Red Sparrow is a 2018 spy-thriller film directed by Francis Lawrence who worked with Jennifer Lawrence (the star here) on a couple of the Hunger Games movies, but this is a very different beast. Jennifer Lawrence plays Dominika Egorova (in, it has to be said, a not entirely convincing Russian accent), and Joel Edgerton, Matthias Schoenarts and Charlotte Rampling star as the film's secondary characters. This one is a pretty big departure from what Lawrence has done in the past, although it has to be said that she's making some pretty bold career choices. I'm not the first one to say that, and for a good reason: it's true. After last year's Mother! it appeared as if she was trying purposefully trying to appear in more "mature" films, and believe me, it doesn't get much more mature than Red Sparrow. The film plays out like one of those schlocky exploitation from the seventies, in that there's sexual violence, sex, violence, torture, and all manner o
The Ritual is a 2017 British horror film directed by Dave Bruckner. It was written by Joe Barton and Adam Nevill. It stars Rafe Spall as Luke, and is based on the novel by the same name, which was also written by Adam Nevill.
It tells the story of a group of four ageing men, who are deciding to plan a lads holiday. Rafe Spall plays the character who isn't quite willing to let go of his youth, and the others are leaning more towards going on a hiking holiday in the Swedish mountains. The reason they choose to go there is because the friend who wanted to go the most was murdered in a robbery, with Luke in the corner shop at the same time. Over the course of the film, he tries to deal with the guilt of not attempting to save his friend.
So, we've finally entered my favourite movie-related period of the year. The time in which studios schedule a bunch of horror films to come out around halloween, in October and November. Considering horror is one of my favourite genres, I'm always excited to see what the best of the year are. If all of the horror films that come out this year are as good as this one, I'll be pretty satisfied.
The Ritual is a film that most definitely wears its influences on its sleeve. The biggest influence is The Blair Witch Project, but there are also elements of things like The Wicker Man and The Evil Dead. With that being said, The Ritual never feels like a copy of those films, but something that's been influenced by them. The scares are very effective, and the story is original enough for the film to be satisfying for seasoned horror fans.
This is true of all horror films, and the best thing about The Ritual is the characters. All of them seem incredibly real and fleshed out. All of them have their own struggles, but the most interesting part of the narrative is their feelings about the murder of their friend, and Luke's culpability in it. I won't to reveal too much, but that plot strand makes the entire story more propulsive than it would've been otherwise.
The Ritual is a great start to this year's horror season. The interesting and realistic characters, the great score and beautiful cinematography all mean that it's far better than the average horror film. If you're a fan of the genre, I'd call this one a must see, and I think more casual film-goers will find a lot to enjoy here, too.
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