Change Your Image
gilliandawe91
Lists
An error has ocurred. Please try againReviews
Barbie (2023)
An Ode to the Love of Cinema
Wow. I saw this movie on July 23rd and I've been thinking about it ever since. Right off the bat, the first thing that has to be mentioned is the absolutely stunning and wildly impressive set design. The backdrops, the houses, all of the set decoration in Barbieland is PERFECTION. All of the travel sequences are so fun and beautiful and creative. I would love to believe that Barbie can help usher in a new era, where we can go back to at least having some movie with real honest to god set design in a sound stage, without so much CGI. Set Dec is 10/10
Next, I have to talk about Greta Gerwig's clear love of cinema. From the opening sequence that starts with a perfect 2001: A Space Odyssey parody which they absolutely nailed, to a hilarious Matrix reference, and then the overarching clear love of old Hollywood and especially those old school classic musicals. The dance and musical numbers here are just an absolute BLAST!
Then there is the acting. It almost feels wrong to say it, but there's no denying that Ryan Gosling steals every scene he is in. His comedic timing is a triumph and the fact that we haven't gotten to experience more of this in his film history is a travesty. Margot Robbie is absolute perfection, the most obvious casting for Barbie ever in the history of the world, but don't let that fool you. Her balance between comedy and the emotional scenes are unmatched by anyone else here. She really is one of the best actor of this generation. The rest of the cast also absolutely kills it. America Ferrera Simu Liu, Kate McKinnon, Michael Cera, Will Farrell, etc etc etc, everyone holds their own in this incredible ensemble performance. Acting is 10/10
THE MUSIC!!!! It is so iconic and obvious and perfect that we get a full original Barbie album for this film. I'm not always a hard pop music kind of person, but it went so perfectly with this film, that I had to order myself a vinyl copy. But best of all, Ryan Gosling's performance in "I'm Just Ken." The dance sequence in this one is so freaking fun and good and hilarious. I can only pray that it is nominated for Best Original Song at the Oscars so that we can be blessed with a live performance of this gem, can you imagine it?!? Music is 10/10
And finally, the script. See how I managed to make it this far in the review without even bringing up what all of those insecure baby men on the internet seem to only be able to focus their tiny brains on? This script is hilarious, SO smart and witty, and deeply poignant and emotional. It hits home so hard on so many points while still being able to poke fun at this doll that has captivated the imagination of children for the last 64 years. I love that even though Barbie has caught some heat in the last decade or so for destroying the body image of women everywhere(I personally did not find that to be the case for me, I was perfectly happy to compare myself to all of the other fellow 10 year old girls in my age group to do that for me) we are able to also look at how the ambitions of this doll, all of her careers, the fact that there was an Astronaut Barbie before there was a woman working at NASA, etc. Then of course the dreaded wish to take down the patriarchy!! If anything in this movie seemed false or offended you, I don't even know what to tell you. This felt like a very real and true example of what its like to walk through this world as a woman. So many women have shared America Ferrera's monologue, and the entire set of scenes after that were some of the funniest scenes in the entire movie. And I say that as a big Matchbox Twenty fan!
All in all, this movie for me is a masterpiece, it's stunning, hilarious, emotional and the most fun I may ever have had in a movie theatre. Cannot recommend strongly enough! Easily my favourite movie of 2023, can't imagine how anything else could come close.
Unknown: The Lost Pyramid (2023)
Beautifully filmed with incredible discoveries
Loved every second of it. I have always been fascinated by Egyptology, and especially anything involving Dr. Zahi Hawass. His fight to bring the glory of Egypt back to the Egyptian people is so honourable and you truly sense the pride everyone involved has for their country and their history.
This finds here are nothing short of astonishing, many things I have never ever seen before in any other documentary. I don't want to overhype but truly wild.
On top of all of that, the cinematography was absolutely stunning. Whether in the tombs themselves in those tight, tiny corners or overlooking the incredible Egyptian landscapes at sunset, the DOP's on this shoot did an amazing job in some very difficult circumstances.
If you're into Egyptology at all, highly recommend!
I Care a Lot (2020)
Started out good...
The storytelling in the beginning was honestly very good in my opinion, within the first 10 minutes I was unbelievably enraged, mostly because I know things like this happen in the world, truly evil humans. I didn't even mind the next part of the premise because I knew it would help me get the revenge I so desperately wanted, but the story became so muddled, it felt like they were trying to make me feel sympathy for a character they just made me hate to their core. The ending was unbelievably unsatisfying. There was great thriller potential in this idea, but it got lost somewhere along the way.
Mad Men (2007)
The Greatest
I came to Mad Men around season 4, and then watched along every week as the rest of the series came out. Since the series finale, I've watched the entire series at least 5 more times, and every time I am convinced, yet again, that Mad Men is the greatest show I have ever seen on television. If you haven't seen it yet, or even if you tried and stop, I implore you to try again because I assure you, you will not regret it.
The Personal History of David Copperfield (2019)
Disappointing Adaptation
I finally finished the novel today, after months of hiding from the trailer for this film, and I was thrilled to watch. I understand that a lot of things are going to be changed and condensed from a 900 page novel into a 2 hour movie but boy, they made nearly all of the opposite decisions I would've made on what to keep and what to throw away. Mr. Dick must've gotten 10 times the screen time as Peggotty and Mr. Peggotty who were two of my favourite characters in the novel. In the beginning, I really enjoyed the whimsical nature, however, the whimsy seems to have disappeared after the first half, leaving me to wonder why it was added at all? I loved the diversity in the cast, and what a cast it was, but wow.. just a really disappointing adaptation of a beautiful novel.
Hammer (2019)
Great film
Really enjoyed this film. Great cinematography, great acting. I thought it had great pacing, and I thought the ending was great. A great film about family relationships wrapped in a crime thriller. Mark O'Brien was fantastic.
Mansfield Park (1999)
Are we sure this is Mansfield Park?
I get that Mansfield Park is a long book, and that changes were going to have to be made... but the things I liked most about Fanny, and the events that happened that made her story most clear.. ended up being muddied, and I imagine, confusing for anyone who hadn't read the book. I also don't understand the added slavery angle, it ends up undermining the whole relationship that has been built between Fanny and Sir Thomas. I don't think Mr. Crawford's character is fully understood in this adaptation, which also ends up confusing Fanny's character, which I found so inspiring in the novel.
Devil's Knot (2013)
Could not be more disappointed.
After following this story for years I was extremely excited to see this film, especially when I found out Colin Firth was going to be in it, but I could not have been more disappointed. The true story is more bizarre then anything that could have been fictionalized, so I'm not sure why they tried. I understand you have to take liberties when writing a story, but I don't really understand why they decided to focus the story on these players. I felt like leaving this you don't feel the same horror as you do when you see the three "Paradise Lost" Documentaries done by HBO, or "West of Memphis", a documentary from Peter Jackson. I was actually shocked by the lack of horror I felt, because I didn't think it was possible with any re-telling of this story but it was just.. lacking. If you don't know the story, there's a chance you'll enjoy it because you are aware of how horrific a tragedy this really is, but if you've followed the story and enjoyed the documentaries I previously mentioned, I'm not sure how you could leave this with anything but disappointment.