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haroldareynoldsIV
Reviews
Killers of the Flower Moon (2023)
Killers of the Audiences' Brain Cells
The Good: Lily Gladstone deserves an Oscar just for sitting through this "epic" slog, pouring her all into a thankless role, where she deserved to have way more lines and material to chew on. Deniro was great playing evil to his best ability. The story was great, but the book already explained it better. The costumes, setting, and time period were extremely well done, but that seems to be the gimmick.
The Bad: The top investigator and FBI, whose perspective that the book was written, were relegated to the backseat and a Jesse Plemons Columbo is in sleepwalking mode so that the movie can self-indulge into Dicaprio's and Deniro's big egos, Dicaprio overrated as always in this. The Osage victims are done no justice, and what is this expressed as an actual study on? It should've studied deeper into the great Osage people, but they were mere background actors. It's way too long with no rewatch value and not even on a spectacle level like one-watch Oppenheimer. The final ten minutes were an absolute joke and fraudulent.
I'll give it a 4/10 just as an investment into future sleeping assistance and for Gladstone's suffering in having to be a part of this mess.
4/10.
Mission: Impossible - Fallout (2018)
Fun Action Watch That Started Great and Ended Mediocre at Best
This is the first Mission Impossible movie I've seen since part one way back when. I wanted to watch it in case I decide to see the newest one that just came out and because it was recommended as "the best one" of the entire series up to when it came out.
When it comes to MI movies with Tom Cruise, I expect a lot of cliches and formulaic, predictable plot, which is probably why I've avoided them for basically two decades now. With that being said, I did enjoy the movie, but it wasn't as good as I was hoping only because the third act devolved into that formulaic expectation.
The first sixty minutes, the first act, were excellent for a MI or any action movie in general. In the first hour, all of the twists, dialogue, and action scenes were very good, if not excellent. I was seeing why the ratings were so high for this.
During the second act, it continued to suffice minus a couple of eyeroll scenes (Cruise ejects off his motorcycle with no helmet at full speed after hitting a moving car, gets up, hobbles over to the bush, and lands into the boat waiting for him with basically not a scratch on him; I can forgive the broken bones, but not even a scratch? My eyes rolled for the first time). The second act was still good, but it wasn't as good as the first act, where Vanessa Kirby stole the show. I was hoping to see a lot more of her, and to my pleasure she did appear one more time, albeit for only about ten seconds at the very end of the movie, basically an epilogue.
Now, spoilers are coming here for anyone who hasn't watched it, so if you haven't then immediately discontinue reading this review. I saw the big twist coming from about half an hour or maybe forty-five minutes into it (I knew Walker was Lark just based off of a few observations and deductions I was able to gain about the scenes, especially the scene with Angela Basset when Walker tries to pin Ethan as Lark- that scene was a giveaway and I actually wondered if it was meant to be a little, as it's one thing for Walker to butt heads with Ethan professionally, but trying to pin Lark on being Ethan was ludicrous and something only a true villain would do). I digress. So knowing about that earlier on, I was not surprised about the eventual soon-to-be reveal. Fortunately the script was layered with a bunch of other twists that took me off of that. However, at the same time, it became a little too convoluted in that basement scene with Alec Baldwin calling the shots, Angela Basset on the video call, and then a band of armed agents storming them (which was after another expository scene where Baldwin confusingly tries to paint Ethan as the bad guy who needed to get out to take the fall). Look, I get it, it's a fun action movie with plenty of twists, and I totally followed everything except who those armed soldiers were who stormed them, I'm guessing they were agents for the CIA, but it was never clearly explained why that all went down, at least not clearly. It was a fun little twist, but it made me roll my eyes again, and seeing Baldwin go down the way he did was a little cliched- the older pro remaining stoic at his last breath.
So then came the third and final act, and I'm just going to say it now and cut to the chase. While there were some intense and riveting action sequences, the third act mostly felt, at least to me, like Commando's final act, but mixed with a hamfisted love story that was cringeworthy and unnecessary to try to either appeal to female viewers, tug at heartstrings (which it failed to do), or both. First, I'll start with the Commando reference of how Arnold battled the villain, who Cavill, to his credit, acted like and reminded me of, even long before the third act. It was mostly just Cruise going after Cavill, and they magnified this aspect of the movie, instead of sticking with its true strength to me, which was keeping Vanessa Kirby's villainy front and center. She was an even more interesting character. So it devolved into this early 80's action movie, instead of the "spy thriller" it was working marvelously as in its first act. Lastly, there was enough hinted romance without squeezing in so much cheesy stuff between the wife and the other girl. Were they going for some kind of two love interest drama? It surely seemed like it, but none of it was landing. It seemed more like the writer or director or studio wanted to give the actresses "more to do" so they had to find ways to put them in scenes, for more lines to say or something.
Then, of course, we have the "race against time to stop the detonator" (eyeroll #4 keeping track). Gee, I wonder how this is going to play out. So I keep a 20% outsider chance this won't be a happy ending (not that I don't want one, but it's a no brainer that it will be at this point), with an 80% probability he'll reach it at the last second in the nick of time (oh, and please build the suspense and drama just in case with some popcorn fun exposition in the jeep between all five main characters just to give the cliffnotes of how this so suspenseful and unpredictable detonator mission is going to be impossible to do, thanks for that, I don't believe for a second that they can actually pull this off /s). Throw in a couple of extra cliched fight scenes with the bad guy and Benji on the rope, with the "chair breakout of the hand ties" cliche I've seen over the years a hundred times before (along with the last second rope chop to save the good guy before he asphyxiates), and yes it surely devolved into what I had expected and why I'd avoided MI franchise movies for about two decades.
But hey, it was a good action movie, and I'll always cherish that first act with some great pacing, action, twists, and dialogue...and Vanessa Kirby's steal of the show. It's too bad they all but vanished by the third act, as if the studio wasn't bold enough to continue to respect the audience's intelligence like it did in act I. It wouldn't be a surprise if it had a completely different other writer or the studio made it more formulaic. Whoever wrote the first act was doing fantastic.
Act I- 10/10
Act II- 8/10
Act III- 5/10
Final Score
7.5/10.
Oppenheimer (2023)
Nolan's Biopic Masterpiece
While Oppenheimer is a very long movie at three hours (and often feels like it), the superb acting performance by Murphy holds your attention enough to endure it, all but ensuring his frontrunner status for Best Actor awards next year.
The film has signature Nolan style, which can be both good and bad but are mostly good here. However, this is Nolan's most adult movie since Memento, as most of the consensus agrees it's his most refined and mature movie.
For people who struggled to keep up with the rapid fire dialogue and timejump edits (timejumping could be the second top criticism of the film behind length), if you just stick with it and hang in there, you won't be disappointed if you are someone who appreciates endings that have a powerful 'moral of the story' as it's in the final five minutes that the biggest truth bomb drops, and when it does it's tragic, creating juxtaposing poignant images between a man who was once hailed a hero and praised by the flag-waving public and the devastation and destruction he has brought onto humanity. That ending alone paints the perfect description of the dichotomy between a man's ambitions and success inevitably leading to mass destruction.
Sound of Freedom (2023)
Edge of Your Seat Riveting, Moving, Inspiring, and Beautiful
Preface to say, the only reason I only gave this an 8 was just because it's not the typical genre or kind of movie that I rate high. My favorite genres are action, drama, and crime so they are usually the ones I rate above an 8. Many best picture winners I rate an 8 because I know they are really great movies, but they're just not my favorite genre. For example, I gave Parasite an 8 and Titanic an 8.
Now, with that being said, I genuinely and honestly have to say that this movie could be a legitimate contender for Best Picture, if not for controversy and bias. By the end of it, there is no denying that it has all of the elements and ingredients that can usually propel a movie to be nominated.
First, it's well put-together. It has structure and good editing.
Second, it is incredibly moving. I read some reviews about people, including grown men, crying in theatres, and for the first half of the movie I was totally fine and figured those were exaggerations. But by the final third of the movie, I could not hold back my tears and sniffles on several occasions.
Third, it's beautiful. It has heart, it has emotions, it has good cinematography and very emotional acting, especially the parts that are the most important.
Fourth, I'd mention the acting, especially from Bill Camp, who has a really really good monologue scene and some other good scenes, is sufficient. Caviezel does what he needs to and shines when it matters most.
I've seen many Best Picture nominees over the last ten years that I felt didn't deserve it and they were not my cup of tea- movies such as Roma, a Star is Born, Nomadland, Shape of Water, and even Parasite and EEAAO, although based on the years that the latter two (Parasite and EEAAO) won, I could see why they did, and I gave Parasite an 8 because it was very good, but it wasn't my preferred genre so I couldn't score it higher.
It probably won't be up for BP due to controversy and Hollywood bias, but I will say that this movie is at least as good if not better than all of them movies I listed and obviously many others nominated. It's up there on the level of Hacksaw Ridge in my opinion, a based on a true story, serious topic, incredibly moving, and a tear-jerker.
8/10.
Breaking Bad (2008)
Once in a Lifetime Cinema
If there was one thing left on my bucket list I could do that I never did, I would rewind the clock back to before I ever watched Breaking Bad, and then I would carve out one week of my life, dim the lights, and binge watch it for about five days without knowing anything about it, no spoilers, and just enjoy the best movie snack food while witnessing the greatest piece of filmmaking ever made, at least in the past several decades.
I'd cut out all connections and communication with anyone in the outside world who had already seen the show so as not to be spoiled by any small detail, and just sit in awe and astonishment at the best piece of art that filmmaking of any kind has seen, possibly ever.
The combination of acting, writing, plot, directing, cinematography, character development, world building, originality, creativity, editing, music, and storytelling is simply and truly unbeatable.
I've been a lover of movies, acting, and tv for my whole entire life, and when I say that Breaking Bad might possibly be the greatest work of art in the history of Hollywood, I don't say it lightly. It is more addictive in every way than the fictional meth the show deals with on every level of storytelling.
There are many classics that carved out uncharted achievement in filmmaking history- and Breaking Bad is definitely one of the handful of unforgettable classics and watching experiences. It is actually so good that it's not even believable that anything this good actually got made.
If I could erase my memory, take a week off of work, dim the lights, and lock myself in a room for a week with popcorn and snacks, I guarantee that watching this show without knowing any spoilers would be hands down one of the greatest life experiences imaginable. Masterpiece on every single level.
Breaking Bad: Felina (2013)
Gripping, Cerebral, Tense, Disturbing, and Filled With Plenty of Twists
Review of Breaking Bad- 10/10
"Chemistry is the study of change: there's growth, then decay, and then transformation!" lectures Walter White in episode 1, "Pilot", of Breaking Bad, foreshadowing his own future journey to going from a weak, mild-mannered Chemistry teacher into the great, notorious, and fabled methamphetamine kingpin and internationally known criminal who goes by the alias, Heisenberg. But his journey there was ironically never intentional. It was a story of how one's original intentions can become murky and forgotten when the stress and desperation backs them into choices they never thought they'd have to make. While the tense, suspenseful, witty, and dramatic show can be a clinic in writing dark humor, cinematography, world class acting performances, and unique character creations, ultimately the most fascinating, shocking, and poignant aspect of the story is watching Walter White's shocking"descent" into madness.
Renown for a slow-burn build up to shocking, unexpected, and jaw dropping climaxes and addictive, episode-turning binge-worthy storytelling where each episode seemlessly flows into the next without missing a beat, Breaking Bad delievers a satisfying entertainment experience and rewards the careful viewer.
On practically every level of storytelling, from character development, to plot, and to themes, Breaking Bad delivers an enriching and remarkable television viewing. And while taking such an esoteric and weird subject matter like meth cooking and presenting it as story material comparable to practically any business industry in relationships, corporate dynamics, and brilliant ambitions, the show manages to appeal to everyone, from laypeople to students to entrepreneurs and business people.
Showing all sides and parts of the social coin in a realistic light, the show brings together a cast of characters that are all despisable, heroic, and unfrogettable. The show plays out like a small town crime syndicate that simmers underneath the ground until it boils up and explodes onto the international radar with surprising escalations connecting the main characters to international crime syndicates. It's a story of free will, or lack thereof depending on how you look at it. Do the ends justify the means? What is justifiable and what isn't? How far is too far? Who is really at fault? Is ther ea scenario where even a good person has to do a bad thing to protect their family? Could this have been avoided with better decisions? What is legal and what is moral? What is the purpose of life? These such questions may arise from time to time on the journey of viewing the show, and the list actually goes on.
Loaded with classic scenes, from violent action sequences to dramatic, heartwrenching monologues, to dark comedic dialogues, Breaking Bad delivers an almost unparallelled cinematic experience. While it's not exactly perfect due to the slower developments in the earlier seasons that are necessary for character introductions and development, the fifth and final season is perfect, along with the majority of season 4 and many great episodes in the first three seasons. What ultimately separates Breaking Bad from most shows is how the final season plays out, somehow surpassing the greatness of the fourth and third seasons prior to it. It is the takedown of the crime syndicate, the falling apart of Walt's midlife crisis dream, and the destruction of all that was once good into utter graffiti- that overbearing sense of guilt and regret- in an epic crime caper for the ages, that makes the show a masterpiece. And it is in one of Walt's final sentences to Skyler where he says, "I liked it. I was good at it. I was really, I was alive" where viewers will contradictorally agree with Walt's sad sentiment that the escapades and misfit shenanigans are over, but they were worth the ride.
Top Gun: Maverick (2022)
Top Gun Maverick Thrills and Entertains, but it Just Doesn't Quite Reach the Altitude Necessary to Be a great Movie
What I liked: Popcorn humor, it got off to a promising start, beautiful Jennifer Connelly, Iceman cameo, nerve wracking final mission, callbacks to Top Gun 1986, the cool fighter jet imagery when the anti-missile tech is released, and the very end was a nice happy ending that is applaudable.
What I didn't like: The middle where Maverick comes out of nowhere on the radar while they are in class and they can somehow all observe him even though he was dismissed as teacher and his subsequently being brought back felt rushed and unrealistic, picking the 6 pilots felt rushed and slightly confusing for a big moment, the soundtrack was nowhere near as good and iconic as the 1986 original (it could've used Righteous Brothers "You've Lost that Lovin Feeling" at the end or somewhere), the tacked on "behind enemy lines" ending became cartoony and literally made no difference in the end other than for another deus ex machina (only because they didn't inform the viewer that Hangman was sent, which they should have) hero-twist, and even though this was an impossible mission not one pilot died, which made it lack drama and believability.
This is a decent-good movie. It's like ripping out the cliff notes of a good book and only reading them, but moreso it's like the mission Tom Cruise led his pilots on: the mission was to vertically clear the mountain on the way out at the End of the mission in order to succeed, but for the movie during that ending, the aircrafts never quite cleared the peak to be truly great. It did reach the good range though, and for movies today, maybe that's the best they can do since it seems it's all been done before.
6/10.
Ozark (2017)
Disappointing Final Season
Ozark was a fun show for people left with a void created by the ending of the glorified and much deservedly praised classic TV drama, Breaking Bad.
Essentially, it took the exact same notion of an average professional American family who, for the pursuit of money and wealth and dissatisfied with their status quo upper middle class underachieving lives, delved into a life of crime that crossed roads with the Mexican cartel. The parallels and likenesses are so obvious and not so subtle, with obviously Breaking Bad coming first and Ozark following its artistically groundbreaking blueprint.
Unlike Breaking Bad, Ozark fails at cinematographic art and arguably the most vital component to Breaking Bad's success: dark comedy. Instead, Ozark, while imitating the dark, twisted plot components that can take place messing with a Mexican cartel, sticks with a serious and somber tone throughout most of its 50+ hour runtime.
The good news is that it achieves a satisfying and entertaining Breaking Bad derivative. It doesn't take a brainiac to quickly realize that Ruth Langmore (in a star turn by Julia Garner deserving all her Emmys) is Jesse Pinkman, Marty is Walter, and Wendy is Skyler, while Del/Javi/and Cartel Boss are a mixture of Don Eladio, Gus Fring, the Salamancas, and Lalo. It's not even subtle. However, the one truly intriguing element that Ozark adds to the middle class-family-turned-drug lord is the addition of a quirky Hillbilly-Redneck element comprised by Julia Garner's Ruth and The Snells. Additionally, on the flank you get an unfulfilled and shorthanded appearance by the KC Mob, who when first introduced seemed to be predictable major players, and yet for some unexplainable reason faded to meaninglessness by the time season 4 arrived.
Ozark's creators aren't dumb. They made a good show, knowing they couldn't go wrong with a huge demand in the market for a Breaking Bad replacement at the brokenhearted culture in its wake after its' treasured finale in 2013. At that, they delivered. They satisfied that void and added a slight twist and uniqueness to it, choosing the southern Missouri Ozarks as the setting, tinting the screen in blue tint, and introducing an array of new, eccentric criminals to the story.
However, the show never quite reached Breaking Bad's greatness. The only season that can be argued that came close to any of Breaking Bad's seasons is season 3 (and it was pretty great). But season 3 was such a good season of Ozark that it left many viewers thinking they were going to truly do a Breaking Bad and go out on a high note. Instead, season 4 was a flunk. 4A was obviously lazily rushed and anticlimactic, and two months later season 4B followed suit with another abysmal and disappointing end to what could have been an all-time great show.
At least we'll always have Julia Garner's Ruth to remember in an incredibly, unforgettable acting performance as the underdog, foul-mouthed redneck who is witty and sharp as a whip while taking on these sophisticated criminals like the Byrdes and cartel henchman and women. Outside of that, it was a good ride that was never able to fly. As one person paraphrased, "Yours is an off brand generic cola. You dye your show blue to look like mine; you already aped my product at every turn. What I'm selling is classic coke. Mike's retiring so you have a chance to sell my product. You all know exactly who I am. Say my name.....(Ozark: "You're Heisenberg") You're goddamn right!"
Braveheart (1995)
Perfection
If you want to see God, then this is the movie you need to see. Some more perfectionist and profound people measure a movie by how close it brings them to seeing their creator, and this is one of the few films that capture that experience. You will never be the same.
One of the top 5 Movies of All-Time.
10/10.
Dark (2017)
Deceptively Overrated; It May Appeal to Kids or Teens, but Honestly Can't See Adults Liking This Much.
First of all, let me say that I am not a fan of Stranger Things, but I found Stranger Things to be much better than this similar show. Stranger Things had better writing, art style, acting, character development, cinematography, and music than this very similar show does, at least in season 1 of Stranger Things (like I said, I'm not even a big fan of that show so I didn't continue but I enjoyed it).
This show is a decent show, but it is deceptively overrated. At best, I would rate it about a 6/10, which is still decent. However, it is incredibly overhyped, and I suspect it is from little kids or teenagers, at least mostly.
Nothing except the "atmosphere" really stands out as anything remarkable, and even that is kind of a horror trope cliche, raising suspense with eerie sort of cues and musical notes. I mean, it's definitely competent and watchable, but the raving reviews about it seem to be a new generation of people who have never seen these kinds of sci-fi cliches before.
Also, I found it unnecessarily violent and disturbing. Do we really need to see little kids getting tortured and abused? Really? That's actually pretty sick. It's okay to insinuate such things for the story's purpose, such as a kidnapping or implying something, but this show did not need to portray it in such an over the top way. It's not really scary as much as it is unnecessary and disturbing.
The acting is okay and pretty good, but nobody truly stands out as a first class performance. Then again, they don't really have much to work with either. It's extremely overrated, but I guess if you have nothing better to do, it may help pass the time and give you a taste of some new sci-fi. One thing it is not, in my opinion, is pretentious; I do think they genuinely want to explore the concept and topics, but I just don't think the execution is as good as many reviews have stated.
The Wire (2002)
Completely Overrated
Ask oneself why a major studio company such as HBO, which just had garnered so many awards and nominations for The Sopranos and clearly had influence over voters come awards season, still garnered absolutely no awards for the Wire. I's not like there are any actual excuses. Occam's razor would easily conclude that the show just isn't that good to win.
But then, okay, all of this particular show's fans seem to constantly hype it up as it clearly has a cult following. Some even say it is better than Sopranos, which is not the case. So they do get people to watch, but like most people, I just didn't like it. I have 4 college degrees from a university in the ivy league, so it's certainly not my lack of education or intelligence as to why I just simply didn't like it. That seems to be the argument from defenders of this show: "you didn't get it" or "it's only for intelligent people". Such pretentiousness and ludicrous assumptions show how delusional some of this show's fans are.
If you haven't seen it yet, here is something that may help you decide whether to dive into this slow, boring slog of a television series, with 60 minute episodes that usually feel like they're 2 hours long each with how slowly paced they are and how wooden the acting usually is: In the cold open of one of the episodes, a cop opens the door of a politician, apparently the Mayor of the city (keep in mind this is supposed to be a TV series, not a Porno), and the cop literally opens the door and sees the mayor explicitly getting a blowjob with a full on erection at his office desk (yes, they actually show this, believe it or not). What purpose does this serve artistically? To think you're cool?
Shows that rely on shock value and thinking they are smarter than they really are or push the limits just for the same of pushing the limits are the most pretentious. In some ways, it seems like the fans of this show think they are cool because of elements of the show like this so they wear their fandom as a way of expressing a fantasy sense of superiority in their social world. I wouldn't recommend wasting your valuable time for this unless you were taking a class in urban sociology, and even if that were the case, I'd recommend sticking with the footnotes so you don't have to be bored to sleep every night.
Gisaengchung (2019)
Best Movie of the Nominees for the Year, but Not Perfect
This won BP because it was the best overall movie based on all of the nominees. It had good: acting, directing, original screenplay, score, and cinematography.
All of the other nominees were good in only one or two categories, maybe three. But this movie checked all the boxes.
If you only wanted acting, you see Joker or Irishman; if you only wanted visuals and cinematography, then you see 1917; if all you wanted was acting and set design, then you see Once Upon a Time; if all you wanted was actresses, then you see Marriage Story, Bombshell, or Judy.
But if you want the whole package, then this was the best movie of the nine nominees as a whole, and that's why it won. When voters vote, the ultimate winner is also decided by how many 2nd place votes a movie gets, so the winner will gets lots of 2nd place votes in addition to the 1s, and that's finally why it won.
Gisaengchung (2019)
Best Movie of the Nominees for the Year, but Not Perfect
This won BP because it was the best overall movie based on all of the nominees. It had good: acting, directing, original screenplay, score, and cinematography.
All of the other nominees were good in only one or two categories, maybe three. But this movie checked all the boxes.
If you only wanted acting, you see Joker or Irishman; if you only wanted visuals and cinematography, then you see 1917; if all you wanted was acting and set design, then you see Once Upon a Time; if all you wanted was actresses, then you see Marriage Story, Bombshell, or Judy.
But if you want the whole package, then this was the best movie of the nine nominees as a whole, and that's why it won. When voters vote, the ultimate winner is also decided by how many 2nd place votes a movie gets, so the winner will gets lots of 2nd place votes in addition to the 1s, and that's finally why it won.
Knives Out (2019)
Brilliant movie for 2019; Well Worth the Watch and Surprisingly Hilarious
Rian Johnson actually spoofs himself and the genre in this (what will soon be) modern classic.
After a consensus failing on his Star Wars take with The Last Jedi, Johnson actually returns to his best and perhaps most famous roots by digging into his Breaking Bad roots. That's right. Some people might have missed it, but I picked up on it easily since that is one of my favorite shows, and Johnson directed some of its most famous (and notorious) episodes (Ozymandias....Fly respectively).
Make no mistake- Knives Out is absolutely its own thing, but Johnson was not hiding his roots here. First of all, ask yourself, what was his most famous directorial scene from Breaking Bad? Was it, when Skyler chooses the knife instead of the phone in the climactic scene? Of course, and she pulled the "knife out" there, as in knives out. Second, wasn't Johnson the director of the notorious "bottle episode", which is equally hated and beloved? Well yes, and this is a claustrophobic movie mostly set in one single place- a mansion. Third, the actress (De Arma) literally acts just like "Lydia" in most scenes of the movie- an anxiety-ridden, desperate, back against the wall performance. He could have just put Laura Frasier in the role and you couldn't have told the difference. Fourth, the dark humor, which is generously spread throughout the movie and never forgotten. How about the cell phone usage reliance for so many scenes, but with dark humor reiterated along with it?
Yes, Johnson learned a lot from Breaking Bad (as well as brought so many great episodes to it), and he brings so much of his brilliance into this fun, dark comedy. How many people caught the Game of Thrones reference with the knife throne at the end? There is just so much dark humor spread all throughout this and so many fun homages and references. Some people won't fully get it, and yes I admit it is a little over the top at times to some extent, but not enough so to say it's anything less than a great movie, especially for 2019, where originality is lacking. However, this movie has more than originality going for it. What a fun time and an immersive and enjoyable (although very slow and bumpy) "ride".
I've now seen 1917, Richard Jewell, The Irishman, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, Joker, and some others, and ironically, if it all came down to it, this would actually be my Best Picture vote for 2019.
10/10
1917 (2019)
Kindergarten Saving Private Ryan, A Very Overrated War Movie That Doesn't Stand Close to the Greats
I was fooled into watching this film expecting it to be something special by the "Golden Globe" award for Best Drama. In fact, I was so fooled that by the end of it, for a second I was almost convinced it was 'that' good since the final scene was touching. I ignored and overlooked many, many flaws throughout the runtime to give it a fair chance like I do with most movies that are decent. This sometimes includes pretending I didn't pick up on a flaw, an error, a bad performance, or an implausibility.
However, after I slept on it and reflected on these things, I had to change my mind, and I just could not ignore the glaring flaws, which were somewhat juvenile and made it feel like the movie was written by a 12-year old.
There are numerous scenes in this movie (and they are the ones that are supposed to be the 'most dramatic' and 'intense') that are actually implausible to the point that they can be ridiculed and mocked at how unrealistic they are. In fact, you can actually laugh at them, despite the movie taking these scenes so seriously. It tries to sell itself or pawn itself off as some realistic, gritty take on WWI (and it "almost" succeeds, and it does hit the mark at scarce moments), but you can't help but notice that simultaneously it also feels like some kind of unrealistic action movie with maybe Schwarzenegger as its lead since the main actor has laughable plot armor on him.
Does it suffice for a new war movie for 2019? Sure, if you want to see a new war movie, then this will give you that genre. And yes, the cinematography is undeniably well-done and at times a marvel to look at. But if you actually stand this movie up against the true great war movies, it really is nothing special. It had a couple of good scenes and traits, but overall it's just not that good.
Forget about SPRyan comparisons. It's not even close to that. But for a WWI movie, to even compare it to Atonement in terms of quality would be stretching it; it doesn't have any depth like that does.
4/10
1917 (2019)
Kindergarten Saving Private Ryan, A Very Overrated War Movie That Doesn't Stand Close to the Greats
I was fooled into watching this film expecting it to be something special by the "Golden Globe" award for Best Drama. In fact, I was so fooled that by the end of it, for a second I was almost convinced it was 'that' good since the final scene was touching. I ignored and overlooked many, many flaws throughout the runtime to give it a fair chance like I do with most movies that are decent. This sometimes includes pretending I didn't pick up on a flaw, an error, a bad performance, or an implausibility.
However, after I slept on it and reflected on these things, I had to change my mind, and I just could not ignore the glaring flaws, which were somewhat juvenile and made it feel like the movie was written by a 12-year old.
There are numerous scenes in this movie (and they are the ones that are supposed to be the 'most dramatic' and 'intense') that are actually implausible to the point that they can be ridiculed and mocked at how unrealistic they are. In fact, you can actually laugh at them, despite the movie taking these scenes so seriously. It tries to sell itself or pawn itself off as some realistic, gritty take on WWI (and it "almost" succeeds, and it does hit the mark at scarce moments), but you can't help but notice that simultaneously it also feels like some kind of unrealistic action movie with maybe Schwarzenegger as its lead since the main actor has laughable plot armor on him.
Does it suffice for a new war movie for 2019? Sure, if you want to see a new war movie, then this will give you that genre. And yes, the cinematography is undeniably well-done and at times a marvel to look at. But if you actually stand this movie up against the true great war movies, it really is nothing special. It had a couple of good scenes and traits, but overall it's just not that good.
Forget about SPRyan comparisons. It's not even close to that. But for a WWI movie, to even compare it to Atonement in terms of quality would be stretching it; it doesn't have any depth like that does.
4/10
Richard Jewell (2019)
What a Sleeper! This is the Best Picture of 2019!
How did this movie fly so far under the radar and not fair well in the box office? It's laughable!
This is the best friken movie of 2019 and nobody even has a clue about it!
Acting: A+
Directing: A
Story: A
Editing: A
People are missing out. I'd venture to say that for many, this will be a breath of fresh air compared to the Irishman, which was way too long and had understandably critiqued on the deaging, but I'd also venture to guess that the "Avengers" crowd has no idea why a film like this one is excellent.
The Irishman (2019)
Borderline Masterpiece; Best Picture Oscar On Its Way- You Can Skip Half an Hour in the Middle Though if the Length Bothers You; Everything Else is Perfect
Skip 1:50-2:16 if you want to shorten the length, which is about 3 hours and 20 minutes. That section was tedious and could have been edited out with nothing lost.
The first 2 hours, as well as the final 30 minutes are all masterpiece material.
Joe Pesci will win Best Supporting Actor, De Niro will be nominated for Best Actor, especially for his acting in the final 30-45 minutes of the movie which sees him encounter and battle old age after all he's done.
For Scorcese's gangster/crime type of movies, I would place this above the Departed, about on par with Goodfellas (though it's its own separate thing). It is actually slightly better than Goodfellas in "some" ways, but I think Goodfellas is such a classic and broke new ground in such an original way that it is hard to declare it totally better than that. I will say this- I liked the ending of The Irishman more than I liked the final act and ending of Goodfellas. It's more powerful than you'll expect and hits pretty hard unexpectedly for such a dark comedy.
If it was between this and Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, this is hands down your Best Picture winner for 2019. You may just want to skip that roughly half an hour around the 1:50-2:16 mark to save some time.
9/10
The Irishman (2019)
Borderline Masterpiece; Best Picture Oscar On Its Way- You Can Skip Half an Hour in the Middle Though if the Length Bothers You; Everything Else is Perfect
Skip 1:50-2:16 if you want to shorten the length, which is about 3 hours and 20 minutes. That section was tedious and could have been edited out with nothing lost.
The first 2 hours, as well as the final 30 minutes are all masterpiece material.
Joe Pesci will win Best Supporting Actor, De Niro will be nominated for Best Actor, especially for his acting in the final 30-45 minutes of the movie which sees him encounter and battle old age after all he's done.
For Scorcese's gangster/crime type of movies, I would place this above the Departed, about on par with Goodfellas (though it's its own separate thing). It is actually slightly better than Goodfellas in "some" ways, but I think Goodfellas is such a classic and broke new ground in such an original way that it is hard to declare it totally better than that. I will say this- I liked the ending of The Irishman more than I liked the final act and ending of Goodfellas. It's more powerful than you'll expect and hits pretty hard unexpectedly for such a dark comedy.
If it was between this and Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, this is hands down your Best Picture winner for 2019. You may just want to skip that roughly half an hour around the 1:50-2:16 mark to save some time.
9/10
El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie (2019)
The Emprorer Has No Clothes...and Netflix Has No Soul
Netflix knows it is about to be contested by formidable competitive streaming sites. From an executive business level, this was a good and desperate attempt at one final cash grab before it goes the way of Blockbuster video. Gilligan, being loyal (and NF did play a huge part in BB's success to be fair), agreed to bust out a movie to help them out, and he did a fine job in it being a decent and not bad movie, but it's just one where you can see Netflix's trademark soullessness playing a hand in it.
Netflix movies are 99% of the time like movies that are basically "genre paint by numbers" movies. Like, if you want a thriller, it will be a generic thriller with nothing special or standing out. If you want a romance, you'll get a cookie-cut romance. If you want a drama, it will be the most cliched plot that you can imagine with banal acting and storytelling. Hey, I mean, there is definitely a market out there for people who think mediocrity is good and don't have a problem being insulted and exposed to underachieving work.
That being said, El Camino is actually a decent film that is worth a viewing, especially for Breaking Bad fans. This is because Gilligan does his best to meet Netflix's "formula" while still keeping it quirky in the Breaking Bad dark humor that satisfied many fans, in addition to some formidable acting from Jesse Plemons, Aaron Paul, and Robert Forster.
I wanted to rave about this movie and love it, but the more I think about it, the more disappointing it seems, and I was finally able to put my finger on it when it was confirmed how big of a role Netflix played in its production. This is taking nothing away from the director and performances, but the way the story is dumbed down makes El Camino nothing in the way of being "a Breaking Bad movie" they tried to advertise it as, with the exception that many familiar faces and characters make an appearance.
Once Upon a Time in... Hollywood (2019)
A Stylish, Highly Entertaining Slow-Burn Played Out Over 2 Days at the Sunset of Hollywood's "Golden Age"
The stories of a young, radiant up-and-coming starlet, a fading old Western actor, and his cool, loyal, and regretless stunt double intertwine on a fateful summer night in 1969 at the dusk of Hollywood's "Golden Age" when a rabid bunch of hippy-cultists at the orders of Charlie Manson go out to seek violent revenge.
For those who aren't familiar with the backstory, Charlie Manson was an aspiring musician, who had become friends with the main drummer bandmember of the legendary group, "The Beach Boys", Dennis Wilson, and after crashing at Wilson's pad for a while and gaining some interest from him, Wilson set up a meeting with Terry Melcher, Doris Day's son, who was a successful music producer in Hollywood. Manson got the meeting with Melcher at his home on Cielo drive, but Melcher decided not to sign Manson after having some unsettling encounters with him at the Spahn ranch, where Manson eventually moved to and organize his infamous cult full of young girls and runaways, whom he would brainwash and take advantage of. A young Roman Polanski and Sharon Tate eventually began renting out Melcher's home where Manson thought Melcher was still living, and Manson and his girls were angry at Melcher for not giving him his record deal he wanted. The rest is pretty much history.
The event was important because it basically was symbolic of the end of the Golden Age of Hollywood, when all innocence was finally lost once and for all.
Tarantino captures the final days of the Golden Age through the eyes of fading Western actor Rick Dalton (Leo DiCaprio), his stunt double Cliff Booth (Brad Pitt), and Sharon Tate (Margot Robbie) and how they experience this shiny world of big dreams, fading careers, and at the time, an influx of "hippies".
About 80% of the movie captures the lives of each of these characters over the course of 2 days in February of 1969, as DiCaprio struggles to accept his fading star, Robbie happily enjoys her rising star, and Pitt is stuck in a business-as-usual mode where he has accepted that his career will never be anything more than a stunt double for Dalton, but he's okay with that.
This is a very good film, but for those who are expecting anything similar to Tarantino's most recent movies like Django Unchained, Inglourious Basterds, or Hateful Eight, they may be disappointed at this one because for a large majority of the movie, Tarantino is relatively reserved, and that includes the very ending. There is very little over-the-top style Tarantino dialogue; rather, the film is subdued and the dialogue may be the most realistic Tarantino has ever had in his films. This is not a bad thing, and it's a refreshing break from what is expected.
For Tarantino fans who prefer Pulp Fiction, Jackie Brown, or even Kill Bill Volume I as his best thus far, this may also land among your top 3 in his film catalogue. Expectations should be checked, however; although it is a very good movie and very enjoyable, calling it a masterpiece would probably be going too far. This is really just pure movie entertainment that is extremely well-constructed and well acted.
DiCaprio gives one of his best acting performances ever, Margot Robbie is excellent as Tate (it will be interesting to see how many awards nominations she gets since her screentime and lines were limited, but when she is on screen, she is captivating and plays the role to perfection), and Pitt is solid as well.
There is very little action or violence relative to what one would expect (again, a good thing), no sex or nudity, and the movie is grounded and humble overall. As meticulous and detailed as each scene is, there isn't anything overly embellished. Instead, the majority of the movie is a look at the fading career of DiCaprio's Rick Dalton, who is still landing roles in Western TV shows, but has now gone from the leading man to the bad guy, a sign that he is no longer as valued compared to new actors.
There is plenty of humor and laugh out loud, quirky moments, and the overall feel of the movie is usually comedic. This is a movie for people who really like time pieces, historical events/nostalgia, the behind-the-scenes reality of acting and filmmaking, and for people who like more realism to their movies, as well as people who like movies with great acting in it.
It is a slow burn and takes its time in building the suspense, as it meditates on DiCaprio's acting roles, Pitt's part in helping his career, and the earlier days of Hollywood glamour and nightlife.
If you are just looking for a fun, entertaining, realistic, and well made movie with a good story and great acting, then you will enjoy what Tarantino has put together with Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.
Game of Thrones: The Bells (2019)
Great Episode! Mother of Dragons Finally Arrives and Takes King's Landing
Danaerys finally unleashed the ambition we all knew she had. This was long overdue. To see Cersei in panic and watching her kingdom crumble to Dany and Drogon's fire was a GOT dream come true. Hound took Gregor out like a champ, and Euron got his but handed to him by Jamie. Arya was amazing as always.
This episode was a MASTERPIECE!
Game of Thrones: The Long Night (2019)
Baffled by the Reviews
The outpouring of negative reviews this episode has gotten by both fans and critics is really baffling for a few reasons. First off, I never thought GOT was that great because the writing has taken the pis the past few seasons, and it just never lived up to the hype of being "the best show ever" due to some mediocre actors, above average but not great writing, and dragging on the final seasons for money like many shows have done that have dropped the ball in their final seasons, thus lowering their rank amongst the greats. While it's clear many haters of this episode are trolls, some of the negative reviews are authentic. But for a show that I already saw and noted so much deux ex machina with, as well as third-grade writing for, I was used to the writing criticisms and mistakes, and thus expected them. Therefore, they weren't a letdown in this episode, but expected, and I rather enjoyed the CGI action spectacle and great scenery.
Secondly, this episode is now ranked down to #35 of all GOT episodes as of this moment on May 1st, three days after airing. While it was no Battle of the B's or Rains of Castamere, it certainly isn't worse than 34 ( and trajectory is even lower) other episodes. Objectively, this was easily a top 5 GOT episode, and top 10 at worst. This was the first GOT episode where I actually rewatched it, and I did it almost immediately after. The only other episodes I've ever rewatched just certain parts of are BOTB, ROC, and Winds of WInter, and I've also rewatched certain scenes of this episode, The Long Night, about five times already.
Also what needs to be mentioned is the criticism of the darkness of the episode regarding how many people complained they couldn't see it. The battle is fought at night so of course it is going to be dark, and the supposition is that the director wanted it to realistic; if that was the case, he succeeded because it was as real as a fantasy tv show battle could appear at night. I watched the episode on my laptop, and I had absolutely no problems seeing anything regarding the lighting. Some scenes were hard to decipher in the way they are with any war battle scene you'd see throughout history, in not always being able to see who is where in the midst of hundreds of battlers and warriors. For the sake of it, another scene I wanted to watch twice was the dragon collisions and whose dragon was attacking whose, but what I suspected the first time was right. Do people need to get their eye vision checked maybe? I hope not, but that could have been the reason they couldn't see it very good.
Even if this episode did possess the now expected deux ex machina and plot armor that many are complaining about, is it enough to warrant such a great episode to be downgraded to #35 currently among GOT episodes?...when this kind of writing has been common for the past couple of seasons, especially? My question is, why now? Why haven't all of these critics and fans harped on the decline in writing, plot armor, and deux ex machina before? I'm used to it by now, so I expect nothing less, and in fact, I thought it was better than I thought it would be. Sure, Brienne, Jamie and Sam, especially Sam with no warrior skills, were flooded with hundreds of wights against the wall and should have died, but that was the only glaring example of it.
Episodes 1 and 2 of season 8 have about 1-2% range of "1" ratings, but this episode has about 6-7% "1" ratings. Now, many of those 1's are probably trolls, but the criticism of this episode has also been dealt by regular fans.
This episode did many things right, despite the lazier writing that has become commonplace. Melisandre's magic was intense and amazing, the visuals and music, especially in the first half of it, were artistic, beautiful, and breathtaking, the dragons once again worked their visceral magic...Arya's fight scene was excellent and beautiful, and despite some corniness in this scene and one or two others, I really enjoyed the callback to Jurassic Park when she was hiding under the table in the library. And how about when she walked into that walker on her way out and stuck her in the throat without hesitation but you weren't a hundred percent sure who got who? Then, there was her oh-so-awesome killing of the NK, a scene which was truly great. I really thought the NK had her and was going to kill her when he caught her, or at least she would die too after, but she saved the day in a great scene (a scene that I believe is one of the best of the show, and a top 2 of the last two seasons). I also liked how the episode ultimately ended with Melisandre mysteriously walking away and then falling as she changed into what appeared to be a walker herself.
As for what the episode could have done better, sure there's the battle strategy, the plot armor, but my biggest criticism was the weird music that began to play with about 10 minutes left in it, and how they began putting everything, especially with the NK in slow motion. The music was not the best choice, and I really thought it was a mistake. It sort of broke the ambience of all of the great action scenes and the majority of the great episode that came before it. I also didn't like how predictable it was that the NK would survive Drogon's fire. Everyone knew he would be standing there once it ceased, and the smirk he gave was like 80s horror.
What I would have done: although the writer's clearly have a pictured end game, which obviously led to their decision not to kill any main characters off (as did them lacking George RR Martin's guts), the episode would have been improved by making better usage of the dragons. Viserion should have leveled all of Winterfell, and Dany and Drogon should have killed Viserion. Jon should have had a sword fight with NK. I would have killed off a main character or two; this is dark but it's a dark show so Sansa committing suicide as the walkers breached the crypt and she was about to be attacked would have worked, and although I love Arya, I wouldn't have minded it if she died while killing the NK just because it would be realistic. Then, I probably would have surprise-knocked off Jaime or Jon, but in a heroic way where they have good dialogue that is meaningful with someone. This show has really put on the brakes in recent seasons and can use a shakeup and some crazy events that are unexpected to keep viewers guessing as opposed to them becoming used to everyone having the plot armor on and all the main ones destined to make it all the way to the end no matter how impossible and illogical based on what unfolds. Finally, although to would have been disappointing waiting for an entire week for the conclusion, I would have turned this battle into 2 episodes, given that there are only, but still, 3 episodes remaining for the season and the next one looks like it's more subdued and boring like the first two; maybe have the NK take control of Winterfell and push them into retreat heading north in small numbers, only to have Cersei have a change of heart and save her brothers Jaimee and Tyrion as they're losing the battle.
Still, this was a great episode of GOT and does not deserve the criticism and disappointment it is getting. Perhaps expectations for people were too high. They wanted to brag about being right (the fan theories and spoilery predicting for this show are so bad, I always avoid those conversations), or wanted a certain someone they don't like to die and they didn't. That's on them. Personally, I went in to this excited, but with no specific expectations other than a great battle, and I got it. This is easily a top 5 GOT episode for me, and I'd put it about 4 or 5.
8/10
Cold Pursuit (2019)
Hilarious Spoof, Don't Listen to Critics; It's Fun, Funny, and Suspenseful
When this movie first came out it had an 86/100 on Rotten Tomatoes and about a 67 on Metacritic, both very good critics' consensus scores, but after Neeson's remarks about how he felt about forty years ago after his niece was raped, the media and SJQ crowd and critics came pouring in and really downvoted the total scores. It's still in the "good" range, but critics are clearly judging it while being offended by Neeson's comments, rather than the movie itself.
Now, to the movie. First off, this is not what you would expect. Most people will go into viewing this looking for the usual, overdone, redundant, repetitive, Neeson revenge flick that has been coming out about every January for the past ten years. For avid fans of those films (recent entries include A Walk Among the Tombstones, The Commuter, Taken 3, etc), you will probably be a little disappointed. However, for people who are expecting that and yet not looking forward to the same old conventional (and therefore boring, predictable) black and white plot, you will probably be pleasantly surprised.
Personally, I have not been a fan of any Neeson action-genre movies of the past five years. They're decent, but nothing special. The last Neeson action movie I truly enjoyed was the Grey (which also had a surprised tone to it- that one being philosophical), and I am still a fan of the original Taken movie. So when I went into viewing Cold Pursuit, after reading a few reviews and seeing the previews, I had it pegged as a conventional revenge-action film in the snow. I saw a couple of mentions of "humor and comedy", but I really didn't and couldn't believe it would be anything substantial or noteworthy; I thought maybe like a Schwarzenegger movie with a couple of one liners, and that would be it.
So here is my review of Cold Pursuit. If you enjoy comedies, dark comedies, and style, then you are probably going to like this movie. If you are inclined to be a fan of Tarantino or the Coen Brothers's Fargo, then you will probably enjoy this movie. The reason why is because this movie is a spoof and a subversion of the expected Neeson-action movie.
There was one moment early on that really marked its devolution into comedy, and at first it didn't seem like much, but it signified and foreshadowed where the rest of the movie was going. This was when the radio asks "who is the best Denver Quarterback of all-time, Elway or Manning?", and the screen goes black and you hear Neeson saw "Elway"....Interesting, right? Well, the next victim he finds, before he decided to shoot him with his sawed off shotgun, he asks him, "Elway or Manning, who's the best QB?" The bad guy responds, Neeson, agrees, and then shoots him anyway. Most of the material for the first half hour prior to this moment made it seem like it was a standard revenge movie, but this was the first really confusing and subtle hint at comedy. Still, what comes beyond that is even far more comical.
We are introduced to a gang of Indians lead by their mafia leader, White Bull, who operate a drug ring in the Denver region, a white mafia henchman to their ringleader named Viking, who has an unusual way of seducing hotel maids, other henchmen with hidden sexual identities, an Afro-American assassin who hates the music that is playing as he is being smuggled into the city to do his service only for the driver to change the channel into "Barbie Girl in a Barbie World", a hardened Asian wife who commands her gang member husband and is in her own eccentric world, amusing mono y mono faceoffs and dialogue between gang members, edited in recognition of casualty names and religious symbols as if to give them a sendoff and acknowledgement, and a completely bizarre ending and final five minutes that in hindsight is absolutely hilarious (when it first happens you'll be confused and not sure of what you think but it will draw a laugh). Lots of this won't make sense to anyone who hasn't seen the movie, but those who have will know what this refers to.
Bottom line: if you just want some fun entertainment for a couple of hours full of action, suspense and surprisingly comical and genuinely funny material, then Cold Pursuit is for you. Go in expecting "Taken on Slopes". leave satisfied at the Tarantino-esque dialogue and editing, and Dumb and Dumber-type comedy.
Game of Thrones: The Dragon and the Wolf (2017)
Meh
1 hour and 20 minutes for a season penultimate season finale, and it turned out fairly mediocre and a little of a let down. As many other fans and writers have posted, the writing has headed south along with the night army. it just so happens that I always thought the whole night army subplot was the weakest link of the show going back to season one, and now it has been promoted to center stage. This was the element of the show I felt was the most childlike and made to appeal to teens and children.
But that isn't the only complaint. Jon and Dany's romance is one of the most "forced" romances that I can remember on any show or movie. I'm still not totally convinced of it.
In addition, Danaerys and Tyrion, who are two of my top 3 favorite characters, are fragments of their former selves in earlier seasons. The gravitas of the characters and the show has totally diminished to the point where the characters are no longer even in coherence with their true original characters, except for some minor moments like when Tyrion mentions whore houses and guzzles wine, but that only lasts less than a minute in all. Overall, their characters are no longer colorful and bright, which was what made the show good in earlier seasons. I can go on and on but I'll leave it here with one more final mention of last week's ridiculous "catch a walker" episode that had more deus ex machina in it than all 6 previous seasons combined.
On a bright note, Lena Headey keeps the show credible and somewhat saves the script with her acting chops, but it's not really enough. Jamie's character is also a good actor, and unlike Tyrion and Dany, he is one character that has remained coherent to his original in earlier seasons. the music graphics, and production were never a problem and are still the show's strongest link.
But I won't be hanging around for season 8. I don't like the direction they went with the characters or story. I may binge watch season 8 after it's all over, but waiting a week for this mess of a plot isn't worth the anticipation after viewing season 7 that way after a 6 season first time binge watch.
Oh and for people who say this is better than shows like Breaking Bad, well, season 7 threw that argument out the window. It's not. to be with the greats, the final season or 2 have to be strong and continue with high quality across all production domains, but like most shows, game of Thrones has declined.
Episode- 5/10
Show- 7/10