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isaacroccoco
Reviews
Severance (2022)
Captivating.
Hitchcockian pacing. Kubrickian framing and lighting. Precision direction, great casting, acting, and editing. No scene so short that it rushes or overruns the carefully crafted pace nor too belabored so as to induce boredom or afford one time for distraction lest they miss something - it's hypnotic. Tramelll Tillman is scary pitch perfect. The addition of Christopher Walken was a genius move to add the perfect amount of possible absurdity or red herring (I don't yet know which). Then one is fed the soul bending weight of the corporate psychosis inducing indoctrination. The scene with Ms Casey felt unsettlingly too familiar.
Kudos to the audio people. I've not heard a modern soundtrack that so perfectly integrates and balances the very intelligible dialog, the incredibly well mixed music and artfully stated sound effects. The highly crafted sound space is a joy to experience in quality headphones - award worthy in my humble (but professional opinion).
The show had me at "Who are you?" It's an audio/visual/theatrical work of art. But I'm beginning to suspect that after only three episodes, watching any further may be detrimental to my mental health. The psychological weight of what the characters endure is palpable.
All the Light We Cannot See (2023)
Loved it
It seemed apparent where the plot was going to go but you give yourself over to such a well made film and enjoy the ride anyway because everything else is that good
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Everything goes well, plot is well laid out, character development, production values, acting - all first rate.
Although I forgive it, the film borrows liberally from other film tropes, Tarantino's evil Nazi in pursuit of a young woman, Raiders of the Lost Ark's evil Nazi in pursuit of fabled ancient treasure and I'm sure others some will point out. But in an almost Disney-like feel good environment, all is forgiven for the wonderful ride.
Long Shot (2019)
ok 6.5
Let me say I enjoyed the movie. There were a few genuinely funny, LOL moments of dialog. But... The palpable lack of chemistry between Seth Rogan and Charlize Theron took the required 'suspension of disbelief' out back and shot it in the head. It's like Theron believed to her core and wanted to remind the audience that this would never have a chance of happening in real life.
I really don't feel like there could be anything further to relate that would further clarify my experience of this motion picture other than to say it felt like a mashup of Notting Hill, The American President and some other movie I can't for the life of me remember the title. But maybe it'll come to me as I review how many completely unnecessary and superfluous words I've added to this this review.
Foundation (2021)
Loosely based on the Foundation Trilogy
Decades ago I read the entire Foundation Trilogy and all the Robot books and novels that wove together Asimov's great story arc. Many years ago a reviewer of these books made an incredible observation that instantly and loudly resonated. They noted than in Asimov's stories there were never clear cut evil villains but people with opposing agendas justified by the situations they were in. And the first thing that struck me about this adaptation (and disappointed me) is that the writers clearly missed that peculiarity of Asimov's plot lines and right away painted Cleon with the evil tyrant trope, sacrificing character development of both Seldon and Cleon to move on with the usual sci-fi visual tropes. It doesn't feel as sophisticated as the novels.
The Beach Bum (2019)
Ugh... nope.
A masturbatory celebration of being continuously high, drunk, and irresponsible (criminal even) - which is maybe ok if you're a misunderstood party-boy artist.
I kept waiting for something to redeeming to happen but the only thing that came close was Lingerie confessing to Moondog that he had been boning his wife.
And does he leave his own daughter penniless?
Boring movie.
Boston Legal (2004)
Ahead of its time. Funnier now than it was 15 years ago.
I had seen a few show years ago and remembered liking them so recently (June '21) I started watching the entire show from the beginning. For some reason the show is funnier now than it was when it aired. I believe the culture may have caught up to the show's absurdism. Its lifestyle inclusive posture is more current and the topics it tackles are every bit as current & important today as they were more than 15 years ago when the show originally aired. The funny unlikely bromance between red alpha male Denny and blue bleeding heart Alan actually plays better now than it did 15 years ago. We can more comfortably laugh about how they and all of Crane, Poole, & Schmidt make themselves feel comfortable with it and it doesn't seem as reality bending in today's climate. Other than some "Me too" issues of workplace sexual advances which all the female characters are adept at parrying, the show is a gem and genuinely funny. I've been unapologetically bingeing on it.
The Handmaid's Tale (2017)
Frustratingly slow paced at times.
I THINK I like it? But I'm three episodes in and am contemplating not continuing. It's not the acting, I know Moss can act and act well. It's the direction - excessively long pauses in Moss' dialog, atmosphere shots that linger too long, long shots of Moss being pensive belaboring the adaptive zombie-like countenance of Moss' character. Trust me, I get it after a few seconds. I don't need reminding in every scene in every episode - it's been firmly established. GET ON WITH IT!!!
It adds up to feeling excessively padded to the point where the story is suffering terminally. It's one of those shows where I start abusing the +10sec button to move things along. Maybe they had to stretch this thing a few too many episodes to close the deal.
The Expanse (2015)
Isaac Asimov would be totally totally proud
Excellent Sci-Fi in the Isaac Asimov tradition where Asimov would rarely, if ever, have an obvious evil villain. As in so many Asimov novels, everyone in this story has an understandable agenda with which they justify their actions for the good of Earth, Mars, The Belt, or their vision for a better future. The drama and action comes from all the factions pursuing their best interests and agendas. Excellent characters, special effects, story lines, casting, and direction. My one question was voiced by Drummer to Naomi about Holden, "I don't know what you see in him." Dominique Tipper as Naomi Nagata is captivating.
Notable performances by Jared Harris (Anderson Dawes), Wes Chatham (Amos Burton), David Strathairn (Commander Ashford), and Chad Coleman (Col. Frederick Lucius Johnson)
The "Did You Know" says the language the Belters use is based on Afrikaner but to me it sounds like a mashup of Jamaican and a Scottish brogue.
I give it a 10 considering how I am totally hooked and entertained. And lucky to be able to binge watch under statewide "Stay at Home" orders. As others have noted, this is the best Sci-Fi in a very long time. I'm new to Amazon Prime and I can't believe I just found this fantastic series that has been around since 2015.
I Am Mother (2019)
They should have issued a credit or at least a special thank you to Isaac Asimov
Many people are familiar with Isaac Asimov's three laws of robotics. But far fewer are aware that in one of the sequel books extending and tying together the robot series, the Elijah Baily books, and the Foundation series that he added one more law - The Zeroth Law. And that is exactly what this movie is about.
Good movie. I enjoyed it.
Requiem for the American Dream (2015)
Should be required viewing for every American.
Everyone should see this. Confused, concerned, and frustrated by what is happening in America? Watch this and you'll begin to understand.
I would also recommend watching Adam Curtis' excellent documentary "The Century of the Self" as a companion documentary to help understand how we got here.
Annihilation (2018)
Engaging and interesting even with a big scientific wtf.
Good sci-fi. I'd also consider it sci-fi/horror where the horror element comes from the fear of the unknown which can be as powerful as any alien monster and is masterfully played. The horror seemed to come more from the results of what was happening than from aliens themselves. Intellectual curiosity kept me watching the slowly developing plot which felt necessary to the story in discovering the mechanisms of what was happening and was not boring.
What I found to be face palm inducing was that the team was sent into the "Shimmer" (after numerous teams never came back except one man who was suffering some sort of internal trauma) without bio-hazard suits or any sort of protection from what was believed to be a growing ecological disaster of an alien nature. This would NOT happen in a scientific investigation with military oversight (as the movie "Arrival"). But I guess with it they wouldn't be exposed which would be sort of plot wrecking.
Natalie Portman was excellent and J.J. Leigh was on spot on.
I'll have to read the book to figure out the difference of what happened to Lena & Kane vs Dr Ventress.
The Century of the Self (2002)
AN ABSOLUTELY MUST WATCH DOCUMENTARY
Adam Curtis documents the rise of consumer culture, public relations, propaganda and advertising. The main focus is Edward Bernays, Sigmund Freud's nephew who used his uncle's behavioral theories in his advertising, public relations, and propaganda business. He was also hired by the US to soften public resistance to entering WWI.
In 1928 Bernays wrote a book called "Propaganda" and its first paragraph should be all you need to read to want to watch this documentary;
"The conscious and intelligent manipulation of the organized habits and opinions of the masses is an important element in democratic society. Those who manipulate this unseen mechanism of society constitute an invisible government which is the true ruling power of our country."
Got that? That was in 1928, His methods have since evolved into predictable science.
Scrooge (1951)
The best Scrooge ever - not even close
I've seen them all and none measure up to Alastair Sim.
I first saw this movie on TV as a child around 1958. I have to watch this movie every year otherwise I can't begin to catch the Christmas spirit. As I got older I'd have to scour TV Guide every year to find out when it was airing. Finally I bought a DVD as soon as it was available. Now I have a .avi file I can watch anywhere.
Alastair Sim's portrayal of Scrooge's metamorphosis and redemption rings so true you experience it with him
Also watch it to see Kathleen Harrison (Mrs Dilber) imho deliver one of the most moving two word lines in film history in her scene with Scrooge on the stairs.
The Master (2012)
Great acting. Boring movie.
For over two and a quarter hours we are slowly walked through the relationship between a hopelessly war damaged drunk lost soul navy veteran and a charlatan who is the head of a cult. We surmise nothing much will come of this relationship for the drunk or the charlatan as it is easy to quickly ascertain (from the excellent acting) that neither of these leopards are about to change their spots. It has been alluded to that the movie's drifting non-narrative style is a metaphor for the drunk navy drifter. Get it? ... Or maybe it's supposed to be an indictment of Scientology or cults in general. For those of us not in need of edification on that front it seems pointless - over two hours of "Yeah. We KNOW." It kills me that so many movies which are held up as examples of cinematic artistic achievements have such awful sound. And I don't mean the soundtrack (which didn't seem to add to the film) but the dialog suffering from varying levels and is at times unintelligible. Why is dialog easier to understand from movies many decades older technologically? So that leaves us with some damn fine acting that for some may be worth the time.
The VVitch: A New-England Folktale (2015)
Horrible audio
Between the huge swings in dialog volume, poor recording quality (either sibilant or muffled), and the actors trying too hard to say their lines in a thick accent making them often unintelligible, I couldn't get past 10 minutes of this movie. What a shame. Might have been a good movie - I'll never know.