Goldbeater

This is an erotic art movie, and a visually captivating bizzarro. Each camera shot is a colorful, playful treat. It is difficult to get a clear grasp of the plot, the audience has to let itself get carried away by the visual stimulations, the primeval tone, and the sultry close psychological atmosphere.

This movie has an imaginative subject matter, a likable cynical approach, and a great plot. However, disappointment soon comes. With such a strong concept and edgy heroine, it is a complete shame that the filmmaker decided to include villains worthy of Looney Tunes animated cartoons, and completely resigned from making any bold decisions. Moreover, it is one of those movies whose final act just happens to be whatever tickled the screenwriter's fancy at the time. It was OK, but it could have been much better.

This is a contrived posturing from an artist who apparently believes himself to be overflowing with all-round talent and for anything he touches to turn to gold. Unfortunately not. At times, I was surprised that so many A-list actors/actresses had not thought twice about getting involved here. John Turturro better be in front of the camera next time, not behind it. It was quite a task to finish watching this showcase of "nothing".

This movie has been bothering me for a while. On the one hand, it is just a silly comedy, where it is advisable to turn off all your brain as quickly as possible and enjoy the few jokes that come along and land well. On the other hand, this is a movie about two repulsively awful characters with whose life goals only a few people could identify with, and who you wish would get nothing but a hard slap in the face. Moreover, the movie’s message is so morally corrupt that you would rather remember the little "highlights" with Chazz Palminteri and Dan Hedaya than ponder over the movie’s disturbingly depraved message any further.

Home Alone with a twist; here the thief is the savior from a far worse guest. You can never have too many inventive "trap" movies, and the screenwriter of the middle instalments of the Saw franchise cannot be denied, but I have to admit that the older I get, the harder "torture porn" movies get to sit through, especially when there is an overabundance of fishing hooks in them. A solid horror flick, but one and done for me.

Magic works much better as a psychological drama than a horror movie, because the tropes of the genre that are inevitably going to turn up here without any surprises and in a fairly classic form. Still, if you already found the ventriloquist's dummy on the poster very disturbing, you have a lot to look forward to. Anthony Hopkins is phenomenal in the dual role (if you can call it that), and certainly carries the whole movie. Plus, I have to say, I was surprised at how dialogue-driven, funny and raunchy the movie was at times. William Goldman is undeniable. To sum it up – you will not get a fright, but you will be interested in the well portrayed characters and you will be totally convinced of the inner conflicts of the main anti-hero.

I appreciate the craziness of the whole idea and some rather striking details that probably just happened by accident, because otherwise this movie is a completely undisciplined, and technically peculiar grindhouse horror completely lacking in any atmosphere, which unfortunately most of the time is not even entertaining. The fact that the characters' behavior will lack any, really any, logic is clear to you after 5 minutes, so you have plenty of time to come to terms with it by the end. The adults behaving like far more irresponsible troublemakers than the insufferably murderous brats, however, is quite something. Maybe that was the intention.

Small film, yet great. Within the first few minutes, The Father grabbed my attention perfectly due to its dynamic script, fast pace, and strong acting performances. Plus, I have to say that it was like an emotional rollercoaster ride that will leave you with goosebumps in the end. The spiral narrative ingeniously plays with the supporting characters and the perception of time and space. In addition, we experience its growing confusion and frustration with the main protagonist. Anthony Hopkins is at his best here. Everything he does and he feels is endlessly believable, and you forget that you are watching an actor. It was a force to be reckoned with, and it touched me like nothing else.

Kong II, king of the monsters. I could practically copy my comments from the other Godzilla reviews, with perhaps one positive amendment, that this time there was at least something to see during the fight scenes. However, you still have to spend an incredibly long time watching the inconsequential, clichéd, and absolutely intolerable characters, some of whom are on screen just to stare up at the sky and mindlessly repeating the catchy monster names. Also, I have to say that even though I was in such distress, I was still somehow waiting for the screenwriters to add another act to the storyline we have seen a million times before, which would provide at least one element of surprise. However, it was not to be, so the movie ends, and you go, "Oh, was that it?" I had to shake my head at the obvious references to 2001: A Space Odyssey, the first Star Wars movie, and I am guessing Tron, unless I did not imagine that due to the excess of neon lights. Also, throwing knowing references at the audience does not necessarily make a good movie. The only thing that lifted my spirits is that it all seems like the swan song of the series, and I sincerely hope it is.

Zack Snyder is a master of the placebo effect. He did not resolve the issues with the original Justice League movie at all, he only watered them down, and disguised them with a movie that is twice the length. Some of the characters have more depth and come out of it "more alive", however, we still have to watch the practically indestructible (and therefore uninteresting) superheroes in the movie for a long time, whose superpowers lack any consistency and are governed only by whatever the screenwriters feel like at the time. Plus, there is a generic villain from a generic galaxy of generic villains who came to take over / destroy the planet, because they can! In addition, with all the scenes full of stuff that slows it down, whining musical interludes, and endless teasers for sequels and spin-offs that will never happen, I was just wondering if I could not have done something better with my time and watched 2 to 3 shorter, more fulfilling movies instead.