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Donhagneone
Reviews
Whiplash (2014)
A Mesmerizing Experience
Your adrenaline starts to flow
Your blood is rushing
Your hands are bleeding
You make it good, you make it bleed
WHIPLASH!
Andrew Neiman, a freshman at Shaffer Conservatory, is determined to become the perfect jazz drummer. Andrew meets a terrifying instructor at school, his name is Terence Fletcher. Fletcher runs the school's best jazz ensemble. After finding Andrew alone practicing his drumming, he is determined that he wants Andrew in his band. Once on board, Andrew is treated with offensive behavior and insults. Fletcher himself is a stubborn middle-aged man that will sacrifice his own career just to find the next Charlie
Parker.
But Andrew believes that gaining Fletcher's respect and approval is the key to achieving his one desire, so puts everything he has into it, including his personal life and even sanity. While music is the central theme of this movie, it is about so much more than that. Whiplash is essentially a film about a student who is willing to go further than any other human being to accomplish his goals.
The film brilliantly combines drama and psychological terror, creating an atmosphere with feelings of fear, love and hate. None of the above would be possible without the great cinematographer Sharone Meir. Sharone's stunning photography catches every bit of sweat and blood, turning everything into an exhilarating art-house full of lightning bolts-hammering the audience with striking emotion! Damien Chazelle's script is marvelously written with excellent pacing and furious dramatic elements.
The stars of the film are of course our leads, J.K. Simmons as Fletcher and Miles Teller as Andrew Neiman. Teller is absolutely amazing as Andrew Neiman. Whiplash is where he gets his opportunity to show his acting skills and his subtle turn as a very important character and ambitious student in the heart of the film.
J.K. Simmons is really the ace in the sleeve, his thrilling and mesmerizing performance just gives me an urge to jump out of happiness on the edge of my seat. Never in my life have I seen such a good adaption to a character before. How can they create a character like that? How can they make the character feel so human? That is beyond my imagination.
A good edit is something that you don't notice, but I think it can be the other way around. An amazing edit like the one in Whiplash is something you definitely won't miss.
Breaking down the various aspects of this film, the thing that stands out the most is the performances by the two leads. Miles Teller driving the enthusiasm and energy into the character of a highly motivated drummer really is inspiring. J.K. Simmons' absolutely perfect portrayal of the furiously scary teacher was raw and brutal. Even if the character was unforgettable and cruel, I myself could relate to him somehow. Their characters kind of represent the good and the bad in life. One can't be anything without the other. The whole film was shot in 19 days. I'm very thankful towards the creator and the crew behind this, one can't make a masterpiece single- handedly.
Thanks for the ride.
Enemy (2013)
An Underrated Film.
The Good: +Dialogue +Story +Acting +Script
+Cinematography
The Weak: Some people will get confused when they watch "Enemy" because of its very interesting way of telling the story. But that wasn't a problem for me.
With last year's big and successful thriller Prisoners, Canadian director Denis Villeneuve made a name for himself among word wide moviegoers. Almost year later after the release of Prisoners is the release of Enemy a mind bending and deep film which was filmed before "Prisoners". The impact Villeneuve has left us with after these films doesn't seem to be going anywhere soon.
There are viewers who urgently asks for an 'explanation' of the last scene, I suggest that they should re-watch the movie and try to analyze it, the ending has a lot of meanings. A more appropriate answer should be "how does the final scene magnify the emotional and dramatic values we've been experiencing throughout this whole film?" The question can only be answered by each individual viewer, and no one else.
Interstellar (2014)
I laughed, I cried, I experienced something beautiful
Today i had the absolute pleasure of watching Interstellar, A film from the very known Christopher Nolan, but I was only expecting another mediocre sci-fi movie about people traveling in space. At first i wasn't sure that he could pull it off... i have never been so wrong in my entire life.
Cooper is our father figure and is also one of the main character's. He's a father of two, his little girl Murph and his son Tom. In the near future, the get some bad news, the earth is no longer able to sustain the human race. The last crops are dying and turned into dust. Storms scour the land and covers everything in a Grey layer of dust. This somehow leads to a energetic adventure into space, but i will say no more. That is for you to experience yourself. Interstellar is not only about a space journey, but family, friends and love. The things we do, and why. That really made me think, about life, problems why we exist and what we do for a living. The visuals are amazing and artsy, u can See that he got inspiration from other well known Sci-fi giants such as 2001:A Space Odyssey, Alien, and Blade Runner. The Acting was another big score for this movie, starring Matthew McConaughey as Cooper and Anne Hathaway, as our main characters. Matthew really shined in this movie and so did Anne but Matthew really peaked this, he gave up his soul and his body for this character. He did it outstandingly good and u could connect with him on screen, u somehow felt what he was going through. U could See what he and the others felt like, and that really got me. I enjoyed every second, minute and hour of this amazing movie and From start to ending with the credits, a story once again from Christopher Nolan has inspired me and made me think about stuff that i wouldn't normally think of.
Kaubôi bibappu: Cowboy Bebop (1998)
One of a kind.
I'm not a fan of episodic anime series unless they're either one season long or a slice of life series. Why? Because they have a tendency to get boring, or repetitive. But all rules and preferences have exceptions. And Cowboy Bebop is that exception.
story~9.5
We start our episodic space journey in an environment that is futuristic yet in many ways primitive. Due to the inability of the police to handle all criminals in such a large area bounty hunting is encouraged through media. Our four main characters that are bound together by greed, revenge, and desire.
Little to no background information is given about any of the characters from the beginning. Each character has a past that is hidden throughout many episodes. Slowly, the audience learns of the sins and tragedies that quietly haunt those aboard the spaceship of Bebop.
art~10
Despite being over a decade and a half the animations in cowboy bebop are amazing in providing the dangerous rugged environment of this criminal filled space.
Sunrise, who generally do an excellent job on animation, really pushed the boat out with this series. when compared with other shows that were released around the same time (Outlaw Star for example), it can clearly be seen that the art, animation and character design in Cowboy Bebop is something special. The animation during the numerous action sequences is especially impressive and the character movements are free-flowing and naturalistic.
The outdated animations contribute greatly to the classy western style of the anime. Everything from the smoke of cigarettes to guns blazing are portrayed brilliantly. The choreography of martial arts and space flight is done in a fluid and smooth fashion. The characters look great and production never seems to drop for a single moment.
sound~9.5 First off, the music. All music is performed by The Seatbelts and they are outstandingly good.
I wholeheartedly believe that it is safe to say that regardless of your ideas about Cowboy Bebop, everyone can agree that the music in this anime is absolutely amazing. So amazing that without the music I believe that Cowboy Bebop would never have achieved the success it has had to this day. Never have I come across another example such as Cowboy Bebop where the music is such an integral part of the show. From the Blues to the unmatched soul of harmonica solos, the music in Cowboy Bebop does its job 110%. To say that the the music is fitting would be an understatement. Cowboy Bebop's music boosts the atmosphere and situation of every scene to its highest potential and provides a convincing atmosphere like no other.
The dub of Cowboy Bebop is the arguably the most highly praised dub ever produced in the anime industry and also my favorite. Watanabe Shinichiro even stated that he believed the English dub surpasses the Japanese dub, a feat that is notoriously rare. Every character's voice is portrayed brilliantly with every word filled with real human emotion. The English voice acting is truly a one of a kind in a world of horribly ear wrenching dubs.
The Opening and the Ending of Cowboy Bebop are probably one of the most popular Opening and Ending Themes of all time.
The OP(opening) ("Tank!" by The Seatbelts) is a jazzy explosion of adrenaline. Listening to it is a joy and pumps the viewer's eagerness to watch the episode. It keeps you on your feet and is in many ways the most famous trademark of the Cowboy Bebop series.
The ED (ending) for most of the show ("The Real Folk Blues" by The Seatbelts feat. Mai Yamane) is equally as amazing but instead of pumping the viewer's eagerness the ED in turn helps the viewer digest what was just displayed on the screen.
Character~10
Cowboy Bebop has one of the most memorable casts of any show I have ever watched. They are eccentric, unique, strong willed, and powerfully convincing. We have Spike Spiegel who is a male bounty hunter in his late twenties that is trying to escape an inescapable past.
Jet black, The father like figure of the spaceship Bebop who has been stricken by unjust tragedies.
Faye Valentine, the strong female character who is kept in the dark about her own life.
And then we have Edward, the teenage female hacker with a background as confusing as herself.
the characters of Cowboy Bebop are outstanding. Their strengths overcome their flaws when united as a whole. Beautifully drawn and creative, Watanabe Shinichiro has invented a golden cast.
Overall/Enjoyment~ 10/10
This anime is a classic and i strongly recommend this to anyone who is looking for something extra.
The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug (2013)
An adventure we won't forget.
Putting Middle Earth on screen and making Middle Earth are not the same thing. Jackson didn't create Middle Earth but he pictured Middle Earth and made it cinematically visual for all of us to watch. By doing so he is strongly influencing us and making millions of people around the world today, and generations to come, see what Middle Earth looks like. I am incredibly grateful for the world that Tolkien created, which later went on to Peter Jackson and they together created such a wonderful fantasy world.
I have seen the Movie twice now and it continued to entertain me as much as it did on it's premiere or maybe more?!
I thought to myself "Finally i have been waiting for this since last year" I was so hyped and happy because i knew that Peter again had created a fantastic movie. From beginning to the end, i was stuck to my chair with a big smile on my face!
This trilogy has the lack of seriousness and with that comes people that finds this movie not as enjoyable as the former Jackson's Middle Earth movies had, I didn't really care because i found it funny and entertaining.
I really think the jokes and the humor fits perfectly in this movie because of it's softness compared to the LotR movies. The thing which i find most touching is the character growth, For a little Hobbit like Bilbo who was scared to leave his home has now evolved into an entirely new character and i can't wait to see him the next time on the the cinema screen!!! It really felt like the characters and not only characters but also Tolkien himself came back to life and put on screen, although I could not see him, I knew that it was he who took me on an adventure. somehow Peter has managed to create this visual world of middle earth that we all know and love. I am very very grateful for the hard work that Peter Jackson has put into making this movie and i really look forward to the last part!
Score: 10/10