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Yesterday (III) (2019)
8/10
The psychological pressures from fear of being found not good enough for the job
15 September 2019
Warning: Spoilers
The theme of the story is interesting in that it alludes to things that are familiar to us, with the viewer thinking that this guy is incapable in his life, much like his musical career, but actually his speedy successes came with his own touch on things.

But when you finally find out who he is, what he used to do for a living, any condemnation at a wasted life dissipate and you grow to love his character more. Given the turnover rate in that industry, we would find their highly trained staff in all areas of society. Given the life he led after the bump on the head, I started to wonder if the external forces causing the shift were less physical and instead work pressure related leading to a psychotic break. In a thankless profession, here the character just wants to be appreciated. What he does isn't really bad since many in the music field buy their song material from innovative creators and then put their face and name to it.

There were a few interesting points alluded to, for the viewer to take in and think about. From the claustrophobic stalkers representing the stress of being found out as not good enough to do your job, to stereotypical assumptions of blue collar service sector workforces, and the imagery of the assumed happiness of middle class professionals (who were quite laid back, not overblown, perfect characters.) Just human. Everyone is human. And I think the director wants us to examine all living and think about what roles we have in life, the unlikelihood of fame, and ultimately the price to be paid. (Is Ed Sheeran that bad at acting? Or was the "character" he was playing another demonstration of fear of not being the best?)
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Control Factor (2003 TV Movie)
7/10
Hard scifi NOT for the masses!
1 December 2007
I've been having an ongoing conversation with a friend of mine who has conflicting comments about specific episodes of Stargate Atlantis when the rare gems of hard scifi scripts appear. This film is like one of those episodes.

It is rare to see a good script turned into something with stars, cash and the promotion behind it. This particular Baldwin is most definitely a blockbuster actor and I don't feel the 'family curse' extends to him. With more money you might feel this movie could be right up there on the billboards. Unfortunately it is hard scifi and the masses wouldn't cope with it. They want the softer, soapier stories and if that is what gets the blanket scifi genre out there as a viable product, so be it.

But every so often, there comes a tvseries or film that gives us hard scifi fans so much enjoyment that we collect together and make our views known. This film has its faults. The soundtrack feels separated from the lacking environmental sounds, the ending seems a bit rushed. There are many things that could be done better and a lot of these things appear to be to do with camera angles/direction and timings of specific shots/scenes.

We don't say everyone must immediately watch this or that DVD. We are here however unanimous in saying, "Control Factor is a gem of a movie for the hard scifi crowd and not to be missed even with its faults!"
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