Beats is a ride of mischievous behavior combined with friendship. Directed by Brian Welsh, and executive producing done by Steven Soderbergh, Beats includes many risky scenarios that are intriguing, haunting, and inviting. The time period is set in the early 1990s and the film is blended with black and white cinematography. The setting and the cinematography add to the entertainment. The question is, “Could the two main characters have wild fun without serious consequences?”

The film gears on two best friends in Scotland. They are Johnno (played by Cristian Ortega) and Spanner (played by Lorn Macdonald). Both have issues at home that they feel they cannot overcome making their lives miserable. Johnno lives with his abusive and criminal brother, and Spanner is about to move to a new town with his family and his mom’s significant other (who he does not feel close to). Due to the sorrow caused by the fact that Johnno and Spanner are going to be separated from each other, they make a risky decision to party one last time together. They choose to go to an illegal rave part where they run into a mix of destruction, freedom, and legalities that they will always remember.

Given the outcomes of their decisions and associated consequences, their friendship, Johnno and Spanner does not change. What grasped my attention was that the two friends keep making risky decisions, but they view those decisions as a way of making positive memories of their friendship as opposed to focusing on the irreparable consequences. When they make one bad decision, they just make another one, and they find it entertaining. These risky behaviors made Beats engrossing, because I found myself curious wondering who was going to suffer the worst consequences. The outcomes provide much anticipation and interest for viewers.

The film’s timeframe added to the risky decisions, since the main technology they had for fun in the 1990s was radios and TV.  There was no streaming or fancy smart phone technologies which people now use daily for life, work and fun. Beats shows how boredom could have stirred up dangerous times for enjoyment in the 1990s.  Many events like parties and raves were much more exclusive due to limited ways of promoting them. That is why the illegal party becomes a special opportunity for Johnno and Spanner. From their vantage point, it was a chance to have the time of their lives and put their problems behind them for a change.

This was a film that was a different experience on many levels. It was like a young version of Danny Boyle’s Trainspotting (1996) blended with black and white. I felt like I was watching a younger generation of two European misfits trying to boost their confidence and live life to the fullest. Beats is a summer fun ride and I give it four stars.

With limited cinemas being open due to the COVID-19 pandemic, I have been questioning whether to venture out to see the films in the theatre depending on the titles. With Dave Franco’s The Rental, I was glad I ventured out to see this one on the big screen. In Franco’s directorial debut, The Rental is a chilling and suspenseful vacation film that leads a deadly trail of deception, dishonesty, and danger among its four main characters as they take a vacation in an Air BNB in the mountains of Oregon. One tactic leads to another which had me aching in curiosity of what the outcomes would be for Charlie (played by Dan Stevens), Michelle (played by Alison Brie who is also the director’s wife), Mina (played by Sheila Vand), and Josh (played by Jeremy Allen White).

The plot of the film is that the two brothers (Charlie and Josh) decide to take their girlfriends (Michelle and Mina) on a weekend getaway to celebrate work success. At first, some seem skeptical, but figure it is in a house with privacy and that it cannot be that bad (unfortunately it is the opposite). Once they all settle in on the first day, all of them get into hard drugs, drinking and partying. Some decide to call it a night early and go to sleep, but others keep the party going and start engaging in mischievous activities believing they will not get caught. However, they are already in the spotlight due to hidden cameras around the house. Two of the guests start to realize their risqué behavior was probably recorded and worry that they could face all kinds of life-threatening conflicts if the video is out there. The key is that the man behind the cameras can see everything. Soon the house becomes more dangerous, as he sees everything and creates tension via the technology that he uses to challenge the behaviors of his guests.

The tension in the film was intense as were the emotions of the characters as they try to maintain their safety and fight for their lives, but also somehow find the footage of the lewd behavior that was recorded of them. The film reminded me of Vacancy (2007). I felt the premise was similar, but this was a film that has a setting which is much less predictable. Both films ask the same question, i.e. how can the protagonists fight for their lives when the antagonist can see all they do technologically? The Rental takes those tense elements many levels up, given the cameras are wireless and hidden in many places that people would not think about.

The Rental may well have been one of the best movies I have experienced with shock and horror during these hard times. I love films with jump scares as well as people chasing and trying to fight others. The Rental spoke to me throughout its ninety minutes. It had me on edge, and while it was somewhat predictable in some moments, in others twists of shock are thrown in. Franco has done an excellent job with the shock value in his directorial debut. Three and a half stars.

When it comes to movies gearing on peril, I have always been a sucker. Especially when the film involves airplanes in menacing situations or on the verge of finding safety with little time and no assistance, I am a fan.  Some of the films in this genre include Flightplan (2005), Con-Air (1997), Flight (2012), and United 93 (2006). United 93 is hard to watch given it is based on the 9/11 events, but the realism is what makes the film engrossing. The others are not based on actual events, but they have a variety of hazardous airplane scenes that make viewers feel they are part of the action. Patrick Vollrath’s 7500, however, is just average. While it has a chilling setup and structure, it is dry and probably one of the quieter movies with airplane danger that I have seen.

Joseph Gordon-Levitt plays Tobias Ellis, a pilot en route to Paris from Berlin.  Shortly after the flight takes off, terrorists try to take control of the flight deck killing Tobias’s co-pilot, but Tobias manages to keep them locked out of the pit. With one pilot dead, terrorists on the plane cause much harm to the passengers to get Tobias’s attention in order to let them take control of the flight deck, Tobias finds himself having to talk to the flight tower to try to get help from below along with constantly wondering how much danger the passengers are in. Although the premise is a good setup, it is not as suspenseful as I expected, most of the suspense came from the consistent banging on the cockpit by the terrorists along with dialogue via radios.

As always, I try to be fair with my reviews, and I am trying to be positive here even though it is a challenge for this one. 7500 keeps its viewers on edge (albeit quietly), but it is more irritating with repetitive sound effects than suspenseful. I found myself wondering if Tobias would ever leave the cockpit cabin, or if there would be slightly more physical action.  Unfortunately, there was only a light amount of physical action, and not much of a change of scenery. This film just seemed rushed.  Joseph Gordon-Levitt delivered a solid performance, but the script was not very well written and not very memorable.

7500 is a mediocre action/thriller film that could be better, but it was just rushed. The premise had potential, but the filmmaking, the writing, and the setup of the hijacking was where it all lacked. Therefore, I give 7500 just two stars.