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Rise of Empires: Ottoman (2020)
QUITE SATISFACTORY,HOWEVER NOT HISTORICALLY CORRECT ON SOME MINOR DETAILS
Basically this is a Netflix production and like other Netflix productions lacks depth; should be no problem with that if one is a regular subscriber . Cinematography and CGI are satisfactory,costumes are great,acting is a bit over the average.Ottomans speaking-somewhat terrible-English sounds really odd but obviously for those who are too lazy to read subtitles.
Overall quite enjoyable if you don't expect much from a Netflix production.
On a side note: Mr.Dance's narration is so smooth...
Pieta (2012)
Not Easy to Watch,but...
Pieta,winner of Venice's 2012 Golden Lion is another disturbing,compelling,metaphorical Kim Ki-Duk masterpiece.The plot unfolds as an unusual revenge story yet the metaphors tell another tale.
Named after Michelangelo's masterpiece housed in St.Peter's Basilica in Vatican,Pieta is not easy to watch but a thought-provoking experience about the misdeeds of industrial capitalism and how it slowly and finally drains the vitality from those who are not able to cope while creating monsters of others.The mystery that surrounds the two main characters lend an almost 'eerie' atmosphere to the film which is typical of Kim Ki-Duk.
Definitely not for the faint-hearted,the pleasure seeker or the romantic...this is a serious film and certainly a rewarding experience for the true 'cinephile'.
Inception (2010)
Either Overrated or Underrated
A complex,action-packed,brain wrenching story with twists and turns that call for full attention on the side of the viewer...a film-noir,that reminds one of Matrix.
Inception is also an eloquent and original way of showing how our subconscious is projected in our seemingly meaningless dreams...it wouldn't appear as surreal as it seems if one looks at the plot from that angle.
However,this movie shouldn't either be overrated as the best film of the decade or underrated as the worst!Either would do little justice to Nolan's latest film.
I must add that definitely Memento is the better movie!
Passengers (2008)
No Sixth Sense
While watching the movie,my first thought was "another Sixth Sense or one of its derivatives"...not that I deny Sixth Sense is a good movie in its own genre,but that should be left there as regards Passengers.
Concentrating on the catastrophic and traumatic effects of an airplane crash on its few survivors, the movie initially seems to bear in itself illogical/unexplained relations among characters and events which, at first appear as a major flaw...however everything falls logically into place at the end paving way to a total surprise.
Anne Hathaway's low-key acting is a bonus...
A surprise after much overrated movies like The Curious Case of Benjamin Button or Revolutionary Road.
No masterpiece but an interesting thriller...
Man cheng jin dai huang jin jia (2006)
Stunning Visuals, Almost Shakespearean Drama
This time director Zhang Yimou has not placed the visuals over the substance as he did in Hero or House of the Flying Daggers.
The plot unfolds like a Shakespearean drama,slowly but subtly. Set in China's Tang Dynasty reign, this rich tapestry weaves a tale of intrigue, incest, and betrayal richly blending the characters, old-world grandeur,pomp and decadence where everyone is scheming against each other but no one triumphing in the end.
Zhang Yimou is equally successful in projecting and portraying the characters' inner conflicts in this multi-layered, big budget epic backed by excellent performances of Yun-Fat Chow, Li Gong and other players.
A joy to the eye!
Iklimler (2006)
A Unique Film-Definitely not for all Audiences
A director-as an artist-may choose to tell his story by using different parameters i.e.eloquent treatment of dialogue,scenery,costumes,soundtrack and sometimes visual effects. Another may yet choose to tell his/her story using spare plot,minimal dialogue,long still shoots and creative atmosphere.
Three-time Cannes winner director,actor,photographer Nuri Bilge Ceylan follows the second path...
*Spoiler*
A sequel to Uzak,Iklimler,very simply is about a middle-aged academic still writing his thesis and his younger wife(director himself and his real-life wife Ebru Ceylan)who pass through the seasons in their marriage.As the story moves on-from summer to fall then to winter-we see the scenery and locations change in parallel with their inner conflicts.The couple cannot reconcile; separation and break-up is unavoidable at the end.
*Spoiler
Ceylan,with almost a Tarkovskian approach tells his story in the manner of a true auteur he is.