Fallenhazel Reviews

Mortal (2020)

We Can't Be Gods Because We Are Too Human

[9/10 · 3 April 2024]

If I had god-like powers, I still couldn't save the world. There's too much damage. Too many broken, lost souls, and some don't even seem to care anymore. And where would you even start? Would anyone want your help? Would they see you as a hero, or as a monster, someone that was just cursed? Maybe, if I had those powers, I would feel the same, hide away from the world, but you can't hide forever. And then the world will find out who you are, and if asked to be saved, would you try? Would you even want to bother, knowing the history of yesterday? Maybe, nobody should have those powers, no matter how much good you might want to do. We are after all human with a beating heart, and it only takes one thing to tear us apart.

Inside of You with Michael Rosenbaum (2018 Podcast Series)

Being Inside Of You

[10/10 · 19 February 2024]

I used to not care if actors and actresses were real people. I just loved their characters, what they brought to those intense and emotional scenes, and the villains... There are so many great villains like Hans Gruber (Die Hard), Eric Qualen (Cliffhanger), Kevin Wendell Crumb and all his split personalities including The Beast (Split), and Ozymandias (Watchmen).

Who are these people behind the characters? Sometimes, you can't tell. Sometimes, there is no actor or actress. There is only the character, but these days, we seem to focus on the person not the character. We want to know about them, and I'm curious myself. I would like to look behind the curtain and see what lies inside.

Michael Rosenbaum opens that door to a room decorated with horror posters, and sometimes, I chuckle. Seen it, seen it, didn't see it. Meanwhile, the actor or actress waits on the couch or screen to speak their truth, their past, their struggles and their passion. There is no character. It's just them.

I have watched many interviews and will watch more. It's not because I want to see the face behind the character. It's because I want to see them. I want to know them, and it is better to see and know them in this raw form than on the screen and pages that the media dishes out because maybe the media doesn't get it right. And there is no connection like a small, private space, where they can breathe and live and express, and we watch, I watch and listen, captivated and inspired.

If Anything Happens I Love You (2020)

If Anything Happens, But So Much Already Has.

[10/10 · 19 February 2024]

When we think about yesterday, we will only remember Covid. We'll forget the pages before that, stories of terror and heartbreak, tragedy, so much tragedy. We won't remember. Maybe, we don't want to remember. We rather better memories, happier times, but when were those times? So many lives have been destroyed. They're still being destroyed, and we're still trying to survive. We are hoping that if we hold on, push ourselves to tomorrow, we'll find those times again, those moments of happiness and love and not despair or tragedy. We have known so much pain, and we do deserve a time, where we are free from it. Maybe, that time is tomorrow, but we must not forget yesterday.

Grab My Hand: A Letter to My Dad (2019)

Gate Check

[10/10 · 19 February 2024]

We walk past the gate every day. Most of us hate the sound it makes behind us. Just another damn day, but we're still here, still moving forward to something. And most of us are not alone. There's always someone standing beside us, and if we can't see them, they're still there, watching over our shoulder. And we move another step forward. Sometimes, we aim high, and sometimes, we just try not to fall. We can't all be superheroes, especially in the world that we live in, but some of us want to do good, help those that need it and defy anyone that tells us to just be silent. Live your lives. Don't make noise, but we can't leave ourselves at the gate because that won't be living.

So, we move another step forward, and we keep on moving until we are out of moves. But we don't want to let go. We can't let go until we know those we loved will be okay once we are gone. They take our hand, and we squeeze back. It's okay to say good-bye, but this is not good-bye. We will see them again when the gate opens one last time.

The Life Before Her Eyes (2007)

I Want To Live A Lifetime

[10/10 · 16 June 2023]

The door swings back and forth, and past and future meet, then disappear as present slumps against the wall, tired of living the normal life, but I want to live any life, yesterday or tomorrow. The door swings back and forth again, and he enters the room. My fate falls with each step he takes. If only I could dive beneath the water flowing around my feet and just disappear. I want to be somewhere, anywhere. Just not here, anywhere but here, and the door swings back and forth again. One last time. He tells me to make my choice, or he would decide for me. Do I live, or do I die? And tomorrow meets yesterday.

The Whale (2022)

If Only We Could Do One Good Thing With Our Life

[10/10 · 28 February 2023]

The weight of Death presses down on us, every day, making it harder to carry forward, but we struggle to breathe, to live. We have to hope, hope that despite the mistakes that we have made, we did something right. At least, one thing. Please, tell me that I did one thing right. I could make a very long list of the terrible things I have done, and those things have torn me apart, inside and out. I can't forget them for they are shadows inside my mind, scabs on my skin. You might not see my pain, but it's there, wearing my face. Still, I force a smile, but Death doesn't move an inch. It remains. My time is slipping. There's no more good that I can do now. No escape. I just live between memories, faded photographs. Please, tell me that I did something right. It would warm my heart like a sun over the ocean. If only I could bury my toes in sand and dream, dream of a better life than this, and somewhere in the distance, she reads to me, her last words. And maybe, maybe this sensation is no more pain but finally, peace.

Covid Diaries NYC (2021)

Listen To Their Stories Told

[10/10 · 12 February 2023]

They could tell us a million stories. They could paint their lives across the screen, and they could open the door for us to come inside. But we hesitate, debating if we should. Maybe, it's because we are too comfortable between our own walls, living our lives, and battling our wars, trying to survive, trying to decipher truth from fiction because we are bombarded with non-stop information. And we want the truth. We want to survive. We just forget that we are not alone. Maybe, we should hear their stories, see their lives outside our walls, and remember that what we need right now is for us not to be divided or be selfish. We just have to listen.

Burn (I) (2012)

It's Not The Fire I Fear

[10/10 · 5 December 2022]

It is not the heat pressing against the door, telling us to turn back, do not come closer anymore. It's not the flames reaching for me as it takes and takes, leaving debris where a home used to be, and they wait outside, watching us go in, worried about what they will do next as our fire fight begins.

And the cameras are flashing, the mics are on, but the fire is thrashing, a wild beast refusing defeat as we battle and battle, blackened ash covering our feet. And then it all goes silent as we exit outside, shaking off another round of violence, knowing another fire will rise. It's not the fire I fear. It's fear our struggle won't break, but we will still remain here. But there's only so much that we could take.

Five Days at Memorial (2022)

Nobody Knows You, Misery

[10/10 · 17 November 2022]

Nobody knows you, Misery.

But me. But her. But you.

Nobody knows you, Misery.

But me. But him. But you.

Our eyes are stained with your windows, darkness, shadow.

Our hands are torn and red, grasping, praying.

Our mouths are dry from words left vacant.

Our hearts are sliced and broken.

We have seen you, Misery, the real you, the one that comes after destruction, the one that knows true tragedy, and when you leave, Misery, you try to take us with you.

But not all of us go.

We stay behind, our eyes still stained, our hands broken, our mouths refusing to taste hope, and our hearts now carrying ghosts.

We carry you.

We pull you along as we try to live again, and people talk of misery.

But they don't know you.

They don't know the real you.

Nobody knows you, Misery.

But me. But them. And of course, you.

The Time Traveler's Wife (2022)

Nothing Left To Say When Yesterday Becomes Today

[10/10 · 16 July 2022]

You can't change the past, no matter how hard you try. You're just stuck on repeat, playing the greatest hits, or more like tragic moments that you wish you could escape. But can't. You're pulled back into then, leaving today behind, only to be spit out after being chewed up, dropped and beaten, scrambling for safety, hoping to land in a clearing, where she waits, and you watch her grow up, the love of your life, failing to recognize it when you first meet her. But she knows you, the real you, the one you refuse to see, blinded by all that damage and scars, the anger and self-destruction, the abyss that could swallow you whole, if you allow it. But she's the anchor, and instead of falling back, she pulls you forward. And you're still failing her.

Maybe, it's time to let go. Just accept it, but you'll fight it because that's who you are. And once you two meet, it doesn't matter what happens next.

You know the ending to this story, and her crying echoes in the distance.

But you still don't let go. How could you, why would you, knowing that when you are finally gone, your travel at its last journey, something will remain behind, something that yesterday can't break, and it's more than love. It's more than time. It's life, yours and hers, together, forever. So, there is nothing left to say when yesterday becomes today.

Clerk (2021)

We All Need To Reach High

[10/10 · 8 January 2022]

In a world where the stage lights have dimmed and we are too afraid to even sit back down in seats now covered in shadow, and the fans over our head decline to carry voices once lifting, soothing, we're fading into the background. But there remains a silver lining waiting to be seen, a reminder of what was, struggles and triumphs. Whether we stand or sit, it doesn't matter. We just need to listen to his story and feel his inspiration.

Because when we pass through this period of pandemic, and it will be another chapter to belong to history, we can either remain in the background or peel ourselves away from the walls to make our dreams real.

Showrunners: The Art of Running a TV Show (2014)

A Journey Across The Screen

[10/10 · 22 December 2021]

I've heard the term, Showrunners, but I honestly didn't know what that meant. I've seen some tv shows suffer when a Showrunner leaves, so I get the idea that it's someone equivalent to a captain steering a ship. And of course, the captain has their mates helping to keep the ship in order, so it doesn't sink. And the journeys they shall go on, some legends to be told for years and years afterward. Speaking of journeys, this documentary guides you along a well-know sea with stars shinning above, leaving you drifting afterward, wondering if this is a path that you might take.

Prodigal Son (2019–2021)

Where's the love?

[10/10 · 22 May 2021]

I love the dark and gritty.

Malcolm Bright Whitly.

A character never seen before.

Making us crave so much more.

Taking us on a journey with the girl in the box.

His life, his family, a cruise line striking rocks.

Caught in such a web of lies and despair, but through the darkness, his heart would always still be there, beating against the chains that would hold him down.

Constantly under, but he would not drown.

His mind would breach what could not be seen, a brilliance carved by a vicious gleam, The Surgeon's touch.

His father taught him so much.

Always in his head, his secrets unable to shed, but Malcolm has got his own, resigned to stay alone despite the love over his shoulder.

If only he could hold her, but such is the life of the Prodigal Son.

Even Cancellation cannot silence a story far from done.

Songbird (II) (2020)

Love Conquers All

[10/10 · 21 March 2021]

Battle lines have been drawn across the human heart, shaken to its core and left broken apart. It can't be stitched back together for no touch is allowed. Instead, fear pours in, drowning and overflowing. It never ends, and death is a breath closer. But somewhere in the dark, hope, strength beats against despair, and slowly, the pieces come back together, defiant against virus. The pieces hold like solid walls, lending their support until the beats become more in sync, in harmony, and chaos fails to bring it down because the human heart is beating now. And even in the face of so much devastation and uncertainty, the songbird has found its song, and the heart answers its call. The battle lines have been silenced by what it could never silence, Love.

Predestination (I) (2014)

We Are Our Own Paradox

[10/10 · 10 January 2021]

What if we are the paradox of ourselves, continuously bound to repeat the same damn mistakes that will pave the road cemented to our feet, and around and around we shall still go, never realizing we are puppet to our own strings. And if giving the chance to cut ourselves free, we tell ourselves that this time will be different, the vicious cycle broken, only to walk in the same shoes again.

Summer of 84 (2018)

Our Faces Are Not Real

[10/10 · 10 January 2021]

Discovery is the blade to peel the flesh away, and the face falls down. The monster is revealed. Its grin menacing. Its target in sight, and innocence dragged off, painting their face in fear. Death is but an inch away, but the monster thinks otherwise. Instead, he molds his skin, portrays the innocent man and leaves his prey to the darkest thought that one day, he would return for him. All because they saw his true face, and no more would the innocent ride their bikes, chase their friends around, or think of the girl next door because the only memory left now is the horror-stained Summer of 84, a haunt of Stranger Things and Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark with a bite of Halloween (1978).

Miracle on 42nd Street (2017)

Give Them a Home, They Will Give Us The Stars

[10/10 · 27 July 2020]

History's pages are filled with dark times, and we have been broken many times. We are being tested now. Would humanity hold? Would community fail? We are looking up to the stars for hope, but a lot of stars have gone out. I fear that we are slipping. The cracks in the pavement are widening. We could fall through at any moment, and no one will catch us. We need hope, and for hope to survive, the stars have to shine. We need the dream makers, and those artists need a home, where they could thrive.

Welcome to Marwen (2018)

We Might Be Destroyed, But We're Not Finished

[10/10 · 13 May 2020]

We all have scars. Some more than others, and some of us can't sleep at night. Too many nightmares. Maybe, it would be best not to remember, but then we lose a part of ourselves. We struggle to fill the void even with simplistic things, but a little goes a long way like a small, thin thread slowly being pulled back into a fabric that was torn apart.

Cosmos (I) (2019)

Never Stop Chasing Stars

[10/10 · 18 February 2020]

We all chase a dream, but what if that dream finds us? Do we panic and say that it is not real, or do we embrace something that would change the world? Time is against us, and we don't have the luxury of choice. The dream is slipping into static, and we're switching stations, wondering if we lost it for good. But there it is again, and the dream knows your name. Do you answer the call, the pulse calling from a thousand stars away, but move fast before circuits are fried, the battery dead because if you run on speed and hope and discovery, that dream will ignite into a blaze of glory to flood the horizon and echo across satellites. The mundane of life will become nothing but a dream.

I Still See You (2018)

We All Live With Ghosts

[10/10 · 11 November 2019]

We all live with ghosts, fragments of our past that haunt our tomorrows, but what if we weren't the only ones haunted? What if ghosts walked among us, doomed to repeat endless moments of their life, maybe their last moments? Would we remain bystanders, believing that we were safe from harm, right until we find ourselves confronted by a killer? Would we run or still believe that they could do no harm, but time is on their side. And the cold hands of death are reaching for the throat, ready to pull us down into that cracked open abyss, and we are drowning in-between. The only way out is through, through the cold and the darkness, letting go of the fragments of our past, so we could live another tomorrow.

Alita: Battle Angel (2019)

A Magnificent Blend of Science-Fiction

[10/10 · 4 August 2019]

What do you get when you take Blade Runner and add Avatar plus a little Ghost in the Shell, and you shake it all up? The answer is Alita: Battle Angel, a wild rollercoaster ride that will take you to breathtaking new heights and then drop and roll you into the arms of tragedy that might make you want to slip. But you hang tight, so that those watching behind the eyes can see the strength that lies inside. And any enemy that dares to stand in your way will hear your battle cry.

Dark Matter (2015–2017)

We Could All Use a little Dark Matter

[10/10 · 6 May 2019]

A void has been growing across the distance, chasing after the legends of Star Trek and Star Wars. It has found its silence in Stargate, Killjoys, Farscape, and Travelers, but the void is yawning open, ready to devour those still reaching for the stars. And we are plummeting until we grasped onto the Dark Matter that ignited into a new universe, and we fell hard for the anti-heroes, who struggled to know themselves and chase after formidable adversaries. And we chased with them, killing the void with our own hunger to know more, but we were silenced by the axe of cancellation, left adrift across the event horizon, an echo of their greatest tale yet and leaving us to dream beyond the absence of Science-Fiction.

Clara (III) (2018)

The Universe is Playing Their Song.

[10/10 · 6 May 2019]

We spend our lives adrift, but we hardly notice being lost. Instead, we set our sights on the furthest star, and we throw ourselves against the wall because we have to believe that something better waits on the other side. Or maybe it is all random, and we are nothing but particles, dust. Our lives ebb and flow in so many alternate ways, and loss cuts us deep. And we're disconnected, never realizing that the strangers who find us are leading the way back to shore. Their stories are fragments, little rocks to fall into the holes that have eaten away at us, and their foundation builds us back up and returns our hope. And we regain our footing, only to slip once more across the jagged edge of tragedy, but instead of falling do we cling to their words, their vision. And we see what they see, and no longer are we adrift but anchored to them. And we move forward, throwing the past to the waves and saying good-bye, never expecting an answer back, but somewhere in the distance, the universe is playing our song. The violin is resting against the strings of the movie, Clara, and we are still reaching for the stars.

An Interview with God (2018)

If our lives have reached the end of their story, what would you do?

[10/10 · 18 November 2018]

What if you were walking through the park one day? The sun's shining. People are jogging nearby. Some old men are playing Chess. Then, you stop walking and turn to see this man sitting there, staring at you. It's like he was waiting for you, and for some reason, you move toward him, sit down on the opposite side of the Chess table. And he seemed like any other person, just another human, but what if he wasn't? What if he revealed from the beginning who he really was? Would you still listen? Some of us have seen terrible things, things that will change us, whether we admit it to ourselves or not, and those terrible things can derail us. It can shake our foundation, crack it open, and if not careful, we could be swallowed up by the abyss beneath it. Others just stumble over the cracks, trying not to fall, but when they fall, is there anyone really there to catch them? What if he appears out of the blue, willing to give answers to questions constantly asked? Would we believe him, or would we call him a Prince of lies? How could we wrap our mortal minds around the conversations with him, and why would he come to us? What would make us different, or is it because we have reached our end? If our lives have reached the end of their story, what would you do? What would you do with the answers that he had given? Would you throw them away, or would you share them? Would you help others, try to erase the bad that had fell upon them? Would you chase after love and hold onto it as long as you could? We never want to know when it's over, but we can't live forever. And time is a precious thing, sands in an hourglass that are counting down to that last grain, and when that last grain falls, that's it. But we are not gone yet, so what would you do if you had an Interview with God?

Sherlock (2010–2017)

A Journey to Never End

[10/10 · 13 August 2018]

As a child, we are captivated by the storytellers of Tolkien, Doyle, Poe and Shakespeare, dreaming of walking in the footsteps of unforgotten characters and living their adventures, tracing the intricate webs of their definition and closing our eyes in hopes of seeing them step away from the page and out into the silver screen. And we recognize the actors that hold them before us, but we do not see the actors. Through devotion and brilliance do the characters thrive instead, and no longer children do we still remain captivated, binging on every story right up to the end. But the journey will never end nor the characters we've known for so long or love dearly. We can always revisit them again.