So, way back in 2007, months before the release of this film, I was at SIGGRAPH, the most significant convention in the computer graphics field. Lots of animation studios and VFX houses were present on the expo floor, and the most significant CGI films of the day were all well represented: Ratatouille, Spider-Man 3, Transformers, Shrek The Third. And Beowulf. Everyone was talking about Beowulf.
The difference between the former and the latter was that Beowulf was the laughingstock of…
This time I watched the 2003 re-cut version of the film, and through some combination of the better cut and my adjusted expectations, I'm pleased to say that I managed to find a pretty good film this time around. I still like the first two better (who wouldn't?) but this does have a lot to recommend it, in the end.
For one, it looks really good. Mostly. The sets are big and impressive, and infused with a strangely art deco…
The year is 1997 and Wim Wenders has decided it's his turn to try to be David Lynch. And the result is this strange film, an utterly confounding shapeless mass that doesn't seem to know whether it's some sort of hardboiled noir or a very stark atmospheric piece. It doesn't make a whole lot of sense and it's really hard to tell what exactly it's trying to do or say, but it's strangely compelling nevertheless. Seems like it would reward…
Generally speaking I'm not bestowing star ratings anymore but why did I deny this film a measly 1/2 star last time? Let's bump it up to 5 where it belongs. del Toro transmutes this classic tale into a meditation on mortality and the significance of life, and in doing so somehow perfectly balances gravitas with slapstick absurdity. And of course it's explicitly anti-fascist as well.
World-class animation. Stop motion has never looked better.
Career best performance from Cate Blanchett ;)
This review may contain spoilers. I can handle the truth.
There's a special kind of awful that can only be attained by someone who thinks their screenplay is "smart" when it actually isn't. Ex Machina is such a film, constantly comporting itself as a story of Big Ideas, but said Ideas are largely misconceptions and even then aren't explored in much depth. This could be forgiven if the actual narrative was good, but it's not. It's a mishmash of dull characters, predictable plotting, and regressive tropes that are likewise unquestioned.…
This review may contain spoilers. I can handle the truth.
God damn it but I am really angry and upset right now. I don’t know honestly why I have continued to watch Almodovar’s films despite such incredibly tone-deaf stories as Tie Me Up, Tie Me Down, but this is my last one for sure. No amount of beautiful photography and good direction is going to redeem this film for me. I’ve had it with Almodovar’s incredibly simplistic and reductive understanding of gender and sexuality, and clearly he is not about…
