This is one of those films that's very good for what it is. I found much of it quite amusing, which gave this film a different feel than similar entries in the genre.
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.
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.
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.
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.
This movie didn't seem able to decide what it wanted to be. The script was really ambiguous, a feeling only strengthened by the ending of the film. I wish that they had focused more on the struggle between Jack and Mark, instead of trying to be something that it ultimately wasn't.
This was incredibly poor. After five minutes, I was bored out of my mind. I barely made it 25 minutes in, and I was ready to give up. Travis Fimmel is not an actor. His portrayal was labored and a ridiculous caricature of how a human being would act. The writing was also pretty bad, as both the dialogue and storyline were really weak. I have no idea what Forest Whitaker or William Fichtner were doing in this film.
This was a fantastic film. The acting was tremendous, and the pacing of the film was quite good for such a movie. I was really impressed w/ the overall production, and I learned quite a bit about the entire process of the atomic bomb coming to be. I will say that I was somewhat surprised that there wasn't any real focus on the long-term effects of dropping the bombs, however.
This film was about as Wes Anderson as Wes Anderson gets. The casting and acting were incredible, but unfortunately, the story left a bit to be desired. I also felt that the use of three women being portrayed nude was unnecessary, especially in this day and age. If you're a big Anderson fan, I imagine that you'll enjoy this. For those of us who simply find his works amusing, I don't know that there was all that much here other than the performances.
It was a solid effort w/ an extraordinary cast, who were all fantastic, but the story left a bit to be desired but, I suppose that was sort of the point. It's a story about a couple of bumbling gym employees who find what they believe to be government secrets and the confusion it causes in figuring out what they really have in their possession. In the end, it turns out that they have notes related to a former government security analyst's memoir. The experience in trying to sell what they believe to be sensitive information to the Russians is detailed in this movie. The entire idea was that no one was on the same page, and even in the end, they couldn't figure out what had taken place, b/c it was so bizarre. It's difficult to dislike it, b/c the cast really was great, but the story lacked, and the humor was really nuanced.
It was a solid effort. I think that they could've made it more dramatic and less of an action-adventure, but other than that, I didn't really have any complaints. Millie Bobby Brown was solid in a difficult role, b/c she didn't really have anyone to play off of.
This was a terribly pointless film from a vile racist, bigot, misogynist, and child-rapist. Always remember that Tarantino said that a 13-year-old girl wanted to be raped. That thing is a fucking subhuman.
It's difficult to imagine that filmmakers could compile such a great cast, then go so far off base w/ the script that it doesn't really make a difference. I've read where this was considered a prequel/sequel, but I don't see how that's possible, since the events of this story clearly took place after the first movie. To have that be the case and not have Kristen Stewart reprise her role as Snow White, it was the huge hole at the center of the story. Charlize Theron's primary motivation was killing Snow White, so how do you make that a central theme of a film w/out utilizing Snow White? Other than that, there really wasn't anything special about this story. It was standard fare for this type of film. One thing that stood out to me as bothersome were two scenes, where, when approached by opposing forces, Chris Hemsworth just stood there and was taken captive. It begged the question: Isn't your entire purpose in this film to protect the mirror, and kill the evil queen? What sense does it make to simply stand there and be captured...twice?!?
