Change Your Image
ChiefBogeyman
Reviews
Silo (2023)
Only Reason To Watch Is Rebecca Ferguson
Amazing how sci Fi is so bad when it comes to TV or even films. The exceptions are few and far in between, however Silo is on the lower side of good. These ten episodes could make a one good (not very good) film, it does not need to stretched out as it is, the characters are not that interesting or internal to make much difference. The direction is clunky, the story hokey, the production design only as good as Solyent Green. It would be better if authors or estate owners could control who makes their properties into film or TV, not that they or their agents would necessarily know better. Oh well another waste of time and lots hope as somebody at IMDB gave it an average rating of 8.1, way too high.
Sugar (2024)
Trivial pursuit
While the title character Colin Ferrell with a smug face and a well built body takes you through the series pursuing a lost girl and lots of Hollywood misfits it leaves you feeling you have seen it all before, and it was NOT the Maltese Falcon. A beautiful Sting Ray does not make up for a dim witted story line that could have been told in a two hour movie. The title has no consequence to the character or the story and Sugar is certainly no Marlow. While there are very good performances by formidable actors such as Amy Ryan and Nate Corddry, Collin Ferrell is not challenged enough neither by the character or the director. Amazed that this piece got made.
Civil War (2024)
Lost in a Civil War
Do not get caught up in the hyperbola that CIVIL WAR or for that matter OPPENHEIMER are must see films. Each have their pretension with intellectual superiority. Do either of these films open up a new dialogue ... Flatly NO...just for the press who are always seeking a new angle to tell the same story. While a well made film with powerful individual scenes there are filmic cliches which are unpardonable and bring the story down. This exercise in filmmaking leaves one cold as did EX MAXHINA and ANNIHILATION. Alex Garland is great at capturing the zeigeist of the moment which mostly does not translate to fictional film.
Ripley (2024)
A Plodding Ripley
I was interesting in seeing how a terrific screen writer.would take a terrific book and convert it into a mini series. There is obviously a huge difference between screen writing and series writing. This show does not make the transition. While Ripley and friends make deep interesting characters Steve Zallian miscast the series or rather chose to use uncharismatic performances which leads to dull show. Fillers include lots of foot action on beach to villa stairs, letter writing, sharp unnecessary camera angle and to top it black and white which takes away from contrasts of hell in a NYC hotel room and heaven in the Italian town. Zallian did a good job with IN THE NIGHT a number of years ago however that show was almost scene for scene a remake of a British show. The added foot issues that Tuturro faced did not engage us. Without a series to pace him here Zallian fails at pacing. The characters are quite morose and really not that interesting unfortunately. Sorry to see a great story go to such waste. Sorry Steve.
Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire (2024)
NOT A Reptile fan
I have never understood how Godzilla with such a small brain could have such a wonderful impact on the world of cinema. King Kong on the other hand is a warm blooded thinking individual who is possessed by procreation with human women. King Kong has been wronged and he needs to set the record straight while Godzilla is just an inane reptile with no motivational force driving him/her/it. Put the two together and you have humans who make films about two species battling whatever it is they want to battle and hoping that humans will pay money to be bored for two hours. It is a sad state of affairs when Godzilla has to meet a American franchisee rather than one of his own Japanese franchisees. Unfortunately this Godzilla film has a far more intelligent and motivated King Kong to deal with. This cocktail does not work, learn science before making stupid assumptions.
Dune: Part Two (2024)
A Spectacle from a very talented director
I will not assume I can write a synopsis any better than the many reviews this film has received. The film is excellent, it is big, beautiful, exciting, haunting and deals with life on many planes of consciousness. The characters are very well fleshed out and play pivotal role, nothing too lean. The semblance of a love story is there in order to promote it audience, however it is well done and appropriate for the story.
Please note that the film does need subtitles in English for English, while the filmmakers know the script inside out, it is hard for an audience to deal with sound effects let alone mumbling on top of it. I will definitely see the film again, however with the benefit of subtitles.
Overall a great experience well worth watching on a large screen but bring your hearing aides to flesh out the dialogue.
Babylon (2022)
A Very Skillful Film
Skillful in the sense that every aspect of the film is beautifully executed, however a film begins with a script and that is the one category that was lacking. Yes it is a good yarn of Hollywood however it touches on so many points that it lacks cohesion.
Acting...great
Casting....great
Cinematography...great
Music....amazing
Production...great
Direction....great
Costumes....great
Sound, Editing, Design.....great
Script....just okay.
Something could have been learned from the tight script of Once Upon a Time in Hollywood. However this is a big project and once it starts it is very hard to not proceed despite the script not being perfect.
Triangle of Sadness (2022)
Ship of Fools
While I am quite familiar with the cinematic mind and definitely give creative credit to strong filmmakers like Ruben Ostlund I am always perplexed by the enthusiastic audience who finds the need to fill missing hole in their lives through the work of more brilliant people than themselves. You can read the film plot elsewhere but here I wanted to just justify my lower rating for a film and filmmaker that has won many prizes to date. Social criticism can work in many ways and the most accessible being comedy where bright and dim minds can meet and each get something different from the same material. FORCE MAJEUR, THE SQUARE and now TRIANGLE OF SADNESS share the same DNA; all three observing and rejecting a boatload of losers, people that cannot transcend to a new plateau post traumatic situations, people whose lives are selfish and empty. As a Swedish filmmaker Mr. Ostlund separates us from his subjects, creates inconclusive situations and leaves us cold with neither passion nor caring for the characters we are observing. To me I feel as if here we have a contemporary Bergman, one whose journey could be best presented on stage when we feel the spit, smells and deception of a character. The desperation of the cinematic audience who shared the air we breathe was presented in sharp hesitant laughs which were as inconclusive as the film we were watching.
The Devil's Hour (2022)
Doctor Who Relives His Time Travel Experiences
The first two episodes could be the best two hours of television, it is too bad that the next four hours is just a rehash of murder mystery television with a metaphysical twist. Acting is top notch, especially with Jessica Raines and Alex Ferns turning in Oscar/Emmy winning performances. While Peter Capaldi does all the right facial expressions necessary of a sane/insane intruder his role is not original enough to satisfy his immense talents. Direction moody and tight and all technical credits well worth watching. While I think everybody will not be happy with the untidy ending it does still is the best solution to a metaphysical problem where what we know is not enough to explain parallel lives.
George Ayoub.
Chloe (2022)
Very provocative show
This is a notch above most shows, the acting is too notch
. Just beware of the worse costumes you have every seen in film or television other than in comedy sketches.
No Time to Die (2021)
Say Who is That Man with the Gun Over There
The recent slew of Bond films have held their own and generally are pretty entertaining. The backgrounds and action takes precedent over the actors who deliver formulaic lines on Q. The production values have increased substantially over the last 10 years and candy appeal is definitely delivered. Trying to make No Time To Die a humanist film succeeds only if you can believe that Bond can fall in love frequently, therefore therapy is definitely in order for James. He still loves Vesper and visits her grave and now again deeply in love with Madelaine...wow, a man who loves younger women who quite honestly don't have much character. I personally have stopped going to Bond films for the acting or ho hum characters, but do go to get a visual palette of richness. This film had some nice sets and locations, the favorite of which was the Denmark - Swedish bridge and chases. Most of the film was TOO dark (big mistake directors make so that the audience takes them seriously) and it also needed subtitles between all the low lips and mumbles it is hard to hear some of the dialogue. That Bond dies is a good thing as Daniel Craig took himself too seriously to like him and also will give the producers room to create a New Bond which Vaughn has already done with the Kingsman series. I would have really enjoyed seeing a Danny Boyle version of James Bond, it if nothing else would have much more interesting. Maybe Americans should not direct Bond films.
Defending Jacob (2020)
Where a soap opera meets quality television
First of all it must be stated that Chris Pines beard should win the Razzle Award for "worst beard on a well known actor on television". While the IMDB rating is what drive me to start watching this series, it pacing and soap operish turns is what has driven me away from it. There is nothing here but a two hour movie stretched beyond credibility with family moments, driving shots, deep thought moments which do not drive the story. While all production aspects are great that is not enough to engage a smarter HBO audience, which is what they were hoping to do.
Servant (2019)
A 2 Hour Movie stretched to oblivion
It is too bad that good ideas get stretched beyond reason with the pandemic exile of feature film talent to the home screen. While M. Night Shyamalan has had some good ideas most of which did not make good films, shows up at Apple with a feature film idea which gets converted into a stretched out melodrama with rather one or two dimensional characters and performances. Robert Grint is the best actor in this group and a more nuanced character. Too bad Shyamalan should stick to 2 hour films.
The Returned (2013)
A post zombie thriller brings new light to the genre
The zombie genre has been exploited in many ways. THE RETURNED brings a new twist on the genre. In a world like ours where several zombie outbreaks have already occurred, those that turned to zombies were killed and from their blood the infected were treated with a antiviral drug and are now 'returned' - neither fully human nor quite zombies, they live on the edge that the infection which is constantly within them can turn them into zombies within 24 hours if they are not inoculated every day with the drug.
Kate works at the hospital in the Return Unit, helping those who have been infected by the virus that turns people into zombies. Kate's dedication to her work is absolute, but few people realize that for her it is also a personal matter; Kate's own husband, Alex, has been returned. After various brutal and prolific attacks at the hands of Anti-Return groups and rumours that the "antiviral" stock is running dangerously low, Kate fears for Alex's safety. Suspicious of the government's order that all the returned should report to a secure medical facility 'for their own safety', the couple decides to flee, taking with them as many does of the antiviral protein they can find. They are joined by their best friends Jacob and Amber. At no point does the couple imagine that the real threat is a lot closer than they think
A smart sharp script is directed by a talented suspense / horror director (Exorcismus) joined by a wonderful cast. Worth putting this into film onto your films to watch list.