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Jesters_folly (230 KP) rated Jigsaw (2017) in Movies
May 1, 2021
Contains spoilers, click to show
10 Years after the events in saw 7 (the Final chapter/Saw 3D) a new 'game' has started and a new group of police officers have to try to find out what is happening and who is responsible.
Jigsaw runs to almost the same formula as the previous films , there is a game in progress and the police have to stop it but as well as the game there is still enough of a story to make the film interesting. The biggest difference is that there isn't really the back story in the same way the other films had mainly because, with the exception of John Kramer (the original Jigsaw), we have all new characters. Instead Jigsaw focuses on finding out who the new Jigsaw is or even if it is a new Jigsaw or if John has some how come back from the dead. This is where the film is cleaver, it gives us a number of possible suspects and even makes it seem it may be John.
Jigsaw doesn't seem to be as gory as the previous films, yes you still have people in a game and yes at least some of them loose but there are no intestines littering the ground or close ups on people getting cut in half. Don't get me wrong there is still gore, closeups of the dead bodies and people loosing limbs but it doesn't quite have the same feel to it.
The story aspect to the film is good , as I said, it does leave you guessing to who the killer is although, if you pay attention there are clues. The film also plays with time a bit and, as in the other films, this is used to throw the viewer off track.
Jigsaw is a good entry in to the Saw franchise, as it has a ten year gap from Saw 7 it doesn't get bogged down with the original charters and doesn't get (too) bogged down with the past timeline which was getting a bit muddled (in my opinion) but it does manage to pull from what has gone before and use it further the story.
And that's it, the end of the Saw franchise. OK not quite, at the time of writing 'Spiral, Chapters from the book of Saw' is due out at the cinema (Corona willing) in a couple of weeks and it looks to bigger and better however I probably won't get to see it for a while so, for now, it's time to move onto something new.
Jigsaw runs to almost the same formula as the previous films , there is a game in progress and the police have to stop it but as well as the game there is still enough of a story to make the film interesting. The biggest difference is that there isn't really the back story in the same way the other films had mainly because, with the exception of John Kramer (the original Jigsaw), we have all new characters. Instead Jigsaw focuses on finding out who the new Jigsaw is or even if it is a new Jigsaw or if John has some how come back from the dead. This is where the film is cleaver, it gives us a number of possible suspects and even makes it seem it may be John.
Jigsaw doesn't seem to be as gory as the previous films, yes you still have people in a game and yes at least some of them loose but there are no intestines littering the ground or close ups on people getting cut in half. Don't get me wrong there is still gore, closeups of the dead bodies and people loosing limbs but it doesn't quite have the same feel to it.
The story aspect to the film is good , as I said, it does leave you guessing to who the killer is although, if you pay attention there are clues. The film also plays with time a bit and, as in the other films, this is used to throw the viewer off track.
Jigsaw is a good entry in to the Saw franchise, as it has a ten year gap from Saw 7 it doesn't get bogged down with the original charters and doesn't get (too) bogged down with the past timeline which was getting a bit muddled (in my opinion) but it does manage to pull from what has gone before and use it further the story.
And that's it, the end of the Saw franchise. OK not quite, at the time of writing 'Spiral, Chapters from the book of Saw' is due out at the cinema (Corona willing) in a couple of weeks and it looks to bigger and better however I probably won't get to see it for a while so, for now, it's time to move onto something new.
Sarah (7800 KP) rated Velvet Buzzsaw (2019) in Movies
Feb 2, 2019 (Updated Feb 3, 2019)
A little confused
A little confused is definitely how I feel about this film. In parts it’s a darkly satirical take on the art world with some horror thrown in, but the rest is just plain old dull with a handful of characters you care little about. Jake Gyllenhaal is great as usual, but I feel the rest of the cast were a let down. Zawe Ashton especially seemed to put in a very deadpan and robot like performance - must have been how her character was intended but it just didn’t work. It also doesn’t help that despite Jake Gyllenhaal, there’s no real main character in this and this is where it falls done, bouncing between a lot of mostly conceited unliveable characters.
This film spends far too much time talking and poking fun at the art world, instead of focusing more on the horror aspect. The story of art killing people is an intriguing one that sounds like it’s been taken straight out of a Stephen King book, it’s just a shame the film didn’t capitalise on this until well over an hour in. Especially as a lot of the horror parts were well done and quite disturbing, although some of the special effects were a bit OTT.
I just find this entire film a little bit meh. It wasn’t terrible, but it’s not particularly memorable either. And whilst I’m sure there’s a message about the fake and judgemental art world, it doesn’t really make for a great film.
This film spends far too much time talking and poking fun at the art world, instead of focusing more on the horror aspect. The story of art killing people is an intriguing one that sounds like it’s been taken straight out of a Stephen King book, it’s just a shame the film didn’t capitalise on this until well over an hour in. Especially as a lot of the horror parts were well done and quite disturbing, although some of the special effects were a bit OTT.
I just find this entire film a little bit meh. It wasn’t terrible, but it’s not particularly memorable either. And whilst I’m sure there’s a message about the fake and judgemental art world, it doesn’t really make for a great film.
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Lenard (726 KP) rated Pet Sematary (2019) in Movies
Apr 9, 2019
A Boston doctor moves his family to what is believed to be a quiet town in Maine. He soon discovers that the town has a secret past and supernatural powers. A good horror movie requires an atmosphere and a good movie based on the book makes you want to read the book to see what was left out. Neither requirement is met in this version of "Pet Sematary." The setting of the atmosphere I may have missed due to longer credits attached to "Shazam" that my gig required me to view. When I entered the theater, the family was already in their Maine house. In the short time I was not there, two things were established, the gas trucks that constantly careen through the town, a ominous sign of accidents to come and the family move to Maine to get away from the hustle of the city. The shadow of death could not have come until I was already in the theater. This aspect of the family dynamic was firmly established later when Ellie sees an animal dead on the road. The titular pet cemetary was also introduced while I was in attendance. The directors did not set up any foreboding specters for the cemetary or the family past, a sign of people in need of paying attention to their own creation. Throughout the film, there should be moments that terrify you from Church to the zombie child to Judd's mysteriously dead wife. None of these approach master level suspense.
Lenard (726 KP) rated Ask Dr Ruth (2019) in Movies
Jun 14, 2019
I grew up on Dr Ruth Westheimer. I wrote a book report on her autobiography in probably middle school. This is how influential she was during the 80s. The new documentary about her life released on Hulu and in select theaters quietly pays homage to this remarkable woman. Much like another short statured Jewish woman who received a documentary last year, Dr Ruth gave a voice to women and power to women in the bedroom. She made it okay to air your sexual problems and get a solution. For a generation, her humor and honesty turned a German girl who escaped the Holocaust and the 1948 Israeli-Arab War into a minor celebrity. I hope people can see this film and appreciate this trailblazer who tirelessly works for feminism (although she is not a feminist) and LBGTQ.
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The Chocolate Lady (94 KP) rated Salmon Fishing in the Yemen in Books
Oct 7, 2020
I promised myself I'd read this before allowing myself to see the movie. I have to say, it was certainly a fun ride, and yet one that I think might make a good film. However, there do seem to be a few things that wouldn't translate.
That said, Torday certainly knows how to write sympathetic characters and put them in interesting situations. This one doesn't tie all the loose ends up at the end, and we wonder what happens with some of these people. That could be a good thing, but I somehow feel this concluded a touch too quickly - and perhaps a nice epilogue would have helped conclude just one or two things that felt a bit too unfinished. Even so, the style is solid and unique - and nothing like the other book of his I read - The Girl on the Landing!
That said, Torday certainly knows how to write sympathetic characters and put them in interesting situations. This one doesn't tie all the loose ends up at the end, and we wonder what happens with some of these people. That could be a good thing, but I somehow feel this concluded a touch too quickly - and perhaps a nice epilogue would have helped conclude just one or two things that felt a bit too unfinished. Even so, the style is solid and unique - and nothing like the other book of his I read - The Girl on the Landing!
Leanne Crabtree (480 KP) rated Divergent in Books
Jan 12, 2021
4.5 stars.
I have this thing where I have to read books before the films are released, i.e. twilight, mortal instruments, and when I heard this was going to be a film, I just had to read it.
That being said, I wasn't entirely sure what the book was about before I bought it yesterday, just that it was a young adult dystopia story with romance in it.
Either way I was hooked from early on. I think it was when it came out that she didn't fit into any faction, that she was Divergent. Then we met Four, and, the sucker I am for any hint of romance, I was a goner. Hooked.
I really enjoyed this. It had a bit of everything that I like in a story and I can't wait to read what happens next in the series.
I have this thing where I have to read books before the films are released, i.e. twilight, mortal instruments, and when I heard this was going to be a film, I just had to read it.
That being said, I wasn't entirely sure what the book was about before I bought it yesterday, just that it was a young adult dystopia story with romance in it.
Either way I was hooked from early on. I think it was when it came out that she didn't fit into any faction, that she was Divergent. Then we met Four, and, the sucker I am for any hint of romance, I was a goner. Hooked.
I really enjoyed this. It had a bit of everything that I like in a story and I can't wait to read what happens next in the series.