davidec23's Reviews

Dune (2021)

9/10

15 November 2021

Reading all the negative reviews on here I thought I'd share my thoughts on the film.

First of all to adapt a book as complex and detailed as Dune is no easy task (Lynch's version is an example) and I feel like Villeneuve did an incredible job in adapting the novel into film. Having read the book numerous times I was amazed to how close the film followed the storyline and dialogue. It kind of reminded me of Peter Jackson's adaption of Lord of the Rings.

Dune is a political novel as much as it is a science fiction one. So for those who expect battles and over the top scenes may be disappointed (although not completely). There are so many details in the book that if ignored can ruin the whole story, so I really wasn't surprised when they decided to split the film into two parts. And I also understand the reviewers who haven't read the books not being satisfied with the film, it sort of feels like it comes up short towards the end. But as Lynch has proved in his 1984 adaption, to fit a 500 page book in a 2 hour film is no easy task and can make for a rushed and messy film.

Having said that, nobody can deny the incredible work done in special effects. The visuals and sound was just incredible and really feels like what Hebert was trying to portray in the book.

The cast was also decent. No actor overplays his role and overall there are some quite decent performances.

Much like Jackson's LOTR, I feel like we need to wait for Part 2 of this film in order to give it a final judgement. But as Villeneuve has shown in his recent endeavors I am certain he will not disappoint.

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The Father (I) (2020)

10/10

Sir Anthony Hopkins at his finest

12 April 2021

I just finished watching the film and I am speechless. Acting, writing and directing are all absolutely brilliant. This picture is a breath of fresh air in the polluted world of today's cinema.

Sir Anthony Hopkins gives one of the finest performances ever put on film. My grandfather had dementia and seeing this film brought back the memories so vividly that it almost made me want to stop watching. The gestures, the sudden mood swings and the slow fall into the horrible word that is dementia are all perfectly portrayed by Mr. Hopkins.

Olivia Colman also delivers a powerhouse of a performance in this film. The role is not an easy one, playing the daughter of a man affected by Alzheimer's, but she shines through the whole film and honestly deserves as much praise as Hopkins.

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Tenet (2020)

5/10

Should get the Razzie for sound mixing

5 April 2021

The movie itself has a lot of potential, the idea is quite genius and Nolan tries his best to portray it on film. I would say the end result is a little raw, definitely needs a few rewatches to make sense of it.

My main issue was with the sound. I am wondering if Nolan even watched the final cut before release. It is abysmal to say the least, most conversations in the film is inaudible due to the crazy loud soundtrack and sound effects. The special effects are top notch as you would expect from Nolan so I really don't understand this oversight, it literally ruins the film.

Hope it gets remixed by someone who know what he is doing, maybe some editing wouldn't harm either.

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What the Health (2017)

5/10

Positive yet majorly flawed documentary

12 March 2021

I think the producers set out to make a documentary with all the best intentions. The preface is that meat/eggs/diary are the cause of most modern diseases and by simply switching to a vegan/vegetarian diet all of these magically go away.

To back up these claims they interview a bunch of doctors who all share that same opinion. There was little to no debate from the doctors advocating for eating meat. Right off this was a huge flaw in the documentary. Whenever they went to a big health association (cancer, diabetes, etc.) they would be refused interviews.. I wonder why? Why wouldn't somebody sit down and talk about the subject? I believe it's because the documentary tries to be as one sided as possible.

Yes, a purely meat based diet is surely not healthy for you and bacon/processed meat has been shown to be cancerous. But to label ALL meat, poultry, fish and eggs as the food of the devil is foolish and honestly passes off as extremist. There is plenty of research showing that a well balanced diet has health benefits (ie. Mediterranean). I am Italian and our nation's average life expectancy is some of the highest in the world and yet we still eat meat/fish/diary. Just moderately.

I heartily disapprove of the meat industry's way of dealing with animals and the over consumption of their products and believe that people need to be educated on diet and the adverse effects o; some foods. But misinformation and propaganda isn't the way to go about it.

Again I feel that the producer's hearts were in the right place and the overall message is positive. I just wish they had delivered it better.

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Joker (I) (2019)

10/10

Film of the year (if not of the decade)

18 November 2019

I heard all the hype about this film and as a skeptic at heart I came into this film with the most critical mindset possible.

I just finished watching it and I am absolutely speechless. I don't think a film such as this has ever been made in Hollywood before. The slow and steady fall of the Joker into complete insanity is just so realistic that you feel a strange empathy towards him and almost come to justify his actions even when he commits the most heinous crimes. This is what makes this film so incredible, it takes the "villain/good guy" type of film making and just flips it right on its head.

The cinematography captures this perfectly, you never feel rushed into a scene and yet it keeps you glued to your seat (thanks also to the music and score which contour this film perfectly).

Joaquin Phoenix gives the performance of the century and only thanks to his brilliance is this film even possible. I feel sorry for the actors who gave Oscar-worthy performances this year, as Mr. Phoenix's acting in this film is just from another planet and deserves all the accolades it can get.

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Arrival (II) (2016)

1/10

Departure... from sanity

18 January 2017

Warning: Spoilers

Having been a huge Sci-fi fan all my life and hearing all the praise for this film, I gotta say, I had really high expectations. When I left the cinema I couldn't help but feel like someone had just conned me.

The basis of this film is great. An alien species arrive on earth and the various governments deal with it their own way. A linguist and a physician get called out to the landing area of one of the spaceships and are asked to communicate with the aliens. Up to this point I was on the edge of my seat.

Then the director decides its time to throw it all away. He gives some really poor explanation on how the aliens communicate, and the protagonist through a series of moments of heavy breathing (literally) and flashbacks somehow understands it all.

There is no science fiction in this, not one bit. It is pure fantasy and honestly a waste of talent and potential.

Throughout almost the whole film it felt like the ball was on the goal line, and you are waiting there for someone to just tap it in. And when they finally do you realize it's an own goal.

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Before Sunrise (1995)

5/10

One word... LAME

20 May 2016

I recently picked this movie up after seeing the stellar reviews on IMDb. I knew I was in for a dialogue-filled 90 minutes but I was not ready for what I was about to endure.

I love dialogue based films but this one is different. The whole movie is just one big dialogue from start to finish. And it isn't funny or original dialogue, it's mainly clichès about love and lame anecdotes.

It gets so pretentious I laughed during some scenes. The characters try too hard to be emotionally deep and intellectually different, and it gets to a point where it's just plain boring.

The acting is good in some points and horrible in others, some lines are delivered with so little conviction you start to wonder whether some of it is supposed to be sarcasm.

Anyways I still give it 5 stars for the idea but I would definitely not watch it again.

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Argo (2012)

7/10

Its fiction people...

17 April 2013

This is a movie! Not a documentary... Most of the facts are exaggerated and most of the historical details are inaccurate. In my opinion if you go see this film without any bias its actually quite enjoyable and brilliantly directed.

Maybe it is propaganda, but what movie doesn't have a social/political message in it??(Lincoln & Django both about black oppression, both released before Obama's re-election and lets not even mention Bigelow's absolute crap)If you want Hollywood to depict history accurately you'll be disappointed 99 % of the time. For example, most of Hollywoods war films are complete garbage, only showing one side of the story and the American army being the mighty hand of God himself while the enemy is portrayed as cruel and ruthless.

Actually Argo doesn't glorify the US. It shows a critical political situation and a government that is failing to get out of it cleanly. A CIA agent comes up with a daring plan to rescue the embassy staff who survived without harming anyone... The mistake was not giving enough credit to the Canadian government who actually saved the day and took most of the risks. Iran was the villain so obviously everything about the people, police etc. was exaggerated to the extreme. But hell if you know a little about history you wouldn't give a damn.

Again Argo is fiction and it has to be viewed as such. The plot is great, the editing superb and the acting was decent. Affleck's directing is also excellent, giving a realistic feel to the movie and always keeping you on the edge of your seat. Worthy of an Oscar for Best Picture? Probably not, but the Oscar for editing was well deserved.

Watch this film without trying to understand the political aspect of it or taking parts and I am sure you will enjoy it.

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Sex, Lies, and Videotape (1989)

6/10

Didn't live up to the expectations

5 April 2013

I heard a great deal about this movie from some of my friends and having seen some of Soderbergh's more recent works, I must say I was kind of let down. The story in itself is kind of interesting but the characters (and the actors) aren't. Most of the characters felt superficial to me ie. the successful lawyer having an affair, cheating sister, repressed wife etc. I just think Soderbergh should have built the characters a little more. Other than that it is quite a decent film. Especially the different perspectives this film gives you on infidelity and dishonesty (and fetishes I guess). Not a movie I would watch again though... I'll just stick to Soderbergh more recent work (Traffic was brilliant).

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Django Unchained (2012)

4/10

Tarantino... I am disappointed

11 January 2013

Warning: Spoilers

I am a hardcore Tarantino fan and I must say I had great expectations for this movie. I can now honestly say that in my opinion Django Unchained is Tarantino's worst film to this day.

Lets start with the first major flaw. The soundtrack. Usually Tarantino has great taste for his soundtracks and on most of his movies (pulp fiction, reservoir dogs, kill bill) it actually is a fundamental part and complements the film. On Django it seems that Mr. Tarantino got Lil Wayne to choose some of the tracks. Hip Hop in a western?? Completely ruined the movie for me.

Second, the length of the movie is ridiculously long... Almost 3 hours. Usually films of such lengths have intricate plot lines and/or are made to tell an exceptionally long story. Not in this case. The movie could have easily been 100 minutes long. If it wasn't for the excessive and unnecessary dialogues, the useless KKK scene, the first 45 minutes of the movie which have almost nothing to do with the main plot line. The last 30 minutes of bloodshed serve to no use and I guess is just a fetish of the director. Mr. Tarantino seems to lose the sense of time and you can never tell where his ego ends and the plot begins.

Third, bad acting. Jamie Foxx is impalpable. Besides a few punch lines and some dramatic moments Foxx doesn't portray the slave from the pre-civil war era but mostly comes off as a thug from the hood. Di Caprio is too pretty-faced to seriously be the villain in this movie and if it wasn't for the horrors happening around the character (Candie) you could hardly tell he's the bad guy. Waltz and Jackson on the other hand with their excellent performances keep this movie together. I was really hoping Tarantino, with such an all-star cast, could have pulled off a both socially relevant and at the same time entertaining film, but again I was mistaken.

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