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Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: Fear and Loathing on the Planet of Kitson (2019)
How can this show make such an abysmal epsiode like that?!?
I have been enjoying this series since its very beginning. The writing, directing really improved from season to season and my enjoyment really grew with time. But this new season 6 started strangely, but now with episode 3, I can safely say it was the most awful episode EVER. It's extremely bad on so many levels.... Unimaginative, truly bad dialog, star wars ripoffs, awful humor, really, really dumb all over. Seriously, get back with the previous team (cause I can't believe it's the same), or course correct this incredible mess that the show has just become. This is the type of episode that could easily make me drop it in an instant. If it continues like that, I won't even be sorry that I left it.
Massacrator (2009)
A very fun little one
Through a friend of a friend, I have seen this little gem piece called Massacrator. It's an easy, ridiculous plot and obviously intended as such (come on, Terminator battling Elvis
!), but the fun resides in its action packed rhythm and old-school grindhousesque aesthetics (and barely tempered in post as I've been told it has been shot with old rolls of 16mm film stock) as well as basic animation tricks and a couple gore shots thrown in for good measures. It's so cool to see DIY filmmakers having the guts to go all the way and do crazy stuff that no old timer would have the energy or creativity (or maybe even idiocy!) to do stunts like burying a motorcycle and run another through an apartment! I'm quite certain these rooms were not real sets.
The editing is sharp and the music flows great through it. The only "down" part to this trippy versus cartoon popcorn piece is that it's rather short (around 4 minutes something), not that it needed to be longer at all, but it leaves you wanting to see more from the guy. Ayotte's got the chops for cool snazy direction and given the opportunity, I'm sure this dude could rise fast. One can feel it when another got style. Do check it out!
Children of Men (2006)
Wow.
Ain't going to go in details for now. But what an astounding movie! The direction is so intense I just couldn't blink for a few scenes, especially the "plan séquences" ones which are so brilliantly orchestrated... Everything in this film is superb. The acting, the script, the clever humor, the characters, the beautiful photography (or color timing should I say), the music.....
Haven't read all the comments, but it seems all have missed to mention that this is the exact premise as "2019: After the Fall of New York" (check it out for yourself : http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0085125/) an Italian apocalyptic film from 1983 (yes, even beating the book CHILDREN was based on). OK, OK, 2019 is a childhood favorite of mine that I've seen many, many times and falls in the very cheesy domain, but if there was a remake of it to be done, well it just has!!! And I'm not complaining one damn bit.
I just hope Alfonso haven't hit his peak, cause for his own sake, he's got an incredible job at beating himself now.
Shaun of the Dead (2004)
It saddens me...
To see that people really enjoyed this film...
Aside from good looking zombies and one well rendered "day of the dead" homage gore scene, this movie is really not funny, nor interesting.
The humor is meant to be understood and appreciated by our own society's living dead. Easy adolescent wink-wink frat-fart jokes and situations are so abundant in this film, it's just sad to see that people still laugh at that z-grade sitcom crap...
The pacing is ridiculous such as the zombies'. They attack whenever the characters have finally completed their lines, and other zombie rules are simply overlooked for the sake of the script's advancement.
Imbecile characters for an imbecile audience. Unfortunately this is a winning combo and will sell well to the mass...
Makes me sigh in pity when I read that some say it's better in ALL aspects than Peter Jackson's Braindead...
Once Upon a Time in Mexico (2003)
quite a mess...
Contains SPOILERS.
I was going to the theater with a positive attitude and not knowing much about the film by having only seen the full trailer once. It was enough to convince me. Damn, I was fooled...
Mr. Rodriguez needs to get more than a script doctor because I've rarely seen such a badly written scenario. It goes all over the place while getting nowhere all through the film. Sub-plots with characters that have no purposes. Like many, Dafoe is one that you keep wondering what's his role in this and why the hell does he decides to get a change of face at one point near the 2/3 of the film. Johnny is fine but we never really get to understand again what's the reason the FBI is entangled in this situation, and even his character's text proves that his confusion is leading him in no specific direction. So he goes around hiring/convincing people to do this and that while being a happy-go-lucky guy who gratuitously (unfortunately not in the fun way) kills innocent extras. And by the time you don't really care anymore, he pulls a Daredevil like it was the easiest/painless thing in the world to become BLIND. Not to mention that the bad guys have good occasions to kill the heroes once and for all but would rather disabled them or put them in escapable situations...
Hey, don't get me wrong, I "like" moronic bad guy decisions like in the James Bond movies, but in this one it's just to damn stupid to be taken on a that type of level.
And if you ask me, alot of people will be disappointed by the misleading poster that lets you believe Antonio and Salma are the central characters of the film. When Antonio is there, he barely has the charisma of Desperado, and you get maybe a line or two by Salma who is dead from the beginning and only appears in flashbacks... That's not even a real spoiler because if you don't get that the first time she appears on screen, then you're in for a major deception. But I could care less because I wasn't expecting her to hold the film together.
So basically, without enumerating the myriads of useless ploys and murders, all I can say is that the film is about Johnny trying to pull some sort of money stunt that blends all sorts of bad guys and good ones into saving the Mexican president from a coup d'état and convincing Antonio to now be a real hero for his government instead of the "legend" that he had become.
Note that I'm not aware of the current political situation in Mexico, so I don't know on which angle to deal with this, but one thing for sure is that Robert Rodriguez has made sure we are still confused why everyone is fighting everyone, even up to masked paraders on the occasion of the Day of Dead festivities... A real big gunfight ensues that leaves absolutely no cadavers after the bloodbath.
I'm just realizing now that there are so many more flaws, more than I'm interested in writing about...
In the end, it's way far less entertaining than Desperado, not suspenseful for a second, because all the actions scenes have no build-up whatsoever, and happen just because a regular spectator would feel it would be a good time to put some bloody eye candy on the screen. The directing is not well choreographed, it really feels like Robert was on auto-pilot.
But I must say that I wasn't disappointed by one thing, the HD look is really not bad at all, I think it looks pretty slick aside from very few minor glitches. I'm certain that 97% of the population will never see the difference. Well done on that side. But even though I like better actual celluloid, I must say that I'm not one of the purist and am always open to new technologies.
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Wait for it on TV....
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Ascension (2002)
A true gem you need to discover!
It was a nice delight to see 'our' Marie-Josée Croze win a Cannes Award, but I must admit I have yet to see Les Invasions... But in light of her recent success, I had to stop by here and give words of praise for her previous film, Ascension.
I had the chance to see a preview screening in my hometown and all I can say is that I was truly impressed! Marie-Josée is fabulous in it (along the two other actresses who form a triangle of incestuous sarcasm) in this story where... Well I don't want to write any spoilers here since the movie is not officially out...
All I can say is that Karim Hussain's work as a director is quite remarkable. Taking advantage of the industrial qualities of an abandoned silo to paint his 'cold' sarcastic sci-fiesque story, he also manages to perfectly blend surreal horror moments reminiscent of David Lynch's work.
A brand new film unlike anything else and a great refreshing movie that will surely see its way into the public's brain. No matter who you are! And if you like to be confronted with new, boldly worlds of cinematic expressions, then rush to the theatre when this film comes out, and I can guarantee it will sooth your taste for quality cinema!
I can't wait to see it again, and you can bet I'm going to keep an eye on that new director.