POMO

Cold Pursuit is a thriller with not only an original concept, but also humor and dozens of corpses. The comic relief makes it amusing in some ways, but I would rather see the topic of revenge for the murdered son in harsh northern conditions treated seriously. Even the bad guys do not earn enough respect here. And the positive Indian poetics surrounding drug dealers that are just as vile as the main bad guys is just WTF. This is a peculiar film hybrid that not quite successfully mixes American thriller elements with European courage to play with audience expectations.

This action flick for guys reliably delivers all of the classic elements of Emmerich movies – superb casting, elaborate composition and over-the-top American pathos at the end. Unfortunately, the storyline is confusing – the strategies discussed over the maps and sometimes the continuity of the action scenes make no sense. Ideologically, it’s also pro-China, as without a Chinese investment, this film would probably never have been made (it could never attract enough moviegoers to pay for its technical execution). The digital aspect is excellent, especially in comparison with the recent (sixth) Terminator.

The intention here was to elevate a simple theme like that of a Van Damme movie to the level of a clever, emotional action drama with a social subtext, with the help of a top scriptwriter and “artistic” director. And it didn’t really work. The digitally rejuvenated Will Smith is a WTF character – he’s supposed to go through an intense internal struggle requiring a quality acting performance and, paradoxically, delivers the worst “acting” of the movie with his Shrek-like facial expressions. Despite its ambitious plan, the film is also dragged down by unrealistic digital action scenes that are reminiscent of a Fast & Furious theme park. And that’s too bad, since it had such a promising start with the still cool Will and nice chemistry between him and Mary Elizabeth Winstead.

This promising film about a brutal struggle between two tough guys in a living room is entertaining with both cool visuals and humorous hyperbole. However, by gradually exposing the reasons for the intense conflict and introducing two other characters, the film reaches the climax, where it loses its confidence and fumbles a bit. Resurrection and other nonsense go against the very physical realism that was its greatest asset. [Sitges FF]

Imagine the dark, atmospheric War of the Worlds or The Thing in a B-movie version and starring Nic Cage, who delivers the funny, energetic overacting we know and like in his crazy comedies. Does anyone want that? The film alternates high-quality slimy freak-show effects with cheap “space nebulae” and quite powerful horror scenes with the aforementioned comical Cage. It’s a story about a family in serious danger and the director, through Nic Cage, suggests you shouldn’t take the film too seriously. For me this is a little bit hard to swallow, although I enjoyed it and I was curious how it would turn out. [Sitges FF]

Filmed in a modern fashion, this retro gangster film from Naples tries to be very stylish with an elegant, charismatic Toni Servillo, but remains only a simple, one-dimensional revenge tale with pretensions of wisdom. [Sitges FF]

In the Quarry offers the psychologically well-portrayed escalation of tension between four people at a picnic. Female stupidity stimulates male jealousy, leading to a group tragedy. Unfortunately, too little happens here for a feature film and, moreover, it happens too slowly. After all, it is not Polanski, but a pure genre film in which we are used to seeing such conflicts escalate even further and more intensely. [Sitges FF]

O Beautiful Night has a wonderful ending with heart and an important message, but I couldn’t relate to the three main characters during the movie, the atmosphere of their urban road-trip or the supporting characters. Which may be solely my problem. [Sitges FF]

The most interesting thing about this movie is the interior design of the house and the views from it, which must be wonderfully diverse with the changing seasons. Watching the lead actress swallow things that aren't meant to be swallowed is amusing in its bizarreness. And it also raises one’s curiosity as to how far it will go and what it will bring to the lightweight story. After the sloppy absolution, in which her character is supposed to take on a new dimension and the film should be brought to a meaningful conclusion, the swallowing itself however remains the film’s only attraction. [Sitges FF]

The writers are obviously fascinated by CERN and its research, but they develop the idea that a living being could disappear in the given area by “disintegrating into particles” in a terribly dull way. In terms of plot and drama, the film reaches barely 20% of its potential. The main character is uninteresting, the other characters are only lightly sketched and all of the events that happen in the movie should be just an introduction to something more attractive for the audience. [Sitges FF]