lpucci Reviews

Dune (2021)

All I hoped for and more

[10/10 · 15 October 2021]

I have been a Dune fanatic for 40 years. Was fortunate enough to see a premiere today in SF with a Q&A afterward with Denis.

I like the Lynch version but am very aware that there are some major problems. The mini-series was passable but I was always wanting for something better. And this was it. The Harkonnens and Sardaukar were brutal unlike the other two versions. The Fremen were perfect. The cinematography was incredible. The sound engineer will win the Academy Award. Hans Zimmer should win as well.

I always thought IMAX was where it was at but Dolby was absolutely incredible. I felt like I was on Arrakis. The sound just thundered underneath my seat.

Anyways back to the movie. The acting was fantastic across the board. I was worried about Oscar Isaac but shouldn't have been. Everyone else was perfect.

I just want to thank Denis Villanueve from the bottom of my heart for the experience I just had. I've read the book at least 3 times and felt like I just lived it.

Bring on Part 2.

Charlie's Angels (2019)

Better by a mile than Terminator Dark Fate

[6/10 · 14 November 2019]

It is what it is. Tries to be too stylistic with jarring camera movement during action scenes which can be pretty unnerving to watch. Story twists were a bit too obvious to me. The girls had decent chemistry. Ellla Balinska might have a pretty decent career and would be a reasonable Bond if they ever relent and have a female lead in that franchise.

By no means was this a great film but it was head and shoulders above that travesty Terminator Dark Fate. How that movie is rated 6.5 and this one below 4 makes me seriously doubt the veracity rankings. That said, in my opinion this film was not in the same league as the Kingsman movies and Spy for humorous spy film franchises.

Puss in Boots (2011)

A worthy yet slightly flawed successor

[20 October 2011]

I was able to see the San Francisco premiere for Puss N' Boots last night. I would say the audience was about 50% children and 50% adults. The movie was shown in 3D and I would definitely recommend it.

The star of the movie was definitely Banderas's Puss. If you liked the character from previous movies, you will not be disappointed. Salma Hayak as Kitty Softpaws was decent enough although not very memorable in any way. And finally, Zach Galifianakis's Humpty Dumpty will be a polarizing character in my opinion. If you thought Rumpelstiltskin from Shrek Forever After was a tad on the annoying side, I think you'll feel the same way about Humpty Dumpty.

Anyways, the story is good. The integration of former players in nursery rhymes and fairy tales is seamless. And the comedy is standard Shrek-style delivering lots of laughs for children and the occasional adult-only joke (some very funny).

The visuals are stunning. And the music is fantastic. It almost felt like an action-packed spaghetti western with a Latin flavor. I definitely enjoyed myself. I also talked to quite a few people afterwords and the consensus was that the children all loved it and the adults kept using the word "cute" in so many different ways to describe their feelings about the movie.