February 16, 2020
Diary Entry #1
Jojo Rabbit (2019)
I’ve been a bit on a Taika Waititi binge lately, watching movies of him I had not seen before. I’ve seen What We Do in the Shadows (2014) and Thor: Ragnarok (2017) before, but I’ve yet to see his particularly well balanced style in yet another movie. So I went through his oeuvre and found another couple of gems in Boy (2010) and Hunt for the Wilderpeople (2016). His excellent use of character combined with a fun way to use a camera (he likes to rotate it in place so you experience the entire room and actions in it in one take, it’s quite lovely) drew me to really look forward to this experience.
I just came out of It’s a Wonderful Life (1946) when I put this on and of course, the movie experience is quite different. I don’t know how Waititi manages it, but he draws us into the Nazi world without ridiculing them too much but also not vindicate any kind of their actions. He shows and tells us that Jojo does live in a cruel world, despite the slapstick like qualities his surroundings form around him.
Taika is very good at building relationships between people that meet each other for the first time. It’s a recurring theme in all of his movies. Two characters that meet up and are forced in some way to spend time together and get to know each other through dialogue and sharing of philosophies. His Andersonesque way of story through exposition makes me happy every time. Sometimes you don’t need words to tell what is going on. A well shaped image guides your mind towards the conclusion he wants you to draw from the scene. I admire that a lot in a filmmaker.
He doesn’t ask a lot of his audience, he’s not as symbolic as Anderson can be. But Taika knows how to be precise and concise at the same time. At this point, his style has become quite streamlined and he can fit pretty much anything he wants into the format he has become comfortable with. That’s why watching Jojo Rabbit feels like coming home to me. You know what to expect camera and dialogue wise, throw in a little bit of Waititi awkwardness, sprinkle in a setting that is compelling and homely at the same time and voila. You have a Taika Waititi movie.
Now, it’s definitely not his best. What We Do in the Shadows (2014) reserves that right. But it was of the same level as Hunt for the Wilderpeople (2016). It’s bright, it’s funny without ridiculing itself. The story, you know, it’s a play on the Romeo & Juliet situation. It’s how it’s told and shown which is important. With the help of brilliant child actor Roman Griffin Davis as Jojo, this story just glitters off your screen.
Scarlett Johansson deserved that Oscar nod, Sam Rockwell was delightfully apathetic at first but vindicates himself later on. Rebel Wilson was there too and her bluntness got a good laugh or two out of me. The only thing that bothered me is that their accents jumped all over the place and all I could hear from Rockwell was Waititi’s New Zealand accent.
I think Waitit blends humor and emotion again in a perfect way, the story feels satisfying, has humor and sadness, regret and delight. If you’re a fan of his work, you’ll love this. If you’re not into him, you’ll question things a bit more than I did.
Thanks for reading, have a wonderful day!
Well, I liked this one way better than Love Actually, that's for sure.
I know what this thing wants to be, it's very clearly aimed at children. It feels like a children's book brought to life and it is definitely filmed like it too. If done well, something like that can be charming and heartwarming, but this movie is neither of those things.
A lot of scenes feel like excuses to have Will Ferrel do what Will Ferrel does best, play a big child. Now, this fits his character well enough, but I got to wonder that during 30 years living at the North Pole, Santa or his wife didn't educate him thoroughly about how the world works outside of their magical Christmas land. Especially when Buddy decides to leave the safety of his home and venture somewhere he is very unfamiliar with. He doesn't know social cues, customs or how anything really works. The least he could do is give him some safety tips but he leaves it with some funny quips about peep shows and gum on the street being not for eating. (I gagged when he actually put some in his mouth from a filthy looking iron bar).
Buddy's supposed innocence gets really tiresome halfway through the movie. I mean, after a couple of days, wouldn't he realize that he needs to adapt to be able to be accepted in this world? Even after being beat up by a wonderfully great Peter Dinklage, he remains positive. He doesn't even wonder /why/ he was beat up or ask what he did was wrong. Instead he just accepts the beating and makes a quip about Peter Dinklage (he calls him an elf because he's small, har har) being a South Pole elf. Even if he grew up as an elf, he still has human emotions. I mean, even the elfs at the North Pole are mean to him, as he overhears a conversation that he's pretty useless in the shop. Words hurt more than physical violence, huh? In any case, watching Peter Dinklage kick Will Ferrel's ass was very satisfying.
The movie features a lot of movie tropes that are forgiveable, because it's aimed at movies and the rest of the actors are charming enough that it elevates the movie for me. It's not bad, but it's not good either.
Robert Egbert looks like he doesn't know what the hell is going on half of the time and the lines do not feel right to him at all. Zoey Deschanel is very charming, but doesn't add a lot more to the story besides being a love interest. James Caan pulls an incredible amount of patience from... somewhere. He must love his wife very much (a forgettable Mary Steenbruggen) because it's her that convinces him to let Buddy into his life. A selfless choice from her that's only there to have Buddy move in with the family and cause mayhem.
Not everything in this movie is annoying, I was pretty charmed with it. I loved the scene in the shop where he spends the entire night decorating the place. It shows that his background as living as an Elf is good for something in the real world, and feels like it's something that he can contribute to society over there. Despite that, there's not a lot going on that makes him a valuable character to society. That's not something he actively persues, not even if he wants to impress his dad. But at the end he ends up being a writer for a children's book that gets popular? There's not a single mention about him being interested in that anywhere. His father just took the story of his arrival and adventures in NYC and cashed it. Well done Dad.
Conclusion:
I didn't hate this, but I didn't love it either. It's a good attempt at making a child-friendly Christmas story, but the charm is partially ruined by Will Ferrel's man-child acting.
I don't know why I tortured myself sitting through all 135 minutes of that, but here we are.
The only thing that makes this movie somewhat tolerable is the cast. There's a lot of big names in this, but not all of them are featured as prominently in the movie as they are on the art in front of the bluray. Especially Rowan Atkinson isn't even a full minute in the movie, it's just another big name to add to the list of people that are in this.
It just makes it feel more like a feel-good Christmas movie cash-grab. The best is Emma Thompson, she's amazing in everything.
It could have been so much more. It starts and ends with people meeting with their loved ones in the airport, but it's not where the story starts off. It would have made a lot more sense to start off with that and build up characters through that. But it's just 10 or so stories that are slightly connected somehow (mostly done by things happening on screens). It just feels so bloated and convoluted because by the end of it, you barely know anyone from this movie, and that's a real shame with these kind of actors.
The only other positive thing I can say is that is was charming, but most of that is done by the excellent work of the actors handling a script that is laughable at best. The text just isn't written for the characters, it really feels like they've been put words in their mouth and had to fill in the rest by themselves. Luckily these people are pretty good at that. It particularly bothered me with Thomas Brodie-Sangster (Sam). The little kid talks about love like he's been through it all before and watching Titanic he knows exactly what it's like in real life. I'm just not buying it.
It would have been better if they cut half of the stories, connected them more deeply so it feels like more of a world of story. Make them come together for Christmas at the end. Not like only 8 of the 10 coming together for the nativity play. Get all of them in there, don't be afraid to get some drama in there (nothing is always lovey-dovey). Just... urgh, this feels too fantastical and whimsical.
Conclusion:
Not my cup of tea. I'm sure people love this for its charm, I just couldn't get into it.
About half-way through I realized I wasn't watching something in the ordinary. I've only watched it once before and wasn't really paying attention to it. I was now, and I think it's one of those hidden little gems that combines very good acting with a funny homage to the neo-noir genre. The dialogues beteen Robert Downey Jr's Harold Lockhart and Val Kilmer's Gay Perry.
"Look up "idiot" in the dictionary. You know what you'll find?"
- "A picture of me?"
" No! The definition of the word idiot, which you fucking are!"
Yes. More of this please. I need more dialogue humor like this in my life.
Best kind of Star Wars I've seen in a long time! Finally, the middle of the season was a bit wobbly, but they delivered!
Finally! A good episode! Gosh, I enjoyed this one, the previous one established how dangerous he could be. This one takes you back to the story of the first two episodes and makes some progress with it. Honestly, for what, 8 episodes? I thought they could have fleshed out the main story a bit more, this feels very episodic. Oh wait...
While the ending left me a bit baffled by how far the character was going to push himself in his own rising convictions, the path towards it is one of pure character developing joy.
Ethan Hawke bites himself deep into this role, letting the Reverend take over. His performance is superlative subtlety as he fights against the convictions he has built up for himself over the years. Current events that he has no control over but has to tackle as his duty as pastor catapult him into a mindset he is not ready to dive into yet. His silent struggle is real, a part he does not easily show towards any kind of public. That forlorn nature of the character is actually what pulls you through the movie, the narrow frame helping to make him feel even more locked up. Not only by his function, but by his hard mindset.
A bit of the genius of Taxi Driver trickles through the dialogue in here, I have to commend Paul Schrader for giving us yet another movie that folds a difficult setting and current problems into a sandwich of genius that I enjoyed thoroughly.
I could have done with maybe 20 minutes less of footage and an ending that was a bit differently scripted, but that is personal taste and for that, there is no remedy.
Convinced that I would roll my eyes a lot with this movie, I did. But then it did something wonderful and captured me in the way that The Goonies, Hook, and all those other classics did. It teaches without being too overpowerful, it situates itself within this time (make quite a few nods to Brexit England) and it is filled with hope when there's a world where it seems that there's not a lot of it left. It's clear what Cornish wants to achieve here and I do feel like he did. He wants to fill youth with adventure, goals and hope while reminding those that had forgotten that not all is lost just yet.
It's not perfect by any means, but it is charming, heartwarming and decently acted. It just looks like it was a whole lot of fun to make and I had a whole lot of fun watching it.
I really just wonder how the hell they explained the remains of the battlefield at the school to the teachers... Or did Merlin just hypnotise them to clean it all up and forget all about it. But what about all the dents in the cars?! Oh but wait, the meek kid can multiply money now, it's all good. And shouldn't they be like all over the news if 4 kids disappear for 4 days straight? Mum didn't seem too devastated or angry about it. Ah well, it's a family-fun adventure movie, what the hell am I going on about, I enjoyed it.
The episode where we learn that there's finally more under the layers of what appears normal and from now on out we'll see just how deep the rabbit hole goes. Lead the way Sam Esmail.
Sam Esmail does it again. I shall follow his career (and this show) with great interest. I love his use of camera, aspect ratio and pretty much all the rest. I'm really glad they give him a platform to perform to the best of his abilites on.
Glenn Close's performance outshines the rest of the tepid feeling the movie gave me. I liked Christian Slater in his role too, but I think it could have gone a bit... deeper, ironically enough.
One could edit this movie into 30 minutes of Daniel Radcliffe just skulking about and looking sad/scared.
Maybe one of the most important documentaries of the decade, showing how inequality, not only towards women, is still prevalent in what we call a 'modern' society. There are still many things we have to learn and change, but it is great to see that there is at least one great person out there trying her best to change things. And I'm cheering her on.
Fun, but pointless. C'mon guys we're 5 episodes in and you don't even talk about the main problem? Stop with the fillers, it's season 1 for crying out loud, give us context please. I want to know where Baby Yoda comes from and then you even remove him from the sideplot as well just urgh. At least Amy Sedaris was a fun addition.
The Seven Samurai plot but with The Mandalorian and a rogue soldier. A bit of love interest side-plot. Baby Yoda is still cute. Doesn't progress the story, expands the world a little bit. Nothing to really write home about except for the battle. It's nothing new under the sun.
The turning point episode. I'm glad to see that The Mandalorian is not an entity devoid of moral grounds. Then again, had anyone expected him to be? Maybe a bit more down the season, but the story line forces him to make the decisions now. It does leave him with some big enemies though, but I'm sure he'll get some back-up soon. Jon Favreau is a good writer, I'm just waiting for him to write a story that will really fly off. I hope it's this one. This is the way. I have spoken.
Of course, I couldn’t not see The Dark Knight after watching Joker and Batman Begins. It’s better, oh so much better. Unlike Batman Begins, its villain has center stage. And 11 years (!) after the fact, Heath Ledger’s Joker knocks it out of the park. I cannot compare it to Phoenix’ in Joker. Neither one is better than the other. The both put whatever they have in the character and are very entertaining in their own regards.
Nolan cranked it up a notch in this one. It’s aged way better than Batman Begins and I’m curious now how The Dark Knight Rises will hold up too. I miss Ledger, but for this role to be his final act of acting (sorry...) on this world... I can’t be mad about that. Just not the way that he went. But if he hadn’t, I don’t think we would have had this performance to enjoy. I just wish he was still here to dazzle us with his talent.
I can put this into the same category as Heat. A movie I’ve watched before, but not paid a lot of attention to. Boy, am I glad that I did now. Sitting close to 3 hours, it did not feel that long at all. The critics are right in saying that this is one of the best movies ever made. Not only is it excellently cast, the writing is fantastic, the tone, the colours, the camera work.... It’s one of those movies where the production story is just as enticing as the movie itself. Brando, Pacino, Duvall,... there’s so many actors to name that are brilliant in this.
It takes a bit of legwork from your brain to stay on top of everyone and all the storylines that are going on, but if you do and you’re with it, it’s fantastic. It’s organic, it’s real, it’s like you can reach into your screen and actually touch these people. It’s almost like a documentary, it’s that life-like. To edit a baptism with an array of murders at the end, is two-fold. Michael’s godson being baptized is secondary to his own baptism as the new Don of the family. It’s just perfect.
Ah, now this one you didn’t expect, I bet! I watched this movie because I will be tackling the play in a big local production next year. I don’t know what role I will be playing yet, we just had the first read on Friday. I hope I get the role of Robert.
It’s a weird tragic comedy about people competing in a gruellingly long dance competition. (I checked, the longest one is 129 hours, but this one goes on for weeks). With that peculiar setting, you really have the chance to show the absurdity of the situation and why all the characters are doing it. They’re all doing it for the money of course, because it is set during the economic setback following the crash of Wall Street in 1929. It’s humor is dark, but witty. It sets down how capitalism can really ruin people’s spirits and what it forces them to do to survive. Of course, it’s all part of the initial problem. Instead of a way out of misery, it just pushes them further into it. I think it’s a great allegory for people fighting to survive, so they can finally start living, only to have their hard struggle be for naught.
Still holds the record for highest number of Oscar nominations (9), but only winning one (Best Actor in a Supporting Role, Gig Young). I recommend watching it, it’s something you haven’t seen before and very enjoyable to see how people from that time deal with the problems of society.
Ah yes! Michael Mann’s master piece from the 90s. I’ve referenced it here before, it just happened to be on the list to watch this week. The Old Man and the Gun did not make me want to watch this movie, just for reference.
I’ve watched this movie before, a couple of years ago, when I was going through a list I compiled of the 500 greatest movies. I think I got about halfway, and there were some movies that I didn’t pay attention to. This was one of them.
Boy, was I wrong to. There’s a lot going on, and I imagine my younger self did not have the patience to sit through 2.5 hours with his full attention. I admit, I caught myself on my phone a couple of times too during this rewatch (I’m working on it). Watching Pacino and De Niro act together is an absolute joy, I’m so glad I’m experiencing this is a new, more grown-up light. Their acting is so good that the rivalry between the two characters kind of takes the main stage over the plot. Not that I think that’s a bad thing, because both are very pleasurable to witness.
I know it’s a good movie and I’ve rated it as such, and yet it was my least favourite movie to watch this week. It’s not entirely for me, I believe. But that’s ok, if everyone liked and loved the same things, it would be a boring world.
Ah yes! Michael Mann’s master piece from the 90s. I’ve referenced it here before, it just happened to be on the list to watch this week. The Old Man and the Gun did not make me want to watch this movie, just for reference.
I’ve watched this movie before, a couple of years ago, when I was going through a list I compiled of the 500 greatest movies. I think I got about halfway, and there were some movies that I didn’t pay attention to. This was one of them.
Boy, was I wrong to. There’s a lot going on, and I imagine my younger self did not have the patience to sit through 2.5 hours with his full attention. I admit, I caught myself on my phone a couple of times too during this rewatch (I’m working on it). Watching Pacino and De Niro act together is an absolute joy, I’m so glad I’m experiencing this is a new, more grown-up light. Their acting is so good that the rivalry between the two characters kind of takes the main stage over the plot. Not that I think that’s a bad thing, because both are very pleasurable to witness.
I know it’s a good movie and I’ve rated it as such, and yet it was my least favourite movie to watch this week. It’s not entirely for me, I believe. But that’s ok, if everyone liked and loved the same things, it would be a boring world.
Ah yes, last year’s Oscar winner for Best Picture. Had not gotten around to watch it yet, because I was a bit afraid that I wouldn’t like it. The first half I was still being sceptical, but around the midway point in this movie, as the friendship between Tony (Viggo Mortenson) and Don Shirley (Mahershala Ali, deservedly winning the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor) takes a turn into deeper and personal emotions, this movie becomes something more. It’s really something special, and all it took is some excellent casting to bring this story to the screen. I had a hard time believing that something like this really happened, but it did. Of course they took some liberties to make the story better for the screen, you have to or it doesn’t sell. But it’s there. You love them for their qualities and dislike them for the faults they show, but you always end up liking them more and more because of how they push themselves to accept these faults and try to do something about them. At the end, they are changed men, but still the same. And I think that’s really beautiful.
This movie has my favourite quote of the week.
Frank “Tony Lip” Vallelonga: “The world’s full of lonely people afraid to make the first move.”
I must have watched this once when I was a kid, because it felt really familiar. That may also have been because I’ve been on a bit of a James Cameron ride lately, having just seen both Terminators and Aliens. This movie is so, so much fun. Cameron pushes the genre of action comedy into something that is otherworldly and yet, is so believable at the same time. If you 90s action movies, Arnold Schwarzenegger and want to see something different, watch this. They put a horse in a fricking elevator, for crying out loud! Jamie Lee Curtis is great in this too and it’s always fun to see Bill Paxton (Man, I miss him). It doesn’t quite deliver on every plot line it goes for, but that’s not why you want to watch this movie. Just, amazing old fun and well done!
Well. This one was a really nice suprise. Joaquin Phoenix is absolutely brilliant and will be a strong contender to win that golden statue next year, I think. As Arthur Fleck, he is forced to watch his world crumble around him while he desperately tries to hold the pieces together. Not everything is entirely his fault. Gotham in the 80s is not treating its lower class citizens quite right and he is just one of the many victims in the corruption filled city. The movie is a slow stroll from barely hanging on, but surviving to reaching the bottom of a bottom-less pit, finding it full of monsters who are not there to hurt you, but doing the terrible things they tell you to do makes you feel so, so good.
Besides the terrific character study of how a ‘normal’ guy can turn into a villian if his surroundings push him to it, the movie also tries to send the message that corruption and misery are prevailing. It lacks a bit in this regard, but I respect what is trying to be said. But, between you and me, that is not why I watched this movie, and I bet neither did you. You and I both know what is going on in the world, we do not need to be reminded of it. But to shape the situation and plot, it definitely helps.
What I absolutely adored though, was the framing. Whenever a character has a close-up (and there are many), director Todd Phillips uses the environment to really focus on his actor’s. And it works, very well. It brings you real close and personal. His use of hallways and open spaces to make everyone feel small and like a marionette in a play is also Oscar worthy. The green Joker tint, just finished it off into finger-licking good cinema (See what I did there?).
As I’ve not yet seen De Niro in The Kingd of Comedy, I can’t compare him to this. But as always, he was great to witness.
This week starts off with what could well be Robert Redford’s last leading role credit. The man is in his 80s, and yet he does not relent in putting down the role of Forest Tucker. To feel alive, this man keeps doing what he’s good at and loves doing. Which is robbing banks. But it’s not a heist that you’re used to. Instead of impressing and intimidating, Tucker remains discreet, polite and above all, a gentleman. It doesn’t take much to feel sympathetic to the man, even if he’s committing crimes. The movie doesn’t portray him as a criminal, instead he feels like an older Georgey Clooney heist genius. Just with less bravado. A couple of times, Sissy Spacek turns up as a charming love interest. I also can’t help unsee the dewey eyed Casey Affleck from Manchester by the Sea and for me personally feels a bit lost in the role of a police detective, assigned to find Forest. It’s trying to push the Pacino – de Niro friendly rivalry from Heat too much and it’s not really working too well.
Tom Waits and Danny Glover feel severely undercast for the roles as Tucker’s aids. I think the film could have prospered with at least 20 minutes more time to flesh out the bonds the three have together, after having worked alongside each other for so many years. It’s just a bit of bickering about their situation and that’s it. Then again, sitting at 93 minutes, it’s not like it’s a huge waste of your time. If you like Redford and you like crime movies where the protagonist is lawful evil, this is definitely your jam.
Perhaps a tad too long and a shade stretchy in its concept, yet the film drenches you in the personality that is Zain. The very young actor embodies this role fully.
A rough life, but sweetnes and love is found anywhere, even in the darkest of places. It's only so heartbreaking to see how this young boy tries to do everything he can to do the right thing, and yet the world around him is not letting him. Shockingly real for how it must be in real.
It had me in tears.
Ever since I found the story of It, I've been drawn to its story and concept. It features stuff from your worst nightmares, a scary clown, creepy crawlers, hideous monsters. And yet, it is not the stuff on the surface that scares you most, it is the absolute manifestation of your emotional fears. Crap that you have buried under layer upon layer of mental walls, making it disappear from your mind and thoughts. Until it is uncovered again.
This film embodies this. Takes a shovel and digs its way into your fears. This is what happens when you let a director loose who wants to do the source material justice. Not only for the fans, but because it is such a clear representation of what deep, emotional fear can be like. And when the shovel stops working, it takes a pickaxe. Then a drill. Then dynamite.
Skarsård has been compared to Heath Ledger wearing his role. And they're not wrong, the comparison is spot on. He lives and breathes Pennywise. If not for that brilliant casting, the movie would have falled flat for sure. And it's not only the clown that's been handed to capable hands, the rest of the losers are all one by one perfect in their adult rules. This is beautiful film making in a genre that has gone mostly unnoticed by talent. It's a great movie to end this decade of excellent horror movies.
It's not only scary, it's sweet too. Banding together with your friends to beat the demons of your past, together. It gave me the greatest sense of nostalgia for them, the characters and their lives in Derry.
I loved this movie and it's one of my favourite of the year and one of my favourite King adaptations. I would like some more, please.
This is, by far, the weirdest kind of bad movie I've ever seen. It's so bad it's good, kind of thing. So it deserves a low score, but you know why you want to watch this, if you're into this kind of thing at all. They speak in this weird, forced, official language that is really hard to follow. Half of the time, you have no idea what's actually going on. The solution to a problem is literally super handy and within easy reach, building no tension. Everyone is convinceable. The bad guy is a stereotype pur sang. The actors seem to have no idea what direction they want to go on and their well-tried efforts did not come out well from the editing room. It's so ridiculously edited, at one point they try to portrey 4 global disasters going one, while also telling a story down on Earth and one on the space ship. Which ends up with this... off-balanced act of fitting all the pieces together, it becomes surreal in the process. Must watch if you want to have a laugh at a good effort to make a decent movie, but lacks heavily in the the dialogue and editing.
I can best describe that this movie is shot like a moving photograph, combined with the tight ratio, it gives a really compressing view on the bleak, saddingely real life this family is leading. Their lack of empathy reflects how society feels about these kind of people, making it even harder for them to ever get out of this vicious cycle. This is their life, that's how it was then, that''s how it is now and that's how it will be. A forever unchanging line that does not waver.
Despite half of it being a talking head documentary, which I'm not for, the combination of the powerful women telling their story with the images shot in the eighties of the race is absolutely stunning. You cheer them on because they're there to set the trademark for all women after them, opening a door for them for opportunities. These girls are saying now again that if you listen to what people tell you you can't do, human kind would not have been great at all. And that is a strong message that I will take to heart.
