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The Discovery (2017)
A Filmmaking Masterpiece
I'm not one for hyperbole. Yet The Discovery is truthfully one of the best films I have ever seen in my entire life. And I'm not even going to go into the plot and how unique it is and how it touched a chord within me and blah blah blah. No, no, no. I'm being very objective about it. This flick has all it takes to be both an arthouse and cult classic.
The dialogue...
No movie in recent memory manages to capture the ad-hoc/haphazard reality of our postmodern existence like The Discovery. Consider the following gems: "Hey. Uh... I'm sorry, where you sleeping?" "I'm standing." "Well, yeah. That's something you're supposed to say, I guess."
Woow. How many movies have you seen recently that has an iota of such ingenuity!
This movie gets it all. The cinematography. The intellectual aspect of the plot. The dialogue. The larger-than-life characters. It is a true masterpiece. Segel's best performance as well.
Year of the Rabbit (2019)
Shallow and too much on-the-nose
I was really...really...really looking forward to this show. I adore Victorian drama and the concept behind this one promised good. But alas I was very disappointed. First of all, the humor is extremely stale--not just your regular generic banter; but it actually stank. Second, I understand they wanted to reimagine Victorian England as a multicultural society. And even though that might sound interesting, the execution came out terrible. None of the main characters is "round" (to quote E. M. Forster); all of them are sheer shadows to serve the pedantic mission of this drama. And it did not work. So disappointing.
Aquaman (2018)
Disappointing
I'd been keeping this one for a quiet good night. And tonight was the night. So I was very much biased towards giving this flick a good review. But alas I was very, very, very much disappointed in this movie. I can forgive bad CGI; I can ignore lame acting; hell, yeah, I can even dismiss plot-holes and idiosyncrasies. But in case of Aquaman--it was silly, generic, haphazard, and really...boring.
For instance, how Arthur got to know about trident fighting and whatnot comes from a flimsy backstory when Vulko (ostensibly) trained him as a kid. But this backstory appears after 1/3 of the movie without any gusto to sell its belatedness.
Another thing is the mother/son dynamic between Mamoa and Nicole Kidman. It is simply not there. The first time they meet, they recognize each other on first sight even though THEY HAVE NEVER MET BEFORE (AS ADULTS)!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Not to mention the ludicrous villain story involving Manta.
Overall, not worth your time.
Batman: Death in the Family (2020)
Mindblowing
I watched this flick by chance and I was blown away! This is a piece of art. The movie is comprised of a few story snippets, with Batman's being the first and least intriguing. The rest of the stories -- featuring characters I am not familiar with such as "Strange," "the Phantom Stranger," and "Death" -- were very well done. I am curious if there are other movies just like this one. Highly recommended.
Marlowe (1969)
Noir Perfection
I debated only for a fraction of a second whether to give this film 9 or 10 stars, and I quickly settled on 10. Honestly, I was mesmerized throughout the whole movie. I was also shocked--shocked because I had never heard of this movie before... and I'm 36. How come in over 30 years of watching movies had I never heard of a wonderfully written, acted, and directed movie like Marlowe?!
The dialogue is phenomenal, the acting is superb, the music is spot-on. For an hour and a half, I lived in the late '60s atmosphere. With a tight plot like this, and a gripping performance by James Garner, I couldn't even pause for a moment until I figured out how it ended. Even the ending credits is worth watching.
I really wish they still made movies like this instead of all the superhero and horror junk we are inundated with.
Sighs.
Farewell, My Lovely (1975)
The best version of the Raymond Chandler novel
This is an astonishing improvement over the 1944 versino of the same story "Murder, My Sweet." The actors give exceptional performances--all of them--and the movie has some gripping Chinatown-ish feel about it that you don't see in the 1944 version.
Killerman (2019)
Goringly refreshing but the ending didn't deliver
I really enjoyed watching this movie. I had no preconceived notions about it, so my experience was as pure as it could get. The cinematography and acting are topnotch, the pacing fast, and the story compelling. I really liked how they didn't get into the main bind (conflict) of the movie until a half-hour had gone into watching the plot building up. This was unique in a time when all types of entertainment have to abide by the unofficial universal rule of "starting with the action."
So I'm really glad Killerman didn't do that.
As the story progresses, you get to see more facets of the characters and bit by bit more secrets are presented and tackled. The movie gets really gory in the third act--which came as a surprise to me. It wasn't shocking or anything; just guiltily compelling.
The only problem I have with this movie is the ending. Spoiler alert, spoiler alert, Liam Hemsworth's character (Moe) turns out to be a cop. Which I had seen coming a mile off; too much foreshadowing: how he's so good with guns and reading his environment and so on, not to mention the relevance of his losing his memory to this gangster/hustler/chase plot. So it was easy to predict. And the filmmakers didn't resolve it well. I just felt it was also too predictable and bland. I would've ended it differently: He remembers who he is and ends up with his girlfriend. Or-more exceptionally-his friend turns against him despite all he's done for him. Something unusual like that.
Anyway-it's worth watching; Liam Hemsworth's best performance to date.
D.O.A. (1949)
Perfection
I've been keeping this for a good night. Thanks to the COVID-19 fun, I finally got to watch this gem. D.O.A. is perfect in every way, ladies and gents. It has a watertight script, impeccable performance, and topnotch direction. I don't believe I have seen anything at this level in modern cinema. Sigh. Chapeau.
Uncut Gems (2019)
Sandler the Hardnut
This movie made me see Adam Sandler in a very different light. This guy CAN act. Besides, the storyline is terrific. The only problem I have with this movie is the audio editing; especially in the first 10 min of the movie or so we hear a jazz piece or something overlaying the dialogue--which is quite cacophonic. The other thing I didn't like is the ending. I ain't going to go into detail about that, but the ending wasn't exactly what I'd hoped or expected. It is overall a very fine movie and I'm pretty sure it will live on.
Le locataire (1976)
Wow
I watched this movie the other day out of boredom. I wanted something different from the superhero deluge we are faced with in this deplorable low-quality age. And I was mesmerized. The Tenant is a much underrated movie, and I can see why. First of all, it is not for everyone; the movie has a surreal postmodern nature which might befuddle viewers not used to this kind of film. The influence of the French New Wave is clear in this movie, especially that it is set in Paris. Despite the dark theme, I was delighted and entertained. Highly recommended for lovers of good film.
Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World (2003)
A Masterpiece
One of my all-time favorites. Should have been among the top 250. Perhaps the best performance by Russell Crowe ever. Inspiring and suitable for the whole family. They don't make movies like this anymore, alas...
Love Actually (2003)
Terrible
Just terrible. Lacks decency and artistic quality. Vulgar, rude, and disgusting. Shouldn't have been made in the first place.
The Irishman (2019)
So Much Ado About Nothing
The Irishman isn't a bad movie. Actually, it's beautifully made and, from a narrow filmmaking perspective, it is flawless. However, something is missing from this movie--something which isn't missing from Scorsese's early gems such as Taxi Driver, After Hours, or Casino--namely: "mission." The Irishman lacks mission. For over three hours I was floored with spectacular cinematography and state-of-the-art acting by De Niro, Joe Pesci, and Al Pacino. But once the credits hit the screen, I felt cheated, shortchanged. The Irishman is well-made, but it is easily forgettable. I cannot think of a single scene or theme that has stuck with me from this whole visual epic. It somehow feels like a watered-down version of another movie which got lost somewhere.
The Man Who Invented Christmas (2017)
Astounding!!!
I cried while watching this movie. That's all I wanted to say!!!
City of Tiny Lights (2016)
Good But...
I fell upon this movie by utter chance. And I'm glad to say I was gladly surprised. The storyline moves smoothly; the acting is superb (esp Rez's); the pace is fast; the cinematography is mesmerizing! The film zooms in another side of the UK we seldom see, and that is fantastic. The film discusses a wide array of topics from gang violence to prostitution to terrorism. That said though, the only problem I have with this movie is its political message. Many people would find it unrealistic. Villains in this movie include some counterterrorism agents, which doesn't make sense. Anyway, I did enjoy the film experience. Recommended.