sethklee-77687 Reviews

Black Widow (2021)

Meh.

[5/10 · 10 July 2021]

Overall, I'd say "Black Widow" slightly exceeded my expectations, although, admittedly, my expectations weren't very high. The movie is okay. The 134-minute runtime didn't drag like I thought it would, but it wasn't particularly good either. The comedic moments are fine, and the action is fast. However, the action does nothing new, and it can be a bit bland. The villain of the movie is also pretty lame.

As an exploration of Natasha's character, it's ok, despite being years too late (spoiler alert: don't get too attached to her...). I guess it tells the story of her troubled past well, but it doesn't really add anything interesting to her personality. I don't feel any more of a connection to her character now than I did before watching. It essentially feels like the purpose of the movie is to bring Florence Pugh's character into the MCU, rather than coming from a genuine desire to tell Natasha's story. The multi-billion dollar MCU pushing industrialized, uninspired media out? It's crazy to think about, I know.

As far as the acting goes, everyone was fine, although I thought the Russian accents were kind of awful. It's kind of disappointing to see Florence Pugh take her career in this direction though... At least Scarlett Johansson is free now.

4.8/10

Also, Jeremy Renner should have been in this movie.

The Perfection (2018)

A Mess

[3/10 · 8 February 2021]

"The Perfection" is a mess. The film features Charlotte (Allison Williams), a woman who was a cellist prodigy as a child until she was forced to abandon her position at a world class music academy to take care of her ill mother. Years later, Charlotte flies out to Shanghai to reunite with her former mentor. During her visit, she meets Lizzie (Logan Browning). Lizzie took over Charlotte's position in the academy and is essentially living the life Charlotte wanted. It is from here that the story begins to unfold and oscillates between thriller, body horror, and revenge tale. The movie actually starts off okay, save for Logan Browning's performance, which I found to be unconvincing. But, as the story progresses, everything starts to deteriorate and it gets increasingly more stupid.

The film tries, but nothing really succeeds. The directing, the cinematography, the acting, and the writing all fall flat. Especially the writing, which is extremely unsubtle and all over the place. The writing at the end is so poor it essentially makes a mockery of the characters and subject matter.

3.4/10

Palm Springs (2020)

Flew Under My Radar

[8/10 · 15 January 2021]

A nice surprise: this was the funnest release of 2020! The script is witty, fun, and charming throughout, but still manages to be heartfelt. Andy Samberg and Cristin Milioti were perfectly cast and had such a great chemistry. Everything just worked very well, although the emotional moments were a little cliche. I also had the pleasure of not even knowing what the main plot was before watching which made it more enjoyable for me. Overall, "Palm Springs" was a good time and is probably worth a shot if you're on the fences about it. One of my favorites of the year, although that by itself doesn't say much.

I was a little bit worried towards the end, but they managed to wrap up both of my main concerns with the second to last scene and the post credits scene... Nice.

V/H/S (2012)

V/H/S

[6/10 · 8 December 2020]

When seeing that this is a low budget, anthology, found-footage horror movie, your first instinct may be to roll your eyes and disregard it. But, this really wasn't half bad. It kept my interest for the most part and can get genuinely creepy at times. It definitely has its issues though. For one, the quality widely varies between stories. The "Tape 56" and "Second Honeymoon" segments, especially the latter, were straight up bad. The found-footage aspect, with its frantic camerawork and glitches, can be taken too far and get annoying to watch. All of the stories also seemed to follow a similar path, which can grow to be boring.

On the other hand, the "Amateur Night" segment in particular was great. It's unsettling, has a great atmosphere, and is well crafted. While the movie wasn't as good as I hoped it would be, I'd still say I enjoyed it overall. If you're a fan of the genre and can look past its flaws, "V/H/S" is worth a shot.

You know quarantines got you messed up when you're considering the succubus.

6/10

Godless (2017)

Almost Great

[6/10 · 28 November 2020]

After seeing the recent acclaim for "The Queen's Gambit," I decided to watch Scott Frank's first miniseries, "Godless." And I'm not disappointed, because this is a fairly solid western. The story, while not anything excellent, holds your interest. The cinematography is gorgeous and it is well written, doing a great job world building and an even better job building the characters. And these characters were well acted. Jeff Daniels was great as the villain and some others stood out as well. But, there are some things that hold the series back.

For starters, although most of the cast was great, Truckee's line delivery ruined my immersion at times and I didn't find Merritt Wever very convincing... Although I seem to be going against the grain on that, seeing as she won an Emmy for her performance. It also could have been better if the length was shortened. There was some unnecessary stuff that could have been trimmed to bring the show down from its seven hour runtime, perhaps even all the way down to a film. Lastly, the finale didn't live up to the rest of the show and left me feeling a tad bit dissatisfied. The shootout was disappointingly bad and I'm not sure how I feel about how some of the storylines were tied up. With all that being said, the show as a whole isn't bad by any means and I think most will enjoy it more than I did.

6.4/10

ThanksKilling (2008)

You Just Got Stuffed

[7/10 · 23 November 2020]

This is genuinely hilarious. It's satire and it isn't meant to be taken seriously like many of the reviews are taking it. It's exactly what it sets out to be; whether or not the humor works is up to you. If a psycho killer turkey that offers to prostitute himself, disguises himself Leatherface style using someone's face, and eats a salad because he's vegetarian sounds interesting to you, go for it. It probably helps that I watched this with a group of friends at like 4 in the morning, which I would highly recommend if you're going to watch this.

7/10

Love Liza (2002)

Running on Fumes

[5/10 · 20 November 2020]

Philip Seymour Hoffman was good, but beyond that it's not really worth watching. While he was good, his character lacked development through both his background and his progression. Combine that with the lack of story arc and it leaves you asking yourself, "Do I even care?"

His friendship with Denny was cute though.

5/10

Megan Is Missing (2011)

Really.

[1/10 · 18 November 2020]

God help us for Gen Z TikTok finding this, because this is awful. Everything from the script, to the acting, to the directing, to the editing. The dialogue was so obviously written from the way a 40 year old man thinks teenage girls act. The characters are cliched (abused girl engaging in risky behavior and her goody-two shoes best friend), it's unrealistic (for instance, Amy's identity would have been kept a secret after she came forward), and there's plot holes (the police easily would have been able to track Josh down). The acting was awful, unconvincing, and forced (Charlie the cat is cool though). While the ending is not good and it's not nearly as disturbing as it's made out to be, at least it was memorable. But, combine that with some peoples' ignorance and it may be the movie's greatest sin, since it's what has led to it regaining popularity once again.

When defending this movie most bring up that it's supposed to spread awareness, like it's some sort of end-all be-all shield from any criticism. But it still sucks. All it does is teach people who know nothing about the internet to be scared of it and prey on young girls' fears. At best, it's outdated. Other movies have done it before and much better, without the creepy exploitational vibe this movie gives. Hell, even those awareness ads we used to be shown in elementary school were more realistic, were better acted, and had a better message than this.

1/10

Funny Games (1997)

The Games Weren't Funny.

[6/10 · 15 November 2020]

I don't know what to rate this. Although I can appreciate what Haneke was going for, the morally condescending tone didn't work for me. While you could write a book on the topic, I'll keep my thoughts short: humans have a fundamental craving for violence, and I can differentiate violence in media from violence in reality. His message just ended up falling flat. There wasn't any deeper criticism of violence and I didn't walk away feeling wrong or like I should have a new perspective on the matter. Yet I still didn't dislike it... The film was expertly crafted for his intentions, was adeptly acted, and I was kept engaged. Does that make me his target? Is it just pretentiousness? I'm not sure.

6.4/10

The Empty Man (2020)

Friedrich Nietzsche x A Cure for Wellness

[6/10 · 5 November 2020]

Decent. A dark, mystery thriller which follows an ex-cops investigation into a friend's missing daughter. The plot, which stays suspenseful and intriguing for the most part, is complex and philosophical, leaning on nihilism and Friedrich Nietzche. I'd say the film is more of a mystery film than a horror film, but that's ok and it certainly has horror elements. When it is scary, it doesn't rely as much on jumpscares which is always a plus.

I'm unsure of how I feel about the ending, but I had a good time with the buildup. It definitely could have had some of its 137 minute runtime trimmed down though. It almost feels like it was put out before being fully complete, which is definitely a possibility considering it's discrete release. The feeling could just be coming from its perplexing nature though. James Badge Dale gave a good performance. The cinematography and sound design were well done. Overall, while not great, it was something out of the ordinary and I found it to be a fairly enjoyable and philosophical film. It was nice to get out of the house and see one of the few films in theaters after being starved of them for months.

5.8/10

Tenet (2020)

An Intriguing, Creative Spy Thriller

[8/10 · 12 September 2020]

An intriguing, fast-paced, and creative spy thriller. It has an interesting concept for you to wrap your brain around that kept my brain stimulated for the duration. I saw a lot of people say they thought it was overly convoluted, but it felt fine to me (although those I watched it with disagree). Maybe my advantage going into it was I could hear the dialogue alright (many complained about the audio mixing) and I could keep up with everything going on in the film for the most part. But, I also could be missing much of it while not even realizing it. It's hard to know, because analyzing one aspect of the movie requires you to wrap your brain around the entire thing at once. I also saw some complaining about the exposition, but it was definitely necessary and it flowed fine for me.

While still a solid movie, I think it would have been better with more fledged out characters. The only character we really got an in-depth look into was Kat. The rest of them were written generally the same as most protagonists and I feel the film could have benefited more from their persons being explored. Also, while the movie was fast-paced and action scenes were fun and innovative, I felt the urge for more gritty, brutal fight scenes rather than the many times we were given simple headlocks. While holes (or the opposite: more aspects coming to light) could become apparent to me on a rewatch, for now this sits in my mind as a solid action film. Certainly not Nolan's best, but certainly more unique and captivating than most blockbusters.

7.6/10

My Suicide (2009)

A Powerful Low Budget Indie

[9/10 · 11 September 2020]

I really enjoyed this touching, low budget indie. The film has a very unique style that I enjoyed, with the way it switches between it's daydream like animation and normal. Crazy, experimental, and inventive, but that's what makes it so interesting and special. It's different than anything I have seen and I found the visuals to be captivating. Maybe slightly dated, but that didn't detract at all for me. If anything, it gave me an early 2000's nostalgic feel.

It was surprisingly intelligent and insightful. Lots of tonal shifts, but it covers the whole emotional spectrum seamlessly. Heartwarming and heartwrenching at the same time and a sharp, witty sense of humor that captures the heart of the character and teenage angst well. It leaves you with lots of food for thought. It has some intriguing philosophy that leaves you with some fantastic quotes and monologues about its deep themes. It's relatable, though not meant in an edgy way. It brings up for discussion some of the darker thoughts that creep into everyone's mind sometimes.

Archies' character felt tangible, and there were well done portrayals of human anguish all around. I also really liked the movie's soundtrack. Although I realize this movie isn't perfect and I could understand if some thought it was flawed or cliched, for now it holds a sweet spot with me.

8.8/10

Pyewacket (2017)

A Decent Low Budget Indie

[6/10 · 10 September 2020]

A decent low budget indie film with solid performances and drama. Maybe I should watch more horror movies alone in the middle of the night, because this felt eery. Yes, the atmosphere building and tension throughout the film is well done, but the concept itself is also unsettling. Making an emotional decision you immediately regret, but what's done is done and you are powerless in the face of it. It's a slow burner but it kept me intrigued.

The Pyewacket scenes are really good. You don't see it too much, but when you do it is chilling. The scene in particular that comes to mind is when it was sitting in the corner of her room at night, watching her. It gave me goosebumps and made me "wtf?". The movie doesn't use any in your face jumpscare type horror, just does a superb job at creating a creepy atmosphere.

But, the ending really did not work for me. I would have been satisfied with the reverse-ritual working and her making up with her mother. I would have been equally satisfied if the ritual failed and she had to suffer the consequences of her mistakes. But, the way it ended made absolutely no sense. She didn't listen to the author's advice at all. She didn't try to finish the ritual, and more importantly, she didn't listen to the advice that it could change it's form and deceive you. The fake mother and her real mother were so clearly different. I guess you could say she was a scared young girl, but the ending really knocks it down a notch for me.

6.3/10

Midsommar (2019)

Terrible

[1/10 · 3 January 2020]

I actually originally made my account just to give this movie a review. I don't understand why so many people rave about this movie. I can handle long, slow burn films but this was just pointless. There was multiple multi-minute scenes of people just speaking jibberish or moaning. It was just a bunch of random garbage thrown together that was supposed to be disturbing, creepy cult stuff, but it wasn't. It felt stupid and it made me feel extremely annoyed and slightly confused watching it.

The Grudge (2019)

Not worth your time

[3/10 · 3 January 2020]

The movie wasn't engaging. It was boring and didn't create a sense of fear at all. The only scares were a couple very weak jump scares. It looked and felt nothing like The Grudge. It felt like a cheap rip-off. It also had one of the generic bad endings that you always see. I'd say you should skip this one, you won't miss anything.