10s Movie Review - The Ballad of Buster Scruggs

Director: Ethan Coen, Joel Coen
Genre: Comedy/ Drama
Runtime: 133 minutes
Year: 2018
Starring: Tim Blake Nelson, Clancy Brown, Zoe Kazan, Tom Waits, James Franco, Stephen Root, Liam Neeson, Harry Melling

Description: Six tales of life and violence in the Old West.

I WATCHED THIS MOVIE FOR MY 2022 MOVIE CHALLENGE.
WEEK 25: A MOVIE WITH MULTIPLE STORYLINES
 
Review: A film by Joel and Ethan Coen is always something to look forward to. That Netflix allowed the famous brothers to make a film and gave them a free hand in it makes it even more interesting. The results is an anthology of six stories, all set in the Old West and highlighting an aspect of life in the Wild West.

“The Ballad of Buster Scruggs” has a book as a window for the narratives. An unknown person opens the book and we dive into the first story. It bears the title of the film and is delightfully ridiculous. Tim Blake Nelson plays the smiley cowboy from the title and comes across as somewhat simple. But he manages to win every fight he gets into. That;s how simple the premise of the first story is.

The other five are more or less the same, but there is enough cleverness in them and references to modern times to keep engaging. Gradually, the tone of the film also changes and the lightheartedness disappears. In ‘Meal Ticket’ Liam Neeson plays the callous impresario of a man without arms and legs. The wretch recites poems, but sees his audience shrinking. This was my favorite story. In ‘The Mortal Remains’ we follow a group of people in a carriage. This is my least favorite of the stories and a bit boring actually. Other stories stand out, like ‘Near Algodones’ where James Franco plays a bank robber, or ‘All the Gold Canyon’ with a starring role for musician Tom Waits as a prospector. The stories are not connected, so it’s sometimes difficult to get into them properly.

It’s not one of the best movies by the Coen Brothers and certainly not one of my favorites, but definitely worth a watch.

Rating: 3/ 5

Netflix Friday - Vol. 112

Some Netflix film tips for the weekend! And there is something for everyone, since I picked a movie for all the different genres.
 

Action: Kill Bill: Vol. 2 (2004)
The Bride (Uma Thurman) continues her quest of vengeance against her former boss and lover Bill (David Carradine), the reclusive bouncer Bud (Michael Madsen) and the treacherous, one-eyed Elle (Daryl Hannah).
 

Drama: Herself (2020)
A young mother (Clare Dunne) escapes her abusive husband and fights back against a broken housing system. She gets out to build her own home and in the process rebuilds her life and re-discovers herself.
 

Comedy: The Man From Toronto (2022)
The world’s deadliest assassin (Woody Harrelson) and New York’s biggest screw-up (Kevin Hart) are mistaken for each other at an Airbnb rental.
 

Animation: My Neighbor the Yamadas (1999)
The life and misadventures of a family in contemporary Japan.
 

Romance: De Rouille et D’os (2012)
Put in charge of his young son, Alain (Matthias Schoenaerts) leaves Belgium for Antibes to live with his sister and her husband as a family. Alain’s bond with Stephanie (Marion Cotillard), a killer whale trainer, grows deeper after Stephanie suffers a horrible accident.
 

Horror: The Block Island Sound (2020)
Something lurks off the coast of Block Island, silently influencing the behavior of fisherman, Tom Lynch. After suffering a series of violent outbursts, he unknowingly puts his family in grave danger.
 

Science Fiction: Venom: Let There Be Carnage (2021)
Eddie Brock (Tom hardy) attempts to reignite his career by interviewing serial killer Cletus Kasady (Woody Harrelson) who becomes the host of the symbiote Carnage and escapes prison after a failed execution.
 

Crime: The Post (2017)
A cover-up spanning four U.S. Presidents pushes the country’s first female newspaper publisher (Meryl Streep) and her editor (Tom Hanks) to join an unprecedented battle between press and government.
 

Thriller: Thoroughbreads (2017)
Two upper-class teenage girls (Olivia Cooke, Anya Taylor-Joy) in suburban Connecticut rekindle their unlikely friendship after years growing apart. Together, they hatch a plan to solve both their problems, no matter what the cost.
 

Documentary: Keep Sweet: Pray and Obey (2022)
Examines the rise of Warren Jeffs in the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints and his shocking criminal case.
 

Family: Imagine That (2009)
A financial executive (Eddie Murphy) who can’t stop his career downspiral is invited into his daughter’s imaginary world, where solutions to his problems await.

90s Movie Review - Only Yesterday

Director: Isao Takahato
Genre: Animation/ Drama/ Romance
Runtime: 118 minutes
Year: 1991
Starring: Daisy Ridley, Dev Patel

Description: A twenty-seven-year-old office worker travels to the countryside while reminiscing about her childhood in Tokyo.
 
I WATHED THIS MOVIE FOR MY 2022 MOVIE CHALLENGE
WEEK 24: AN ANIMATED MOVIE THAT IS NOT DISNEY
 
Review: Within the acclaimed animation studio Studio Ghibli are the best known and most acclaimed films of director Hayao Miyazaki. Lesser known films are the often more experimental films of celebrated filmmaker Isao Takahata. Of these, “Only Yesterday” is a fascinating examination of memories of the past and their impact on the future.

1982 and 27 years old, office worker Taeko Okajima spends her vacation ways from the noise of Tokyo to help harvest safflower crops on rural Yamagata. Such a pilgrimage reminds her of her 10-year-old self, who longed for the excitement of getting out of the city. During her journey, she develops a close relationship with Toshio, a serious young man who loves his farm life. However, Taeko remembers and relives special moments from her childhood, such as: discovering that a boy liked her, dealing with a mother who couldn’t see through her academic shortcomings, and the time her father beat her.

For the first half of this almost two-hour film, most of the running time is taken up with flashbacks of Taeko’s childhood. In the second half, the flashbacks are contextualized by Taeko’s current experiences and are relatable to any of us who have memories of what our youthful selves thought we would become.  
 
The 1982 setting is animated with deep hues and detailed facial animations that intentionally contrast with the faded color palette of the flashbacks. Two distinctive styles in one film. The approach of director Takahata’s is much more mature and thoughtful. We go on a very realistic journey with Taeko, who grew up with distand parents, chattering sisters and crushed dreams. In adulthood she unknowingly settled for an unfulfilled life.

It's a beautiful film.

Rating: 4/ 5

Movie Review - Hustle

Director: Jeremiah Zagr
Genre: Drama
Runtime: 117 minutes
Year: 2022
Starring: Adam Sandler, Queen Latifah, Juancho Hernandez, Ben Foster, Kenny Smith, Robert Duvall,
 
Description: A basketball scout (Adam Sandler) discovers a phenomenal street ball player while in Spain and sees the prospect as his opportunity to get back into the NBA.

Review: In “Hustle”, Adam Sandler can express his love for basketball as a talent scout and aspiring assistan coach for the Philadelphia 76ers. Produced by himself and baskets player LeBron James, the film can count on many cameos by NBA players. It’s a colorful affair with many beautiful shots. The story is not spectacular or new, but has enough layers to get you invested.

The film is great for basketball fans. If you have no affinity with the sport whatsoever, you might not like it as much. Sandler plays basketball scout Stanley Sugarman, who discovers a talented street basketball player in Spain (played by real-life NBA player Juancho Hernangómez, currently playing for the San Antonio Spurs).

Stanley spends most of his life on a plane and missing his daughter’s birthday. To prove himself as a coach and be allowed to be home more, he tries to get his newfound talent Bo Cruz from Spain to level up enough within a month and a half to play in the NBA.

Adam Sandler portrays a believable and heartfelt role as the bratty and failed former athlete Stanley, slightly disappointed with his life but still filled with his passion for the sport. The role sits well with the new line of Sandler’s career, which since “Uncut Gems” has shown that he has much more going for him than bland jokes. Because the featured player in this film have more experience in the sport than in the acting game, the heavy burden falls solely on Sandler’s shoulders to carry the story. He does manage to do so.

 I’m really loving this Adam Sandler and think “Hustle” is a great movie. Definitely if you’re a basketball fan.

Rating: 4/ 5

Netflix Friday - Volume 111

Some Netflix film tips for the weekend! And there is something for everyone, since I picked a movie for all the different genres.
 

Action: Interceptor (2022)
One Army Captain (Elsa Pataky) must use her years of tactical training and military expertise when a simultaneous coordinated attach threatens the remote missile interceptor station she is in command of.
 

Drama: Moneyball (2011)
Oakland A’s general manager Billy Beane’s (Brad Pitt) successful attempt to assemble a baseball team on a lean budget by employing computer-generated analysis to acquire new players.
 

Comedy: Long Shot (2019)
Journalist Fled Flarsky (Seth Rogen) reunites with his childhood crush, Charlotte Fields (Charlize Theron), now one of the most influential women in the world. As she prepares to make a run for the Presidency, Charlotte hires Fred as her speechwriter and sparks fly.
 

Animation: A Whisker Away (2020)
Miyo Sasaki is in love with her classmate Kento Hinode and tries repeatedly to get Kento’s attention by transforming into a cat, but at some point, the boundary between herself and the cat becomes ambiguous.
 

Romance: What Happens in Vegas (2008)
A man (Ashton Kutcher) and a woman (Cameron Diaz) are compelled, for legal reasons, to live life as a couple for a limited period of time. At stake is a large amount of money.
 

Horror: The Prodigy (2019)
A mother (Taylor Schilling) concerned about her young son’s disturbing behavior thinks something supernatural may be affecting him.
 

Science Fiction: The Core (2013)
The only way to save Earth from catastrophe is to drill down to the core and set it spinning again.

Crime: Spiderhead (2022)
In the near future, convicts are offered the chance to volunteer as medical subjects to shorten their sentence. One such subject for a new drug capable of generating feelings of love beings questioning the reality of his emotions.
 

Thriller: Fear (1996)
When Nicole (Reese Witherspoon) met David (Mark Wahlberg); handsome, charming, affectionate, he was everything. It seemed perfect, but soon she sees that David has a darker side. And his adoration turns to obsession, their dream into a nightmare, and her love into fear.
 

Documentary: Misha and the Wolves (2022)
“Misha and the Wolves” is the dramatic tale of a woman whose holocaust memoir took the world by storm, but a fallout with her publisher, who turned detective, revealed an audacious deception created to hide a darker truth.
 

Family: The Spiderwick Chronicles (2008)
Upon moving into the run-down Spiderwick Estate with their mother, twin brothers Jared and Simon Grace, along with their sister Mallory, find themselves pulled into an alternate world full of fairies and other creatures.

Movie Review - Jurassic World: Dominion

Director: Colin Trevorrow
Genre: Adventure/ Action
Runtime: 146 minutes
Year: 2022
Starring: Chris Pratt, Bryce Dallas Howard, Sam Neill, Laura Dern, Jeff Goldblum, DeWanda Wise, Mamoudou Athie, Isabella Sermon, Campbell Scott, BD Wong, Omar Sy, Justice Smith
 
Description: Four years after the destruction of Isla Nublar, dinosaurs now live alongside humans all over the world. This fragile balance will reshape the future and determine, once and for all, whether human beings are to remain the apex predators on a planet they now share with history’s most fearsome creatures in a new Era.

I WATCHED THIS MOVIE FOR MY 2022 MOVIE CHALLENGE.
WEEK 23: AN ADVENTURE MOVIE

Review: The image we have of dinosaurs today was largely shaped by Steven Spielberg’s now classic film and masterpiece “Jurassic Park”. Science is now a lot further along in its knowledge of these creatures.

In the third film in the Jurassic World trilogy and sixth in the Jurassic Park franchise, humans have learned to live with the escaped dinosaurs. Biosyn, a multinational company with good intentions, has started a reserve in the Italian Dolomites and is taking care of the global dinosaur population. However, they are particularly interested in Maisie Lockwood, a girl who is a clone of her own mother, a deceased scientist from the time that Jurassic Park was build.

Maisie lives in the forest in the U.S. with Owen and Claire, who have each found their own way of dealing with the dinosaurs. When Biosyn also appear to be responsible for the extinction of global agricultural crops and threatens to disrupt the food chain, it’s time for action. None other than Dr. Alan Grant, Dr. Ian Malcolm and Dr. Ellie Sattler all turn up to fight Biosyn and find out the truth.

There’s a lot going on in this film. Even with over two and a half hours on the clock, it seems to be cramming to give so much plot and so many characters space. It is therefore striking how nicely everything falls into place. The storylines of the old and new group largely run separately, but do interlock constantly. Even new characters, such as the tough Kayla Watts, are given ample space and a full role.

You would almost forget that this movie is mainly about the dinosaurs, but director Colin Trevorrow constantly uses them when they help the story along, or simply guarantee spectacular action. Trevorrow also throws in some food for thought, but doesn’t rub it in.

It is clear that the makers have an enormous love for 1993’s “Jurassic Park”. It is expressed in shots that are borrowed one-on-one from Spielberg’s masterpiece. You could see it as cheap copying or paying an homage to a film that pioneered the use of computer effects and old school animatronics. Trevorrow didn’t shy away from these either.

“Jurassic World: Dominion” is getting mixed reviews. But I look at it this way: I knew going in, that it was never going to top “Jurassic Park” and no movie in this franchise ever did, will or tried to. The plot might be a little bit so-so, and there is a lot of fan-service and nostalgia in “Jurassic World: Dominion. I loved seeing the old and new gang, together and apart. The film was highly entertaining, we got to see a bunch of dinosaurs, some we already knew and some for the first time. The action is fast paced and it didn’t bore me for one second. Is it a great movie: no, but it’s still good, enjoyable and fun. And as a “Jurassic Park” fan, I loved all the hints to the original and the fan-service. So, I won’t talk crap, because I liked the film and it entertained me.

Rating: 3,5/ 5

Netflix Friday - Volume 110

Some Netflix film tips for the weekend! And there is something for everyone, since I picked a movie for all the different genres.
 

Action: Everest (2015)
The story of New Zealand’s Robert “Rob” Edwin Hall (Jason Clarke), who on May 10, 1996, together with Scott Fischer (Jake Gyllenhaal), teamed up on a joint expedition to ascend Mount Everest.
 

Drama: Hustle (2022)
A washed-up basketball scout (Adam Sandler) discovers a phenomenal street ball player while in Spain and sees the prospect as his opportunity to get back into the NBA.
 

Comedy: The Dilemma (2011)
A man (Vince Vaughn) discovers that his best friend’s (Kevin James) wife (Winona Ryder) is having an affair.
 

Animation: Ocean Waves (1993)
As a young man returns home after his first year away at college, he recalls his senior year of high school and the iron-willed, big city girl that turned his world upside down.
 

Romance: Bright Star (2009)
The three-year romance between 19^th-century poet John Keats (Ben Wishaw) and Fanny Brawne (Abbie Cornish) near the end of his life.
 

Horror: Insidious: Chapter 3 (2015)
A prequel set before the haunting of the Lambert family that reveals how gifted psychic Elise Rainier (Lin Shaye) reluctantly agrees to use her ability to contact the dead in order to help a teenage girl who has been targeted by a dangerous supernatural entity.
 

Science Fiction: Cloverfield (2008)
A group of friends venture deep into the streets of New York on a rescue mission during a rampaging monster attack.
 

Crime : The Constant Gardener (2005)
A widower (Ralph Fiennes) is determined to get to the bottom of a potentially explosive secret involving his wife’s (Rachel Weisz) murder, big business, and corporate corruption.
 

Thriller: Collateral (2004)
A cab driver (Jamie Foxx) finds himself the hostage of an engaging contract killer (Tom Cruise) as he makes his rounds from hit to hit during one night in Los Angeles.
 

Documentary: This is It (2009)
A compilation of interviews, rehearsals, and backstage footage of Michael Jackson as he prepared for his series of sold-out shows in London.
 

Family: Paddington 2 (2017)
Paddington (Ben Wishaw), now happily settled with the Brown family and a popular member of the local community, picks up a series of odd jobs to buy the perfect present for his Aunt Lucy’s 100^th birthday, only for the gift to be stolen.
 

TV Show Review - The Handmaid's Tale (Season 4)

Season: 4
Genre: Drama/ Thriller
Number of episodes: 10
Year: 2021
Starring: Elisabeth Moss, Yvonne Strahovski, Joseph Fiennes, Max Minghella, Alexis Bledel, Anne Dowd, Bradley Whitford

Description: Set in a dystopian future, a woman is forced to live as a concubine under a fundamentalist theocratic dictatorship.

Review: It took a while before “The Handmaid’s Tale” returned with season 4. But Elisabeth Moss, who plays June, is finally back and is great as ever.

WARNING: THIS REVIEW MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS FOR THOSE WHO AREN’T CAUGHT UP

This season, June manages to finally escape from the hell that’s called Gilead. After a while, she even manages to end up in Canada where she is finally reunited with her husband Luke. However, in her escape, June did not have the opportunity to take her daughter Hannah with her. She blames herself greatly for this and feels guilty towards Luke about it. Although June’s escape attempt, which she does together with some of the other handmaids, is ultimately successful for her it is obviously not going to be easy. June faces considerable hardship and loss.

So the relationship between June and Luke is what I found most interesting this season. Both are struggling with a sense of guilt about their daughter Hannah who is still trapped in Gilead. June and Luke both deal with it in a different way, but the sadness is very palpable for both of them. Meanwhile, Fred and Serena Joy are still in jail in Canada awaiting the lawsuit filed against them. Fred wants nothing more from his wife, until Serena Joy discovers that she is pregnant with his child.

Season 4 contains a few memorable scenes. Like the speech June gives in the courtroom in front of Fred and Serena, the people who made her life a living hell. But the scene that most impressed me and stuck with me is where June ruthlessly taunts Serena as to why God let Serena get pregnant according to June. Elisabeth Moss should win an Emmy for this scene alone.

But with four season already made, it’s hard to avoid a little bit of repetition. A lot of things happening, we’ve seen before.

But it’s still a great season and I highly enjoyed it. I believe the fifth season, which will come out in 2022, is the final one. Which might be for the best. I really want to know how it ends and what will happen to all the characters, good or bad.

Book Review - 13 Minutes by Sarah Pinborough

Title: 13 Minutes
Series: -
Author: Sarah Pinborough
 
Description: They say you should keep you friends close and your enemies closer, but when you’re a teenage girl, it’s hard to tell them apart.

Natasha doesn’t remember how she ended up in the icy water that night, but she does know this: it wasn’t an accident, and she wasn’t suicidal. Her two closest friends are acting strangely, and Natasha turns to Becca, the best friend she dumped years before when she got popular, to help her figure out what happened. Natasha is sure her friends love her, but does that mean they didn’t try to kill her?
 
Review: A hiker finds 16-year-old Natasha dead in a river one morning. When he goes to look for his phone he thinks he sees her hand moving and decides to pull her out of the water. She has been dead for 13 minutes but she can’t remember anything. When she wakes up, she is in the hospital, having no memory of what happened to her. Natasha starts to keep a diary, to try to get her memory back. Her best friends Jenny and Hayley visit her regularly, but are behaving strangely as if they know more about what happened to Natasha.
 
After Becca hears the news of what happened to Natasha, she visits her in the hospital too. She and Natasha used to be best friends, before she dumped Becca and become the most popular girl in school. But she wants to help Natasha solve the mystery.
 
I loved the premise and the book has plenty of suspense. I appreciated this in the book. But eventually the story starts to drag a bit and becomes repetitive. There aren’t a lot of likeable characters in the story either, which makes it hard to identify with any of them, or relate to them. And however everyone is raving about the plot twist at the end, I wasn’t as enthusiastic. It’s by no means a bad book, because I did enjoy big parts of the story. But the negatives I have for “13 Minutes” are pretty important aspects for whether I love or hate a book.
 
I would still recommend this book to whoever loves a YA thriller, because most fans of this genre really love “13 Minutes”. I just wasn’t as enthusiastic about it as most.
 
Rating: 2,5/ 5

Movie Review - The Requim

Director: Le-Van Kiet
Genre: Horror/ Thriller
Runtime: 89 minutes
Year: 2022
Starring: Alicia Silverstone, James Tupper

Description: A couple (Alicia Silverstone, James Tupper) on a romantic getaway find themselves stranded at sea when a tropical storm sweeps away their villa. In order to survive, they are forced to fight the elements, while sharks circle below.

Review: Big contender for worst film of 2022 is “The Requin”. I always love a shark movie, and most are bad, but still enjoyable. This one was just bad.

Jaelyn enjoys a vacation with her husband Kyle. This turns into a nightmare when a tropical storm wipes out their stay by the sea. The couple is stranded at sea where they come face to face with sharks. Due to a seriously injured Kyle, it is up to Jaelyn to rescue them from their predicament.  

 
It turns out the be more a survival movie than it is a shark movie. The effects are terrible, as is the acting. The dialogues are cringeworthy and the film makes no sense either. Before the storm arrives, the couple is warned and offered a different place to stay, but are told they don’t have to worry because these storms happen often. But the villa they are staying in easily floods and break, and the entire villa drifts off to sea. And nobody comes to look for them, when it’s obvious they are gone. And does it really only take one night to drift off that far into the open water? I doubt it. And they make some pretty weird decisions while trying to survive.

At least they tried, right? I watched it, so you don’t have to. Please, skip it, it’s 90 minutes I’ll never get back.

Rating: 0,5/ 5

00s Movie Review - Super Troopers

Director: Jay Chandrasekhar
Genre: Crime/ Comedy/ Action
Runtime: 100 minutes
Year: 2001
Starring: Jay Chandrasekhar, Kevin Heffernan, André Vippolis, Joey Kern, Geoffrey Arend, Erik Stolhanske, Steve Lemme, Paul Soter, Marisa Coughlan

I WATCHED THIS MOVIE FOR MY 2022 MOVIE CHALLENGE
WEEK 22: A MOVIE THAT HAS A CULT STATUS
 
Description: Five Vermont state troopers, avid prankers with a knack for screwing up, try to save their jobs and out-do the local police department by solving a crime.

Review: “Super Trooper” is the kind of movie which could best be enjoyed when your stoned or drunk. A film you should watch with a couple of friends. And I watched it fully sober and on my own and hated it!

I know this movie isn’t to be taken too seriously, but even when, I don’t get why this film has the cult status it has.

We follow a group of State Troopers in Vermont, who are constantly at odds with the local police. The town is far too small for so many law enforcement officers, so they are constantly bored. And that’s where the shenanigans start.

I really lost interest very early on in the film didn’t find it very funny and wouldn’t recommend this movie to anyone. I think this is a very unpopular opinion, because the rating for “Super Troopers” on IMDb is very high. This movie just wasn’t for me.

Rating: 2/ 5