cd637 Reviews

Into the Inferno (2016)

Filled with stunning imagery and insights on underrepresented cultural traditions

[9/10 · 13 March 2017]

Werner Herzog proves again he is a monster of a documentarian. Into the Inferno is filled with stunning imagery and sounds that truly left me awestruck. The substance of the film itself was not quite what I was expecting, but it turned out that that was a good thing. This film goes places you would never really think of, and sheds light on many different cultural connections to volcanoes around the world. It more about people, societies, and culture than it is about science and geology, although there is some of that too. If you are at all interested in volcanoes and how people react and interact with them around the world, this film will pleasantly surprise you.

Lincoln (2012)

Spielberg and DDL at the their best.

[9/10 · 17 November 2012]

Steven Spielberg's Lincoln is an incredible film. It is probably the most subtle and restrained film you will ever see from the director, and all the better for it. It is also probably one of the most brilliantly acted movies of all time. Daniel Day-Lewis as Abraham Lincoln is phenomenal to whiteness. You forget that you are watching an actor, and when the credits roll, you feel as if you just hung out with Lincoln for 2 and half hours. DDL is without a doubt one of the greatest actors of our time. That being said, there is not a performance in this movie that can be faulted.This film features a tremendous supporting cast, who each gets their own moment to shine.

Lincoln is a movie that feels very real and authentic, and is able to engross you in the world and in the lives of the people it portrays. I can understand some people really not liking this movie, because it is not an action piece, but a heavily dialogue driven movie, which some can find extremely boring. There is one, extremely brief battle scene which is followed by dialogue, and dialogue, and more dialogue. But in my opinion, the dialogue in this movie is some of the most beautiful and witted dialogue I have heard in recent memory. The screenplay overall is 'A' solid.

Some may also argue that the ending of the film wasn't handled well, but I think the way Spielberg executed the final moments of the movie was done so in the proper way and was not off-putting from the rest of the movie.

I think the movie falls just short of a masterpiece due to the fact that there were a few moments were the movie felt like it was dragging a bit and a few times where my mind started to wander onto something else while I was watching, but I was always able to quickly latch back on.

But that being said, I think the movie is excellent and one of Spielberg's greatest achievements. I walked out of the theater moved and wanting more.

If you have any interest in film, great acting, or history, Lincoln is a movie for you!

War Horse (2011)

A marvelous little film, but not flawless

[8/10 · 12 April 2012]

It is hard for me to find a Steven Spielberg movie that I don't genuinely like. Going into War Horse I wasn't really expecting to be blown away, but merely expecting to be entertained and garnished off into the masterful artistry of Steven Spielberg. And what I was expecting pretty much came true. I thoroughly enjoyed this movie and consider it to be another one of Spielberg's greats. There were only a few problems I had with the movie, but were easily forgiven. The first problem I had was that the first act of the movie moved a little on the slow side, and seemed to have some trouble creating audience investment through character development. And the second problem I had was that the acting wasn't always top notch, and the script contained some very weak and clichéd dialogue. Another thing that slightly bothered me but wasn't a real problem, was that the French and German characters were all speaking English. I understand why he chose to have everyone speak English but I would have just preferred to hear the true languages spoken. Other than those minor issues, I think the movie is pretty great. Once the war began in the film, it really took off for me and did not let up until the end. I think that Spielberg created some extremely masterful shots and scenes in this film that really stick in the viewer's mind. (ie: the shot of the soldier walking out into no man's land to help Joey). Also, i found the depiction of The Somme to be stunning; it literally left me breathless. As usual, the cinematography in this film was gorgeous, and the score by John Williams was one of his best yet. Overall, War Horse is a great film that has the power to sweep the viewer into the movie and get lost in the wonder of Spielberg's magic.

Lost: Across the Sea (2010) Season 6, Episode 15

A Wonderful Look into the Island's Past

[9/10 · 19 May 2010]

Finally and episode that explains the back story of this island and gives us some insight on Jacob and the Man in Black, but for some reason, no one can stand this episode. I will admit that the first time I saw this episode, I was a bit skeptical about whether or not I enjoyed it. Then I watched it again, and again, and again, and each time I watched it again, I realized that this episode was actually one of the best episodes of the series. This episode did not answer everything and even created more questions but it also gave us what we have been waiting to see, the back story of Jacob and the island. I think the idea of the light in the cave (the source) may have scared some people away, but if you think about it, it all makes sense. The source is life, death, and rebirth and throughout this entire series people have come to the island with illnesses and have been miraculously cured and we always wondered why and how that was. Well I believe the light in that cave is your answer. Also, I loved how this episode showed us how the riff in Jacob and the Man in Black's relationship started and the reason behind the Man in Black's motives. I thought this episode was extremely well acted and thought that Giacchino's score was outstanding. I think that this episode is one that will be more appreciated in time and I hope that people come to their senses and realize just how great this episode actually was. This episode gave us more answers than ever before and it is obvious that the information that we learned will be playing a vital role in the series finale and I cannot wait to see how everything ties together.