Ink of Blood

(This review may contain spoilers).

I haven’t seen the previous version of this movie, or read the book this is based on, but seeing as I enjoy watching movies set in the kind  of time period this one was set in, I was immediately interested in watching this.

I liked that this movie started with the conflict between Judah and Messala. While I didn’t know then why their relationship was fractured, the first scene did succeed in drawing me in from the start… and then it was good to be able to have the opportunity to see how things progressed.

I liked being able to see the relationship between the brothers, though I was a bit confused about why Judah’s family had adopted Messala. I would have liked a bit more detail about that kind of history between them.

I did have a lot of sympathy for Messala and I could see why he didn’t feel like he fit in with Judah’s family. There were some hints of conflict in the household… but some of those hints didn’t really go anywhere; such as Judah’s relationship with Esther. Despite mention being made of the differences in their stations, there were no obvious problems.

I liked seeing the clear differences in the brothers, with Messala a warrior and Judah only fighting back when his family was threatened. I did feel that he was a bit naive at times, but considering his status in Jerusalem, I could understand why he wouldn’t necessarily see things the same way as people like Esther did.

Even though this movie had a low age rating (I was surprised to see it was only a 12A), it was good to see it didn’t shy away from showing the violent tensions between the Jews and the Romans. And as a Christian, I was very happy to see the historical figure of Jesus appear… even though he wasn’t the main focus.

I did feel this movie didn’t use the ethnicity that should have existed in that time… and I also had the impression Judah was wearing jeans during one scene. But although those problems were noticeable, I didn’t feel they really detracted from the movie, even if they did give me pause.

There were a lot of good moments of tension throughout and by the time the movie was finished, I wanted to watch it again. I would definitely buy this movie on DVD.

(This review may contain spoilers).

Having seen the previous two movies in this franchise, I was quite eager to be able to see this one. The trailer looked really intriguing and I especially liked the fact that Leo from the second movie would be making an appearance.

It was good to see the effects the Purge had on everyday citizens, such as when Joe had the price of his insurance driven up the day before the Purge. It was also interesting, if disturbing, to see the idea of the murder tourists; though I suspect that a lot of those who could afford to would have left the country altogether.

I thought it was good to see that this movie showed more of the politics involved in the Purge. I really didn’t like the Minister… but then again, it was hard to understand or connect emotionally with any of the founding fathers.

I liked the fact that this movie didn’t focus so much on the horror of the Purge, even though there were some very disturbing and gruesome scenes. I particularly hated seeing the people who were chained to the bonnets of cars. While I could see why people weren’t attempting to step in and help, it would have been good to see more in the way of varied reactions.

I liked Laney’s character especially, but I would have liked to learn a bit more of her past. It was interesting to see that she had a reputation… but I had zero sympathy for the two shoplifters who knew of her. At the same time, it was intriguing to see that, although the Purge was supposed to stop criminal activity during the rest of the year, there were still people like those schoolgirls who expected to (and probably did) get away with those kinds of crimes.

I especially liked Marcos’ relationship with his boss and I thought Marcos seemed like a really strong person. He was certainly easy to empathise with. I also liked Dante… and even though I didn’t really agree with the Senator’s beliefs, I could understand the way she felt and the logic in it.

While I preferred the second movie out of the franchise, this one did hold my attention throughout and I would watch it again. I’d also be interested in seeing more movies dealing with the aftermath of the events of this one.

(This review may contain spoilers).

When I saw this movie advertised originally, I was immediately interested in the concept, even though I couldn’t have said it was a completely original one.

I really liked that this movie focused as much on the family, or the conflicts between them, as the comedic aspects, though there was a lot of comedy in the film.

It was good to see Tom’s relationship with his son at the beginning of the movie and also how David interacted with his mother, step mother and Rebecca. I would have liked to see some interactions between him and his other sister, though, even though I really didn’t like her.

It would have been good to get a bit of background to Purrkins’ shop and Purrkins himself, even if I could definitely relate to someone who loved cats and was trying to give them good homes, along with teaching potential owners life lessons.

For a lot of the movie, I did feel that Rebecca’s reactions didn’t really seem very realistic, despite liking seeing her interactions with her mother. As the movie went on, I did feel she was shown to have a lot more depth.

I liked the opportunity to see other plots going on, especially since those allowed me to see the characters in other environments, such as when David was working in the offices and having to deal with the politics involved in the board after what happened to his father.

I really liked seeing Tom having to deal with being in cat form and not knowing how to control his jumping and things like that. I thought Mr. Fuzzypants was especially cute… but I would have liked to know what happened to the cat while Tom was stuck in his body – though I wondered if seeing multiple identical cats had something to do with that.

All in all, I really enjoyed this movie. There were a lot of good family moments along with the comedy… plus… I met one of the actors.

This film was definitely one I would watch again in the future.

(This review may contain spoilers).

Although I’m technically an adult, I do still enjoy watching films aimed at younger audiences; and this movie was no exception.

I thought it was interesting to see how the events of the movie fit together. It was good to see how the characters all connected to each other and I liked the relationships between the Walker children and with their mother. I did find the storyline with Jim to be an intriguing one, but I really didn’t like him very much for most of the movie.

I had a lot of sympathy for Roger in particular, though Tatty was a precocious child who reminded me of my niece at times.

I did feel there was a real lack of foreshadowing, such as the implications that Tatty always made up stories and her siblings didn’t believe her. The other thing was the past history involving their father. The times foreshadowing was utilised were fewer than I felt they could have been.

There were a lot more darker scenes than I was expecting, but at the same time, I felt there was a lot of tension in this, which was good. The two Russians were creepy, but rather than coming across as cardboard cutout villains, I felt they had more depth than it first seemed.

I also liked the fact that there were conflicts in the relationships between the children… well, not so much the ‘Amazons’, but definitely the ‘Swallows’. I did, however, question the wisdom in their mother allowing them to go to the island, especially given that the two older children didn’t really come across as all that responsible.

I would have liked a bit of history involving Mr. and Mrs. Jackson, as it wasn’t very clear how Mrs. Walker and her children knew them. I also liked the opportunity to see something of the town… such as the carnival and the stereotypical nosy shopkeeper.

I felt the film was entertaining and although it did seem to lack the spark that would have made me want to watch it again, it was an enjoyable movie to watch. I wouldn’t recommend it for younger or more sensitive children, but it would be good for older children.