No Time To Die

I’ve always been a fan of the James Bond franchise so I decided to treat myself to seeing No Time to Die in Hoyts Lux at Chadstone.

So, this will be both a review of the Lux experience- while I’ve done a few times- as well as the movie.

Hoyts Lux Chadstone Experience

Booking

The booking process was quite easy- I booked via the Hoyts website but you can also do so via their iOS app. Handy enough as you can change your seats and even get a refund up to half an hour before the session time- whether this is because of COVID times I do not know, but I have to admit it’s very customer focused.

Lounge and Welcoming Experience

I have always found that the greeting and welcoming experience of Hoyts Lux is somewhat “lacking” for a lack of a better word; after all it’s friendly and fancy enough, but for the price of a ticket (which variers anywhere between $25 and $45 plus the booking fees) you want a bit more consistency. The staff member was perfectly fine- no doubt about that! - but for the amount of dosh you’re dropping you want a bit more professionalism for the lack of a better word. Having said that, I wouldn’t fault the staff member who served me as she was very knowledgeable in her knowledge of the food and drink menu and all around had good customer service.

Hoyts Lux @ Chadstone Lounge

Hoyts Lux @ Chadstone Lounge

Hoyts Lux @ Chadstone Lounge

Menu Items and Selection

Like any luxury movie experience, the menu doesn’t really stray too far away from what you expect it to have- for example they have squid chips and wedges as examples of entrées, with main dishes consisting of things such as pizza and sliders. For dessert, there’s things such as Ben and Jerry’s, while they also have their signature Maltese’s sundaes.

I didn’t stray too far off the beaten track- I had the squid chips, followed by wedges and a glass of Moscato. This was topped off with an order for the churros- again all of it was delicious.

Auditorium and Seat

Hoyts Lux @ Chadstone Auditorium

Hoyts Lux @ Chadstone Seating

Hoyts Lux @ Chadstone Auditorium Screen

As my days off fell during the week, I was lucky enough to be able to go during the week- I attend the first session in Lux of the day (11:00 A.M), which meant not only I had the chance to do errands at Chadstone before it got busy, I had the entire of auditorium 2 to myself.

Before settling in, I proceeded to give the seat a quick spray down with the Glen 20 on The Go Spray, as well as wiping down the table, seat adjustment buttons and service buttons with disinfectant wipes. While there was no signs of dirt or uncleanness, you can’t be too careful in these days.

After wiping it down, it was time to settle in the seat- which truth be told has a slight advantage of Village Cinema’s Gold Class Seats. While the seats in Gold Class are more comfier, Hoyts Lux seats have separate adjustment buttons for the back and the legs- so for example you can be on a slight angle on your back, while our legs are fully stretched out. Which is handy when you’re trying to eat and not wanting to make a mess! Additionally, the food table has a on/off button for the light- so your little light can be on while eating and then switched off again when you are watching the movie with your full attention and not getting distracted by a light.

Hoyts Lux Summary

All in all Hoyts Lux is on par with Village Cinemas Gold Class- there is very little in the difference of offering from both products. While Lux does offer complimentary popcorn and a soft drink, and has probably a better table/seat layout, the menu itself is probably better at Gold Class.

All in all both are equal and come down to personal preference- though you probably got better service at Gold Class but even then that’s dependant on the day, the time etc- all variable aspects that have an impact on service levels but doens’t really detract from the experience.

Now onto the No Time to Die spoiler free review!

No Time to Die Review

Well! What can I say- I am trying to make this a spoiler free zone but that doesn’t leave me too much too work with!

From the opening pre-credits scene I got the feeling that this wasn’t going to be a typical James Bond movie- admittedly I did grow up watching the “classic” 007 movies, but even allowing for the reboot/retooling/whatever you want to call it; you could tell that from the get go this wasn’t going to be typical.

Without spoiling much, the pre-opening credits involve two time jumps; both over significant time periods so again that’s very unusual for a James Bond movie. But yet it did work- while normally the opening sequence is some sort of action event (which at one point this is!), in No Time to Die this is also essentially a prologue so you better pay attention!

After the opening credits, we see what is the norm of the Craig-era Bond; a broken man who has been damaged far too many times and has escaped to an unknown tropical “paradise”. It felt a bit blasé, not going to lie, but things started to heat up when we see Bond’s old “brother”, Felix Leiter, track him down and ask him for his assistance.

This then sets off the chain of events for the movie; with some subtle nods all the way through the movie to eagle eye fans (which I thought was a nice touch but without forcing it- it felt natural). This also means you really need to pay attention- I know I’ve said this before but it really is worth watching because even now after watching it, I’m still unsure of some of the finer plot points (if there’s such a thing in a 007 movie!)

I am surprised that with some of the things the producers attempted to do in this movie that there hasn’t been any backlash from fans- after all look at how fickle Star Wars fans are!- as well as the fact that some of the finer points haven’t been leaked. Without giving too much away in my view it appears that the producers tried to have their cake and eat it too- the question being is was it achieved?

Hard to say.

As from any 007 movie, there’s plenty of guns, girls and sexy times thrown in, along with the usual witty comments and dry remarks. This was all enjoyable as to be expected- the scene where they take a break midnight to chug back a martini was very dry I must say!

The most surprising part- that is to say away from the ending and some other stuff- is that they made Q [spoiler redacted].

I told you I wouldn’t spoil it.

It’s a long movie- just a fraction shy under 3 hours so it does take up a huge chunk of your day, but if it’s your thing then it’s certainly worth going to the movies to see it on the big screen. As far as movies go it’s one of the better movies I’ve seen in recent times.

Would I recommend the movie? Yes I certainly would- even if a few things were hit or miss!

Rocketman

I decided to see Rocketman for a few reasons- one because I am partial to Elton John, two I find the actor Taron Egerton quite talented and thirdly because I wanted to see if they would straight wash this movie.

With all this in mind, and already having brought the soundtrack via iTunes, I was pleasantly surprised by the movie.

The main thing to note is that this movie isn’t a lineal movie in the traditional sense- the time frame bounces from the “present” to the past and back again- so you better be paying attention (though it’s quite easy to follow). The movie opens with Elton John going into rehab before bouncing back to his childhood. The rehab is the point of return for the movie- we come back to it quite often and it’s a frame work for both us as the audience and for John himself, as we see how the “rock and roll lifestyle” affect him.

In between the meltdowns and going off the rails, Rocketman is a pretty campy movie; for a lack of a better description this is one of the gayest movies I’ve ever seen and I’ve also seen a lot of LGBTQIA films in my life. The fact that this movie is such mainstream and it hasn’t shied away from showing John’s gay side- you see gay sex scenes and quite a lot of gay kisses too!- shows that this movie isn’t afraid of showing the true aspects of it’s star.

Speaking of stars, we must talk about Taron Egerton. As mentioned above, I already purchased the soundtrack on iTunes so I knew he could sing, but my lord it’s so much more then that! Egerton is a true performer- not only can he hold a tune, but he encapsulates the essence of John in the performances as a he bumps it up to 15 and showing why people love Elton John so much.

This is a movie that’s well worth viewing and gets 5 stars from me