Goldbeater

George Miller delivers a more mature Hollywood fairy tale along the lines of "One Thousand and One Nights" with captivating visuals, imaginative editing and the charismatic Idris Elba, who, especially with his voice, pulls the whole thing on his shoulders as much as he can. But is that enough for the viewer? Three Thousand Years of Longing attempts to floridly tell an epic tale of humanity, inner desires, love and eternity, but it mires all these lofty themes in such a dramatically muddled form that it makes you dizzy. The whole time I had no idea where it was going, and when it finally got somewhere at the end, I was none the wiser. I practically don't even understand who is supposed to be the target audience of this conventionally told fantasy, because the banal plot and carnival grip can only appeal to children, and they won't get to see it because it has an R-rating due to the nudity and sex. While Miller may have surprised everyone years ago with his fresh and dynamic direction in Fury Road, here he almost seems like a fossil melting over slightly more intellectual bodice rippers. I really don't understand who it's aimed at, and I don't believe it will manage to recoup even a fifth of its budget in revenue. [KVIFF 2022]

Although you may think you know the whole story from the media, the documentary The Killing of a Journalist very skillfully puts the crucial information into a comprehensive context and neatly translates it, along with many surprises, for the viewer, who then has no choice but to shake their head at how "fucked up" the situation in Slovakia really was (or still is; will be). It is good to be reminded of that, to have an active conversation about it, and to not turn a blind eye to it. What else can I say? It was really strong. [KVIFF 2022]

Ruben Östlund delivers an excellent social satire in an endlessly entertaining and sometimes blisteringly funny form that seems to combine three films at once. The centrepiece of this distinctive work is, of course, the quite literal shitstorm in the middle of the plot, which almost seems to have dropped out of a Troma production and then floated out into the international waters of A-list cinema. It won't be a film for everyone, yet it is clearly the most significant highlight of this year's festival in Karlovy Vary and without a doubt one of the greatest film events of the year. When it gets a domestic theatrical release, put it in your calendar! [KVIFF 2022]

Quentin Dupieux projects another geyser of his crazy ideas onto the big screen in a witty parody of superhero films, such as Ninja Turtles, Guardians of the Universe and even the Marvel and DC films, and the like – everyone can find what they want. And the whole thing is combined with the scheme of horror short stories. Sounds hard to believe? Go to the cinema, you won’t believe it until you see it! [KVIFF 2022]

While David Cronenberg's previous genre-diverse films seemed to exist in a complex and vibrant world, Crimes of the Future seems to exist in just three barracks surrounded by a vacuum. It does have thoughts and ideas, but the framework is so clumsily put together that few will be satisfied or surprised by the story this time. And while I understand that the budget was low and the pandemic situation affected the production, I still can't get over the fact that the film is more like an amateur theatre performance than the truly compelling piece of cinema we would like to see from this director. [KVIFF 2022]

Elvis is an enjoyable musical biopic that doesn't bring much new under the sun in terms of plot and slightly alters key events to build a somewhat better drama around them, but its main asset is of course Baz Luhrmann's idiosyncratic directorial grasp and especially the committed performance of Austin Butler, who manages to completely connect with the character of Elvis from the first minutes. Who failed to blend into the character, however, and who sticks out like a sore thumb in the film, is Tom Hanks. It's kind of a matter of whether you accept his peculiar efforts, but I simply didn't believe for the entire two and a half hours that I was seeing Colonel Tom Parker, but rather just Hanks overacting under a layer of prosthetics. Baz Luhrmann doses his hyperstylisation sometimes unnecessarily too much and his choice of the accompanying soundtrack, or rather modern music genres, in a story about the king of rock 'n' roll, I would in all fairness call at least questionable. In any case, and despite these distractions, the film works and offers a truly spectacular experience, which is worth seeing if possible on the big screen. For me, slightly mixed satisfaction.

I'd guess that many of us imagined the film to be a lot crazier from the synopsis than it ended up being. The highlights are, of course, the meta scenes where either Nicolas' filmography and memorabilia from his works are discussed, or where the current Cage bickers with his younger self, which is one truly brilliant and superbly executed idea in an otherwise not entirely imaginative film. In the end, it's a very fine entertaining diversion that has virtually nothing to offend, but after the strong praise that initially accompanied this film, my expectations were a bit higher.

Spiderhead has a great premise that offers so many possibilities for a solid sci-fi thriller and possibly a comedic satire, yet it ended up somewhere in the middle of the road. The culprit isn't director Joseph Kosinski, but the writers of mock action flicks like Deadpool, Zombieland and 6 Underground, who are unable to harness thought-provoking source material and instead try to pitch a wannabe-cool, silly spectacle festooned with attractive properties. The wasted potential is clear to see, yet Spiderhead works to some extent at least as a solid non-brainer B-movie that unfortunately disintegrates into a laughable mishmash of nonsense at the end.

The Trip is a relationship therapy performed by Norwegian butcher Tommy Wirkola. It's funny, apt, it's set in an amazing environment and it's totally over the top at times. A very refreshing movie.

The People vs. George Lucas may seem like a mere insight into the banal whining of fans because a new sequel to a universally acclaimed work suddenly isn't as good as they would like, but it’s not about that. The documentary delves into the grey areas of topics such as excessive fandom, the unrestricted creative control of an individual, and in particular where is the line between ownership of a work by the creator and ownership of a work by the public. And yes, it's extremely sad that something as phenomenal as the first Star Wars trilogy will probably never be able to be legally seen in its original, unaltered form. At the same time, this documentary is an interesting time capsule, because this particular collection of views and opinions would be different only a few years later, after the acquisition of Lucasfilm by Disney and the release of the third trilogy. And if only the interviewees had known at the time what the corporate Mouse was about to do to their beloved saga, they might still have weighed in with a word for "weird uncle" George Lucas.