gmac-9 Reviews

Capitalism: A Love Story (2009)

If you believe all of this or none of it, you are a fool.

[10/10 · 27 December 2022]

The answer lies somewhere in the middle. Kudos to Moore for having the conversation. He swings and misses on some points he tries to make, like a juvenile reform centre having anything to do with capitalism, (as if the general public has the abilty to financially make a choice on which reforms and reform centres are being used),

He also whiffs in an attempt to suggest that the co-op model of business is the best choice for everyone. Clearly it is not. It is not against the law to run a co-op business, so if everyone thinks that doing it is the best solution, then there would be more of them...nothing is stopping you.

It would be hard to think that the government bailing out financial institutions is the right thing to do for taxpayers, and Moore rightfully draws attention to that. That doesn't have much to do with capitalism either, but it was a nice digression about government overreach... the dirty cousin of socialism.

Regardless, some good conversations can be had following this film, so all is not lost. Just be sure not to commit to being in full agreement or full disagreement with Moore and his wearly silly stunts. There really shouldn't be anyone we completely believe.

I also wonder how the righteous Moore feels today about having his documentary produced by Harvey Weinstein. That didn't age well.

Ivy (2015)

Interesting... right up until it wasn't

[6/10 · 17 December 2021]

Things are happening. Suspense is building. Then some loose ends unfold and the credits roll. Thanks for nothing. There are films that leave the viewer to fill in some blanks, I get it... but this movie didn't guide us toward anything less than a million possible conclusions.

Tucker Carlson Originals (2021– )

Reviewing the Patriot Purge portion

[10/10 · 15 November 2021]

What I liked most about the series of three episodes called Patriot Purge, is that it is largely made up of people telling their own accounts of what they saw and heard.

We can acknowledge that Carlson himself, has a particular bias to one side of the story, and there are certainly some filmed scenes and pictures to sway a narrative, but his documentary also comes with a lot of real-life video evidence and personal account interviews to let the viewer see and decide for themselves in most cases.

This offers a better approach to reporting, than a talking head on a TV screen just telling you what they want you to believe and/or how you should interpret what happened... rather than just showing you what happened and letting you decide.

Your opinion of 1/6 can be whatever you want, but at least this series gives you some real information to consider.

George Carlin: You Are All Diseased (1999 TV Special)

Not seeing it.

[1/10 · 1 November 2021]

I have enjoyed ranting humour. I have enjoyed dark humour. This just didn't have any actual humour, in terms of funny story-telling or punchlines.

It would take a bit of work to make jokes out of things like, bombing a market is entertaining and when someone kills children at school it becomes an arithmetic problem. George just didn't do any of that work.

Is an old man saying random touchy stuff just getting laughs from people who don't want to come off as overly sensitive?

I'm certainly not sensitive... I really enjoy the likes of Anthony Jeselnik, who doesn't shy away from harsh topics, but is far more effective at the delivery.

Life of Brian (1979)

They were just joking about men having babies

[5/10 · 28 May 2021]

...yet here we are. Some good satire, but I just can't stomach some of those voices. Nails on a chalkboard.

Moonlight (I) (2016)

Setting a culture back years.

[4/10 · 2 May 2021]

This is glorified as a beautiful story? Is this a triumph? Why is portraying the same anchors that drag a culture down played over again here, and it's celebrated?

Fatherless child. Check.

Richest person on screen is a drug dealer. Check.

Drugs ruining a family. Check.

Harassment of someone because they aren't "hood" enough, so they don't have a "black card". Check.

Meaningless violence amongst your own neighborhood. Check.

Refusal to report crime because "Snitches get stiches". Check.

Violence breeds more violence and the result is incarceration. Check.

Next person to become the richest on screen is the new drug dealer. Check

There is no triumph here. Just like in the movie 'Do the right thing', nobody did the right thing. Nobody made themselves better.

This whole film is a disservice to a community who wants to be better. What little plot it offers is mostly just a day-in-the-life, or maybe more accurately, a day-in-the-rut.

How much better would this film be if it were about the first drug dealer taking the chance to acknowledge that his drugs were killing what was left of the family the young boy?

I mean, there was literally a scene where the little boy makes the drug dealer acknowledge that it's HIS drugs that are ruining his mom's life, therefore ruining the life of the boy.

And the result of that acknowledgement? "Oh well". Even the nicest person in the film, Teresa doesn't care enough to do anything about it.

What if that was the self-reflection moment where he put the young boy on a better path than he chose and helped protect him from the harassment of his peers?

What if it were about a person being a responsible adult and breaking a harmful cycle?

No... instead it's just the long and boring unproductive daily routine of selling drugs and harming each other.

What are we left with? Just the notion that we yet again get a glimpse into the lives of people who inexplicably refuse to make positive change for themselves and stay in the same cycle of doom.

The homosexual angle just put another undeveloped nuance in there for no good reason.

The only reason it got a 4 instead of a 1 is because I maintained hope until the end that a decent message would surface. It didn't, but at least I didn't turn it off before it ended.

M (1931)

Not buying it.

[3/10 · 26 December 2020]

To each their own, but it was hard to find entertainment, suspense or drama here for me.

Is this another one of those cases where people give bonus points for its age or some ground-breaking effort in cinema? I didn't see it.

It took me three sittings to choke this film down, and I'm sorry I gave it that much effort.

The most thought-provoking part comes much too late and ends much too soon.

I gave it a shot. It was very lacking. There are far greater films from long ago.

3 Idiots (2009)

Finally, a foreign film with plot.

[9/10 · 13 December 2020]

To be fair, I'm comparing this to some of the other films that creep their way onto the top 250 here. I often worry that some of the movies that get high praise on here are a product of a bunch of snooty and pretentious film students who feel that their ability to define art within nothingness is commendable. This is entertainment. I want to be told a story and have an emotional connection to it. It's great to have a film stick in your mind and spark conversation afterward. A laugh, a cry, a question as to why... something. Sometimes just a quote that will stick for life is a prize.

You can keep your hoity-toity praise for non-events like "In the Mood for Love" or "Apocalypse Now" where the hope that something actually happens never materializes. 3 Idiots is most certainly not my regular lane, but in keeping an open mind, I sat down to it. I was not disappointed. This is a fantastic roller coaster ride where my only issue is the length... though this was a far easier 2:43 than some of the other dryness the top 250 is selling, (I'm looking at you, 2001: A Space Odyssey).

As a North American looking to expand my horizons, this did not disappoint.

All is well.

Battle Royale (2000)

disappointing

[7/10 · 19 July 2005]

Great premise.... horrible ending.

The viewer is set to embark on a tale of children being put back into line, by being taught a VERY hard life lesson.

Knowing what the movie is about, one would also expect to see some intense action as the game of destruction plays out.

While the movie could have uncovered topics like loyalty, trust, sacrifice, strategy, panic, delirium, and more, the film comes up short, offering "accidental" killings, and compromise.

Perhaps cliché, but a more appropriate ending would have been a "you or me" situation, or at least some unlikely turn of events that provided closure.

People come to this movie to see blood and guts in a game of survival of the fittest. Leaving us with a puppy love romance was not the way to go in my opinion.

Very disappointing, because based on the premise, and the opening portions of the film, I was completely prepared to recommend this to all.