largu Reviews

Alita: Battle Angel (2019)

If you like the original material, perhaps you must see it.

[7/10 · 27 February 2019]

I was thoroughly sceptical going in on this one. I like the comics that it is based on and we can all agree the the trailer fell deep into the uncanny valley. Now, that being said I really did like Rodriguez/Cameron's take on Alita. The transition of manga into "real" is jarring at first but as you get used to it you see the meticulous work that's been put into the visuals. Dare I say love, because there is a lot of stuff going on in the details here and it is good.

Story-wise it's not amazing. The movie is stitched together from the vast base material and it's taking some very generous liberties at times. It's too over the top and cringe-worthy at times but that brings me to my main point. Have you read the original work and if so, how long has it been since you read it? Gunm (the manga) is decidedly silly and super over the top at best and that is a quality. It's been around for quite some time and have already inspired numerous sf-works. Rodriguez/Cameron know this and have to some extent made an adaptation for the fans. Will the fans get it? Perhaps not, but on the other hand everyone will get a lovely fest for the eyes with a not-to-bad story tied to it.

Now to wait and hope for the sequel...

Koko-di Koko-da (2019)

Therapeutic nightmare

[8/10 · 24 February 2019]

Koko-di Koko-da is about a young couple, a man and a woman with a deep trauma that is slowly tearing them apart. They have reached an endpoint in their relationship and something is about to give. The first thing to breaks is their reality.

On a dull camping-trip the couple encounter a troupe of three menacing and allegorical figures that suddenly emerges from the woods. Things quickly turns nightmarish. The man keeps reliving the violent encounter time after time while the woman remembers nothing of it. She in her turn experience her own nightmare, less violent but cold and lonely.

Johannes Nyholm is a very visual artist with some quirky and frankly stunningly beautiful pictures. While Koko-di Koko-da is dense and dark, it is not hopeless and I left the theater feeling quite elate. So, it's not for everyone but give it a go. All in all it's a beautiful experience.

High Life (2018)

The point misser

[2/10 · 31 January 2019]

I went to see High Life at a film festival and had quite high expectations but I would have been disappointed regardless. I've seen every premise of the movie done before, and better. It's a low-budget 'gritty' version of SF but as such it doesn't feel honest. How low budget are you when sporting stars like Binoche and Pattison? The fake feel of the sets must be an esthetic choice but to no apparent reason. Even an old and decidedly silly film like "Dark Star" handles the theme of dangerous ennui and boredom in a lowfi space setting much better. Also, the use of sexual abuse to create some scenarios just feels like lazy writing. I get what they were after, a poetic reflection of the human condition set against the backdrop of the merciless empty universe, but there are too many things that doesn't work. With better photo or a more atmospheric soundtrack I could have bought it as an art house flick but it never goes the whole distance. Quite ironic from a movie about an never ending trip through space. It goes nowhere and still misses.

Maquia: When the Promised Flower Blooms (2018)

Dare to be sentimental

[8/10 · 8 January 2019]

I had the pleasure to see a preview of Maquia without any previous knowledge of it. This is something that I recommend. That being said, Maquia start off quite dense with different warring factions and odd bits of vocabulary. No worries though, because even though every detail is not fully explained the word building and slow pacing eases you into the story. And it IS quite detailed, both story vise and visually. The protagonist Maquia from the title, is born in village where the inhabitants record and keep history by weaving long tapestries. Her people are a legendary elf-like lot who can live for hundreds of years and stop aging in their teens. Now, this trope could easily turn quite nasty, but Maquia steers tastefully far from most potential threats. In all, Maquia is a story about family and relations. It's poignant and serious in an oddly down-to-earth way regardless of it's fantasy setting.The animations are a high-budget marvel to see. My only gripe is that the movie kind of ends multiple times, and the last 30 minutes or so feels like one ending after another. Apart from that it also made me cry quite profusely. So, go see it.

A Ghost Story (2017)

The 1000 year itch

[8/10 · 5 October 2018]

After seeing "A ghost story" I thought that it was a rather good movie. Nothing fancy, not too long, a bit poetic, pretentious but not overly so, but also very empty.

Quite nice and quiet nice.

Still,it comes back to me. Looking back on 2018 I've seen a lot of movies which I hardly remember, and to be honest I do not remember "A Ghost Story" that well either but it will not leave me alone. The infamous pie scene that every hater here keeps whining about? Only a dim recollection and not a dealbreaker. There is a hypnotic quality to the movie that would have worked on me no matter what age I've seen it in. As a kid I would have been mesmerized as I was by classics as "Great expectations" and the black and white "Hunchback of Notre-Dame".

I like the idea a lot. A ghost which is the archetypal "white sheet" ghost. Not scary but very sad. Also the tediousness and impotence of being stuck in a place without knowing really why yourself. As in life, so in death. Maybe I like the idea more than I like the movie, but it did touch something in my core which is more than any other movie have done in a long time.

I'm terribly impatient but I still enjoyed it, so give it a go alright? It's definitely a hit-or-miss thing as these reviews can tell.

Utopia (I) (2013–2014)

The greater evil or the greater good.

[9/10 · 4 August 2014]

Trying to describe Utopia for a colleague it stuck me how utterly silly the premise of the series sound. A fan-base set around an obscure and conspiracy driven graphic novel realize that the content of the comic might be *gasp* real. This actually ties in well with the overall theme of seemingly easy decisions turning out to be complex and maddeningly hard. The silliness dies (quite literary) in the first few minutes of the first episode. Utopia sports a host of some of the most gruesome psychopaths I've ever seen on screen and they are on a mission they believe in.

In less capable hands this would have turned into another "little man vs. big evil corporation" with some shock value but the horror which is really vile and cold is not the main engine of Utopia, the story is. I'm not sure about you, but after a while I begun to wonder whether I was rooting for the wrong team (and so does some of the characters). That is good storytelling. The characters all feel real and they evolve and change with what they experience.

Oh and don't forget how it works aesthetically. Some might not like the brash colours and the off-kilter music but it just added another layer to this cake.

In conclusion, see it. It's not for the faint of heart but neither are most TV-series these days and this is one of the very best.

World War Z (2013)

What's in a name?

[5/10 · 20 July 2013]

It's often futile to compare a movie to its source material, especially if the movie is loosely based or just inspired by it. However, the case with Word War Z makes me wonder. Who is the intended audience for World War Z? In all aspects it's an OK zombie flick, a genre ridden with mediocrity. There are jarring plot holes and inconsistencies but not worse than in other similar movies. After all, this is a big budget movie made for a broad audience and that is perhaps the first problem. Is it even possible to make an involving zombie movie with PG-13? The effects are well done but there is no blood and it's not especially scary in comparison. The beginning of the movie is really good. Small hints of a catastrophe are looming in the background throughout the introduction. The audience just waits for the sh*t to hit the fan and with casualties in the billions it sure does, and quick. The organic blob-like waves of attacking zombies as seen in the trailers is a "fresh" new take to the genre. Things take a turn for the dumb quite quickly. There are too many "really?!?" moment, like "did they really survive that?" Make no mistake; this is a movie about Brad Pitt with a few extras on the side. Expect no intricate character portraits. This might be surprising since the book had no protagonist whatsoever. Yes, the book. If you have read the book and liked it odds are you will be disappointed. WWZ is one of the few books that addressed the issues of what the real result of a viral zombie outbreak and its long lasting effects would be. It's obvious that the author Max Brooks was (perhaps a bit too) obsessed with the idea. If you are kind you might say that the movie is set in the same universe as the book but even that is stretching it too far. The book is a well reasoned exercise in different aspect of cause and consequence in the face of an inhuman catastrophe. The movie is without spoiling too much, everything but that. Now, if you are going to throw the basic premise of a book out the window you are bound to alienate a big part of the audience, but why when call it "Word War Z"? "I am legend" made the same mistake. This is a generic zombie movie and I tried to watch it as such, but it's hard to disregard the title. Now if you like Brad Pitt, please try to watch him best a zombie apocalypse without thinking too much about that book, OK?

Dogtooth (2009)

No crisis in Greece after all.

[8/10 · 27 June 2011]

This one came out of nowhere. A really good and thought-provoking feel-bad movie from Greece. Who would have guessed.

The premise is simple. A pair keeps their three children looked inside a large countryside house through strict rules and gruesome lies about the world outside the high wall. Only the father may leave the house. All signs form the outside is translated by the parents to fit into the hermetic prison-world that they have created for the now adolescent kids. Imagine it like "Blue Lagoon" made by Michael Haneke if you catch my drift.

To fight of the obvious boredom the kids invent games and competitions. Good behavior, according to the parents, is awarded with stickers. There may, or may not have been an older brother in the house who may have escaped, or might have died: it's hard to tell how far the parents rules goes, but they are no stranger to cruelty.

That's it basically. We follow the strange family with their odd behavior. Their system works, but for how long? What if the kids start to question it and if so, what will the parents do? It might be good to remember that even stranger relations have existed in the real world and most likely still does. This is a highly interesting rendition of an unlikely but not impossible family held together by parental love that may as well be pure fascism. Also; bonus-points for some of the most unsexy scenes of consensual sex ever shown on screen.

The Tree of Life (2011)

The "hands opening towards an open sky" symbol again.

[6/10 · 27 June 2011]

Any film that wins the "Palme d'Or" should have something special, so why the low score? It might just be me. If a movie tries to make me feel something profound, but fails, I'll get thoroughly annoyed. But then again, after the screening there where scattered applause mingled with nervous laughter. I agree with both.

There is not much to say about the story. There is one, a quite simple one really which is not the main focus. It's the framework of the story that is the real movie. The fluff and details that you might call "life".

One thing is clear. ANY movie depicting moving dinosaurs is quite taxing on the audience. If you are going to buy it, it demands a certain something from the director. A movie sporting both dinosaurs AND Sean Penn demands a touch of genius. Now, Terrence Malick have been accused of said "genius" before. Is it still there? Yes, partly. There are scenes of true beauty here, really, but they are dragged down by long low-ampere scenes. Oh, I'm no stranger to pretentious experiments. If it works I'm fine, but I do not believe in this. The ending was downright laughable, or at least cringe-inducing. How many "hands opening towards an open sky" can one take in a lifetime? I for once have had enough, thanks to Mr. Malick. I applaud your beautiful pictures but laugh nervously at your cliché-laden ending.

Ink (I) (2009)

The many ifs and whys of Ink

[6/10 · 2 May 2011]

Ink is really quite good... for being a movie such and such, and therein lays the problem with ink. It's a great independent, low budget, fantasy, growing up movie with an agenda, especially for fourteen year old. Yes, but is it a great movie, period? In parts, definitely so.

The first 20 minutes tries to set the mood, in the worst ways possible. Right from the bat you get the horrid "oh no. it's one of those movies" feeling, and it isn't, at least not through and though. The acting is generally bad, sometimes cringingly so. The cutting is jumbled, jittery and a bit TV-ish. The special effects does its job with acceptable grades and even inventiveness. Thumbs-up for that.

Now, you probably all know that and those are not reasons to watch any movie. Why you should watch Ink is because its an ambitious project which only made it through because of a heart, a lot of work and the strange spell of the internet. It draws from, and also gives homage to A lot of movies, without leaning to heavily one any. If I should pick any that would be something between Labyrinth and Silent Hill (in the best ways possibly), but it draws its mood from books like "Momo" (like "Dark City" cunningly did).

I don't really see the target group here but I guess I would have loved it as an 14 year old. My rate varies between 5 and 7 so how about 6/10? It's not perfect but quite charming. If you're interested, give it a go.

Tron: Legacy (2010)

Not too user-friendly

[4/10 · 17 December 2010]

I like the first Tron. Not in an creepy over-obsessed way, but I regard it as a campy, retro glitterfest based on an delightfully silly idea. The basic concept stays the same in Tron Legacy. Computer programs are sentient beings inside the computer grid, probably deriving from the fact that they are created from someone's hope and dreams and therefore inherit some of their creators (or "users")soul.

In the first Tron a "user", Flynn/Jeff Bridges, is whisked away into the computer world (by lasers, no less). In "Legacy" the son of Flynn is looking for his father 20 years after he strangely disappeared without a trace. No price for guessing where, and we also find ourselves in the computer world after a quite glum and outstretched intro. FINALLY.

Turns out the world inside is equally glum. Now, with the way the use of computer have evolved and increased dramatically since the last movie I was expecting to see a grid teeming with all sorts of life and variety. That may be my mistake. I realize that the world in Tron Legacy may in fact be the sole creation of one being (Flynn/Jeff Bridges) with no interaction with the rest of the world, which may be plausible,given the theme of the movie, but still. Flynn copy/paste a lot and is obviously very fond of the "dark-gritty-stone-tool".

All that aside, there been notables upgrades in the Tron world. Most technology looks, well, cooler. It is stunning visually, especially in 3d. My biggest gripe with the movie though is how clunky everything is. This should be a rendition of the world inside a computer, but stuff hisses, creaks and spew exhaustion. When did the digital world turn so analogue? Sure, from a scientific point of view the digital is indistinguishable from the analogue if it is complex enough, but why does it feels like a step backwards? The world in the older movie actually feels like a much more accurate rendition of a computer world than this. The new one is more like reality with fancy neon. Flynn turns his personal abode into a reality shrine, and eating what I guess is a virtually crafted pig, but that is him emulating reality. The motor of the first movie was that we could see games and programs run "as if it was in real life". With todays graphics that is already happening on-screen so the movie might have outlived its gimmick. If so there are more than enough other features from the digital world worthy of being represented in Tron. Why just demote the whole world then?

I realise I haven't said anything about the acting. Well, there is none. Bridges tries his best to put some personality into Flynn. Not an easy task. Most of the time he just seems awkward. Our protagonist, whats-his-face, Sam is the sulky and estranged techno-wizz-kid we have all seen so many times before, only a bit older this time (27). The Tron from the title is there naturally, and he does... nothing. Boxlietner is in the cast, why not let him give old Tron a line at least? In the male world of computers there are as many as two female actor, but they are just the standard blockbuster version of the madonna/whore, aka spunky and bitchy. That boils down to sourpuss, hippie, spunky, bitchy, a creepy game-character and oh, there is also a Bowie, although not thee Bowie. Hello Disney, NEXT TIME YOU SHOULD CONSIDER ADDING SOME DIMENSIONS TO YOUR CHARACTERS, AND I DO NOT MEAN 3D, OK?

Frankly, I'm thoroughly annoyed, and though not expecting much also surprisingly disappointed. Ah, well. The 4/10 is for looks, sounds and effort. It do look nice and the soundtrack is marvellous at times. I'm convinced that the musicians Daft Punk would make a better version of Tron themselves AND with more heart.

Pulse (2001)

Lingering ghosts

[8/10 · 2 December 2010]

It's been two years since I saw Kairo but coming to this page again I realize how much it still lingers in my mind. First of all I'm not sure if its a horror movie, not in the classic sense anyway. It's an existential drama with a low budget and some genuinely creepy moments. If the idea of loneliness scares you then I guess it IS a horror movie, but for me it's more of an "unsettling movie" if that ever was a genre. If so, it's a genre I like. About the movie. The story starts of like any other j-horror flick with some school kids investigating a MYSTERY on the INTERNET. Imagine that... What I like with Kurosawa is his talent of taking a well known setting and turning it into something else. Basically Kairo is about the fear of loneliness and ultimately that this loneliness may carry on into eternity. The story isn't flawless and involves some out-of-place scenes, and "science" explanations, but what crowns the movie is the overall feel of it. Yes, I will remember it fondly even after another two years, and another. Also, the sound-work is amazing. Be sure to crank up those woofers.

Lady in the Water (2006)

Oh but for the love of...

[2/10 · 2 June 2008]

So, I decided to give this one a go. Shyamalan has made some movies that I genuinely enjoyed watching. Sure he has been steadily deteriorating but even "The Village" had some interesting points so he might still got it, right?

Now, where to begin. Yes I did give it two stars so, no I didn't like it. At all. Period. Why? There is no story to find. Not even any real trademark "Shyamalan" twists. I felt a drift of foul wind in the end of "Signs" but I hoped he would stay clear of that and return to real story writing but nooo.

Mr. Shyamalan stars in the movie himself, as a saintly martyr no less, which only makes him come across as a bit of prick. There is also a pesky film-critic who through his own cynicism meets a sticky end. That might be all good and well, if it's there to make a better movie, but again he fails to not disappoint me. So maybe the critics where a bit too harsh on his later works and maybe he really has a profound message to tell the world, but phu-lease. Leave your self indulging moping out of your pictures and get on with it!

And yes, I wasted money to see it. I've seen worse, but for the sake of enjoying a good movie, stay clear.

I Am Legend (2007)

Broken

[12 April 2008]

Let's make one thing clear. "I am Legend" is a broken film.

Somewhere towards the end it got severely injured by a unfortunate cut. Now, this is fixed with an abomination of an tacked on ending. There are oodles of hints towards what I consider the real ending throughout the whole movie. The version seen in cinemas makes no sense what so ever, but the "why-oh-why-lord-didn't-they-pick-this-ending?" version is accessible here on the internet or on DVD.

Do you all hear that? There is an ending to "I am Legend" that actually makes sense. An ending that works and is much more true to the original story.

If this will be the original cut for "I am Legend" then I might consider giving it a proper review.

The Taste of Tea (2004)

One of the only true "10" movies in my book.

[10/10 · 12 April 2008]

Yes, so I gave "The taste of tea" a full 10 score. It's not something I do lightly, mind you. How come a whimsical, Japanese, slice-of-life flick makes me go to such length? Let me count the ways...

Ishii has, as many contemporary Asian directors, shown much promise but never really gone all the way. However, the first time I read about "The taste of tea" I got the feeling that 'this might be the one', and yes, finally, it was.

The story revolve around a family with unusual, but not unbelievable people who go about their slightly odd, but not unconvincing lives. It's all a bit like in those "celebration of life" type of movies which were banned during the sixties, or at least moved to Balkan; But slower. Much slower. In a good way. Is that even possible? Yes it is.

The younger son in the family is more of the main character than the others but his story is strangely enough the one that touches me the least. His the little sister is far more interesting with her BIG imaginary-friend problem. My favourite of the lot is of course grandpa, an retired animator who spends his time enjoying life and coming up with fantastic songs like "Why are you a triangle?" and "The mountain is alive". "The mountain is alive" has nothing to do with "sound of music" but its performance would still beat Julie Andrews any day, at lest in the eyebrow-bowlcut-polyester-and-pure-style area.

And yes, the style... Call it impressionism or magic realism but the heightened visual language actually works here. There are some computer graphics but its made with a big pounding digital heart.

Watching "Taste of tea" is like taking a stroll on a nice spring day. Its beautifully executed with charm, wit, soul, and dare I say it... sublimity? It soothes the mind and it even makes me like humanity, something which requires an ever increasingly effort these days.

Sure, its not for everyone but since I'm reviewing it now, I call it one of the very few flawless gems out there.

Pure bliss.

Pushing Daisies (2007–2009)

It's not the best thing since sliced bread. It's pie!

[7/10 · 11 April 2008]

I can't shake the feeling that people are giving "pushing daisies" an unfair judgement. I guess it's quirky and inventive reputation attracts certain reviewers. Lets take this from the top. Yes, we have seen it all before. The intentionally bad design and effects. The all-knowing (quite annoying) voice-over. The standard crime-of-the-day story with a twist. And yes, it truly is a bit pretentious. The story isn't even that inventive.

BUT that isn't why you should watch this. All the characters are charming in a over-the-top but lovable way. Come on, this IS a fairytale. I genuinely care about what's going to happen to our dear protagonists. The setup is simple with it's mechanism of impossible love, but it's working. Maybe it's trying too hard to be original sometimes, but it IS trying, which is far better then most of the lot out there. It's candy coloured and sweet entertainment. Sure it got a morbid premise, but that is standard fare these days.

Maybe I'm just swooned by the pie-maker and his charming childhood friend, but hey, being swooned is a good reason to watch TV. It will probably be cancelled soon anyway since most networks are morons, but at lest it wont turn sour then, right?

"Pushing Daisies" is cute as a button. Try it.

Takeshis' (2005)

A two-in-one brainwash from Takeshi

[8/10 · 24 January 2006]

The story's simple enough. Two men, both called Takeshi, live in Tokyo. One is a well-known actor and one is an actor-wannabe who works in a convenience store. The two Takeshis are being played by the director of the movie Takeshi Kitano. It may sound a bit like "Being John Malcovich" but goes far beyond that.

Sure, the movie isn't for everyone but it's definitely interesting and at parts very visual and imaginative. It's without any doubt the most extreme Meta-movie I ever seen.

When a movie has many layers you usually describe it as a "deep" movie. Takeshis has an enormous amount of layers but most of them are paper thin, if not shallow. In the beginning you try to keep track of whether you're watching a dream or one of the two Takeshis reality. It turns out to be a futile task, especially after one caterpillar-scene too many (You'll know it when you see it).

Do remember that this is not "Memento". It's not really meant to make sense. OK, I've always been allergic to the popular urge to over-explain everything in movies but Takeshis might be a bit too far in the other extreme. A heady cocktail of randomness and logical short circuits but not more than most people experience under a good nights sleep, which is what this movie is all about. Dreams and dreams within dreams.

Please, watch Takeshis with an open mind. You either regard it as an aged directors milestone after a long and creative odyssey of ups and downs, much like Fellinis "8 ½", or you can look at it as an overstressed actors brain fart after too many crazy TV-shows and gangster movies.

It's a bumpy ride, it may be a bit too long, weird and garish but you might have a few laughs and at least you have something to talk about afterward. A bit like a theme-park then, isn't it?