All posts by Tarek Fayoumi…The Paterson of his Craft!

I am someone who strives to become a professional critic. I watch and review many movies. I view the eyes of movies as something as an art form. I have followed many critics over the years, but once I was thirteen I knew writing film reviews was going to be my passion. I learned from watching multiple episodes of Ebert And Roeper in my teen years, and then in middle school I began writing film reviews for a newspaper club. I am also an avid fan of the arts of Chicago including Theatre, Comedy, and music. Films, however, are my primary focus.
Film reviews

I.S.S. Review

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When it comes to movies set in space, there are always limited resources for scenes set many miles above the earth. Movies with this premise invigorate and captivate me because time is typically of the essence. In I.S.S., the mission of the film is critical and the conflicts in a space shuttle boil. From my experience with the film, however, I felt that the direction was a bit misconstrued. The story begins with the foundation of going into outer space, but the writing is lacking. As the film moves forward, tension and danger rapidly rise. I.S.S. has some amazing visuals of a spaceship adventure, but it is rushed.

The film is focused on American and Russian astronauts. The American astronauts are Dr. Kira Foster (played by Ariana DeBose), Gordon Barrett (played by Chris Messina), and Christian Campbell (played by John Gallagher Jr.). The Russian astronauts are Weronika Vetrok (played by Masha Mahkova), Nicholai Pulov (played by Costa Ronin), and Alexey Pulov (played by Alexey Pulov). Everyone on board is there to conduct research missions. However, their main mission turns to protecting themselves when they are informed that the United States is at war with Russia. Both the American Astronauts and the Russian Astronauts are told to take control of the I.S.S. Soon, no one on board can trust anyone which leads to mixed messages and concerns about survival. The onboard missions no longer matter when the primary goal is to stay alive to see home again. Because the astronauts are at odds, communication between the crews breaks down on the space shuttle.

The film demonstrates how the war on Earth turns into a treacherous war between the teams aboard the I.S.S. Again, the writing does not provide much context as to why individuals are at risk or how they are associated with what happens below. The film becomes a death match in space which is played out for the purpose of maximizing suspense. The scenery may seem revolutionary, but the concept itself is somewhat blurry. Why is there a war on Earth? How do the astronauts relate to it? How do they contribute to the conflict? Some of these questions are explained…barely. The film just jumps from moments of actionto various conclusions.

This movie is not amazing enough to have mass appeal with audiences, but the frequent floating in the I.S.S. did appeal to me. I found the home life on the spaceship more fascinating than many other aspects of the film. The set design is strong in I.S.S. and appears to provide a realistic idea of how the inside of a space shuttle may look in real life. However, the set alone was not enough to make the movie an exhilarating experience.

I.S.S. is monumental from a technological perspective, but the writing is completely rushed. It should have been an experience of epic suspense. Unfortunately, since there is no puzzle to it, it fails to be breathtaking. I left the film feeling neutral about my experience. Two out of four stars for I.S.S.

Film reviews

Bad Hombres Review

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Bad Hombres is one of those thrillers that starts out very promising. It sets up with a foundation of exploring the lives of people working to feed their families and finds a direction of conflict. The problems that arise are disastrous in finding employment with a certain immigration status and landing in dangerous territory. To an extent though, the writing feels like a blur that just fills up missing spaces in between the action. Problems arise in the film and there is a rush to find a solution with little regard for a quality story. This film hits uncharted territory and struggles to remain on pitch.

The movie opens on a setting where there are immigration problems, and many illegal immigrants are desperate for an income. Lack of money and citizenship struggles set the tone for Bad Hombres. It takes place in Lucera, New Mexico, a landscape of dry lands and empty fields where just a few people own many plots of land. The owners though, may not be as trustworthy as the audience may think. The tone of trusting no one with anything is set in Bad Hombres.

The film opens with the story of Felix (played by Diego Tinoco). He is an immigrant trying to put food on the table for his family. He teams up with Alfonso (played by Hemky Madera) and they both agree to do work for Donnie (played by Luke Hemsworth) and Steve (played by Paul Johansson). Felix and Alfonso begin the work of digging holes in the desert for Donnie and Steve. The job becomes unsettling as Donnie starts to show signs of strange personality traits and innuendos towards Felix and Alfonso. After a drastic and life-threatening incident with an individual getting shot, Felix and Alfonso make a run for it trying to hide from the crime scene they witnessed.

With Felix being one of the shooting victims, his injuries become the central conflict of the film. Alfonso is the one that aids Felix in finding a way to survive the dangers following them after their incident with Donnie and Steve. Felix refuses hospital treatment because he fears being deported. Regardless, everyone will suffer…if they are caught. The life of Felix and Alfonso is on the line—the authorities, illegal immigration operations, and criminal activity are the moving parts of one wild and destructive ride in Bad Hombres.

The film shifts a lot and the writing is lacking here. It feels as if it just keeps finding ways to fill time instead of moving the story along with quality content. The film does not have the surprises most would expect in a thriller like this. It is an experience where the suspense builds and anxiety-provoking stressors are anticipated yet not executed properly. This is one of those films where I feel it had much more potential to be more astounding, but fell short through weak attempts to thrill. Bad Hombres is a ride where the suspense is shaky and keeps halting in its tracks leaving moviegoers disappointed.

Bad Hombres is dark and brutal with floppy writing. The moving parts never come together and result in a ride of uncertainty and frustration. It is an unsatisfying experience. The acting is promising and realistic, but the realism of the film is not in its direction of brilliance. I thought there would be more backstory to the characters in the situation of immigration conflicts. Sadly, there is none of that. The film relies on action and suspense alone in trying to find conclusions and it misses out on providing a full story. Two out of four stars for Bad Hombres.

Film reviews

Cult Killer Review

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This film revolves around a young detective finding purpose in a misdirected life. It starts out with the story of a rough upbringing and finding a mentor that helps. Cult Killer begins with a vibe that feels like an extended episode of Cold Case and then moves in an eerie direction where silence and hidden secrets have a purpose. It is a special brand of thriller. Sadly, it does not take the cake.

The film focuses on the characters of Cassie Holt (played by Alice Eve) and Mikhail Tellini (played by Antonio Banderas). Tellini is a private detective that helps Cassie get back to her roots in life. He helps her to get past her alcoholism stages and to see the brighter sides of her existence. Cassie is a woman who has hustled and done all kinds of shady activities to make ends meet. Mikhail though, helps her climb out of that pattern and then shockingly is murdered. With Cassie saddened and dealing with grief, she is assigned by Rory McMahon to solve Mikhail’s murder. She finds herself discovering a world of evidence she did not know existed. She also realizes the corruption of law-enforcement surrounding Mikhail’s case. With shady executives Victor Harrison (played by Matthew Tompkins) and Wallace (played by Kim DeLonghi) working against Cassie solving the puzzles to Victor’s murder, a trail of questions and answers slowly come along in Cult Killer, yet the story remains lacking.

Cassie finds herself experiencing many flashback moments with Mikhail. She remembers times when he encouraged her to explain things and helped her find resolutions to problems. These moments come up in Cassie’s mind as she moves through her investigation into Mikhail’s murder. He had been stabbed repeatedly and as Cassie deals with grief and the inquiry into her mentor’s death, she also remembers to have her guard up.

In the shadows of Cult Killer, fascinating evidence hides throughout the anxiety-provoking writing of the film. Politics and people from within the case remain prejudicial with the exception of one person named Jamie Douglas (played by Shelley Hennig). Jamie guides Cassie into the deep alleys throughout the film. She explains shady places and situations to Cassie, yet she does it so sporadically and with an ego that leaves her suspect as to whether she can be trusted or not. There is uncertainty about her possible involvement in Mikhail’s murder.

The murder case of Mikhail grows to become a conspiracy theory involving those who are connected to gain success from being deceitful. Jamie begins a cat-and-mouse game which is likely to lead to a trap. It should be thrilling, but ends up more of a boring experience as time begins to run out in Cult Killer. The obstacle here is continuity in that it crams so many other confusing dynamics into the case in the film. It ends up a hot mess of details which are unclear in their accuracy and relevance to the plot of Mikhail’s murder. There is not much of a “cult” feel in Cult Killer. The writing hits a plateau and then simply quits.

The action moments of violence create a picture of a predictable outcome. The rabbit hole does get deeper and darker in Cult Killer, however the revelations are not so invigorating as I anticipated. There are too many moving parts of two-sided hierarchies that keep getting thrown into the mix. They take away from the aspects of the film that the audience anticipatesand desires. The characterizations of the main players get lost along with the storyline. It starts off well, but then becomes a trail of misdirection in the form of mediocre writing. Cult Killer has got a slick idea with a promising premise, but it does not execute well in its continued suspense.

The film disregards the murder case and goes down the road of personal deceitfulness instead. It just does not work here. I will say the cleverness is bold, but the premise of Cult Killer deteriorates quickly. The feeling that no one to be trusted unfolds in ways that make no sense. This should be a straight shot experience, yet it misses in its mark in its of direction of triumph. Two out of four stars for Cult Killer.