They did Natasha so wrong with this movie. Black Widow is my favourite from the mcu and therefore I was super excited to watch a backstory and a full solo movie of her. However, it felt so meh. The plot is generic and easily predictable, the characters had no depth whatsoever, even though there was an attempt, and the villain was not even a villain? He was dead in 10 minutes? His plan was dumb? It was all too easy, especially for someone with the skills on Natasha Romanoff. She's supposed to be a badass trained killer with a difficult childhood and trauma, yet somehow they turned her into a generic spy comedy film that my mom watches after 10pm on Saturdays. No, just no. Such a shame and a waste. And to think I cried my eyes out when the character got sacrificed (or made a great exit anyway), only to be brought back like this.
Edit: would've much better preferred to see what happened in Budapest with Clint or at least show us her training and how much she went through during her time in the Red Room, that would at least have been interesting, all that exposition was unnecessary.
Oh no. Netflix has done it yet again and made me root for and feel somewhat sorry for a criminal, bravo guys. Prior to a few days ago, I had never heard the name Griselda Blanco. That was until I saw that a new Narcos-like show had started on Netflix that, surely enough, had some of the same writers behind the lauded Narcos (2015). It shows too because in its opening minutes, it feels like competently made TV. It's difficult to explain but after a while, you can kinda tell if a show is going to be decent or not by the way it feels. The way it's shot and the atmosphere is something that you can differentiate from a show that has a paper mache budget from one that doesn't, and Griselda certainly has that HBO-like blockbuster feel that you can see in its set designs, clothes, acting and overall composition.
Speaking of acting, a lot of it is good, but the star of the show is Griselda and watching Sofia Vergara (who like Morgan Freeman and others doesn't seem to age at all) struggle to her rise to power and slowly lose it all left me conflicted to say the least. The power to change your life doesn't often come easy, especially in her case. The fear, blood, looking over your shoulder always and betrayal that comes with her life is something I struggle to understand if it's worth it in the end. Her come up made me sympathize with what people from other parts of the world go through to just live, let alone survive, and how some of those same people look to a country with plenty of problems as their way out.
I might have to finally check out Narcos because if I was this impressed with Griselda, I can't imagine what's in store for me there.
Paradise for Nic Cage fans, as Nic Cage plays a slightly fictionalized version of Nic Cage, travels overseas to visit an obsessive Nic Cage fan, argues with an imaginary friend (younger, crazier Nic Cage), combats a drug kingpin (not Nic Cage) and writes a movie. Want to guess which Hollywood celebrity he casts in the leading role?
Wacky, tongue-in-cheek and overtly meta-conscious, The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent sees Cage leaning into his well-earned public image, embracing his noted private eccentricities and having some fun with his status as a world-class weirdo. He finds a capable partner in Pedro Pascal, who flaunts an impressive set of comedic chops as the aforementioned international fanboy. Together, they see sights and enjoy luxuries while discussing life, love and their favorite cinematic Cage-isms in the same breath. This is fun while it lasts, longer than I'd expect in fact, but eventually we do have to move on from the knowing winks and silly dialogue. At that transitional moment, it fades quickly, in a desperate effort to connect the most effective bits of the first two acts with a grander arching metaphor that's mismatched at best. Lame stuff, really; a limp follow-through to what had been a sharp, intelligent cluster of joyous mayhem up to that point.
While the getting's good, it's a wickedly entertaining ride, but that last half-hour feels like work.
Reagan: "Door open or closed?"
Robotus: "Open?"
Reagan: "Kidding!"Myc: "Relax, we have more money than God." [Chuckles.]
Reagan: "Yeah. What's the point of unchecked power if we don't abuse it?"
J.R.: "We're out of money!"
[Reagan smashes TV screen.]Brett: "We have to fire someone!" [Pukes.]
[All gasp. Reagan sighs.]
Gigi: "Look, skip the part where we pretend this is a hard decision and just fire Myc."
Myc: "Hey, fuck you, shoulder pads. If I'm going down, I'm talking you all down with me!"
Glenn: "I'm not retiring without a fight! I know where the weapons are hidden in every room!"Myc: "Guys, I know how we're gonna keep our jobs."
Glenn: "Stop taking three-hour lunches and coming back drunk?"
Myc: "LOL, Glenn, no, that's a good idea. Just kidding, you idiot. You simpleton, no. We're not gonna fucking do that."Kate: "Hi, I'm Kate. Just a little clone humour. And here's my little clone tumour."
Clone tumour: "Kill me."
Reagan: "Christ, wow."
Myc: "If I had ears, they'd be fucking bleeding right now."
Man: "Up next, we have Glenn singing 'Proud to Be an American.' Again."
[Audience groans.]
Glenn: "Clap, or you're a traitor!"Brett: "Noel!"
Rand: "Ready to make a deal?"
Reagan: "Is our honeypot ready?"
Myc: "Reagan, I will never forgive you for this Bugs Bunny shit."
[9.8/10] Susie nails it. When Midge tells her she’s considering doing something reckless with the four minutes remaining on The Gordon Ford show, Susie tells her number one client to go for it. She tells her that she got into this thing by taking a stage nobody invited her to and saying things she wasn’t allowed to say. Why should today be different? Why shouldn’t the same boldness and hilarious honesty carry the day now?
And oh my lord does it.
“Four Minutes” is, like so many series finale, full of call backs and bookends. In the finale of The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel’s first season, Midge and Joel are on the verge of getting back together. What stops the reunion is Joel hearing an underground “party record” of Midge’s confessional rant from the night he left her. He couldn't stand her spreading their private lives to strangers, and perhaps more damningly, he couldn't stand her being better at comedy than him.
Now, when he hears that Midge is going to be on The Gordon Ford Show, he is overjoyed for her, not jealous. And more to the point, without being asked, he tells her to talk about anything, about him, about the kids, about any part of the life he helped fracture, if only so that his sins can be further made fodder for something good and worthwhile. I’ve ragged on Joel a lot, but there may be no bigger sign of his growth and maturity than that.
Some echoes are not so happy. In the first episode, Midge hears Lenny’s rant about the meat grinder of stand-up and asks him in response if he loves it nonetheless. He gives her a shrug of resignation, a wry sort of acceptance that love it or hate it, this is the path he’s on. Here, Susie gives Lenny a plea when his life is disintegrating. She gives him an offer for help he sorely needs. Folks aware of the real life story know that Lenny is not far away from his untimely end. But when asked one final time, not in so many words, if he’ll accept the assistance it would take to pull out of this tailspin, all he offers is the same resigned shrug. It’s an underplayed but brutal affirmation that he’s as stuck on that path now as he was then.
Some lead to moments of honesty and vulnerability. The desperate phone call that pulled Midge away from work was having to bail Susie out of jail. It’s a meaningful reversal of the series’ beginning where it was Susie who got Midge out of the slammer. What led Susie there is continued raw feelings over Hedy, and having to dredge up that painful part of her life in order to get Midge the ticket to being in front of the camera she needs.
In the wake of that concession, which Midge now understands the gravity of, Susie (and Alex Borstein) gives arguably her best monologue in the entire series (give or take her eulogy for Nicky). When she talks about her relationship with Hedy, the plans they made that she let herself believe in, the love that they shared in a time and a place it wasn’t accepted or embraced, the heartbreak of seeing the woman she cared for pulled away from her, it is the most raw we’ve ever seen her. Her heartfelt confessional to her closest friend not only gives Borstein a time to shine as an actor, not only helps Midge understand what her manager did for her, but underscores the extra pain folks like Susie had to endure at a time where there were even more hurdles to finding love and acceptance that folks struggle with under the best of circumstances.
But the sacrifice is worth it because it works. Midge gets an invitation to appear on The Gordon Ford Show. The invitation is a bitter one. Gordon Ford resents Midge and Susie going around him to make this happen. But by god, it’s happening. And it leads to all sorts of great comedy and better grace notes for the cast of characters who made Mrs. Maisel feel so lively and hilarious for five seasons.
Dinah pulls off one last miracle, getting Midge the dress of her dreams for free for a mere mention of Bergdorf’s. (A far cry from when Midge had to struggle with a domineering boss to keep her job at a competing department store.) Zelda calls Rose to let her know about the show in secret, so as not to let Yanucz know she’s entangled with the Weissmans again. Archie and Imogene make it to the big show and take credit for dumping on ol’ Penny Pan from a cocktail party. Mrs. Moskowitz cuts through the elder Maisels’ monkeyshines and gets to the bottom of their grand plans.
Those grand plans are to, well, retire and spend the rest of their lives together. The epiphany arrives in an appropriately silly way, with a couple of choice falls in the shower and a sopping fur coat leading to some honest conversation. But in a season that started with the prospect of their divorce, there’s something adorable and endearing about Moishe retiring and giving up his business, the thing that represents the outward success he so cherishes, to revel in the inward success of a marriage to the woman he loves.
For a finale that is, quite understandably, full of sap, “Four Minutes” doesn’t skimp on the comedy. Susie and Dinah debating how to get a bucket across two buildings using a trained squirrel is a big laugh. Midge ranting to her fellow writers about deserving a few hours off without an array of pestering phone calls, only to find out it wasn’t them, is a very funny moment. And Abe and Rose frantically trying to explain to a series of unsympathetic cabbies during a shift change (relatable!) that through money, math tutoring, wedding rings, or magic whistles, they need to get to Rockefeller Center, is another one of the show’s great comic set pieces, with expert cinematography to match.
And yet, theirs might be the most touching moments in the finale. Rose’s schism from her husband and daughter in the first season stemmed from the sense that they were lying to her, that they were keeping the important things from her, that she wasn’t taken seriously. So when she has to find out Midge’s big news second-hand, Rose declares she’s not going thanks to this affront. It is merely the latest insult, the latest case of her being kept out of the loop by her “pathological liar” of a child.
Except, hilariously, Midge has enlisted everyone she knows, from Joel, to Shirley, to Zelda, to her fellow writers, to try to get the news to Rose. Wouldn’t you know it? Mrs. Weissman inadvertently left the darn phone off the hook. Nonetheless, she is touched that Midge went to such lengths to reach her, and it shows her how much her daughter does value and care about her.
Abe’s moment is much simpler. Midge tells him the news, and he’s confused about Midge’s references and colloquialisms and other things he just doesn’t understand. But what he does understand is that this is an achievement. He stops his all-important goings-on to tell her so and, even when the appearance isn’t going as planned, tells her how incredible what she’s accomplished is. It is a heartwarming follow-up to his hollowing epiphany of what he’d done wrong from the prior episode. And it is a tacit acknowledgment that, even if his daughter’s life doesn’t fit what he’d wanted or expected from her, it is no less extraordinary for it.
His pride carries extra resonance because Midge’s vaunted appearance isn’t going well. Gordon’s begrudging admittance of her to a spot on the show is not to perform her act; it’s to be interviewed as a writer. She is a “human interest” story. He will technically fulfill his wife’s request to have her on. But he also demeans her in the process, treating her like a sideshow and a curiosity rather than a comic.
She’s permitted to perform. She isn’t permitted to sit on the couch where the “real” guests go. He all but denies Midge her name, introducing only as “a Gordon Ford show writer”, and “our resident lady writer” before briefly providing only her first name, in contrast to the male writers who get their surnames as part of their introductions. And when she has the temerity to be funny during this neutered little segment? He throws to commercial because he can't stand her and Susie getting one over on him.
It is a brilliant exercise in frustration. Midge’s last stretch to glory in this finale is not a primrose path of triumph. It is another instance in which she must scratch and claw to get what she ought to have earned through talent and hard work alone. It is another example of her being punished for not doing things “the right way”, when that way contains every roadblock for people like her. It is one more time when succeeding at this means being bold and daring and a little dangerous, taking what you deserve because otherwise no one will give it to you.
That is the biggest bookend and parallel between The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel’s final bow and its opening salvo. Susie calls out that same fire that led Midge to the Gaslight to vent her frustrations on stage in the first place. Once again, Midge goes where she supposedly doesn’t belong, speaks when it’s not her turn to speak, because whether it’s liquid courage or simply the courage of her convictions, by god, she’s meant for this.
In one of those impossible, brilliant, writerly monologues, she tells it all again. She talks about being Jewish. She talks about being the child of two demanding parents. She talks about being left by her husband. She talks about being a mother. She talks about wanting fame and recognition for what she does. She talks about the challenges she’s faced as a woman, a comic, and someone who’s tried from day one to reconcile her life on stage with her life off of it.
At base, she talks about her life. With tremendous choices in lighting and direction, the show sells the enormity of this moment, the way this is the tipping point of her climb to fortune and fame, but also an intimate confessional, the truth behind her art that makes the comedy funnier and the confessions more piercing.
As I wrote in the series’ beginning, Seinfeld was not meant to be “a show about nothing.” It was intended to be a show about how comedians found material for their act. And in the same way, this moment in Mrs. Maisel is about the same thing. The performance that puts her on the map is not a riff on random nonsense or “put that on your plate”-style phoniness. It is about how, from her initial wedding toast, Midge has used her life as fodder to stand-up in front of the crowd and connect with her audience.
In a way, Midge’s whole life has led to this moment. She uses the events of the series, her challenges from being single again, the unique struggles of being a comedienne, her relationship with her kids and her relationship with her parents and her relationship with the ex-husband whose selfish deeds started this whole wild journey, to make up the set that becomes her crowning achievement. The trials and travails of the last three years and five seasons amounted to this: a set that kills, a truth that resonates, and a person less revealed than transformed, who’s come out of her original betrayal stronger and willing to seize what’s waiting on the other side of that window.
It’s beautiful and stirring and a magnificent capstone to all Midge was achieved. If there’s an element of wish fulfillment to it all, it’s that she’s so hilarious that even grumpy Gordon can't help but break down and admit he should have had her up there a long time ago. He does fire her, so she doesn’t get off scot-free. But in a parallel to Joan Rivers’ big break with Johnny Carson, she’s invited to the couch, a recognition of her talent and the fact that, whether he wanted her there or not, she was going to be a big star. It’s enough for Gordon to give her the benediction of announcing her name, a title drop for the series that could hardly come in a more satisfying way.
But other people knew before Gordon did. One of them was Lenny Bruce. Whether or not he’s there for her great success, he saw the star that she would become. It is downright lovely that the thought we leave Lenny with is not his sad passing, but rather the image of someone who had utter faith and confidence in Midge, with a fortune cookie fortune, spun into honest flattery, that gives her a boost via their sweet inside joke when she needs it most.
But the first person who knew was Susie. Season 5 teased discord between manager and client throughout. Our flash forwards suggested enmity between them that couldn't be resolved. And for all the talk of fame here as the ultimate goal, our semi-shocking glimpse of Midge in 2005 suggests a lonely life. Her parents have presumably passed on. Her kids clearly have mixed feelings with her. Joel is but a loving picture on a desk. All that's left, seemingly, is for Midge to wander through an opulent but empty living space, albeit one in a familiar part of town, that suggests she may be as isolated and aloof as Sophie Lennon became amid her success.
Except she isn’t. She retreats to her room, connects with a blissfully retired, tropically-residing Susie, and the two uproariously funny old vets crack each other up over Jeopardy and reincarnation across a continent. In the end, when the work together has ended, what’s left is their true friendship. And more importantly, Midge has what she was looking for the last time Susie was in a beachside locale -- someone who makes her laugh.
When Midge lost one partnership with Joel, she accidentally discovered another with Susie. And while the former fueled her, and eventually worked its way to being a worthy part of her life, it’s the latter that drove her, comforted, and sustained her.
What a lovely note to go out on for this series, which nailed the landing in a way few television shows do. The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel’s final set is a glorious one, which pays due tribute to these rich characters, this colorful little ecosystem, and the journey that led them here. A small-time bar boss comes to manage the stars, a jilted housewife comes to be the groundbreaking entertainer she was always meant to become, and two people uncover a friendship that nourishes them even when the work fades away. To Amy Sherman-Palladino, to the talented creative team that brought this series to life over the past six years, to Midge and Susie -- thank you and goodnight.
Oh jeez, the series was great but they really should have toned it down a bit with the cringy fairytale ending.
By the end eeeverybody has to take their turn and declare their unconditional adoration for the Mary-Sue of the series:
- Townes (despite years of no contact and overall lack of relevancy at this point in the story?)
- the grizzled russian chess veteran (despite playing her only once?)
- Billy (despite him rightfully telling her to fuck off previously)
- Beltik (despite her previously refusing his help and him being some random Kentucky store manager and a washed up ex-regional champion way over his head at this point)
- the twins, for some reason - what are they even doing in Billy's basement offering advice in a game way above their level? (do they even know any of the other people in that room? Who invited them? Why does the US chess champion have to rely on phoned in advice from some random friends while playing for the world title in the first place?)
- Borgov (who is inexplicably happy for her despite the fact that his loss is a huge upset not just for him, but the entire cold-war era soviet bloc)
- throw in some random old men on the street in Moscow beacuse why not
By the end I was surprised her adoptive father didn't chip in and call her in Russia to admit teary eyed that he was wrong and Beth is "the greatest person that ever lived" or something.
I am disappointed with this movie. I had such high expectations. There were many gaps in portraying the story. I am very familiar with the British history so I was able to fill in the gaps. But I was with my teenage daughter and she got lost in the story. First of all, there was no explanation as to why the religion mattered. Second, many stories were rushed, no detail provided while some other stories/parts dragged. And as I watched the scene when Elizabeth and Mary met for the first time I realized that this whole movie is about women empowerment. The way the story was told, the focus was on the strength and power of the women (mostly Mary). I don't like how Elizabeth was portrayed as a weak and insecure woman. Actually, the truth was quite the opposite - she was strong and smart woman. She knew what she wanted. She never married because she knew that she would lose power the moment she tied the knot. This is what ultimately brought Mary's demise.
If the focus of the movie was telling the story rather than making a point, the result would have been much better movie. Right now the movie lacks a seamless story telling. What a waste of good actors. And btw, I think they overdid it with Elizabeth's make up.
[8.0/10] This is a season finale without much finality. That’s not the worst thing in the world, but considering we went years between seasons before, the number of dangling threads here and sense of not settling down much of anything the show kicked up this season is a tad disappointing.
But what we do get is good! Midge’s set about women being in charge only nobody’s told them! And the ensuing chaos of the raid! And Abe’s obituary for Moishe! And Lenny reading Midge the riot act! It’s all excellent and in some cases, downright moving.
It’s that last bit though that’s my favorite. Candidly, I don’t like Lenny and Midge sleeping together. In my humble opinion, the show went about as far as it should have in blending real life and fiction with Midge and Lenny’s quasi-date in “It’s Comedy or Cabbage” from last season. Pushing it this far, especially after Lenny’s jerkery earlier, seems unnecessary.
But I like him being the one to talk some sense into Midge. Susie is just freaking done and, given how her phone is ringing off the hook, doesn’t seem to need Midge in order for Susie Myerson and Associates to do some serious business. She’s understandably pissed that Midge gave up the Tony Bennett gig in the name of only headlining, but just sucks it up until she says, not in so many words, that she’s tired of having to listen to Midge’s B.S. about this. And hey, good for her.
Lenny, on the other hand, comes from a place of experience. He’s the one Midge aspires to be like, to be able to speak her mind and still have an audience like he does. And he basically tells her that being controversial is a curse as much as it’s a blessing. He demands that she take him off a pedestal and recognize him for the fuck-up that he is (drug problem notwithstanding). Most of all, he insists that she see this as work, that she give up on the “my way or the highway” bullshit and play ball to get where she wants to be.
It’s the kind of speech you don’t hear very often on television. (The “just do the work” speech to Don in Mad Men comes to mind as the rare comparator.) It’s not inspiring exactly, but it’s motivating. It’s learning to compromise, to put in the work to get you where you need to go, and have the humility to recognize that your path to get there may involve a few less glamorous stops along the road. It comes from a place of love. Lenny sees that Midge is on the cusp of her big shot and doesn’t want her to miss it. And it’s exactly what she needs to hear.
The rest of this one is good too. I’m sorry to say that I recently had an experience of a loved one being in the hospital in dire condition, and “Carnegie Hall” manages to capture both the humor and heartbreak of it. Imogene patting everyone on the arm, Joel looking up medical textbooks, Mei posing as a hospital-provided mahjong player, Abe fearing his keys are a death rattle, it’s all funny in that dark but rib-tickling sort of way.
It comes with a heap of touching moments though. The one that catches you off guard is the conversation between Abe and Shirley. It’s funny too, with detours about services for burial plots and trips to Turkey based on Turkish plumbers. But the heartfelt conversation about “dying with all your teeth” and whether god is cruel for allowing people to know that they’re going to die is profound in a way you don’t necessarily expect from what is mostly a joke character. The coup de grace comes when Shirley reassures Abe, even as she’s hurting, that if Rose passes first, she’ll be there to help him. It’s just unbearably sweet.
The same goes for Abe’s spoken obituary about a thankfully living Moishe. Amy Sherman-Palladino doesn’t lay on the schmaltz. Abe discusses the origins of Moishe’s fabrics shop and mentions the thirteen Jews and even gets philosophical and academic in that trademark Abe Weissman way. And yet, he ends on a note of sincerity. As much as the elder Maisels are characters who exist mainly for humor and to be pests, their actions speak to their true, generous character. Abe’s right. The way they took Abe and Rose in without asking for anything in return, the way Moishe’s looked after Midge when it wasn’t his responsibility, is a mitzvah and the sign of a good man. The speech tugs at the heartstrings and Kevin Pollak does excellent work with Moishe’s plainly touched reaction.
The episode’s a good excuse for Sherman-Palladino to show off her skills as a director. The “Personality” sequence at the burlesque house has oodles of visual panache, and it’s matched with the mad dash to get everyone out the door once the raid starts. We get some good indications of struggle as Midge trudges through a freak snowstorm. And in the big scene with Lenny, she manages to make two people arguing on a big stage in an empty theater visually interesting with the way she blocks the performers and keeps the camera active with them.
That just leaves Midge’s set. As always in these confessional moments, Midge (and by extension, Sherman-Palladino) seize on both the truth and the humor. Her recognition of how women are expected to soldier on in these situations where men are societally permitted to be out of sorts is well-observed. Her note of how doctors are gods but nurses are, as Lenny will say, doing the work, and holding you as you cry, sets up a strong call and response and vindicates hard-working medical professionals. And she closes without a joke, just a wry but piercing observation of who might really be in charge and a wish that a kind man not leave this veil of tears just yet. It’s her best set of the season, and there have been some doozies.
Of course, there’s also the sweetness of Abe and Rose, with him being moved enough by Shirley’s comments to affirm her and her match-making, and give her the wherewithal (and kiss) to spur her to go to war with the Matchmaking Mafia. It’s a nice grace note for the couple.
There’s still a lot up in the air. Shirley still doesn’t know about Mei. Moishe accepts her and her pregnancy, but insists she convert. Midge’s career trajectory is still a big question mark. Susie’s rocket to the top and what the mob’s “taste” will look like lingers out there. How Rose’s war will turn out, what will become of Alfie and James and Dinah, and a million other questions still linger. This is more of a set of ellipses than a period, or even a semicolon.
But it’s good stuff -- touching, funny, and appropriately chastening of its title character at a time when she needs to hear it. I can’t ask for more than that.
Ever see a movie and you suddenly realize your IQ is dropping? That's this movie. I seriously cannot believe this movie got made, or that anyone in charge of the budget signed off on it. It's horribly dull, just scene after scene of people dancing and partying. These four "ladies" go on "spraang braaaake" and bad stuff happens. I kept waiting for the point, but really, the movie has nothing to say other than "look at these ladies in their bikinis." I guess the "moral" is that you shouldn't do bad things or bad things might happen to you? Maybe?
My least favorite part was the constant repetition of lines. I feel like the "writers" couldn't come up with good dialogue, so when they found something they liked, they repeated it. At one point, the girls get arrested, and they keep saying "it wasn't supposed to be like this" over and over. I'm not kidding, I think they said it six or seven times. The film is visually stunning, if I'm being positive. They spent a LOT of money on neon lights and fake guns...and swimsuits. SO MANY swimsuits, and so many closeups of women in swimsuits. I kinda feel like the director graduated from "Girls Gone Wild" to artsy films, but this need more plot, character arcs, and less of James Franco's teeth. If you want to hear people say "spraang braaaake forevvvvvahhh" many MANY times, go for it.
[8.5/10] I’m assuredly overrating this one because of the reveal, but to put it in Shyamalan terms, what a twist!
What’s great about the fact that our heroes are, and have been, in The Bad Place this whole time is that it recontextualizes everything we’ve seen in a reasonably believable way. Sitcoms are founded on conflict, and we, the audience at home, had every reason to believe the glitches in the system were just part and parcel of the usual sitcom necessity of having some conflict to motivate the action.
But “Michael’s Gambit” turns metatext into text, revealing that the character conflicts and frustrations that the main characters have been through is not merely an incidental result of some unexpected error, but rather a deliberate attempt from the architects (in some ways, a stand-in for the show’s writers) to make the characters torture one another.
It adds a creative spin on everything we’ve seen so far. (Though I do wonder if, on rewatch, everything holds up to scrutiny.) I particularly love the conclusion that despite the consequentialist good she did, Tahani’s efforts weren’t enough to get her into the real Good Place because her motives were corrupt, and that Chidi’s obsessive morality and indecision led to him hurting everyone close to him. That helps us to see these seemingly enlightened characters in a different light, which is what good writing does.
Some of the initial business where the gang is debating who should take the two slots to The Bad Place is a bit tedious, both because the logic used is pretty weak and it retreads some of the feeble love triangle stuff from before, but where it leads is outstanding.
I particularly love the idea that the Bad Place architects, and Michael in particular, are going out on a limb with this. The notion of finding new and creative ways to torture people, and trying to come up with a perfect vicious cycle with these four people completely redoes the show’s premise and gives it tons of interesting new places to go.
In addition, it provides a promising reset for Season 2. Eleanor’s own gambit is a clever one, and I’m excited to see how it all shakes out.
Overall, the laughs weren’t as strong as I might have liked, but this is a brilliant twist that I absolutely did not see coming, so the show gets points for a genuine surprise that makes me see the prior twelve episodes differently.
(And hey, let’s throw out some additional wild speculation while we’re at it. Maybe in this afterlife, people don’t get sent to hell to be punished necessarily, but to be given the chance to improve and earn themselves a place in Heaven. Each time, our heroes get the chance to be a little better and get a little closer to eternal reward. Granted, I totally whiffed on the twist here, so take my predictions with a grain of salt, but still, throwing it out there anyway!)
SPOILERS AHEAD…. I don’t even know if I can put into words how much I fucking love this film!!! American History X is such an underrated masterpiece—literally, from start to end. This is not an easy film to watch, but damn is it worthy of every second.
A 1998 film directed by Tony Kaye presents to us the story about a neo-Nazi skinhead named Derek Vinyard—marked with a life of cruelty, violence, racism—who is sent to prison after brutally murdering two black men who attempt larceny. Once released, he desires a change and understands his mistakes. Derek sets off to change and fix the things he did wrong, specifically that his younger brother Danny doesn’t follow in his footsteps.
American History X obtains beautiful cinematography. There is an extremely distinct and intelligent representation of hatred in the movie’s photography. The past is shot in black and white to portray how Derek viewed the world as plain as black v.s. white; and the present is shot in colour to represent Derek’s change and comprehension of what social hatred has done to better his life, which is simply nothing but pain.
Sadly, 20 years later, American History X is still relevant to this day. Recently, many problematic hate groups have been exposed and often include neo-Nazis. Never had I thought I would live in a world filled with this atrocity but disappointingly, they have always been there. Deep inside, I have this raging gut to show this film to all people that commit hate crimes or simply hate. Hell, how could that ever happen, right?
Why is it that I love American History X so much? It is because the message that this film sends out is astonishing. The script is in every single way a lesson, and it all concludes perfectly at the end. This movie in no way sets out to present white people being victimized by different races and ethnicities. It simply speaks to the world about not only racism, but how hatred can affect individuals and tear loved ones apart. Technically, this entire movie should be the definition of hate. That “Hate is baggage. Life’s too short to be pissed off all the time. It’s just not worth it.”
The movie accomplishes to teach us how individuals are never born hating. People learn to hate, and if they can learn to hate, then they can be taught to love. There are numerous amounts of scenarios where this is shown through the film’s very memorable moments. From the curb stomp scene, which presents HATE, sending Derek to prison (presenting: hate does not mean better), where he soon experiences BETRAYAL from a group of neo-Nazis when they rape him, to unexpectedly befriending a black man, displaying LOVE.
Edward Norton, Edward Furlong, Beverly D’Angelo, and Jennifer Lien did amazing jobs portraying their characters—each and every single one of them with so much pain. The most difficult scene to watch was the brutal dinner table scene where Norton gives a fucking powerful performance. He really demonstrated how deep the character’s hatred can go once he sends endless insults to the Jewish man whom during that scene was in a relationship with his mother. Not to mention the part where he begins to suffocate his own sister!!
The ending of the film was the most unexpected and completely heartbreaking. Although this is a film that revolves around white supremacy, I cannot be the only one who was hoping for a happy ending. Watching a family go through such horrendous events and then watching this former neo-Nazi noticing his mistakes and profoundly attempting to fix them, only to see them end on the murder of his young brother is truly fucking tragic.
In a way, during that last scene American History X presents the cycle of social hatred. One loses, and the other wins, continuing to pass on the hate. That kid was probably put up to a test, and as soon as Danny’s blood splatters over his face, the kid’s eyes open wide, and we know he regrets it.
I have read the original script of American History X and I seriously wish this film could’ve been longer. I really believe it still would’ve been successful if they included a few scenes from the original screenplay. AMAZING MOVIE!
This was fucking horrific. This scriptwriter should be forced to find a new career. The second that Rosamund Pike was kidnapped, I thought to myself, "He's either going to propose, or they're going to go into business together." The problem was in getting to the point, where this actually happened. These Russian mobsters must've been the most incompetent buffoons on the planet to not be able to finish off two individuals, who they'd already pretty much brought to w/in an inch of their life. This was such an incredible stretch that it made this movie absolutely ridiculous.
Aside from this, the fact that the writer tried to make these two women sympathetic characters screams that there's something really off w/ this writer. On what planet are people who take advantage of, and essentially murder, some of the most vulnerable members of society sympathetic?
On one last note, I've never been a fan of Rosamund Pike. I'd seen her in two previous films, where she was not good at all: Jack Reacher and Gone Girl. In the former, she's so melodramatic, it's difficult to watch, and it's even more difficult to take her character seriously. In the latter, although she's playing a character w/ Antisocial Personality Disorder, that doesn't necessarily mean someone devoid of affect, which is exactly how she played that role. She may as well have been a talking stump in that movie. I realize that she received industry-wide recognition for the latter role, but I prescribe this to the industries' complete and utter lack of understanding of psychological disorders and their accompanying attributes.
I wasn't going to watch this film b/c of my distaste for Ms. Pike's acting ability, but the movie, on its own, won such rave reviews, I figured that I'd give it a chance. However, something about her just wasn't right. She had this odd grin in a lot of scenes, where it either didn't fit, or it seemed like it would've been inappropriate, if it had been a real-life situation. I just find her acting to be really off-putting. Luckily, both Peter Dinklage and Dianne Wiest are always top-notch performers.
This was my favourite film of the season, primarily because of the artistry of Greta Gerwig and the skill of the performers. Saoirse Ronan and Emma Watson were brilliant, as I expected them to be, but, Florence Pugh and Eliza Scanlen were new discoveries for me (and I have already begun to enthusiastically follow their filmography). Laura Dern brought a gravitas to the nurturing, generous Marmee that deepened the character. When I saw that Meryl Streep was bringing her legacy to a relatively small role, I knew there were great expectations of this production (I later found out that both she and Saoirse, announced to Greta Gerwig, pre-production, that they WERE going to play those roles). Greta Gerwig is a profoundly intelligent writer and filmmaker, and she attracts equally gifted people with whom to collaborate. This production is rich with insights into the characters that come Louisa May Alcott's own life and borrows from some of her other works. Those who follow me know that I chat with other movie goers as I leave a movie, and, of the 6 people I spoke to, 4 gave the film a straight up 10. Two women (who watched the film together) were confused because they missed the cues as to shifts in the time line, so here's the scoop - the movie begins in the middle of the book, with Jo in New York scrambling to be published. Only once, is a flashback labelled as such, but, the movie continually flips back and forth between the Jo's present and her past. As her present sparks themes from her childhood, we are transported back to those memories. Greta Gerwig is very deliberate in how she places her cuts, long before shooting begins, so don't miss her deliberate artistry. I've already gushed on too long, so I'll end by rating this film a 10 (perfect) out of 10. [Classic Americana Drama]
"Says the princess who was given all the mattresses in the world to sleep on and still complains she can feel a pea." - Not Dottie dropping truth bombs. Love is very much a hypocrite.
I know it's a hallucination but Love imagining her and her brother naked in the bathtub together is wild. I understand the symbolism and what it was supposed to represent but still, it was weird to watch them.
I have to say, the last two episodes have been a little slow and dragged quite a bit. The domestic drama between two serial killers is interesting but I don't feel any chemistry between the two cheating stories. I really don’t care about Marianne or Theo. At least, Theo ties in with the murder (because he is Matthew's stepson) while Marianne is just the next obsession for Joe. I think this storyline felt like a very rushed and quick change in plot line. It would've been more interesting if Joe was stalking Marianne, but she had no interest in him at all. I just don't see how a woman like her would be into a man like him. At first, she came across as too smart and sassy to be manipulated by someone like Joe, then one conversation about their childhood and boom, she has feeling for him. The writers didn't give her enough time for character development. Also, I hoped this time it would be different because it seems like every woman Joe stalks, she likes him back.
Why are they pretending Marienne speaks French?
How did it take Joe until episode 6 of season 3 to realize he's got mummy issues? He's slow.
I have a feeling that Joe will end up killing Marienne’s ex-husband.
Good show. It had an interesting concept, one I've never seen anything similar to. The comedy was pretty decent but nothing I'd consider really, really funny. I'm sure a lot of people feel the same way. I'd still say you should at least give the show a shot. For most of you, you'll probably consider it absolutely horrible or not your cup of tea, which is completely fine. That's what I think.
Edit, upon watching and finishing the second season: The first season was a nice introduction to the show, but the second season is where it's at. There was more of a budget, though, to be fair, would a show like this need a bigger budget to be better? I don't think that's specifically the case, but the bigger budget did play a part in the greater overall enjoyment in comparison to the first season. It felt like there was more of a story, which contributed to the level of enjoyment as well. I don't know, it just felt better. I'm not very good at writing something out in regards to a show in some cases, and this is one of them, so that's all that comes to mind, so to speak, and came of letting my fingers do their thing rather than thinking of what to write, word by word.
We join The Menu on a private pier, alongside a dozen snooty, well-dressed guests awaiting transport to an exclusive island retreat. There resides a world-renowned chef, plus an eerily devoted kitchen staff, who have prepared a culinary experience like no other. As we’re led through a tour of the grounds, curtly seated and served our first expensive wine pairing, a sense of unease settles over the room. There’s tension in the air, a mutual holding of the breath that disturbs the once-cordial atmosphere between dining partners and envelopes the celebrity chef like a cloak as he stands before the room to introduce the first course.
The film’s basic premise is that everyone has something to hide, no matter how they choose to disguise it, but it’s crafty about illustrating that point. Chef Slowik (Ralph Fiennes) has a personal bone to pick with all in attendance, save for one last-minute substitution (Anya Taylor-Joy), and uses the contents of the meal to voice those complaints. Dished in gratuitous detail and served with an itemized list of ingredients, it’s half high-end food porn and half salacious tell-off, with a spicy side tray of dark humor. Like its thematic contemporary, Glass Onion, The Menu works a fine balance between witty laughs and creepy suspense. Helplessly, we guess (often wrong but sometimes right) about the next surprise. We laugh at the absurdity of the menu, the vapidity of the social elite and the icy boldness of the staff. And, in the end, we’re left a little unnerved. Well done, all around.
Wow, I see so many negative comments on this final episode and the final season. I personally don't agree with the 'hate'. I enjoyed this season and the finale has me feeling so much... first there was joy. Seeing the little moments between Eve and Villanelle on their journey to the end was showed us how different yet similar they are. the kiss... I can't even explain it... goosebumps. Showing once again that the chemistry between Sandra Oh and Jodie Comer is fantastic!
The show being called 'Killing Eve' I expected it to be Eve but I knew this show could only really end with one of two possible scenario's... either one of both die. Villanelle died and she died sort of gracefully? That's not the right word but looking at her in the water with the blood creating sort of angel wings and the light coming from above... beautiful and a nod to earlier this season AND to the tarot reading. Explaining beautifully that the 'death' card pulled for Eve doesn't mean literal death for her but the end of a chapter via Villanelle's death.
Carolyn... where to start. I love her. She is a badass. She does whatever put not 'whatever'... you know? She's smart, there is always something deeper going on and I'm not even mad about what she did in the end. It's crazy that I even view her getting Villanelle killed as something to get mad over... We can't forget Villanelle is an assasin who killed and enjoyed killing lots of people. This story began with trying to bring her down and Carolyn did just that. She made sure Villanelle did her dirty work for her - killing the Twelve - and I imagine this would grant Carolyn her job back... as she said to Pam... can't show up empty handed at MI6.
Pam grew on me. I'm glad she walked away from this.
I'm very satisfied with the ending. It's tragic but feels fated to have ended like this. Halfway through the season I started fantasizing what a life between Eve and Villanelle would be but it's impossible. They are so very different and yet exactly the same in the way that they are both not really sane... Villanelle for sure a psychopath but Eve showed to be very unstable too... liking the thrill a of a kill a little too much. So tragedy was always in their cards (pun intended) and I'm okay with Villanelle being the one to die... I'm not one for open endings mostly but I can look past it... I can fill in the blanks on my own and create a story for myself. Eve will not let it go, she will deteriorate and go after Carolyn. Carolyn might or might not be back at MI6 or some other job (maybe working on her own) to unravel more of the Twelve because I bet there are more powerhungry people like Helene in that organization waiting to pick up the torch.... Eventually it will come down to Eve and Carolyn and again... one or both will die. That's how I see that playing out.
Brilliant show. I'm sad it's over because I enjoyed the story and mostly the characters!
Starts great, continues strong but finishes weak.
After the night club scene the police are no longer involved in the movie at all. The reason this is bad is because the authorities all thought that Max was the murderer apart from one cop who believed he was actually just the taxi driver. However, we saw him take multiple shots at close range that dropped him & we don't know if he lived.
We don't know what happened to Max with this poor ending, the police had ID'd him already so he is a suspect and he also cuffed a policeman at gunpoint. He had a witness who is high ranking in the legal system to back him up but he could have also been shot on sight by some angry cops after what happened at the nightclub.
I think you could also argue that the story as it is told is lacking substance, we are fed traces of why the hitman is working; he is eliminating witnesses. So what happened with that? Did justice prevail since the last witness survived?
I guess we are entitled to draw our own conclusions and finish the ending ourselves since none was provided.
7/10 Fantastic acting but I feel they should have taken another 15 minutes to properly conclude the story.
Notes
Reagan: "My latest invention. Behold, the Productivitron."
Brett: "Oh God, robot arms!"
Glenn: "Christ Almighty!""Snake Gyllenhaal"
Mr Mothman: "Hi, everyone. Welcome to Inhuman Resources. I'm Mr Mothman. I'm a Mothman."
Mr Mothman: "Elliot Mothman, you need to finish your master's and get the fuck out of this office."
"WELCOME TO YALE THE HARVARD OF NOT EEING HARVARD"
[Camera pans underground.]
"WELCOME TO ACTUAL YALE"Reagan: "Who's an antisocial weirdo now? Not the girl who invented robot arms to hug strangers. Oh my God, I sound insane."
Barb Shrike: "She gets it. And I absolutely love your skin. How do you get it that scaly?"
Reagan: "Hey, fuck you... using moisturiser! The drier the better, right, baby?"
Zarthax Griswold Walton: "We reptoids have had a great decade. Thanks to propaganda in the media, we have made society more tolerant of our kind, from the Geico Gecko to 'The Shape of Water'."
[Lizard Guillermo Del Toro gives thanks.]
Zarthax: "We even got K. Rool in 'Smash!'"Reptoid: "Come out with your hands up, you pink-fleshed motherfuckers!"
Glenn: I plead the Fifth and the Second!"
[Takes out shotgun.]Mothman: "She's on her 95th HR violation. But who's counting? Me, I'm counting. Mr Mothman is counting."
Rand: "I swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, so help me 'Godzilla 2000'."
Review
This episode is actually good—yay!
Ok wow that was good. Like really good.
Man just a lot of fun.
So plot wise this is a movie about two people both of whom are bad people. They meet happenstance and find out they're both going to the same destination wedding. Lindsay is the former fiance of the groom (he left her) and Frank is his half-brother. They both hate the groom Keith but it barely unites them as they both just hate everything.
This plotline sounds familiar because it's basically all you need to know to watch FX's absolutely excellent You're the Worst. But this is just a movie version of that pilot. So what you really look for in this movie is not so much the plot which we all know (Boy meets girl, ... , They get together), but the chemistry and how they get together. Ryder and Reeves have EXCELLENT chemistry and the writing was top notch. Which it had to be because this movie is 90% Lindsay and Frank riffing off one another. It doesn't feel improvy or forced. But the sheer endurance of the back and forth between them is impressive. They should be together based on that alone. But Keanu plays a character that in other people's hands would feel lazy and dull. I love Bruce Willis movies but ever since I learned he has a rider that says he films his parts in like 2 days and then collects his money and they film the rest of the movie. It suddenly clicks what is wrong with his performances lately. It's that he's not performing. Reeves does the oppsite here. He takes a character that is written as lifeless and stiff and he performs that stiffness. Ryder's Lindsay on paper is pathetic. Keith broke off their engnagement like a dick but she sues him and is still coming to this Destination Wedding performatively instead of saying no and sparing herself the pain. Ryder infuses her with pain and anger and spite. Yet she's develops a hesitant but honest and open affection for Frank that keeps her interesting.
This is exactly the sort of movie I would buy just to have on tap when I need something to watch that's entertaining but not stupid.
"It's not what she said. She said she wants to set you free. And I think that's really nice of her because I also think she's a destructive piece of shit. In fact, I think in a lot of ways she made your life. I think you were this cute girl from Conneticut, on your road, and you looked out and saw everything laid out in front of you, this nice, normal life, and a part of you said f+ck that. I want to be special. Alex was your ticket to special. You got to live this life of intrigue. You were above the law. And then you got scared, and you reverted back to your old path. That's me, and our life together, and you saw this life laid out in front of you, this nice life, this normal life, and this time you said f+ck it. I'm tired. Let's do this. But I think that restless part of you just would have risen up again at some point. So, lucky for all of us that Alex named you. Because now, once again, you're special."
"Jesus. when did you formulate this theory about me and my life motivations? I did not want to go to prison. It was awful" -Piper
"I believe you. But I also think maybe this was the bext thing that happened to you. Because you can never be nice and normal again. You're the ex-con. Which, in our circles, is quite exotic."
"We're not in the same circles."
Because look at the choices you're making. That woman I met the night we all went out to dinner? She's great. She hot, she has a cool job"
"She has an amazing apartment" blurts out Piper
"She has an amazing apartment, she is on her way, and she likes you. and all you can think about is Alex."
"Because I love Alex."
"Yea. Because you love Alex. But also because you love what being with Alex represents."
"Stop. This is BS. You don't know me anymore. You may have known a version of me but you have no idea who I am now. This whole narrative you created; I am not that self destructive."
"Arent you?"
There is only one redeeming factor about this movie, the fact that Trakt give rating of 1 heart the name 'Weak Sauce :(' as that describes this movie perfectly.
People may say that this is a more 'arty' film, let's be frank, it's not well enough executed to be one, I've seen better arty films elsewhere.
Not only that, but I just can't get over the plot holes, which includes some typical Hollywood style puffery, for instance, the girls hold up a cafe (I think) at gunpoint, steal money from the till without wearing gloves (so you'd think there are fingerprints at least), the girls later get arrested during Spring Break (so I'd imagine fingerprinted), so I'm either over-estimating police intelligence or information sharing, or that was a pretty big plot hole.
In addition, when they are outside the diner/superette(?) and they re-enact the hold up, how that scene would go completely unnoticed, boggles my mind, it just doesn't make sense to me.
Apart from what I feel like plot holes, the proportion of runtime spent on mindless dribble/fast cuts/etc (which is really the director trying to be artsy) bored me out of my mind like you'd never believe.
In summary, I want my hour and a half back!
What a finale! I'm going to be genuinely pissed if this show doesn't get renewed. Usually, I'm not particularly fond of finales that end on a cliffhanger, especially when it comes to shows I really enjoyed and got invested in. But that doesn't mean I base the whole finale on how it ended and then hate the entirety of it because of how it ended. In this case, it was perfect.
In a very grim, gritty, and suspenseful finale, there was still a little bit of humor added in a believable way with the interaction between Fred and Malibu, particularly his carefree and straightforward reaction, as well as the interaction afterward in the car between him and Eddie. Both Miljan and Charlie being taken care of, in a way I wasn't expecting. Bennie surviving the whole ordeal creating the opportunity to bring him back for a second season. Alice getting kidnapped. Phoenix not being able to save her and then crying over the phone to Daisy. The suspense with what was going on with Dillon and during the last scene making you wonder whether or not he got lucky or unlucky, depending on how you look at it, with playing Russian roulette. Daisy saying to him that Alice is in danger and revealing that he's her father. The camera focusing and going in a circle on and around Daisy's face and the change in emotion from being distressed and crying to a mix between insouciant and angry. Like I said, what a finale!
I had an absolute blast with this one. I don't think it quite reaches the heights of Searching, but it absolutely justifies its existence and then some. It almost feels odd to say about movie like this, but there's a real formal elegance to the craft here. Searching and now Missing are really the height of the "digital interface" genre. These movies are engaging in a way that actually feels incredibly novel and fun. There's a "Where's Waldo?" element at play that almost makes you feel like you can "solve" the movie before it guides you to the end. Of course, that's an inherent element of any thriller, but here it feels so much more tangible. And the best part is that while it might be labelled a gimmick, it's really just a brilliant use of the audio-visual medium that is film. If every frame counts and is supposed to advance story, then movies like Missing should be seen as exemplary achievements in film. That might be a tad hyperbolic, but I'm just really jazzed that a genre like this now exists.
To get to the movie, it basically delivers on everything I signed up for. My suspension of disbelief was definitely stretched a bit more than I was expecting, especially when this movie begins to veer into the horror genre, but never so much that I wanted to get off the ride. There were also certainly some little plot elements that felt contrived or convenient, but given the experience I was expecting from this movie (a fun thrill-ride) I was never totally put off.
The fact that this movie, amidst all the fun, also provides some incisive and thoughtful commentary on our current digital age - in terms of how it's commoditized, how it desensitizes us, how despite our greater connectivity our humanity hasn't necessarily increased, etc. - is a beautiful cherry on top! What really landed the plane for me with Missing were the emotional beats that the movie managed to pay off in the end. A thumb reaction to a message, and a father-son reunion both brought a giant smile to my face and reassured me that I was in the safe hands of thoughtful storytellers throughout this movie. While this wasn't quite as mind-blowing as Searching, I do think this was a very worthy successor, and overall another successful entry in this genre of movies.
Welcome back Ms. Piper...., you've been missed. This being a "from the mind of Billie Piper" co-joint, I of course am down for whatever it is that she is offering. That having been said, I have to wonder, if, given Bella Thorne's recent $2,000,000.00 (that's 2 MILLION Dollars, for those of you in Rio Linda) in TWO DAYS OnlyFans score for sharing photo's of her naughty bits for cash, if, the age of the celebrity photo hack is pretty much past it's sell by date. The one exception to this would seem to be the case of the exposing of some hereto undisclosed "secret", regarding the hackee's sexuality, sex practices, or in the case of the eponymous "Suzie's" case, choice of sex partner(s), in this instance, not the one she is currently cohabiting with. But, if Megan Fox has taught us anything, even that doesn't matter, because you can even abandon your spouse and kids as long as it's your "soulmate" you run off with.
Anyway, after winning a vocal competition 15 years earlier, and becoming a "star", our heroine Suzie, finds that she is no longer as in demand as she once was, but, out of the blue, she finds out that the house of Mouse wants her for a role that, unlike LL Cool J, would definitely be a "comeback". But the celebration, and the publicity photo shoot at her country home, unfortunately, finds our girl being interrupted (that was for you ND) by the news that a "fappening" (look it up) has released some Kim K style photos of her perfecting her best fellatory skilz on an an apendage NOT attached to her current beau. (Rut Roh Shaggy!!)
I would say that comedy and hi jinks ensue, but, Billie Pipers performance elicited more empathy and, I really felt bad for the character as she tries to hold it together, NOT melt down, and finish the comeback photo shoot, as her partner implodes from the realization of what he is seeing in the photo's, and frankly, is kind of being an azz. Leila Farzad is wonderful as the personal assistant / crisis manager trying to get a handle on things.
If the audience can anything from this, is that "the cloud" is only as secure as the integrity of the worst azzhat working there, and, if you just HAVE to take naughty pics and you're NOT Bella Thorne or Kim K, and would actually MIND if strangers and coworkers saw you nekkid, then store your stuff in an encrypted file, or on a password protected thumbdrive or SD Card IN an encrypted file, that only you know the key to unlock it. Just sayin....
This could be fun, so, well just see where it goes...
[Apple TV+] S1 was possibly somewhat underestimated, but it built a space between horror and absurd humor, which is even revealed as a premonitory of the subsequent confinement, given its narrative premise of taking place only in the house where the protagonists live. Although chaotic in its development, the typical ending of Shyamalan productions revealed great surprises.
In S2 it seems clearer that they are trying to build a more extensive narrative arc (M. Night Shyamalan has commented that from this season they started to work in a plot that lasts 40 episodes, that is, four seasons). And in a way it's about putting some order into the chaos of S1, especially around the character of Leanne. They certainly do, but without finishing building a homogeneous development.
One of the most interesting characteristics of this series is the selection of directors, mainly from European fantasy and horror films: the French Julia Ducournau does a splendid job in her two episodes, marking a beginning of great visual impact. But there are also the Swiss Lisa Brühlmann, the Swedish Isabella Eklöf or the Hungarian Nimród Antal, apart from two episodes that are reserved by M. Night Shyamalan and his daughter, Ishana Shyamalan.
S2 has an excellent start and a haunting ending, but in the middle of the season it gets repetitive and seems to want to play more clearly on the absurd humor, which is disconcerting at times. The revelation of Leanne as a kind of fallen angel who is able to bring back to life (to Jonathan, but also to Julian), but who behaves like a rebellious angel, opens up the possibilities for a plot that seems to be turning her ever-growing into the real protagonist (in the second season the characters of Julian and Sean are a bit blurred). And the end of the season, with the entrance of Josephine, promises more than they possibly end up offering us later.
Oh how I wanted to love this movie. How could it go wrong? Three of the best actresses of their generation and a director whose work I admire, all in one film. And alas, it isn't good. The result is a drama without drama and characters that not even these great talents could breathe life into. In a way it reminded me of a bad Woody Allen movie (side note: the shots of the empty hallways towards the end was reminiscent of the same scenes in Allen's Interiors). There would be scene after scene where very little happens to advance the plot or your interest in the characters. It's almost like dutifully walking through the movie taking notes on what happened and then on to the next scene, as if we were walking past museum exhibits. At no point is any of it compelling or even very interesting.
This film is also another classic case of the rottentomatoes score not being indicative of the quality of the movie. Is it necessarily bad enough to get a negative score? No, but I would by no means take the number of positive reviews as an indication of the movie's worth.
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When I sat down to watch Always Be My Maybe I thought this will be good, a romantic comedy written by well-regarded female comedy star, both leads are Asians so there is a new slant on an old formula.
I was wrong, aside from the lack of real chemistry between Wong and Randall what I saw is a romantic comedy that I have seen so many times before.
There are clearly big cultural references for American Asians in the film which whilst I have no handle on I’m not unaware enough to spot. The film could have been sharp and inciteful but instead was all too familiar, undercooked and sentimentally soft, like so many romantic comedies out there.
I wanted so desperately to really enjoy this film and I did laugh at moments during the runtime, so my virtual signalling and SJW credentials are prevalent but in the end I felt flat and disappointed for the run time. The whole film had a feeling of boilerplate. Proper vanilla-flavoured boilerplate.
There’s a particular scene that brought up some quick social media memes and got a lot of attention as soon as the film gained an audience when dear old Keanu Reeves popped up but in all honesty, it was a weird section of the film shoe-horned in and mostly was not that funny. The early restaurant part did get me chuckling but also I felt a bit uncomfortable, you cannot help feeling that a lot of participants in the movie probably go to establishments that serve that type of cuisine.
Always Be My Maybe felt like an extension of Fresh off the Boat and when it was pitched to Netflix it was an easy harmless option. Safe, tepid, nothing new to add to the genre and ultimately boring. But it did add another great film to the film-dud pantheon.
He's my unsolicited advice Netflix, use great comedic talent properly, be a bit daring, it’s not like you are losing money is it?
Paul Feig tries his hand directing a movie sans Melissa McCarthy, that honestly, on first viewing, had me hitting fast forward on the remote. Fortunately, where I stopped was the point that the movie got truly interesting, and, after watching the third act, I was intrigued enough to go back and take a second look. I'm very glad I did. It's not the typical Paul Feig, movie, neither raucous comedy, nor comedy thriller, but kind of a dark, comedish, Urban Neo-Noir, dramedy but not exactly. The female leads drive the story, but, you really don't know who to root for, as BOTH are a bit damaged and twisted, and, you have to get to the end to find out which one is MORE screwed up. A third of the way in Anna Kendrick's character makes some choices that (although they had set it up in a previous scene) were sooo aggravating and clichéd that I ALMOST called it a wrap, then, they telegraphed the "plot twist" so ham handedly that one can easily guess the rest of the movie.
THANKFULLY, Feig's deft direction, and the casts thespianship, combined with several ..but wait, but wait....., but wait, curveballs (is it a plot twist if you see it coming?) at the end made this worth the watch.
If you rent the DVD, in the extras there is a cute "flash mob" scene that was supposed to be the happy ending, to run during the title credits, but, it didn't track well to test audiences, so they cut it. Its a fun Bollywood tribute, but, IMO they were right to cut it, as it would have seemed trite and forced. Still, they tacked on some happily ever after title cards in the credits, because that's just how Paul rolls.
