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gliderguy
Reviews
Armageddon Time (2022)
Change the Channel Time
This movie was billed as a "coming of age" film. Unfortunately, the main character Paul Graff (Banks Repeta) never comes of age and remains stuck in his aimless life. The best part of the film is Anthony Hopkins performance as the loving grandfather, but that, by itself, is not enough to save this dreadful bore of a film. This film is, apparently, a recreation of the director's, James Gray, childhood. It makes me feel sorry for him, but not sorry enough to recommend this dog. The central character gets associated with a held-over juvenile delinquent who exerts a negative influence, including doing drugs in the restroom. The movie goes downhill from there and seems to end when they ran out of film to continue.
Trial by Fire (2018)
Compelling case for the review of the death penalty
What struck me about this movie is that a hardly more despicable character as Cameron Todd Willingham (Jack O'Connell) is deserving of a fair trial. The movie starts with the fire and deaths of his three young children. Willingham is convicted based on a flawed forensics investigation and the manipulated testimony of a cellmate. Willingham steadfastly maintains his innocence throughout his ordeal on Death Row, which includes the numerous executions of his cellmates. His case is taken up by a total stranger, Elizabeth Gilbert Liz (Laura Dern), who steadfastly pursues all angles of the case, even though she has no self interest in the case. Ultimately, she fails in her extraordinary attempts to prove Willingham's innocence (actually to raise enough doubt to warrant a new trial). This case underscores the necessity that even the most undesirable defendants deserve, and are entitled to, a fair trail. Even though we all know the final outcome, the movie has the viewer on the edge of their seats hoping for a legal breakthrough. Let me be clear here: I am a proponent of the death penalty because there are horrible crimes that deserve it and without it lifers have a free pass to commit murders while in custody.
Suspect Zero (2004)
Solid whodunit with a twist
An FBI agent with a checkered past is on the hunt for what he thinks is a serial killer (Thomas Mackelway played by Aaron Eckhart). The twist is that this serial killer (Benjamin O'Ryan played by Ben Kingsley) is killing OTHER serial killers. And he is very smart, so smart that he identifies serial killers who escape identification by the FBI. And he is taunting Agent Mackelway, leaving clues at each one of the murders he commits. Mackelway's past comes back to haunt him (he kidnapped a suspect in Mexico and brought him back to the US where he was subsequently released because of the illegal capture).
The movie suffers a bit from pacing, but the acting Eckhart and Kingsley is excellent. The movie has an interesting twist at the end which will keep you guessing (unless you are clairvoyant).
Mr. Nobody (2009)
Most amazing film since 2001, A Space Odyssey
The story revolves around the World's oldest man (Jared Leto) at 118 years of age. The World at this time, 2092, has figured out how to arrest ageing, but it is too late for the protagonist. So, in careful respect of his privacy, they have decided to broadcast his last days to the world. A nosy reporter sneaks into his hospital room to get one last interview, which he obliges, although he is confused thinking he is only 34. His recollections go thru three separate versions of his life with three separate females. There is a constant stream of flashbacks and flashforwards, leaving the viewer wondering what just happened. Scenes from each of the three different versions of his life are interwoven, heightening the bewilderment. If this weren't enough, he fulfills a childhood promise to spread one of his wives' ashes on Mars (yes, Mars!).
Warning: like 2001 you may be left scratching your head about what you had just seen.
The acting is top-notch, especially Leto's. I had to check the cast list to be certain they didn't have a really old man play that roll as the makeup and mannerisms were so damn real. They didn't.
The Offence (1973)
Absolutely no redeeming value to this dud
I watched this to the bitter end hoping that something would, miraculously, appear to justify wasting my time. It didn't. Sean Connery was the hook that got me to watch it in the first place. He plays Detective Sergeant Johnson, a long time officer with the British Police Force. There was a string of child sexual assaults leading up to the incident covered by the film. A new victim survives an attack, but is too traumatized to provide any help, and is sedated. A suspect Kenneth Baxter (Bannen) is brought in for questioning.
The entire movie is very dark, both figuratively and literally. It left me empty, wondering what its point was. The only conclusion I can reach is that Johnson is a sadist who enjoys hurting people. If you read any further expect spoilers from this point forward.
He is covered with mud and blood, which convinces Johnson he is their man. The film is shot with multiple flashbacks, which leaves you wondering about the film's continuity. The film starts with an unsettling scene of several officers beaten and lying on the floor, and Johnson wandering around in a daze, and the image is blurred. That transitions to the first flashback at an elementary school where the police are staking it out, looking for the perp. He is not spotted. A short while later an elderly woman witnessed a girl from the school being led away by in man in the distance. This is the abduction that the film revolves around. After a search where the girl is found alive and the witness comes forward, only to be berated by Johnson. The entire squad begins looking for likely suspects, and one is found (Baxter), who is brought in for questioning. Johnson is convinced Baxter is the perp before he even begins questioning him. Johnson begins the questioning by dismissing the only other cop in the room, an ominous sign. Once alone, Johnson immediately begins to manhandle Baxter. He beats Baxter to a pulp and gets suspended from duty. After a string of prior crime scene montages (some very violent) the film switches to Johnson's apartment and a disturbing scene with his wife (Vivien Merchant). He is clearly upset and drinking. He berates her mercilessly, recounting past crime scenes in vivid detail after she asks him to talk about what is bothering him, finally blaming her for all of his deficiencies.
Johnson has to go back in for an interview after the he is told that Baxter had died from the injuries Johnson inflicted. This "interview" is just another opportunity for Johnson to vent his outrage about the system he figures failed him. He even manhandles the Detective Superintendent (Trevor Howard), saying it was his own fault afterwards.
The movie than flashes back to the questioning of Bannen, going into much more detail, but ends with him beating the officers who came to intervene in the beating of Bannen. At this point the movie abruptly ends.
BTW, Vivien Merchant lived through an unhappy marriage in real life, and ended up drinking herself to death after the divorce with an unfaithful husband.
Midsommar (2019)
Pointless violence with Mack Truck sized plot holes
Midsommar (mid summer in Swedish) is about a group of friends that are invited to a remote Swedish commune by their Swedish friend Pelle (Vilhelm Blomgren). Anthropology student Christian (Jack Reynor) wants to take the opportunity for research for his doctorial thesis, but springs this on his girlfriend Dani (Florence Pugh) at the last minute. She shames him into including her on the trip. Things start getting weird right off the bat when Dani is pressed into taking a hallucinogen immediately upon arrival. Further weirdness is exemplified by a meat pie that is garnished with pubic hairs. Really, pubic hairs!
Cult members all wear the same garb, a white smock with cult symbols that are their names in the mysterious cult language. Cult members show exactly zero emotion except for one who goes ballistic when one of the group pees on a dead tree, which turns out to be the embodiment of the cult's ancestors. This is a harbinger of nastier things to come. It turns out that cult members voluntarily commit suicide at age 72 in an elaborate ceremony that ends with them jumping off a cliff in front of the entire group. Naturally, Pelle totally and purposefully fails to warn his friends about this gruesome ceremony, which isn't taken well. Things go downhill from here as one by one members of the visiting group disappear, only to be found for the final Viking style homage to the cult's heritage. Actually, the Vikings were more human than this crew as they waited until they were dead before setting them on fire.
The film is slow and plodding with little character development. You would think that the disappearance of so many outsiders would attract the attention of the authorities, but no. Interestingly, none of the film was actually shot in Sweden.
Love at First Sight (2023)
Great gem of a movie
Looking for an alternative to the action hero movie where the hero seems to miraculously dodge thousands of bullets I ran across Love at First Sight and decided to give it a chance. It turned out better than I expected, although I disagree with the title somewhat. The couple in question end up on the same flight and seated next to each other by total screen writer chance. Yeah, this is pretty predictable, otherwise the movie makes no sense. Ok, moving beyond this plot ploy, the chemistry between the protagonists is genuine and you get invested in seeing the inevitable outcome proceed to the predictable outcome. The other supporting characters are also as genuine, especially the boyfriend's mother.
MH370: The Plane That Disappeared (2023)
Ignores real data about MH370, peddles bizarre conspiracy instead
A retired aerospace engineer, Richard Godfrey, analyzed radio wave propagation data from the Weak Signal Propagation Reporter network developed by hams to pinpoint MH370's crash site to a 300 sq mi area. This sounds like a lot, but previous estimates where hundreds of thousands of sq mi:
(link removed by order of IMDB: search for "MH370: NEW RESEARCH PAPER CONFIRMS WSPRNET TRACKING TECHNOLOGY")
Here is the full report:
(link removed by order of IMDB: search for "GDTAAA WSPRnet MH370 Analysis Flight Path Report.pdf")
Godfrey was approached by Netflix for a documentary about MH370, but declined as they only wanted conspiratorial viewpoints. In fact, the Netflix "documentary" peddles the idea of a Russian conspiracy where MH370 was hijacked by three Russians and flown to Kazakhstan. They do this by entering the electronics bay and take control of the aircraft and lock out the pilot's controls. Obviously, Godfrey's flight path totally refutes this theory.
I would have given it One Star but the first episode was ok before they got into the tin had territory.
The Poison Rose (2019)
Boring "thriller" with a predictable plot
This film is about a private investigator (John Travolta) hired to look into the state of a family member at a mental institution. Travolta's character is already being hunted down by hitmen for an undisclosed transgression. So, he goes to Galveston to find this person and immediately encounters the obvious runaround at this hospital. In the mean time, he reconnects with old friends because he was the star high school quarterback with a checkered background. Morgan Freeman plays the town's big cheese who has his hooks into everything. The movie is somewhat plodding and predictable with some slight twists. It seemed far too formulaic for my tastes, which reflected general reviews when it came out. Don't waste your time on this one.
Jesse Stone: Night Passage (2006)
Predictable small-town cop drama
Jesse Stone (Tom Stelleck) is hired to be the Chief of Police in a small costal Massachusetts's town after being fired for drinking on the job in LA. This turns out to be an asset since the town didn't want a Chief that was on the ball. He immediately has a run-in with the town bully Joe Genest (Stephen Baldwyn). The former police chief, Lou Carson (Mike Starr), is murdered and Genest is the prime suspect. The small town corruption is so predictable that I find myself completing their lines for them. On the plus side, the scenery is eye-pleasing and Selleck gives a believable performance as a troubled, but tough, cop.
The Volcano: Rescue from Whakaari (2022)
This is what REAL courage is made of
This is the real story of real people that are confronted with cataclysmic event that most of us can only image in our worst nightmares: a volcanic eruption. People went on a cruise to an island off the coast of New Zealand for what was supposed to be a modestly dangerous view of an active volcano, which, in reality, was a quite active volcano. Whakaari did erupt on this day in 2019, leaving tourists with woefully inadequate protection against pyroclastic flows. If you don't know what a pyroclastic flow is, imagine a couple of dozen Freddy Krueger's coming at you with no where to go. The chances of survival are between slim and none, and slim is out of the question. None the less, some on the island did survive, and this documentary introduces you to them.
The Stranger (2022)
Worst movie I have seen in a long time
I was 90 minutes into the "The Stranger" when I realized I had just wasted 90 minutes of my life (to paraphrase another pointless review). I had to turn subtitles on because the OZ accents and soft talk are very hard to understand. Basically, an ex-con (Joel Edgerton as Mark Frame) is recruited to do some less than legal chores which don't get adequately explained. The film is about the massive real-life manhunt for the killer of 13-year-old Daniel Morcombe in Queensland in 2003. It is tedious and boring to the extreme, and there is but the most subtle of final reveals at the end, leaving you to question WHY you have wasted TWO HOURS of your time getting to this point.
Well, DON'T waste your time watching this DOG!
The Midnight Sky (2020)
Unlike any other SciFi flick I have seen since 2001
For starters, this is a (nearly) apocalyptic film; a worldwide disaster has occurred prior to the start of the film, presumably global nuclear warfare, but that isn't discussed. One lone scientist, Augustine Lofthouse (George Cloney) refuses to evacuate an Arctic science station. He isn't alone, however, a little girl hid behind while everyone else evacuated.
These two are alone, either, a spacecraft is returning from a deep space mission to explore a nearby planet that is human inhabitable. They encounter their own troubles, running into a meteor shower that disables essential equipment, necessitating a space walk to repair the equipment. This mission does not go well, resulting in the death of one astronaut.
While there are some minor technical squables, like the meteors hitting the space craft at roughly 100 mph (you wouldn't see them because of the speed you would be travelling), and instant radio communications (comms would be digital with a significant transmission delay), the overall special effects are excellent. The Artic outpost scenes were filmed in Iceland in a real blizzard. The pace is a bit plodding at times, but not terribly so.
Ignore the mindless negative reviews and give it a try.
Peppermint (2018)
Positive reviews sucked me in - don't waste your time
This is really a bad version of Death Wish on crack. I wanted to like it, but just kept going downhill from the start. The premise of the entire film is that the protagonist's (Jennifer Garner as Riley North) family is murdered after her husband turns down a crime gig - give me a break, couldn't they have come up with a scenario a bit more believable than this? Just goes to show how low budget their script writing was on this film. Then Riley ID's the gunmen from a police lineup, but they are left off by a corrupt judge. So Riley goes berserk in the court room and is ordered to a mental institution by the corrupt judge. Riley escapes from the ambulance that was to take her to said institution, not to be seen from again - for FIVE YEARS! She comes back as a Ninja warrior, having perfected her skills as a MMA fighter. She proceeds to render mayhem on the criminal cartel that murdered her family.
Okay, I understand that this film if formulaic based on the original Death Wish franchise. But when Riley murders the corrupt judge using detonation cord the moral outrage part just evaporated (this was also the fate of other attorneys representing the bad boys).
The script writers must have assembled all of the best cliches of this genre of film and cut and pasted it into the final script, which has absolutely no redeeming value whatsoever.
Watch this film if you get your jollies seeing bad guys gutting stabbed, shot and exploded. But if you are want even a glimmer of intelligence go elsewhere.
The Northman (2022)
Did not live up to my expectations
The review score looked good, the cast looked good, and the story had potential. The result, however, was very disappointing. The plot line was plodding and predictable. There was very little character development.
On the plus side the cast of Alexander Skarsgård, Nicole Kidman, Claes Bang, Ethan Hawke, and Willem Dafoe was very strong, which made you think that the writing and directing would be as strong. But the writing was mediocre, at best, filled with cliches. Worse, there was a lot of screaming and guttural utterances. This was supposed to make the characters look terrifying and bigger than life, but, in reality, made them look foolish.
The final scene was as fulfilling as a football tie, and completely implausible. It was if the writers couldn't agree on the finale, so they punted.
The bottom line is that I kept checking the time wondering when this mess would end.
Mr. Jones (2019)
Overrated, tired war correspondent pseudo thriller
After reading the reviews I had high expectations of an engaging thriller that would keep me mesmerized. What I got was the opposite; boring, slow, pondering an unsuspenseful. Now, don't get me wrong: the murder of millions is horrific on a scale that is very difficult to comprehend. But I am not rating the magnitude of the horror, just the quality of the filmmaking. The acting was as good as the script allowed, which wasn't impressive. The film was shot on location, but that really didn't help at all (they might as well have shot it in a studio).
James Norton plays Gareth Jones, the reporter who travels to Ukraine and discovers the genocide by starvation of Ukrainians committed by the Russians (boy, does that sound familiar!). But as compelling as the event was the movie failed to engage me into identifying with the victims.
Olympus Has Fallen (2013)
Flawed but engaging thriller
Okay, let's get something straight up front: the basic premise of the film is undeniably flawed and you must suspend normal reasoning or you will dismiss this film out of hand. That said, the movie is straight high-level action from the get-go until the predictable end. You are on the edge of your seat rooting for the good guys against the evil Koreans, or whatever. A lot good guys get killed, making it that much more engaging (blood sells). Gerard Butler is totally believable as Secret Service agent Mike Banning, right on down to the ultimate showdown with super bad guy Kang (Rick Yune). The scenes were so realistic that even my wife asked me if this could really happen (I said it was remotely possible). Aaron Eckhart was mostly believable as President Benjamin Asher until he ordered the Secretary of State to give up her Cerbeus code, which could result in the destruction of the country!
The CGI was well done and not to over the top. Most of the acting was acceptable, but I felt that Morgan Freeman didn't deliver his best (it was okay, at best). Finley Jacobsen as the President's son Connor was delightful. There were a lot of cliches, which goes with the territory.
The Informer (2019)
Punches way above its weight class
Joel Kinnaman ... Pete Koslow
Mateusz Kosciukiewicz Mateusz Kosciukiewicz ... Stazek
Karma Meyer Karma Meyer ... Anna
Ana de Armas Ana de Armas ... Sofia
Rosamund Pike Rosamund Pike ... Wilcox
Clive Owen Clive Owen ... Montgomery.
This movie is a diamond in the rough, far better than many movies with 10x the budget (or more). The main character is an FBI informant Pete Koslow (played convincingly by Joel Kinnaman) released early from prison on a long manslaughter conviction (protecting his wife's honor) in exchange for arranging a big drug deal between the cartel and some sleazy politicians. Things go wrong fast when a police undercover trys to do his own deal - very poorly, and gets murdered. This queers the big deal and the FBI wants Koslow to go back to prison to ferret out more drug dealers. Koslow strongly objects, but is compelled by the FBI. The scenes inside the prison are very intense and realistic by all actors.
The cinematography is excellent and the locations spot on. This will keep your attention for the full two hours.
Trapped (2002)
Kidnapping flick with a twist
I have to admit, I am a Charlize Theron fan, so I am biased. But she did a good job on this film. The plot is about 3 kidnappers that kidnap rich people's kid, preferably a single child. Kevin Bacon plays the ring lead (quite credibly). The plot runs into a snag, however, when he learns that the child is an asthmatic that needs prescription meds to prevent anaphylactic shock.
The plot is fast paced with a pretty dramatic ending (although they pretend to be in Seattle when it was filmed in Vancouver, CA).
The Bourne Legacy (2012)
Best urban motorcycle chase ever
A supersecret op is disbanded - along with all the experimental subjects. The protagonist (Jeremy Renner) takes exception to this, especially since he is dependent on the meds they have been feeding him. This takes him from the mountains of Alaska (actually the Canadian Rockies, but they will do) to the streets of Manila. The cinematography is great, the acting good and the plot passable. A very entertaining two hours where you won't nod off.
The Voyeurs (2021)
Sexually explicit thriller
The movie centers around a couple that move into a Toronto apartment that is across from another apartment where the occupants don't bother to close the blinds, for ANYTHING! The couple becomes more progressively involved in voyeurism (hence the title). This degenerates into unpredictable consequences. The movie is well choreographed and acted by all parties, with unexpected twists. The ending, however, totally stretches credulity. Just go with the flow here and the movie is an engaging watch.
Keep Breathing (2022)
Part survival, part revival
Liz, a NY attorney on a quest to get to a remote Alaskan village, talks to men in taking her on a private charter after the airline cancels her flight. The charter plane has mechanical problems and crashes into a lake. Liz and one other passenger survives, but he dies after being rescued by Liz.
The series alternates between her increasingly desperate attempts at surviving the wilderness and her past life, both as a child and as a professional. Some will find the numerous flashbacks as annoying, but they are key in understanding Liz's character.
The acting by all is excellent, as is the cinematography and the beauty of the location. It would have been better done, however, as a two hour movie.
A Quiet Place Part II (2020)
Just another aliens come to Earth story
I didn't watch Part I, which this is a continuation of. The family has two deaf kids, hence the Quiet part of the title. The aliens are remarkably dumb for somehow travelling here from another galaxy. You would think that they would have a better plan for taking over Earth than having a bunch of spiderman goons running around killing people one at a time. The protagonists are trying to escape the aliens and team up a dude hiding at an abandoned steel factory (or whatever it is). They have come up with a simple scheme to battle the aliens, but danger lurks everywhere.
The acting is good and the cinematography excellent, but that doesn't make up for the holes in the story line.
The Ninth Gate (1999)
Starts pretty strong, finishes with "Is that all there is?"
The story revolves around three copies of a rare book; the owner of one of them (Frank Langella) wants rare book dealer Johnny Depp to track down the other two copies. Along the way people are killed and Depp is chased by a mysterious albino while at the same time protected by a mysterious blond (Emmanuelle Seigner, who's exact involvement is never explained). Getting the right parts of the three books together entitles you to... That's the problem: there is no explanation of the ultimate reward, which makes you ask yourself: "Is that all there is?" The acting is mediocre, special effects are skimpy and the story line is weird. I guess there are worse ways to spend a couple of hours.
Tigerland (2000)
Dull, boring anti-establishment anti-war flick
Save your time watching this yawner. There is nothing here of any redeeming value. The acting is, at best, forced and unconvincing. I have to add more words here to meet the IMDB minimum, so here they are.