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Greta (2018)
Imperfect but good premise, with excellent acting and directing.
I don't do a lot of thrillers, but this one seemed original to me. Chloe Grace Moretz and Maika Monroe are charming and believable, with kudos to Chloe, as her acting has the subtle touches of a veteran. You can tell what she is going through by the look in her eyes and her expression.
I especially liked the setting and the direction. Wherever they shot this in Ireland, it's a good stand-in for Brooklyn. I've been to Brooklyn several times and it would have fooled me.
At one point in the movie, there is an elapse of time which is not identified. We don't know if it is days or months. It would have helped to nail that down a bit better.
Was this a white-knuckler? No, but at times it is very much edge-of-seat. I give it a 9 for cinematography and sound, 9 for acting, and 7 for the story. As a writer myself, I appreciated the dialog. It is normal and believable. Overall... 8 stars out of 10, certainly worth the 98 minutes.
Black Box (2020)
Better than average low-budget sci-fi. Well worth a try!
Marcus Tyco, the son of Aerospace magnate Juliano Tyco has been on an orbiting space station for 24 hours when a serious accident takes place, destroying the station. Marcus and the station pilot, Brian, each escape in their own rescue pods, and Marcus has managed to save the Black Box to bring back to Earth with him.
Brian and his pod are not responding. Can or should Marcus try to pilot his rescue pod to rendezvous with Brian in an attempt to save him?
Refreshing independent film with an actual, oh... what was it called? Oh yes, a STORY. I liked it! It's not Hollywood, so don't expect explosions every 22 seconds to keep the x-box crowd engaged. This has a good, coherent plot, and some surprises. It is shot entirely on one set, which is the interior of a rescue pod, but that one set looks very good and believable, especially given what I calculate is about an $11,000 (USD) budget.
Some reviews said the script was wordy, but to me, it was not overly wordy. I thought all of the dialog was necessary, given what was happening. Even so, I can honestly say there is never a dull moment. Clever and very competent voice acting by Kerry Ely, especially, and the other two who play the Tech and the Doctor.
I'm a writer myself and I appreciated not only the robust nature of the story, but the dialog and the credibility of the events as they unfolded. If you go into this expecting a nice, well-produced, intimate Sci-fi tale, I think you will be very entertained. All good wishes.
Resident Alien: Pilot (2021)
A Solid 10 Because Everything is Perfect
Tudyk is really in his element here. He's a master of sci-fi in general and beautiful as a fish-out-of-water alien getting used to how we do things in a small Colorado town. I love everything about his performance. Also, I'm from a small Colorado town, and they NAILED the look and feel. Just beautiful. Wonderful, interesting, exciting premise, the story here, the plot is absolutely ripe with opportunities that are not wasted. How refreshing and original! The dialog, the writing is outstanding. World-class. The special effects are so good, one tends to accept them as reality instead of recognizing them as special effects. I immediately enjoy the look, the feel, the pace. Terrific directing by David Dobkin, whose work I wasn't aware of, but it's clear he is hyper-competent. Supporting cast are excellent and interesting and in only one episode, seem multi-dimensional, each in his/her own way. To put it very concisely, this episode, and more generally, the concept and the series is supremely entertaining from start to finish. I can't wait to see the rest of it.
Everything Beautiful Is Far Away (2017)
Wonderful and Gentle. MUST SEE.
Everything Beautiful is Far Away is an independent movie with a small cast. As such, I wasn't expecting much when I played it on Amazon Prime, but I was certainly very pleasantly surprised! What a beautiful story by Pete Ohs and such light, gentle direction by Pete Ohs and Andrea Sisson. The score is minimal to match the setting, and reflects and transmits the tone of events almost without being notice; almost as though it were a gentle breeze.
Hollywood could take some lessons from Mr. Ohs and Ms. Sisson. You don't have to have explosions every three minutes. You don't have to have monsters and blood and gore. You simply have to have a good story. And this is an EXCELLENT story, which I shan't spoil.
The characters are very nicely filled-out by clearly good writing, and they do go through an arc of discovery on this journey. The dialog is minimal, which serves the film very well, because when something is said, it matters. No shot and no dialog goes to waste and there is beauty from beginning to end. I found myself caring about all the characters, including the stranger, who we see only briefly, and even including the robot head.
2:22 (2017)
If you value original, interesting plots, you will LOVE this.
The casting was perfect. From the leads, Michiel Huisman and Teresa Palmer, to the minor characters -- I can't imagine it any other way. Perfect direction by Paul Currie, who is best known for his documentaries; Lionheart: The Jessie Martin Story; and Every Heart Beats True: The Jim Stynes Story.
The production values, special effects, props, everything are perfect, and gently astounding (especially the holographic work!) Having said all that, however, what really shines is the story. It's a love story, a mystery, a drama, and a thriller all rolled into one, and kept cogent. It is original, engaging, and every one of the 98 minutes is worth watching. If there IS a down-side, it's the fact you MUST pay attention; but for me that's a major plus.
Since 2:22 is not a prequel, sequel, remake, reboot nor comic book superhero, it is supremely obvious this film is not a product of Hollywood. Massive, cosmic kudos to Lightstream Entertainment, Pandemonium, Screen Australia and the Australian film industry in general for hitting another one out of the park.