MovieMeditation’s Diary Reviews // “Come and meditate with me!”

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"""" Hulk Smashhhh."""
03-10-16
I haven't seen Night Of The Living Dead, but it does look like something i might enjoy.
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03-19-16
Originally Posted by MovieMeditation


March 16th

Interstellar (2014)*
critical
// entertaining
-

"We used to look up at the sky and wonder at our place in the stars,
now we just look down and worry about our place in the dirt."

EXTENDED REVIEW
This movie disappointed me greatly when I first watched it, and I guess that is mainly because of my hopes that all the ambition of the project was to be realized. Especially because I know that Nolan can take your typical blockbuster and make something far more out of it, even considering the fact that he seems to have lost his way by now. Still I hoped that somehow this could bring back the Nolan I once knew, and give me something that could live up to the ambition of the project…

But unfortunately, what I got was a boring and totally stretched out 40-minute opening, with not nearly enough character development or even a sense of a story that is actually moving towards a point, which would make the 40 minutes of nothing worth it. It is stiff, uninteresting and overall a poor attempt at making us care for these individuals and understand their characters. Anyways, when you get past those 40 minutes, what you get is a collective mess of people discussing semi-scientific plot points in an overly scientific way, often complicating even the simplest of sentences, and walking around in the dark even more so than the audiences do. Many times it felt like the movie wanted to be way smarter than it actually was, and because of its heavy themes it wanted to have a equally heavy script. But because most of the film is just people looking in the dark for answers they don’t even know if exists, it ends up being so extremely boring for the viewer to follow – or at least try to follow. The film is loaded with overwriting and overstuffed apathy and it seems as if the movie isn’t even sure what it wants to do.

There isn’t really enough interesting stuff to keep the movie going by itself either, and it feels like it kind of stays on this level between the edgy and the all-too-comfortable, and it doesn’t at all dare to go all the way until maybe the final act of the film... But when we finally get there, it actually begin to become interesting, because here Nolan finally explores the theories instead of just talking about them, and also plays with own ideas, wich somewhat succeeds, although still holding some of the same clichés and stupidities a blockbuster usually has. But even for all of its ambition and science it is mostly a fun popcorn movie, which I think was what mainly took me out of the film the first time I watched it. I expected more from the story, something that was only semi-realized in the last act, and I was already quite disappointed by then. There is no denying that the movie generally looks great visually, though Nolan seems to rush his direction more than usual, perhaps because he doesn’t want to distract his audience from what he thinks is a very heavy and strong script. But I was really missing some signature camera work from Nolan, because I honestly think he felt so anonymous on that department. The soundtrack and general sound mixing and editing was amazing though (except for the problems already raised by many) and really completed the experience for me – again, a very fun time on the surface of it all.

The actors assembled in this film are all of great talent, but that doesn’t mean you will get great acting. I don’t think I have ever seen a movie with such great talent wasted, neither do I think McConaughey was right for the lead role. I like him as an actor, but I think because of his raising popularity he just got asked to do pretty much everything – and this just wasn’t fit for him, at least in my opinion… And also, every actor seemed to deliver a performance on autopilot, and I don’t really know if that was because of the script or their own commitment to the film – probably the former, since they most likely had no idea of what kind of character they had to play, in such a muddled and overly ambitious script. And yes, the script really is overly ambitious, and I know there are people out there who will say something along the lines of “you are just too stupid to understand the film.” I’m not calling myself superior in the intelligence department, but this really isn’t as deep and complicated as it wants to be. Yes, it is very possible that all the theories, physics and math make total sense in their respective areas, but that doesn’t make a great film on its own. The science should help drive the actual story of the actual script forward, instead of driving it to the ground and overcomplicating everything. The science aspect simply doesn’t fool me one bit, I don’t want a movie that sounds smart I want it to actually be smart. I don’t care for a movie discussing theories on a correct level if it doesn’t try to prove or disprove them. Why raise a bunch of theories if you aren’t going to do nothing but let it float there in mid-air?

What is even more fun about that is, when Nolan finally reaches his last act, he actually leaves most of what he set up beforehand, by finally delivering his vision and ideas and develop further himself. And that is also why we as an audience have so much fun in the end, because we are finally watching a movie and not a documentary of some sort. I don’t understand why he purposely want to leave his audience in the dark for so long, other than he wants the movie to be “smart and scientific”, and when it comes down to it he doesn’t at all want to make a scientific movie. Because the overall film and its story, is just a big bloated blockbuster disguised as a science film, and everything from the central story, its characters, the visuals and the soundtrack makes that aspect quite clear. Only the script is in doubt of whether it should be wise or fun, and the result is an average script where someone accidently spilled the content of a science book onto it and added a little love and a little sentimentality here and there for impact-value…

‘Interstellar’ is an ambitious film with great and interesting ideas but it is simply executed so badly that, on every other level than entertainment, it fails. So if I had to rate it on that kind of level, I would give it a very low grade, but thankfully, on a second watch, I was able to see past all that and just enjoy it for the overall entertainment value, good visuals and a great soundtrack – and that made me like it a whole lot more, and if I continue to view this as pure entertainment I probably won’t mind watching it again some day.

FAVORITE SCENE // Spinning Endurance Scene & Journey and Fall to 5th Dimension Scene

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I was able to endure about 3/4 of it, durong multiple viewings, uo until the guy who cheated them for a ship or something. anyway, I saw on TV a guy from the local physics dept who said that at least as far as the latest discoveries go, it's on the level. But...this is a film, not lecture in cosmology. And yet, as you say, it is both. I mean, we need to make a film, anyone can hire the best expert on wormholes, which they did. i'm still willing to give it a chance, and knowing nolan, he won't disappoint and will make something out of it.



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Friendo.
03-24-16
MovieMeditation presents...
HIS FILM DIARY 2015
total movie count ........... viewing day count
227 .......................... 261
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September 18th

—— 1999 ——
magnolia
—— drama ——
REWATCH


What is Magnolia...
What does it mean...

Magnolia is the calm and controlled hand of a master at work. A film directed by a man wearing cinema directly on his back, carrying his craftsmanship like a clear cut crown in the midst of the muddy center of moviemaking itself. It is an eccentric exercise in the exact expertise of filmmaking, within its purest form, fumbling only faintly but purely and simply for the sake of his own art. Seeking the feeling of falling and the feeling of failing, but only to relieve himself once again by pushing and pressing himself to the absolute limit. A film so picture perfect you can’t even frame it and a cast so charismatic that caring is completely inescapable. The purest form of escapism trapped inside an escalating epic of biblical proportions, showing us how tightly fitted free form story telling can actually be. This... is Magnolia.

With a story arc leaping all the way into a lengthy three-hour runtime, you will be surprised to see just how meticulous and organic this major magnum opus actually feels, as well as how admirably it continues to climb as a movie and connect us as a viewer throughout its multiple storylines. When thinking about it, I can’t quite come to recollect any film from my many movie viewings, which essentially carries out a central story so extremely downplayed and dramatically driven, but with a conclusive outcome that feels far greater than one’s past perception of potential. Inside the very core of the film, this is a fairly calm and collected story, which ends up feeling far more complex and meticulously calculated than formerly anticipated, especially considering how the story is actually about human examination and not explosive annihilation, which would be the easy way out. ‘Magnolia’ is certainly no bloated action film that begs for our attention, but instead it continues to blossom in bold and beautiful ways, until the point where it eventually earns it.

Writer-director of the film, Paul Thomas Anderson, does something rather impressive with his story by simply planting a seed and watching it grow, evolve and dissolve from a starting point that almost stretches and structures itself along the way. So despite being a little weird at first, the pretty peculiar plant-based parallel of the title is definitely not weed for the movie, but more a winning element that secures the grounded feel of the film and ensures the audience’s involvement with the characters. And just like a flower with lots of leaves the movie leaves lots of layers on its way, while organically growing as a story and maturing as a depiction of life, the humans within it, and the relationships between them. As the flower begins to unfold, the story begins to reveal more sides to the same situation, and as we all know, the life of a flower is not eternal and at one point some leaves will wither and eventually fall dead, breaking its connection with those surrounding it. We also know that unexpected elements will interfere along the way, resembling that of bad weather conditions where wind, rain and whatnot will take its tow on the fundament of which this entire thing is build. The question is whether or not this metaphorical mashup leaves the situation muddier than needed be. But whatever the answer, after all, the movie does take place on Magnolia Blvd. for one so there’s that. And did you know the magnolia flower cures cancer?

‘Magnolia’ prides itself with an unpredictable storyline told with unmatchable storytelling expertise, where the grand runtime goes past us so fast and with such a firm grip on the viewer, that you can't help but be utterly impressed. This can simply be called a prime example of an endless epic of colossal and almost canonical magnitudes, which moves along with a pitch perfect pace and in a very moving manner, packed with powerful emotional flair. But empathy isn’t all, since it far from fails in the technical department where the editing remains one of the most refined works I have ever seen, crafted and calculated with a pace and precision that creates a constant and ever-growing tempo, leaving the audience on the edge of their seat to the purest form of drama there is. ‘Magnolia’ stands out in the field of thousands, while merging masterful filmmaking from every angle imaginable – some admirable actors gives us astounding performances; an amazing writer-director graces us with powerful cinema; all of which ends up being one hell of a cinematic adrenaline rush and a revelation of right and wrong choices, characters, coincidences, care and carelessness…



This is why I watch movies, this is why I love movies, and this is why 'Magnolia'
is one of my all time favorite films…

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Lone Wolf
03-24-16
Great review MM. I love Magnolia so much. Every time I watch it it moves up my rankings, it sits at number 4 right now. It is time to watch it again actually. Maybe it will be the film that unseats Shawshank.



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03-24-16
Originally Posted by seanc
Great review MM. I love Magnolia so much. Every time I watch it it moves up my rankings, it sits at number 4 right now. It is time to watch it again actually. Maybe it will be the film that unseats Shawshank.
I damn sure hope so.

But really, thanks for reading sean, I appreciate it. Glad you are also a huge fan of the film.



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Master of My Domain
03-24-16
I STILL haven't seen Magnolia yet. Hope I watch it before I die. It's a life goal, you see.
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Friendo.
04-02-16
MovieMeditation presents...
HIS FILM DIARY 2015
total movie count ........... viewing day count
228 .......................... 262
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September 19th

—— 1973 ——
Robin Hood
—— animation ——
DISNEY CLASSIC no.21

REWATCH
When I was young, wild and free
this was one of my favorite films to watch

This is a must watch growing up and just think about the fact that some parents were robbing the childhood of their children from ever witnessing such a wonderful film like this; a movie filled with beautiful things like backstabbing, stealing, treason, tax fraud as well as attempted murder, hangings and overall executions of different kinds. How can you not love that! But of course, this is Disney we are talking about here, and they are pretty much infamous for implicitly filling their films with fragmented pieces of parental advisory parallels, especially during their earlier years. But they are also well known for hiding it all away in a fun little family film, which is definitely a description that fits Disney’s depiction of Robin Hood perfectly…

What is the best way to begin describing this film? Well, a chain of events led to chained up friends, who are now to go on death row, because the rich people lived on the poor people’s expense. Wait, this may be a little too late in the story to start the review; we better take it back a bit. In my poor attempt to chime a rhyme or two, I promise you that it wasn’t without point or purpose. Disney’s ‘Robin Hood’ opens in traditional fashion, but with an untraditional turn of events in which the obligatory book is flipped open, only to reveal the pages of which this film is based upon, where we also find out that the story will not be presented in the traditional sense at all. The narration comes from a rooster, who not only breaks tradition but also the fourth wall, speaking directly to the audience and telling them how it all happened. The opening is accompanied by an instrument, which helps to introduce the rest of the characters and the voices who portrays them. What follows is an iconic opening of Robin Hood and Little John walking through the forest, which is setting up characters, caricatures and carriages along the way.

‘Robin Hood’ is a hand painted period piece that unfolds as a collection of events and moments more so than a carefully structured story. In a way, this approach enforces the mythical mystery surrounding the good thief and creates a story that is more about the entire town of Nottingham than just a single character. Nottingham is a character in itself and the signature rough style of director Wolfgang Reiterman helps breathe life into the tale by giving it tails and teeth, which makes it both cute and edgy. The added element of anthropomorphic animals works better than ever here, where every character has a strong connection to the animal portraying them. In a way, ‘Robin Hood’ is actually a “hang out movie”, where it is a lot about how you feel rather than how the story plays out. I always enjoy the company and the chaos of how it all happens and Disney’s ‘Robin Hood’ is simply a good ol’ fun time.

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04-02-16
MovieMeditation presents...
HIS FILM DIARY 2015
total movie count ........... viewing day count
229 .......................... 264
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September 21st

—— 2015 ——
S A N
A N D R E A S
—— action ——



Today we will put forward the obligatory question, which is whether or not
this disaster film is actually a disaster or just a movie about disasters?

Today we will put forward the obligatory question, which is whether or not this disaster film is actually a disaster or just a movie about disasters? Out of all the actors present in this feature, there is quite a few who could either make or break the eventual quality of the picture. There is The Rock, whose acting ability certainly could crumble when trapped in an earthquake of emotion he cannot handle. Perhaps we will witness the synonymy of his stage name having an ultimatum in how his testosterone-filled tough guy persona ultimately acts in this film. In all honesty, I don’t know, but I guess people couldn’t really care less about lengthy character development and so-called dull moments, since this is mainly a mass destruction movie where the mass destruction is what really matters. But is that aspect of it even any good?

Measured on the Richter magnitude scale, my expectations wouldn’t even be able to be picked up by the machine. I couldn’t care less about this film, but a few coincidences collided and here I am. But am I happy to be here? This accidental viewing of apocalyptic accidents was far from fantastic, but I honestly expected something a lot worse. It is within the script where things really fall apart, but the state of the pages isn’t as bad as the state of the people in the state of California. But even so, the characters are extremely surfaced and the movie is trapped in a conflict between being dumb apocalyptic porn and a dark aggressive motion picture of painful emotions. This makes it hard to even pass the movie as a part of the many dubious disaster flicks out there that are at least enjoyable for their dumb fun. ‘San Andreas’ takes itself too seriously, especially for a movie that attempts to make us care for people running next to a green screen with an earthquake makeover.



As stated earlier, the script is extremely thin and it will break immediately under any form of acting tour de force. Therefore, we don’t see much great acting in this film, but it is mainly because the actors are held down by their weak characters and their weak characters are held down by the bloated visuals. The only worthy actor here, is actually the kid, who I hated upon introduction but began to like later on. Some would say he overacts, but that is only because he is next to people who underacts. Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson was fine in the movie, but his acting in all of his films seems really one dimensional. That said, he gave the audience a little something towards the end, but it is a blink and you will miss it moment and I wish he had done more of that.

Overall this movie was extremely underwhelming with only a few decent moments, like the one-take for example. It may seem less impressive because of potential green screens, but in the end you still have to control the chaos and the actors in it. I would say it was a rather impressive technical pull-off in a dumb movie like this. There were a few exciting moments as well, but most of it just drowned in CGI, which by the way, wasn’t always on point. Apart from those few instances of above average entertainment, most of it was dumbed down and not really worth my time. Perhaps I didn’t exactly hate it, but while the earth was shaking, I was sitting here shaking my head at this catastrophic excuse for a catastrophe film. I managed to survive this earthquake without major brain damage, but it was a mindless mangle I could have done without…

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Master of My Domain
04-02-16
San Andreas looks terrible, and I haven't even seen it yet. The first 30 seconds of the main trailer were enough to turn me off.



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Friendo.
04-02-16
Originally Posted by Gatsby
San Andreas looks terrible, and I haven't even seen it yet. The first 30 seconds of the main trailer were enough to turn me off.
I felt the same.

You don't need more than those 30 seconds. The movie is pretty much those 30 seconds over and over again. CGI buildings falling apart, people running and screaming, The Rock trying to save the day... There you have it.

Originally Posted by Zotis
How is Tom Cruise's acting in Magnolia?
It's amazeballs.

Probably the best I've seen from him.



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Master of My Domain
04-02-16
Originally Posted by MovieMeditation
The Rock trying to save the day... There you have it.
I think even after 30 years The Rock will always be playing the same character. That one tough dude who always saves the day.



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Friendo.
04-02-16
Originally Posted by Gatsby
I think even after 30 years The Rock will always be playing the same character. That one tough dude who always saves the day.
Yep. As I said in my review, his acting is fine but it's really one dimensional.



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MoFo Whisperer
04-03-16
Originally Posted by Zotis
I boycotted San Andreas. Such an obvious money grabbing scheme.
It's a summer blockbuster movie. Why pick on that one?
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04-03-16
I really enjoyed San Andreas. When I watch a movie like that, I want non-stop action and destruction, and that's what it is.

Another Magnolia fan here.



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Friendo.
04-03-16
Originally Posted by cricket
I really enjoyed San Andreas. When I watch a movie like that, I want non-stop action and destruction, and that's what it is.

Another Magnolia fan here.
Yeah, I mean, I still gave it 2 stars it wasn't the worst movie ever. It did have some fun and exciting scenes, but with movies like this I like when the tone is in line with what is happening. Here, it was way too serious for such a dumb movie, which held me back from completely surrendering to it, like I would with, say, a Fast & Furious film.

Awesome you love Magnolia too, cricket, and thanks for checking in!

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