ilan-55261 Reviews

Balloon (2018)

...will keep you on the edge of your seat...

[9/10 · 7 December 2019]

I saw this film at the theatre this evening and I must admit, it captured and captivated me from the very first scene right up until the final climax.

The language barrier and English subtitles didn't affect the suspense level one bit, quite on the contrary. The fact that it's based on a true story just made it that much more entertaining and worthwhile to see.

The cast is truly "unbelievable", not literally speaking! This film just goes to prove that having a good script, actors and director completely compensates for having a low budget. You don't need a hundred million dollars to make a great movie and this is a fine example.

The plot and characters are so alive and vivid. You can feel their tensions and fears. This is definitely a movie to be seen as a family. The family values displayed are invaluable. Truly inspiring.

Joker (I) (2019)

"Joker" is no joke.

[10/10 · 13 October 2019]

This is the kind of film that won't seize to creep up and haunt you for days or perhaps even weeks after you've first seen it... It definitely brought out the "philosopher" in me. I found myself asking the universe all kinds of questions about human behaviour.. What makes a man crack under pressure? What drives a man to lose his sanity and commit vicious crimes? Is society at all to blame? If so, what's it's contribution?

The laws of physics state that most substances known to man either have a boiling or melting point. All substances, once subjected to certain pressures or temperatures, either melt, freeze, liquidize, sublimate or simply decompose.

A man's mind, psyche or sanity is actually no different in that manner.

This is a film about a man's inner struggle to cope with his unfortunate and miserable life and the tragic chain of events which inevitably lead him to experience an emotional meltdown.

Arthur Fleck, "Joker", is a "monster" created solely by society. He's victimized throughout his entire childhood and adult life by everybody surrounding him, including his own mother.

Arthur suffers from a serious mental condition due to severe a physical head injury and mental trauma that was inflicted upon him during his early childhood, causing him to uncontrollably burst out into laughter whilst under mental duress.

With this mental condition in mind, Arthur works as an underpaid clown on the verge of poverty, living with and caring for his elderly mother, alienated and outcasted by society and his peers at work, neglected by social services due to budget cutbacks, deprived of his daily prescribed medications, continuously humiliated, assaulted, beaten and battered by cruel people of Gotham City, left lying and bleeding on the ground in alleyways and subways like an injured animal, defamed and ridiculed on national television and dissuaded by his own mother.

Life and reality as Arthur knows it have become much too overwhelming for him to deal with. He's like a "ticking time bomb" ready to explode at any given moment. The writing is on the wall. He eventually cracks - totally freaks out, losing complete control of himself and goes off on a killing spree.

Though Arthur's actions are strongly condemned and CAN NEVER BE justified, it's quite difficult not to feel any empathy whatsoever towards him. Indeed, Todd Phillipps, the film's director, succeeded by intentionally instilling that thought in his viewers which continues to linger in their minds long after the movie is over...

In my opinion, Joaquin Phoenix delivers the greatest performance of his acting career and well deserves an Oscar Academy Award for it. "Joker" is a true masterpiece of cinematography.

My suggestion is.. If you haven't seen it yet, do yourself a big favor and go!!