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mchantloup
Reviews
Civil War (2024)
Refutes the authoritarian worldview
An authoritarian president (think Donnie) overstays his constitutional term of office and precipitates a civil war led by the Western Alliance of California and Texas (presumably the president's allies in these states were disposed of early on). The action follows a small group of journalists who journey from New York on a mission to interview the president as the Western Alliance closes in on D. C. That's the setup -- I'm not giving anything away you won't learn in the first ten minutes.
Clearly the target of the film is the MAGA worldview, though it takes pains to keep the specifics vague. If offending MAGA was a consideration, they needn't have bothered, since they're staying away in droves anyway. (They know who would be inclined to start a civil war if they don't get their way.) Anyway, the script is tight and the acting is good. It's an effective and unsettling film.
The Shack (2017)
Invisible Sky Wizard Nonsense
Sam Worthington plays the troubled hero Mack, who embarks on a fateful camping trip with his kids. Things don't go well, and later the grieving man receives a mysterious, personal invitation to meet with God at a place called "The Shack." He goes there and finds he's talking to himself. Then some delusional people show up, convince him they're the holy trinity, and soon after, he once again embraces superstition and is happy with his imaginary friend.
If you aren't already indoctrinated into the invisible-sky-wizard cult, this pile of clichés and happy-clappy, New-Age-Christian propaganda won't convert you to their lunacy. But you'll know how the pancake feels after the butter and syrup are poured on.
Bodies Bodies Bodies (2022)
Up With Killers
Watched Bodies Bodies Bodies to kill some time. I think the point of this movie is, we're supposed to root for the killer. The characters are like the spoiled little pukes of Snowflake Mountain before the shoot.
Bullet Train (2022)
Funny as heck
It's like John Wick with wicked sense of humor. I just saw a Thursday afternoon showing, sitting by a family of six. I was laughing my tail off, and they were falling all over each other laughing. I mean big, long guffaws. No, it's really that good. The plot is a bit complex but easy to follow, and the action sequences are amazing. Also, it's good to see Brian Tyree Henry in another big, meaty part. I've been a fan since he played the warlord in Book of Mormon.
The Reality of Truth (2016)
Psychodelics are cool
Hey, I'm for anything that helps people transcend their fears and limitations without resorting to superstition and invisible sky wizards. Check it out.
Breach (2020)
Budget Creature Feature
It's a mash-up of Alien and The Thing made on a small budget. Not great but good enough to finish watching. Bruce Willis gives a spare, professional performance in a supporting role, which is something considering the disability with which he's been working. The rest of the cast is good as well.
I'm puzzled by all the low ratings, though I shouldn't be, considering how narcissistic and smug people have become. Hence I gave it a 10 as a rebuke to those knuckleheads.
The Tragedy of Macbeth (2021)
Once more into the breach
Collins Dictionary:
archaic
ADJECTIVE
1. Marked by the characteristics of an earlier period; antiquated
an archaic manner
an archaic notion
2. (of a linguistic form)
commonly used in an earlier time but rare in present-day usage except to suggest the older time, as in religious rituals or historical novels. Examples
thou
wast
methinks
forsooth
I have acted in several plays by Edward de Vere AKA William Shakespeare (with, no doubt, significant contributions and revisions by many others), and there were lines that, despite in-depth research, I voiced without clearly knowing their meaning and intention. Yet, despite the fact that audiences comprehend even less of the dialog, with its marginally relevant subjects of kings and court intrigue, ghosts and witches, and English historical conflicts, Shakespeare is regularly produced and lauded as genius. Why?
Well, for one thing, it's very irrelevance makes it an unthreatening corporate favorite -- "full of sound and fury, signifying nothing" -- and it's a fun challenge for actors and theatre companies. So, they make all the expected mouth sounds about the illumination of the human condition and timeless universal truths. Yet, in my opinion, he never penned a better play than James Goldman's 1966 play, Lion in Winter.
For audiences, attending one of the big festivals or Globe Theatre replicas or Shakespeare in the Park, the appeal is similar to baseball. Not a lot is happening, but it's nice to be out on a pleasant evening with snacks and cold beer, with colorful, athletic performers running about doing their noisy thing -- "a loaf of bread, a jug of wine, and thee."
Film may actually improve it somewhat. Watching beloved screen veterans in giant closeups brings us close to the angst of the characters, illuminating the text and making it passably accessible. And so it is here, with Washington and Frances McDormand giving Macbeth -- as compelling a play as de Vere ever wrote -- all they've got.
Yet, after all is said and done, it's hard to escape the feeling that we've watched another energetic but academic exercise in reanimating a historical anachronism. We go home and have a better time watching McDormand in Fargo or Washington in The Equalizer.
Game Over, Man! (2018)
Pineapple Express meets Die Hard
A raunchy, violent buddy farce that jumps the shark -- in this film, maybe, humps the shark -- in virtually every scene. Whether you find it side-splitting or repellent depends on your temperament and the tension in your rectum. Me, I liked it and laughed my behind off. I would rate it an 8 except I cannot abide prigs who give movies a 1 (that would be 3 hours of chartreuse paint drying with no soundtrack), so I'm voting 10 to cancel out one of them.