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Reviews
The Matrix Resurrections (2021)
Disappointing reintroduction of a new era of Matrix
Matrix trilogy dashed a hypothesis that men are living in a virtual world. It is not like it had never been mentioned before. But I think no other entertainment products made for mass population ever captured the vast majority's attention like this trilogy.
Then, with that kind of hype in the background, one come to watch this resurrection. It is like a zombie, not even a ghost compared to its predecessors. Other people have said enough. Anyone who haven't watched it can imagine how big a disappointment they could get from the 4th one.
I'd, nevertheless, like to point out another evident point that, the intention is to have more sequels come after the 4th. So maybe in the producer's grand design, the resurrection only serves as a reintroduction of a new set of Matrix movies decades after its last appearance. If it is the case, I would argue, to use a complete movie as re-intro is too time-consuming for many audience and consequently too costly for the investors. Personally, I will go to watch the next sequel anyway, but with much lower hype.
Black Mirror: Smithereens (2019)
I came for Italian dinner, but got served with Fish&chips.
Admittedly, Smitherrin is not a bad production, specially from TV series side. I would say the quality is better than a lot of movies. But to my dismay, I came for a Italian dinner, but got served with Fish&chips.it is beautiful story but completely lack of the sci-fi elements shared by all previous episodes. Idk what happened to the original crew, because I never investigated since I can't do nothing about it, except dropping a little warning here to my fellow black mirror fans.
Us (2019)
It makes no sense...
Long story short... the movie was fun and suspenseful before you know what is going on. After that, everything just doesn't make any sense.
Jungle (2017)
The plot was so flat, I was reading news in between.
To be fair, I was enchanted by the natural environment and habitat. It feels good on the other side the screen, maybe not so if I was surviving inside of it alone. That's the whole point of the movie I think.
Other than that, I can't say there is much more to enjoy. The plot moves so slowly, I read several news in between. The successful survival of Yossi was clearly in sight because of various hints dropped along the way. My biggest question was about Marcus and their questionable tour guide. Then the movie told that they disappeared at the very end and that's it. So the whole movie has no climax for me. I was simply waiting for it to end...
I can't call it a good movie for reasons above, although telling a real story always adds gravity to a movie. I think I would enjoy it more when there were more turns and a climax. A real story has to be distilled and mixed with spice for make it ready for the sliver screen.
Velvet Buzzsaw (2019)
It could've been another Muholland Dr., if with a more revealing story.
From the rating, Velvet Buzzsaw doesn't seem to appeal to wide audience. I sort of understand that. I think it is more about the angle you look at it from and the resulted expectation deviates from the intention of the movie.
Let me start with that, it is a very well made movie. I am not really watching many movies, so I am not good at recognizing faces. But even I can tell, the cast is very talented and extremely devoted. The result is spectacular performance throughout the whole time. Setup is also great. From time to time, I really enjoyed looking at those Dease arts. Kind of remind me of "the Scream/Shriek" and some of Van Gogh's works, when he was sad. Definitely Norwegian. I think I could go through the movie again just to go through the paintings and some conversations again.
However, it is my opinion that, it is not primarily an art movie, but a horror in the core. The first 1/2 to 2/3 part is disguised like a drama of art critics and some dirty operation in art business. Then, more often would you hear the eerie tunes. People started to die. Their ambition and greedy was like a derailed train ramming and spinning out of control. Anyone related to Dease's arts and having done some wrongdoings were kind of cleansed by the evil spirits living in the paintings. It is not only about greediness. For example, Morf was against any kind of "paid reviews", but was also killed because he wrote an untruthful art review to please his girlfriend Josephina... He only liked studying Dease's life and works.
So what I mean is, the movie is not 100% about the value of art, altitude of critics or creativity of artists. It puts right and wrong in B&W, and kills everyone who is black. That is the kind of horror movie approach. Also, at least the last 1/3 is almost solely about suspension and killing scenes, which would not have happened in a drama. That is why people felt the story is undone, because for most horror movies storyline is designed to set up tension rather than to discuss something in depth.
I like watching horror movies, if they are good. It has been increasingly difficult to find any horror worth watching at all as more I viewed. I think Velvet Buzzsaw is worth watching. In more than one place, it reminds me of Muholland Dr, even the same street name showed up towards the end of the movie. By watching the first half, I was thinking it could be the 2nd Muholland Dr. But the ending is less revealing or enlightening in my opinion. But very nice, nevertheless.
Our Planet (2019)
Great show for alarming climate change
I've long been a fan of planet earth, a documentary filmed decades ago. But facing today's climate change and its consequences, which start to show more and more clearly. The world in "planet earth" is more like a fantasy.
That's how quickly the climate could change, which is not acknowledged by the majority of our generation. It's actually where " our planet" did really well. It's brave enough to show the cruelties of nature. And it explains the consequences of climate change to millions of audience drawn by this show.
I think, down the path, the more and earlier people wake up, the better the future will be.
The Umbrella Academy (2019)
Very exciting show!
I have never been a TV episode guy since college time, I think. Very few series could conjure me in front of a TV or computer or iPad everyday after work and nourish me with the latest development in stories... like they do many people I know. I think for this reason, umbrella academy is unique for me.
I started by reactivating my dust-covered Netflix account searching for a show that will bring me some easy to brainless entertainment during dinner time. i found umbrella academy.
At first glance, it is like any of those Marvel hero shows. Super rich wiredo, abnormal newborns, crazy plans, world on fire... It reminds me of Heroes and X-men in many ways. The plots hold up very well so far. Everyone has unique character that is well acted. Among the several superhero movies I watched and remeber, character building is not necessarily a strong point. But Umbrella is a clearly an exception. In addition, the major storyline is gripping. The branches are not so many or loose. Its good because I don't have to memorize many things to follow up the show. Action scenes are way too loud and didn't add anything exciting in my opinion. But ok. It's a super hero show after all.
Another point that adds credits is the background music. I think it's the biggest feature for me. From the "phantom of opera" at the beginning to many pop in songs in old time - I don't even know, they keep me excited. They are very beautiful music and chosen so well to match the atmosphere and tempo. When I watched the part with Cha-Cha and the other guy in black suits sitting in that dingy hotel room and 70s or 80s pop songs playing in the background, it was like a tribute to Pulp Fiction.
Love it so far. It strikes a great balance of casual entertainment and complexity.
Dracula Untold (2014)
Hollowness
Never did I understand why people would give 10 stars to this movie. It lacks in consistency. I would only say this much.
Lonely Hearts (2006)
A movie confused by its focus
It is a beautiful movie, all the scenes shot very nicely. But the reason I would not recommend it is because the movie has no clear focus.
The focus of this film, which was split between Buster and the couples half-and-half, should have been solely on Ray and Martha instead, who would have had the chance to make the film a lot more twisted, gruesome and action-packed..., the sort of things you would expect in a serial killer movie. The movie-rated "R" anyway-is a lot cleaner than I thought. The most gruesome scene is probably the blood gushing out of the woman who was shot by Martha in a furry while she was riding on Ray having sex. That is all. I guess if there was additional 20 mins scenes shot on the killer couples and their preys, we would have the chance to look deeper into their twisted mind and the manic killing spree.
Instead, the film spent a lot of precious time on Buster. If there was a good story about him, it would have been different. But it was none. Buster's wife died at the beginning, shooting her brain out in a bathtub. The scene was a lot like the later one, where Ray's victim committing a suicide because she caught him having sex with Martha. So I naturally thought there was some connection between Buster's wife and Ray. I waited until the last minute expecting to see it revealed, but nothing. The director did not give any explanation about Buster's wife's suicide, which basically devalued the starting scene-there was nothing in the end to echo the beginning. Then it was Buster's personal life: his son, his mom, Rene... has not much to do with neither the killing nor the detection. So does anybody care except the director, who is actually a descendant of real Buster?
In the end, I was puzzled why Laura Dern joined this film. She was David Lynch's favorite leading actress. She looked like an angel in Blue Velvet. She was so skillful in Inland Empire. Then she played Rene, who was not important what so ever. I mean, Laura tried to show the different aspect of this woman, her harshness in the office, her tenderness in bed with Buster, her self-respect... All the effort was wasted again, when it came to the end scene, where it had no time to explain her reunion with Buster. There should have been some good emotional scenes.
Even though the shooting was done beautifully, the storyline was planned very poorly. I can't say I enjoyed watching it.
[Rec]³: Génesis (2012)
Just another zombie movie, which has nothing to do with the first 2 REC
I love the first 2 movies. But the 3rd one is just awful, even worse than the 4th. Admittedly, I skipped the last 1/3 except the ending. But from what I watched, I don't see a lot of connection to the main story in the first 2 movies. The genesis sounds like it is going to tell the source of all this havoc, probably the girl who was identified of the original carrier in the first 2 movies. But from 2/3 I watched, there was no trace of that. The movie was a plainly zombie same as the millions of the rest of this genre. You don't find the special camera view from a hand-held home DV anymore. The zombies just pop out of nowhere. And there are millions of them following wherever the story goes. It is tiring. I will stop here, since you should get an idea of this movie if you have read so far.
Return to Sender (2015)
Disappointing.
At the beginning of the movie, I was struggling to recall where I have seen this pretty face before. It wasn't until a third had passed, I finally got it. Gone girl. So I figured that was where the sinister feeling came from. But I didn't expect the twist was going to emerge so early.
Was Maranda sending letters to him in prison??? Dubious behavior. "You win" was written on the back of the envelope. William, are you getting your hope up again soon after you raped her? OMG, she came to visit in an open back dress. A wicked trap, no doubt about that.
Was that about 50mins into the movie? For the rest of the time, I was just counting minutes and yawning. I repeated "kill him, kill him, just do it..." for a thousand times silently. There was nothing surprising when he was drugged just like the pitiful dog. Of course, she wanted to revenge. Of course, he being a minor scumbag had no chance to escape her deadly and jerking claws. But, kill someone released on parole just like that? Wasn't he supposed to send weekly reports to authorities? Hadn't anyone seen him working on her porch? Her dad surely did. OK, a father wouldn't rat out his little girl. But didn't she know that William went to the local store for paints? When her dad was venting at her , he was waving the piece of shade guide. There was no way she would miss that. Nevertheless, the fire of revenge was scorching and she was the ultimate predator. If no one else cared about the plot holes, why should she do?
The performance was OK. I think the biggest disappointment was that the twist was exposed too early–like I said above. Before anything else, the character of Maranda was too similar to the one in Gone girl. This overlap alone could give away the biggest twist of the movie easily to anyone who recognized her and had some imagination. The ending was also not thought through. She was basically asking for trouble by killing William like that. But, well, that is just typical for these kind of movies. Once the twist is revealed, the class will be over. But Gone girl at least combined a variety of elements to keep audience excited. The plot of this movie, on the other hand, was just very linear.