Stanislaus

Jan Palach has a dense theme, but I didn't find it as strong and striking in its execution. The most impressive scenes in the film for me personally were the ones with the arrival of the Soviet troops, while the sequences concerning the life and mindset of the main character seemed rather mediocre – the only exception were some scenes with Zuzana Bydžovská. Since I knew where it was going to go, I was expecting maybe a bit more from the ending. Of course, it makes you shudder, but my expectations were somewhat different.

The Cloverfield Paradox tries to be a smart film, but fails on more than one front. You can never have too many alternate reality films, but in this case I found it bland and unpolished. I was expecting a larger dose of suspense and action from a film set on a spaceship that suddenly finds itself in trouble. On the other hand, the dramatic line didn't work either (Ava and her family). In many ways, the film is similar to Life and Aliens, but qualitatively it is quite different. As a result, you sense an obvious yet untapped potential.

Lazy Eye is a truly intimate conversation piece, which I think could have gone a bit more in depth, as I think it lacked any more powerful scenes. I liked that the storyline set in the present was interspersed with bits and pieces from the past that explained the plot in a meaningful way. The premise certainly wasn't bad, but the execution just felt flat, though I liked the denouement. P.S. You just don't see "suicidal" mice in movies!

Being 17, it is a story of young love, passion and the importance of family, as well as loss, pain and the search for self. The film offers a believably told and authentically acted tale of two teenage boys whose complicated relationship is an illustration of the adage "what goes around comes around". The narrative also focuses on their parents, who also have a difficult time in life, which makes the plot more varied. In addition, the film offers plenty of shots of the beautiful French countryside in different seasons, so it is also a feast for the eyes.

The protagonist Esther is torn between the Orthodox world bound by tradition and a multitude of rigid rules in one of New York's Jewish neighbourhoods on the one hand and the free world of artists in Berlin full of unlimited possibilities on the other. I liked the plot layering of the miniseries, in which we follow the fate of Esti in two spatiotemporal planes that intersect at the end. I have some basic understanding of the Jews and their culture, but it was enlightening to broaden my horizons a bit more and peek under the hood of the traditional world and its customs, which were at times slightly shocking. Aside from the dramatic storyline, the miniseries also offers a few laugh-out-loud moments, like the Jewish sex education and Jews vs. technology. All in all, a rewarding and very entertaining three and a half hours.

Even though Beautiful Boy has a strong theme that only life itself could have written, the film still didn't grab me and ground me as much as I would have expected it to. Steve Carell took on the role of a father who wants to help his wayward son find his way back in a really convincing way, with Maura Tierney as his wife perfectly seconding him. Timothée Chalamet's performance wasn't bad, but at times I thought he overacted and pushed the envelope a bit too much. It's a shame that the film didn't really get going until twenty minutes before the end, where it offered a couple of stronger scenes. That said, I have to commend the nice soundtrack and the way the narrative intertwined the two timelines.

If you overlook all the clichés of the genre, the slightly more superficial characters and the downright American and wild ending, this is a pleasantly shot and unpretentious film, which I found particularly interesting for its portrayal of a relationship that was not a given from the beginning and had to overcome several obstacles. Alongside the dramatic-romantic storyline, the film offers a few humorous moments, mainly provided by the character of Stasia. A slightly above average surprise with a nice soundtrack.

Halloween II could be seen as an extension of the first, if only because it takes place right after it. This time the action moves to a hospital, which is always a rewarding place for horror films. I liked the first half better, it doesn't lack suspense, even the simple but all the more iconic theme song works the second time around. But in the second half, which was also suspenseful, there certain illogical, even silly moments that began to bother me. Mike Myers is overly resistant (he clearly doesn't mind boiling water) and Laurie crawls or runs around as she sees fit. I understand that this is supposed to be a B-movie slasher from a time when the line between the living and the dead is at its narrowest, but everything in moderation when it comes to the (in)mortality of some of the characters.

I'm not a fan of historical war films, but I was tempted to watch The Outlaw King because of the cast (Florence Pugh and Chris Pine) and I was also intrigued by the character of Robert the Bruce, who is not so well known. The depiction of the Middle Ages with all its unfortunate attributes was quite good, but I felt that everything else was flat and emotionless, both in the war-historical and biographical-romantic lines. But maybe it's just that I'm not the target audience.

Even though the second part of To All the Boys I've Loved Before lacks the wow-effect and original idea, I personally found this sequel on a similar level and therefore I give the same rating. The actors are still authentic in their roles, the script isn't completely predictable and at times I found the sequel even more mature than its predecessor. The plot also flows decently and it's nice to watch. Maybe average, but an unobtrusively filmed recreation with more than one humorous, but also more serious moment, which has a likable diverse cast.