Log: week 18 / 2025
Say what you will about this film, but the timing of its release couldn't have been better. That's also the best thing about Conclave, as the rest of the film is a mix of too cheesy and too commercial. It wants to be a stylish thriller, but it doesn't have the flair or the guts to be one, which is a shame. There are too many familiar faces who look out of place in this setting, and the plot's a bit too silly for its own good (the attack in particular is just nonsensical, and the finale is bland). The presentation is decent enough, but also not very surprising or out of the ordinary. Not a terrible film, but a little lazy.Read all
A pleasant enough comedy, but after all these years, it's a bit more difficult to see why I thought this was such a special film. Sure enough, the cynical leads are comfy, and there is some dark and dry comedy scattered throughout, but it's all quite tame and within the realm of the expected. The performances are nice enough, the presentation's a little dim though. The soundtrack isn't all that, and the cinematography is mostly functional. The drama is also rather basic, but there are some genuinely touching moments. It's a solid film, worth revisiting, but it isn't quite up there with the best.Read all
One of the better Black Mirror episodes. Slade does his best to give his film a little extra visual polish, in which he succeeded (though it still can't compete with proper cinema). The plot is decent and the premise is cute, but the story doesn't go anywhere interesting, and the finale is a bummer. The performances are okay, the buildup of the story is nice enough, but then the ending is quite rubbish. It probably needed a longer runtime to expand on its premise or a more original finale. At least Slade made the best of what he was handed. Black Mirror is far from my favorite anthology series, but this was solid.Read all
Indian melodrama. Classic Bollywood really isn't my niche, and the fact that most of these films are overbearingly long doesn't help them either. Pure One is colorful, I'll give it that, but that's about the only positive thing I have to say about it. And even that part isn't all that impressive. The musical numbers are terrible, the story is drab, and the performances are mediocre at best. The pacing is glacial too, though that's probably because I didn't care for any of it. Fans of Bollywood cinema will no doubt find something to love here, as the foundations of current Indian cinema are already present here, but this simply isn't for me.Read all
A simple but ultra-effective sci-fi horror. The premise is intriguing, the mix of sci-fi and horror is pleasant, but it's the luscious styling that's the true cherry on the cake. Every shot is doused in moody colors, the editing is razor sharp, the sci-fi designs are lovely, the score and sound design are impeccable, and the visual effects are top-notch. It's the kind of genre cinema I adore, but looking at the tepid audience response, the time isn't right for these types of films. It's a shame, the director is extremely talented, and I'd love to see more atmosphere-based films like Ash.