rickblaine34 Reviews

Scoop (2024)

Extreme dullness

[1/10 · 17 April 2024]

I don't think I've ever seen a film that takes itself so seriously, and with nothing to show for it. What should have been a 20 minute episode in a series (tops) was painstakingly lenghtened to a full picture which is a total bore and which utterly fails to contribute anything new to its subject matter. Gillian Anderson was a pain to watch at her half-baked attempt to look and sound like Thatcher. And I still cannot understand why we were 'treated' to seeing Sam the booker's face at close up for absolutely no reason for what I assume amounts to more than half the entire running time of the film. All in all, I think it was a total waste of time.

Top Gun: Maverick (2022)

They sure don't make 'em like this anymore!

[10/10 · 5 February 2023]

A lifelong cinema buff, I am finding it increasingly difficult to commit to a movie for more than 15 minutes. With Top Gun Maverick, I have literally prayed that it doesn't end - it is 2 hours and 10 minutes but not a minute too long. A cinematic masterpiece is a true gem of a film in which you would not change a single scene. Well, Maverick is the only one I have come across in years. You come out convinced that there is a reason why Tom Cruise is Tom Cruise. Top of the class acting, directing, screenplay and character development and - needless to say - truly unbelievable aerobatics. It makes you laugh, it makes you cry and it makes you cling to your seat - barely able to remember breathing. If you want to remember how it felt to genuinely enjoy a movie, please see Top Gun Maverick. A real tour-de-force.

Babylon (I) (2022)

A tour-de-force until it is not

[7/10 · 21 January 2023]

Excellent acting, cinematography, music, editing and directing; a real tour-de-force, roller coaster ride of a movie until roughly the last 40 or so minutes. It all goes downhill and becomes a mess when Toby Maguire shows up and the plot starts unwinding. It would have been a masterpiece if Mr. Chazelle could wrap things up in 150 minutes, he chose to sabotage his own movie in the last 40 mins. Half of the theater walked out before the finale. What can I say; there is no sabotage like self-sabotage. And I still don't get how the last part survived the initial screenings, perhaps Mr. Chazelle was too obsessed with keeping his love letter to Hollywood intact that he could not realize how he messed it up in the end. Would still recommend it but feel free to walk out after Tobey shows up.

Your Honor (II) (2020–2023)

Bryan Cranston might be a lot of things, but he's no Superman

[6/10 · 15 February 2021]

Phenomenal acting by Bryan Cranston but there is nothing else going for this 'miniseries' which would've made a decent 100-minute thriller at best. Some of his co-stars are decent but the rest is nearly all terrible - with Cranston's son taking the lead as by far the most irritating character you've seen on the screen - and the script goes downhill after the third episode. All in all, you'd be better served by watching the first and the last episodes to appreciate Cranston's acting but be sure to skip on the rest.

Stuck Apart (2021)

Leyla Everlasting No. 2

[1/10 · 8 January 2021]

There is obviously a conspiracy inside Netflix these days against the Turkish movie industry. First Leyla Everlasting, now this pointless, colourless borefest. Rest assured, our cinema is much better than this.

Tenet (2020)

To be read by Mr. Nolan in 'posterity'

[7/10 · 20 December 2020]

Mr. Nolan, I think you are the most visionary director of your generation and a great gift to Hollywood. Apart from genuinely enjoying your movies, I truly admire the immense respect you show towards your work and your viewers by perfecting each and every angle of your scripts so that there are no gaps or plotholes although you are dealing with mind-boggling subjects like time travel. But please admit that whilst you have tried to outdo yourself with Tenet, you have instead overdone it to the point where it simply ceases to make any sense. Although the movie is very enjoyable, the script just does not work. There are too many questions left unanswered, too many plotholes and nothing in the way of proper explanation; and this comes as no surprise because the concept of 'inversion' is so half-baked that it falls apart after the first 45 minutes. So yes, I've enjoyed your movie, but merely as a decent blockbuster, and certainly not as a Nolan picture with the caliber of either Inception or Interstellar. 200 million US Dollars could have been spent much better.

Leyla Everlasting (2020)

Heineous

[1/10 · 5 December 2020]

This so-called 'movie' is almost an attempt at sabotaging the commercial success and critical praise that high-quality, hard hitting Turkish productions have enjoyed in Netflix. It is really sad to see that an actor of Haluk Bilginer's caliber actually chose to be a part of this utter embarrasment.

The Undoing (2020)

Why on earth did this get made?

[4/10 · 1 December 2020]

Hugh Grant, Nicole Kidman and Edgar Ramirez all deliver fine performances but the script is truly unbearable - zero originality, meaningless dialogue that seems to go on forever, pointless scenes that have no apparent connection to the story and a plot which leads absolutely nowhere. The sheer pretentiousness, the evident pointlesness and an incredibly dull finale - just as the show had managed to build up some actual suspense towards the ending - just ruins the whole thing. All in all, a waste of your time. I am sure even Susanne Bier is at a loss as to why this series got made in the first place.

Interrupted (2020)

Rubbish

[1/10 · 29 October 2020]

The plotholes are so many, the scenario is so amateurishly written that it is not possible to take this miniseries seriously, I'm sure the screenwriters feel the same way. I have endured throughout the entire series, partially because the acting was decent but mainly hoping that it will all be sorted out but the 'finale' removed all my doubts as to how second-class this production is. Nothing is revealed, nothing makes any sense, all questions remain unanswered and the premises prove entirely baseless. The viewer is basically delivered a huge insult, simply because no one has even bothered to deliver a proper ending. I can hear the producers laughing: 'did you really think we knew what we were doing? You people will watch anything.' Not me. I will cancel my subscription to the streaming service and shall not return.

The Insult (2017)

WHAT A TRIUMPH! WHAT A TOUR-DE-FORCE!

[10/10 · 28 January 2018]

What a tour-de-force! What a triumph! What a masterpiece! I haven't seen such a powerful movie in years. This is the kind of movie you come across so very rarely, that shakes you to your very core, makes the art of cinema worthwhile and reminds you why you fell in love with the motion picture in the first place.

Suburbicon (2017)

Next time your pal Clooney calls to make a movie, please, just say no!

[1/10 · 28 January 2018]

Seeing the ratings I asked myself 'how bad could it possibly be?' And boy, did I get an answer. This is one of the most bizarre, pointless, pretentious, excruciatingly boring and terribly executed films I've ever seen. You feel extreme physical pain before you reach even half. And it is a disgrace to use the issue of racism, which should be dealt with extreme seriousity, as a backdrop to this horrendous film just to be able to market it. I do not see how a self-respecting actor could sign on to this project. And Matt Damon, next time your good pal George Clooney calls to make a movie, please, just say no!

Her (2013)

Spectacular

[10/10 · 15 February 2014]

'Her' is a modern day classic and one the best movies of the year. A work of creative and artistic genius, Jonze's sci-fi romance revitalizes a genre long dominated by CGI-filled popcorn movies. It has a melancholic charm to it. This movie is about a romantic relationship, no matter how out of the ordinary. But it can still give you this smooth, beautiful feeling of solitude, while portraying a relationship. I had the same feeling while watching Lost In Translation. The acting is spectacular. The casting was just right, everyone fits in perfectly to their role. The colours, the music, the cinematography, all perfect. It is so successful in that for a moment there it makes you feel such a relationship can actually be possible. It is so realistic that it makes perfect sense. This movie just carries you away. You won't believe how time has passed and you've reached the end, by that point you won't want it to be over. But unfortunately it is. More like this please Jonze. Simply spectacular.

Dom Hemingway (2013)

Not everyone can be Guy Ritchie

[2/10 · 15 February 2014]

At first look, Dom Hemingway seems to have all the makings of a good British crime comedy. Witty jokes, extraordinary characters, good fights, not-your-average gangsters. But overall, Dom Hemingway doesn't work as a movie. Why? Because the jokes aren't really witty, the characters, although out of the ordinary aren't deep and the plot, especially after a certain point, is too meaningless, you loose all curiosity and just don't care anymore. We could easily say that the director tried to go for the Guy Ritchie style. What he should've done was put more depth into the characters, give us more on their backstories. And make more use of some characters, like Madalene Ghenea's character, there could've been more to her then just having a few lines overall and running off with Dom's money. There were many stories within the movie worth extending and further exploring, like Dom's best friend and their youth days as criminals or his relationship with Melody. Instead of going for all that, the director chooses to provide us with meaningless scenes, an unmoving plot and second-class humor. All this shows that Guy Ritchie is indeed Guy Ritchie for a reason.

Under the Skin (I) (2013)

If this was made during the Bush administration, there would be no need for waterboarding. This is legal torture.

[1/10 · 15 February 2014]

I saw this movie, if you can call it that, a few hours ago, at an indie festival screening in Istanbul. And I still haven't recovered from the terrible headache and nauseation. I can't say that I didn't like it. 'Not liking it' doesn't come close to expressing my feelings towards this catastrophe, this nonsense, this treason to the art of cinema. I didn't like the last Superman movie. I didn't like Skyfall. I didn't like Dom Hemingway. Those are films I 'didn't like'. But this one...There's nothing quite like it. I despised it. I was disgusted by it. I can't remember the last time I hated a movie so much. Perhaps because I've never seen anything worse. Let me summarize this movie for you. 108 minutes of constant, maddeningly irritating music, (more like weird sounds, I couldn't call that music), rare and when available meaningless dialogue, a meaningless plot that falls to repetition after 10 minutes, weird scenes that don't make any sense and a horrible ending which comes by the time you're basically considering ending your life for the torture to be over. It is agonizingly slow, there's enough content for maybe 30-35 minutes. Barely anything happens in this film except for an alien Scarlett picking up single men from the street and taking them to a dark, unidentified place to die, disappear, dissolve or whatever the hell it is that happens to them, to extract their skin possibly for other aliens' disguise. And there is another character with a motorcycle, alien or not we aren't told, who serves no other purpose then cleaning up Scarlett's mess. In the latter parts of the movie the director attempts to throw in some feelings, trying to humanize Scarlett, and he succeeds to make a complete mess of that too. The people who are behind this movie need to understand that showing a few naked people, throwing in some weird images or light games and some extremely irritating music doesn't get you art-house. All it gets you is this embarrassment of a movie and a furious, sickened and nauseated audience. At the end of the movie, what was left of the audience (many started leaving after 20 minutes) clapped in protest. The only upside would've been the images of Scottish countryside, which the director tried to use for creating a feeling of solitude, but he fails at that too and ruins the imagery for us. So please, please, please do yourselves a huge favour and avoid it. Don't see it because Scarlett's in it, I'm sure many people were fooled by that, myself included. I wonder what kind of substance she was on while signing up to do this. Probably the same stuff the director and the screenwriter were on. Well, perhaps not, they must've been on something much, much more stronger. On a last note, I think important actors/actresses, like Scarlett Johannson, need to be much more careful what kind of projects they sign up for. They carry a responsibility towards people who see their names in a movie and buy the ticket. Scarlett is one of my favourite actresses and I have certain expectations from the kind of movie she chooses to star in. I was quite disappointed to see her in this joke of a film. A waste of her talent and a waste of my, hopefully not yours, time and money. Don't see it.

Celal and Ceren (2013)

If you're the kind of person who gets a kick out of endless fart jokes then this is a delight for you. Otherwise, run for the exits, now!

[1/10 · 31 January 2013]

Let me start my words by telling you how Sahan reacted to the score he received here, according to a newspaper: ' IMDb? IMDb? Hahahahahahahaha. Hahahahaha. Who gives a damn about IMDb?' So this is one of those directors who feels comfortable insulting the moviegoer when his work is not appreciated, your regular art house director you would think, the only difference is that he cannot claim, as those 'self declared' genius directors would, that his work was 'misunderstood' because the single biggest feature of his movie is fart jokes. I'm sure if he got an 8 or a 9, he would be talking about how incredibly proud he was to be endorsed by the biggest movie database in the world. Spare yourself Sahan's witty genius just this once! And if you certainly must, lower your expectations, to the point of zero! If you're relying on the love story you saw on the synopsis, don't be fooled, go see Gigli, it is a romantic masterpiece next to this one. If you're the kind of person who can manage to laugh at endless fart jokes, spitting and all sorts of disgusting things, this movie is a delight for you.  I'd like to end my words by stating how sick and tired I am with Turkish comedians like these. This sort claims that people who don't like their work are elitists, that they are doing a fine job indeed, just look at the box office figures. Judging by their movies' financial success, this sort thinks that such idiotic humour is worthy of the Turkish audience and they keep making movies of the same kind, clearly thinking that the audience does not deserve or cannot appreciate decent humour. I couldn't disagree more. The Turkish moviegoer, like the average Turkish folk, is quite smart. They just like to laugh a lot. And since many movies are like this, they don't have much of a choice. But when they are provided decent comedy, witty jokes and quality humour, they reward that work with the biggest budget successes of all times. Mr. Sahan Gokbakar, if you disagree with what I just said, my advice to you, just look at Cem Yilmaz.

Silver Linings Playbook (2012)

One of the best movies of the year, if not the best. If you enjoy movies at all, don't miss out on this one.

[10/10 · 4 January 2013]

The Silver Linings Playbook is one of the warmest, one of the most sincere and the most heartfelt movies I have seen in my lifetime. A wonderful story about broken hearts, how to mend them and how to hold on to life, it will surely leave it's mark on you. The acting is out of this world, Jennifer Lawrence and Bradley Cooper give what is easily the best performances of their careers. Sometimes the movie becomes an actors' showdown with all the breathtaking talent flying around. And it is, as always, a delight to watch De Niro just be De Niro. I can easily say that it is among the best pictures of the year and is one of the most inspiring movies ever made. If you enjoy movies at all, don't miss out on this one. A must see.

Skyfall (2012)

Skyfall is not a real Bond movie

[6/10 · 5 November 2012]

Skyfall was probably the worst Bond movie I've ever seen, except for maybe Moonraker in which Bond actually goes to outer space - come on you cannot beat that in epic failures - and for On Her Majesty's Secret Service which ends with the villain shooting Bond's wife right after their wedding. (what was even more intolerable then the ending was George Lazenby's acting) It just didn't have enough content and material to be a movie, was more like a lenghtened episode from a spy series. As opposed to many, I did not like Javier Bardem as the villain, he can play a terrific villain if he wants to, look at No Country For Old Men, he just couldn't deliver here, still seemed to me like Juan Antonio Gonzalo from Vicky Cristina Barcelona, one of Bardem's finer hours. Skyfall is a celebration of all things British, it is a celebration of England actually and I don't have a problem with that especially since it is the 50 th anniversary of Bond, nothing wrong with returning to your origins and paying tribute to the old 007s. But have too much of that stuff and you just overdo it, turn the movie into half a documentary. All in all, Skyfall might be a nostalgic feel-good action movie especially for the Brits but it's not a real Bond movie.

Bir Avuç Deniz (2011)

avoid at all costs

[1/10 · 20 March 2011]

This film is an insult to the moviegoer and to the art of cinema itself. It is so incredibly bad that it would drive one to open an IMDb account just to give this movie a low rating. If you think that this movie was actually a joke, and that it was made merely to make fun of dull and meaningless romantic movies that take themselves too seriously (which is a natural assumption to make after seeing it), I got horrible news for you, it is not. I have never seen such an epic failure in my life. Terrible acting, piece of crap scenario, meaningless dialogue, this movie represents everything that is wrong with the Turkish cinema today. It should be shown in film school under the title: 'How not to make a movie' or 'How to torture your audience and bore them to death'. As I stated at the title, avoid it at all costs. Well, let's not be so harsh, there is an upside to it. If you're looking for a good laugh, this will work even better than Peter Sellers movies. The audience laughed so much that it was hard to follow the conversations. Definitely the worst movie I have seen in my life, period. Anyone who actually liked this movie, certainly lacks any kind of taste in movies.