Reviews

After the resounding success of "Star Wars: The Force Awakens" Lucasarts Studios has rewarded the loyal Star Wars fans with a film that would introduce us to the story about how the rebel alliance exactly got to the plans of the ' Death Star' in the beginning of the movie where it all started. In this way, the film builds on the success that Star Wars with her first 3 films has amassed, which is a very smart choice. We can't exactly say the same about the prequels sadly…Say what you want but the pre- quels were now not really a bull's eye. The story focuses around Jyn Erso (Felicity Jones), who from an early age since losing her parents, took on a rebellious path which has proved quite troublesome for The Empire apparently. When she meets Cassian Andor (Diego Luna), a member of the Rebel Alliance, she unwittingly lands into a plot against The Empire. Gradually the two in contact with various individuals who all have reason enough to join the group. The most notable of which are the duo of Chirrut Îmwe a blind (force wielding) ninja-like fighter, his best buddy Baze Malbus and K-2SO ( a hilarious re-programmed Empire-droid, with a great use of sarcasm). The mission sounds simpler than it seems: getting a hold of the plans of the Death Star to prevent the whole Galaxy being under the power of The Empire.

The 'Star Wars '-label on this film is both a curse as a blessing: on the one hand it brings the return to this "Galaxy far far away" nostalgia back. The grim post-apocalyptic atmosphere that the original trilogy had as well,finds its roots deep into this movie as well, the visual effects, the costumes and the overall atmosphere throughout this movies is a joy to watch and something you don't really find in a lot of movies nowadays.

On the other hand, the fact that this film was clearly as a story 'leading up to' (although is already 40 years old) A New Hope, makes the film also firmly limited in its freedoms: While this movie has created so many things you want to know more about, the movie simply doesn't have enough time to go into much dept about them. The characters suffer the most here. Outside the main character, Jyn Erso, none of the Rogue-One group members get a lot of time to develop their backstory, their motives of really much of an arc. So you feel little to no involvement when they are in danger during the suspenseful scènes. You just know too little about these characters to experience a real commitment. When u have already seen the original trilogy (as I suspect you did), you also kind of know where this whole story is going. While this is not fully deal-breaking, it does take away a bit of it stakes throughout the movie. The film is also rather slow start during the first part and it really takes a while to get the movie going. The first half of the movie does need quite a long time to orient the events in the universe and sometimes this feels orchestrated. I had a feeling that throughout the movie the paths of the characters were already pretty much set and this gave me a a bit of a compromising experience. However, the biggest problem that this movie will probable face is the fact that it made bad use of its. By putting our most favorite bad guy in the Galaxy in the trailers a lot of Star Wars fans had high expectations for the screen time that Darth Vader would receive during the movie. Unfortunately Darth Vader only appears 2 scenes. Although one of the scenes was absolutely amazing to watch (you will know it when you see it), I can't deny that I was a bit bummed out by only seeing him this much. That being said, Rogue One does contain at his core something where every Star Wars fan instantly falls in love with. The fact that Rogue One also answers some questions where a lot of fans have been waiting for 40 years for, does make this movie relevant. There are also some very nice treats for the very attentive fans amongst us, who will be rewarded for knowing and remembering all of their Star Wars-trivia (bonus geek points!) Last but certainly not least the movie is also surprisingly funny, much credit here for goes to the sarcastic droid K-2SO (voiced by Alan Tudyk). All in all this movie is a welcome addition to the Star Wars universe. Star Wars fans that don't get their expectations too high will undoubtedly enjoy this movie. If you previously, however, weren't Star Wars fan was, this movie will not suddenly win you over.

Conscensus: don't go with too many expectations to this movie (not sure if you have a lot of Darth Vader expected). The film comes when slow start but once the action starts, both action-fans as Star-wars lovers really enjoy this movie. You also want to watch' A New Hope ' again right away!

This movie is about a very successful Florida lawyer who hasn't lost a case since he started, played by Keanu Reeves, when he gets the chance to go work for a big lawyer company

Going into this movie, I expected something very different from what I got. It wasn't quite clear what the movie was going for. The scenes feel very rushed and most of them don't really serve a purpose. The first and the second part also felt very separate from each other. The first part felt more like a biopic, while the second part got glimpses of a psychological thriller. Only until the very (second to) last scene the movie revealed it's underlying message, but by then for me it was already ruined.

The performance felt a bit choppy for me, especially Keanu Reeves got on my nerves with some serious overacting. He also had something really irritating about his voice. Also Charlize Theron's character was just plain stupid, she had no personality whatsoever and you don't really care for their relationship. (It even annoys you a bit at times) The one bright spot in this whole movie is the performance of Al Pacino though. Every minute he's on screen he demands all the attention, and while you get from the beginning that he's not really very reliable, you do however enjoy every scene he's in because it really looks like Pacino is just having a fun time. Pacino has some great monologue moments in this moments, and all the credit goes to him because he didn't really have so much to work with, but somehow he made it click.

That's however the only really enjoyable part in the movie, because what's left is really just a hot mess. The editing feels very choppy and rushed, like already mention the dialogue is very dull and you don't really know where this movie is going or what it wants to be. It is blunt and too subtle at the same time. Sometime the movie wants to make something clear so bad that it just looks absolutely ridiculous while at other times you don't really get what the movie is trying to tell you. Having said that however, I do think if you see this movie twice, you Will get a bit more satisfaction over it if you do decide to concentrate on the underlying tone. It is pitiful however that you only can get grasp of the tone of the movie at the end of the movie. (The last monologue of Pacino is undoubtedly the thing that elevates this movie) I don't think anyone would really care to see it a second time to be honest, because you would have lost you attention for the movie long before the first watching even ends 5,5/10 verdict: A hot mess

This series is more of a documentary than a 'netflix-series', and that's the way you should look at this. If you're just looking for a TV-series to lighten you're mood, then this clearly isn't for you. If you are, however interested in the subject of the importance of education, if you want to have a good look at how the American college system works ( especially if you're not from the US this is interesting), than this series might be exactly what you're looking for.

What sets Last Chance U apart from other 'reality-series' is the different angles where it is coming from. From the grad student, to the renominated coach Buddy Stephens, to the concerned tutor of the college athletes who is desperately trying to get them graduated at the end of the year. You really understand the importance of the situation, the legacy that these young athletes are trying to maintain. It also doesn't really feel like a real documentary-series, although you keep getting reminded that this in fact has really happened before.

However Last Chance has a hard time trying to keep my focus, maybe it was just me but I found myself numerous times being distracted while watching the series. and while this is no doubt a real documentary, I couldn't help myself but finding it all a bit by the books. It almost sounds like a classic football story which you have seen so many times before. I couldn't help myself wondering if some things were really scripted.

Still if you can get yourself invested in the stories of these coaches, students and their surroundings, you do really get a real reward out of it, because it does leave a mark. It really gave me satisfaction to get to know the stories of so many lives in this little Mecca of American football. So if this subject is your niche... you should definitely check it out.

7,5/10 Verdict: A very interesting and touching look at the life of student athletes

Why aren't there more movies like Carnage? Why is it that I've had to hear about this movie from the immensely intelligent father of my best friend? Why is it that movies like these don't get more attention? I don't know… it should.

Carnage has a a simple premise : two kids got into a fight, the one hurt the other and now the parents of both children need to sort it out. The problem is that these personalities don't really mesh. It does however create some very (though dark humor like) funny moments. You have a workaholic advocate who doesn't really have time for children played by Christoph Waltz. His wife, played by Kate Winslet is an uptight, trying-to-be friendly businesswomen who really comes of as a bit awkward( which is really funny). On the other side you've got a laid back father who's pretending to be dummer than he really is (played by John C. Reilly) and his wife, played by Jodie Foster, who is really pretentious, both in her job, but especially in her child's education.

The thing where this movie really shines is it's writing and it's actors. It is very apparent that this movie is an adaptation from a play, because you can almost 'read' the situations which the writers are trying to create. You can also really read the thoughts of these characters throughout the movie, this is as much a compliment to the writing as to the amazing jobs of the actors: they all understand that they have a certain stereotype to play and they do such a good job at making these certain tics really recognizable. The thing that surprised me is that this movie has such a simple concept but it could still continuously grasp my attention with the witty dialogue. Everybody will undoubtedly find himself rooting for one or two persons at the beginning of the movie, but the fun thing is the arcs of all the characters are all over the place, which catches you of guard, because at some moments you will find "you're character" teaming up with the character despise most. Somehow Carnage makes it work though. The fact that the movie is only about 90 minutes long makes it even more lighter than it already is, it's just a fun time!

I don't know what it is about Carnage but something about this film makes you want to see more simple movies like these. I absolutely recommend this movie for everyone, not necessarily a must see in the cinema, but certainly a fun pick-up movie.

8,5/10 Verdict: remarkably accurate portrayal

Tarzan, the half man half animal with his iconic cry has been immortalized in movies for numerous times, most know for its Disney adaptation. This time Tarzan comes to the movie screen in a live action adaptation directed by David Yates ( know for the later Harry Potter movies) starring Alexander Skarsard, Margot Robbie, Samuel L. Jackson and Christoph Waltz. So… What's not to be exited for? Well… a lot.

While the classic story of Tarzan might have been adapted many times before, the decisions of the writers to make a story after the well known legend, caught me off guard from the beginning of the movie. Don't go into this movie expecting the classic story of Tarzan because you will only get flashes of it by way of flashbacks (pun indented). While the use of flashbacks may be effective, it seems in The Legend of Tarzan desperately tries to explain certain other actions in the movie by way of these flashbacks, but they come off as off-beat. The real story in the movie is pretty far fetched and the intentions of Christoph Waltz's characters to lure Tarzan back to Africa are almost as ridiculous as the CGI and green-screen effects in the movie. Maybe it is because of the beautiful CGI works as the new Jungle Book, Gravity etc. Recently, but during this movie I was continuously getting frustrated by recognizing the usage of green-screen and CGI. Skarsgard does however succeed at portraying a convincing Tarzan. The other performances are all good to okay: Robbie continues to convince me being a well-rounded actress while Christoph Waltz continues to raise the question if he is only really good in Tarantino pictures. While L. Jackson is fun to watch at, he gave me kind of the impression of just screwing around and making himself have as much fun as possible because he saw immediately that this film wasn't that good to begin with. Basically this movie is another summer blockbuster movie, without having any purpose apart from making money. While the action in the movie does enough to not make fall asleep, it ultimately falls way short. Hopefully Yates doesn't fall short again with the next movie in the Harry Potter universe.

5,5/10 Verdict: Forgettable in every way

Everybody has something in his life which makes you want to push yourself to your limits. With Andrew (Miles Teller) , it's jazz music. He has an almost irrational drive to get better at being the best jazz drummer in history. When he gets the chance to come to the class of Terrence Fletcher (played by J.K. Simmons), a well known teacher at the most prestigious music School in the USA, Andrew sees his future brighten up. Only he doesn't know the severity and seriousness with what Mr. Fletcher teaches his classes…

Whiplash is a terrifyingly beautiful film about the things a person is capable of doing for greatness. Or as the Joker might say: "This is what happens when an unstoppable force meets an immovable object." From the first scene of the movie we the perfect impression of what you're going to get throughout the movie, great jazz music and even greater performances by Miles Teller and especially by J.K Simmons. Every scene Simmons is in he draws all eyes to him, and he draws every breathe out of you, anxiously awaiting his reaction. In terms of villain factor, Simmons is right up there with Darth Vader, Voldemort etc. With the only difference that Simmons' character is much more realistic.

The movie does a great job setting up the character of Andrew, making you understand where he is coming from and what drives him into the decisions he takes throughout the movie. The scenes with his dad are especially powerful. Apart from the dynamic performances by the two head roles, the other factor that elevates this movie is the beautiful soundtrack! Never has a soundtrack impacted me this much, from being a jazz enthusiast to an absolute jazz guru. Immediately after the movie I went to search for the soundtrack along with some extra jazz songs to make myself my own personal jazz playlist. The great thing about the soundtrack of Whiplash is it's necessity to the story: every track brings it's own factor to the movie.

All in all, Whiplash succeeds in making a very fundamentantelly impactful film about success, desire and motivation, and the dangers it brings with it. It also succeeds at being the best movie of 2014.

I absolutely loved this film! It's probably one of my favorites of all time! You should definitely see this film in the theater (or something like a home cinema) because it's an absolute experience watching it. The performance of Matt Damon was perfect for me, he was really funny, you were rooting for him! He also was good in the dramatic parts of movie. As for the rest of the cast, they were also really good. Especially Jessica Chastain and Chiwetel Ejiofor. I heard a lot of complaints from friends about this movie that it was not realistic enough. I don't think that should be a complaint, because that wasn't necessarily the objective of the movie. By the way, apparently every movie involving space travel, has to be approved by NASA to approach the subject matter on a respective and trustworthy manner. From my point of view the film did exactly what it wanted to do, and that is to touch you, make you laugh, cry and think about some very important life questions. I absolutely recommend this movie to everyone.