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Reviews
Swarm (2023)
Trash. Worst thing I've ever seen. Slow. Boring.
I saw this at the SXSW premiere at the Paramount Theater in Austin. It was truly one of the worst things I've ever seen in my life. It was vulgar, boring, slow, unlikable, badly acted, and badly written. Every character was unlikable, especially the lead. It felt like a bad student film that had nice cinematography... it has "shock value" that's not shocking and just trying hard to be provocative without any substance.
It's making some strange statement on masculinity that's exactly the opposite of what the culture needs right now. This is elevating the worst elements and impulses of contemporary culture and validating them. Cannot understand how this got made with intelligent people behind it. Truly a let down. I'm sad I had to sit through it on the first day of SXSW.
Street Flame (2019)
Lovely and Authentic
This is a sensitive portrayal of young people and community with dreamy visuals. The voices of young men reflect on friendship and mortality. Life and Death. Memory and Legacy. This is a wonderful short film with authentic actors and heartfelt characters, showcasing the power of friendships. The visuals are striking and give a real mood with vibrancy. It reminded me of a Sofia Coppola or Gus Van Sant film. I really loved the scene at the bonfire, where the group of kids is together building a fire. It felt like something I did when I was younger with my friends, watching a fire being built and hanging around the fire, the light flickering and the smoke. Like the night would never end. This brought me back...
The Mandalorian (2019)
Gina Carano is the best
Gina is the best part of the show. I watch for her.
Burning Cane (2019)
Another slow boring film that gets rave reviews?
Slow and boring...dark and depressing...cynical and on the nose...style over substance...sleep inducing
Honey Boy (2019)
Good acting in an incoherent film
There were some great performances from Shia LaBeouf and Noah Jupe and powerful moments between these characters as father and son.
Unfortunately, the film suffers from not having a clear story. There was no plot, suspense, or structure. This isn't inherently a bad thing if ALL the scenes are strong, but the weaker scenes were boring and never moved the story forward(particularly the scenes with Lucas Hedges in rehab).
The film read as a bit incoherent, messy, and indulgent. If you're curious about Shia LaBeouf, you'll love the movie.
The sad thing is that I love Alma Harel's prior documentary films, which have a magical quality this film totally lacked. The cinematography was also unimpressive. The film relies on a dreamy quality that isn't captured well.
All in all, a disappointing film.
Waves (2019)
Another A24 Frat Boy Film
Imagine if a white boy from the suburbs who listened to hip hop all his life made a film about a black family, tackling the opioid crisis and toxic masculinity. Waves is a sappy sentimental on-the-nose film with so much flash, intensity, loudness and color that it distracts from it's obviousness. It's otherwise earnest Christian-religiosity is masked by this white boy's attempt to prove he's not just making Christian propaganda- his frat boy tendencies ensure he will show a lot of glamorous partying, sex, drugs, pro-abortion views, and violence all set against an assaultingly loud score and contemporary music.
This film uses sound to manipulate the viewers into having an immersive and intense experience, which is fine, except that the film thinks it's a lot deeper than it actually is. If only big themes like Love and Forgiveness could be so easily depicted....
I commend the films flashy cinematography full of tracking shots, 360 pans, changing aspect ratios, and neon lights-yet it's flash also eliminates any sense of naturalism or raw grit, making you all to aware of the film's contrived artifice.
The film, like The Place Beyond the Pines before it, changes protagonists midway unsuccessfully. The 2nd half of the film tries to prove the film isn't just a frat boy film by spotlighting the younger sister's experience. However, the filmmaker fails to authentically capture a young woman's true inner experience-he's only able to show her character through a romantic relationship she has with a young awkward white boy (the frat boy listening to hip hop in the suburbs). The director probably finds himself in this white boy character, who is more drawn out emotionally than the younger sister.
I'm sick of white boys who claim influence from Paul Thomas Anderson and Scorsese making films with the same old flashy obviousness. Somehow this film felt like an amalgam of so many hot pop culture trends and NOT fresh in the slightest.
Can A24 please STOP making frat boy movies directed by generic white men??
Flower (2017)
Sexist/Misogynistic junk written by wishful males
Terrible film about a pretty girl who falls in love with her fat ugly half-brother. Uhhh yeah, only in movies written and made by wishful men! Pathetic plot with unbelievable characters who felt like caricatures.