Paul McGuire Grimes, creator of Paul’s Trip to the Movies, sat down with some of the stars of Read or Not 2: Here I Come and we get his review. Plus we get his review on Project Hail Mary starring Ryan Gossling.
READY OR NOT 2: HERE I COME (in theaters)
Samara Weaving cemented herself as a new Scream Queen and Final Girl back in 2019 with Ready or Not. Now her character Grace is back for another round in Ready or Not 2: Here I Come. Knowing that its been a few years since the first film came out, the sequel picks up right as that story ended with Grace covered in blood and smoking with the mansion up in flames behind her. Her husband and in-laws are now dead, and she’s wheeled off to the hospital thinking her nightmare is over. She’s now being detained for arson and murder due to what happened and her sister, Faith (Kathryn Newton), arrives in town to help her out. They have a sordid and complicated past. Grace is referred to as The Bride, but she has no idea that her in-laws were a part of a high council of wealthy people who want their revenge on her. Legendary horror director David Cronenberg gathers his lawyer (Elijah Wood), his children (Sarah Michelle Gellar and Shawn Hatosy) and the other families to capture Grace and Faith and put them through another game of Hide and Seek.
-Ready or Not 2: Here I Come is catering toward a specific audience. The directing team of Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett go by the name Radio Silence and they certainly have a distinct style and view in the horror genre.
-The creativity team have taken a page out of the horror action comedy sub genre where it’s not traditionally scary, but it’s playing in multiple genres and doesn’t take itself too seriously.
-Some could say that this film feels like more of the same of what happened in the first film, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing. Radio Silence and their writing team have expanded the lore behind this twisted game of hide and seek by adding in this high council of families and have raised the stakes by adding in this fractured sister relationship between Grace and Faith.
-Kathryn Newton and Samara Weaving make for a great sister duo. Radio Silence has built up a company of actors they work with, and you’ll see plenty of them pop up throughout the film.
-Horror fans will appreciate seeing two different generations of horror stars duke it out with Sarah Michelle Gellar, Elijah Wood and Shawn Hatosy all in their villain eras going up against the new generation of Samara Weaving and Kathryn Newton. They’re all keenly aware of the elevated style of acting needed to pull of these characters and the world this exists in.
-Everyone involved knows the rules for a sequel as the body count is higher, there’s more blood, and there are twists and turns a plenty. No one is safe, and part of the fun is seeing how certain characters meet their demise.
-There’s a playful and giddy quality to these movies that has been kept intact for the sequel.
RATING: 3 out of 5 TICKET STUBS
PROJECT HAIL MARY (in theaters)
Author Andy Weir had a successful page to screen adaption with The Martian and now he has another winner on his hands with the movie adaptation of his book Project Hail Mary. Much like he did with The Martian, Andy Weir takes the audience into the impossible depths of space. We find Ryan Gosling’s character, Ryland Grace, waking up from an induced coma. He’s the only surviving member of his three-person team that’s been in space for quite some team. He realizes that he’s so far into space there’s no feasible way to return to Earth. The film uses extensive flashbacks in the weeks leading up to the mission. Ryland was just an ordinary middle school science teacher, but he is wickedly smarter than he gives himself credit for. He’s brought in to assist on a potential space disaster as there is a series of dots that have been found between Venus and the Sun. These dots appear to be multiplying and blocking out the sun at a rapid pace posing a great danger for Earth’s climate. Ryland not only figures out what these dots are but finds himself unwillingly part of this one-way suicide mission in space known as Project Hail Mary. Sandra Huller stars as Eva Stratt who is the mission leader on Project Hail Mary.
–Project Hail Mary comes under the direction of Christopher Miller and Phil Lord with a screenplay by Drew Goddard. They’re a winning team to bring Andy Weir’s novel to life. You feel a synergy at hand as Lord and Miller have kept their unique voice as filmmakers while honoring Andy Weir’s novel. They’ve worked on 21 Jump Street, Spider-Man Into the Spider-Verse, and The LEGO Movie.
-While it sounds like a technically complicated story to follow, it never feels out of reach as there’s a hopeful, playful energy throughout most of it. They’ve made this more of a space comedy than a disaster epic.
-Ryan Gosling is flawless as Ryland Grace. He somehow pulls off this nerdy, funny vibe. He never stops talking, which could have been annoying under another actor. Gosling injects his naturally charming self into Ryland.
-Every element Lord and Miller infused in this film felt engaging and a new take on the genre. They’re clearing paying homage to Stanley Kubrick with the sumptuous visuals and color palette while leaning into Steven Spielberg’s wonder. There’s a direct reference to Close Encounter of Third Kind’s five-note motif and there’s a whole subplot with Ryland encountering an alien species he names Rocky. He’s clearly treated as an E.T. for a new generation.
-James Ortiz is the voice and puppeteer behind Rocky, and you really fall for this budding friendship between the two of them.
-Lord and Miller have noted about much of this was filmed with real set pieces and practical effects over CGI. This tangible choice goes a long way when seeing this film in IMAX and the wonder if has over the audience.
-This story is about discovery, and it’s best to go in with as little knowledge of what’s to unfold. Try not to watch the trailers ahead of time if you’re unfamiliar with the source material. See it on the biggest screen possible
RATING: 4.5 out of 5 TICKET STUBS