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Nightmare Alley (2021)
Disappointing, pretentious, ludicrous...etc.
Del Toro is an acquired taste and this movie is not going to help me acquire it. The actors are as ill-suited to their roles as Bradley Cooper's mustache is to his face. The dialog is clunky, the plot is predictable, and the finale is a pathetic and risible attempt at Oscar glory. Four stars for the period decor.
Goliath (2016)
If only things worked out this way...
There's something for everyone in Goliath. If David Lynch decided to expand his audience by making a feel-good movie, this would be it. It's got all the dark, Lynchian flourishes. So dark in fact, I often had a hard time figuring out what was happening onscreen as most scenes seemed to be shot in near-total darkness. +
After the numerous, astonishing plot twists have been dispensed with, the good guys prevail and the bad guys are found to be rapaciously greedy capitalists responsible for the deaths of thousands. They lose all their ill-gained billions and their coveted place in line on the next SpaceX voyage.
Just like in real life.
My Movie Girl (2016)
Why would anyone want to make a knock-off of Woody Allen?
We're reminded of Woody Allen from the very first line of the movie when the protagonist makes an offhand remark about some unnamed filmmaker being too old to continue making movies. Nevertheless, from there on the movie becomes a dim remake of Allen's films, replete with a nebbishy hero who, despite his obvious ineptitude, manages to get the girl.
Woody Allen was a nebbish, but a likable nebbish. The main character, who is in every scene of this film, is grating and cringeworthy. Do yourself a favor. Instead of watching a film that should have been made in the 1970s, watch "Play it Again Sam" (1972) as an alternative act of kindness to yourself. Because life's too short to eat imitation crab.
The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel (2017)
Offensive in so many ways
Too bad about this show. It seemed quite promising to begin with. But it went downhill in a hurry. Too much time spent with secondary characters in unfunny set pieces like the one at the exercise class. That scene was so lame it made me grimace. And that isn't the only cringe-worthy part of it. The parents of the two principal characters are cliche-ridden caricatures that are so over the top they could only be funny to someone who is not woke enough to be offended. I tend to think the writers of the show took the path of least resistance. Instead of nuanced characters with something clever or meaningful to say, they're all loud-mouthed boors without any discernible motivation for their actions.
And don't get me started on the portrayal of Lenny Bruce. I'm sure he would have some choice words for this pile of crap.
The Big Sick (2017)
Thin material, vaguely familiar, only mildly amusing
Why all the hype? This is a mostly derivative dramedy that plays like a second-rate TV sitcom. The only thing missing is a laugh track. True, there's no end to the cute one-liners...but continual use of "the pivot" as a comedic device has made all these cute one-liners predictable and annoying.
Also annoying are the lame stereotypes of Asian parents..haven't we seen them in countless other mediocre comedies? Enough already!
Holly Hunter manages to elevate her role, even though she's saddled with a maudlin script and unbelievable plotting. The rest of the cast looks amateurish, like TV people who don't belong on the big screen.
Sometimes it's best to know your limitations and not try to go beyond them.