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The Last Duel (2021)
Ridley Scott doing Ridley Scott things again
I headed into The Last Duel with a cautious but optimistic mindset. Ridley has unfortunately been somewhat inconsistent as of late. More often than not, the issue isn't Scott's finesse as a visual interpreter, but his ability in picking good scripts. I was delighted to find out that this was not the case, as I hold this as one of 2021's stronger pictures, much to the writers' credit.
The movie has an interesting, split narrative, told in three chapters from three viewpoints. It's a surprisingly captivating and dynamic approach, without falling into repetitiveness. A lot of this has to do with the clever script, but also director Ridley Scott's skill at staging shots. They're framed differently, edited differently and acted differently. The change in lens and mood is a testament to cinematographer Dariusz Wolski's expertise as well as Scott's.
Ben, Matt and Nicole have written a temporary story with modern resonance; the politics are ancient, but fundamentally, it feels contemporary. The spoken dialogue in The Last Duel invokes an older time period, more so than it actually is.
Technically, it's a Ridley Scott movie; what can you say? He's a master at creating crisp imagery, filled with texture and haze. The action here is violent and grotesque, yet beautiful and quick. His eye for aesthetics is impeccable, demonstrated in costume and set design. The audio mix is very strong, blending Harry Gregson-Williams' excellent score with a veracious sound design.
The casting here is spot on. Adam Driver as Jacques Le Gris has a strange, muscular presence, radiating charisma while simultaneously being brutally unhinged. Jodie Comer as Marguerite de Carrouges is truthfully courageous and emotional; her performance is empowering without feeling burlesque.
As the title suggests, the final duel is fiercely intense. It's gnarly, visceral and savagely distressful.
At 152 minutes, the picture is undoubtedly long. The narrative might feel tedious to some and the overall tone is unflinchingly vile.
Alien: Covenant (2017)
Half of Alien: Covenant is on Youtube as promotional material and not in the actual movie
A mind-bogglingly cretinous but visually sublime science fiction continuation from legendary director Ridley Scott. This mixed bag of a movie struggles with trying to be too many things at once, a new Alien movie, an android's evolutionary journey, and a sequel to a prequel in the form of 2012's Prometheus.
Alien: Covenant feels like the amalgamation of several stories, mashed into one. In many ways, it behaves like a second sequel, in how it basically skips the ideological questions left by Prometheus, and dives right into Xenomorphic carnage. Covenant is more about the android David's internal struggle and his desperate quest to become a God than it is a mythological expansion of the Xenomorph's origin. If anything, it's a reduction of mythology, diminishing the uniqueness of the creature. It's a frustrating afterthought; thinking what could've been, had it only been committed to one.
Like most of Ridley's work, it's fantastic to look at and admire. He's impressively consistent with creating crisp imagery. Unfortunately, like times before, his work is weighed down by the writing. Like its predecessor Prometheus, Alien: Covenant suffers from an illogical and almost schizophrenic screenplay. It relies on implausible stupidity to function, which makes for an annoying experience.
With that said, I adore the movie's otherworldly feeling. Composer Jed Kurzel has orchestrated a pulsating and eerie score that fits the tone perfectly. The atmosphere is something I continue to return for; it transcends beyond silly words on a page. Hopefully, this wasn't the nail in the coffin for Ridley's Alien future.
Dune (2021)
Majestically gargantuan
Denis Villeneuve's adaptation of Frank Herbert's science fiction novel is a technical display of modern wizardry, an enormous and often thundering spectacle. It's best described as a sort of mix between Game of Thrones and Star Wars with religious parallels, which isn't very surprising since Herbert's novel was George Lucas' inspiration many decades ago.
Dune's story is full of rich and often bizarre mythology, political conflicts on a galactic scale, raging battles between opposing forces and fantastical prophecies.
It's a meticulously crafted vehicle to fully immerse you into the world; the movie takes deep care to establish lore and characters, unfolding at a slow pace. It's brilliantly directed in a calm but constantly tense premonition.
The acting is superb all around, with standouts from Rebecca Ferguson as Lady Jessica and Stellan Skarsgård as the villainous Baron Harkonnen. The latter manages to give the story a menacing, borderline supernatural presence.
Hans Zimmer's score invokes historical grandeur and a sort of legendary, Arthurian voice. Greg Fraiser's cinematography is vast and big, giving the story's magnitude the scope it deserves. This is a very unique looking production and it shows up on set and in costume, tremendous artwork and design.
As far as criticism goes, the movie lacks a proper ending. Sure, it's not the first movie to end on a cliffhanger, but it could still warrant an understandably inconclusive feeling. Aside from that, the pacing is also a possible deterrent for some viewers. It's long and methodically structured.
Catching the Impossible (2008)
An outstanding achievement in freshwater filmmaking and the most professional fishing program ever made
The combination of elusive underwater footage and careful documentation of impressively large and rare specimen fish makes Catching The Impossible a timeless show.
The skill, perseverance and patience from angler Martin Bowler and his companion Hugh Miles makes this movie possible. The fish caught, documented and carefully released puts it in a league of its own when it comes to television. No show has this many absurdly large, magical and unbelievably rare fish displayed on film. They're not only documented on moving image, but the entire journey and thrill of the catch is documented. This is fishing entertainment in unrivaled fashion. A milestone in not just entertainment but in education as well. It's a show that has brought endless inspiration to countless anglers across the globe, and will continue to do so.
Unhinged (2020)
Absolutely absurd
Russell Crowe has in Unhinged taken on the physicality of former rap star Biggie Smalls and the temperament of his younger self. Russell "I'll have two number 9's, a number 9 large, a number 6 with extra dip, a number 7, two number 45's, one with cheese, and a large soda" Crowe goes off on a woman for honking her horn a bit too much, so much that he goes off on a literal killing spree on comedic levels. This is a movie where people are unresponsive to the sight of a man getting stabbed to death, police do not exist and people are oblivious to any form of vehicular violence. This is a cautionary tale of not honking your horn.
Enthiran (2010)
And it's only 155 minutes?
If you're a fan of epileptic editing, erratic changes in frame rate and seizure induced montages of slapstick comedy, then you'll love the scenes with sped up footage and inconsistent CGI. You'll also love the incoherent storytelling, illogical plot and robotic acting. Not to mention the unpredictably absurd music videos with High School Musical level dance numbers and sudden changes in language for no comprehensible reason. There's also an artificially intelligent robot that can talk to mosquitoes, jump at the speed of light and disobey the laws of physics.
This is the best movie I have ever seen.
The Nile Hilton Incident (2017)
Well crafted political thriller
The Nile Hilton Incident is a political thriller following a murder at the Nile Hilton Hotel in Cairo during the Egyptian Revolution in January 2011.
The movie pulls off both the political elements as well as the more cinematic mysteriousness without being too much of either.
The acting is first class, especially Fares Fares, who probably smoked enough cigarettes to keep Marlboro in business forever. His character is not only interesting, well written and dynamic, but most of the struggle is internal. It's a very restrained act and he does it perfectly. Fares Fares is a legitimately good physical performer, not just here but in general.
The lack of musical score is an interesting choice. It's only used during big character moments and adds a sense of importance to those scenes.
The Nile Hilton Incident is veritable, competently shot and professionally acted.
Annihilation (2018)
Masterclass
Having seen this mysterious 115 minute masterpiece several times I feel obliged to write about it.
Alex Garland's second official directing gig after the critically acclaimed Ex Machina, comes in the form of an adapted screenplay from Jeff VanderMeer's 2014 novel.
Annihilation is a captivating trip into the unknown, it's a refreshingly unique story that blends horror and science fiction into an uneasy mixture.
What immediately hooked me was the oozing sense of lucid discomfort and severe danger. This is an adventurous and frightening dive into uncertain territory. Annihilation combines science fiction with horror in a masterful way. It's ominous, atmospheric and fantastically mesmerizing. It tells itself in the best way possible, as a mystery.
The score and visual imagery are the two outstanding technical merits from Annihilation. Ben Salisbury and Geoff Barrow have created a uniquely pulsating score to support the nightmarish imagery put on screen. It goes hand in hand with the uncomfortable nature of the story and elevates the material from fantastic to absolute masterclass. They've given the movie a voice and personality. The sound department have done a fantastic job.
Alex Garland along with his crew of VFX artist and designers have created unforgettable visuals. Not only have they come up with timeless creature designs, but they've brought them to life with authentic results. The practical and digital work blends effortlessly. There's some truly remarkable moments here. They've also managed to combine these terrifying monsters, unholy mutations, with beautiful and colorful artistry. It's a complete 180, there's horrific abominations of terror but there's also pretty looking plants and animals, sometimes both. This mixture makes for a dreamlike illusion.
On the surface the story is this very elaborate and sometimes violent science fiction discovery, but it's more than just that. The obvious one being the cancer metaphor, which makes for a more thoughtful experience. It's vocalized several times and works as a passive explanation for The Shimmer, a nice parallel.
The more interesting theme here is self destruction. It's an unusual topic for a science fiction horror movie. It's a really interesting allegory that spoke to me personally. It's told but also visualized. Why do we do harmful things to ourselves even though we know they're harmful? Will we succumb to our own temptations or will we evolve? It's something most of us can relate to.
Annihilation is a must see for science fiction fans and lovers of H. P. Lovecraft's work.
The Resurrected (1991)
Ugly and unsubtle
The Resurrected, from director Dan O'Bannon, writer of Alien, is a surprisingly amateurish looking movie. It has some of the most horrendous looking cinematography I've ever seen. The direct to video release does it well, since it looks like a 12 year old shot it. The framing is flat, dull and without life, it lacks any sense of flair or skill. The lighting is so one note and straight it's hurtful to look at.
What about the acting? Well, it's terrible, it's like watching somebody read from a teleprompter. Execution? Even worse. It has painfully unsubtle directing and editing, so rough Dan O'Bannon would've been better off letting his actors scream exposition at the camera.
Not even the writing is good. The dialogue is extremely basic and uninspired.
Only saving grace here is the creature design, it's disturbing and a little creepy. Unfortunately, it's presented like absolute garbage with terribly dated stop motion effects...
A more skillful director could probably have made something worthwhile with H. P. Lovecraft's story.
Midsommar (2019)
Beautiful and bizarre
Ari Aster, director and writer of critically acclaimed Hereditary, has once again constructed another gorgeous piece of psychedelic horror.
The script is smart and sufficient, one that not only creates realistic drama but makes sense of each character and moving them along in a captivating way.
Aside from being a brilliant writer he knows how to make a visual feast. He manages to keep us hooked and uncertain while doing something very different with the genre. Most of the movie is shot in daylight yet it still manages to be atmospherically refulgent and mysterious. Midsommar could easily have been something ridiculous that felt like a joke, but Ari keeps the movie on track with a strong vision. The balancing act here is impressive.
Technically the movie is splendid, the cinematography and lighting is unique. The framing is really nice, it's very artistically shot. There's subtle and interesting psychedelic effects happening at times. The set and art design is interesting and nicely woven into the sublime camerawork.
All of the costumes are accurate to something you would wear during a Swedish Midsommar, especially for traditionalists. The native language spoken in the movie is accurate and so is the geographical distances delivered during dialogue, it's a nice detail that adds realism.
The prosthetic work and violence is just like in Hereditary, blunt and graphic. It's not over the top and busy, it just is. And that's the most uncomfortable type of violence there is, perfectly suited for a film like this.
Dragged Across Concrete (2018)
Intense
Provocative, dynamic and refreshingly different. Dragged Across Concrete is a 159 minute crime thriller from writer and director S. Craig Zahler.
The cast is fantastic, with two standout performances from Tory Kittles and Michael Jai White.
It's slow paced and deliciously calm. The patience from director Zahler and his editor Greg D'Auria is something to behold. It has Zahler's trademark violence and gore and if you've seen his previous films, you know what's coming.
The writing is the strongest aspect here. It's almost rejuvenating. The story is so blunt and unapologetic, yet rich in character and stuffed with complicated dilemmas. This is raw, unfiltered writing. Zahler's writing is carefully mapped out and precise. It's slow, watchful and deliberate. Methodical masterclass.
Vice (2018)
A mess with good performances
This was probably my most anticipated movie of 2018 and what a disappointment it turned out to be.
It suffers from having a lackluster story, that takes no liberties nor risks to tell itself. It doesn't have enough material to give us anything special. The editing is a puzzled mess, it's frustratingly disorienting. The story is never allowed to start and the narration is clumsily misplaced.
It just ultimately falls apart in the editing. How is this movie nominated for best editing? I'll never know. If you're expecting a Guy Ritchie type editing style with a comedic tone to it, you're in for a disappointment.
The movie isn't especially funny. The laughs are few and far in between. It's not entertaining and therefore feels really slow and pandering.
The performances are all around very strong, especially from Christian Bale. There's one or two strong scenes, but it can only do so much to save the film from itself.
Bird Box (2018)
Absurd
Bird Box is a structural disaster in how to keep tension. It's unpolished and unfathomably ludicrous. There's enough moments of sheer ridiculousness to make Fast & Furious seem realistic.
You might enjoy this for unintentional reasons.