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phoebecraighill
Reviews
First Love (2022)
Loses its stamina pretty quickly.
The film's opening scenes are really good. They set out what could be a dramatic masterpiece with a perfectly stylistic setting. Then Diane Kruger leads the way and you're thinking "wow this could seriously be good, i didn't anticipate this from the film poster" and then "could this be Hero Fiennes Tiffin's revival in the romance genre? No more of After's blatant toxicity - now we get to see a good and pure relationship, right?". Well, apparently when you strip back the constant arguments, insecurity and deception (referring Tessa and Hardin of course) we have a boring picture left to doze off to. Too simple, too tame maybe. It was great to see the dichotomy between the problems faced by the older and younger generations: finance/work vs love and then love being corrupted by finance etc. But I think it took so much out of Jim and Ann's relationship and characters that it made them too implausible; 2 years go by and barely anything happened in their romantic/sex lives whilst both are in college, seriously? That's just my opinion of course. I am just disappointed, plain and simple...like this film.
Red Riding Hood (2011)
What a bore!
This took a good few times to resume to get to the end of the film because i just couldn't engage with it at all. Had such high expectations for it, had this on my watchlist for literally ages and all my excitement was wasted. All potentials of this film were completely wasted - the love triangle, the cast, the wolf curse, the "whodunnit" and can you even call that an ending? Dull, dull, dull. Only pro was some artistic sequences where you can see Catherine's quirks as a filmmaker, I just feel like this film was not her true vision at all and i have no idea what happened to make this potential blockbuster so boring and unmemorable.
Purple Hearts (2022)
Really beautiful!
This is really well-made, and unlike many of Netflix's rom coms the script didn't bore me at all. Any predictabilities such as Frankie's tragic death didn't lower the quality of the film because of how well they were executed. Beautiful cinematography and settings, so stylistic. I did find Luke's character a little robotic even for the whole soldier machismo, he didn't really soften and also severely reminded me of Four from Divergent (the actors are like doppelgängers tbf) but still i don't the character particularly lowered the quality. The songs are absolutely gorgeous as well, omg Sofia Carson is Talented with a capital T, powerful lyrics and voice and they're all good songs to get stuck in your head, kind of relaxes my mind actually and I always love a film that's calmly therapeutic. Overall really impressed. :D.
Persuasion (2022)
It's alright. It's beautiful, just far too simple for Austen.
I was certainly in awe of the visuals throughout, everything about them was definitely thought out perfectly, love the costumes and how they represent the characters etc. Etc. Etc. It's all very serene and idyllic, as Austen intended her settings.
But it's the underlying tone of societal chaos and deep inner psyche that explores Austen's idiosyncratic speculation of social realism that is MISSING from this film. Protagonist Anne, (although Dakota's performance is perfect) appears as a "copy of a copy of copy" - by that I interpret her as a form of Bridget Jones; easily embarrasses herself, heavy wine drinker, can't make up her mind about her love life but pretends to be not so worried about it - which is alright for modern relevance but any Austen fan knows Bridget Jones' Diary as a satirising Pride & Prejudice with modern stipulation upon love. I'm not dismissing the archetype and I also appreciate the loyalty to the storyline, but was this loyalty worth it from the look of the final product?
Yeah, no.
Easily forgettable film, doesn't do justice to Austen and so unfortunately raises the truly distressing questions - is the Austen brand now being overworked by the film industry, is the flame burning out?! I bloody hope not!
Wild Wild West (1999)
Light-hearted, all-enjoyable spoof of westerns. Shouldn't have been tribute to the all-SERIOUS 60s show.
Whilst both the tv show and the eponymous film epitomise the western genre, it's fair to say the film is very much parodical and not for serious viewing as for the tv show. It annoys me to interpret the reason behind the film bearing tribute to the show being to dodge an original concept, hence the same characters and opening credit style are utilised (although the credits do look awesome). If it hadn't been tribute in the first place, no doubt it wouldn't have received any of the razzie awards neither be so detested by Conrad for its blatant disrespect to the show.
Instead it would be perceived as just another blockbuster that when someone says they haven't seen it, people would go "but how?!" and would possibly be on a similar(ish) level to MIB considering Will Smith's heroic, witty, fun-loving and cool characters in both and (despite the numerous goofs) how well-made the film is; magnificent set designs, action scenes and vfx at high quality for the time, and there also aren't many "adult" scenes so it's relatively family-friendly for those who deem it appropriate for particular younger viewers.
So I'd say as a tribute: an atrocity that flips the bird at the tv show's demographic (quite literally in an ending shot of a finger-shaped rock). But as a blockbuster: ticks all the boxes, it's hilarious, it's satirical, it's comic relief for the severity of tension and seriousness within westerns and action films - the heroes don't have to be idolised for their heroism, instead more humanised for their wit and flaws, hence it's just another good example of a film that scrutinises its character archetypes which it does upon the brains and the brawn duo of West and Gordon.