Rapid Reviews || Fear Street Part One: 1994, Midnight Mass, Squid Game, and Marvel's What If...?
There are an overwhelming amount of movies released every year. In 2020 alone there were 329 new movies released in theaters and on streaming - and remember that thanks to COVID-19, 2020 wasn't exactly your normal year, with most years averaging over 700 releases. With numbers like those, there is no feasible way for one reviewer (and that is how Film-FTW currently operates) to watch every single movie released, let alone find the time to write thoughtful, analytic reviews for each one. Often there are new releases I'm able to get around to, but due to work on reviews for other potentially more popular and relevant movies, I'm not usually able to do anything with my thoughts on them. The same can go for many limited series and television shows - it's a gift and a curse to be in a golden age for television, where there is such an abundant amount of quality on offer.
It is with this thought that Rapid Reviews was created. The idea is for this to be a semi-regular feature that will collect smaller, one or two paragraph reviews for a wide range of movies and shows that might not be otherwise discussed. And make no mistake, some of these shows and movies need to be talked about.
Fear Street Part One: 1994 || Netflix
Directed by: Leigh Janiak Written by: Screenplay by Phil Graziadei and Leigh Janiak Story by Kyle Killen, Phil Graziadei, and Leigh Janiak Starring: Kiana Madeira, Olivia Scott Welch, Benjamin Flores Jr., Julia Rehwald, Fred Hechinger, Ashley Zukerman, Darrell Britt-Gibson, Maya Hawke Score by: Marco Beltrami, Marcus Trumpp || Cinematography by: Caleb Heymann
Netflix's self-described "Movie Event of the Summer" begins with Fear Street Part One: 1994, a young-adult tale that gleefully leans into the more "adult" part. This first entry in Netflix's horror trilogy takes clear inspiration from Wes Craven's Scream, with a highly evocative and fantastic opening in an empty mall food court. Not being familiar with this non-Goosebumps property from R.L. Stine, I couldn't tell you if it's accurately adapted - but I can tell you that the writer/director, Leigh Janiak, does a solid job of telling a mostly standalone story that hints at larger machinations at work in the larger universe. There are teases and glimpses at things to come from Part Two and Three, and Fear Street Part One: 1994 effectively earns those moments. That said, Janiak also loves her some needle drops, as Part One is filled to the brim with 90s hit after 90s hit. There's a point to which the licensed tracks became used as shorthand for character development and I couldn't figure out if it was a brilliant move or a lazy one.
Part One: 1994 exceeds expectations mostly in its characters - comprised of a young, but talented cast that aptly handles the material. Some of the standard, tried-and-true horror movie archetypes get some fresh reworks, but that sadly isn't the case with all of the characters. The lead actress, Kiana Madeira, and her character Deena's unaffected teen who lashes out at those around her to mask her inner turmoil - well, it never worked for me. Not helping the matter is a script that wants to take advantage of the "R" rating and needlessly inserts "edgy" language in whenever possible - making a lot of Deena's interpersonal drama and her character overall feeling more juvenile than they were meant to. There are issues keeping Fear Street Part One: 1994 back from being a truly great horror movie, instead of well-produced, slickly edited one that's only momentarily clever.
Film-FTW Rating || 6 Stars - “Better Than Average / Moderately Successful”
Squid Game (오징어 게임) [Season 1] || Netflix
Directed by: Hwang Dong-hyuk Written by: Hwang Dong-hyuk Starring: Lee Jung-jae, Park Hae-soo, Wi Ha-joon, Jung Ho-yeon, O Yeong-su, Heo Sung-tae, Anupam Tripathi, Kim Joo-ryoung Score by: Jung Jae-il || Cinematography by: Kyoung-sun Chae
Hundreds of cash-strapped South Korean citizens accept a strange invitation to compete in a series of deadly children's games for the chance to win 45.6 billion Korean won (roughly $4.5 million). The catch? To be eliminated in any of these games, means to be eliminated...from life!
This is the story of Squid Game, a solid premise, that I'd be lying if I said wasn't a little too similar to the plot of Battle Royale or The Hunger Games. Luckily, within viewing one episode, all of those concerns vanished - Squid Game is clearly out to do its own thing. In addition to a very striking and iconic aesthetic, Squid Game was really allowed to find itself in its storytelling - afforded to it by the additional runtime that comes from being a series as opposed to a movie. This extra time is wisely used to really push and more deeply examine the characters playing these games - all adding to the narrative's focus on analyzing economic class struggles. Squid Game seeks out to ask if these economic hardships are inherently systematic or if the individual shares any of the blame. Though the death and violence on display here is shocking and in-your-face, the character work is thankfully more subdued and empathetic.
Along with its theming and storytelling, Squid Game wholly succeeds in everything it does aesthetically. Though there are moments where the storytelling's reach exceeds the budget's means - the astute editing and direction, along with phenomenal production and costume design do a lot of the visual heavy-lifting, making up for some of the cheaper looking CG moments. The storytelling is top notch, with one episode (episode six, Gganbu) being a clear highlight in terms of effectively moving along the driving story while deftly setting up and paying off a multitude of character arcs. It's a masterful hour of character work that will be one of my highlights for the entire year. Overall, Squid Game's first season is exceptionally realized, bold and unwavering, and instantly iconic. Outside of some unresolved story strands and the anticlimactic reveal of the mysterious benefactors of the deadly games - Squid Game is absolutely worthy of becoming your new streaming obsession!
Film-FTW Rating || 9 Stars - “Amazing / Exceptional”
Midnight Mass || Netflix
Directed by: Mike Flanagan Written by: Mike Flanagan, James Flanagan, Dani Parker, Elan Gale, Jeff Howard Starring: Kate Siegel, Zach Gilford, Kristin Lehman, Samantha Sloyan, Igby Rigney, Rahul Kohli, Annabeth Gish, Henry Thomas, Hamish Linklater Score by: The Newton Brothers || Cinematography by: Michael Fimognari
Fans familiar with writer/director Mike Flanagan's specific brand of slow-burn, psychological horror from Doctor Sleep, The Haunting of Hillhouse, and The Haunting of Bly Manor, will be right at home with what Midnight Mass has to offer. This seven-episode limited series is very much the methodically paced, horror-as-metaphor storytelling Flanagan is known for - only this time he's not as concerned with ghosts. Well, there might be a ghost or two, but Flanagan's inspirations become clear within the first episode - borrowing and reinterpreting themes from Salem's Lot and The Mist (both from Stephen King). King and Flanagan seem to share a similar interest in the inherent horror of religion, tying the overzealousness of the devout to the supernatural threat lurking in the background of Midnight Mass' narrative. The difference comes in Flanagan's much more nuanced and three-dimensional look at its characters - yes, even those problem-causing zealots. The result is an often meandering, but continually thoughtful reflection on the themes of loss, redemption, and rebirth that is as cerebral as it is graceful in its storytelling and characterizations.
Film-FTW Rating || 8 Stars - “Great / Memorable”
Marvel's What If...? [Season 1] || Disney+
Directed by: Bryan Andrews Written by: Paul Simms, Marika Sawyer, Sam Johnson, Stefani Robinson, and others Starring: Jeffrey Wright, Hayley Atwell, Sebastian Stan, Ross Marquand, Chadwick Boseman, Benedict Cumberbatch, Tom Hiddleston, Chris Hemsworth, Score by: Laura Karpman || Animation by: Stephan Franck
The Marvel Cinematic Universe returned full-force in 2020, with four new movies releasing in theaters, and just as many properties airing on Disney+. At a certain point, if only due to the sheer number of projects in its universe, Marvel Studios was going to need to start entertaining new ideas and exploring different venues. With the success of WandaVision, The Falcon and Winter Soldier, and Loki already proving that the MCU is interested in taking their characters into bold directions, their first foray into animation, Marvel's What If...? seemed poised to do the same.
And, admittedly, it does make bold choices...sometimes. My biggest issue with this first season is how safe the storytelling often felt. With the series promising to tell untold and unique stories from all across the multiverse, what we ended up getting were episodes that retread similar themes and ideas from earlier entries in the MCU - if not just rehashing entire MCU movies altogether. Some of the more daring episodes still suffer from odd storytelling decisions that begin to make sense when the larger season arc is revealed. And that season arc feels rushed, getting to a "big event" that feels like it arrived to earlier, almost as if they were worried a second season wasn't guaranteed so they rushed to get to some of the "good bits" without really earning it leaving the whole season feeling a tad undercooked. Outside of it's consistently interesting, actual comic-like visuals - the first season of Marvel's What If...? winds up being a mixed-bag in terms of success, with some good ideas overshadowed by clunky and repetitive storytelling.
Film-FTW Rating || 5 Stars - “Mediocre / Mixed Feelings”
More from the Author
Thank you so much for reading to the very end of this review - I sincerely thank you for taking your time in doing so! If you have any thoughts or comments, please feel free to share them in a respectful manner down below. Consider checking out and following the author on Twitter or Letterboxd.