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Reviews
Impuratus (2022)
On the edge of your seat thrill!
Impuratus masterfully brings you into a horrific experience and keeps you on the edge of your seat throughout the entire film. The film is a masterclass in tone and the dark gritty tonality of the film really made it an exciting watch.
The performances were exceptional. Jody Quigley as Daniel Glassman was absolutely chilling. Airen DeLaMater's performance as Sister Rose was dynamic and powerful and had me wanting to leap out and save her from the perilous situation. She was no doubt the bravest character in the movie just for being in the room alone with that thing... And Robert Miano was phenomenal in his role as the drunken doctor who kept me on the edge because the way he played the role made me feel as though he was somehow more involved in the horror show than he let on.
All in all, it was a great watch and an excellent film for anyone who is psychologically disturbed and wants to take a ride on the dark side of the human psyche.
The Night Of (2016)
After finishing the series I have to admit I was left a bit underwhelmed and here's why.
First off, one of my biggest gripes about this show was Naz's transformation from a seemingly reserved mild-mannered kid to this hardened, tatted-up, drug-using bad ass. I get the logic that in order to survive in a rough prison it is important to adapt, however how rough did things ever really get for Naz? He got cut, got some hot water thrown on him and his bed lit on fire. Next thing you know he links up with the top-dog Freddy and now he's a hardcore SOB that no one wants to mess with. The tattoos really bothered me because if he was currently on trial and knew he was innocent, why get "Sin" & "Bad" and a Latin King Crown tatted on your neck when you're in the middle of trying to prove your own innocence? I feel like these decisions were more of a story device to show to the audience that Naz has changed rather than his change being driven by genuine experience. Also the prison environment itself didn't seem too realistic. Freddy and Naz were able to chill all day in their cells smoking heroin all willy-nilly while occasionally beating up guys or slitting a guys throat when the guards weren't looking. The fact that there was no investigation over the inmate getting his throat cut or the mention of any security footage of this crime just goes to show you how untouchable Freddy and Naz were in prison which creates poor drama because there is essentially no consequence for their actions on the inside. Why does Naz have to be incognito getting drugs into prison when he can be an accomplice to murder and not suffer any consequences?
Also, Naz's relationship with his lawyer Chandra was kind of unbelievable in my opinion. What happened between her and Naz that compelled her to willingly commit a felony by storing drugs up her snatch to give to NAZ in-front of a Police officer? And then to kiss him on top of that
All in the midst of a situation where they are constantly showing how everyone's moves are being monitored by cameras
The courtroom drama was underwhelming with a resolution that seemed a little bit too easy and too open to be completely satisfying.
Lastly, as a filmmaker I realize how important it is to balance a dark story with moments of humor so that the story doesn't become overly depressing, however Jack's eczema-ridden feet shouldn't have been the main focal point for humor in this story. It was severely overdone and redundant that in every scene with Jack, his feet had to be shown or mentioned. After a certain point it was just gross.
Overall, the show was shot well and the acting was decent although I wish I could have gotten more variation from Naz's character who's performance had a monotone quality to it.
Interstellar (2014)
2001: Space Odyssey + Inception = Interstellar
There were definitely many parallels between this movie and 2001: Space Odyssey. It's almost as though Nolan just decided to mash the Inception storyline together with a deeper exploration of the concepts explored in 2001. If you break this story to it's basic form it's almost identical to what happened in Inception:
- A group goes on an exploration into some obscure place that nobody quite understands. - A bunch of vague explanations of scientific theories are thrown around. - A couple people die in the process. - Then at the end there's a revelation related to a "Memento" that was briefly introduced earlier in the film. - And there's some old person of significance on their deathbed.
Other than that the movie was visually captivating and the music was moving. It just seemed as though the storyline was a little flat and the characters didn't really struggle despite going through several perilous situations. Both Anne Hathaway and Matthew Mcconaughey pretty much went through the whole movie unscathed. Even the ship hardly suffered any damage after being hit by 2 mountain sized waves which mildly tossed around the crew who didn't even have seat belts on. Not to mention flying through ice clouds, a black hole, and an explosion where debris flew every where, yet the great Matthew Mcconaughey was able to swiftly avoid all of it and dock with the spinning half destroyed station. Then after being expelled from the ship he casually flies through a worm-hole where he becomes the "evolved human", who pushes humanity to the next level which is a concept explored in the film 2010: The Year We Make Contact.
My biggest gripes:
- Idiotic character motivations: Anne Hathaway risking everyones life to go get the beacon as the huge tidal wave approaches. Wes Bentley standing by the ship while watching the whole thing happen yet somehow Anne Hathaway was able to make it back to the ship and safely get inside while Wes just stands there... (He deserves what happens to him.)
- Poorly underdeveloped African American character who really serves no purpose other than to be a stepping stone for the main "lighter" characters to succeed... Something needs to be done about these T-Dog (Walking Dead) like characters who seem to just be thrown into the movie just to add some "Color" to the roster. Even in the casting it seems like they took the time to cast High Profile actors/actresses for the main roles, yet the main black guy in the film is just some guy no ones ever heard of. Oh wait I forgot about his memorable role as "Skinny Prisoner" in Dark Knight Rises...