Change Your Image
chancellorpink
Ratings
Most Recently Rated
Reviews
The Killer (2023)
Excellent Movie; Morons Please Avoid
Too many people missed the point of this very tight, taut dramatic thriller by the great (not hyperbole) David Fincher. Yes, it's basically only a revenge thriller, but one with fabulous style, panache, atmosphere and edge. And most importantly...humor!
Case in point, people have complained the narration is cold and repetitive. The narration isn't repetitive; it's consistently contradicted or interrupted, as the killer's self-idealized methods are constantly challenged by the unpredictable & crazy nature of life itself. And that's the point. In the end, philosophies aside, this would-be meticulous dude is merely one of the many, albeit one capable of living in opulence by doing bad. Like he said, one of the many. Lol The movie is sad, sure, but also ironic & comical, as are so many of the songs by The Smiths, the band the killer constantly listens to while working.
As for our lead, think Max von Sydow from Three Days of the Condor meets Edward Fox from The Day of the Jackal. This movie is as solid as those fine 1970s classics, with an assassin just as fascinating. Fassbender's appearance is tethered to vocal and physical balance and stillness, with a gaunt yet stately face, like Olivier in Sleuth, and with Michael Caine's steely cold glare from the same great film's ending sequences.
Yes, the ending of this movie is somewhat lacking. Had something more meaningful been cooked up, I'd have gone 10. But you can't hold any final minor disappointment against an otherwise riveting ride, one made all the better, yet again, by the fantastic score of Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross, & Fincher's precise editing. Absolutely worth multiple viewings.
Killers of the Flower Moon (2023)
Leisurely Paced, Authentic & Just OK
I was disappointed in the movie, in a different yet similar way as The Irishman. I think Scorsese has gotten too expositional and unable to self-edit enough. Too many long, drawn out scenes, including many with tons of intense dialogue. It's well acted, but I don't love any one performance in the film.
And there just aren't enough great movie scenes. I wasn't moved. I wasn't thrilled. It WAS engrossing. Not particularly too long, because you are interested in the story. They just take too long to tell it, and, frankly, it's such an ugly, unpleasant story, that it's nearly impossible to be a fan.
I also feel like people will be afraid to insult the movie for fear of looking like they don't like American Indians. A look into their culture wasn't as compelling as it should have been. The movie has its moments, but it was a letdown, overall, for me.
Fair Play (2023)
Wimpy Leads Sink Potential
This is a good little film that could have been so much more. Very well-written and realistic, with a nice turn from love story to unpredictable edgy drama/thriller, but it needed better acting from the leads to ramp this movie up a couple notches once the tensions start to rise.
As it is, only the ever-reliable Marsan, as the wickedly cold-blood head honcho, captivates throughout with both cruel charm and a foreboding sense of wicked know-how. Male lead Ehrenreich holds his own well in the earlier portions of the film, playing adoring & honest then hurt & snarky very well, but he folds in the movie's second half, as he lacks the degree of menace & deceit required to make us believe the character's change-over. Similarly, female lead Dynevor has such a juicy role, one so many actresses would die for, yet she strikes out entirely in carrying off the intended character arc, as she plays the entire role, start to finish, as basically weak and toothless, clueless to the evil that men do, and it's simply unrealistic that anyone so ambitious and successful in business could be so naive, so that later, in her most powerful scenes, we really don't buy her new-found strength. Either it was there all along, or it's not there now. The actress simply can't pull off the transition, one way or the other.
This movie is a mixture of Wall Street and Disclosure, but director Domont has very little of the stylistic flare of even Barry Levinsin, let alone Oliver Stone in his heyday. However, she's written a script here that's strong enough and believable enough to overcome her directorial shortcomings, if only she had cast leads capable of pulling it off to its full potential. As it is, this well-made flick settles for 7, when it certainly had 8-9 caliber within its grasps.
True Confessions (1981)
One of the great movies
When it was released in 1981, True Confessions-came on the heels of Duvall making a huge Oscar splash with both Apocalypse Now and The Great Santini, and it was De Niro's first film after winning the Oscar for Raging Bull. Along with its detective investigation/murder plot line, it became one of the most highly anticipated movies ever, carrying Godfather-level hype and expectations.
Well, it bombed. Because it was nothing like expected. No. It wasn't. It was far better.
Here is a truly original, moving and superbly acted film, brilliantly written, from the novel by John Gregory Dunne, with screenplay by Dunne and his equally talented novelist-screenwriter-wife, Joan Didion. People hated its pacing. Yet multiple viewings confirm that director Ulu Grosbard's vision was simply over the heads of American cinema at the time, in that it was subtle, sure, but actually very concise, as well. The pacing, though consistently leisurely, is never less than compelling, progressing forward with 100% realism. The seedy subject matter never overshadows the characterizations, and although the solution to the murder mystery may feel anticlimactic, that's entirely the point. Substance over form, character development over plot.
I think this is Duvall's greatest film performance of all time. If you watch this movie for any reason at all, do so to revel in Duvall's acting, which is at its highest form. De Niro, so soft spoken, is also a revelation, as are the excellent performances of several late & great actors: Kenneth McMilan (his best performance ever), Charles Durning (one of our great character actors rocks the role of a bad guy for a change), Burgess Meredith (so great in Rocky, but even better here), and Ed Flanders (giving such clever weight to a small role of a cynical church insider). But Rose Gregorio, as whorehouse madame Brenda, might actually steal the show here. Her earthy, grounded heartbreaking performance stands toe-to-toe with Duvall's magnificence, drawing us all in via pure human empathy.
The themes of family competition, business corruption, church-as-business and the unspoken sexual deviances of the human animal all collide in subtle-yet-Shakespearean ways, hitting home with even greater impact due to the memorable score contributed by Georges Delerue.
Simply put, this movie demands multiple viewings. Each rewards more insight into the human condition and more appreciation for the greatness of cinema at its highest form. Please don't overlook this truly underappreciated masterpiece. That's right, I said masterpiece. And I never use that word lightly.
Jesus Christ Superstar (1973)
Still Damn Great
I bought it for $8, for Easter weekend 2023, after growing up having loved the album as a kid & seeing the movie in the theater in 1973. I thought it held up great. Cried several times (Music & message are just too great, combined).
They shot it mostly on the Roman ruins in Israel. Once you get past the drama-queen presentation of heavy singing and intense facial close-up shots, and the fact that this Jesus is very whiny & passive, the human aspect takes over, the "Judas from our perspective, now" reality, and how Yvonne Elliman's love for Jesus is the big, fat human heart of "the Christian" in the film, it all really grabs a hold.
As unadorned as it is, in terms of the way they make movies today, it has just enough Fosse dance sheen & costume pizazz, with just enough camera angels, cuts and slow motion impact, to make you forget about the fact that the movie is 50 years old this year.
Plus, man, the music. Those songs. It's just damn too good. Atheist or Christian or Jew. You can't deny the quality of those songs. 9/10, even in 2023.
Tár (2022)
As Challenging to Review as it is to Watch
The opening of this movie is intended to frustrate and challenge by demonstrating the pomposity of the classical music industry. But I think it goes too far & loses the audience a bit (at least those of us who aren't trained in or fans of classical music) to dullsville. Similarly, I think the presentation of the central story here is a bit bogged down by unnecessary or overplayed elements, such as Tar's relationship with her daughter, nearly irrelevant bits about Tar's family roots, and the a-bit-too-overstated theme of how Tar is haunted during the night. I also think the overall plot lacks enough drama/intrigue to sustain and validate the film's very long run time.
Having said all of that, I greatly appreciate Field's creative presentation of the material, phasing scenes in and out with sounds and sudden cuts, and his respect for the audience's intelligence. The best films never bludgeon the viewer over the head with what's going on; they challenge us to put the pieces of the puzzle together on our own. I saw this film in many ways as an homage to Eyes Wide Shut, the Kubrick film that featured Todd Field, himself, acting as a piano player.
I also enjoyed the central message and what it says about the corruption of power by arrogance, the underlying reality that even intellectuals and artistic geniuses are prone to animalistic desires, and the fact that cancel culture can reach anyone, no matter the gender or sexual preference.
Finally, what can we say about Blanchett? In a companion piece to Woody Allen's Blue Jasmine (upper class snob gets comeuppance), she pontificates, sneers, adores, parents, plots, rages and even vomits. She manages to take this frustrating, challenging and often despicable character and invest her with sympathetic undertones. She even made me laugh while playing the accordion! It's yet another great performance by one of our finest actors, ever.
Overall, I wanted to go 9, given Field's creative presentation, his trust in the audience's intelligence and Blanchett's performance, but I can only give it 7.5 given it's penchant to lack entertainment value. After all, in the end, it's still just a movie, something we should be able to enjoy with popcorn in our dominant hand.
Terrifier 2 (2022)
Better Luck Next Time, Damien
I loved this at the start, as it tried to build a story, with terror. But as it made its way along, it also made it crystal clear that it was telling a story devoid of authentic horror.
I know a few efforts were made, with cool music, rare & occasional shots of affecting imagery, etc. But the acting sucked, top to bottom, without exception - not totally awful, but no one who could dare to make you care - & there was zero apprehension about "what" it all might mean or "how" it might all resolve itself.
No. It was, in the end, just a prolonged bloodbath. And the excessive violence & gore reduced the fear factor exponentially. If you understand horror, you can't deplete tension by gratuitous exploitation. Damien Leone may have made more money with this movie, but he still hasn't made a good horror movie. Better luck next time?
Hellraiser (2022)
Oh, Hell No!
You know what else is from hell besides the Cenobites? The zero-story script in this tedious bore of a movie.
But let's not leave out the murky cinematography, the forgettable music, and the atrocious acting of female lead Odessa A'zion, whose one-note performance consists of screaming her throat hoarse throughout the entirety of the movie. In fact, all the characters in this movie mostly just scream at each other all the time, to no avail.
David Bruckner did such a nice job with the surprisingly effective The Night House, but, boy, did he swing and miss here. His remake is an overly long mess with none of the creepy charm of the original. Avoid.
Hangover Square (1945)
Overrated to Say the Least
Today, IndieWire rated this movie the 35TH best horror movie of all time. Laughable.
Ok sure, the acting, for its time, was better than most movies. George Sanders & Laird Cregar are solid. They hang in there.
But the movie's premise and many of its scenes are comically ridiculous. Dated in such a way as to make the movie groan-worthy at times. I gave it a 5, out of respect for the intense subject matter being addressed 75 years ago. Plus the "woman as manipulative villain" was well done, and a theme our man-hating modern culture rarely addresses honestly anymore.
But in the end, this very short movie actually drags, because it's a silly melodrama. This movie isn't horror, it's kitsch.
Last Night in Soho (2021)
Me Too in Soho
I'm different than most on this film. I was made a bit numb by the overdone music/dance/flash scenes & also got fed up by the gimmicky ghost special effects, but I enjoyed the hokey murder mystery/horror twist ending. What I hated, in the end, was the incredible misandry of this film. I'm sick to death of it in movies & on social media. Hating on white men has jumped the shark. It's racist. It's sexist. It's not justified & should not be tolerated anymore than any other kind of racism or sexism. Grow up. Accept responsibility for your life. And your murders. Lol.
Southland Tales (2006)
Be Smart, Absorb
This movie isn't a story, it's a dream. David Lynch meets plotting (Sorry Lynch obsessives). It was trashed because it was viewed as nonsensical and extreme in 2006, but after Trump, it's almost believable (except it's China, not Japan). No one can justify hating this unless you prefer boring, repetitive drivel. Richard Kelly made something intensely creative here, with big laughs and a sense of meaning, even if it doesn't make sense. Be grateful America can still make English speaking movies this original and brave. Watch it twice before hating. Love it after 3 times. Amen. PS Richard Kelly needs to get off his ass and make another movie soon.
Licorice Pizza (2021)
An Icky Taboo Romance? No. A Great Watch!
Just saw my favorite movie so far from 2021. Licorice Pizza. Definitely the most enjoyable to me of all the Oscar best picture nominees. Paul Thomas Anderson deserves his best director nomination.
Judgmental sods find it problematic because it's about a boy of 15 and a young woman of 25, but it deftly handles all that in numerous ways that closed-minded, clueless people would refuse to absorb or otherwise miss completely. Such as, Gary is advanced for 15, as a child actor with a mother on the go, but Alana is repressed at 25, with parents watching her every move. He's already trying to make a living, & she's looking for a guy with a plan. They try with people society says they belong with and fail, because there is so much more than age to personal chemistry. Plus, there is no sex in this movie, & the underage boy is the aggressor/pursuer. There's even a nice analogy drawn between gay men feeling the need to hide love due to societal judgment, & our two protagonists here. Sorry. But no one should condemn this film just because Anderson does such a great job pulling off this taboo romance.
To me, it's a return to form for PTA. Very reminiscent of his first few films. Great use of music. Excellent time-period feel. Warm, natural performances by new faces. Phillip Seymour Hoffman's son does a nice job, and Alana Haim pulls it all together. And Bradley Cooper's brief cameo as Jon Peters is brilliant, a total scream. Should have been nominated. Oh, and blink and you'll miss John C. Reilly as Fred Gwen, "the real Herman Munster".
It's not a super-duper heavyweight movie, but it's just so nice to see top-notch filmmaking again, where the movie is not driven by plot or effects, but human behavior.
Dune (2021)
Good Set Up, Not Enough Pay Off
Dune was only ok to me. Very well made. Villeneuve is one of the better directors, Zimmer again does really good music, and it's all edited & put together slick, but artistically too. But honestly, next to nothing happens.
It draws you in and then kind of leaves you wondering why it took 2.5 hours to lead to a... knife fight? Lots of mystical significance and worm action, but no real progression of anything. Maybe I just don't like this kind of sci-fi, but I was totally ready for the movie to take me anywhere, and it left me hanging (literally with "this is only the beginning" as the last line).
I'm sure it'll win 5-6 technical Oscars. Sound & effects, for example. But I don't think it deserved a best picture nomination. 6.7/B-
Spencer (2021)
Stop Being a Stuffy Snob
I think a lot of people missed the point of this movie. It's not solely about mental health or a tortured Princess Di's depressed mental state - it's more so about repression of spirit and the mental anguish inherent in wanting terribly bad, yet feeling unable, to break free.
The music, bright colors, cinematography, costumes and performances here are all quite good. And the tone is perfect, once you grasp the overall message. But although I agree that Kristen Stewart's performance is Oscar-worthy, her whispering tones and quietly strained enunciation ruined some of the dialogue flow for me. It's a bit distracting when hushed and hurried deliveries make words hard to make out.
But, in a way, that also sucks you more into the mind of Dianna - ready to explode, but too timid and afraid to boldly, clearly pronounce her liberty, constantly smothered by her regimented surroundings of breakfast dresses, closed drapes and royal spies watching your every move.
It's a 7.5, but I went 8 because, in the end, hell yes to the movie's anti-ass-kiss message.
West Side Story (2021)
Coulda Been a Contender
Colossal blunder by Spielberg to have Rita Moreno's character weakly sing the musical's best number, "Somewhere", with lame montage footage as a backdrop, gutting this overrated film of its narrative power in so many ways.
The Tragedy of Macbeth (2021)
Double Dull Is Trouble
Tragically, I was bored by Tragedy of Macbeth. It's rarely possible for me to enjoy Shakespeare unless I'm reading it; I have, but not here. Some wonderful, classic lines in Macbeth, to be sure. But this was a dry, bleak, colorless (both literally & figuratively) affair. C.
tick, tick...BOOM! (2021)
Hey What a Way to Spend the Day
It was hard to like at first, when you realize it's an actual musical (I didn't know it was going to be that, didn't know it was an adaptation of a musical Larson actually wrote), and some of Garfield's eye movements/acting were a bit over the top on occasion, but once you settle into the feel of the film, you can't help but surrender to its overall message of fighting to keep your dream alive.
I found the Sondheim parts really good, in part because Bradley Whitford follows me on Twitter lol, but also because that was apparently actually Sondheim on the answering machine, and he even rewrote the script to leave a message that he felt was more in keeping with what he would say.
I also got sucked into Larson's relationship with his childhood actor friend. My favorite song was the one sung at the piano outdoors at the amphitheater (hey, what a way to spend the day). That song so encapsulates why creative types long to create for a living. It's not just about screwing around or being lazy or avoiding reality. It feels like something beautiful is happening/getting done, and it makes the days have true meaning, & everything else just pales so much in comparison.
Finally, there's something so obviously profound about the fact that just as he finally gave birth to Rent and it was going to premier off-Broadway, Larson died only days before his 36th birthday, of an aortic aneurysm related to undiagnosed Marfan syndrome, almost as if he knew the clock was tick, tick, ticking on him, and he had something great he needed to get out before it went boom. His ending only lends greater impact to the film's message that believing you should live to create isn't the mistake most of society says it is.
The Lost Daughter (2021)
It Draws You In
Very effective drama with wonderful performances, including the ones by Olivia Colman and Jessie Buckley, playing older/younger versions of the lead, both Oscar nominated. Impressive script (nominated) and direction from Maggie Gyllenhaal, too. Her husband (Peter Sarsgaard) gives a nice turn, and Ed Harris is once again great. Hard to believe he's never won an Oscar (4 noms). He's 71 now too, so time is running out. People haven't loved this film very much, but I did. It draws you in. Highly recommended for all parents whose kids have now grown to adulthood. PS Film also reaffirms that Dakota Johnson's body is a work of art.
Ghostbusters: Afterlife (2021)
Annnnd....Swing and a Miss!
Ghostbusters: Afterlife?
Crapborers: Lifeless.
Apparently I need 150 characters, or the review cannot be accepted. But even 150 additional characters wouldn't have saved Crapborers.
Hey, did you know the Ghostbusters car had a gunner seat? See this movie, and be reminded of that fact, over & over & over again.
Plus see a Harold Ramis impersonator disintegrate. Amazing Fun! :/
Even Paul Rudd is a dud in this dreary, eventless, uninspired retread.
The Beta Test (2021)
Love/Hate Him: Jim Cummings an Original
Jim Cummings makes movies full of smart dialogue, edited frenetically, with the lead always played by Cummings to a 10-level of smarmy sarcasm and fast-talking, explosiveness while traversing the modern day male-female relationship landscape. If you have been navigating the world of romance/marriage/divorce in the new millennium, you'll very much recognize and should appreciate his humorous but very honest and accurate dialogue/themes.
But will you love his movies and performances? Hard to say. He's definitely an acquired taste as an actor. Good enough to be there, definitely funny, yet also always so over-the-top that realism escapes him, and so the emotional connect fails, despite the heavier themes addressed.
I like him, in the end, because he's an original. We need that more than ever today in the movies. As for this movie, it's quite violent. Even a bit disturbingly so. But that adds a serious tone which, in the end, benefits the film. And the central mystery remains intellectually captivating even as the end credits are rolling. So I say, give it a watch.
And if you just don't like Cummings, you can always go watch him die again in Halloween Kills.
The Power of the Dog (2021)
It Must Be Said. No.
Every once in awhile, the critics bring to us one of their most overrated bloviations of all time. Ladies & gentlemen, they now give us The Power of the Dog. All homosexual undertones aside, we have no real love story here, and no real story, period. No real, concrete characterizations.
If Benedict Cumberbatch wins the Oscar for this, it will join Eddie Redmaine's mind-blowingly inappropriate robbery of Michael Keaton for the worst Oscar grab ever. His character starts very strong but loses focus. And OMG not only does Smit-McPhee not deserve an Oscar, his wishy-washy, poorly enunciated, zero-inflection performance is one of the weakest of the year.
Look, Campion tries her best, with her trademark idiosyncratically weird intonations. The music is fantastic. The editing is sharp. But this story wasn't worth telling. And the overall presentation & narrative arc is a gigantic insult to the intelligence of people who actually love movies worth watching.
Nine Perfect Strangers (2021)
Yawn Retreat
Slow. Uneventful. Hugely disappointing. Plus Regina Hall sucks in this movie. Someone needed to acknowledge that. I only stayed with it because I was waiting for the "thriller" or "mystery" to start. It never does. This is a drama. Mostly about dealing with death. And a dull one.
Rosemary's Baby (1968)
Cinematic Classic and Great Horror Too
I watched Rosemary's Baby again last night, and if you were unware that Roman Polanski was, at one time, one of cinema's greatest auteurs, please watch this movie post-haste to see true genius at work. Yes, it is better than The Shining. Yes, Polanski was better than Kubrick. And Exhibit A is Rosemary's B.
Not enough fantastic things can be said about this work of cinematic art, which, from its opening sequence of rooftop credits, pans its way through your paranoid entrails, digging up dread for the true creepiness lying beneath -- the rooftops, your neighbor's smile, your husband's kiss and your own skin.
Yes, it's perfect casting, with John Cassavetes' acting matching the brilliance of his directing, in his most sympathetically detestable screen performance, and Mia Farrow reaching a superbly nuanced balance of heartfelt fight and fear that, in retrospect, confounds, considering her Woody work, which was mostly limp and never came close to matching what she touches on here, at only 23. Was it fear of letting down Sinatra (who got her the part) that drove Mia to such unsurpassed excellence? Or was it Mr. Polanski? (Hint: See answer B).
Because everyone is excellent -- from Ruth Gordon's much worse than nebby NYC neighbor (which won her the Oscar), to Maurice Evans' fatherly hero gone hospital. From Charles Grodin's warm-hearted Dr. Hill gone-to-hell betrayal, to Tony Curtis' absorbing (& uncredited) telephone voice-over work as the actor blinded by witchcraft. This is brilliant ensemble mojo that completely belies the film's 1968 made-on stamp.
But let's get to the cancerous red meat here, this film eats at you because Polanski is always in charge. He's working closely with cinematographer William A. Fraker (who shot the fantastic San Francisco car chase sequences from Steve McQueen's Bullitt that same year), so that every unspoken word is captured by extreme facial close-up, and every chaotic stumble, by handheld cam in real time (which was cutting edge in '68), and the dream sequence montages are legendary, with editing of the highest order.
And oh my, of course, I could never forget to mention that hauntingly ideal "la-la-la" theme and an overall score that gets you in the mood to look away, just when you know you can't. The cumulative filmmaking extras here never get in the way, while always involving the viewer in a believable, empathetic tale of vulnerability exploited.
Unlike the horror of today, Rosemary's Baby is frightening while still being fully humane, treating characters with the respect humans deserve, even the despicable ones. That's partly why it consistently scores Top 10 rankings in the "best of" horror film lists regurgitated this time of year.
But I'm here to tell you that Roman Polanski's Rosemary's Baby has a well-earned stake in the claim for "best of" and "top ten", no matter the genre or holiday. This is art and entertainment, in one. And it's a flick that's still going to fly long after you, I and Rosemary's baby's baby's baby are dead and gone.
Halloween Kills (2021)
Oddly Out of Step, But Still Good
I keep rewatching this movie & then upping the score.
At first, it comes off as an odd mashup of the a-bit-too-reverent and overwrought past crashing into the overly-violent present. I think the filmmakers got so caught up with paying homage to the original 1978 movie (with so many cameos from past cast members, full of corny back story), that when they shift back to present day, the violence, with so many nasty head-bashings and neck slashings, seems a bit shocking & out of place. But maybe that was the idea, to starkly contrast movie horror - then and now.
Regardless, although it first ends up feeling kind of disjointed and messy, it's well made, certainly never dull, & definitely worked for me on Halloween night 2021.
Cruising (1980)
Mystery Unsolved
I'm not absolutely certain why I love this movie so much. I suppose it starts with the fact that it's prime-era Friedkin, made when he was still at his best. Pacino at his peak is a factor too. I also love the frank and brave way it tackled the gay sexual underworld of its day, for which the film took a lot of heat, with accusations of painting homosexuals in a negative light. I personally thought its realistic portrayal of that environment was riveting. I suspect, however, that the main asset, to me, of this largely unheralded and controversial film is its Giallo-style music and editing, and the spectacularly confusing and nearly unsolvable resolution of its underlying whodunnit. Even if you decide, in the end, that there is no "answer", I defy you to stop caring about trying to find one. That's Friedkin genius, right there. He was truly one of our best.