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Reviews
Tides (2021)
Surprisingly good sci-fi gem
I was really positively caught off guard by this one after watching it despite the low (why?) imdb rating. The filmmakers create a believable world. Someone compared it to Waterworld. And yes, this is the real dark, dirty, muddy version. The plot is strong and done with just the right pacing. Acting, cinematography, production design, score are all good. The movie delivered basically on every level for me. It is a rare find. Maybe I am more forgiving than others when it comes to some (small) logical flaws.
Give this movie a chance. If you are a sci-fi nerd and are open for a well made smaller film there is a good chance you like it.
Idila (2015)
What a beast of a movie
I don't often write reviews but I have to for this hidden gem. How on earth is this fine slasher film only rated at five stars? Ok, I get it the dialogue in the beginning is stale and the acting just ok. But, the movie doesn't waste much time on the exposition and once it gets going this is one beast of a movie. First of all it has great pacing, there is a continuous flow with lots of small twists and turns. Second, the main villain is fantastic. What a fear inspiring, evil and huge man. One of the best villains in movies like this. Next, the visuals are great. I mean this is a low budget film, but it has lots of cool atmospheric shots. And the gore and violence factor should also satisfy your expectations.
Ma Rainey's Black Bottom (2020)
Unnatural dialog and overacting might work in a play
On the positive side this film is beautifully shot. The downside for me was that I never got into the movie. The dialog feels staged and unnatural and the acting feels like ... acting. There have been great adaptions of plays into movies in the past. This is not one of them.
Westworld: Genre (2020)
Big budget, no brains - the emperor is naked
This episode is one big let down and easily the worst so far. Dolores and Aaron Paul walk around most of the time for no concernable reason. There are some bad action sequences. Some supposedly deep stuff about the world is revealed bla bla bla. Basically this all is some pretentious nonsense in glossy pictures with big music. It lacks any kind of captivating dramaturgy. Next time, how about you do a script review before you greenlight this kind of budget?
Extraction (2020)
Cynical piece of crap
Let's start with the good things. Never seen a movie shot in Bangladesh before. The female support character looks pretty nice.
The rest is and endless killing orgy large filmed in video game astetics. Hemsworth is a sociopathic mass murderer whose body count in the movie is probably close to one hundred. The cynical part is that we are supposed to see him as a hero cause he is doing all this to save a boy. Yeah sure. Ok, the action scenes which take up 75% of the time are filmed well but this neglectance for lives just makes me want go puke.
Don't think I am a puritanic family movie guy. I like slashers, I like Tarantino et al. I just hate to be served this Hemsworth character as a hero.
303 (2018)
Before sunrise reloaded
Hans Weingartner worked as production assistent on Richad Linklaters classic Before Sunrise. 303 is his variation on the theme. It is a subtle, slowpaced heartwarming film with two great actors. Especially Mala Emde gives a breakout performance. Two different characters slowly developing emotions while on a roadtrip through Europe. I really enjoyed the movie. My only critique is the running time of almost two an a half hours. Linklater does it shorter and that would have benefitted this gem also. Anyways, I would love to see part two nine years,later.
9 (2009)
Beautiful, but lifeless sampled story
I watched this film knowing almost nothing about it (got the DVD from a colleague). For the first minutes I was stunned by 9. The visual style is unique. Just with dark colors brown, gray, black 9 creates a postwar world where simple dolls and machine monsters are the only inhabitants. This is not your usual kid-oriented animation movie with some cultural references to keep the adults attention. This is darker stuff for adults with just enough cuteness to not lose all kids. I immediately loved it.
But 25 minutes into the film I find myself constantly checking the watch. And this did not stop until 9 ended, which is actually after 70 minutes. They must have added 9 minutes of credits to reach the IMDb-running time. So what went wrong? The problem with 9 is that it feels like fabulous short that someone liked so much he decided to turn it into feature length. But if you do this you need some plot and character development. The visuals will only carry for 10 minutes. What 9 delivers in form of plot and characters is sadly not original at all. In every scene you get the "I know that", "I've seen that before" feeling. Instead of writing a script that's as original as the visuals 9 just samples elements from other stories and movies.
In the end I am much more disappointed than I would be if 9 was just another bad movie. It started so great and seemed to have so much potential that I feel let down by the film makers lack of care in the story department. In the film there is a device that can "breath" life into dolls and machines. I wish they had it while making the movie.
King Kong (2005)
Overambitous
Note: If you know the basic story of King Kong, this review does not contain spoilers. If you know nothing about it you will find some basic story elements.
This movie made me angry. Not because it's bad but because it has such spectacular action, beautiful shots and wonderful moments and still fails. This could have been great but Peter Jackson was too ambitious and wanted to make an epic emotional love story and a spectacular action adventure at the same time, not realizing that he didn't have Lord of the rings size material at hand but a pretty simple b-movie story.
If you cut out 45 minutes (especially in the first half) you can tune this into a fantastic Jurassic Park 4 (or Jurassic Park 2 for that matter as we now see that JP2 stole its story from Kong). It would be a first class action ride with stunning never-seen-before leave-you-breathless action sequences.
Sadly that was not enough for Jackson and that's where he fails. Though there are emotional moments that work, over all the characters are b-movie flat. There are stories of sidekicks that are pretentious and don't help the movie. There are at least forty close ups on Naomi Watts who is really beautiful but after about the 20th close up I can even tire from her beauty. The island natives are one-dimensional creatures. The acting is so-so. And after all, if Jackson had cared for a character driven beauty-and-the beast love story he should have toned down the action.
Whats left? Some of the best action sequences in movie history and a CGI Kong that really comes alive in a simple story that does not survive being handled as an epic.
Hotaru no haka (1988)
Extremely touching, best movie about war ever
Grave of the fireflies is a masterpiece from Japans Studio Ghibli and among my top ten movies of all time.
It tells the story of a brother and a sister and their struggle to survive in Japan after their mother has been killed by the nuclear bomb. The kids never loose their optimism and are very brave considering the circumstances.
The movie resists all superficial dramatics and tells its story in a very subtle way which makes it even more touching. I am sure you cannot see this film without tears coming to your eyes. Hell, I am close to tears as I write this and its a year since I have seen it.
And don't judge this as an Anime, this is so much beyond other animated films. It is in a league of its own. For me it is the best movie about war ever. Don't think you are prepared.