Goldbeater

The Power of the Dog plays out a very interesting and engaging psychological game with the central characters in the first half. You are waiting and wishing for their frustrations to quietly simmer away and eventually explode violently. However, that is not going to happen; the second half pretty much pushes it all into a corner in such a predictable and unexciting way that you almost feel sorry for the promising beginning. In any case, Benedict Cumberbatch has convinced me that he is a great actor - if there is one reason to watch this movie, it is his performance. Plus, the movie has a very impressive score.

I enjoyed the new Spider-Man movie at the cinema. I enjoyed the return of old friends, and I was equally happy that some characters, for whom I had practically expected no more than a cameo, were surprisingly given quite a lot of screen time. However, this movie beautifully mirrored Martin Scorsese's words about how the MCU really IS the equivalent of an amusement park. That is because this movie, for all its flashiness, has no more depth than an empty amusement park ride, with well-known characters popping up to get the viewers to react emotionally. While I am willing to go along for the unpretentious fan-service ride to a certain extent, I am not going to condone the trigger for the whole plot is that the two main "superheroes" act like the biggest idiots in the galaxy. This is something that no one gives a second thought to for the rest of the movie, and both characters barely show any self-reproach. Yes, I understand that the movie needed some sort of storyline; however, the whole thing (including the denouement) hinges on one screenwriting crutch after another. Plus, there is the lame prepubescent humor again, ha... ha... Again, I enjoyed it at the cinema, but "the nineteenth best movie of all time"? C'mon.

The previous Post COVID TV movie was entertaining and lured the viewer into watching more; however, this movie just played it safe and rushed to the end. We will see what Parker & Stone has in store for us next year.

Eva Toulová is a natural phenomenon that I would be happy to see more of in the future if only out of sheer enthusiasm for biological anomalies.

I'm feeling satisfied and I am happy with this movie, albeit with minor reservations. It is necessary once in a while within Czech cinema to express support for a movie that really seems like it is a real movie; with characters that really resemble lively characters; with their problems that actually sound like everyday problems; with an environment that truly feels like a real environment; without product placement for a brand of men's suits and similar crap. It may sound like a given, although you can see for yourself what percentage of Czech movies a year meet these conditions.

State of Siege is another political thriller from the proven Costa-Gavras + Yves Montand team, and one that left me completely speechless. After another viewing (in time) I am not going to rule out raising the rating to full points.

1917 is a showcase of technical ability and cinematography skills, for which it deserves all those Oscars it won. Otherwise, its subject matter is barely enough for a Universal Studios theme park attraction. The scene where one soldier finds shelter with a beautiful French woman was a tired cliché in the 1960s, let alone today.

I like how the term "Yves Montand in a political thriller" is practically a sub-genre of French cinema in its own right, offering a lot of very engaging and high-quality productions, of which this is definitely one. I for Icarus is a structurally interesting thriller, interspersed with several relatively straightforward expositions that uncover a background of political crime, each of which is unique, suspenseful, and at the same time very literally enlightening. The discerning viewer will anticipate the vigorous conclusion, even though it certainly does not detract from the movie's impact.

Great idea, poor execution. With a premise reminiscent of 8MM set in a community of movie censors, the movie seemed to promise a solid piece of entertainment. However, the whole thing got gradually bogged down in well-worn horror tropes and, more importantly, was mesmerizingly boring (and the movie is not even an hour and a half long). The tone of the whole production is also strange. Censor practically invited the audience to watch a movie that looks like it pays homage to the era of "video nasties". They could have made a clever movie about the controversy surrounding this phenomenon, especially the question of whether brutality in movies can impact the audience negatively. However, instead, they came up with the simple conservative conclusion that these movies are the product of eccentric freaks and have a bad psychological effect on the audience. That is not an homage; that is just a throwback to 1980s British movie censorship puritanism.

A fresh point of view, classic accuracy and entertainment. Most of all, it has beckoned me to watch the next installment - hopefully coming soon.