DaViD´82

I shot my wife. Prove it. This is a slogan that promises an interesting storyline. Anthony Hopkins and Ryan Gosling. These are names that indicate quality acting performances. Gregory Hoblit. This is a director from whom one can expect at least quality craft, if nothing else… Fracture undoubtedly has the potential to be a really good thriller. In essence, it did not fail in any of the above areas. Although the subject is not explored to its fullest extent, the plot is still interesting and suspenseful enough. Neither actor plays the role of his lifetime here but their performances are sufficient. The movie’s greatest asset are the joint scenes where the actors play “face to face". Hoblit shot it all technically well (albeit somewhat unimaginatively), but the camerawork and music skillfully enhance the impression. Overall, Fracture is probably not worth a second viewing, but it has enough enjoyable moments in the course of the movie to make it feel like it wasn’t a waste of time watching it. That’s not too bad for another of the endless series of court dramas, is it?

A potentially powerful subject but, given that it’s made by Hitchcock, it is unusually mediocre. It is not bad in any way, but it is also not exceptional in any respect. All the classic Master's techniques are here, the good actors are too, and there are also thrilling scenes - the trial was especially successful. But overall, especially at the beginning of the movie, there is a slow pace and too little tension. This is rather a mediocre item of Hitchcock's filmography, albeit still of sufficiently high quality.

Zach Braff strays into Kevin Smith’s sovereign territory - New Jersey. And things go quite ok for him there. Garden State awakens from the somewhat subdued mood when Sam, played wonderfully by Natalie Portman, bursts onto the scene. At that moment the picture grabs onto you whole and doesn’t let go of you until the end. What slightly damages its assets is the unimpressive introduction and the occasionally overly forced “weirdness". Instead of it being used sparingly to spice up the overall atmosphere, it appears all over the place and sometimes it is annoying to the point of being counterproductive because draws you needlessly away from the characters. Zach Braff comes out of this movie as a better director than actor. He isn’t outright bad, but he lacks charisma, although he has a certain aura of likableness about him. Despite the above, Garden State is a feature-length directing debt that is worth watching.

A plodding, poorly acted and not interestingly shot "reconstruction-drama" documentary/film about a real bank robbery. The potential is certainly great, but the entertainment value is almost naught.

The way to victory contains perhaps all possible sports movie clichés in such quantities never seen before in any other movie with a similar theme. And, in view of the subject matter chosen, the topic of racism couldn’t be avoided. So it is a rather pleasant surprise that the whole thing is good to watch. Although James Gartner didn’t spice up the fights with a special style that would differentiate them from other movies, but at least he chose some good actors. Apart from one - Josh Lucas. In view of the fact that the entire movie was meant to be carried on his shoulders, it is almost bewildering that he managed to play such a gift of a role so terribly blandly. Overall, what we have here is another in a long line of American sports movies about outsiders and their path to “unexpected" success. This movie isn’t exceptional or memorable in any way, although it is pleasantly watchable, if nothing else. Even if Glory Road is rather lack-luster and lacks a charismatic trainer.

A documentary founded on a perfectly chosen topic, the reminiscences of several generations and hours of painstaking work searching for material in archives. A look at the development of the Czech consumer society / lifestyle, since the end of World War II, during the totalitarian state and then after the Velvet Revolution. Rich in information and with a pleasant objectivity. You will have but good memories of this documentary...

A mediocre comedy in almost every conceivable way, with one big advantage: the actors. The Ref, fortunately, is saved by its perfect cast, who put it in the category of quickly forgettable but pleasantly relaxing generic comedies.

The Last Temptation of Christ is Scorsese’s best non-Mafia picture. Need I say more? Need I emphasize Dafoe and Keitel’s performances of their lives? Or the atmospheric soundtrack? Do I really have to mention the theological level of this picture and its philosophical aspects that will remain troubling you long after? Describe the wave of outrage of the general public (I recommend the book Banned Films)? No, I think that there isn’t much point and it would be like taking coals to Newcastle... And anyway, this is one of those rare examples where the movie adaptation is better than the (already excellent) book it’s based on.

I gave this French TV miniseries more than one chance to reveal its qualities. But it was a waste of time because there simply are none to be found. The characters are unbelievable, the dialogs awkward, most of the time the actors spend most of their time overacting, the costumes aren’t too bad, the interiors are indescribably disgustingly kitsch, not to speak of the director’s obsession with killing every exterior scene with some intense color filter. And the horrendous Czech dubbing is just the proverbial “icing on the cake". The only thing about A Cursed Monarchy that could be seen as positive. A series that gives the otherwise the usually high quality French miniseries a bad name.

Although they murder the original story, luckily The Last of the Mohicans works primarily as a romantic adventure movie in itself. And very well at that. Plus, all negative impressions are pushed out of the mind by the unforgettable final sequence. If the whole movie had been like that, I wouldn’t have lost for words. Just forget about seeing anything that resembles the book. ♫ OST score: 4/5