[JonE(vil)]

Sanatorium pod Klepsydra (The Hourglass Sanatorium) 1973. Poland.
A man goes to visit his father.
Completely surreal two hour film. Once the bloke gets to the sanatorium and sees his father, he goes from room to room thru what looks like different realities and situations. No real plot exists, but it has a very visual flamboyant style that is entertaining.
Kinda of a struggle to get thru, as consistent as it is, it gets a bit boring and your left just admiring the strangeness.

[JonE(vil)]

Tell me something 1999. South Korea.
8/10
Slow burn crime thriller/horror. Bags of body parts are turning up, with parts that are for a victim yet to be found. Similar to Decision to leave (Dir. Park Chan Wook) in that the cop is sympathetic to woman whose ex boy friends are being murdered. Some gore with practical effects and a solid but slightly hazy plot.
Looks like the style of the time, grimy cop drama, with old fashion detective work. No action scenes or high speed chases.
Little bit slow, but a interesting serial killer film that stands the test of time.

[Faust]

Originally Posted by JonE(vil) ↗

Review and rate a film.

Black Adam. 2022.
2/10
A superhero is awakened to take on a bloke corrupted by power.
Dwayne Johnson is the latest actor to attach himself to the 'superhero' genre. Not knowing anything about the character, or any of the other 'superheros' that appear doesn't really matter. It explains itself, to a degree. The opening is a generic origin story, followed by the standard fare from a film like this. Large amounts of cgi destruction make it interesting, but even that becomes a boring. Tamer than The Suicide Squad by James Gunn, it just looks like a studio driven movie thats out to copy Marvel with a bit more grit.

Was this set in Gaza? Serious question but this was honestly how I interpreted it

[JonE(vil)]

Originally Posted by Faust ↗

Was this set in Gaza? Serious question but this was honestly how I interpreted it

The opening was set '5000 years ago'. From there its in modern time.
I can only assume you watched the first few minutes.

Strange days. 1995.
7/10
A cyber punk crime thriller.
Nero is a dealer who sells recorded memories to people wanting to thrill without the danger. The film follows him as he is pursued by bent cops wanting a certain 'disk'. With a run time of over two hours, it sets up a number of characters and the crime. From there has a energetic feel with lots of music and styles. It somewhat drags after a while with the main part of the plot only coming together after the first hour. But still a interesting film.

[Faust]

Originally Posted by JonE(vil) ↗

The opening was set '5000 years ago'. From there its in modern time.
I can only assume you watched the first few minutes.

In the movie during the modern time:
Native people of color in a desert country are occupied and oppressed by an evil military state that commits crimes against humanity

Which country did you think it was supposed to be set in then? I know the movie is fantasy but what do you think the directors had in mind

[JonE(vil)]

Probably fictional Middle east/North Africa. Johnson, the lead actor is polynesian. So he makes for a good fit, going against type playing a baddie type superhero. It does go back to that region, but the film overall was so forgettable, there has not been any sort of attempt to tie the character in or pursue any sort of series.

I, the executioner. 2024. South Korea.
8/10
Street justice cop in the digital age.
A group of cops are assigned the task of protecting a ex felon that is at risk of being murdered by a killer, who is hunting down people who 'society' view as not getting a harsh enough sentence for there crimes. Also in the mix is a internet celebrity who claims to in contact with the killer and is winding the whole drama up.
Solid action crime film, with elements of humour and drama. Kind of obvious who the killer is early on, but the plot does a good job of having multiple characters, with different things happening worked in to the main plot that keep the viewer interested. Action scenes are fast paced and kinda edited, but still show some impressive stunts.

[JonE(vil)]

Daaaaaali. 2024
5/10
A reporter wants to make a doco about the painter Salvador Dali.
Fictional story that takes elements of real life, such as, some of his paintings and alot of his infamous personality. From there it has a very surreal style to it, with young and old depictions of the painter.
With a run time of 76 mins its a short film, but does has a repeating style in the fact that Dali is constantly asserting his grander.

[JonE(vil)]

Mikey and Nicky. 1976.
7/10
Interesting drama that has a simple idea. One has a contract on his life for his part in the killing of a bookie. He contacts his friend and together they go from place to place. Slow burn with the dialogue mostly reflective, Nicky is well aware that he will die, so there is a intense sadness and anger, while Mikey has a friendly way about him, as he tries to keep things from getting out of hand. A grimy harsh look with 90% of it filmed at night add a visual depression. With a lack of any action, it does feel drawn out, but still a great character study.

[JonE(vil)]

Bornholmer straße. 2014. (rewatch)
10/10
Comedy about the border crossing between east and west Germany that opened in 1989.
Centers on events at the crossing that night, and the guard in charge. Events slowly spiral as its said by the leader that the people can cross, but nothing has been said to him. Forced to hold the border shut, its humour comes in the rigid stiffness of his years of duty, vs the lack of communication, along with the people just wanting to go see the 'west'.
Never slow, the film has a constant pace with little bits of human drama that work completely.

[JonE(vil)]

The dinner game. 1998. France.
6/10
A bunch of rich blokes host a dinner in which they all bring an "ídiot", and see whose is the stupidest.
The film mainly centers around a small cast in one the rich guys apartments. He puts out out his back, the bloke who he was to take to the dinner turns up, and whole series of events unfold with duel layers. Very well written with alot of verbal humour. It works that you feel for the lower class bloke, but also laugh at the situations he gets the rich guy in to.

There was a american remake, Dinner for schmucks. 2010.
Watching only the trailer, it follows elements of the original, but adds the dinner and a whole cast of competing "idiots". Looks very over the top with bizarre performances.


Tiger stripes. 2023 Malaysia.
8/10
A coming of age horror about a a young girl in a small conservative village.
Solid film that addresses the issues of a 12 year old girl and her first period. Slow but solid and interesting, it doesn't shy away from issues of peer pressure and knowing that you are different. With the whole village devout muslims, it sets up the later half of the film, which is where the horror starts to present itself nicely.
Solid first directorial feature that the woman also wrote.