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ronin1066
Reviews
The Last Right (2019)
Very lightweight dramedy
The characters were very cliched. The stereotypical 'boy gets girl, boy loses girl...' but the 'boy loses girl' part was way too forced to feel believable. The autistic parts copy directly from 'Rain Man', which they even reference in the movie. I guess it's an homage? It just felt silly.
If you're really desperate on a Saturday afternoon and want to see a somewhat amusing Colm Meaney acting like a mean Sheriff, go for it, I guess. But only if you're the kind of person who reads Harlequin romances by the dozen. It's very forgettable.
The plot was cliched, I predicted just about everything that happened, except for how bad the male protagonist turned on the romantic interest for no reason.
Huan tu (2018)
There's no conclusion
Great cinematography, good acting, whimsical storyline. I have no idea what the conclusion of the mystery is. It just ends. So if you like atmosphere and brooding and mysticism, check it out. If you like murder mysteries, or mysteries at all, skip this.
Maybe if I understood the culture better, I'd understand what happened? Not sure. It shows some of the mix of cultures in Singapore between the (poor) Chinese and Indians, so that might interest someone as well. As an American interested in Asian cultures, I'm at a loss. If someone understands it, maybe post here what happens in the end? It'd be nice to know.
The Split (2018)
Prime Time Soap Opera
This is a soap opera. Period. No beating around the bush. The main family of women have not one redeeming quality among them, except maybe the sisters trying to be good parents. They are completely irrational. Remember Al Pacino in "Scent of a Woman" when he said "I always knew what the right path was. Without exception, I knew. But I never took it." That defines these women perfectly. It's maddening to watch women who are lawyers and supposed to be logical and professional be so consistently horrible to everyone around them.
It's also completely predictable.
This is not an interesting legal drama at all. The law is a very small part.
The acting is pretty well done though, and high production values.
Nefarious (2023)
100% Christian Propaganda
Make no mistake, this is christian propaganda. The Production company is 'Believe', it has Glenn Beck at the end, playing himself, giving a nice little summary making sure the xian themes are driven home. There is a segment on abortion that makes you wonder if you are actually sitting in church, which handily ignores all of the baby slaughtering their own god did by his own hand.
The first half grabbed me, I'll admit. It was an interesting premise and the actor playing the inmate did a great job. But the end falls flat as they try to round everything up to match their xian worldview rather than an actual interesting, dramatic ending.
The Tower (2021)
Season 1 was OK, went downhill
Season 1 was decent, a little frustrating in getting pertinent details. Season 2 really went downhill. Gemma's character was relentlessly treated like crap from almost every single person she encountered. Other characters were exceedingly irrational. Her boss blamed her for his decisions, after acknowledging he would take the hit. She was being gaslit. Lizzie's boss yelled at Gemma for putting Lizzie in danger, and then immediately did the same exact thing to Lizzie that Gemma had done.
Gemma pushed back a little finally, but it wasn't enough to save it for me. If you can really suspend your need to rational agents, try it out. But I think you can skip season 2.
I Came By (2022)
Predictable, decent acting.
Hugh. George MacKay, and others did a decent job of acting. However, the major plot points were 100% predictable. I didn't care about MacKay's character as he was a snotty young man without much to redeem him, and many things just weren't given any depth. It was a decent Saturday afternoon watch if not much else is on, and you really want to see suspense but you're not really missing anything.
Parts were very frustrating, especially the two main friends. They didn't explain anything to anyone, it became as cliche as a sitcom. "Just tell them where! Just tell them why!!" you'll be yelling at the screen.