fmansoor Reviews

Welcome the Stranger (2018)

A little movie magic

[10/10 · 15 October 2023]

Who the hell is Justin Kelly?

And why am I not seeing huge movies by him?

From the other reviews one can gather that this is a movie that one either loves or hates.

It is a nuanced piece of work, exquisitely photographed and scored, and its pace adds to the mystery underlying each individual's experience.

I think this must be one of the most carefully constructed movies I have ever seen. One maybe forgiven for thinking that some of the shots drag but the denouement explains the rhythm.

The Director misleads us continuously throwing up red herrings and clues to the mysterious plot. A commendable work.

Pennyworth (2019–2022)

Easily the most entertaining show on offer

[10/10 · 7 October 2022]

With all the brouhaha around the mega shows like the House of the Dragon and the Lord of the Rings, this show is easily the most entertaining with its satirical examination of society through an the device of an alternative universe. Beautifully anachronistic in detail and pregnant with relevance to the modern transhumanism this show highlights the predicaments and predicates of modern life without becoming sloppy, dreary or pedestrian. It has only got better from Season to Season. I just love the '60s vintage cars the Seventies soundtrack and '80s mobile phones all juxtaposed on the Swinging Sixties cultural milieu.

Beecham House (2019)

The production values are outstanding

[10/10 · 8 August 2022]

This series, its Producers and Directors, should be celebrated for setting a new standard in TV production. The amount of detail presented in a 45 minute episode had me stopping to check how much was left and invariably finding myself only half way through. The fact that this was not picked up for second season is a testament to the mediocrity that pervades a society built solely on material benefit. Why shoot for the stars when lesser is better? This is an awesome Series, watch it!

Code Name Banshee (2022)

OK So it is not Natural Born Killers

[7/10 · 15 July 2022]

OK So it is not NBK, but it holds one's attention, leads with the action and keeps it up to the end. I cannot agree with all these negative reviews. It held my attention, and I wanted to know how it all turned out.

As a completely distracting action romp it serves its purpose.

Double Threat (2022)

Subtly satiric formulaic thriller

[7/10 · 8 June 2022]

From the opening frame the movie has the feel of quality and the whole movie is beautifully designed and beautifully shot. I think the subtle twists on the familiar boy meets girl-assassin routine are quite fun and.the action moves along fairly even paced. I am afraid I did not find any plot holes, and overall I laughed a lot.

The Dirty Dutch (2016)

More Lemon Popsicle than American Pie

[8/10 · 9 March 2022]

I cannot understand the featured review on IMDB which condemns this movie as peverse. This is a silly, irreverent parody of teenagers who think about sex 24/7 but rarely if ever get any.

This movie has absolutely no nudity, but from the opening frame sets the scene of teenagers in their first heat of puberty.

There were some genuinely funny set pieces and the movie was not without its social messaging, but even these were kept light and in context.

I gave it an eight because it made laugh out loud at times, and even though some reviewers may think it is not as slick as a Hollywood production, maybe so, but I laughed more in this than any of the American Pie movies, that mostly depend on nudity and crudity to gain a laugh.

Like I said more Lemon Popsicle than American Pie, but much much better.

West Side Story (2021)

Sometimes it is better to leave things alone

[6/10 · 25 February 2022]

This interpretation of West Side Story with its mad woke and pc artifacts is a pale imitation of the original. If Spielberg wanted to do what he has, he should have at the very least done so in a more modern setting. As it is this version is full of cultural anachronisms that destroy the subtlety of the original and despite the beautiful set pieces and choreography, and super orchestration, left me irritated and dismayed. I gave it a six for the dance sequences, but none of the songs had the power and magic of the original.

Book of Love (2022)

Verónica Echegui steals every scene

[7/10 · 4 February 2022]

An interesting premise that builds to a predictable climax and provokes a few laughs and a tender tear along the way. Sam Claflin does ok but Verónica is a delight who steals every scene she is in, even with her back to the camera. I look forward to seeing her again.

How to Save a Marriage and Ruin Your Life (1968)

Charming and delightful

[9/10 · 3 February 2022]

This movie a series of set pieces that examines the social mores of a generation.

A light hearted comedy which is a snap shot of an era, when people were much less judgemental and relationships more natural and less transactional. Although on the surface seemingly the opposite of my last sentence, its denouement if a bit rushed, is charming and redeeming.

Truly a gem, the like of which we may never see again in this woke and cancel culture we find ourselves in today.

I didn't give it a ten because of the alacrity with which it ended which left a little hole in the narrative.

Scrapper (2021)

Uneven but passable

[6/10 · 8 December 2021]

Strong story and interesting plot is let down by some wooden acting and pretty amateurish special effects. Overall though it kept my attention but one cannot help but wish the characters were developed better.

No Time to Die (2021)

What a disappointment

[5/10 · 11 November 2021]

Given the premise of this movie, it seems obvious why it was not released when the pandemic hit. Even so as a Bond movie it was woefully woke and unrealistic. The final scene where everyone is watching as the oh so not so Great Britain takes unilateral action without the okay of her allies is beyond disbelief. What an awful way to end James Bond.

Pig (I) (2021)

One of Nicholas Cage's most outstanding performances

[10/10 · 26 July 2021]

Given his rather uneven material for some years I didn't go in to this expecting a lot but what I received was a stellar screen presence that completely captivates with a depth of performance that moved me and touched me. It is sad that many reviewers who have panned this movie just don't seem to get the raw emotion that permeates every frame. If you have even a smidgen of empathy in your soul watch this movie, you will not be disappointed.

Masquerade (II) (2021)

Seems the other reviewers have missed the key device

[6/10 · 23 July 2021]

Ok so no one is going win any Oscars but the other reviewers seem to have missed that the whole movie is the juxtaposition of sequence from two separate robberies. The second one an act of revenge for the first. The little girl Kasey is also the grown up Rose.

Pennyworth: The Bloody Mary (2021) Season 2, Episode 7

It seems impossible but this episode conveys an essential England

[10/10 · 21 March 2021]

Horribly annoying that the London bus has its access on the wrong side in a scene, but this episode tells us why the ordinary people of the world have more in common than that which separates. An often unknown fact is that the ordinary, butchers and bakers and candlestick makers who owned shares in the British East India Company rejected the unholy treaties that Clive and his ilk contracted in their name. In this episode Alfred Pennyworth, Bet Sykes, Lord Harwood, Frances Gaunt and Mary Pennyworth speak to that spirit.

Half of a Yellow Sun (2013)

Engrossing tale of family and war

[8/10 · 11 April 2020]

I haven't read the book and had to decide which to do first, watch the movie or read. I feel now like a child with a present I haven't yet opened. Having seen a few youtube videos of Ms Adiche speaking I was intrigued to know more about her and when I found this film was available online I jumped at it. Other reviewers have covered most of the aspects of the movie as history and as it relates to the book, but having only heard Ms. Adiche speak about writing it and what she was trying to convey, mainly the humanity extant in all of us, I must say the movie moved me. I do not think Thandie Newton overacted or that her performance was flat, to me it had a kind of authenticity of blind devotion that impelled her character to somehow go with the flow even when life became impossible. This film also highlighted a reality that many of us grew up with in the daily news bulletins of our childhood and it is a tragedy that so much suffering has so easily been forgotten. I recommend this movie without reservation, the action moves quickly and if there is any criticism at all it is that some scenes lack connective tissue and I suspect one of the reviewers is spot on when they said that the book should have been made in to a TV series.

The Girl from the Song (2017)

An exploration of Spirit that is time well spent

[8/10 · 31 March 2020]

Although superficially a love story this movie seeks to explore not just emotional ties but more specifically the Human spirit in the modern world. It brings us a gamut of human stereotypes but deals with each sympathetically. Some characters could have been developed a little more and it does seem that for the scope of the canvas this is where the movie falls short if at all. Definitely a movie worth watching more than once, to catch the nuances it hints at. For a first attempt at a feature length movie I think it is excellent. The performances were first rate, and the suspense of disbelief was sustained right to the last frame. Overall I would love to see a sequel that explores these characters further.

The Courier (2019)

Whatever the other reviewers say, I bet they watched to the end

[7/10 · 19 January 2020]

The script is wooden and everyone speaks in cliches, but this movie has relentless action from the get-go and not for a moment does one stop rooting for the Courier. As another reviewer points out the chemistry between the Rabbit and the Courier makes the suspension of disbelief realisable. Undoubtedly there are holes in the plot and the Courier's leg wound miraculously disappears in the last frames but overall I enjoyed it.

Pandora (2019–2020)

Intriguing alternate history

[6/10 · 15 September 2019]

I have to say I do look forward to each episode although I must agree the writing is not as good as something like Killjoys or Dark Matter. That said I do enjoy the characters but it has a sophomoric feel about the show which makes it more like a teen comedy than a proper Sci Fi thriller. However what keeps me watching is the alternate history and the political dynamic between the alliance and its allies. It seems the writers are only just getting started and all that we have seen so far is a build up to something quite different than we are seeing now. Time for the writers to move the story along, the side interpersonal relations take up too much time and do nothing for the main story. Update after end of Season: Disappointing to say the least. The plot jumps from place to place with unfinished storylines and huge gaps. People miraculously appear at crucial moments without lead up as to how they could actually get there, so timelines are compressed and overall it looks like the writers tried to pack too many ideas in to too little time. It could have been good...

Ingrid Goes West (2017)

A very touching homespun examination of loneliness

[10/10 · 18 November 2017]

This movie moved me in ways I cannot explain. It made it plain how one can still feel alone even when "connected" to the social construct of the new millennium. An ordinary person with no anchor to keep her secure tries hard to feel real in a space that has no harbor. There is a lesson in this movie, loving kindness can save us all.

Facing (2016– )

Too short to do justice

[4/10 · 30 September 2016]

Pablo Escobar was a complex phenomenon but not an especially unique one. Anyone who goes after a government using the same tactics as the government is invariably a criminal at least in terms of the State. Velupillai Prabhakharan used similar criminal activities through out the Western world to fund his own operations in Sri Lanka. Of the two it would be fair to say Escobar did more to ameliorate the trials of the poor than Prabhakaran, but both progressed through assassination and then all out war. What the documentary does not talk about is that Escobar's operation was undermined by a group who eventually became the Contras and one way or another poor Gary North paid with his life and his reputation for exposing that. Overall this documentary would serve history better by explaining the international environment in which all this occurred.

Hotel Desire (2011)

A beautiful evocation of a perfect day.

[9/10 · 12 July 2015]

The two other reviews of this movie, as I write this, both seem to have missed the director's vision. One of them is almost a diatribe and the other an apology. Neither do this sensitive, hand crafted movie justice.

There maybe some technical problems with the editing, for example an unfortunate jerk in continuity early on when the protagonist moves from changing room to being upbraided by Management, but to me from the perspective of what the Director was trying to do and whether he did it, the movie was almost perfect. I don't understand the criticism of the music, the use of Debussy for example was, dare I say, lyrical? Each shot is thought out and framed beautifully. There is subtle complexity to the several story lines of ordinary human interaction each of them confirming in a precise way elemental humanity.

Only a shrink-wrapped hedonist would call this porn. Metaphysical in content it is really a celebration of life as beauty. The tenderness of the final denouement is sublime and it most certainly is not in the sex.

Hit and Run (I) (2012)

Social commentary masquerading as comedy

[8/10 · 23 November 2012]

I don't know... the other reviewers seem to be expecting War and Peace instead of a formulaic salute to the genre, with a little iffy choreography but still interesting stunts. Don't expect pathos and I guarantee you will be laughing out loud every time the hapless Tom Arnold is on screen. The cars are beautiful, a '67 Lincoln with 700hp, A Cadi estate to die for, a Solstice and a custom built off-roader that I wouldn't even know how to begin to name. Unlike many other reviewers I enjoyed the banter between all the parties, and in itself it is an interesting take on contemporary Californian relationships: the Pouncer app, the political incorrectness of fag, the voting for civil unions... Bradley Cooper's thug was creepy and intense and yet loves dogs. Shepard and Bell have tangible chemistry, Ms Bryant manages to look lethal and desirable all in one sweep of an eyelash, and one ends up wishing they had added more meat to Carly Hatter's role of the inept cop's sidekick with all the answers. What made this movie work for me was primarily the intelligence and yes, restraint with which each every actor executed their role. The plot had some holes, okay craters, like why would someone in a limousine think they could lose a coupe on a dirt road... follow the dust dude, and if someone is trying to hide, why would he choose to drive a trademark? But it gets an eight because it made me laugh out loud at least a few times.

Multiple Sarcasms (2010)

An enigmatic expression of the complexities of love and friendship

[8/10 · 5 October 2012]

A seemingly happy man with an unscratchable itch blunders in to a solution that is neither heroic nor mundane but nevertheless seems satisfyingly right in a very ordinary way. Without quite knowing what he knows that he has been battling with a conundrum his whole life, to find a solution he turns away from his life and decides he must write a play. He then finds himself describing his conundrum and the movie unfolds like a detective novel with odd clues dropped from time to time, as he traces the root of what's been bothering him. He finishes his play and better yet its production is financially rewarding, he's a made man and he does not have the itch any more. I gave the film an eight because even though the dialogue stank in parts, the Director still manages to convey a voice and evoke empathy and a sense of shared human experience.

Columbus Circle (2012)

Fast paced murder mystery with a twist

[7/10 · 4 March 2012]

An unusual film which gives you all the clues straight out, up front, confirms all your suspicions and then provides an expected denouement in an utterly unexpected way. I enjoyed it although I think its sparse cutting gave it pace but robbed it of being more than a sketch. Several characters and plot ideas would bear fleshing out. Overall I think ten or fifteen minutes of connective tissue could have been added without losing any of the pace. Wonderful set design and contemporary feel to the whole production. Believable performances by everyone, but the two female protagonists excel. Overall it seems to me someone probably interfered with the Director's vision and not to the benefit of the movie experience.

Feed the Fish (2010)

Charming multi-layered look at human relationships

[8/10 · 5 September 2011]

This movie begins in Venice, CA and ends in Lake Michigan, WI, along the way it examines the dynamics of several relationships between friends and family through slapstick comedy and some moments of real pathos. A genuinely funny movie which will have you laughing out loud, empathizing with the characters and hoping against hope that impending disasters are averted and yet when the worst happens laugh along with the characters at the delicious futility of man made plans. The picture celebrates community, family, friendship and relationships through a series of interactions that are commonplace and yet unique to the peculiarities of the writer/director's vision. I had a genuine sense of loss at the end of the movie and suspect that the writer has all the ingredients for a very successful TV series as there are many characters that could bear further development. I suppose that is the power of the writing as even minor characters are endowed with enough personality to intrigue. The nurse and the waiter are two cases to point. Tony Shalhoub brilliantly underplays his role but the ice cream cones must go to Katie Aselton and Ross Partridge who make it all work.