fpollinger Reviews

Spartacus (2010–2013)

Simplistic show for violence-lovers

[2/10 · 29 June 2011]

So let's start with the positive aspects: Breasts. I like them, i don't have any hypocritical religious reasons for not enjoying seeing nice boobs on television.

Now let's come to the negative aspects: I can enjoy movies with violence. I liked Irréversible, i liked 300, i liked Srpski Film (A Serbian Film). Why? Because those movies can reflect about violence, about what it does to us. Unfortunately "Spartacus: Blood and Sand" can not deliver such. The only message it provides is is that murdering people is justified and can be pretty cool (even though i find the CGI-Slow-Motion effects pretty embarrassing) Well what is there really to find in this show apart from fascination for blood and breasts. Nothing, right. I'll certainly not fill the waiting for Season 2 of Game of Thrones with this garbage.

The Experiment (2010)

Important Message, but a movie with flaws

[6/10 · 28 August 2010]

First off: I am German and i've seen the original Das Experiment many years ago. I wouldn't call all Americans dumb because they remake foreign movies. In fact this movie is better in some ways, like the acting of Forest Whitaker, which reminds me like a evolution from a stay-at-home-dude to his interpretation of Idi Amin.

But the movies share a big problem. The original experiment was the Milgram Experiment, which was in the 60s if i recall correctly. The difference to the movie experiment is, that they originally used completely sane men. So that's why this study had such a big impact. They stopped the experiment at a earlier stage, but they were right at losing control. So in the movies there are psychopaths, Nazis, misfits and even an emo. I think that weakens the message of the movie. It should not be saying: Maniacs and psychopaths are capable of violence, oppression and humiliation. The message of the movies should be: Every man is capable of violence, oppression and humiliation. But it is possible to prevent such things if we ever arrive a level of empathy, philosophy and post-capitalism, then we could prove that humans are more than monkeys with funky weapons.

So apart from the message the movie is OK. Don't expect an action flick, so everything's fine.

Nefes: Vatan Sagolsun (2009)

simplistic and mediocre

[4/10 · 31 January 2010]

I was really looking forward to this movie because of the high rating at IMDb and the promising plot.

Well, i have seen many war movies, good ones and bad ones. Unfortunately "Nefes: Vatan sagolsun (The Breath)" turned out to be a rather bad movie. First thing to analyze is to judge whether this is a propaganda movie or not: It is not a obvious propaganda movie, that is for sure. But looking at IMDb comments like: "long live Turkish warriors" and others, i think it's a simplistic and unidimensional war movie. The PKK-Dudes are shown as insane suicide bombers, evil misanthropists. There is no word about what caused this conflict.

Another thing i must state is that this is not a anti-war-movie. I could explain that in words, but i strongly recommend everyone in the world to watch : "Hotaru no haka (Grave of the Fireflies". Then you will know why most of the so called "anti-war-movies" are not what they are trying to be.

Well, there isn't everything bad about the movie. The acting is OK.I also liked some of the pictures like the scenes with the clouds.

The characters could have been interesting, i mean their development in solitude. Problem is that i've seen lots of movies that to exactly that in a better way. In this movie i never really care for any of the characters.

Well that's it. I don't want to disrupt you folks in your excessive nationalism, so just keep rating this as 10/10

Daniel the Wizard (2004)

easy to hate - difficult to love (but possible)

[7/10 · 26 December 2009]

OMG!!!!! THIS GUY SERIOUSLY GIVES THIS CRAP 7/10?!?!? Yeah, but let me justify that.

My guess is that 90% of the movie's viewers deeply hate the person Daniel Küblböck. So i think most of the votes and reviews are written out of a perspective of hate, disgust and certified prejudice.

Let me write a review from a perspective of a person that just doesn't care about the person of Daniel Küblböck:

1. This movie isn't done by aestheticians of modern cinema, let's mention Tarsem Singh or Pedro Almodóvar for an example. So expect a very cheap looking film.

2. Don't expect professional actors. Most lay actors here simply play themselves or very plain characters.

3. This movie has a simple message. See it as a movie for children, maybe aged 10 or something. Those viewers do not have the same expectations as you might have as an adult. I think the message of the movie is a good message: "Do not hate. Love instead!" and so on. If you have a look at the enormous crap that is being watched by children today this seems like a good message.

4. This movie directly addresses to the majority of people who hate the person of Daniel Küblböck. Well, the message for haters would be the same like it would be for children. "Hate makes you blind for what your life should be worth living for" Why can't you leave something alone if you hate it? Without the enormous negative media circus Daniel Küblböck would have been forgotten in weeks like all the other casting singers.

So let me summarize. There are movies that transport their message in a artistically more valuable way, but nevertheless the message of the movie is good. Most haters are blinded by their hate and won't be able to change their narrow-minded point of view.

Now please insult me for giving this movie more than 1/10

Sling Blade (1996)

Two hours of happy ending movie with a not-happy ending

[2/10 · 21 August 2009]

When i watched the movie this evening i didn't know anything about it at all. So i was in a good mood after the start of the film was quite well done. It had false hints, a main character that seems almost unique and a really promising introduction into the plot. So i thought this might be about a retard that isn't as lucky in life as Forrest Gump is. But i thought wrong. After the good start the movie just went a horrible way. Everything turned out sooooooooo nicely for that poor guy Karl, people forgave him his murdering, he got a job, everyone was sooooooooo friendly and accepted him. The homosexual guy trusts him so quickly and tells Karl how he can't do an outing. He and the poooooooooor kiddo get best friends. Problem is, this continues almost two hours. It was like a terrible happy ending all over the movie. Next problem, i didn't wonder about the ending at all, when he kills that bad bad bad boyfriend. In fact i was hoping all movie long that he would do that. So maybe this this whole happy story was about to let us not think, that Karl would murder again. But this attempt completely failed.

Well i was once working with retarded children and i loved that job, so i don't think that Billy Bob Thornton's acting was very good. If you want to see a brilliant performance, then watch Rainman with Dustin Hoffman. Also Forrest Gump does so much better regarding acting of the main character. But Thornton's acting was surely the best of this movie. The other actors in Sling Blade were pretty much worse. Totally plain and stereotype characters. The homosexual that doesn't like violence at all. The Mother, that can't get away from her bad boyfriend. The other retarded girl. I really didn't like any character at all.

To sum it all up i liked the beginning and i was hoping for a really good and interesting story, but after a while of good hope i had to realize how bad this plot actually is.