dantehr Reviews

Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves (2023)

Had Mariana Trench low expectations

[7/10 · 1 April 2023]

Laughed once, nearly cried.

This movie has some clever ideas, a mesmerising shape shifting chase, and some genuinely funny jokes, watchable pacing and a clear story goal motivated by touching relatable emotions.

Strangely shy in the art department, I would have enjoyed bolder, wilder, psychedelic creature designs, and less bland cities.

I went in fully expecting one of the worst movies ever made. If Star Trek has technobabble, then go in prepared for Dungeon-Babble. The first two thirds of this film are as wordy as any stage play.

Overall, Honour Among Thieves felt consistent in its silliness and benefitted from not taking itself too seriously.

Cosmos (I) (2019)

I've met people like this

[6/10 · 12 November 2019]

I've met people in real life who act deeply hurt if you refuse their offer of a mint, so I find it hard to agree with accusations that the acting is poor. For me the interest of this film is the presentation of young scientists. Cinematographically the blocking and use of focus pulls are very effective, while the lighting is certainly in the realm of fantasy, being beautiful but often unmotivated. I agree the film desperately needs editing down, the scene where the guys sing along to the radio is tolerable for a few seconds but becomes painful to watch. The hat presentation is the worst offender and comes across as complete parody. Amazing production value on a low budget, although I did find the car chase scenes disturbing as I can't imagine the team paid for road closures, so they appear to have been filmed recklessly and possibly illegally. Hope I'll wrong about that!

Mute (II) (2018)

A mess...

[3/10 · 8 November 2018]

Can't believe this is by the same guy who created Moon. I'm genuinely wondering if the script was written by primitive A.I. because the dialogue feels like sound bites taken from a back-catalogue of movie scripts. Also, what went wrong with the cinematography? It's like the exposure values are all over the place, the environment is competing for attention with the lighting on the characters, and the shots are poorly framed. How can this be the work of the guy who shot Moon?

King Arthur: Legend of the Sword (2017)

Leave fantasy to The LOTR team

[4/10 · 20 May 2017]

Guy Richie seems to lack the ability to make fantasy plausible. The movie feels like a teenager cut together clips from Lord of the Rings and a few Guy Richie films, but somehow in the process lost the qualities of both. The best moments come from Jude Law musing about the power of fear, and other minor actors split second contributions.

The visual effects were mixed ranging from the ridiculously designed Camelot, with no focal points and obvious texture repetitions like an early playstaion game, to the fairly decent Londinium with interesting post Roman elements.

Alien: Covenant (2017)

Refreshingly clueless characters - All the gear and no idea!

[8/10 · 18 May 2017]

It was so refreshing to see a movie where characters act like very ordinary people in an extraordinary situation. The crew of the Covenant presumably had some form of training but despite this they have no clue what they are doing! If you've ever been thrust into a high pressure situation you've never experienced before you'll know how realistic this is! In reality it's easy to forget most of what you thought you knew and rely on bad instincts, make mistakes and trust the wrong people. The story is a catalogue of how not to investigate a new planet, and I can't help feeling this is close to the truth of how things might really pan out when colonists destined for a pre-approved planet take matters into their own hands! How many of us really understand how the technology we use works? The crew of the Covenant have all the gear but no idea how to put it to good use, forgetting basic principles like wearing a space suit when investigating an unknown environment. Particularly effecting were many of the deaths resulting from blindly following the authority of a synthetic, just because they had a handsome face and a clear voice. Bad writing? Or good writing of bad characters? Overall very refreshing to see what NOT to do if you ever find yourself in a similar situation. The film is a poem of the limits of the human capacity to translate knowledge into action, and as we enter the age of artificial intelligence and 'deep thought' a reminder to be careful what we create! Massively underrated! Well done Ridley and co. p.s. I think we all wan to know more about the engineers :D