3DD!3

Awesome! Shame I’m not 10 and so I can’t ask dad for Zartan the Panda (with interchangeable faces). And while we’re talking about him, he is the best President of the United States ever (he handled nuclear disarmament of the country blindfolded and then played the Angry Birds) and Jonathon Pryce enjoys him to extremes. Bruce is just here to make up numbers, but works better here than in the last McClane. Tatum soon clears the decks (the opening scene was just because of him, in my view) and makes way for the powerhouse of the movie, the Rock whose Roadblock has a) a more complex character (as far as is possible for this popcorn genre) and b) the most worked-out body and he’s a really nice guy. Of course, the duels between those two ninjas are perfect and the peak of the movie is the abduction in the mountains. Unfortunately, for some baffling reason the action just doesn’t work - in fact it’s not baffling, but awful editing which turned everything into some sort of impenetrable goo. Otherwise, there are enough ideas that should have been made the most of and to greater extremes, but some things are very effective. But that’s where the Transformers sequel suffered too. Hasbro must be having a whale of a time.

Definitely an unconventional picture with a depressing aftertaste and excellent one-liners. Moreover, Harrelson portrays the main character so convincingly that he should at least get an Oscar nomination. Unfortunately, it’s a little boring, without a moral lesson (which is fine) and without a catharsis at the end (which is isn’t so fine). Rampart simply ends and that’s that. But that doesn’t mean that it isn’t perfectly written and the actors are excellent. Too little action, no suspense. P.S.: Before ending up with Atlanta P.D., Shane (Jon Bernthal) from the Walking Dead trained dogs in L.A. ;) Bear in mind that I’m not a racist. Fact is, I hate all people equally.

An effective, modern genre movie. Creevy is a talent and uses Mann-style light and steel visuals with the best intentions of an honest copycat. McAvoy rocks, the unstable Lewinsky will never fit the mold of positive hero, Strong cuts an ambiguous (hitman) antihero who, under other circumstances, would probably play on the right side. I was very pleased to see David Morrissey who is currently giving the Walking Dead a run for their money, and I’m happy even for the slightly corrupted storyline that at least means that the ending makes some sense. The action is effective, the atmosphere good and dark and London... Oh, good old London. P.S.: What jerk translated the title?

A bit of a strange, action-packed nonsense. A shame that one of Jackie’s stories went astray (we find this summed up in one sentence delivered by a TV presenter) and he began copying from the putrescent and decadent west. The Indy inspiration is obvious (if unconvincing), but what were the Pirates of the Caribbean doing there? And they could have easily just cut out the multi-lingual tomfoolery with the cow from France and Coco. The speed-skating intro is marvelous, but the search for the boat somewhere in the jungle was just boring. The most effective part of the movie remains the part at the forger’s with the awesome fight on the sofa. And while we’re talking about fights, there is a criminal shortage of them here. A shame that Jackie didn’t return more to his roots for the last time.

Classic criticism of the modern way of life in a funny and juicy guise. Some scenes are better than others, but I experienced a feeling of satisfaction almost all the way through. But some unpleasant questions raise their heads. Are we turning into Americans? Is our nation too really in such a bad state? Won’t somebody, please somebody film God Bless the Czech Republic? The message is definitely worth a full set of stars.

A lifeless wreck tries to get back to the top. Pacino is perfect, teetering on the brink of breakdown, with the expression of a someone working on autopilot. Won’t we all end up looking like that some time? The story is on the whole average, the power of the powerful and their double lives. If it weren’t for Al’s acting recital, this movie would have nothing going for it. P.S.: Kim Basinger is terribly cute in this. The worst thing in this world, Michael, is to know too much. Better to try and stay naive. That’s better.

An excellent horror, just the behavior of the characters at the beginning was a little strange. Verbinski layers up atmosphere, combining unpleasant chill with several very effective shockers. The investigation into the origin of the video tape drives the story nicely forward and several scenes are wonderfully surreal - the horse on the ferry, falling into the well, Samara’s emergence. Very good.

Cherchez la femme. Polanski’s grasp of the excellent and well-thought out screenplay is a joy to watch. Sun-parched L.A. is stifling with a heavy and paranoid atmosphere, especially when no water comes out of the faucet. I’m not a big fan of Nicholson, but here he really is excellent and gives the hero the necessary authenticity. The crushing finale is just the icing on the cake. In the 70s this must have almost been a revolution in cinema. Bad for the glass.

Two human wrecks (a would-be writer and a would-be photographer) chatting together, complaining about their lives and reminiscing. They criticize their life for how it was and how it might have been. They reflect upon it using intellectual analogies and feed us with their extensive experiences without setting foot outside New York. They keep on trumping each other with better and better arguments. Then they begin analyzing the Good Book and everything moves forward. Slowly, but surely begin emerging words of wisdom, priceless... “It can’t be done without money." You can smell the theatrical drama in Chinese Coffee a mile off, but Pacino leads very deftly. Of course, he acts better than he directs, his ever irritated Harry is a real character, the same as the laid-back Jerry Orbach. I recognized some people I know in both them. The picture could be analyzed for hours, it’s so rich in themes. A joy to behold.

This time he brought you a Mercedes... The only thing that didn’t drop in quality was Beltrami’s music. Otherwise, this is like falling painfully on your face. For me, this isn’t another episode of that excellent series that I grew up on. I’m not treating it as one of them, so that I can be at least a little objective. I don’t like Moore, he already ruined Max Payne and he isn’t much good at making movies. Here at least he tries to push the action to the forefront (I have to admit that there really is a lot of it) because any switch to “father and son talking" equals catastrophe. I would be surprised if Skip Woods’ screenplay was any more than five pages long, it’s completely off any qualitative scale. It has some sort of story, but too few snappy lines and hogwash about the holidays soon gets boring. Bruce doesn’t give a damn about anything and he seemed to me to be overacting. And what else can he do, it’s a parody on Die Hard after all! I’m not going to have a dig at the illogicality of individual scenes, but several times I had a really surprised look on my face. Especially on the trip to Chernobyl. That reminds me of the days when I used to watch Seagal movies with my dad (e.g. Under Siege 2) and he always went on about what a pile of baloney it was, that it didn’t make any sense. Who on earth thought up such a load of tripe? Well, now I’m following in my dad’s footsteps. Wanna cuddle?