aussiecubs Reviews

Tár (2022)

Great acting cannot save this boring mess

[2/10 · 10 January 2023]

A great acting performance by Cate Blanchett cannot save this boring mess from being one of the biggest disappointments I have recently had the misfortune to encounter.

Many other negative reviewers have already shared their points of view detailing the innumerable faults with this film from the insult of forcing all viewers to suffer the films full credits taking up the first 10 minutes of the film, to numerous subplots that take the storyline nowhere, many scenes added that have little connection, a ridiculously overlong running time of 2 hours 38 minutes during which for most of the time very little happens etc., But to me the biggest disappointment was the failure to involve the viewing audience with orchestral music.

I appreciate that the film is about the politics of the world of classical music and strictly not about classical music itself, however the failure to use the power of orchestral music to involve and develop the dynamics of the story and the characters is in my opinion unforgivable.

Throughout the whole of the excessively long 2 hours 38 minutes running time, there would be literally less than about 5 minutes of in total of music. Most of the music was played in short runs of about 10, 15 or 20 seconds that were promptly brought to a halt and cut off by Cate Blanchett telling us what was wrong or what the music should have done, etc. The longest pieces of music in the whole film probably ran no more than 50 or 60 seconds.

Enjoying the sound of a full symphony orchestra is for many people one of the great joys of the world and it can be truly enjoyable, moving, uplifting, inspiring, etc. This love of classical music was after all the factor that was motivating and driving the characters in the first place which then led to the themes about politics, cruel exploitation, sexual abuse through political manipulation etc.

Nowhere was the power of the music itself allowed to be given a full reign in order to fully develop the characters and the story line.

This to me was the greatest error that the producers and the director could have possibly made.

Whether or not Cate Blanchett wins the Oscar is never going to change the fact that this is a terrible movie set in the world of classical music but which was effectively played out with no music at all.

One Night in Miami... (2020)

Boring waste of time

[1/10 · 13 November 2022]

The previous reviewers have said it all:

"I'm mystified by the numerous favourable reviews this movie received because it was horrendous."

"this movie is basically 4 famous guys talking in a room and I literally mean just TALKING. I fell asleep half way through the movie and I can not underline how boring this movie was."

"Boring movie ever, bunch of men talking in a motel room..."

"First let me say this I like the concept of the play turning into a movie. But sometimes it works & sometimes it does not. In this case it did not"

"I got about half way through, I kept asking myself, when's it going to start getting interesting, it just never did."

"What a bore."

"After an hour of watching the movie and hoping it was going to get better...... it didn't"

I could not agree more with these comments.

Nomadland (2020)

Boring Boring Boring

[1/10 · 25 July 2021]

One of the most boring movies I have ever seen. Just because the subject matter is interesting or challenging does not mean it will lead to a good movie. This is a bad movie, no real story line, endless closeup shots of Francis McDermott simply doing nothing. She may be a great actress but in this movie she is wasted. It reminds me of the sort of movie that would result if you asked a film student to make a film with simply one cameraman following someone around for a few days who was doing nothing. In my opinion the Oscars simply got this wrong in voting this best picture.

Love and Monsters (2020)

fun-filled action-packed adventure; jump onboard and enjoy the ride!

[9/10 · 1 November 2020]

A great fun-filled and action-packed movie that has all of the best elements of a classic family adventure movie.

As many other reviewers have already commented: It has adventure, it has humour, it has love, it has friendship, it has great FX, it has good acting, it has cool Monsters, it has unseen plot twists, it has a few tense drama/scary scenes, it has a cool dog, it has a terrific young child actress, it has some tame "baddies", etc. What more could you want?

It kept a smile on my face throughout it's runtime and I can't wait for the sequel.

While it is not quite up there with some of the classics such as Stand by Me, Jurassic Park, The Goonies, E.T. and The Lost Boys; it is a sufficient compliment to this film to say that if you enjoyed any of these films, then you will almost certainly enjoy "Love and Monsters".

No need to spoil any of the plot by re-telling it here, just jump onboard and enjoy the ride.

The One I Love (2014)

Don't read the other reviews - Just watch it !!!!!!!!

[10/10 · 23 August 2020]

Reading some of the other reviews about this film will spoil the fun. Instead, trust me and just watch this film and enjoy two great actors at the top of their game. Outstanding. Elizabeth Moss has to be one of the most engaging and versatile actresses ever. Mark Duplass, I had not seen so much of but he is great in this film. The story line is unique and entertaining. A rom-com? A thriller? A drama? Suspense? Yes, ticks all of these boxes for me. I really enjoyed this movie immensely.

Wind River (2017)

Great Movie - do yourself a favour and watch it.

[10/10 · 23 August 2020]

This following quote from kckidjoseph-1's review of this movie sums up my thoughts perfectly: "This is an engrossing story well worth your time and money, and kudos to everyone involved for having faith that a discerning audience will find and appreciate it." Read his whole review for a solid appraisal of this wonderful movie. Great movie, really draws you in. Just watch it!

Destroyer (2018)

Disappointing

[6/10 · 23 August 2020]

Despite some solid acting from Nicole Kidman and the rest of the supporting caste, this movie failed to deliver an enjoyable experience. The story line and direction let the film down badly, particularly the direction, it became too confused and pretentious. A good movie takes the sum of its parts: direction, script, acting, camera work etc. and delivers a greater result than those parts would indicate and it draws you in to the movie. This movie fails to excite and left me sadly disappointed after reading a number of very positive here on IMDB before seeing it. My score a 6, dragged up from a 4 or 5 by some solid acting.

Crazy in Alabama (1999)

A Wonderful Film

[10/10 · 2 August 2020]

Just finished watching this movie and loved it so much I had to jump online and add my recommendation about, it so others may enjoy it as much as I did.

When I opened IMDB's home page for this film, the featured review displayed from IMDB member Delhia, headed "A delightful surprise", perfectly encapsulated my thoughts on the movie, so I won't repeat her points here. Find her review and read it for a clear insight into this movie. Well done Delhia!

The contribution I can add is to give additional comments about the performances of the actors. The three main leads; Melanie Griffiths, David Morse & Lucas Black were outstanding, especially Melanie Griffiths. In my opinion, her best performance ever. Rod Steiger was great with his small role, as were generally the rest of the supporting cast. Only disappointment for me was Meat Loaf's effort at portraying the bigoted local sheriff; this part required an actor with more ability than Meat Loaf could bring to the screen, but this was only a very minor blemish on an otherwise great film.

If you want something that is entertaining and interesting, and a bit different from the usual run of the mill stuff, do yourself a favour and watch this film. 10 out of 10 from me.

The Invisible Man (I) (2020)

Outstanding movie! Ignore the 1 star ratings

[10/10 · 10 May 2020]

Outstanding movie! Ignore the numerous 1 star ratings, which are way over-represented in the posted reviews on this site.

At the time of my review 91,218 IMDB members have voted on this movie. Arithmetic Mean average and Weighted Average are 7.2. Over 74% of voters have rated it as a 7, 8, 9 or 10. Compare this to the fact that only 1.6% of members have rated it as a 1.

Yet it is the shrill voices of the 1.6% who are ranting about illogical plot holes, being slow, boring etc. in the posted reviews.

I felt compelled to post this positive review to balance out the hater's reviews.

Metacritic rating is 72%. Rottentomatoes rate it as 91%

My conclusion is that, like me, the overwhelming majority of IMDB members and movie fans in general think that this is a very good or even great movie. And the reason for this is that it is great entertainment. The cinematography and direction etc. are excellent. Elisabeth Moss's performance is great. The suspense and drama carried me right throughout the movies somewhat long run time.

It is a sci-fi, horror, mystery, thriller and ticks all of those boxes.

If you want to be entertained and gripped by great suspense and drama then watch this movie, you won't be disappointed.

If you are going to nitpick about plot holes and won't let yourself be immersed in some excellent entertainment, then look at something else that will better suit your narrow views.

My vote is with the other 5,901 IMDB voters who have rated it as a 10 out of 10. Go see it and get blown away!

All Is True (2018)

Disappointing beyond belief.

[1/10 · 19 May 2019]

Just because the writer and director are dealing with one of the most interesting, well loved and intriguing figures in English literature does not guarantee the end result will be a good film.

The film is poorly written and directed. Extremely slow and boring, with only a few occasional sparks generated by the magic of Shakespeare's writing adapted into the dialogue.

Branagh's performance is flat and uninspiring and brings no spark or insight into his portrayal of this wonderfully interesting literary genius. Judi Dench is badly miscast as Shakespeare's wife Anne Hathaway, 29 years older than Branagh compared to the 8 years difference between Shakespeare and his wife. Dench comes across more like his mother than his wife.

Some adequate acting from the rest of the cast cannot save the film from disaster.

Fans of Shakespeare will be disappointed, the frequent references to his work don't translate into something interesting as far as the film itself is concerned. Non fans of Shakespeare will just shake their head in disbelief as the pedestrian pace grinds on and on.

The most disappointing film I have seen in a long time prompts me to warn others about this film. I found the film to be a complete failure and a torturous waste of 101 minutes of my life that I will never get back.

Cut Snake (2014)

Overall quite disappointing

[3/10 · 6 February 2016]

I am an Aussie and I like to support our Australian film industry and so I wanted to like this movie, but unfortunately it turned out to be disappointing.

I agree with the points made by the two earlier reviews of "gazferg" and "mattory" In my view, some elements were fine, but other parts were so poor that they dragged the movie down to finish up with something that, in the end, was very poor.

Sullivan Stapleton as "Pommie" is excellent; his menacing presence was quite gripping however the other two leads, Alex Russell and Jessica De Gouw did not quite deliver the performances required to make the movie work. Unfortunately, a few of the other bit part players were so poor they were farcical.

The technical side of the filmmaking is quite solid.

In the end the weaknesses of the script and direction, particularly as the film spirals to its ending, ruins the film, leaving this viewer extremely disappointed.

Youth (I) (2015)

10 Reasons to avoid this boring, pretentious rubbish.

[1/10 · 8 January 2016]

1. Some outstanding actors (including two of my favorites in Michael Caine and Harvey Keitel) being completely wasted on an indulgent, pretentious, artsy-fartsy script/story line. A solid performance by Michael Caine etc. does not save this film from being a disaster.

2. Extremely self indulgent and pretentious direction. All about the director showing us how clever he thinks he is. A sad case of "look at me, look at me, aren't I so clever" as he uses ever trick in the artsy film director's book of tricks.

3. To a large extent, no real plot, just too many rambling irrelevant scenes running in to each other. I kept waiting for something to happen, to involve the viewer, it did not happen. Boring, boring, boring!

4. Some wonderful cinematography wasted on meaningless scenes. Unfortunately, the film includes a large number of wonderful camera shots and marvelous scenery that just don't mean a thing in terms of the supposed point the director thinks he is making. Again they are in there to say "look at me, look at me, aren't I so clever" to make you think they must be so meaningful. Again wasted talent.

5. A movie perhaps made subconsciously by the director pandering to his own ego and to please the people in the circles that he moves in and the Film Critics, who could not wait to jump on to this director's bandwagon. Budget: US$13,000,000 (estimated). Gross: $1,650,314 (USA) (1 January 2016). Unlike the film industry critics, the general moving-going public was not taken in by this example of film making made for the sake of film making.

6. The meaningless "parade of weird characters in the Alpine luxury resort where the entire film is set - from an obese football player with a tattoo of Karl Marx on his back to a masseuse with braces who declares she likes touching more than talking, and imitates dancing cartoon characters in her spare time" (This quote taken from another IMDb member). It's so way out there so it must be great cinema, right? Wrong! Pretentious self-indulgence.

7. It tries so hard to be "film art" that this gets in the way of making a film for an audience to enjoy and become involved with. This movie is so focused on being different and unique, but there's a difference from being different and making art and being different and making a load of meaningless garbage.

8. As another IMDb member has already noted, "The film is over filled with one surrealistic trope after another to the point of bursting." I could not agree more.

9. So much of the dialogue is to a great extent meaningless and rambles on and on.

10. Stringing together cliché after cliché about old age and life is no way to make a good film, it all simply ends up as a huge cinematic mess.

I appreciate that all of these views are my subjective opinion and there is no absolute right or wrong when it comes to film and the arts, and so my aim is not to criticize others who take a different view.

I simply write this comment in the hope that anyone looking for an enjoyable, interesting, involving and meaningful movie will be saved from wasting two hours of their lifetime that they will never get back. I regret being put through what turned out to be for me, two hours of nauseating torture.

Virtually any other movie you may be considering to watch would be a better choice than this dreary, self-indulgent and pretentious waste of time, money, talent and effort.

If I could give this film a rating lower than 1 (awful) I would do so.

The Debt (I) (2010)

Do not miss this Film

[9/10 · 3 January 2013]

I have just finished viewing this fantastic film and, having enjoyed it so much, I am moved to add my positive comments to the many others on this site.

Brilliant film all round: great script, direction, acting, filming etc.

While the background subject matter refers to one of the darkest tragedies in the whole of human history, this only helps you to understand and fully believe the motivation that drives the protagonists in the plot.

And this drive, relying on clever writing and direction, makes this film far superior to so many other suspense thrillers that have an over-reliance on the use of special effects to engage the audience. I was literally on the edge of my seat throughout the film and some of the clever twists in the plot showed me that my premature assumptions (about what I was initially thinking was a poor choice by the director & writers) were completely way out. Instead they made the film.

The actors were all great, especially Helen Mirren, Tom Wilkinson, Jessica Chastain, Martin Csokas, Sam Worthington and Jesper Christensen who plays the Nazi war criminal Vogel with such clever skill that it makes his quietly spoken character in some respects truly frightening.

The movie's use of flashbacks and flash-forwards (approximately half the movie taking place in 1966 and the other half taking place in 1997) meant that you needed to be focused on what was going on, but in my view this added to the enjoyment. While some other reviewers and critics have criticised this aspect of the film, and the ending, I found it most enjoyable. A movie that challenges your intellect to me is always far more rewarding than so many of the other straight, boring narratives that are on offer. And this is not the sort of art-house pretentious challenge that I abhor, it's just about enjoying a really satisfying movie experience.

If you like good movies, especially drama/thrillers, don't miss out on seeing this one. I rate it 9 out of 10 and amongst the best films I have seen in the last few years.

To Rome with Love (2012)

Woody Allen's worst movie ever ?

[1/10 · 3 November 2012]

Woody Allen's worst movie ever? Quite possibly and after some recent hits this one makes me wonder whether age has finally caught up with Woody Allen, who is now 76 and who, by judging from this film, may be well past delivering an even passably enjoyable movie.

What a sad waste of an opportunity to enjoy the marvels of a fantastic city like Rome and its wonderful people and culture. The plot attempts to weave three stories, with quirky characters involved with the magic of this city, through to something for the audience to enjoy. Sadly it is a complete flop. There are basically only three jokes in the whole movie that get relentlessly tortured over and over until they have you squirming in your seat waiting for the movie to end. Not the least bit funny or amusing, and they become increasingly boring.

What a sad waste of a competent cast including Alec Baldwin, Judy Davis, Roberto Benigni (from "Life is Beautiful") Penelope Cruz, and Ellen Page etc. The only joy for me in this film was the brief time that Penelope Cruz spends on the screen; she at least marvelously delivers her small part as only she can, despite everything else dragging this movie down.

The role for Roberto Benigni's character is terrible; a simply ridiculous and distracting annoyance throughout the film.

The ending of the film was simply underwhelming.

This film had all the right ingredients, like some of Woody Allen's other European based movies, so why did it turn out so badly ? Hard to say exactly why, but obviously the buck must stop with Writer/Director Woody Allen.

A waste of two hours of my life that I will never get back.

Jack Irish: Bad Debts (2012 TV Movie)

Truly Excellent drama

[10/10 · 3 November 2012]

Rarely do I feel compelled to share my thoughts on a movie to other movie fans. A movie has got to be either really bad or exceptionally good. In the case of Jack Irish: Bad Debts, I am pleased to say that it falls into the exceptionally good category.

First up I compliment the previous two reviewers, whose views I share, and who have thoroughly set out some of the merits of this production.

This movie is outstanding in virtually every aspect. The actors are great. Guy Pearce is brilliant, as are all the other actors. No wonder, as they are all extremely experienced and each one manages to bring that little bit of extra depth, right from all the leads even down to the very minor roles.

The script is great; even though the story goes through quite a few twists and turns, it was entirely believable and had me hooked in.

The direction and technical side of things are first class.

For Melbournians, there is that little bit of extra joy hidden into so many parts of the film, but these traits also add a nice background and feel to the movie, which international viewers will also enjoy equally as well.

One of the best movies I have seen this year, either in theaters or on television. If you love a good yarn, don't miss catching up with this one. I give it 10 out of 10!

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (2011)

Boring,Dull and Tedious

[1/10 · 18 February 2012]

I enjoy a wide range of movies, all styles and genres: Hollywood blockbusters, Art House, Foreign Films, Sci-Fi, Action movies, Dramas, Thrillers, Rom Coms etc. and especially this sort of spy drama/thriller/mystery I think I am generally favorably inclined to most movies. Even films I do not greatly enjoy I can usually appreciate some of their qualities.

However not this film.

It has been a long time since I have found a movie as dull and boring as this movie, to the extent that I felt compelled to jump on the net and add my views to the comments being made about this film.

Dull, boring, tedious and uninteresting are the words that spring into my mind after putting up with this wholly underwhelming movie.

I wanted to enjoy this movie and I kept holding out hope that at sometime during its interminable 127 minute duration it was going to get better. Alas it did not, boring from start to finish.

Being a fan of Gary Oldman I can only blame the director for the dull performance he delivered in this movie. Even characters that are meant to be played as complex and deep need to convey some spark and insight from the actor. Here there was none.

I watched this movie because it was generally being well reviewed and had an IMDb rating of 7.3 and was nominated for a number of awards (eg 11 at BAFTA). Now I cannot understand how this has occurred.

A bit more research now and I find it was snubbed by the Golden Globes so it seems not everyone has been sucked in.

I also found out that there are a number of members on IMDb who share my opinion. I now wish I had taken notice of them before deciding to see this movie.

I had the choice of viewing this movie or the Iron Lady. I can only hope that my comments here may save some poor soul from making the same mistake that I did. In my opinion any other movie playing now or at any other time in the foreseeable future would have been a better choice than this boring and disappointing movie.

By the way did I say this movie was boring? Just wanted to make sure I got this point across.