Reviews

Ava DuVernay handles this story with serenity. It's gruesome, heavy, and painful to watch. But she depicts everything with serenity. She takes us through the facts without losing sight of the humanity, and at the same time, shows where America's humanity is lost, or dead, that it keeps on repeating those same mistakes. This was beautifully acted, marvellously portrayed, from start to finish. I'm glad that the crew had an eye for dignifying this particular story; there was no need to show some things - things we know happened, but showing it, slamming those boys with a thing they fought hard not to be, was unnecessary. And The crew was aware of it. But what strikes me the most id how Ava DuVernay tells their story keeping you uneasy with the fact that it is true. And familiar. All the time, you can't shake this off: it happened. These five kids are alive today, full grown men, after all the horrors we see on the screen. We can't lose sight from this fact: it happened 20 years ago, when we were all kids. We could've been any of us. This happened to them, but it could've been me. This feeling haunted me throughout the series. It crawls in every scene. It happened, and might very well have happened to you.

It calls us to action with such feeling. And given what we saw in Ferguson and Charlottesville... Maybe we should heed to it.

The thing about this particular movie is that it had a good story. And it could've been a great movie just telling said story. But the movie decided to be artsy. And it was ruined for that. Then it got messy, dragged itself for ages in senseless scenes, and its greatest sin, wasted a solid performance for Vanessa Redgrave.

Thing is... It's not a bad movie.Not at all. It has good ideas, some scenes are beautifully done, some are creepy to the core. But then... It's not good either. At times things get too hammy and chewed over, like some kind of novella. The story could've benefited from a lot of trimming on dialogues and by toning down a few over the top scenes. And this is not done by the acting; everyone - even the child actor - is well on screen. They're genuinely connected, and because of their sharp portrayals, most of the good scares work, even when we know they're coming. No, most of this feeling comes with the script. And the choices the direction made. This is what we get, and... It's ok. Not bad... But not good either.

I enjoyed the movie. It reminded me a lot of "The Road," and maybe this piece was what Shyamalan wanted when he made The Happening - and no, for the love of God, this movie has nothing to do with "A Quiet Place". It's a good thriller. Entertaining. Sandra Bullock Once more is amazing on screen. Trevante Rhodes proves himself as a versatile actor and stands amazing beside Bullock and Malkovich. The pacing of the story is good. We're on the edge of the seat at times. I did not see all the allegories people said this movie dealt with, like depression and anxiety; I did not find it an "Annihilation" or a "Get Out". It's an apocalyptic monster movie. No mystery or deep meaning there. It was a little annoying not to show the monsters - not one bit - but at the same time, maybe it's a smart decision. It's known that their presence means absolute danger, that doesn't take eyes to know. The starting point felt a little rushed, like World War Z - actually both starting sequences have the same tone of rush, confusion and urgency. There are tense moments. And for that, I have nothing to complain about. It's a nice thriller; I enjoyed it. The movie is ok.

I was pleased to see this one. At first it seems dull and boring - because we come for this cover. We want a horror movie. But that's not what happens. And then it gets interesting... We want to know more about it - while feeling guilty for this very desire. Then it goes completely overboard with its intent; and we are shocked. Grossed out, for many of the things shown. But we can't stop looking. We can't turn off the movie, because we want to know what happened. This movie engages the audience with a simple and subtle - yet incredibly strong - grip. The end brings a terrible, painful surprise. We struggle with what we see. Though some of it might seem far fetched, since we're in its grip, we can buy the premise. I think that the director could've served the third act with a little less exposition; much of the ending would have a lot more impact if there was no character narrating it. But the movie still delivers a good story. In some aspects. it reminded me of Oldboy.

At first I thought this movie would ruin this story. It's a painful, yet hopeful and loving chapter of African history. This is NOT a love story. If people should come to watch this movie hoping for a "love conquers all" plot... They should be very disappointed. And I'm fairly glad for that. I congratulate the director, Amma Asante, for rendering this story into the big screen with delicacy and respect to all involved. I thank her for realizing all this story was NOT, and putting it out for the public from the first frame. I also love her for showing almost everything this story was about, without going into great detail.

This movie is based on the true relationship between the King of (now) Botswana, Sir Seretse Khama, and a white British woman, Ruth Williams. Today we might know Ruth and Khama as leaders in the fight for the country's independence (since it was, when they married, a British protectorate), but their struggle started way sooner. Their story became their country's story. A fight for their right to choose.

It's not about their love. It's about his choice, not to marry within his tribe's customs, and her choice, to up and leave her home, building herself a new life from scratch. It's about a country's choice to their leader - and how much the world hates him, her and the country for the nerve to demand their voices be heard with such fire.

Amma Asante thrives on sewing up Seretse and Ruth deep within the political setting, in a beautiful dance, until we cannot see the lines between them. She also shows how much resistance change can face - and overcome. Their marriage becomes a set of lens for the viewer to analyze strength and frailty confined in this tiny world full of hope. And it gets you going.

Rosamund Pike and Daniel Oyelowo are simply superb. His performance here is stronger than Selma's, which is saying something. And though Pike had less screen time than Oyelowo, her presence is felt throughout every scene. It doesn't fail. Pike gives a poignant performance of a true turnaround in life, and she gets us engaged with her every move. She doesn't have to show her face; every spin this movie gives gets the viewer thinking about Ruth's reaction, thanks to her powerful deliverance.

With that power couple, I thought the supporting cast would be weak and acceptable... I was surprised. Again. Tom Felton, Jack Davenport, Laura Carmichael (why, hello, Lady Edith!), Terry Pheto, Vusi Kunene, Jessica Oyelowo and Abena Ayivor, to name a (very) few, were splendid in their roles and really brought the tension between marriage and politics alive.

Cinematography is delightful, which goes really well with the dazzling music score. The somber tones of post-war London are contrast to the joyful sounds and colors of the southern borders of Africa; yet you hear pain in their laughter as well as you see smiles in British tears. Everything is designed to really bring the viewer there and then.

It's an interesting and delicate take in a true story, that happened not so long ago. It's a solid 7, because of historical inconsistencies throughout the film (the lasting of the protectorate, Indian's ruler at the time of independence, and so on), but it's definitely worth at least a screening.

I didn't expect to enjoy Genisys, but I did. It has a good story, the acting holds up well, sound effects are very good (following up the great work done with Terminator Salvation), we have old fashioned Governator reminding us why we like him in this role (and almost apologetic from that disgrace they call T3), a curious enough plot point to get our hopes up for the next movies... Not to mention the awesome mindless action scenes running around every time. It was a good movie, alright. Kudos for everyone involved, this was great.

The alternate realities do give me one hope: to see them so entwined in the next instalments that they force all Sarahs to meet. Imagine how great it would be if Linda Hamilton could be back, and Lena Headey too. Which brings me to the one thing I really couldn't put up with here: Emilia Clarke is a good actress. Actually she's awesome at what she does. But she is no Sarah Connor. As I said on Facebook... We should never set a Targaryen to do the job of a Lannister.

People really need to watch out for Alan Rickman. I don't think people understood clearly what he did here, yet he did, and in such a delicate and powerful way that just made people adore this work of art (which it is) without a full grasp of its consequences. He conducted a perfectly paced drama for men and women alike. He just made the infamous chick flick a very special and respected thing for appealing to everyone and showing characters equally dense and powerful in their unique traits, attractive to all of us - come on, even the King reminds us of someone (sometimes ourselves). I just loved this movie. I'm in awe of what Rickman was able to extract from the script, the actors, the landscapes... From everything. From the very beginning we get sucked in this spectacular world he brought to life and even as the cameras zoom out in the end, you don't really want to come back. It's a very strong movie, yet so delicate and precious. It's almost perfect in every way. As the King says... It strives to achieve the impossible. And it almost made it. That's the second movie for dear Severus Snape and I hope he comes around with more and more delicious pieces of art such as this one.

When the live action movie of Rurouni Kenshin was announced, I was not pleased. I feared the adaptation would just kill this great story, and because of that, I ignored the installments. Yet here I am, beyond satisfied with the trilogy. Actually, I am thrilled to be alive in a time where stories like this one are respected and loved to be told in such a beautiful way by cast and crew. In every frame, you see the efforts in sound, photography, directing, writing and acting (among others) to make the most enjoyable moment for the audience, whether it's made of anime/manga fans or not. There is only one word to describe the AWESOMENESS in this flawless adaptation: subarashii (magnificent). I thank you all involved. And congratulate you on the marvelous job done.

At the beginning of the movie, you find it boring. It seems just one of those "The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants" variation, with good actresses to glorify it a bit. So you sort of drag along the scenery and the beauty of Robin Wright and Naomi Watts (and the two gorgeous boys) and you think you're in for a good nap.

Then things start to unfold. That's when you see the director was serious about "decrypting simmering emotions". You're baffled by what's going on in front of you - because you get grossed by it, and at the same time, enchanted by it. Who are we to tell the limit to a relationship? And who are they to break those limits? To what extent we can excuse everything in the name of love (whatever the meaning and use of it)? How far can we go to bask in our passions? The plot of this movie defies our sense of self. And it can get pretty gnarly to discover what sort of ugly (or pretty) judgement calls have been lurking about your mind, when faced with that kind of event.

It's not a masterpiece. There are some plot holes. But when it comes to dissect bonds, relationships and the feelings moving around those, this movie is extremely good.

I think this movie couldn't have come in a better time. In two whole hours, it is perfectly portrayed to many young men and women complaining about their situation why things are the way they are today. A marvelous movie. It's entertaining, heartbreaking, hilarious, tense... It's life, in the blink of the eye. It's history. And we don't see Hollywood making that kind of movie all that frequently - at least, not with some real and painful colors, such as this one was. Congratulations on Forest Whitaker - because he was AWESOME as usual - and Oprah Winfrey, for conveying such splendid performances. The presidents shown were just great - I disagree with a lot of my fellow reviewers here, because I found John Cusack a nice Nixon. And from Robin Williams to Alan Rickman, I could not see one flaw on them. But I can tell I was really surprised by Minka Kelly's Jackie: at some points, there was a physical resemblance to Jackie Kennedy. As for Nancy Reagan, no one could've pulled her off but Jane Fonda. I was very happy to see Vanessa Redgrave on the screen, that woman is always a breath of fresh air when it comes to acting. I was also missing Cuba Gooding Jr. It's been a while since he was on such a masterpiece. David Oyelowo was also a nice surprise. And folks like Terrence Howard and Jesse Williams were really great to watch. I think everyone on this picture, named or not in this post, has contributed to a wonderful movie - one I should hope to see as a really strong contender at the Oscars... And a hell of a winner too. OH, let's not forget how wonderful Mariah Carey was - keeping her mouth shut at all times. I believe the reason not to give this movie a 10 lies on little mistakes made by scenario crew - like mixing up the image of the White House on certain portrayed times and such. And the photography, at some points, stroke me as odd. But I don't think this should matter when we're facing such an incredible piece of art.