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NeilEv
Reviews
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga (2024)
Anya Taylor-Joy carries the film, in spite of a weak narrative.
Review of Furiosa: 6/10. The most important element of any film is the story. The story in Furiosa is simple: the child Furiosa is kidnapped by the Biker Horde and wants to return home. It's a primal story of homecoming that's been told from The Odyssey to the Wizard of Oz. But Writer-Director George Miller takes too long to move the narrative forward. The first act is all backstory.
The star, Anya Taylor-Joy as the adult Furiosa, is absent for the first hour. Her appearance marks the launch of the second act and the main story: her quest for vengeance against Biker Horde Leader Dementus and her fierce determination to get home. Furiosa cuts her hair off and poses as a boy, still a warrior-minion within the compound but at least not a sex slave. The second act consists of long scenes of chases and fighting, but does little to advance the plot. Which takes us to the third act, Furiosa's revenge.
A bond forms between Furiosa and the War Rig's driver (Tom Burke), which promises to give the movie some heart. π But even that relationship isn't fully developed, since they are more co-combatants than lovers. Visually, the film had same desert atmosphere as Dune, and same expansive landscape. The final battle between the hero Furiosa and the villain Dementus, is both disappointing and anticlimactic. In the end, Furiosa picks up where Fury Road begins, with Furiosa attempting to drive other freed female hostages to their home. π
Maestro (2023)
Bradley Cooper Never Brings Leonard Bernstein to Life
I love biopics: they're my favorite film genre. Films where the actor becomes the character, like Gandhi or Lawrence of Arabia. And musical πΆ biopics are my favorite sub-genre. Films like Ray (Charles). The Buddy Holly Story. And the recent Elvis (2022).
I wanted to like Maestro. Bradley Cooper was great in American Sniper and A Star is Born (2018). The look and feel of the film are very polished, especially the black and white first half of the movie. And Carey Mulligan, as Bernstein's wife, is both warm-hearted and sympathetic. But the movie never captures Bernstein's artistic genius or his creative process. And the filmmaker (Copper) makes Bernstein so emotionally cold, that I never cared about him enough to ride the emotional roller coaster that a gear biopic creates. For me, the worst experience in watching a movie is when I see the actor instead of the character. Throughout the movie, I saw Bradley Cooper playing Leonard Bernstein. An old saying is: A beard doesn't make a Mr Natural. In this case, a nose, a cigarette and fake laughter doesn't make a Leonard Bernstein π
The Killer (2023)
Fincher's Film is as Cold and Antiseptic as the Killer
Rated 6/10. Michael Fassbender plays a stone-cold, meticulous assassin for hire. We've seen this setup a thousand times, so we wait for a differentiator. But one never comes. This character must have some redemption. I kept waiting for the Killer to have a change of heart, creating a plot reversal. I was expecting he would get assigned a target, then fall in love with her or otherwise feel compassion toward the target, creating a moral dilemma. But he doesn't. His last kill is as ruthless as his first. He's a person with no redeeming factors. Director David Fincher makes the film look and feel as cold and antiseptic as the killer.
The Book Thief (2013)
A Coming-of-age Story about Growing Up in Prewar Nazi Germany
10/10 Stars. A very humanistic storytelling about growing up in prewar Nazi Germany. Liesel is 13-yo girl whose mother has been taken away and she now lives with her adopter Mama and Papa. Like in the Ann Frank story, they secretly keep a Jew hidden. The story is about how Liesel comes of age, learns how to read and write in her journal and discovers the love π of those around her. They include her best friend Rudy and the Jewish boy Max. It's a beautiful story with a semi-happy-sad ending. After Liesel witnesses a Nazi book-burning, she finds her way into the rich Mayor's home with an extensive library.
Worth watching.
Master Gardener (2022)
A Paul Schrafer Slow Burn, but Hopeful Story
8/10 Stars. This film,written and directed by Paul Schrader, had all the hallmarks of a Schrader movie. Like Taxi Driver, the film is narrated by the protagonist as he keeps his journal of events. As in The Card Counter, the protagonist is characterized by his profession: in this case, he's a master gardener. Like all Schrader films, the story is a slow burn, with Narvel (taciturnly played by Joel Edgerton) concealing a dark history. He describes a certain sensation as "the buzz you get just before pulling a trigger." Unlike most Schrafer films, there isn't a catastrophic ending. In fact, you could say that this has a hopeful ending. Worth seeing.
Oppenheimer (2023)
The Spectacular Rise and Dramatic Fall of an American Hero
Christopher Nolan's Oppenheimer film may be best film of 2023. Based on the book American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of Robert Oppenheimer, the film is a tour-de-force that brings to life the rise and fall of the "father of the atom bomb." Like in his films Tenet and Inception, Nolan uses non-linear storytelling. The film is divided into two parts. Part 1. Fission, which covers Oppenheimer's rise in the 1940s, as head of the Manhattan Project, creating the first atom bomb. And Part 2. Fusion, which covers his dramatic fall in the 1950s, after being accused of Communist ties, loses his security credentials.
Nolan, who's directed two Batman films, knows how to create and present a superhero. In one early scene, Oppenheimer, preparing to meet with his project team of scientists, dresses in his suit and tie, puts on his 1940s-style fedora, places his pipe in his mouth, then exits as though he were a superhero preparing to save the world.
The Manhattan Project was a race to build the A-bomb before the Nazis did. The most dramatic scene in the film takes place on 07/16/1945, the day that Trinity, the world's first atomic explosion takes place at Los Alamos, NM. The team of mostly American scientists and engineers party and celebrate the success of three years of experimentation and dedicated, hard work. But it appears that only Oppenheimer sees both the triumph and tragedy of the accomplishment. You can't help but think of a similar day on 07/17/1969, the day Apollo 11 astronauts walked on the Moon. Both celebrate American πΊπΈ scientific and engineering achievements, but result in dramatically different outcomes.
The Covenant (2023)
You Off Your Debts.
8/10 stars. Pay your debts. What starts as a typical US fighting a war in Afghanistan, evolves into a story of suffering and redemption. Ahmed, an interpreter for US Army Sergeant John Kinley, goes to extraordinary efforts to save Kinley's life. Once back safely in the US, Kinley is completed to pay back his debt by rescuing Ahmed and his family. Kiley, who once saved the life of his superiors, that it's time to repay the debt by getting Ahmed and his family US Visas and Passports. What do you owe someone who saves your life? And how do you repay them? The story revolves around the covenant that Kinley and Ahmed have made to each other. π
The Whale (2022)
It's the English Teacher's Dream: Moby Dick - Call Me Charlie
I liked The Whale, esp. The literary references. Moby Dick, one of my favorites. Ellie's essay: Capt. Ahab thinks his life will be better if he can kill the white whale π³. Then there's Jonah & the Whale: Another story of redemption and rebirth. Aronofsky has a way of bringing out the best in his actors: Natalie Portman, Mickey O'Rourke and now Brendan Frazier. Charlie preaches honesty and authenticity, but he's living a big lie: with his students, with Ellie, with Liz and his ex-wife. Nowadays, viewers want authenticity in their actors. Spielberg's remake of West Side Story has a Latina play Maria, replacing Natalie Wood. Why not have a morbidly obese actor play Charlie? That person who know deeply how the world treats obese people and their struggle. In the 2022 Oscar film CODA, all the deaf characters were actually deaf and the Deaf lobby wouldn't have it any other way. I guess there's no Obese lobby. π
Triple Frontier (2019)
Well-developed heist adventure, with several plot reversals.
Rated 8/10. From the actors, to the action to the direction, this is a realistic, soldiers of fortune adventure. A group of former Special Forces operatives join forces to steal a large fortune from a Columbia drug lord. Directed by J. C. Chandor. Chandor and Mark Boal wrote the screenplay. Great acting by Charlie Hunnan, Ben Affleck, Oscar Isaac, and Garrett Hedlund. Everyone had noble intentions, but ultimately it was a survival story. Just when they're making their $250M heist, you know things aren't going to turn out well. And it doesn't. In the end, they either throw away or give away all the money that they fought for. Has much in common with similar film Extraction. Worthwhile.
Fall (2022)
It's both unnerving and totally engaging.
10/10 Stars. This film had me on edge of my seat for most of the movie. It brings vertigo right to your seat. The filmmaker understands that viewer engagement and creating characters that we care about are the two most important things in great movies. Once you decide to go on the roller coaster ride with Becky and Hunter, then hold on tight! Both these women demonstrate grit and determination. Of course, if they had planned the trip better, like carrying 200 ft of rope, food and water for several days, power cell batteries, climbing shoes and letting someone know where they're going and when they'd be back, it would have gone smoother, but be a less stressful film.
Looks That Kill (2020)
A perfect blend of heart and head
You may think you know where this film is going, but you'd be wrong. Max meets Alex when he's about to jump off a bridge. Alex is full of life and unexpected surprises. She brings Max out of his shell and wakes him with appreciation for being alive. They are a perfect blend of skepticism and innocence. Loved this film and the characters in it.
The Old Guard (2020)
Immortals Still Feel Love and Pain
Charlize Theron has figured out there's more money and future in being an action hero, than a romantic comedian. From Mad Max: Fury Road to Atomic Blonde, action films have more global appeal. The plot would have been better to have the newbie, Nile Freeman, captured and have the Team rescue her. It's all very diverse and predictable. But still enjoyable.
First Man (2018)
Neil Armstrong was the Accidental Hero of the Space Age
Technically well made, but cold as deep space. Armstrong was so emotionally constrained that he couldn't open up to his family or co-astronauts. Before leaving for Apollo 11, he sits down with his two sons and says, "Does anyone have any other questions?" as if they're at a press conference. In the last scene he's quarantined after returning from the Moon. His wife walks into an adjacent room where they're separated by a glass wall. They express no joy in his safe return and don't even touch hands on the glass, like they do in all prison films. Armstrong was the accidental hero of the space age.
All Mine to Give (1957)
This is a 3 hankie tear-jerker.
I think this is the saddest film ever made. The story follows the growth of an immigrant family from just Mom & Dad to a house full of children. Then tragedy strikes and we see the family start to shrink. First by death by disease the parents, then by having the oldest give away his brothers and sisters. This film has what most modern Hollywood films lack - characters that you care dearly about. You will care enough about this family by the end, as if it were your own. I was 10 when this film was released, and had just lost my Mom. The film really hits home - as Buddha said: every family has a tragedy.
I hope it is released in VHS or DVD sometime in the future.
Biker Dreams (1998)
Part Romance, Part Roadtrip & All Adventure
The road beckons to South Dakota, and the people speak for themselves, from the hip. Funny thing is, even when ideologies conflict, nearly everyone cites the people they have met through motorcycling as one of its great attractions. Meet Martin and his girlfriend Alex as they set out for their first long motorcycle trip together. Interspersed with their own personal exploration of the whole biker phenomenon are candid moments with a sampling of the many, many others with whom they might be rubbing shoulders, including `Liddo' Jim, a tattooed, bearded one-percenter. Some of Liddo's fascinating story aims straight for our sensibilities. And, yet, he speaks with a sincerity that has been tempered by both his trials and achievements. As one woman says, `Downtown Sturgis is the epitome of Biker Heaven. There's always a prettier woman, an uglier woman, a bigger guy, a skinnier guy-more patches, different paint jobs.' Her observations run more than skin-deep. Note: this video contains adult content.