- Jun 11, 2014
- 5,593
- 7,874
Founding Member
Just watched the Irishman...long and kind of slow but what a cast and I didn’t know much about the story behind until now so I found it interesting
Film Reviews - what have you seen lately, what did you think?
- Thread starter TLB
- Start date
- Jun 10, 2014
- 16,578
- 20,016
Founding Member
The Irishman - this is what they will use to help insomniacs sleep in the future.
City of God - Brazilian film about crime and growing up in a slum outside Rio. Made in 2002 and considered one of the best films of all time. Riveting story and incredibly shot, would highly recommend if you don’t mind subtitles.
City of God - Brazilian film about crime and growing up in a slum outside Rio. Made in 2002 and considered one of the best films of all time. Riveting story and incredibly shot, would highly recommend if you don’t mind subtitles.
- Jan 6, 2015
- 14,094
- 26,299
Maybe it's me, maybe it's MEH-belline...
Watched Darkest Minds earlier, and as mentioned, pretty Meh. That trend continues for me, and I know at least one of these films others have really liked, so maybe it's me...idunno.
ANNA (2019) - others here covered the story (Russian girl trained as a spy in the late 80's). I liked the feel of it (lighting, angles, plot and twists), but spent the whole time feeling like "I have seen this before." That's actually possible given how much I watch films, I could end up seeing one a second time and realizing afterward I'd already seen it, but no - this was a first viewing, it just felt like deja vu. Maybe part of my disappointment lies in expecting something like Hanna where someone is raised remotely and trained specifically most her life. Instead, the only background reference is a short mention of playing chess, training and dropping out of some military school when her parents died. Nearly everything is from her mid-20's on, and she is just 'adept' at learning things despite arriving at a point in life of being a fk-toy girlfriend for a druggie loser. Everything just 'fit' so much to the trope without standing out to me in any special way in how she was 'found' and trained, and deployed. If I hadn't seen Red Sparrow, or any of the Nikita-esque films, I might have liked this more - I mean, there's nothing inherently wrong with it. But, overall, left me with ... Meh. 7/10
Brightburn (2019) - tagged as horror with the thought 'what if superman were evil?'. We start with some home video clips of an average boy growing up in a rural town raised by loving parents, and when he hits 12-13, he hears voices and realizes he has powers (indestructible, can fly, etc). You can see a little bit of a young person figuring out who they are, pushing boundaries to determine their own future and definition, but that is very small. The film instead turns to him killing those around him, often without a lot of reason beyond 'they just made me angry'. The deaths are somewhat enjoyably gruesome, but I struggle with the 'why' in a lot of them - case in point he goes to a diner where they had his birthday party (him, mom&dad, aunt&uncle), and once everyone leaves but the main waitress lady he tortures and kills her. Why? Because she served a baby cake with a candle days-weeks earlier? Pointless. Bloody fun, but pointless. We roll towards a climax where he confronts his parents about who/what he is, and honestly, it felt weakly written and executed. The closing credits have interspersed clips of him going on a rampage destroying things, an implication of him possibly heading off to destroy the world (a set up for a sequel? I hope not). Bottom line, if you like some bloody deaths, you'll rate this about a 4-5/10, if you want something with more substance, look elsewhere. 4/10.
Watched Darkest Minds earlier, and as mentioned, pretty Meh. That trend continues for me, and I know at least one of these films others have really liked, so maybe it's me...idunno.
ANNA (2019) - others here covered the story (Russian girl trained as a spy in the late 80's). I liked the feel of it (lighting, angles, plot and twists), but spent the whole time feeling like "I have seen this before." That's actually possible given how much I watch films, I could end up seeing one a second time and realizing afterward I'd already seen it, but no - this was a first viewing, it just felt like deja vu. Maybe part of my disappointment lies in expecting something like Hanna where someone is raised remotely and trained specifically most her life. Instead, the only background reference is a short mention of playing chess, training and dropping out of some military school when her parents died. Nearly everything is from her mid-20's on, and she is just 'adept' at learning things despite arriving at a point in life of being a fk-toy girlfriend for a druggie loser. Everything just 'fit' so much to the trope without standing out to me in any special way in how she was 'found' and trained, and deployed. If I hadn't seen Red Sparrow, or any of the Nikita-esque films, I might have liked this more - I mean, there's nothing inherently wrong with it. But, overall, left me with ... Meh. 7/10
Brightburn (2019) - tagged as horror with the thought 'what if superman were evil?'. We start with some home video clips of an average boy growing up in a rural town raised by loving parents, and when he hits 12-13, he hears voices and realizes he has powers (indestructible, can fly, etc). You can see a little bit of a young person figuring out who they are, pushing boundaries to determine their own future and definition, but that is very small. The film instead turns to him killing those around him, often without a lot of reason beyond 'they just made me angry'. The deaths are somewhat enjoyably gruesome, but I struggle with the 'why' in a lot of them - case in point he goes to a diner where they had his birthday party (him, mom&dad, aunt&uncle), and once everyone leaves but the main waitress lady he tortures and kills her. Why? Because she served a baby cake with a candle days-weeks earlier? Pointless. Bloody fun, but pointless. We roll towards a climax where he confronts his parents about who/what he is, and honestly, it felt weakly written and executed. The closing credits have interspersed clips of him going on a rampage destroying things, an implication of him possibly heading off to destroy the world (a set up for a sequel? I hope not). Bottom line, if you like some bloody deaths, you'll rate this about a 4-5/10, if you want something with more substance, look elsewhere. 4/10.
- Jul 15, 2014
- 28,445
- 47,245
Agreed on all and I think the 7 is fair (and still relatively high)... I liked it because I like the genre, but yes, they're all a variation of La Femme Nikita. They one thing they did well in this movie was they way it would "flashback" to fill in plot holes, I thought that was done differently (and well) than other movies I've seen doing the same. That said, I know I am a sucker for Eastern European/Russian females who will do whatever it takes to survive and get free... which is clearly the tangent these movies have been on.
- Dec 31, 2018
- 14,888
- 28,138
“Whatever it takes”, huh? I am so hoping I get a chance to read your memoirs. Be sure to include pictures by the way.
- Jul 15, 2014
- 28,445
- 47,245
I get it, but in reality, it's sad... and it breaks you.
- Dec 31, 2018
- 14,888
- 28,138
Yeah, I know. There were quite a few EE gals in Cyprus when I was there; mostly Russians and Moldovans. Some of them were in OK situations (bar maids mostly) with decent bosses - it helped that they were all Orthodox; others not so much. Especially true on the Turkish side.
- Aug 28, 2014
- 16,541
- 26,096
Yeah I never got to the end. I like OG movies but this really got slow towards the end. ITt felt like Deniro just got as much screen time as wanted so he could act. Self-absorbed.
On a related note Once Upon A TIme in Hollywood. I didn't finish that either. Total lack of plot. Again it felt like Tarantino was just making a movie for himself and his friends.
- Jun 11, 2014
- 21,099
- 33,857
Founding Member
- Jan 6, 2015
- 14,094
- 26,299
F&F Hobbs & Shaw (2019)
Premise is the world is in danger, and these two who can't stand one another must work together to save us all. The carryover from the F&F franchise starts with the characters and their animosity for one another, a lot of verbal jabs throughout the film as each attempts to solve the problems independently. This film does a go a bit deeper within each character, making them more connectable, and giving them personal investment in the mission. I wanted to say they dropped a lot of trademark F&F car action in favor of character development and storyline...but they actually kept a great amount of car action in as well (film runs 2h, rather than the 90m you expect on an action film....and it 'almost' doesnt feel too long). I'm avoiding spoilers here, but need to speak to a few items. First, there's a third central character who creates a good pivot between the two leads while holding her own. No boobs, and not much in the film overall for sex appeal, but decent eye candy with her and another minor player. Second, we have a cameo from a wannabe 3rd super spy who offers to help them. I won't say who he is, but it was the perfect person to cast and I fully expect to see him in a H&S II sequel. Lastly, and perhaps most important - our villain. Idris Elba plays a self-proclaimed 'black superman' and does it superbly. The dialogues, the hand-to-hand fight sequences, and the realistic CGI car action are all extremely well done. I look forward to seeing him as Bond at some point soon. To wrap up, if you like the franchise, you should really like this. If you don't care for the franchise, you can still enjoy this 2h action film without the background. Not a deep thinking movie, not by a long shot, but a good action flick with good characters throughout. 7/10.
Premise is the world is in danger, and these two who can't stand one another must work together to save us all. The carryover from the F&F franchise starts with the characters and their animosity for one another, a lot of verbal jabs throughout the film as each attempts to solve the problems independently. This film does a go a bit deeper within each character, making them more connectable, and giving them personal investment in the mission. I wanted to say they dropped a lot of trademark F&F car action in favor of character development and storyline...but they actually kept a great amount of car action in as well (film runs 2h, rather than the 90m you expect on an action film....and it 'almost' doesnt feel too long). I'm avoiding spoilers here, but need to speak to a few items. First, there's a third central character who creates a good pivot between the two leads while holding her own. No boobs, and not much in the film overall for sex appeal, but decent eye candy with her and another minor player. Second, we have a cameo from a wannabe 3rd super spy who offers to help them. I won't say who he is, but it was the perfect person to cast and I fully expect to see him in a H&S II sequel. Lastly, and perhaps most important - our villain. Idris Elba plays a self-proclaimed 'black superman' and does it superbly. The dialogues, the hand-to-hand fight sequences, and the realistic CGI car action are all extremely well done. I look forward to seeing him as Bond at some point soon. To wrap up, if you like the franchise, you should really like this. If you don't care for the franchise, you can still enjoy this 2h action film without the background. Not a deep thinking movie, not by a long shot, but a good action flick with good characters throughout. 7/10.
- Aug 28, 2014
- 16,541
- 26,096
- Jun 12, 2014
- 7,126
- 6,185
Founding Member
“Of course the main attraction is Sasha Luss, but this film has lots of twists n turns n some decent action. Cillian Murphy n Luke Evans r lucky fellas. Comparison to La Femme Nikita is inevitable. If u like Tinkle Tailor Soldier Spy, The Double n Bridge of Spies, then u will like this too. Another good aspect bah this film is that this time they haven't shown the gloomy, sad n isolated parts of Russia but more of the urbann colorful parts.”
- Sep 20, 2014
- 3,925
- 4,676
Sonic the hedgehog- as a dad you get to take your kids to see things that look like absolute crap because a it’s a character they love. My seven year old is a little gamer that loves the classics. Mario, Sonic, megaman and this new game called cup head. He is particularly good at the megaman games. For Christmas we got him a Genesis mini and Sonic has become his jam just in time for this movie. When it gave the classic Sega sound at the beginning he about came unglued with joy.
There isn’t much to it. Alien appears and the government brings in someone to track them down. Turns into a buddy road trip before the big finale.
The thing is that this movie far exceeded my expectations and was actually good for movies aimed at kids. Had the good mix of humor for both age groups and best of all my son loved it. Jim Carey was on point as well as the villain.
For what it is I give a 7/10. If your taking your wife to this on a date think 4/10. If your taking your wife to this you need to be slapped. Kids will love it, especially if they are gamers.
Stay through the first round of credits and it will show a teaser of a character for the sequel.
There isn’t much to it. Alien appears and the government brings in someone to track them down. Turns into a buddy road trip before the big finale.
The thing is that this movie far exceeded my expectations and was actually good for movies aimed at kids. Had the good mix of humor for both age groups and best of all my son loved it. Jim Carey was on point as well as the villain.
For what it is I give a 7/10. If your taking your wife to this on a date think 4/10. If your taking your wife to this you need to be slapped. Kids will love it, especially if they are gamers.
Stay through the first round of credits and it will show a teaser of a character for the sequel.
- Jan 6, 2015
- 14,094
- 26,299
6 Underground (2020) <Netfilx>
Unfortunately, I had to watch this in pieces over the weekend, so no continuous viewing. That, with the chopped in flashback sequences to start the film I felt a bit of angst and frustration. However, it all started coming together and fell quite nicely into a mixed-bag team of guys ridding the world of evil as s super secret spy team like a dozen other films you've seen. Ryan Renolds is his usual chill self with comedic one liners through out, he's no surprise but also not disappointing. We have a hot blond, a hot brunette, a young parkour type kid, and a meathead hitman as the core team. We have a kick ass driver to start the film who gets swapped out for a sniper, decent trade off, keeps the chemistry from being the same as every other film of it's ilk. Plot is that billionaire Ryan decided to fake his death and personally try to help rid the world of evil as his donations to charity weren't having the desired effect. To achieve this, he enlists these other characters, they fake their deaths to be 'off the grid' and each brings their own background and skills (and for the hitman, his own personal issues) to the mission. The goal, topple a dictator, replacehim with his 'democratic loving' brother. Simple, no? This is a Michael Bay film, so lots of explosions, but there's also some cool techno weapon work with magnets I've never seen the like of (not mind blowing, but a cool new thing), and the rest is typical Bay chase scenes, gun fire, etc. Not too deep, as expected. I'd probably like it better if I saw it one sitting, but it was decent. 6.5/10.
Unfortunately, I had to watch this in pieces over the weekend, so no continuous viewing. That, with the chopped in flashback sequences to start the film I felt a bit of angst and frustration. However, it all started coming together and fell quite nicely into a mixed-bag team of guys ridding the world of evil as s super secret spy team like a dozen other films you've seen. Ryan Renolds is his usual chill self with comedic one liners through out, he's no surprise but also not disappointing. We have a hot blond, a hot brunette, a young parkour type kid, and a meathead hitman as the core team. We have a kick ass driver to start the film who gets swapped out for a sniper, decent trade off, keeps the chemistry from being the same as every other film of it's ilk. Plot is that billionaire Ryan decided to fake his death and personally try to help rid the world of evil as his donations to charity weren't having the desired effect. To achieve this, he enlists these other characters, they fake their deaths to be 'off the grid' and each brings their own background and skills (and for the hitman, his own personal issues) to the mission. The goal, topple a dictator, replacehim with his 'democratic loving' brother. Simple, no? This is a Michael Bay film, so lots of explosions, but there's also some cool techno weapon work with magnets I've never seen the like of (not mind blowing, but a cool new thing), and the rest is typical Bay chase scenes, gun fire, etc. Not too deep, as expected. I'd probably like it better if I saw it one sitting, but it was decent. 6.5/10.
- Jul 15, 2014
- 28,445
- 47,245
Anna and LFN are both Luc Besson movies
- Jan 6, 2015
- 14,094
- 26,299
El Camino (2019) <Netflix>
Spin off from the Breaking Bad series, which I absolutely loved. Focus is to follow the second main character and what happens to him following the end of the series. If you haven't watched the series, you're missing out - go watch it. The film drops in several flashback sequences to help fill in a bit of what's going on in this film, but they are made in a way that fills the cracks between the series and the film. Meaning, if you haven't seen the series, those cracks are filled but there are HUGE holes of wtf-is-happening-and-why for the viewer. For those that don't know, our lead Jesse Pinkman ended the series being caged by some Nazi type white nationalists to make meth for them. The series ended with him breaking free and running away. The film picks up with him breaking out and trying to figure out what to do next.
The writing is right on par with the series (same writer/director/etc, so it makes sense - no changes to the team), which keeps things quite enjoyable and reminds us of how great the series was (hint-hint, go watch it) and how much we...I....miss watching it. We also catch up with several characters we haven't seen since, and they all bring a bit more human to their roles, and we get a handful of new characters that fit right in to this storyline. As ever, the theme is desperation, being in a no win position and trying to make it work - somewhat with determination, somewhat with luck, and things never go as planned. I especially liked the focus on Pinkman when he discovers a gun in the glovebox and has a chance to escape, and when he later is caught in a stand-off with two cops = both situations where he is faced to kill or be killed, and how he reacts to the situations. It wraps up well enough, gives us a good ending to his story line. It'd be nice to see a next chapter with his new start, but it's also very good to just leave it at this. I told you, I'm a fanboy of the series, and this doesn't disappoint in the slightest. 9/10.
Spin off from the Breaking Bad series, which I absolutely loved. Focus is to follow the second main character and what happens to him following the end of the series. If you haven't watched the series, you're missing out - go watch it. The film drops in several flashback sequences to help fill in a bit of what's going on in this film, but they are made in a way that fills the cracks between the series and the film. Meaning, if you haven't seen the series, those cracks are filled but there are HUGE holes of wtf-is-happening-and-why for the viewer. For those that don't know, our lead Jesse Pinkman ended the series being caged by some Nazi type white nationalists to make meth for them. The series ended with him breaking free and running away. The film picks up with him breaking out and trying to figure out what to do next.
The writing is right on par with the series (same writer/director/etc, so it makes sense - no changes to the team), which keeps things quite enjoyable and reminds us of how great the series was (hint-hint, go watch it) and how much we...I....miss watching it. We also catch up with several characters we haven't seen since, and they all bring a bit more human to their roles, and we get a handful of new characters that fit right in to this storyline. As ever, the theme is desperation, being in a no win position and trying to make it work - somewhat with determination, somewhat with luck, and things never go as planned. I especially liked the focus on Pinkman when he discovers a gun in the glovebox and has a chance to escape, and when he later is caught in a stand-off with two cops = both situations where he is faced to kill or be killed, and how he reacts to the situations. It wraps up well enough, gives us a good ending to his story line. It'd be nice to see a next chapter with his new start, but it's also very good to just leave it at this. I told you, I'm a fanboy of the series, and this doesn't disappoint in the slightest. 9/10.
- Jul 30, 2014
- 10,131
- 16,377
Sorry, this movie is old news... I previously only saw parts, but finally watched “Men of Honor” last night. Outstanding movie that shows what’s possible when you aren’t willing to give up despite extreme resistance and adversity.
- Jul 23, 2014
- 11,790
- 26,695
