Episodes
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Martin Scorsese directed a brilliant film that will stand the test of time. It's film that we all love and enjoy and we don't care that the characters are bad guys, like, really BAD guys. Scorsese has that visual power where we get to see, envy, the glorification of "GoodFellas" featuring my good friends of the We Don't Smoke the Same podcast - E-Zone and XG. We dissect the film by pointing out favorite scenes, discuss the power of being a gangster and the culture it influences, and how drugs come into play in the mob business. I dig the film for it's realism on these characters and how they handle situations. Scorsese does a great job providing different senes that highlight the highs and lows of the various characters that play off each other. Every time I see the film, I learn something new about it and the director and how it all works.
Four out of four tokes.
E-Zone
http://flavorsbyezone.com
XG
http://fullytoxic.com
#goodfellas #film -
"My Dinner With Andre" is beautiful simple film directed by Louis Malle. A legendary filmmaker decided to film two theater guys talk about life while they eat in what looks like to be a fancy restaurant in New York. This film is unqiue due to the fact that it's simply two people who meet up and dine. And they talk for 111 minutes. For us nowadays, one will say "oh, well that's just a typical podcast". True, but it's the FIRST. And honestly the only of it's kind. There's really not a film like "My Dinner With Andre". These two men talk about life, throw in their perspectives. There is a point to the film. There is a beginning, middle and end and it's great. It all works very well. I love how these characters make life seem real by talking about things that are real to some of us. A scripted as it can be, they were able to create something that we can all relate no matter who we are, where we're from. I like the they it shot as well. There's an intensity with Andre Gregory that Malle was able to get down. When you see that close up, you feel the words that Andre is saying. You see that vulnerability and contrast it with Wallace Shawn's realistic approach of life. They are great together. You can tell Shawn is skeptical but he loves his friend. He has a respect for him that you can see and Malle, again, shoots it so dignifying, I can't help but just stare and figure if there's more to it and turns out in this film, there's not, haha. I'm actually going to watch it again. There's layers in the topics they discuss and it's fun to see something so real to be just fiction but it's that darn believable.
Four out of four tokes.
#mydinnerwithandre #louismalle -
Episodes manquant?
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Danny Boyle directed a good film that was written by Aaron Sorkin called "Steve Jobs". It's a biographical film depicting Apple Computers Co-Founder and Visionary Tech Giant, Steve Jobs. The film centers around three key moments in Jobs' life and in each of the periods shows us who this guy Steve Jobs is and we should care about him and the people who surround him. The scenes really give out a clear but complex picture of Steve Jobs. To be a visionary such as himself, you must some type of complication, something that stand out in your life. I dig the film for its intense dialog concerning the task at hand, which is basically making the unveiling of the future is as perfect as it can try to be. I dig the cinematography, where the space of a setting is used. Boyle gave us the feeling of a play of sorts because characters spent their time in closed doors in a public venue. Interesting to see how actors can use their space and setting for their effective skills. the use of editing where characters appear and disappear in the film and how we get the reaction shots from the characters which relates as how WE would react to a certain exchange of dialog and/or action. The flaw I would give for this film is partially on the type of character this version of Steve jobs is. Almost an egomaniac. It has a bit hard to swallow that pill.
Three and a half out of four tokes. -
"Mona Lisa Smile" is a universal film that aimed towards people who thnk they have their futures written in stone. A film directed by Mike Newell, stars Julia Roberts as this free-spirited teacher who travels over to the east coast to teach at an institution where women are guided to be submissive wives/partners. This was set in the mid-'50s. I never really focused on Roberts in films but this one really swept me to a point. I love her character as Katherine Ann Watson. She doesn't let anyone really dictate her life and style. The film is not about style but about how to hold on to your own and that you're not confined anywhere especially if you have personal goals set. I did like that they did a good job balancing the principle characters' dilemmas which is difficult to do in screenwriting, period. The plot is all right but I didn't like how they tackled it where it was an examination of the women in the film rather than playing high stakes. I didn't mind how it played out for Roberts' character but in connection to the other characters that support her morals & goals as a film, was weak and needed more work to established.
Three out of four tokes. -
"Paddington 2" is the most positive reviewed film in the history of cinema and it came out in 2017, beating "Citizen Kane" directed by Orson Welles. Imagine that? Anyways, I love this film. I didn't mention it in the review but this a "perfect" family film. It has everything - comedy, action, moments of wonder & curiosity, drama, but most of all, this film has heart and that heart is the character himself - Paddington. The cast in the film great, even to the villains. Hugh Grant was great in this film, you can tell he was having a blast playing a villain and made it so self-centered, it's great. He's a character you can fall behind because he goes all the way as who he is and what he wants. I was impressed to take in the fact that it's a live action film with a CGI bear and honestly, I didn't even notice. I mean, you can tell it's fake but they way they animated Paddington and what they have them do, took a lot of consideration. I was too convinced and hooked on the bear, the sweet and courageous bear named Padddington that can turn a criminal into a friend. Imagine having a buddy like that in your life? E-Zone, fuck Baby Yoda. Paddington is the guy you want on your side. He's the "voice of reason" and all that's thanks to his Aunt Lucy, which is the basis of the whole plot itself. It's hard for sequels to out-do the first film, but this surpasses it (respectfully) at a level that pulls the heartstrings. The film only goes higher as the stakes get tough for the bear to clear his name. When times get tough, stay strong and follow through with the faith you got but also take matters your hands.
Four out of four tokes. -
"As Tears Go By" is the debut of filmmaker Wong Kar-wai. It's his love letter to the film "Mean Streets". He shares a tragedy where love is lost, both of the romantic and of the brotherly. I was amazed to see a style of filmmaking and it came out in 1988. It's very stylistic and isn't afraid to push narrative boundaries. My favorite scene of the film is honestly, the ending. I wont say why but it's an effective ending that you don't really get to see in cinema nowadays. It's a film that drama, romance, crime, some comedy, and even existentialism. It's a film about a gangster who tries throughout the whole film, to look out for his best friend, and honestly, his only friend, especially in the world they're in. His friend is always messing up and he has to figure out a way to chamge, or else...
It's great film in it's style of filmmaking and a story that's engaging and doesn't spoon feed you
#astearsgoby -
Terrence Malick gives us "The New World", a visual epic of the story of America, but in a romance between John Smith and Pocahontas. It's a really good film depicting the settlement of Jamestown in what is know as Virgina at the time. We see how it goes down, how love can be new and destructive to someone and how it navigates they way order and growth goes. I enjoy this film for its simple but poetic plot. We just don't see Native Americans fighting for theirs against the Jamestown people, we see how actions and decision are laid about. We see how emotions unheard of are formed and how it really shapes people into how we know them by. Malick, you can see that he really put himself in this film by the shots we see. We see how things came to be and it goes across to what I'm typing at this moment. And this film came out over 20 years ago. It's still fresh and very consistent to his work.
Four out of four tokes. -
Hayao Miyazaki's "Ponyo" is a colorful sight of a film to see with a beautiful way to tell a story of how the test of friendship can LITERALLY disbalance the earth. What a way to tell a film without having a bad guy, it's all about something for the good of all kinds, not just man. Miyazaki likes to put the awareness and importance of maintaining the sustainability of our earth, our environment. I like the slight agresssive attack towads that thematic and how it overall ties to the film. it's a character of it's own, if you ask me. What's there to say, the film is enjoyable. It's a story you can definitely invest your energy in because it does take you for a ride. To see the sequence of Ponyo catching up to the BAD ASS tiny car, is really a testament to the art of anime filmmaking. Thank you, Hayao Miyazaki for giving us "Ponyo".
Four out of Four tokes.
#ponyo #hayaomiyazaki -
Lars von Trier is a controversial filmmaker with his work and as a person himself. Due to his depression that, he creates films with dark characters with, sometimes, dark storylines. But his films are great. Some are beautifully shot with referneces to classical art. This film "Melancholia" is one of those. It's about the last days of the world due to a planet that is literally going to crash into Earth and the main character welcomes with open arms. It's more dramatic than how it sounds but it's there and it's in full effect. The film is great for its cinematography, how Earth plays a role as a planet that is dying by the frame and we get to see characters go through it. We see characters that represent illnesses such as depression and anxiety. The film highlights and sometimes makes it very visually poetic.I love the fact that Trier made a film like this and it's not overdramatic. Overall, it's a dark and straight-in-your-face type of filmmaking that anybody can appreciate.
Four out of four tokes. -
Éric Rohmer ends his famous "Tales of the Four Seasons" with "Autumn Tale". It's a French romance comedy about a woman who operates a vineyard, thinks about the idea of dating again and it focuses on the middle age folks, which is a bit different from the other season films. Magali's friends decide to take matters into their own hands and get matches for her. At this wedding party, it all goes down and it's an iconic scene itself. I love the film for it's rich and engaging screenplay and the actors who make these characters very real, especially when they conversate which is a huge strength that Rohmer. This film gives us insight to people who are older and wiser. We see a perspective that's almost too foreign for us especially if we dont match the same age. I can wacth this film all day and so should you.
I give it four out of four tokes.
#ericrohmer #filmreview #autumntale -
David Lynch's "Inland EMpire" is a crazy psychological thriller that I had the pleasure of watching. I three hour film shot on a sony digital camcorder and it makes perfect sense as to why he choose to shoot a film like this. A film that barely has a script but as holoow as it many seem, it film goes into alternate realities where we question our own reality. It's a film about a "woman in toruble" that takes on a film set. Laura Dern's character is an actress who's gonna star in a film that's known to have a death that occurs which stopped it in the place. But not for this crew. They decide to do it anyway and stuff happens. It's like a huge portal that leads to all portals and it makes sense in some way. I admire the work Lynch put especially Laura Dern. She deserved an Academy Award for this film.
Three and a half out of four tokes.
#davidlynch #inlandempire #filmreview -
The Coen Brothers are incredible filmmakers. They are known for their screenwriting and direction. From wacky comedies to serious dramas, they always go for the heart and it gets us to wonder about life and the meaning of it. "A Serious Man" is a 2009 comedy drama that's dark about Larry who is about to get divorced and doesn't know why but we see why. But not only that, he has other struggles that really break this man down but not completely because of his faith in Judasim. The only thing that he ponders about is the meaning of life and bad things happen to him. It spirals to an existential journey in a small Minnesota town. I dig this film in how the cinematography amps up the struggles that these characters go through and as well as the screenwriting. The dialog is superb and pushes the story forward. We are meant to see this man and yell at him on the screen because the answers to his problems are sort of in front of him and he eventually figures it out. Not a film for a peson for action but if you're in some type of crisis, this one is for you. The characters are great and written very well and they bounce off each other and they sure deserve it.
Four out of four tokes
#coenbrothers #aseriousman -
"Todo Sobre Mi Madre" is one of Pedro Almovodvar's great films especially of the 90s. It's a complex drama surrounding a mother dealing with her only son's death and actually doing something about it. She goes into a spiral of events that eventually answers deeper questions of her past lives. It's almost that thing where you can't lead into the future unless you can let go of the past. A great film because it's full of laughs and legitimate drama. Thw riting is excellent because gets sucked in and the cast that highlights it makes you wonder why they haven't been on the big screen. You can see greatness even from the small, local stage.
Four out of four tokes.
#allaboutmymother #pedroalmodovar #filmreview -
"Lamb" or natively "Dýrið", is a crazy folk horror film and there is a twist and a couple of turns. The director did a pretty good job showing us the effectiveness without spoon feeding like American horror films. it's a about a couple who discover a lamb that has features of a human. You have to see it to not only believe it, but to see how it plays out. The ending is unexpected. The way the characters play out the story seems plain but there's a lot of dark pain in it and it slowly unfolds. It's a not a simple and the cinematography backs that up. It may be beautiful in Iceland, but what surrounds it is the scary part. Fogs, mountains and unpaved roads represents the film. It's vast and you can easily get lost with little hope. I dug the screenplay of this film. It's precise as to how the characters operate and slowly develop. We care about them, trying to live a simple farm life but circumstances were not in their favor. Please watch this film, it's available on Prime Video FOR FREE, you will not be disappointed.
Three and a half out of four tokes.
#lamb #lambfilm #noomirapace -
Xavier Guerrero is my guest for this episode reviewing the film "A Summer's Tale" of "A Tale of Smmer"--however you want to pronounce it--is a comedy film by Éric Rohmer. He is a beast in comedy, witty and impactful philosophical writing and direction that seems breathless to the eyes. In this film in particular, it's about a dude who comes with no dilemmas ending into evading a huge one that dealt with three women. Man, what a film. XG and I talk about suspenseful it gets with the different dynamics of each of the women and the intersection of them with the main character, Gaspard. We also talk about how easy and simple the film is in its cinematography and how the characters speak to each other- very natural with constant wit. It's a sparring battle and it's crazy how it carries the film's overall plot. It's just sets up only to get knocked down to the next part of story. It's a good film, great laugh and it's simple. Maybe too simple. it's films like these where you can really take and enjoy for what it is. We both agreed how it does take a while for the film to really get to the excitemenr of the second act. I was amazed as to how XG can get actually frustrated having captions in front of women, especially women in a French coast setting. Oh, X. But that right there tells you what a good job this film did with the casting and these actors owned their characters.
Four out of Four Tokes
XG
http://fullytoxic.com -
"Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire", a fun film with a lame plot where somehow we had to revolve it around an existential crisis from a teenager that I feel doesn't work. I don't mind the film getting to the roots of demons and how it ties into ghosts. That part still barely makes sense but it's better than Phoebe trying to figure herself out. I felt cheated, like it forced us to try to be "woke". I don't mind an existential crisis but it has to tie well with the overall plot and I feel we two different plots going on at the same time and the only people to save it was the OGs that included Bill Murray. The acting is pretty all right in this film especially the dialog but again, the overall film wanes with trying to tie that in, like it doesn't know what it wants to be or rather, it doesn't know where to stick to. It is a family film of sorts that I'm sure can be relatable but when you have a teenage girl talking about death half the time in the film and preferring a state of death/ghost, it disconnects right off the bat. That I can't get behind at all. Shit like that is influential and can cause of wave of people being that open to put themselves in that state of mind. That's a red flag.
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"Lost In Translation" is an iconic film written & directed by Sofia Coppola. It's one of the first films in her career that is very visual with a simple but profound plot where two travelers from America are missing something. One just graduated from college, married and with no clue with what to with life. The other was a famous actor and now does commercials, married but unhappy. He has little clue as to how to move forward with life. They meet and the rest is history. The film touches the idea of social/cultural displacement and the question of what to do with life and how to find meaning of it. There's no crazy action, there are no twists, it's two main characters journeying life and they make it fun. It's a film where Tokyo is a main character in itself, that teaches us to make adpations and find new ways to jumpstart ambition. I review this film with E-Zone. We touch on how personal issues define us, the cinematography showing beautiful Japan, and the writing. The writing is great and these actors nailed the characters highs and lows. The film ultimately shows me that you can make a simple setup and have millions gather around you because you made it very relatable.
E-Zone
http://flavorsbyezone.com
#lostintranslation #sofiacoppola #film -
We all know Zack Snyder and what he's known for. He's definitelty a celebrated filmmaker. Has made numerous superhero films in the DC Comics universe and the iconic "300". But before all that, he re-made "Dawn of the Dead". Now, I didn't compare the two. You really can't, thery're their own films. It's fun to see Tom Savini be a part of the 2004 version. Now, I'm not a big fan of Snyder and "Dawn of the Dead" but it's not a bad film. It's not a great film either. I talk about the casting, how the characters develop as they interact with each other and the situations they go through to trying to escape a mall without being harmed an attracting zombie attention. I do like the moral dilemma that the film faces when it comes to death. It also makes it entertaining because at the most part, it is a action zombie flick. The zombies are pretty legit. I do hate some of the characters. I wish there was a bit more do to with the plot overall instead of the typical "how do we survive the zombie apocalypse"?
Overall,
two and a half out of four tokes
#dawnofthedead #zacksnyder -
Janeen Damian once again directs Lindsey Lohan in the film "Irish Wish", a rom com about an editor who is in love with her boss who is the author of books that get published. Guess what, a fairy godmother of sorts grants Lohan's character's wish to get married with this guy. Then, it's a journey of love dispelling the notion of true love especially when she starts hanging out with this photographer who, guess what, gets her! Who would have thought, right? This is not a good film but it tries really hard. I talk about the strengths of Lohan's acting. I also discuss the screenplay of this film in which I think needs a lot of work and would have made Lohan's character be stronger for the film's overall message. But it wouldn't have mattered because the film gives itself away. It's waay too predictable but like I said in the podcast, this is a major watch due to Lindsey Lohan herself - she looks great, can still deliver a good acting performance, and is likable overall. And of course, I do like the film because it's set in Ireland and they did a good job giving us authentic Irish vibes.
Two and a half out of four tokes.
#irishwish #netflix -
Jonathan Glazer is a trailblazer of a filmmaker. "The Zone of Interest" is another win for him and filmmaking in general. He was able to use sound to highlight the horrors of the holocaust. He chose to not show any kind of violance whatsoever and the sound makes up for. It's a simple story of a family of Nazis who live in a beautiful home RIGHT NEXT TO the Auschwitz concentration camp ran by Rudolf Höss. It focuses mainly on Rudolf Höss and his wife Hedwig, seeing life in their evil lives, living peacfully, almost gracefully with the help of their staff which happen to be Jews. There are no happy endings, only the dissection of how cruel we can be as a people to one another and we don't have to see any deaths. It's through what some of the characters comment and how they are use to the fact that what goes on the next is completely normal to them. It's mind-boggling. It's hard pill to swallow throughout because these folks are living happily with no acknowledgement of the evil they are a part of and sadly, proud of. This film is sort of a meditation piece of cinema. We see dramatized facts unfold of evil and we also see how men can evolve by throwing the very last of human morales. I recommend everyone to see this film. Glazer did a good job getting us up and close to this film by having invasive camera work, attention to detail in almost every shot, and the cast is great. They play their roles convincing. However, the plot is is almost minimalistic.
Three and a half out of four tokes.
#thezoneofinterest #filmreview #morningreel - Montre plus
