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chrisxmoloney
Reviews
Constellation (2024)
Watchable and Good/OK. LOST by ending. Done with this.
We invested a ton of time watching this series. The space scenes and story drew us in. The complex international space station elements made it entertaining and smart. Although VERY slow at time.s Then, as series do---they drag things out too long, too much and seem on the hunt for content in episodes 3-6. 7 Was good. 8 was a confusing non-ending ending. TV series have a chance to draw people in over weeks, even months at a time. You are eager to get to the next series. The astronauts barely seem like the top in their class. We invest our time, like money, into TV an movies. This series reminds me why movies are 10X better. You have 120 minutes to tell your story. If you do great, you get a sequel. Constellation did not need 8 episodes.
Manhunt (2024)
Excellent story. Very watchable. Sometimes slow. Always Fascinating
This is really what makes TV series worth watching. I learned a TON. Great time investment. Great historical drama with deep insights into our past. Thriller-level story and characters, and great cinema-quality (almost) filming and sets. My main issue here is the occasionally slow middle parts of the story. I was able to do work email at times, but it always wound up being an interesting episode, even if it did not need to be stretched to 7. I FIRMLY agree with many of the other reviews about casting ISSUES. Lincoln is 1/10th as good as Daniel Day Lewis was in the Lincoln film. The actor who is the main storyline, Tobias Menzies as Secretary Stanton is really excellent and the focus of the whole series. Serious and believable. Some of the "bad guys" are just dumb. Some other folks seem unworthy of this level of acting. The actor who plays John Wilkes Booth has his moments, but I think he's a 7/10. Despite getting a lot of camera time, I don't feel we understood this character much. That assassination of Lincoln is still pretty amazing to understand 150 years later. This story taught me lot and I am glad to watch it. If there were not a true story, I may give it a 7.5--but the deeply accurate historical cinema makes this an 8.5+ for me. GREAT series. Historical Aspects 10/10. Cinema 8.5/10. Casting 6.5/10. Pacing 7/10. -- Learning a ton about our nation's history - Priceless.
Road House (2024)
Absurd, Cheesy, 80s-style, flawed, stupid Entertainment
First, I love the director Doug Liman... usually. Jake Gyllenhaal was amazing in last year's film "Coventant." However, this film is so flawed and cheesy, it's much WORST than the 80s Patrick Swayze version. Here's a few thing that are so absurd--they make it hard to watch. Entertaining at times, but like a bad TV skit Where to start... having been to Florida 100 times and the Keys 20 times, I can tell you this gangster angry violent redneck vibe is NOT the Keys in any way. Perhaps there may be somewhere on the border for Florida/Alabama like this, but this is not the keys. The "owner" character is not like anyone in the Keys, the patrons are not like Keys folks, well dressed and relatively smart thugs does not make sense. Nothing really adds up here. Not even as a black comedy. The bands and the bar would never play there. Key West is one of the most laid back friendly places anywhere. Every patron is ready to fight or die every night it seems. Angry, drunk, gang thugs with nice bikes is not Key West. The original Patrick Swayze 1980s film was set in rural Missouri. Maybe there are some odd folks there for sure. But the Keys are VERY expensive. Even shacks can be pricey near the water. His love interest is also absurd. A doctor who thanks him for injured patients. If you can turn of 99% of your brain for 2 hours, this might be a visually fun angry fighting soap opera. Back to the bands... they are good, but would never play behind a chicken wire cage in the keys. Really a 5/10, but I'll add an extra point just because Doug Liman directed the classic LA/Vegas film Swingers. Stick to films like that Doug. Avoid these direct-to-streaming absurdity. And avoid politics. You can do much better.
Dune: Part Two (2024)
Awesome Cinema. Must be seen on the big screen!
A great movie to see at the theater. This gigantic visual spectacle features some characters you know from the first film and some interesting new ones, including Christopher Walken. It is visually stunning, dark, complex, and draws from great cinema and deep historical references of the past of human history. We saw it in IMAX which is well worth it. This film is definitely want to see in the theater and you should not wait to watch on a television. You will only get about half the effect on a TV screen. That said, the film was a bit long, and despite a few slow moments, it kept us fully engaged, and felt and thrallingly real, despite its other-worldly characters and planets. Truly, an inspiring piece of cinema, the captures, both the human spirit, the conflict of humanity, the flaws of emotion, and the goodness of the human spirit. Great Cinematic classic!
The Iron Claw (2023)
Wow. What a well-told story. Very entertaining and cinematic.
I only knew a little about the Von Erich's. This movie seemed a bit risky due to the topic and title, but there is a reason it has a 90@% on Rotten Tomatoes. Wow, what a fun and very realistic film. A true story that is powerful, real, and heartbreaking. Loads of classic 70s-80s vibes and music with great (albeit testosterone) acting. REALLY well made film. Glad to have optied in to watch this true story. The writing and directing really make it come alive. Wish I had seen this in the theater to give it the right focus and attention. This era of Wrestling was unique, but the real story here is about family and humanity.
The Creator (2023)
Interesting, but overrated. Wildly eccentric and unreal
We wanted to like or love this sci-fi film. The complexity and concept were interesting. But on an $80 million budget, it only made $40 million in the US. That says a lot about a big budget sci-fi film. So much was missing and convoluted here. My wife and I almost gave up, but at 2 hours and 15 minutes, we felt tied in. It has its moments. Washington is dark and compelling, but the fight between good and evil is zany. It suppose we get a glimpse of the AI risks, but the film has a plot hole every 10 minutes that distracts me. What a terrible and messy waste of time in the end. I just wish it were better. Two Oscar nominations in Sound and Visual Effects. That surprised me given the overall mediocre reviews. I free stream on a Tuesday--Maybe--but big screen sci-fi film, sorry.
The Holdovers (2023)
Perhaps the best film of 2023-24. Smart, authentic, funny, and real
My favorite film of 2023-24 Oscar season deserves the 5 nominations it received. Yes, this Best Picture nominee is very real and believable. And for Paul Giamatti's Alexander Payne wrote a funny, smart and real film. The 70s aesthetic is perfect. Even the film editing and opening credits feel like it's from that era. PAUL GIAMATTI is brilliant, perhaps his best film. Another Sideways of real humanity. I had a professor or two just like Professor Hunham.
The story grabs your heart on multiple levels. It connect very different people and sets of stories into one brilliant reminder of the power of human connection. It's also a stark reminder of parenting and how we teach our children and others around us.
Enjoy this brilliant cinematic throwback that has no special effects or super heroes. Regular people being real and the amazing storyline that emerges.
It won't likely win the best picture award this year, but in some years it would. Giamatti and Da'Vine Joy Randolph are award winners and quite deserving. What a winner of a film!
Napoleon (2023)
Entertaining bit of history. Grand epic cinema, but flawed execution.
I love Ridley Scott. I enjoy the historic story of Napoleon. Great costumes and scenery. Phoenix looks the part and has the emotional complexity, however, his painfully mumbled American accent is rough. This is even harder given that the other actors have a clearly British accent, yet they are all French. The Napoleon story is fascinating and Scott tries to tell a very complex story, but he misses the mark far too many times. But the fight scenes--and there are many--are amateurish. Scott has taken so much time to get teh visuals right, but the fight scenes often look so fake they look like a TV movie. And the accents vary so wildly, it's comedic. Might win an award for costumes. And it does make me appreciate history more--but I wish the film were better.