holker-127-845774 Reviews

The Revenant (I) (2015)

Good start, but someone got arrogant, which made the movie absurd...

[6/10 · 21 December 2015]

I was lucky enough to watch this movie early and saw it without the knowledge that it was from the same director as Gravity and Birdman.

The movie was good until the horse jumped off the cliff and into the tree. Looking at the end result of that stunt the director completely lost me as viewer. All the gravity the heavy story had; became an absurdity, which is an incredible shame. That single scene should have been edited out, which would have saved the story, because everything what happened afterwards became an irritating show-off of special effects (like The Hobbit trilogy) and no longer the gritty film what it was.

The special effects are indeed amazing and you are very often left wondering how they have pulled that off; especially the bear scene. However, special effects shouldn't dominate the movie and the story should always come first!

At the final scene it suddenly struck me that this was a movie from Alejandro Gonzalez Innarito, because it was such a signature of his. It is too bad he got too cocky here, because Gravity and Birdman were both beautiful masterpieces. The Revenant in its current form is definitely not a masterpiece unfortunately. Less would have most certainly been more in this case and I can only hope they revise this movie before release, trimming some unnecessary scenes out...

Lockout (2012)

Escape from New York in space

[8/10 · 25 April 2012]

I haven't enjoyed a science-fiction like this one, since 'District 9'. The skeleton-storyline is obviously stolen from the classic 'Escape from New York', but we need a new Snake Plissken anyway, don't we? I think they have found the perfect match and thankfully they managed to do an excellent job by making this film still unpredictable. An extra thumbs up for making one of the bad guys funny as well, well done! You don't see that very often in films and I think that little detail is exactly what this film makes a bit more special and better in quality. With the open ending they have given this film, I cannot wait for the Lockout2-sequel, they got my vote! 8/10

Captain America: The First Avenger (2011)

No surprise, no disappointment

[6/10 · 4 September 2011]

I watched this flick, because I want to see all the prequels to the highly anticipated "The Avengers"-film and I suspect that's why most people will have the same motivation to see this movie.

Story was familiar, since they used the exact same formula as in all the other Stan Lee superhero movies. To be honest it is starting to become boring and I hope Captain America is next to the first Avenger also the last Avenger.

Hugo Weaving absolutely stole the show with his Arnold Schwarznegger accent and he basically carried the whole film on his back. It was great fun to see him perform the evil governator super-villain and I wish there was more footage shown of him.

The rest of the movie is just sad. Of course they have to pick World War 2 as the war where Captain America fought, since every one knows all the recent wars were just fought to obtain oilfields for the corporate world (how noble is that? indeed...). And the rest of the film is just a load of American chauvinism and propaganda with a few entertaining jokes in it. 6/10

The Fountain (2006)

Quest for acceptance

[9/10 · 3 September 2011]

Watching this film was like watching a masterpiece painting coming to life. Visually it reminded me a lot of Anton Corbijn's video-clip of R.E.M.'s song "Losing My Religion", but then with the captivating music of the Kronos Quartet 20 times longer, who by the way did such a good job in the "Requiem for a Dream"-film from the same director, who made this very picture; Darren Aronofsky.

I read that Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett were cast for the lead characters, but Brad went for Troy (big mistake). I do not know if these two could have done a better job then Hugh Jackman and Rachel Weisz, but actually I think the rolls would have fitted better with Latino actors to be honest. I think it is a missed opportunity there for Penelope Cruz or Salma Hayek and Antonio Banderas or some other Latino, who could have maybe given this film that extra star it needed to make it truly legendary.

But I am nitpicking this film to much. This film is a story of a man who cannot accept his wife is dying. His wife has already accepted her faith and has to painfully watch her husband struggle with this. This beautiful story is not about Tom trying to help Izzy by finding the cure for cancer, but exactly the opposite; the dying Izzy helping out Tom finding reconciliation with his ordeal of losing her. A wonderful film full of symbolism you can watch over and over again. 9/10

The Infernal Comedy: Confessions of a Serial Killer (2010 Video)

Project to introduce you into opera

[7/10 · 2 September 2011]

I bumped into this video and it got my curiosity, since I absolutely do not mind mainstream classical music. In the beginning I thought it would be a show where some classical music is going to be played, then John Malkovich would say something while the musicians are taking a break and visa versa. But fortunately it was more then that and John Malkovich really interacted with the female opera singers (lucky old bastard), the orchestra and the audience.

I hoped to find a review here from an opera-expert, who could explain to me which opera pieces were performed and how they fit in with the serial killer's story, but I see I am the first one to review this video. I hope someone who really knows opera can explain me about this some day, because the pieces have really intrigued me now.

This project is most likely made to introduce people into opera and it did work for me, so this art-project is therefore a success. However the story line, that started and built up so good, did not deliver a satisfying ending and I think more could have been done on that part. 7/10

PS. If you look at the books stacked on the table, you can see they have taken the best parts out of several different plays. ^^

The Pursuit of Happyness (2006)

Predictable feel-good movie

[7/10 · 31 August 2011]

At the moment I am in a similar situation as the lead character was in this film, so that is why I was interested in this flick. I am about to make a gamble myself and do an internship without pay just to get some work experience under the belt, just like Chris in the film.

Chris had it tough, real tough and has Murphy's law against him as well; when everything can go wrong, well... but with perseverance you can get you a long way. I hoped to get some inspiration from this film, but it didn't really happen for me; mainly because the story was a biography and you kinda know how it is going to end. He is going to get lucky and the many people who didn't, are not in the spotlight and won't get an own movie. Maybe a movie should be made about such a person for a change.

Anyway, I am happy for Chris and I hope I will one day follow his footsteps and be successful just like him. 7/10

Dogtooth (2009)

Revolting film that does make you think...

[5/10 · 31 August 2011]

This film is about a family, that has completely alienated itself to protect the children from the outside world. Why is not clear, but I think it has to do with the loss of a son what made the father and mother decide to do this. The result is creepy to say none the least.

What's creepy is, that the teenagers are still treated like toddlers and are not allowed to know the meaning of bad words like 'zombie' and 'cunt'. The parents also make things up to keep the balance. This balance is immediately disturbed by outside influences like the girlfriend of one of the teenagers and even a visiting cat in the garden. The parents try to restore this balance with even more lies to disastrous effects.

Classifying this movie is hard, but you can see the influence of Lars von Trier well in this young director. I give this 5/10, because it is absolutely no fun to watch, but because the story repels you so much it does make you think twice about the responsibility of good parenthood.

Body of Lies (2008)

decent thriller

[30 August 2011]

Ridley Scott is one of the directors I really admire and I love his sci-fi films like 'Bladerunner' and 'Alien', they are true classics. This film 'Body of Lies' is a solid political terrorist espionage thriller, which doesn't really take sides or step on any toes. It reflects the situation in the Middle East as it is; everybody lies and is playing the cloak and dagger game. The story is slow-paced, well constructed and stays neutral, but doesn't really stand out in anyway. It doesn't really bring out a message either, which is a shame. Everything else is just about right the movie, the directing/editing/acting is all just fine (maybe some miscasting with the Australian Russell Crowe as the fat arrogant American and the obvious blond/blue-eyed Aryan Leonardo DiCaprio trying to blend into the Muslim world as an arab), so therefore: 7/10

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (2008)

Dementia romanticised

[8/10 · 28 August 2011]

When someone gets Alzheimers, that person becomes quite often childlike and I am pretty sure that this film is based upon that fact and not the freak genetic disorder. However, the subject of dementia is only briefly touched at the end of the film and the story is actually more about life. They have decided to cover life from beginning to end and that's quite a lot material to cover, so be sure to make time for this one. Luckily for me the movie never grew dull for me, unlike some fastlaner's reviews I have read. When you do not take Benjamin Button's age to literally, a lot of life's truths are revealed like; for everything is a time and something good never lasts forever. This all is brought to you in a very lightweight charming story that never really becomes really dark, even though some really heavy subjects are brought to light. 8/10

The Expendables (2010)

Action nostalgia

[6/10 · 27 August 2011]

The Expendables 2 film got into the news and I got curious what the first film was like, so I watched this one. I have grown up with Arnold Schwarznegger, Sylvester Stallone, Bruce Willis, Dolph Lundgren and Mickey Rourke and I used to look up to these men as a kid, so it was great nostalgia to see those men back in business again. Mickey Rourke actually surprised me with some real acting moment actually, kudos for him, but to bad it was wasted in the wrong film, because this baby was all about action, hahaha! The film is a sorry-excuse story just to blow up some stuff and beat the crap out of some stupid people that got in the way, as of course expected. In that way the film really delivers and if you wanted anything else, then you are just a fool for even attempting to look for it in this film.

I hope the governator is coming back in the sequel with Jean-Claude van Damme, Christopher Lambert and Christian Slater. Would be cool to see Mr. T. and Jackie Chan as well, but I guess I am asking for to many 80's/90's actionheros now.

All in all I am going to give this film 6 out of 10; it was great entertainment, but a higher grade would be really to much.

[Rec]² (2009)

Why so serious...?

[25 August 2011]

After seeing the sequel I am happy I have seen it.

This second {Rec} film takes itself much more seriously then the first one and has much less humour in it, which is a shame; because it looses its charm as well. Also the heart-stopping scares are much more predictable now, therefore much less effective and no longer give that adrenalin rush as in the first {Rec} film.

Nevertheless, it does make up in story, since you are no longer following one cameraman anymore, but 3 or 4. This has the result that the storyline is much more complex and enjoyable to watch.

I hope they end the {Rec} series here, but I fear the worst; they most likely milk this cow completely dry as it happens with all horror-flicks... For the wicked storyline; 7/10

REC (2007)

Horror how it should be!

[8/10 · 25 August 2011]

I am not going to say much, because I hate to spoil it.

It's a good horror docu-style, which made my heart jump a couple of times and the adrenalin pumping in my body. The film doesn't take itself to seriously like Blair Witch Project and that's why it is a great laugh at the same time. Don't expect any classy stuff, like good acting, camera-work, props, scientific basis etc., after all it is a cheap horror movie for gods sake! If I would make a cheap horror, it would have been like that and nothing fancy.

Just sit back and enjoy the ride. Must see for the horror-fans! It is a solid film with it's faults, but that just makes it even more charming and maybe that is even its strength. 8/10

Fish Tank (2009)

overrated

[4/10 · 15 August 2011]

This film was on BBC's iPlayer and because of IMDb's high rating it got me curious to see this film. The first 15 minutes I was worried I was going to see some "I'm-gonna-dance-out-of-da-ghetto" film, but it turned out to be a coming-of-age flick of some white-trash girl. Now there is nothing wrong with that (Trainspotting is one of my favourite movies), however; there were several times where things were starting to get really dangerous and these were excellent opportunities to make the story really REALLY interesting. But unfortunately for some reason the writer did not have the guts to turn into that road, with the result; a film that fizzles out into another boring supposed-to-be-happy-ending flick.

The film did not deliver any kind of message and it is basically a documentary of a time period where an European white-trash family trying to live the African-American gangster dream. 4/10

Wings of Desire (1987)

My German should have been better...

[14 August 2011]

As a kid I have been watching U2's "Stay" video-clip without realising it was based upon this dense deep slow paced German film about the meaning of life. It is quite a lot of material to handle and I want to see it again. I wish I could understand German better, because I noticed the subtitles did not match with what was actually being said. For example "Gebrauch mich" means "Use me" instead of "Need me". I guess I have to see it with different subtitles, maybe one which is in my native tongue.

It was a great surprise for me to see Bruno Ganz playing the lead character in this movie. He is a marvelous actor and was magnificent as Adolf Hitler in Der Untergang (Downfall). I have read other reviews and the comment that Peter Falk (Columbo) actually played the devil in this, didn't occur to me. I feel stupid for not noticing it myself, because Lucifer is of course a fallen angel himself.

This film is no doubt a classic. City of Angels is obviously based upon this movie, although that movie is much more romantic and not as philosophic as this one and should therefore definitely not be compared with each other; they have each different objectives.

I feel I have to see this classic once more again before I am going to write anything else about it. For now 8/10.

Six Shooter (2004)

Pulling Death's Leg

[7/10 · 14 August 2011]

After seeing 'In Bruges', I got curious of the other film Martin McDonagh had made. This short film is also a dark comedy and tries to make fun of death, suicide and the loss of a loved one. This is of course really hard and not easy to do. It sometimes fails as well at some points, but overall it kinda succeeds.

Yet another movie of Martin McDonagh I am not sure what to make of it... strange... but if you like dark twisted humour, then this film is definitely for you.

I am not sure if the Oscar was really deserved, but it keeps me thinking at least... 7/10

In Bruges (2008)

Disappointing black comedy becomes a fascinating surreal movie

[7/10 · 13 August 2011]

I watched this film expecting to see a brilliant dark comedy, but I didn't find the jokes funny at all. It was indeed dark, but slow paced and half-way through I was thinking of giving this boring film just 5 stars.

But then the story became very surreal and interesting. I started to wonder if Ray was already dead and Bruges itself actually symbolised purgatory, where good (Ken) and evil (Harry) were fighting for Ray's soul.

Still not sure what to make of this flick, but I kinda like it now. 7/10

Super 8 (2011)

Nostalgia for the midlifer

[8/10 · 12 August 2011]

Cloverfield meets Stephen King's It... granted... but I quite enjoyed the movie J.J. Abrams served us, maybe because my expectations weren't so high. Clearly you could see Stephen Spielberg's influence seeping through, but I wasn't bothered by this, because after all; it has been a while when we saw something good coming from him.

Also it was wonderful to see all those little things I had forgotten about coming back to me, like the first time when the walkman with headphones came out to the public or when films/photos still needed to be developed in a store. Of course this has to do with my age, but these kinda things brought me right back to my own childhood and that's probably also the reason why this movie hit me on personal note I guess.

All in all nostalgia for the ones who lived and seen the period before the digital age. 8/10

Don't forget to watch the credits too!

Thor (2011)

Thor is great fun as always :)

[8/10 · 9 August 2011]

I never read the comics, but Thor is a great character in the old Norse folklore and seeing him as an alien in this film was just as entertaining as the old Scandinavians must have found him entertaining in the good old days when they still spat on Christianity. It is great to see also all the other elements of the Norse myth being revamped and kinda scientific explained to make sense of all this ancient magic. The plot of the film never bored me for one minute and it had all the stuff it needed. To bad he didn't speak Icelandic or some other Norse language, but if the movie is made in America it just has to be in America then.

All in all a good movie and I am looking forward seeing Thor plus entourage in The Avengers. 8/10

Rise of the Planet of the Apes (2011)

Caesar is to perfect

[8/10 · 7 August 2011]

Everybody loves a revolution and so do I, but the reason why it didn't receive the full 10 stars is; because they made the film to save and crowd pleasing. In my heart I know this film is actually just a 7 star film, but I gave it the extra point, because Rupert Wyatt showed so much respect to all the previous 'Planet of the Apes' films by putting so many nice little references in his film, making me smile every time I recognised one.

The story does a real good job filling in the blanks, which came to being after Tim Burton's 'Planet of the Apes' film. Tim Burton must be really happy with Rupert Wyatt's film, since many people will be motivated to see Tim Burton's film for a second time after seeing this 'Rise of the Planet of the Apes' film.

However; where Tim Burton tried to hard to make a stamp and create a real different 'Planet of the Apes' film, Rupert Wyatt unfortunately wasn't bold enough and lacked that courage here. There were several wonderful opportunities to make for example the Caesar/Will Rodman (James Franco) relationship really epic (I'm thinking in the trend of Darth Vader/Luke in Star Wars or Fredo/Michael Corleone in Godfather) or Caesar more of a conquerer by not letting the apes hold back. But Rupert Wyatt simply missed this opportunity, which is such a shame! It could have made such a difference and could have made this film a classic, if they were a little bit more bold enough...

Still a good watch, I was entertained throughout the film and I am certain all the 'Planet of the Apes' fans wont be disappointed. Go see!