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Reviews
Blackhat (2015)
Frankly, the plot is senseless
If we hadn't been misled by the two line synopsis, we probably wouldn't have watched this thing. It led us to believe there was some cerebral content. More than once a character asked why the perpetrators were perpetrating; it was never sensibly answered. There was a bunch of fighting and explosions thrown in, but there really wasn't any reason for it. The main character's original prison sentence wasn't convincingly explained, nor was how such a brilliant programmer got caught for his second sentence. Other parts of the movie are incredibly predictable. The plotted endgame of the villains was clearly contrived as an excuse for the included violence; as the "hero" suggested, and should have been able to do as well, with the skills attributed to them and him, there were far easier ways to get rich. I'll give it four stars for the action scenes, although, as I alluded to above, judgement of such is not really my forte.
Annie Live! (2021)
Not great, but fine
First complaint is that in the comic strip upon which the musical is based, none of the characters had eyeballs, yet here, they all did. Why couldn't the producers come up with something for actors with eyeballs, instead of...
If you really think the point of the story has anything to do with Annie's hair or skin color, I feel very sorry for you.
I think the "over the top" interpretation. Of Miss Hannigan started with Carol Burnett. It's a little much for me, but that's just a matter of taste. (Hey, for me, one of the highlights was catching the stagehands skirt across the back of stage--different strokes for different folks.)
Different versions have accented different parts of the story; this is hardly my favorite. More fleshing out of the plot to kidnap Annie to get the money and Miss Hannigan's sudden act of conscience would bring more sense to the story.
All that said, it does project the optimism that's the point of the play. It's not that hard to sit back and enjoy (unless you rely on the captioning, which, done live, rather than from the script, was late, and often truncated).
The Ice Road (2021)
If you think Mark Twain got off tearing James Fennimore Cooper a new one...
He could have had twice as much fun reviewing this thing. Physics, physiology, medicine, economics (for a $100?); it would take hours to properly list all the examples of pure (and impure) nonsense. On the other hand "The Last of the Mohegans" is still being read and there is a presented tension here, a classic villain, and even an existential question or two brought up. So, it can serve to fill up two hours semi-enjoyably, particularly if, to piggyback onto that other reviewer, you start the beer drinking well before the movie.
Rock My Heart (2017)
Fine, nothing special
Nothing new here, pretty predictable. If you start thinking about it too much, the plot holes begin to manifest themselves, but nothing beyond what would be expected of a movie of this type; it's probably a bit better than average for a movie of this genre.
(Frankly, what I will remember most from this film, which I watched, dubbed, on Netflix, was that the dubbing and the subtitles were from different translations. The meanings were generally the same, although not always, and the profanity was more limited in the subtitles. The usage of the word "amateur," for somebody riding for a cash prize, also seemed a little strange.)
Christmas in the Wild (2019)
Fine for what it is
Nothing outstanding here, nothing really to see. Very predictable, her acting was poor at best. Everybody but maybe the ex-husband and the barely explained blond was likeable. No pain, no gain, pleasant enough way to kill some time. Would have liked to see more animals. Like most of the rest of the movie, the darkness of the sky was not believable. Did like the ex's $108,000 contribution, which I assume was the writers' little joke.