Episode 284 Free Fire
Could this be the most aptly titled film of the year so far? Perhaps, but aptitude is not the measure of a good movie. FREE FIRE is a an exercise in imprecise filmmaking. Director Ben Wheatley wanted to make a nasty, fun dark comedy that delights in watching its characters brutally kill one another, but the shootout is sloppily directed. Its hard to get a sense of where the bullets are flying, and how many each shooter has before they run out. The film is full of great actors, but Wheatley doesnt seem to care about any of them. His last film, HIGH RISE (episode #223) was a similarly misanthropic mess. Phil would like to see Wheatley make a film that might betray his emotions; an earnest movie about people dear to his heart, rather than another violently ironic black comedy.
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