Toetensen-1 Reviews

All Quiet on the Western Front (2022)

An (aesthetik) Overkill.

[9/10 · 2 October 2022]

The full horror of war in an cold german aesthetik beauty presented. Just like in the book. Who would have thought that the most suspense scene is stealing a duck. The banality of the war and the coldness of bureaucracy is documented in a movie which works with the warm tones of flare grenades, the snow panorama of French mountains and the symmetry of latrines. The actors aren't just in their roles, they somehow sometimes masked symbols and types of average people. Keep an eye on Pauls face: his ambivalence in the horrors of war is precisely painted into his face: with dirt, staring eyes and blood. In the end he is a marble figurine of the dying soldier, the sad remembrance you can see at every cemetery of war.

The Batman (2022)

Great visuals, but

[6/10 · 21 March 2022]

...maybe made for the generation instagram. The story and brutality dissolves into beautiful pictures, where a dark mid20 is searching after his soul. Permanent mood music and a voice over is needed, so really everyone can understand what's happening. Catwoman could have been deleted from the script, because there is no chemistry. Gordon is funny because he is always surprised...really always.

The Wheel of Time (2021– )

Wheel of time on speed

[6/10 · 19 November 2021]

I understand you have to bring some kickstart into a fantasy world but to destroy the slow burn of the books especially to character development is very sad to look at. Good Drama and complexity needs time. There is no grey, only black and white. Now it looks like a HDR/Disney-Version of LOTR, which combines every ethnic group into one little village. The multicultural aspects, the different concepts of genderroles etc are diffusing in an action series. It's logic to reduce 2700 named characters in 14 books to a understandable dimension but only 8 or 9 characters of 100 in the first pages? And then there is Perrin, already at this dark place, which he reaches much much later....

Foundation (2021– )

Philosophie vs. Dramaturgy

[8/10 · 26 September 2021]

Since you can't read about real individual tragic in the books, more about philosophical and mathematical core ideas presented by zero dimension characters, this series is a near to life translation of the core ideas of the books. So I think it's an good interpretation of the books. At last for a normal watcher you need this translation to the individual view on a Concept that works with thousands of years of human generations. Maybe some more bravery and complexity would have been nice, like f.e. Westworld choosed.

Murder on the Orient Express (2017)

Soulless

[4/10 · 19 September 2020]

An aggressive permanent standard Mystery mood music decorates characters and dialogues without deepness. A ton of cold cgi effects and a lot of unsteady maximum arty camerawork in front of artificial mountains/streets/cities doesn't help either. More minimalism and less must-happen-action with old men may have been better. So many good actors are (over)acting like a cliche-gang in a soap opera...

Mad Men: A Little Kiss, Part 2 (2012) Season 5, Episode 2

Masterpiece episode

[10/10 · 5 September 2020]

Great episode, the hole constellation and interaction of the characters the episodes before accumulate just by handing a baby through the hole bureau. Applause!

Biohackers (2020–2021)

Maximum cliche experiment

[4/10 · 22 August 2020]

The story is a standard cliche story, trying to present a genetic world where you can do manipulation in your garage. It seems Someone googled cripsr and wrote this thing. And it seems the author has never ever visited a German university. The relationships are developing and deteriorating within two weeks and have no depth. And of course, an evil academic hears classical music in a house, so big, that Julius Caesar would have been impressed. Happens in Germany all the time... we invented those kind of evil counterpart. Watch it, when you come home drunk.

Airplane! (1980)

Masterpiece

[10/10 · 13 April 2020]

Those old spoof movies are ultrafunny and still try to tell a story. Much better than the actual us -vulgarity. Clearance? Over!

Daybreak (I) (2019)

Loud trashy and quit deep

[9/10 · 26 October 2019]

The series can't decide, what it wants to be, but that's quite good. Have a look till episode 8, it's more drama then the comedy might suggest at the beginning.

Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets (2017)

Soulless

[6/10 · 20 July 2017]

It seems to me, the visual effect crew and the costume department had maximum freedom, while the dialogues where bought at street market ruled by 12 year old. It is sad: actors and the hole try to do their best, especially the leading actress, but there is no deeper story or atmosphere, the characters are flat and the development of valerian is full of holes. The story has been told a multiple time in multiple films, so a lot of scenes seemed to be a citation where I think it wasn't indicated. Watch James Bond in space and on LSD, and you get this movie. The LSD has quit good quality, so 6 points.