agostino-dallas Reviews

The Cleaning Lady (2018)

Really predictable and disappointing movie

[5/10 · 14 July 2023]

I had better expectations on this. Usually I don't read reviews prior to watching the movie. So I avoid any bias. I started watching and I was exciting about what coild be the maid's secret. Would she really impersonate the lady ? Would her past be interesting? Revenge? But sooner I realized the movie was going to suck big time. No twists, no big surprises, it is like they run out of money and decided to end it sooner or maybe someone burnt the screen play and they ended it earlier anyway. So Freddy's sister did the obvious gore work, the movie got only darker and more obvious and no big surprises. It really looked like they lost it. The beginning of the movie was a little promising but the middle and end was bad. One of the worst movies so far. Even Friday the 13th Part - 36 is probably better. Cheap budget? OK, I understand but hey, a plot so weak and predictable have no excuses. Don't watch this!!

Them (2021– )

I have a hard time believing this is any good, totally a turn-off

[6/10 · 22 May 2021]

I gave it in respect to the actors, producers and I am sure iit took a lot of hard working behind the scenes. Having said that, I am not sure where this is going. I am not black, I am not "white" in the "pure conception" of what it means to racists, to the white supremacists. Therefore, maybe I am not the right person reviewing it. My point is simple though. Given the recent events, this might not be a good time to highlight violence. It does not help at all. I found the serie quiite disturbing. I would not keep watching it. It is evil. II understand people who want this to be a way to show what was like to be a black person living iin the white men's world. However, the real effective vegeance belongs to the Lord. On that day, I am sure hell will be a place dwelled by many white people, the violent and the ones who stood still when they could interfere. Make no mistake, those people who really did such terrifying and eviil things iin the real life will certainly will never see the light again. I understand this is fiction but I think I just have better things to nurture my brain and real life violence is not one of them.

The Nest (I) (2020)

This movie should inaugurate a new category: "real life horror"

[5/10 · 4 April 2021]

I understand that some people are not particular fans of horror movies. That´s moatly because they depict, many times, gore, evil forces attacking and hurting people, darkness, sex etc. Although, some teens watch them because nudity or partially nudity is shown. The point is, this movies is the "real life horror" type of movie. Failure is a big deal for us, liiving creatures on earth, trying to make ends meet, even if you are succeeding, if you were not born with a silver spoon, stay succesful is harder than reach success I tell you this from experience. Anyway, this movie shows a father figure failing to support his family, pretending to be someone he is not, lying, living a miserable life. That is for me the real life horror type of movie.

Seven in Heaven (2018)

Pay attention to the title of the movie, nonsense!

[5/10 · 3 October 2020]

I understand that sometimes movie or book writers love to be on the more metaphorical side and to make it a sort of thought-provoking thing they will choose a title which does not relate a lot to the plot or the story you will read or watch. However, this one tops them all! It is pure nonsense. People love movies about time travelling, imaginary places, different dimensions, but this one is a totally misleading type of movie, a phony. I have the feeling that producers had half of the story, they liked it a lot and they gave it a shot - literally. Then when they already had half of the movie already filmed, the writer got drunk, burnet the rest of it or maybe he truly went to a closed and disappeared. As a result of that, the producers had to come out with a plan to finish the movie and everybody wrote a piece. In the end, they put it together. Nobody would give up their idea and they had to manage to fit all the pieces. Then you have it. A movie which was promising becoming a total nonsense teenage bad told story. A waste of your precious time. Acting was also painful, very high school, although maybe some high school drama classes could easily beat this one up.

A Simple Favor (2018)

Don't get confused, it is still worthy watching but someone lost it in the end

[7/10 · 8 September 2020]

Why such a good thriller, great plot goes downhill in the end? I really can't understand and it will look like the production switched directors or the last pages of the movie script got lost and they couldn't find the original writer. As a result of that, someone decided to turn a great thriller into a dark humor comedy. You can totally see that and ... if you like practical jokes, you will not find it so bad. Come on, I am not sure it was the Exorcist or maybe The Reanimator but it was really screwed up.

The Grudge (2019)

It is not totally wasted...

[6/10 · 17 February 2020]

I have not watched the original Japanese movies. I think what I missed on this movie was a little bit more of consistence. It looked like a good story but in the end it wasnt as good. The story of someone visiting a haunted house in Japan and bringing the curse to the US doesnt hold a lot of water. The ghosts were OK, some thriller, but I missed the core. This visual thing using a long wet dark hair is not new and it can be quite repetitive over time.

I.T. (2016)

You can write somthing better than this at work after IT Help Desk fails to help you

[6/10 · 9 February 2020]

It is a really clichê. The powerful rich man who has a perfect family and bad atitude dealing with people. He invites the enemy over, even his family has doubts he is the man of the house. The perpetrator seems vague and with a childish motive to do what he does. Here goes a Golden tip: if you need some help with your house security system, internet or similar kind of assistence, stay away from Young smart pants who have worked for secret agencies. It could totally backfire.

I Spit on Your Grave 2 (2013)

Why people still produce these dark nonsense movies?

[4/10 · 2 January 2020]

I understand that some people might "like it hard" when it comes to revenge. You wanna watch the perpetrators suffer with extreme and well elaborated ways to make sure payback is made with interest. However, that is so cliché. First of all, the plot sucks. It is not well elaborated. It is very amateur. The actress - just like in I spit in your grave remake I -- is good but that´s pretty much it. The revenge is graphic so fans of gore mixed with dark sexuality will enjoy the movie but it can be considered a little sick. She has been raped and tortured but she is alive. Of course, in real life her life would have changed forever but she kills the bad guys. I don't care about the bad guys, if they were real, they deserved what they got. The issue is the lack of thrill. Just like the other movie, the remake, it is: nice sexy girl is a victim of male perpetrators. Nice girl plans an extreme cruel revenge. On top of that, the "destruction of male genitalia" is a metaphor as well. Women paying back, punishing the males where they feel the most for the longtime chauvinism. Altogether, it is a truly third tier movie. It could be better if the perpetrators were working with human slavery, something very true these days. If there were more victims, both men and women, together, not again the naïve single girl who will eventually get even. Both thumbs down, thumbs up if you like movies like Antichrist, Nymphomaniac and second tier dark movies to satisfy dark fantasies.

Doctor Sleep (2019)

It feels almost like the original one - almost!

[8/10 · 10 November 2019]

The atmosphere of the original is not going to be overcome by Doctor Sleep. That is easy to guess if you consider how many takes it took to film the original. Mr. Kubrik was a perfectionist. Each take was thouroughly thought. The Family, the job interview, the tour at the hotel, the stories, so many it is hard to count. This one has a connection because Dani is here but the story is quite far away from what I thought it would be, I enjoyed the movie but again, it vould have been so mucch better if the producers had made more connections and a better background than what was shown on this one.I like it, no doubt, I would recommend fans to watch this one but do not rise your expectations so much, the original one is not to be beat by any movie soon. Maybe that´s the reason why The sixth sense has no sequel.I hope you like it as much as I did, I actually rated it 8, but 8 is na OK rating only.

Rattlesnake (2019)

If you like horror movies, watch this one with low expectations but watch it

[6/10 · 26 October 2019]

I have lived in Texas for 5 years. Texas has a nice atmosphere for horror movies. It has all the ingredients: long lonely roads, weird landscape, weird folks, I say it in a nice way. This movie is not bad per se but It is hard to believe that they - the producers - missed it so badly. The plot could have been better worked on. The reason the lady got in trouble made no sense, what triggered the whole thing was not really making sense. But it is not a waste of time, it is just not as good.

The Nightshifter (2018)

It has all good ingredients maybe some of them were overcooked - still good

[7/10 · 14 October 2019]

I am a long time horror movies fan. I loved The sixth sense, The others, some of the Paranormal Actitvity etc. This Brazilian movie is the type of movie which horror movies fans will enjoy no matter what. You can get some nice bone chilling moments. Sometimes, it even looked like an American production. The issue for me is that the movie took a loop which could have been better developed but unfortunately it satyed in the loop. It is a fair 7 rated movie. It means it is Worth watching. Over time, this movie can be used for future Brazilian movies to set some standards. It is also a movie using Brazilian poorer neighborhoods - outskirts if you will, those are the places where violence punches in, 24/7.

Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood (2019)

When five stars mean something else, QT could have done better

[5/10 · 19 August 2019]

In my humble opinion, a movie with extremes reviews, highs and lows, it is usuallly better than having lots of 5s or 6s. I think 5 or 6 is like we are voting for a dull movie. This is the case, at least from me. I was not aware of the connection between Hollywood and the murders masterminded by that psycho - burn in hell Manson! However, I could not "dig it" watching this movie. I think this is like those paintings that intelectual people try to tell you a lot of BS but you can see clearly that it is nonsense but you are afraid of expressing yourself. This movie has good actors on it and that I respect but the movie is really going nowhere.

Happy Death Day 2U (2019)

Much clever than I expected

[8/10 · 24 February 2019]

A sequel is considered by many people (producers, screenwriters, sponsors) a double-edged sword and many of them avoid it. I can't remember how many times I wrote that "The sixth had sense" would totally boom it if it had a good sequel. However, Mr. Shyamalan didn't have the creativity to do it. This movie was good, much clever than I expected and it could possibly have another sequel as long as the creativity and clever plot continues. It has all the ingredients for that. It was totally worth of it and I am waiting for the next one, for sure,

Glass (2019)

Remake, sometimes they are good, sometimes theye are not.

[7/10 · 21 January 2019]

If you didn't see the original, you should be fine watching this one. If you did, there should be no spoiler or big surprises on what I am writing here. It is basically the same approach with a couple of changes. Many people who saw it -- myself included -- maybe it is the bias, we liked the French version better. It looked like the French characters seemed to bond better. The American characters, from my standpoint, seemed more like a cliché relationship -- B&W people issues in America, be that implied or explicit, it is always there.

Miracles from Heaven (2016)

Great movie to renew your beliefs

[10/10 · 5 January 2019]

Don't be scared to let it go. You don't need to a religious person or a Christian to understand faith is not always related to a specific religion but it requires some strong dive in your inner self to find that extra battery of life. Whenever I feel like I enter any church to pray and I look around. Some people are into it and some just sitting there or checking the cell messages. It is about what you believe, if it is Jesus or another sacred person for you, it is OK. Just remember that faith is a strong power available for those who believe it.

Pulp Fiction (1994)

Original, shocking good!!

[8/10 · 9 December 2018]

You read the title of my review, you saw this movie, no need to write all the stuff critics and amateur reviewers like me have already wrote. OK, having said that, what is left to write? I will give it a try. I watched this movie in 1995, in Brazil movies used to get a little later. Some movies still come here 6 or 9 months after released in the US. And this movie was a total cult-to-be right away. The thing people talked over and over was how Tarantino was able to make the actors -- Travolta and Jackson -- really sound like two ordinary bad guys having a true bad guy conversation. A crude, hardcore type of conversation. It was like he had the power to put us there. No regular artificial type of dialogue. On top of it, the fact that the movie was not made to run a typical chronological order of facts. I think it is still good day but of course it would not make the same impact it did back in 1994.

Life Itself (2018)

Kill or cure - love or hate type of movie - 'tutti frutti'

[5/10 · 9 December 2018]

I would not say I hate it but I am very far from loving it. I thought this movie seemed like some movie-maker students spent the night trying to come up with an original screenplay to show Hollywood they still exist. But something wen wrong in the process and they stuffed the movie with what I call in Brazil "tutti frutti'. You mix drama, joy, a lot of ups and downs and make the effort to show people you are doing something very clever and because you do it, it totally backfired. A last advice for real people: teach your kids how to cross a street or a big avenue, this must be the 50th movie I see and people are killed by a motor vehicle! What a cliché!!

The Others (2001)

It is way "beyond" a horror movie! There is a complex message in this movie.

[8/10 · 20 May 2018]

This movie is no ordinary movie. At first it might look like just another good-mystery horror movie. However, as you watch it twice or three times, you will realize it has a complex thought-provoking subject which many of us would avoid because there are no right answers for the implied subject. Sometimes we will avoid because it can take us to a place we don't want to be very often, which is the boundaries between this world and the "next" one, whatever your faith is. Unless you're a totally science person like Stephen Hawking, you know we still struggle to understand the mysteries of this life. Why we are here, how and when we die, and how these events are related. That's the foundation of many of ours issues as humans, fears, uncertainties. To me, the idea of being trapped in a "limited world", whether it is a house, a neighborhood or even a city is really scary. It is like, depending how you leave this world, you should stay in limbo, whatever your limbo is, and for what reason? Reflection? I guess, the only remedy what we know will come someday is trying to live your life the best way you can. Follow your dreams, treat the others well and keep your faith, Those who choose to live in the desert might end up going to one. Try to make friends, take care of nature, pets, wild life, you might just cross to be in a better version of what you choose here or the opposite to that matter.

Love, Simon (2018)

Very good to straight people to understand what is going on?

[8/10 · 9 April 2018]

I live in a quite homophobic country. However, the gay parade has been gaining momentum. I have never been to any "gay type" event in my life. Nor a single party, parade, even some diversity or minority thing. I am not homophobic now. I say now because I grew up in a very homophobic environment, especially during Junior High and High School. The good thing though is that, I was never supportive neither disapproving of it. I just thought, gay things are meant for gay people. Religious people go to their churches or temples, single people to singles' bar and gay people to gay places. Eventually, everybody bumps each other, mostly at work and, as long as everybody keeps a professional behavior, OK. But this movie showed something that most of us, straight people. have a problem understanding, which is when someone "becomes gay"? When dos the gay bug bite? it should be out there, maybe it is, the truth is I hope life becomes less of a burden to gay people. I still don't get a couple of things but I am a changed person on this. Not because this movie in particular but this movie helped. I think there should be more informative movies like this and documentaries too. I think society has to be always collaborative and less of what it is now: hateful, racist and stuff I can't write here. Good movie!

A Quiet Place (2018)

Wow, 8 or more for this movie? Give me a break! Do you love movies or hold a crush for the director or actors?

[6/10 · 9 April 2018]

I can't believe a dull movie like this is rated by lot of friends, oops, people. It is not a mediocre movie but 6 or 7 would be fair. OK, you have the right to exercise your right to give whatever rate you want but there is something fishy here. Anyway, I struggle to believe in two things:1-ETs looking like horrific creatures and 2-ETs invading the planet to do stupid things, that has been human job so far. Did you see Signs? OK, any resemblance is mere coincidence? Maybe. For me, this movie could never rank better than Signs.Signs is rated 7.4, OK, fair. 8.2 for this ? No way! 7 is high, 6.4, 6.5 is fair enough. It totally missed the opportunity to be a great movie. Maybe it is the budget, maybe I am wrong. However, I see absolutely no big difference from Signs.

All I See Is You (2016)

One rally mediocre movie

[2/10 · 25 March 2018]

You see...it looks like a promising movie. She can't see...then she can. When it looks like something really thrilling is to happen...it doesn't. You stay like waiting for it to make sense, it never does. Nothing really worthy. The story seems to be left in a very dull moment which stays on and nothing really unfolds. You leave the movie theater with some question marks...how can someone transform a promising plot in a very dull and nonsense? Idk! Maybe I am too demanding these days when it seems that movies are sometimes produced to be a failure.

Get Out (I) (2017)

Best original screenplay -- it is what it is and that's good!

[8/10 · 12 March 2018]

I didn't have any expectations about this movie. I avoided reading reviews and anything, just so I would be surprised. Unfortunately, I didn't see this one on the big screen. I liked the movie, a lot. Horror? It is in a certain way. Racism, of course. It is an American movie with Southern story background, come on, this is like American cliché right there. But it is OK. We all know how races is a big deal in the US. It is maybe the only country where you are forced to think you have a race. I mean, let's not hypocrites here but in the US, it really matters. It is like people are curious to know what mix have you been blended with? Get some white, black, Asian...put in the blender and ... there you are!! It doesn't take the originality of the movie and I don't think it is a big deal but there it is. The white people talking, African-American talking...but it is still good.

Amnesiac (2014)

Another dull movie stereotyping people who have cats

[5/10 · 18 February 2018]

Stereotyping can happen in many ways, "cat people" are strange people who live in dirty weird houses and probably have skeletons or maybe fresh human meat in stocked in a fridge. Oh, don't forget driving some car which might have been taken out of a Stephen King's book. I don't know if these directors stereotype to be facetious or they do it because they hate cats. And cat people, I am, are usually people who love animals, nature, and we have cats because they are easier to take care of. This movie also seems like a second tier version of Stephen King's Misery. It is dull, sloppy and very, very predictable, which is the worse thing is a intended to be thriller movie. So, go fly a kite, swim in the lake, watch sports, better, do some sport!!

The Notorious Bettie Page (2005)

Gretchen Mol embodied Bettie Page like nothing I have ever wacthed before

[8/10 · 17 January 2018]

I am a movie goer and I go a lot. I have seen many, many people embodying real people on the big screen but nothing like this. The Oscar is little compared to what she did. The movie is also sharply directed and you don't doubt for a second she is Bettie Page. I am a big fun of pin up girls. I can't help it. I see those 50's and 60's housewives and I am like a kid in a candy store. Bettie might have made some stuff who some people could have found inappropriate but it wasn't sure not pervert, not evil, but she was terribly criticized and probably felt so bad about herself. Men took advantage of her, for a change. Does it ring a bell? Gretchen you're great! So is Bettie.

Lights Out (II) (2016)

I am still waiting for a sequal of "The Sixth Sense" but it looks like it will not happen

[6/10 · 7 January 2018]

I enjoy horror movies, a lot, but not these melodramas mixing mental issues and supernatural. They lack the essence of a good horror movie which is to entice the audience in a psychological thriller to a point where you believe that what is going on the big screen could potentially happen when you go back to your house. Especially if you are American and live in one of those nice big houses. Ghosts usually do not pick Latin America houses. That's because they will probably have to haunt a studio place, where the living room is also the bedroom and there is one bathroom which in a standard American house would be a cat or do; g area. Anyway, my point is, this movie is a 5 or 6, it will scare you in a couple of scenes but that's it. As soon as you leave the theater, you will turn on your cell, check some e-mails, FB, and think of what you will see next time. This movie will definitely not stick only that when someone ask, you will probably say: "Oh yes, I saw it once". Please make the Sixth Sense sequal.