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ralphellis1979
Reviews
Ally McBeal (1997)
Anything for Love
The key theme of this show is that you can do any terrible thing in the world as long as it is for LOVE. You can cheat on a partner. You can break up a working marriage. You can lie constantly. Anything, absolutely anything is okay if it manages to be done in the name of love.
There is no continuity in this show. People form relationships and attachments in one show that don't even exist in immediate subsequent shows.
Some things are never explained such as why a senior prosecutor would keep on wearing clothing that was continuously cut to show off her cleavage. I am pretty sure that most law offices have a minimal dress code.
Deadpool & Wolverine (2024)
Greatest Story Ever Told
Clearly the greatest movie ever made. It should sweep the Oscars. I expect that the movie will be studied in cinematic circles for decades.
The musical numbers and the random use of Hugh Grant as Hugh Jackman's body double was a stroke of genius. I especially liked the acapella singing of the Music Man numbers.
Action scenes are a little light on explosions, but you have to save money somewhere. The movie had product placements from AARP as both actors approach that age range. Just like the movie Hustlers where all the strippers are senior citizens, Marvel tracks the aging North American population by having a geriatric action cast.
The Matrix (1999)
World's Dumbest AI
The World's Dumbest AI decides that feeding and raising humans and creating a massive virtual environment for them generates more net energy than using nuclear fission or fusion. Apparently, futurist AI ain't so good with the math.
Let's face it. Screen play writers never paid much attention in science or math class. This is a fun idea but the whole underlying concept is hilarious.
That said. Lots of good action scene but why does everyone keep doing cartwheels? Cartwheels don't make you go faster or or make you bullet proof.
Could this be an unintentional comeday? Still beats the science in Star Wars though.
Avatar: The Way of Water (2022)
Great Effects, Silly Plot
Imagine that you want to conquer a world. Do you:
1) Devise a plan to conquer the planet and pursue it.
2) Chase one family over a personal vendetta.
Which would be the more effective strategy?
It is clear that all the money was spent on special effects and only $20 was left for scriptwriters. "Family is everything." again and again in Hollywood movies. Please find another topic and not rehash all the old themes.
Follow the challenge of how the evil Earth people move to subdue the natives. Draw parallels to similar Earth conquests. Make everyone even more blue. Ditch the US accents for foreign planets.
Glass Onion (2022)
Fun Who Did It with some Gaping Holes
This is a fun movie with a great cast that is good entertainment. It is a pity that the key plot turning point on which everything else depends is ludicrous.
What is more likely?
The ownership of a multibillion-dollar organization is decided by:
a) a shareholder's agreement drawn up by lawyers
b) a cocktail napkin.
After you suspend disbelief over this bizarre oversight, you can enjoy the fine characters and the solid action. Daniel Craig and Edward Norton are always elegant professionals. The rest of the cast is solid and helps move the plot along. My wife and I both enjoyed the movie and the funny in- jokes that are present throughout the film.
Hustlers (2019)
Weak and Bizarre
Imagine a strip club where all the dancers are members of AARP and old enough that the main areas of discussion are retirement and 401k plans. Add to that criminal masterminds who devise a scheme so devilishly clever that it depends entirely on the victims not reporting the perpetrators to police. Their plan is virtually designed to fail from the start. Finally, Cardi B had to lie in interviews and pretend that she had drugged men and stolen from them as a stripper in a hopeless attempt to give this piece of trash some street cred.
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (2022)
Reasonable special effects with some weak characters
While the movie was fun, it is a debatable choice to include America Chavez, who is one of the least popular characters in the entire Marvel Universe, as a focal point. Almost any other plot device would have worked for this conflict. It could be an attempt to boost the weak comic book sales for that title.
The action scenes are worthwhile as are the special effects. It is surprising to see an alternative Sorcerer Supreme who keeps on playing second fiddle to Dr. Strange.
There is some humour mixed in with the action which is always welcome.
The Last Airbender (2010)
Fartbender
Originally this move was supposed to be a comedy - The Last Fartbender -about someone who bends methane to do amusing things. Alas the studio did not like the audience reaction to the initial filming and added many pretentious elements.
Whores' Glory (2011)
Interesting Insight and Sadness
This is a must see look at lives of prostitutes in different countries around the world. The saddest monologue is from a young Pakistan prostitute who asks how in god's world can there be no place for her. She sees her future clearly and realizes that she has no hope of the simple dreams of a marriage and family.
The overview is blunt and non judgmental. Mainly it is left to the prostitutes to discuss their own experiences.
Justice League Dark: Apokolips War (2020)
Quality Change of Pace
There is a lot to be said for this plot line. The Justice League chooses a conflict that dooms earth and ends up with the JL essentially defeated and destroyed by Darkseid. Damian sums it up when he says that they went to kill Darkseid with a bunch of people who were not killers. It ends in disaster for them and the earth.
The best scene in the movie is when Darkseid and Trigon are going to be trapped forever in a pocket universe fighting each other for control. Darkseid tries to escape but Trigon pulls him back in and thanks his daughter for this "great gift". Just in case you were wondering who really is evil incarnate.
The earth is crippled with billions going to die and Batman asks Flash for another Flashpoint because anything is better than their current situation.
Not everything needs to be cotton candy and birthday parties. Choosing to fight when they were not properly prepared leads to disaster. That is the lesson of the animation.
Also no one seems to have figured out that if you want to kill Darkseid, you don't send the JL, you send the Joker.
Superman: Red Son (2020)
Interesting Idea but poor execution
In this version Wonder Woman has a severe mental disease. Luthor attacks Superman building the socialist utopia and she blames all warlike men. Superman saves Wonder Woman from anarchist Batman and she blames all warlike men.
In the end, the socialist utopia falls for no apparent reason. Luthor pretends that he planned all of this decades ago even through all the key events happen by accident. Clearly a Deux Ex Machina to finish off the poor plot lines.
The Irishman (2019)
Same Old Same Old
Scorsese doing a gangster film. Very original. Glad to see that he is stretching himself. In spite of a strong cast, the action is slow moving and the development predictable.There are no surprises here and the movie just trudges on.
Perhaps Scorsese should try a superhero film next.
The Brave (2017)
Yet another Brave show
Yet another show about "The Brave". What about the slightly less brave? You know, the ones who are not so sanctimonious about it. In the end, this is another formula show about the people who help keep the world safe from democracy. A more complex view about what US intelligence really does would be appreciated.
Need for Speed (2014)
Steaming Pile of ...
No one expects realism from this type of movie. The best way to watch the movie is to turn off the sound and fast forward through any scene with extended dialogue or a woman. This cuts the movie time a manageable one hour with time to watch something else worthwhile. The cars are pretty - prettier than the women in the movie - and they are the only reason to watch this. The lead actor is a capable actor based on his past work but there is only so much you can do with a sow's ear. No one seems to consider that everyone in the race is going to jail for vehicular homicide and deserves to go to jail for the rest of their lives. Granted this is no worse a fate than the screenwriter and director deserve. How hard did they have to pinch their noses while making this film?
Divergent (2014)
Good Marketing - Moderately Interesting Plot
The makers of Divergent looked at Twilight and Hunger Games and said "How can I make a boat load of money?" First you start with a boring, unremarkable, uninteresting teenage girl who ends up with a hunky boyfriend (Twilight) and have her Save The World (Hunger Games). This allows all of the other boring, unremarkable teenage girls to identify with the movie because they know that they too could save the world and have a hunky boyfriend if only they could stop Tweeting, watching 9 hours of MTV a day and eating fast food. Give credit where credit is due. The producers understand their market as much as the makers of John Wayne westerns and Oprah Winfrey TV shows. From a SciFi perspective, the organization of the society is a interesting plaything. You have to wonder though how the current government leaders of the society, the Abnegation faction, are so poorly connected to the mechanisms of power that their only option is to run when the Erudite faction tries to take over. The whole movie is designed to produce two more sequels so the cash cow can be milked. All in all, Divergent is a predictable, moderately interesting SciFi flick that will appeal to the main body of movie goers who are teenagers.
Heartbreak Ridge (1986)
Imperialism for the weak minded
The climax of the movie comes when the US military invades Grenada which seems to have no standing military and only weapons purchased by mail order. Obviously going into such dangerous ground means that all the invading soldiers are heroes. It is hard to drum up tension for such a mild finish. Did Clint Eastwood need to be such a tough drill sergeant to prepare his troops to do this? A few boy scouts with bad attitudes could handle this assignment. It is not necessary to have a war movie for every US conflict no matter how petty. Perhaps we need a scene where the soldiers debate bringing their bathing suits to use after the morning's fighting is done. Clint Eastwood did better working with monkeys.