mistarkus Reviews

Nomadland (2020)

Soulful

[9/10 · 25 February 2021]

A soulful, interesting, believable depiction of how some people in this country choose their livelihood. It is true that their circumstances may force them into being nomads but despite the hardships and struggles that are depicted it seems they would not have it any other way.

A little more unique for film to depict this somewhat elder demographic who are living and embracing this alternative lifestyle. (If you like the style of this film I recommend American Honey to depict the younger demographic of "nomads") Although the main character was fine and an interesting character study, the assortment of side characters really make Nomadland deeply soulful, melancholic and inspiring at the same time. Most of the more involved dialogue provide mini-stories and insights into these side characters struggles. These characters are well done and their stories seem true to life therefore opening up our hearts to care for even the characters with a mere few lines. It seems that getting to a certain point in age and in life you can't help to have an assortment of deep hardships, struggles and losses. And choosing to live on, live freely, living warmly towards your fellow human being becomes what life is about to them. It was beautiful to see as they get close to their dying years they choose to swallow as much as life can hold and keep on going down the road.

The beauty stems from the naturalism and truth depicting the landscapes and the people. The vast, arid landscape showcased through beautiful cinematography envelop these independent spirits and represent their soul. Their soul for yearning for space, peace and freedom. These people out west living communally in their campers, trucks and tents, off the grid, struggling to survive create their own unique culture within the US. A culture of warmth, comradery, boisterous swashbuckling fun, a necessary self-sufficiency. But most of all a culture of connection and the drive to create a brotherhood and sisterhood.

As the main character doesn't seem to resolve in a direct path perhaps as a metaphor for the nomads themselves and their lack of resolve or actually their conscious resolve to leave their life unresolved, to continue to search and quest where ever the winds of the world take them.

Interstellar (2014)

Imaginative and Real Science Fiction

[9/10 · 10 November 2014]

A wonderful, imaginative, and finally real sci-fi premise takes us on a journey to the outer-limits of imagination. Very Imaginative yet keeping within the realms of real science fiction as opposed to fantasy, Interstellar may be what Sci-Fi people have been waiting for since 2001 A Space Odyssey. Interstellar, undeniably influenced by 2001, will likely join 2001 within the pantheon of the greatest sci-fi epics ever made.

The film goes on an exciting journey though space to explore other worlds and reaches other dimensions. This premise and story line paired with the big budget extravaganza of wondrous visuals and state of the art effects make for an amazing movie going experience.

Attempting to connect this Sci-Fi with mass appeal as opposed to challenging us with novelty as Kubrick did, make Interstellar fall slightly short of that most legendary sci-fi film - 2001. For example, the wonder and amazement of the unknown of space travel will be fused with thriller/action sequences and characters that suddenly and implausibly become evil bad guys, so that the awe and amazement stemming from the unknown of space/time travel alas merge into the more routine, "entertaining", unrealistic Hollywood thrill rides with its loud music and edge of your seat, fake scenes. Fortunately those sequences are only a small, ignorable part of the grandiose film.

The wonders of space and imagination simply needed to stay within that theme to capture the audience; instead these wonders become diminished by implementing Hollywood drama and emotions expressed by the astronauts chosen to embark on the mission. Feeling a bit miscast, when seeing Ann Hathaway (who plays one of the astronauts) putting on her singing in Les Miserable face, also Matt Damon, and even Mathew McConaughey (despite decent acting from him), led the mesmerizing journey into the unknowns of our universe(successfully accomplished in 2001, where its sterility from its astronauts made the actual outer-space become more of the character), to a mood that is a bit more ordinary and mainstream than some may hope for. I guess I personally wished for a slightly different film, one that didn't need to dwell as much on the human emotional world and chose to be where the setting actually was in outer space. A film explaining a bit more about the scientific phenomenon going on in planet earth that led to the need to seek out habitable planets and more explanations of what is going on in space. By the conclusion, there was a typical Nolanesque, mind bending, brain twisting conclusion challenging the audience to decipher what happened. The truth is the conclusion might be genius and really work brilliantly if it is able to be correctly understood or it might be something meant to be subject to interpretation.

These tarnishes could not hold back the film from reaching and attaining those outer-limits. Since the premise and story were undeniably there and visually we were exposed to the imagination of the wonders and awe of space, time and other dimensions.

Gone Girl (2014)

New Film Genre

[8/10 · 26 October 2014]

Similar to this filmmakers other films such as Fight Club and Girl with the Dragon Tattoo the dark anti-societal theme and sort of pseudo-realistic film noir genre are present in this movie. The anti-society theme in Gone Girl is the dark, eerie commentary on marriage.

This along with the director's other films seem to create a new film genre. This new genre contains elements of film-noir/thriller/horror/comedy/fantasy yet it can not really be described as any of those. Gone Girl has a superb exciting flow and it was unpredictable if you did not read the book and don't know the story.

Gone Girl is about a missing wife, the search for her and the mystery of her disappearance. There was nothing typical about this seemingly mundane sounding mystery premise. The whole film, its theme and story reflect and comment on the darkness of marriage. This commentary on marriage is satirically, darkly humorous as well. It asks the question, do we really know what our spouse thinks.

It was a well created film that is unpredictable if you did not read the book or know the story however the film was not without flaws. The pseudo-realism creates improbable events that are difficult to swallow. The unconvincing pseudo-realism works less in Gone Girl than other movies like Girl with Dragon Tattoo and fight club because Gone Girl was more of a mystery than the other films and less of a fantasy. The whole film was mystery so what I expected is more realism. The settings seem to be realistic but the story ends up in this realm that is so far from reality that it is almost a fantasy. I did not believe the practically supersonic abilities to manipulate the circumstances that the wife had.

Another flaw was that there was no connection to the wife and her monstrously diabolical persona. This was a problem since we were granted a window into her past through flashbacks yet no understanding of how she became a truly menacing character.

Overall a unique interesting film that was really well created. It thematically commented on the possibility of the truly dark, eerie side of marriage. It holds interest with the unpredictable story and curiosity created from the odd characters.

Boyhood (I) (2014)

A Profound Rebellion

[10/10 · 10 August 2014]

The mundane and commonplace premise of the "typical circumstances" of growing up actually rebels from traditional film formula in two major ways. Thus the mundane premise becomes one of the most profound meditations on film and the meaning of life ever made.

The rebellious nature of this film is subtle. We are accustomed to films that usually utilize a formula. This formula trains us as viewers to expect a climax, a tragedy, a sudden dramatic element. This film frees itself from this formula and opens our ingrained and adapted film mind. Scenes purposefully made to cause our mind to anticipate the typical and necessary dramatic moment, instead, innovatively "back off" from the drama or edge, these scenes prevent immediate drama to happen, and let in a more likely, believable reality to surface. This passing over of the immediate drama, creating a reality (because for much of us reality is dramatic but not film dramatic), gives us something surprisingly more interesting and profound. So this innovative feature of holding off on the drama is both a rebellion and a commentary on traditional film, (the commentary that films don't need the dramatic element to be profound. Immediate drama is not necessary to draw an audience in ). The result is a refreshing and believable slice of reality over 12 years.

It is a slice of real life about a boy growing up. Almost as relevant as the boy is the family saga. The mother, the father and the sister are all part of this showcase of human development and change.

The second great innovation is the well done psychological and physical human development played out on screen in one 3 hour film sitting. Physical development is witnessed over 12 years as we see the characters actually age and grow simultaneously with the actors. We see the children develop into adults and the adults physically alter to middle age.

Even more than the physical, the psychological/cognitive development reflect the appropriate stage that the boy is in. In the beginning, when the boy is very young, things take on a very sensory perspective. Things are unclear and if something confusing for a young boy is introduced it is almost passed over without much thought or much dialogue. The dialogue and thought processes going on at this age are completely appropriate for that stage of life. As the boy develops into different stages, his psychological mind develops to a more intuitive nature, he becomes more intellectually and emotionally curious about the people in his life. He eventually becomes a teenager and in this most interesting stage, he develops his own soul. As a teenager his words and perspectives create a more individualistically philosophical being. There is more dialogue reflecting a more nuanced detailed thought process that appropriately coincide with a more matured stage of boyhood.

It was quite a remarkable feat to witness this progression of the different stages of childhood over a 3 hour period. We were able to see how various influences and people in his life perhaps formed this boy's soul and personality. He isn't someone incredibly shocking or magnificently great or terrible he was just idiosyncratically normal. He was his own unique individual which is the most normal and realistic thing a character can be.

The family developed too and it was mesmerizing to see their changes as well as the boy's throughout the years.

Thus a slice of life tale about a more or less normal boy growing up ultimately became that movie that asks the biggest most interesting questions. It asks the deep philosophical questions, about time, about our place in the world and the meaning of life. Even the most grand questions of all is asked – whether to be or not to be on Facebook. Finally in the last moments of this film we are granted an answer to these deep, grandiose questions.

The Wolf of Wall Street (2013)

Debaucherous Bliss

[9/10 · 12 January 2014]

Playful without taking itself too seriously, the Wolf of Wall Street knows exactly where it belongs and it is a finely executed and well made movie. We are brought into a fake looking fantasy world of debauchery bliss. This is not the film to explain the inner workings of wall street or what an IPO is or how exactly the company makes money from exploiting people. DiCaprio says outright speaking to our faces, "you don't care about this technical stuff lets just say I'm making a lot of money and its illegal" - YEEEAAY! And that expresses the point – follow me on a roller coaster ride of extraordinary decadent, nasty, fun, the kind that those of us in this business get to have. The movie doesn't show the hard work that is done to make the millions it only explores the fantasy that the millions brings to these young eccentric personalities that make it big fast. It is not satirical, nor is it a down to earth slice of life tale or even a much of commentary it is mostly pure playful entertainment.

Over the Top Caricatures are created as opposed to real people which add to surrealism. DiCaprio as the leader and Jonah Hill as the sidekick are an amusing frat boy/wallstreety combo that opens up new levels of laughably painful debauchery throughout the entire three hours. The plot moves fast but the pace is well managed since time slows and we can witness wonderfully creative, amusing scenes of the raw over-the-top decadence in its full manifestations. These scenes have a pseudo-realistic flavor and therefore are more laughable than anything else.

The invincible arrogance of DiCaprio's character is a lot of fun to follow. He knows he is doing wrong and seems to relish in the evil of it. Women are degraded and co-workers are humiliated in this dog eat dog machismo company that the Wolf creates and the Wolf loves every minute of it. There is only one brief instant when he becomes almost stupefied by his unbelievable invisibility.

This character trait doesn't really glorify wall street since it shows these types to be so perverse and not only corrupt but inherently a bit evil, a bit sick in the head. Scorcese is making fun of them by showcasing them in ridiculous sequences of slow motion while they are under the influence of this weird drug qualudes, that the film goes into. The exaggerated affect also gives a playfully over-the-top tease to these wall street types and that is what makes it different from other movies in this Wall street genre that took themselves more seriously. The fantasy of the pure debauchery bliss might seem glorious to some of us but overall most of us, I think, will root for the Feds getting the Wolf.

This is another extremely enjoyable highly re-watchable movie. Like during a late Sunday afternoon of channel flipping when you stumble on other Scorsese greats, such as Good-fellas or Casino, which ushers you into stopping for an indulgent peak, and all of the sudden finding yourself once again for the 10th time becoming so engrossed that you can't help but to continue watching to the end.

Inside Llewyn Davis (2013)

Tired Film

[3/10 · 30 December 2013]

The protagonist has his life sucked out of him due to failure from trying to make it in the music scene. And the only redeeming quality is the connection felt to this character since you will likely have the life sucked out of you after viewing.

Its about a man trying to make it in the folk music scene in new York city. Inside Llewyn Davis needed but lacked something smart to envelopment the audience into the folk scene. It needed to present us with whats going on in that scene. If they couldn't do it technically (since all that was done regarding the setting was showing cold, muted colors and bleak dark environs that do not transport you anywhere except to a place of gloominess) they should have at least tried to put in some dialogue about the scene, a bit of a historical perspective, something about folk music itself, anything to get the audience into the 1960s folk scene setting which was what the movie was about. Perhaps the movie wasn't really about the folk music scene but rather a metaphor for the man who fails in his vocation. The film was about portraying a face that is not able to make it and perhaps the difficulty of trying to be a folk singer during that time period. The music was portrayed and listening to it was a delight and the only redeeming quality unfortunately is was barely discussed.

The reason this film really fails is it exposes the worst of the worst film-making techniques and styles that the Coens are capable of. Quirky and boring caricature like characters that are trying to be amusing or maybe funny but you absolutely don't care about. Characters who are arbitrarily literally dropped out of the story which is OK because you don't care about them. There is really no character study of Lllewyn Davis he is sad, a little frustrated without very minimal backdrop to why he does what he does.

The second major film-making problem was that it seemed put together in a very amateurish way since it has a disjointed feel, lacks flow, contains scenes of random nothingness infiltrated with characters of such banality. This was the worst Coen Film since the random characters which are sometimes amusing in their film were carelessly put in, had nothing of interest to say and completely failed to amuse. The random scenes in their films that usually don't fit in can sometimes have this quirky suspense about them but there was no suspense in this movie. The movie seemed lazily put together, the main character was tired and it may ultimately leave the audience tired.

The only pleasantness derived from this is the actually folk music we get to hear. A complete song was played which is the only enjoyment I can foresee an audience deriving from this poorly put together depiction of bland misery. Devoting significant movie time to playing complete songs is also a problem. So the only good thing about this movie even added to the problems since by having a lot of time devoted to playing the complete song; the character development, the story and the substance were all forfeited.

Blue Is the Warmest Colour (2013)

Coming of Primordial Essence (Age)

[10/10 · 30 December 2013]

The film devours you into the main actress. Her acting, the interesting methodically developed transformation of her sexual identity, her ignition of passion towards the feminine of her choice, the love affair and the eventualities of how the love affair plays out. Reality created true to life nuanced passionate love story. True lived in character became profoundly interesting as the youthful passion became inflamed. Creation of passion was well done by the actresses and director capturing the subtleties and slowness of the developing love, the pause during the eye contract. Her awakening into a sexuality orientation and leap into her identity took dramatic alteration from who she thought she was and it seemed at the end of the movie her transformation is still somewhat being discovered. Sequels can fully explore her sexual identity whether lesbian or perhaps someone who loves the person despite their sex.

Sexuality was utilized to explain and showcase the passions she felt and contrast them to her other love affairs especially the one with the male. Not everything in film needs to be imagined sometimes stark portrayals can truly take the audience into whats going on. We get to be completely immersed into the passions seeing some of the sexuality between the characters. We can therefore not only understand but feel more the character's spiritual love, her painful anguish, her desirous passions since we were allowed to voyeuristically step into the bedroom and take a peak. The relationship was unpredictable and you did not know what would happen next. The movie could have exploited this sexuality giving more of a thrill yet it remained controlled by holding back and focusing on the relationship and the psychoanalysis of love. This created more interesting characters.

A world that delights in the delectable sensuality of life. Not only regarding sex but food takes on a symbol of pleasure. You see side characters not so much indulging as taking real genuine sensual satisfying pleasure in eating.

The exquisite, philosophical, thought provoking, literary referenced, writing coupled with unbelievably believable acting portrayals made this possibly the best made film this year. Philosophical conversations not related to the thrust of the story but its themes such as the comparison of male vs female pleasure, gave the film another level of substance.

It was very long at 3 hours and you were left with wanting to literally follow the main protagonist and find out what would happen next in her life. A sequel was suggested at end credits and it would be wonderful to see more well made explorations of these subject matters following this amazing actress. Further learning and discovering her primordial essence with her and witnessing how she will indulge in it.

Her (2013)

Bland Sci-Fi/Romance

[6/10 · 27 December 2013]

This would have been an extremely bland, poorly written movie if it were not for the unique premise. A premise that gets imaginative and asks the question about where our society is heading. The question posed is just how close are we going to get with technology? Are we going to have a real intimate relationship with it/her? Movie did a good job reflecting that idea as the main character becomes virtually lost within his relationship. He is so possessed by the operating system (as we are arguably becoming possessed by our technology) that it seems as though he is just waking up whenever he looks somewhere else or interacts with a "real" person.

You almost already "know" the movie without having to see it because it really didn't go into a lot of territory. Brutally typical dialogue and tediously typical turn of events such as is portrayed in any run of the mill romantic movies became the essence of this film. The character was that one-toned, perpetually mellow, melancholic soul we've seen before (for example; Bill Murray in Lost in Translation). Long drawn out scenes of wistful sad faces further slows down the pace and holds back the potential of this premise.

The Atmospheric filming style conjures a moody feel of the slowness and calmness of just waking up on a lazy Sunday morning and going outside into the sunny day. This meditative sensation felt by this technique was relaxing to watch and took the film out of the run of the mill territory.

More could have been done with this nicely imagined sci-fi premise however, the character, the writing, the tone, the film itself muttered mediocrity.

American Hustle (2013)

fun plastic world

[6/10 · 23 December 2013]

In this exaggerated, over the top world the human drive is to get one over and out hustle the fellow man. The hustle is the theme of life in this 1970s New York City world. The convoluted plot was fun to follow, seeing where it meanders with tensions intensifying ultimately crescendo-ing into chaotic surprises. The chaos of the film may reflect the chaos the characters are feeling as the "hustle" ignites and explodes into danger.

A boring beginning with not the most thrilling characters ever created evolves into a more fun tricky plot. In order to preserve the mystery of the hustle we must be kept at a distance from some of the characters. We are never quite able to enter some of their heads until the very end, so throughout the movie the characters are vague and lack substance in our eyes. This distancing makes connecting with them difficult. So you ultimately don't really care too much about these characters.

American Hustle glorifies its actors and actresses. The overly exalted Amy Adams and Jennifer Lawrence are showcased in many scenes strutting their stuff with haughty confidence and moxy in slow motion. These are all good actors and I'd like to see them brought into more of a reality instead of put on pedestals and thrust down our throats. Overall each of the actors had their moments and at other times they were over the top.

American Hustle can be watched for a fun plot that makes you think during the viewing about the motivations of the characters and who is trying to hustle who. And afterwards the thinking continues as you digest and connect the dots to the puzzle that was just witnessed.

Nebraska (2013)

Existential Elegance

[9/10 · 14 December 2013]

The road trip movie is an expression of an existential bleakness of life. Story of an elderly man with perhaps a mild case of dementia goes on a road trip with his son to claim what he thinks is a winning ticket of a million dollars but the ticket is in actuality an advertising come-on . The central part of the story is a stop in a small town in Nebraska where the father grew up. Showcased is the spiritual nowhereness of these people in the town mostly consisting of the man's extended family. They are living nowhere of consequence, they don't really communicate about anything interesting or of relevance and they are likely going nowhere. It seemed perhaps the impetus was this man's break against these themes he lived with his whole life since he is trying to grab onto something and get something (the million dollar winning. This is not to say that the film is not entertaining since infused within it is distinct very dark humor and very interesting characters.

The ordinary/realistic look of the characters surprisingly draws you into them more than familiar faces do. We are presented with fun realistically conceived main characters highlighted by the mother. Her raw essence expressed through her off-color, blunt and uninhibited comments amusingly stole the scenes.

The road trip takes us from Billings Montana to Lincoln Nebraska. The naturalism of the sets and people freshly created an immersion into mid-American blandness. It was refreshing and a bit of a novelty to portray realistic settings of these cities and towns. The bleak environs of the road from Billings to Lincoln, the utter mediocrity of the cities, towns and environment created a visually moody empty beauty as though the feeling of time is slipping away from these middle age or mostly elderly characters. The existential sensation was felt as questions arise concerning whether or not it really matters that time is slipping away. The use of black and white wisely further emphasized the world without color further adding to the essential emptiness that was exposed within the characters.

The Story of Film: An Odyssey (2011)

A Work of Art

[10/10 · 16 October 2013]

This documentary is a bold, encompassing lengthy journey into film history. By delving into movies he deems to be monumental and the particular scenes that make these movies monumental we are granted a very subjective interpretation of film history. It is not simply a history lesson in film. The chronological documentary is the creator's expression of how he views films and is therefore a work of art in and of itself.

Wonderful to enter this man's portal into film since it exposes us to not only movies we never heard of but gives us an expert's view of what makes certain film's and scenes so important. It is innovation that is important and innovation which becomes influential. He sometimes emphasizes world cinema perhaps influencing the great American film makers. He'll choose to show a particular scene from a movie and go into the lighting, the camera strategies, the technology, the atmosphere created, the acting, the writing, the political and sociological situation of the moment when made....everything. He wonderfully makes it long so we can get deep into this. We might not agree on quite the level of importance he imparts on particular films but we can sense he is a passionate expert with a hyper-awareness. This creates a rich tapestry for us to soak in and will enrich our artistic souls and how we will forever see a movie in the future.

By delving so deeply into film history it actually goes into a bit of world, cultural and politically history. It is a minor travelogue as well with some nice scenes of the foreign lands. The maker feels films reflected the time and place in which they were made. Sometimes as essences and shadows of the era and locale and other times rebelling against it. Film is both impacted by culture and politics and film can also even influence and change society.

A lot of films that we love might shockingly only get mentioned for a mere minute. I felt that perhaps the Godfather and Lawrence of Arabia were more influential and deserved more time in this lengthy tapestry of film history. But every other documentary on film has berated us with how great these movies are. We already know it and can see documentaries just on the making and symbolism of these films or these great American filmmakers. The exposure to the rest of the world is one of the great achievements this documentary accomplishes. There are a billion people in India where the movie Shoaly played for 7 years. It had a profound impact on that country of a billion plus and I never heard of it until I saw this documentary. Perhaps Shoaly might be more influential to more people and the world than my favorite movies are. There are still whole episodes dedicated to films made in the United States. There is an episode that went into American movies from the 70s. There is a whole entire episode on Hollywood in the 1920s. Despite being a documentary about world cinema the US still is the largest country represented in the story of film.

The most amazing part is his understanding of the artistic and political expressions emanating from particular scenes. Absorbing his critiques and commentary on film can gave not only a new way to look at film but a new way to look and think about many different art forms. Things that can do this are the greatest things ever created.

Zero Dark Thirty (2012)

Contemporary War Movie

[8/10 · 7 January 2013]

Appealing to delve into the freshness of portraying this most contemporary of wars. This is a war movie and it is one of the first Hollywood ones dealing with the War against Al-Qaeda. Similar to how the climax of WWII culminated in D-day this is the first big movie showcasing the climax of the war against al-Qaeda (dropping the elite 6 over Ben-Laden's house) and like the many portrayals of D-Day in the history of cinema there will likely be other portrayals of the elite six coming down and getting Ben-Laden.

A war not so much about troops or arms or traditional battles of armies but rather a clandestine war consisting of sly CIA operatives and fanatical terrorist leaders hiding from the world. Victories and defeats not won or lost by traditional army battles but by achievements in intelligence or thwarted efforts to gain knowledge, continued concealment leading to more acts of terrorism. The beginning shows one of the battles of this contemporary war as an American operative tries to gain information through use of torture. Interestingly exposed is the strategy to gain information through the mechanism of torture. It shows how we did it and raises questions as to the morality of it. The movie did not leave the morality open for the audience but provided its biased interpretation of the situation.

Innovative to make a detailed account of this contemporary war however this innovation might be giving this film more accolade than it deserves and although a very good movie not the best one of the year. More sterile historical lesson than cinematic experience as the step-by-step detailed process in getting Ben-Laden moving through the scattered military bases seemed well researched yet long, not completely thrilling and at times a bit confusing. The protagonist was the driving soul of this movie slowly becoming more and more driven, obsessed? with her goal of getting Ben Laden this was to the detriment of anything else in her life especially human interaction. She had vulnerability but a mere couple of minutes was devoted to making a real character thus the sterile feel was not only in how the story was told but was also infused into the main character. She ultimately became more symbol than human being.

I do not know if one person was behind all this intelligence gathering it is hard to believe that all these years it could be one person yet the movie made it seem that it was all on this woman's shoulders. This gave Zero Dark Thirty a feminist quality by having this woman becoming the symbol and visual connotation of the CIAs secretive war against Al-Qaeda. The men either couldn't hack the intensity of the tortures and wanted to go back home, were far less committed and driven or were mere subservient foot soldiers for the female protagonists. The male soldiers were literally her arms as in a scene she touches one of them on command so that he would punch the victim being tortured. Even the elite 6 felt like extensions of this female protagonist. It was interesting to give this movie this feminist quality but it didn't seem realistic, not because it was female but because it seemed like there was only one person trying to get Ben-Laden.

It was immersive, there were some nice scenes transporting us to the middle east as we see the desert towns and hear the call to prayer. A well researched, well made, immersive movie about this freshly portrayed contemporary war.

Django Unchained (2012)

Tarantino Epic

[9/10 · 26 December 2012]

By incorporating a multitude of thematic Tarantino elements Django is the best Tarantino movie SINCE Pulp Fiction. Not as good as that great movie since this one is a little more bloated and less novel, it nonetheless is Tarantino's second best movie. This was great because it used many of the best aspects of the other Tarantino films. Such as the friendship between a black and white antihero (a hit-man like in Pulp Fiction but now the male bonding is as bounty hunters), also the violence art similar to Kill Bill and the Gut Warming, heart pounding, pulpy thrill of revenge against an evil like in Inglorious Bastards. There were many other aspects of Tarantino's movie in this one.

To start off the complete unpredictability is what really draws you in. You really do not know what is going to happen next which is refreshing to those that frequently see movies. The episodic scenes have such a high degree of unpredictability that it mesmerizingly keeps us on the edge of our seats.

There were some really amazing characters created which was not wholly due to the writer/director but the great actors who infused their talent into the roles. These characters' eccentricities were so unique that you might have never seen characters like this before. A trademark oddity in how they spoke, what they said and their ultimate actions reflected without any creative barriers the moviemaker's soul. If you thought Christopher Waltzes and Jamie Foxx's character were great wait till you get to DiCaprios and Samuel L Jacksons. You really wanted to see more of these characters despite the nearly 3 hour length of this Tarantino epic. Dicaprio's character was probably the best; he was so amusing with his warped, semi-depraved, megalomaniac eccentricity. DiCaprios acting was really good here too. Samuel L Jackson can blurt out the necessary profanities with the appropriate rawness making him the perfect actor for some of Tarantino's parts.

The greatest thing is the psychological aspects to these characters and how that plays out in the scenes. There is actually a lot of psychology going on which builds multi-dimensional characters and creates scenes of intense unpredictability. There were other scenes of brilliant hilarity mocking the dark side of the old south, or genre film itself.

As the movie progressed and where it could have ended well and uniquely alas a contrived scene was thrown in to showcase Tarantino's signature brand of violence art, reminiscent of Kill Bill. This weakened the movie as a whole and made it drag however it was pure fun to witness the slow motion blood splattering and detailed depiction of body parts being shot with blood shooting out like geysers drenching the place in red.

I think I heard Tarantino is criticized for rehashing old movies or copying from other films. I guarantee whether or not that is the case you've never seen something like this before.

The Dictator (2012)

Laugh fest

[8/10 · 30 May 2012]

Sacha Baron Cohen makes the funniest movies of all time and this was the case here. It really got me to laugh nearly constantly throughout the whole movie. No other movies has come close to doing that. It is not necessarily extremely witty rather it is in your face stupid, over the top, politically incorrect and raunchy slapstick but I absolutely love that.

The key word is "I". It was MY brand of humor and really made ME laugh and that is why I loved it. This humor is definitely not for most people. Not because it is too raunchy or over the top (not too much is these days) but because some people don't find it as amusing as I do.

And if you aren't going to laugh at this movie there isn't a whole lot of redeemable features. You are not going for the interesting plot, the character creation, cinematography or mood. You are going to laugh your brains out at stupid/raunchy over-the-top humor. Its hard to rate this movie because it was not technically a great movie but it was a laugh fest for me personally. If you find his stuff funny its worth going to.

Its a little less satirical than some of his other movies since this movie was scripted as opposed to the improv created when one of his zany character goes over to random, unsuspecting people and filming these people's reactions to the zany character. Usually these random people's souls are being satirized which is actually quite an intelligent, statement making brand of humor. Despite being scripted The Dictator was funny and made a few statements.

The Hunger Games (2012)

Good Action Movie

[8/10 · 3 May 2012]

This was a very good action movie with an idiotic story premise. Most of the movie takes place in a forest-like arena where enemies and allies get knocked out one by one in a guerrilla warfare scenario like those classic Scwartzenagger and Stalone Extravaganzas from the 80s. It has a similar vein to the classic movies Predator and Rambo.

The story is rather ridiculous and hard to swallow only to be digested with the understanding that this is a total fantasy and despite the characters being humanoid we must understand this to be another world in some way.

Its about a futuristic society that pulls children's names out of hats essentially to be sacrificed. One out of 24 is supposed to survive the competition where the combatants fight with each other to the death with primitive weapons. And the oddest thing and purposefully hard to stomach is that that a small 11 year old girl must compete against a strong fully grown 18 year old male. It is a hard to swallow story. The world is so barbaric that our mind had to sense it in the middle earth realm and not this world. It is somewhat interesting to understand the reasoning behind this all powerful insecure government that runs such an event to keep the subjects in subjugation by fear yet teasing them with the smallest iota of hope. The expansive evil society and government will clearly play a larger part in the sequels but the movie wisely focused on the thrilling action packed training, build up to the competition and the game itself. Making a dumb, very entertaining and engaging action movie was beneficial over dwelling on another evil government movie. The charismatic actors gave the movie its edge and appeal.

There are some parallels to the world of reality TV. The competitors go on stage and are made up in their best outfits to try to win appeal and gain favor from the audience. The competition is shown to the public on screen. It was very reminiscent and hauntingly satirical of the reality shows in our world.

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (2011)

Ultimate Contemporary Film Noir

[9/10 · 9 January 2012]

The ultimate contemporary film noir was created as modern information gathering and communication techniques took us through an evolving mystery that was filled with interesting characters.

The dark story and Gothic style created an edgy moodiness that enhanced the intrigue and made an exciting experience. The mystery was multi-layered, well thought out and although a bit horrifically fantastical was still absorbing. There is a tremendous level of decadence and perversion in this mystery which had similar overtimes to the classic Silence of the Lambs. It focuses in on, what I heard was an alternative title to the novel, violence against women. And one of the most intense revenge sequences that not only menacingly satisfies but at the same time smartly adds a level of momentum created one of the best individual scenes of the past year.

Even more than the intriguing mystery, the creation of one of the most mesmerizing, interesting characters enhanced the experience. A thrilling character to get to know, the "Girl" became the ultimate strong anti-hero/feminist even more so and more developed than "the Bitch" in Kill Bill and Sigourney Weaver's character in the Alien movies. Richly dark and edgy her Gothic anti-society appearance blended well with the way she holds herself; angst ridden and moody. Despite the evilly rebellious exterior she is incredibly technologically savvy, brilliant, tough, and nearly fearless. She has a fiercely independent sense of self. The sense of self made her confident and self-actualized sexually yet adding a layer to this greatness was a level of vulnerability. Her vulnerability was not only the traumatic kind, but simply the minor kind which we all have in our lives and can relate to. The kind where minor imperfection and mishaps occur, the kind where she can't get exactly what she wants, the stuff which we all experience. This created a relatable individual despite her renegade appearance, and almost supersonic abilities and therefore she is a character we feel for and understand. We got to know this soul as she merged with the intriguing mystery.

There was an initial switching back and forth between the mystery and the character creation. This blended well together so that there was never a dull moment.

The story was a bit horrifically over the top and the abilities, almost powers of the "girl" put the movie on a borderline reality/fantastical realm. The character's strength and sexiness will be hard to forget.

The Artist (I) (2011)

Contemporary Silent Film a Classic?

[6/10 · 28 December 2011]

The artist is a smartly crafted tribute to movies from the silent era. Everything from the sets, to hair and outfits to the overly exaggerated expressions, to even the late 20s mentality brought us back to movies from that time period. The actors expertly emphasized the over the top emotions which are needed since verbal expression is not possible. The as minimal as possible shots of written words to convey a statement, as was done in silent films from the past, was a fun aspect that showed how minor a role words actually play in order to convey a story by film.

It was a nice tribute and it excellently mocked those old silent movies however The Artist is not a classic as those old silent films are. I think when a silent film is revisited it is not so much for its entertainment value but rather for its value as a classic as a art form in its infancy, perhaps to get a sense of the time period or perhaps to touch on film history by witnessing legendary actors or filmmakers. It was impossible for The Artist to achieve this level or any level of nostalgic classic nor will it since it is a contemporary parody.

As a silent film and as a mimic of those old silent films it had a cumbersome pacing at times. It was rather light hearted and didn't have as much as that interesting psychological dark edge as other similar stories that explored a Hollywood star that is once on top, loses it all and is no longer relevant has; think Sunset Boulevard. There were also much more entertaining movies made about the advent of talkies and the impact it had on actors from the time period, think Singing in the Rain.

The Artist is mildly entertaining, with a premise that felt revisited. It was a comfortable tribute that expertly recreated films from the 1920s.

Shame (2011)

raw but missing something

[6/10 · 19 December 2011]

An interesting, gloomy, raw mood resonates from an intimate portrayal of an obsessed, addicted personality yet something was missing more so than there being no beginning, middle or end or a lack of story.

Well adjusted on the surface, a bit soft-spoken, and rather nice the character is not what may be first conjured up when thinking of one who emits sexual depravity. Within this character's "normal" exterior lurks an inner personal darkness manifesting into an uncontrollable intense obsession. The raw, intense illustration of severe angst, confusion and pleasurable agony was interesting to view and nicely portrayed by the makers and especially the actor. The makers wisely focused on the disturbing contortions of the face, especially during sexual encounters, which mesmorizingly transformed handsome calmness and confidence into monstrous mental and moral depravity and destruction. The actor altered his facial expressions so much that we saw him become the monster he truly was.

Despite these intense feelings we witness, it was not the most interesting character ever created. The filmmakers' focus on this character's addiction with out regard to other aspects of a personality (except for him being a nice guy on the surface), which resulted in more of a characterature than a completely encompassing personality. The character was therefore not 100% believable due to lacking layers. There was another important aspect that was not believable and should have been more developed for this type of film. The sexual encounters seemed a little forced (contrived) and should have been more thought out and better developed which would have resulted in a more interesting movie.

Despite the gloomy, dark mood and intimate portrait it still felt as though something was missing.

Martha Marcy May Marlene (2011)

Mysteriously Fascinating

[9/10 · 5 December 2011]

Martha Marcy May Marlene is very interesting because it subtly explores how this girl gets slowly manipulated into a rustic "cult". It is in a way a cult but it doesn't seem that way, and the audience may not exactly know it is a cult if it were not for the fact that we already have a description of the premise. What was so interesting was how this "cult" worked and what it was about, how the girl subtly became manipulated and brainwashed by it, and how small, rustic, gritty and ragtag the cult actually is. Its not what is imagined by a cult.

It is also a psychological thriller. About a girl and her repressed feelings and trauma experienced from being a part of the cult. It is believable that this type character became taken in and what was also believable was the subtle way she was taken in. Would be truly powerful for someone that may relate to this character that is played well by the actress. She takes the darkness with her despite escaping. Did she really escape it when she ran away or was she so immersed in it that it continues to envelop her soul? The filming was brilliant. It smartly switched from present day life living with her sister and husband trying to merge back into and cope with normal life, to flashbacks of the story of what mysteriously happened to her and how she fell into this dark cult. The wild reactions she'd have at her sister's home led to a flashback of something that happened in the cult which brilliantly gave a reason for her current state and emotions and at the same time explained the story of her immersification into the cult. The ending is powerful makes you think and ponder but it actually loses a point for me personally since the unknown led to a more unsettling feeling than a speculative one.

Hugo (2011)

Dreamlike

[9/10 · 5 December 2011]

Beautiful sets and costumes, alongside stunning CG/3D technology transport us into the visually wondrous world of Hugo.

The story seemingly about a young boy who is living in a train station working the clock evolves into a story about a filmmaker. A bit children's adventure and a bit mystery the story achieves a childlike wonder as you watch the clues and story unfold to nice surprises, satisfying conclusions and resonations of commentary concerning the preservation of film itself. Hugo is about nostalgia, nostalgia for Paris in a romantic period, the nostalgia for seeing movies for the first time as a child, and nostalgia for old films themselves.

It was a nice, pleasant story that seems a bit contrived and forced forward at times. The transitions in the plot were not smooth and happened so randomly that it pragmatically seemed like a stretch; however Hugo should not be watched for its absolute realism. The story as the visuals itself are surrealistic, beautifully imaginative and semi-realistic therefore transporting us to dreamlike Paris in the early part of the 20th century. The imagery and story itself feel as though you are in a dream which makes the contrived plot acceptable.

A delightfully nostalgic calmness resonates as we sense the old fashion flavor in conjunction with the old ragtime music similar to what would be heard and seen when experiencing an old silent film from around the turn of the century (20th century).

The softening of the typical contemporary edgy themes created an old fashioned, relaxed, slower paced flavor yet the innovated CG and 3D make it more modern than almost any movie of it day. The 3D effects enhance the experience. You feel as though you are walking into highly populated hallways, up towers, you feel like you are in clocks peering out over the dazzling, wintry, romantic city of lights and you can not help but crack up as Sasha Baron Cohen's face comes closer and closer to your own as he once again scolds the protagonist. The assortment of extras dressed to the nines in outfits of the time, the small side stories and mini romances such as between the train's security guard and the flower girl created details that make Hugo a nice, encompassing, well crafted film.

War Horse (2011)

Pleasant

[7/10 · 28 November 2011]

War Horse is a pleasant, sometimes poignant, typical, well done Hollywood experience. Uniquely focuses on the horse, Joey, more so than any of the other human characters. We follow Joey on his journey as he touches on the different people that come into his life during World War I. The characters are so drawn to Joey that they can not help but to so desperately desire to continue to possess the mythological horse. The filmmaker is able to tell stories with a lot of heart and we do care for all these characters even the ones with smaller roles (the people) but especially for the main character, Joey the horse.

The time period (World War I) is a refreshing one and unique as far as war movies. The time period has not been overly played-out as opposed to World War II movies. The distinctive aspects of that war that changed all wars are somewhat explored such as the immobile stalemate of trench warfare, the horrors of it and the fraternization of the enemy combatants.

One of the best aspects is the dazzling cinematography that takes advantage of the lush green lands of England or Ireland. Beautiful camera shots and sets transport us to cottages and windmills immersed in vast green meadows that seem so warm, quaint, and peaceful.

You feel for the horse and witness the horse (or multiple horses) actually acting. You can almost see altered facial expressions in the horse and you can penetrate deep emotions in the horses eye. The training of these horses to "act" seems like a remarkable feat and it is but it doesn't make a remarkable movie.

Despite having an old fashion flavor by both employing a wide lens camera shot, which permits a focus on many characters set against an expansive vista in a single shot, and the slower more immersing pacing, War Horse did not have an epic feel that might be hoped for or expected. It was a war movie, but it barely scratched the surface of the ideas of that war nor was it a truly epic, amazing adventure with the horse. Keeping it within the proper time frame and within the parameter of the PG-13 rating created an accessible experience for most people including children but was a bit too much within the bounds of typical Hollywood. However, it was still a nice, pleasant, family film best seen and recommended to be seen in the theater in order to capture the beautiful cinematography and style.

The Descendants (2011)

Not much to this movie

[5/10 · 21 November 2011]

Interesting to showcase Hawaii, the off the resort real community flavor of its residents and also the beauty of the tropical landscapes hovering behind white beaches and azure waters making you wish you were there on a cold November day, however, there is not much to this movie. It was neither entertaining nor was it interesting.

There really is not much of an interesting story premise. A rather well off man who owns land in Hawaii whose wife gets into a boating accident and is in a coma decides to bring back his kids during this difficult time. The major drive and climaxes deal with decisions as to what to do with the wife who is in a coma and what to do with the land thats in his name. One of these decisions unfortunately becomes very predictable.

For these mostly slice of life tales, character creation and development are crucial. Unfortunately its difficult to care for these characters. The wife in the coma has only 1 aspect to her character and personality and that one thing which we already learned from the previews is that she cheated on him. You don't feel sad that she is in a coma, maybe thats a good thing, but you just don't feel. You don't really care about any of the other characters either. The children don't have a lot of dimensions to them. The supporting characters of the cousins, the wife's lover and his wife have very small roles. George Clooneys character isn't too interesting either. As opposed to this filmmaker's main characters in his other movies, the main character in this movie has rather cliché emotions and feelings. It is mildly interesting to see how his twisted feeling are portrayed towards his wife he recently discovered was deceptive yet is in a coma.

This was disappointing because the filmmaker's previous movies delved so much into interesting believable characters with plots and writing that emanated a fun, creative, dark humor.

Super 8 (2011)

No Wonder and No Charm

[3/10 · 23 June 2011]

Overall has the feel of the run-of-the-mill disaster movie with a mindless story and corny special effects. The makers failed to recreate the intended retro/sci-fi speilbergesque feel.

The main reason was the awful story created that had tremendous holes and things that don't make sense even for something that isn't realistic. It didn't stick to anything as the movies it was trying to recreate did. The old Spielberg movies stuck to a unique premise with a wondrous charm and fun sense of adventure. Premises such as interesting children's adventure saga, a huge Shark, dinosaurs or some mysterious aliens is what made you want to go the movies. These premises were unique at the time, fun and had tons of heart. Super 8 on the other hand tried to throw everything in there, all the Spielberg premises ultimately creating nothing. It was just a special effects movie centered around a nonsensical story with a few of Spielberg's old techniques thrown in and none of his heart.

Frequently there were those annoying (and in this case gratuitous) "jolting awake" moments occurring from a span of quietness followed by something drastic happening that created a sudden loud bang.

The children trying to make a movie were mildly cute but it lacked intrigued because that aspect didn't get into enough depth since it had to go into the more boring, corny over the top special effect areas. The ending got absolutely ridiculous even for something that is fantasy/sci-fi.

Midnight in Paris (2011)

What is Romantic Paris?

[7/10 · 26 May 2011]

Ever wonder what "Romantic Paris" is all about? The latest Woody creation showcases this hyped notion literally through a montage of photograph-like camera shots of various streets. The blatant depiction of the romanticized Paris does not get too tacky because Woody satirizes the great romantic played by Owen Wilson and the romantic in all of us; the American who wants to live in Paris, walk in the rain and write.

Wisely making Paris as the setting is perfect for the American audience who at times regard Paris as the ultimate city of romance. Climaxing with a wonderful message to this romantic protagonist, we once again get Woody's amusing, societal effacing commentary.

This is a fantastical film where the protagonist gets transported to Paris in the 1920 after midnight. He gets to briefly meet some of the great artists and writers who get to comment on him as a writer, an artist, a man, and a lover. This did get a bit cheesy but it was also a bit of fun. It is fun to see the modern man interacting with legendary people from the past but these characters from the past were mere characterizations of the great artists. Perhaps it was the intention to make these artists of the past how we envision them, containing the proper imagined eccentricities and that was OK since the modern man goes back and fantasizes about it as how he imagines them similar to how we imagine them. The charactertures and therefore not real people plagued all the characters of this film even the ones of the present. It was also not very believable that the protagonist and the fiancée ever got to the level of being on the verge of marriage since they were at such odds with each other and had such conflicting souls.

Even though the characters weren't great this is another gem of Woody's witticisms, philosophies, and scenes of natural urban beauty. It is the perfect depiction of Romantic nostalgic Paris in the rain.

Bridesmaids (I) (2011)

Finally Females

[8/10 · 20 May 2011]

The soulfully, relatable comedy is nicely blended with over the top crass, crude humor. The amusingly unique movie plays out from the female standpoint and mentality and that differs from movies of this kind that are typically based upon the male psyche. It is up there with the best of the irreverent, nasty comedies of this genre such as the Hangover, Knocked up and Superbad.

By creating a cynical theme, due to the melancholy, jealousy and nihilism that the friend believably feels from the occurrence of her bff getting married, a crass/slapstick comedy evolves into a dark and sophisticated one. When a Bff gets married resulting in the inevitable "growing apart" while at the same time the friend not getting married feels as though she is going nowhere a soulfully bluesy mood resonates. The acting amongst the main characters, especially their connection with each other was well done.

The assortment of side characters and bridesmaids were well developed. We really cared about these supporting characters since their own histories, and idiosyncratic personality traits created complex eccentrically believable personas. Especially amusing were the heavy set bridesmaid and the policeman.

Finally the typical plague that frequently decimates movies of the genre, the overlong sappy "tie things neatly together" moments, did not go on too long. Instead what was wisely focused on was crude, slapstick humor, developed side characters and real connections between friends.