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Reviews
Dunkirk (2017)
This movie was so rich, so detailed and so profoundly moving that it's hard to put it into words. Christopher Nolan is back and he's here to show us what a master can create.
This review will be mostly spoiler free but I don't want to be banned so I clicked it just to be safe..
The basic plot revolves around the 450,000 odd British soldiers trapped in Dunkirk, France as the German troops close in. They don't close in on foot though, instead opting to pick the trapped soldiers off from the air and sea.
This movie isn't a propaganda piece touting the glory of British resilience; most of the movie is just young men trying to survive, petrified for their own lives. The threat is ever present, there was a wonderful sense of tension throughout the entire movie. You really felt the cinema shake as the German planes closed in on the soldiers and let loose their bombs and you can feel the thick fog of fear.
The enemy in this movie is very interesting because you never actually see a German face. The enemy is just a looming threat and comes in the shape of torpedo attacks and bombs from planes. I read that Nolan spent a lot of time studying silent films and how they built tension which is pulled off masterfully in this movie. Like the movie Gravity once this movie begins there is no down time, they are constantly being attacked in one way or another.
The casting for this movie was absolutely superb. Our very own Barry Keoghan had a short role that I would liked to have seen fleshed out more but he pulled it off very well. Cillian Murphy was wonderful as always and played the role of a shell shocked soldier. Mark Rylance stole the show for me and put on a stellar performance as the father who is doing his duty to his country. His bravery never fades. Fionn Whitehead and Aneurin Barnard were excellent choices and I liked how Nolan chose largely unknown and inexperienced actors to mimic how young and inexperienced the soldiers really were during the war.
When I heard that Harry Styles was in this movie I figured that it was just a clever ploy to pull in more ticket sales but I absolutely stand corrected. He put on an authentic, honest performance that was very impressive. There's a great scene in a boat where you see how he is affected by desperation and sheer terror that really sold it for me, his performance was extremely consistent.
Tom Hardy is a chameleon... Any role he plays he is completely dedicated and immersed and you can't peel your eyes away from him. He has some of the most nail biting scenes and his scenes toward the end of the movie were very emotional and moving.
Strangely enough some parts of the movie felt like watching old WW2 footage; it was grainy and real. This movie didn't rely on CGI, it was gritty and honest and beautifully shot.
You really can't talk about a Christopher Nolan without talking about Hans Zimmer and the soundtrack. There were some scenes that were reminiscent of the docking scene in Interstellar because the music flowed so well with each scene that it evoked a sense of urgency and intensity. This is a phenomenal soundtrack. The movie starts to a ticking clock and it's only a matter of time until time runs out.
There is very little dialogue in this movie but it isn't missed at all. This movie is an emotional power horse. I was genuinely moved a couple of times throughout it and it's one that will stay in my head for a long time.
THE GOOD:
Casting was perfect, the lesser known actors held their own weight against some of the veterans. The cinematography was fantastic, you really felt completely immersed in the movie. Hans Zimmer's score was Oscar-worthy. The movie will leave you on the edge of your seat throughout.
THE BAD:
The story line is not always linear which was confusing. Dialogue was sometimes hard to hear (but not necessary)
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Dunkirk is a fantastic movie, it's as simple as that. This should be the standard of movie that other directors should attain to achieve and here Nolan proves that he is one of the greatest directors of all time. The acting is superb and the entire movie is a treat for the eyes and ears. Don't miss out on seeing this in a cinema.
Suicide Squad (2016)
Great cast, terrible plot, mediocre action scenes and shoddy humor
I just got back from the movie and have a few feelings about it. It started out solid enough, we get to know the characters/motivations/weaknesses. Yes it was hurried but necessary and stylish.
Then things drastically started to go downhill. DC's answer to Samuel Jackson is the stony faced Amanda Waller. She decides she needs to get these people together in case of another meta-human attack and by doing so she instigates the attack itself.
So now we are faced with the big bad enchantress who we know nothing about and really aren't that committed to as a movie baddie. But that's OK... the bad guys aren't that important if our protagonists have good charisma with each other on screen. Here was my biggest issue. They just don't.
The enemy ends up being a barrage of blackberry-headed minions and it begins to feel like an annoying video game. Step into a room, kill all bad guys, move on to the next room and repeat. To add insult to injury Rick Flagg even gets dragged away twice and has to be rescued like those ridiculous 'keep them alive' missions in video games. The action feels more suited to a war movie than to a comic book movie (perhaps the directors past is showing here)
I wanted to like this movie, I wanted to like the characters but there were points where the dialogue was just so bad. TWICE, characters randomly hit on Katana to which she does not respond. It's not funny. TWICE everyone ends up ogling Harley Quinn. The attempts at humor in the movie were weak at best. Killer Croc utters so many pointless one liner's that are neither funny nor useful. It just didn't work.
You want humor? When the characters are being shown their wildest dreams, give us a ridiculous seen with Boomerang. Give us some funny scenes with Diablo and stop saying 'esse' at him.
I loved the romance with Joker and Harley.. give us more of that, don't squeeze the joker into a bunch of different personas.
The bar scene was lovely, you felt the characters come close to something like a bond. Don't give us that at the end... give us that at the start of the movie, make us actually feel like these people mesh together well. They call themselves a family at the end but they have done nothing to merit that.
Diablo had a cool scene at the end and Will Smith played an amazing Deadshot but I feel Rick Flag was just badly cast. I never really cared for the Rick and Deadshot scenes together on screen... It never felt like it really worked.
Overall, I'll still watch DC movies, but I do feel like they are missing something that the Marvel counterpart has got right. Maybe it's heart, maybe Marvel just have more practice but I hope DC can redeem themselves next year.