Many adaptations of Frank Herbert's epic have come, but none compare to the likes of Denis Villeneuve's star-studded blockbuster hit. The film covers the first two parts of the first book and serves as a part 1 worthy of a sequel. The film is an action film, but primarily it tells a story and introduces the world of Dune to audiences helping to set up a future in the series. The film is very similar to Star Wars and The Lord of the Rings. The way it introduces the characters, story, and action, yet the filmdoes not achieve the same level of excellence. The film's cinematography is excellent. The shots are some of the greatest and most beautiful of the year. Like previous films by Villeneuve like Blade Runner 2049, Arrival, and Sicario, the cinematography is Oscar-worthy. While Villeneuve takes a different approach with hiring a new cinematographer and not longtime collaborator Roger Deakins, the film still maintains its visual glory in the beautiful landscape of Arrakis. The cinematography uses lots of shadows and grain to showcase all the dust that you see on Arrakis. The cinematography is very similar to Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. The overall design for the atmosphere surrounding the film's action represents the film very well, and the cinematography captures it amazingly. The costume design is excellent, especially with the still suits from the novel to the big screen. The score is composed by the great Hans Zimmer who's previous composing credits include Inception, Gladiator, and The Dark Knight. The overall sound of the score represents the film's atmosphere throughout. At the beginning of the film, on Caladan, the score is softer and more orchestral, slowly rising to the rest of the film. On Arrakis, the score has more Arabic elements and percussion. Being a passion project for composer Hans Zimmer, you can hear the emotion and dedication put into the scene in the score, which ultimately ends up being a good decision for the film. The overall score is powerful in keeping the film's emotion. The film seems to flow by and makes the two-and-a-half-hour runtime seem less. That helps dramatically with the story and makes it more enjoyable. The movie removes the voiceovers representing the inner thoughts of characters, a change from the classic novel. Another cut of the film is a story from the book that shows Duke Leto increasingly portraying distrust against Lady Jessica, leading Thufir Hawat to believe that Lady Jessica was the traitor. The film only covers half of the book, which allows it to feature more and go more into detail for the novel, something that the 1984 adaptation could not do. The writing is good, with help from the book using many iconic lines like "Where the fear has gone, there will be nothing. Only I will remain." The film starts by giving background information on the situation on Arrakis, setting up the rest of the film, and is very effective in helping introduce the story to those who may not be familiar with it. The writing overall helps prevent pacing problems that many films similar to it fail. The performances in the film are good. Lady Jessica gets a better representation than previously, keeping Rebecca Ferguson among one of the film's best performances. Timothee Chalamet shines in the scene where he must pass the Bene Gesserittest; if he withdraws his hand from the box, he dies. Many people may be surprised to find out that Zendaya's character
Chani does not appear for a long time in the film because she was a big part of the film's promotion; in the book, the character is introduced only more than halfway through the book. Dune is available to watch in theaters and on HBO Max. The film proves itself to be very similar to the likes of Star Wars. The cinematography of Dune is excellent and reminds us of what cinema is, not a genre or an award, but an experience and what audiences take from it after the credits roll. The film incorporates many Arabic and Medieval influences into its overall design, and alongside the score, it does a great job representing the book. I would give this movie an 8.5/10, a must-watch for fans of the Star Wars saga and The Lord of the Rings trilogy.
Reviews
5 Reviews
The Little Things
(2021)
The Little Things Review
2 February 2021
While The Little Things may not be anything of much memoria, it still has a substantially good amount of worth as a piece of psychologically thrilling entertainment. The film shares much of its familiarity with the 1995 movie Se7en. Directed by John Lee Hancock, The Little Things follows two cops, Joe Deacon (Denzel Washington), a cop haunted by his past and cases he could not solve, and Jim Baxter (Rami Malek) as they investigate a chain of murders in 1990's Los Angeles and increasingly fixate their attention on Albert Sparma (Jared Leto) a suspect who seems to enjoy their attention. It's only by around the end of the first hour that Jared Leto's character Albert Sparma is brought into the picture. Throughout the runtime, the film insists that it's the little things that are important and conveys a theme that everybody has skeletons in their closet. The opening credits of the movie also introduces a new Warner Bros logo animation.
The performances in the movie are nothing too memorable but are still good. With a cast led by notable Academy Award winners Denzel Washington, Rami Malek, and Jared Leto. The performances are supported by the script written by John Lee Hancock. The story of the movie is good and with turns at almost every corner it is another area in which the film has success. Although at its loss, the story leaves some areas of the film concealed from the audience. The Little Things will leave you at the edge of your seat in the film's most thrilling parts. The ending shifts from audience expectations and into a different structure than other films of the same genre and type.
The score of the film composed by Thomas Newman is great and however does not assist in giving much of a thrilling aspect alongside the film's already existent thrill that is primarily occurrent in the opening and the ending. At the end of the movie, the score does assist with the thrill shown on screen. The lighting helps to set the ambiance of the film's 1990's Los Angeles setting with many dim and dark lights. These elements keep the tone fitting for the genre of a Drama, Crime, Thriller film.
Overall, The story of the film explores many areas of the film and to its loss, leaves many areas of the film undisclosed. The score is great but does not give much in terms of a thrill. The performances in the film are also good, but they are nothing too special or memorable. These elements help to keep the thrilling storytelling and entertainment aspect of the movie at a somewhat large quality, there is nothing that is of amazing quality. I would rate this movie a 7.5/10. The Little Things is available to watch on HBO Max with a subscription from January 29th to February 28th and is also available to watch in theaters.
The performances in the movie are nothing too memorable but are still good. With a cast led by notable Academy Award winners Denzel Washington, Rami Malek, and Jared Leto. The performances are supported by the script written by John Lee Hancock. The story of the movie is good and with turns at almost every corner it is another area in which the film has success. Although at its loss, the story leaves some areas of the film concealed from the audience. The Little Things will leave you at the edge of your seat in the film's most thrilling parts. The ending shifts from audience expectations and into a different structure than other films of the same genre and type.
The score of the film composed by Thomas Newman is great and however does not assist in giving much of a thrilling aspect alongside the film's already existent thrill that is primarily occurrent in the opening and the ending. At the end of the movie, the score does assist with the thrill shown on screen. The lighting helps to set the ambiance of the film's 1990's Los Angeles setting with many dim and dark lights. These elements keep the tone fitting for the genre of a Drama, Crime, Thriller film.
Overall, The story of the film explores many areas of the film and to its loss, leaves many areas of the film undisclosed. The score is great but does not give much in terms of a thrill. The performances in the film are also good, but they are nothing too special or memorable. These elements help to keep the thrilling storytelling and entertainment aspect of the movie at a somewhat large quality, there is nothing that is of amazing quality. I would rate this movie a 7.5/10. The Little Things is available to watch on HBO Max with a subscription from January 29th to February 28th and is also available to watch in theaters.
Soul
(2020)
Pixar Strikes Again
19 January 2021
Pixar has struck again with yet another masterpiece, this time with the new movie "Soul". It is easily one of the year's best films for many reasons that include its excellent animation and its story. "Soul" follows Joe, a middle school music teacher who has lost his passion for music. He is transported out of his body and must find his way back from the Great Before rebranded as the You Seminar with 22, a soul learning about themself. The themes in this film of finding out what life is about are brought into animation with amazing storytelling that results in success.
Directors Kemp Powers and Pete Docter has brought many magical stories to the world of Pixar, including "Up", "Inside Out", and "Monsters, Inc.". "Soul" is no different. The only cons in this movie are just little things. The movie also has many fun parts that sometimes counter the emotion. The directors of the film brought this story to life with amazing animation and great voice acting performances by Jamie Foxx as Joe and Tina Fey as 22. They capture the essence of the characters with many emotional elements alongside many fun elements that are sure to keep most viewers laughing from time to time.
The animation in this film, along with the character models that are used, are great, and the background settings of New York City and the You Seminar (a place where souls find their spark before going to Earth) are amazing and fit right into the theme of the film with the use of color. The themes of jazz used in the movie fit perfectly with the animation and the end result is magical. Throughout the film the animation is excellent, and it is also a constant reminder of the difference that has been made by the evolution of animation throughout the years.
The music in this film captures the many elements of jazz and matches alongside the visual elements of jazz shown on screen. The film includes jazz compositions by Jon Batiste, and an original score by Trent Reznor and Atticus Rose that deliver both down to earth elements and themes of music, along with out of this world elements of music in the score that all together have powerful emotion.
Overall, the movie is amazing, with fantastic animation, great voice acting performances that capture the essence of the characters, powerfully emotional musical elements, and a story that lives up to the powerful and amazing storytelling that Pixar always delivers. The rating that I would give "Soul" is a 9/10 and I would highly recommend this movie for people to watch. "Soul" is available to watch on Disney+ or in limited theaters.
Directors Kemp Powers and Pete Docter has brought many magical stories to the world of Pixar, including "Up", "Inside Out", and "Monsters, Inc.". "Soul" is no different. The only cons in this movie are just little things. The movie also has many fun parts that sometimes counter the emotion. The directors of the film brought this story to life with amazing animation and great voice acting performances by Jamie Foxx as Joe and Tina Fey as 22. They capture the essence of the characters with many emotional elements alongside many fun elements that are sure to keep most viewers laughing from time to time.
The animation in this film, along with the character models that are used, are great, and the background settings of New York City and the You Seminar (a place where souls find their spark before going to Earth) are amazing and fit right into the theme of the film with the use of color. The themes of jazz used in the movie fit perfectly with the animation and the end result is magical. Throughout the film the animation is excellent, and it is also a constant reminder of the difference that has been made by the evolution of animation throughout the years.
The music in this film captures the many elements of jazz and matches alongside the visual elements of jazz shown on screen. The film includes jazz compositions by Jon Batiste, and an original score by Trent Reznor and Atticus Rose that deliver both down to earth elements and themes of music, along with out of this world elements of music in the score that all together have powerful emotion.
Overall, the movie is amazing, with fantastic animation, great voice acting performances that capture the essence of the characters, powerfully emotional musical elements, and a story that lives up to the powerful and amazing storytelling that Pixar always delivers. The rating that I would give "Soul" is a 9/10 and I would highly recommend this movie for people to watch. "Soul" is available to watch on Disney+ or in limited theaters.
Palm Springs
(2020)
A New Take On Groundhog Day
16 July 2020
Palm Springs is "One of those infinite time-loop situations you might have heard about". Palm Springs is a Rom-Com about Nyles (Andy Samberg) and Sarah (Cristin Milioti) two wedding guests stuck in a time-loop forced to relive the same day over and over again. Samberg and Milioti are great together as Nyles and Sarah. The CGI may not have been great, but that didn't take away from the many laughs I had during the movie. Palm Springs is a great movie, and if you haven't yet watched it, watch it.
Scoob!
(2020)
The Good, The Bad, and the Scooby
18 May 2020
Scoob, the First Entry in the Hanna-Barbera Cinematic Universe is out and it's Scooby Dooby Great! The Animation in this movie is beautiful. The style of the animation looks modern with vibrant colors and stunning settings and my favorite, Mystery Machine. I think the animation is best on the Mystery Machine because it makes the Mystery Machine look beautiful. The feel of the movie is very upbeat and fun. The beginning of Scoob! stayed true to the original premise but the ending did not stay as true to the original because they fight the real supernatural not a human pretending to be a monster. The Casting of this movie is excellent, Jason Issacs did a great Dick Dastardly, and Ken Jeong is amazing as Dynomutt and his dialogue is amazing. It was fun seeing him do a serious character for a change. One of my favorite scenes in the movie is at the beginning on Halloween when they solve their first mystery after meeting each other and my second favorite scene in the movie is at the end when they fight Cerberus. The theme of this movie is Friendship, an important thing right now because it is something everyone needs to get through these trying times. Throughout the movie, we see other characters from the Hanna-Barbera Cinematic Universe like Dick Dastardly and Muttley, Captain Caveman, and during the end credits, we see Atom Ant, The Great Grape Ape, Jabberjaw, Dr. Frankenstein, and Dr. Benton Quest who we see is currently developing R.O.S.I.E. If you like movies like Big Hero 6 then you will like Scoob! By the end of the movie, it looks like we've got another mystery on our hands. That mystery is what will be next in the Hanna-Barbera Cinematic Universe, will it be The Flintstones, or maybe The Jetsons, or will it be Scoob! 2?
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