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[moviesnmisc]

Hellboy (2019)

Directed by Neil Marshall

This movie has received a lot of bad criticism so I decided to see it for myself and make up my own opinion.

The story is detached from the original movie by Guillermo Del Toro and there is a whole new cast. This time Hellboy squares off against an immortal female Dracula and must again defend humans against supernatural beings and demons and prevent the end of the world.

In contrast from what I have read the new hellboy actor (David Harbour) does a great job and does the character justice. The story is by enlarge fairly good. The only thing that is slightly worse than the original hellboy movies are the special effects which at times seems to originate from the mid 1990s.

Verdict: Not as awful as some have deemed it to be. An ok story and a great cast of actors means that it gets⭐⭐⭐⭐ stars out of six.

[moviesnmisc]

Last Christmas (2019)

Directed by Paul Feig

There is sort of a tradition of an English romantic movie every christmas. Without giving away the central plot of the movie, it sort of follows the British formula of making a romantic movie, which means a central story of boy meets girl and quirky friends and family who lends a comedic flavour to the movie.

This has been the formula since the movie 4 weddings and a funeral. The central character played by Emilia Clarke is funny and quirky, however the stories about her employer and family is not that engaging. Furthermore, by trying to make the story contemporary the script writers suggest that Brexiteers are racist and that may alianate a few people who are able to think rational.

Verdict: the central romantic story is great but all the rest subtracts from what could have been a great movie. It gets ⭐⭐⭐ stars out of six.

[moviesnmisc]

Straight Outta Compton (2015)

A movie about the highly influential band NWA Directed by F. Gary Grey

This is a biopic and there is a subtle difference between a biopic and a documentary. In a biopic it is not unusual that some of the main characters portrayed in the movie are also involved in the production of the movie and that poses a slight problem. For instance in the movie Bohemian Rhapsody some of the band members in Queen was deeply involved in the production of the movie and therefore they were portrayed in the movie as unflawed and almost saintly.

Band members of NWA, Ice Cube and Dr Dree were involved in the production of the movie and they are almost portrayed as saintly. Moreover, their manager Jerry Heller is portrayed as the villain and that might be the case. It is not unheard of that a manager takes advantage of a music group but this is not a documentary but some band members view of the past, and so they might have a beef with their former manager.

The story is perhaps more engaging to fans of NWA, gangsta rap or those who are close to that environment. Nevertheless, the movie and actors manages to give a clear picture of the motivation of the different band members and those people who were close to them. The title is clever because some of the band members and associates wanted to escape Compton whereas some never could leave. A very powerful moment was the sad passing of band member Eazy E.

The movie deserves ⭐⭐⭐⭐ stars out of six.

[moviesnmisc]

The Joker (2019)

This movie is directed by Todd Phillips and is starring Joaquin Phoenix in the titular role.

It was listed at my local cinema as a horror movie. However, it is so different to other movies that it is difficult to put in a specific category. There is an element of horror but it could just as well be categorised as a tragedy or a superhero movie.

The story is essentially an origin story about one of the main villains in the Batman universe i.e. the Joker, and it tries to give an explanation as to how the Joker became the Joker.

It is based in Gotham City but it could just as well be New York city. At times it is deeply disturbing to watch because as a viewer you get an understanding as to how society and people destroys the soul of Arthur Fleck (the Joker) and how he descends into madness.

I wanted to give it four stars but because of the scene of death by refrigerator, I will give it one more star. So it gets ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ stars out of six.

[moviesnmisc]

Logan Lucky

A movie from 2017 directed by Steven Soderbergh.

This is I suppose a comedic heist movie. The main character Jimmy Logan (Channing Tatum) is as the rest of his family pretty unlucky in terms of his career and marriage but wants to change his luck by robbing the nascar organisation with the help of his family and a fellow criminal Joe Bang (Daniel Craig) during a nascar race.

The southern US backdrop, in terms of the mannerism and dialect, is supposed to lend the movie a comedic twist I think but I don't know how successful this is, maybe it is more funny to an American (northern).

There was one truly moving moment when I was attacked by ninja onions and that was when Logans daughter sang a song by John Denver during a beauty pageant.

Although the comedic elements only gave me a smile and not a laugh I still liked the movie not at least because of the excellent actors I.e. Adam Driver, Riley Keough, Dwight Youkum among others.

Steven Soderbergh maintains a consistent high level and the movie deserves ⭐⭐⭐⭐ stars out of six.

[moviesnmisc]

Operation Valkyrie

Movie directed by Bryan Singer 2008

When I saw it I did not know it was this old. Nevertheless, after seeing Dunkirk which was an ok movie but not a great one, I remembered this one.

As with Dunkirk I knew the story beforehand. It is of course a story about a botched attempt of assassinating Hitler in the latter years of World War 2, an attempt lead by the German colonel Stauffenberg played by Tom Cruise.

Although the story is well known Bryan Singer manages to lend a feeling of suspense to the story not at least aided by a very competent slew of actors including Bill Neighy, Terence Stamp, Kenneth Branagh, Tom Wilkinson, Eddie Izzard etc. Tom Cruise is no method actor but he really as usual delivers a solid performance. It is really engaging to see the events that leads up to the assasination and what follows.

The movie deserves ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ stars out of six.

[moviesnmisc]

Dunkirk

Movie directed by Christopher Nolan in 2017.

The movie tells the story about the British troops that we're stranded on the beach of Dunkirk in France during world war two and the rescue of these troops.

Must admit that I had high expectations before I started to see the movie because Christopher Nolan is an A list director and surely there is a lot of positive things to say about the movie.

First of all, the movie scenes are flawless. The images of world war 2 with the uniforms, the beaches and the military equipment seems to be depicted really authentic. Secondly, the dialogue and acting is flawless.

Unfortunaly, the story is not that engaging. Maybe it is because I knew what it was all about before I saw the movie just like before I saw the movie Titanic and the movie does really not add anything new to the story of Dunkirk.

The movie gets ⭐⭐⭐ stars out of six.

[moviesnmisc]

Pain and Glory (Dolor y Gloria)

A film by Pedro Almodovar released 2019

This movie is about a movie director who is getting older and is struggling with heroine addiction, illness and subsequently the will to keep making movies.

I am still looking for that magic movement when I saw his 2002 movie "Talk to Her". Let me just start out by saying this is not it.

It has a distinct Almodovar flavor i.e. a colourful setting (the apartment), people who are facing some sort of personal crisis, which in this case is the main character played by Antonio Banderas and a meta movement when you see Banderas directing a sequence which was part of the movie.

I get it, the theme in the movie is not a biography of the life of Almodovar but it seems like he has used some of himself and his experiences in the movie as a director. I just miss that magic touch. Nevertheless although I was not fully engaged in the movie I was never bored so it gets ⭐⭐⭐ stars out of six. (30/9-19)

[moviesnmisc]

Holmes and Watson

This movie is from 2018 and directed by Etan Cohen starring Will Ferrell as Holmes and John C. Reilly as Watson as well as a slew of English actors.

It is a comedy about the Sherlock Holmes and Doctor Watson characters originally invented by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. It is a rollercoaster of gags with a very thin story involving the Arch enemy of Sherlock Holmes Dr Moriarty.

To be honest I was very skeptical before I started to see this movie. There have been a ton of Sherlock Holmes movies which have been done before both serious one's and comedies.

However, my skepticism was unfounded and I thoroughly enjoyed this movie. Many movies have a comedic element but a pure comedy is one of the most difficult genres to master. Both Reilly and Ferrell does a tremendous job. Therefore the movie deserves ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ stars out of six. (28/9-19)

[moviesnmisc]

TUSK

This is a movie directed and scripted by Kevin Smith in 2014. The movie begins with showing two people Wallace Bryton (Justin Long) and Teddy Craft (Haley Joel Osmond) who host a pod cast which is called the nosee show (a pun of the word nazi). Essentially one of the hosts travels across the USA and Canada and interviews weird and wonderful people. The other one stays at home and they pod cast together based upon these interviews. The story unfolds from here but telling the whole plot will spoil the movie experience. Let's just say that a surprise waits for Wallace Bryton during one of the interviews and it is a horror movie.

It has been a long time since I have last seen a movie by Kevin Smith but I will not hesitate to say that this is the best movie I have seen from his hand thus far. Although all the actors deliver a solid performance, Michael Parks really stands out as the enigmatic character Howard Howe.

The movie receives ⭐⭐⭐⭐ stars out of six.

[moviesnmisc]

Everybody wants to go to heaven. But nobody wants to die

A song by Loretta Lynn but prefers Albert King's rendition.

You die twice. Once when you take your last breath and second when no one remembers your name.

Origins unknown.

[moviesnmisc]

Hell is other people

Jean-Paul Sartre

[moviesnmisc]

To see a World in a Grain of Sand

And a Heaven in a Wild Flower,

Hold Infinity in the palm of your hand,

And Eternity in an hour.

He who shall train the Horse to War

Shall never pass the Polar Bar.

A truth that's told with bad intent

Beats all the Lies you can invent.

It is right it should be so

Man was made for Joy & Woe;

And when this we rightly know,

Thro' the World we safely go.

He who replies to words of Doubt

Doth put the Light of Knowledge out.

The Strongest Poison ever known

Came from Caesar's Laurel Crown.

Every Night & every Morn

Some to Misery are Born,

Every Morn & every Night

Some are Born to sweet Delight.

Some are Born to sweet Delight,

Some are Born to Endless Night.

God Appears & God is Light,

To those poor Souls who dwell in the Night;

But does a Human Form Display

To those who Dwell in Realms of day.

Excerpt from Auguries of Innocence by William Blake (published 1863)

[moviesnmisc]

Too much or too little service

I decided to join a gym. A very enthusiastic young lady wanted my contact information and proceeded to call me by my first name. I thought at the moment it was a bit too intimate for my taste. Anyway, when I later on saw her again in the gym it was if I had ceased to exist . Strange!!! In conclusion a little distance without getting too formal is what I desire when I require some kind of service in the future. Don't address me by my first name I don't know you imaginary future service provider.

[moviesnmisc]

The Decline of the Grand Nation

Lately, there has been some unrest in France especially with the "yellow vest" movement. Underneath the protests and subsequent violence which almost always occurs when there are yellow vest demonstrations there is an important issue which hardly gets any attention since the focus is mainly on the clash between the police and the demonstrators.

If we go back to the French revolution, it was a rebellion against a failed state (a monarchy) that failed to satisfy the basic needs of its citizens. The monarchy was overthrown and the republic was formed with the slogan liberty equality and fraternity (liberate, egalite, fraternite).

Today especially for the working class the principles on which the republic is founded sounds more and more hollow. Not at least because the gap between the rich and the working class seems to become wider and wider. Globalism and the EU has contributed to this gap, where employers can move jobs to countries where the wages are low which has contributed to mass unemployment in France. Moreover, with the aid of the EU the workers have been pitted against each other with some stiff competition from immigrants from Eastern Europe and outside Europe who are willing to work for less money and as a result it has become more and more difficult to sustain a basic existence of living in France, meaning that the there is hardly any increase in wages anymore to keep up with inflation, basic cost of living, or cost of housing.

Furthermore, in the large inner cities in Europe it is almost impossible to sustain a living on a basic salary because the rent for an apartment, for instance, has sky rocketed because of more affluent tenants moving in and because rental apartments either undergows a renovation which raises the monthly rent, or they are being converted to condominiums. Also with a large influx of migrants and not enough housing this also makes apartments more expensive.

Another problem which threatens the cohesiveness of the French society is the massive influx of immigrants/refugees from mostly Muslim countries outside Europe. As with other European countries, there have been efforts to try and integrate these migrants into society. However, this effort has by enlarge failed. And it is due to several factors. There is no consensus on what it means to be integrated. Some think it is enough to work and speak the language, others point towards ideas like accepting human rights or Christian values. Furthermore, because of the massive influx of migrants some migrants never really has a steady job and some are mostly unemployed which means a loss of status in their community and family. Other immigrants and descendants of immigrants/refugees have no intention of giving up their own culture and are holding on to their own values. These factors have created different enclaves in French society such as rich enclaves, poor/working-class enclaves or Muslim enclaves.

France has never been a nation of equal people it has always been like other nations a nation divided in different classes but previously there were some commonalities like for instance a strong catholic church and Christian values as well as a public school system where different classes would meet. These common denominators were instrumental in bridging the gap between the different groups in society, but today the catholic church doesn't appeal to the masses anymore, and the children of the wealthy or middle-class people are being enrolled into private schools. According to Allan Finkielkraut "The fire in Notre Same wasn't an attack or an accident it was a suicide attempt."

Why is this important? It is important because this is happening in most of the western countries in Europe and it does not only affect the disenfranchised people when a nation becomes unstable it effects all groups in society. Also it is always a chock for the elite when the "forgotten" people (the working class or poor people) exercises their right and elects a Donald Trump as president or chooses a Brexit. The Elite can't understand this and talks down to these people implying that they are not that clever and really don't understand what is going or that it is simply because they are not well enough informed about how the world works. According to the elite the EU, globalism and human rights are wonderful and are not to be questioned.

[moviesnmisc]

The Best Sci-fi movies

In no particular order

1. Predator 2. Stephen Hopkins (1990)

2. Aliens. James Cameron (1986)

3. District 9. Neill Blomkamp (2009)

4. Moon. Duncan Jones (2009)

5. Starwars, the empire strikes back. Irvin Kershner (1980)

6. The Day the Earth Stood Still. Robert Wise (1951)

7. Interstellar. Christopher Nolan (2014)

8. The Thing. John Carpenter (1982)

9. 12 Monkeys. Terry Gilliams (1995)

10. Robocop 1. Paul Verhoeven (1987)

11. Guardians of the Galaxy. James Gunn (2014)

12. Dark City. Alex Proyas (1998)

13. Gattica. Andrew Niccol (1997)

14. Edge of Tomorrow. Doug Liman (2014)

15. Moon 44. Roland Emmerich (1990)

16. Species. Roger Donaldson (1995)

17. Iron man. Jon Favreau (2008)

18. The Fifth Element. Luc Beson (1997)

19. Oblivion. Joseph Kosinski (2013)

20. Skyline. Brothers Strause (2010)

21. Planet of the Apes. Franklin J. Schaffner (1968)

22. Invasion of the Body Snatchers Philip Kaufman (1978)

23. They Live. John Carpenter (1988)

24. Fantastic Voyage. Richard Fleischer (1966)

25. Alien Nation. Graham Baker (1988)

26. Split Second. Tony Maylam (1992)

27. The Matrix 1. the Wachowskis (1999)

28. Dredd. Pete Travis (2012)

29. Westworld. Michael Chrichton (1973)

30. Operation Capricorn. Peter Hyams (1978)

31. Attack the Block. Joe Cornish (2011)

32. Galaxy Quest. Dean Parisot (1999)

33. Men in Black. Barry Sonnenfeld (1997)

34. Dream Catcher. Lawrence Kasdan (2003)

35. Aliens 3. David Fincher (1992)

36. Aliens 4. Jean-Pierre Jeunot (1997)

37. Signs. M. Night Shaymalan (2002)

38 Contact. Robert Zemeckis (1997)

39. Starship troopers. Paul Verhoeven (1997)

40. Blade runner. Ridley Scott (1982)

41. Dune. David Lynch (1984)

42. Life Force. Tobe Hooper (1985)

43. Outland. Peter Hyams (1981)

44. Dead Zone. David Cronenberg (1983)

45. The Last Starfighter. Nick Castle (1984)

46. Innerspace. Joe Dante (1987)

47. Screamers. Christian Duguay (1995)

48. Stargate. Roland Emmerich (1997)

49. Pacific Rim. Guillermo Del Toro (2013)

50. The Black Hole. Gary Nelson (1979)

51. Rollerball. Norman Jewison (1975)

52. Zardoz. John Boorman (1974)

53. Fahrenheit 451. Francois Truffaut (1966)

54. Robocop 2. Irvin Kershner (1990)

55. Solaris. Andrei Tarkovsky (1976)

56. 2006 a Space Odessey. Stanley Kubrick (1968)

57. The Terminator. James Cameron (1984)

58. Tron. Steven Lisberger (1981)

59. Timeline. Richard Donner (2003)

60. Imposter. Gary Fleder (2002)

61. Time after Time. Nicholas Meyer (1979)

[moviesnmisc]

The Best Non American Movies

In no particular order

1. Gegen die Wand. Fatih Akin (Germany 2004)

2. Stalingrad. Joseph Vilsmeier (Germany 1993)

3. The Swimmingpool. Francois Ozon (France 2003)

4. Rec II. Jaume Belagueroe (Spain 2009)

5. Juan de Los Muertos (Juan of the Dead). Alejandro Brugues (Cuba/Spain 2010)

6. Martyrs. Pascal Laguir (France 2008)

7. Pans Labyrinth (El Laberinta del Fauno). Guillermo Del Toro (Mexico/Spain 2008)

8. M. Fritz Lang (Germany 1931)

9. Alexander Nevskij. Sergei Eisenstein (Soviet Union/Russia 1938)

10. Spirited Away. Hayao Miyazaki (Japan 2001)

11. The Trollhunters (Troldjægeren). Andre Øvredal (Norway 2010)

12. Jules et Jim. Francois Truffaut (1962 France)

13. Solaris. Andrei Tarkovsky. (Soviet Union/Russis 1972).

14. Let the right one in (Låt den rätte komma in). Thomas Alfredson (Sweden 2008)

15. Talk to Her. Pedro Almodovar (Spain 2002)

16. Amelie. Jean Pierre Jeunot (France 2001)

17. Delicatessen. Marc Caro and Jean Pierre Jeunot (France 1991)

18. Siege of the dead. Marvin Kren (Germany 2010)

19. Oldboy. Chan Wook Park (South Korea 2003)

20. Jægerne. Kjell Sundvall (The Hunters, Sweden 1996)

21. Pusher. Nicholas Winding Refn (Denmark 1996)

22. Great Expectations. David Lean (UK 1946)

23. La Vitae est Bella (Life is Beautiful) . Roberto Benigni (Italy 1997)

24. Intouchables. Oliver Nakache, Eric Toledano (France 2011)

25. Queimada. Gillo Pontocorvo (Italy/France 1969)

26. The Remains of the Day. James Ivory (UK/USA 1993)

27. The Good, the Bad and the Ugly. Sergio Leone (Italy 1969)

28. Waterloo. Sergei Bondarchuk (Italy/USSR 1970)

29. Under Solen. Colin Nutley (Under the Sun, Sweden 1998)

30. Das Boot. Wolfgang Petersen (Germany 1981)

31. Shaun of the Dead. Edgar Wright (UK 2004)

32. Once Upon a Time In the West. Sergio Leone (Italy/USA 1968)

33. My Life as a Dog (Mit liv som hund). Lasse Hallström (Sweden 1995)

34. Zappa. Bille August (Denmark 1983)

Granted some of the movies have been made with US finances/actors but most movies are cross country colloborations.