Set in the fictional country of Foland, Ubu, a poor drunkard, seeks change in his countries Monarchy. Executing a plan with his conniving wife, Ubu overthrows the nobility and becomes the leader of his country, announcing democracy for all. Ubu becomes too interested in greed and power, leading to the country suffering even more than before. Piotr Szulkin's 'King Ubu' is a complex, politically-pointed farce critical of Poland's government. I'd be lying if I said I grasped all the ideas and commentary which the film offers, but this is an expertly done, highly enjoyable, farce nonetheless. Based off a famous polish play, the film is shot in a very open, stage-like style, where Sulzkin's camera free-flows around the characters and the action. The film has a few musical numbers and the staging and visual design of the film is just breathtaking, filling the frame in almost every shot. It's a dingy, dirty setting where corrupted politicians, foreign influences, human greed, and poverty greatly influence this so-called democracy, making it no better than the same authoritarian society which existed beforehand. Full of absurdest humor and outlandish, yet demented performances, "King Ubu' is a fascinating farce which glows in its childishly bawdy production design, and light, yet directed tone. I have a feeling I would love this even more if I knew more about the politics in Poland. Not a good place to start for Piotr Szulkin. 8/10
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A computer engineer and his lingerie model girlfriend are forced to fight off legions of malicious birds who descend upon a small coast town with the sole purpose is destruction. What started off as a simple vacation between the couple becomes a battle for the sake of humanity. 'Birdemic' is another entry in the extremely low-budget, 'so bad it's good' genre. Everything about this film is terrible, the insanely dull acting, laughable script, and incredibly shitty special effects all are very amusing in their dreadfulness. This is the type of film that would be perfect to watch with a bunch of buddies and some brew, though, sadly it's actually kinda boring. The filmmaker behind this travesty has a geniune sincerity for the material, which comes off as both hysterical and insulting. Too bad the film takes so much on its little character development, to the point that most of film's bird apocalypse sequences come off rather stale and uninspiring. It seems that James Nguyen's purpose was to create a film that informs about the harms of polluting our environment, as the film has many random characters which appear to simply portray a monologue about such "Green issues" only to die soon after. While it definitely has its amusing bits, and I could imagine this film being far more fun in a group setting, I certaintly can't recommend you watch this film alone, as the novelty wears off before the Bird attacks even begin. 5.5/10 From the opening sequence of her debut feature 'The Unloved', it's clear that Samantha Morton is confident in her direction - throwing the viewer into the world of this young girl Lucy, who comes from a home of neglect and abuse. No clear narrative, Morton bravely forces the viewer into the mindset of this little girl, unsure and unaware of the details surrounding why she is forced into a foster home, not knowing why she can't live with her mother. Visually the film is very reminiscent of Lynn Ramsey's Ratcatcher more so than the ultra-realist style of Ken Loach, using expressive visual techniques to convey mood, though this film is far more about innocence than guilt. Morton understands that less is more, using image over dialogue to tell the story as much as possible. One clear example being the relationship that forms between Lauren, a rebellious roommate in foster care, who Lucy looks to as a figure of guidance. When they first go out together, Morton simply uses the distance between the two of them, sitting on the bus, showing how it shrinks both figuratively and emotionally as they spend more time together. Morton also uses a lot of christian symbolism, relaying the hopeful spirit of Lucy, a young woman whose in bleak circumstances. While being atmospheric, sensible and a poignant tale of young Lucy's struggles, the film never cowers to manipulative means to make the audience feel for Lucy. Her father and mother are never portrayed as "evil monsters" but are merly shown through Lucy's point of view, as lost souls whose issues with temperament, commitment, and anger are almost equally as tragic. The type of scathing commentary usually associated with films about Foster Care is mostly absent, as the film never wavers from its intricate portrait of Lucy. 'The Unloved' never breaks from Lucy's point of view, creating an incredibly sharp, sensitive portrait of a young woman forced to live in the foster care system of the UK. 9.5/10 Merida, a skilled archer, and daughter to the King and Queen, is determined to live her own life. Her mother, Queen Elinor, wants her to take part in the age-old custom where she marries one of her willing suitors. Determined to carve her own path, her actions inadvertently unleash chaos on the kingdom, causing young Merida to learn a valuable lesson about true bravery and sacrifice. Pixar's latest effort 'Brave' feels far more like a typical Disney storyline than one has come to expect from the Pixar people. It's a redemption story about a strong, but somewhat selfish young girl who comes to learn a lot when forced to face the demons she herself has created. One thing to always expect from Pixar is some fantastic visuals and this film is no different, showcasing gorgeous landscapes with livid textures. A few times I even had to remind myself that I was watching an animated film, as some of the landscapes and backgrounds looked incredibly realistic. The story is totally serviceable, with the bad guy vaguely reminded me of G'Mork, the wolf like creature from The Neverending Story, which was awesome. I call it serviceable because there was a lot of things which the film could have explored more, opting instead to focus on this ho-hum narrative. Never getting very invested in the emotional journey of the character, this is a solid film but not one of Pixar's best. 7/10 The untold story of how before becoming the incredibly influential president, Abraham Lincoln was secretly a vampire hunter who slayed the undead. Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter is obviously a silly concept, but the film actually does a great job at injecting this story into the landscape of American history. The story unfolds in Lincoln's early years, leading up to the end of the Civil War. It's kinda funny how the film makes it out that most confederate soldiers were in fact vampires, with the civil war actually being more about the battle for humanity than a war between the north and the south. I personally had no idea that vampires were racist. Timur Bekmambetov's penchant for highly stylized violence is in full effect, having quite a few exciting, kinetic action set pieces. Although the film does a good job of interweaving this fictional story into American history, the film never feels as particularly heavy as it should have been. The film clearly was going for a serious tone, and given the stakes, I never really cared for much of the dramatic material- just waiting for the next fun action set piece. 6.25/10 The introduction of the humans as the main enemy, viewing lycans and vampires as diseased individuals who must be killed so the virus doesn't spread is a fun angle but it really does nothing to stop this entry from being a generic b-movie storyline, especially considering the fact that this new angle they introduced is barely involved in the narrative. The thing is that I don't see these movies for plot or gripping narrative, so Underworld Awakenings delivers on some solid fight choreography, while being loaded with action with a nice side of graphic violence. The problem here is that the special effects are pretty terrible at times. Harsh? Maybe cause I was watching on Blu-ray, though essentially anytime the effects aren't of the practical variety, I was taken out of the it a bit. The one exception being the gigantic werewolf and some of the transformation stuff. If you liked the sequels of Underworld, you should find this enjoyable for what it is, nothing very exciting but an entertaining enough way to waste 80 minutes. 5/10 While Bustillo & Maury's first film 'Inside', was a simple, grotesque and ultimately horrific slasher flick, the directing duo's follow-up effort, "Livid' is a much more ambitious, dark fairy tale. The story of Lucie, a woman still struggling to adjust to life after her mother's suicide. She begins a job as a young caretaker, leading her to an old, desolate mansion where Madame Jessel, a comatose, former ballet instructure lies in a coma. After learning that this mansion apparently houses vast priceless treasure, Lucy is convinced by her boyfriend to break into the mansion on Halloween night, which of course leads them on a dark path of horrific discovery. While the story of "Livid' is a bit convoluted, the film is wildly ambitious and inventive in creating a tale that combines vampire mythos, fairytale surrealism, some spooky macabre to create a creepy, fascinating horror film. While 'Inside' relied more of pure tension and ultra-violence, Livid is a film that relies much more on mystery and atmosphere to create this dark, creepy tale. The film doesn't spend much time on narrative, as the viewer must pick things up as they go along, but it's ultimately what one would hope for from a horror film delivering a creepy, inventive, supernatural horror story. 7.5/10 Fred, a toy company executive, feels alienated by his wife (Joahn Bennett) and kids who essentially take advantage of his good-natured demeanor. While on a business trip, Fred bumps into his old flame Norma (Barbara Stanwyck), and the two spend the weekend catching up. Eventually Fred begins to fall back in love with Norma, a woman who shows him more affection and attention than his wife or kids seem to. Douglas Sirk, the master of the melodrama, creates another fantastic film with "There's Always Tomorrow". I don't think I have ever seen a film that takes a more mature, intellectual look into adultry. The moral dilemma is throughly examined, while never beeing biased or leading towards one side of the issue. Sirk shows how things can escalate when a man feels under-appreciated and a very lonely mental state, even when he is happily married with three children. Fred has needs and desires of his own, feeling trapped in a family unit with no time to be adventurous with his wife, no way to fuel the passion. Nothing is black and white in this film, but Sirk loves to explore the gray area playing with perception vs. reality,exploring every character's perspective from Fred and Norma, to Fred's son Vinnie, who is the first to suspect his father is cheating. As great as how the story unfolds, the exquisite compositions, framing and stylish camera movements really elevate the film to another level. Everything feels incredibly thought out and designed to tell the story not only through the story, but visually as well. I love how the family portrait is strategically placed in certain shots, the camera lingering on it in others, iliciiting the stakes of this potential adulterious relationship. The deeper I explore Douglas Sirk's filmography, the clearer it becomes that he was one of the master storytellers. 9/10 A meticulously punctual headmaster of an English school is off to the Headmaster's Conference. While there he will deliver the keynote speech, which he views to be incredibly important. On his way, he accidentally boards the wrong train, the first of a chain reaction of inconveniences and snafoos which conspire to keep him from reaching the conference on time. 'Clockwise' is a fun, charming farce starring John Cleese as this incredibly meticulous man. It's essentially the John Cleese show, which is not a bad thing by any means, as he plays this type of uptight snobbish character so perfectly that it's hard to imagine anyone else in this role. He's a man that wants to control every aspect of his life, even the things which he cannot, and this film really captures how such forces of the universe can arise, halting any man. While there is nothing incredibly profound about 'Clockwork', there is a surprisingly reflective aspect to the film, even becoming philosophical at points, but never to the point where it could jeopardize the farce comedic aspects of the film. If you are a fan of John Cleese and haven't seen this film, make it a priority. 7.5/10 A mob boss, out-on-bail, discovers that $500,000 of his money is missing. He sends four thugs out to find the suspected thieves and their families, as well as send a message, "loud and messy" he proclaims. After the hitmen murder a few of possible theives, they arrive at the Rutledge home, where they discover the household's emotionally disturbed boy, who gives them more trouble then they could possibly imagine. Steven C. Miller's 'The Aggression Scale' is essentially Home Alone on steroids. The young boy is like Macgyver when it comes to ways to defend himself and inflict pain on the thugs who are trying to hurt his family. While it's a rather inventive spin on the typical genre, the film doesn't bring anything incredibly special to the table beyond the premise. That being said, if you like violent horror type fare in the same vein as 'The Strangers' or 'Ils', The Aggression Scale definitely delivers. It's a pretty brutal flick that doesn't shy away from realistic violence that is both unnerving and a lot of fun. The script has far too much exposition in the dialogue, but I really didn't mind it that much cause of the joy I had watching a 12 year old kid in full on Rambo-mode. Don't get me wrong this could have been even better, but it's definitely worth your time if you're a fan of the genre. 6.5/10 |
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June 2023
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