This movie far surpassed my expectation. I know going in that this movie is going to ride on the nostalgia from the first movie. However it will get boring very fast if that is the only card it has to play through the entire movie. Fortunately, this movie has many cards under its sleeve and able to turned itself into a very watchable and entertaining piece of nostalgic cinema. It managed to make the premise new again for the young generation to enjoy while pleases the original generation who enjoy the first top gun some three and a half decade ago. If you go through the review on IMDB, you will very quickly notice that there not a SINGLE bad review written about this movie. It is a testament that Tom Cruise and his film making team had delivered exactly what the audiences wanted. That is no easy feat in the era where Marvel movies rule over the box office. It is even a bigger miracle that the is not a frame of CGI used in the entire movie of Top Gun: Marverick. Tom Cruise insisted on shooting the movie with practical effects the way they did it in the original Top Gun when there were no CGI were used due to their budget constraint at the time CGI has not been invented. The dawn of CGI was yet to come, with Jurassic Park being the first movie to fully used it to great effect in the 90s. There is a youtube documentary feature about how this entertaining movie get made without any CGI. Here is the link to that fun documentary if you are interested in watching it. I thoroughly enjoy the movie. It was fun, suspenseful, and an enjoyable trip down memory lane that I did not know I needed, until I watched this movie. When the first note of music from Top Gun Theme from Harold Faltermeyer started playing on screen, audiences got really emotional listening to that familiar song. It feels like being back in the time most of the Top Gun fans were young men and women in their early teens/twenties and the future was bright and promised a world full of possibilities.
Category: New Film
Firestarter – No budget remake
Nowadays, if you are going to make a movie that is set for a cinema consumption, you better make it in at least a Netflix-worthy production quality. That’s where this movie failed. The entire movie looked like a tv special. Made in shoe string budget that completely underwhelmed the power of a compelling story of the child who have special abilities to either control someone’s mind or incinerate them. It is so disappointing to watch someone make another bad movie out of an amazing novel by Stephen King.
Hatching – Macabre body horror
I think it is safe to say if you watched the trailer to this movie, you already know the premise to the entire movie. However, sitting in the cinema watching this movie slow burn into your consciousness elicit another level of creepiness. Euro horror tends to push the envelope and teeter in the arthouse territory and this one is no difference. The first time young gymnast character called Tinja came on screen, the camera lingered on her just a little too long to give you a sense of uneasiness. This movie is pretty much a tale of body horror that cleverly told through the creature feature genre. It is a creepy and unsettling 86 minutes that end in its devastatingly disturbing conclusion.
You Won’t Be Alone – What an incredible and profound movie
If Terrence Malick shot a horror movie, it will look something like this. But this movie surpassed all my expectation and then some. And I went in expecting for it to be exceptional, given all the glowing reviews given by major media outlet on this little Australian-financed foreign movie.
Like myself, the rest of the audiences during the screening of this movie were mind-blown into stunned silence and remained on our seats while the end credit rolled, to process what we all just watched. It’s no small wonder Vanity Fair magazine called it the BEST movie of 2022!
The fact that so many film critics interpret the metaphor in the scenes and came up with a variety of meaning is the proof that this movie had elevated itself into an interpretative art piece.
Taking place in 19th century Macedonia, the movie is filled with metaphor and hidden existential allegory.
It is categorized as horror but this movie transcend that genre barrier to be an art cinema that happened to broach the subjects usually reserved for scary movies.
And yes, it dove into dark, macabre territories like death, sex, and cannibalism, with all the unsettling visuals to back it up. But none of those scenes felt gratuitous and they are essential part of the whole story telling. I never once felt spooked or experienced a single jump scare but this movie really get under my skin. Another winner in the horror genre destined to be the new classic which will be held up as the new gold standard all future horror movie will be compared to. It is subtly profound, hauntingly beautiful, with complex and sweeping cinematic narrative that will stay with you long after you watched it. if you love the movies of Von Trier, Ari Aster, Robert Eggers, and Tomas Alfredson, you are going to enjoy this movie immensely.
Ambulance – Finally, a fun Bayhem movie
Anyone who is familiar with a Michael Bay movie should already know his signature frenetic and ultra-kinetic camera works. You would expect at least a couple of amazing car chases or bombastic action sequences. But you would also expect some cheesy dialogue or over-acting from the much of the casts.
But what you do not expect is that Michael Bay finally realize audiences go his movies mainly for those over the top action scenes. In Ambulance, he cut through all the bs and go straight to the action, and keep the momentum going throughout the movie. This movie is literally one big car chase but don’t let that plot set up dissuade you from watching. The script is a clever one because it managed to pack some serious comedy, jerry rigged between intense and serious action scenes, and an unexpected touching moment towards when you least expect it. Eliza Gonzales finally get to shine in a movie she’s in and she more than hold her own between the two macho megastars like Jake Gyllenhaal and Yahya Abdul-Mateen II. After a long spell of awful, bloated and dull films he made in the last decade, it’s about time we get to finally see a genuinely fun, edge-of-your-seat, and no-nonsense explosive action movie like this from Michael Bay.
I almost forgot to mention the incredible drone shots in this entire movie. Those shots pump up the kinetic element of the movie to the #th degree. Michael Bay hired the 19 year old champion FVP drone flier to helm all the aerial drone shots. I don’t even want to guess how many expensive drones strapped with the RED KOMODO camera that got destroyed capturing all those insane action shots.
X (2022) – A solid throwback slasher
This homage slasher did everything right. From the mood, the 70’s style cinematography, perfect casting, to the sex and gore; every aspect come together to become X. Mia Goth and Brittany Murphy hold nothing back to make their roles believable as porn starlets out to make some good smut in a rented farmhouse out in the middle of nowhere. Everything about this movie is a set up for all the creep-fest and gore to come but you’ll still startled by what you see. Disturbing, unsettling, and bound to be a new slasher favorite for the fans of the genre. The director revealed that he offer Mia Goth a role in the prequel of the movie (called Pearl) right after they wrapped filming X and she gladly accepted. This movie is solid entertainment that will sure make your eyes glued to the screen from beginning to the end.
The Batman – Underwhelming…
The term Go Big or Go Home should apply for all the new superhero movies that is being made or in production. Especially for the flagship franchise Batman brand. Forget the Tim Burton’s batman, which was shot wholly in studio by incorporating scale models and set pieces, for audiences who have seen the big spectacle of Christopher Nolan’s Batman trilogy are going to be disappointed with this new, smaller scale (visual-wise), and slow tempo version. How can the film maker think that this a smart way to go? I understand that they want to do a fresh take on the Batman lore and in a way, reboot the franchise by mining the story of a young Batman on his second year of vigilantism. But this deliberately slow pacing story-telling does not make an entertaining viewing. I have to give credit to Robert Pattison for his spot-on portrayal of a broody young Bruce Wayne and the cinematography in this movie deserve an Oscar nomination for it’s dreamy and dark visuals. Other than that, I find this movie can improve with about half an hour cut off from the final cut to speed things along and trim the scenes that drag it down. I had my reservation about this incarnation of the Batman before I went to see it. The only thing that pique my interest is Matt Reeves directing it because he did such a stellar job on the Planet of The Apes Trilogy. Just a little public service announcement to save you from wasting your time waiting for the end credit extra scene, there is none.
The Cursed – Creepy and Atmospheric
Directed by the terrific Sean Ellis, who also shot the cinematography himself (hence the magnificent mood and visual of this movie), this little gothic horror is a must see. The movie moves slowly but don’t mistake it with being boring. This movie is far from boring. It grab hold of you visually from the opening scene and keep you glued to the screen until the end. For those who is unaware, Sean Ellis started his career as the photo assistant to the great British fashion photographer Nick Knight. Mr. Ellis later on become the one of the most sought after and most prolific fashion photographer himself. Even today, none of the current fashion shooter can hold a candle to Mr. Ellis’ fashion work. At the height of his fashion photography career, Mr. Ellis decided to quit and pivot his focus on cinematography and directing. He started with advertising , music video, short film, and gradually landed in the role of the director. His first movie CASHBACK ‘s visual coolness still hold up in present viewing. He is way ahead of his time when it come to his taste in visuals. Let’s not have this write up be solely about Mr. Ellis and look at this terrific latest effort of his retelling of a classic monster tale. Only someone like Mr Ellis can reimagine an often-told monster classic and put his own spin on it to make it fresh and immensely watchable. Boyd Holbrook did a terrific job as a pathologist happened to pass by the village that is plagued with death in the middle of the Cholera pandemic. When I met and become acquainted with Mr. Holbrook many years ago, I never would have imagine him to become one of the best actor of his generation. Now that I have lost touch with him and only able to enjoy his presence in movies and Netflix series, he never ceased to surprise me with his selective choices of interesting characters in all the roles he took on. May he continue to thrive and be one of the great actor in the business. My final note is go see this movie and be entertained. This is not the kind of movie with jump-scares. It is a taut and well-shot gothic horror with fantastic atmospheric setting.
Death on the Nile – more ancient than a grandmother’s clock
This second remake of the Agatha Christie’s classic is not getting better in pacing and storyline.
I read a review saying the CGI landscape of Egypt is distracting. I beg the differ, sir. The CGI is the most visually captivating part of this entire movie. I bet the reviewer have never been to Egypt as I had. The real Egyptian landscape would look absolutely horrendous if it’s shot for this movie. How are the film makers going to be able to get rid of all the hundreds of hoodlums and tourist scammers who littered the ground of the Pyramids. Cleaning the murky river Nile and its trashy river banks just to shoot this movie will cost millions and will be a futile attempt. Let’s not get side track from the actual review of this movie. If you want to have a good sleep in the cinema, this movie will do it for you. The slow pacing and old school style dialogue really put a damper in this movie. The film makers should take heed when KNIVES OUT was released and learn a lesson or two from that movie in terms of modernizing the script and story pacing. But they did not so they ended up with this big plodding slow poke currently playing at the cinemas near you.
West Side Story – A remake no one asked for
The trailer to this movie that played in constant rotation in cinemas for months did not entice me to go see this movie. I chalked it off as another remake no one asked for. Then I read the review on Associated Press where it waxed poetic about how the director, writer, song composer, basically the whole team of filmmakers got together and triumphantly created a better version of the movie that far excelled over the original version. That was what get me to go see this remake. I have to say, it was very well shot. Mr Spielberg know how to grab the audience’s attention with the opening shot of a rubble that would become the up and coming Lincoln Center complex. That relatability and familiarity connect the otherwise dated storyline with the new audiences. The cinematography was very good to look at as well. Unfortunately, that’s where the appeal of this movie ends. If the film makers think by casting all new young actors will draw and appeal the movie to the young generation, they’d be wrong because all the young audiences in my screening were LOL to the wrong scene and worst, LOL at the most tragic scene of the movie. Why you ask? It’s because the new audiences grew up on reality shows and instant emotional payback of watching snippets in tik tok. This over-dramatize set up of tragic scenes are so artificial to them that it took them out of the moment and they couldn’t help but burst into laughter. As I had declare on the title of this post, this movie truly is the remake no one asked for. The original version is fine as it is. I truly hope Mr. Spielberg conduct a focus group with real teenagers who are not peers of his kids who live in Hollywood or Malibu before embarking into a journey to make a movie that is supposed to appeal to that demographic.
Flickcaster 