Change Your Image
earitlit-87718
Reviews
The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power (2022)
So much wasted potential
Having read the source material about 6 times - give or take - I was excited to read that the second age was going to be made as an ongoing series.
And then I watched season 1.
You can tell a lot of quality went into production. Wardrobe, makeup, etc. The cinematography is excellent. The CGI is decent. The editing is also excellent....even some story lines have merit. Some.
But then... the deviations taken from the source material ( that was handled relatively respectfully in Peter Jackson's films) is so way off the mark as to deserve the distinction of being nothing other than disrespectful fan fiction. Mithral storyline is clearly out of contemporary left field and belongs in Tolkien's world build about as well as water on a campfire.
Furthermore something as significant as a relationship between human and Elf would always have been written about in source material. This was a significant aspect in the original writings that were neatly tied up at the end of the third age. Now.... from nowhere we get more fan fiction that dilutes the significance and gravitas of Mr. J. R. R.'s well woven theme.
These are feeble and amateur attempts to expand on the source material and thoroughly undermines the potential this ongoing series had.
It is a disappointing and disrespectful opportunity lost.
Roman J. Israel, Esq. (2017)
So much wasted potential
This movie starts out brilliantly. By that I mean it's on the quality level with any classic you have seen.
The legal system is not portrayed in a sympathetic light and one can almost feel the grime and grit watching Roman wander and wallow and wade through it. Roman's character has depth rarely developed on screen and it is well done. From his words to his clothes to the world around him. Exceptional.
Unfortunately the characters around him are two dimensional. Created solely to emphasize his hollow rise and fall and realized compromise.
And then it takes a disappointing Hollywood turn. Around the one hour and thirty minute mark. Such is life.
FUBAR (2023)
Nope
Cringe worthy for the terminally brain dead. Certainly made with the ADHD console playing multiple generations as the primary focus audience.
Arnold had to have made this for the money. Unfortunately his acting skills - never a strong point - have degenerated to Conan levels. It's clear he's going through the paces (Has the check cleared my bank account?)
The dialog for Roo and Aldon scream 6th grade (I'm being generous) and you will literally feel lobotomized as they speak.
Milan Carter is the bright spot in the series. Excellent actor. Wasted in this series. I hope he gets the opportunity to shine elsewhere.
The action sequences have their moments but overall feel like they belong in an 'A-Team' made for TV movie.
The first episode initially is well played (with just the right amount of camp) - sucking you in - before rapidly devolving into the juvenile mess that passes for modern entertainment. The plot threads are predictable (again - think 'A-Team').
I will watch the next episode (because....well... Arnold) with the vain hope some characters die (or the writers graduate high school).
The Covenant (2023)
Very very good
I am not a Guy Ritchie fan - having seen a couple previous movies - and I put off watching this. However ' the boss' wanted to see it and all i will say to that is I'm glad she insisted.
The story and plot are excellent. The cinematography is by far his best. It's reserved and lets the story be the focus rather than his stylized filming techniques in his other films. Well done!!!
The script dialogue is believable and the wardrobe accurate. Watch this movie. Enjoy this movie. It paints The Taliban in the proper light. It paints Washington bureaucrazy in accurately.
I will definitely watch Mr. Ritchie's next movie hoping it's as good as this one.
Sunshine (2007)
Better than a poke in the eye
Hard to tell what type of story they wanted to tell. Horror, suspense, science fiction, etc.
Hated the editing and at points the artsy fartsy shift in cinematography hurt the pacing of the story being told.
Actors were excellent and dialogue was decent as were the special effects. Story is completely unrealistic. Like seriously. It's easier to believe an Elf named Hermey living in the North Pole wants to be a dentist instead of one of Santa's toy makers than it is to lose oneself in this plot.
Reignite the sun? Really? With a payload that size. With the gravity involved and het involved. Ridiculous by any stretch.
If I never see this again it'll be too soon.
Nothing Lasts Forever (2022)
Watch it and ask questions!!
I already knew that DeBeers was a monopoly that promoted the illusion that natural diamonds were a rare thing.
This is an excellent documentary that covers the impact of manmade diamonds into their controlled artificial market.
No one is saying diamonds are not pretty. No one is saying they're not desirable.
The ground covered has to do with what you have been buying - natural or artificial - and what you may ( or may not) have bought into.
No doubt the ethics of the industry is suspect from top to bottom of the process. It's human nature and it's on full display from the hucksters to the scientist.
My only advice after you watch this is buy what you think is pretty and if the price for the same look is significant between natural and man made.... save your money and purchase what's less expensive.
The Ark (2023)
Nope.... not worth watching.
Dialogue is average. Acting is passable. Characterization is stereotypical. CGI moderately better than say.... Babylon 5/ DS9.
Critic reviews claim a good replacement for people who liked, ' The Expanse' ( if you haven't seen it - it's excellent). That's a high standard to meet. Those critics had to be bought and paid for.
Premise is a rehash of several ' done to death' TV series going as far back as ' The StarLost'.
Spoiler: so the entire leadership basically gets blown off the Ark in the beginning. Meaning no one intelligent enough to understand system redundancy distributed leadership to different areas ' just in case' an accident happened. Not so brilliant. In fact - annoying! And no one packed enough provisions ' just in case' of catastrophic failure. Really?
Perhaps humanity - like this series - doesn't deserve to survive.
Elvis (2022)
Director ego vs. bio
If you watch this thinking you are getting an honest(at least as far as objective perspective can be) interpretation of who Elvis was - forget it! Not to be found in this film.
But if you are looking for a stylized self indulgent director Hollywood version of Elvis - this is the film for you.
It ticks all the boxes using accurate iconic moments, however the film colors them with multiple moments that NEVER HAPPENED and some personality characterization that NEVER WAS.
I did not care for the editing at all. A jumbled artistic mess trying hard to link various true and false narratives to explain personality. It fails miserably.
The acting is by far the best thing about this movie. Austin Butler was fantastic. Tom Hanks was great. So was the supporting cast. Too bad the rest of the picture did not measure up.
Peacemaker (2022)
One dimensional trash
Barely made it through episode one.
Nothing like (near as good as) Suicide Squad movies in quality of story telling or interaction of personalities. Disappointing.
Not an (amazing) antihero like 'Deadpool' and lacking the character density and likability/sympathy of 'Deadshot'.
None of the characters are written especially well and all come across as shallow caricatures. If they all perished in this first episode I would not care.
There are some VERY funny moments in this especially at the beginning (conversation between Peacemaker and the janitor comes to mind) that raised my hopes. But they are VERY few and far between and ep 1 became a waste of my time.
Don't waste your time.
Star Trek: Discovery (2017)
'Star Trek'. Not really.
Cons:
It is more concerned about inclusiveness, cooperation and being woke than entertainment. All these points are overblown to ad nauseam in almost every..... single..... episode. Not that these aspects don't have their proper place in proper proportion - they do. However in this 'Trek' it's cloyingly excessive.
Then there's the whispering. Can we stop with the whispering that I can only assume is being used to convey gravitas. If it only lasted a minute in every other episode it may be tolerable. It's not. It seems that at five to ten minute intervals we're to be subjected to some oppressively overblown discourse in 'whisper' that drones on and on and on and on and on. (Get the point?)
Pros:
Amazing production. Good editing. Great CGI. Some refreshing new characters and personalities (some not).
Summary: It's watchable and does have exceptional moments. As someone who has been entertained by previous Star Trek series - this show is a disappointment - unless I remind myself while watching - to enjoy it as science fiction and not as a Star Trek.
(Even so.... I find myself needing the 'skip 10 seconds' on my remote to deal with the overplayed sermonizing far too often.)
The Conservation Game (2021)
Disgusting irresponsible people...
All private facilities that put money and personal wishes before the welfare of the animals need to be shut down. It's time to put the animals before the ego and money.
Ignoring where animals are kept and turning a willful blind eye to big cat animal welfare. 'We have are own set of criteria' is an irresponsible attitude.
Jack Hanna....shame on you. Jared Miller...shame on you. Dave Salmoni.... shame on you. Boone Smith....shame on you. The Columbus Zoo....shame on you. U. S. Department of Agriculture limiting information and renewing irresponsible facilities.... shame on you. Too many irresponsible people to list.
Congress...shame on you.
Watch this documentary and be disgusted.
Black Widow (2021)
Weakest POST-2008 Marvel Movie
It could have been good. It clearly had potential but misses the mark.
When I saw the 7 of 10 rating, I was surprised but considering 'grading on a curve ' I took a peek at the Hulk 2008 movie and saw that it was currently at 6.7 of 10. There is no way in H*** this movie is better by any metric. This would be a 5.5 if half scores were available - but not a 6.
Of course it still has worthwhile moments. It's not a complete dud and no doubt its watchable if not entirely entertaining or immersive or a visual spectacle. And no. My rating is not a result of comparative expectations vs. Other Marvel movies. It's simply weak on its on merits of plot/story.
It almost feels like it was made more out of an obligation to the character (and to make money) rather than because they had a good story to tell.
This review is deliberately vague on details only because people should watch it in its entirety without focusing on particular singular points I could use as examples. No spoilers here.
I'll watch it again in about a month and see if I have a change of heart.
But I doubt it.
The Brainwashing of My Dad (2015)
Irony
For any who think this 'exposes' Fox news. Have you considered that some other news stations are brainwashing as well? Just cause you may lean that way and chose to believe this is a one sided 'indoctrination' is naive . This was interesting. And one sided. And pablum to reinforce a one-sided perspective. Well done propaganda.
Four Weddings and a Funeral (2019)
Excellent
It is predictable, the characters are likable and production is excellent. It's good enjoyable TV. I'm hooked and even though I expect I know how it will eventually turn out - it's good entertainment!!