sailorman-12617 Reviews

Cherry (I) (2021)

I don't understand the low ratings.

[8/10 · 12 March 2021]

Very briefly: Cherry is a brilliant movie and a fitting translation of the story of a real person. The pacing feels chaotic at times, compared to traditional movies, because real stories aren't paced like screenplays. The cinematography is nothing short of stunning, and most of the events are ugly to give a hint of the ugliness that is being translated from real life to a book and to a movie. Tom Holland once again flexes his range as an actor, and the Russo Brothers continue to elevate cinema. Ciara Bravo didn't have too much to do in the movie, but I personally believe she aced her tonally contradicting scenes.

The Legend of Korra: The Ultimatum (2014) Season 3, Episode 11

Phenomenal

[10/10 · 17 November 2020]

While some shows tend to nerf protagonists or buff antagonists in order to have the bad guys win, it isn't the case in The Legend of Korra. Zaheer and The Red Lotus had been shown to be overwhelming foes while Tenzin had never really been seen fighting. However, that didn't mean that the show ignored that he's a Master Airbender; it made sure the viewer remembered that in every frame. Zaheer is formidable, agile, and highly skilled, but logically, he was no match to a Master Airbender. Tenzin was eventually set against all three of the most dangerous benders in the world: Ghazan, Ming-Hua, and Zaheer, each of whom is capable of dispatching armies of highly skilled benders alone, and Tenzin was more than capable of creating a pattern to keep up with them within seconds. He only loses because of P'Li.

This is the work of writers who truly respect their characters and prioritize them over plot convenience. They didn't just write that Tenzin would lose the fight. They designed a fight overwhelming enough for him to lose. Masterful writing, and the beautiful animations and fight choreography only adds to the beauty.

Paranormal (2020)

A tad above "for an Arab show"

[8/10 · 15 November 2020]

It's true that if, say, The CW put out a show like Paranormal, it wouldn't really be highly rated.

However, this show completes its objectives. It is a great show for Arab viewers to watch while, for once, finding relatability that stems from that the show is set in 1960s Egypt and brings out and embraces its entire culture, using it to drive the plot forward instead of shying away from it to bring a story that would fit in a Western setting.

All of that aside, the show isn't bad. The story is very appealing. The cinematography is impressive to say the least. And most importantly, the protagonist Refaat Ismail (Ahmed Amin) is phenomenal. You have to buy Refaat's character in order to enjoy the show, and Ahmed Amin sold Refaat hard. The rest of the characters are perfect for the setting, and Maggie (Razane Jammal) is a great bridge between Arabs and international audiences, and her character is amazing (as is her performance).

Mulan (2020)

Nothing good came out of it

[1/10 · 7 September 2020]

I've been waiting for this movie ever since they announced it in 2018. Then it was delayed from March 2020 to September 2020 due to COVID-19. I had very high hopes for the movie, especially after learning it was a new, PG-13 take on the story. The least of my expectations were a great reimagination of the mountain battle. It was awful. Every single detail was changed to the worse, and I'm a fan of making changes in live-action remakes. Not a single character was interesting. The fight choreography was absolutely awful. The quality of the visual effects loudly says "we don't think this will sell, but we're doing it anyway". Judging this movie as a standalone, it's bad, but comparing it to its predecessor makes it worse. Bori Khan is bland, but putting him as a replacement to Shan Yu is an insult. Xianniang the Witch is a badly-developed character that just almost becomes interesting. Mushu and the ancestors were removed, and it appeared as though they were trying for a more realistic approach to the legend, but the combat is so horribly edited and choreographed, it makes Mushu look like a historical accuracy.

Mr. Robot (2015–2019)

Absolutely stunning.

[10/10 · 26 June 2020]

Everything about Mr. Robot is fine-tuned. A well-oiled machine through all four seasons. The story is extremely well-written, and takes the word "extremely" to its definition in the sense of that it never stops surprising, sometimes shocking, the viewer, with little-to-no reliance on the usual formats of plot-twists. The stunning soundtracks are perfectly immersive, never failing to put the viewer at any given scene, translating tension to audio. The cinematography is never just showing the viewer what's happening. Much like the audio, it really puts the viewer right where Sam Esmail (director) wants him to be, showing what Esmail wants to show, always keeping the viewer in the proper mindset.

Gemini Man (2019)

A great movie for the fans of the genre.

[8/10 · 14 March 2020]

Because of the really bad reviews, I had low expectations for this movie, but I evidently failed to see what all the fuss was about. I believe that the movie is a lot better than the reviews made it out to be. To be clear, I didn't give it an 8 because I thought it was the type of movie you should expect to find an 8-rating on when viewing it. The 8 represents how much I genuinely enjoyed it, and not how much I expect other people to enjoy it.