denzil-09434 Reviews

About Schmidt (2002)

Waste of time

[4/10 · 3 June 2020]

This is transparently the vision of a young man about how an old man feels. Stay in your lane.

Hitting the Apex (2015)

Very well chosen subjects to illustrate modern motogp

[8/10 · 15 March 2020]

I was surprised how much I enjoyed this. I was particularly pleased that Marco Simoncelli was given his due as a modern great. I realised that this was the first time I saw his accident. I was watching live but I had turned my back on the TV before the coup de grace, and I immediately turned off the TV and left it alone. Such a sad day. The whole Doriano Romboni incident just rubbed salt in the wound. I guess the producers did right not to mention that in this context. Very good film.

Ilana Glazer: The Planet Is Burning (2020 TV Special)

Not good enough for an open mic

[1/10 · 30 January 2020]

5 minutes of dancing followed by 50 minutes of out of breath filler on the fly. I have exactly as much respect for this performance as the performer has for the audience. Zero.

Buttleman (2003)

Many faults but well written

[7/10 · 31 December 2019]

Fun movie with a star who bears a striking resemblance to Dan Soder.

This movie us fun and well written. On the understanding that it was made for absolutely no money, it's extraordinary. Pretty funny.

Honestly the main problem is that the time setting is confused, but for no money, what can you do? Other than that, solid film. I enjoyed it.

Joel (I) (2018)

Hilarious. Nick Mullen biopic

[8/10 · 21 December 2019]

This film is very funny if you view it as a documentary about Nick Mullen. The resemblance both physical and mental is delicious.

Hunter Killer (2018)

Some great naval footage but a stupid film

[4/10 · 29 August 2019]

Some lovely photography of battle ships but the story is ridiculous. For example, the plot, acting and editing reach 1980s levels of improbability. An historical event which never happened nor was actually told is used as the only background for the main character and the action happens at a time of year when there is snow on the ground in Scotland but not in Siberia. What time of year is that?

The characterizations of the sailors and Pentagon staff are utterly appalling. The Russian baddies are bond villains.

Also, while the surface action is supposed to be happening in a fjord, it's all clearly shot in open ocean.

This film's greatest achievement is getting to film a decent sized flotilla of super cool hardware.

If you do like this film, you may also enjoy A Company of Heroes. That's even worse.

The Hunted (2003)

Almost good

[4/10 · 9 August 2019]

Kind if ends up good but you have to battle through 30 minutes of nonsense at the start.

1. TLJ tracks a bleeding wolf through the forest. When he catches up with it it's caught in a ground anchored loop snare. How does a snared animal leave a bloody trail? The essence of a snare is to restrict the mobility of its victim.

2 TLJ goes on a helicopter ride. Reads, looks at pictures, acts perfectly fine during ride. Immediately after touchdown, badly acted, extreme airsickness.

Little things plot wise but totally unforgivable. Is the guy airsick or is he not? Is the wolf captured or is it not? The credibility of the film is shot to pieces before it starts. Even allowing for the corny Croatian prologue.

After this stupidity it gradually becomes a mediocre action flick but at no time does anything about it measure up to the 2 leading men. They must have been very well paid as this film is miles beneath their talents.

American Movie (1999)

Good movie. Seems like it might have influenced Trailer Park Boys

[8/10 · 19 July 2019]

Good movie. As a huge fan of trailer park boys I can't help but think that some of tpb was inspired by this. Different character elements are distributed differently but it's all there... all except Lahey. The protagonist has elements of Bubbles, J-Roc and Ricky. Or rather those characters are inspired by this real guy. It's a must watch.

Good Omens (2019– )

Pretty good

[5/10 · 9 June 2019]

Having read the book multiple times I was pleasantly surprised by how great the characterizations of Crowley an Azarafael were. Better than they were in my own imagination. The glaring fact that David Tennant's rendition of Crowley is basically an impression of Bill Nighy is not necessarily a bad thing. On the contrary. It's almost as good a choice as casting Nighy would have been. Like I say though, it's better than my imagination as a reader was and Tennant is to be congratulated on it, even if the casting person should have thought of it first.

Hopefully this will be a huge success and Amazon will start dramatizing Robert Rankin books next. Please make the Brentford Trilogy into a TV show!

Edit: The more this updates the worse it gets. Half way through episode 4 I'm out. There's nothing good on TV anymore

Deserter (2002)

Really?

[5/10 · 8 June 2019]

Almost watchable until the cafe scene 41 minutes in. Give me a break!

Peppermint (2018)

Almost good

[5/10 · 25 May 2019]

Some good ideas here but it's regularly punctuated with episodes of such corniness that they totally take you out of it.

Rita, Sue and Bob Too (1987)

One of the best films of the 1980s

[9/10 · 21 April 2019]

This movie has stood up very well over the years. All the performances are excellent and the writing is better than that of any British film I can bring to mind. The fact that it was written by a very young woman is amazing. She had such a deep understanding of how the world works at such a young age and was able to turn it into a spectacularly entertaining and enduring work of art.

It's one of those films you can watch over and over again. In my repeat viewing chart it's probably second only to The Blues Brothers.

Great fun and they'll never make anything like this ever again.

No Good Nick (2019)

I thought it was a spoof

[2/10 · 18 April 2019]

Terrible show. Makes iCarly look like Curb Your Enthusiasm.

The Red Pill (2016)

Very interesting

[8/10 · 13 April 2019]

I knew nothing about MRAs going in to this, but I'm not blue pilled either. What struck me about this film is that both sides in this argument have supposedly very similar goals yet one side really is not listening to the other.

Images of male feminists banging saucepans to drown out speakers who they imagine they disagree with is reminiscent of white anti racists calling Candace Owens the N word. Who knows, it's likely the same mob.

There's lots of interesting stuff here but I think what sticks with me the most is how one of the feminist activists interviewed actually did see that MRAs agreed with her about most things, whilst refusing to listen to them. Contrasting that with the thoughtful and humane approach of the BLM activist in Hoaxed, which I watched the night before.

This is a very good film and highly recommended. It's a very depressing subject though. There's a conspiracy to destroy western civilisation and propagate a revolution to authoritarian rule. That's what motivates the drones of the revolution to drown out opposing voices in case they accidentally hear something that might alter their foregone conclusion.

Unfortunately watching this will probably do as much good as watching the Kardashians. The war is already lost.

Hoaxed (2019)

A profound experience

[9/10 · 12 April 2019]

This film honestly seeks all points of view and dismantles the traditional dividing lines between groups who are told they are opposed to one another.

I found the people from the groups I'm most prejudiced against the most persuasive, although everyone had good points.

Best $5 I ever spent.

Special Correspondents (2016)

Awful but prescient

[4/10 · 5 April 2019]

This movie is awful in every way. Luckily it will never be made again now that it has been acted out in real life by Robert Mueller and CNN.

Amy Schumer: Growing (2019 TV Special)

Not funny is the new funny

[2/10 · 27 March 2019]

Schumer is a competent standup in terms of her performance. Her delivery is solid but there's no writing here. If anyone could make this material funny it would be her, but even she can't. It's lazy. It's joke free. The whole thing can be summarised as follows. "I'm pregnant and my husband is autistic. " Hilarious!

Ms Schumer was a better writer when she was dating a Anthony Jeselnik. Now she's married to a chef the influence of her partner is more visual than cerebral.

Fortunately she's become a good comic actress. More movies and fewer specials please Amy.

Weapon of Choice (2018)

If only the fuhrer knew

[1/10 · 8 March 2019]

An Austrian argues against 2a. Evidently he has no idea why the populace might need to defend itself against tyranny. An Austrian!

I suppose that from a Germanic point of view, the defence against tyranny is an enigma (pun intended). "If only the fuhrer knew! "

This kid even flew to Iraq for one shot out of his hotel window because someone erroneously informed him that Chicago is known as Chiraq. It's more commonly called Chicongo. Neither Iraqi nor Congolese citizens have 2a rights to protect them from tyranny. They have tyranny instead. That's what you get without either 2a or Germanic obsequience to authority.

The fuhrer was Austrian. He knew. He also knew his subjects would think the best of him because, hey, why would the citizenry believe their masters would practice tyranny?

On the positive side, this guy is less of a one eyed polemicist than the odious Michael Moore. That's the best that I can say for this. It's naive rather than cynical communist propaganda.

We Still Kill the Old Way (2014)

More corny than Kansas.

[5/10 · 2 March 2019]

Great cast. Good production. Terrible writing. Everything that's stereotypically rubbish about British films is particularly rubbish about this one. It's so well made and well acted that it'll make you watch to the end but you'll be disappointed the entire time. The good points only make it worse. This movie stinks.

Comics Watching Comics (2015– )

Geno bisconte ate my hamster

[8/10 · 3 February 2019]

I feel some kind of way about this show but I award it 8 stars because I negotiated that to prevent Geno from going public about what happened with me and his kitten.

I'd like to take this opportunity to recommend owl pellets as a nutritious snack in a bag lunch for a ginger step child.

Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri (2017)

More pandering than San Diego zoo

[3/10 · 26 January 2019]

This movie epitomises the shallow treatment of rural America which Hollywood churns out time after time. And it's directed by a brit! Pay your $12, sit still and shut up whilst one of your former imperial overlords explains to you, very slowly, why you stink.

Billy Bob Thornton has written about this type of movie (not this exact one as far as I know) and he's right. It does nothing to advance mutual understanding or art, which is surprising because this is from the maker if the superb In Bruges.

I thought this would be a good film. It isn't. It's the opposite of Sling Blade. That film dealt with broadly similar topics and situations but was ten times more powerful because it had truth and love running all the way through it.

This film is totally hollow and 2 years from now nobody will remember it.

The Gunman (2015)

30 minutes too long. 120 minutes too boring

[2/10 · 20 January 2019]

Lots happens in this movie. Much of which is cool, yet it manages to be totally boring throughout. It is almost perfectly crap.

Sad Hill Unearthed (2017)

Very good

[7/10 · 13 January 2019]

Well worth watching. A reminder of the power of one of the greatest movies of all time. Tears were brought to my eyes.

Standup and Away! with Brian Regan (2018– )

Very good

[7/10 · 6 January 2019]

This is a really good show. The switch between the stand up and the sketches is a tad awkward but it's worth it. BR is a stone cold killer. It's pretty much all winners.

From the Ashes (I) (2011)

Not for a cricket tragic

[6/10 · 6 January 2019]

This is a pretty good documentary. But it's a mainstream film designed to please people who aren't interested in cricket cricket.

It makes a great case for cricket but only cricket fans will watch it, and they'll enjoy it, but not as much as they would enjoy watching the highlights of the matches.

Like the 100 it's ultimately pointless. Designed to please people who don't like cricket. People who won't give it a chance. So why bother?

But my word, wasn't Sir Ian a beautiful, sweaty, sexy hunk?