Film Shapes

This was a fun nerve jangler, not quite up to par with the first two. Placing the action over a day or two in one location - it's basically Escape from New York: Alien Edition - neatly encapsulates the fear. The early bombing of the bridges traps the water-shy invaders on the island, the aim being to evacuated citizens from the ports. Fine idea, though the devil is in the detail. We know from the other films in the series that these lumpen-footed Skeksis, with Rubik's football heads can't see but can hear incredibly well. Sound is obviously very important here. One nicely done exodus scene with a growing cacophony of humanity brings about the inevitable bloody chaos.  The leads, Lupita Nyong'o as Samira and Joseph Quinn as Eric, are very good at selling us the horror, panic and resignation of the situation. Djimon Hounsou reprises (PREprises?) his role from the second film. And there's a nonplussed cat that will get the animal lovers meowing (it's a pretty cleve...