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jpmelkus
Reviews
Migration (2023)
Ok but forgettable
This is very much a paint by numbers kids movie. The villain is very badly characterized, the comedy is bland, and the characters and story are out of central casting for a movie like this.
That said it's pretty family friendly and looks really nice and has just enough giggles and action to make it worth it.
My bright six year old giggled maybe ten times but never had a belly laugh. That sums it up. Might be a little intense for younger than five years old.
It's PG. I think they could've toned down the villain, who is nasty and has NO comic relief, made it G, had more jokes and it would've been a lot better.
Ferris Bueller's Day Off (1986)
Recaptures "Youngness"
I rewatched FBDO (sorry, had to) for the first time in many years. I was not even 10 when it came out, and it is not until now that I have appreciated it a level beyond the basic comedy. It has comedy for sure, of all kinds. Slapstick, absurdity, farce, comedy-of-errors, comedy-of-manners, puns, shock, swearing, satire, parody, and on and on.
But is so much more than an outstanding comedy. It has real philosophy that is not sophomoric (they're seniors and juniors...haha). This comes in Ferris's asides, but also in what the characters say when they are not joking.
It has some complete non-sequiturs and montages that really make you ponder the characters and that capture what it is like to be young in a way that you almost never see, e.g., them looking down from the Sears Tower, the scene at the art musuem, etc.
Why? Well, real teenagers can almost never make enduring art, so they have a hard time capturing what its like to be young in any way beyond the surface. You have to know what it fleeting about youth to capture it and you only know that once you're not young any more. A 17 year old writing this movie couldn't capture youth because youth are just to callow and to inexperienced with life. But adults, even when they try to write about youth, often infuse that feeling with too much importance that isn't present when you're young. It gets too nostalgic, or treacly, or whatever.
But with FBDO, John Hughes just takes your mind back to what it was like to be about to graduate high school.
Yes, these are all privileged white kids. Yes, the whole move is extra white and extra privileged. Minorities are relegated to some really insulting stereotypical parts. So in that regard, it has not aged well at all.
BUT! This movie still captures late adolescence perfectly. That feeling of knowing your childhood is about to disappear and missing it already, but being excited about your unknown future that seems to stretch out forever ahead of you. And scared at the same time.
It just leaves you feeling warm and reminiscent and happy to be an adult, but really glad you were a kid.
I also like that Ferris, for all his likability, is a flawed character. He is a narcissist. But he's 17 (maybe 18). He hurts Cameron's feelings over and over in a way that is close to bullying or gaslighting. But protagonists shouldn't be perfect. And Ferris's flaws illustrate those of the other characters in a way that is very illuminating.
All these characters have a depth that is so lacking (except maybe the dad). Certainly Sloane and Cameron and Ferris are totally three dimensional. But even his sister, and mom are shown as real people too.
But then you have totally INSANE absurd non-sequiturs thrown in. The principal is an absolute cartoon. So is his secretary. The BONKERS way everyone in town is pulling for Ferris. I mean, they paint a WATERTOWER in like an hour?!?! The parking lot joyride. Abe Froman!? The whole parade sequence?! It is just crazy how all that happens and the movie still feels "real."
An absolute joy to watch. I haven't seen a comedy this deep in years. Planes, Trains, and Automobiles, another John Hughes movie is probably similar in that regard. They do not make them like this much any more. Even 40 Year Old Virgin and Knocked Up, for all their dealing with "big issues" seem to be inhabited by cardboard cutouts (the stoner, the hectoring girlfriend/wife) compared to this film.
Watch it every couple years. You won't regret it.
The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (2007)
Stays with you
Superb acting by an amazing cast. But the most enduring aspect of the film is Casey Affleck. As much as We might have reason to dislike him, he delivers a truly unique and spellbinding character study as Robert Ford. As much as I thought I knew people like his character, as more time went by I realized he made the character so multi faceted that I didn't know anyone like him. So much depth for such a callow and shallow character. He also actually grows throughout the film into an adult from an adolescent. Wonderful acting performance. He should have won an Oscar.
Ad Astra (2019)
SFX-Plot=Mediocre movie
Gorgeous to look at and listen to, just don't pay too much attention. As a rumination on father-son relations, it is half way interesting. As a "space" movie, it is ludicrous. To anyone with a 6th grade understanding of physics, it is absurd to watch. There is no explanation for how governments powerful and rich enough to colonize the Moon and Mars are somehow unable to prevent roaming bands of lunar-rover equipped pirates from rampaging around the Moon shooting at people. How do those brigands afford to get to and live on the Moon? Unexplained. How the heck does Brad Pitt's character get to Neptune and back so fast? Unexplained. How and why is anyone doing anything? Unexplained. Plot points are dropped in from on high by random characters who just announce that things will now happen. Full of plots holes technical, emotional, and logistical. Just OK. Worth one watch.
Star Wars: Episode VIII - The Last Jedi (2017)
Scarcity creates value; Plenty creates cheap crap
I'll just join the chorus in saying IMDB's weighted average is obviously a joke, as anyone who spends time going through the reviews can see. Go to Metacritic, where the user review average is 4.6/10 for a more accurate picture of what audiences actually thought of this movie. There, there are 3,307 negative reviews compared to 2,600 positive reviews. And as anyone can see even here, the vast majority of negative reviews are thoughtful and well written out while most positive reviews are basically "Awesum!" Does anyone think the audience of user reviewers at Metacritic is composed of a wholly different group of inherent haters while *only* IMDB is an accurate representation of audiences? Please.
Any economist can tell you, scarcity creates value. When there were only three Star Wars movies, they were treasures. The rest of the galaxy played out in your mind, in the Star Wars role playing game, and the EU books. It was great.
Now that there are nine movies and counting, to say nothing of TV shows, they will become far less valuable, even if they were all just as good as the first three. Each time a new director fills in or replaces more of what you imagined of the Star Wars universe, it gets less special.
That effect is greatly multiplied when four of the last six movies are pretty bad.
That effect is also greatly multiplied when the WORST one, THIS movie, is supposed to be building to the climax of the recent trilogy.
This movie mocks Star Wars universe and is an insult to fans. It is poorly written, badly plotted, dumb, infantile, and all the rest. The other reviewers have covered it all. It is just sad.