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dan_isacsson
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Old People (2022)
Had to stop about 1/3 through
There was a lot of interesting and tense buildup, I was quite invested. But then one person decided to be this year's contestor for "I Like Putting My Family In Danger" awards and I couldn't continue any longer. I have my limits, and this moment took me out of the story completely.
The tone, the music and the acting was good. I even really felt compelled to listen to the message, which I think it still managed to convey to some degree without me finishing the film.
I have hard time enjoying horror flicks with a serious tone but with absolutely bottom feeder instinct decisions. It is just... ugh...
Some people may be able to get past that moment. But it's one the most stupid decisions I've seen in a horror flick for years, and I've been watching my fair share.
Monster Hunter (2020)
Enjoyable first experiment
This will be a fairly short review and I'm going through a few key aspects that are stuck with me after finishing the film.
The value
So, as for why you would want to watch this movie it comes down to three core aspects for me. The movie is not a masterclass in directing but it is a good first experiment to showcase just how broad the options are when it comes to making a Monster Hunter movie. This one barely scratches the surface, has passable dialogue and enjoyable moments barely without trying. That's pretty encouraging to see as I hope other filmmakers will look at this and take it in all kinds of directions. It may sound as critique, but I am actually happy the first movie we get from this franchise (there has been an animated series and that's about it) has such a small setting. A majority of the film takes place in two locations, and while plenty of material could be cut down I wasn't expecting some masterpiece so this is quite well within my expectations and because of that I had a pretty good time.
Apart from this, you also have some thoroughly detailed monsters and being a fan of the franchise I love how they embrace teamplay here and give the monsters plenty of time to shine. It doesn't always follow logic, but when the pitch was "a military squad gets sent into the Monster Hunter universe and one becoms a dual-wielding blade hunter" I can't really say they didn't tell us so.
Finally, this movie is really easy to digest. If you're looking for something medium-rare, feel-good and that won't have you question much you're in for a good ride. I personally only really reacted to scenes that were too long maybe once or twice. If you're stressing out prior to watching I would presume your experience might differ but I was in a pretty good mood coming in and it wasn't ruined one bit by the movie. Instead I found myself chatting up some folks, taking shots of the film and small-talking. Pretty much what I expected.
The cost
A flaw of the film is definitely, as others have pointed out, the directing. I found that the shots would often jump around way too much, much more impact could have been felt if they had more confidence in their execution. The choreography that goes along with it isn't great either, but it does the job.
The music is lacking some of the Monster Hunter vibes I like. A few missed opportunities for music fan-service here, I really hope it wasn't a matter of missing the license or something of the sort.
On another note, the games have very little to do with gender. Why does this matter for the movie? Because unlike the games where, sure you have some gender stereotypic roles, anyone can become a hunter and nobody really talks about why a woman should do this or a man shold do that. Here, however, it's unnecessarily pointed out how someone is "like that despite being a woman" and it feels tacked on as if a reaction to our times. It's just a small thing though, for those looking for an easy ride it won't be a deterrent.
I won't give it higher than 6/10 because it's just a good ride. A 10/10 has to floor me, stun me. It's enjoyable fun, and if you think you'll like the movie based on the features I mentioned under "The value" you probably will.
Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence (1983)
A war prison well-writ but so-so shot
I just finished watching this movie. My first encounter with it was the brilliant acoustic version of the song that goes by the same name as the movie, played acoustically with piano and violin. I must have listened to it a hundred times before I finally decided I needed to know for what it was writ.
Aside from some odd angles and an overall (to my surprise) inconsequential soundtrack I still fell for this movie's depiction of prisoners of war versus prison guards. It had a good amount of respect for both sides, depicting both he prejudices of the Japanese and the american soldiers. I think it could have gone further in-depth, and some odd moments took my attention away from the experience, but the acting is on par with many release around this period and the writing holds up (despite some abstract scenes).
In terms of length, despite running at just about two hours I didn't get bored. Plenty of ups and downs, guided by a goal for some authenticity gave the film a flair of unpredictability. It's slow paced, but only painfully so if you expect something else.
Give this film a watch if you're curious to see a fairly nuanced take on the conditions in captive environments. Don't expect much in terms of using camera angles and lighting to set the stage and ambience, but in spite of its flaws I think it's a worthy watch that still has the potential to trigger some pondering.
The Umbrella Academy: The White Violin (2019)
I Had No Patience
After watching Episode 9, and I loved the show up until this point, I did not have the patience to watch as they antagonized the "villain" of this episode. It seems intentional, and I'm happy it didn't turn into an all-out simplistic war. Either way, I ended up skipping through this whole episode as I wasn't really a fan of watching her deteriorate into a villain for completely obvious reasons.
Episode 10 seems well-done, in spite of my skipping through it, so I might edit this review after a rewatch but... I definitely lost a lot of my patience after the ninth episode. It went somethng like this:
"Oh, so... okay... they're just gonna' be fighting her for the rest of this episode and... like.. defeat her? *skip, skip* Yeah basically. Ah, a few parts in-between with time freezing still going on... alright. *skip, skip* Everyone's fighting, she does the obvious "it's all okay" despite there being more than half the episode left so there's no way that would happen... *skip, skip* blah, blah, blah. Ooh, new powers! Go Ben! Oh, so... she's not gonna' get killed? Alright, I might rewatch this."
A totaly affront to all that is watching a show, but... meh. This review will be completely redone if I rewatch it and get a different opinion. I still think they kind of... rushed the tenth episode. A lot of things happened that just... yeah, we'll see. I don't know. It felt largely predictable but a few things caught me off-guard at the end so... *sigh*
Tsumetai nettaigyo (2010)
A dark and unflinching depiction of human weakness
Every now and then I come across a title that speaks to me. Now don't take me the wrong way, I don't necessarily mean that I can relate to it but it sends a message and reminds us of what we humans are really capable of. In the dark of all Hollywood movies, Japanese action-movies and romantic comedies that flood the box offices lie small gritty and pitch black movies that just wait to be found by those who can handle it.
This isn't a movie for those that only like mindless gore like Saw or Hostel. Instead it delves deep into the darkness we humans can fall into and it doesn't let us out even once. Someone wrote that those who are into dark comedies could take a liking to this movie, I'd say that if you take this on as a dark comedy then you're missing the point of the movie and shouldn't be watching it in the first place. For that purpose there are far more gory "entertainment" out there to laugh or giggle at.
If you're a fan of really dark thrillers with drama and characters with depth then you'll definitely love this movie. Others may love it as well but at the very least you should not watch this if you have a weak heart, and that's not only due to the gore in this movie. I'd go so far as to say that in terms of atmospheric darkness not even the Vengeance Trilogy comes close. This becomes even more apparent due to the fact that this movie is loosely based on events that truly have transpired.
I'm not gonna' delve into the story of the movie as I myself lose a lot of the surprise when I hear about a movie like this. I hope I've been of help and that you'll be ready to see what may be your darkest movie yet (if you're able to not try and laugh it off).