Still very watchable. Nicely shot. The humor somehow still holds up. Paul's might have been the worst performance in the film. But it's fun to see him in his pre-cool, try-hard days. Fans of the Rocky movies should give this one a look.
The alien storyline was too silly/funny to be scary, creepy, or even startling. I also found it an odd choice to have the alien predator appear to be made out of fabric. There's nothing frightening about a hot air balloon.
The Gordy subplot, however, was well executed and truly horrifying. But what did it have to do with the main plot? Just give us a standalone Gordy movie starring Steven Yeun. That would have been so much better.
Nope has other shortcomings I won't get into regarding the half-baked development and execution of its plot. Overall, fairly entertaining but disappointing to see Jordan Peele drop the ball with this one after having delivered two gems: Get Out and Us.
Such a step down from Call Me By Your Name that I find it hard to believe it's even the same director. CMBYN felt like a film for adults while this one seemed like it was targeting teenagers.
A fun, quirky, original, cozy, well-thought-out little movie. Worth the watch but not trippy or deep or meaningful enough to keep you thinking for days after.
I was eager to watch this one because I loved the premise, the single shot approach, and the setting.
The good: There's not a single boring moment.
The bad: Overall, I was disappointed. The story is weak and to make up for the lack of narrative, it seemed like the writer was just trying to cram in a bunch of random, implausible drama. I would have preferred a more nuanced and realistic telling, something more to do with a typical busy night at a high-end restaurant. For example, the most compelling scenes for me were the ones that were dealing with normal restaurant issues: the opening scene with the inspector, the rude American patrons, the immature dishwasher, etc.
As a dad of three kiddos, C'mon C'mon did not tap deep into any of the core emotions I've experienced as a parent; it merely scrapes the surface. I'm disappointed as I do think it had the potential to do much more. Certainly, there were many aspects I could relate to but in the end, I did not feel moved or enlightened or anything at all really by how Johnny and Jesse's relationship was captured. Even the mother's perspective on parenting failed to strike a chord with me.
Maybe it was all too plainly relatable and these are just feelings and struggles I've already spent enough time replaying and resolving in my own head.
The best moments of the film, for me, were the interviews conducted with the other kids.
I rewatch CMIYC every few years despite it not even appearing on my all-time favorites list. It just has a very high entertainment value. And it's easy to immerse yourself in the story thanks to a nearly seamless script and production.
But as Frank Abagnale is a stickler for detail, so will I be. My one gripe with the movie: the character of Frank's mother does not speak with the same French accent a French woman would have after years of living in the U.S. She speaks with the accent of someone who has only lived in France.
This is the only detail that slightly disturbs my suspension of disbelief.
I went into this one expecting to enjoy it because 1) I thought the trailer was wild 2) I love unconventional storytelling, 3) the Daniels seem to share my sense of humor, and 4) the overwhelming good reviews.
But oh, how let down I was...
I'm still trying to wrap words around why I disliked this movie so much. As much as I am a fan of weird, out-there, complex and unconventional movies, without grounded storytelling to make the emotional content accessible I'm unable to come along for the ride.
I think this movie was just the Daniels trying to force a concept and a bunch of weird ideas and jokes but not being able to form an organic and compelling narrative around them.
So, visually awesome, super creative, and sometimes funny but a flimsy narrative that failed to hook me (or my two theater companions).
Ham-fisted humor (e.g. parents sex stuff) and overblown characterizations that just do not exist like that in real life (the fucking choir teacher) but otherwise enjoyable. I loved the sign language aspect of it. I wasn't expecting to but it was just so refreshing and different. The story was good, if not paint-by-numbers-inspirational, but it would have been better told in a capable writer/director's hands who wasn't so caught up in milking her own sentiments.
After Yang starts out with an exquisite setup as far as plot and world-building but the film loses wind in the second act, and the attempt to reawaken the audience with the third-act revelation feels abrupt and thinly developed.
Still, there are enough precious and beautiful moments, ideas, and interactions to make this one worth watching.
When the look and feel of a film is as immersive as this one, I almost expect less from the story. I loved hanging out in this movie with all these authentic and unusual characters. I thought Cooper Hoffman and Alana Haim both killed it. DiCaprio Sr. not so much lol.
But I do agree with others that the story wasn't strong enough to carry our concern beyond the midpoint.
I went into this having never seen Rent, the play or the movie, but with some peripheral knowledge of Jonathan Larson's story. I was ready to be inspired...
...but by the fourth or fifth song, I had to turn it off. This is the great Jonathan Larson's oeuvre? These songs are juvenile, grating, and inane.
Is Jonathan Larson's genius overblown? I did some Google searching and apparently there are plenty of people in the theater world who believe so. I had no idea. I always assumed he was universally praised and beloved.
These girls did not deserve what they got, but come fucking on. If this guy's douchebag persona is that effective with so many women, to the point that they are ready to marry him and give their life savings to him, what does that say about a certain subset of women? I don't even need to say the word, you know what it is. These ladies are not looking for love...
I thought the filmmakers did a decent job at surprising and misdirecting us, at least enough to keep me entertained, up until the climax in the bedroom. From there onward, the writing felt lazy and I ended the movie feeling disappointed.
Clever but not amusing. Maybe it's just me, but I don't find far-fetched, convoluted stories entertaining. Maybe that means I just don't like the time travel genre.
Not everything Spielberg touched in the 80s remains gold in today's light (e.g. The Color Purple) but EotS should be counted as one of his timeless works. An incredibly moving story with performances that never veer into being schmaltzy as most melodramas from that time period do.
Bale nailed his performance of what we label these days as a "high-spirited child." I'm the father of one so I would know. Bale was so authentic in his portrayal, I can only deduce that either he was actually a high-spirited child himself, or Spielberg was the father of one and knew exactly how to direct him.
The only letdown for me was the underwhelming final scene.
Comments 1 - 25 of 522
Movie comment on Mother!
devilsadvocado
This may actually be the worst movie of all time.Movie comment on Somebody Up There Likes Me
devilsadvocado
Still very watchable. Nicely shot. The humor somehow still holds up. Paul's might have been the worst performance in the film. But it's fun to see him in his pre-cool, try-hard days. Fans of the Rocky movies should give this one a look.Movie comment on Doraibu mai kâ
devilsadvocado
Meandering and melodramatic, but that's what you get for adapting Murakami.Movie comment on Nope
devilsadvocado
The alien storyline was too silly/funny to be scary, creepy, or even startling. I also found it an odd choice to have the alien predator appear to be made out of fabric. There's nothing frightening about a hot air balloon.The Gordy subplot, however, was well executed and truly horrifying. But what did it have to do with the main plot? Just give us a standalone Gordy movie starring Steven Yeun. That would have been so much better.
Nope has other shortcomings I won't get into regarding the half-baked development and execution of its plot. Overall, fairly entertaining but disappointing to see Jordan Peele drop the ball with this one after having delivered two gems: Get Out and Us.
Movie comment on Bones and All
devilsadvocado
Such a step down from Call Me By Your Name that I find it hard to believe it's even the same director. CMBYN felt like a film for adults while this one seemed like it was targeting teenagers.Movie comment on The Fabelmans
devilsadvocado
It's not Space Jam, but then again...what is? Apart from Space Jam, I mean.Movie comment on The Whale
devilsadvocado
Essentially Space Jam if Space Jam were confined to a single location. Fat Brendan really nails the Bugs Bunny archetype here.Movie comment on Brian and Charles
devilsadvocado
Sweet if not simplistic. Humorous concepts, characters, and scenarios had their quirky charm but not too many outright funny moments.Movie comment on Dorosute no hate de bokura
devilsadvocado
A fun, quirky, original, cozy, well-thought-out little movie. Worth the watch but not trippy or deep or meaningful enough to keep you thinking for days after.Movie comment on Fire of Love
devilsadvocado
Who is this constipated and contrived narrator? Oh, hi Miranda July!Movie comment on Some Kind of Heaven
devilsadvocado
Reggie is my geriatric spirit animal.Movie comment on Boiling Point
devilsadvocado
I was eager to watch this one because I loved the premise, the single shot approach, and the setting.The good: There's not a single boring moment.
The bad: Overall, I was disappointed. The story is weak and to make up for the lack of narrative, it seemed like the writer was just trying to cram in a bunch of random, implausible drama. I would have preferred a more nuanced and realistic telling, something more to do with a typical busy night at a high-end restaurant. For example, the most compelling scenes for me were the ones that were dealing with normal restaurant issues: the opening scene with the inspector, the rude American patrons, the immature dishwasher, etc.
Movie comment on El buen patrón
devilsadvocado
A perfectly balanced film where everything comes together in such a precisely satisfying way. I thought it was brilliant.Movie comment on C'mon C'mon
devilsadvocado
As a dad of three kiddos, C'mon C'mon did not tap deep into any of the core emotions I've experienced as a parent; it merely scrapes the surface. I'm disappointed as I do think it had the potential to do much more. Certainly, there were many aspects I could relate to but in the end, I did not feel moved or enlightened or anything at all really by how Johnny and Jesse's relationship was captured. Even the mother's perspective on parenting failed to strike a chord with me.Maybe it was all too plainly relatable and these are just feelings and struggles I've already spent enough time replaying and resolving in my own head.
The best moments of the film, for me, were the interviews conducted with the other kids.
Movie comment on Catch Me If You Can
devilsadvocado
I rewatch CMIYC every few years despite it not even appearing on my all-time favorites list. It just has a very high entertainment value. And it's easy to immerse yourself in the story thanks to a nearly seamless script and production.But as Frank Abagnale is a stickler for detail, so will I be. My one gripe with the movie: the character of Frank's mother does not speak with the same French accent a French woman would have after years of living in the U.S. She speaks with the accent of someone who has only lived in France.
This is the only detail that slightly disturbs my suspension of disbelief.
Movie comment on Everything Everywhere All at Once
devilsadvocado
I went into this one expecting to enjoy it because 1) I thought the trailer was wild 2) I love unconventional storytelling, 3) the Daniels seem to share my sense of humor, and 4) the overwhelming good reviews.But oh, how let down I was...
I'm still trying to wrap words around why I disliked this movie so much. As much as I am a fan of weird, out-there, complex and unconventional movies, without grounded storytelling to make the emotional content accessible I'm unable to come along for the ride.
I think this movie was just the Daniels trying to force a concept and a bunch of weird ideas and jokes but not being able to form an organic and compelling narrative around them.
So, visually awesome, super creative, and sometimes funny but a flimsy narrative that failed to hook me (or my two theater companions).
Movie comment on CODA
devilsadvocado
Ham-fisted humor (e.g. parents sex stuff) and overblown characterizations that just do not exist like that in real life (the fucking choir teacher) but otherwise enjoyable. I loved the sign language aspect of it. I wasn't expecting to but it was just so refreshing and different. The story was good, if not paint-by-numbers-inspirational, but it would have been better told in a capable writer/director's hands who wasn't so caught up in milking her own sentiments.6/10 Best Picture no way
Movie comment on After Yang
devilsadvocado
After Yang starts out with an exquisite setup as far as plot and world-building but the film loses wind in the second act, and the attempt to reawaken the audience with the third-act revelation feels abrupt and thinly developed.Still, there are enough precious and beautiful moments, ideas, and interactions to make this one worth watching.
Movie comment on The Odd Couple
devilsadvocado
Not much there story-wise. More of a well-shot and elongated TV episode than a film. Great nostalgia though. And a few laugh-worthy scenes.Movie comment on Licorice Pizza
devilsadvocado
When the look and feel of a film is as immersive as this one, I almost expect less from the story. I loved hanging out in this movie with all these authentic and unusual characters. I thought Cooper Hoffman and Alana Haim both killed it. DiCaprio Sr. not so much lol.But I do agree with others that the story wasn't strong enough to carry our concern beyond the midpoint.
Movie comment on tick, tick...BOOM!
devilsadvocado
I went into this having never seen Rent, the play or the movie, but with some peripheral knowledge of Jonathan Larson's story. I was ready to be inspired......but by the fourth or fifth song, I had to turn it off. This is the great Jonathan Larson's oeuvre? These songs are juvenile, grating, and inane.
Is Jonathan Larson's genius overblown? I did some Google searching and apparently there are plenty of people in the theater world who believe so. I had no idea. I always assumed he was universally praised and beloved.
Movie comment on The Tinder Swindler
devilsadvocado
Have horrible taste in men, win horrible prizes.These girls did not deserve what they got, but come fucking on. If this guy's douchebag persona is that effective with so many women, to the point that they are ready to marry him and give their life savings to him, what does that say about a certain subset of women? I don't even need to say the word, you know what it is. These ladies are not looking for love...
Movie comment on The Clovehitch Killer
devilsadvocado
I thought the filmmakers did a decent job at surprising and misdirecting us, at least enough to keep me entertained, up until the climax in the bedroom. From there onward, the writing felt lazy and I ended the movie feeling disappointed.Movie comment on Predestination
devilsadvocado
Clever but not amusing. Maybe it's just me, but I don't find far-fetched, convoluted stories entertaining. Maybe that means I just don't like the time travel genre.Movie comment on Empire of the Sun
devilsadvocado
Not everything Spielberg touched in the 80s remains gold in today's light (e.g. The Color Purple) but EotS should be counted as one of his timeless works. An incredibly moving story with performances that never veer into being schmaltzy as most melodramas from that time period do.Bale nailed his performance of what we label these days as a "high-spirited child." I'm the father of one so I would know. Bale was so authentic in his portrayal, I can only deduce that either he was actually a high-spirited child himself, or Spielberg was the father of one and knew exactly how to direct him.
The only letdown for me was the underwhelming final scene.
Showing items 1 – 25 of 522