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Unidentified Objects (2022)
"The Trip" with Steve Coogan... on acid. (my elevator pitch)
I just love this movie. It's funny, touching, bold, exciting, it really has everything you could want. And it really feels original and creative, unlike anything else from hollywood these days.
One thing missing in the digital age is people who support each other and real life situations. We're all trapped inside, with or without a pandemic keeping us inside, our social media world traps us and disconnects us. Movies like that this remind me of the unquantifiable importance of human connection.
So far this is my favorite move this year!
After watching this I went and watched Peanutbutter Falcon, which also scratches a similar itch and I highly recommend too.
City of Ember (2008)
Bad screenplay, Great props & sets, Enjoyable movie.
I am very excited about this movie. It suffers from some of the things so common in fantasy films: Simplified storyline, too many things fall into place for the characters, generally directed at children when it doesn't need to be to include them. That being said, unlike most of the Fantasies in the past few years, these traits do not ruin the movie. The star actors do a great job, the story premise is interesting and relevant to today's world, and above all THE SETS AND COSTUMES ARE F-ING AMAZING! Finally a director has come who is over the whole CG dazzle and understands that CG has it's place but that it should be reserved for things that you couldn't otherwise do. Yes, this movie includes CG, but wherever it can it steers away from it. Interview with Gil Kenan on cinematical.com Kenan says "I'm not really impressed by special effects. I feel like I grew up in a generation where -- I knew how a blue screen worked when I was a five-year-old, and growing up with magazines like Cinefex around, there's no illusion to it. It's much more interesting to me to tell a story in a primitive way. That gives me the excitement that another generation of filmmakers has had of pushing the technological envelope -- I feel like it's a backlash to that stuff. And I feel like it's important to balance. There's a lot of fancy digital effects in the film, but they were used when the effect could only be created digitally, when there was no way to do something practical."
This is a crucial attitude in the advancement of quality fantasy and sci-fi films. For years now we've been plagued with things like "episode" 1-3 of Star Wars, or worse, the CG animated re-edit special edition of the original Star Wars trilogy. UGH!
Anyway, City of Ember brings back great costuming and set design aesthetic and is a huge step int he right direction for the future of fantasy and sci-fi film. And of course, it's engaging, enjoyable, and cool. Even if a little too childish / badly written to go down in history as one of the greats.
Being his second film since the short animation that got Gil Kenan his career, and being such a step up from that, I am hugely excited to see what this fledgling director will be coming out with next.
Read more of my reviews and other things at afoxdrinksblood.livejournal.com
Body of Lies (2008)
Enjoyable, not amazing.
Another middle east terrorism film, Ridley Scott's Body of Lies is actually enjoyable. There have been a whole slew of these things lately, including Rendition, Traitor, The Kite Runner, and movies about War and today's soldiers like Stop-Loss and Lions for Lambs. The middle east is popular these days, or unpopular, whatever it may be, tons of movies are coming out that take place there and have some relationship with terrorism, religion, and war. Body of Lies sort of sums a lot of these things up, considering many of the angles that were each the focus of one of these other films. Although in doing so it doesn't make as strong a point as the others which very simply illustrate ONE THING so that it's very clear to the viewer. Body of lies considers all of these things and carefully weaves much of it in to the overarching plot of the film. The result is a very engaging enjoyable film that is no slouch in it's depth, but also no hard hitting political statement. Within the run of these movies Body of Lies was one of the most consistently enjoyable and overall well balanced films. I would definitely recommend it to someone looking for the pleasure of an adventure movie that's more than just action, or maybe to someone who likes to think about international relations, terrorism, and morality, but I would NOT go to this movie to be inspired or enlightened.
I saw this and then went to Sex Drive, and the combination made for an evening of good fun, which has been lacking in my trips to the theater of late. If that's what you're looking for, check em out!
See more of my reviews and other things at afoxdrinksblood.livejournal.com
Burn After Reading (2008)
Proof that "it's all been done before" still ain't true.
Okay, so maybe this film is really just another edgy thriller with a twist, except that it's not. It's just like every other movie and yet somehow not like any I've ever seen before. All I can say without tainting your experience is that this movie is exactly the same and nothing like any movie you've ever seen before. A true masterpiece of standard form, and a good representation of how personality and your own personal touch can really change the same old into something brilliant. With an all-star cast playing characters they're not used to, the Cohen brothers tell yet another "standard" in a way that makes you want to go back and dig up their oldies.
Hamlet 2 (2008)
It was good.
Although not the best movie I've ever seen, Hamlet 2 managed to be funny and somewhat original despite being yet another quirky inspiring down and out looser film. I think what saved the movie was that they didn't try too hard to hammer the jokes into you or repeat them over and over again like the recent semi-flop would have been good Pineapple Express. The movie knows it's doing something that's been done before, something that's been overdone, and it just says "hey, here I am, doin it again cause I wanted to". Without all the oneupsmanship they manage to stay on track, get wacky, have a good time, and leave you with the feeling that you should go out and build something really big and cool right now! Which is the sign of any good arts movie -if you ask me.
Hellboy II: The Golden Army (2008)
Better than Hellboy 1 but I'd avoid this series. Stay tuned for The Hobbit!
Hellboy II was not what I'd hoped. I didn't really like the first one, but as a follow up to Pan's Labyrinth with lots of freedom to do as he pleased, I expected a little more from Guilermo del Torro. I think though, that you just can't merge the polished comic look he'd "perfected" for Hellboy with the old worn beauty of his fantasy creations without hitting that cheesy middle. Although there were several beautiful props, others were too polished and shiny or CGed and CG enhanced to look good. However, Hellboy is his pocketbook and I think he did a good enough job with it compared to most people's sellout moments. I believe it will fuel his way to a spectacular job on The Hobbit, which, if he makes more like Pan's Labyrinth, will seriously rule the school.
The Dark Knight (2008)
Only a few flaws. Upping the bar for Super Hero movies. Excellent
The Dark Knight rocked the theater past, present, and future. Although I had a few little complaints such as the audio work and some of the camera work not emphasizing the Joker's intensity (felt the Scarecrow in Batman Begins managed to be really intense through camera and audio work, and although they couldn't repeat that style verbatim since it was a hallucinogen based experience, they could have pulled it forward a little with close ups similar to those on Willem Defoe in Wild at Heart and louder sound for impact at key moments. I am thoroughly glad to see Batman back in action and better than ever. I wouldn't mind if Christopher Nolan went on to do another 5 or six more Batmans; in fact, I'd be quite glad. I have much faith in his abilities.
The Man in the Iron Mask (1998)
Bad directing, boring visual style.
*no spoilers, just a spoiled movie* One of the worst movies I've seen. Okay, maybe not that bad, but sh*t, it was sh*t. The script was decent until the end. I can't help but think some disneyfied jerk was brought in to "pretty up" the ending. The directing though... the directing was absolutely abominable. I've avoided this movie for a long time, but I figured now I was in the perfect mood for it. Thought I'd probably even end up loving it. Hey, with that cast, how could you go wrong? All of the characters lines were delivered flat. Each of these great actors who have given so many great performances, in this movie, failed miserably, and one cannot help but see the mark of a terrible director marring their good talents. And of course the production design, lighting, and camera work, were all stale grade B "disney" style, with a tragically pop-feel score ruining every one fo the few moments that could have been strong.
Stardust (2007)
A bad movie, maybe good for kids.
Firstly, you get attached to the main character who turns out not to be the main character. The switch doesn't work because everything that's supposed to make you attached to the new guy is done way to fast and you can't feel what he does. Next, the characters' decisions are not the guiding force of their quest. What I mean is, everything happens TO the characters, but they make no relevant decisions to sway the outcome. Everything good is coincidence, or someone else's doing, and everything bad, well that's generally someone else's doing anyway, but the point is, there's no struggle of the characters, just THIS HAPPENED< THEN THIS HAPPENED THEN THIS HAPPENED THEN THIS. And therefore, since the movie overall fell flat, all of these great jokes that would have been really funny, fall flat too cause you're so damn underwhelmed by what's happening.
This is a good movie for kids around six or eight years old. If you are seeing it with them you'll get a kick out of this movie for the aside jokes for adults, since you're not expecting too much. But as a movie, standing alone, for normal people to watch, IT TOTALLY SUCKED.