Directors: Jimmy Chin, Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi
Heights and I don’t get along too well. They do their thing: being all tall and shit; and I do mine: being…not. And yet, I loved this film, even though several times I had panic attacks and felt like I needed to leave the room.
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Director: Jennifer Kent
Writer: Jennifer Kent
I have to start this with a word of warning: this is an extremely hard film to watch. It’s not just that it’s bloody. There are also several scenes of rape, and a shit-ton of racism. My understanding is that people have walked out of the film when it’s been shown on the festival circuit. That said, if you can tough it out, you’ll find a very powerful, well-made film.
1825: Claire (Aisling Franciosi) is a young Irish woman and former convict who is indentured to Lieutenant Hawkins (Sam Claflin), the leader of an unruly group of British soldiers stationed in Tasmania. He refuses to release her from her servitude, and forces himself on her, angering her husband Aiden (Michael Sheasby), who confronts Hawkins and his men publicly one night. Once Hawkins’ misdeeds are uncovered, he loses the commission he was promised, and blaming Claire, he kills her family and leaves her for dead.
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Have you ever gone into a little dive of a restaurant and ended up having a killer meal? Watching Time Trap (2017) is a little like that. I’m so used to sitting down to a low-budget film and having it be so sub-par that I almost don’t know what to do when it’s not. To be fair, it’s not exactly “low” budget at $1 million, but they definitely got the most bang for the buck I’ve seen in a while. No cheesy effects or bad acting here. I put it on in the background while doing something else, but very quickly stopped that something else, because it was just that good.
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(Originally from Facebook – August 5, 2013)
I had been putting this one off, due to a few luke-warm reviews. I have to say, though, that I really liked it. Better than the first one, even. There are a few nods to the original series and films that most fans will get, but you don’t need them to follow the story. Continue reading
(Originally from August 9, 2013)
My worst fears for Man of Steel have been confirmed. As soon as I found out Zack Snyder was helming, I worried that it would end up like his other films–visually stylistic, but without much else to back it up. I think this latest Superman film has suffered the same fate. I can’t remember being as bored as I was while so much was happening on the screen. Entire skyscrapers were razed, super-powered punches launched characters through…pretty much everything. Continue reading
(Originally from Facebook – August 13, 2013)
Poor M. Night Shyamalan. He gets so much hate. But what do you do when you’re a director who peaked with his first two films?** I guess you get relegated to doing vanity projects for wealthy movie stars. I defend Shyamalan a lot, too, primarily because those first two movies are two of my favorites. I would go so far as to say that The Sixth Sense has one of the most nearly perfect narrative structures in the last 30 years of film. But also…The Happening happened. So what’s an M. Night fan to do? I just can’t defend him on this one. (Well, I will say that rumor has it that Smith stepped in to do a good portion of the direction, so I will defend him that much.) Continue reading
(Originally from Facebook – July 31, 2013
I’m going to end this trifecta on a good note. The #3 entry is the post-apocalyptic sci-fi film, Oblivion. Let me tell you, the Church of Scientology should just replace whatever holy document they have with a picture of Tom Cruise. Then, whenever someone makes fun of it, or wants to know why they should join, they could just hold up that picture. The guy is constantly impressing me, not only with his performances, but also with things such as his stunt work. Did you SEE him running around outside that building in MI: Ghost Protocol?? It’s got to be difficult to do that because of the great heights involved, and also because it’s got to be hard to move so fluidly with the giant set of balls he must have to do it in the first place. Add to that the fact that he seems to actually be aging in reverse, and it’s hard not to be impressed. But I digress…
(from July 5, 2013)
Visually stunning, but I wish they had put a little of that CGI money into hiring a better writer. The acting is a little off, but I really think it’s more the result of the writing than anything else. (I felt there were multiple cringeworthy lines.) The characters aren’t quite developed enough, either, although there are some very nice moments. (I loved nearly all the scenes with the China Doll.) And yet, overall, I enjoyed it. The 6.6 at IMDB is maybe a couple of tenths high. (running time 2:10)
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