I'm old enough to remember the original Hellraiser (1987). That was a true horror film. There were horrible people, doing horrible things. It left you feeling really quite disturbed about the worst aspects of human nature.
The follow-up Hellraiser 2 (1988) managed to recapture a small part of that. But after that it was downhill fast. The sequels were nothing but parodies.
Well, for some reason, Hulu decided to remake it.
Shamefully, the film fails on nearly every level. It's not well written (terrible dialogue) and poorly acted. There's little horror and you simply do not care about anyone or anything happening in it. It doesn't give you a reason to care either. The Cenobites are not scary, or grotesque looking... they just look like cheap make-up and some bad CGI.
Like the later Hellraiser films It has more in common with trashy slasher flicks than anything else. Poorly done ones at that.
As is common today they gender-switched the main role. Did it add anything? Nope. In fact, I keep hearing about what a good performance Jamie Clayton was as The Priest. I don't know what they were watching. There isn't a performance, it's literally all make up and some lines read out flat. Look at the originals: Pinhead's character is all about small, slow movements and looming dread. He's literally an overwhelming threat and you are the prey. Not in this one though.
Or look at the secondary villain. In the original it's Uncle Frank, who is an awful person who fully deserves his fate. Even in the end as he's pulled apart by the Cenobites... he's drawn to it, and much as he tried to run he still wants what the Cenobites offer. In this new version... there's none of that same grimy, disturbing look into subcultures. It's all clean, boring and badly acted.
Watch Hellraiser (1987) and Hellraiser 2 (1988) and stop there. They did it better on much smaller budgets.
I went to a preview screening for this movie.
For the positives:
- there are some really good scores in this movie
- the title card flashes up in japanese which is a nice tribute
- the practical effects look amazing
- the casting is really good - at times the mother looks like she's on the verge of a mental breakdown
- some of the dialogue is really touching and heartbreaking
- strongly developed small-town cop feels
- some of the characters have really good backstories
- grief is a strong theme in this movie
But the negative...oh goodness. The idea of the curse...basically a police officer takes the curse back with her from Japan and it infects her house. Despite this being a movie with several main character police officers, there is no investigation. They do not actually investigate the curse at all, because a previous character did all of it before. You dont get to see any of the discovery, you dont even get to see anything in Japan.
This movie is not scary. You don't see any chasing or stalking, you don't see any deaths until the end of the movie. It is all jump scare/fade to black. The CGI does not look good. The cadavers spewing flies look very fake. The blood splatter scene where the mother stabs herself in the neck looks very fake. The blood particularly looks almost pixelated on the stained glass window. I just can't understand that there are no real chase /stalking or fighting the bad monster scenes. It feels like a tribute to The Grudge in that they couldn't show the monster because they couldn't afford it in the budget. The Grudge aspect in this film is more like vengeful spirit possession, less tied to the idea of a monster personifying a grudge brought on my death.
The tonal shifts are really confusing as is the direction the movie goes in. It feels like the director wanted to make a well-shot western film or something like There Will Be Blood, but only got a horror movie instead. Some character and story elements are really underused. The main character has a son but he's in like 10% of the movie. They have a dog but it isn't even in more than 3 scenes?
Overall I'm just really disappointed since I thought it started pretty strong.
What a disappointing end to the Halloween reboot trilogy. Halloween Kills was so unbelievably good that I was excited to see what's next, it turns out that this film is vastly different. I'm aware that the filmmakers wanted to try different approach with this final entry but I wasn't expecting this messy. It's more of a drama, villain origin story, dark romance with some slashing. Definitely not an easy task to pull this off, but you can clearly see the struggle. The focus shifts on this new kid's descent into darkness which largely feels underdeveloped and hollow, with some super corny romance thrown in, cornier than people chanting 'evil dies tonight'. I find it super weird and get so frustrated because of how the kid got the main focus when this film is supposed to finish Laurie and Michael story which started a long time ago. Also, the romance part feels forced, downright cringy and unnecessary. Like seriously, who thought that it was a good idea?! The slashing is brutal and fun, at least, although you won't see the incredibly menacing Michael Myers like in the previous film. It honestly makes me appreciate Halloween Kills more since that one is the most 'slasher' out of 3.
Knives Out disappointed me, it’s cliched and not as clever as those it pays homage to. 2019 is really the wave of “woke” American movies that think they're way more clever than they actually are.
Every character is an exaggerated stereotype of some sort, shallow caricatures. The good senior millionaire – see he isn’t bad like the rest of his family! Except, who do you think raised this family? The well-intentioned “black” cop and dumb “white” detective. The members of the family are obviously meant to be parodies of stereotypes, but they’re either too on the nose or too underdeveloped, and just end up becoming the stereotypes they’re parodying.
But the impossibly kind messiah born to an illegal immigrant bothered me the most - Marta Cabrera has exactly two expressions throughout the whole movie, such an anti-feminist character, no agency whatsoever. She is the modern Mother Teresa – the best nurse, has to always tell the truth, and needs to save the woman blaming her for murder. It’s her story but she is so passive, and solves nothing. Her only defining character traits are that she’s an immigrant and has a kind heart. By the time Marta is referred to as good for the 20th time, they’ve ensured she feels less like a person and more like a symbol for The Perfect Immigrant.
I wish more was done with the big name actors. Daniel Craig (along with Ana de Armas) got the most screentime but his performance of attempted humor didn’t translate, and his fake Southern accent was really irritating. I get that it was exaggerated, but his acting sucked. A bad casting choice, he just doesn’t fit the character.
I felt like the story was building to something more than it actually was the entire time. The mystery felt like a backdrop for Rian Johnson to vent off his own political frustrations. You can tell he is way too online. Expect to hear things like, “How's your SJW degree coming?”, “Alt right troll”, or “Liberal snowflake”. This clunky use of buzzwords doesn't add anything to the characters or the story. These are manufactured quirks that try to disguise underdeveloped characters as developed. They don't even qualify as satire, because satire needs actual insight and depth to it, some sort of critique. The movie doesn't make any real points about class or privilege. Rian Johnson needs to learn few things about subtlety while bringing his ideologies in movie. And whoever has to clean his house should be given all his wealth I guess.
Overall, it's an 'immigrants vs. the rich people' movie and you can guess where it goes from the beginning because well, it's Hollywood.
This is atrocious. How this has the Halloween name on it is beyond me. Why are these 30 years olds acting like edgy, emo 15 year olds in an MCR music video? Why is Allyson so willing to go along with all this, and why is she so stupid compared to how she has acted in previous movies? Why does it feel like no one gives a shit and wants nothing to do with this production of this beloved franchise? The root message here about evil being born or created is an interesting one, but the implementation is some of the most amateur, hamfisted dialogue and storytelling I've ever seen, especially in a high profile franchise film like Halloween.
I was one of the few people that gave Halloween Kills the benefit of the doubt. I enjoyed it's metaphor-lead plot about mob mentality and the instigators being no better than the original perpetrator; but I felt it had middle movie syndrome that comes with being a planned trilogy. It couldn't push far enough because the finale still needs to be made so it just has to awkwardly tread water. Comparatively now to Ends, it appears they were just stalling for time. They had nothing left in the tank and were simply delaying the inevitable for this creatively bankrupt franchise.
Does that mean there is nothing of merit here? Not quite. The intro babysitting scene is very good and really sets your expectations far too high for the rest of the movie, and the compilation of kills throughout the last half of the movie are still decent enough for pure slasher fans. There is equally enough throwback visuals and easter eggs that will either be fun or annoying dependant on your tolerance for nostalgia bait and audience winks.
I'm just glad it's finally over, which I guess is the worst thing to say about a revival trilogy of a beloved franchise. Almost poetically, Mike Myers met his end just like this franchise. Slowly being chopped, cut and impaled until it didn't represent itself anymore, bleeding out slowly before being dramatically crushed before our eyes.
I had so much expectations going into this, with reason because this is promised as the closing chapter for Michael and Laurie. It does promise on that and gives us an end but that's about it. It doesn't offer much compared to the previous two entries in terms of centering on Michael and Laurie. We instead focus on this new character who's now the main character. What a confusing and bizarre direction for a final installment. The unnecessary romance subplot and cringe one liners didn't help either. It feels erratic, disjointed and is victim to bad writing. I found myself questionning Laurie's state of mind throughout it's like we don't know the character anymore which is weird after so many films. They should of focused on that instead! And answering a few questions about the "origin of evil", giving an explanation for the existence of the supernatural being that is Michael Myers - we get none of that!
What I liked about it is that it's very unpredictable they did good on that. At no point in the story did I predict what was going to happen (except for the stuff in the trailers, that's bad marketing!). The opening was amazing and made the movie quite promising. The third act is wild and you sure get a payout I was on the edge of my seat but whatever comes after is questionnable.
Overall this is a very lackluster ending to the Halloween trilogy and i'm baffled at the writing decisions. It's unsatisfying and I don't feel like i've been given a closure. At least we know why this was dumped on streaming day one.
Like me at a dinner party, I can seem interesting for a long time but then I blow it in the end.
Freaks Out is an ambitious Italian film set in World War II Italy in which a group of circus freaks sets out to save their Jewish manager from a 6-fingered German officer with the gift of clairvoyance.
I love a lot of things about this movie. The directing is sharp, the sets are breathtaking, the cinematography is superb, plus there's the stunning piano version of Creep played by the man who takes drug trips to the future, not to mention the Wizard of Oz vibe with a trio of lost men being led by a young girl in braids and the army of misfit boys that consists solely of broken men with more heart than anything else... The acting is on point: especially young Aurora Giovinazzo who is electrifying in the lead role and German demi-God Franz Robowski (Great Freedom, Undine, Victoria) who throws himself into the part of the bad guy without reserve.
The first two acts are tight like a Lamborghini on the edge of a mountain curve, but in the 3rd act the film hits all of the various plot lines and spins of control, going over the edge in a blur and exploding in a chaotic mess. But at least it explodes, and doesn't burn out quickly like a birthday candle.
The film is a solid 7/10 that I'm giving an 8 because of how hard it goes, what it strives to reach and how it haunts me like a luxurious ghost days after having seen it.
3 Thoughts After Watching ‘Halloween Kills’:
If I had to hear “evil dies tonight” or one of the many other melodramatic one-liners again, I was going to scream. This film tried wayyy too hard — and it failed, miserably. Awful writing. I believe this is the worst contribution to the franchise and, considering a few of them, that’s saying a lot.
Intro and score aside, this didn’t feel like a Halloween film by any means. The theater was constantly laughing — and not in a good way. Michael Myers took on characteristics and acted in ways that were very unlike him. For example, our classic Michael was always super stealth. Barely ever seen. That was what was creepy about him. Frankly, we saw way too much of him here.
I hated how “deep” they tried to take this incredibly-jumbled plot. Insinuating that Michael was ultimately out to turn the town against each other, bringing out their evil. No. That’s not Michael. It’s quite a stretch. And the side plot of the escaped patient was random and ridiculous.
Bonus Thought: I’m honestly not at all a fan of this timeline. I think their biggest mistake was taking the connection away that Michael and Laurie were siblings. It provided motive and stakes and the family element that was always a part of the mythology.
Note: the home version is incredibly different to the theatrical release. Because of this intentional deception by the studio, to split audiences and confuse us, this is the first movie I'm rating a 1 on this website. I wish I could rate it 0.
Not as "dumb but fun" as the original. The weird tertiary subplot with the family dynamic is really ham-fisted and unnecessary. Some of the logic here is far too preposterous and contrived, even for a wacky horror/sci-fi movie like this. For example, at the end where the dad is locked in the daughter's room, why doesn't he just use the code that he himself implemented to escape... did I miss a part where the daughter was faking her imprisonment the whole time or something? And if the friend survived the quicksand, what about the priest guy who fell through the sand too?
The movie often doesn't trust the audience, flashing back to scenes that literally happened 5 minutes ago, as if we're too dumb to remember and even then these revelations don't pay off, like what's the point in the character who can't feel pain, she doesn't do anything with this "superpower" to help anyone and just dies randomly. The story here is not well thought out or plotted at all. These "contestants" die for little to no reason and we don't even get to see their fears realised, which was a big part of their character backstory and dialogue during their introduction.
The whole plane simulation in the first act never came to fruition and should have been cut... what, was it meant to "subvert expectations" because they took a car and a train instead or some bullshit? Then show us that they avoided the plane crashing, 'Final Destination' style or don't bother including it at all. (Edit: I just found out the theatrical version is completely different to the version I watched at home, which includes a different ending where they're trapped in this plane sim, Amanda from the original movie is involved with the Minos corporation thing, and there's a subplot with Zoey's therapist that foreshadows the events of this movie... why was all of this cut for the home release? I've never been gaslighted so bad, I'm so fucking mad lmao).
This movie is filled with Chekhov's gun moments and doesn't follow up on ANY of them. Not to mention half of the puzzles are solved in the characters' heads without including the audience (they just yell the answers to each other). It is incredibly frustrating and unsatisfying. Then the movie suddenly wraps up and ends with an allusion to a sequel. Please don't.
Perhaps the only film this year that I'll rate 3 stars and still like.
I went across the city to queue up for the sole showing of this film in an out of the way art house cinema to witness a train wreck... and Alien Crystal Palace didn't disappoint.
Nothing about this film was even remotely within screaming distance of 'good'. The acting was as wooden and shoddy as the sets, the lighting was as off as the dubbing, the directing was as infantile and inane as the story... The only area I found disappointing were the original songs by Serge Gainsbourg impersonator Nicolas Ker because they weren't as awful or as surreal as his appearance in this film he co-wrote, and I was hoping for a perfect disaster.
You must see this film and if you must see it you must see it in a packed cinema because the number of people laughing at this film while the art crowd shush those of us in joyous tears and the hesitant applause that rises up like bile in a belch at the end of the film is a cinematic experience you're not going to be able to gleefully suffer through many times in your movie going career.
Well, it's better than "Revelations," I will grant that. Taking a note from "Hellraiser: Inferno," we once again are following a cop and his partner(s) as they track a sadistic killer whose killing follow the Ten Commandments (name the film this brings to mind in ten, nine, eight, ...), all while the Cenobites seem to be doing...something in the background (seriously, I'm not sure what they're really up to; it starts at the beginning of the film with a discussion about how antiquated the Lament Configuration is and how outdated they seem to be with increasingly debauched pleasures and pains readily available; I don't know, it never seems to really go anywhere). Or we would be following them if we weren't already pretty much near the end of an investigation that had been going on for a while.
The really bizarre thing is that, for the tenth movie in the series, you can actually see the potential for a decent and interesting film here. But they drop the ball hard, and it's a potential that they fail to realize on an epic scale.
The main problem here, and I can't believe I'm about to say this, is that the film needed to be longer. More hints at the ultimate solution to the mystery needed to be dropped, enough so that when looking back, the audience could say, "Yeah, how did I miss that?" rather than "Did I miss something?" It also results in a real lack of characterization, although I have to admit that it's not entire for want of trying.
I like that there are hints at a bigger picture, even if they do fly in the face of established Hellraiser lore. For the first time, we see an actual angelic counterpart to the demonic Cenobites, although the problem here is that the Cenobites were never really established as demons, per se. It's also got a twist ending that's bizarre even by Hellraiser standards, and might have worked if Pinhead in particular were given more of a character in this film. Instead, the ending is entirely dependent on knowledge of him from previous films, but let's be honest here, no one who isn't familiar with the previous films will see this one.
Again, it's not phoned in like the previous Hellraiser film (I can't believe I also have to give credit for the film actually looking like it was filmed with a professional camera and not an iPhone like "Revelations"), but it's still so sloppy that it falls over itself trying to tell a bigger tale than I think they were ready for, and instead comes off as derivative and vastly disappointing.
Honestly, not as good as i was hoping it would be. There are a few moments that makes one jump but other than that.. it was just lotsa heavy breathing underwater XD All i can say is, once they mentioned bout the nitrogen causing hallucination part, i sorta see it coming, that it's gonna happen to one of them, it was a good twist but not really unexpected. Another part that was kinda stupid was, when they reached the surface and the rest was like asking them to swim, to me it was like really? There's a shark after them and you'd think they can swim faster than a shark? I'd throw them the float and tell them to hang on tight and prolly start the boat and bring them closer to the shore first, not driving too fast of course... At least, create some distance from the shark first or something :/ Then again, i know nothing bout driving a boat nor being an injured shark food and holding on for dear life when half of it is in the shark's tummy XD anndddd It was juz a hallucination anyway~ One thing's for sure, Mandy is the lucky one!
Based on a classic slice of short fiction by HP Lovecraft, this long-incubating adaptation is an overly flashy, effects-laden blend of sci-fi and horror. Nic Cage plays a semi-retired family man whose isolated upstate farm is struck by a meteorite, which then evaporates and causes all sorts of bizarre changes in the surrounding environment. Pink trees, mutated animals, unexpectedly abundant harvests, that sort of thing.
Among the afflicted is Cage himself, who revels in the chance to amp up every last one of his craziest on-screen tendencies. My god, what a Cage-being-Cage film this is. He's howling, he's gesticulating, he's painted in blood and cackling, he's... suddenly and inexplicably changing accents? I'm not sure how much direction he took here, because it looks like they just focused the cameras and kept rolling while their star actor did whatever felt good, with the occasional interruption from family members or special effects showcases. And, as perversely entertaining as that can be, it doesn't merit a film unto itself.
The scraps that surround those indulgent bouts of overacting are awfully scant, narrow and underdeveloped, like the worst '80s straight-to-video productions. It's trippy, but pointlessly so. We get cryptic prophecies and arcane imagery as props, mere window dressing that's waved around and then forgotten. Even the visuals can seem laughably dated, particularly the goopy, absurd creature effects. Catch the highlights when they invariably wind up on a YouTube gag reel - they're almost as funny as Cage's out-of-context lunacy in The Wicker Man - but do yourself a favor and skip the rest.
An anthology of pseudo horror story based on different myths around the world. No link at all between them. All are at least ok, often well done on the directing point of view, often nice visuals, but they are not that interesting. None of them is really good and would justify seeing the whole thing. They are generally too long on the exposition and way too short on the reveal. They all feel too rushed towards the end.
Die Trud
A village with only women. When a young one sins (kissing another girl), it seems to summon the trud, a monster that attacks (and rapes ?) her. The aesthetics and atmosphere are pretty good. It's nothing out of the extraordianry, but it felt like a good start.
Al Karisi
A young pregnant woman taking care of her grandmother seems to do something that summons a jinn that comes to steal her baby. This one has a nice oppressive atmosphere. It uses classical horror tropes in a basic but efficient way.
The Melon Heads
A couple and their sons in holidays in a house in the woods. The kid makes a mysterious new friends. Turns out there's a gang of children with huge heads that kill people. Meh. That's the american segment, so instead of a ancient folklore it's based on a stupid urban legend you would tell around a campfire and it should not take more than 10 minutes. Very disappointing ending. They could have gone for a native story instead.
The Kindler and The Virgin
A gravedigger is inspired by some spirits to gain knowledge and power by digging up recently deceased people and eating their hearts. There's not much of a story but it's visually interesting, very dark and oniric.
What Ever Happened to Panagas the Pagan ?
Really weird. People are partying, discover a goblin and kill him because its blood makes great psychedelic wine. Then it's mostly drug party scenes and I guess there's supposed to be a story and something related to a cave with blue flames, but didn't see it much. Good visuals, but not clear on what's happening and what's the point.
A Nocturnal Breath
A brother and a sister living in a small farm in the mountain. She's possessed by a small mouse that gets out of her body at night to kill. Images are really dark, but in the end, there's not much happening, not much stake, and the ending makes no sense as it's shown as a solution whereas it changes strictly nothing at the whole situation.
Palace of Horrors
I'm trying really hard to remmember what this one was about, but so far, nothing.
The Cobblers' Lot
It's a kind of fairy tale (well Grimm style) with a cobbler's love story with the princess and his jealous brother. No dialog, the styleand costumes, everything is made to look like an older movie. It works visually, but like most of the others the story is the weak part.
In the end only Die Trud has the potential to be something more. Maybe the format was too heavy a constraint. There are 8 stories but none really fit their length. Maybe 6 longer or 12 shorter would have been better.
Sadly, unlike Michael Meyer's infamous knife, Halloween (2018) is a bit dull. The film falls victim to the same pitfalls that drain the life from other horror films (vicious clichés, violent WTFs...) but also suffers from writing sloppier than a sleep away camp crime scene.
The script is really what kills this movie. Most of the deaths are of characters who have absolutely nothing to do with advancing the story (international true crime podcasters ) and are killed in the least interesting ways imaginable.
In addition to the silly murders there's a plot twist involving a character we can predict in the opening minutes, story lines that appear and disappear faster than Columbian drug dealers and an ending that is so ridiculous when considering Laurie's motivation throughout the film that it gutted me. As I said, the Michael Meyer's knife is the only thing sharp about this film.
So what works? The nostalgia factor is strong (when we first see Laurie Strode's granddaughter Allyson, she's wearing a sweater and carrying school books just like Laurie in the 1978 original), John Carpenter's soundtrack is titillating, and the whole continuation of the Halloween mystique is fun.
One could argue that it would be impossible for this film to live up to the reputation of the first, but I'd argue it died trying.
This did not live up to my expectations. This is just an average movie, to the point that is borderline bad. I would not recommend watching, unless you are super Marvel Fan or for continuity of the Marvel movies.
Story: Average. While there are some good aspect (e.g. superhero from Africa), with somewhat believable story of hidden country there, the rest of the story is just sub-par. Completely predictable, generic. The middle of the movie will bore you.
Characters: Below average. Again some positives (Ulysses Klaue, made me laugh), all other were just textbook, one-emotion/purpose shallow characters. Also some storyarcs that are supposed to have emotional climax, are just blank as there is not enough story/buy-in.
Acting: Generaly OK. As mentioned I liked Ulysses Klaue (Andy Sarkis), I also liked Okeye (Dania Gurira), but otherwise again just an average movie.
Visuals: Good. Something to be expected and the driver of the movie. I like that compared to other recent movies, the scenery does not change every 5 minutes. Also the African location is a nice change.
Music: Bad. Generic Marvel Universe music here again. Nothing memorable. The lack of good music is even distracting.
Other observation:
1. It is also a weird mix of other movies. There seemed to be a hint of a Bond movie (when they the Black Panther was preparing for an action) which did not sit well with me. Too similar.
2. At some points the movie tried to be funny, but you could feel them failing.
Wanted to watch an "easier to digest" comedy this weekend, so I ended up watching Game Night in theaters that just came out with Jason Bateman and Rachel McAdams, and I really enjoyed it. There were a lot of good laughs and a very solid and honestly relatively unique premise for a comedy. In action, the "Game Night gone wrong" premise worked out a lot better than I thought it would from seeing the initial trailers, mostly due to a good balance of varied semi-believable comedic situations, a nice brisk pace over 1.5 hours, and a dash of "real life" themes for good measure (but not too much, of course).
There was great chemistry between the two leads of Jason Bateman and Rachel McAdams, and the supporting characters were all very fun and unique in their own rights (yay for Sharon Horgan from Catastrophe). Honestly, the specific interactions between each of the couples was done very well, and each couple gave off a distinct vibe that worked to keep the movie fresh. Most of the jokes hit ("Hey Denzel!!"), and things never got too overly "ridiculous" or completely "unbelievable" where all common sense gets completely thrown out the window (aka later Hangover movies). I thought that maybe Max "the stalker cop" would be a little too overboard, but things got concluded quite nicely in the end and worked out for the better (definitely stay to watch the ending credits and the post-credits scene).
I didn't have the greatest expectations coming in, but I was pleasantly surprised by this movie. A very, very solid 7/10 from me. If you want a nice comedy to enjoy with some friends and get some good solid laughs (this one will have jokes for everyone), I definitely recommend checking Game Night out. Or if tickets to Black Panther are sold out... ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)
It starts pretty well and does not lose a lot of time on introductions. The classic inherited old house, full of the classic creepy dolls, a traumatic event, then as an adult, she has to go back to the house. Hard to come with a more classic setup for a horror movie. It could have been good, but instead, they went for a total change in the middle with a big twist.
The twist being, not only not a very original one (she actually never escaped), but even a really boring one (so yeah, all you imagined would happen in the intro ? well you're gonna see it and it's the whole movie. Nothing special, nothing surnatural, nothing really.) It would definitely have turned out better without it.
I was expecting a lot more, specially with the whole Lovecraft hype the movie is doing. However, turns out most of the movie from there is just a series of jumpscares, not particularly good ones.
I really don't like Mylene Farmer, but she was actually pretty good there.
Also, like a lot of Z movies (which this one isn't supposed to be), you have to go with the basics that different/ugly people are not only inherently evil, but a real special kind of psycho that you can't apprehend because it's not even human.
So yeah, the doll fetish thing is sick (how lucky was that that they found this house so full of them ?), but unless you get your kicks by watching young girls get beaten up (which apparently is the director's thing), nothing much to see here.
NO NO NO NO NO NO NO AND AGAIN A BIG NOOO! Sure i wasn't expecting much but damn it they had a really good material in their hands to actually do something awesome. And what they did was absolute shit. No mate. If you want to use the name of Death Note, even if you dont do a direct adaptation there are still some key things that you had to keep. Light for example. My god wasn't he awful. Light was supposed to be a trully brilliant psychopath, cold with no empathy what so ever and really good tactician. But this dude. My god. A dumb,angry teenager with not a drop of brain in his head.Testosterone speake dto him , since he did all that to impress that freakin cheerleader. What men do to f@#k. And L. He was supposed to be as brilliant as Kira. They had something going on there. Here L found out who Kira was in one sec. No brilliance there. And towards the end he turned into a sentimental brat.
Ryuk was actually the only good thing in this whole movie and they only gave him like 10 lines.
I laughed hard at the scene on the ferris wheel and the song they used in this one. OMG it was hilarious. Just it didnt fit this scene. It was totally ridiculus.
No. I really warn you. I was going to watch this for the heck of it, but at least i expected they would try just a little.If you are an anime fan like i am do yourself a favour and don't watch this shit. Even if you completely try to forget the original this still is a shitty movie. Shame on you Netflix. I hope if you ever try to brutally murder a good anime in the future, you do a much better job.
I wanted to attend a screening of "Grave" (now re-titled to "Raw") almost a year ago from today but it was canceled so I have been looking forward to it's regular release ever since. The general press continued to hype this up, the trailer looked quite dope and even Mondo jumped on the wagon doing the OST pressings... expectations high [✓] (check).
As one can already see by my rating they were not met at all... I was even more so offended that it got that much praise. Frankly put: the movie sucks.
I don't quite understand what it is that some people saw in this... maybe they're vegetarians or just got distracted by the shlock.
The so-so concept which consists of elements all done before is terribly under baked. The changes occurring in the main girl are not really grounded in her character but rely on music or shlock scenes to progress but even with those I feel duped. Nothing in the setting helps to support the story (and it's nonsense) and instead makes the whole thing seem even more unrealistic and distracts with some overly edgy bullshit.
As the movie progresses it just falls apart even more and looses it's focus, building towards a tonally misguided ending. It almost felt like a joke.
The only positive thing I can say that the cinematography is quite good for the most part ¯_(ツ)_/¯...
typical marvel origin story for doctor stranges first solo outing, but an enjoyable one nonetheless. the special effects are by far the best thing about the whole movie, and marvel are to be commended for the outstanding work they did.
Cumberbatch is excellent as Strange, proving beyond a shadow of a doubt that Marvel made an excellent choice when they picked him to play the part, and Tilda Swinton is also good as the Ancient One, despite the fact they changed genders for the role.
the only let down for me, was Mads Mikkelsen's villain character, who suffers from the same thing that a lot of marvel studios villains seem to suffer from, namely being boring and one dimensional. Dormammu is built up the entire movie as a major world destroying threat, but gets maybe 10 mins screen time at best, and is defeated far too easily.
overall, a good movie which you should see as soon as you can, but don't make the same mistake that a lot of people did at the screening i went to and walk out as soon as the credits start to roll. you will miss the mid and end credits scenes which most Marvel movies have now.
I really don't get why everyone praises this movie. Great idea and I liked the music and style. Cinematography and acting weren't bad either.
But the protagonist makes horrible decisions throughout the movie and you can't help but think she's dumb. The forced perspective doesn't work so you feel superior to her. Nothing proved that Howard was lying about the outside, but in the end, instead of killing him she goes outside. The burnt lady and Emmett should've been proof enough. It was obvious what the blood on her car meant (or at least could mean to her).
Even though in the end Howard is a killer, up until then you think she's just paranoid. He reacts the way he does because Michelle acts rude. And he might be a bit off, but he saved her and nothing really looks like he kidnapped her.
You can see through the plot and know where things are going. Some things only occur to help the character(s) later or to make Michelle think Howard's a psycho. He really only poses a threat because of the girl he kidnapped. Everything else is understandable. I even get why he shoots Emmett (although it is extreme). Because Emmet poses a threat and Howard fears that they could kill him due to paranoia.
Dialogue and character backgrounds are generic (crazy kidnapper/killer, highschool dropout and relationship problems).
AND OH GOD THE ACTIVITY SCENE
Jenny is a very intelligent 16 year old girl in high school, her goal is to enter in Oxford so she is studying hard to get there. Meanwhile she meets a very charming men in his 30's, he starts to seduce her but not just her, her parents too. Her parents that once wanted her to get the best education possible are now also enchanted with this very pleasent men that seems to be the perfect future for her daughter. But things turn not to be that easy and Jenny also starts to question her goals. She is not so sure anymore about education values.
I didn't know much about this story, I actually wanted to see it because of Carey Mulligan and I am for seeing it pretty much since it came out. I think she is a fine actress, liked to see her in everything she had done so far and that was the main reason.
As I predicted Carey Mulligan gives a strong performance in this film, I think she is those kind of actress that does not even need to speak. She can speak through her eyes and facial expressions and she can transmit a lot to us without saying any word.
The rest of the performances are all strong and it always lovely too see Emma Thompson even if it's just for a little role as a headmistress.
Although this is a lovely coming-of-age story about destroyed dreams and childish fantasies of what is being an adult I thought that I would see some more depth in it and I didn't felt that certain depth in the story. Of course it has a point, a message but I was already predicting how it was going to end and what the lesson after all would be. I was always waiting for something special but nothing really different popped up. I think I would rather seen a more dramatic end and not the pretty one.
Overall, An Education is not great but not bad. It's an okay story lightened by strong performances.
There was an Interview with Tow Ubukata on ANN a while back where he talked about the limitations he had when working on Psycho-Pass 2 given that it was squeezed in front of the movie... as it turns out that isn't a good excuse as to why it was so lackluster then the movie works really well as a standalone entry. The existing characters besides Akane and Kougami get very little screentime so they had plenty of freedom.
Anyways, the plot isn't all that movie worthy but the export of Sibyl-"Lite" adds some needed world building as to there the system stands in the world. Since this all plays out abroad in a tropical setting it feels different from the show and the action focus is a lot bigger. It is sort-off filler (depending on Kougami's future role) given that there isn't much lasting impact to the general "universe" from these events.
The animation and action is done well and an upgrade compared to the show plus the dominators wreck a lot more havoc with extra focus on the guts.
All-in-all it's a solid action flick for me but not much more.
(If you haven't seen the show you could watch the movie anyways as the gist of it gets explained in the OP but I can see some head-scratching without any previous knowledge of the show).
Aw yeah! This is a proper sequel for fucking nazi zombies!
I have to admit that I did't dig the first one all that much but with the zombie battalion moving from the get go it's a lot more fun.
Content wise this gets a lot more absurd which allows for some interesting setups and a battle between German and the Reds. The story continues where the first movie ended but there is a flashback so you get at least the gist of what happened if you haven't seen it (and we all know there isn't a deep story here).
It seems like after having directed a movie in Hollywood that Wirkola's budget for this one was a lot bigger. The zombie fx are all consistently good and the gore is fucking everywhere.
They also went out of their way to break plenty of taboos with holding no restraints when it comes to the nazi decimating the villagers on their final mission. You better not be offended because there are some hilarious deaths thanks to that.
The biggest weakness are probably the members of the US zombie hunter squad whose characters are written a bit too comic-ey but thankfully their screen time is balanced enough. I take it they were added to appeal to a wider audience since whenever they're involved the whole cast is speaking in English.
I can only recommend checking this one out as its funnier, gorier and even has cuter zombies than the first one!
