Reviews

It is a movie about a female researcher suffering from PTSD (however, the movie lacked to tell the viewer what caused the PTSD) and only recently having been released from psychiatric care after a worse episode, but the gist of it is, she never told anyone that she was in hospital, everyone thought that she took a vacation abroad. So, when she returns to her life, she sees that everything is falling apart and those PTSD episodes are slowly returning to a climactic point in the end.

Overall, I would describe the movie as surfing though filth and nothing but filth; depression on depression, melancholy on melancholy, only to in the end do a one-eighty and have a dramic-comedy scene. Well, I guess it's your standard go-to Lithuanian movie... Did I like it? Eh, it wasn't terrible, a solid 6 out of 10, but if this was on cable tv, I would change the channel after the first commercial break.

You know, when I first saw the trailer all the years back, I wanted to watch this movie, because who would, as I remember advertising, not want to see girls dressed in skimpy outfits fighting giant monsters? And, having watched it, let me tell you, boy, this is not the premise of the movie. Sure, it is there, but that's not it entirely. This movie is weird alright? It's about an evil step-parent, who abused his step-daughters, and one of them wanted to fight back against him, but only was capable of injuring him and accidentally murdering her sister. So, the evil step-father does not waste any time and commits her to an insane asylum wherein he has an under-the-table deal with one of the orderlies to falsify the signature of a head doctor and to do a lobotomy on his step-daughter, so she would not be able to tell the police anything.

So, when the time of lobotomy comes, I guess, she enters her own little world, where all of the persons she saw in the mental institution play certain roles. For some reason, she created a world where a priest has dropped her in to a, I don't know, I would call it a whorehouse, but kinda Disneyish whorehouse, where the clients choose their girls as per their singing and dancing (I'm telling you, the movie is weird). So, when the time comes for her to show her skills, every-time she dances, she imagines another scenario (so, a delusion-within-a-delusion), wherein she alone and sometimes with unlikely friends are fighting against giant monsters, nazi zombies etc. (you know, the video-game tropes of finding five items to proceed, e.g. And this is the exact same reason why I would not want a video-game to be transferred in to movie genres 1-on-1; I know that many dislike video-game-transferred-to-movies, but these scenes are so much worse). When she finishes her delusion cycles, everyone in her first delusion is left astounded; "Wow, you danced so sexilly etc.".

So, she figures out a plan to escape via using this "new found power of hers". And, well, the movie for the main character does not end well - in the end she is still lobotomized, but she manages, in the real world, to "help" one of her asylum friends escaping. And the movie is weird not only because of that, but some of the characters from her delusions, which (presumably) she never saw in her real-life, are in there (for example, the sensei-swordsmaster (who is also playing that blind martial-artist, who trained Daredevil, in Daredevil Marvel series, BTW) helps that one friend escape. What is that?).

Maybe because I do not watch that many of my country's movies, maybe because I do not watch that many movies in general and I've experienced some sort of movie draught, but this one... this one... had surprised me pleasantly. I was sceptical at first (I did not particularly fancy 'Zero', which someone holds as an epitome of Lithuanian filmography), but god damn were my expectations smashed in a good way.

The movie revolves around gruesome murders, which, at first seems to be a work of a maniac (because, who in their right mind would dedicate their time to cram-down a viper someone's throat or decapitate someone and than put a moose's head on the stump. And that's just few of examples), but as the movie presses on, it becomes clear that this is a calling card from the past for those, who have done wrong and now are in position of power. That's the most I will spoil of the plot.

The plot is competent. The acting is also competent, if at times I can see the unnatural talking, as if monologuing in a theatre play. The chosen music score is very good as well. At times, I was finding myself nodding along to the track.

I would have even given this movie a nine out of ten score, if the director would not have been afraid to break the taboo of not killing children in the movies, because what is the point of making a father suffer thinking that he has lost his child only in the next scene for the father to find-out (and rescue) that his son is alive and well? The killer should have gone the extra-mile to shatter any hopes and dreams of the father before killing him, because the final scene was that kind of deus ex machina or should I call filius ex machina that I cannot abide. A primary schooler saves the freaking day?!

I mean, in a way I get it, it's within the confines of the movie's title: "The Generation of Angry Men". The child watches a woman burning alive and his father bleeding-out, and, thus, the cycle doesn't close. But, I don't know, would have thought-out, if I was writing the script, to somehow incorporate the thing with the rubble with how many people were killed and in the end for the killer, before shooting one of the main characters, to say to him: "Here's your pieces of gold coins" (alluding to Judas).

But, hey, I'm not the screen-writer here. Just rambling on...

So, yeah, in conclusion. GO SEE THIS MOVIE.

7/10.

The whole movie's premise is about an off-branch of Allies military unit, who calls themselves Inglorious Basterds and kills Nazis in occupied France in the beginning of the fifties. I would have rated this movie even an eight or a nine, if it was all there was to it. However, the movie is divided in to a couple of perspectives: 1) Hansas Landa, a Nazi officer tasked to hunt-down Jews, whose primary attributes revolve around the fact that he is smarter than your ordinary Nazi and will show this in every-which way. Don't get me wrong, C. Waltz was the best thing in this movie, but his character for me personally was way too much; 2) Inglorious Basterds, who are taking their sweet time killing Nazis while barely getting a scratch themselves. Though, this is rectified towards the end in a shoot-out scene. We gotta have those! Even though, in the flash-backs we see how one of them just mowes down prison guards. Yeah...; 3) Shosanna - a Jewish girl, who in the past has escaped Hansas Landa and now is working as a cinema operator with a grudge against the Nazi occupant forces.

I'm gonna be honest, this might be the least favourite Quentin Taratino movie for me. Much of it is a bore and slog and when it finally picks-up, it's almost at the end. And I did not like the ending much; what, everyone dies except Hansas Landa, who gets a second chance at life through blackmail? Get the hell out with this crap...

Two races look like condescending jerks. Elves looking down on humans as if they are second class citizens and harfoots leaving their own behind for not only injuries, but, as it would seem, any reason whatsoever.

So, this episode follows Arondir, who is captured by the orcs and is forced to toil in their labour camp (for some reason, along with his fellow elven soldiers, who were captured off-screen, I guess).

The next plot-line follows Galadriele and Halbrand being escorted to Numenor shores, wherein, they are not much welcome, but instead of seeing them off, like they would want to, the local nobility decides to keep them there for some reason.

And the third-plot sees harfoots punishing Nori for harbouring the mysterious stranger. But, along with Nori, her parents are being punished as well.

+ Atmosphere + CGI + Acting

• Two of the races were depicted as unsympathetic jerks.

• No explanation on how did Arondir's company get captured by the orcs?

In this episode, Galadriele, not wanting to travel to Valinor, jumped ship and ended-up in the open sea. Drifting for some time, she comes across a group of people in a broken boat, who reluctantly let her in. As it later became apparent, their ship was attacked by a giant sea monster, which attacks them again.

The other plot introduces us with Lord Celebrimbor and Elrond traveling to Kazad-Dum (Dwarven capitol) to acquire some needed materials for the forge, however, the local prince wants none of that, because Elrond had abandoned him for twenty years and no, Elrond has to make amends to his old friend.

The third plot takes us to the Haarfoots, wherein Nori and Poppy are trying in-secret to take care of a 'giant, who has fallen from the sky' and figure-out what to do with him.

The fourth plot takes-us to Arondir and Bronwyn, trying to figure out what has happened to a nearby village and who dug up a tunnel leading to their own village.

Overal, the episode had more potential, because people were doing more this time, not just talking.

+ Atmosphere + Music + Environment + Dwarves

• Overused giant sea monsters trope
• Correct me if I'm wrong, but weren't orcs created by Saruman, by cross-brieding elves with goblins? There shouldn't be any orcs at this timeline, only goblins.

• Unnecessary cheesy at times.

If at times boring. Look, I get that the Tolkien estate did not grant all of the rights to the LOTR lore and they had to use what was available (as far as I've heard, the appendices in the end of LOTR books, which is... yeah... I know), and perhaps they should have re-thought everything. But judging this as an interpretation or fan-fiction as a whole. I'd say its off to a good start.

The plot: so Morgot was defeated by the ancient Elven Lords, but his servant, Sauron, killed off one of the main protagonists (Galadriele) brother and Galadriel vowed to destroy Sauron even if it takes her forever. So, flash-forward a couple of thousand years (I'm asuming) in to the future, and we see Galadriele and company travelling the frozen lands in search for the remnants of Sauron. However, her company is not ecstatic, because the High King Gil-Galad had ordered to return many months ago. So, even when they find traces of Sauron's influence, Galadriele is forced to return wherein Gil-Galad offers her a 'boon': passage to Valinor (the home-land of the elves), wherein she would dwell for all eternity in piece. But, being the main protagonist that she is, in the end, she refuses to cross realms and jumps ship.

Other plot introduces the viewers to Harfoots (ancestors of Hobbits). The two main protagonists of them, Nori and Poppy are like quasi-Frodo and Sam. One wants to go on adventures, and the other, because she is her friend, reluctantly accompanies her (I'd wager in the later episodes), because she's afraid of her well-being.

Also, there is another plot brewing, which, I'd assume will connect with Galadriele's search for Sauron. There's an elf called Arondir, who is a member of a watch group tasked to keep an eye on the... I'd guess decendants of the Numenorians who followed Morgot? Anyways, over the years, he ends up fancying a human woman (so, a possible love-plot line), but is soon introduced with a possible dark evil influence plot-line in the terms of something is poisoning the land from the East. So, he sets off to investigate.

And, there's a fourth plot-line wherein Gil-Galad tasks Elrond to aid Lord Celebrimbor in his task of constructing a forge.

Are they all following the books to a letter? From what I remember: no, to a big hell no. BUT, as a "it's own" (fan-fiction) story, it's all right. It has room for improvement, especially in the dialogue sections, because sometimes you think: "What?" For example, when Galadriele's companions say that they have exceeded the king's orders for months now, but they are still willing to go with her. But as soon as they find the mark of Sauron, they are like: "Well, no, we cannot go any further, Galadriele. The kings orders were clear. We have to go back, despite Sauron still living".

+ Locations + Music + CGI + Atmosphere

• Dialogues
• Pacing

Overall rating of first episode: 7-8/10.

Well, that was a load of lies it seems. Now, the movie picks-up right after the end of Spectre, where James and Madeleine ride off to the sunset after the Blofield is captured by MI6. James and Madeleine, for some time, are enjoying their "honey-moon", but their ideal tranquillity is quickly destroyed in Italy, wherein James wanting to visit Vesper's grave and say his goodbies for one last time, find himself facing a bomb, which was put there by Spectre agents. This event leads him to believe that Madeleine may have tricked him, but then they are both chased by Spectre agents, and wanting to save her life, even though, he does not quite trust her, he puts her on the train leaving Italy. And he, himself, is alone again.

Flash forward a couple of years in to the future and we see another organization breaking-and-entering in to a top secret British hazardous chemical substances facility to steal what is called Project Heracles - a chemical DNA targeting substance. This event causes even CIA interest and one of its operatives, Felix, reaches-out to James Bond, who is now living as a recluse in some tropical island. He convinces Bond try to help them, because Spectre may be involved, and their search leads them to Cuba, wherein, in one of fancier clubs, there is a meeting of Spectre agents hosted by Blofield (from prison of all places).

Afterwards, things really get way out of hand when Bond finds-out that this was a trap set by Blofield to kill him. Blofield orders to use the chemical substance stolen to kill Bond, stating that it will not affect any Spectre agents, only Bond; but reverse thing happens and all of Spectre agents die.

This event sets off the entire movie. While, on paper, it may seem interesting, but on screen all of the movie simply felt too boring, wherein even the action-scenes were lacklustre. Bond (or Bond with company) mowing down hundreds of bad-guys, who are barely struggling to hold their ground, in order to get to the man responsible... who, isn't even Blofield. Hell, actually, Blofield unceremoniously dies in this movie; James touches him (well, okey, in anger tries to strangle him), but because he was not aware that now that chemical substance is on him, he kills Blofield.

The real bad-guy is some guy named Safin, who is out for revenge on all of the Spectre, because many years ago, Blofield ordered Madeleine's father to kill Safin's parents. Now, Safin is in possession of not only Project Heracles, but also a wad of poisonous materials for some reason... and he's boring as watching paint dry. While in the start of the movie, in Madeleine's flash-back, we see him shooting Madeleine's mother, but he does not do anything afterwards. He just talks and talks, and talks (with some sort of mental disability, I wager), and then, in the end, gets unceremoniously tripple-tapped by James.

The only more or less impactful part was when Felix died in line of duty, but everything else was just plane and simply too boring for a James Bond movie.

That part where all of interwebs was up in arms with James being replaced by another operative, I mean, it was good. God knows, that for the major part of Craig's Bondiana, Jame's character was more or less working outside MI6. So, nothing's changed there, surprised that M only now decided to replace Bond with another operative.

All in all, I would say that the movie was simply anticlimactic and an anticlimactic way to say farewell to James Bond in general.

A movie about a mother, who was fed up with inactivity of local police department, and decided to set up some advertisement stands reflecting it in regards to the rape and murder of her daughter. It was a pretty confident movie, but as was with the case of The Girl In the Train, which I saw a while back, it lacked some sort of zinc to make it more interesting. I heard that it won (or was nominated for) an Oscar that year, but, I don't know. Competent drama, but outside of that not much going on for it.

Thinking about the whole premise, I don't think that, in Lithuania (my country), for example, people would condemn her for exposing the laziness of authorities, if anything, we would be: "Yeah, show those imbeciles".

Only two things in the movie felt out of place for me. The sheriff's wife after handing-over the letter to Mildred starts kinda insinuating that it was Mildred's fault that sheriff Willoughby committed suicided, even though not couple of minutes ago we hear the sheriff's narration (presuming that the wife is reading the letter addressed to her) indicating that he took his own life, because he did not want to become a burden for Anne. And when that (not) a rapist came to Mildred's shop and started threathening her and trashing the place, and when later we find out that he lives in Idaho (another state entirely). And I'm left thinking, so, you travelled thousand of miles just to antagonize her? You don't even live here? What the hell is wrong with you.

Also, the whole town... eh... it kinda gave me some Derry vibes (from Steven King's books) where everyone is just so apathetic to everything. It was just strange...

So, I decided to watch something unseen with Jim Carrey for instance, and was looking through his filmography, and found an eighties movie about vampires. 'Hmm', thought to myself, 'might be an interesting watch'.... well, fast-forward to the end of the movie and that was an hour and a half of my life that I will never be getting back.

The name of the movie was Once Bitten (1985). Its about a vampiress, who must every Halloween drink the blood of a virgin three times in order to appear as young as she is, but since she is living in the 20th century, naturally, compared to previous centuries, the quantity of virgins are dwindling. Here, steps our unlucky protagonist (Jim Carey), who after an argument with his girlfriend, stumbles upon the vampiress. That's the supposed plot, but in reality it is a movie about a douche, who had a stick up his butt, because his current girlfriend refused to have sex with him in an ice-cream truck in a place where every couples inside the cars are banging. So, instead of thinking, well, maybe I'm gonna book a hotel room, I'm just going to get laid, because my girlfriend refuses to give me any, and then goes: "No, oh my god, I made a mistake. Please forgive me".

The movie is supposed to be a comedy, but I did not laugh once. Even before halfway through the movie, I was wishing for it to end soon. It wasn't funny, it wasn't entertaining, it wasn't even a good parody about vampires. The only two redeeming qualities it had was the soundtrack and the fact that someone noticed Carrey's proclivities for physical comedy. That's it.

While the narrative is stronger, but suffers from the same unrealistic fighting choreographies as the first movie. I know it is based on an anime, but what works for animation, does not necessarily work for live-action movie, because all those physics-defying, one-man versus an army battle scenes just draws you right out of immersion, because everything surrounding it is done more or less in good quality.

Though, maybe, another gripe. The dude was stabbed multiple times and burned at the pyre, and, yet, years later is still alive, covered in bandages and his wounds do not preclude him from fighting at all, while other characters can barely survive one slash wound. I mean, that's pretty big plot-armour.

And that's one of the reasons why these type of movies will never get more than a 6 from me. Because - there is no fantasy genre in the description.

That in my honest opinion, S1 was their best and S6 was their worst. The show's writing quality went gradually down hill ever since Winn was replaced by Brainiac. And the last half of S6 was so bad writing wise that it felt more as a parody of itself.