Brachvogel's Reviews

The Last of Us: Long, Long Time (2023)

Season 1, Episode 3

10/10

21 February 2023

Warning: Spoilers

So far, I like this series, I really do, but this episode plays in a league of its own. It's smart, funny, beautiful, but most of all, it's pure love.

At first, I kept expecting the usual course of events typical for a dystopian series: Build up a heartwarming situation - preferably with a character you've grown fond of - and turn it into a nightmare, preferably by killing the beloved character.

So when I watched Bill and Frank on their first day of encounter, I was prepared for the worst. I saw in every gesture of kindness the potential for betrayal, and I was sure, Bill would soon be killed because an apocalyptic world brings out the worst in us, right?

Wrong! This episode takes a step aside from the usual zombie-apocalypse-abyss and shows nothing but love, caring and kindness, leaving me deeply moved, surprised, and impressed.

Last not least: great acting, great scripting, and great cinematography!

I thank the makers for this beautiful experience!

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RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars (2012– )

2/10

How Commerce Can Turn something Good into something Bad

11 August 2022

I've seen all episodes of Rupaul's Drag Race and I love every one of them. It's such a great format for me because no matter how competitive it gets, no matter how low the blows among the contestants are, in the end there is only one person who decides: the beautiful, loving and wise Rupaul. No one would ever dare to second guess the decision of the founder and icon of the Drag Race.

The All Stars format counteracts just about everything I love about Drag Race. It's a producer's concept aiming for high viewing figures. They gather former Drag Race contestants who have gained the biggest fan community and let them decide among eachother who has to leave. The result is a social carnage that breaks my heart in two ways:

that almost every drag queen jumps over the stick and descents into the lowlands of human behaviour
and that the admirable and lovingly Rupaul has agreed to this.

This show concept aims to reality show drama - so much that it spoils for me the wide range of creativity shown.

Is this really necessary? As a fan I say no. On the producer's perspective I can only speculate that they have an urge to gain (even!) more revenue by adding more social voyeurism to the Drag Race equation.

Shame to everyone who falls for this!

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Little Murders (1971)

5/10

Top Notch Acting But the Script...

27 March 2022

Director [link=nm0000273} had gathered the best actresses and actors available at the time, and it is a pleasure watching them work, but in the end, a movie sums up to all its components. In the case of "Little Murders", it's the script that's just not holding up to present times, and if the script doesn't work anymore, there is nothing the rest can do to make it matter. For one thing, you can hear the stage play paper crackle in the dialogues. And, typical for the time, there are too many punch lines, too many brute force plot twists - not to speak of the constant urge to lecture. I can understand the positive reviews here, but nostalgia shouldn't count in a present-day review. The question is: Does this movie work in a today's context? It doesn't. It's clearly attached to a 1971 perspective. In that view, it's an honourable undertaking. But is it transferable to 2022? No, it isn't. What remains, is pure nostalgia: the actresses, the actors, the retro-fashion, '71-New York - that's all cool - no question - but is this movie still enlightening? It's clearly not.

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Expired (2022)

4/10

In Great Ambition Lies Great Responsibility

19 March 2022

It's an ambitious task producing a science fiction movie on an obviously low budget, especially if the content focuses on condition rather than plot.

The movie's cinematography is well worth watching, also editing is well made, but without a straight plot, scripting has to carry a heavy load because every scene has to stand for itself. Unfortunately, it doesn't hold up to the task. Though the dialogues seek philosophical depth, they lack refinement, constantly throwing me out of the suspension of disbelief.

Acting is just fine, including that of Ryan Kwanten who plays the lead role of Jack. However, his sloppy diction is hard to take. Eager to be as authentic as possible, he sacrifices his control over speech which makes him simply hard to understand.

Also, there are too many references to "Blade Runner": A lonesome killer seeking love, voiceover narration, androids, the lifespan issue, an Asian future city, even the soundtrack that sounds like Vangelis at times - there are just too many parallels.

Great Hong Kong footage, good editing, but overall an overambitious undertaking.

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Joker (I) (2019)

5/10

Top notch acting, great film making, but a highly dubious conclusion

20 June 2021

Warning: Spoilers

Usually, when I write a feedback, I start with the good stuff. This time, I must ask first: What is this movie getting at? Exterminate the skum?! Guns help the helpless?!

The acting of Joaquin Phoenix is the best I've seen in years, always giving it all, taking it all from within, never thinking of effects or external perception: ingenious.

The hole making of the movie is impeccable: the shots, the editing, the sound design, the soundtrack - close to perfect.

And then there's the plot. First of all, the main character Arthur is depicted as nothing but a victim. All he wants is spreading happiness into the world, but he has mental issues that include extreme social challenges, and that combined with an utterly degenerated word turns every contact, even the smallest subplot into an abyss.

So what solution does this movie offer? Nothing but violence.

That all sounds sensible for a main villain of the DC universe. But the whole approach seeks pure realism, has no interest in comic word exaggeration.

Highly sophisticated film making set in our world plus great acting combined with a message that conveys violence as the only logical solution leads to a dangerous, toxic product, aiming at us to acknowledge the Joker taking the whole world down. Bad vibes, man, really bad vibes.

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Apnea (2019– )

3/10

Fishing in Shallow Waters

8 January 2020

A thin story (unfortunately, the prejudice that many writers lead to a bad script once again has proven true) coupled with a bloated, hollow imagery generate the stale taste of a generic music video or a commercial for a beach vacation. It's not that I don't get it: Extreme close-ups and a constant play with depth of focus aim for a dark notion of something twisted or mysterious. But the content of those minute-long sequences is breathtakingly dim. You can skip 75% of those shots without missing anything remotely relevant for the story. When I look behind the curtain of these loads of eye-candy I see a director who is a visual show-off that doesn't care much about the story he is telling. What a terrible misunderstanding. On a last note, I have to mention the questionable image of the women here. I find it exploitative, reminding me of the 80's.

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Orange Is the New Black (2013–2019)

5/10

Great Cast, Flat, Predictable Dramaturgy, Rare Great Moments

30 June 2018

It has been long overdue for a series with a women's focus like this: beyond the usual upper class "men-are-the-worst-upper-class-sex-in-the-city" hidebound women's rights breadcrumbs. For the cast, it deliveres the promise: great actresses (and actors), all in an incredibly good mood that reflects a positive working environment. Also, the degree of "not pretty" boils down to pure acting - and it's top of pops! However, the storyline is off the charts: most of the time highly predictive, and if not, packed with farytale turning points, most of them making no sense, if you have an interest in realistic human behavior. It all boils down to a bunch of writers who think of how to keep this series on the charts instead of pursuing a clear vision of content. Despite of the great disappointments in the storytelling, I must express - again - my admiration for the top-class acting performance.

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