artenfrize Reviews

Aniara (2018)

Depressing and near perfect.

[10/10 · 26 June 2023]

The reason I'm writing a review is because before I watched this, I watched 'Triangle Of Sadness'. They are basically the same film but what makes it more interesting is that the captain from Aniara is also in Triangle Of Sadness. (See also Wall:E) It's a well worn trope but it's done very well here and is frustrating and bittersweet at the same time.

The cast are excellent and the grime of depression and abandonment is extremely well done (see also High Rise) It's not a sci-fi for people who are excited about brand new worlds and possibilities, it's a sci-fi for people who know that humans will also be dreadful in space.

For All Mankind (2019– )

Finely crafted entertainment

[9/10 · 17 December 2021]

Beautifully filmed and excellently acted this is best kept secret in modern TV.

It hits the perfect balance of drama, action and tension. The cast is excellent and the period detail is nicely done. Being on season 3 👌

Invasion (2021–2024)

Glacially slow

[5/10 · 15 November 2021]

While its slightly unfair to write a review before the end of the season I think it's perfectly valid to state that this series is so painfully slow that most people will not have the stamina to get past episode 3.

It's very well crafted and features an excellent score from Max Richter but this can't save it from simply being a bit boring - quite a feat for an alien invasion feature.

The plot threads are so thinly painted and spread out that it's hard to remember or care what happened to the the many individual protagonists.

Little Fish (2020)

Heartbreaking but beautiful

[9/10 · 12 October 2021]

Beautifully shot and scored, with two perfect leads that exude easy chemistry. The premise is more of a backdrop to the narrative which revolves around what it is to love and be loved and the experiences that comprise that. It has parallels with Alzheimer's movies but the wider scope gives it more of a desperate feel as the protagonists aren't special as everyone is going through 'the thing'.

It's not perfect and the pace is languid and arty but at it's heart it's a powerful love story with the wheels coming off.

Muscle (2019)

Great intentions sunk by a terrible ending

[5/10 · 6 June 2021]

This started out well with a solid premise of a loser finding himself. It developed neatly with some great performances and stylish direction only to be completely wasted on one of the worst unresolved endings I can remember.

Fairbrass is gold as usual, Clerkin is also excellent and it's a real shame that the story wasn't tightened a bit more to deliver a more rounded experience.

Army of the Dead (2021)

Nothing new but nicely done

[7/10 · 22 May 2021]

Zombie movies have long outstayed their welcome, there are simply too many. Something new has to be presented in order to stand it apart.

Sadly there's little here in the way of originality.

There's a predictable ensemble of characters, a by the numbers plot and a slight tweak in zombie hierarchy but nothing to make it in any way memorable.

The only thing that saves this from immediate oblivion is the budget. It's had a lot of money thrown at it and it's evident on screen. Nicely done gore, slick action and decent CG.

Denmark (2019)

Nicely done but unrelentingly depressing

[5/10 · 16 December 2020]

There's no real arc or story to speak of and in lesser hands this would have been a molten dumpster fire but Spall manages to drag it over the line with a decent supporting cast. If you're waiting for sometime heartwarming to happen you'll be waiting a long time.

Christmas with a View (2018 TV Movie)

Nonsensical sugary dross

[2/10 · 7 December 2019]

Despite lovely warm cinematography the film quickly unravels into a complete mess. It's hard to detect any sort of central storyline and the main character tends to get offended and storm off whenever anybody else talks to her. It's hard to care about any of the flimsily constructed plot devices, characters or situations. In a universe full of great Christmas films this is the toilet paper that gets stuck on the bottom of someone's shoe.

Roma (2018)

The Emperor's New Celluloid

[2/10 · 16 November 2019]

Despite looking amazing this is perhaps the dullest film I've ever sat through. Unlike the sluggish narrative and languid camera work of Tarkovsky, this has no pay off or hidden reveal. There is no prize for sitting it out until the end. It's dull.

The Unthinkable (2018)

Distopian apocalypse presented as an arthouse movie

[9/10 · 1 October 2019]

I think a lot of people reviewing this movie arrived with massive preconceptions about what it was going to be. I watched it fresh never having heard of it and was pleasantly surprised. The cinematography and score are amazing, the latter being woven into the story itself. The characters are pretty frustrating but humans are in general so it wasn't off putting. The narrative is a fairly tidy concept encompassing many ideas from zombie movies to post apocalypse, to the fear of neo-terrorism / foreign and domestic aggression. At the centre is a disparate love story framed by familial disharmony (which is a million other films) but the disjointed chaos and gradual slide in apocalypse sets it apart. The violence is clumsy and unglamorous as it should be and the VFx look lush and expensive. Anyone after an easily consumable, nearly tied up cookie cutter movie will be disappointed. Everyone left - enjoy 👌

An Evening with Beverly Luff Linn (2018)

Criminal Waste Of An Excellent Cast

[2/10 · 31 January 2019]

This is now officially the worst film I've ever seen and I've seen Transformers : The Last Knight. The 'comedy' isn't funny which is a real issue.

An amazing cast struggle to make the shambolic narrative coherent whilst certain jokes that weren't funny the first time (the grunting and coughing) are beaten to death relentlessly. The stylisation is trying so hard to be 'kooky' that it jolts the viewer out of the experience on several occasions.

The whole experience is awful in so many different ways. I'm glad it's over.

IO (2019)

Slow and painfully dull.

[2/10 · 18 January 2019]

How did this get made? It's like listening to your girlfriend tell you about a boring dream she had for 90 minutes straight. Achingly pretentious but without the artistic beauty to back it up. Mackie struggles with Twilight level dialogue while a surprisingly graceful score beautifully frames the drama and emotion that should be there but simply isn't. A crushing waste of everyone's time.