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antonredglare
Reviews
Ant-Man (2015)
a joyride from beginning to end
I had totally given up on the entire super-hero genre. It had just become sooooo formulaic. Hero's origin story. Introduction of villain. Introduction of hero's love interest. Forty minute long ending battle scene with the city destroyed, and the hero emerging triumphant.
After 5-10 times, I was bored with entire spectacle. Especially since 9/11, I'm not down with seeing New York City (or Metropolis, or Gotham City) leveled.
I was going to pass on Ant Man, until a coworker strongly recommended it.
Action junkies: You won't be disappointed.
Everyone else: You're in for a hell of a ride, filled with as much laughter, character development and excitement as you could wish for.
WAR and PEACE it ain't.
Yes, it's a popcorn movie. Total escapist entertainment.
But escapist of the highest order.
Need to get away from your daily woes for a brief time? Ant Man's the flick for you. I've never laughed so hard at a super hero movie before.
The Book Thief (2013)
I disagree with almost everyone/ an awful film that should have been good
Sorry, but this film was a HUGE disappointment, and no, I've not read the book.There were too many scenes that made absolutely no sense, a serious case of lazy film making. 1) A mother hiding a Jewish family friend in the basement in nazi Germany will NOT run to her foster daughters school, make a scene, pull the girl out of class on a pretext to tell her that their guest recovered from his illness. A family like that in such peril wants to keep a low profile, not create a spectacle that will be talked about for days. Good news like that can wait until the girl gets home. 2) A girl who is repeatedly burglarizing the home of the local nazi bigwig to steal books, will NOT pause for a lengthy chat with her pal outside the house she is regularly breaking into. The conversation can wait until they get away. 3) Intelligent children on the verge of adolescence in nazi Germany do NOT go screaming at the top of their lungs, "I hate Hitler!", however good it might feel. I could go on and on, but I won't. Some good cinematography, some decent acting, and that's about it. Way too many scenes where credibility just went out the window, never to return. Shameless Oscar pandering Holocaust kitsch.
Eat Pray Love (2010)
walked out after an hour
I rarely leave before a film is finished, but I walked out of this one. There was so much wrong with it. To start with, I kept waiting for a reason to care about this character. She was utterly unsympathetic and utterly uninteresting. I felt she should have just taken a Prozac and gotten on with her life. And then there were the mistakes, huge ones. I can't stand a film that assumes ignorance on my part. She's tucking into a plate of pasta, and enjoying it immensely. The soundtrack is opera. But does it have to be a German opera? It's Mozart's Die Zauberflote (The Magic Flute). There's no Mozart aria in Italian that would suffice? Nothing by Verdi or Puccini? She and her pals toodle around in a cute little car. It's a Citroen Deux Chevaux, a French car. The last time I looked, the Italians have plenty of sporty little cars of their own. She eats a Napoleon pastry with her new Swedish friend, who has to tell us she's Swedish because we'd never know it from her completely American accent. Only problem is that you can't get a Napoleon in Italy, at least not one that's called that. He invaded and humiliated the country; they're not about to honor him. Couldn't have a cannoli instead? I could go on, but you see my point. I left the theatre before she leaves for India. Perhaps the movie gets better at that point, but I doubt it. Maybe if she arrives during the terrorist attacks in Mumbai a few years back, the film will pick up some speed.