This is how we should still be treating (neo-)Nazis.
After having just finished the two "Dune" films before watching this, and having seen a few other Denis Villeneuve films, I think that it's safe to say that he's quite poor at telling stories, especially those belong to other people. His ability to convolute a story is unmatched. I can't recall being more confused than when watching his films. I think that it's an injustice to the actors and the source material. This was a great idea for a story, but his telling of it left a lot to be desired.
This had a fine cast, albeit a bit old to be playing 16-year-olds, but the script and direction were not good. I found Dakota Johnson's character to be really unlikeable for most of the film, and there was no look into the three members of her cohort, which seemed like a really wasted opportunity. What was the plan, to tell their backstory in a sequel? Tahar Rahim is a fine actor, but he was not good in this, and for all the vitriol against this film, it wasn't that bad, but it also wasn't good, as it really wasn't a superhero film, so I'm not really certain why they marketed it as such. To give you an idea of how bad the scripting/dialogue was, there was a scene in the first third of the film, where the four main characters are standing in a park getting to know one another a bit. Celeste O'Connor complains that her father makes a fortune polluting the oceans with plastics, which would've been a worthy gripe had she not less than 30 seconds earlier finished eating a bag of beef jerky before tossing the empty plastic bag into the bushes. Seriously, no one in the entire filmmaking process caught this?
It's a well-made film, but I'm not now, nor have I ever been, a fan of white savior stories. No matter how you slice it, white, fascistic oppression is still white, fascistic oppression.
I got the feeling that there was so much to this story in the books than was explained here, as it didn't relate well to the screen. I was confused throughout this film. It wasn't bad, but I also felt that it wasn't nearly as good as others had made it out to be. Instead of trying to wrangle extra dollars, I wish that they would've made this into a longer epic and explained in greater detail the cultural aspects of these oppressed people and what it was everyone's intentions truly were.
In this series of "Bud Abbott and Lou Costello Meet..." films, this was not one of their best, but it was still a better-than-average film that showed why this formula was so popular for them.
This film was an important view of what it looks like to stand up to murderous fascism, those who use their outsized power to put their boots on the throats of those they oppress.
I really enjoyed this film. I thought that the cast did an exceptional job, and it was a sweet story full of heart and hope for a brighter future.
I was so disappointed by this. I really, really wanted to like it, but I never really understood what was going on. The mother-daughter story would've been of great interest to me, but it felt like they took an incredibly roundabout approach to dealing with that relationship. I'm not really sure what the rest of this was, if it all was in order to tell that story.
This wasn't at all what I was expecting, but it was a tremendous film w/ a tremendous cast. Neither the story nor the story outlay were unique, but they were well-done. This was a strong drama.
This wasn't really what I expected. I thought that there'd be more comedy, but that wasn't the case. This was very much a semi-light-hearted drama with some comedic elements. It was also dark, and it gave me Fargo vibes. I'd never seen Tina Fey in a role of this type, and I thought that she did really well. In fact, I'd like to see her branch out, and take on more roles like this.
This was a really unique film about the resilience, inventiveness, and intelligence of children. The cinematography gave it a nostalgic, 1970s feel to it, and the young actors were terrific. It was a sweet, heartwarming tale, and it would seem that Weston Razooli is a filmmaker to keep an eye on.
I really enjoyed this. I thought that Awkwafina and Sandra Oh had great chemistry together, and the comedy in this hit just the right notes. For me, Awkwafina always stands out in whatever I happen to see her in, and it's no coincidence. She's incredibly talented and brutally funny. I think that she's criminally underrated as an actor.
Overall, this was an interesting story. However, it should've been kept to five or six episodes. There was absolutely no need to string this out into 10 episodes. It really lost purpose in the middle, and it got away from the main focus for long periods of time. In the end, the performances by Amanda Seyfried and Tom Holland were quite strong, and they carried material that otherwise might've been quite lackluster.
This episode was certainly more interesting, as there was more happening to introduce elements to the story that might culminate in informing the audience of the truth. Yet, I think that the biggest drawback for me has been the writing. I don't think that they spent much time fleshing out how they would tell this story, and so they seem to be trying to shoehorn plot points into the story that don't really fit. In numerous episodes now, Amanda Seyfried's character has said things that simply didn't fit into the flow of the conversation she was having w/ Tom Holland's character. She pleads with him to get at the heart of the story, to tell the truth, to inform her of the details, but in his retelling of events, that's exactly what he's doing. He's not intentionally misleading her, so there's no reason for her to be saying these things. It seemed that the writers simply felt that they needed to give her lines of dialogue, and this was what they came up w/.
To try to twist the machinations this story involves, they had to write dialogue that doesn't really jive. And the dialogue also betrays later plot points that haven't been introduced, yet, so when they're discussing something the audience isn't aware of, it really doesn't make much sense in the moment. None of this makes for a compelling story.
Much like the first episode, this did very little to move the story forward. I understand that there needs to be some backstory, but there are scenes that drag on for for seven or eight minutes, and nothing of any real consequence occurs in words or action. It's quite clear that this had no business being a 10-episode mini-series.
I just finished the first episode, and I can't say that I have high hopes for this mini-series. First off, the episode was an hour long, which is about 10-15 minutes longer than most "one-hour" mini-series episodes. Since it's a mystery, I expected them to keep many details hidden, which was fine, but they also didn't do much to further the story, which was problematic. You had to do one or the other.
It was fun to see most of the crew back again, but this was not a good script. It seems like it was a quick cash grab that the studio put little-to-no effort into. Even Bob Uecker wasn't great, although he was the best part of this film.
This show was better than it was given credit for. For me, the highlight was Tinsley Grimes. She had such great mannerisms and a terrific delivery. It really made her stand out. Glenn Howerton, on the other hand, was the lowlight of this venture. I've seen him in a couple of things, and I find him neither to be funny nor a good actor. He's just sort of there, and he often comes across as kind of a jerk. I really don't care for his presence, and I think that he drags down the material.
I haven't seen this, but I've read enough about it to know that it's a giant waste of time. The writer/director chose to sell tickets rather than present an even semi-accurate picture of what's happening in America today. Only one side is comprised of white nationalists, neo-Confederates, Christo-fascists, and neo-Nazis who already once tried to overthrow the government, while having spent the past decade or so threatening civil war. Any comparison of the right and left is a false equivocation. Fighting against the fascism of the right is not the problem; the problem are the fascists. Yet, this film doesn't even begin to address any of this. In fact, they California and Texas teaming up, which is just a ridiculous proposal. This film is a pathetic excuse for what's actually occurring in the world.
This film was about the sentimental, yet short journey of two, new friends. They each found a way to break down the other's walls, and enjoy a true friendship built on openness, vulnerability, and truth. It was an impactful film with tremendous performances from the cast. It's incredible what we can learn by listening to others, especially those who have developed an introspection only the dying are able to muster.
Seeing fascists presented as the good guys is always disappointing, but when they use those they oppress to be their cheerleaders, it's unbelievably sickening. This would've been so much better, if Captain America had let the fascists die.
The writing on this show is so awful. Is it laziness or ignorance? I have no idea, but whatever it is, it's not good.
This was generally mediocre. The dialogue was pretty bad, so was the fight choreography, and some of the CGI didn't look right. Also, the story didn't make for a superhero tale. This was more interpersonal drama, and if I wanted to watch that, I'd watch something better written.
This was a difficult film about difficult topics. It's the story of kids growing up in abusive, unforgiving homes, who seek comfort in each other's company. They partake in what would be considered by the norm to be deviant activities, yet in these engagements, they find their commonalities. The film doesn't really offer any answers, as it more or less shows a slice of these kids' lives during this period of their trials and tribulations.
This was a smartly funny, darky comedy. It was a solid effort on behalf of all involved. I really enjoyed it.
Until the ending sequence, this film was pretty mediocre. The acting was not good, and as others have stated, the script didn't do much to move the story forward. I do have to state, I have no idea what the author of the books was thinking, when he devised the name World Catastrophe Killzone Department (WCKD), otherwise referred to as "Wicked." They were supposed to be the good guys, and that's the name he chose? You didn't have to be Stephen King to realize that the name was unbelievably awful; Don King could've figured that out. Doing something like that only serves to mock the very story that you're writing.
It's difficult to take this movie seriously. All the characters involved in this story are beyond stupid. They're so dumb that it's difficult to believe that they're capable of functioning on a daily basis. The ignorance they show on every single topic they open their mouths about is so prevalent that, at a certain point, I began wondering if the filmmakers were trolling the audience. The story is interesting enough, but it's just painful to listen to these morons speak.
This was brilliant! It was immensely funny, energetic, introspective, and entertaining.
