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Reviews
Fight Club (1999)
Look....it's this simple
You do not talk about fight club.
YOU DO NOT TALK ABOUT FIGHT CLUB!!!
Borat: VHS Cassette of Material Deemed 'Sub-acceptable' by Kazakhstan Ministry of Censorship and Circumcision (2021)
Relavant
This movie is not a spin off of the Subsequent Borat film as the first episode suggests. Sasha Cohen Baron does something beneficial to the growing polarization in America by educating the two characters by supplying FACTS and not conjectures.
Jim and Jerry, the two conspiracy theorists, take on an active role engaging with the mythbusters and it becomes clear they are not complete dumba$$ but rather fed one information from one side. When the topic of BLM was mentioned, the two say something that both sides of the media is guilty of....."they need to show both sides of it."
I'm a Journalism student so I know how much misinformation hurts democracy. And when the media buys into the emotions of conspiracy theorists and crowd the air waves with misleading opinions, they are hurting democracy. They are taking people for tools.
For instance, on the left, the Black Lives Matter was a highly publicized story which lead to defending the massive riots across major cities in America, ironically, destroying Black owned businesses. It also lead to major cities cutting police funding. One year later, Biden has proposed to place federal money back into solving gun violence as EVERY major city saw a rise in crime. Cities like Los Angeles and Oakland are also putting local funding back into Police to restore public safety. The moral is how an exaggerated hype of hostility can cause major damage across America, yet due to media bias, everyone looked away and allowed this to happen. It's mentioned in the film 97% of BLM protests were non violent. I was in SF watching from a parking lot as downtown businesses were destroyed and looted by a crowd of hundreds. A protest requires a city permit so it's my belief these riots are not considered an actual protest.
Although much of the rally cry was in defense specifically of Black Criminals and reformation, the violence was real. Democratic leadership today blame both the pandemic and the criminal reformation as the reason why crime has shot up. Ideas are dangerous. When you plant the idea that doing the wrong thing is justified, especially into the minds of violent individuals....that's a recipe for disaster.
I was working with homeless people for a school project when the stay at home order hit. Tenderloins of SF is a majority Black neighborhood, very high in crime, drugs and homeless. This was early February when I met Henry, a convicted felon. We would talk for hours during my shift about the news. First, he tried to tell me the Virus was a weapon created for genocide in China. He admitted this was some b.s. They tell each other in the hood. But in truth, this rumor turned fake news spread like wildflower. It's exactly why misleading information is dangerous. Today, there is an investigation open to see if Covid was actually created in a lab. But if you know politics, you also know how much Republicans control Capital Hill. So this Investigation is highly politicized. The origin of the virus is mentioned in this film. But to further explain, scientists found out the original host was a bat. The Chinese scientists said they brought a bat to their lab to study it, but they didn't know how deadly it was. And while they were investigating, some were infected with the virus and died. This story was spun by the right wing media to make it sound like the scientists got infected while creating the virus in a lab. Every credible scientists have said the structure of the virus cells have organically evolved, but the conspiracy prevails when the public is eager to trust someone who holds no accountability for his actions. As they say, beware of false prophets.
As we were discussing the news, back in Tenderloins, another information he leaked was that Asian immigrants were being targeted. They would look for Asian Immigrants to extort for money often getting $20 payouts per Immigrant. Poor Immigrants who live in near by ghettos like Chinatown. They would run up on Asian Immigrants in groups and threaten to beat them until they pay money for the Covid virus. Than the news clips began showing Black men in Tenderloins beating a Chinese senior with a metal stick going viral on YouTube. A 98 year old Chinese woman was beaten to death and then robbed. On and on...
This documentary centers on how misinformation hurts the public perception. Antisemitism. Sinophobia. It's all used as a way to stir the public. Get them angry. Unaccountable media who will absolve themselves of culpability. The Right thinks they can lie as long as they have high ratings. The Left thinks they can mislead the public as long as they support Black people (but in truth they don't). Ironic. Paradox. Crazy world.
Ford v Ferrari (2019)
Perfect Ten
Some stories are so compelling, I'm left speechless. This is one of those films. Not because I am a car buff. I live in Silicon Valley, drive a hybrid and take Public Transportation when possible. But not due to a self conscious image of who I want to be. I think if someone believes in something enough, they will do what needs to done to achieve that goal. Even the impossible.
Ken is a mechanic that knows the logistics of the motor and how to win a race mostly because he is willing to bend the rules. An odd ball genius. He is introduced in this film as someone who will beat his hood with a wrench to make the engine fit. He is someone who sees through the conventional wisdom and sets his eyes to the limits to push boundaries. Someone willing to do anything to win. A high risk in the eyes of Ford Motors corporate suits.
"If this was a beauty pageant, we just lost."
Looks aren't everything. But at a time America began setting the standard in the free world, there was an emphasis placed on ethics and presentation. The staple for American conservatism and the veneer for the American hypocrisy, which was always validated by high earnings. Due to the assembly line, American manufacturing has always fared well in earnings from mass production. But what if we reduce the number to one. One car. One day. One race where even One loose bolt can close your One Chance at winning. With the One driver who can win, what is the One obstacle that can get in the way. Themselves.
The man who has stretched boundaries, maybe even the laws of physics to win every race, will be asked to reach one more time in the most important one.
I can't say enough about this film. The acting is spot on. The director places sporadic dry humor alongside tense moments. Absolute Winner.
Joe (2013)
One of the best Anti-Heroes
Joe is a complicated man mostly because he doesn't talk about problems that Involve complex answers. He is not the settling type, despite having grandkids. He is not the deadbeat type, despite the fact he is always drinking. The more you learn of his oddities, the more you realize there is something much deeper inside. But nonetheless, he is a character you can't help but to like....given the circumstances and the environment.
In comes Gary. The son of a dysfunctional family. As a 16 year old, he is forced to be the grown up by holding a job. But that's not his main issue. His father, or G Dawg, is an alcoholic and cares nothing for order, kinda like Joe. But that's where the comparison ends. As a deadbeat, he abuses Gary and takes his money to feed his alcoholism. He loses his job by burning bridges. His wrecklessness seems to have no ends. He prostitutes his daughters. He beats down and kills a boozehound. He reinforces the trauma and tries to pass on his psychological dependency to his kids. As much as he needs to be the deadbeat, he tries to force into Gary's mind that he is the one person he needs in his life. It's only a matter of time before Gary figures out it's all bulls#$##. It's only a matter of time before this circle of life will meet its reckoning.
Joe's issues are deep, but there is one that bubbles to the surface throughout the film. He hates people telling him what to do. He keeps himself independent of people and the law. The perfect anti social character if he wasn't likable. But as he begins pushing away every shot at a normal life, it becomes evident a breaking point is near.
As an anti-hero, you are not liked because you do the things the right way. You are liked because you do the things that has to be done. Without getting into an argument over what he should have done, what ends up happening is a break from the painful circle which grips at the heart of Gary's family. This is a story where you will be rooting for the Good Guy to win.
The Imposter (2012)
Who is the Imposter?
A private investigator thought he was a foreign terrorist. The FBI conducted a forensic interview and determined not only that he wasn't Nicholas Barclay, he didn't even grow up in an English speaking environment. They saw this as a potential dangerous situation. But yet, even after all the expert witnesses warning the family, they invited him in with open arms. They became hostile against the FBI investigation and refused to provide DNA. It's as if the trauma of the missing Nicholas Barclay was so much, they couldn't compute the red flags being waved. All they saw was Nicholas Barclay. Or does this family have a darker history to hide?
"I no longer saw them as a grieving victimized family. I saw them as a questionable family. There'll be reason to accept a stranger into their lives unless there was something to hide. Something was being hidden and I didn't know what that was," FBI case worker.
"They knew I wasn't Nicholas. Whatever I was telling them, they didn't believe a word of it. But they were getting good at not showing it," Frederick Bourdin aka the imposter.
What began as a lie by the imposter had turned into a conspiracy through willful corroboration. But conspiracy for what?
What is revealed through investigations is a family torn by a toxic relationship between Nicholas and his older brother. Something happened in that house law enforcement doesn't know about. Something that Nicholas's brother took with him to the grave in a suicide as the once missing persons was being viewed as a possible homicide. Or is this the sick work of a lifetime con and a pathological liar to turn the spotlight to a torn grieving family?
Twists after twists. Lies after Lies. Evidence, or lack thereof, spins this true story in a circle.
Moment of Truth (2021)
Think About It...
The documentary really focuses on 1 person. The one person who took the fall for the death of Michael Jordon's father. And from there, in the backdrop of the investigation, there is a strong message calling for criminal reform. But.....
....what is clear is that one of these guys either killed James Jordan, or/and they know a whole lot more than the police report says. So regardless of this trendy "crime reform"....what about justice for the man who was brutally killed at the height of MJ's career? The brutal death of an innocent man seems to fall through the cracks and replaced by trying to free someone who the evidence pointed to. And there lies the problem with criminal reform. Often, it means to overlook ACTUAL JUSTICE.
We can have crime reform AND have justice for the victims. But this documentary seems to focus more heavily on the reformation part.
American Gangster (2007)
Could have been one of the best and most epic films
This movie is epic in the cast and story line. A black man in a mafia which has traditionally been run by Italians. A good cop who is willing to fight criminals and crooked cops as well. That final interrogation is absolute classic. But...
.... before the credits, a statistic is given to show the severity of the issue, which in turn shows the significance of the two characters who brought down the Crooked NYPD and the Mafia. It says 75% of DEA in NY were convicted of corruption. The problem with this is it's fabricated. There is no resources to support that claim. Movie Magic.
The film would have been better off without putting a fabricated number.
True Story (2015)
Yaaawwwwnnnnn
Finkel was chasing the glitter and gold as a NY Times journalist and he wanted to capture a story of the African Slave trade. The only problem was he didn't have actual evidence supporting an actual slave trade. So he made it up. Great story line right? Unfortunately, the movie begins AFTER he gets fired.
After being fired from the Times, through a strange connection, he meets a man charged with killing his wife and three kids. The killer claims his innocence and he wants Finkel to tell his story. So through some narcissistic final wish of a killer, they begin writing a book together.
A story I don't want to hear from a killer I have no pity for.
The Count of Monte Cristo (2002)
Possibly the Greatest Revenge Story Ever Told
The ultimate revenge film.
"I'm a count. Not a saint."
Machine Gun Preacher (2011)
Fake News
This is a movie I was so much wishing was true....
....but it's not. Apparently, he's an A-hole. In fact, there are doubts even if he saved those kids.
Bliss (2021)
Surreal
After being fired for doing nothing at work, a man walks in to a bar and learns he has the ability to move objects with telekinesis. So what does he do next? He takes a homeless lady on a date and flip people around in an ice skating rink. OMG....Of Course!!!!
This film feels cheap and hurried. Bad script, ineffective camera tricks and a ridiculously surreal story line. If you like good stories, this isn't it. Selma Hayek, Owen Wilson and Bill Nye the Science Guy couldn't save this film.
Herself (2020)
Absolute Gem
A mother and two daughters leave an abusive husband/father to start again. The theme of this film is literally and figuratively "how to build a house" from scratch....only the past will not let go. The acting is terrific by the trio of ladies in showing the wide range of emotions that comes with a broken home. The directing flows effectively to capture the tribulations, frustrations and the hypocrisies of the family court system.
This is a film that grabs the audiences attention from the opening scene. And from there, what seems like grains of sand falling in an hour glass, challenges after challenges.....it all build up to the finale.
Powerful. Absolute Gem.
Clockers (1995)
One of the most under rated films
Whether by Spike Lee or Richard Price....this is one of the best stories no one's heard.
Kitchen Nightmares (2007)
Culinary Justice
This show is essentially a guide for all restaurant owners of what they should NOT do. Majority of the show is dedicated to Ramsey's deconstruction of a failing restaurant. From the rotten fridge, egotistical chefs, owners who micromanage, false advertisement....nothing is missed. After the chaos than comes order. From tearful frustrations and anger flailing, the show usually takes a 180 turn where humility comes in a form of a new start. Ramsey's punch-to-the-face constructive criticism never gets old.
What makes this show work is the fact Ramsey is a 16 michelin star chef and the restaurant chefs are regional. So the dynamic of how they will respond to Ramsey builds up for the chaotic drama.
Watch this because no one dishes constructive criticism like Gordan. Watch this because it seems like Ramsey is speaking for all consumers of local restaurants who wants a clean and honest food experience. I call this show "Culinary Justice."
Léon (1994)
Cult Classic
It begins as a movie about a cleaner....
Than comes corrupt NYPD.
Cocaine runners.
Broken family.
Deadbeat dads and evil stepsisters.
Beethoven or Mozart?
Massacre.
Little brother.
A desperate knock.
Please...please open.
Vindication.
Eviction.
A glass of milk.
A plant.
Gene Kelly.
John Wayne.
Training.
Change is bad Leon.
Another Eviction.
A Promise.
Her name is Mathilda.
Vendetta.
Special delivery to NYPD.
No woman No kids.
Contract letter.
The rescue.
The swat raid.
Bring me EVERYONE.
Let the girl go.
The shoot out.
We're checking out.
The escape.
This is from Matilda.
Better than a bank.
Its over.
Get back to school.
Take a chance and trust me.
The final truth and a new start....
....Before Natalie Portman and Gary Oldman became the icons, the Oscars and the box office....there was this little film. A cult classic.
Untouchable (2019)
Great Insight in both the Hollywood World and the Force that lead to Abuse of Power
Here's a fact. After the 2017 NY Times Report on Harvey Weinstein over 100 people stepped forward with stories of misconduct, harassment and sexual assault in the 30 year of Weinstein.
This documentary allows us to hear personal testimonies with the victims of the man who was once referred to as a God. It's chilling. From his rise to the inevitable sentencing that gaurantees his death in prison, this documentary is a reminder of how casual "rape" was accepted in Hollywood prior to the "me too" movement.
Personally, I hope for reciprocation, eye for an eye, for all 100 victims, and he dies getting raped in prison.
The Nightingale (2018)
This is NOT a revenge film.
A group of colonial soldiers, shamed by their superior officers, decide to take it out on an Irish family. They gang rape the wife and kill her husband and baby. In this world where the meager live by rules similar to the wild wild west, the wife is left alive to seek retribution on her own. So she hires an aboriginal native as a guide, and at gun point, they track down the soldiers.
This is not a revenge film as the description may suggest. The movie begins as a conflict of person vs person. But as the story begins to unravel, the real conflict is bigger than any one person or one group. It's a story of frantic survival. It's an exploration of the uncanny darkside where the natives are left to survive in consequence of colonialism. There is a scene in the film where the Irish wife and the aborigine find a common bond in their hate for the British who killed both of their families. But still, to live in the social world, they both have to accept the hegemony set by the British Colonial. And vice versa as the natives way of life begin to mirror the role presented for them through hegemony.
How do you describe a film like this? How do you describe "slavery"? This film is not for the faint hearted. The courage it takes to live through the madness of being treated like a slave, the strength to find pride, and the fortitude to carry on.
The Usual Suspects (1995)
Guilty Pleasures
"The greatest trick the devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn't exist. And like that.....
....he's gone."
A movie you have to watch again to appreciate the full effects.
Unhinged (2020)
The time we are in....
What happens when "the gladiator" puts on couple hundred pounds? He becomes a very disgruntled man.
A middle class woman, unemployed and a single mother, comes across a divorced maniac who is one tick away from exploding.
There is a saying from Godfather 2 "if history has taught us anything, it is that you can kill anyone." As technology and internet has unveiled and sold our most private information, finding anyone's address is as easy as clicking the mouse.
In 2019, it was reported "roadrage" crimes have doubled. In 2020, "violent crimes" increased. The number of unemployed is hitting record highs and Covid virus is claiming 3,000 lives every day. All the while, the rich keep getting richer and Trump doesn't give a #$$# about poor people of any race. Riots have spread through poor neighborhoods and white supremacist groups are taking aim at Democrats.
It's a crazy world. I don't know if this movie was meant to be political but all throughout the film, there is rarely a scene where the police does what they are paid to do PROTECT THE PEOPLE!!!
Food for thought....or telling of our times. There are millions of Americans getting unhinged everyday. Technology either made policing easier to track down suspects....or it made it easier for maniacs to find their next victim.
Arctic (2018)
Absolute Lost for Words
How can a movie with almost no dialog and only 3 cast members be so captivating? Director Joe Penna tells a story of survival words can never express. No word can explain the depths of human soul and ingenuity until death comes knocking. From that point, humanity begins to peel layer after layers to reveal who we really are.
The movie begins in a remote tundra where the main character manages to survive a plane crash by staying one step ahead of death. But death in this film comes in many forms. Climate. Predator. Starvation. Frostbite. No medical supply so any injury can be terminal.
It's not until mid way through the film, he makes the choice to walk into the blizzard to seek rescue. And in silence, the story begins to churn the emotions of "hope" and the frozen terrain where very few life forms make it. As the momentum begins to build, it takes a sudden turn as looming threat of death continues to haunt him. What carries him is the humanity that drives him to will his way against what can be the inevitable. But like the saying goes, "you only lose when you quit."
The story telling is weaved through sounds and breath taking scenary with minimal dialog where a simple "hello" makes your heart drop. Obstacle after obstacle, as the story builds, the ending of the film is....well, you have to watch it.
Borat Subsequent Moviefilm: Delivery of Prodigious Bribe to American Regime for Make Benefit Once Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan (2020)
A movie about absolutely nothing?
This movie is essentially a slap stick comedy disguised as an allegory....or is it the other way around?
This satire is something only Sacha Cohen can do. Pretending to be the joke only to turn the tables on any unassuming character.
Rudy Giuliani has a cameo on this film. It was later learned Giuliani called the police to have them escorted out. When you watch the clip you will understand why. That alone makes it worth seeing.
The Vanishing (2018)
Haunting
The movie begins with three characters who's pasts are entangled through emotions still raw and unsettled, viewers are left guessing what the relations are. Their immediate responsibility is to patrol a lighthouse on an island that seems a million miles from human contact. Desolate in every way. That is until a man is washed ashore with a mystery cargo. From there on, the director Kristoffer Nyholm, takes a hold of the audience's nerves and never let's go.
This movie is possibly one of the best suspense films i have seen in a long while. My mind began racing as I felt engaged and fearing for their lives. The action comes in a wave where each sequence leads to consequences that embodies the dark mystery of human will. Just what are the ends to human will when you really want something...at any cost....even if it's your own life? The intriguing part is how little we know of each character doesn't seem relevant. Not as relevant as how little they know each other. That is until the end.
The finale is mesmerizing. As haunting as Gerald Butler's performance. I can't get it out of my head.
3:10 to Yuma (2007)
A modern take on one of the best Western story
The lawmen would burn down his ranch so they can use the property to connect the intercontinental railroad. His own son sees him as a coward for not fighting back fist to cuff. His wife is riddled with doubts. But in the face of danger, pride went running scared all except for the one person who was willing to sacrifice his life for his family. It took the most ruthless outlaw to see inside of the soul of Dan and find value in the struggles of the everyday hero.
The final shoot out was Ben Wade's statement that the worth of the family man is more important than anything he has done.
Must watch!!!
Tales from the Loop (2020)
Ehhhh....
The world of "the loop" is a place where technology expands human possibilities. But it can't help making poor episodes. If I can give a rating for a single episode, than episode 2 "transpose" gets 9/10.
Two friends from different classes decide to exchange lives for a day. The story takes a dark turn when one decides he's not going back.
Every other episode is like "eeehhhh"
Taxi Driver (1976)
Preservation of innocence
A concise analyses into the characters:
Both female characters in the film have naive innocence on the verge of corruption. Jodie Foster as Iris captures the naive little girl who yearns for the love of her pimp, and Harvey Keitel gives her sparing moments of romance so he can cash in. Cybil Sheppard's character, Betsy, represents purity (dressed in all white) but she campaigns for a politician....a politician maybe the most manipulative corrupt figure anywhere. And Robert Deniro as Travis Bicker plays the protector who will sacrifice his life for both women.
In the novel Catcher in the Rye, Holden Caulfield plays the naive kid who can not understand the mature world so he questions what a hookers does....or why people cry watching movies. He is forever in the state of innocence which contradics the very society he lives in. New York City, the big apple, home of hells kitchen and other grizly underworld is a place where a breath of innocence dissipates into toxicity. But Caulfield could not understand the contrast between his innocence and the metropolis, so he goes insane, literally going in circles, living in a hallucination where he is catching innocent children falling from a cliff's edge. And Travis has similar traits only he lives amongst the under world and he understands the world he is in. But when he sees Iris and Betsy, he sees what everyone else has been desensitized to see.....purity. But just like Caulfield, he sees a society which embraces corruption of purity...so he makes his ultimate sacrifice.
There is a scene in the diner when Travis and Iris locks eyes to show they are the same people, victims of circumstantial environment. Their path out of this....it runs through all three caharcterrs
Does he overcome the villain? Does he get the girl? Will he finally be seen as the hero? All i will say is this. We are who we are in this world. And in this film, a taxi driver will always be a taxi driver.
If you are a Scorsese fan....or even just a movie buff, than you've seen this a million times. Some had to write a report on this for film class. Either way, this movie is all about character development which builds up until the final explosion...the moment of reckoning.