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Cooked (2016)
Such a great journey in the evolution of gastronomical inventions
What I really relished watching this series is when he backtracks the basic inventions like bread making to its best origins. How the modern mass scale industrial production had ruined the basic essence of bread making. How some basic techniques were discarded to speed up the process but in doing so we were actually making a backtracking interms of the nutrition processing in its natural raw form. Its almost as if the importance of sour dough is rediscovered. The gluten scare maybe born of skipping this step.
The same journey with that of natural fermentation of cheese.
Its a delight to watch.
Ex Machina (2014)
Best AI flick I have seen so far. Kudos Alex Garland.
Recently as Steven Hawking and Elon Musk warned the greater public that its most likely that a intelligent General become a danger to mankind in the long run. We have images of the doomday apocalyptic Skynet nuking the world, and most recently Marvel studios finally made the story arch of age of Ultron from the Avengers Marvel universe which has a similar violent avakening of an AI.
This movie treats the audience to the same theme in a much softer manner evoking human emotions of a seemingly naive innocent female AI, playing into the psyche like a thriller with three great personal character stories.
The story begins with as a employee Caleb Smith among many in the company genius Nathan Bateman, who invented the AI gets selected to take part in a truing test to fine tune this nth iteration called Ava. At a secret facility in Alaska we are greeted by a graceful feminine robot programmed to be a heterosexual female.
As the movie progresses Batesman's narcissistic personality with a practical witty outlook on like is revealed. Wit for wit is matched both Caleb and Ava's personality. With great classical science and Sci-fi references. With a strained relationship between Ava and her creator Garland, Caleb becomes the man conducting the test as well as a subject and a means to Galand and Ava.
It's much like who has a intellectual upper hand on who. A thrilling ride tot he end.
Song of the Sea (2014)
This animation is a stunning mix of old school artistry meeting the motion picture.
First off I was blown away by the beautiful artwork of the film. Each and every scene is masterfully drawn the team behind the art. The concept of showing the scenery with the the imaginary vision of capturing the other wildlife within the shot really did some wonders.Props great concept in Art, and for that I gave it a eight, of-course with a nice nice twist to the folk tale that told here.
The story centering on the Celtic legends of the Selkies or the Seal people entwined with the fairies tells the brother sister story and a half Selkies journey of discovery. Born of a Selkie mother and Human father the the little sister inherits her mothers Selkie side, during her birth for some reason which was not very apparent the mother had to leave the family leaving the baby behind. In truth it's a children tale so the story isn't that complicated or intricate.
Highway (2014)
India social elite culture unravels with a other end kidnapping a gated princess.
By far the best Bollywood movie I have seen in recent times, the lead actress Alia Bhatt eloquently portrays the girl from the rich upper cast family who lived a gated community life totally veiled from the utter realities of life in India, suddenly kidnapped Ironically feels never freer in her life. Along the way she never wants to return to her real life which was full of shallowness. She breaks down and reveals her not too dandy life as a child who was molested by family and hushed by family to protect the family honor.
Later the mechanization of police institutions and family connections culminates in sniper shot killing of the ring lead man who took her, of- course an unprovoked shot, but a man deemed unworthy require no trail.
Chappie (2015)
Blomkamp gets a misfit target audience flick, of what could have been great.
What could have been a really good movie, by Neill Blomkamp with a similar theme of the Joe Berg ghetto culture married in with the other, this time rather than Aliens an AI, takes the wrong turn of being much too comical at the same time infusing it with gore and violence. The comical aspect with a very vague explanation of sci-fi turns of the serious mature movie goers while the violence and gore makes the movie unsuitable for a certain younger audience.
The main theme of a advance General AI gaining consciousness is very interesting and getting more and more relevant to our times as automated Drones and driver-less cars gets a legal go ahead, but as said before that theme wasn't explored to where the audience craved it.
Citizenfour (2014)
The Philosophy this man stood up to well worth propagating
The Philosophy this man stood up to well worth propagating, CitizenFour follows the Story of the now famous NSA whistleblower Edaward Snowden. From the time he he traveled to Hong Kong, the documentary follows actual footage that was taken of him and the collaborating Journalists meeting and talking about the extent of the Espionage and violation of privacy that NSA and GCHQ was undertaking.
In truth the true Hero here is Edward Snowden not any of the other Journalists, it took courage to give up your comfortable life to live a life on the run. To be frank of all the leaked information leaked to the the media outlet Guardian, only a biased selected documents was published about, in my opinion insulting the efforts and ideals of what Edward Snowden stood for.
If even one of these privacy violations are on going and and you let it pass, remember you are the sheep being slowly led to the slaughter.
Speak out now.
The Imitation Game (2014)
Reducing the actual Alan Turing to a bumbling social failure, to garner viewer empathy
Not particularly true to original events nor true to Alan Turing Character. Farcical but big budget movie with excellent actors make it for a great viewing nonetheless. Reducing the actual Alan Turing to a bumbling social failure, to garner viewer empathy was a main theme of movie, but actual truth Turing was a charmer and socially apt personality.
Where the movie shines is showing Turing for his concept of coming up with a thinking machine, or Machine intelligence. A machine that can be re programmed. This later develops into what is know as the Computer. In the digital age it was renamed Artificial intelligence. The unsung hero of science and WWII finally finds the spotlight in global cinema, albeit in the form of a sobering social miscreant. Nor does it end their, the movie failed to show the social class and woman status correctly. Turing developed the machine and outline it theoretically the machine was build by mechanics not Turing himself because it was deemed of lower status to meddle with mechanics and get your hands dirty, the upper class social norm of the time in England. The machines was run and maintained by the woman, and it gave out a lot of heat.
PK (2014)
A very daring movie
This is a must watch movie. A very daring movie still in a very religiously conservative country. Shattering through the facade of conman and dogma that is passed of as religion is shattered in a very colloquial and accessible level to the masses.
Comes with humor and an underlying intelligent plot, a visiting stranded Alien on his quest to get back home has to confront God and religion in it's multiple forms that comes in the diverse Indian theology and culture. On his way he learns he feels, he befriends and fall in love. Finally loosing, then changing and touching lives, and knowing when to make that sacrifice. The story is well made with suspense and genuine wit.
Deux jours, une nuit (2014)
For it's originality of depicting very everyday life, props
For it's originality of depicting very everyday life, props.
This movie would not blow you away from reality into some unimaginable, extraordinary event. Like the directors previous movie which won an award here is a film which portrays similarly life and moment of a woman and family going through a period of adversity.
The slow moving pace gives the viewer some time to think and the situation, wear that hat of empathy. The economy is in recession everyone where she works is hard pressed our character finding courage after recovering from severe depressive episode and support from her family sets of trying to salvage the job she had been away from. Deviation from the norm but an excellent flick to give your mind a treat of reality. It is the same everywhere.
Fury (2014)
One of the best Tank warfare movies made.
The movie was indeed a treat to war movie lovers. If any war movie is to get acclaim in the awards it's this one not American sniper.
The production excellent, set and costume is was to the mark. The battle scenes was largely realistic, except for the cinematic decision to visualize bullet fire by greenish neon streaks of lights. Hey its not a future sci-fi its a period piece where laser guns hasn't been developed.
The depiction of German superior tanks engaging the American lightweight Sherman, was super and the suspense trill and tension for survival they really managed to show.
The movie movie progress Wardaddy (Brad Pitt) and his crew are shown extremely lucky surviving engagement after engagement as the solve operational tank, they play into a religious angle of guided by the hand of God. They on a untrained rookie played by a new comer Logan Lerhman, who in my opinion performed sub-par. The crew interaction with captured POW as they execute solders was somewhat dark and real.
The movie pulls through with a great performance by Brad Pitt and Jon Bernthal as Grady 'Coon-Ass' Travis. Really he was a great character.
The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014)
Alas a joke to Moonrise Kingdom
Wes Anderson gives it a second go at direct a similar movie as the successful Moonrise Kingdom he did a few years back, fails miserably.
The central theme and set of the production is well done and commendable but that's where the praise ends. For the whole movie had no clear direction and lack real character development.
What Anderson try to redo here is the artsy romanticized noire of the early 20th century. where he fails is bringing together the cool score produced for the film with timing and acting. No point in talking about the lack of story and suspense development here again.
I would say go see Moonrise Kingdom if you haven't before you see this miserable production. Heck go and see Fantastic Mr.Fox.
Gone Girl (2014)
Psychological thriller
Not having read the Book I thoroughly enjoyed the movie. You get a very intelligent woman raised by ambitious parents who manipulated and novelized her life to create a great series of books. Who settles for the average Joe, an aspiring writer. After spending all her trust fund to prop themselves up on a safe low scale business things go awry. Both fall out from there initial phase get bored with their routine life, Nick the Husband searches for new excitement in the form of younger woman and spends on gadget toys. Amy the the ever so proper and emotionally detached woman that she is finds herself unable to make new acquaintances in her new neighborhood to connect at her level. She feels herself lost, and further aggravates the feeling when she discovers that Nick is cheating on her, and does not love him. After having spend most her money on her marriage her psycho selfs snaps into action on a revenge plan that is utterly brilliant but horrific.
From there the flick show her level of planning and lack of empathy when executing her plan. Along the way a few hiccups changes her plan and what unfolds is quite interesting.
Some woman may find this flick misogynistic and misanthropic or even misandry, but truly the theme is psychopathy, like the director David Fincher's many other movies.
Would this flick get an award, I doubt it, the director played with a misunderstood theme, notwithstanding choose to embed certain micro elements into the scene which is very politically sensitive.
If you consider acting Rosamund Pike was excellent and pulled the movie along to its enjoyable levels. Can't say the same with Ben Affleck (actor) performance.
Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014)
Best movie from the Marvel Universe after the Avengers
After the Avengers this is by far the best flick by Marvel Studios. Within the Marvel universe the last Iron Man movie was a complete disaster, Cap. America delivers from a much more approachable angle with the rise of hydra, Cap questioning the ever more growing police state and constant surveillance. While Cap thinks compromises are necessary it isn't worth it with the loss of freedom, and challenges the established ethos. Later to find out S.H.I.E.L.D being compromised by HYDRA within.
Actions shots were awesome at the beginning with Cap, but later on it kinda movies into whats with the shield Cap Pic up a gun in a gun fight. Later scenes it get screwed up with Cap risking the mission when he did not properly neutralize Winter Soldier aka Bucky. Personally it felt like lazy story telling.
What more I think the movie does shed some light into the overgrowing security and surveillance obsession the world is gearing towards
The Act of Killing (2012)
In the 20th century evil was synonymous with Hitler and the Nazi regime, but these Indonesian gang-lords make them look like pussies.
In the 20th century evil was synonymous with Hitler and the Nazi regime, but these Indonesian gang-lords make them look like pussies. This is a docudrama following and depicting a dramatized tale of the Indonesian paramilitary and gangs who marauded, extorted, murdered slaughtered, raided and truck fear into the poor villages and communists who opposed the then politically established.
Their modus operandi was as while as possible, at the hight of hypocrisy the gang members and their political patrons at government blessed themselves and their movement by sermon and prayer to God (Islam, Muslim society). Indonesian society and culture sort of glorified the gangster, in the Indonesian language as they point out a word for gangster is derived from the English language, 'free-man' become 'primaan'. This documentary was play acted by the actual gang lords proud of their history, with glee the horrid stories was reiterated. The crowning moment for them is that even Indonesian national television has picked up on the documentary and did a promo with the actors/gangsters.
In my impression the whole culture gave off a very primitive feel, like sorts of a throwback into a much more barbaric times, I was thinking when the Mongol horde swept through Asia all the way into eastern Europe sacking cities slaughtering millions of children women and men, did they feel remorse, they kept to their goal of building an empire and amassing wealth in the primitive way they knew how.
This is well worth the look to get a feel this throwback culture.
PS: The the main attraction Anwar Congo, at the end of looked an awful lot like Nelson Mandela, and at some angles like Barack Obama, Ironic isn't it.
Gravity (2013)
Excellent movie blew me away with stunning visuals, spoiler free and with spoiler halfway through
First off this is a one of a kind movie, that blew me away with excellent cinematography and story telling. The movie is a sci-fi space drama/thriller, but unlike most sci-fi space movies Gravity strives and excellently depicts a more realistic current setting, with the current technological limitations. This is were so many peoples reliability to the movie comes from.
Movie stars Sandra Bullock and George Clooney, and are the only two live faces you would see on the movie, with Sandra taking a large chunk of the screen time midway through the movie. With only two cast members floating in space the the directors/writers pulls off an amazing feat keeping the audience engaged in a relatively fast paced plot, not only in an adrenaline fulled high, but playing with the emotions and creating empathy connecting the actors to the audience. This is largely achieved by clever dialogue close up face shots coupled with excellent acting by Sandra. What was really stunning about the movie was the breathtaking rendering of space, the earth from space, as the continents cities rolls by and the sun is peaking from the horizon, all of the visuals was amazingly realistic with great attention to detail. The shots of Hubble and ISS was was exactly as they are in space, not to mention details to starts and constellations. The directors tried to get the physics as real as possible, but sadly there were some shortcoming, but a casual majority of movie goer might not be able to notice these, this did not degrade the movie experience completely, i would say some of the choices to flaunt those rules did enhance it, for instance the decisions not to use space visors so their faces could be visible from the suit helmet. This movie is definitely worth the 3D experience, a must watch movie.
OK, from this point on the will be some spoilers for a more critical review...
The movie starts of with Kowalski (played by Clooney) a space veteran, and his team on the space walk mission doing some repairs to Hubble space telescope. Rayan Stone (played by Bullock), a medical researcher is out on the space walk doing some repairs to the Hubble. Strapped to a arm out in the space totally out of her element and profession. Its one of those moments where you scratch your head whats she doing out there doing repairs, and turns out its her first space walk. The plot unfolds as the Russians decided the best way to get rid of one of their old satellites is to blow it up with a missile. Another absurd moment, the Russians with all their experience in the space arena, blows up a satellite with a missile, this also while a active space walk was going on. Usually defunct satellites forced to re-enter earths atmosphere, where they burn up, and the remains safely crash on some safe zone. Anyway this explosion creates a chain reaction, which creates debris moving in hyper speed which are moving faster than speeding bullets, this scenario is somewhat plausible, these debris moves in and destroys the repair teams shuttle and on impact flings Sandra character hurtling into space. The first thing is faster than speeding bullet debris is seen coming their way, while of course it would be impossible to see such fast moving objects, but this can be overlooked as it created the great cinematic effect.
Moving further on there was one scene where physical laws was so blatantly twisted and disregarded it almost ruined the movie. This is where Mat Kowalski had to un-tether himself apparently because the momentum was pulling him and Rayan Stone both, so Clooneys character does this and floats away to die, all the while they were both pretty stationary and stable, physically speaking there should be no force acting on him. Although this most blatant abuse of physical law to further the plot, the story as a whole was pretty OK.
World War Z (2013)
The movie is based on the world created by author Max Brooks in the zombie apocalyptic novel World War Z, an oral history of the Zombie wars.
The movie is based on the world created by author Max Brooks in the zombie apocalyptic novel World War Z, an oral history of the Zombie wars. Unlike the book which follows multiple story lines into longer time frame into the aftermath, the movie focus on the initial outbreak and follows a retired UN field investigator, now a family man played by Brad Pitt surviving the fall of New York city, who is then forced back into action to keep his family in the secure zone. Pitt is flown with the team in search of patient zero and the origins of the pandemic presumably caused by a virus. The movie is fast paced through out the two hours and holds back on the gore for a PG-13 rating. The movie is much like other zombie apocalyptic movies like 28 days later or contagion.
The zombies in the movie are fast agile capable. Some set Zombie masses swarming was excellent. Even so the zombies had a comedic look to them too, with the high pitched sounds they make to the funny facial expressions.There were some tragic but ironic scenes were we laughed, and other were we were on the edge. The movie had very few emotional scenes and frankly had zero emotional impact.
Further on Pitt's character later discovers that N.Korea and Israel is the only two countries effectively dealing with the pandemic. N.Korea by removing the teeth of all the healthy, the virus spreads through the bite of the infected into the blood stream. More interestingly Israel survives by building walls throughout its borders and keeping the infected mass of zombies at bay. It seems Israel had prior knowledge and acted on it. The novel by Brooks has a underlying theme dealing with American ignorance of foreign geo-politics outside north America, in the movies Israel building a wall and winning it is only were the movie deals with the theme. Even today Israel has extensive walls and fences running through a large part of their borders.
In the movie after being infected it took just 12 seconds for the virus to take over and person to change into a zombie a bit questionable. Finally Pitt's character discovers a work around, a camouflage from the infected. When infected with anther deadly microbe the infected Zombies somehow detect this from a distance and altogether avoid the person and with no explanation given in the movies, I found myself questioning the science.
Finally the movie ends with its just the beginning, so it's highly likely there might be a sequel. All in all an enjoyable flick produced for mass appeal has a blockbuster feel to the movie. For me after reading a bit about the book now I'm more interested in the book.
Vikings (2013)
A must watch,
Following a dramatized version of life and exploits of infamous Viking Ragnar Lothbrok, history channel portrays the everyday life of Viking society to how the vikings struck fear in the then Saxon kingdoms of England and I think as the show progress we would see Ragnars forays into Frankish Francia.
Here we see the Viking not only being fierce warriors, but the raiding parties exploiting the Christian sensibilities, customs and rituals of thir victims. From costumes, set design, the use of old English to portrayal of the pagan Viking religion this is a small screen cinematic gem. History buff would love this show.
Carlos (2010)
A fictionalized biopic of the Venezuelan born, Marxist-Leninist ideologue, political terrorist, Ilich Ramírez Sánchez, who took the alias Carlos, aka Carlos the Jackal.
A partly fictionalized biopic of the Venezuelan born, Marxist ideologue, political terrorist, Ilich Ramírez Sánchez, who took the alias Carlos, aka Carlos the Jackal. He is a democrat and a socialist of the Marxist philosophy (devolution of the class and power to the proletariat), who soldered against imperialist, the capitalist west. He joined forces with the Arab revolutionary cause, the PLO, who took up the revolutionary cause during the soviet era.
The movie is 3 part or in 3 volumes each of about 2 hours which in whole covers 2 decades of this active revolutionary days, for the cause. The French-German style of directing and the artistic depiction of the decade is of the most excellent appeal. Édgar Ramírez who played Carlos is the main highlight for without his strong acting presence the movie/mini series would be have been just average. A must watch.