#czech movie review

[stromuprisahat]

Shadow and Bone season 2 review*

When the good guys kill people, it's Cool™. When the baddies kill people, it's EVIL! You can tell who is who by what the creators say in interviews…

This is what it looks like when incompetent screenwriters get their hands on an average book. Eight hours of action and embarrassing speeches, which - according to many reactions - successfully diverts attention from the psychopathically one-dimensional characters and primitive plot, possessing the naiveté of the first grade of elementary school. (You can recognize the good guys by the fact that they all know each other and like each other terribly.)

While the worldbuilding was only touched upon in the previous season, now they simply don't give a fuck about any of that. You learn all the necessary information five minutes before use, usually by lucky chance. Which, of course, doesn't matter, because the viewer is not expected to remember any of it, or perhaps to draw their own conclusions, not pre-chewed by one of the "heroes".

The book!Grishaverse introduced a caste of wizards physically dependent on their abilities, hated worldwide and persecuted for their "unnaturalness". The creators of the series dropped practically everything that distinguishes Grisha from dime a dozen fantasy mages, including the socio-political situation. They are left with a few random mentions, usually by the villain, who seems to live in a completely different reality than the one presented to the viewer.

If in the book fandom I encountered the observation that the world of Grisha is presented in a surprisingly anti-Grisha way, the second season of the show seems like pure propaganda of the ruling regime.

Are you different? Then cease being so… or perish!

#aleksander was completely right #the darkling was a general and acting like one #the darkling for the main character movement

* Yes, it took me over half a year only to translate this, why do you ask?!

[livvyofthelake]

i don’t mean this to sound homophobic or whatever but some queer people literally cannot conceptualize that they actively look down on things they consider “basic” or “straight” with an insane level of contempt no matter how much they say they support everyone and everything. like. if i tell you i love riverdale because it’s campy and fun and you give me that look of disgust because you perceive riverdale as some basic lame straight people show. that’s not very like. nice. and then you refuse to hear me out in my show’s defense… and you just wave me off with a “whatever like whatever you like” but you’re still looking at me like i’ve just ordered a pumpkin spice latte while wearing ugg boots and listening to taylor swift. like at a certain point when will you admit you’re not actually very nice about people’s interests that don’t align with yours.

[filmgamer]

Dune 2, Kung Fu Panda 4, Glen Powell and PS5 Pro: Podcast: S3 E.13

You can also listen on Spotify: Listen on Apple Podcasts: (https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/2une-down-those-kung-fu-panda-4-reviews-and-ps5-pro-rumours/id1630483024?i=1000648361383)

[meydia]

🎥 FOOD (1992)

11 Nov 2022 | Day 4/∞: Food (1992) - Jan Švankmajer Trigger warnings: cannibalism, auto-cannibalism, light body horror

Had a hugely busy day, so I watched a short film by Jan Švankmajer, a renowned surrealist, stop-motion Czech filmmaker. You can watch the video yourself above. This is a three-part short film, each of which I will discuss below. This is apparently a dissection of Czech life in a newly modern and capitalist society post-Velvet Revolution, which saw a non-violent transition from Communist rule, though some also claim it is a critique of food rationing in the USSR. Švankmajer's cinematography is beautiful and unsettling and his stop-motion skills are admirable - the entire film is live action but stop motion, lending an unsettling tableau-like quality to every scene. Real eye candy! His other stuff is definitely going on my to-watch list.

Onto the feast!

Breakfast follows two people who sit at a table. One appears to be a mechanical automaton with instructions hung around their neck. The other prods and enacts violence upon the other as if they were truly a machine, causing their stomach cavity to open, revealing an ascending dumbwaiter containing the least appetising meal I have ever seen (mustard, a hotdog and some bread).

It's eventually revealed that after each person consumes the meal, they become the automaton - and the previous machine regains their humanity and leaves. The final person leaves to reveal a long line of people waiting to get their meals this way. Perhaps this is a critique of the food system, whereby people exploit each other in order to receive food. It could reflect the rationing of food via tickets. Or maybe it's a reflection of a capitalistic society where we dehumanise workers to the services and goods they provide us (I'm thinking of people who treat waiters shittily).

For lunch, two people sit at a table together - one, on the left, is cultured and seemingly rich. The other is dishevelled and seems financially worse off. They both fail to catch the attention of their waiter, someone who zooms around like a machine, completely disregarding them. They fall prey to hunger. They begin to eat everything on the table, their own clothes, and eventually eat the table and their own chairs.

Throughout it all, the poor man attempts to emulate the rich man - and yet the rich man becomes less and less cultured in his hunger. Ultimately, they eat their cutlery, only for the rich man to reveal his deception - he regurgitates the cutlery, then, it is implied, cannibalises the poor man. If this isn't a commentary on class dynamics I don't know what it is, man. The waiter may represent a society that doesn't care, or a government that fails to address hunger and greed in its population.

Dinner is perhaps the most straightforward, showing people eating essential parts of themselves after much seasoning - the first man cuts off his hand and removes his wedding ring. The second is a runner who eats his own leg, then a woman who eats her own breasts. Lastly a man eats his own dick. Crazy! Something something greed and hunger in a capitalistic society makes you lose yourself / harm yourself in many ways. Sometimes literally!

Sometimes you're just hungry I guess!!! Maybe Buddhism is the way guys.

(PS: This reminds me strongly of Hylics in the transmutation of objects to different forms: everything, in a sense, to food, and the automation of human beings. Hylics, on the other hand, makes everything the same in different, beautifully sculpted shapes. Still need to finish it!)

[aokuro-san]

I took advantage of this little time to finish watching this movie. And wow! Why not recommend it more? IKARIE XB 1 is very stylish! And comfortable…💗🩹 A work of art in all its aspects, as some say (and I support it).

Another Czech film that leaves a good taste in my mouth.

[movie--posters]

Taxi 121

2016 (Czech)

I watched this at random and ended up liking it, it follows a taxi driver in Prague as the city is being plagued by a serial killer who murders taxi drivers. Based on real events, the story builds as Matej, the main character, picks up different passengers and thinks about his girlfriend and their attempt to have a child. The humanization of Matej and his girlfriend and the general, every man quality and likability of his character is finally put to the test when he realizes his last passenger is the killer. Dušan Sitek, who plays the killer does a fantastic job of playing a cynical, misanthropic old man, determined to hate the world. He tries to pick apart Matej's life, subjecting him to his own cynical views and gives him a stream of bitter monologues from the back of the cab while threatening him with a gun. The tension between the two is well played and Filip Tomsa's wide, terriffied eyes and quiet movements help convey a sense of dread. I won't spoil the ending but the film is pretty good. It's simple, not overly complicated and because of that the dynamic between Matej and the killer feels realistic. The people feel real and of course Prague is quite beautiful, even while stalked by a killer.

[ogradyfilm]

Recently Viewed: The Pied Piper (1986)

Czech filmmaker Jiří Barta’s stop motion adaptation of The Pied Piper is a triumph of style as substance. Every frame is both immaculately crafted and dense with meaning.

The imagery draws obvious inspiration from German Expressionism: the sharp angles, bizarre proportions, ambiguous perspectives, and jagged, asymmetrical architecture contribute to the story’s eerie, haunting atmosphere. The characters that populate this surreal setting are likewise twisted—crude figurines of blocky wood and wiry metal, their features vague and indistinct; some are even carved directly into the scenery, indistinguishable from the environments that they inhabit. The implication is clear: in the city of Hamelin, human beings are only as valuable as their labor—synonymous with the goods that they produce or the services that they offer, mere cogs and gears in an all-consuming machine. It’s a nightmarish vision of industry and commerce gone awry—which is, of course, perfectly consistent with the subject matter, a decidedly anticapitalist interpretation of a folk tale that already explored themes of greed, avarice, exploitation, injustice, and karmic retribution.

I could argue that The Pied Piper probably influenced a number of critically acclaimed spiritual successors (including The Wolf House and Phil Tippett's Mad God), but such comparisons honestly feel reductive and superficial; the movie has a wholly unique voice, standing out within its very niche medium. Emotionally resonant and socially conscious in equal measure, I won’t soon forget this poignant animated parable.

[cosmicsodayt]

Movie Review: Daisies (1966)

9/10

[Review on Letterboxd]

This is the first Czech movie I have watched in my attempt to watch a more diverse variety of film :)

The movie was quite strange but in a good way.

It has themes of nihilism throughout and a energy that just screams "being in your 20s" and "living life to the fullest"

This movie has so much energy and I love the themes presented. It's also just a silly feel-good movie about two young women fucking around and having fun.

I really enjoyed it and if you're a fan of Everything Everywhere All At Once or just old movies this is definitely worth a watch.

[moviesandmania]

REPULSE (2021) Reviews of Czech horror now on Screambox

Repulse is a 2021 Czech bleak horror drama film about a tragedy that leads two dysfunctional families to intertwine in disturbing ways. Written, directed and edited by Emil Krizka. Produced by Jakub Kostal and Vratislav Slajer. The Bionaut production stars Pavla Gajdosíková, Stepán Kozub, Petr Panzenberger and Alena Sasínová-Polarczyk. Plot: The fates of two dysfunctional, grieving families…

[o-the-mts]

90 Movies in 90 Days: A Midsummer Night's Dream (1959)

I’m kicking off 2023 by trying to watch and review one movie every day for the first 90 days, all of which will be 90 minutes or less. Title: A Midsummer Night’s Dream Release Date: 25 September 1959 Director: Jiří Trnka Production Company: Studio Kresleného a Loutkového Filmu Summary/Review: Czech animator Jiří Trnka created this stop-motion interpretation of William Shakespeare’s play as his…

[franki-lew-yo]

-Fantastic Videos about Animation and Animation History-

The Animation that Changed Cinema by Cinema Cartography.

A wonderful intro into the world of Chinese Animated films by Accented Cinema.

Li Speaks breakdown of the Horseland TV show.

Jenny Nicholson's well-deserved take down of The Land Before Time series of films.

Laura Crone's painful look at the original and then all TWELVE of The Swan Princess movies.

Walt Disney's Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs' crew party with Defunctland.

Phelous' entire playlist on the infamous Dingo Pictures films.

Yesterworld's very insightful history look at The Black Cauldron.

Rankin/Bass history with Quinton Reviews and Worthikids and Nutcracker Fantasy with BenettetheSage.

Ralph Bakshi's Lord of the Rings with Folding Ideas.

Phelous' look at Ralph Bakshi's borrowing between Rocket Robin Hood and Spiderman and also that time Filmation tried to make sequels to Disney films.

Just Lady Emily talking about The Gorillaz history.

BrowsHeldHigh's look at Czech Stopmotion animators Jan Svankmajer with Little Otik and Jiri Trinki with A Midsummer Night's Dream.

Jaccob Geller's heartbreaking deep dive into Don Hertzfeldt's animation (through a single Simpsons gag).

Wonderful introspective videos on Death Note, Neon Genesis Evangelion and Barefoot Gen -cw: violence, child death, crime and sa throughout) with BenettetheSage.

In the aftermath of all....that, I recommend a happier detour into La 'Ron Readus' look at A Goofy Movie.

HBomberGuy's good look back at RWBY and Rooster Teeth.

-cw: discussion of self harm, altrightness, and sa- A sad look into Emily Youcis's infamous 'Alfred Alfer' animations and subsequent fall from grace (into racism).

The Kimba the White Lion vs The Lion King controversy with YourMovieSucks.

CynicalReviews' look at Foodfight, just to prep you for Rotten: Behind the Foodfight by Ok so...

[formulaireone]

(Review)

it took me 39 days to watch Daredevil (charlie cox)

to say that i love this show is an understatement, now that i’m done with it idk what to say other than the second time i’ll watch it won’t be the same as the first

funny thing is is that i started watching Daredevil after I saw the movie with Ben Affleck in a Czech hotel. but i don’t think the movie has the same effect on me as it did with the show

you know that feeling when you’re watching a show and it’s so good but you don’t want to watch it all at once so you keep procrastinating to watch it?? i just had that feeling right now ☹️

i loved all the character arcs, the development, the background stories, the world building— the references to other franchises that i didn’t know could somehow co-exist as a movie in the MCU

and i never wanted to watch ANY marvel movie or show until daredevil- until NOW— and i finally found a branch in the franchise that lets me get the hype…

now that i finished it i can’t wait for DD: born again, totally can’t wait for Punisher and Bullseye

the end of an era ☹️ but i’ll be daredevil for halloween :)

[phantomato13]

It is once again time for another reviews my brethren, but this time it's a movie that isn't Phantom related - HOWEVER, it's a movie I firmly believe every Phandom Pham should watch! It is called Beauty and the Beast (Panna a netvor originally). It is from 1978 directed by Czech filmmaker, Juraj Herz.

It's a grimy, foggier retelling of the classic tale except in this one our Beast is a bird-man called Netvor. Just like the original story, Julie (this version's Belle) sacrifices her life for her father by going to the Beast's castle. The Beast falls in love with her while trying to hold back his wild, animalistic urges. The reason I think fellow Phantom fans would love this is because it has a similar concept where the male love interest is afraid to show his face/body to the female love interest. I watched the whole film with English subtitles on YouTube (link). Next to The Phantom of the Opera, Beauty and the Beast is one of my top favorite stories ever so don't be surprised if you see more of it on my blog every now and then lol (the 1946 version is also amazing). Here's a link to the Letterboxd page as well!

[yvain]

film asks! 13, 26, 38, 43 ♡

13. Do you have a favorite film in another language?

Hard to choose but here are some: The Quiet Girl (2022) [Irish], Portrait of a Lady on Fire (2019), Beauty and the Beast (1943), Knife+Heart (2018) [French], The Handmaiden (2016), Burning (2018) [Korean], Battle Royale (2000) [Japanese], Three Wishes for Cinderella (1973) [Czech]

26. Which movie made you think the most about life?

I’m not sure, but against my better judgment Empire Records gives me a serious case of “I was born in the wrong era” whenever I think about it

38. In your opinion what is the most overrated movie?

In addition to Silver Linings Playbook I don’t like La La Land and I didn’t find The Dark Knight particularly interesting either plus this review makes an interesting point

43. Which movie do you quote the most?

Probably Clueless tbh

Movie asks

[do-you-have-a-flag]

finally got my letteboxd year in review

315! seems a lot but once i cut out documentaries short films and tv shows it's actually 196! about a fortnight more than half a year of daily movies! 100 short films! 25 documentaries!

top director Jacques Demy because I watched his cinematic universe of interconnected sometimes musicals sometimes not films

most watched actor keanu because I watched 1 john wick movie twice and rewatched a couple matrix films for the first time in years and 2 of the bill and ted films and one documentary he was in. Mr most rewatched over here.

I watched a solid 13 days worth of films

I have only watched 10 feature films from 2023 so the letterboxed high ratings have slim pickings from me. it put short film DOINKS on there despite red white and royal blue and john wick having the same star rating from me. I gave a higher rating to 2016's Under The Shadow and 1962's The Fabulous Baron Munchausen than I did to the 2023 films shown.

anyway shout out to that one day in July where I watched the Todd Haynes unauthorised Karen Carpenter biopic made entirely with barbie dolls, then a 1970 Czech retelling of adam and eve, then 28 short films, then a movie that I can only describe as a 2007 shitpost.

the same movie they play every january 1st right after the fireworks to start the year, and a Chaplin movie to end because I accidentally watched a bad scifi film and did not want to end the year on that note so I had to pick something better fast. literally the day before I watched all the movies in the ju-on series leading up to the grudge so that's the real tone of my end of year viewing.

accidentally watched john wick exactly 100 movies apart oops.

anyway I love horror and this was the year I watched all 11 of the Friday the 13th films in 3 days and a horror movie every day in october. so that's why my most watched themes and genres are Like That.

some of my most hated (bothered to give a low rating) feature films include dungeons and dragons 2000, pearl 2022 (fight me about it) forbidden world 1982, and guns akimbo 2019

anyway here's some of my picks for funniest things i've said in reviews this year

[anwiel13]

Thank you for tagging me @ramm-ramm 💜

Last song?

Last movie?

Funny Games USA. I was soooooo looking forward to see this movie, because I heard only very good reviews. But I was extremely disappointed. First 20-30 minutes were very good, than it was terribly boring and I stopped paying any attention in the middle of it.

Currently reading?

Spad by František Kotleta. It's amazing, I would really recommend it, but it's only in Czech language. Unfortunately.

Currently watching?

True Detective season one. So far so good, can't wait for season four. And also Mayor of Kingstown, for the third time. Yes, I love it that much 😄

Currently consuming?

Right now nothing. But I had very good tacos for dinner. With whiskey 😁

Currently craving?

I would kill for strong pho with a lot of pak choi. At least I know what I will order for lunch tomorrow 🤤🤤

Tagging:

Whoever wants to do this game, consider yourself tagged. And also @shipswithoutcaptains 😜