Tag: PlayStation

The Last of Us – “The Path” | REVIEW

Bella Ramsey in THE LAST OF US: THE PATH — PHOTO: HBO.

This is a recap and review of the third episode of the second season of HBO’s The Last of Us. Expect spoilers for season 1 and game 1 (and the episode itself, of course), but also some references to and comments about the second game (though without spoilers).

In the third episode of the second season — titled The Path — we get a three-month time jump, as the Jackson settlement and its wounded — including Ellie (played by Bella Ramsey) — recover in the wake of the tragedy in last week’s episode. However, when Dina (played by Isabela Merced) reveals a secret to Ellie, it sets in motion an appeal to gather up a crew to hunt down those who wronged them and killed Joel. The Path was written by Craig Mazin (Chernobyl) and directed by Peter Hoar (The Last of Us: Long, Long Time).

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Until Dawn (2025) | REVIEW

(L-R) Ji-young Yoo, Ella Rubin, Michael Cimino, Odessa A’zion, and Belmont Cameli in UNTIL DAWN — PHOTO: Sony Pictures Releasing (Still image from trailers).

Directed by David F. Sandberg (Lights Out) — Screenplay by Gary Dauberman (‘Salem’s Lot) and Blair Butler (The Invitation).

After years and years of middling-to-poor video game adaptations, it seems we’re finally at a moment in time when Hollywood is confidently turning video games into beloved and/or successful films or series. We’ve got The Last of Us, Fallout, Sonic the Hedgehog, and The Super Mario Bros. Movie, just to name a few. Now, of course, there are still some duds out there, such as Eli Roth’s Borderlands adaptation, which was largely regarded as one of the worst movies of last year. The latest attempt at turning a popular video game into a successful movie is David F. Sandberg’s Until Dawn from Sony Pictures, with which the studio is hoping to find low-budget horror movie success, like certain studios have become quite known for on a regular basis, but with a video game adaptation. In a lot of ways, Until Dawn makes a lot of sense for that model, and, heck, it should be a success given the horror movie veterans — like Gary Dauberman and David F. Sandberg — they’ve hired to get the job done. But does Until Dawn succeed as a video game adaptation? Frankly, I think it’ll divide opinion.

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The Last of Us – “Future Days” | REVIEW

Bella Ramsey with her back to the camera in THE LAST OF US: Future Days — Photograph by Liane Hentscher/HBO.

This is a recap and review of the premiere of the second season of HBO’s The Last of Us. Expect spoilers for season 1 and game 1, but also some references to and comments about the second game (though without spoilers).

The wait is finally over. It’s been more than 2 years since the release of the season finale of the first season of HBO’s adaptation of the beloved and critically acclaimed video game series known as The Last of Us, the two parts of which are my favorite video games ever made. Now, the second season premiere has been released on Max around the world, and the showrunners are now officially no longer adapting the first game, but rather the highly discussed, more complex, and much longer second game (click here to read my spoiler-filled thoughts on The Last of Us: Part II). How did the season premiere live up to the excellent games and the strong first season? Well, let’s have a closer look.

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Grounded II: Making the Last of Us Part II (2024 – Documentary) | REVIEW

Still from Grounded II: Making The Last of Us Part II, in which we see Ashley Johnson (the actress portraying Ellie in the games) — in full mo-cap gear — performing the extremely controversial scene that sparked outrage from a toxic vocal minority of the fanbase when presented out of context.

Directed by Ryan O’Donnell, Jason Bertrand, Cesar Quintero, and Matt Chandronait.

Normally, I’d agree that a behind-the-scenes documentary about a video game isn’t necessarily the most fascinating premise for a documentary. However, with The Last of Us: Part II (one of my favorite games ever made — and the sequel to my favorite game of all time), it is an entirely different story. The original game (i.e. Part I), which spawned an HBO adaptation last year (which I’ve reviewed every episode of, click here to have a look at those), is widely regarded as one of the best narrative games of the modern era, and, since its sequel is largely critically beloved, you might expect its releases to be all breezy and undramatic. In actuality, that couldn’t be further from the truth. Not only was this video game about a global pandemic and zombie-esque outbreak released in the middle of an actual global pandemic in 2020, but the studio was also the victim of a massive leak of the game that detailed its most controversial and boundary-pushing twists leading to toxic online vocal minorities review-bombing it and harassing the people involved with it, despite the critical acclaim.

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REVIEW: The Last of Us – “Look for the Light”

Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey as Joel and Ellie in HBO’s THE LAST OF US — PHOTO: HBO / Liane Hentscher.

The following is a recap and review of the ninth episode and season finale of HBO’s The Last of Us. Expect story spoilers.

In the ninth and final episode of the first season of the HBO adaptation of the critically acclaimed video game franchise known as The Last of Us — titled Look for the Light — Joel (played by Pedro Pascal) and Ellie (played by Bella Ramsey) finally reach the hospital that they’ve been moving towards. But how will the Fireflies greet them? Look for the Light was directed by Ali Abbasi (Holy Spider and The Last of Us: When We Are In Need) and written by Craig Mazin (Chernobyl) and Neil Druckmann.

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REVIEW: The Last of Us – “Left Behind”

Bella Ramsey as ‘Ellie’ and Storm Reid as ‘Riley’ in HBO’s THE LAST OF US — PHOTO: HBO / Liane Hentscher.

The following is a recap and review of the seventh episode of HBO’s The Last of Us. Expect story spoilers.

In the seventh episode of the first season of the HBO adaptation of the masterful video game franchise known as The Last of Us — titled Left Behind — we flash back to Ellie (played by Bella Ramsey) in FEDRA school. She gets into fights in school and may be headed down the wrong path in life, but then an old friend, Riley (played by Storm Reid), stops by and gives her an adventure in a nearby mall. Left Behind was directed by Liza Johnson and written by Neil Druckmann (co-creator of The Last of Us video game franchise).

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REVIEW: The Last of Us – “Kin”

Gabriel Luna as ‘Tommy’ and Pedro Pascal as ‘Joel’ in HBO’s THE LAST OF US — PHOTO: HBO / Liane Hentscher.

The following is a recap and review of the sixth episode of HBO’s The Last of Us. Expect story spoilers.

In the sixth episode of the first season of the HBO adaptation of the masterful video game franchise known as The Last of Us — titled Kin — Joel (played by Pedro Pascal) and Ellie (played by Bella Ramsey) reach Wyoming and search for Joel’s brother, Tommy (played by Gabriel Luna), and Joel starts having panic attacks. Kin was directed by Jasmila Žbanić (Quo Vadis, Aida?) and written by Craig Mazin (Chernobyl).

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REVIEW: The Last of Us – “Please Hold to My Hand”

Bella Ramsey as ‘Ellie’ and Pedro Pascal as ‘Joel’ in HBO’s THE LAST OF US — PHOTO: HBO / Liane Hentscher.

The following is a recap and review of the fourth episode of HBO’s The Last of Us. Expect story spoilers.

In the fourth episode of the first season of the HBO adaptation of the masterful video game franchise known as The Last of Us — titled Please Hold to My Hand — Joel (played by Pedro Pascal) and Ellie (played by Bella Ramsey) are on their way to Wyoming to find Joel’s brother. But when they have to take a detour, they are ambushed in Kansas City. Please Hold to My Hand was directed by Jeremy Webb (Downton Abbey; The Umbrella Academy) and written by Craig Mazin (Chernobyl).

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REVIEW: The Last of Us – “Infected”

Bella Ramsey as ‘Ellie’ and Anna Torv as ‘Tess’ in HBO’s THE LAST OF US — PHOTO. HBO / Liane Hentscher.

The following is a recap and review of the second episode of HBO’s The Last of Us. Expect story spoilers.

In the second episode of the first season of the HBO adaptation of the masterful video game franchise known as The Last of Us — titled Infected — Joel (played by Pedro Pascal) begrudgingly agrees to escort Ellie (played by Bella Ramsey), alongside his longtime smuggling partner, Tess (played by Anna Torv), to the Old State House in Boston. On their way there, Ellie sees what longtime infection can turn someone into. Infected was directed by Neil Druckmann (television directorial debut) and written by Craig Mazin.

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REVIEW: The Last of Us – “When You’re Lost In The Darkness”

Nico Parker’s Sarah and Pedro Pascal’s Joel on outbreak day in THE LAST OF US — PHOTO: HBO / Shane Harvey.

The following is a recap and review of the first episode of HBO’s The Last of Us. Expect story spoilers.

The Last of Us is my favorite video game ever made. I hold it in the highest regard as one of my favorite stories. The game, and its sequel too, is a heart-wrenching, fully absorbing masterpiece that does a lot with the zombie genre. Now HBO has decided to have it adapted into a television series. The show is created by one of the game’s creative directors, Neil Druckmann, as well as the creator of HBO’s incredible Chernobyl series, Craig Mazin, and it features a stellar cast from top to bottom with actors such as Pedro Pascal (The Mandalorian), Anna Torv (Fringe), Bella Ramsey (Game of Thrones), and others. 

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