Not_Silent_Bob Reviews

Horvath's Los - Alltag war gestern (2013– )

As Austrian as...

[8/10 · 7 February 2024]

Well, I only learned now that this exists. Seems like S1 was basically the starting point of the band Sailer & Speer, who are quite famous around here.

Now Anton Horvath is basically a live version of Deix' cartoons. A foulmouthed know-it-all who thinks the whole world is out to get him, who pretends to know everybody who is somebody. In reality, he lives a life of petty crime and very heavy drinking. On a very, very few occasions the reality of his 'potscherts Leben' (awkward life) does surface with him.

Now such figures are hard to watch. Because everybody knows one of those in real life. Maybe not that extreme but give 30 percent of the population a few beers & they'll come out.

Production quality does get better and better. S1 was obviously shot on no budget. During its run it becomes a proper mockumentary.

I'll give it 9/10 Proleten and call Horvath the Ultra-Mundl of the 21st century (without the heart of gold). As an Austrian, it's hard to watch because there are quite a lot of those types (like everywhere but here we know them)

Exodus: Gods and Kings (2014)

Well....

[5/10 · 16 January 2024]

... now I have re-watched that one since I'm doing a Napoleon-inspired retrospective of Ridley Scott's work. I barely remember it from seeing it at the theater. Obviously, that's for a reason.

Most of the big problems of the film have been mentioned in other reviews. No need to repeat them here. What's most jarring for me though is the interaction between Bale, Edgerton and the other characters in the beginning.

I mean, do you see this too?

It's a bunch of 21st century guys talking in their 21st century home accents, acting like 21st century dudes having a few cold ones on the porch, perfect teeth and all. Moses then marries a perfect 21st century model with a 21st century hairdo in the middle of the desert.

It's pretty clear those very good actors just didn't have anything to work with.

Nobody expects this to be a historically accurate piece. It's entertainment after all. However, Scott himself did better, in Gladiator as well as Kingdom of Heaven and Napoleon. Difference is, all those eras are much closer to our own time so we are more accepting of their characters kinda being like us (which just isn't true for 180 and the Crusades but hey).

The 1956 version definitely has more 'baroque' dialogue. But it's also more befitting the grandiose story. Even though I am not religious myself I think the portrayal of God as a petulant child is without respect for the source material.

Once the real action starts, all is good. Characters are no longer required ;)

Not one of my favorites from this great, great director. It's sloppy.

Ghost Project (2023)

Don't be cruel

[7/10 · 19 December 2023]

This movie was made by nobodies and first-timers, on obviously no budget. For that it's actually quite good. Yes it's rough around the edges. But then it's a horror movie so it doesn't really have to make perfect sense.

As for the plot: Young techie types find old hardware that can make ghosts visible. Ghosts don't appreciate that very much. Bring in burned-down place with plenty of ghosts in it and go for it.

It's certainly on par with other horror movies that don't quite work despite having 100 times the budget and big names attached to them. Ghost Project's makers' next project will be much more polished and it's a workable first effort to be honest. The basics are all there, some well executed (jump scares and general mood mostly work), some not so much (love scenes only work if there was chemistry between the characters before it - but big movies make that mistake too).

As I said. Don't be cruel. A for effort.

Survive (2022)

Uff...

[3/10 · 29 April 2023]

Oh come on. The basic idea of the movie isn't so bad - classic road to redemption. Buh-huh I wanna die, uh no now I want to live! Why not.

Anyway. As an Austrian I feel compelled to contribute in terms of alpinism. I live in the flallands and I dislike mountains but still, it's in my DNA. Soooo you pretty, troubled kids. WHY on $deity's name are you running UP every mountain you see? I know, because it looks good from a cinematic POV. Why are the running up mountains that end abruptly in veeeery dangerous cliffs? Because it makes for good action when they climb down impossible, steep, slippery walls without skill, equipment and in street clothes just to happily walk up the next mountain?

Kids, REALLY! You wanna walk *down* the mountain, find a river and follow it. Easy, huh!

I'm also well aware that without those stupid decisions by characters we're supposed to take seriously, this would be a very short movie. Making dumb decisions carries it to 110 minutes. There is also a wolf attack out of nothing to add some time. Single wolf, mind you. And here I thought they hunt in packs. But it's nice to see an injured human can outrun and beat him in a fistfight. OK, suspension of disbelief NOW. And sure, after that Marvelous feat, finally find your river and your senses and just jump into the icy water. What could go wrong?

All in all, this movie provides some nice landscape shots from the Italian Dolomites. Which is all I can say about it. Some advice to Ms Turner maybe - find a new agent.

Extrapolations (2023)

So, people...

[9/10 · 25 April 2023]

... seem to mistake this for a SciFi show. It's not. There may be some scifi elements - I doubt we're gonna talk to whales anytime soom - but at its core it's exactly what the title says: an extrapolation of what's to come. And it will come within the lifetimes of many of us here.

Could it have done better? Sure. More fun, more jokes maybe? Why not. But then it would have lost all impact. What the makers are trying to say and many in the audience don't want to hear is - this is REAL. We're on the path to the worst of it.

Now I know neither I nor the show will persuade people who have for themselves decided that science is suddenly wrong when the results don't match their opinions. All I have to say to that is: LOOK UP!