spocktom Reviews

Rebel Moon - Part One: A Child of Fire (2023)

Over-hyped, over-stylised, riddled with cliches and rubbish.

[3/10 · 23 December 2023]

This film had me yawning about twenty minutes. I laughed at the many cliches, the ridiculous technology on display ( a gun that needs a hammer action, really?) the use of many South African extras with that awful nasal twang of an accent and a soundtrack lifted straight from some game with no leitmotif...nothing resembling the great Williams soundtracks. Boring, pretentious nonsense.

The CGI was acceptable but not great. The acting was wooden. The script is just laughable. I felt no connection with this film...none. It did not blow me away the way Star Wars did back at the beginning of 1978. Even Star Wars and its light script is light years better than this stuff. You want to watch this...fine. If you are a young person grown up in the digital gaming age I suppose you will like it. People looking for more substantial science fiction might need to look elsewhere. Sorry.

Leave the World Behind (2023)

Great production standards but so many loopholes.

[5/10 · 9 December 2023]

The movie itself is extremely well made, beautiful production and a good soundtrack (apart from the awful hiphop used in the main title). The story builds up a slow sense of dread and you are drawn into the mystery of it all BUT many things make no sense at all. A ship can be navigated without GPS and would not run aground on a beach on a perfectly sunny day. Same thing relates to aircraft. Why did the power stay on? Water and gas as well? Wouldn't the unseen destabilisers have also messed with them?

The ending was just too contrived. It was almost as it was stitched on. Not a hit with me....

Knock at the Cabin (2023)

Too implausible!

[3/10 · 21 February 2023]

Whilst the tone of the film is quite good with excellent cinematography and some great performances by the actors, the entire concept is just too bizarre. We are left with too many questions and no answers and I feel the film is something televangelists would just love. Mr. Shymalan's films are often hit and miss. For me, this is a miss.

More context is required for the motivation behind the visitors. Some sort of answer is surely needed at the end of the film. Why were the couple and their child chosen by whatever messaged the four visitors? Why must the sacrifices be made? Sorry, in many ways I started to feel quite bored during the film. I don't mind watching a "cerebral" film but this is far too cryptic for me.

Unsane (2018)

Very realistic

[10/10 · 25 July 2022]

I note that some people here think this kind of thing doesn't happen. Be thankful, then, that you have not been "sectioned" or detained against your will because you have attempted suicide due to depression. Apart from the shared sleeping arrangements what you saw in the film is PRECISELY what happens in every public psychiatric ER and public psychiatric facility. The other difference to real life is that in real life you can use a phone and have your phone with you...otherwise in all other respects you are a prisoner until you can prove to the psychiatrist on duty that you are safe enough to leave. It is a demeaning and soul-destroying experience because all the rights you believe you have are removed for a period of time by the state. You can threaten legal action, you can complain but while you are in the clutches of the hospital you are treated like an errant child...it's disgraceful. As to the thriller aspect of this film and the stalker...well that was okay as far as the story went but I like how, in the end, the whole experience of being in a psych unit actually made the lead character worse. That's what sometimes happens in real life.

Tumannost Andromedy (1967)

Turgid!

[4/10 · 8 May 2022]

I went into watching this with an open mind and based upon a recommendation of a friend who compared this film to "2001-A Space Odyssey." I also read a couple of reviews here. Someone mentioned that the costumes were "wonderful," etc. Sorry...to me they looked like bad advertisements for early 60s leisurewear. They were laughable and not a patch on the art direction and costuming of 2001.

The story line was confusing and full of earnest Soviet-style invocations to do well, etc...etc... The effects were sub-par, even for the late 60s. The music was just terrible...awful! I think the composer wanted to inject some themes used in US films like the 50s "The Thing from Another World" and "Forbidden Planet.' It just comes out as a mashed-up mess.

This film is worth watching from the historical viewpoint of trying to understand Soviet films of the period. Good luck getting through it.

Being the Ricardos (2021)

A Visual Time Machine

[10/10 · 22 December 2021]

I've read the other reviews here with people giving various opinions about why the film needn't have been made, etc. I completely disagree and I suspect many of them were written by people who were not alive when "I Love Lucy" first aired.

This movie is brilliant in every way...the acting, the cinematography, the depiction of the time period, the story, the direction...in short, the works. Nicole Kidman silences, once and for all, those critics who accuse her of not being a top actress. She pulls off the Lucy role with aplomb. She doesn't do it with complete duplication, rather she adopts some mannerisms Ball used and adjusts her voice to a sultry gravelly sound which is uncannily similar to Lucy's actual voice. Bardem does a wonderful job as Desi...his voice, his singing and his mannerisms are spot on! Yes, he doesn't look like Desi but five minutes into the movie and you will believe that he is actually Desi Arnaz. J. K. Simmons and Nina Arianda are just brilliant as Fred and Viv.

Quite apart from the excellent way the film portrays the back room politics and dynamics at work making a hit tv show, the film touches on some important points about the "white bread" racism and sexism which were the norm when the show was being made.

For me, however, this film brings back my childhood memories of watching "I Love Lucy" on my family's 21 inch b/w tv. Life was simpler then and there was real magic being created on television at the time. This was long before reality television and the many other forms of "entertainment" which seem to have reduced network television to an also-ran in the entertainment stakes.

If you are a fan of Lucille Ball you simply must go and see this film... It shows Lucy and Desi as what they were...hardworking decent human beings who just wanted to make people laugh and earn a living from it.

Lost Horizon (1973)

Forget about the lyrics...don't judge it by the reviews...isolate the wonderful message within.

[9/10 · 21 March 2021]

I won't dwell on the criticisms of the film levelled at it by the critics...the poor lyrics, the disconnection between the songs and the film...blah. blah, blah. If you can push past those things the message of hope within the film is truly wonderful and the visuals (especially the mountain scenes and the airplane footage) were very well done...you can see no effort or money was spared to make it believable. In fact the flying sequences were reused as stock footage in the second Indiana Jones move they were so good. My personal feeling is that had Bacharach actually just scored the film without lyrics and if it had been played as a real mystery/drama it would have come off as a true classic. Bacharach's music is truly epic and moving and I wish he had composed more music for films.

Vivarium (2019)

Started off very well and then...

[1/10 · 22 November 2020]

The film starts really well...quite intriguing and then it descends into a llllooooonnnggg and dull boring repetitive cycle. The film hints at alien abduction of a sort but there is no satisfying resolution and it drags on and on. The whole film could have been told in an hour long tv episode. I feel as if I wasted quite a bit of my life watching this and I can't help but think others will feel the same way.

Years and Years (2019)

Meh...

[6/10 · 6 December 2019]

Honestly, all these "glowing" reviews! Some elements of the series are thought-provoking...the what ifs. What if the US nuked part of China? What if the banking system collapsed again? All very plausible...all very compelling. The problem is the "wokefulness" of the family portrayed in the show. You have a gay couple, a bi-racial couple, a split family situation, a disabled person, a stupid kid and entire families addicted to their screens. I am not homophobic. I don't mind portrayals of gay families. I am not racist. I don't mind the portrayal of a bi-racial family but can't tv series show "normal" families anymore? Why must families be portrayed as dysfunctional?

As to the production values...they are quite good (as expected of a Beeb production) but that awful droning quasi-gothic soundtrack! Yech! Can't anyone compose a soundtrack with an actual memorable melody and leitmotif anymore? Why must tv producers go for the synthesiser tonality drone? Ugh!

If you can see past the wokefulness of the production it's actually a good series but you will have to put up with a lot of PC nonsense coated around the central story.

Joker (I) (2019)

A window on a world created by us.

[10/10 · 26 October 2019]

The acting in this film is superb. Joaquin Phoenix must surely be in line for best actor Oscar for this amazing performance and I suspect the film will garner many Oscars for all its other contributors. Everyone here has commented upon how the film shows the character's descent into into pathological evil because of the cruelty of his upbringing and the callousness of the world around him. All very true, however I see the film also as a telling allegory about modern society in the west.

We now live in a society wherein there are a lot of poor people, a dwindling middle class and a burgeoning upper class. Corporations are now largely in control of the world, regardless of the veneer of democracy in which we participate. Globalisation has robbed jobs from blue collar workers and fattened the numbers of people we now consider poor and the working poor. Corporations are making fabulous wealth by sending jobs from the west to Asia to exploit cheap labour and make stupendous profits. In the process the unregulated factories harm their works and belch pollution and dangerous chemicals into the environment...hastening the change in the world's climate.

At some point people will react against the status quo... They will become angry and descend into barbarism because they know no other way to deal with a system which no longer cares about them. There will be many Jokers then.

John Doe: Vigilante (2014)

Thought provoking but disturbing.

[6/10 · 21 May 2017]

I understand the rage people might feel if the justice system lets them down...if legal technicalities let an offender walk free from court or a rapist is not convicted because there is no material evidence. This film deals with an even more controversial area of pedophilia and the main character, John Doe, makes it his life's work to execute as many pedophiles and child killers as possible.

Now most of us would cheer his actions, being that pedophiles are the lowest of the low in terms of human society but the film challenges us to think of the whole legal system as a total failure unable to dispense true justice and that the only true justice comes at the hands of vigilantes. To me and I bet many others this is dangerous territory. Once you start to disassemble our legal system...once you have no jury system...no rules of evidence...no procedural rules you are left with lynch mobs and kangaroo courts where an accusation is enough to see one hanged. This puts us one step away from savagery where anyone could make an accusation and a group could just decide to do you in without any real evidence at all. That's not the type of world I would like to live in because not only would justice cease to exist but democracy as well. So before you all choose the cheer the protagonist on in this movie think about what the director/writer seems to be advocating... a world without an organised police force or legal system. Is that what you really want?

Childhood's End (2015)

Just brilliant!

[10/10 · 19 December 2015]

I know the mini-series compressed a lot of the original book's themes and sub-plots but it had to, otherwise it may have dragged on and on too much for modern (fickle) audiences. This series is SciFy Channel's crowning glory...a modern classic that will live on in years to come and be thought of in the same vein as "Close Encounters" and the original "The Day the Earth Stood Still" (with which it shares some parallels). The actor portraying Karellen (Charles Dance) does so with such gravitas and brilliance that he is very much the equal in terms of screen presence to Michael Rennie's Klatuu from "The Day the Earth Stood Still"...and that's not an accolade I give easily for Rennie was superb in that film.

I do not cry easily watching films or TV shows but I was reduced to tears at the end of the final episode. The use of Vaughn William's "The Lark Ascending" as Milo Rodrick's enduring memento of humanity for any future explorers passing by where earth once existed tore my guts open in sadness and pride. For all our faults Jerry Holcross (the Mayor of New Athens) was/is right. Despite our avarice, violence and base instincts, humanity created art, music, literature and science. It was the one species on earth who rose above all others to ask, "Is this all that we are?" Not quite Shakespeare's "paragon of animals"...not quite worthy of the mantle of Godhood...for despite all our advances and evolution we still carry the chimp inside of us.

From a production standpoint the series is beautifully executed and a real feather in the cap of the Melbourne Australia studio that produced it. Nice to see bits of beautiful Melbourne in the background from time to time. Oh...and the effects were excellent.

The Man in the High Castle (2015–2019)

Wow! Just Wow!

[10/10 · 10 December 2015]

In this day and age of reality TV dross...the endless mindless TV cop shows and the like comes this jewel...this finely crafted mystery/sci-fi epic. I've read the original book...the series is just so much better than the source material.

For a company operating on a TV budget the series looks great. So much attention to detail, character building, and good pacing...not too flashy, not too slow. And the adherence to authenticity is just excellent.

If you want to watch something that will make you think long and hard about the "what ifs" surrounding the WWII period, then watch this series. I can't wait for season 2!

Strangerland (2015)

Meh...

[6/10 · 14 July 2015]

The best things about this movie are the cinematography, the acting (despite the lame script) and the beautiful and haunting outback locales. The story is so strung out...so stretched. The whole thing could have been told in 30 minutes. As it is the story is padded out with long and luxurious takes of the outback, the stereotypical outback town (of which there are very few these days) and the side story of Kidman's character losing it big time.

I am thoroughly sick and tired of Australian films these days (yep-I'm Australian). They tell off-beat boring stories or focus far too much on the outback that the rest of the world must think we all live in the desert with koalas and kangaroos for pets, speak with an appalling twang and drink copious amounts of beer whilst swatting away huge flies.

Here's the reality... Most Australians live in large cities or suburbs not unlike LA (I know LA so I can compare our cities quite well). Few of our films deal with our cosmopolitan and multi-racial population. Aussie films either show whitebread Aussie families or Aboriginal families in distress. No mention or filming of the other ethnic groups here.

Now whilst trying to tell tales about your culture is a laudable thing, to make a film truly internationally interesting it needs to sell to a wider audience otherwise our film industry will always be relegated to the quirky sidelines while Hollywood conquers all.

Tomorrowland (2015)

Watch it with an open mind and heart.

[22 June 2015]

I don't what people expected of this movie. So many movies, these days, are meant to be action-filled blockbusters with lots of sound and fury and not much in the way of a meaningful story.

This film has its special effects and "Oh wow!" moments but it's not really about that at all. It's about hope. It's about hoping that the world we live in tomorrow will be much better than the world as it exists today. A world free of war, pestilence, personal and corporate greed and religious terrorism.

This is a film that tells us that if we wallow in our worries and imagine that the world will end, it will end purely because we believe it to be so. Millions of years of striving and invention will be snuffed out by hatred, war and environmental degradation.

The film's writer is also asking us to rekindle the hope and aspiration that was so common in the world not so long ago. I well-remember the first moon landing. I was a little kid of ten and I sat in our school library with all the other kids in my school and watched as Neil Armstrong proved we could, indeed, fly to other worlds. I marveled at that and the fact that all my teachers were in tears...not tears of sorrow but tears of hope and joy. Somehow, over the years that followed, we allowed hatred, greed and sheer stupidity to cloud those lofty aspirations. So the film's writer is telling us to stop and learn to look in wonder again.

Interstellar (2014)

Mixed feelings

[7/10 · 22 January 2015]

There's a lot to like in this film. The way it uses real and theoretical science, the way it doesn't pander to the Star Wars fans by showing space as it is, a soundless void. There's a great deal of thought surrounding communication across time. Ultimately though the film is flawed in many ways. Let me list them: 1/ The idea that food crops are failing across the world and yet people are shown still eating wholesome meals...there is still gas for the cars and power stations still work is somewhat incongruous to me.

2/ Matthew McConaughey is just not the right person to have played the lead role. He seems too laconic and the way he mumbled his dialogue at times was downright annoying.

3/ I don't think the US would allow school books to be printed saying that the moon landings were a hoax designed to bankrupt Russia. Political correctness, I suppose, will probably become more intrusive in the future...but THAT intrusive? 4/ The "incident" with Matt Damon ("Dr. Mann") is just ridiculous and muddies the storyline and the pace of the film.

5/ The robot design is so impractical as to be laughable. Even the B9 robot from the old TV show "Lost in Space" would have worked better.

6/ Will Hollywood PLEASE pension off Mr. Zimmer and his theme-less exercises in going up and down the music scales to generate tension. Much of the "music" was loud and not appropriate to scene and there really was no memorable theme at all. Goldsmith would be turning in his grave! I congratulate the Nolans for trying to make an intelligent SciFi film in these times of dross. They have succeeded in many ways but the film is not the masterpiece 2001 is.

Super 8 (2011)

Just "okay".

[6 August 2011]

I won't go through the entire plot line...you all know the story by now. The actual craftsmanship in creating this movie is just fine. the effects are good, the sound/lighting/camera work...all just fine. The actors are VERY good...particularly the children.

Abram's directorial style, especially in relation to the kids, mimics the Spielberg style as used in "ET" and "Close Encounters". You know...people talk over each other...families depicted in the seventies look very "busy" and hyperactive, etc.

The story is so full of holes you could drive a truck through them. If the alien could not be stopped with the combined might of the pursuing military just how, pray tell, were they able to control it at Nellis airbase? And how were they able to get it on board a train? And if the alien has the power to suck away energy forces...why didn't it do this to the train??? Sorry...far too illogical.

Now...to the music. Michael Giacchino is no John Williams or Jerry Goldsmith...no way. Oh yes...the music is okay, in a TV show kind of way...but it doesn't have the thematic development and magic that Williams would have brought to this film. The only decent piece of music appears in the last ten minutes of the film and even then the theme is very underdone. Perhaps, Michael, you should go and have some long talks with John Williams before he leaves us for good.

Overall this film was like a junk food meal...quite delicious and filling but still leaving you with a certain feeling of emptiness, of being let down by much promise but limited delivery.

Star Trek (2009)

Pale imitation

[13 June 2011]

I waited for months before venturing to write a review of this film. This is a Star Trek reboot for an addled and ADHD-suffering modern generation. There is precious-little substance to this film at all apart from the roller coaster ride of effects and (poor) music.

Oh the actors did a good enough job...that wasn't the worry. It was the nonsensical and silly script that wrecked it for me. The too-convenient twists and plain hokum plot devices like "red matter"...red matter???

People are jumping up and down and writing that JJ has revived a "dead" franchise. Better that it stayed dead than get the JJ "LOST/FRINGE" treatment. Gene Roddenberry's ashes would be glowing in anger if he could see this trite nonsense.

Hachi: A Dog's Tale (2009)

If you love your dog...watch this film.

[10/10 · 30 June 2010]

I watched this film with no preconceptions and not really knowing much about the story beforehand. All I knew was that it was based on real events in Japan. I deliberately didn't read the blurb on the DVD case because I wanted to "discover" the story for myself.

I have always owned and loved dogs. Some people love their cats but I'm amongst the many who just really care for their pet dogs. Now I won't spoil the story for you except to say that after a bit of a slow start this film draws you in. As another poster said...it will teach you much about the quality of love and loyalty.

I can only warn you to have plenty of tissues on hand because if you are a human being with functioning emotions you are going to cry...a lot! I am a fifty year-old "grumpy old man" but I bawled like a baby for nearly half an hour after watching this film. I also let my Staffordshire Terrier come up onto my lap (and she is VERY heavy) and I hugged her for an age! I will never look at a dog the same way again after seeing this film and I will treasure it for as long as God allows me to live.

Inglourious Basterds (2009)

I didn't like it and if you can overcome the hype, you might not, either.

[5/10 · 18 November 2009]

Unnecessary gratuitous violence, twisting real history in some sort of alternate timeline of events, the use of music which does not marry well with the images on screen (...sounds more like Quentin's temp track of all his old favourite bits of music...)and the levity with which a very real tragic part of human history has been dealt with.

The acting was okay. The cinematography was reasonable. The direction was nothing out of the ordinary and the editing...ho hum.

And this Tarrantino guy is meant to be a new Hollywood genius??? Well...give me John Ford, William Wyler, Robert Wise...etc...etc... any day! Hollywood...down the tubes you go!

Saving Private Ryan (1998)

A necessary lesson.

[10/10 · 24 August 2009]

I won't summarise the film or talk about its technical and artistic brilliance. It is a brilliant film which depicts WW2 as it was, not the sanitised versions we were used to seeing from the 50s onwards. But, to me, there is a more important lesson to be gained from this film...

I went to see this film in a suburban cineplex here in Australia. On the night there was a huge audience and a large group of teenagers who'd wandered in because the film they wanted to see had a full house (I overheard them saying this...). They were boisterous and noisy and sometimes obnoxious as kids can sometimes be at cinemas. But after the first five minutes of the film they were dead silent and they remained so for the rest of the film.

I looked at their faces as they exited the theatre at the end of the film. All were ashen-faced, drained...some clearly close to tears. I was happy about this because a film had hammered home to a bunch of modern kids the reality of war without them having to experience it first hand, thank God. All at once they learned that war is horrible, sometimes necessary and best avoided. I'm sure they learned to look at the elderly survivors of this time in human history with a new-found respect. In short, they grew up considerably and without any physical pain as a result of watching this masterful film. And for that, I thank Spielberg profusely. Bravo, Sir.

Lost in Space: My Friend, Mr. Nobody (1965) Season 1, Episode 7

Just magic!

[10/10 · 25 January 2008]

I won't give a plot outline for this episode of LIS. Watch it for yourself to experience one of the best episodes of the entire series and perhaps one of the finest hours of TV made in the US at the time. I saw this episode when it first aired on Australian TV in the mid 60s in glorious monochrome. It had a huge impact on me because it was the first time I think I ever contemplated the nature of the universe, of existence and life.

How could anyone not be hooked by this wonderful story with a simply superb score written by the then "Johnny" Williams. The final few minutes of this episode contain, perhaps, the finest music themes ever composed for a TV show, bar none. To this day the final scenes of "My Friend, Mr. Nobody" can move me to tears and they will for you too.

Lost in Space (1965–1968)

Oh, it was so good!

[10/10 · 14 December 2007]

"Lost In Space", whether you love it or hate it, was grand fun for kids growing up in the 60s. I know, I was one of them. I was 6 years old when this show premiered on Australian TV in glorious black and white in 1966. It created an absolute flap around the school yard and I fondly remember running about the grounds with my friends yelling "Warning, warning!" in my best imitation of the robot. Most kids my age just loved the show and I think this was due to the quality of the ensemble cast and their amazing talents, especially Jonathan Harris and Billy Mumy. The scripts, whilst admittedly corny in seasons two and three, were generally very literate and well written and some of the season one episodes are worthy classics of science fiction, especially episodes like "My Friend Mr. Nobody." On that note, the "Nobody" episode was sheer brilliance. The hauntingly beautiful score by a young "Johnny Williams," the quality of the story and the sheer wonder it evoked...just beautiful! I well remember being moved to tears in the final scene when "Mr. Nobody" reveals what he truly is...surely one of the most powerful scenes of any science fiction show of the period.

The other important element, for me, was that Jonathan Harris was brilliant in his use of the English language and his constant sniping at the robot was a source of inspiration for me to learn more about words and their meanings. It worked so well I ended up becoming a teacher...thanks to "Lost in Space."

The Last Mimzy (2007)

Heart warming and uplifting.

[10/10 · 24 June 2007]

Many films these days are like a fine Chinese meal. You enjoy the experience whilst it lasts and then...you feel empty again. You won't feel this way watching this film. I could wax lyrical about how magical and wonderful it is but that would do a disservice to a film that uses Science to instill a beautiful message.

This film isn't just for kids...all can enjoy it, and should. If you want to feel a true sense of awe and have some sort of affirmation that the future will be a better place, watch this film. This is the first film that I have truly enjoyed in a number of years. I hope that you enjoy it too.

The Paradine Case (1947)

Interesting

[7/10 · 25 December 2006]

I won't go into the story, which has been better explained by other contributers. The direction of this film, by Hitchcock, is first rate, as is the "film-noirish" camera work. The score by Waxman and Dessau is also excellent. The actors struggle bravely with trite dialogue and a fairly obvious script, which is this movie's Achilles heel. It is watchable but not one of Hitchcock's best films, more so because of the story's quality than for any technical reason. Generally speaking, there are quite a few story loopholes and the character of the hapless manservant speaks English far too well to be a struggling foreigner.

Gregory Peck does a fine job in this film but I wonder why a British actor wasn't picked to play the part. After all, Peck was playing the part of an English barrister and his accent didn't exactly match the image. Hitchcock's trademark camera angles and tricks are all here to see and that's what makes this film interesting from a film connoisseur's point of view. With a tighter script and and more-believable dialogue this film could have been one of Hitchcock's better efforts.