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The Shift (2023)
Allegory in an Unusual Package
Neal McDonough is ferocious at times, and insincerely charming at others. Given the role he's playing, that's on-target. The man has classic Hollywood looks and charisma, but never fit in to the Hollywood "scene," so he took a role like this and it works well.
Sean Astin is his usual likeable self, and that's very important for his character in relation to the protagonist. When something happens to their relationship, it hurts, because you have affinity for Sean.
As for the protagonist, Kristoffer Polaha plays a Wall Street guy who loses everything (it's supposed to reflect Job, but only superficially does) and then finds himself in an inexplicable predicament. He has to carry most of the narrative, and does a commendable job.
Liz Tabish is a favorite actress among fans of Angel Studios (she's Mary Magdalene in "The Chosen"), and she's lovely and charming in her brief appearance in this movie.
The production values are good, even with limited budget. The storytelling is handled competently, but many will find the actual story confusing. I followed it enough to enjoy it.
Monster: God of Forgiveness, God of Vengeance (2022)
Sincere Exploration of Grace and Mercy
This episode shocked me. Its opening scene is the most like a horror movie of the entire series, and that is saying a lot. It was the worst part of this episode, so don't despair. The central portion of this episode is a surprisingly sincere and moving examination of two vital principles. The scene with Dahmer talking to the priest in prison is a clear, understandable, challenging and inspiring lesson on GRACE. Superbly well-done. And the following scene with Glenda and her pastor is a similarly thoughtful treatise on MERCY. Only God knows if Dahmer's decision that followed was sincere, but if it were, then even he could be forgiven. But not by men. The inmate who studied Dahmer's crimes sought JUSTICE, which is a different matter.
This is truly a fascinating and thought-provoking bit of work, and made the series overall better than it would otherwise have been. Good work.
Mary Magdalene (2018)
Mixed messaging
The look of this movie is commendable, and the pace of it is fitting for its consistent tone. Content-wise, it should have been rated PG, rather than R.
As for its message, it misses the Gospel Truth. Of course, it has elements of the teachings of Jesus, but in its apparent desire to have Mary gain status, it pushes the other Apostles down... very far down. This is most egregious at the conclusion of the film...
SPOILER
The 11 remaining men never see Jesus after His resurrection in this movie, and the clear impression by the storytellers here is that they remain filled with resentment that the Kingdom was not brought about as they had envisioned. They would therefore not receive the Great Commission, and would not share the Good News. That's a bogus ending to an otherwise potentially encouraging movie.
Quantum of Solace (2008)
Serves mainly as coda to far superior "Casino Royale"
Viewers who walk into "Quantum of Solace" without having seen "Casino Royale," but familiar with the series of James Bond movies, will scratch their heads throughout this film. They will wonder if they are actually in the right theater! This movie is not like other Bond films, often to its detriment. But it does add to the story told in "Casino Royale," and does make me interested to go on another adventure with this "new" Bond.
Things about this movie that are good:
-- Judi Dench (as "M") has a more substantial role than usual. I wouldn't want that to become the norm for Bond movies, but she's very good and the story elements involving "M" worked well.
-- Olga Kurylenko was an interesting female lead. Again, the story strayed from formula with the female lead, but that was fine. And she was more than mere eye-candy in this role.
Things about this movie that are not good:
-- The direction. There are more elements to the language of cinema than just the close-up and the extreme close-up. The fact that the director limited himself primarily to those two shots made the numerous action sequences far less interesting than they should have been.
-- The editing. Shots should be maintained for longer than 0.8 seconds every once in a while...
-- The writing. A little exposition never killed anyone... Bond goes from place to place and does exactly what he must, but we are never given any ideas about how he knew to do most of those things. He's not merely lucky, but this script presents him that way.
The Dark Knight (2008)
Questions and Answers
Question: Is "The Dark Knight" the best "comic book movie" ever made?
Answer: Yes.
Question: Care to qualify that?
Answer: No.
Question: Does this movie live up to the ridiculous hype?
Answer: It surpasses it. However great the moviegoer may expect this to be, it's even better than that.
Question: Is Heath Ledger's performance as the Joker as great as so many claim, or are we all just being sentimental?
Answer: Impossible to say, given my own sentimentality; however, Ledger completely owns the role of the Joker now, without disrespect to Jack Nicholson. This Joker is a force of nature, and not one you want to encounter under any circumstance.
Question: Is this movie a serious contender for the Academy Award for "Best Picture?"
Answer: Absolutely. It is the best movie of the year thus far, and unlikely to be surpassed.
Question: Name one key distinction of "The Dark Knight" versus previous "comic book movies."
Answer: This story is told in the real world. Gotham City is no longer part of some fantasy land, but it's real, and it's right now. So we are forced to confront Gotham's problems ourselves.