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Stowaway (2021)
No crash boom bang action, but a great space drama
Well, I will spare you the synopsis, since you can watch the trailer. I must say, I'm glad that after reading a lot of the mediocre or outright 1-star reviews, I switched to reading some 10s. Anna Kendrick is phenomenal in this. The acting is generally good. It's a slow-paced movie about problems and solutions, ethics and purpose. I usually don't like overly long movies, but this could have been easily 15 to 20 minutes longer to develop the characters a little better, but it also didn't need to be. This movie is a solid 8 or 9. Giving it extra points to even out the stupid low ratings. Give it a shot and judge for yourself. Unless you want crash boom bang action, which is fine, but not to be found in this movie.
Jolt (2021)
Decent watch, but not like Crank at all
This is an over the top action movie and it involves some electric shocks. That's about as much as it has to do with Crank. The reason for the shocks and their effect is entirely different and by far not as much of an important plot device as in Crank. Comparing those two movies is pretty shallow in my opinion.
It's a fun movie with some good acting and some good action. Don't expect too much, but if you like over the top action movies, you will most probably enjoy this.
What else is there to say? I need more characters to fill this. I assume that's why people start their reviews with a totally unnecessary story abstract.
There's Someone Inside Your House (2021)
Pretty underrated
If you like teenage slasher movies, this is a decent one. Not the best, but not bad at all. A solid 7/10.
If you don't like teenage slasher movies, why bother?
Reading reviews here on IMDB, I feel some movies, including this one, have such a low rating because people who don't like the genre watch them in order to get mad about something.
The Intruders (2015)
not as bad as the ratings suggest
Actually a decent film of the genre. Recently I read a review of another film in which the reviewer stated that people today only rate at the top or the bottom. That seems to be the case here as well. This film could have been better. The resolution could have been more surprising and the background of the truth could have been a little deeper. Will I watch this movie more than once? Probably not. But it wasn't bad at all. It's at least a 6. Sometimes I rate movies a little higher if I feel they were underrated. But in this case, I can confidently rate it a 7 out of 10 without feeling like I'm cheating.
Fantasy Island (2020)
Terrible, terrible. Somewhat entertaing.
None of this makes sense. This is a terrible movie, with a terrible plot with terrible twists and terrible dialogues and terrible jokes and some terrible acting. It's so bad it's not even worth thinking of a synonym for 'terrible'.
I would give this movie 0 points from an artistic and craft perspective. (Which isn't to say it probably cost a terrible amount of money to make this terrible flick.)
However, I must admit, it wasn't boring. I think it could work if you see it with someone you can joke about it with.
Secret in Their Eyes (2015)
Don't know the original, but this one is great
I read a lot of reviews. Most praise the original. I can't compare them, because I haven't seen the Argentinian version. However this one here is a very, very good movie and deserves a much better rating than the current 6.3
Do I even have to mention how good the acting is? This is not your movie, if you are looking for a lot of action. There is some, but not very much. It mostly draws from a more than dense atmosphere and well written characters and character arcs. If this is your thing, I highly recommend giving this a try.
El hoyo (2019)
Great questions, but don't watch if you expect easy answers
Basically everyone who has seen the trailer, knows what this film is about. We get to see a great variety of characters who react to this situation. They all symbolise different points of views on what this situation means and how to deal with it. Of course we all know that this is a metaphor for life and society in general and capitalism in particular. The movie provides some interesting questions and hints, but doesn't give any finite answers, which I think is a good thing. Watch it and then go and discuss it with your friends. Share how you interpret certain aspects. I think that's how you'll get the most out of this. I believe we need more movies that pose good questions and give people something deep to talk about.
Originally I thought this was a solid 7, but when I started to think more about it and started to write this review, I decided on a 9. Now that I'm at the end of my review and did a little more thinking, I can't see any reason to not give it a perfect 10, which I usually spare for those very, very special movies. I think this probably is one and with the benefit of the doubt and in order to encourage more filmmakers to make movies like this one, here it is: 10/10
The Autopsy of Jane Doe (2016)
Could have been awesome...
The idea is great, but in the end it was terribly executed. Don't get me wrong: this all looks very professional. Good lighting and sound and camera work, but, for instance, the main characters jump from "we are so very scientific and seasoned" to "wow, this must be supernatural" in zero time. The last third of the movie is just cliché. I could predict every single jump scare. The final moment would have totally impressed me in the early 80s when I first started watching horror. Today this was just so lame I can hardly believe they actually did that.
What a wasted idea, budget and (in parts) talent.
4 stars for camera work, sound, lighting, make-up and the basic plot idea. Maybe I could have given it 5 stars, but I think it's pretty overrated.
Luther (2010)
Stopped episode 1 at 2 minutes before the ending
Wow! This is a bad show. I struggle for words to express how bad it is. I couldn't even finish the first episode. Story is cliché at best, acting is totally over the top, character or plot development are non-existent, let's not even start to talk about logic flaws or dislikable characters. There's also no investigation or deduction of any kind. Luther just jumps to a conclusion between behaving as stupid as possible in every scene. Awful!
Why two stars? I somehow liked the villain for a few moments. It had potential and the acting wasn't all that bad. Sadly all that was wasted.
Tau (2018)
Overall good watch.
While this movie does indeed miss some opportunities, it's an overall good watch. I don't really understand why the rating is so low. Actually I think this movie should have been at least 30 minutes longer to explore more of the villain as well as the AI. These parts seem a little condensed. But well, decisions had to be made and plot had to be moved forward.
If you don't mind filling in some blanks for yourself, this is 97 minutes spent well.
I probably would have given it 7 points, but reading some of the other comments, which I feel are not all fair, I give this an extra point for being underrated.
Shut In (2016)
Not groundbreaking, but obviously underrated
I really don't understand the low ratings. It's not a bad movie. Well shot, well written, well acted. Nothing out of the ordinary, but not bad either. Not a movie I will rewatch over and over again, no instant classic, but I enjoyed it. Like another reviewer put it: everything below 5 or 6 stars isn't justified in my opinion, given you are generally into that genre. If that's not your genre you will obviously not like it.
Hereditary (2018)
Awesome acting, half-assed script, terrible ending
I really enjoyed The Witch. I like it when a movie takes it's time to develop atmosphere. When people complained about Blade Runner 2049 being to long I thought about what I think could be left out, and I couldn't think of anything.
The problem with Hereditary is, that it does build up a lot of tension, but in the end it doesn't deliver. Or at least you wish it wouldn't, because what you get is the lamest and most senseless plot revelation I got to see in any major production since... I don't even remember when. And worse than that: it's not even well executed. One special effect is so bad, it would have been laughable in the 80s. And what it shows is even totally unnecessary, as was already established one scene earlier.
All in all it looks like a movie with a some good ideas for a family drama, which was then spoiled by some underdeveloped horror/mystery plot elements. 4 stars mainly for exceptional good acting and some very good dramatic scenes in the first half.
Atypical (2017)
Everyone is weird
Everyone is weird. This is stated throughout the first season in different phrasings. But even if you look beyond dialogue, you will notice this show is a lot about communication, the lack thereof and its manyfold difficulties. And everybody has all of these in abundance. The possibilities and problems of neurotypicals are just different from those of the atypical. Great show! Deep!
UPDATE after season 3: I can totally see how people hate the mother. I hated her, too. But that's her character. She is always overshooting her goals. It's not a likeable character, but a realistic one. And she does have some development. She's trying to do her best, but struggling with her own quirks and problems, just like her son does. That's the point of the whole show. Everyone has some problematic behaviour. Everyone is weird.
The Invitation (2015)
Stop reading! Watch it!
Do yourself a favor and stop reading anything about it now and just watch it. This movie thrives on the suspense it creates with uncertainty. Even the scene that reveals everything keeps things unclear as long as possible. Aside from that it is very well crafted: lightning, acting, camera work, pacing, sound, all very well done.
Now finally stop reading, will you?! :-D
Disturbia (2007)
Could have been good
Really starts out good. I even cheered at one scene at the beginning. Somewhere around the middle of the movie, it all starts going downhill. Unnecessary and very cheesy romantic situations, logic plot holes big enough to fly a death star through, characters just behaving odd. The last 15 or 20 minutes or so only work if every single one character behaves as stupid as possible on every single occasion. Carrie-Anne Moss' character is totally underdeveloped. While her son is going through a lot of pain, there never seems to be a hint of her feeling anything similar about the situation. I just changed the rating from 4 to 3 while writing this. I better stop before it drops even lower.
The Lazarus Effect (2015)
Decent horror movie
I think this is way underrated. While this is nothing intellectual, it is indeed an entertaining horror movie. Acting is quite good and it is overall pretty well made. I also don't think it's a weakness, that big parts of the background story are left to the viewers imagination. Did any horror story ever get better, when everything is explained? I don't think so. We get to know enough for the story to unfold, and I think that's totally OK for a scary movie. Yes, it's more popcorn cinema than deep or demanding, but I think it's thrilling and fun to watch.
The Man from Earth (2007)
Don't watch! Stop reading now! You already wasted too much time on this!
This movie is totally overrated. Go save your time and stop reading now and find some other movie. OK, I understand, I need to elaborate on that. Well, I gave this move 2 stars, because the idea could have turned out pretty promising. Well, that's about all the good things I have to say about this total waste of time. I will not mark this a spoiler, because there simply is nothing to spoil. Nothing happens. People sit around in a room and talk about a silly idea. And while this could also describe one extremely good movie with intense inter-character dynamics like "Carnage", this one is exactly on the opposite end of the spectrum. Acting is just awful here, although some of the actors are known to be able to do much better. Arc of suspense is simply nonexistent. Even the death of one character is so lame I can hardly find words to describe it. Be warned! Switch now! Life is short!
A Lonely Place to Die (2011)
No artistic highlight, but fun to watch
If you like action thrillers, can cope with some small logical "errors" (the kind most action thrillers have) and want something a little off the beaten track when it comes to setting, this movie is for you. Eight points for keeping the tension pretty high for almost the entire movie, yet not being too shallow. Acting is decent without any embarrassments. We also have a few beautiful Scottish landscape shots and some neat stunt work to round it off.
Surely not the most artistic piece of film, but I really had a good time watching it. Maybe I would have given it only seven points, if I didn't think it was kind of underrated here on IMDb with a current average of six points.