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Cowboy Bebop (2021)
A faithful translation of the original anime, with some new flavor on top
This show is a riot.
Netflix really went for it, adapting some elements verbatim from the original (frame by frame recreations of some iconic scenes) while taking liberties to give fans something fresh to watch.
I don't know what some reviewers are looking for out of a show these days... This thing is a roller coaster, with great action, funny dialogue, and real heart.
The Wheel of Time: Leavetaking (2021)
Too fast, too furious... slow it down!
After waiting years for this show, viewers who take in the first episode might be excused for being disappointed. Leavetaking is shot and edited at such a fast pace, with shaky cameras and jump cuts constantly, that it left this guy feeling a little queasy at times.
Like so many other shows in the last ten years that have tried nakedly to capitalize on the success of Game of Thrones, the producers went for ultra-fast worldbuilding in the first episode. It's too much. Too many characters are quickly introduced, with no time to get to know any of them before BAM we're on to the next. Too much exposition is dumped on us.
Relax, little show. You don't have to set up the entire series major plot arcs in the first episode. It's okay to introduce us to just SOME of the people, to leave some mystery about the setting and the rules of this place for next week.
By the end of the episode, a character dies and I was left struggling to remember who they were. Clearly from the music and acting I was supposed to care deeply, but instead I was just left to wonder what the heck was going on.
For a reported $10 million an episode, please, please, hire someone who will tell you that less is sometimes more. The effects are gorgeous, I think... when they slow down enough to see. Rosamund Pike is a powerhouse actor and tremendous fun to watch, and I'm sure I'll come to enjoy the new faces the series introduces too. But not if they're all bouncing around like 7 year olds at a birthday party.
Sparks (2013)
This movie may prove some Internet conspiracy theory...
I like movies. I like a bit of cheese. I'll forego big budget effects all day long if you're ready to give me a bit of fun dialogue, a neat story, even just some good facial expressions and clever timing with the cuts.
This film is just bad. I'm sorry. It's bad.
So why did it have an IMDb rating of 7.3 when I decided to give it a whirl?
To be fair, that rating is now down to 6.7 a few days later. But there were THOUSANDS of 8, 9, and 10 reviews according to the breakdown link. For a movie with, I'm sorry, very amateur acting, a derivative storyline that's half Watchmen, half Kick-Ass, and none of the goodness of either. GLOWING user reviews written and then "found useful" by dozens of others.
I... I think the producer got all his friends and family to write nice things. :( I feel sorry for him, I know it can be hard to break out into the larger world with a small budget movie, but the first thing you need is SOME QUALITY, dude. Look at Primer. Look at Pi. Look at The Man From Earth.