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David McK (3576 KP) rated Snowpiercer (2013) in Movies

Aug 12, 2020

Snowpiercer (2013)

2013 | Sci-Fi

7.9

(59 Ratings)

Movie Rating

No. not the Netflix series.

The movie on which it is based.

If I'm honest, I didn't even know that there was such a thing, until I saw it pop up on Amazon Prime after having seen the trailer for the series on Netflix.

After a bit of research did nothing but say good things about both (movie and series), I thought I would give the movie a go first.

Set in the not-too-distant-future, where a science experiment to stop global warming has instead resulted in a new Ice Age, the film (and series) posits society surviving on a train that is circling the globe in perpetuity, with those in power at the front of the train (living in the lap of luxury), whilst - the further back you go - the worse conditions get. And it's at the very back of the train that we pick up, with Chris Evans (here, no Captain America!) about to lead another revolt five years after the failure of the last.

It's an interesting set-up, with some impressive (if improbable) special effects as we move up the train (and see the outside world through the windows), with Tilda Swinton stealing the show as the loathsome Minister Mason.

Now I'm off the (maybe) see what the series is like ...

Kudos

LeftSideCut (3776 KP) rated Blood Machines (2019) in Movies

Aug 15, 2020

Blood Machines is essentially a glorified music video for French synthwave outfit Carpenter Brut. That's not something that automatically de-credits the project of course, and sci-fi fans will undoubtedly get a kick out of it.

Aesthetically, Blood Machines looks pretty stunning. The entire 50 minute runtime is bursting with colour, and is visually impressive. The settings are truly otherworldly.
The screenplay and to a certain extent the plot, take a backseat. The dialogue is frequently silly (possibly intentional) and doesn't really offer much - I actually think it could have benefited from no dialogue at all - but the makers hope to distract from this with naked women adorning upside down crucifixes across their torsos. Nothing like a bit of nudity mixed with anti-religious symbolism to fill up the "edgy" quota after all.

I actually saw Carpenter Brut at Arctangent in 2019, completely unaware of who they were, and honestly had a great time. Their music is heavily inspired by 80s movies, and the visuals they use in their live performances reflect that. Here, their music adds to the experience of Blood Machines in spades, and a big part of why I enjoyed it.

If you have an hour to kill and like Sci-Fi, then I would encourage you to check out Blood Machines. It's not revolutionary but it's entertaining enough for what it's is.

Kudos

Dean (6927 KP) rated Tenet (2020) in Movies

Aug 30, 2020 (Updated Aug 30, 2020)

Tenet (2020)

2020 | Action

7.7

(28 Ratings)

Movie Rating Watch

John David Washington (1 more)

Visually awesome scenes

Overly confusing plotlines (0 more)

Mind bending Action

I saw a tag for a review that called this Bond on acid. That's a good summary. At times it feels like a modern Bond film. Global locations, wicked villain, butch henchman but packed with plenty of style. Visually it's very impressive as you'd expect for a Nolan film. Especially the time related action scenes, which look a bit surreal. The plot is simple in reality like a Bond film, stop something terrible happening. The whole time and inversion is where it starts to get complex, definitely a film with many layers. It just feels some sections of the film are overly complicated, almost for the sake of it. Not helped that hearing the dialogue in some scenes is difficult. I'm sure more will unravel with a second viewing.
I've not seen the lead actor in anything before but he had a likable swagger in the role. The rest of the cast are pretty good as well.
Overall a film that is well made and unique, with some almost strange to watch action scenes. It's classy if a little overly complex on the plot. By the end it does enough to bring the film to a good conclusion. Although you'll still be trying to understand some points long after.