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The Shift (2023)
Not Exactly What I Thought It Would Be, But Still Terrific!
I went into this picture with a very definite idea of what I expected this to be, but it turned out it was quite a bit different. That doesn't mean it was bad, it was great and I would recommend this film to anyone. Rather than risk having any of my incorrect expectations categorized as "spoilers," I'll just let anyone else who has not seen this yet go in with their own postulations and either be surprised, amazed, or disappointed.
Neal McDonough is outstanding. In fact, I would've liked to have seen more interaction from his character in the story. Also, there were some elements that appeared in the previews/advertisements that were clipped from the movie. I saw more than a few reviewers who stated they were somewhat confused by the film - they certainly could have fleshed out the story more to eliminate that. I think I read that they were concerned about the total running time of the movie, but I would rather have clarity over an arbitrary time constraint.
Without question, I would highly recommend this movie.
A Christmas Carol (2019)
Considering it on its own, it's OK
I just saw this listed on "Fox Movies" tonight and thought I'd give it a shot. In a nutshell, if you judge this movie all by itself and do not try to compare it to other versions, it's OK. If you view it while trying to hold it up to say the 1951 version with Alastair Sim, you'll be very disappointed.
Be advised, the writer of this screenplay used the Charles Dickens story as a sort of framework for this movie, NOT as a blueprint. There are several alterations to the story, I suppose to make it more contemporary with the moral challenges society faces today - they just don't really fit very well if you're trying to sell it as events taking place in England of the 1800s. Additionally, the story development they do try to pursue is simplistic without any real quality to it.
The changes in the story are tolerable up until the last half hour when they seem rushed to cram everything in to tie-up all the loose ends - that part along with the final resolution was when the film lost me and dropped down to a 5-star effort in my opinion.
The Master (2012)
Disappointing
In a nutshell, Joaquin Phoenix is the entire entertainment value in this movie. His character development is outstanding! I also thought, what I'll call "the psychology," of the film is well done. (Exploring the psychology of cult recruitment and a believable examination of a drifter's mind.) But, as I've read with other reviewers here, the movie itself is disappointing. With a terrific cast and a provocative subject matter, the story could've been so much more, but isn't. The promotions make it seem like it's going to not only be a character study, but also a look at the shady underpinnings of a cult.....it does with Phoenix' character, but is lacking in every other area.
So, 4 out of 4 stars for Phoenix, 2 out of 4 stars for the movie as a whole.
The Return of Peter Grimm (1935)
VERY Slow Moving Story
This movie was recently on "Turner Movie Classics." Seeing the cable guide write-up and the fact that Lionel Barrymore was the headliner had me looking forward to this film, but I was really disappointed.
I have to admit, of a listed 83-minute film, I finally snapped it off with about 45 minutes to go. I'm all for setting the scene, developing characters, etc., but enough was enough. There were a couple of chuckles in the part I saw leading up to the death of the character Peter Grimm and I knew it would probably get funnier with the appearance of his ghost, but I just gave up. I got to roughly 5 minutes after his death and that was it.
The entire first half was tedious character/storyline development which was WAY too much! They could've accomplished everything they wanted to do in about 15 minutes and then spent the roughly 70 remaining minutes on the humor, fantasy, and fun.
Perhaps someday I'll sit down and watch the rest of this movie, but, for what it's worth, I didn't care too much for what I saw.
The Badge of Marshal Brennan (1957)
Surprisingly disappointing
I noticed this movie tonight when I had trouble sleeping, listed on "Movieplex"for 2:15 a.m.. The cable guide gave it 2 stars (out of four possible), so I gave it a shot.
I just could not believe how horrible the dialogue, score, and much of the acting was. Jim Davis and Lee Van Cleef (both very young in this) are, quite naturally, solid in their performances. The rest, however, are questionable at best in their abilities.
Also, the "Indian" is just comes off as he is.....a white guy with heavy make-up playing an Indian. And the "hispanic", "Fillipe", comes off as a white guy trying to play a hispanic with a labored accent that comes and goes.
The music behind the film was usually inappropriate to the scene (dramatic scenes should have dramatic music) and should not be as overbearing as this score is.
All of these factors make the entire film rather comic, instead of dramatic. And as most people know, there's nothing better sometimes than sitting up at 3 a.m. laughing at a hacked-up, third-rate movie that tries to be serious.
I gave this pictures 2 stars because I thought the story was promising and could've really been something. Unfortunately, they never really flesh out the plot and there's no real depth behind the characters. For whatever reason, they seem to rush into the action without letting the story build into it.