A short month with only 4 films…
Bullet Train
#FF22 Bullet Train is a fine if somewhat forgettable entry into the overstylized action genre.
— Gary Fleming (@garyfleming) August 7, 2022
People have codenames that appear onscreen, we jump around the timeline, the dialogue is snappy: you've seen this before.
Entertaining enough action. Generally fine.
Prey
#FF22 Prey is an excellent entry in the Predator franchise.
— Gary Fleming (@garyfleming) August 7, 2022
Beautifully shot, well-paced, tense, brutal action. Midthunder is fantastic as the lead, bringing tenacity and vulnerability to the role.
Original and exciting, while bringing back the ethos of the original.
Must see.
Nope
#FF22 Nope defies neat explanations and simple categorisation.
— Gary Fleming (@garyfleming) August 20, 2022
The cast are strong and it looks great, with the main action being clear and focussed. That recurring sequence in the TV studio is superbly tense. The message is harder to extract.
Enjoyable, but not straightforward
Day Shift
#FF22 Day Shift starts with a solid, quiet action scene that sets the world up neatly...
— Gary Fleming (@garyfleming) August 21, 2022
...and quickly devolves. While the action remains decent, the plot is nonsense and most of the characters don't make sense; world-stuffing the film for a franchise.
Forgettably entertaining
The August Winner
While Nope is interesting, Prey has to be the winner: a great action film that rejuvenates a flagging franchise.