J*A*S*M

We get what we get. A pretty good horror film about a priest who must come to terms with the fact that he was unable to save a member of his flock, who, instead of believing in God’s help, killed herself. So he’s haunted mostly by his own conscience and remorse. From a certain point forward, the plot of Heretic is almost sinfully predictable, but it has no problem conjuring an atmosphere. When, after about half an hour, the story moves exclusively to the interiors of one house, I could no longer complain about the lack of atmosphere. I really like this intimate, domestic horror flicks :) There’s room for improvement, but Handford has made a good entrance.

This kind of exploitation flicks, where the same thing has been happening again and again for 40 years, bore me to death. And in this case, the creators also added an incredibly long run. Personally, I didn’t get much of an experience out of it, but I admit that, within the scope of the sub-genre, the film is quite effective.

Excellent black comedy. Being funny with a premise like this is something that not many would dare (for instance, Denis Villeneuve last year with Prisoners, which I remembered several times during the screening). Sometimes you feel a bit guilty for laughing about such things, but it is possible when the duo of directors are able to execute it so beautifully. Otherwise, Keshales a Papushado are clearly polishing their author’s signature and, in many aspects, Big Bad Wolves is similar to their début Rabies. The chain of coincidences and twists (some likely, others unlikely) bring so many different characters to one place that they end up getting into mutual, no always friendly, interactions, while deconstructing the traditional rules of the thriller and refusing to meet the expectations of the viewer. Whereas in Rabies all that felt improvised and unconvincing, I didn’t have that problem with this film and I’m looking forward to what’s next.

Actually, I have to make a big effort to give it at least two stars for the flawless technical aspect. Raze is nothing but a shallow spectacle and its contents, and the very purpose of its existence, can be described as “women fighting in tank-tops”. Because why? Because we fucking want it, that’s why. Those who enjoy this – well. For me, it devalues horror movies.

I’m not claiming that animated films for kids should be supported by a logically bulletproof story, but bugger me, if I’m already squeezing such a complicated plot, I would make damn sure that it makes sense at least within its basic framework, but in Frozen I said WTF way too often. Yet I won’t deny that I had some solid popcorn fun. Officially, only three stars for the film, the fourth is for “Let It Go” :-)

Home invasion + exploitation + stoner comedy + slight metaphysical overtone. The beginning suffers from the annoying characters (loud Thai teenagers) and the creators could have done without the resolution, and yet, I feel the weak four stars are an appropriate rating for this really energetic film that’s never boring. The execution and the performances are very good. What bothered me the most was that climax, because I simply don’t like that kind of thing.

Hi, I’m Spike and I generate films just for you! - Oh! That’s great, let’s see what you can do. - Well, first, what genre would you like? - Hey, I quite fancy some sci-fi. But a smart one, no madness with robots or anything like that. A pinch of social satire and… - OK, I’m writing it down. What about romance? Humour? Would that be fine? - Yeah, I guess, but only a little, so it would be a bit sad and melancholic, rather than cloying, get it? And the humour, just a bit to spice things up. - Sure, we’ll go easy on it. And what about the actor for the leading role? You have any special requirements? - How about someone renowned but not a big celebrity? Maybe Philip Seymour Hoffman? - Sorry, mate, he’s dead. And Joaquin Phoenix? - Yeah, no worries. - And in what era would you like it to take place? A slightly altered present or a far, post-apocalyptic… - If possible, maybe somewhere in the near future. So it would be very similar to now, but also with some different and original details. I’d love that. So I could imagine that things will be like that in a few years, but I wouldn’t be too happy about it. - So the tone would be rather depressing? - Well…. not that, no. I don’t want any cheap happy ending, but it doesn’t need to be a heavy downer, either. Something half-way. Don’t make it too happy, but leave the characters with some hope. - Well, I think I already have it. It will be called Her. Have fun.

From my part, intellectual recognition for the very sweeping, ambitious and thorough treatment of a catastrophic topic, rather than emotional satisfaction. If that deadly virus spread at the speed of this film, people wouldn’t have anything to worry about.

The most fundamental American film since The Social Network. The film is not amoral, what’s amoral is its protagonist and modern society as a whole. He’s an asshole who ended up in prison (for a ridiculously short time), without friends and in debt due to his criminal behaviour and yet he has a relatively normal life, and there are still business people who take him as a role model and eagerly listen to his motivational lectures. Though Scorsese doesn’t portray the main character from an acceptable moral position (after all, Belfort himself is the narrator), after three hours of footage, a sensible viewer can make their own judgement, and thanks to this confrontation, a lively comedy becomes a very caustic satire. Excellent and brisk fun with pretty dark reverberations. Get over it.

Considering that it’s an Oscar biopic about people fighting AIDS, Dallas Buyers Club is surprisingly vibrant, lively and not pathetic. Matthew McConaughey and Jared Leto are impressive.