Movie reviews
Last two weeks were generous for me in terms of entertainment and the following two will probably match them in that regard. Going to the pictures (that’s how our grandmas talked about cinema, right?), attending our friend’s dancing tournament, Wii playing party… Nice to experience that not my old age, neither Luke’s demanding presence stop me from living fully. ;-)
To the ad rem, then. :-) I saw three movies recently, though but one of them in the cinema, and not the one I’d recommend to everyone. Most curiously their quality in almost all categories was arranged increasingly, meaning I started with an absolute rubbish and ended with a movie that was completely after my own heart. Were the order reversed… ugh. It’d hurt.
Hanna, or the rubbish one. A recipe for disaster: take brilliant actors (Tom Berenger, Cate Blanchett, Eric Bana), breathtaking filming, a haunting soundtrack, some good action-movie tropes, fairy-tale symbolism, stir well. As an afterthought add a complete lack of logic, several plotholes the size of an elephant, idiocies that make my suspended disbelief crash onto the ground, laughable motivations and moronic explanations. My disappointment was painfully acute as I had expected a lot from this film.
Limitless, or the so-so one. Good idea, creative imagery, solid gold performance of De Niro, intriguing plot in the first two-thirds of the movie. Besides what’s not to like when the idea’s positively Dickian? Um, let’s see: bland ending, lack of emotional vibe, leaving off the most interesting threads, purposeful shallowness when in-depth analysis would serve the movie better, unnecessary focus on moneymoneymoney, and something I simply can’t forgive - the character that’s supposedly extremely intelligent and who’s in fact rather average.
Source Code or someone pushes all of my buttons. Shall I count them while squeeing? Time travel, alternate realities, changing the destiny, character whose intelligence and ability to learn I see through action and not through author’s say-so, well executed suspense, logic!, plot that’s convoluted but still makes sense, more than two layers of reality, emotions without cheap sentimentality, hero’s death (or not?), self-sacrifice.
Wheee! Add to this Jake Gyllenhaal’s soulful basset’s eyes and his undisputable ability to act, succinct imagery that does not overwhelm the plot, the sweetest Michelle Monaghan who can act too, and the nice surprise - the director’s identity.
Did you know that Bowie’s son is a sci-fi movies director? That he’s someone who cares about plot, plausibility AND emotional development? Hopefully his emergence along with Nolan’s brilliant mind heeds the start of new era; this of logical, creative, complex movies, whose logic-puzzle structure enhances (and not spoils) the experience.
And as for the Source Code - go see it.
To the ad rem, then. :-) I saw three movies recently, though but one of them in the cinema, and not the one I’d recommend to everyone. Most curiously their quality in almost all categories was arranged increasingly, meaning I started with an absolute rubbish and ended with a movie that was completely after my own heart. Were the order reversed… ugh. It’d hurt.
Hanna, or the rubbish one. A recipe for disaster: take brilliant actors (Tom Berenger, Cate Blanchett, Eric Bana), breathtaking filming, a haunting soundtrack, some good action-movie tropes, fairy-tale symbolism, stir well. As an afterthought add a complete lack of logic, several plotholes the size of an elephant, idiocies that make my suspended disbelief crash onto the ground, laughable motivations and moronic explanations. My disappointment was painfully acute as I had expected a lot from this film.
Limitless, or the so-so one. Good idea, creative imagery, solid gold performance of De Niro, intriguing plot in the first two-thirds of the movie. Besides what’s not to like when the idea’s positively Dickian? Um, let’s see: bland ending, lack of emotional vibe, leaving off the most interesting threads, purposeful shallowness when in-depth analysis would serve the movie better, unnecessary focus on moneymoneymoney, and something I simply can’t forgive - the character that’s supposedly extremely intelligent and who’s in fact rather average.
Source Code or someone pushes all of my buttons. Shall I count them while squeeing? Time travel, alternate realities, changing the destiny, character whose intelligence and ability to learn I see through action and not through author’s say-so, well executed suspense, logic!, plot that’s convoluted but still makes sense, more than two layers of reality, emotions without cheap sentimentality, hero’s death (or not?), self-sacrifice.
Wheee! Add to this Jake Gyllenhaal’s soulful basset’s eyes and his undisputable ability to act, succinct imagery that does not overwhelm the plot, the sweetest Michelle Monaghan who can act too, and the nice surprise - the director’s identity.
Did you know that Bowie’s son is a sci-fi movies director? That he’s someone who cares about plot, plausibility AND emotional development? Hopefully his emergence along with Nolan’s brilliant mind heeds the start of new era; this of logical, creative, complex movies, whose logic-puzzle structure enhances (and not spoils) the experience.
And as for the Source Code - go see it.