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PODCAST

The Brown Note Movie Review

Movie and Music reviews from The Brown Note radio show presented by Julian Brown, recorded unscripted, unedited and live. Also on YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCggKb5ezgKFT5M27z75jVcQ

tv & film film reviews

All Episodes

14:03

No Time To Die (2021)

The Brown Note Movie Review ·

2021/12/01

After an entire James Bond (why are James plural by the way?) special last year, where I listed every Bond film in order of greatness, how does the final Daniel Craig effort shape up to his 3rd best in my list, Casino Royale, or his rock bottom last outing in the terrible Spectre. Thankfully a lot better, though I still expected more.

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07:31

Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (2021)

The Brown Note Movie Review ·

2021/12/01

Although promising a great deal through its first half, this Marvel Universe exploration into Asia, becomes a little too rote and World of Warcraft as it peters out, to feel rather low stakes by the end. The stellar reviews I feel make it another film where critics have simply celebrated another middling superhero effort, due it not being a straight white man in the lead. At least we get the immortal Tony Leung in a great role.

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08:27

The Guilty (2021)

The Brown Note Movie Review ·

2021/12/01

This American remake of a modern Danish, one room classic, is a remarkably solid turn from the often wayward Training Day director, Antoine Fuqua. He doesn't get in the way of an anxiety inducing thriller starring (almost entirely) a powerhouse Jake Gyllenhaal. Underappreciated.

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16:07

Dune (2021)

The Brown Note Movie Review ·

2021/11/13

When one of the world's greatest directors, Denis Villeneuve, had already landed an impossible 1980's sci-fi godhead classic in Bladerunner 2049, he was the obvious, unimpeachable choice to tackle Frank Herbert's impossible to film best seller. Yet the enormous acclaim afforded this effort points to it being the emperor's new clothes of the modern era, his worst film and the most disappointing film I've seen sine TENET.

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10:06

The Velvet Underground (2021)

The Brown Note Movie Review ·

2021/11/13

Todd Haynes much heralded documentary about a band who are pretty much ground zero for alternative music and created multiple entire universes that are still explored today, is an artistic triumph. If I wanted to nit pick, I'd say it's a little to abstracted. For a band so influential on the history of music, it needs a lacking wider context, it's a little too insular, to be a definitive documentary about them. But for fans of the band who already know all that, it's an illuminating ride.

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16:40

Roadrunner: A Film About Anthony Bourdain (2021)

The Brown Note Movie Review ·

2021/11/03

Ignoring the pointless furore over the director's use of artificial intelligence, to speak a couple of Bourdain's written lines, Morgan Neville does everything I could've hoped for in his biopic of one of my favorite people ever. Namely, take me on the same chronological journey I took with the late lamented star, from the beginning of his career to the bitter end, imbuing each stage with far deeper understanding. It's a more painful journey than I expected too - with a shattering yet illuminating

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10:01

Candyman (2021)

The Brown Note Movie Review ·

2021/11/03

This sequel to the memorable 1992 horror comes with the pedigree of Jordan Peele writing and great reviews, yet, for me falls wildly short of the mark. The setting in the remanents of the most notorious housing project in American history and the subsequent gentrification is about the only thing this slight film gets right.

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15:43

Dave Chappelle And Netflix Vs The World

The Brown Note Movie Review ·

2021/10/13

Arguably the world's apex stand up comedian, Dave Chappelle's latest Netflix stand up, The Closer, is the most controversial of the modern age. Why I think it's also the most important. The most fearless, deliberate and confrontational work of his career, less concerned with being funny than staring down the zeitgeist, taking a blow torch to the sound bite universe and running a freight train through cancel culture. Astonishingly, in an era of gun-shy corporations, Netflix knew full well what they

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15:01

The Card Counter (2021)

The Brown Note Movie Review ·

2021/10/13

This post Iraq war gambling morality play came with impossibly high standards for me to hold it up against. The director, Paul Schrader not on;y wrote Taxi Driver and Raging Bull, but his last film, the devastating state of the world address, First Reformed was my film of the year. It doesn't quite live up to those expectations and feels a little unfinished, but it's still one of the years most interesting films, full of quietly powerful moments and anchored by a stunning lead performance from a

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11:34

Free Guy (2021)

The Brown Note Movie Review ·

2021/09/29

A massive let down to be honest and far closer to the awful Ready Play One than I'd hoped. Living inside a fake reality films set a high water mark back in the 90's with the likes of The Truman Show and The Matrix, this offers next to nothing. The basic concept of Non Playable Characters inside video games attaining sentience is ripe for exploration, but ideas are thrown up in the air and never explored below surface level noise. It maybe the first romantic adventure for the PewDiePie/YouTube video

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06:52

Malignant (2021)

The Brown Note Movie Review ·

2021/09/29

Through sheer relentless volume, Aussie director James Wan gets called the king of horror, because it sure isn't quality. I've rarely been impressed by his films. Though this talked about horror is a wild and strange beast indeed. Never scary and seemingly Michael Bay making the most rote body horror imaginable for two thirds of its run time, Wan then decides to turn into a full blown Dario Argento for an insane final third that makes the whole enterprise worth while.

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08:19

Habit (2021)

The Brown Note Movie Review ·

2021/09/29

A big fat zero percent on Rotten Tomatoes is like cat nip to me, how bad can it be! Sadly not interestingly awful, more just terrible. Ex Disney star turned adult entertainer, Bella Thorne seems to have much the same level of talent and charisma as the rest of this cast of rock stars, models and people probably just walking past. The controversy generated by the blasphemous poster turns into immature shock tactics on screen, with only very fleeting glimpses of the true subversion of something like

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08:51

The Protege (2021)

The Brown Note Movie Review ·

2021/09/05

Full disclosure - as I am massively in love with Maggie Q, a fair review is not possible, but I have been saying for years this criminally underused actor deserves exactly this kind of starring role. This very much post Leon the Professional, slightly post Kill Bill Hitman (woman?!) actioner has been underappreciated by critics as it does one crucial thing right. Most films like this start strong and peter out into tedium in the obvious final third - this stayed fresh throughout. Throw a fantastic

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10:49

Stillwater (2021)

The Brown Note Movie Review ·

2021/09/05

This "inspired by" take on the Amanda Knox murder story has been rightly criticised by her but on its own terms is a hugely underrated film, perhaps as it's been mis-marketed as both a crime film and an actioner. It's neither, it's a very patient, very effecting human drama with a surprisingly bitter sting in the tail. Don't come here expecting a Liam Neeson film, it's far more European and based on character growth and interaction and I found it kind of wonderful. I always liked Matt Damon but

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12:50

The Green Knight (2021)

The Brown Note Movie Review ·

2021/09/05

Writer-director David Lowery has become one of the most interesting and exciting auteurs in cinema. This massive left turn for him into the legend of King Arthur thankfully hews far closer to John Boormans 80's classic Excalibur than Guy Ritchie's nadir, though in truth is a far more art-house experience. Dev Patel and Alicia Vikander excel in their meatiest roles in years and the production design is stunning and stylish throughout. Some occasional drifts into boredom and deviations from the source

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06:26

The Forever Purge (2021)

The Brown Note Movie Review ·

2021/08/26

The fifth entry into the occasionally polemical and relevant Purge franchise wastes the brilliant choice to relocate in post Trump America to Texas and the border. Despite having a cast array of low-hanging hand grenades it could set off with Mexicans, immigration and red-necks, it never feels like it engages with anything and could've been about anywhere. American Ninja is even mentioned.

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08:35

The Suicide Squad (2021)

The Brown Note Movie Review ·

2021/08/26

We should thank the DC universe for providing never ending intrigue. The operate like a failed state on the border of Marvel's Europe. After the shocking abomination of WW1984 and the totally unexpected triumph of Zack Snyder's Justice League, we now get a poached Marvel director to fairly decently helm a perfectly watchable invocation of Deadpool.

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10:06

Jungle Cruise (2021)

The Brown Note Movie Review ·

2021/08/04

Though sadly hewing closer to the likes of The Mummy or Pirates of the Caribbean than Indiana Jones, a winningly likeable cast, with good chemistry, elevate this amiable romp to being a much needed balm for troubled times.

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08:32

Wrong Turn (2021)

The Brown Note Movie Review ·

2021/08/04

After a rote first half that presents itself as a Friday the 13th, lets knock the obnoxious kids in the woods, one by one, horror, Wrong Turn explodes in unexpected and far more satisfying ways, recalling the likes of The Wicker Man and ends up much superior to the frankly naff Midsommar.

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08:40

The Tomorrow War (2021)

The Brown Note Movie Review ·

2021/07/28

After reading the less than tepid reviews, I was very surprised by how good the first two acts of this sci-fi actioner were, and how heady and existential the themes it doesn't quite fully engage with are. A dreadful and actually unnecessary third act and frankly lame performance from Chris Pratt crash things back to earth. However I now realise what I've been missing in the stellar Aussie actress Yvonne Strahovski, who is a revelation and who along with an excellent JK Simmons, deserved a movie on

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