Chernobyl makes you feel as if you were there with the darkness, the music, the cinematography. Whether or not you remember the accident, you somehow get shivers down your spine whenever you hear the clicking of an R meter and as the clicking intensifies, so does your heart rate. It becomes a character in the series. The frustration of working through the problem while fighting through all the BS that comes from such a secretive state as the Soviet Union is played well. Stellan and Jared play this convincingly, both from the perspective of a career party man and that of a brilliant scientist who is just doing his job as a scientist with little care for the nuances of the CPSU.
My only complaint is episode 4. The dogs. The story line of the liquidators doing animal control is unnecessary and adds nothing to the story besides making you feel even more uneasy. You can skip those scenes entirely and lose nothing which begs the question... why even show it. The scenes in the control room are obviously romanticized because we really don't know what went on at 1:23:45 but we know from witness accounts that the mood was calm.
This is not a comedy. The first 10 minutes of the first episode is a comedy. The rest of the show is a tragic story about mental illness and how the failure to treat it affects others. It is difficult to enjoy and mostly stressful to watch.
Visually this show is very appealing. The first few season were good, then the story just takes a hard right, then a hard left and then a u-turn in the middle of traffic. It's very difficult to make a connection to any one character. To top it all off, season 5 feels more like Star Wars.
Do any of you care about that? Probably not. As someone who grew up with TNG and the like, this just wasn't what I hoped it would be in the end.
This movie makes me want to drink whisky and smoke cigarettes with a handlebar mustache. It's good fun, good story, good laughs and lots of kick ass.
I haven't seen product placement this aggressive since Transformers.
A bad script and bad directing can make any great actor seem terrible.
This movie was infamous because of the "Reddit AMA" that went horribly wrong. I avoided this movie because of that as I followed it in real time. I decided to give it a try after all these years because the subject matter is interesting.
I can say that my disappointment was not unexpected. This movie is boring. It's 108 minutes of Woody Harrelson smoking and being a racist and overall terrible person. It's all expected and repetitive and just exhausting.
This movie should be called "Dave Brown" because it tells very little about the Rampart scandal which has already happened in this movie. The tagline is "The most corrupt cop you've ever seen on screen." Sorry... that title goes to Alonzo Harris in 'Training Day'.
It's a story that nobody asked for that is poorly portrayed.
I just watched this through after years of seeing it win awards. I was not even considering watching this show considering the subject (Soccer) and I wasn't much of a fan of Sudeikis.
However...
I broke down and watched through it and... wow... finally a show that is wholesome and funny with a great story but just the right amount drama and tragedy to not take away from the other qualities. It was a nice break from everything going on in the world and the shows that are centered around that.
I have a new found respect for Jason and Hannah and Juno, all who's chemistry is unmatched.
I was saying "WTF did I just watch?" after each episode. Especially the finale which is the most absurd thing I've ever seen.
It's a cringe comedy that will leave you with more questions than answers. But for some reason, you feel you must continue the story.
"Sons" was an amazing depiction of the life of an Outlaw MC. Watching it during its release really left you with a visceral feeling that being in SAMCRO was like driving on the edge of a cliff with a burning river beneath you. I binged this during the pandemic and I don't advise that. After watching 4 or 5 episodes in a row, you need a break. It's tragedy after tragedy.
I think this is definitely worth your time. The bombing scenes are very well done. The dynamic of the aircrew seems to be on par with reality. The acting and effects are nothing to scoff at. It is a different look at yet another group involved in WWII.
However...
The show is called "Masters of the Air" yet most of it takes place on the ground. I understand the focus characters were shot down and captured during the war and it is important to see that. I was hoping for this series to be focused on the pilots and aircrew of the 100th but in this series we are focused on just a handful of airmen and while their story is amazing and their bravery should not be overlooked, it doesn't quite compare to the tier of other WWII miniseries biopics.
Band of Brothers remains #1, followed by The Pacific then Masters of the Air.
Trigger alert below:
It is sad to see so many comments here using the word "woke" because the Tuskegee Airmen were included in a few episodes. Whenever I see that word used, I just assume that person has no idea what it means and then I dismiss everything else they say.
It's cute. It's funny. It's a nice mindless rom-com for those of us who need a break from nominated films and blockbusters.
Be honest, you watched this because you like watching Statham kick ass. Well... that's what you'll get! It's John Wick with a dash of Jason Bourne except everyone else is a douchebag.
Spoilers ahead:
Everything else in this film is forced, poorly scripted and overacted. The main reason that Adam Clay is such dangerous badass is because every single person he comes in contact with is utterly inept. Somehow, the CIA, Secret Service and FBI are all completely useless against one man. The plot is weak and many of the devices in place are simply there because the plot demands it. The enemy is a snake with many heads but the film ends with only the death of a few. The credits roll and you are left with many questions on what was really accomplished.
Saw this in theaters on opening weekend.
It was a really good addition to Afterlife. The story is and plot are good and mesh well with the franchise. It was good fun but nothing breath taking. Some scenes were a bit forced and too goofy. There is obvious nostalgia bait contained within but as someone who grew up with the OG Ghostbusters, it wasn't over the top.
Definitely worth the price of a ticket in the theaters.
Mr. Robot is a show that got it right in nearly all aspects of the story. The hacking was realistic but they didn't make it boring. The psychology was realistic. The story was captivating all the way through. Easily a top 10 show for me.
It's like an action genre for IT geeks.
There are reasons I like this show and reasons I don't.
The fights and ass-kicking are fun to watch. The "hobo" lifestyle is plausible and part of Reacher's character.
But...
Some of the dialogue, story telling and fundamentals are just hokey and not realistic. The plot devices are old and predictable and some of the fundamentals are just wrong. Part of this is the ex-military/ex-cop in me over-analyzing things but it is bothersome.
Narc is one of those movies that I had never heard of when it was released. I've always been a Ray Liotta fan and when I saw this DVD in the "pre-viewed" section of Blockbuster back in early 2003, I picked it up.
This is a very dark, dirty but intense cop film that makes you feel as if you are in the depths of Detroit. Liotta and Patric play their characters very convincingly whether they are at a desk or in the streets.
This is definitely one of my all time favorite films.
A modern classic with an original idea. As a kid I almost took this movie as an anatomy lesson. Maybe I learned about the birds and the bees a little too soon? :laughing:
Joaquin is a fantastic performer. We all know this, we've seen it several times. There are films where the actor is separated from the character in which you forget that it's "so-and-so" playing the role. For example, Heath Ledger's 'Joker', Javier Bardem's 'Anton Chigurh' and Daniel Day-Lewis' 'Lincoln'.
For Napoleon, Joaquin is simply himself in Napoleonic attire. It was just not convincing. Perhaps it's the story that is to blame which is... boring. We spend most of the time focusing on Napoleon's love life with breaks in between that give us only a glimpse of the epic battles he was a part of. Even the end credits begin by telling us his battle history and body count but... THE FILM BARELY FOCUSED ON THAT!
I wanted this to be an epic biopic on a pivotal character in world history but sadly we did not get that.
I had to research the actual meaning of the film after watching it. Bad sign.
I love Adam Sandler, he is the main reason I watched this film. He was great in it but he couldn't save us from a boring story that is missing the main components of telling a story.
I want to love this movie. I want it to be successful. I never want to watch it again.
Plot: The plot has it's merits but is quickly lost on the viewer as the story progresses. It's only again mentioned in spurts and towards the end.
Visuals: Stunning. Colorful. Confusing. It's almost anachronistic. You don't quite know what timeline you are in but it doesn't matter because it, in and of itself, is fun to see.
Acting: Emma Stone's performance is top tier in this film. She essentially plays three different roles in the span of the film. Plenty of sensible chuckles throughout. As far as the performances go, I have no complaints.
Conclusion: After the film ended, and we endured nearly two hours of sex scenes, archaic surgical procedures and a pig-headed chicken... I said to myself "what in the actual F * * K did I just watch?" It was not what I hoped it would be, but it wasn't terrible. It was good, but very weird. This is one of those films where the previews were probably the best part of the film because the rest of it cannot be shown on television.
Disclaimer: I am a Xennial who doesn't care for musicals.
It was a good reboot for the current generation. The cast is very talented in both acting and singing. It is essentially the 2004 Mean Girls with a few difference for the present day culture (social media, cell phones, etc...).
As a person in their 40s, I prefer the original film but that does not mean this version is better or worse. I just relate more to the original.
As someone who is new to the Dune franchise, this was certainly a spectacle to behold.
Was it better than Part One? I would say definitely yes. It's only March and this will be the best Sci-Fi film of the year. I look forward to the careers this young cast will have and the amazing stories they will tell.
"What are your chances of getting out of here with that jacket on?"
"Better than average."
I love Ant-Man. I love the OG cast. I love the concept.
However... The charm that came with the first two installments is gone. What makes Ant-Man so good is the "fish out of water" aspect of an ex-con who has lost everything, suddenly becoming a super hero and redeeming himself... while kicking some ass. We are also missing Michael Peña and his narrative cut scenes. I loved those dog!
Just like with Thor: Love and Thunder, we are telling more of a story that has already been told. It adds nothing to the greater MCU. We have some of the same, tired old villians (M.O.D.O.K) who somehow are forced into relevancy, (as someone else here said) "in a Rick and Morty" kind of way. Don't get me wrong, I love Rick and Morty, but I this is not R&M, it's Marvel. The only interesting thing we get is a summation of what Janet did during her 30 years in the Quantum Realm, which we really didn't need to know anyways.
Unfortunately, Quantumania is another victim of a film made after Endgame where we all were content with how things ended.
Wanna play a game? Drink every time a goat screams. This felt like and action film trying to be a comedy or a comedy trying to be an action film. It's hard to tell at times. You move from overplayed joke to tragic cancer story back to the same joke then some ass kicking... It is a bit too nutty at times. But... it is fun. Being less than 2 hours long, it probably could have been even shorter. The last 30 minutes is what saves it.
I've been re-watching the entire MCU in chronological order and aside from Guardians and Spider-Man, the MCU was done after Endgame. Everything after is just filler. Perhaps these films made during COVID suffered because of the pandemic. Thor: Love and Thunder doesn't fill any gaps from the previous films, but rather adds to a story that was already told.
With the next phases coming up, we shall see if the MCU dies a hero, or lives long enough to become yet another over-saturated collection of films.
I will say that the runtime really scared me. It's hard to sit through 3.5 hours, even at home but this movie flows really well and even though we had to invent our own intermission, it did not feel like it was terribly long. The ending seemed a bit rushed though which is my only real complaint. It is a tragic story told by some of the best Hollywood has to offer.
I got bored and I couldn't finish it. The only reason this is tied in to the MCU is because Thanos is mentioned once or twice. If I didn't already know, I wouldn't call this an MCU film.
A truly original classic and a yearly tradition on this, the 2nd day of February.
Drink every time you hear the word "hard drive" and you will be drunk enough to enjoy this movie.
I had the pleasure of watching this during the original release in a "4D" theater (one where the seats move). I had no knowledge of the GotG at the time but was a fan of Chris Pratt from P&R. This is hands down my favorite MCU film and one of my top 20. After the MCU phases were baked in a little more and a timeline was clearer, the story makes more sense after all these years but even in 2014, it was a hell of a ride (literally).
Do you have a favorite character, or are you like me and enjoy the entire main cast for different reasons? That's what makes this movie.
