Sneha Jaiswal's Blog, page 121

Twins The Series Review

Most stories focusing on identical twins tend to emphasize on polar-opposite personalities despite all the surface similarities, however, Thai series “Twins” is about two brothers who are both athletes, hot-headed, and self-centered. One of them is just a LOT more happy-go-lucky than the other, while the other is asocial, and exceedingly arrogant for no apparent reason.

Directed by Pro Siwasit Phondongnok and Ball Kanathorn Tabvilai, “Twins” is a 12-episode sports-themed romantic drama. Frame Ritchanon Sriprasitdacha portrays both Sprite and Zee, estranged twin brothers and athletes in their respective disciplines. Sprite, a cheerful jiu-jitsu champion, and Zee, a dedicated rising volleyball star, have their worlds collide when goons, targeting Sprite, mistakenly attack and injure Zee. To safeguard Zee’s sporting future, their mother persuades Sprite to assume Zee’s identity, leading to a challenging double life.

For a sport-themed show, there’s a good amount of volleyball throughout the episodes, although, a lot of it looks quite stages, but to the creators’ credit – it all looks a lot more believable than some of the other Thai series featuring sport segments. Ritchanon Sriprasitdacha is quite cute as both Sprite and Zee, but the characters aren’t fleshed out well, so it becomes confusing to differentiate between the twins in the second-half. The title leads one to believe you’d see enough of both brothers, but there’s a lot more focus on Sprite’s struggles to fit in the volleyball team and juggle jiujitsu along with it.

While Zee has a crush on a girl called Salmon (Mimi Ruethaiphat Phatthananapaphangkorn), Sprite begins to fall for volleyball player First (Ryan Panya Mcshane) while pretending to be Zee. Prior to Sprite secretly taking Zee’s place, Zee didn’t get along with any of his team-mates, least of all with First. So there’s a decent amount of comedy generated by a happy Sprite replacing the grumpy Zee, leaving the volleyball team bewildered over his improved friendly attitude but worsened volleyball skills. While Zee is transparently mean-spirited, Sprite who seemed to be the better of the two, turns out to be a bigger jerk by the end of the show, as he causes a lot of confusion and pain to the unsuspecting First, when the two brothers start swapping their places once Zee recovers from his injuries.

There are two more secondary couples in “Twins”, one follows Sprite’s best-friend Thun (Pooh Phiangphor) falling for the cute volleyball player Sam (Team Tatchanon Thongpao), although the latter has a huge crush on Zee. Another romantic sub-plot involving Zee’s teammates could’ve been completely removed from the show, as their story does nothing but serve some steamy scenes while the primary pair’s romance is still in the incubation period.

For a series with an “enemies to lovers” trope, “Twins” is entertaining in parts, but becomes a pain to watch in the last few episodes. The show should’ve been condensed to a eight-episode drama.

Rating: 5 on 10. Twins is available on GagaOolala.

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Nostalgia Issues 1-2 Review

The titular protagonist of the Scott Hoffman and Danijel Žeželj (Artist) comic book series, Nostalgia, is a rock star, with his music being likened to the sounds of Hendrix’s electric guitar on the very first page of the first issue. However, the cover for the first issue featuring Nostalgia’s face was reminiscent of another star – David Bowie.

First issues of 30 page comic-book series like this are hard to judge. But “Nostalgia” is a gripping neon fuelled dystopian tale which felt a little longer than it really is. Set in a dystopian future, it follows fading music star Craig Mantis, popularly known to the rest of the world as rock-God Nostalgia. Craig receives a mystery package, which leads him to a stranger and an unexpected new chapter in his life.

The artwork is a neon burst of colors, which almost blinded me, especially since I was reading the comic series on my phone’s Kindle app. However, it’s the flashy colors and illustrations that make the story engaging, even though not much happens in issue one. This is why I picked up the second issue immediately, although it wasn’t as exciting as the first one.

It’s challenging to predict where the story is heading after the first two issues, but the dominant theme revolves around Craig living in a broken world where the natural order of nature has collapsed, and technocrats reign supreme. Despite youth protests dominating the streets and a persistent divide between the rich and the poor, some believe Craig’s music can be a powerful tool in fighting for a more balanced and harmonious world.

So far, “Nostalgia” promises to be an intriguing comic-book series that explores the intersection of music, rebellion, and a fractured society.

Rating: 3.5 on 5. Nostalgia is available on Kindle Unlimited.

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Talk to Me Review – Possession is the new kick

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Sneha Jaiswal (Twitter | Instagram)

Move over alcohol, drugs, violent video games, and kinky sex, the teens in Australian horror film “Talk to Me” have a new kick they cannot get enough of – demonic possession.

Directed by brothers Michael Philippou and Danny Philippou, the film follows a group of friends who become hooked on using an embalmed hand to summon spirits that enter their bodies for a few minutes. This out-of-body experience comes with strict rules, and when one of them goes too far, things get far too out of hand.

Danny Philippou has co-written the story for “Talk to Me” with Bill Hinzman and Daley Pearson, spinning a fresh modern day tale of haunting in the times of social media. Sophie Wilde plays primary protagonist Mia, who spends most of her time at best-friend Jade’s place (Alexandra Jensen) and is still struggling to come to terms with her mother’s death. Mia goads Jade into going to a seance party where an embalmed hand is used to talk to ghosts. The youngsters keep hosting these supernatural parties and in one such get-together, Mia lets Jade’s younger brother Riley (Joe Bird) use the hand, when Jade isn’t around and the boy is overpowered by the spirit, leading to terrible consequences.

I like how the film lulls you into its leisurely paced world of teenagers getting high on a bizarre new thrill, it all seems fun and games, until it isn’t. “Talk to Me” unfolds like a spurious drug, which gives its users a high at first and then just goes for the kill. Sophie Wilde as the insecure, attention-seeking Mia is a train-wreck, which is meant as a compliment, because Wilde subtly captures all the nuances of being a troubled teenager. Mia starts off as a likable dependable friend, who watches out for Riley, when his own sister doesn’t, but she is also a big people-pleaser and gives in to easily to the whims and fancies to those around her, just to be be likes. Red Flag.

The cinematography in “Talk to Me” offers an intriguing blend of a indie teen drama and a disturbing thriller. Striking a good balance between day and night scenes, the creators commendably avoid overusing jump scares and dimly lit shots to establish the horror ambiance. Even the background score consists more of ambient sounds than songs, which helps set the eerie atmosphere. For example, one of the first spirits to appear in the story is that of a woman who appears to have drowned to her death, so you often hear the sound of water in the background.

With a 95 minute runtime, “Talk to Me” is crisp, even though it seems to meander a bit in between, focusing on a character’s personal struggle, which feels like a digression at first, but makes more sense in the second-half. The Philippou brothers cleverly bring the story a full-circle at the end, which is foreshadowed well by the developments in the plot and will leave most viewers satisfied with the climax!

Watch “Talk to Me” on Prime Video (India) or rent it on YouTube.

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Letter to a Pig – Short Film Review

A holocaust survivor recalls hiding a pigsty for days, thankful for the cover provided by the animals in the short film “Letter to a Pig”. A bored classroom of school children listens, giggles, yawns, squeals, as the man talks about writing a letter to a pig that saved his life. But one young listener is profoundly affected by the tale, slipping into a nightmare, where she interprets the fear, anger, and hopes of a generation far removed from the horrors of war, yet reeling under the legacy of collective generational trauma.

Written and directed by Tal Kantor, the film is dominated by a stark black-and-white palette, with the animation team (Meton Joffily, Anne Kraehn, Kantor) employing a blend of different art styles to produce a surreal story about what it means to be human. While some parts seem to have been rotoscoped (a technique where animators draw over real people/objects), other parts are a mix of drawings, photographs and digital animation techniques.

On the surface, the theme of “Letter to a Pig” might seem like a straightforward exploration of the generation gap and the lack of understanding between those who endured the horrors of war and those who grew up far removed from its effects. But given the abstract storytelling and the nightmarish second half, different viewers can walk away with different meanings.

There’s a scene where the students surround a giant pig, which is feral in nature, and kill it. After its death, the pig transforms into a babe, and one student takes it in their arms, nurtures it, and sets it free. The climactic scenes symbolize how survivors of trauma can either let their pain or hatred consume them, leading to an unending cycle of violence, or break the chain and start afresh. Overall, “Letter to a Pig” is riveting film, with a fresh animation style and a haunting soundtrack which complements its profound themes.

You can watch the short on YouTube. It’s also embedded below.

Role Play Review: Kaley Cuoco’s Assassin Act Lacks Lethal Edge

Rating: 2.5 out of 5.

Sneha Jaiswal (Twitter | Instagram)

Emma leads a double life as a secret assassin, and forgets her seventh wedding anniversary because she was busy killing someone in a different country. To make amends with her husband Dave, she suggests they role-play at a fancy hotel, but their night takes a twisted turn when her identity is exposed. Now, chased by bounty hunters, Emma’s secret puts both her life and her family at risk.

Directed by Thomas Vincent and written by Seth W. Owen, the 2024 movie “Role Play” bears resemblance to “The Family Plan,” portraying a former secret assassin feeling from home with his unsuspecting family, who believe they are setting out on a simple road trip, while in reality they are being chased by armed goons. Both movies are comedies, have their fun moments, what for an action-comedy, “Role Play” has a lot of less combat, shooting, or action scenes as one would hope for.

Kaley Cuoco portrays the protagonist, Emma, whose undercover hit job identities involve simple swaps like changing wigs and eye lenses. Given the exaggerated premise about a lone woman traveling around the world killing prominent personalities, one really wishes the creators would’ve embraced the farce and given Cuoco some mission-impossible like moves and transformations. The writing doesn’t go beyond the basics, and thus flits between boring stretches and some fun moments in between. Besides, Kaley Cuoco appeared to be more like she was role-playing an assassin than being the real deal. Now that I think about it, it brings to mind the brilliant portrayal of Jella Hasse as a lone killing machine in the Netflix series “Kleo.” In “Role Play,” there seemed to be a deliberate effort to give as few action scenes to Kaley Cuoco as possible; which is such a shame, given the primary plot.

David Oyelowo was pretty hilarious as Emma’s sweet husband Dave Brackett, who freaks out just over the fact that a man died in the same hotel they were having their role-play night. Imagine the shock he goes through when he learns the truth about his wife. The kids don’t have much of a role in the movie, but surprisingly, the principal antagonist doesn’t get much screen space too. Bill Nighy makes a strong impression in his cameo as Bob Kellerman, a chatty old man with ulterior motives who seeks out Emma on her date night with Dave. Things might have been far more entertaining if he had a larger role in the story.

I really don’t have much to say about the cinematography or the background music, nothing really stood out. Overall, “Role Play” is mildly entertaining and completely forgettable. Watch if you haven’t seen titles with similar plots and perhaps you might enjoy the film more than I did.

Rating: 5 on 10. “Role Play” is available on Prime Video.

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Dragons of Wonderhatch Episode 7 Review

Minor story spoilers ahead

This edition of “Dragons of Wonderhatch” (Wandahatchi: Soratobu Ryu no Shima) most definitely had my favorite scene in the series, and I don’t think the creators will be able to top it. It will be amazing if they do, though! It’s the moment when Tyme (Okudaira Daiken) tries to rescue his human friend Nagi (Sena Nakajima) from a giant bubble she is trapped in. It’s reminiscent of the famous Renaissance painting titled “The Creation of Adam” by Michelangelo and looks absolutely gorgeous. The fantastical scene is pictured below.

Titled “Awakening”, episode 7 of “Dragons of Wonderhatch” opens with the tense cliffhanger episode 6 closed with – Nagi getting fatally injured during Space’s attack. Tyme’s little dragon Guphin comes to Nagi’s rescue and also develops new powers as an evil entity in Upananta awakens from a long slumber.

While animated scenes were completely missing from the last edition, viewers get a slice of the colorful Upananta and its dragons once again. Jairo, who had seemed like the primary antagonist in the first few episodes, finally explains what really is happening. The cinematography beautifully blends the anime realm with live-action, as the two different worlds literally collide in the tale at this juncture.

Tyme hopes his hero Akuta (Mackenyu) will help avert the catastrophic events unfolding above the floating island the latter created, and a tense battle between Akuta and Space (Morita Go) ensues. While Mackenyu and Morita Go are fantastic as feuding heroes, Okudaira Daiken manages to hold his own as the pacifist, idealistic Tyme. While Tyme can be mildly annoying due to his rosy, naive vision for peace in times of destruction, his character stands as a worthy representation of a young generation that steadfastly opposes violence and believes in talks over war.

Rife with revelations, confrontations, and a mysterious twist, the penultimate chapter of “Dragons of Wonderhatch” sets solid ground for an exciting climax. I loved this edition and the cinematography continues to be consistently good in the series.

You can stream “Dragons of Wonderhatch” on Disney Plus and Hulu.

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Little Witches Review – Magical Ode to Louisa May Alcott

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

Sneha Jaiswal (Twitter | Instagram)

“Little Witches: Magic in Concord” by Leigh Dragoon, retells a beloved classic with fantasy elements – Louisa May Alcott’s Little Women.

As someone who read and loved the original work as a youngster, I obviously had my apprehensions about reading this graphic novel. However, Leigh Dragoon spins a charming ode to Alcott’s work by re-imagining the March sisters as young witches in Concord. So, the story follows the trials of Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy. The author also introduces a mystery sub-plot involving the disappearance of precious objects and animals in Concord, so the sisters try to unravel the cause of the new disturbances in their region.

Each sister embodies traits reminiscent of the characters they are inspired by: Meg, the eldest, takes on the nurturing role akin to their mother when Mrs. March is away; Jo is the feisty and rebellious one, venturing into forbidden magic; Beth is the quiet peacemaker, often settling disputes among her siblings; and Amy, the youngest, oscillates between causing and getting into trouble with her childish antics. And in an interesting twist, Laurie is African-American, and his grandfather Augustus is a former slave who escaped bondage to become a ‘federal witch-finder,’ dedicated to apprehending those who misuse their powers.

The digital artwork in “Little Witches” wasn’t as enchanting as its magic-themed story. However, it’s cute enough to keep viewers engaged, especially younger readers who have yet to be saturated with the snazzy styles of big action comics. It was a little confusing to differentiate between Beth and Jo in the first few pages of the novel, however, once Jo gets a hair-cut, it became a lot more easier to tell the sisters apart.

About 160 pages long, “Little Witches: Magic in Concord” is an engaging read, however, the last few pages were a real muddle. Leigh Dragoon wraps up the novel with a side-story called “The Problem of Too Many Pests”, which was random, and makes the reader feel like the story ends abruptly. Instead of feeling like dessert, the aftermath chapter was an annoyance. Regardless, the graphic novel is a fun fan-fiction like tale.

Rating: 3.5 on 5. “Little Witches” is also available on Kindle Unlimited.

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American Nightmare Docu Series Review

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Sneha Jaiswal (Twitter | Instagram)

In 2015, Mare Island resident Aaron Quinn called 911 to report his girlfriend had been kidnapped after his home was invaded by unknown men. But Aaron made the call ten hours after the attack took place, raising suspicions over what really happened to his girlfriend Denise Huskins.

The 2024 three-part Netflix documentary “American Nightmare” covers Denise Huskins’ disappearance that soon came to be known as the “Gone Girl” case in popular media. Titled “The Boyfriend,” part one opens with a brief home video of Aaron and Denise enjoying time at the beach. Soon, the screen goes black, and a date stamp of “March 23, 2015” appears – the audio recording of Aaron Quinn’s call to 911 plays, where he reports that someone broke into his house and forcibly took away Denise for ransom money.

From original video clippings of Aaron’s interrogation to television news snippets of the media coverage the case garnered, “American Nightmare” has plenty of material for comprehensive coverage of the case, complemented by a whole host of interviews. This includes Aaron and Denise’s testimonies, along with family members, lawyers, journalists, and police officers who worked on the case. So, unlike a few Netflix documentaries, this one presents as many sides of the story as possible, managing to avoid a lopsided narrative.

“It’s always the boyfriend…” – the cops were sure Aaron had something to do with Denise’s disappearance, believing he most likely murdered her and concocted a cock-and-bull story about the kidnapping. But when Denise was freed by her kidnapper after a harrowing ordeal of being drugged, raped, and traumatized, the police accused her of staging all of it. Was she really kidnapped and then courteously dropped off a few steps away from her home without any ransom money, or was it an elaborate ‘gone girl’ like hoax? For those who don’t know anything about the case, this documentary is a compelling look at how criminal investigations are often distorted by biases, narratives, and media coverage.

“American Nightmare” deftly demonstrates how confirmation bias works and also exposes corruption within the criminal justice system. More often than not, officers are more enthused to close their cases than get to the truth. While it might be understandable for true-crime enthusiasts and the general public to be swayed by postulations based on past precedents, it becomes absolutely dangerous and results in a grave miscarriage of justice when investigators let bias color their judgement. The third part of the documentary wraps up the tale on an emotionally triumphant note, where the truth of what really transpired is finally cracked with the help of hero cop Misty Carausu.

Stream “American Nightmare” on Netflix.

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Percy Jackson and the Olympians Episode 6 Review

After their fateful encounter with the Greek god of war Ares in episode 5, the lead trio of ‘Percy Jackson and the Olympians’ gains new insights into who could have stolen Zeus’ bolt. The kids must quickly reach the underworld to complete their quest and prevent the Gods from going to war.

Titled “We Take a Zebra to Vegas,” episode 6 begins with Percy Jackson (Walker Scobell), Annabeth Chase (Leah Jeffries), and Grover Underwood (Aryan Simhadri) trying to figure out where they are, cramped in a truck filled with animals supposed to be heading to Vegas. The plan is simple – they find Olympian deity Hermes and ask him for an easy way to the underworld. But Hermes is in a flashy casino called the ‘Lotus,’ where time moves differently, and people tend to forget things…

Set largely in a colorful-trippy Vegas casino, this chapter of the series has the potential to be super fun, but the direction fails to exploit the comic potential of the script effectively. Leah Jeffries maintains a constant shade of serious smugness as Annabeth, which is becoming far too monotonous. It’s as if the young lead actors have either been instructed to tone down their emotions or they simply have a limited range of expressions. Considering how the series has been shaping up so far, I strongly suspect it’s the former. So, what could have been a riotously entertaining episode manages to be a mildly entertaining one nonetheless.

In an interesting twist, Percy experiences mysterious dreams that hint at a larger, darker conspiracy afoot, extending beyond the war between the gods. The episode gets over in a flash and even though the kids make significant progress in their quest, they are hard-pressed for time and allies. The oracle’s prophecy about Percy being betrayed is yet to come true, so the next episode should be a lot more interesting!

‘Percy Jackson and the Olympians’ is available to stream on Disney Plus.

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The Family Plan – Daddy’s Got Secrets & A Risky Plan B

Rating: 3 out of 5.

Sneha Jaiswal (Twitter | Instagram)

Dan Morgan is a boring car salesman with three kids, never venturing beyond town, anti-technology, and stuck in the same weekly routine. However, Dan used to be a lethal assassin, which is why he lives a low-key no frills life. When his past catches up with him and an army of goons seek to kill him, he must take his family on the run and eventually tell them the truth.

Directed by Simon Cellan Jones and written by David Coggeshall, “The Family Plan” stars Mark Wahlberg as the protagonist Dan Morgan, a former assassin turned salesman, while Michelle Monaghan plays his unsuspecting physiotherapist wife, Jessica Morgan. Van Crosby and Zoe Colletti portray their teenage kids – gaming-obsessed Kyle and the older Nina who plans to ditch her own career dreams to follow her boyfriend to college. Iliana Norris gets to be the cutest Morgan in the family, toddler Max, who is always smiling, happy, and a total charm machine for anybody with a soft spot for adorable, smiley kids.

One of the first action sequences in “The Family Plan” involves Dan getting ambushed while shopping for diapers with Baby Max, so he is forced to fight the bad guy while the baby is still strapped to him. The exaggerated but entertaining fight helps establish the ruthlessness of Dan’s enemies – they don’t care about a dead toddler being collateral damage. The baby is the best comedic-trope in this film, which doesn’t have a lot of novelty to offer. However, Michelle Monaghan brings a cheery energy to the movie as the super-fit working mom Jessica, who feels she is stuck in a rut and is thus game for all the sudden spontaneity her husband shows – like taking the entire family on an impromptu road trip to Vegas and throwing away all their phones (because he doesn’t want them tracked by the dozens of dangerous armed goons chasing them).

The sub-plot about Dan’s teen son Kyle being a pro-gamer was relatable, two of my younger brothers also play the same game Kyle is obsessed with – Valorant. It’s a first-person tactical shooter game, which is pretty popular with most people who love e-sports. Kyle’s gaming is a sore-point between him and dad Dan, but the script cleverly uses his gaming skills towards the second-half of the story and also incorporates some good father-son bonding moments. Zoe CoVan Crosby reminded me of Nolan Gould (Luke Dunphy in ‘Modern Family’), with his boyish charm and open smile, quite unlike the ‘awkward gamer boy’ personality of his character Kyle, but he pulls it off. Zoe Colletti ranges from the raging rebellious teen to vulnerable lost youngster in her part.

So, well, the cast makes a cute American family, and “The Family Plan” is pretty entertaining for most parts. However, the whole “Dan is scared to tell his family the truth” gets too dragged out. I was hoping the cat would be out of the bag by the middle of the runtime at least, leading to some comedic drama and exaggerated action scenes, but it’s postponed until the very end, testing viewer patience. The action sequences in the climax were also quite underwhelming.

Regardless, the engaging screenplay, and a peppy soundtrack makes the movie worth a one time watch for the weekend.

Rating: 6/10. Stream “The Family Plan” on Apple TV.

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