Engerek01 Reviews

Creature (2023)

Terrible Acting and Weak Story

[3/10 · 30 October 2023]

The 1st episode had an impressive entrance. A group of trouser hunters, desperately moving upon the sleeves of a misty mountain. After that promising act, the rest of the episode gets lost between shallow conversations and acting.

The acting could be the worst I've ever seen. The actors in the 1st act was great but the rest of the cast looked like a bunch of students making fun of themselves. They ALL failed the acting assignment.

What's the story? Why have they done this movie? What was the purpose? I didn't have the slightest idea after the first 2 episodes.

In the end, Cagan Irmak's name was the only thing that made me start watching but it wasn't enough to make me finish.

Ahsoka (2023– )

The Perfect Mediocracy

[6/10 · 24 August 2023]

What I've seen in the first two episodes is the definition of mediocracy. It's not bad, it's not good, just hanging somewhere in between.

The story so far is non-existent. There are some bad guys and... that's it.

Writing is horrible. The character interactions were pretty much the most boring I've seen in a very long time. It was painful to watch sometimes. It was that bad.

Forced wisdom... is the worst kind of writing.

Logic has left the show. When I saw Sabine, one of the smartest fighters in the SW Universe, punching a robot in the face, I immediately lowered my expectations. After that, it even got worse. She's definitely NOT the Sabine I knew from the Rebel series.

Acting is also generally ... bland. Even Rosario Dawson seems off as Ahsoka.

But there are also good things.

CGI and scenery are breathtaking.

David Tenant is amazing as the voice of Huyang. God I love this man.

The show has some promise of mystery in the distant horizon, and that's what encourages me to watch more. If they can deliver, the show can get a lot better.

The Flash (I) (2023)

Perfect way to destroy the only good thing in DC

[3/10 · 22 July 2023]

Where to start...

How do you know a movie is DC? Epic music everywhere!

The hero sleeps.. Epic music The hero wakes up... Epic music The hero gets a cup of coffee... Epic music Finishes the coffee.... Epic music.

Quickly became dull and lost its purpose for me: Elevate the scenes.

I know writers are on a strike but to be fair DC never had any. Same story... over... and over... and over...

Dialogues are uninspiring. Obviously there to fill the screen. Very simple, very dull. But you didn't come to theaters hear silly teenagers' banter thus this part can be skipped.

The only good thing about the movie was one certain cameo. He still got it!

One thing that really hurt was... well... probably every DC fan knows by now but for the sake of keeping this review spoiler-free, let's say that they managed to completely and utterly destroy the only good thing remaining on DC.

Rest in peace... good memories...

Transformers: Rise of the Beasts (2023)

A Weak Step in The Right Direction

[7/10 · 16 July 2023]

I'm writing this review as someone who watched all the transformers movies and someone who loved the series when I was a kid.

The Good:

CGI is finally decent and clear. It doesn't have the older movies' confusing "on your face" action. We can finally understand what's going on.

It wasn't boring. It had good amount of balance of action, adventure and humor.

The BAD:

Story and writing is very bad. If you want to revive the age of "one liners", hire Arnold. It looks and sounds corny when robots do it, and unfortunately, there were a ton of them.

Characters were bland. I didn't care about them. Without giving spoilers, I really didn't care who would win in the end.

Too many aspects of the scenes were "inspired" from some other successful movies. So much that I could guess exactly what would happen and exactly when they would happen by remembering those movies.

In the end, even though there were some nice steps in the right direction, I believe it is time for the producers to spend some of that CGI money to hire some decent writers.

The Witcher (2019– )

Gold does NOT rust!

[6/10 · 6 July 2023]

Strangely enough, this goof describes the downfall of the series perfectly.

Season 1: 10 Stars, simply amazing, beyond expectations.

Season 2: 8 Stars. Very good with many lovely story telling.

Season 3: ... What the hell was that?

In one of the latest episodes of season 3, Yennefer says "Look at all these Gold, left here to rust".

Yennefer is a powerful sorcerer, that has lived for centuries and has extensive knowledge in alchemy. She would most definitely know that Gold does not rust. That's what makes it so special.

And that summarize the quality of the 3rd season and how once an amazing show with beautiful story, wide characters and extended knowledge has now become a total waste of time.

Creed III (2023)

As bad and shallow as it can get.

[3/10 · 1 May 2023]

This movie has nothing of value to speak of.

The story is ... Something that can be told in a single paragraph and even that is simple cliche.

Characters don't have character. If you are longing for Sly's wide character development, those feelings that came with anticipation, you'll not find it here.

The acting is, regrettably, also bad. It's as if actors already knew this was a bad , unremarkable, forgettable movie so they refused to give in their best performances.

Which brings us to the scripts. Some movies have simple stories but make up with good scripts, conversations. This movie doesn't have it. Once I was done with the movie, there wasn't a single line that stood out. Listening to random people in the street would be much more exciting.

It's a shame, because I had loved the 1st Creed movie. Perhaps because Sly was in it. He is the soul of the franchise and without him, it looks utterly empty.

65 (2023)

This is a bad movie

[2/10 · 16 April 2023]

The movie has a promising start, but then quickly goes downhill. Even Adam Driver looks like he was bored while filming.

Storywise, nothing really happens. Nothing is interesting.

Characters are dimensionless. There are only a few people and I didn't care for anyone.

Some parts are designed to be a horror movie but it is so silly and childish that looks like one of those cheap ones.

Music is the worst. It's supposed to elevate the scenes, not dominate them. Yet you hear constant "epic" music all around when literally nothing is happening on the screen. As a result, it quickly loses its meaning and effect.

Creature behaviors are unrealistic and usually don't make sense. Those parts reminded me of old video games with poor AI.

There's supposed to be humor somewhere, but it was just silly and out of place.

I won't even go into the scientific parts because the film makers obviously didn't care about it.

The whole movie is only 90 minutes but already felt like forever. I'd rather watch grass grow for 90 minutes. It would at least sooth my mind.

His Dark Materials (2019–2022)

Might be the most boring 3 episodes I've ever watched

[1/10 · 17 December 2022]

I don't know what the producers were aiming for but I suspect they created this show for the fans of the book. I watched 3 episodes because some reviews recommended not to judge after only the 1st episode.

The scenes are amazing. Acting is top notch.

Music is too epic. Keeps playing epic music when I have no clue what's going on.

After 3 episodes, there's still no story. No building, character-vise or world-side. Things are happening in such a slow pace that it makes some art-movies seem like action movies.

Dialogues are often meaningless or irrelevant at best.

I shouldn't need to read the books to enjoy a movie. I shouldn't need to know the world in advance to be able to proceed. You can't expect people to be patient. Time is precious and I'd rather spend or waste it on something I enjoy or learn something from, than put blind-faith on a tv series.

Warriors of Future (2022)

A complete disaster

[1/10 · 6 December 2022]

Maybe I expected too much from this movie, but it doesn't have a single quality that I can deem above average.

Story is bad. There was nothing interesting story-wise. It also doesn't make sense most of the time.

Writing is cringe. Most dialogues sound like written on the spot.

Acting is really (I mean really) bad.

CGI, which is supposed to be the selling point of this movie, is crippled by the horrible camera movements and selections.

Music and sounds in general are horrible and always out of place.

It is such a shame because it actually had a promising prelude despite the cliche components and with a budget like that, the outcome should be a lot better.

Star Wars: Tales of the Jedi (2022)

Clone Wars Upgraded

[10/10 · 26 October 2022]

I wouldn't dare to claim this show is necessarily better than the Clone Wars, the show which I believe is the heart and soul of the Star Wars Universe. I am merely suggesting that this show is for the same audience, filling in the blanks and enhancing the story, sometimes dramatically.

For those who haven't watched the Clone Wars series, this show might feel average. But for those who have, there's a good chance that some moments will grab you tight, so intense that you might wind up crying without even realizing it.

Thank you Dave Filoni and everyone who contributed to this relief. I needed that.

The School for Good and Evil (2022)

Came for Charlize Theron, stayed for the story

[8/10 · 26 October 2022]

I had a few hours to kill, found this movie. Checked the IMDB rating. Low. Read the comments: Horrible. Could it be that bad?

So I started watching, ready to close if it is really bad.

The acting is really good. Everyone plays their parts perfectly.

The story, which is the most important thing for me in a movie, is spectacular and brilliantly delivered. From the first moments I could tell something was fishy. I was patient and got rewarded for it.

This is NOT another "girls good, boys bad" movie. It has a message and gives it clearly, openly, without cheating. Bravo.

In the end, I'd recommend it to anyone who's willing to spend some quality time with their loved ones.

Extraordinary Attorney Woo (2022)

I am in love with this show

[9/10 · 21 September 2022]

This show has one of the most vivid stories I've witnessed in a long time. Emotions are so strong that it feels like you can touch it. Writing is incredible. Acting is spectacular.

As someone who did voluntary work with different kinds of children, including autistic, I find these kinds of shows very important and useful in establishing a world where differences are seen as something to cherish and enjoyed rather than tolerated or ridiculed. And this show does an amazing job helping that.

However, as you would guess, the show is more than just about autism. One might argue that it is just a small fraction of what the show really has to offer. The show spoils us with not only information about different cases of law practices, but also about layers of human emotions.

The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power (2022– )

What a horrible disaster.

[1/10 · 2 September 2022]

I had a feeling this show would be bad, so I had kept my expectations extremely low to not suffer a disappointment. Yet here I am, witnessing the butchering the masterpiece I grew up with.

I'd read all Tolkien content long before the movies. The movies had altered a lot of things, but they were faithful to the spirit.

First of all, physics. The show undermines science in the most despicable ways to create a magical world. Tolkien never altered reality. He always added to it. Watching the 1st episode hurt me not only as a Tolkien fan, but also as an engineer.

I'm not going to get into how they altered elves and the world. This was to be expected.

You, Tolkien fan. Lose all hope if you want to enter this show. But then again, many shows that have gone deserved to last longer. Can we give it to them? Not always. So maybe we shouldn't be eager to deal out judgment... yet.

Let Life Come as It Knows (2022–2023)

A beautiful story

[8/10 · 29 July 2022]

I have only watched the first two episodes but I am already captivated by its charm.

First thing first. Ertan Saban is displaying an exceptional performance as the lead character. He is funny, charming, and most importantly, believable. I've never heard of him before, but I'll be sure to keep an eye on him from now on.

The rest of the cast, which is enormous, is also doing a great job.

The story can be explained as, "easy to learn, hard to master". A gangster named Yedi Emin (Ertan Saban) suddenly decides to turn his life around, in this case literally, and turns himself into the police, offering them key information about the gangs in exchange of witness protection. His name is changed to Sadi Payasli and starts working in a high school, as a geography teacher. What can go wrong? We'll see :)

But while doing that, it dives into the lives of several students of that school. We, as the audience, see the world from their eyes and experience their problems. Which was very well portrayed so far.

Overall, I enjoyed watching these 2 episodes. It maintained a nice balance between comedy, action and drama. I can only hope they can keep this up. We'll see.

The Gray Man (2022)

Fun, Straightforward, full of action!

[7/10 · 26 July 2022]

This is a movie that knows what its purpose is: To provide good times with action and excitement and it delivers it perfectly.

The story is as cliche as it can get, but it does its job till the last moment.

You can see that Chris Evans is having a good time playing the villain and it shows. He's definitely one of the best portrait antagonists in the last decade. I'd like to see a little bit more complicated tactical expertise but that's just me nitpicking.

A movie that you can watch to spend a couple of hours and a good time.

Thor: Love and Thunder (2022)

Too much sillyness

[6/10 · 12 July 2022]

In an interview Taika said "This movie is like we asked 5 year olds what they want and said yes to everything". It is NOT. I don't think any 5 year old would ask that kind of perverted sexual content.

The "silly" aspect of Ragnarok had worked because of its deep characters and it had balanced out the burden, the terrible tragedy of Thor. It had so many tragedies and redemption.

Love & Thunder follows the same path, minus the tragedy, deep characters and any sort of redemption. I didn't care for anything and anyone in this movie.

Ragnarok was hard to watch in theaters because of all the laughter. This one didn't have that problem. I think I laughed once or twice and smiled a couple of times more. The room was silent otherwise.

The ending was terrible. Maybe it is because it was too easy to guess. In about 15 minutes, I knew exactly how the movie would turn out. That's not always a bad thing but it doesn't help either.

All in all, the movie is naked, like Thor at one point in the movie. Very shallow content on top of vulgar street humor.

Then why 6 points? The actors. Chris Hemworth is as charming as he always is as Thor. Natalie Portman and Christian Bale are both accomplished actors and they don't disappoint despite the extremely shallow script they were handed. Tessa Thompson is very good at bringing seriousness to the show. She is truly the Queen (King?)

Watch the movie with zero expectations and you might have some fun. Expect another Ragnarok and you'll be sorely disappointed.

Halo (2022– )

Brilliant!

[9/10 · 13 May 2022]

Having watched the 8th episode, I can now confidently say that Halo is one of the best action TV series released in the last decade.

The acting is amazing. I hadn't heard any of the cast before but now I know every single one of them. They are so good. I hear some people hating some characters (as they always do). That's because of the amazing acting and because that's how it's supposed to be.

CGI is top notch. It is better than any show or movie I've seen lately.

Action is extremely satisfying. I am almost 50 but some scenes managed to make me go "paw paw". They are that good.

Both the story and the writing is excellent. Much better than I expected. The story is evolving at an accelerated pace with strong points and mystery and the writing is full of intelligent conversations. The banter between characters makes you think and as far as I've read from the comments, it succeeded on masses. With some people defending one side of the story while others arguing for the opposite side. And I find this beautiful.

Lessons are strong but subtle. I sadly see that many people failed to catch them. Maybe they were too subtle to notice or it is my own imagination. This show made me think and question some aspects of humanity too much.

Overall, it is a good show with good pace, story, acting and intelligent conversations developing outstanding characters.

The Adam Project (2022)

Funny, emotional, warm and full of action

[8/10 · 12 March 2022]

The story is simple and the ending is pretty much implied in the beginning. However, this movie is a perfect example of the phrase "it is not about the end, it is about the journey"

There are some decent messages, given sometimes not so subtly and the acting performance made me cry my balls out.

Ryan is as funny as you'd expect. And the rest of the cast complement him adequately.

Acting is top notch.

The movie is funny, emotional, warm and full of action.

Gunpowder Milkshake (2021)

Why is writing so bad?

[4/10 · 15 February 2022]

The acting in the movie is very good. Lena Headey is amazing as always and visually adds quality to every scene she is in. Pretty much everyone else also gives 110% to their characters. Their talent and determination try to overcome their weak characters as a result of shallow writing. So 10 stars to every actor in the movie.

Directing is also very good. Scenes pass smoothly, making the movie pleasant to watch.

But why? Why are the story and writing so terrible? It is so bad that it crippled all the excitement for me. Is it so hard to write a story that is longer than 2 sentences? If you thought John Wick didn't have a story, it is Shakespear level compared to this.

This might be the movie for you if you want action without thinking. But I see it as a missed opportunity to create something magnificent.

The Legend of Vox Machina (2022– )

Amazing experience if you know what you are getting into.

[9/10 · 4 February 2022]

First, I think it should be a fair warning that this show is for mature audience. It has lots of violence and swearing. If you are uncertain, watch the 1st episode and see if that's your cup of tea.

I found the show very entertaining on multiple levels. It has great story, humor, live and strong characters and excellent voice acting. Maybe that's because the main actors are actually voicing their own characters that they played on the 1st season of Critical Role. They created the characters so they know them inside out.

I found the story to be progressing too fast. Maybe I am used to the Critical Role show and watching them trying to decide what to do for hours. In the show, all happens within minutes.

The story and atmosphere are also both very dark so far. A lot darker than I had anticipated. I was expecting some parts of the show to be like that but I also expected to see some of the beautiful places of Tal'Dorei. So far, no dice (pun intended). I am hoping they will balance things out in the future.

Nonetheless, can't wait for the next episodes.

Encanto (2021)

Speaks loud but has no voice

[3/10 · 2 January 2022]

This animation is a cheap attempt to repeat the success of Frozen, but falls short in every aspect.

Let's start with the only good thing: Animation. The characters and the world around them seem lively. It truly looks amazing. The tones are used perfectly to display the story changes.

Unfortunately, everything else falls short.

Songs are repetitive and boring. They all sound the same with absolutely no originality. The lyrics are mostly meaningless word combinations to rhyme. It is never a good sign when people say "please, not another song" in a musical. And I love musicals.

Characters are as stereotype as it can get but still manages to oversimplify them. I am used to Disney's recent "1 dimensional character" rutine but in this case, they don't even have a dimension. This makes it hard to feel for anything or anyone.

Story manages to simplify things even more, and not in a good way. The "moral" of the story is forced on us right from the start and contradicts itself. The whole story can be written in 5 sentences. How didn't they notice that?

In inclusion, this is a magical journey that starts from nowhere and ends up nowhere. It desperately tries to force morals on the audience and contradicts itself in doing so.

Lulli (2021)

Fun, energetic and wholesome.

[9/10 · 29 December 2021]

This is a simple movie. It reflects relations, emotions, fears and friendship in a simple way and it works.

The cast is amazing. Larissa is full of energy in the lead role. The rest of the cast complement her perfectly.

Story is simple, straightforward yet still managed to captivate me. I had lots of fun and didn't feel bored for a single moment.

Don't Look Up (2021)

A Brutal Masterpiece

[9/10 · 25 December 2021]

First thing first. This is how you make a movie. It has everything. Good actors, story, humor and a brutal, slap on the face ending.

Don't be fooled by the "Comedy" label. This is not your usual laugh, have fun and then forget type of pop-corn movie. Even though I laughed many times throughout the movie, it always came with a price. A sour feeling deep in my soul, dangerously warning me how close this is to reality.

The cast has so many amazing actors, legends and new generation talents side by side. I couldn't stop admiring this perfect harmony.

The story starts strong but I had this feeling that it would be full of cheap laughs. I couldn't be more wrong. Between laughs and jokes, the movie kept getting darker and more serious with every step. It captivated me physically, mentally and emotionally. The building intensity was too strong, even depressive at certain points.

Aside from the amazing main story, every short story, each character's build up are full of great moments, full of references to real life issues. The more you know about these issues, the more you'll recognize them and it will suddenly turn into a fictitious documentary of the human species.

Some parts of the movie feels rushed. Maybe the pace could be managed more efficiently. But that's just me nitpicking.

In conclusion, this is a movie that I will advise everyone to watch.

LOOK UP!

Red Notice (2021)

It's exactly what you'd expect

[7/10 · 18 November 2021]

This movie is a solid 7. It has action, humor, romance, bromance and a tiny bit of emotion. Perfect movie to spend time.

All 3 leading actors known for their narrow acting range do it to perfection. Gal Gadot is adorable in pretty much every scene she is in. She is cute, charming and aces the action scenes. Ryan still has that Deadpool acting glued to him. If that's what you want, you won't be disappointed. The Rock is same old same old.

Watch the movie knowing what you are getting into and you will have a good time.

Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (2021)

It's ok

[5/10 · 13 November 2021]

In simple words, this movie is full of stereotypes buffed with overuse of CGI. In other words, this is more a Disney movie than a Marvel.

Plot is as simple as it gets. If you had watched the trailer, from the 1st moments of the movie, you'll know exactly what will happen and in what order. At that point, Marvel usually throws in a few surprises. Not in this one. Everything goes smoothly from an action fantasy children movie.

Acting is great. Everyone plays their roles to perfection. There's nothing to complain here.

CGI is, like I said earlier, more Disney than Marvel. Remember the Lion King remake where it didn't feel right. It's the same here. Looks gorgeous at first sight but fails to connect emotionally.

In Summary, there are entertaining moments, but the writers room clearly saved the good stuff for future movies. This one is just a filler to introduce a late character.