Movies seen in 2025
(Work in progress as the year progresses, so remember to check every now and then if anything new popped up in the meantime.)
Beware: There are a couple of spoilers ahead as those are predominantly notes for myself. Nothing all too serious, but one or two twists are revealed.
MaXXXine
"MaXXXine" (2024) is the final entry in the X trilogy. The story continues "X's" Maxine's journey to being a star. The movie's plot resembles "Hardcore" (1980) a lot. The director claims the order is not relevant, but I would watch them as they were released. The style and recreations of the 1980s in this movie are truly remarkable. Funnily enough, despite having XXX in the title, there isn't really that much erotic scenes ("X" had more).
The Last King of Scotland
"The Last King of Scotland" (2006) has been on my radar since its premiere (in no small part to Juriusz's recommendation), but it never fell in my direction. Now, thanks to Max, it has. Based on true events but mixed with MacBeth [sic!], it tells a story of an Ugandan dictator through the eyes of his Scottish doctor. Strong performances by Forest Whitaker and James McAvoy. It shows nicely why it's better to avoid people in power.
Filth
"Filth" from 2013 is an adaptation of Irving Welsh's book of the same title. The source material was believed to be unadaptable, but it turned out to be doable, albeit, some framing devices were demoted to one-scene wonders (looking at ya, tapeworm). A story of a terrible cop and a horrible and repulsive person but also kind of sad one, starring fantastic James McAvoy. As the story progresses, we learn to see he's a bit a of an unreliable narrator.
Love Lies Bleeding
"Love Lies Bleeding" (2024) is yet another example of a movie recreating 1980s to a very granular detail. Colours, props, music, and hairstyles—pure eighties. And the plot had a couple of twists that I didn't see coming. In fact, the plot was unpredictable in general. Huge props for casting Kirsten Steward and Jena Malone as sisters, albeit, it went a little unexplored. Two main characters reminded me of Wachowski's "Bound."
Exit Through the Gift Shop
"Exit Through the Gift Shop" is a 2010's Banksy's documentary about a man who was making a documentary about Banksy but turned out to be a more interesting subject. I was eyeing this film for a long while but only seeing "F for Fake" last year inspired me to finally have a go at it. It's a high-octane cocktail about street art and art as well, and very funny at that. A bit like a video clip, perhaps. And those narrative layers!
Dark Crimes
"Dark Crimes" from 2016 is generally a bad movie. The writing lacks and the realisation is far behind, and it's 1 of 2 movies that I know to have 0% on Rotten Tomatoes. So, on paper, it sounds like something to avoid at all costs, right? Well, unless you're me, so...
Cunk on Life
"Cunk of Life" (2024) is a single-entry continuation on "Cunk on Earth," where titular Philomena Cunk presents us with some wisdoms and interviews real-life scientists, putting them constantly in a tight spot (I can't imagine how they convinced all those people to participate in it, but maybe they did that for laughs as well). Extra points for using "Pump Up the Jam" again.
A Boy and His Dog
"A Boy And His Dog" is 1975 post-apocalyptic movie with action set in 2024, with young Don Johnson in the titular role (the boy, not the dog). Visually it resembles Mad Max a lot, and it turned out it was an inspiration for his movies. As well as for "Fallout" (e.g., the underground community). The scenography was pretty convincing, with all the sets build from old furniture. Don Johnson speaks a bit like Matthew McConaughey here.
I do find it interesting that the plot starts from a telepathic dog that helps the boy to find "females" which he can basically rape. That is a plot point that would be unlike do be used in the actual year 2024. In all fairness, the closing comment from the dog was controversial even back then, so maybe I'm too harsh with the past here.
But fishing out the old cringe, which possibly wasn't cringe back in the days, is part of an experience of watching old movies.
Rebel Moon: Part Two: Director's Cut
"Rebel Moon: Part Two: Director's Cut" (2024) is a follow-up of, unsurprisingly, "Part One." Jokes aside, I was a bit disappointed with the pacing, which was slugging in the first hour, which is something that didn't happen in the first part. It's also narrowed down to one village on one planet. It got better later, but the whole thing is too childish plot-wise for adults and too graphic/sexual for kids. But visually it's stunning, all the designs, etc.
Fahrenheit 451
"Fahrenheit 451" is 2018's adaptation of a famous dystopian book (there was also one in 1966). I wanted to see it since I got HBO back in 2019, and I finally did it. It's a mediocre movie at best. While the message got strengthened over the years, I think, it still felt like a glorified TV movie. Michael Shannon delivered, as always, but in the end it, there was no katharsis for me.
Dead Bodies
"Dead Bodies" from 2003, on the other hand, is a TV movie. I wanted to see Andrew Scott in an early role. For a moment there, I thought it was a bit like pre-Tom Ripley, but his character develops in another direction (despite being named Tommy too). What is impressive is how many twists they packed in 80 something minutes. Once you think you got it, there's another one. There were interesting, video-clip like visual representations of inner states of the main character.
Nosferatu
"Nosferatu" from 2024 is probably a remake with the biggest gap since the remade movie. Murnau's "Nosferatu" was released in 1922, which gives us 102 years. Wow. It's Robert Eggers' movie, so it's a visually impressive slow burner. Totally acquired taste, and if you didn't like his earlier production, there's nothing for you here. Count Orlok's got a really thick accent and is, for the first time, dressed in a Hungarian uniform, to be historically more accurate.
The Pornographer
"The Pornographer" from 2001 is a movie that I was curious of since its release, mostly because I had an eye for Ovidie back then. A story of a retired porn director who needs to go back to directing, only to learn that things have changed. There is also a relationship with his estranged son. I had no expectations, and it feels like a mix of Finnish vibes with a bit of Yorgos Lanthimos, which produces very weird outcome. Probably not for young people.
One of the things that the movie, which even won an award in Cannes, is known for is that it has scenes of unsimulated sex (i.e., they really had a penetration). It was also mentioned in regards to 2000's "Baise-moi" and 2001's "Intimacy," so I suppose, looking back, it was a thing back then. It didn't catch up because it probably doesn't bring much value to the story. But it's my guess. In any case, no one advertises movies with this feature any more.
A Real Pain
"A Real Pain" (2003) is a film written and directed and played by Jesse Eisenberg (but not only, he's creating a dynamic duo with Kieran Culkin). It's a love postcard to Poland, which was a surprising refreshment after gloomy as hell "Dark Crimes." This one's very colourful, like Poland in the Summer. A story of two brothers who visit Poland to find a house which belonged to her grandma. Touching, funny, but also not avoiding difficult topic of Holocaust.
Stoker
"Stoker" (2013) is an American movie done by Park Chan-wook, whom I've seen only "Oldboy" and "The Handmaiden." A story of a young girl whose father died recently. After the funeral, an unknown brother of the father moves in. Things begin to get creepy. Stellar performances from Mia Wasikowska, Nicole Kidman, and mesmerising Matthew Goode. The pacing is slow and visually, it's an homage to Alfred Hitchcock (for a while, I didn't know what year the action could be set, it's so timeless).
Worth noting is that it's a screenplay debut from Wentworth Miller, who's probably most known from his role of Michael Scofield in "Prison Break."
I really liked Matthew Goode's performance. Very chilling. As if he was too smooth to be true. I didn''t know if the movie was supposed to be supernatural or what, and this was adding another layer of uncertainty.
Nosferatu: Phantom der Nacht
"Nosferatu: Phantom der Nacht" from 1979 is Werner Herzog's approach to Murnau's classic. It's the third time I saw this movie, and I was reluctant because I always found it boring, but this time around, it actually won my heart. And I forgot the ending. Sparse dialogues and showing everything instead of telling it is something I missed the other times. Slow burner with Dracula not being some sort of absolute evil but rather a prisoner of his own fate. Probably not a movie for everyone.
There's Something About Mary
After reading a script to "There's Something About Mary," I decided to see the movie to have immediate comparison of effects. Firstly, it wasn't that funny knowing the puns, which I did not expect for some reason. Secondly, there were more gags than in the script. I think they were improvised during filming. The movie also had a different ending. Cameron Diaz plays Mary in a very subversive way; she's not your typical rom-com sweetheart. And it's positive.
The Substance
"The Substance" is a visually stunning story of an ageing (and lone) TV star, who's being pushed out by the relentless capitalism. In this aspect, it reminded me a lot of "Bubba Ho-Tep." It also felt a bit like Faustian story and the trickiness of all the deals with a devil. The movie incorporates male gaze equally framing all the bums: of the main character in all her incarnations, of a young lover, and the monster later.
Arthur Miller: Writer
"Arthur Miller: Writer" from 2017 is a documentary made by Miller's daughter, Rebecca. She shot a lot of interviews with him, which later became this film. There is a bit of history (i.e., with Marilyn Monroe, which was the only thing I knew about him beforehand), but the tastiest part is the old Arthur Miler who shares his life wisdom. The thing that landed the most is when he says that if you want to write something good, it needs to be almost embarrassing for you.
Perfect Days
"Perfect Days" from 2023 is Wim Wender's movie about a cleaner of public toilets in Shibuya in Tokyo. Slow-paced every-day’s routine of a middle-aged man turned out to be a very appealing lifestyle. Working, taking pictures of trees, listening to music, and reading books. And all by himself, not really talking to anyone, not even coworkers. Like a hermit in the middle of a crowded city.
I realised that the movie shows my favourite part of movies like "Le Samouraï", "The Killer", or "Map of the sounds of Tokyo" where a lone killer is leading a very ascetic life, very ritualised too. Jim Jarmusch took a swing at this in his "Limits of Control." But that was still the killer. Turns out you can make a movie like that without actual killing. It's a relief that you can have a monk-like quality of life without taking anyone else's life at that.
Appaloosa
"Appaloosa" from 2008 is a western directed by Ed Harris. He also plays the main role. But not the narrator who is played by Viggo Mortensen. The story is, I suppose, classic Wild West story about a dispute in a face of lack of the law, and it resolves as such. The most interesting aspect was chemistry and dynamics between Harris/Mortensen characters. Plus I didn't expect to see Renée Zellweger, which was a nice treat. I haven't seen her in anything in a while.
Fatal Attraction
As strange as it may sound, I have never seen "Fatal Attraction" (1987). Apart from love scenes, like the one in the elevator, the movie got old pretty well. It can be seen as a cautionary tale for married men or (probably) something about oppressive patriarchy, which shows the initial quality. Glen Close plays a role which usually is reserved for male characters, and she can have a very chilling impression when she's calmly scanning the environment.
Dogs Don't Wear Pants
"Dogs Don't Wear Pants" (2019) is a Finnish film, which is listed as erotic black comedy, but for the most part, it feels like a drama with an additional layer of funniness. A story of a man who even years after losing his wife is sort of passively moving through life. This changes, however, when he accidentally meats a dominatrix. Due to heavy BDSM imagery at times, it might not be for everyone. Really beautiful camera work and framing and colours. And music.
The part about dealing with the loss of the wife vaguely reminded me of German "Cherry Blossom" (2008). But very vaguely.
I also liked the subtleness of showing how the relationship of the two main characters emerges. Something in Mona's face when she was depriving Juha of breath.
And finally, Mona, when not in her dominatrix attire, reminded me of Lisbeth Salander from David Fincher's "The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo."
Blowup
"Blowup" from 1966 is a movie about which I regularly read in the TV guide when I was a kid back in the 1990s, but I never actually saw it. It aged well, even if I'm not sure what is strange and what is normal there because the past truly is another country. A story of a photographer who captures something in the background when casually taking picture in a park. Mysterious by design and with a lot of flesh in it.
Pirates of the Caribbean
Thanks to my daughter's newly-found interest in pirates, I will be watching (partially rewatching) all the "Pirates of the Caribbean" movies, which is a perfect opportunity for a thread.
Idiocracy
I finally got to see "Idiocracy" (2006), a movie which has been referenced in some discussions I've seen over the years, but I never saw it mentioned anywhere else. A story of the most average man (and a woman) who gets hibernated and forgotten, and wakes up 500 years later to find that people are, well, just idiots. Hilarity ensues. Nice role from Luke Wilson. I suppose it's somewhat prophetic if you filter it out properly. Also funny, which is desired in a comedy.
Barbarella
I knew about the existence of "Barbarella" (1968) for long enough to say forever. It's a shamelessly erotic and silly, if not goofy, science-fiction bit. It's actually quite decent story-wise if you ignore that Barbarella changes her clothes every 10 minutes because the previous one were destroyed. It was a surprise to see the main actor from week-before "Blowup." I found the character of Pygar, a blind angel, to be the most interesting. No follow-up ever managed to emerge.
Red Lights
"Red Lights" from 2012 were a last moment choice when the other film didn't pan out. I got lured by the cast (Cilian Murphy, Sigourney Weaver, and Robert De Niro), but it was a bit of a dud. The first part is strong, but then the story goes into weird, and not in a good way, areas and developments. The end made the experience somewhat better, but it's 5/10 for me.
The Color of Pomegranates
"The Color of Pomegranates" (1969) has got to be one of the more original films I've seen because I rarely watch Armenian cinema. We just never bump into each other. It's an experimentally-done biography of Sayat-Nova, a great poet. I didn't understand much of it, but it's visually interesting. Its recreation of medieval pictures reminded me distantly of approach in "The Mill and the Cross" (2011).
Music felt very familiar and I realised that it's because I spent hours listening to duduk music for years now. So, the vibe of the melodies was truly where I felt like at home. A bit unexpected.
Casablanca
I have to admit that I haven't seen "Casablanca" (1943) until last week. Yes, 82 years later. I was expecting a lot of cringe, but no, the movie holds very well, plot and pacing wise. I guess Rick's demeanour is perceived differently now than it was back then. Was he more rude? Or less? No clue. I liked his banters with the French commissioner. Black-and-white make the fake Morocco more believable. However, Ingrid Bergman as unearthly beauty is more of an informed characteristic.
Zift
"Zift" is a Bulgarian film from 2008, an adaptation of a book. Story of Moth, a criminal who finally goes out of the prison with a plan for himself, but gets snatched by former associates. Black and white film gives a bit look to the action set sometime in 1960s. Neo-noir and black comedy should be especially interesting for retro-Soviet aesthetics. Surreal at times.
Crime and Punishment
"Crime and Punishment" from 1983 is Aki Kaurismäki's debut. As title suggests, it's Fyodor Dostoevsky's book adaptation. What's impressive is that it was adjusted to then-modern times and yet, it managed to keep faithful to the source material (as far as I remember now). Finns deliver sufficient amount of deadpan for the movie to be funny, despite its subject.
Rigor Mortis
"Rigor Mortis" (2013) is nominally a horror, but felt more like real-live anime. More action-packed than scary. Not a bad thing, just know what to expect. Sadly, I had English-dubbed version which broke immersion a bit for me. The creators managed to build a very dense atmosphere, somewhere between brutalist hell and liminal space horror. If you're into these things, that film is for you. I think the final twist could be cut off with benefit for the story.
Don't Worry Darling
"Don't Worry Darling" (2022) is the second movie directed by Olivia Wilde. It's a solid sci-fi, which brings memories of "The Matrix," a bit of "Barbie" (the world seems off in a certain way), "The Stepford Wives," but also "The Talos Principle." I had fun watching it, but it kind of flew by. It doesn't really say anything, although it does it in a new way. The "villain" was apparently modeled after Jordan Peterson, which is a funny tongue-in-a-cheek.
The Royal Hotel
To follow up on my newly found soft spot for Australian outback, I saw "The Royal Hotel." A story of two Canadian girls who went to work-and-travel and ended up with no money which led them to finding a job at a bar for miners out in the middle of nowhere. I didn't know the genre, and I didn't know what to expect at times (is it a thriller? what trope this guy falls under?), and that's always good. Kudos for Hugo Weaving for me not recognising him at all until the credits.
Wedding Crashers
I missed on "Wedding Crashers" when they were released in 2004. But I never forgot about it, and when the circumstances were right, I reached out for it. It wasn't that funny, although it had its moments, and what I was wondering the most about was how would I have taken it back then. I don't know. I can't say. It's a bit of a relic of its time. A lot of rape-related jokes, which wouldn't fly today. Act cautiously. But I like Owen Wilson, and he always delivers. And he did.
From Dusk Till Dawn
Surprisingly for me, I got to rewatch 1996's "From Dusk Till Dawn." Since I saw it last time, I've seen season 1 of the Netflix show, so I could compare some stuff. What I realised this time was how much nods to old horrors there was. It's hard to say now if cheap-looking special effects got old or were always intended to look like that. George Clooney's character was also much less sympathetic than I remembered. The whole thing feels like The Ultimate 1990s Experience.
My favourite anecdote about "From Dusk Till Dawn" is this. When Quentin Tarantino was shooting "Reservoir Dogs," he was cash strapped, and someone did something related to the production for him for free, but under one condition: he would write a screenplay based on his short story. Guess what that story was.
Doing a movie was a bonus, I suppose. It was also a way to give people QT acting (apparently a thing people were asking him for).
And finally, knowing now about Quentin Tarantino's foot fetish, I can spot all the scenes that he must have written for himself. Salma Hayek shoving his foot into his mouth and pouring alcohol? C'mon. :D The whole "I gave people my acting they asked for" begins to look like a half-baked excuse.
Fata Morgana
"Fata Morgana" is 1971's film from Werner Herzog. I would add it's an experimental movie, but I already said it was Werner Herzog's. Shot 2 years earlier, mostly in Sahara, it tells a story of something, but I focused on visuals. I like desserts, not only Australian outback. I think he captured some things and some people which are not of usual interest to anyone. It's unthinkable for me that there are people living like that. But also, a little tempting?
Mickey 17
"Mickey 17" is a science-fiction dark comedy from the director of "Snowpiercer" and "Okja," and it really shows at times. I suppose he has his favourite themes. Robert Pattinson plays an Expendable, a man who gets reprinted every time he dies, and he's used for various experiments and dangerous operations. On a higher level, it's a very brutal commentary on how the rich people are deranged in their detachment from reality under them. Excellent Mark Rufallo as a mix of Trump and Musk.
Dracula Untold
I saw the "Dracula Untold" trailer in 2014, when the movie was released, and at first it seemed like a fresh take on the character. Mid-trailer, however, the vampire showed. *sigh* After seeing recently a documentary about Mehmed II and Vlad (they were childhood friends!), I decided to check it, and sadly, my reaction to the trailer was correct. There are traces of historical accuracy, but it's a mediocre production at best. The ending suggests they were planning a follow-up.
The Usual Suspects
As promised, I rewatched "The Usual Suspects." The film aged like fine wine, although the soundtrack sounds a bit oldish, reminding me of Tim Burton's Batmans. What I like about this movie is that knowing the main twist doesn't spoil the fun because now you can spot details that you missed the first time. I really appreciate how different all the 5 characters are in personality and clothing style wise.
Sikandar
"Sikandar" (2025) is an Indian movie, which is categorised as action drama, but due to my cultural differences with Indians, it was more comedic. But not in a bad way. I could appreciate the fights, which were improbable, like Jason Bourne of Mission Impossible taken up to eleven and feeling more like dance sequences. The narratives go their own way and often, I wouldn't understand what happened and why (but I could still follow the main plot).
It is interesting, though, that an aristocrat and a rich man (owning 25% country's gold) was made a main character without any interpretative twist. This or I completely missed it.
This reminds me of watching South Korean "Vagabond" and being utterly perplexed. Why were they shouting so much? Is the president portrayed as an harmless old man or with dignity? And some other things, which I didn't take a note of and I cannot recall now (remember, kids, always take notes of things).
One thing that fascinates me in Indian movies is this natural mixing of English and Hindi. Not like only words mixed in, but they would have a half of a sentence in English and half in Hindi. This is pretty much like we talk wity my wife between us because some phrases sound better in their own language, so we have a Polish foundation riddled with English and Spanish and occasional other languages (Arabic, Maltese, Finnish, Latin, to name the main offenders), so it felt very familiar.
And speaking of language, my wife, who's learning Arabic on her own, noticed the same or similar words in both Arabic and Hindi. That's why we learn new languages: to catch more patterns out there.
Tequila Sunrise
"Tequila Sunrise" (1988) has always been on my radar, but I never bothered to even check it. I thought it's either 1920s' or 1950s' crime story. It's the 80s, and very hard in stylistics, like saxophone themes during love scenes. Might be an overlooked gem in these regards. Plot-wise, it feels like first attempt at "The Usual Suspects," including twist after twist and finale on the boat. The first half felt more like love drama between 3 main characters, though. Still cool.
The Accountant 2
This year's "The Accountant 2" is a follow-up to a story of autistic [Artistic Licence] accountant who's also a killing machine. This didn't change, and he even has a group of hackers helping him this time, which is all a bit super-heroey (it's like making up for the lost Batman on Affleck's end). That being said, the movie is not dumb and there is some connecting dots required. Also, Jon Bernthal and Ben Affleck make a great duo on screen. It was fun.
One thing that caught my eye was a bit of ensemble cast where Christian Wolff doesn't get that much screen time, but I think it worked well 'cause otherwise, it would feel like overplaying the same gimmick, and that would be weak. Braxton Wolff fills some space. And then, there is Anais (yet another killing maching) plot in the parallel. Then I read that it was an unrelated screenplay adjusted to the franchise. Worked better than other examples.
And there's the third part planned.
The Order
"The Order" (2024) is a story of a federal investigation of a neonazi militia in 1983-84. It fits in nicely with what's happening in the US at the moment. I was surprised that Amazon funded something like that, given their sympathies for the current regime. Anyway, strong roles from unrecognisable Jude Law and Nicholas Hoult. I liked ascetic visuals, reminding me a bit of "Longlegs," but very broadly.
The Sum of All Fears
I remember "Sum of All Fears" trailer back in 2002 and being somewhat curious, but I haven't seen it in the end. Now, I got mainly curious how did politics got old 23 years later (the plot seems naive and quite Bondish, with a cunning neonazi plotting to drag USA and Russia into an all-out war). Seeing "The Accountant 2" recently, I was not prepared for such a boyish Ben Affleck. He's also quite action survivor, with Liev Schreiber doing most of the heavy lifting.
Dhogs
"Dhogs" is 2017 independent Spanish movie. I knew absolutely nothing about it, which is my preferred way, because I had no fucking clue what's going on. I saw events, but they didn't make much sense. Until the end, that is. The film is also quite brutal (but according to Soska sisters who did "American Mary," rape scenes should be uncomfortable to watch). Actors speak in Galician dialect, so I was very grateful for Spanish subtitles. I totally recommend it.
In the hindsight, this is like Michael Haneke, mainly "Funny Games," but the shots of the audience watching, well, us, also sounds like something from one of his movie (I don't know which one because I only read about it).
Aforementioned Michael Haneke said once that if you watch a movie and it doesn't challenge you, then you wasted your time. I have more lenient and leisurely approach to watching film, but this one not only challenged me, but I also felt judged by it. Here I'm watching a rape scene, and it's intersected with a shot of emotionless audience in the theatre. Which is basically me at this point. Nice once.
I suppose the movie is a comment to a human thing which is watching violence for fun. Or even, as here, playing violent games. When the Rabbit Man killed the kidnapper and, instead of freeing the woman, raped her, I thought, "What else they are going to do to her?" Because it felt a bit over the top. Turns out it was a video game. This reminded me of an outcry about torture section of "Grand Theft Auto 5." And yet, we choose to consume violence for emotional gratification.
Hit Man
"Hit Man" (2023) is Richard Linklater's comedy about a fake hitman. You see, there are no real hitmen, but due to action movies, people think there are, so they try to hire them. And here comes our main character, Gary, who acts as a decoy. Once the money has been passed and order given, the police steps in to arrest the person. The first part was funny, the middle one (rom com) quite bland, although the flight attendant scene caught my eye. The finale was okay. Props to Glen Powell as the hitman.
Capitán Carver
"Capitán Carver" from 2021 is yet another Spanish indie movie. The trailer suggested a story closer to "Kick-Ass," but to my surprise it turned out to be a slow-burning mix of "Taxi Driver" and "Lost Highway." The entirety of scenes are shot at night and the streets are empty, which creates liminal-space and dream-like feeling. Many scenes look like taken out of comic frames, only to intentionally backfire and look like a cheap wannabe. One of the problems of many adaptations.
Dream Lover
Guests are gone, so I'm back to watching movies. "Dream Lover" from 1993 with James Spader and Mädchen Amick is a late 80s/early 90s thriller. It has huge time jumps, but other than that, it's pretty standard stuff. With 30+ years on a counter, it was a bit unpredictable, although at times because James Spader's character behaved like a blinded idiot. Only for connoisseurs of that era movies (a bit of outdated cringe too). Christopher Young provided an interesting soundtrack.
The movie reminded me heavily of Steven Soderbergh's "Side Effects" from 2013, down to the plot twists. The man is shameless in these regards. After seeing that movie, I said that he basically redid a 80s/90s thriller. Now I know which one exactly. :D
And earlier, there was "Kimi," which was a strong homage to Alfred Hitchcock's "Rear Window."
Cobra Verde
Following the book/interview with Werner Herzog, I decided to see his 1987's "Cobra Verde," the last movie that he did with Klaus Kinski. A story of a Brazilian rancher who ends up as a slave trader in Africa. The most interesting thing was presentation not following the usual Hollywood style: all the buildings in Brazil and then later in Africa, plus original clothes, are a breath of fresh air in the way they look on screen.
The Gray Man
I had a taste for Desperados and we coupled it with "The Gray Man" from 2022 because it felt like the right choice for a beer movie. It's a spy action flick, something between James Bond and Mission: Impossible, full of incredible scenes (like a tram chase in Prague). Ryan Gosling plays his usual character and it was fun, but it only showed me that those movies are not for me anymore. We might still see a franchise here. The hooks are there (like the invisible boss).
Jurassic World Rebirth
"Jurassic World Rebirth" is this year's installment of the renowned franchise about dinosaurs. There is not much to say because it's Exactly What It Says On A Tin. All the expected plot points are there, I was even able to predict who will die when and in what order. If that's what you were expecting, then all's good. The part on the boat reminded me of "Moby Dick," which I'm now reading. And Scarlett Johansson had a nice character, not too much of a fan service kind of action chick.
The Shrouds
"The Shrouds" is the latest (2024) David Cronenberg's movie and it's again science-fiction, like the previous "Crimes of the Future." The story revolves around technology which allows keeping track of how body of relatives decomposes in the grave [sic!]. There are many conflicting plots which aren't getting resolved, but it's fine because it's a story about grief after losing somebody. A bit like "Lost Highway," his own "Naked Lunch," and German "Cherry Blossoms." I could feel that it was very personal.
Kumiko, the Treasure Hunter
"Kumiko, the Treasure Hunter" (2014) was a surprise for me because I only knew the poster and assumed it's a feudal Japan fantasy flick. It's not. It's set in the modern times and follows titular Kumiko who lives in Tokyo and is obviously not dealing well with life, so she escapes into the world of fantasy and starts looking for a treasure that she saw in a movie, which turns out to be "Fargo." Then she travels to actual Fargo! All in all, it's a sad story. Especially, giving away the rabbit.
Extra points for Rinko Kikuchi as Kumiko. I have seen her previously in "The Map of Sounds of Tokyo" and "Tokyo Vice."
Soylent Green
I rewatched "Soylent Green" after at least 10 years. It aged funnily and feels more like an alternate reality (especially that action was set in 2022) than some sort of prediction, but still has solid world building. In these regards, it reminded me of "Fahrenheit 451." In all fairness, wealth accumulation while the bottom percentage sleeps in their cars is not so far off. I find boxes with the phones, which allows contacting the precinct, sweet.
Queen of the Desert
"Queen of the Desert" is 2015's Werner Herzog's movie about Gertrude Bell who was a person unknown to me and all while she played a crucial role for Middle East countries' borders. It starts very slowly and as a not very interesting romance story, but it ends early enough and moves into desert. I like desert, so the later part was cool. And the opening played its role. Werner Herzog doesn't like three-act form anyway. Apparently the movie has only 15% on Rotten Tomatoes, but I beg to differ.
The movie was done after the interview I read, so I had to figure stuff out on myself. For instance, Fattuh presenting a faked paper from the government is what Herzog did during shooting "Fitzcarraldo."
Apartment 7A
I knew nothing of "Apartment 7A" as it was not my choice. Then I saw Julia Garner from "Ozark" and I thought it was the reason my wife chose it. I was curious if she was one-trick pony with Ruth Langmore, but no. She plays a completely different person here. Then my wife hinted there is something about the movie and I figured out soon after that it's a prequel to "Rosemary's Baby." Not bad but also completely not necessary. Like "Papillon" remake. But Julia's brilliant. And Mr. Gibbs.
Super
"Super" (2010) is a cooperation of Rainn Wilson and James Gunn, among some others, and it tells a story of a nerd who goes through a breakdown after his wife leaves him and he decides to become a superhero. It's a dramedy and at times I laughed when it wasn't really a place for that because it was treating a serious problem in a silly way. But that's not a criticism. It's just a mixed beast and I think the proportions were okay. It's a solid deconstruction of superheroes.
It has been compared to "Kick-Ass" which was released around that time too, but both movies were done at the same time, so there is no borrowing from one another. It actually works in favour of both movies because we can see different takes on the same topic at the same time. Due to tragic aspects of the main character's life, it reminded me heavily of Spanish "Capitán Carver."
However, the reason why I decide to see this movie was an article about Rainn Wilson who said that he knew that he would be mostly remembered as Dwight Schrute from "The Office," but if he could choose one movie, then it would have been "Super." And I thought that I owed him that much. He's good as these idiosyncratic nerds. In fact, I haven't seen him playing any other type of character.
Jaws
After a quater of decade, I rewatched "Jaws." It's the 50th anniversary and the creators prepared a remastered version. Luckily, in terms of frame resolution and not adding new scenes, etc. The movie holds strong and the second part (of course) reminds me of "Moby Dick," which I suppose was intention. An interesting thing is that the mayor admits he was wrong halfway through the movie and doesn't live in denial till the end. Solid leading actors.
The Congress
"The Congress" is a loose adaptation of "The Futurological Congress" by Stanisław Lem, which I didn't read. Ijon Tichy has been replaced with fictionalised Robin Wright. The first half feels like a "Black Mirror" episode and later it gets surreal, in no small part to animated presentation. If anything, the movie feels European as fuck. In a positive way. The whole "let's replace actors with AI models" is so spot on that it's uncanny that someone figured that out back in 2013.
Star Wars: Episode IV: A New Hope
To introduce the next generation, we have rewatched "Star Wars: Episode IV: A New Hope" (or "Star Wars," as they were known back in the 1970s). Not much surprise plot-wise, but it's been some time for me and my perception has changed and I was positively surprised how snappy they were at each other. I definitely did not remember that. Princess Leia would found herself pretty well in "Veep."
However, I have also spotted all the puzzling things when looking from the perspective of the whole franchise.
- It doesn't make sense that Obi-Wan Kenobi doesn't recognise C-3PO and R2-D2. He spent years with them.
- Same for droids, although their memory might have been wiped out as they knew too much.
- It is puzzling that Leia Organa is oblivious to Luke Skywalker's last name. As a politician, she must have been taught history. Unless Anakin became The One Whose Name We Don't Speak.
- Lord Vader seeing Leia and not having any second thoughts about her looking exactly like the woman he loved.
- We know now from the "Obi-Wan Kenobi" show that Leia spent significant time with Obi-Wan and yet, she doesn't seem to have much reaction when he dies. Neither she specifically recognises him. But maybe she was too little to remember well.
But this is what you get when you write the story as it goes. It's very soapy operey like that.
A lot of that boils down to how fast and far the news travel across the galaxies in Star Wars. It's possible that when you live on Tatooine, you don't give a rat's ass about what's going on in Coruscant. It wouldn't be surprising if they knew nor cared next to nothing. But neither the movies nor series truly reply to this. So it's an unknown. They are vaguely medieval when it comes to their communication, which makes sense given it's a Fairytale But With Robots.
But anyway, the points raised above are not any obstacle. After all this decades, I know very well what I'm getting into when I decide to see Star Wars.
Amsterdam
I saw the "Amsterdam" (2022) trailer a while ago and I was fascinated how chaotic it was. In the world where a trailer often tells the whole story, here nothing was clear. It's a bit of this and bit of that, there's little story-within-story and little noir detective story. And it's based on facts (to a degree, it's not strictly a historic movie). As the story was developing, I started to suspect that this might have been by the same people who gave us "American Hustle," and it was true.
Twilight
Hungarian "Twilight" from 1990 is probably the biggest slow-burner I have ever seen, to the point that I would doze off and come back within the same scene and not lose any story. So, definitely not a thing for everyone. Visually it's wonderful, with black-and-white frames, but despite nothing happening, I had issues with following the investigation. The inspector suddenly goes somewhere and talks to someone, but why? Why in the first place? I don't regret seeing it, but I cannot recommend it.
On the Silver Globe
I knew about "On the Silver Globe" for a long time now, but there never was an occasion. So we made one. Due to political shenanigans, only 80% of the movie was shot up until 1977, so when the creator returned to the project in 1988 there was not much left to work with. The missing parts are simply told with voice over. It produced a rather interesting effect. But alright, what about the part that was done? It's simply amazing.
Andrzej Żuławski made an adaptation of his grand uncle or something like that, which makes it a family project. The visuals are stunning: the costumes, the colours (through filters and make-up), the scenarios (like Wieliczka salt mine). It's a shame that this ended up like that. There was enough potential for Alejandro Jodorowsky's contender. It's still watchable, but it doubles as a documentary on itself. Which is also an interesting outcome.
I wanted to also focus on language which was very poetic, to the point of sounding like inspired gibberish. There was so much pathos at times that I scoffed. However, that is only relevant if you watch it in Polish. I happened to have English subtitles and all the poetry was gone and the words sounded normalish. It's hard to say if it's for better or worse. It definitely was adding to the overall surreality. My wife even said that they sent "poets, not astronauts."
Contact
To stay in the mood, the next day we watched "Contact" from 1997. A story by Carl Sagan about the contact with extraterrestrial intelligence. The movie leans heavily on the science part of sci-fi, due to Sagan's involvement, and because of that it aged pretty well. There is some CGI which got old a bit worse, but it's merely decoration to the meat here. I liked all this picking up the pieces together from the alien transmission. And catching the transmission in the first place.
At the same time, there is a not so pretty picture of Usonian fanatics. I remember talking to Juriusz and others in 2003 and the consensus was that choosing an astronaut based on their religion was a bit of a stretch. I still think it's a weird choice to focus that much on this aspect, but now I see why would they want to lean so heavily on it. A good science-fiction tells more about the present than imaginary futures. Or other worlds even.
Back in 2000s, when I saw it for the first time, I had no idea about existence of Carl Sagan, that came only later when the Internet kept serving me bits of his programmes. I was so sure that it came from Michael Crichton. Anyway, thanks to the strong scientific background here we don't have humanoid aliens speaking English. And the final twist that it could have been a rich man's prank is somehow fitting our times better. Now that I write about it, it reminds me of Adrian Veidt's hoax.
"Contact" reminded me heavily of "3 Body Problem." Both in how they communicate with aliens as well as the part where they're on the ship (which is incidental). The other movie is "2001: A Space Odyssey," especially when the main character travels through the whole universe in a visually appealing tunnel. And then she meets something custom tailored to her instead of some alien landscape.
And finally, to round back to "On the Silver Globe," straight from the beginning, when we heard them speak, my wife said, "They're sending poets into space." In "Contact," when the main character ends on the other ends of the universe, she says that it's so beautiful that she cannot describe that and that they should have sent a poet instead. So there was a method to this madness.
Limbo
I found 2023's "Limbo" after checking Simon Baker's filmography after finishing "Boy Swollows Universe." So, we're back into deep Australian outback and it's visually stunning, reminding me heavily of "Ripley," due to black and white colours, and at the same time "Mad Max" (the game) which made it very familiar (80 hours spent in game). Plot-wise, it's a slow burner about a burnt-out cop reviewing a 20-year-old cold case.
I have spent many hours with Simon Baker as The Mentalist, so it's really refreshing to see him playing someone else.
The plot and the colours combined reminded me distantly of 1990's "Twilight." The inspector is driving between places and talking to people, but here it serves something and shows the lives of the family killed and how incompetent the original investigation was. At the same time, it's a bit idle review and only due to the detective's broken car.
It might sound nihilistic, and it certainly sounded like that when I re-read the previous post now, but all in all there's a lot of humanity here. It's very close to the original concept of "Twin Peaks," which was meant to never be resolved and instead act as a vehicle to show the town through the eyes of Agent Cooper. Well, that's what we get here. There are hints as to what happened with the murder but the review gets cancelled before end.
A while ago, I read that the police doesn't do all the forensic and detective work like they show in TV shows (also called "cop propaganda" by some), and instead most of the cases are solved by someone either outright admitting to the crime or someone telling on that person. And the detective in "Limbo" gets quite far with the case, even after 20 years, by simply talking to people. He doesn't even take the gun with him most of the times.
I mentioned Bulgarian "Twilight," and for a good reason: the movie has pacing and camera work as taken straight out of Easter European cinema. I need to see more Ivan Sen's movies to check if it's a running thing with him, but that's definitely a plus here.
So, to summarise, I can definitely recommend the film.
Goya's Ghosts
"Goya's Ghosts" (2006) is Miloš Forman's movie about Spain the most than anything else, I think. Could be about history and human condition. Anyway. While there is Francisco Goya himself here, he's a deuteragonist to Natalie Portman's and Javier Bardem's characters, both fictional. Seeing Goya's paintings in May was helpful. But of course our main highlight was recognising that one scene was shot in Segovia and we saw it ourselves during our road trip.
The Card Counter
I decided to watch "The Card Counter" from Paul Schrader ("Taxi Driver's" script) after seeing a short bit on Netflix where the main character explains how does the card-counting in question work. I never looked into details of it and it seems to be based on a simple principle. But that's not what the movie is about. If I had to point to the main aspect it's the titular character who wants to live anonymous live. Very much like Driver from "Drive" (the book, not the movie).
"Taxi Driver" is not merely a random reference on my end. Both characters are veterans who have problems with what they went through. William Tell here, though, ended up in an overly organised life, in no small thanks to 10 years in prison. The movie also shows how traumatic in general was what the US did in places like Abu Ghraib. I guess enough time has passed to be able to say more.
But going back to Driver. Both characters crave anonymity: Driver by renting places and not keeping anything personal and being able to just vanish, and William Tell by living in hotel rooms which he re-arranges to visually resemble a prison cell where he keeps writing his journal.
But then he begins to care and it opens him to his old trauma. You can escape from your demons only as far.
Definitely a strange movie, but I liked it.
Y Tú Mamá También
I must have seen "Y Tú Mamá También" (2001), like, twenty years ago. I thought I remembered it well enough and it turned that the gist was there but it looked completely differently, and a huge role played the fact that I've seen more world now. The action is set in Mexico and there is a lot of social turmoil shown in the background of coming-of-age story but nothing is explained. I found this interesting. Plus impassioned narrator.
While watching this movie, I fully realised that I used to like coming-of-age movies when I was actually coming of age. I suspect they were helpful in getting a perspective on all the potential forks that my life could take (plus even more ones that my life would never take, for variety of reasons). However, once I was done with it, the movies lost its utility to me. Additionally, I don't get any trips down the memory lane. I have a generally good memory and movies don't trigger anything extra.
But "Y Tú Mamá También" is different because the two characters who are coming of age are not the only participants of their trip through Mexico (which, a side note, reminded me heavily of our road trip in August). There is also Luisa who joins them and she's in her late 20s and has a different reasons, reasons that might resonate better with an older viewer. And that's the movie's strength in my opinion. If not, then it's interesting visually. Like a documentary.
A movie that comes to my mind, mostly due to how this one was shot and the overall scenery, is Argentinian "Too Late To Die Young" which I saw last year.