c_matschke Reviews

Saltburn (2023)

Works

[9/10 · 28 January 2024]

This film left me in a disturbed state of mind. At its core is a simple enough story which offers no simple answers. What you see, or think you see, is two worlds colliding. The have's, and the have-not's. Rich boy befriends poor boy and invites him to his stately family castle. It doesn't end well. The extremely beautiful camerawork, and the sometimes abrupt plot twists which seem to have no real psychological explanation, give this film an air of a poem - a strange poem that does not give a realistic picture of the "real" world but follows its own inner logic. At the end, we think we understand what happened and why. But I think, we don't - not until we appreciate the new meaning that the director has given to the term "working class" (which may be one of the reasons that American viewers seem to rate this film so low).

Die Verräter (2023– )

We should have known

[3/10 · 6 October 2023]

I watched the first season of the UK version of The Traitors: It was absolutely friggin brilliant. I didn't expect it to be. But the game made me witness social dynamics in a way I have never seen on TV before. Gripping stuff. I also watched the first season of the US version - which was great as well, but suffered considerably from the producers' decision to staff contestants with a handful of known names bringing on camera experience. Luckily, they weren't the majority. But it gave a somewhat false air to the proceedings. And now along comes German TV station RTL and, we should have known, it does what it always does: Using (or shall I say: Misusing) every show for promoting the personal brands of people they call "Promis". These people are more or less (mostly less) well known in Germany, and RTL recycles them in their shows. Thus they become ever more valuable to RTL and their next show. For the German version of The Traitors that is bad news. Because now we don't get gripping social dynamics between regular people you never had heard of before and therefore cannot quite figure out. We now get a dance routine of professional egos. Which has a devastating effect on the entertainment factor. This version of The Traitors is just plain boring. I give 3 stars because the concept as such still is somewhat undestroyable. In this case, it is the execution that makes it sub-par TV.

The Swarm (2023)

A drag

[2/10 · 20 March 2023]

Each scene and every situation, the whole plot drags on and on, like a prisoner trying to escape through the swamps tugging at a 50 pound steel ball chained around his ankle. I didn't think such bad writing and directing was possible nowadays. But then again, what do I know. Too bad about the story. It does have the potential to make an exciting series. Concise writing seems to have fallen out of fashion. The fact that I am forced to add more than two hundred characters to my review although, from my point of view, I already have said everything there is to say about this ill-conceived series, may serve as proof.

Maya (I) (2018)

Boredom, not magic

[2/10 · 11 January 2022]

Sometimes in a film, when nothing happens, magic is created. Not in this case. The dragging story leads uninvolving characters to nowhere, we are treated to plenty of postcard images of the countryside which look like they have sponsored by the local tourist boards, and the only thing all this creates is - boredom. Two stars for the nice scenery.

After Life (2019–2022)

You may regret watching this. I certainly did not.

[10/10 · 25 May 2020]

I practically binge watched the first season. It's the first time I ever binge watched a full season of a tv series. There is something weirdly zen-like about After Life which completely absorbed me. It's not a complicated story. It's a simple story about redemption. And maybe other things too, like the meaning of life and things like that. In any case, it made me listen, it made me laugh, it made me cry, it made me think, it made me feel. What more could I want from a tv series? Nothing.

Don't. Get. Out! (2018)

Gripping suspense thriller

[8/10 · 9 April 2020]

This movie had me nailed to my seat, or rather: seats. I had to make two attempts at watching it. I am a father of two myself, and the first time round I had to turn off the tv when things got to tough for the kids. But the seed was sown and I found myself wondering what the heck was going on in this story, and I needed to find out. So I watched the rest online two days later. I don't regret it. I felt the pain of the father, wondered about the villain and his next moves, got angry at the police making bad mistakes, and rooted for the heros. And at the end I realized that this is what good movies do.

P.S.: Emily Kusche did a fantastic job. I loved her even better than Wilke Möhring. In every second, the emotional state she displayed reflected precisely the situation she was in.

L'intrusa (2017)

Strictly for grown-ups

[9/10 · 8 April 2020]

Civility is put to the test - and fails. But: life will go on. To me, that is the essence of this story. It's a very simple story of a person in need of help, and another person willing to give it. But the world around them, and their own human faults, stand in the way of a happy ending. Nothing overly dramatic happens in this sombre movie. It is a quiet meditation on human life, where it succeeds, and where it fails. And yet, it had me on the edge of my seat constantly. Maybe I'm getting soft.

Pandemic: How to Prevent an Outbreak (2020)

The world, seconds before the meteor hit

[10/10 · 3 April 2020]

What timing! Now that the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic has the world in its grips, this series provides a fascinating look at the world as we knew it. The unheard warnings, the blatant ignorace, the irrational politics, the likeable but fantastically naive anti-vaxxers, the worried doctors and scientists who in retrospect should have screamed murder and yet couldn't help themselves but carry on with their studies and their routine, and many more. A world in limbo, by and large blissfully unaware of the imminent danger. Our world - just seconds before the meteor hit. Time will tell if humanity can learn from this pandemic. The series inspires hope as well as despair in that regard. Which makes it thrilling to watch.

Das Quartett: Der lange Schatten des Todes (2019) Season 1, Episode 1

The worst detective story I have seen in years

[1/10 · 12 October 2019]

I don't even know where to begin to explain why this film is so bad. Is it the wooden acting? Yes. The gaping plot holes? Oh, yes. The frequentlx preposterous dialogue? Yes, yes. The needlessly tangled storyline that leaves us caring zilch for the protagonists and what happens to them? OH, YES! I can't understand why anything like this passes professional quality control. I watched it because it actually got a fantastic review on the tv guide website I use. Turned out the film is so bad I had to keep watching it until the end, I was fascinated in a sinister way, it felt like watching a trail derailing in slow motion. What an utter mess.

Wild Bear Rescue (2017–2019)

If you like bears, this is for you

[7/10 · 3 September 2019]

While I don't feel this is any kind of groundbreaking documentary, it makes up for nice entertainment and some education as well. Contrary to what another reviewer states, much attention is given to to the fact that these bears have to stay away from humans after they have revovered and been released to the wild again. That is quite a task, because as they say in Canada: A fed bear is a dead bear. A quick online search brings up a July 2016 article in the Vancouver Sun which makes clear that the facility portrayed in this series does a professional job: "The Langens and their staff have nursed 369 bears back to health to date. Of those, only 2.4 per cent came into human conflict post-release. This spectacular track record has meant the couple travel the world making presentations at meetings such as the International Bear Rehab Conference in Russia, the International Moose Conference in Canada and even a trip last year to Vietnam." So, if you care for bears, this docu series is for you.

Toy Story 4 (2019)

Discuss the meaning of life while munching popcorn

[10/10 · 16 August 2019]

This movie made me feel good. It proves that you can tell an extremely entertaining and funny story which even small childeren will understand, and by doing so, discuss real serious matters, even the very meaning of life, in a deep, non-trivial manner. It is not alone in achieving this feat - Inside Out comes to mind. But, there are not many films like this. What is especially beautiful about this film: it allows you to be completely immersed in the story, turn off your brain and munch away on your popcorn. And if you decide to follow the philosophical implications, you are NOT rewarded with easy answers, but with questions that will last a lifetime.

Beverly Hills Cop (1984)

I fell off my chair laughing

[8/10 · 16 August 2019]

This movie hasn't aged very well. From today's perspective it seems a bit slow, and I would award it, say, 6 stars. But I saw it in 1984. And at the time I found myself alternately glued to my chair because of the suspense, and falling off my chair because of the outrageous humor. I was extremely well entertained. And because no action movie can hope to thrill 35 years after its release, I think it is only fair to rate it according to its quality as it was perceived at the time of its creation.

Hard Rain (1976 TV Movie)

The definition of intensity

[10/10 · 15 April 2019]

This is the most intense live show I have ever seen on film. When I first saw this around 1977 or so, I couldn't stop watching, my eyes were fixed on Dylan who was full of vibrating energy. Any moment, I felt, something extraordinary was about to happen. Dylan would dissolve into light, or cause an earthquake, or shoot to the stars, or the power of his presence suddenly would attract all matter and condense it to become a black hole and swallow everything. You get the drift: I've been a fan ever since. Never mind the technical quality of the film; it's ok, but nothing spectacular. The music and the performance tell the story, the cameras simply bear witness.

Früher oder später (2018– )

Magical realism in the Bavarian countryside

[10/10 · 29 November 2018]

This docu series is so well conceived, narrated and filmed, it's astonishing. Within a few minutes, it brings you extremely close to these people and their lives, and it lets you feel the beauty and the thrill of ordinary things. And in doing so, the film transcends what it shows. You are being transported to some magical state where you seem to understand life on a fundamental level, while at the same time you realize how unexplicable and wondrous human existence is. The funny thing is that the documentay itself at no point gets philosophical or emotional. It's like a play by Samuel Beckett. The tone never gets juicy. What you see are totally dry observations. But from minute one you will be on the edge of your seat.

Watch Out, We're Mad (1974)

It does not stand the test of time

[2/10 · 28 November 2018]

Where I lived, Bud Spencer and Terence Hill were legends in the Seventies. The crudeness of the humour was evident, but it didn't spoil the fun, on the contrary, it was the core of the value proposition. But this movie shares the fate of all movies starring Bud Spencer and Terence Hill: it has not aged well. From the perspective of a viewer in 2018, the silliness is boring instead of exhilarating. The stunts are mediocre. The story is as interesting as a user manual for a vacuum cleaner. And the action is slow, and I mean excruciatingly sloooooooooooow.

If you have fond memories of this movie, do yourself a favor: do not watch it again.

Rambo III (1988)

How to create monsters and a mob

[4/10 · 31 May 2018]

It's easy to be distracted. It's easy to forget that, while you are entertained by the heroism of the hero, the badness of the bad, and the military action, at the same time you are being taught a lesson. Watching Rambo III, your heart learns: enemies are evil and therefore it is OK to mutilate and kill them in whichever way. They are not human, they are devils.

Let me illustrate my point I went to the premiere night in 1988 in the medium-sized Bavarian town I lived in at the time. I will never forget the moment when Rambo shot an arrow at one of his mean adversaries - oh boy, had he been established by the story as a particularly mean monster! - and the arrow went right through his head and - whack! - nailed him to a tree: half of the audience bursted out in shouts of sheer triumph and hate and revenge fulfilled. It was frightening. I witnessed the creation of a mob.

Dumb and Dumber (1994)

Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven

[10/10 · 9 December 2016]

This movie to me is the exact opposite of what the title and the plot suggest. It is hysterically funny, but it's not so much the jokes that make you laugh, but the wicked and wildly optimistic humor they are rooted in.

We see two guys acting totally stupid all of the time. Why doesn't it become boring after five minutes? Because all this dumbness is not shown to generate cheap laughs. The jokes point to something deeper, something more substantial and important for our lives. The final scene, which left me gasping for breath, makes it totally clear: Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Which may be translated into our daily lives as: relax, and trust yourself to find your individual path to happiness - so what, if you look dumb to your fellow men! I love this movie.

Showgirls (1995)

More food for thought than for the eyes

[8/10 · 19 October 2016]

The general perception of this movie is in such stark contrast to what I thought and felt when I saw it in 1995, that I feel provoked to analyze what I liked about "Showgirls". There are many movies that mean much more to me, but this gap makes it much more interesting for me to write about this film than, say, write about one of my favourite movies by Fassbinder or Malick or Bergman.

I had gone to see this movie for its supposed sexiness. And sexy it was, if you managed to ignore the somewhat wooden acting. But there was something going on underneath the surface of the story which I found much more interesting than well-shaped bodies and the obvious plot: I felt caught in the act. There was no difference between me and and the strip-tease and night club audience. The film was actually dissecting me and the role as a member of the audience I played in that setting.

There is a scene which, in my mind, proves my theory (*** spoiler alert***): when Nomi takes brutal revenge, we suddenly switch perspective and watch the scene through the eyes of the miscreants who had beaten up her best friend, and who are now under vicious attack by Nomi (***end of spoiler***) - which means we, the audience, are found guilty by Verhoeven, which again is ironic, because it is his film in the first place that tricked us into this position (or did it?).

The Story of Petroleum (1923)

How oil was produced and distributed in the US in 1923

[8/10 · 26 June 2016]

This short documentary by the Bureau of Mines is interesting for its historical footage. The first intertitle of this silent film reads: "This picture is from the film library of the UNITED SATES BUREAU OF MINES DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE, Washingtom, D.C. It is one of many made under the Bureau's supervision to visualize various phases of the Mineral and Allied Industries." For reasons I can't explain I am always fascinated by very old pictures and films showing industrial plants and machinery of our great-grandfathers. That's what makes this documentary interesting for me. It does not dig very deep, but it gives a nice overview on the state of the petroleum industry at the beginning of the Twenties in the US. And it has a few animated sequences which are really cute.

This is what happens in "The Story of Petroleum": We see a geologist doing surveying work. A derrick being built. The rigging up of the drilling equipment. The rotary drilling method is shown and explained using graphics. A „shooter" lowers nitro-glycerine down a drilling hole and detonates it with dynamite. We see oil raining from the derrick and storage tank farms. Machinery driving the pumps in action. Worker camps. Huge diesel engines in casinghead plants. We learn how the pipeline system made transportation cheaper so the crude oil could be refined near consuming centers. We see a map of the pipeline system in the US. Pumping stations. We learn about the „Go-devil", a device for cleaning the pipelines, and the men who ran along the pipeline to keep track of it. We see a new pipeline being laid, a dozen men or so working to the beats of the foreman hammering on the pipe. A pipeline is laid across the Red River. Samples are being drawn from the end of a pipeline at East Chicago - oil quality is determined by simply spilling some on the ground. We get a near 360 degree shot over a huge fuming refinery. Ther process of distillation is nicely explained by a short animated sequence. Oil waggons, trucks and service stations of „Sinclair Oils" in action. We learn what becomes of a barrel of crude oil.

Crossroads (1986)

The Road to Hell Is Paved with Good Intentions

[4/10 · 10 March 2016]

I love the Blues. It's been with me since I was 12. And although I have broadened my musical horizon considerably over the past decades, it still is the Blues, be it electric or acoustic, that sounds like "Home" to me. From what I have seen and heard in Walter Hill's movies - "The Wanderers", "Streets of Fire", "48 Hours" are the ones that immediately spring to mind - I believe he loves the same kind of music that I love. I bought the "Crossroads" soundtrack LP right after I saw the movie back in the Eighties. I must have listened to the title track a hundred times, trying to figure out and then playing to Ry Cooder's fantastically grooving riff.

I hated the movie, though. I recently saw it again and I still don't like it. I feel, Hill did the Blues a disservice.

Sure enough, the movie obviously was made with the best intentions. Not only does it celebrate the Blues and especially Mississippi Delta Blues legend Robert Johnson. It also makes the case for cultural open mindedness by demonstrating the virtues of stylistic cross-pollination: Juilliard School needs to understand that the Blues is as valuable as Mozart, and our "hero" wins the final guitar battle by applying his extraordinary classical chops.

So, I can sympathize with the message Walter Hill sends here. And the story is kept on an acceptable level of suspense: Will our hero become friends with Willie Brown, the old blues harmonica player who supposedly performed with Robert Johnson way back when? Will he find Johnson's 30th song? In the end, will he save his soul?

Still, the movie made me cringe. There are two main reasons: leading actor Ralph Macchio, and the story's ridiculous climax. Macchio seemingly cannot shake off the feeling he is being watched. The camera makes him feel awkward. In my eyes, he never loses his self-consciousness. Yes, his role does require a certain amount of insecurity and goofiness - but being insecure actor is not the same as being able to convincingly incorporate it in the role you are playing.

Worse, still, is the duel of the guitars at the end, which will decide our hero's fate. Two guitar players take turns at shredding, like boxers exchanging blows - and at the end there is an unquestionable winner, because one guy wasn't able to play some high notes and bend his e-string high enough? Give me a break. At the climax of the story we are presented with a ridiculous caricature of musicianship. Which in my mind is the direct opposite of what Hill wanted to achieve.

Nelken in Aspik (1976)

A satire on communist East Germany's state-run advertising business

[8/10 · 8 June 2015]

This movie may only be truly entertaining to people who had at least a glimpse of life in East Germany when it still was the communist GDR. All advertising in all of East Germany was in the hands of one single company, the Deutsche Werbe- und Anzeigengesellschaft (Dewag). It was directly owned by the ruling party SED. Most goods that East Germans really wanted weren't available anyway (it was a common habit to join a waiting queue as soon as you detected one, because you could be sure that something very rare was on sale, like pineapples or bananas). Dewag's main purpose therefore was to spread communist propaganda. Dewag also used to mimic West German advertising best they could, because many East Germans saw it on TV (although it was punishable by law) and the Communist party tried hard to give them the illusion life was even better in the East.

So that is the background for this movie. The puns and the humor are addressed to an East German audience trained to read between the lines. It is a real wonder the movie not only got made but also released in the GDR. For whatever reason it initially had escaped censorship. It didn't last long in the movie theaters, though.

Holy Ghost (2014)

Seriously?

[1/10 · 10 September 2014]

So GOD actually made this movie, seriously? What kind of a marketing trick is that? Sounds like blasphemy to my (Catholic) ears. Just because HE doesn't interfere with our worldly matters and lets us have our way, we don't automatically have permission to attribute lukewarm and uninspired films like this to HIM, do we?

As it says in the storyline given above: no plan, no script - oh, yes, and no inspiration either.

It's one thing to go on a mission. It's another thing entirely to create a piece of art which is truly meaningful and valuable. This film-maker, it seems, has nothing new or original to say. Somebody should tell him the road to hell is paved with good intentions (assuming he had any).