Watched with commentary by Anna Boden & Ryan Fleck. While not as great as their HALF NELSON commentary, this one was still very good and gave some fair insight into making the film, especially in regards to how much thought they put into the visualization, their aesthetic choices and how they fit the story, and it’s so refreshing to see directors on an MCU joint who clearly care about this kind of stuff when so many directors…
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The Villainess 2017
For how much this has been talked about for its set-pieces, I was pleasantly surprised that the character drama at its core — a revitalized take on a tragic femme fatale story — was more of a highlight for me, largely due to a wonderful performance from Kim Ok-vin in the leading role of Sook-hee. There’s even a small stretch purely focused on a blossoming romance between Sook-hee and Sung Joon’s Hyun-soo where I almost forgot I was…
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The Raid 2011
[Unrated]
First viewing in over three years, second viewing altogether, and hope to revisit its sequel sometime today or tomorrow. Absolutely fucking shreds. Not only one of the absolute greatest action films ever made (yes, I know I’ve been saying this a lot recently, but in my defense, I’ve been watching and revisiting some damn great action cinema!), but some of the most immaculately and thoughtfully choreographed, shot, and edited action set-pieces ever filmed. And to think the sequel somehow…
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The Night Comes for Us 2018
Had been meaning to revisit this for a while now since my first viewing when it released in 2018, and with my recent martial arts film watches, I figured now would be the best time to do so. Anyway, this absolutely fucks so damn hard. Could even be alternatively titled The Raid 3, given the similarities in set-pieces and plotting, in addition to the inclusion of Iko Uwais and other cast and crew members. One of the absolute greatest action films ever made. Need a Julie Estelle-centered actioner ASAP.
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In the Heights 2021
Remember when musicals used to be made by directors who knew how to shoot and stage them?
Looks and feels far too artificial for it to work, as it is so easy to tell what was shot on location and what was shot on soundstage. It doesn’t help that the narrative and characters are already incredibly shallow in execution and the emotional beats are manufactured and unearned, but it doesn’t work as a musical either, given both the inept staging…
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Malcolm & Marie 2021
Sam Levinson directly to jail.
It’s painfully obvious from the getgo that Levinson got ridiculously offended by one negative review for Assassination Nation (a film that, despite its many flaws, I found to be a relatively enjoyable work of genre schlock), so much that he made a student film with dialogue that feels like it were written by an Aaron Sorkin-wannabe and made John David Washingnton’s character a stand-in for himself, and that alone creates the problem of thinking he is…
