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Funny Pages (2022)
Best Film I've Seen In Ages
Maybe I'm overselling a bit here because of all the negative reviews I've seen here but I thought this bizarre little flick was amazing. It starts off on a bizarre, off-kilter note and manages to maintain the charmingly weird vibe right to the end.
The movie take place in the nutty world of indy comic books with people like Peter Bagge (who designed the opening title font (yes, I noticed right off) and Chester Brown (who one oddball character seemed to resemble) the reigning champs of cartoon brilliance. The movie does seem a little out of step with modern times (do comics like that even exist anymore?) but the screenplay is completely convincing in its detail.
The film has sort of a GHOST WORLD vibe. There are similarities, too, with the CRUMB documentary. Writer/director. Owen Kline knows his stuff! The oddball characters that keep showing up are distinctive, vibrant and totally convincing. The standout performance is by Matthew Maher as an intermittently violent ex-Image colorist who is embarassed about his past.
The only real flaw in the movie is the weak ending. I'm willing to forgive it because of how completely I became immersed in this detailed and original world. Here's hoping Kline gets to make many more movies. I'm really hoping for a sequel, dare I say trilogy? A great antidote for all the current comic crap in movies.
Knock at the Cabin (2023)
Gotta balance out those bad reviews...
I can't believe how "meh" the score is for this mini-masterpiece. I watched it not knowing a thing about the plot, which is probably the best way to see it. The premise is solid and the cast keeps you invested. The ending (not to give anything away) is not the typical Shyamalan "surprise" (thank goodness) but a genuinely heartfelt and touching finale. Pitch perfect!
I hate to say much more to risk giving away too much but this is definitely one of Shyamalan's best. He's changed the ending from that of the book (if anyone's read it) and, to my mind, vastly improved it.
The copious one star reviews are hilarious in their wrongheadedness but save them for after you've watched the movie.
Cats (2019)
Only Love Here...
Yes, I saw those kinda creepy trailers... no, I was never a fan of the Broadway musical... yes, I was prepared to watch the movie with my family and have a good laugh at it.
I did not expect to love the movie!
It wasn't just me either... I watched it with my children on Thanksgiving Day (12, 10 and 9) and they agreed... I wasn't just suffering some sort of delusion.
Yes, the CGI on the cat people could be disturbing at times... but once you got used to the whole idea of human faces with cat ears... most of the actors looked quite good.
The songs are mostly great... the performers voices are fantastic... the set pieces are imaginative (though the dancing cockroaches may have been a little too much)... the attention to detail is really quite impressive.
How on earth did this movie become so hated????
Taylor Swift's song is one of the best movie sequences of all time... and the Mungojerrie and Rumpleteazer sequence isn't far off...and where else are you going to see a tap dancing cat?
Starfish (2018)
Boring In The Same Way 2001 Is Boring
People who find 2001: A Space Odyssey is boring will probably think this movie is boring as well. Those who think 2001 is brilliant will... well, they will either get this movie or they won't. It's a different kettle of fish... and not for everyone... but I was mesmerized from the first moment to the last. Do I understand every detail of this movie? I think a lot if left open for interpretation. A truly interactive movie in the very best sense.
It might *also* be "pretentious codswallop" but is that *really* a bad thing?
Uribyeol Ilho-wa Eollukso (2014)
Absurd But Engaging!
Honestly, how can anyone not love a movie where Merlin the Magician is transformed into a magical roll of toilet paper? (He was sleeping in a tree, you see, and it was cut down and turned into various paper products.)
A run down satellite in space suddenly picks up the mournful singing of a broken-hearted young man and becomes obsessed. The satellite transforms itself into a young Astro Boy-ish girl robot and flies to Earth to save the boy, who has been changed into a milk cow and is being hunted by a giant incinerator AND a plunger-wielding maniac who wants to steal his liver! That's because the broken-hearted of the world are all transformed into farm animals and their livers are highly-prized because humans think eating them can transform them back to human (just a false rumour as it turns out). See? It all makes perfect sense!
Surreal as it all is, the story does have the emotional core of the relationship that develops between the "satellite girl" and the "milk cow". Just give in to the weirdness and you can't hlp but be charmed by this offbeat little masterpiece. Kid friendly? Oh, yeah! My three kids, ages 10, 7 and 6 were all swept up in the story, alternately thrilled, intrigued and teary-eyed.
An absolute winner!