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Maestro (2023)
Excruciating Boredom, Not for fans of Bernstein or Classical music
I'm a classical music fan and a Leonard Bernstein fan. I have several recordings of Lenny's in my collection. There are not many great films that have the classical music world or figures as their subject. So I was looking forward to this film with great anticipation.
I can't think of any other film that was so well done in so many areas of film form, that has bored me to the point of trauma as Maestro has. It looks great. Its sounds great. The direction, cinematography, editing, mise en scene, and the acting are all superb. The hair, makeup and costumes are flawless. The depiction of the various historical periods are excellent. But the characters, story and dialogue are so empty, so banal, so inconsequential that the film's positive aspects are utterly canceled and undermined.
Not one interesting word or sentence is uttered in the entire movie. Bernstein, an outstanding conductor and composer and his wife also a seemingly outstanding person and artist are empty shells with nothing to say. No one in the entire picture says anything interesting. It's unbelievable that any people let alone these, who revolve at the highest levels of music, artistry and society could not utter a single relevant word of any interest. If Lenny and his wife were like this at all, it could only represent a fraction of who they were. Two minutes of listening to the real Lenny in his Young Person's TV show gives us a far more compelling amount of talk and revelation of personality than this entire film.
I did not learn one thing about Lenny or his wife in this movie that I did not read in a synopsis before going to see the flick at the cinema. Its impossible that these people could be so vacant in reality. Even when Lenny is giving his views on art and life to a biographer who is recording an interview with him in one scene, his statements are mundane and trite. There are a couple of party scenes in the picture where one would think that you would hear some interesting if not compelling conversations. Not here. Not one word of any interest is said in these scenes.
There is no drama, no conflict, no tension and no emotion anywhere in this film. It is all style and no substance whatsoever. Despite its polished surface and attention to historical period detail the narrative is inert and the characters sterile in depiction. I'm still trying to find a way to articulate
the effect this film had on me. Right now I only know that overall, its was an abrasive and grating experience.
The film left me cold and angry. The boredom of it was almost traumatizing as I tried so hard to find something of interest in it. I was in disbelief, exhausted and baffled as I left the cinema trying to understand what I had just sat through. Disappointment is to weak of a word to describe my feelings toward this film. The experience was painfully boring. Perhaps the most intense, active and sustained boredom Ive ever been through. So I harbour great antipathy toward this flick. Its memorable to me for the severity of its boredom and the depth of its vacancy. I'm a film lover and I utterly hate this film!
Nothing of music or of Bernstein exists in this picture. Just a shiny well made image of a man and woman that is completely empty of meaning, emotion or thought. Unfortunately, this film might reinforce the idea that some people have of Classical music as being boring. Don't believe it. Go and watch or rewatch Amadeus or Tar instead.
Tár (2022)
Excellent, Perfect, Fascinating.
Dead on. Flawless filmmaking. Kubrickian. Todd Fields must have learned a lot about directing when he acted in Eyes Wide Shut because there is something of Kubrick's cool aesthetic here. Beyond that Fields made this his own. I'm a classical music lover so I found this subject matter, Blanchett's performance and the milieu fascinating. There is no Hollywood spoon feeding here. The film is difficult and challenging. It demands your full attention. Details and what is not shown or known, matters here. But everything you need to know is on the screen and in the sound. I wish there were many more films like this coming out of the U. S. It's obviously not for everyone but for those who enjoy an intellectually engaging and demanding film this is for you. Bravo!
Bad Day at Black Rock (1955)
Bad Asses at Black Rock
One of the worst gangs of villains in cinema history vs. A one armed Spencer Tracy. There are no worse individual bad dudes than Robert Ryan, Ernest Borgnine and Lee Marvin. And here they are together. The tension starts with the first shot and its crash of music and doesn't let up until the denouement. This film is sharp, tight and concise at 81 min. A perfect film where all the elements are in balance to offer an engaging and satisfying viewing. Great cast, good acting, succinct, captivating story, solid music and excellent cinematography and direction. A memorable masterpiece of cinema.
Star Trek: Discovery (2017)
Excellent Trek Shake Up
ST Discovery is an excellent envelope-pusher to add to the lineup of ongoing Trek TV Series. The story is engaging and the characters magnetic. You can actually get interested in this crew, each character is a distinct individual, several of which are striving for some personal goal. The Enterprise tv series was so disappointing bc its characters were bland and uninteresting. That crew was like one mono character, all the same. And Voyager was only marginally better with characters that were just barely distinct and interesting. The addition of Seven of Nine saved that one, thank god. But Discovery really ups the ante for future series. The goals of the ship and crew and the ensuing drama are intriguing. It keeps you guessing as to where its going. It introduces new tech and new ideas of what is possible in Roddenberry's universe. It has a hard edge unlike previous Trek series that helps to renew and refurbish the Star Trek world. This is a fresh take on Star Trek that changes up several familiar elements and yet retains enough of the core Roddenberry vision to stay within a recognizable universe while pushing at the boundaries. This is all reinforced by the presence of Gene's son Rod Roddenberry. As Executive Producer he is definitely carrying on in the classic Star Trek tradition while refreshing many of his dad's ideas. An absolutely fantastic series and a fine addition to the Star Trek family. Cannot wait to see what Stange New Worlds has to offer. Bravo! Bravo!