Numerous films have been released this year. Some of them are remembered for the most inglorious reasons imaginable.
Twelve eventful cinema months come to an end. But as always, not everything that shone on the screen was gold – sometimes despite success at the box office. And so, in addition to hits and films that were neither fish nor meat, there were numerous real disappointments. Representing the past few months, twelve films that made you lose your appetite for popcorn.
“The King’s Man – The Beginning”
The prequel to the “Kingsman” series wants to be both satire and adventure film and fails at both. With their overstylized violence, the two predecessors already operate on the border of good taste, or just above it. “The King’s Man – The Beginning” tries the same patterns in a World War I setting, but comes across as completely overloaded and hyperactive. If ADHD were a movie, it would be called The King’s Man – The Beginning.
“Scream”
A film can be as self-referential and “meta” as it wants. However, when he unpacks the same tricks as his four (!) predecessors and mixes them with increasingly outrageous twists, the filmmaking is without esprit. It doesn’t help that instead of the usual cast, which only happens marginally in “Scream”, there’s a new cast that the clumsy Ghostface wants to get at. Especially not when the new main character in a slasher is so bloodless.
“Moonfall”
Where Roland Emmerich (67) is on it, Roland Emmerich is also in it. More than ever in the movie “Moonfall”, whose title basically sums up the plot. Looking at the two-hour video game cutscene, one happily longs back to the time when Emmerich protested that he no longer wanted to make disaster films. The “Schwäbische Spielberg” is more conspicuously stingy than ever with new ideas in “Moonfall” and once again relies on the ever-same visual values and character drawings, which he has been using for 30 years now.
“Death on the Nile”
For all the bickering about Armie Hammer (36), one of the main actors of “Death on the Nile”, nobody but Armie Hammer can do anything. There are other reasons why Kenneth Branagh’s (61) second trip as master detective Hercule Poirot still drowns. A lot of style, little substance. But the fact that the Agatha Christie story was filmed as Poirot in 1978 and starring Peter Ustinov (1921-2004) didn’t make the task any easier. The most benevolent adjective to describe the new edition is therefore: unnecessary.
“Uncharted”
The dynamics of a video game can only rarely be transferred to the screen. Or to put it another way: What captivates a gamer for 10+ hours in front of the screen does not necessarily have to work for two hours in the cinema. “Uncharted” with Everybody’s Darling Tom Holland (26) also has the problem that with “Tomb Raider” basically the same video game film has been released several times, just with a woman as the main character. And what does a male “Tomb Raider” call himself? That’s right Indiana Jones.
“morbidity”
There was something: Oscar winner Jared Leto (50) got his own Marvel comic film adaptation in 2022. As a vampire anti-hero “Morbius” but like “Spider-Man” and his favorite enemy “Venom” via Sony Pictures. The catastrophic plot let Leto die of thirst as a bloodsucker on his outstretched arm – of all things, while the oversaturation of Origin stories progresses cheerfully. All hobby vampires probably wanted to watch the sunrise after the dark film.
“Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness”
The premise of “Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness” offers literally endless possibilities. But what everyone can observe with themselves in the supermarket also applies to Hollywood blockbusters: too much choice is paralyzing. Benedict Cumberbatch’s (46) journey through the multiverse is shockingly unimaginative – with the exception of a short sequence with alternative versions of well-known superheroes. The character development of Scarlet Witch aka Wanda (Elizabeth Olsen, 33) makes you angry when you look at the successful series “WandaVision”. The insight on the subject of the multiverse: If you open too many doors, you shouldn’t be surprised if you get a draught.
“Jurassic World – A New Age”
“Let them die out!” What Dino critics are demanding within the “Jurassic World” series also applies to the commercially successful but frighteningly weak film reboot. “A New Age” is a symbol for the unspeakable nostalgia rail, which is currently being ridden to death on TV. Because there is nothing “new” about part three of the series. Instead, it relies on the joy of reuniting with Alan Grant (Sam Neill, 75), Ellie Sattler (Laura Dern, 55) and Ian Malcolm (Jeff Goldblum, 70) being somehow enough to overlook an uninspired plot. Also known as the “Star Wars” phenomenon…
“The Gray Man”
“The Gray Man” reportedly cost streaming provider Netflix $200 million. The result is “James Bond” meets “Mission: Impossible”, but ordered from Wish. With every fiber of its being, The Gray Man wants to be the next big agent franchise. In this megalomania, however, the strip forgets to do the most rudimentary homework in terms of dramaturgy. On the other hand, Ryan Gosling (41) and the new “Sexiest Man Alive” Chris Evans (41), who desperately conjures up his inner Nicolas Cage (58) in “The Gray Man”, cannot fight it.
“Thor: Love & Thunder”
Anyone who is worried that the Marvel Universe will say goodbye to the slapstick will see themselves brutally confirmed with “Thor: Love & Thunder”. With his second “Thor” film, Taika Waititi (47) turns the absurdity button to the limit – at the expense of the serious topics in the film. About the cancer of Natalie Portman’s (41) character and above all to the detriment of the tragic villain, as always fervently embodied by Christian Bale (48). But if everything is just a big joke and consequences don’t matter, then sooner or later the hustle and bustle will miss your ass – no matter how shrill it may be staged. Even more: As a viewer, you catch yourself crossing your fingers for the butcher of the gods (Bale), who offers valid arguments for his actions.
“Halloween End”
history repeats itself. When John Carpenter (74) brought “Halloween” to the screen in 1978, the true horror should materialize through the numerous sequels – because they were horribly bad across the board. With “Halloween Ends” the latest series about the masked murderer Michael Myers finds its finale, the film title almost sounds like a promise. Yes, David Gordon Green (47), Danny McBride (45) and Co. are trying something new with their third film together, which deserves a special mention. At times, however, with “Halloween Ends” it seems as if you have decided on some storylines five minutes before the start of shooting.
“Amsterdam”
David O. Russell (64) in the director’s chair, with Christian Bale, one of his favorite mimes, along with Hollywood all-purpose weapon Margot Robbie (32) – that sounds on paper like the Oscar candidate of the year. But “Amsterdam” does not disappoint despite, but because of the gigantic potential that he carelessly gives away. The film can’t decide for a long time what it actually wants to be. And when he does, it’s too late.