Log: week 10 / 2021
A dry, quirky and fun mystery. The Kid Detective is a film that may look a bit inconspicuous at first and might be glossed over rather quickly, but if you pay closer attention it's a pretty original film that finds the perfect balance between comedy and mystery and lives on an island of its own. Brody and Nélisse are both terrific, the comedy is understated but funny, there are some fun little twists and the mystery elements are actually pleasant. The cinematography and soundtrack are just a little too plain to make this a real masterpiece, but it's prime filler that offers plenty of entertainment.Read all
Simple 80s romance. I once saw it a long, long time ago, well before I started keeping track of films. All I remembered was Cruise throwing bottles in the air and The Beach Boys' Kokomo. That wasn't by accident it seems, as these are by far the most remarkable things this film has to offer. Cruise is the main attraction and he does his thing quite well here. The plot is middling, Elisabeth Shue fails to sparkle, the drama is predictable and the soundtrack is pretty bland too. But there's an upbeat atmosphere that makes this a pretty each watch. Just simple fun, don't expect too much and it ends up pretty decent filler. Read all
Hayao Miyazaki's most popular film. Not my personal favorite, I still feel there are some pacing issues at the start, I also think Miyazaki fares better when he favors subtlety over grandeur, but there are definitely moments of genius here and by the end it does feel as if you just witnessed something epic. One for the ages.
A slightly disappointing rewatch. I wasn't a very big grindhouse revival fan to begin with, but Planet Terror stood out because it was still batshit crazy even without all the grindhouse nods. That was back in 2007 though, before we got to the big 80s revival and before Japan unleashed its Sushi Typhoon madness onto the world. By that measure, Planet Terror just isn't zany enough anymore. The performances are fun, the nods to the grindhouse scene are pleasant (though the grain/dirt filter gets a little old after a while) and the pacing is perfect. Planet Terror is solid entertainment, but it aged a bit faster than I'd hoped. No doubt hardcore grindhouse fans will still eat it up, for me, it lacked that little extra.Read all
Dragonball as seen through the Hollywood lens. I'm pretty glad that I have very little affinity with the franchise. I've seen a handful of the anime films, but never found it interesting enough to even consider going through the series. Still, I can imagine that fans (or just people more familiar with the Dragonball canon) got quite upset watching this film. The CG is ugly, especially considering the budget. The plot is bland, the fights are boring and instead of going for fun and cheese, the film tries to be serious and kid-friendly at the same time. The cliffhanger finale no doubt signaled more films to come, but this one was such a flop that luckily they never materialized.Read all
A somewhat questionable mystery. There are traces of other genres too, though it's hard to say how intentional they even are. You could discover bits of drama, horror references, some people even see comedy elements in it, but it could just as well be Seimetz's failed attempts to create an uncomfortable atmosphere. The characters are flat and performances are mediocre at best, visually there are some interesting moments but they are few and far between. The soundtrack is too easy and not well integrated and the finale is a complete snooze. A cameo by Adam Wingard suggests that Seimetz is part of their clique, but She Dies Tomorrow is a far stretch from the films that put Wingard on the map. The potential is there, the result is disappointing.Read all
Disappointing crime/comedy. Maybe not too surprising considering it's a Tim Allen-led film, not quite the actor I'd trust to do a fun crime flick. I generally trust Barry Sonnenfeld to turn out something amusing though, even if it doesn't look too appealing on paper. Not this time, Big Trouble was the dud I feared it would be. Performances are somewhat unfitting, Sonnenfeld's direction is a bit too chirpy and the comedy simply isn't funny enough. There is definitely potential here, in fact it's one of the easiest genres of film to pull off I think, but even then Big Trouble feels way too safe and predictable to be truly entertaining.Read all
Effective horror/mystery flick. Not one with broad appeal I'm afraid, since the film isn't too keen on explaining things. The audience is given some hints and shown some mysterious moments, but you'll have to connect the dots yourself and even then it's mostly left to your own imagination to come up with an explanation. The pacing is deliberately slow, performances are more than adequate and the soundtrack is quite atmospheric. The McManus brothers do a terrific job building up the mood and manage to keep the mystery alive, stretching it even beyond the final scene. A fun and entertaining genre flick, great filler.Read all
Romance in the desert. The Sheik was a blast from the past. Not because I'd watched the film before, but because it's been some time since I last saw this kind of desert harem romance pop up. It feels as if this type of premise was a lot more prevalent back in the days, I guess it's not that hard to see why it didn't really stand the test of time. Performances are overstated, the camerawork is very static and the plot isn't much to look at. The music wasn't great either, but I'm sure people who really dig this type of film could come up with an alternative score that at least works in favor of the film. Not really enjoyable though, I'm starting to understand why comedy and horror silents are the most resilient films from that era.Read all
US sci-fi animation. While hardly a film for adults, it's remarkable to see a US (mainstream) animation that doesn't feel the need to service every age group. So much in fact that I tried to come up with another example from the past two or three decades and felt stumped when nothing came to mind. The story is very basic, the characters and sci-fi designs are rather flat and the voice acting feels uninspired, but it's nice to see some action-driven sci-fi animation for a change and some of the more adventurous sections of the film were pretty decent. Not a film I'd actively recommend, but it is a good reminder of how shallow and targeted the US mainstream animation scene really is.Read all
One of Shûsuke Kaneko's earlier films, where he started to move away from his pinku origins. Kaneko has had quite a varied career that spans several peculiar niches, No Worries on the Recruit Front is a more basic mix of drama and comedy that seems to target more commercially-minded audiences. Performances are decent but nothing special, Kaneko's direction feels a bit uninspired and the drama is too by the numbers. Some office troubles, romantic woes and the unavoidable baseball at night scene, there all in here, but they never manage to leave a solid or coherent impression. Not terrible, but also not a very remarkable film.Read all
Basic but decent action flick. It copies the premise of Crank, but lacks the balls to the wall direction of Neveldine and Taylor to turn it into a masterpiece. That doesn't mean it's a bad film though, just that it's safer and more predictable genre fare. Good filler for those who are craving a little onscreen action. The direction is pretty solid, the pacing is fine and the performances are on point. Nothing really sticks out as exceptional, but there are no obvious weak points either, unless you dislike action films with a minor sci-fi touch. 24 Hours to Live delivered exactly what I expected from it, and sometimes that's enough.Read all
Seijun Suzuki's comeback film. After 10 years of silence, Suzuki returned to the world of cinema, though somewhat haphazardly. A Tale of Sorrow and Sadness contains vague traces of Suzuki's trademark style, but it's no doubt one of the oddest entries in his oeuvre (mostly because it isn't very odd at all). Performances are quite mediocre and the film exudes a 70s vibe (not really a positive in my book). Apart from some interestingly edited scenes and a quirky soundtrack, Suzuki's signature is mostly absent and the film is actually pretty straightforward. The story isn't really that interesting though, making this a somewhat lackluster film in Suzuki's oeuvre. For completists only.Read all
Crazy film. The Dead Ones takes a flying start and hardly ever slows down. It's a 70-minute-long finale that comes off more than a little confusing, but does offer some answers in the second half. This one is all about style and vigor though, a film that cares more about offering a bewildering experience that serving a clean-cut story. The editing is frantic, the cinematography erratic. Together with the soundtrack it makes for a pretty bad-ass presentation. The special effects look pretty cool too, the only problem is that the performances are really below the norm (even for a B-horror). Still, if you're looking for a nifty, gritty horror flick there's plenty to like here.Read all
Pretty cool. Love in Blood offers a neat mix of fantasy and romance elements. It's certainly not the most original of films, clearly part of that big boom of Chinese genre films that's flooding the market right now, but Li Chengkun uses his limited means to great effect and delivers a slick little genre film. Performances are decent and the pacing is solid. It's obvious that the budget was quite limited, as the film sometimes reverts to "tell don't show", but the lush settings and lavish costumes, the fine use of color and lighting and decent CG make this film well worth the trouble. Sampling these films is really starting to pay off.Read all
Demetri Martin made a film and it turned out to be exactly the way I imagined a Demetri Martin film would turn out. A hipster dramady with minor romance elements, an indie/singer-songwriter soundtrack, some tragic comedy and light drama and an array of quirky side characters. Check them checkboxes. It's all very predictable and it felt like I'd seen this film many times before, but all things said and done Martin did a pretty solid job acting, writing and directing his first feature film. It's not going to blow away anyone but the biggest indie/dramady fans, but it's solid and pleasant filler, which definitely counts for something. Decent fun.Read all
The latest Anderson/Jovovich collaboration. After successfully translating the Resident Evil franchise to the big screen, they're now trying to do the same with the Monster Hunter series. Not sure if it's going to be quite as popular since the lore of this one is noticeably weaker (disclaimer: I'm not familiar with the games), but at least they've managed to make a pretty decent action spectacle out of it. While I wasn't a big fan of the monster designs, it was nice to see some puny humans battling giant creatures again. The action looks slick, the CG is solid and the pacing is perfect. After a short introduction, the film delivers non-stop action, which I exactly what I want from a film like this. It's not what you'd call masterpiece material, but it's a damn entertaining blockbuster.Read all
Pulpy horror from the 50s. The film tries to sell you Tarantula women, but in reality you're watching a horrible cast going through lines and lines of cheap dialogue, just to keep the special effects to a minimum. It's an effective cost-saving mechanism, but it doesn't make for good cinema. The film is short, but because there's so much talking it still feels quite long. Don't hope for a sprawling finale either, there clearly wasn't enough budget (or talent) to come up with anything decent. If you really love classic cult/pulp then there might be something here, otherwise I suggest you think twice before watching this one.Read all
A Hollywood rebellion flick. Poehler plays a mom who used to be a spirited activist and rebel, but who ended up like any other boring (single) mom taking care of her kid. Moxie feels like a film directed by that very character. It feels safe, uninspired and deflated, everything this film shouldn't have been. The direction feels flat, the performances are cringeworthy and the social critique is so on the nose that it's start to grate, especially since this film runs almost 2 hours long. It's a film that tries to be rock 'n roll, seemingly unaware that being rock 'n roll has been out of vogue for at least two or three decades. This was just painful to watch.Read all
Toyoda gets a little weird. He strips virtually all narrative elements and delivers a visual album/album film based on the unique collaboration between Koshiro Hino and the Kodo, Taiko Performing Arts Ensemble. Hauntingly rhythmic music combined with fitting visuals make for a riveting experience, but this isn't going to be for everyone.