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askebisgaard
Reviews
Black Mirror: Beyond the Sea (2023)
Where has the interesting writing gone? (minor spoilers)
Earlier seasons involved dystopian-but-nuanced controversial technologies and societal cultures that seemed possible in a not-too-distant future. They were by and large told with powerful and minimalistic dialogue.
But I thought the major plot hole was pretty hard to ignore, given there was literally no reason given for it. And the inclusion of scenes that showed absolutely kindergarten-level knowledge of the physics of their work environment instantly made me feel disillusioned to the intellectual depth of this story.
And then "Can't they... somehow?" felt like the character speaking entirely to the audience to make them accept the nonsense situation. Clearly the characters would already have prepared for scenarios like this in advance, especially since their industry involves preparing for virtually everything. And I'm willing to bet any senior engineer would have spotted these gaping problems in minutes or even seconds - and usually you have large teams of them for missions like these.
Please, Brooker. At least speak ten minutes with someone who knows something about the advanced subject that you're covering. And get some constructive criticism on the plot - since almost everyone else writing reviews here also seemed to realize this plot hole.
And at the end they're being toxic to each other for no good reason, which is very unrealistic for the kind of discipline and screening that their industry requires. You don't backstab your lifeline in that line of work.
I want to like Black Mirror as much as I've done, but my trust has been heavily tainted now.
I think many of the prior seasons were way better thought out than episodes like this.
The acting, editing and cinematography was great as always though.
Irresistible (2020)
Lacking courage and direction but still decent entertainment
I like a good cynical political drama. But the movie itself is about average for its genre and to me it seemed to put a lot of effort into appearing impartial to the two major parties of the US, and too little time on having a direction.
When the movie revealed its moral I was in disbelief and honestly disappointed - and the end credit interview didn't help as it was unclear and highly rhetorical. It could've been so much more, I thought.
There's a lot of political topics I think would be more interesting to tackle with a political comedy. Gerrymandering, alternative electoral systems, power dynamics vs. Morality etc.
It may be harsh for me to say, but it feels to me like Jon Stewart might be a little bit stuck in his writing, even though it's definitely a noteworthy feat to make a decently entertaining movie when that's not usually his scene.
Girlfriend's Day (2017)
1 hour long short story
I had no expectations and didn't look into the movie before I watched it. I just put this on, knowing Bob Odenkirk was in it.
I don't really understand why, but it seemed like the plot was intentionally nonsensical and simple. It was a weird mix of very predictable and very confusing. Like a greeting card, perhaps?
I enjoy experimental movies just as well as popular ones, but after watching it, I can't help but feel like it should either have been shorter, or had more content.
What I'm really trying to wrap more nicely than it feels, is that I think the writing felt unfinished. Or perhaps the first sketch after a writer's block. Yeah, that bad. I think the only moral or interesting point brought up in the movie was the quote in the opening scene.
Yet, I still enjoyed Bob's acting, but none of the characters really stood out to me in this one. I guess most notable to me was Natasha Lyonne, playing her usual playful character and Steven Michael Quezada playing his usual dutiful and determined working-class character. Amber Tamblyn had a few interesting moments as well - but it all felt very rushed and underdeveloped.
I'll be very surprised if this will end up rated highly. I think I might even have overrated it.