SteelBlue82 Reviews

Star Trek: Enterprise: Stigma (2003) Season 2, Episode 14

Sloppy

[29 August 2020]

First, I will list the scummy things that happened to T'Pol. Tolaris forceably continued a mind meld when T'Pol asked him to stop. Tolaris gave T'Pol a disease because he did not administer the mind meld properly. It is not clear whether Tolaris knew about the existence of the disease or not.

Here is the scummy thing T'Pol does. She lies about being coerced into a mind meld absolving herself from any responsibility and making the already bad Tolaris look worse. She agreed to the mind meld. The whole reason the vulcans let T'Pol remain with Enterprise is because they thought she was forced into it. T'Pol doesn't want to hurt the perception of the minority vulcans, but she does just that by lying about being forced into the mind meld by one of the members.

If the goal was to make T'Pol look deceitful and illogical then the writers achieved their goal. One of two things has to be true.

(1) T'Pol is deceitful and most of the audience don't see it that way. (2) Berman/Braga retconned the mind meld assault to get the desired plot result.

The Denobulan wife visit side story was hilarious. I always love the Phlox stuff.

Come and See (1985)

The Film Eventually Reveals Its Intentions

[24 July 2020]

I didn't find it to be anti-war. I found it to be pro-soviet. Two things led me to this conclusion. The larger than life emotions from the protagonists and the sadistic ineptitude of the antagonists.

The over-the-top emotions and scenic landscapes were very lovely at the beginning.

The VVitch: A New-England Folktale (2015)

Almost

[14 March 2020]

There is a lot of good cinematography and sound design here, but The Witch really loses itself as the story develops.

Let Me In (I) (2010)

Respectful Remake

[27 January 2020]

This is a very respectful remake. Let the Right One In is my favorite movie, so I expected to be borderline offended by this remake. I was not.

The cinematography is improved in this iteration. Music is a slight downgrade from the original. Acting is a tie. They did a great job.

Wild Strawberries (1957)

Reminiscing

[21 August 2019]

Perhaps the finest Bergman film, Wild Strawberries achieved something great. The main character is able to seamlessly move in and out of his memories. The supporting cast blends in well. The script is very thoughtful. Bergman put me in a trance with this one.

Brazil (1985)

Bureaucratic Dystopian Future

[3 August 2019]

The humor of Brazil is so quick, clever, and multilayered in a way that can only British. Much of the story gets swallowed by the visual component. The plot has trouble advancing because it relies to much on the fantastical. Maybe the plot slowly advancing is a metaphor for bureaucracy. If so then that was probably not the best choice.

If you are a fan of dystopian future stories or the humor of Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy then this is worth watching. There are so many great things in this movie that I have to somewhat recommend it.

Gilliam succeeds in the structure of the fantasy segments and attention to absurb details, but he has problems with the cohesion of all the elements shoved into his film.

The Shining (1980)

Horror Icon

[14 July 2019]

Stephen King hated it, critics hated it, and I loved it. Kubrick really made The Shining his own. For me it's top 3 horror movies all time. The things that stand out are the crisp cinematography, moody music, and the performance of Jack Nicholson. The supporting cast is weak, but it oddly blends in with the vulgarity of the movie. And the vulgarity of everything was somehow just the right amount.

Persona (1966)

Art Thriller

[13 July 2019]

This isn't a typical Bergman film. It feels more like a more chaotic art film. He leaves a lot of the narrative up to interpretation. The acting feels comfortable.

The structure of the film feels inorganic and unnatural, but contains many archetypes and symbols with which to think about.

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (2011)

Mara's Best Performance

[28 June 2019]

The movie is nice looking and has great acting, but the story is stretched and runs out of steam. The visual style of Lisbeth Salander is in stark contrast to how long-winded the movie is.

The source material behind the movie isn't well-written. The author has a delusional view of males and females. Wishful and desparate. I would say watch this one for the great acting and directing. Rooney Mara knocks this character out of the park. Fincher makes it look and sound good.

The Game (1997)

Fun Thriller

[28 June 2019]

The overarching plot is quite unique, but intricacies of the plot are rather clunky and not believable. The ending does not justify the plot throughout. Plainly stated, they try to trick and deceive you so much throughout the film that the ending doesn't make sense.

If you go along for the ride you begin to feel as the protagonist does. Manipulated. It leaves you feeling a unique kind of queasy and for that it is an emotionally effective film.

Last Action Hero (1993)

Clever Action Parody

[21 June 2019]

This movie alienates a lot of people. It's an action movie that is making fun of action movies. It's a kid's movie with violence and sexuality. It has a very creative and clever plot, but corny dialogue.

Last Action Hero is one of my personal favorites, but it's very niche.

American Psycho (2000)

Dark Comedy

[19 June 2019]

A very funny movie about vanity and capitalism done in an artsy style. It's one of those movies where the writer doesn't want you to figure out what is real and what isn't. Teenage me enjoyed all the possible meanings. Adult me enjoyed the comedy.

Mulholland Drive (2001)

Pretty at times, but very nonsense heavy

[18 June 2019]

I can't help but think that several of the random elements in the film were created just to cause overanalysis and throw the viewer off the scent. I think Lynch wanted to create discussions about a movie more than he wanted to create a movie.

The Truman Show (1998)

All the world's a stage

[11 June 2019]

The Truman Show is one of those films that proposes an idea many of us had as children. Somewhere in time the cultural zeitgeist started implanting the idea "What if we are in a false reality, but we become aware of it?"

The grand scale of the The Truman Show operation is what keeps the viewer engaged. This is one of Jim Carrey's more precise acting roles. He has a plethora of energy, but manages to keep it reined in. Laura Linney is average, Ed Harris underperforms, and Noah Emmerich almost steals the show at times. Noah has the best line in the film.

Overall, it's a good movie that is worth watching (mainly for the scale of the show and for Jim's performance). The movie fails in addressing questions of morality.

Shaun of the Dead (2004)

Horror Satire

[1 April 2019]

A British style comedy that seems carefree, but is expertly made. Timeless.

Pegg's best film.

The Royal Tenenbaums (2001)

Rare Occurence in Film

[30 March 2019]

Movies like this don't get made anymore. A full cast of expert actors, a director with complete artistic license. Usually the artistic nature of a film is controlled when the cast is this packed full of talent.

Anderson usually has problems meshing the pacing and rhythms of his stories with his specific style, but not in this one. This one works like a charm. One of my top 10 favorite movies.

The Matrix (1999)

Imaginitive Brain Scrambler

[28 October 2018]

This movie raises one of my favorite questions. What is reality? The biggest strength of The Matrix is the story. The special effects hold up because they did not try to go beyond their technological limits.

The biggest weakness of The Matrix is some of the dialogue. It is often times either melodramatic or robotic. It has a few plot holes, the biggest of which being blood. "If it happens in the matrix your mind makes it real..." I don't know how your mind could give you a bloody lip.

With all that The Matrix is still the best sci-fi/action flick ever made.

The Descent (2005)

Unsettling

[1 October 2018]

The Descent is a film that plays with the theme of claustrophobia. Effective usage of lighting. I am pleasantly shocked by how well orchestrated this film is.

Let the Right One In (2008)

Original Story

[31 August 2018]

Such a unique take on vampires. Features a gut-wrenching musical score. This is my favorite movie.