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nicoveltri
Reviews
The White Lotus (2021)
Strong 8 - Contemporary Neuroticism Gets a Sicilian Facelift
I tried racking my brain for a bit now deciding why this is one of the most important shows, making a contemporary statement in recent memory. At times it feels like the story is using topical culture references as decoration for its allure. On top of this manipulating the Covid brain viewers, with beautiful travel, sceneries, like Sicily, or Hawaii, a low blow. But like good literature, the film takes its characters and storylines, and continues to fold them into each other, and expand beyond the point of a origin. This was inspirational for me, because of the lack of artistic efforts of the past five years (with exception of euphoria, which is more so an adults, exploitation of Gen z culture, then a correct representation of it) in capturing the contemporary life. I really hope that this TV series is looked at as an entry point for further attempts at interpreting the world today, with all its quirkiness, contrived, dialogue, vapid, and binary personalities, as opposed to, an exception. Good art and expression can still go exist with popular interest.
True Detective (2014)
God is the beginning
After years of separation from this explosive true crime thriller, I've returned back to look at this series in a new way. Season 1, while having a consistent narrative, exposes much about the creators.wrestling with agnosticism. The southern gothic themes of Louisiana are a comical backdrop to the more serious storyline which includes near death experiences and cosmic-spiritual encounters, which show to be more of a driving force to the main characters. I would love to know what the creator was going through in this late 2010s period, before the trenched era of covid and 20201.
Ocean's Twelve (2004)
This movie is contrived, pretentious, and unrealistic...but I love it!
The soundtrack and foreign settings are grandiose enough to be eye- catching, but the most profound element for me here is the layers of satire and puns that take a few watches to catch fully.
What could be more tongue-in-cheek than Julia Roberts portraying Julia Roberts?
The reason why I think many were put off by this movie, is the very reason I find it so enamoring; the dialogue and plot points in the film give off an excessive feeling of premeditation, but this allows it to reach greater heights than films that attempt to impose as organic or biographical.