POMO

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever is spectacular and colourful – the characters, the production design, the costumes and the excellent arrangements by soundtrack composer Göransson. But it’s also inordinately long, with repetitive dialogue rehashing the same things, a mighty villain with a weak personality, an underwater world that’s not nearly as sophisticated as the one in Aquaman, and the borrowing of ideas from other Marvel movies that don’t fit here (e.g. Iron-Man costumes and flying in them). The first Black Panther was surprising with its distinctive soul and the compelling African mystique of the ethnic roots of a new, superbly functioning superhero movement. This is still a respectable Marvel formula, but altered only for effect.

Babylon is a subjectively irrelevant and aesthetically disjointed depiction of early Hollywood with hackneyed (Brad Pitt), uninteresting (Diego Calva) and annoying (Margot Robbie) lead characters. Chazelle overshot the mark. If it weren’t for the accompanying jazz interludes, you wouldn’t even recognize him in this. The wild parties and scenes of hectic filmmaking are entertaining, but you can sense the strong theatricality in them. The scene of filming on the first soundstage is the best of the whole film, both in its execution and cinephilic dimension. But as soon as the overly long runtime veers into into a fatalistic lament over the inability to go along with progress, it gradually goes downhill, all the way into the “LA shit hole”, i.e. the most WTF scene in the whole film.

As a superstitious believer in traditional values, Shyamalan has run out of ideas for points to make in that regard, so he at least comments on more complex social issues. Specifically, same-sex adoption. The dramaturgical intent with the viewer is clear, but in order for it to work, we would have to take the home-invasion situation very seriously (though it’s entertaining in the context of the genre, it just can’t be taken seriously) and disbelieve the intruders’ theory (which we have no reason to do, since anything is possible with such a bizarre array of characters, especially in a Shyamalan film).

“I went for a colonoscopy last month, and it was like looking at a painting by Jackson Polyp.”  Such a great start...and such a dull result. The central couple are pulled creepingly into hell through sinister symbolism, tantalising sexuality and a tragic accident. Infinity Pool is Lynchian in its dreaminess, Cronenbergian in its physicality and punk in the manner of Kubrick. The flashes of A Clockwork Orange are the last things to work in any interesting way in the second half of the film. The tremendous potential of the initial motifs remains undeveloped: it would have been great to work with the psychology of the central couple’s relationship (she doesn’t know what has changed and is horrified as she gradually uncovers it), to reveal the bizarre world of the island with its terrifying rules, and to metaphorically interweave the whole film with the motif of a burned-out writer’s search for inspiration. Instead, young Cronenberg and his protagonist are stuck in the unjustifiably antagonistic vanity of a bunch of people disconnected from empathy and their own identity.

The Whale is a balanced mix of intimate psychology and touching sentiment. It is engaging primarily thanks to its main character, the likes of which cinema has not seen before, as he is shocking in his appearance and studying his inner self is enjoyable. Brendan Fraser is excellent with incredible make-up and is supported perfectly by Sadie Sink in the role of his daughter. Their encounters overflow with unspoken emotions and anger over the hurt on one side and regret on the other. Yes, Fraser’s character pities himself too much and his discovery of the importance of sincerity in life is laughable, but even so, The Whale remains a beautiful and sensitive film that doesn’t lack artistic investment by its creator.

Sick is the new film from the horror screenwriter who gained fame with the Scream movies. It’s a formulaic yest satisfyingly sharp, brisk and well-crafted slasher flick with both stolen and surprising moments. The COVID motif is rather laughable, though potentially realistic. People are crazy.

In the context of formulaic and naïve action movies starring Gerard Butler, Plane is pleasantly refreshing thanks to the exotic Asian setting and the bad guys who are reminiscent of the villains in Rambo movies. The captain’s responsibility for his passengers and his experience in the military, which is apparent in his way with a machine gun, are also nice. A buddy motif, long-distance phone calls with his daughter and so on. However, the effects with the plane’s crash landing are mediocre.

A fine subject for a psychological study of a child’s mind going off the rails in relation to his own family. Unfortunately, the filmmaker presents it in the emptiest possible way. The 4:3 format and the minimalist music indicate art-house ambitions (together with the main character, the film is reminiscent of Gus van Sant’s Elephant) and an attempt to raise questions and spark a debate, but in order to do that, the film would have to contain at least some meaningful social concepts, motivations and behavior.

I enjoy the slow telling of human stories in a minimalist form, especially in a village setting with snow-covered hills in the background. But there has to be something to tell about. Certain Women is composed of a few characters’ stories that would have ended up on the floor if the most interesting stories had been selected for filming. What drove the director to film these in particular remains a mystery to me. Jane Campion’s films in a similar vein, for example, are something else entirely both formalistically and in terms of content.

Intimate gangster flicks set in the rundown bars of the New York underworld are attractive to viewers, especially when they have a cast like The Drop has. The film is entertaining, as it arouses curiosity about how the relationships between the characters will develop and what we anticipate the dramatic climax will be. But we don’t get such a surprise or drama in the end. The directing dampens the potential for surprise and there is a lack of the key contours of a dramatic arc that is supposed to make sense in the climax. Do yourself a favor and watch its more polished genre siblings We Own the Night and The Departed instead.