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The Witcher: Shaerrawedd (2023)
If it wasn't the witcher
Except for the first episode S3E1, that was feeling like butter spread over too much bread, the episodes 2 - 5 are entertaining and sometimes thrilling. Unfortunately, it is not the story of the Witcher anymore. It has became a romance in a fantasy world with elves and mages, a drama with more words than action. Did you think that a witcher earns his living by killing monsters? Not in this movie. But you will learn some new exciting steps for your next dance party.
And one more thing - please make the actors pronounce words understandably, unless the producer thinks the dialogs are not worth understanding. It was not such a big problem in LOTR, so one can clearly understand many fantasy races.
Jungle Cruise (2021)
Good movie
This is one of the few movie made in 2021 that actually is nice to watch.
The acting is good with nice actions. Once the movie starts it's a nice ride down the river. Maybe the CGI is some scene a bit unnecessary and some fight and action scenes could do with a few less cuts.
To me it feels much more like a bit more scary Jumanji than Indiana Jones, but entertaining nevertheless...enjoy :-)
Mortal Kombat (2021)
Surprise
I had no expectation and was nicely surprised.
If you like this genre and possibly Mortal Kombat, try it.
Ad Astra (2019)
Size does matter
Well, they created a tiny sci-fy movie with a tiny-spaceship traveling the tiny-space of our tiny solar system. And it is spiced with a tiny father-son drama.
Don't expect any science or too much of a brain in the actions, but it is watchable. A tiny little bit :-)
Chaos Walking (2021)
This is one of the least alien looking alien world.
The scenery is very lame. They travel decades in space to a distant planet where there is no alien life (okay, there is ONE), the trees and vegetables is all the same as here, the habitats look like a western countryside mixed with a farm in Norway. They were so lame in the in the post production they even left a shot where you can see a parked tractor next to the farm. Settler wear jeans and normal clots (after spending decades in alien world), only the leader has some kind of fur, but since there are no animals whatsoever, they have probably took it with them from earth in the spaceship. It also looks laughable - people in t-shirts and shorts next to a man covered in thick bear fur, cause it makes him look cool I guess...
I cannot recommend this one.
The Tomorrow War (2021)
nice movie
The movie has good pace, acting, interesting plot and even some twists. The action scenes are not blurred so that you can not make tale and head.
It keeps to pleasant level of realism except for the final act, where the plot goes over the head.
The CGI enables more gore details that might not be to everyone's taste.
I would go with a 7 starts rating for this movie, but with the "competition" released this year (2021), this feels like a gem :-)
Take a seat and have a good time.
Cosmic Sin (2021)
Better to skip this one
Honestly, don't watch this one. It will only makes you sad.
Well it makes you wonder - is age all it takes for you to drop your expectation and dignity bar low enough to accept a role in a hollow movie?
Make yourself a favor and watch The Fifth Element instead :-)
Doom Patrol (2019)
From Doom patrol (Season 1) to Doomed patrol (season 2)
The first season started very well slightly losing its pace toward the end. It's mostly fun to watch 7/10.
The second season is all but fun, trying to redevelop each character making the "heros" pathetic. It's mostly boring to watch 3/10. To be honest, I have cheated here a bit, because at some point I caught myself falling asleep and started to skip time with minimal impact on previous experience...
The heroes changed from Doom patrol to Doomed patrol and death will be their salvation from their struggle with normal day - day life.
Is it just me or is the second series also trying hard to morally educate the audience...
The Expanse (2015)
Going from hero to zero - the series 04 sets the bars low
After the first three series, the last one (2019) is rather a disappointment, still worth watching though.
Holden, the captain who saved the humanity in previous series, and the only hero in the solar system celebrated by all factions is up for the next job - helping a bunch of homeless miners and a tiny military unit over the course of all ten episodes. He changed from a man, who always knows and does the right thing to an ordinary space trawler, whose biggest enemy are his own words trying to escape his throat...
The unpleasant surprise is that all main characters have more or less developed a SOPS - syndrome of paralyzed sloth - unwilling of any action.
The only character I could "recognize" is Amos, although he adds very little to the plot itself.
The series has lost most of its momentum and is sucking dry the connections with the main characters built in the previous series. Let's hope they get it right the next time. ;-)
Black Panther (2018)
boring movie
I try to keep it simple. This is one of the the worst hero movies. Boring with chaotic action parts and outside of action the movie has a pace of a dead horse.
There is no action, there is chaos. That a spear is not good choice again a gun knows everybody. To make up for this "handicap", the fighting scenes are cut every 2 second resulting in a chaotic mishmash. This is in strong contrast to the rest of the peace less movie.
This is and should have remained a purely fictional hero movie, but the attempt to put it into context with painful events in the history of Africa is the biggest laugh to the misery and suffering of its people.
The feeling after the movie is clear: disappointment.
The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 1 (2014)
tasteless film experience
The first two instalments were nice to watch and made me curious about the sequel. They totally lost me with this one. I have to add that I did not read the books.
The film is very boring and stupid. The characters are becoming boring and shallow. The pace in the film is none. The only action is revealed and actually seen in the official trailer.
The characters are totally ruined and Katniss in spite of her previous acts of sacrifice, becomes very selfish, ready to let the whole nation bleed for her own feeling of satisfaction. The new characters are not properly developed and some old ones have rather random appearance, making the plot a set of mostly random and unimportant acts and moments.
The young adult previously fighting for her life (and the lives of others) and prepared to kill now becomes a teenager totally lost in her little sorrows and feelings. Again and again and again until the film is over.
I had some expectation after the first two instalments and this felt like a let-down.
Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance) (2014)
Did I miss the point?
I was probably expecting something other. English is not my native language and I do not have much of a connection to Broadway or its history, so I would most likely miss much of the interpretation in translation, but I found the movie extremely boring.
I like that the film was made without visible cuts, as this was a new experience. I don't think I would like others to follow, since the camera moves were sometimes distracting, but it's nice for a change. And it definitely suits a film about theater.
Otherwise the movie pace was terribly slow for me. I actually could not watch it in one go. Only after a few week, I felt like finishing the other half, which was not much better as the first and I was forwarding most of the last 20min.
This film is not to my taste and I cannot recommend watching it. The plot pace was like the drum music in it - without climax, just dragging on forever.
Pacific Rim (2013)
fisting your mind
This film is very simple minded. Don't expect anything and you will not be disappointed. Unless you paid for tickets, in which case it might be a bit of a let down.
Shame is that it is becoming a new film genre - huge budget, a lot of cgi with no story, no tension and poor actor performance. and sometimes it would be better off as a silent movie too.
I will not add anything from the plot, but I am sure you will know the what will happen at least one minute in advance. The biggest mystery is the score here at IMDb.
It is watchable, but it's a typical watch & bin it movie.
Atlas Shrugged II: The Strike (2012)
rather disappointing
I have watched the first part and loved it. It was full of tension with the characters well played. I was so excited about the next part, that I decided to continue with the watch marathon! There is a small spoiler and I have marked it further below
You have to get used to the new actors. The acting is neither great nor bad, but the characters as such are much less believable than in the fist part. Dagny changed from a business spirit look to a mother carrying look. And I did not get used to Henry's terminator voice, disturbing in every scene.
The disappointment, however, was the change in the dialogues and characters essence. The characters were very bald, except for Dagny.
****spoiler Dagny, which I thought was good up to the point where after a disaster all she cares about is to find a way around instead of trying to save the people. And while they are dying, she enjoys a nice relaxing nap on the train with a chatter afterward. ******spoiler
Sorry, but there is no way for the second part to come even close to the first one. Still you will have to watch it if you want to know how it continues :-)
The Expendables 2 (2012)
it can't get much better than this!
I give 9/10, cause I need to have something in my sleeve should there be Ex3 ;-) Ex1 wasn't bad, but this is so much better. Don't remember any movie recently that left me in such a good mood.
The film is all I would expect from a run'n'shoot action genre. And yes, there is an exact line between good and bad like in the the old fairy tales.
The dialogues are funny and the actors are not afraid to make fun of themselves and their previous roles. In a way, they actually play a parody to themselves. This is most unusual and refreshing and extend the characters behind the plot of the film. In addition, the film did surprised me pleasantly a few times (not with the plot) and that does not happen that often anymore.
There are references to older films, public life /gossip and even jokes. Back than, when Rambo and Commando came out, Stallone and Schwarzenegger wasn't really a couple in love and many of the phrases would be a cliché if they would be said by somebody else. Lucky for us - they are not.
The plot in this genre is not very complicated. If you expect a Sherlock Holmes or Da Vinci Code movie, don't watch it. The plot was clear long before they even decided to make it. If this disappoints you, than this genre is probably not your cap of tea.
The atmosphere starts immediately and gets graduated. But if you lucky, you should find a 30 second window between actions, long enough to get you another beer from the fridge.
If you want some action and fun this is a yes. And if you remember the 80', you will have more fun than action and the film is full of action.
Taken (2008)
is this how it works?
Please tell me what you think of the script: (Warning this is a SPOILER :-)
Natasha, a spoiled daughter of Igor (an ex KGB spy) goes to New York with a girl-friend. While Natasha is on the phone with her father, they get kidnapped from their apartment. Igor, knowing that time is of the essence, does not call the local police (who would trust the NYPD while he is only 10000 miles away) and decides to fly over for a visit.
Igor breaks into the apartment. He knows that the Mexican Mafia is involved and kills a man at the airport and so the killing begins.
To give it the right atmosphere, Igor speaks only Russian, as he knows that all Americans speak fluently Russian, especially the Mexican Mafia members.
Igor meets his old friend John, who used to work in CIA and is now a NYPD head officer, who tells him he can't help him, but gives him a business card. Using this business card Igor pretends to be a special NYPD officer while he speaks only Russian. The Mexican Mafia members believe Igor and he successfully infiltrates their established HQ and kills everyone in his way. The NYPD does not care much for murder and violence Igor leaves behind, as this is widely accepted in New York.
He deliberately cripples his friend, an innocent mother of children, by shooting her with a gun, because she was married to John.
He kills the big boss, rescues his daughter and leaves the country via JFK Airport, cause the Mafia, NYPD, CIA and Customs administration are absolutely useless. When he comes home, his ex wife gets his "I was right message" and everyone in Russia is happy.
So what do you think of the script? How plausible is it? Well, to give a connection to the film Taken, try to substitute: Natasha=Kim, Igor=Bryan, NY=Paris, Russian=English, Mexican=Albanian, KGB=CIA etc.
Maybe if the film wouldn't try to be so serious but had been more like From Paris with love or Pulp Fiction the script would be much more appropriate.
Prometheus (2012)
Prometheus - the good and bad things and the biggest mystery
So what's bad and good about Prometheus? The bad first - the script seems to be a huge line of holes with a little plot in between. It might not even be written with words, but rather sketched as a comic book and the dialogues and actions are the direct result of an immediate improvisation of the actors trying to get from one scene to another.
The characters behave irrationally, professionals act as pure stupid amateurs. The whole team is acting (and looks like) as a bunch of junkies when exploring a junk-yard. Luckily there are no safety procedures and protocols on the ship, so the misery wont take long.
Ridley Sotts' science consultant has just finished the first grade school. But that's just fine, because the anatomy consultant must be a pre-school, cause his knowledge is based on first 'How was I born' answer = You were in mama's belly and the doctors opened it gently and took you out. The ship was designed with the imagination of a 16 years old, as it is cool to include a snooker room, a lot of alcohol and a huge gym where the android can play basketball and ride his bike. In the end it's called a space ship for a reason - cause it has a lot of space in it! The android, however, is very limited and his input-output interfaces are the eyes, ears and mouth.
To wrap it up, from the moment you meet the crew in its full beauty, you're only waiting for the members to die. The only fun is to guess the order (I am sure you know who the first will be the moment you see him). Since they are junkies pretending to be scientist you feel like they deserve it and you shall not miss any of them. (Some should have chocked already in the cryo-sleep anyway).
Now the good things about the film. Some scenes are really nice - for example the first 30sec - but are these even related to the rest of the movie? But the best moment was when I read some of the critic reviews with spoilers, I nearly wet my pants.
The big mystery of the film - how on earth can it have 7.3? Either the audience 'chose they want to believe' or Hollywood has paid 1 Trillion to create 150,000 IMDb accounts and voted 10!
I would hesitate to recommend this film unless you can watch it for free and love special effects (and even so you will waste your time).