Isherwood

After the not-so-favorably received (but brilliant in my opinion) Gangs of New York, director Martin Scorsese has ventured into slightly more recent history. He tells the story of an extraordinary person in an extraordinary style. A man who can be perceived as either a genius or a madman. You have to choose whether you will admire Howard Hughes for pushing the boundaries of technological and human capabilities or despise him for his obsessively guarded cleanliness or instability in relationships. Martin Scorsese gives you both sides of the story in a unique trip back to the early 1930s and late 1940s. The atmosphere of parties, bars, women, cigarettes, and unique music breathed so strongly on me that it tousled my hair. And in this environment, Leonardo DiCaprio moves with his characteristic elegance. The acting challenge was truly formidable. DiCaprio picked up the thrown gauntlet and, with a performance more than dignified, proved to everyone that he truly knows how to act. The entire film is full of one famous name after another. While I'm not particularly a fan of Cate Blanchett, neither physically nor as an actress, I must reluctantly praise her. Alan Alda as Hughes' main antagonist is absolutely superb. A lot of people fault the film for the story going nowhere at times. I strongly disagree. I attentively watched the entire three hours to see what was happening. Visually, the film is perfect. Some scenes are indelibly etched in my memory. For example, the filming of Hell's Angels or the plane crash between houses in Beverly Hills. Robert Richardson's brilliant cinematography adds the final touch to everything. Not only the period music but also Howard Shore's orchestration perfectly contributed to creating the (already perfect) atmosphere. Everything I've listed here should be enough to give The Aviator four stars, but the film has something that makes me want to give it no less than five. It has soul. The soul that allowed it to live and tell. Thank you, Master.

This film has one problem. And that's the fact that it's utterly bland in all aspects. An investigative, but slightly aged journalist gets hold of a report that puts his life at risk. The idea itself is not a bad one. If you can accept that the terrorists are from Palestine. Director John Bradshaw plays with the film quite artfully and tries to squeeze as much as he can out of the sloppily written script. The density of tension in the atmosphere is at a fairly appealing level, and the storytelling pace has rapid turns, so there's no risk of that thing called boredom. Unfortunately, there are scenes in the film that occasionally don't fit well, such as those involving shooting or "interrogations." It turns the "office" thriller into a bit of an unnecessary bloodbath. Fred Ward's presence in the lead role gives off a certain charisma, and his acting performance is also quite commendable. The ending is surprising on the one hand, but on the other, I had to close my eyes to avoid seeing what I had already seen several times. This is a bland thriller that you’ll forget in a week.

Wow! I don't know how much of an original spectacle 8 Women is, but it's definitely worth seeing. Eight women are locked in a luxurious mansion, the snow prevents them from leaving, and the only man lies on his stomach with a dagger in his back. François Ozon managed to make the absolute most of the subject matter. What should have been boring for half an hour of the film, in which one woman accuses another, constantly escalates to dizzying heights. Ozon had me wondering who the killer was until the final minutes. I was forming a certain theory throughout the entire film, but after ten minutes, I had to change it. Moreover, the final resolution settled me nicely, laughed in my face, and only confirmed that I’d seen too few movies not to be surprised. There is beauty in simplicity and the ending is the simplest you can imagine. But despite all that, I am still forced to remain a step below the peak in my rating. The reason I'm not going higher is because I was incredibly irritated by the musical numbers. Sure, it can be said that they suited the film, but they just annoyed me throughout the whole film. However, 8 Women is definitely a very high-quality and entertaining spectacle, in which you will appreciate the individual characters even more after watching it for the second time. But I do recognize that each woman had a reason...

I don't sympathize with bald hooligans whose only entertainment is going to the stadium and causing as much trouble as possible. I strongly doubt the intelligence of these people. I don't know what director Jakub Sluka's intention was when he was deciding who he was making the film for. Either for the hooligans to feel good that they are so great that movies are made about them, or for the "rest of us" and wanted to showcase to us the stupidity of these people. Throughout whole movie I felt like Sluka was trying to play both sides. Unfortunately, he did so unevenly, because there is a certain sycophancy toward the Ultras. The average viewer can grasp the film and find in it what the director intended to convey. That is, what he already knows and does not need to be proven. That hooligans are morons who have nothing else to do. There is, however, a certain effort to make all the characters less black and white. The boss of the party, Jirka, is quite a likable character who has been "given the gift of thinking." Unfortunately, Sluka compensates through his character for the shortcomings and monotony of all the other characters too much. David Novotný can’t carry the film as an actor even if he tries his best. He does his best, and his charisma radiates at every step, but he is simply not enough. Jiří Lábus played a really disgusting role. He was an extremely unsympathetic character, and I tried the whole film to find at least something to like about him. Moreover, Lábus overacts in an unhealthy way, which is quite surprising coming from him. Not explaining the behavior of the innkeeper in Oldřich Kaiser's excellent performance seems like another mistake by Sluka against logic. Overall, the film would have benefited from an extra fifteen to twenty minutes. I would try to stomach it, and then maybe something could be inferred from the film. This way it feels like the editor's scissors may have worked a little too hard. Or maybe the director didn't get it right...?

Comedies about guys who are approaching their third decade and realize that their best years are behind them, but refuse to accept it, have been made plenty of times. Old School, however, is original in its own way. Original in the form of a group of guys who decided to break free from social stereotypes and live life on their own terms. Director Todd Phillips has a good hand for comedies like this. Road Trip - teenagers, Starsky & Hutch - a gentle parody of the classic series. Audiences shouldn't look for anything in Old School. People should just get on the boat and trust the captain to show him all the places during the journey along the rivers called "Stereotype and Cliché." Don't worry about the story. As the film appears at the beginning, so it ends. It’s funny, dry, silly, awkward, but never boring. There's always something to see. Well, not always because a naked Will Ferrell running down the street is really... Actually, it belongs in the "embarrassing" column. Luke Wilson's acting is about the same as that of his brother Owen (the same faces). Yet the unassuming Vince Vaughn has been in the spotlight for a while now, and I have to admit that while his acting may not be extraordinary, he possesses a cute comedic charm. He has one of the most charismatic voices in Hollywood. Old School will be fun for all those who do not try to find something in it. And if they do, they'll probably be disappointed.

A traditionally straightforward espionage ride in which director Doug Liman delivers several top-notch action sequences according to modern audience demands. However, the film also relies on a captivating plot that, compared to the original book, may come up short, but in the case of this film, I'm willing to tolerate it because of the brisk pace, which briefly eases in the second third but then picks up full speed again in the end and manages to engulf the viewer throughout the full two-hour runtime. The careful work with the camera, which perfectly captures the action scenes, and the use of a cold color filter that complements the slowly snowing Paris, along with the excellent musical accompaniment by John Powell, are just a few of the film's strengths. Not to mention the precise performances by the cast, where although a young Matt Damon might raise some eyebrows, his minimalist expressions suit the role perfectly. One minor criticism could be directed at the occasional "late" editing, which reveals the stuntmen "catching" falls. However, even after seeing the film more than ten times, it's impossible not to give The Bourne Identity a perfect review with a smile on my face.

The Farrelly brothers' disgusting, vulgar, and perverted comedy got a sequel. Well, a prequel, actually. The comedic qualities of the first installment were not particularly dazzling, but the Farrelly brothers bet on brutal jokes and top-notch performances from Jim Carrey and Jeff Daniels. This film, however, lacks everything I listed a moment ago. There are a lot of lame comedies, but at least I can laugh at some of the stupid jokes now and then. If, however, you go through the entire film with a stone face and a blank expression, it's clear that something is not quite right. Jokes like Harry pouring chocolate all over the bathroom and then the father of the girl he loves visiting thinking it's not chocolate, but... well, you know, I always like to laugh. It may have been perverse humor, but the director made even this scene so dementedly boring that it's at least worth pausing for a moment. The inability to shoot absurd scenes is really concerning. Compared to this film, a film like Kevin & Perry Go Large is like an art film that will definitely entertain you, even if you resist it more. So what if Derek Richardson and Eric Christian Olsen look like Jeff Daniels and Jim Carrey? So what if they can't even squeeze out a tenth of the facial expressions of their predecessors? Eugene Levy (Jim's dad from the American Pie series) made me downright sick. You can clearly see that he didn't want to play the role and that he overacted with such disgust that it completely ruined my impression of at least some of the actors in the film. Luis Guzmán (Traffic ) probably doesn't get too many interesting roles in Hollywood if he feels the need to act in such cinematic dumps. The film made me sick, not from any scenes, but from how terribly boring it was. Good thing it was so short. Bleh.

I can't decide if this film is stupid or brilliant. However, it definitely does have a few original elements. The first zombie film in the history of Czech cinema turned out to be very controversial. On one hand, the film doesn't lack action, which is good not only by Czech film standards. The creators didn't even attempt to build tension (which I believe was intentional) but on the other hand, the film is incredibly dumb in certain passages. Although it's never boring, it really is stupid at times. That's quite a shame because the action has its charms and, together with a properly sharp soundtrack, it feels notably "non-Czech." There are surprisingly few classic zombie scenes, though admittedly the stylish blasting of the zombie at the beginning is certainly reminiscent of any classic zombie film. Of the actors, Jan Dolanský is the best. It's evident that he doesn't take his role seriously and his acting style of "a guy who doesn't care about anything" immediately won my sympathies. Come to think of it, this is probably how the film turns out when former film critics (with the significant contribution of current ones) get involved - names like František Fuka, Tomáš Baldýnský, Ondřej Vosmík, or Martin Pomothy are well-known to enthusiasts. I do also acknowledge and appreciate the efforts of the creators that are evident in every step to make the film look the way it does. And that it's a little dumb sometimes? It can happen to anyone. If it weren't a Czech film, it would definitely be "out," but I always look at Czech films with a slightly different perspective... Three (un)deserved stars.

I haven't felt this good in a long time. A comedy from the world of thieves in the most elegant presentation. Traffic was indeed amazing, but here, you can see that Soderbergh wanted to take a directorial break. The film is neither frantic nor slow paced. It moves along in a relaxed manner that suits both it and the audience. There are no unnecessary scenes to prolong the film. There is also no unnecessary action, flashy camera shots, explosions (actually, there are a few, but there's no megalomania), and God forbid, car chases. I give the benefit of the doubt to those who say that it doesn't matter if the casino is eventually robbed or not. It's all about how it's done. Cunningly! This is the only word I can think of. Perhaps a bit too much and it’s cinematic, but it's not about art, but about entertainment. Hats off to you, Steven Soderbergh. The ensemble cast doesn't deliver Oscar-winning performances, but it's evident that everyone is having a good time, just like the director. Even Andy Garcia, who I kind of felt sorry for because I have him pegged as a positive protagonist. I considered Julia Roberts a sympathetic addition to a great film. Like I said, I haven't felt this good in a long time. Two hours in the company of a great cast working on one great job.

I love Rammstein's music. I can listen to their songs over and over again. Even though I claim "I'm not into music," I still love to listen to it, despite my lack of knowledge about notes and chords. I'm not going to dissect opinions on them or their music, performance, or overall image. Live aus Berlin is an unforgettable experience. I'd love to hear them live, but where am I going to get the money to go to their concert? It’s a highly explosive spectacle, where things are on fire, exploding, and all accompanied by their music. The boat trip is a blast. A tumult that cannot be forgotten. The filming is perfect. I can't think of anyone else who has such choreographically perfect concerts.