“8 Mile” brought rap star Eminem to the big screen. I’m not particularly a fan of rap music, I’d struggle to name more than a few songs from Eminem, Dr. Dre or Ice Cube and I don’t really understand how rap battles work. I’m clearly not the target audience for this film but I had heard a lot of great things about it so I went in with mixed expectations. This is a really boring film that I think will only appeal to big fans of Eminem and the culture surrounding rap music.

We follow Jimmy ‘B-Rabbit’ Smith (Eminem) during his struggles living in Detroit. He has family trouble and he’s also having a hard time holding down a job. He wants to be a rapper but does he have the guts and the talent to deliver the lyrics during a rap battle?

Maybe Eminem is a talented rapper but I just don’t get the appeal of a lot of his work. Here, he plays what I guess is meant to be a version of himself. If you’re going to have Eminem play a young rapper from Detroit, why bother giving him a different name? I just don’t find the character interesting because I’m not invested in anything that he’s trying to do. The other characters are not any better. Kim Basinger (“Batman”, “L.A. Confidential”) plays Eminem’s mother here and I just have no strong feelings about her performance.

I’m sure there are many people that will love “8 Mile” but I’m definitely not in the same category as those people. I found this to be so incredibly boring that I almost felt like falling asleep. I don’t like a lot of the culture that goes along with rap music, it just doesn’t appeal to me. As a drama, I just wasn’t captivated because I didn’t really relate to any of the characters’ goals. I will admit that the “Lose Yourself” song that plays as the film as the credits roll is easily the best part of the entire film.

The anime series of “Neon Genesis Evangelion” had an ending that divided fans. Passions were so high that even death threats were sent in response to the finale. In 1997, “The End Of Evangelion” set out to offer an alternative ending. With a bigger budget, we get more action and more spectacular visuals. We also got even darker themes than were explored in the series. This is not a good place for those unfamiliar with the series to start.

After defeating the last of the ‘Angels’, Shinji Ikari and the other pilots of the giant mechs find their base under attack. It is revealed that the next step in the evolution of humanity is about to take place. As things progress, Shinji falls increasingly into despair as he struggles to find reasons to justify his existence. The fate of the world hangs in the balance in this disturbing conclusion to the saga.

If you thought the show pushed the characters to their limit, “End Of Evangelion” somehow goes even further. The pressure on Shinji becomes truly crippling. Asuka is also determined to prove herself in one of the most thrilling action sequences in the franchise. Some of the designs of the characters and their bizarre forms are quite unsettling at times. The animation on the characters is terrific.

I enjoyed the ending of the show but I also like this darker ending. I don’t want to spoil anything but I think this ending is a little more consistent with the tone of the series. This film turns into a nightmarish hellscape filled with religious imagery. I can see many people hating this film but for fans of the series, this is a satisfying end. It almost feels like “Akira” meets “2001: A Space Odyssey”. Like the show, “End Of Evangelion” doesn’t always make sense but it pulls you into its world of madness.

While “Neon Genesis Evangelion” was a popular anime series, many fans were divided over the final two episodes. We would eventually get an alternate ending with “The End Of Evangelion”. However, we first got “Death & Rebirth”. It’s completely terrible as it recycles old content in a way that makes almost unwatchable.

“Death & Rebirth” starts as a recap of the tv series with twenty-four episodes’ worth of content crammed into little over an hour. While the series itself was often challenging to understand, this version is just incomprehensible. A series with such complex philosophical themes gets butchered. The remainder of this film is essentially a lengthy preview of “End Of Evangelion”.

When you try to fit in several hours’ worth of content into just a single hour, it’s going to come at the expense of character development. “Neon Genesis Evangelion” was really about the characters and how they developed rather than the sci-fi world and the giant robot action. Here, nobody is introduced properly. It would be almost impossible to understand any of the characters if you had not watched the full series. Just so much is left out and the editing just makes it even harder to understand anything about any of the characters. The animation is good but that’s because the animation in the show was good.

I can maybe understand that at the time of its release, there was some value for fans getting to see some iconic moments from the show up on the big screen. However, this is literally just a recap of the majority of the series and then a preview of what’s to come. It will be meaningless if you haven’t seen the series and it’s completely skippable if you have watched the show and just want to get to “End Of Evangelion”.

“Neon Genesis Evangelion” is one of the strangest shows in existence. Initially, it looks like a typical mecha anime series like “Mobile Suit Gundam” but it’s anything but typical. Rather than focusing on the giant robot action, the focus is on the psychological trauma experienced by the characters. Things get increasingly existential and wrapped in elements of Judaeo-Christian concepts.

Set in a futuristic world shaped by an earlier cataclysmic event, we meet Shinji Ikari. Aged just 14, he is recruited to pilot a giant robot to fight mysterious alien creatures, known as ‘Angels’. Shinji, Rei and Asuka must repeatedly go into battle to defend the Earth but the fighting takes an extraordinary toll on their minds and bodies.

I like Shinji. Maybe he’s a little bland at times but his constant mental struggles come across as quite believable considering the crazy situation he finds himself in. Rei is rather mysterious. We eventually find out where she came from. My favourite has to be Asuka. She is competitive and full of spirit. Asuka and Rei could not be more different with Shinji being somewhere in the middle (probably closer to Rei though). There is also Misato Katsuragi, who mentors the three pilots and she’s great too. She also has a pet penguin. The giant robots are okay but we don’t get to see enough of them for my liking. I love a lot of the “Mobile Suit Gundam” material so I was hoping to see more action like that. The Angels are interesting.

“Neon Genesis Evangelion” is a weird show. It’s so confusing and there are times when it doesn’t really seem to be going anywhere. The first handful of episodes may trick you into thinking this is a more generic mecha show but it gradually reveals layers of complexity. I don’t always understand what the makers were trying to accomplish but I respect their vision. They have created a psychological drama with an epic sci-fi aesthetic.

“The Suicide Squad” is a terrific 2021 DC film that is not to be confused with 2016’s inferior DC flick “Suicide Squad”. The two films share a similar premise and some of the same cast and characters but are wildly different in many ways. The 2016 film was boring and uninspired, this 2021 version is amazing. It’s bursting with life, creativity and style.

After a military coup on a small island nation, an assortment of supervillains is sent to destroy anything and everything relating to the secretive ‘Project Starfish’. Harley Quinn (Margot Robbie “The Wolf Of Wall Street”), Bloodsport (Idris Elba “The Losers”) and other misfit baddies find their mission takes some extraordinary turns.

What makes this movie so great is all the brilliant characters. Margot Robbie has now played Harley three times and she’s just great in the role. There are so many fun characters here including Peacemaker (John Cena “The Marine”), Weasel and Polka-Dot Man. However, my favourite has to be King Shark (voiced by Sylvester Stallone “Rocky”). I didn’t know that I needed a talking shark man voiced by Stallone but now my life is complete. I also liked the new dictator of the island, who is clearly inspired by Fidel Castro. We also have a mad scientist played by Peter Capaldi from “Dr. Who”. Probably the blandest character here is actually Idris Elba’s Bloodsport because he’s the least crazy.

“The Suicide Squad” is a lot like “The Expendables” films but with a superhero flavour and an even more sarcastic sense of humour. The action sequences in this film are so memorable, a lot of the dialog is hilarious and it’s just clear that the filmmakers love the comic book source material. I also loved it when this film dips into kaiju (giant monster) territory near the end. This is the sort of film we should have got in 2016. Director James Gunn (“Guardians of the Galaxy”) has done a superb job with 2021’s “The Suicide Squad”.

“Resident Evil 4D: Executer” was a feature at theme parks in Japan. It’s one of those gimmicky 4D experience films. It’s honestly very disappointing and just looks like something from a videogame of the era. We had “Toy Story” back in 1995 and the stunning special effects in “Terminator 2: Judgement Day” were nearly a decade old by the time this came out.

Set in the zombie infested world of the “Resident Evil” videogames, we follow a group of soldiers as they go to Raccoon City. Their mission is to trace Dr. Cameron and her research. However, what they encounter is a terrifying creation of science.

Some of the monsters look quite impressive and some are even quite creative. Unfortunately, all the people look awful. They look more plasticky than the toys in “Toy Story”. I mean, they’re not as badly animated as the characters in “Mortal Kombat: The Journey Begins” but the animation here is not much better. Since this is a 4D film, don’t expect any character developments. The characters here are barebones. There are also some animals such as rats and they look pretty terrible as well. I don’t think any of the main characters from the videogames or films show up but you would have to consult a “Resident Evil” fan.

“Resident Evil 4D: Executer” was made to show off the 4D technology and keep folks at theme parks happy for a brief period of time. Fans of the “Resident Evil” games and movies may enjoy this but I just found it really boring and ugly. It’s a shame about the visuals because some of the monsters do look great. I think the makers just got lazy when it came to designing the human characters. “Resident Evil 4D: Executer” outside a theme park setting is something that is for devout fans only.

“I Want To Eat Your Pancreas” certainly is one of the strangest titles I’ve ever seen for a film. While the title may intrigue some, it may also put others off. Regardless, this is one of the greatest anime films I’ve seen. This is a powerful drama with a lot of heart. I think it will leave a real impact on many viewers.

Haruki Shiga is an extremely socially awkward Japanese high school student. He has no friends and keeps interactions with others to a minimum. When he accidentally stumbles upon a diary, he learns that a popular classmate, Sakura Yamauchi, has been diagnosed with terminal pancreatic illness. The two could not be more different but they somehow manage to form a strong yet unexplainable bond.

Haruki Shiga is about as detached from others as one could be. While I like this character, the closest thing I have to a complaint is that it seems almost unbelievable that one could be as isolated as he is when still attending high school and surrounded by students and staff. Sakura Yamauchi is upbeat and positive at almost all times. This is despite her terrible predicament. She feels draw in by Haruki Shiga’s indifference to her plight. The two form one of the most interesting friendships ever depicted on the big screen.

“I Want To Eat Your Pancreas” is a wonderful film with a brave script. This is not an easy film to watch as it has some emotionally shocking sequences. This is a beautiful, distressing, moving, charming, intelligent, disturbing, uplifting and thoroughly entertaining picture. Even if you’re not a fan of anime (or animation in general), I still think this is worth checking out. It reminded me a lot of Akira Kurosawa’s “Ikiru”. Both are Japanese films about people trying to make the most of their existence when confronted with the knowledge that they will die soon. When you make a film that can be favourably compared to the works of Kurosawa, you know you’ve done something right.

“3 Dev Adam” (also known as “Three Giant Men”) is one of those weird Turkish knock-off films from the 70s. In the 70s and 80s, the Turks did rip-offs of “Star Wars”, “Star Trek”, “Jaws”, “Superman” and many other films with a blatant disregard for copyright. “3 Dev Adam” features both Spider-Man and Captain America.

In this film, Spider-Man is an international criminal, who appears in Istanbul with lots of counterfeit money. This Spider-Man is also a violent killer and thinks it nothing to murder anybody that gets in his way. Captain America joins forces with Mexican wrestler El Santo in order to destroy Spider-Man’s gang.

This depiction of Spider-Man is about as far removed from the traditional character as you could possibly get. Even the Japanese Spider-Man isn’t this vastly different from the original comic character. This Turkish Spider-Man kills a woman with a propeller and strangles another woman to death with a phone cord. It’s hilarious seeing Spider-Man do and this and yet never does he show any signs that he has the ability to shoot webs or do anything like that. The Captain America we get does not even have a shield. The El Santo we see here is a rip-off of the El Santo from the luchador films from Mexico. There’s also a random stripper girl that appears in one lengthy sequence.

“3 Dev Adam” is as ridiculous as many of the other Turkish rip-off films. They remind me a lot of the Godfrey Ho martial arts flicks from Hong Kong. Such blatant disregard for copyright would never be allowed today for a film that actually gets released for profit anywhere in the world. This film is terrible but it is funny in the same way that an Ed Wood movie such as “Plan 9 From Outer Space” is funny.

“Scrooged” is an intriguing twist on the classic story “A Christmas Carol”. It’s like “Groundhog Day”, “A Christmas Carol” and “Beetlejuice” all mixed up together and while it shouldn’t work, it most certainly does. This is another good film by director Richard Donner (“The Goonies”, “Lethal Weapon”).

In this film, Bill Murray (“Groundhog Day”, “Ghostbusters”) plays cruel tv executive Frank Cross, who is forcing his staff to work around the clock so that he can make a live version of “A Christmas Carol”. He hopes it’ll be a smash hit but he’s about to face the same three types of ghosts that Ebenezer Scrooge had to deal with.

Bill Murray is fantastic here and he plays virtually the same character he did in “Groundhog Day”. He’s not laugh out loud funny here but I’m not sure if the movie is necessarily trying to be funny in that way. At times, the film has one wicked sense of humour. My favourite ghost in the film has to be the Ghost of Christmas Past (David Johansen) as he’s so unique and is nothing like the version I’m used to seeing in adaptations of the story. I also like Bobcat Goldthwait (“Police Academy 2”) as Cross’ employee, who finds himself without a job just before Christmas. He therefore goes mad.

The film is mean at times but to a degree, I think “A Christmas Carol” is meant to be. The film doesn’t mock the old story but instead, it presents a nice variation on story we all know well. “Scrooged” is a movie where I’m not sure if I was meant to laugh a lot or not but either way, I had a really good time with it. There are good performances, good special effects, a nice message in there and some real creativity with a story we repeatedly see done the same way.

“Killer Bean Forever” is a unique experience. Jeff Lew served as the director, writer and animator for it. He’s a visual effects artist and has worked on many Hollywood productions including entries in the “Transformers” and “The Matrix” franchises. In-between his Hollywood work, he also made this surreal flick. It’s like John Woo and “The Matrix” but with coffee beans.

Killer Bean is an assassin on a mission in Beantown. While fighting with local mobsters, he must also defeat a rogue agent, who warns him of the dangers of the agency he works for. Soon his employers send another assassin to eliminate Killer Bean.

The characters in this look horrific. They’re all talking coffee beans. While the character designs themselves look bad, the animation during the fights is actually pretty impressive. The way they move and the great action choreography really help remind me of “Hard Boiled”, “The Killer” and “The Matrix”. Killer Bean himself does not have much personality. Nobody in this film is particularly interesting and the voice acting is awful. However, I didn’t really have very high expectations for a film about talking beans. I mean, does anybody have high expectations for the characters when they’re talking coffee beans?

The action sequences are actually pretty good and there is definitely some novelty value to seeing a film where all the characters are talking coffee beans. “Killer Bean Forever” is a showcase for a talented animator. The idea that a single person could make this is impressive. I was reminded of “Who Killed Captain Alex?”, which was a ridiculous action film made by Ugandan villagers. Aspiring filmmakers may be inspired by “Killer Bean Forever” and those that want to laugh might have fun with this but general audiences will likely hate it. “Killer Bean Forever” is truly unlike any other film I’ve ever seen but it’s not exactly entertaining.