

King Richard (Zach Baylin)

The Worst Person in the World (Eskil Vogt, Joachim Trier)

 

Best animated short

Affairs of the Art

Bestia

Boxballet

Robin Robin

The Windshield Wiper – WINNER!

 

Best live action short

Ala Kachuu – Take and Run

The Dress

The Long Goodbye – WINNER!

On My Mind

Please Hold

 

Best supporting actor

Ciarán Hinds (Belfast)

Troy Kotsur (Coda) – WINNER!

Jesse Plemons (The Power of the Dog)

JK Simmons (Being the Ricardos)

Kodi Smit-McPhee (The Power of the Dog)

 

Best film editing

Don’t Look Up

Dune – WINNER!

King Richard

The Power of the Dog

tick, tick… BOOM!

 

Best makeup & hairstyling

Coming 2 America

Cruella

Dune

The Eyes of Tammy Faye – WINNER!

House of Gucci

 

Best animated feature

Encanto – WINNER!

Flee

Luca

The Mitchells Vs the Machines

Raya and the Last Dragon

 

Best documentary feature

Ascension

Attica

Flee

Summer of Soul – WINNER!

Writing With Fire

 

Best documentary short

Audible

Lead Me Home

The Queen of Basketball – WINNER!

Three Songs for Benazir

When We Were Bullies

 

Best original song

Be Alive (King Richard)

Dos Oruguitas (Encanto)

Down to Joy (Belfast)

No Time to Die (No Time to Die) – WINNER!

Somehow You Do (Four Good Days)

 

Best cinematography

Dune – WINNER!

Nightmare Alley

The Power of the Dog

The Tragedy of Macbeth

West Side Story

 

Best international feature

Drive My Car – WINNER!

Flee

The Hand of God

Lunana: A Yak in the Classroom

The Worst Person in the World

 

Best production design

Dune – WINNER!

Nightmare Alley

The Power of the Dog

The Tragedy of Macbeth

West Side Story

 

Best visual effects

Dune – WINNER!

Free Guy

Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings

No Time to Die

Spider-Man: No Way Home

 

Best actress

Jessica Chastain (The Eyes of Tammy Faye) – WINNER!

Olivia Colman (The Lost Daughter)

Penélope Cruz (Parallel Mothers)

Nicole Kidman (Being the Ricardos)

Kristen Stewart (Spencer)

 

Best actor

Javier Bardem (Being the Ricardos)

Benedict Cumberbatch (The Power of the Dog)

Andrew Garfield (tick, tick … BOOM!)

Will Smith (King Richard) – WINNER!

Denzel Washington (The Tragedy of Macbeth)

 

Best director

Kenneth Branagh (Belfast)

Drive My Car (Ryûsuke Hamaguchi)

Paul Thomas Anderson (Licorice Pizza)

Jane Campion (The Power of the Dog) – WINNER!

Steven Spielberg (West Side Story)

 

Best picture

Belfast

Coda – WINNER!

Don’t Look Up

Drive My Car

Dune

King Richard

Licorice Pizza

Nightmare Alley

The Power of the Dog

West Side Story

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UNCHARTED

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Revue of Amina

Release Date: November 5, 2021 (Netflix)

Genre: Drama

Directed By: Izu Ojukwu

Cast: Lucy Ameh,Ali Nuhu,Clarion Chukwura, Magaji Mijinyawa and Nuhu,Lucy

Awesome-o-metre : 4/10

I remember when I saw the trailer for this movie I was excited. I am a fan of Nigerian epics, and then throw in a female hero? I am sold. Nigeria is full of beautiful untold history and folklore and I am always very supportive and partial to movie producers who tap into this resource.

This was my mindset when I settled in to watch the movie Amina. A movie that tried to tell the story of the famous Queen Amina of Zazzau who led and ruled in the North at a time when no woman dared to. The story was spiced with a few plot twists here and there, that portrayed her as a great but flawed heroine.

The cinematography was amazing and when I mentioned this to a friend, he reminded me that the movie was actually directed by the super talented Izu Ojukwu same person who directed the movie 76. This was the best part of the movie, everything else was sub-par.

The costumes were abysmal, the north is blessed with a rich cultural heritage and we all know how their traditional outfits look like, rather they dressed the actors in rags. Weird looking raggedly clothes that looked like mix-match between Indian and Arabian outfits.

The acting was poor, which is shocking because there were quite a good number of talented performers there; from Clarion Chukwura,Ali Nuhu,Lucy Ameh and Magaji Mijinyawa. I feel they found it hard to interpret their roles, probably from poor direction? Or a poorly written script? It would have been great to have a few phrases in Hausa thrown around, here and there for authenticity. The music was weird and vaguely sounded Arabic. I did not get the feeling that I was watching a movie based on northern history

The scene transition was terrible too, they didn’t flow well into one another. One minute you are here the next you are seeing something totally unrelated. It was very hard to follow the story; I was confused infact all of us watching it were confused. The story was poorly told, many parts didn’t just add up.

For a story with such a massive potential this movie didn’t do any justice to it. I was underwhelmed and felt I wasted over 90 minutes of my time. I was bored and had to really push through to complete the movie.

This is one review I feel unhappy writing, as I really wanted it to be fantastic movie. I was rooting for it.

Amina is still showing on Netflix so you can check it out and make up your own mind. When you do see it, please feel free to leave a comment below or on Twitter or Facebook !

Have an awesome weekend

 

Guest Revued by Gina

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Revue of The Tomorrow War

Release Date: July 21, 2021 (Amazon Prime)
Genre: Sci-Fi
Directed By: Zach Dean
Produced By: David Ellison, Dana Goldberg, Don Granger, Jules Daly, David S. Goyer and Adam Kolbrenner
Cast: Chris Pratt, Yvonne Strahovski, J. K. Simmons, Betty Gilpin, Sam Richardson and Edwin Hodge

Awesome-o-metre: 6.0/10

During the broadcast of the World Cup, soldiers from the year 2051 arrive to warn that humanity is on the brink of extinction due to a war with alien invaders referred to as the "Whitespikes." The Whitespikes will arrive in November 2048 and kill most humanity within three years after their arrival. In response, the world's militaries (including Chris Pratt, an ex- military guy who is currently a biology teacher) are sent into the future to fight the Whitespikes.


Without a doubt The Tomorrow War is my best film (so far) for this year 2021 and that is largely due to the novel plot. I mean, coming from the future to take soldiers to fight in a war that happens in the future is so cool. Although, the question will be asked as to what is at stake for the present when the future is already pre-determined, but that is another conversation all together.

Another thing I liked with The Tomorrow War is the design of the aliens which are super creepy and kinda reminded me of the creatures from Skull Island. The CGI is top notch and this is not unrelated to the fact that The Tomorrow War was originally set for theatrical release but due to the Covid-19 pandemic, Amazon bought the rights and released it on their platform.


Chris Pratt did a great job carrying the film which he did effortlessly. His performance reminded me of his Jurassic World and his performance is entertaining and keeps the film fun and entertaining. Talking about humor, the character and performance of Sam Richardson is entirely unnecessary because his wit seemed forced and almost felt like he was transplanted from another film and dropped into this. I guess the producers were looking for another witty outlet other than Chriss Pratt, but this just wasn’t it.

Have you seen The Tomorrow War? What did you think? Sound off in the comment sectionbelow or on Instagram, Twitter or Facebook !

The Maveriq

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Revue of Black Widow

Release Date:  July 9, 2021 (Nigeria)

Genre: Action

Directed By: Cate Shortland

Produced By: Kevin Feige

Cast: Scarlett Johansson, Florence Pugh, David Harbour, O-T Fagbenle, Olga Kurylenko, William Hurt, Ray Winstone and Rachel Weisz

Awesome-o-metre : 5.0/10

Black Widow is set after the events of Avengers: Civil War and follows the story of Natasha Romanov aka Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson) who has gone back to face her dark past as a Russian Spy to seek answers about her family and history and also to make amends for wrongs she had wrought long before she was an avenger.
Not to be left out of the female lead/hero tide that is washing over movie land, Marvel have kicked off phase 4 of the MCU with the story of Black Widow and I am here to tell you that it is unnecessary. To be honest, there was no need for this film because we all know what came of Natasha Romanov during the events of Endgame so the stakes in this film isn’t as high.


Furth more, the funny thing about this film is that even though Black Widow is the main character, the real hero is Yelena, Black Widow’s sister played by Florence Pugh because she stole the show. Frankly speaking, this film exposed Black Widows lack of superpowers and her one skill fight style. Shey we all know that she likes that move where she jumps on a villain’s shoulder and spins them to the floor? Well, that is really all she brought to the table while Yelena on the other hand brought some real charisma and even humor about her and to me, she is the hero of this film.

One thing I found off putting in this film is that even though it claims to be an origin story, nothing material or significant is introduced…well that is if you don’t count the (immaterial) story of how she got her utility vest and the aircraft she used in Infinity War.


However, the film did have a few laughs and just like Dome Loretto, harped on the importance of family. David Harbour brought in a few laughs and by laughs, I mean his weak (and inconsistent) attempt at a Russian accent.

Marvel Phase 4 has kicked off on a rather dull note but I hope it picks up. Have you seen Black Widow? What did you think? Sound off in the comment section below or on

Instagram, Twitter or Facebook !

The Maveriq

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