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Reviews
Wicked Little Letters (2023)
Wickedly Charming
There's something so charming about British films. They often tell stories in a way that feels more genuine, more human. 'Wicked Little Letters' is no exception. Olivia Colman is captivating in everything she does, but she really gets you laughing in this unique little true story. And somehow, even though it's a film about vulgar letters being sent around town, it's quite a cozy watch.
I like how the film explores how controlled women and girls were (with religion being the weapon wielded to keep them in line), and the utter foolishness of it all.
If you're looking for something that depicts the era perfectly, however, this isn't it. The historical inaccuracies are as silly as the film itself, which I think is part of the point: It's not taking itself too seriously. This isn't the film you'll want to use to show off your mastery of historical matters with a scathing online post about its flaws. Surely the production team very much know. As a self-proclaimed history buff, with a special interest in this specific era, I still very much enjoyed what this film was trying to be. And I appreciate these refreshing and unique stories being told rather than the same old boring, formulaic ones.
Do give this movie a try if you're craving a good ol' laugh at the absurdity of human nature!
Late Night with the Devil (2023)
AI Art in Title Cards Grossed Me Out
I was so excited for this movie! 70s, Halloween, and horror? Sign me up! I had my treats ready and was snuggled up and excited to enjoy this spooky new film when my eyes were suddenly assaulted by . . . AI art in the title cards. The skeleton and owls looked utterly ridiculous.
To spend so much time getting the 70s aesthetic right, getting the costumes to look lovely, etc., then to instantly ruin it all by shoving hideous AI art in our faces? We caught it immediately; it's such a jarring, uncanny thing to see, and it really ruins the movie-watching experience because now, as a viewer, all I can think about is how the production company don't care about art. I also start to wonder if the script and other parts of production relied on AI (since they've now proven they have no integrity). Even if you remove the moral part of how AI art scrapes and steals the soul of other artist's intellectual property (gross!), it still just looks so embarrassingly stupid. It's ugly. They could've paid a teen a few bucks to make something infinitely better.
This garbage undermines the intelligence of the viewer, too, by assuming we won't notice how utterly ridiculous, silly, and uncanny it all looks. This was meant to be a badass 70s horror flick, something that should've immersed me in that era. Instead it thrust me back into modernity by reminding me that there are lazy, cheap, untalented people relying on prompts and a generator to spit out "art" for them rather than hiring a human being who has spent their life learning how to create art.
The human touch will always win. Computers just aren't impressive. Humans making things is what impresses other humans. If a computer calculates a difficult mathematical equation we're unimpressed; we expect it to. If a human calculates it, though, we're blown away. We're excited about human excellence in the arts, not computers being prompted by untalented, unintelligent, lazy people. Ick.