Stanislaus

Life on Our Planet offers an incredibly wide-ranging and information-dense look at the evolution of Earth from the first single-celled organisms to the present day in eight compelling episodes. Initially, I was a little concerned that the series would dilute the same information I'd seen and heard in earlier projects on prehistoric and contemporary flora and fauna, but the creators offered a wealth of new insights into the various stages of our planet's evolution. Since much of the series focuses on very distant time periods, the facts depicted must be taken with the understanding that they are conjectures or hypotheses - for example, the courtship and mating patterns of giant centipedes or T-Rexes. The first episode had a rather leisurely pace, but the other episodes were more lively - I really enjoyed the action-oriented scenes (the underwater and land hunting). I also had to get used to the transitions between CGI and real contemporary footage at first, and noticed that feathered or furry animals looked more artificial than those with scales or smooth skin, but it was still a job well done. I also appreciated the detailed depiction of the asteroid impact that was behind one of the massive species extinctions on Earth. Morgan Freeman's charismatic narration was the icing on the cake.

I'm not a fan of PC racing games or real GT racing, yet I enjoyed Gran Turismo in the cinema immensely. Blomkamp's film has an incredibly dynamic energy thanks to the premise, which balances out the fact that it's a fairly simple story: about a young man who manages to cleverly apply his extensive virtual world experience to real racing. Watching it in the cinema, I felt like I was right on the racetrack, where a single hesitation or ill-advised move can have fatal consequences. Of the cast, David Harbour impressed me the most, but Archie Madekwe in the lead role managed to appeal to me as well (btw, Orlando Bloom, who I haven't seen in anything for a long time, has really aged). In the end, I left the cinema, where the audiovisual qualities of the film stood out, extremely satisfied. A bonus was the classic hit song Orinoco Flow.

The first Ace Ventura is a mostly relaxing romp with a theatrically over-the-top Jim Carrey. When Nature Calls is more of a romp with an overly annoying Carrey. The second adventure of this animal (well, except for the bats) is rife with wacky to bizarre scenes that irritated rather than amused me. The "detective" level also worked better in the first one. As a result, When Nature Calls is suitable primarily for Carrey fans with a high tolerance for his character.

The Creator is one of those films in which the formal side wins out over the content. Visually, it offers appealing locations and, above all, the visuals of the "simulacra", but in terms of story it is a compilation of earlier sci-fi pieces without any major attempt to provide a new insight on the subject of AI. In this "compilation" respect, I thought mostly of James Cameron's work while watching it (Terminator, Avatar or Alita: Battle Angel). Alongside the themes of AI and humans vs. machines, the father-child (Joshua-Alphie) plane had some potential, but was drowned in mediocre concept and a weepy denouement. Of the cast, the young Madeleine Yuna Voyles appealed to me the most, the rest was rather bland. Still, The Creator is certainly worth seeing in the cinema, even if it doesn't offer much material for deeper reflection after the screening.

In Wes Anderson's Dahl tetralogy, I enjoyed The Curious Case of Henry Sugar the most, thanks to the longer running time (compared to the other three shorts), which made the film feel more coherent, as well as the excellent work with the sets. Story-wise, Henry Sugar also appealed to me the most.

Of the four Dahl adaptations by Wes Anderson, Poison interested me the least, and the central motif of "fear of the unseen (and even the absent)" was rather irritating in the end.

The Swan struck me as the most poetic of Wes Anderson's adaptations of Dahl, and from a narrative point of view I found it most directed at the viewer, who watches a boy's trauma staged by the narrator himself. I also liked the seamless transitions between scenes.

The Ratcatcher is probably the crudest piece of work in Wes Anderson's Dahl shorts, thanks to both Ralph Fiennes's make-up and the stop motion animation with the rat (which in the end appears in the film). Besides mice (The Witches), Roald Dahl apparently had a thing for their bigger relatives.

We Have Never Been Modern benefits from an unusual premise – by Czech, but I think also by international standards – and it combines several thematic or genre levels quite skillfully: from a relationship drama through a (pseudo)crime story to a certain social probe into the 1930s, but with timeless insight. Matěj Chlupáček's film could certainly be faulted for a few things, like Helena's period inauthentic speech (especially in the field of sarcasm) or Ladislav Hampl's prosthetics (there must be a more "plump" colleague among Czech actors), but for my part, the rather positive impressions prevail. Hermaphroditism (like aphasia in this year's Exhale) is not a common theme and certainly holds other possibilities. In We Have Never Been Modern, this theme is enlivened by an appealing period colour – here I would like to praise the production design in particular, but also the costumes – and several leading dichotomies (man x woman, factory employee x worker, "divine creature" x "unholy monster"). Of the cast, I would single out Eliška Křenková and Richard Langdon; I was also impressed by the smaller role of Ján Jackuliak, who provided one of the film's strongest moments. I am curious to see what project Chlupáček will come up with next.

Eurotrip should be taken with levity and exaggeration, because that's exactly how – I hope – the makers intended it. I saw the film for the first time during my high school years and now I came back to it after some years. Yes, there are some eye-rolling moments in all (European) directions, but if you see the film as a parody of the (a)typical attributes of a few select European countries, you will find this trip quite entertaining as well. On the other hand, it is not only a sort of mockery towards Europe, but also towards the limited intelligence of Americans, whose thinking rarely goes beyond the borders of their country. I can probably understand any rating for this film, but – with that in mind – it is unpretentious entertainment with ideal running time and more than one humorous cameo (Lucy Lawless or Miroslav Taborsky).