costakcpc's Reviews

The Dish (2000)

8/10

9 June 2020

Many people thought that because the team which did The Castle was involved in The Dish, it'd be just as laugh out loud and over the top.

Instead it's a slow gentle burn. A few good laughs along the way. Plenty of great Australian character. And a good soundtrack to boot.

There's plenty of tea drinking during the film. And that's the kind of film it is. So grab a cup, sit back and enjoy.

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The Villainess (2017)

7/10

Well worn story but still worth watching

30 April 2020

The story is a common one. It echoes the old French movie "The Assassin" and every other plucked-from-obscurity-criminal past-given-a-new-chance-in-life story ever since.

So at that level the movie is quite mundane.

But as others have mentioned it's the action scenes that elevate this movie. There are plenty of jaw dropping moments.

Whilst the story is well trodden, there are some genuinely moving moments in the film. Its not hard to feel empathic towards the main character.

Sure it could do with some trimming and the violence can be hard to watch. But overall it's worth watching.

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Toast (2010 TV Movie)

5/10

Less food more story.

16 April 2020

Warning: Spoilers

Spoilers ahead.

The movies starts well and tells a good story. It mostly meanders along with good acting and good food.

But then in the last ten minutes it's as if the creators remembered they had a story to tell. So in the space of a few minutes we have an unrequited love story, a death, rejection, leaving home and a new start. Its over rather quickly and therefore quite unsatisfyingly.

The movie would be better if it had focused less on food and more on story.

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Freaks and Geeks: Discos and Dragons (2000)

Season 1, Episode 18

9/10

Brilliant.

2 April 2020

Everything hangs in the balance.

Some characters are in turmoil. Others are faced with opportunity. Some relationships are in conflict. Others have formed new ones but are they for real?

And because the series was cancelled, we'll never know they all played out.

I'm not a fan of wanting the show to be remade. Rather I'll be content with how everything remains in tension. It raises more questions.

The show only lasted one season. What remains however is this slice of TV perfection.

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What Happened to Monday (2017)

6/10

Predictable

2 November 2019

If this is meant to be set I the future why does it look like England 2019?

The cars are a little futurised and screens are projected onto hands...yet it still feels like...today.

And then of course there's the idea that these daughters somehow are able to avoid capture and take down wave after wave of highly trained professional soldiers.

They also get beaten to a pulp in one scene yet manage to get to their feet quite easily and carry on.

One reviewer of this movie said you've got to suspend your belief. But one can only suspend so much.

The result is very predictable. You know exactly how this movie plays out.

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Jurassic World (2015)

2/10

Pretty close to plain dumb

11 October 2019

Jurassic Park has tension. Once the story was established it was like a runaway train. And the two adults and two kids in that movie just held on. It was breathtaking.

Jurassic World has zero tension. Care factor for the characters is minimal. Things happen onscreen and you simply don't feel anything.

And if you can't feel for who's on screen then it becomes a bore.

And then there's someone running through the jungle in high heels...

Go watch the first movie and leave it at that.

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Getaway (I) (2013)

2/10

Didn't miss much

21 February 2019

Watched "Getaway" late one night on TV.

During the course of the movie I made a coffee, went to the bathroom, talked with my wife, did some work in another room. Whenever I came back to the movie I realised I hadn't missed anything. Just one big seemingly endless mindless pointless car chase.

Throw in a myriad of camera angles, silly closeups of lips, ears and eyes and constant editing which would put Michael Bay films to shame, this is truly an unremarkable and thoroughly forgettable film.

Avoid. Or just keep it on the background whilst you do other things. Better still, just go and do those other things.

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The Shape of Water (2017)

5/10

Too obvious

12 November 2018

Warning: Spoilers

The Shape or Water is a parable/metaphor of our times, let along the 50/60s it is set in. No surprise it swept the Oscars.

But how the film executes the metaphor is obvious. It's almost as if the director wants to make sure we get the point. Trust me Guillermo, we did. I mean we even have the the final act written on a wall calendar for all to see. Even the bad guy.

If this was The Avengers, we'd expect such obvious storytelling. If this was Captain Obvious Michael Bay, even more so. But this Guillermo del Toro. And he's much better than that.

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Unfriended (2014)

7/10

A silent movie of sorts

18 April 2017

Unfriended is largely a silent movie. Lots of silence that is punctuated with the sounds of typing and the swooshing of messages. Music rarely breaks through. That may put off some but I thought it added to the tension.

I was also a huge fan of the slow pacing. There's a scene where a file is downloaded. And you sit and watch it download for about 20 seconds. It could've been downloaded in a second or opened instantly. However making me sit and wait for the file to download made me feel right in the middle of the scene.

Sadly the horror side of things sweeps away any deeper dialogue. It would've been great to hear the characters speak about their feelings and regrets, what they would've done differently if they had their time again etc. Instead the gore kicks in. I understand that it's a horror flick but I wish there was more character speak.

Finally whoever did the tech is brilliant. Skype, Spotify, Facebook etc are all rendered perfectly. Again this put me right in the picture. Add all the spelling mistakes in the texting and messaging and the feel of the film was superb.

Well worth watching.

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The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies (2014)

6/10

Get on with it

19 January 2017

The one overriding feeling I have whilst watching this movie is "Get on with it!"

The dragon is killed in the first ten minutes. And then you're left wondering what's next?

Lots of talking and the odd skirmish. Galadriel's scenes are excellent. But once she leaves you're left wondering what's next? You begin to stare at your watch. At 50mins in you realise there's almost two hours to go.

Cue more talking. Discussions that are unnecessary. Scenes that could be omitted.

It could've been fast paced. It could've raced and heightened the drama. The story is there but it's given too much space to breathe.

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Star Trek Beyond (2016)

5/10

Keep the camera still

11 November 2016

Warning: Spoilers

I was a big fan of Into Darkness. It had emotion, good action and you weren't quite sure who were the good guys or the bad.

Star Trek Beyond has some emotion, predictable action and there's no guessing who's good or bad. Overall it's run of the mill.

Much more could've been made of Jaylah. She has such a presence yet her role is lacking. More of her story would've given the film greater weight. The same applies to Krall. What makes someone kill so many people indiscriminately? Yet it's dealt with by a few sentences. Sure we don't need a lengthy villainous speech but can we get to know the guy at least? At least with Into Darkness Kirk exploded at Khan. But in Beyond he doesn't recoil at all that he's lost most of his crew.

Probably my greatest gripe has to do with the camera work. It is constantly rotating. Rather than making me feel the disorientation of space it was simply annoying. It rotated whilst in space. It rotates whilst people fight. It rotates just for the sake of rotating. It demonstrates a director who is not self aware. I'm guessing he's surrounded by others who declare "That's cool..." However after the tenth rotation it became predictable, a parody.

Other reviewers have noted that the film is more popcorn summer flick rather than true Star Trek. At the end of the day I agree. For the next one please find someone whose heart beats for Trek. And keeps the camera still.

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The Big Short (2015)

8/10

Excellent and scary

9 November 2016

A very good movie that explains difficult concepts very well. It also entertains in spades.

All performances are excellent. From the bit players to the majors each play they part with aplomb. The constant breaking through of the fourth wall engages the viewer. It gives the movie immediacy.

Throw in cameos from Margot Robbie, Selena Gomez and Anthony Bourdain who help make sense of things and you have an all round great movie.

And it is scary because it can happen all over again. And by the end of the movie you realise that there are no winners. Just bodies on the floor.

Highly recommended. .

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42nd Street (1933)

7/10

Ahead of its time?

30 September 2016

At one level this is less a musical and more a movie about musicals and theatre. Full of shonky businessmen, the odd sexual favour, a frustrated and cantankerous director, actors and dancers just wanting a piece of the action or struggling to get by. Throw in some quick one liners, numerous wannabes and there you have 42nd Street. And there's some dancing and singing.

And there you have the template for Fame, Flashdance, Centre Stage et al.

There are better musicals. But this is a very good movie about musicals.

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The Divergent Series: Insurgent (2015)

6/10

Give me more

26 September 2016

Apparently there's a sex scene in Insurgent. It shows a little flesh, it's nicely shot and it's over very quickly.

For me that sums up Insurgent and the whole series really. It's nicely shot but it only ever offers glimpses into character and motive. And when the characters do talk you only get snippets of what's going on. In the end it leaves you wanting more.

The main character Tris is neither a leader nor someone struggling to come to terms with being divergent. She gives no great rallying speeches, she offers no great one liners of inspiration and hope, she mainly stares and runs. I'd love to know what's going on in her mind!

Once again, I'm left wanting more.

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