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American Cinema in the Shadow of 9/11
Book
American Cinema in the Shadow of 9/11 is a ground-breaking collection of essays by some of the...
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Gruff Rhys recommended Barafundle by Gorky's Zygotic Mynci in Music (curated)
![Spielberg](/uploads/profile_image/4b7/66e3a276-65b8-415c-a059-48174c9ec4b7.jpg?m=1522353634)
Spielberg
TV Show Watch
Filmmaker Steven Spielberg and his colleagues discuss the classic movies that made him famous,...
documentary biography
![Assassin's Creed: Gold](/uploads/profile_image/ddc/4731a6f3-8c81-4659-a2d1-541a15086ddc.jpg?m=1584308741)
Assassin's Creed: Gold
Book
Assassin’s Creed: Gold is a stand-alone tale from the Assassin's Creed universe in which we meet...
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Father Figures (2018)
Movie Watch
Owen Wilson (“The Grand Budapest Hotel,” “Zoolander 2”) and Ed Helms (“The Hangover”...
comedy
![Lord Strange's Men and Their Plays](/uploads/profile_image/378/8ad9da08-6773-42a0-88e9-a2209306c378.jpg?m=1522325234)
Lord Strange's Men and Their Plays
Lawrence Manley and Sally-Beth Maclean
Book
For a brief period in the late Elizabethan Era an innovative company of players dominated the London...
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BankofMarquis (1832 KP) rated Red Sparrow (2018) in Movies
Mar 3, 2018
For, RED SPARROW, is a sexy, intelligent, inner-workings, "out-smart-the-other-guy" type of spy thriller in more of the mode of a John LeCarre novel (like TINKER, TAILOR, SOLIDER, SPY). It does have some action and some GRAPHIC torture scenes, but I would not classify it as an action film, so those looking for that will be bored.
RED SPARROW follows the tale of Bolshoi Ballet Prima Ballerina, Dominika Egorova (Jennifer Lawrence) who, after an accident ends her ballet career, is drawn into the deadly world of International Intelligence by her Uncle and must her her body as well as her mind to survive.
This is billed - and shot - as a "sexy" thriller with "SEXY" being the primary driving force - and that is too bad, for I found the sex and nudity to be gratuitous and didn't really drive the narrative forward. When the film stopped focusing on this aspect and focused on the mystery - and misdirection - at hand and Dominika's ability to outsmart and outhink those around her, that the film really catches it's footing and is quite good.
Unfortunately, you have to sit through the first 1/2 of this film - the training portion - and that is filled with gratuitous sex and sexual conquest and using your sex to disarm the enemy. It's an unfortunate choice that almost took me out of the movie, so when the (really) good second half of the film came about, I was surprised by it.
But if you can get through that, you'll be rewarded by a pretty good, pretty smart, pretty INTELLIGENT thriller.
Letter Grade: B (C for the 1st half, A for the 2nd half)
7 (out of 10) stars and you can take that to the Bank(ofMarquis)
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BankofMarquis (1832 KP) rated John Wick. Chapter 4 (2023) in Movies
Mar 26, 2023
Such is the case with JOHN WICK: CHAPTER 4 - the 4th installment of the Keanu Reeves led/Chad Stahelski Directed series that is long on style, action, intrigue and mythology while being low on logical plot-lines and…well…daylight.
But this won’t matter to the John Wick movie-goer. They are getting more of the same - cartoon violence professionally created by Stahelski and Reeves with plenty of bad guys battling (and losing) to Wick while the mysterious, underground society that Wick has run afoul of tries to take him down.
This insider intrigue will be enriching for the true John Wick fan but will be inconsequential for the casual movie-goer as these plot machinations are just an excuse to line Reeves up against seemingly insurmountable obstacle after seemingly insurmountable obstacle.
And what a journey it is. Starting with a tussle at the Osaka Continental (featuring veteran Martial Artists Hiroki Sanada and Donnie Yen) to a battle in Germany to the final in Paris, JOHN WICK: CHAPTER 4 is just one, long stylized fight sequence with both Stahelski (the Director and Fight Choreographer) and Reeves (as Wick) showing off their talents in new and interesting ways.
There are way too many fight sequences to mention, but there is one sequence in a building that is shot from on high (reminiscent of watching video game play) that is the most interesting/effective - but they all are a ton of fun.
Bill Skarsgard (Pennywise the Clown in the IT movies) is along as the Marquis (cool name) who is in charge of bringing Wick down. He is joined by the always good Clancy Brown (the voice of Mr. Krabs on Spongebob) on the “bad guy” side while Wick regulars Ian McShane, Lawrence Fishburne and the late, great Lance Reddick line up on Wick’s side.
It is a fun roller-coaster ride - if a bit long at almost 3 hours (the middle sags a bit) - that will entertain casual fans of action flicks while satisfying the hard-core “Wick-aphiles” (if that is a term) with a further peeling back of a layer of this world.
Letter Grade: A-
8 stars (out of 10) and you can take that to the Bank(ofMarquis)
![A Bright Shining Lie](/uploads/profile_image/200/09a8976e-53dc-490d-b25d-011ea066c200.jpg?m=1608296900)
A Bright Shining Lie
Book
Outspoken, professional and fearless, Lt. Col. John Paul Vann went to Vietnam in 1962, full of...