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Nine Lives (2016)
My will to live no match for Nine Lives
My roommates put on Nine Lives and what unfolded on the screen rapidly triggered primal "fight or flight" instincts in my brain. I massaged the deepest tissues of my temples hoping to reach my traumatized frontal lobes. My gaze was helpless and shifted from sad face to the next, each illumined by phone screens in futile attempts at distraction. Yet, no one was willing to turn the movie off and take control back of our lives. Soon I was paralyzed by the fear that if I acted on these impulses and ran out screaming into the night or assailed the TV with a hammer, my friends would judge me too pretentious to enjoy a simple little family flick like Nine Lives. When it was over, they said it had been "cute", and retired in defeat to their rooms. I can't believe I'm part of the same species as those who spawned this film/soul-crushing mind control experiment. Nine Lives make me wonder if there is any truth to David Icke's assertion that Hollywood is run by evil reptilian monsters masquerading as human beings.
Straight Outta Compton (2015)
The path less trampled by sheep to the American Dream.
The sheeple buying into the manufactured racial divide are picking sides over this one; look at everyone up in hooves in the reviews. Fact is, the narrative of NWA's rise and the requisite controversy is no different than any artists who change the game, and this film did a fine job depicting it. A line from Moneyball comes to mind: "The first one through the wall always gets bloodied", and these guys were the right guys in the right place and right time to do it. The movie is a worthy testament to their accomplishments. There's a lot to fit in when telling their story, and I felt the script writers didn't want to be accused of pulling punches. Any missteps in that regard are attributable to the constrictions of the movie format itself. The direction is top notch. The acting is uniformly great across the board, and the actors look and sound a lot like the people they were playing (O'shea Jackson Jr is the spitting image of his dad!). Also, the cinematographer captured LA's hazy orange green perma-dawn halogen glow and the blue heaven brilliance of its hallowed hillsides nicely. The liberal use of NWA's catalogue along with other seminal tunes of the era keeps the soundtrack fresh. If you like stories about paths other than hoof beaten ones to the American Dream, check it out.
Hidden Colors (2011)
Proves that fascism is not endemic solely to the white race
Its hard not to draw parallels between this "documentary" and Nazi propagada that pushed the concept of white superiority on the weak minded of 1930s Germany, or the recruiting tactics of radical Islam. The only difference is "Hidden Colors" can be borrowed from your local library from the "history" section, whereas citizens of all skin tones would take to the streets if the film's message was reversed.
If there is a conspiracy, it would be that the filmmakers are offering this fanatical take on human history to alienate the fair, intelligent, and open minded in order to make a mockery of, and ultimately, undermine real black progress.
The fools interviewed for this movie only serve to demonstrate that lust for power and dominance is not exclusive to those with white skin.
The Incredible Burt Wonderstone (2013)
A drag of a movie.
TIBW is an unfunny, plodding, and dull film. I was so physically drained by the comedy vacuum it sucked me into, I needed ushers to help me out of my seat when the credits (mercifully) began to roll.
To me, the writers squandered a premise that had terrific comedic potential. I'm guessing they didn't bother consulting any Vegas professionals, because part of the "joke" was the obvious impossibility of the illusions. This means that the magic tricks were limited only to the filmmakers' imaginations, and yet, somehow, the laughs still eluded them.
Carrell "phoned in" his trademark deadpan performance, Buscemi gamely kept his chin up, and Carrey threw what he could at it. It was nice seeing James Gandolfini in something since learning of his passing.
Also, Jack Rebney wants his catchphrase back.
Dumbstruck (2010)
Pleasantly Surprised
This flick chronicles the lives of a group of puppeteers leading up to their attendance of a ventriloquist's convention in Kentucky. The event is barely mentioned throughout the course of the film, however, and when it arrives, it seems merely to have been tacked on as a footnote to the narrative. The only relevance of the convention to the rest of the movie is the impact impersonator/ventriloquist Terry Fator's sudden fame had on the world of ventriloquism and the hopefuls who inhabit it.
Without a high-stakes climax to converge on, the thrust of the film relies on the day-to-day grind and gradual reveals of the embattled souls who shoulder the burden of being ventriloquists. The five subjects have varying degrees of success, and suffer fallouts in one way or another from their family and social circles in pursuit of their careers. It becomes immediately clear that for these performers, it's an uphill fight for respect.
I was particularly engaged by the 13 year old boy's story, and his struggles to remain self-assured as his father's rejection of his hobby slowly chips away at his confidence.
I also came to appreciate how difficult it is to create the jokes, the act, and different voices of their characters while also being technically proficient in their dummy's manipulation.
Overall highly recommended, and deserving of a much higher rating than it's current one.