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madwilly
Reviews
Avatar: The Last Airbender: Aang (2024)
Wooden and without dramatic tension
I really wanted this to be good. Instead the acting was almost as wooden as the Shyamalan version, and the story structure was somehow worse. They told every time they should have shown, they showed every time they should have implied, and the dialogue was unnatural throughout, even from accomplished actors like Paul Sun-Hyung Lee and Casey Camp-Horinek. The fights choreography was fine, but almost entirely without heart or tension. The sets were a mix of sub-par practical and unreal digital. They felt like visual filler instead believable places. The costumes were fine, but far from great. It didn't make me angry the way the Shyamalan adaptation did. Instead it just left me feeling completely hollow.
Barbarian (2022)
Stellar Cinematography
This film contains some of the coolest camera work I have ever seen. From lenses to dolly shots to wide angles to tracking shots to color grading, it looked incredible and really helped tell the story. The acting was mostly pretty good, and the scares were sometimes great, sometimes middling, but the cinematography is top tier. Tess is a solid protagonist, and Justin Long is delightfully hate-worthy as AJ. Seriously, what a cowardly, despicable character. The story itself subverted a lot of my expectations, which isn't easy to do. I didn't find myself connecting to it emotionally as much as I would have liked, but it's shortcomings are outweighed by its good parts.
Turning Red (2022)
Surprisingly Good
This wasn't really on my radar, as family friendly animation isn't really my jam. But I watched it on the recommendation of some friends and I had a great time. It was funny and heartfelt and the animation was great. I like that it tackled some awkward issues with a combination of sincerity and humor. The relationship between the girls was a delight to watch. The mother/daughter relationships were harder, but poignant and honestly had me misty eyed a couple times. I almost skipped this movie completely, but ended up watching it several times with no regrets. I would recommend it to everyone who isn't a prude.
Amsterdam (2022)
I really wanted to like it but...
It's an interesting idea for a story, about a fascinating time in our history, starring some truly stellar actors. I wanted to love it, but it left me completely cold. Line deliveries were stilted, strange, and downright unnatural at times. Dialogue was dull, bizarre, or repetitious throughout. Very little chemistry between characters, and the comedy never landed for me. It often felt like characters were talking at each other, instead of to each other. The editing was choppy, the cinematography uninspired or distracting in turns. It's got a good message, and some OK story ideas, but they are ham-handedly delivered and often completely jumbled. The costumes were fine, and my spouse enjoyed it, so I guess it has that going for it.
The Witcher (2019)
A Great Start but Flounders After A While
The first episode is phenomenal and it has some great moments after that, but kind of meanders around the story for a while, seemingly unsure of what to do with itself.
Some good supporting characters. The bard is a good idea but he falls a little flat for me. Wish I could articulate why.
Mild spoiler: They get some points for trying out an interesting chronology distortion in their storytelling. Unfortunately it doesn't quite land. It leaves you with more of a "huh, ok..." than a "wow, cool!"
Sexify (2021)
Off to a good start
I like the characters and for the most part their conflicts and friendships are believable within the comedy context. It's not perfect, but I thoroughly enjoyed it and look forward to season 2.