Stanislaus

Eliza Petkova's film with the very bizarre title A Fish Swimming Upside Down addresses the issue a love triangle, a truly generic theme, and not even the two “surprising” twists help it break out of its template. Basically, this is a kind of probe into the corners of (flexible) sexuality, but it could certainly have been handled better.

Simon of the Desert mixes many religious scenes and symbols with a certain amount of irony and its associated humour. At times I felt like I was watching a Pasolini film. I really enjoyed the scenes with Satan and temptation, they were imaginative and humorously obscene. The biggest weirdness, however, arrives (or rather, lands) with the final time jump. PS: I wonder if Buñuel had a kink with kicking animals (see for example Age of Gold)?

No wonder the Age of Gold caused quite a stir back in its day. The maker of the (slightly more) twisted Un Chien Andalou was inspired by the warped mind of the Marquis de Sade and made a film that is certainly worth seeing, even if it won't appeal to everyone (I was only half convinced). The central couple could not have been more unlikeable, while the interaction between the Man and the Woman was – willy-nilly – a sure source of humour. The final scene with the degenerate like "120 Days of Sodom" with "Jesus" was inserted into the film perhaps a little too forcefully. A kind of foreshadowing of the later Pasolini.

Good Luck to You, Leo Grande stands especially on the excellently written script and the performances of the central couple. Emma Thompson only confirms that what a great actress she is, and it was interesting to watch her character Nancy move from a shy and self-conscious woman "past her prime" to a self-aware, self-satisfied and mature woman. Daryl McCormack, unknown to me, was a pleasant surprise and certainly didn't let himself be overshadowed by his more experienced acting partner. I enjoyed watching how, through very personal conversations, the former complete strangers became (temporary) friends/partners. At first glance, it might seem that this is a first-rate and bland conversational drama, but the film tackles a number of exceedingly compelling topics that are not commonplace in the public consciousness: the achievement of orgasm for women, the issue of sexual favours, coming to terms with one's physical appearance, interpersonal attraction, the confrontation between professional and private life, or the generation gap. Alongside this more serious level, however, the film does not forget the classic British humour. A sincere, sweetly nuanced and refreshing film!

At first glance, Hádek Family is reminiscent of Carnage, but while Polanski manages to use the genre of the intimate conversational tragicomedy almost to perfection, Moravec's film glides more on the surface. The actors and actresses were perfectly suited to their roles, so I commend the casting, but it was all spoiled by a shallow script that didn't even half exploit the potential of the original premise. I was expecting to laugh and/or get chills from the character interactions, but those expectations weren’t fulfilled, except for a few smirks.

Ghost Dog is my third encounter with Jim Jarmusch's work, and I still haven't managed to come around to his directorial (and screenwriting) approach. Forest Whitaker was convincing as the unconventional samurai and won my sympathy, despite his "profession". The biggest problem I had was with the overly slow build-up of the plot, which, while corresponding with the "clean and quiet work of the samurai", I found it unrewarding in places. I liked the snippets about the samurai and was intrigued by the ice cream man and his interaction with the main character (EN vs. FR). I believe that if I were a hip hop fan, I would have enjoyed the film more.

Taika Waititi's first Thor film (the third) was quite different from its predecessors thanks to its distinctive and unmistakable directorial approach, and Love and Thunder is no different. The lover of vampires or alternative Hitler gets creatively unleashed again and serves us a two-hour dose of wacky humour, sweet romance and heroic adventure. It has many references to previous MCU films, pop culture and mythology, all wrapped in the director’s typical style of parody. In some places, the humour was perhaps too much and missed the mark, but in the end I had a great time in the cinema. There were also some touching emotions, mainly due to the line with Jane, but also with Gorr, who was indeed a multi-layered villain. You could sense that everyone involved must have thoroughly enjoyed the filming. The Guardians of the Galaxy were more of an afterthought, but at least we could focus on the main Thor-Jane and Thor-Gorr storylines. Love and Thunder has, as I mentioned, many wonderful ideas like the bawling goats, the spawning of "little Korg", the dramatization of Ragnarok (Melissa McCarthy as Hela killed it), or the gods’ assembly with a horny Zeus. I also liked the art of the duel in Shadowland and the visuals of Gorr's monsters. The first end-credit scene teased a possible sequel, so I'm curious to see if Thor will see another film.

Trouble tries to ride the wave of popular animal animated films, but it is drowning in its own mediocrity. It has a formulaic premise, few funny scenes and unlikeable characters. Also, I honestly don't think that Trouble could entertain much of the children's audience for whom the film is primarily intended. The best sequences were the dog pound and the intro with the old lady. The squirrel gang was very bizarre, and the sniffer-hunter was totally out of place.

Anyone who saw the trailer Minions 2 will know pretty well what happens in the film, which is not good. This sequel relies again on the great potential of the wacky banana lovers, but, as with possibly the first film, I felt that they kept a pretty tight rein. They serve some nicely done animation, but the story itself, although full of action, lacked a larger dose of humour and a memorable villain. The airplane sequence was was flawless, and the scenes blatantly (and literally) ripping off Shrek 2 (or Puss in Boots) were good, but I expected more – like the sparingly laughing audience of children in the theatre.

After Freddie Mercury and Elton John, the King of Rock 'n' Roll and his (in)famous story also found its way to the big screen. Baz Luhrmann's films stand out audiovisually, with unmistakable soundtracks, lavish production design and gorgeous costumes, and Elvis also bears a strong directorial signature. I was intrigued that Elvis's story was told from the perspective of his controversial manager, who tried to keep him in a golden but exceedingly toxic cage. From an acting standpoint, I have nothing to criticize, Austin Butler and Tom Hanks are superb, and they are wonderfully seconded by Olivia DeJonge. For me, the strongest scenes were the dialogue with the mothers, Elvis and Priscilla's conversation in the car, and of course the performance with “Unchained Melody”. While I'm not a huge Elvis fan, the film managed to keep me on my toes despite its longer running time. PS: "When things are too dangerous to say, sing."