Sunday, December 31, 2017
The Killing of a Sacred Deer, 2017 - ★★★★ (contains spoilers)
This review may contain spoilers.
More like The Killing of a Sacred Dear.
Bright, 2017 - ★★
Critics hate it. Audiences love it...
Well, I guess I'm officially a critic now.
I was just so annoyed by this movie throughout it. I love Joel Edgerton, and he was really good under all the makeup, but in the end even he couldn't save this movie.
"But there was a dragon flying in the background" ... Yeah and? Also, that's not world building, that's having a dragon in your background.
Also I'm really annoyed by these pop-culture references. In 10 years, people will have to wonder what Will Smith meant when he said "Swipe left". Also I'm not sure Uber will be around that long.
I could go on forever, but I'm just gonna leave it right there. It was pretty well shot for the most part, so I'm leaving it at 2 out of 5 stars, one for it being watchable, one for Joel Edgerton.
The Lives of Others, 2006 - ★★★★½
Even though I should know more about German movies I have to admit I didn't know anything about this one, other than that is acclaimed and supposed to be good. So that's how I went into it.
It's set in the GDR in the 80s, when everyone was being under surveillance or being spied on by their neighbours. The state knew everything about everyone. We follow a writer who is being bugged, and we follow the guy following his every step.
I don't wanna talk too much about the story to not spoil anything, but the acting by Ulrich Mühe, who is still mostly known for this movie, was excellent. I had some problems with some of the other actors, but he was great.
Also the story, while not actually true, is inspiring and just really well done. Also, while it is not a true story, there is lots of truth behind it. While there wasn't this one case in particular, exactly this was happening all over the GDR and there aren't that many movies about it.
Also to be honest, it was kind of relaxing to see a highly acclaimed movie about Germany that's not about WWII for once.
I really enjoyed this movie, and I'm rating it 4.5 out of 5 stars and a like.
Saturday, December 30, 2017
P2, 2007 - ★★★½
For this years Christmas treat I decided to check out P2, another Christmas horror movie.
Angela is a hard working businesswoman who works long on Christmas eve, then is stuck in a parking garage with a lunatic who just really loves her.
Sounds like a great Christmas treat, doesn't it? Actually, I enjoyed it quite a bit. It's nothing special but also not bad.
Wes Bentley is good at just being nuts, and he really gets to shine in this movie.
Also, the gore is not too over the top, but when there is gore, it is well done.
I enjoyed it and I'd say it's worth a watch. I'm rating P2 3.5 out of 5 stars and a like.
Creep 2, 2017 - ★★★½
When I heard about the sequel to Creep I was excited and worried. With movies like these, studios seem to think that if they just make the same thing again, people will eat it up (looking at you, Paranormal Activity).
But I can say they did good, it was the same creative team, doing another found footage movie around our main character, played by Mark Duplass.
Instead of just tricking someone else into getting killed, they went a different route, making a documentary about this self proclaimed serial killer, but not at all like Behind the Mask or Man Bites Dog. It just fits perfectly to the character and is a nice way to follow up the story.
Duplass is brilliant, as always, and Desiree Akhavan was also really good. I was never sure if she is just as crazy as he is, or if she's just playing along.
Also once again they found a good reason for the characters to be filming, which is always something that a lot of found footage movies fail at ... looking at you again, Paranormal Activity.
In the end, Creep 2 was just a good time, a fun little horror story, weird enough to still live up to it's name. I'm rating Creep 2 3.5 out of 5 stars and a like.
Kill Baby, Kill, 1966 - ★★★★
I just want those torch-holding arms sticking out of my walls.
Jesus Christ Superstar, 1973 - ★★★★
About a year ago my parents took me with them to see Jesus Christ Superstar as a live musical. I didn't know much about it, only the old vinyl my mother sometimes liked to listen to. I knew there was a movie but I didn't wanna watch it, I wanted to feel the surprise live.
Now, some time later I decided to check out the actual movie (because it was leaving amazon prime). And I gotta say I actually really liked it. I really enjoyed the live musical, so that was a good start.
I love the ideas they added here, that were kinda hard to do in the prop-less musical I was seeing. They had guns at the sale, tanks attacking. It's a very different take on the story of Jesus.
The songs are my type of music, some great rock, nice guitars and overall catchy songs.
The actors did their part well (as well as you can while singing everything).
I really like the whole story, actually focusing on Judas a bit more, kind of explaining why he did what he did. Also taking a little less biblical look at the story.
My favourite part is probably the King Herod part, in which he mocks Jesus, dancing at his pool. It was just perfect.
All in all I had a good time with the musical, if you're a fan of the musical or the Jesus story, you might get something out of this.
I'm rating Jesus Christ Superstar 4 out of 5 stars and a like.
Holy Hell, 2016 - ★★★½
I read about this as one of those 10/10 documentaries on reddit, and the whole synopsis sounded interesting enough so I checked it out.
This is something you don't see often. Insider footage, shot by a guy who is part of the group and actually really believed in it. Including talking heads by many other former members of the group.
The group? A cult all around one single guy who has a pretty chill view on life. I feel like even he kind of got into this cult himself, at first he was just their leader, but didn't seem as self-important as he later became. Slowly, after years of being told that he is their leader and the greatest, he starts to believe in it.
I really enjoyed this documentary. It not only shows that cults are bad, but to be honest, the whole beginning all sounded very promising. If I was around at that time, I might have joined as well, because the core idea at the beginning sounded kinda chill. The problem is that once you're in, it's hard to get out.
And that's what I thought was shown here very well. Not just how bad cults are. But also good things about them. Even though it's made by someone who eventually left the group, the opening felt almost like advertisement.
I liked this documentary and it's really interesting, especially for everyone interested in cults. I'd rate it 3.5 out of 5 stars and a like.
Friday, December 22, 2017
Reddit's 10/10 Documentaries
Taken from this reddit thread.
Movies in order of comments sorted by Best at the time I made this list.
Made this list mostly cause I love watching a good documentary every now and then.
- The World at War
- Planet Earth
- Holy Hell
- Capturing the Friedmans
- Who Took Johnny
- I Know That Voice
- The Thin Blue Line
- South
- Hoop Dreams
- Going Clear: Scientology and the Prison of Belief
...plus 40 more. View the full list on Letterboxd.
Monday, December 18, 2017
The Public Enemy, 1931 - ★★★½
It's odd how similar this movie is to Scarface from a year later.
Hired Gun, 2016 - ★★★½
I love music documentaries. So when I saw this one on Netflix I just decided to watch it right away.
And in the end it was fun. You learn about lots of those background guys, recording artists who just play in the studio and live bands that are expendable.
I loved hearing the music and the connections, also getting a few performances, but really seeing how good these people are.
What I didn't like about the documentary was the way they structured it. I get that there are lots of people, but I kinda missed a thread to follow. Felt like it switched from musician to musician at random, some to never be seen again, others to appear all throughout.
I thought maybe they'd split it to show first the beginnings, the good, then the bad things. But in the end at quite a few points we got bad things happening, then going back to good things only to go back to bad things.
Also I'm pretty sure at one point they had a short segment where you saw this guy playing, an introduction we usually got for the people next to talk or be talked about, but this drummer just played, it said his name and the bands he played in, then back to the others as if it never happened.
In the end it was still an enjoyable documentary, lots of great music, many interesting stories, and it's shining a spotlight on the people that are never in the spotlight.
I'd say if you are a fan of music or into musicians, then check it out, you won't be sad. 3.5 out of 5 stars and a like.
Monday, December 11, 2017
La La Land, 2016 - ★★★★★
I gave in and watched La La Land a second time, this time on amazon prime, so considerable a different experience from seeing it in the cinema, not knowing anything.
And yeah, I still love it. Now, knowing what was going to happen I had more time to pay attention to background stuff, paying more attention to leitmotifs throughout the movie.
And I still think it's great and just such a good time. Even though it might leave you sad, it won't really for long.
The music is just great. All the songs are just enjoyable and fun and I listened through the whole album a couple of times.
I loved the movie, I'm happy it's already on amazon and I got to see it again. It's just a masterpiece, and I'll stick with my previous rating of 5 out of 5 stars and a like.
Human Remains, 1998 - ★★★★
This is such an interesting movie.
I haven't done any research after the fact (even though I should have to see if any of what I think of it is true), but it feels like those were all real statements, quotes, or at least statements based on facts rather than fiction, by the respective dictators. Humanizing them. Added to them was real footage of those people, not on balconys, talking to masses, but instead just ... basically home footage.
It's the human remains of these inhuman monsters that we know them as now. Smart title for sure!
I thought it was really smart and well done, the footage that Rosenblatt picked fit the narration nicely.
I loved that he chose to have actual actors of the native language speak the parts, then had a translator voice on top of them. As a German I'll always appreciate hearing actual german language in a movie... even if it ends up being uttered by Hitler.
I really liked the short and it's really interesting and might bring up facts about these bad guys that you might not know or find interesting. I'm rating Human Remains 4 stars out of 5 and a like.
The Faculty, 1998 - ★★★★
To be honest I did not expext this movie to be great. I expected it to be a chill, fun time. But by now I'm just convinced that Rodriguez is just making movies for me.
It's cheesy 90s horror comedy, clearly inspired by Scream, self referential and a little crazy. I ate that shit up.
It's about a school where the Faculty is slowly taken over by aliens. Not the most original plot, but they never claim that it is. They actually state multiple times that this is just like Invasion of the Body Snatchers.
I loved the gore they put into this movie, because for a 90s teen horror movie they showed a lot of blood and gore, even though in that time they were usually holding back on it.
I really enjoyed The Faculty a lot, and I'm rating it 4 out of 5 stars and a like.
Wednesday, December 6, 2017
Monday, December 4, 2017
In the Fade, 2017 - ★★★★
I just looked over the general consensus on this movie before I started writing my review and I'm kind of shocked seeing pretty low ratings because this movie was awesome to me.
Maybe it's because I'm German and actually interested in the law, so the trial, which was a big part of this movie had me interested throughout. We don't see many well done courtroom dramas from Germany, so I totally enjoyed this.
The acting was great. Well, except maybe that one cop, which is especially sad because he shared a big scene with Diane Kruger who blew it out of the park. In that scene you could see a big contrast between good actors and mediocre actors, because while Kruger was just perfect, the cop was very monotone and clearly just reading his lines.
Everyone else was great though, I especially liked Denis Moschitto as the lawyer on the good side, and Johannes Krisch as the defense attorny of the bad guys. They both had duels of words in the courtroom, always one-upping each other and I loved it.
The score was really good and fitting, not in your face, but really setting the mood for the movie.
The plot was maybe not the most unique and maybe even a little predictable, but it was so well exectued that I didn't even try to guess how it would end because I just enjoyed following along this story.
In the end, I just really enjoyed this movie a lot and I'm rating it 4 out of 5 stars and a like. Everyone should check it out, and I can't wait for those Academy Awards in which Diane Kruger will win an Oscar for this performance!
Mean Streets, 1973 - ★★★★½
I've actually watched this in two parts because I had to stop in the middle, then didn't get to it until months later. Still, the movie stuck in my head, so I was able to finish watching it and still knew what had happened and could follow along.
I'm not fully sure what it was, I'm usually not that into gangster movies, but I could not stop watching this movie. I was entranced by it, couldn't look away and had a great time.
The movie is well acted, well shot and just all in all great to look at. But for some reason it's underappreciated. I seldomly hear people talk about it. Of course with a director like Scorsese there are so many great movies to talk about that some might get lost in the mix.
Even though they both started out in this time it is still weird for me to see such a young Robert DeNiro and Harvey Keitel. Especially Keitel, who nowadays isn't a leading man anymore, really surprised me. He's really good and looks so young.
I totally enjoyed this movie and I'm gonna rate it 4.5 out of 5 stars and a like. Check it out!
Monday, November 27, 2017
La Grande Bouffe, 1973 - ★★★½
I'm not sure if a movie about people trying to eat so much that they'll die should make someone hungry, but I felt hungry all throughout. So much awesome looking food.
Daybreakers, 2009 - ★★★½
After already watching Predestination and Jigsaw, I saw that another Spierig Brothers movie was on mubi, so I checked it out.
Daybreakers is a new twist on the vampire movie genre. In a bit of a twist vampires took over the world and are now the dominant species. They are still normal and basically human (other than the sun avoiding and the blood drinking), as long as they get their dosage of human blood. Sadly, humans are slowly going extinct...
I really enjoyed this take on the story, it was something fresh, while still staying familiar with the classic vampire mythos.
The acting was well done and I really enjoyed the ideas they brought to it.
It also manages to stay a horror movie, even while adding action elements. There are similarities to I am Legend, but that movie failed to stay a horror movie and became just action.
There are some flaws in the movie, also I'm not fully sure how I feel about the ending of the movie.
But all in all it's an enjoyable time and I'd say if you like horror movies and a fun time, check this out. 3.5 out of 5 stars.
Friday, November 24, 2017
Monday, November 20, 2017
Dementia, 1955 - ★★★★½
Watched the version without narration.
This movie blew me away. I expected a movie with no dialogue, old and in black and white to not catch me, because usually those are still too artsy for me.
But this one actually managed to get me. I was glued to the screen, couldn't stop watching.
Everything was beautiful. From the opening scene of her in bed, light flashing in from the outside. This is how you shoot black and white.
I'm pretty sure David Lynch watched this movie at least a few times. It really felt like watching a dream... or maybe a nightmare. That's usually a thing only Lynch accomplishes.
I loved this movie, I'm rating it 4.5 out of 5 stars and a like. Check it out.
Chillerama, 2011 - ★★★½
This movie is just fun and enjoyment.
Yeah, it's not great. It's not that well shot. The acting is cheesy at best. Then again, that's the point. It's all about classic B-Movie fun.
Each of the stories is enjoyable as hell. Also the gore is really on point, fitting with the entire movie.
I just enjoyed each second I spent watching this movie. You can see that the directors all love making movies and all also love watching horror movies. And so I couldn't not enjoy it.
When Cecil, the theatre owner starts just saying every one liner there is I couldn't stop laughing and loving this movie.
I'm rating Chillerama 3.5 out of 5 stars and a like. It's not for everyone, but if you like fucked-up B-movies, this will be your kind of deal.
Friday, November 17, 2017
The Hills Have Eyes, 2006 - ★★★★
I actually really enjoyed this movie, even on second watching. It manages to be creepy even at daytime and is shocking but not too over the top.
Wednesday, November 15, 2017
Thor: Ragnarok, 2017 - ★★★★
You could really feel the influences recent comic book movies had on Thor: Ragnarok. And if you ask me it was for the better.
The Thor movies were never my favourite Marvel movies. I actually kept postponing watching them because nothing really drew me to them. But at least the third (and final?) movie in the franchise got me excited about our favourite God-hero.
This movie was clearly influenced by Guardians of the Galaxy and Deadpool, while also taking parts from Star Wars, but in the end still actually making a fun movie.
Through all the studio interference you can still see Taika Waititi shine through by his casting choices and just his stile of humor.
I'm still on the fence about the "new" Hulk. They made changes about the character that I'm not sure I like, but in the end I'm glad to see him back on screen.
It's not a perfect movie, it's not the best Marvel movie, but it's fun and entertaining as hell. It's worth a watch for sure. I'm rating it 4 out of 5 stars and a like.
Monday, November 13, 2017
Devilman, 2004 - ★★★
To be honest this was way better than I expected.
Sure the plot is pretty weird and I sometimes didn't fully know what's going on, but mostly it's just people being turned into demons and killing each other.
It's not high-brow arthouse cinema. It's a fun action flick based on an anime.
The CGI in this movie had its charme. It wasn't great, but in their final form they all looked like Tekken characters which I enjoyed more than I'd like to admit.
I love that this movie starts out very personal and just about a few guys in school, but over the movies runtime actually turns into the world in danger, but it all feels like a natural progression.
It is a little boring at times and maybe a bit too long, but I still enjoyed it enough.
I'm rating Devilman 3 out of 5 stars. Check it out if you want to see something weird.
The Meaning of Life, 1983 - ★★★½
I just wanna say that there is an audio commentary track on my DVD of this movie called "soundtrack for the lonely" and it's just someone else watching the movie, laughing at the jokes, having a phone conversation at one point and much more. I just watched that version for a little bit but it almost got me to watch the whole movie again after just watching it.
The Indian in the Cupboard, 1995 - ★★★★
To be honest, I did expect this movie to be a fun childhood memory that probably won't hold up. And when I saw the beginning I felt I was right... remember the 90s, when a kid was happy to get a cupboard for his birthday?
But after the opening this movie got really good. A boy gets a magical cupboard that turns plastic figures to life (and back if he wants). So soon enough he befriends his little native american.
And damn is this movie cute. I was just happy watching it. But it's also sad in parts, but never too sad to handle.
The special effects were done really well, I expected them to look really outdated and to not really work at all, but it all looked real enough to forgive the few scenes where you could see that it was CGI.
It's just a greatly enjoyable movie with a moral lesson and it's fulfilling the wish of every little kid (and some adult kids as well), to just bring your favourite action figure to life.
4/5 stars, everyone who was a child should see this or should have seen it already!
