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A Quiet Place Part II (2020)
As bad or as good as the first chapter (depending on your taste)
The beginning, explaining the genesis of events, was quite entertaining. After that, the movie is like the first chapter. Well directed with nice cinematography and atmosphere. But, there's still a huge amount of inconsistencies, leaps of logic and unreasonable actions. I mean, it can be accepted a bad decision or two; but when all the movie is brought forward by illogical actions, then it becomes tedious. If you liked the first one, you should like this one too. Otherwise it's the same broth.
Nobody (2021)
Yeah...no!
Didn't like it at all. Senseless violence with bare dialogues. It's a shallow copy of John Wick which adds nothing and lacks most of what made the first chapter an enjoyable experience. No charm, no subtlety, nothing. There's nothing in this movie to justify a recommendation.
The Tomorrow War (2021)
Average and forgettable
It's strange the amount of resources that can be dedicated to action, CGI and cinematography while having such a lackluster plot. The story is flat and predictable; the characters stereotypical and forgettable. Overall it's a consumeristic package, designed to generate profit without leaving a mark. It's a safe play, with a hero saving the world and the mandatory family drama. I would consider it more an action movie with a sci-fi element thrown in to give it characterization than a sci-fi movie with a few action scenes. I don't think there's any replay value which truly marks this as an experience barely worth your time. And if you can't stand superficial explanations barely holding together and obvious logic deficiencies, then I'd suggest you to look elsewhere.
El hoyo (2019)
An allegory of today's world.
This is a heavily stylized movie, full of subtexts and evocative imagery. It is also full of gore, repulsive scenes and violence. The movie is basically a giant allegory with no explicit ending so to give the viewer complete freedom in its interpretation.
It's definitely something different, worth watching for its commentary on society and human nature.
I suggest avoiding any spoilers about the meaning of the movie before watching it.
Ozark (2017)
Bleak, unsympathetic and melodramatic
The series is currently done with season 3. It's definitely entertaining and well produced, with some great moments; but it's also full of shortcomings when it comes to storytelling and characterization.
This is especially apparent in the first episodes when the antagonists keep getting fooled by fairy tales you'd tell a kid and characters interactions are plagued by dialogues lacking subtlety and development. Many major characters are also heavily stereotyped and unsympathetic at this point, lacking nuances and interesting traits making for a quite bleak experience devoid of emotional involvement and engagement. This improves a bit with each passing season while still persisting and season 3 is indeed the better acted and produced. But while getting less annoying it also becomes more depressing. It really is a spiral into sadness, melodrama and bad decisions with no one to root for as every major character is either extremely annoying or a cardboard cutout.
I'd say watch the first couple of episodes and decide from there. That is, later on production quality might improve, but the basic framework of the show, how characters behave, the dialogues and the turn of events don't change much.
The Hangover Part II (2011)
Ugh.
I mean, what can you say about this movie? It's the same old broth. A carbon copy of the first movie that actually manages to be worse. There's nothing to look forward to; gags heavily relies on vulgarity, obscenity and idiocy; characters are flat and unlikable; soundtrack whatever; and comedy was nowhere to be found. Not worth it.
Westworld (2016)
Westworld: "season 3 - fidelity test failed".
Westworld Season 1 is great. It is an engaging reflection on what it means to be alive and conscious, the memories that shape us and the lasting impact people can have. There's care in every scene; every sequence filled with meaning, leaving you wondering what lies beneath the surface. It's beautiful, meaningful and interesting. And it does an excellent job sucking you in, in its strange world, full of good and bad, wondrous and ugly, with characters ever evolving and great turn of events.
Then everything starts deteriorating. Beginning with season 2, where there are still a lot of positives, with some truly brilliant episodes, clouded, though, by the contrived writing, the disjointed characters and an overall less intriguing story. It's still great television, so much better than many of the series out there; it's just lacking when compared with the previous season.
And finally the third season, the last one at the moment, and presumably the half point in the whole series. It's another step down. A major one at that. It almost feels like a different series, if not for the shared characters. The writing is simply worse; aside from the linearity of the story, it's the complexity of it. There's no depth, no mystery. Even though it starts off interestingly enough, it slowly turns into a sequence of generic dialogues intertwined with even more generic action sequences and characters exposition. It's not as layered and definitely not as refined.
Hopefully things will improve in the future, as the elements for a great overall series are all there. It just needs to recoup the amazing writing that made the first season so enjoyable.
The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014)
Not really grand.
It's nice! Starting interesting, it develops misteriously but at half point it becomes obvious and thus tedious. The story reveals itself far too soon and the engaging mistery leaves room to excessive absurdity and indulgence. I would say it is still enjoyable, worth giving a try. Overall average in its content, though marvelous in the scenography and audacious in the choice of characters. I wouldn't suggest it and neither advise against.
La casa de papel (2017)
Avoid.
Avoid this series unless you hate yourself and have time to waste. It is a mess, there's no way around it. From the absurd premise, to the clumsy execution and the mono-dimensional, stereotypical characters, there's little to nothing in terms of true enjoyment to be had. Every episode is just a series of contrived turn of events where every main character acts in the worst, most unintelligible way possible. There's no nuance, no real interesting psychological trait, every single character is encaged in a stereotype; everyone is annoying, bland, trivial, over melodramatic. And the story is even worse. Despite its desire to be seen as smart and clever, it's just so absurd and forced that the viewer is left speechless. The police are basically dummies, they play no significant role in how things turn out and if the protagonists weren't the most detached, oblivious, nonsensical fictional beings ever, the series would end after four episodes. Save yourself from this.
The Boys (2019)
Great entertainment.
After all the copy-paste action superhero movies that filled the last decade, The Boys bring some fresh air with its different take on the superhero stereotype. No more paladins of justice but exploitative, manipulative bastards thriving in a capitalistic world where the superhero is now a commodity.
It's gritty, dark and hilarious without being pretentious or pandering. Most of all, though, it's just fun. Great characters, acting and an interesting, although at times reused, storyline. Especially the main protagonist and antagonist, elevate the quality of the show presenting two opposing views that coalesce in a communal disregard for the boundaries of good and evil. Definitely worth watching.
Hopefully, after the great first season, it will stay on the right track.
The Leftovers (2014)
Coping mechanisms: a characters study a.k.a The power of belief.
There's so much good about this series as there's wrong.
Given the implausible nature of the premise, it does an excellent job exploring the psychological consequences on the leftovers. The broken characters, how their life is affected, the lingering feeling of loneliness, the need to believe in something. There are some truly beautiful moments. But despite what seems to be the common viewpoint, I'd say the first season is the best, the most grounded and focused and, from then on, starting with the second and especially in the third, the show delves into nonsense, forced melodrama and just incoherent storytelling.
There are so many unnecessary developments in the second season that the show could have been cut in half. It's all there to produce more questions with no answers. The viewer is just supposed to be taken for the ride with no way to explain or understand what's happening. Aside from that, it would have still been fine as a character study if not for the awkward attempt to fit religion and afterlife in the picture. While the main character, a.k.a. The Messiah 2.0, strolls through the afterlife to get rid of its accompanying ghost, vision or whatever, the viewer is left wondering how we got to this point. It's not a metaphor anymore, it's not a mental health issue anymore. We're finally descended in fantasy storytelling. Absolutely and utterly inconsequential. One might argue it's all in the protagonist's head, but so may details make it clear that it should be intended as something happening, a real event in the story. It's here, at this point, that the show loses its way.
It then doubles down when, once again turning things around, it tries to scientifically explain the main event in the third season while at the same time bringing on with the afterlife storyline. Overall, the third season is just uninteresting, so many characters change completely in the time jump after the precedent season that we're left disconnected, most dialogues are cheesy and far too melodramatic and the majority of whats happening is just absurd. I'd just save the very last episode which regain some of the original allure of the show, despite still having huge explanation gaps.
In the end, a great emotional first season, filled with great moments, and then a spiral towards pointless, absurd storytelling. If you like stories to have some sort of closure, just forget about this. Leaving the viewer wondering is fine, but when everything is left open for interpretation then nothing has any sense.
1917 (2019)
Technically brilliant, emotionally lacking.
Gorgeous cinematography, scenography, music and costumes. A wondrous depiction of war, rich of details. It's just beautiful to look at. Technically brilliant.
The story though is linear, as linear as it can be and the characters are just...ordinary.
The Mandalorian (2019)
A Good Start.
The Mandalorian is a good enough series with interesting characters and excellent world-building. Given the recent Star Wars installments, it is a huge improvement. It lacks a bit in the story department given that it is a weekly monster format and the characters are mostly one-dimensional. But overall it is an enjoyable adventure, with immersive scenery and great cinematography. Fans of this cinematic universe will definitely appreciate the effort. Hopefully the next season will provide a deeper narrative and more elaborate characters.
The Witcher (2019)
Good entertaining production with a few issues.
The Witcher is a captivating series which manages to draw you in and entertain despite a number of flaws that permeate its whole length.
Set in a dark fantasy world of monsters, magic and knigths, this book adaptation follows the deeds of a renegade mutant bound by fate and destiny.
Overall the production is great and definitely worth praising but, still, there's a lot of variation in quality and care in all the main aspects of story telling.
The story in itself, though interesting enough, struggles from pacing issues and sudden cuts and change of focus. This is especially apparent in the first episodes where the viewer is continuously thrown in new situations without introduction or build-up. Be it the magical academy coming out of nowhere where a character goes from being a doormat to being the best in the span of two scenes, or two friend-enemies that after a thirty second dialogue are somewhat lovers, the viewer seems to be fed facts more than stories.
There's a lack of progression, coherence and immersion.
As a consequence, many interactions between characters suffer of poor development and we're forced to believe in romantic relationships, friendships and whatever else we didn't see unfold.
The dialogues in turn, for a significant part, lower the quality grade of the show. Too many mediocre punch lines, ridiculous conversations and generally a tendency to deliver sentences without weight. This flattens the characters and binds them to their own little stereotype with no chance of redemption.
Finally, the show would have benefitted from some deeper worldbuilding. Characters, places and events keep popping out of nowhere without introduction nor meaning. It's an issue somewhat related to the previous two and tends to lessen the viewer experience.
Hopefully these issues will be fixed in future seasons as this series has the potential for being a long-running success. There are a lot of great moments and scenes and it's definitely worth watching for fantasy lovers or those who already appreciate the story as told in other media.
Just go in with the right expectations and you will be pleasantly surprised. As in, don't expect a masterpiece because, even though it's an above average series, there's a lot to be fixed and desired.
Togo (2019)
Enjoyable in its honesty and simplicity.
Heartwarming and enjoyable narration of a true story of courage and love where the protagonist is a dog.
The plotline is simple and straightforward yet engaging and thrilling enough. The characters development is interesting and thoughtful and helps in delivering a satisfying finale. Overall a watchable movie especially recommended to the younger humans who might enjoy its simplicity, pacing and characters.
Ad Astra (2019)
Ad whatever.
An empty movie with no intent, inconsequential ideas, bland progression and irrational methodology set in a fictional timeline where digital recordings don't exist. Either it tries to be exceedingly aesthetic for its scope or it simply suffers from the plague of this decade: poor scriptwriting. Events are rushed, there's little weight to developments and explanations didn't make the cut when the budget was assigned.
It's just not a good story despite having good visuals and a sufficiently interesting premise. Hard to recommend to anyone.
Joker (2019)
Played its cards well.
Unnerving, unsettling, at times hard to watch. A brilliant movie with a dark gritty storyline. It's not easy, and it's not pandering. An interesting anti-hero origin story which separates itself from the landfill of mostly generic hero movies of the past years. But it's not great just because it's dark, violent, unconventional; it is great because it doesn't indulge. No superpowers, no crazy abilities or technological magic. Just a character study. The slow ascent of a lone ill man who wants to be seen.
Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw (2019)
Fast and Furious 2019 - Trite Edition
Three days have passed and I have forgotten. Is this the movie about car races?
The same old sauce. Tough speaking, a lot of punching, some racing and unbelievable sequences that 007 may only dream about. Another sequel, another unremarkable storyline. Bad guy wants world to burn. Bad guy bad. Good guys good. The last part is just so ridiculous, and the setting is just the icing on the cake. See you next year for the next installment of Fast and Furious: Whatever.
Anna (2019)
Annaaaaaaaaaa!
Anna, Hannah, Salt, Bourne, Atomic Blonde, Red Sparrow...this storyline is nothing new. It is a variation of the countless similar representations of the same plot. The difference is the execution. It is clear in this case that the direction relies on the charm of the protagonist, the "femme fatale" which leads men left and right, deceives agencies and manipulates events.
Overall nothing stands out and the events have an average engagement factor. Watch it or not, after a couple of days it will be a hazy memory.
Alita: Battle Angel (2019)
Enjoyable, though not great.
The movie is definitely enjoyable. It is however quite too joyous for its setting with overstated teenage elements, a somewhat predictable and unfocused storyline and a far too bright palette for a cyber-punk representation of a technological dystopia. The elements of a coming of age rising heroin story are all there, from the surrogate father figure, to the romantic first love, and the ladder of increasingly powerful and menacing antagonists. Nothing innovative or provocative, yet sufficiently entertaining. The world-building alone helps saving what would otherwise be a pretty average experience. Still, a lot of details are left uncovered and threads sometimes develop with little to no coherence.
Finally, be advised that the story is meant to be continued in a sequel.
The Laundromat (2019)
Interesting topic, average execution.
A movie about the Panama Papers scandal that isn't sure whether to be fiction or documentary, and as such comes short both in details and in engagement. The topic is definitely important and holds great value irregardless of its presentation; as such, this production should be seen for this reason alone. Personally, though, I didn't enjoy the format. The structure consists of an alternating sequence of a few stories based on true events, revisited and repackaged in a comedic and/or dramatic fashion. Each one is a different angle on the issue at hand, from the perspectives of victims, perpetrators and recipient. Overall some stories were better than others but none of them truly caught my interest. All felt sterile and devoid of pathos. This is fine in a documentary. This movie, though, is not a documentary and doesn't really try to be one.
Hanna (2011)
The Hanna Identity
Formulaic and quite predictable. Starts interestingly enough but then devolves into a Bourne clone. It's an action drama that doesn't bring anything new. It plays safe, following well established stereotypes for characters and storylines. There's nothing intriguing nor subtle. Everything plays out as expected and the ending is the finish line of a mediocre race. A movie without infamy nor praise.
Game of Thrones (2011)
Shame of Thrones
The ending of this series is a disservice to the public!
The first seasons are great as they are based on the books source material and, apparently, the writers are good enough at adapting other people ideas. After season four there's a decline, not so manifest at first since the goodness of the source material still lingers around. It's more of a slow deterioration, a spiral into shallow writing that peaks in a last season devoid of content and value.
Where at first grand scale developments, societal issues and world-spanning intrigues dominated the narration with characters being the pawns of the true overarching story, later in the seasons characters and stereotypical interactions take the stage and the interesting, long developing issues that made the story captivating get resolved in the most unrewarding ways possible. It's incoherent, detached, uninspired writing. It's everything that is bad in mainstream media.
All of this because the writers decided they had enough with the show and grew bored with it. So they wanted to wrap it up as soon as possible in order to go on and ruin the Star Wars franchise (more than it already is). Thanks for your disservice!
It needs to be mentioned that the overall production, sound design, acting, cinematography, all of these are quite extraordinary and elevate the show quite a bit, even when the writing declines. The quality is amazing. It probably is still worth watching for its entertainment value. It just doesn't pay off. The ending season ruins quite literally everything.
The Big Bang Theory (2007)
The Implosion Theory
A prime example of a series being dragged along for far too long and being stripped of its identity bit by bit. The first few seasons (until season three, maybe four) used to be pretty consistent, fun enough considering the heavy use of asocial stereotypes. Sure it wasn't the most gracious depiction of the smart character type but it didn't overstate situations and made the atypical, strange, unusual world of the nerdy protagonists seem interesting and exciting. Jokes and situations had some weight and elaborate setups helped in delivering an enjoyable result.
Everything spiraled down after the inevitable tonal shift toward romanticism and relationships. As our protagonists one by one found a female partner, jokes began to become stale, always centered around such relationships. The show turned generic, shallow and even more stereotypical. There are still some watchable episodes but overall it doesn't work as well. The atmosphere is not the same, demeaning jokes are predominant, some characters turn annoying most of the time and punch-line deliveries become omnipresent. It's almost a different show that gets worse and worse with each passing season and, thus, I don't recommend watching past a certain point because it's not rewarding and quite honestly a waste of time.
Take the Ball Pass the Ball: The Making of the Greatest Team in the World (2018)
Barcelona's beautiful game.
A brief depiction of Guardiola's Barcelona, a team that dominated the world, thanks to Spain's golden generation, Cruyff's philosophy and Messi. The main narrative focuses on these elements expanding on tactics, training and the central players of this new team as well as portraying the club's core values of unity and cohesion. There isn't a narrator. Instead, it's a collection of interviews, pieced and stringed together to achieve the result. Game footage is limited.
As a whole very interesting and intriguing. Nonetheless it's a specialized recount of an aspect of football. As such I guess it's catered more towards fans of the club or of the game with knowledge and passion for the argument.