Valley of the Queens: Planned Obsolescence (2022) User Reviews

Well Done Kev

[tvetter-60987 · 6/10 · 15 September 2022]

Well done Kevin, I like the creativity and storyline of this film. I thought the parts of this film that I saw were interesting and they kept me engaged while watching. I kept wanting to know what was happening next as suspense would build up. I also like the characters you used in the film. Tronic was the perpetrator as he kept trying to convince Solomon to participate in criminal activity. I could tell Solomon was a good person but I felt that he had no choice as Tronic forced him to go through with the illegal activity. You then brought another character in who I thought made a big difference in this film and Solomons decision making. The lady that came in to talk to Solomon told him to think about his culture and how he was raised. This really helped Solomon see that he was doing wrong which caused him to change his mind. This proved that ethics do relate to communication. I thought you did a good job and I wish we were able to watch the whole film because I wanted to see what happened when Solomon left and Tronic told his men not to stop Solomon.

Ethics

[greenboysaz · 5/10 · 22 September 2022]

Mr. Tronic appeared to be a good business man with a lot of promises, but turned out to be a stingy businessman who would stop at nothing to accomplish his goals of making money. Solomon was a smart man who trusted Mr. Tronic but found that his trust was misplaced when bringing up concerns about a program they were going to push out, which sold user's information and Mr. Tronic said it was there intentionally.

I believe the film did a good job expressing Solomon's feelings in-between learning that Mr. Tronic was a bad person and realizing he didn't have to work for him in order to make a living, instead (after having a conversation) making games on his own to sell.

Gives idea that Businessmen are higher rank and should be treated differently

[cmanintin · 5/10 · 22 September 2022]

I think that the movie shows how businesses nowadays are being run. The highest ranked person gets to boss around all of the lower ranked employees because of the position they are in. They claim that money and power make up everything and that's how you know who is in charge. It symbolizes that no matter what happens in front of everyone, the behind the scenes is where the real business happens and if the boss is hiding things and forcing employees to do things that aren't right, then people like Solomon have the right to stand up for themselves and others even if they aren't being recognized.

It is a shame

[jd-61212 · 1/10 · 22 September 2022]

It is a shame that the characters and interactions in this movie are portrayed as they are. There was very little research or thought put into the movie. No emotion, no thought. Most of the time it is hard to watch because the lack of dignity put into the production. Also, the problem that is presented is quite elementary. There are millions of individuals that would be okay with the problems and situations presented in this movie. To make a movie like this you have to actually understand how business happens in this modern world. The characters have no value to the show. There is no real story, more just a jumble of non-sense.

Solid Plot with Good Lesson

[mikereed-03602 · 4/10 · 22 September 2022]

This film was certainly something that was eye opening. The film did a good job of painting a problem in the business world that is certainly present. Although the lesson that is shown is good and has a lot of value, I do not always think that it was presented in the best way. The music in the background at times was bit tacky and overbearing. I think additionally, the acting in the movie was not of the highest quality and did take away from the initial plot. I only saw a few sections of the film so I cannot actually say as to whether or not this is true for the entirety of the film, but for the parts that I saw it was not top quality acting by any means.

review

[hannahmccullum · 5/10 · 22 September 2022]

Tronic was trying to persuade Solomon into working for him by doing research on his culture and interest. But towards the end of the clips, he began to show that is pursuit had bad intentions then after being visited by an oracle Solomon confronts Tronic and code switches to tell him that what he did was not okay, and he would never ever work for him in any lifetime. At the end he gets told that he can only leave if he signs an NDA and walks away. Tronic also has notice that the power dynamic had switch and he did not like that at all but overall the movie was good and had a decent ending. Five out of ten.

Good film

[kloomis-24382 · 9/10 · 15 September 2022]

This film was very honest about the morals and ethics of greedy businessmen. I think it was interesting to see the interaction between an honest employee and a power hungry boss. The real motive behind the greedy boss was exposed in a gradual way towards the employee which put his morals and values to test. I think this film does a good job showing what it is like when under pressure by someone with power and how to tell right from wrong in these scenarios. The intercultural communication in this film plays a large role as the white greedy businessman hires an African-American employee and takes advantage of him by trying to make him change his values for the outcome of more power and success in the end. Altogether this film shows how some businessmen will do whatever it takes for success and how no matter who they hire, they can easily try to persuade them to go against their morals.

Majority vs Minority

[gkincer-08192 · 5/10 · 15 September 2022]

This shows the manipulation that a majority race would use against a minority race for their own gain.

There are two main characters. Solomon is a black man and Tronic is a white man. Tronic uses manipulation tactics like earning Solomons trust by knowing black history. The he manipulates him by saying he should help steal users data because he will earn more money than his last five generations of ancestors did combined. Solomon decided to stay true to his black community though and this upsets Tronic who says he MUST sign a NDR so people don't find out he is selling their information to other companies without their knowledge.

Valley of the Queens

[camihoops · 10/10 · 15 September 2022]

As a business major and different experience towards many levels within the vast industry, I felt some type of relevance to Tronic as he maybe has the wrong motives that are driven by success and wealth. This is very eye opening as an individual looking to succeed in the business world because although everyone has different ethics its important that you don't lose your personal ethics to the battle of power. I also saw myself in Solomon and would like to be outspoken with my values in the future. It looks like a very slippery slope to look sight of what is important when the world is literally revolving around money but I would rather work with/ and for someone like Solomon as opposed to Tronic.

COM-263 Review

[reaganc-20800 · 5/10 · 15 September 2022]

Personally I enjoyed seeing the beginning snippets of the film in class. It was interesting to see Kevin's film and the different viewpoints of people from different cultural backgrounds. I personally identify with Solomons ethical take, I appreciate how Solomon will not stand for the unlawful sale of minorities information by Tronic. The film presents Tronic and Solomons different viewpoints on the issue of selling the information unethically for money. The theme of corruption in business is ever present within the film. Tronic clearly cares only about himself and the amount of money he is going to make.

Looks interesting

[clivingstonaz · 8/10 · 22 September 2022]

From the short sections we saw in class I would say this movie looks interesting and really gives some insight to intercultural communication. We see how the differing culture between Tronic and Solomon clash and lead to them falling out because Solomon wouldn't go through with the plan, to sell minorities data, as it went against his cultural ethics. This was actually impressive considering the massive financial gain that would've been involved. Also, I learned that when respect is lost between to individuals then the code switching and intercultural respect is lost. Overall, I would probably watch the whole movie.

Learning about intercultural communication and ethics

[sengwall-99491 · 7/10 · 22 September 2022]

I think that there were a lot of ethical communication examples throughout the few short clips we watched. I relate more to Solomon specifically because he was being forced to go against his own values and when Nefertiti appeared, she reminded him of his own ethics and values; an important one being family. It can be intimidating and hard to confront and go against what someone else is saying is right, but Solomon decided to quit because he was not going to go against his own ethics and morals.

There are also great examples of code switching and you can see the change in the relationships between the two from the beginning and the end of the movie.

Review

[lorrainhozan · 3/10 · 22 September 2022]

I didn't watch the whole movie, just a few clips of it. I thought the plot of the movie was interesting, not something I would have thought to watch outside of class. But, I think I may have related to Solomon most in the movie because of his values and the decisions he seemed to have to make. I can see the movie wanted to transmit a couple different cultural and ethical messages, and did a pretty interesting job at doing that. If you watch the movie watch for those messages. There were a lot of different characters who played a role in portraying those messages and who had opinions of their own.

for class

[asanchez-38333 · 4/10 · 22 March 2023]

I did not really enjoy the movie, that being said I do think it did its job and served its intended purpose. I think the acting could've been better and the writing could've been more clever or better written. Tronic is a great example of thew modern world manger or boss. Nowadays most bosses and managers are white male characters. They all carry themselves in the same manner, they are assertive and like to create power distance. Overall, it was not a good movie. It wasn't entertaining to watch or anything of that sort. I like a lot of others only watched it as an assignment. The movie is more of a YouTube than a production film.

Divisive and Unrealistic

[haightmichaela · 5/10 · 15 September 2022]

I thought that the movie was fine for the most part. I did not think that it was a ground-breaking commentary on intercultural communication. I thought that it reinforced stereotypes. The characters were not nuanced. The white guy was rich, racist, and power hungry. The black character was subordinate until he stepped into his cultural power and then he made the right ethical decision that we as an audience, of course, are rooting for. I would have preferred more interactions that felt realistic, not so cartoonish. This type of interaction is of course, still possible, but most people, of any race, will not ever encounter this type of situation in their life. Still there were brief moments that the dialogue did step out of that cartoon and into something else, like when the CEO tried to relate to his black employee by using slang. This happens a lot, although the film seemed to reinforce the idea that this is an okay way to communicate, even though I thought that it enforced cultural stereotypes. I think that having a more, give and take communication style, where both characters are flawed but genuinely trying to learn would have been a more accurate depiction of workplace situations that could have been instructive to a wider audience.

Review

[allisoncg-96004 · 5/10 · 22 September 2022]

Just watching a little bit of the movie kind of confused me about the whole point of the movie. With the little time we watched the movie I was able to identify some examples of code-switching. An example of this is how quickly Salomon changes his emotions towards Tronic. I believe this movie shows a great way of intercultural communication and how it is applied. I can relate the most with Salomon. Coming from a different country and whole different culture relates me to him. When taking decisions morality and ethics should come into play, and I believe that I would've done the same thing Salomon did.

Good Film

[jasonhernandez-77330 · 9/10 · 15 September 2022]

I personally related to Solomons's ethical take. At first, Solomon was convinced by Tronic to work for him since Tronic manipulated Solomon by using what is important to Solomon and telling him about how much money he can make. However, Solomon was able to change his mind after finding out what Tronic was truely planning to do with his work. Solomon will not stand for the sale of minorities' information by Tronic. Tronic's and Solomons's have two very different viewpoints on the issue of selling information unethically for money. The theme of corruption in business is ever-present in the film.

Review

[murkersonj · 3/10 · 22 September 2022]

In the film we see protagonist Solomon go through a moral dilemma as his boss tries to groom him to go against his morals. We can see that Tronic tries to relate to Solomon and give Solomon things that he would not have without working with Tronic. This part of the film is almost cringe worthy because Tronic tries way too hard to get Solomon to do what he wants. As the film continues, we see Solomon is visited by a goddess that helps him to stay true his code of ethics and not fall into the trap that Tronic is setting. In the end Solomon does the right thing. This film is showing watchers to do the right thing and presents good ethical thinking.

review

[chillwill-87461 · 9/10 · 22 September 2022]

I enjoyed the video I think that out gave a good message and gave a good connect with the class. This movie definitely make me think of what I would do in Solomons situation. I think that I would have Mande the same choice Solomon had make. I would definitely say I relate to Solomon the most because of his willingness to improve. I also try to the best I can hoping to improve in some type of way. Solomon is also keeps his family in mind and does a lot to make sure there okay. I try and help out my family as much as I can to make sure there okay as well family is a big part of my life as well as Solomons.

A bit over the top

[callahan-72275 · 5/10 · 22 September 2022]

I really liked the plot in this movie, I watched about 10 minutes of it in class and it seemed very intriguing. It tied well into real world interactions, however I feel like some of the lines were a bit on the nose and over the top. Especially, Tronic who was incredibly direct, sometimes to a fault, and it really through off the pace of the movie for me. I couldn't really get into the scenes that he was present in. I also feel Nefertiti's entrance was incredibly cheesy. I feel the writers could have been a bit more creative in that aspect. Overall, I think these points all contribute to my 5/10 rating.

COM-263 Review

[leightonfeltman · 8/10 · 15 September 2022]

Valley of the Queens: Planned Obsolescence had a very important view of the corruption that occurs within the tech industry. As a Computer Science major, I can relate to Solomon and the level of work that is required to succeed in the tech industry. With the use of technology rapidly expanding by the day it may seem very easy to be successful in the tech industry. However, conflicts with ethical and moral values can quickly get in the way. This was shown with Mr. Tronic's sale of minority data which by itself can conflict with ones ethical values but, as a minority employee it can be even more conflicting.

Creative and Honest film

[rseely-36539 · 7/10 · 15 September 2022]

Overall I enjoyed the movie. I think the film shines light on the truth of the business industry and the correlation to the cultural. I liked the music played in the film, I think it helped bring the movie together and it helped describe the tones of each scene. Although I did find some of their conversation hard to follow because the music was too loud in some scenes. The actors were not bad, I think they pertained their characters well. I would have liked to see more background on Solomon and Nefertiti. I also would have like Tronic to be more intense and gaslighting to enhance the truth about how bosses in the industry really treat their employees.

The Good the Bad and the Tronic

[jacobyyeahquo · 5/10 · 15 September 2022]

Having watched an 11 minute clip I think it is safe to say that this movie is certainly indie. I will get my likes out of the way first. The characterization of Tronic is not on the nose for a business man but instead is just in full force to the point where it is comedic. The actor who plays Tronic sells it well and seems plays the role of sleazy yet uncaring business man who is willing to do whatever it takes like every modern CEO of a major corperation. Thats is all for my likes now it's time to get into the bad. For starters the cinematography from the short clip was atrocious as it kept to the same area and never changed to get more dynamic views. There were noticeable cuts that made it obvious that one of the actors had messed up their lines and even then the final cut they still delivered a bad take. I don't like shoehorned messages in movies and this film is no exception. The message so far from the clip was CEO bad and clean cut minority on the moral high ground. That pretty much sums up all my thoughts on the clip but I will say that Tronic was the most relatable throughout the whole clip because he atleast knew what he wanted and kept his ambitions out there I can respect that.

Review

[csalita · 5/10 · 22 September 2022]

I think that this was really interesting. There is the character named Mr. Tronic and I think that it is obvious to see his mindset and his character's personality in this show. You can see though that the character wants to be liked by people who are out there and up there in the business worlds. It is true for a lot of people and I think this film does a good job portraying that. I only saw a little bit of this film because it was for my communication course so I cannot write a full review on this film. I will definitely go back and watch the rest of this and then come back and respond and make another review.

COM 263 Review

[a-39078 · 4/10 · 22 September 2022]

I most related to Solomon because there are many times when people in power will put you in a moral dilemma. Unfortunately this happens a lot. I also think that people are afraid to stand up to people in power. Many people in power can be corrupt and use their power for bad. These people should be good examples but they don't always live or behave in that way unfortunately. I also relate to when Solomon was reminded of his family's values that they had instilled in him. My family also has strong values that I have also adopted. I admired Solomon for staying true to himself and not compromising what he believed in.