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Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget (2023)
Wonderfully crafted kids movie, an Aardmann classic
Knowing nothing about the film, I had no expectations about it and ended up delighted!
The target audience is clearly kids, but as a kids movie it's beautifully made. Adults (like me) will enjoy the nods to classic 60s action movies, a path that Pixar's The Incredibles also trod.
The story follows the classic three-act structure with few surprises but is well-written within this structure. The lead protagonist gets a meaningful character growth arc, with Bella Ramsey again giving a fantastic performance.
All the violence associated with farming chickens is carefully avoided, making it suitable for very young audiences.
Coincidence is heavily used to get our heroic chickens out of trouble, which could easily frustrate older viewers, but once I accepted this as a kids movie I very much enjoyed the ride.
Top Gun: Maverick (2022)
How refreshing: a classic blockbuster and a worthy sequel
This movie is not just a throwback to the original, it's a throwback to a better time when movies were made not to push a political message but instead simply to entertain the audience. And how Top Gun: Maverick entertains us!
The film hits all the right notes: new characters and old tensions, homage to the original yet with a new story. The use of live action gives the film a visual weight, in contrast to the CGI-heavy snoozefests Hollywood has been pushing out for the last few years. Despite a couple of clumsy plot moments, Top Gun: Maverick takes you on a jet-fueled ride.
This is a movie that deserves to do well at the box office so we get more movies like it in the future. I saw it in IMAX and it was great!
Arcane: League of Legends (2021)
Beauty at every layer
It's hard to express just how good Arcane is.
The first watching rewards you with a beautifully animated rich story with compelling characters. An absolute classic.
The second watching brings so much more detail. Knowing the endgame, suddenly every action becomes infused with what is to come. Every expression now bears a double meaning: how the character came to be here, and how their future will unfold.
The third watching begins to reveal the true level of mastery that brought Arcane to our screens. Every single scene is beautiful. A rich tapestry of scenery, character, story, and nuance all flawlessly interwoven.
It's hard to express just how good Arcane is.
The Matrix Resurrections (2021)
Dull as dishwater
This film has nothing. No plot, no characters, no direction.
I'm a huge fan of the original and very much wanted this film to succeed.
Spend your remaining minutes of life elsewhere.
Terminator: Dark Fate (2019)
Devoid of excitement or interest
Take a castload of beloved characters fighting against a growing threat in a new and exciting story.
Now throw that all away. All of it. The characters. Everything that they fought for and everything that made them meaningful. Cast them aside in the opening scene.
The growing threat. Throw that away too. Take all of the techno-fear of the first two movies and replace all of its nuance with a dumb overdone CGI monster-chases-blank-character repetition.
Remove all excitement and interest.
Now you have Terminator: Dark Fate.
Mortal Engines (2018)
Stupid and dull
This is one of those movies with a wonderful idea (moving cities! awesome!) but nothing else.
There are so many attempts to make a meaningful scene - and all of them fail - that at some point so start wondering when - if ever - you're supposed to care.
Paper-thin characters. Wooden performances. Dull plot. Move on.
The Dawn Wall (2017)
An incredible adventure
This movie tells a fantastic story.
Yes, the core is two people trying to climb the hardest rock climb in the world, but it is much more than that. In the vertical world of Yosemite we learn about our heros' journey and all that has brought them to take on this incredible - maybe impossible - challenge.
Respectful to both the gritty details of emotional extremes and life at the limit of human possibility, this movie will sweep you along for the ride, energize you, and leave you wanting more.
Exordium (2013)
Powerful short
In a few short minutes, and with barely a word spoken, Exordium asks hard questions. The fantastical setting is the perfect fit for the timelessness of the story told. Unconventional? For sure. Memorable? Absolutely. This is simply one of my favorite films.
Sucker Punch (2011)
Visually stunning, utterly boring
So much hype. So little substance.
Do not let the opening minutes fool you. Within fifteen minutes we feel like we're in for a fantastic journey with our heroines, a movie that might have something to say.
But this is not the case. We proceed through a series of beautiful set pieces which do nothing but establish the invulnerability of our heroines. Where we want to discover more about our characters, we only go through the motions of risking nothing and gaining nothing.
Sure, the ideas are cool, and the special FX department throw a whole host of teenage boyhood fantasies at us. That our heroines brush them aside so quickly renders them meaningless.
Fantastic visuals. Amazing cinematography. Great sound and music. Empty nothing at the end if the day.
Shame (2011)
A fantastic film... that tries to be to be everything, and falls short
This film confronts many aspects of the modern male, but, in trying to do so much, it spreads itself too thinly.
*** SPOILERS ***
This is a brilliant film. The performances fantastic and the film confronts so much of modern life. We are with our protagonist as he watches others who reflect parts of himself: the shallow sexual predator, the promise of a fulfilling relationship, desperation, a hint of suppressed sexual tension, the brutality of sex without consequence, and the interplay of sexual power.
There are several stories here: jealousy, the search for self, changing gender roles, fulfilment, satisfaction, and dissatisfaction. Each story given a rich opening chapter, yet none is resolved.
This should have been three films, not one.
Centurion (2010)
Not great, or even good
Neil Marhall has brought us some fantastic movies. but this is not one of them.
The Scottish scenery is stunning, but there is little else to recommend this aimless amble through an alternative history of the Romans stopping in Northern England. The formulae are well worn and but the plot never really seems to work out what it wants to be: Is it an action movie, a buddy movie against the odds, a political thriller, or a forbidden romance? It's simultaneously all and none, everything is touched upon but nothing is developed. Ultimately it leaves the viewer as unsatisfied as its threads of plot.
Sure, watch it on DVD, but don't expect much more than a bit of gore and a half-hearted effort at a decent movie. 4/10.
Watchmen (2009)
Too much material for one film
Watchmen opened in Switzerland today and I caught one of the first screenings in Geneva.
It was a disappointment.
Those who've read the book will find it a shallow reflection of the original graphic novel. Some scenes are taken almost panel for panel from the book and a number of these are done very well. But the fundamental problem remains that even with over two hours running time there simply isn't enough time to explore the depth of the book. Major themes are heavily modified or completely absent, and equally often short cuts are taken. Much of the moral interest is lost and relations between the characters are hastily compressed into two or three lines of dialogue.
The same hasty treatment of the themes and characters are likely to confuse those who haven't read the book. Time and location changes quickly, both forward and backward, but with little clue to the viewer as to what is happening. We're given no reason to care about the characters, and the plot is tediously slow until it is suddenly explained in exposition at the end.
It evoked a couple of short laughs but for most of the film the audience was silent. As soon as the film finished everyone headed straight for the exit. Not a good sign.
Maybe a new, longer cut will repair some of the glaring flaws in this release. Until then, you'll have more fun reading the book.