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Awix (3310 KP) rated Roma (2018) in Movies

Feb 23, 2019 (Updated Feb 23, 2019)

Roma (2018)

2018 | Drama

7.4

(10 Ratings)

Movie Rating

Good looking but slightly soulless arthouse drama courtesy of the good people at Netflix, who have obviously decided they need some awards credibility what with Disney Plus being on the horizon and all. The travails of a maid in Mexico City circa 1970; her employers divorce, she gets impregnated by her boyfriend who promptly absconds, swimming trip nearly ends badly, and so on.

Not very much happens, but does so extremely beautifully - beautiful cinematography is coupled with some formal, rather alienating camerawork. You almost never forget you're watching a movie, except perhaps during one gruelling sequence near the end. It's very difficult to shake the sense that this film was made solely to win awards - it has the right kind of mixture of technical proficiency and socially-engaged storytelling. I couldn't really engage with it except on a superficial level, but it is very pretty.

Kudos

Awix (3310 KP) rated BlacKkKlansman (2018) in Movies

Mar 12, 2019

BlacKkKlansman (2018)

2018 | Biography, Comedy, Crime

8.0

(46 Ratings)

Movie Rating

Based-on-truth joint from Spike Lee is one part comedy, one part thriller, and one part consciousness-raising polemic. The first African-American to join the Colorado Springs PD has to deal with racism from his own colleagues even before he embarks upon the seemingly insane mission of infiltrating the Ku Klux Klan, assisted by his Jewish partner.

Not quite the absurd comedy the trailer suggests it will be, although anyone familiar with Lee's work could probably have guessed as much; the material dealing with the civil rights movement and the political realities of the time is seriously presented and clearly deeply felt. Still involving and entertaining stuff - the decision to dispense with a conventional ending in favour of a diatribe against those provoking the Charlottesville riots and their cheerleader in Washington may not be great storytelling, but it feels entirely understandable and appropriate.

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Bob Mann (459 KP) rated Toy Story 4 (2019) in Movies

Jul 23, 2019

Toy Story 4 (2019)

2019 | Animation, Comedy, Sci-Fi

8.2

(89 Ratings)

Movie Rating Watch

Quality of animation and storytelling (1 more)

Mixture of high comedy and gut-wrenching emotion

"Henchmen" might scare very young viewers (0 more)

Yes they Canada!

I was certain in my believe that TS4 would be a horrible misstep, following the beloved original trilogy! (And to be honest I wasn’t really as mad-keen on TS3 either!) As such, I really wasn’t fussed that due to holidays and work trips it’s been out a month before I’ve seen it. But how wrong I was! Pixar have really done it again and pulled a gem out of the bag.

Directed by Josh Cooley (as his first feature!), it’s a masterpiece, and cements itself firmly in my films of the year list.

For the full graphical review please visit One Mann's movies at https://bob-the-movie-man.com/2019/07/22/one-manns-movies-film-review-toy-story-4-2019/

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Lee (2222 KP) rated Your Name (2016) in Movies

Nov 24, 2019

Your Name (2016)

2016 | Animation, Fantasy, Romance

8.7

(23 Ratings)

Movie Rating

Your Name probably spent about a year sitting on my Amazon Prime watchlist before I eventually decided to watch it. A movie with 370 reviews and an overall rating of 5 stars, constantly overlooked by me in favour of old episodes of The Office! And then, one cold and gloomy weekend afternoon, I decided to give it a go.

To be honest, it didn’t really do anything for me at first, it felt a bit messy and a little confusing and I very nearly gave up on it after about 20 minutes. And then it grabbed me - the beautiful animation, the incredible storytelling, the emotion and the drama all clicked and took hold and by the end of it all this movie had completely blown me away. I’m only sorry I didn’t give this a chance sooner and I cannot recommenced it enough. Incredible.

Kudos

Kirk Bage (1775 KP) rated Once Upon a Time in America (1984) in Movies

Mar 3, 2020 (Updated Mar 5, 2020)

Seen by some as an 80s Godfather light, this masterpiece of storytelling stands very much on its own two feet. There is a melancholy and nostalgia that make you care about the characters in ways many crime films don’t achieve. Led by one of the best cinema scores there has surely ever been. Ennio Morricone’s haunting melodies stay with you for life, evoking in turns the spirit of childhood, the regret of old age, and the ache for love and happiness that ultimately evades every one of them. Moments of laughter and glory turn to brutality, betrayal and bitterness, leading to an ambiguous end that breaks the heart. The look and feel of New York, captured with immense care in every shot, is a character in and of itself. An extraordinary allegory of what we were, what we dreamed we’d be and what we actually became.