Log: week 39 / 2022
Remember when the Farrelly brothers still made comedies? Nowadays, it seems the comedy genre is all but dead, so Peter Farrelly transformed himself to direct mushy Hollywood feel-good drama with a message. Enter The Greatest Beer Run Ever, a pointless anecdote that takes us back to the Vietnam war. Efron is pretty decent, but that's about it. The plot is dull, the runtime too long and the critical take on the Vietnam war is so by the numbers that you wonder why they even bothered. The film left a pretty bad taste in my mouth, but at least that's somewhat appropriate for a film about American beer.Read all
A somewhat hermetic, but beautiful drama. Somai doesn't make it easy on his audience, the characters aren't the most charming and are pretty introverted, the structure is a tad confusing and their haphazard trip may feel rather pointless. But as the film moved along, the characters started to grow on me (helped by some terrific performances), the delicate styling didn't miss its effect and the drama grew stronger by the minute. Somai's swan song is a film to cherish, one that should appeal to people who love Japanese drama and don't mind an arthouse finish.
A decent enough action flick, but not half as cool or funny as it pretends to be. A decade or so ago these types of films were all the rage, and I do appreciate what they set out to do, Cat Run just isn't all that effective. I'm not really all that surprised then that this one passed me by completely. I did have some fun catching up with it though. The film is excessively gory for an action film, but the direction feels a little uninspired and the attempted visual inventiveness is mostly just derivative. The film does pick up steam in the second half and the pacing is on point, but it's not really enough to have it up there with the best films in the genre. Still, solid filler for people who like this kind of thing.Read all
Not great. Smile is a horror film that doesn't even try to do anything special beyond its premise. Sadly Parker Finn doesn't draw too many scares from that, and once you arrive at the second part of the film, it's mostly just investigative scenes with a little horror for padding. Past traumas incoming! The smiley people aren't quite as creepy as intended, the jump scares were mediocre and the CG was downright subpar. Performances were decent enough, but a simple film like this can't support a 2-hour runtime and the second half was a pretty big disappointment. Not my cup of tea.Read all
Diet docs have been pretty popular these past years, but few of them have felt genuine or useful. Either they were a bit too dramatic/staged, or too geared at selling a particular diet and/or food choice. It's not that Miso Hungry (an obvious pun referencing Japanese food) gives you a broad range of options, but it does talk more about mindset, portion control, and routine, things that are essential beyond your actual diet of choice. There's a little added humor that doesn't really work and the approach here isn't very scientific, but the bottom line is more focused on common sense anyway. As an added bonus, you're getting a little peek into Japanese food culture, which means you'll be ogling delicious-looking dishes the whole way through. There's nothing mind-blowing here, but it's quite a bit better than many of the alternatives.Read all
Classic Indian arthouse cinema. Our Daily Bread is as far removed from Bollywood sentiment as you can imagine, but that doesn't mean it's significantly better. On the contrary, the minimalism works against the film and unless you're really caught by the drama here, it's a real slog. The cinematography is incredibly drab, the performances are lifeless, and the drama simplistic. I don't mind minimalism in principle, but it has to be done right, meaning that every single detail matters. This to me was just sloppy. I'm sure there's an audience for films like these, clearly, I'm not it.Read all
A pretty little arthouse drama. Damp Season isn't a very novel take on the genre, stilted performances, somewhat impenetrable characters, and slow pacing are some of the key characteristics of the film. The execution is pleasant though, which makes this a very palatable film. The cinematography is pleasant, the performances are strong and minor fantastical touches help to elevate the film. The score was a bit too minimal for my taste (mostly absent in fact) and I felt this film didn't add that much to other, similar films out there, but if you're looking for a fine, Chinese arthouse drama, this film delivers.Read all
Part 6 in the Senritsu Kaiki series. It's one of the most complex and ambitious entries in the franchise. On the one hand that's nice, because you're getting something a tad more original. On the other hand, the budget and scope of this series can't really do justice to the concepts presented here, something that really weighs on the ending. There's a bit more back story, the film is a good 10 minutes longer than the previous ones, and it certainly helps to have seen the earlier entries in the series if you want to understand what the hell is happening. The horror elements aren't very scary though, the effects are crummy and the more ambitious concept forces them into full view. It's still fun filler, but a more cinematic approach would've done this film a lot of good.Read all
Kids these days. It's not all that obvious whether the film wants to be actively critical of Generation Z, or if the film just dishes out some playful nudges and winks (director Reijn isn't the youngest, but drawing a conclusion from that would be ageist). Whatever the case, the film didn't feel fully realized. The kids are pretty damn annoying, and while I understand that's kind of the point, they really are pretty damn annoying. The soundtrack is cool though, the film looks nice enough and there's some fun to be had here. On the other hand, the conclusion was pretty lame and the film isn't quite as edgy as it tried to be. Mixed feelings.Read all
Infinity is an interesting concept, but it's not an easy subject for a documentary. If you get some stuffy scientists to talk for 80 minutes straight, you get a lecture, not a film. And so it was smart to provide accompanying animations that have worth and appeal on their own, rather than a purely illustrative function. That's what made this doc stand out for me. The main takeaway is that our brains are simply not equipped to deal with large numbers, let alone infinity. It's pretty cool to see how maths has evolved from a field that describes what we can see to something that describes things beyond what we can see, leaving us to believe in one of the abstract constructs man has created. Oh, and the animations really are fun and pretty too. Good doc.Read all
A rather basic, short drama about guilt and grief. Lombardini makes an effort to spruce it up with the cinematography, but the attempts are a little haphazard and without a decent score to back it up, the result isn't much to write home about. Not a film that fulfills its full potential. The performances are decent but nothing special, the drama is textbook and while the cinematography is pleasant, it's not strong enough to carry the film. The short runtime doesn't really allow for anything beyond the basic exposition of the drama either. It's not a horrible film, just not at all memorable.Read all
A horror flick that is a not-so-subtle allegory for sexual violence and assault. It's pretty common these days to remake core drama as horror, as long as it actually works well within the genre confines I don't really mind. And Elliot nails that part, even though she clearly didn't have a huge budget to spend. Fitzpatrick is pretty solid, the director feels fresh and contemporary, and the scares are pretty cool. Yes, the CG is a little dodgy, but the monster design makes up for that, though I'm sure it will be divisive. A pretty tense and interesting film, with a clear message that doesn't dial back the genre elements. Good work.Read all
Chinese historic war cinema on the cheap. It was only a matter of time before China would hark back to the glorious war epics that graced the screens almost two decades ago. The biggest difference with Knights of Valour is scope and budget. While director Yilin is used to making do with little, it's not easy when working in this particular niche. The CG is a little dodgy and the lack of massive battlefield scenes is hard to miss, but the focus on a small infiltration team is smart and the film looks pretty solid beyond its budgetary limitations. And so Knights of Valour is pretty decent filler, much like all the other short streaming fodder. Not bad, just don't expect it to stand out.Read all
An interesting premise, handled with the right amount of comedy and the right cast. It's a shame the film's TV roots are a bit too apparent, not all that surprising considering this was Theo Maassen's debut. It's a film that shows promise though, certainly when Maassen could surround himself with the right crew. There's an interesting story about an artist trying to balance fame, integrity, and self-worth (though the ending felt a bit lame in that regard), the performances are on point and the comedy is purposefully cringe. The cinematography was lacking though and the ending was a bit of a dud, but other than that, a fine debut.Read all