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Reviews
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds (2022)
Entertaining and a good prequel
Many great episodes so far, until seson 2. The whole series seems like it was made in the 80s, but with modern graphics. No mumbo jumbo, women turning man, lgbt and nothing that plagues all modern movies. There is a big emphasis on character development that spans across the whole series, even if each episode can be considered standolone. All characters act naturally - the actors for their roles were chosen carefully.
My favorite episode is 'Under the Cloak of War.'
This is a masterpiece. Keeps up the tension during the whole episode with a culmination in the last 5 mintes where you learn that some sins cannot be forgiven and one should get what he deserves.
A Rainy Day in New York (2019)
Woody Alan shines again
Woody Alan hits again
Let me start with: I don't particularly enjoy movies directed by Woody Allan. They are too slow for my taste, there's usually too much dialogue and the characters are stereotypes of some sort.
But this time, the old pervert did it right.
This movie was chosen by pure accident: being a foggy November outside (although it's January) .I wanted to spend the evening with a movie that is light and not demanding, so I've started searching... this one caught my attention as it had more than 6 stars on IMDB. Usually, romantic movies rarely get past the barrier of the '6'. Maybe it's because all of them have the same old pattern, girl or boy falls in love, finds out his partner is not what he thought it was and in the end they end up with someone else, usually some old lost romance. So by watching one movie, you will soon have the feeling that you've watched them all.
This one started as well as any regular romantic chick flick: Mr. He, a quiet, although intelligent boy has a rich, popular girlfriend and, being a movie where everything is possible, they are together.
Mr. He plans a romantic weekend with Mrs. She - where else than in New York, where Mrs. She wants to have a short, one hour interview with some famous movie actor Liev Schreiber.
This is a perfect recipe for these 5 star romantic movies you will watch and forget the next hour. When lucky, your better half will get all romantic about it and you will enjoy some joy-time in the evening.
But not this movie: Quite soon from the beginning, the perfectly planned trip is torn apart by some unforeseen events, when Mrs. She gets invited to watch the unreleased movie of this famous actor, so the one hour interview gets suddenly longer and all of Mr. He's plans will be torn apart. Also, after this happens, Mr. He meets the handsome little sister of his first crush, and they end up kissing. Not in a romantic way, no, they are part of a movie and they are being filmed...
The Woody Alan style is there, all-right, as the characters talk tremendously much, but this time it kind of feels natural: the dialogues are between people who did not meet for a very long time and they have lots to say to catch up. Also, like in any Woody Alan movie, all of the characters are put into situations where their true self comes to surface: Mrs. She will soon forget that she has a boyfriend and gets drawn into the stormy social life of several famous artists: First, Roland, who has some serious midlife crisis and obviously drinking issues as well, his friend, who by an unfortunate mistake finds out that his wife is cheating on him with his best friend or a famous Italian actor, who just wants to take advantage of her like he did with so many others. Being a naive blonde and helped by the endless drink she's offered everywhere she quickly ends up in the bedroom of this famous Italian actor .
Without spoiling the rest of the movie, all I can say that the plot is not predictable at all and very enjoyable: every time when you expect that the character will act in a very predictable way, they fuck up somehow and do exactly the opposite. Unlike other Woody Alan movies, where the dialogue seems to be overwhelming the entire movie, here it feels natural that really helps to reveal the true nature of each of the main protagonists without being over-abusive.
Overall, this is a very enjoyable movie where Elle and Timothee's acting talent really shines, but also the secondary characters shall not be neglected, as well, like Will Rogers, for example.
To conclude, if you would like to watch a good movie on a quiet evening, alone or with your better half, this is a great choice and I am sure you won't be disappointed.
The Kite Runner (2007)
A very good book-to-film adaptation
I've discovered the book not so long ago when I was searching for my next book to read. The book itself is a hard-to-put down, once you start reading, so it's no secret that I've really enjoyed the book. Before that, I didn't know much about Afghanistan and it's culture, generally. I wasn't aware that actually there were different nations, like afghans, hazaras or talibs. Shame on me. After finishing the book, I've felt shame that until now, I've considered afghan culture primitive and aggressive.
I've discovered that there was actually a movie adaptation recently and by mistake. I wasn't sure I wanted to watch it, as the movie adaptations rarely follow the book's narrative very strictly, and this can upset a lot of people, including me, as they expect to have the same story on the screen as they were told in the book.
But in the end I said, let's give it a try. This was one good decision.
From the first 10 minutes you can already tell that this will be a great adaptation. The scene (I didn't know back then that it was actually filmed in China) recreated the splendor of Afghanistan before it was devastated by the wars. Amir and Hassan were exactly as I've imagined, even if in my imagination Hassan was the bigger from the two of them. They play their roles marvelously, especially Hassan. Baba's character is also well chosen, faithful to the book. His appearance demands respect, his words denotes that he is a man who knows that in the world all that matters is to respect others and be fair-minded. It's very clear that the directors choose the actors very carefully in order to give life to characters from the book. A lot of people here complained that it's not 100% faithful to the book. I agree with that, but I also would like to add that it's almost impossible to include in a 2 hour movie all the details from a book, especially as this one. Still, the director tried to maintain the details and the story as much as possible and faithful to the book. Yes, in some cases there were minor deviations from the book, but it was there to allow the whole story to fit in a 2 hour movie. Especially the fight scene between Assaf and Amir was slightly modified in de-favour of the book, but this, in my opinion was also done to simplify the story. Also, Sohrab talks in the movie, while in the book he does not. It would have been very hard to explain everything that was written in the book around Sohrab if he was deaf-mute. I do not want to detail all the characters, but they all have played their role perfectly.
Overall, this is a very good movie that everybody should watch. There are not so many movies that present so well the afghan people and their culture and recent history. If you have the possibility, do read the book. It's worth it.
The Great Gatsby (2013)
Great adaptation of the book
First of all, let me tell you that usually I don't review movies, unless it's a movie that either really impressed me, or it was really bad.
I first saw the trailer of this movie a couple of weeks ago and then I've decided to read the book. I didn't manage to finish the book, (I've read around 80% of the it) and saw the movie. Later I've also watched the one from the 70s to be able to make a comparison.
There are here people who tell that the book is the best and the movie is bad. This is partly true, your imagination when reading the book cannot be surpassed by the vision of one's director. However, I have to say that this is a very good adaptation of the book( nearly as good as Shutter Island, which is the best one I saw until now , in my opinion, of course)
Leonardo DiCaprio does a hell of a job in giving life to the character of Gatsby. He's just like I've imagined while reading the book. So does Carey Mulligan(Daisy) and Joel Edgerton(Tom) too. Unfortunately I cannot say the same about Tobey Maguire(Nick), somehow I've imagined Nick as a different character: more confident, with more life. He's just a person that even if he knows he's poor, it doesn't bother him to hang around rich people. Don't get me wrong, Tobey does it's job well, he just doesn't excel in doing it. Jordan's character is hollow, but she's not very emphasized in the book either.
What I really liked is, compared to the old movie, which is just the transposition of the book into the screen (just like a theatrical play), this movie manages to express all the emotions and feelings of the characters while preserving most of the dialogs present in the book. This is mostly the merit of Leonardo DiCaprio and Mulligan, of course, but all the other characters contribute to this.
The set is very nicely done with beautiful "special" effects, especially at the beginning of the movie. However, the director took always great care to follow the book. The interior decorations are astonishing, by the way.
The music: Now this, at the beginning of the movie was a bit disturbing, as it's a combination of music from the 20s with modern nuances; but it fits very well, making the story of Daisy and Gatsby timeless.
What I really disliked, and this drifted from the book, is the fact that Nick is telling the story while writing the book. No, this was really unnecessary and the credit always belongs to the author, Fitzgerald. But the way the words appear on the screen... I have to admit that it was very nicely done.
This movie is a must see, I'm sure it will win a lot of Oscars this year. Even if you have already read the book, you won't be disappointed, go and watch it.
Happy Endings (2011)
Promising show
I've watched the first two episodes of this show this afternoon.
To be honest, I gave it a try because it was Elisha Cuthbert, who I really liked since watching 'The girl next door'.
After the first couple of minutes I knew this might be a great show. The acting is great,each of the characters has something different and unique, the dialogs are funny and you get great moments of laugh. I hope this will not change later.
Overall, I highly recommend this show if you've watched 'The 70s show' or 'How I Met Your Mother'. I can hardly wait for more episodes. Hopefully this will not get canceled after a few episodes like a lot of other great shows were (like Firefly or Pushing Daisies.
Red Riding Hood (2011)
Worst movie
Let's start with the fact that I'm not a Twilight hater. I've read the book, they were OK. But the movies were horrible, but not as horrible as this one. I've read some reviews, but I thought I'll give it a try, because I really like Amanda Seyfried. Unfortunately, no matter how much I like her, It was a bad movie. Let me explain the big issues: 1. Red Moon. Have you seen anywhere a red moon? Nope, you have not. Why ? Because there's no such thing AS A RED MOON. 2. The snow. The snow is white, cold and does not look like sand. And you cannot simulate snow with sand. Period. And from this comes item nr. 3: 3. This village is supposed to be set in the middle of the mountains, and after a heavy snowing, It's supposed to be damn cold. Well, that's not a problem for Mr. Edward ehmm.. excuse me, Harry I guess (I did not bother remembering his name) or the rest of the metro-sexually dressed young lumber jacks. They are dressed in the movie as if it's as much as in autumn, with their chest showing out, just like in Twilight :) Dear Catherine, maybe you grew up in Florinda and you haven't seen any snow. The snow usually appears when there is damn cold outside. And you have to dress up in that season. And yes, you can see your breath when you are outside. But not in this movie, of course. 4. The acting of the characters is quite good (well, Edward.. ehmmm lumber jack should exercise a little more), but the script is so awful and meaningless that even with a good acting you cannot mask that. 5. I forgot about the windows. M'am, good work there. You've used blurred windows, so then you don't have to worry about the exterior when shooting from inside. But,in one scene, if you look out on the window outside is light, then in the next scene, after the villagers come out from the pub, the windows shutters are closed. Good job, where is the light coming from then ? 6. The wolf. It's Jacob. A little bit smaller, but still him. And he talks of course. And looks awful, just like in Twilight. The same crappy CGI.
Well, there are more... but I guess i've made my point. People, don't waste your money. If you want to see Amanda, go watch Mamma-Mia.