This is one of Marvel Studios’ riskier projects, the hyperlink structure combined with the villain being the main character immediately makes it stand out in the genre. It’s because of those two aspects that the film works as well as it does. Thanos is a great character with an interesting motivation. The animation is so detailed and lifelike that it never fails to bring out the emotion, in fact I’d argue that the scenes between him and Gamora have the most emotional punch (courtesy of Zoe Saldana and Josh Brolin, who both put in a really solid performance). The balancing of all the different plot lines is also quite well done as there’s a relevancy to each one, nor does the tone feel too disjointed at any point. Some transitions or the sudden pop culture riffing during serious scenes can be awkward, but it’s handled about as well as it could. The exposition is handled tastefully and kept to a minimum, it instead chooses to focus on unexpected interactions between characters from different branches of the Marvel universe, which is the more exciting part. I’m less into the action and filmmaking, however. Not a lot about the camerawork or score jumps out to me, I feel like what little vision the Russos brought to their previous MCU projects is completely lost here. The washed out colour palette (which for some reason is slightly more vibrant during scenes in space) and obvious music embellishments don’t evoke all that much. The staging and editing of the action is a little too quick for my liking, the moments that are meant to be memorable don’t leave much of an impression because the editing doesn’t take its time to punctuate the stunts properly. Some of the CGI also feels a little weightless, for example Stark’s suit looks and feels like its made from paper. The resulting scenes, such as the final battle on Titan, feel more like small scale, digital mush than the big epic scenes they’re aiming for. Once the film decides to slow down for the dramatic conclusion, I find its intent to be manipulative and disingenuous. I felt that way after watching it the first time in the cinema, and after every ‘death’ in this movie having been retconned in one way or another, it turns out I was right. Even in its riskier films, Marvel will find ways to take most of the edges off. Overall, it’s still decent but it’s lost a lot of its flavour for me over the years.
6/10
Look, I'm very much in favor of giving directors the creative freedom to put their own spin on whatever they're adapting.
In fact, I think it's quite shallow and close-minded to judge an adaptation against its source material, pretending as if that's meant to be some holy grail of perfection.
That being said: the whole appeal of the Uncharted games in the first place is that they feel like a mix of Indiana Jones and Mission Impossible, with this sassy, horny, shit-talking protagonist at the center of it.
This movie captures neither of those aspects, and replaces them with basic movie tropes.
It doesn't feel like the aforementioned franchises. Instead, it looks and feels like your generic, throwaway action movie that usually stars The Rock (e.g.Rampage, Red Notice, Skyscraper).
Tom Holland plays Spider-man with attitude. He's not playing (a younger version of) Nathan Drake.
Mark Wahlberg plays Mark Wahlberg.
Like, why was this project treated like a tax write-off?
It has everything a Hollywood executive could want: the source material is cinematic, action packed, fun, and best of all: it has a built in audience.
This could've easily been the next big summer franchise if this was given a proper treatment. It should be much easier to get this right than other videogame based adaptations.
So why is Avi Arad producing this? Why is Ruben Fleischer directing this? Why is this script burning through four games of material? Why is the dialogue so clunky and unfunny? Why is the casting so lame? Why does it look like plastic, when the cinematographer of this thing shot Last Night in Soho and Oldboy?
Fuck.
3.5/10
Before explaining why I liked this movie, I'd like to point out that the main idea of the movie is NOT that you need find your purpose to have a happy life. It's the exact opposite! I'm not saying this just to be a professor, but because it's really important and that's why I loved the film so much. You don't need to be fixated about something to find a meaning in your life. You need to savour it and learn to enjoy the little moments instead of waiting for something big to happen to reach happiness. It's so profound and refreshing. A movie just about a guy waiting for his big moment and feeling fulfilled after having reached it would have been dull, boring, trite and most of all wrong, like pretty much all "self-help" advices.
Instead the opposite idea is presented and if you just pay attention to the dialogues -and the story, really- you'll understand what I mean and most importantly what you might apply to make your everyday life better.
But back to the movie I've got to say I almost cried as the end was approaching as much as I was going to turn off the tv when the movie started. The whole initial setting reminded me too much of Inside Out, a film I quite disliked, so I was worried it was a copy of it (it kind of is in the beginning). But luckily the second half steered away from it and developed in one of the most moving film I've seen in a long time. Undoubtedly one of Pixar's best.
I saw this 2 weeks ago, and have already rewatched it once with my fiancé (her first time). I NEVER rewatch shows that quickly, normally it's 3 years until I watch a show for the second time. Simply put, this is the one the best, if not the best, Korean drama ever produced. It's quality shines over most US and British productions as well. The show has a stellar script, cast, direction, cinematography, music, and editing. The brilliance of Korean shows is that they are normally only 16-20 episodes and that's it, story done, no second season. This format allows many of the best series to avoid any unnecessary plotlines that are essentially filler episodes. Signal adhered to that format in a clever way by giving us a satisfying series on it's own, no filler episodes, and the entire series brilliantly intertwined, along with plenty of potential for a second season (something that is rare for Korean shows). The writer of the series is currently penning a new TV series for Netflix called Kingdom and plans to begin writing Signal Season 2 this year. Whether or not the script will return as a second season will depend on availability of the cast and director. As of now, Signals holds the #1 spot over Game of Thrones, Breaking Bad, and The Walking Dead for my all time favorite series. Signal is a must-watch if you're lucky enough to find out about it.
It is a pity. I am very disappointed in many directions.
I do not know where i should start with this review. Before i start writing anything I should say that I enjoyed Uncharted and that is the most important thing on films.There are still a few BUT.
When the movie was announced I expected the masterpiece in all directions. I could not wait for realase in cinemas. Iam very disappointed for cast. The Actors were good but Mark Wahlberg did not fit me into the role of Sulli.. I must to say it.. He is very good actor for sure, in this movie he did good performace, but he did not fit me.. I expected little robbery from the game Franchize in all the directions like epic scene with epic theme from game during that and more a serious film with occasional jokes and great character chemistry, but we did not get any of that..
So much pity... realy... It is completely comedy film where you will have fun and so much laugh, but do not expect any extra quality story with epic scenes and excellent music in the background like in the game Franchize..
There were so many mistakes, but I enjoyed movie and it was not a waste of time... I could be very worse in all aspects..
Cast 6/10
Storytelling 6/10
Characters 6,5/10
Video Prouduction/Cut/Music 6/10
Environment 3/5
Conclusion 4/5
= 63%
8.7/10. One of HIMYM's strengths as a show is the way that it can balance something serious and full of emotion with something goofy and fun. This episode is that idea to a tee. The reunion of Ted and Victoria is a huge moment, and while there's parts of it that are a bit strained (mostly the kiss) it works with Victoria as one of the few people who could get through to Ted and make a serious impact on him. At the same time, the whole ducky tie vs. Lily's boobs bet is the kind of outlandish, mildly lewd comedy that the show can pull off on charm alone.
But let's start with the serious stuff. Ted and Victoria coming back together is a big moment, and the show doesn't treat it as anything but. The way that Ted offers to wash her dishes, and asks for her forgiveness, and admits what a mistake he made is a nice moment. The reveal that Victoria quickly started dating someone from her class in Germany (the Klaus/class/close wordplay was eh) is an interesting twist that escalates the issue, and everything works out, dipping into the pair's histories and the rapport that they quickly fall back into, right up until that unnecessary kiss, which seems like a cheap way to generate drama in an already significant scene. The episode does well to give the story of the two of them hashing things out the time and space it needs to grow and breathe.
On the other side of the divide, the bet over the Ducky Tie is perfect HIMYM irreverence. Sure, the fact that the bet is over Lily's boobs gets a little uncomfortable at times, but the ridiculous tone of the storyline helps soften that, and the absurdity of the tension of whether Barney's been taking habachi classes and using operant conditioning on Marshall or whether he's bluffing or double bluffing is perfectly deployed. The fact that it's the flash that distracts him from completing his mission in the end is some nice lightly-elegant storytelling to tie things off, and the fact that he has to wear the ducky tie is a nice result.
The only problem with the episode to my mind is it's conclusion and what it portends. In-universe, Victoria's caution to Ted that Robin, Barney, and him all hanging out is what has sabotaged his other relationships makes sense. From her perspective, it is legitimately weird, and the idea of having an ex constantly around, in a trio of exes no less, makes sense as a diagnosis she would come up with for Ted's love woes.
The problem is that Future Ted basically confirms that she's right, and that doesn't cohere with what we've seen in the show. Robin did kind of factor into the Stella thing, but only tangentially. Beyond that, it's not like Robin's been this big albatross for Ted that's kept him from finding love. You can sort of bend and twist things to go that direction -- arguing that he's sought emotional support from her when he could have been seeking it from a real relationship, but that applies to the gang as a whole. The critique is interesting; it just doesn't fit with what we've already seen of Ted and his adventures.
What's more, it's an attempt at deconstruction that threatens to break the premise of the show, or at least gets very close to "Homer's Enemy" territory of pointing out elements that are part of the willing suspension of disbelief when watching something that are hard to ignore if you focus too much on them. For one thing, people break up and then become friends all the time. Sure, the hanging out every day thing is weird, but those are kind of the demands of a sitcom. This seems like the show attempting to say that in real life, that would be weird, and it would! But the other side of the coin is that this is part of the unreality of sitcoms, where parents are hardly a factor in weddings and the five main characters only talk to each other at parties and, to paraphrase The Simpsons, everything in these people's lives over the past six years have revolved around in each other in some way.
It's bold to try to deconstruct that, I have to admit, but it also feels dangerous to the show's well-being in some ways. Because accepting the story of a sitcom means handwaving certain things that are convenient for the plot or downright necessary for the show continuing. Making those handwaves the center of attention is odd, especially after the show's been taking them for granted for its run up until now.
Those two problems detract from what is otherwise a quality episode. Ted's story is meant to build to a conclusion that doesn't really work for two different reasons. The first being that Robin hasn't seemed like a hindrance to Ted's love life (if anything I like them as bros a lot), and the second being that pointing out how to a stranger it would be really weird for three people who've dated one another to hang out all the time is bold, yes, but also a shaky foundation for the continuation of a show that depends on glossing over that weirdness. But hey, well done return of Victoria, and a fun B-story around the hibachi place as well, so it's probably too early to complain about this anyway!
SPOILERS FOR THE END OF THE SERIES AND OTHER FUTURE EPISODES BELOW. DO NOT READ IF YOU HAVEN'T SEEN THE WHOLE SHOW*
Part of my problem with Victoria's pronouncement at the end of the episode is that we get so mired in the Ted-Robin-Barney love triangle nonsense over the last third of the show that this feels like a really frustrating motivation and prelude to it. The show had found a nice equilibrium for these three characters and their relationships. Ted had moved on from Robin and they worked much better as friends than they did romantic partners despite their admitted chemistry. Robin and Barney only worked as a romantic pairing on the show for about two minutes total, and the show even did a good job at acknowledging how bringing them back together would be moving backwards. Basically, we're left with the idea that the three of them are fine, and it fits with what we've seen.
But then the show comes and tells us no! This is wrong! This doesn't work! And it's a tell-not-show kind of thing, so it seems very strange. Yeah, in real life, you might have a harder time with that setup, but we've only barely seen that happening, and when it did (like in the episode where Barney and Ted chase Robin when she's with Don), it's generally been a bad episode that makes the leads seem out of character. Instead, the show just declares that this is a problem, despite the congenial friendship.
What's worse, it leans into that idea, and shows it becoming a problem in ways that feel very forced, like the show just decided there needs to be this love triangle and romantic conflict between the three of them even though that whole thing had been essentially settled. So we get two failed fiancees and more and more pining and the revival of two romantic pairings that the show had basically done to their logical end already, which turned the show's whole romantic element into a big soapy rehash. Make no mistake, this is a quality, entertaining episode, but it's a sign that the show is pointing itself in a very rough direction, and knowing where that led casts a pall over the good stuff here.
