Some Nights Not at the Movies
The ridiculously cold temperatures we're facing locally led to me borrowing some DVDs from the library to stay home and watch movies. Here's what I thought of some of them:
Your Name (anime)
I couldn't get through it because it spends a lot of time initially as Embarrassment Squick: The Animation. I just couldn't.
The Fate of the Furious (Fast and Furious 8)
It mostly felt joyless and soulless. The car scenes have been getting ever more over the top of the series goes on, but here they felt especially ridiculous. I was also really annoyed that a female character who survived an earlier movie, something I gave the series respect for, dies here so Dom and Letty can get a baby for themselves without the drama or complications of having to deal with its mother, who had been Dom's girlfriend for awhile. It left such a bad taste in my mouth.
Kedi (pronounced "Kee-dee")
A documentary about the thousands of street cats of Istanbul, who are owned by everyone and no one in a city made up of a lot of "crazy cat people." It can be slow at times but still interesting and endearing, and some of the cats are gorgeous as well as being real characters. Interestingly, the people who talk about the cats are often talking about other things when they talk about the cats, like divinity, freedom, altruism, tradition, nature, self-help, etc. There's also some subtle commentary about other issues, like the increasingly rapid modernization of the city, which isn't conducive to these cats. A lot of the extras are great too, and I appreciated the opportunity to hear more philosophy and personal history from the cartoonist, who's eloquent and often hilarious.
Rogue One
Some parts of it worked a lot better than other parts. To me, it got better as it went along, and it really affected me when all the group died one by one, though it made sense. K-2SO seemed more of a stunt to me at first but really grew on me by the end. The two CG people Grand Moff Tarkin and especially Leia were so uncanny valley that I hope Star Wars doesn't try it again. I don't know if there's a way to come out of this movie not shipping Chirrut and Baze. It makes me even angrier that so many guys made a huge stink about a woman having such a big role in this movie when it turns out that there are only maybe four other women in the entire movie, none of them with roles of more than a scene or two. Really?!? On a lesser note, Felicity Jones' lips kept bothering me. ::shrugs::
Atomic Blonde
I really wanted to love this film, but it spends so much time being cool and badass and stoic that to me it often felt like it didn't have a pulse. I'm glad I saw it on DVD, since if I saw it in the theater I would've come out angry and disgruntled over some twists that occur near the end, whereas having the extras and being able to listen to the commentary gave me a better idea of what they were going for. Though I still think a movie should be able to speak for itself instead of needing to be explained. Some of the late revelations held up when I rewatched (with the commentary on) but some things still made no sense to me. The clothing didn't often say '80s to me, even as I understood some of the styles they were lightly riffing on, but I liked all the neon stuff in the visuals. The hotel room was a trip, though I don't know how you could sleep in it. Not a fan of how they desaturated so much though. That said, Charlize Theron kicks major ass during her John Wick-style fight scenes, and the acting in general is high quality. But I'm shocked Delphine lasted even a year in Berlin, given her naivety.
I entertained some thoughts of buying the soundtrack, but it doesn't include Depeche Mode's "Behind the Wheel" even though it featured prominently in one sequence (and the movie didn't include "Personal Jesus" at all, even though a rap song heavily riffing on it was in all the TV commercials) and some songs on the album are covers, like "Blue Monday" and "Stigmata." "Stigmata" especially annoys me because I was so surprised and happy to hear a Ministry song in the film, then on the soundtrack they use a version by Marilyn Manson with Tyler Bates instead.
You can comment here or at the Dreamwidth crosspost.
comments at Dreamwidth.
Your Name (anime)
I couldn't get through it because it spends a lot of time initially as Embarrassment Squick: The Animation. I just couldn't.
The Fate of the Furious (Fast and Furious 8)
It mostly felt joyless and soulless. The car scenes have been getting ever more over the top of the series goes on, but here they felt especially ridiculous. I was also really annoyed that a female character who survived an earlier movie, something I gave the series respect for, dies here so Dom and Letty can get a baby for themselves without the drama or complications of having to deal with its mother, who had been Dom's girlfriend for awhile. It left such a bad taste in my mouth.
Kedi (pronounced "Kee-dee")
A documentary about the thousands of street cats of Istanbul, who are owned by everyone and no one in a city made up of a lot of "crazy cat people." It can be slow at times but still interesting and endearing, and some of the cats are gorgeous as well as being real characters. Interestingly, the people who talk about the cats are often talking about other things when they talk about the cats, like divinity, freedom, altruism, tradition, nature, self-help, etc. There's also some subtle commentary about other issues, like the increasingly rapid modernization of the city, which isn't conducive to these cats. A lot of the extras are great too, and I appreciated the opportunity to hear more philosophy and personal history from the cartoonist, who's eloquent and often hilarious.
Rogue One
Some parts of it worked a lot better than other parts. To me, it got better as it went along, and it really affected me when all the group died one by one, though it made sense. K-2SO seemed more of a stunt to me at first but really grew on me by the end. The two CG people Grand Moff Tarkin and especially Leia were so uncanny valley that I hope Star Wars doesn't try it again. I don't know if there's a way to come out of this movie not shipping Chirrut and Baze. It makes me even angrier that so many guys made a huge stink about a woman having such a big role in this movie when it turns out that there are only maybe four other women in the entire movie, none of them with roles of more than a scene or two. Really?!? On a lesser note, Felicity Jones' lips kept bothering me. ::shrugs::
Atomic Blonde
I really wanted to love this film, but it spends so much time being cool and badass and stoic that to me it often felt like it didn't have a pulse. I'm glad I saw it on DVD, since if I saw it in the theater I would've come out angry and disgruntled over some twists that occur near the end, whereas having the extras and being able to listen to the commentary gave me a better idea of what they were going for. Though I still think a movie should be able to speak for itself instead of needing to be explained. Some of the late revelations held up when I rewatched (with the commentary on) but some things still made no sense to me. The clothing didn't often say '80s to me, even as I understood some of the styles they were lightly riffing on, but I liked all the neon stuff in the visuals. The hotel room was a trip, though I don't know how you could sleep in it. Not a fan of how they desaturated so much though. That said, Charlize Theron kicks major ass during her John Wick-style fight scenes, and the acting in general is high quality. But I'm shocked Delphine lasted even a year in Berlin, given her naivety.
I entertained some thoughts of buying the soundtrack, but it doesn't include Depeche Mode's "Behind the Wheel" even though it featured prominently in one sequence (and the movie didn't include "Personal Jesus" at all, even though a rap song heavily riffing on it was in all the TV commercials) and some songs on the album are covers, like "Blue Monday" and "Stigmata." "Stigmata" especially annoys me because I was so surprised and happy to hear a Ministry song in the film, then on the soundtrack they use a version by Marilyn Manson with Tyler Bates instead.
You can comment here or at the Dreamwidth crosspost.
comments at Dreamwidth.