Change Your Image
![](https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMjQ4MTY5NzU2M15BMl5BanBnXkFtZTgwNDc5NTgwMTI@._V1_SY100_SX100_.jpg)
jordan-79
Reviews
Michael Palin in North Korea (2018)
Mesmerizing
Admittedly, I was locked in a hotel room during travel, but I have to say that I found this completely mesmerizing. Michael Palin's and innate intelligence and humanity shine through as he has some very in-depth conversations-especially with his two guides-about politics and the way the Korean people see their leaders. Plus the geography and cultural highlights were fabulous.
Inception (2010)
Over-rated, but good anyway
This movie is over-rated. It is hard to follow, not just because some of the dialogue is very difficult to hear but because it is, purposefully, inherently confusing. I don't like to have to work quite as hard as I did in the beginning of this movie to be able to enjoy it.
Also, I didn't really care about the characters. The type of "craziness" that Leonardo's character suffers from has been gone over time after time in movies, and I didn't find anything particularly compelling about Leo or the other characters. I want to deeply bond with the characters, and I didn't really do that in this movie.
The visuals were truly stunning. And they do kind of wrap up everything by the very end. But in my view this movie is not nearly as good as everyone is making it out to be.
Star Trek (2009)
Great, but a few flaws
Generally, this was great. There were a few flaws, though. The time paradox thing at the end with you-know-who could have been handled more adroitly. The bad guy could have been badder. The plot got a bit loopy in the middle and was a touch hard to follow. Kirk could have gotten beaten up just a little bit less, and I thought Checkov was just a bit too over-the-top (or under the English). Also, Sarek could have been more powerfully handled.
Plus, just how big is this Enterprise? It seems way of scale compared to what I would have ever thought it was. Yes, it might make more sense that this should have *always* been the scale, but since it wasn't way back when, I'm having a hard time adjusting.
As for the new and unexpected love interest...surprised me, but what the heck.
But having said this, what a great time, a great ride, and great casting (although Winona Ryder was kind of wasted here).
Yay! Can't wait to see the next three or four!
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003)
Slightly Flawed, but Amazingly Engrossing
Yes, there are some flaws. See above. But given what was achieved here, and the great difficulty of bringing this to screen at all, I think we can safely say that this was a stupendous, amazing, and wonderful movie that was completely satisfying. I am, though, looking forward to the extended DVD in a year, to see the final scenes with Saruman and some more that unfortunately had to be cut out. But look, to really have left everything in would have been more like 3 4+ hour movies, which just wouldn't have been viable. Ultimately, I am very happy with this, and feel that this movie should definitely win the Best Picture Oscar.