D.Moore

The Birds is still as sensational as I remembered it, a joy to behold. Perhaps what I admire most is the gradual building of the atmosphere and how smoothly the film moves from an interesting relationship drama full of likeable characters to a fierce thriller with a fight for life. Each scene with the birds is not only incredibly suspenseful, but also even more suspenseful than the last, so that the amazingly chilling attack on the schoolchildren is trumped within minutes by the "pterocalypse" in the city, which is later surpassed by the multiple horror finale in the house. The technical aspects of the film are still extremely impressive, and if it strikes anyone as dated, then please let it be - I continue to find The Birds terrifying and probably always will.

At first glance, an underrated and at best mediocre six-part TV show, which, however, hides a surprising amount of humor that is on a par with Možná přijde i kouzelník. Why not, since both were created by František Polák? There are several reasons why I give Ring volný an above-average rating, and the first of them has almost nothing to do with humor - it's the flipping of songs, when for example Václav Neckář sings “A tak dál nosíš po kapsách sny mládí" and Waldemar Matuška sings “Lékořice", and both of them fit beautifully. Another reason, but which is humor and I honestly don't know what to name before first. Perhaps Helena Růžičková and Václav Neckář's brilliant parody of Korn's song “Ne, Maestro"? Ivan Mládek, who sings “Duhová víla" together with Hana Zagora to the accompaniment of Ivo Pešák's dance, later “Lásko, mně ubývá sil", while Pavel Bobek, in return, gets to play “Neopatrný křeček" (who will never poop on campus again)? Or Marie Rottrová, who, together with Petr Nárožný, will perform the great scene with the tuba and harp? Eva Pilarová swinging with Vladimír Menšík? Naďa Urbánková accompanied by a family choir composed of Jiří Hrzán, Helena Růžičková, Jitka Molavcová and František Filipovský? The nonchalant humor of Yvetta Simonová and Miloš Kopecký? There's a lot going on, and it's a pity for a few weak points like Vera Spinarová's singing of “Jízdenka", because otherwise Ring volný was a great success. Even the banners hanging all around are very funny when they say, for example, "The workers of Prague bakeries say hello to Petr Spálený".

A wonderfully mysterious film, the kind of honest spectacle that gets more and more interesting and suspenseful, and is a joy to watch the first and hundred and first time around. James Stewart gave a tremendous performance, and he fell for Kim Novak in a way that probably anyone would. And Hitchcock's thoughtful shots are more than just tinged with Herrmann's music - it's just a sensation.

Gustav Holst’s “The Planets" probably entertained the young audience more, but the "heavier" the music is this time, the more accessible Bernstein's words are, he manages to explain everything very clearly and effortlessly again - he talks and directs quite a lot. A great bonus of this volume is the performance of the then young and already amazing twenty-two-year-old pianist Joseph Kalichstein, today one of the most acclaimed pianists not only in America, but also in the world.

It's relaxing entertainment with a fantastic production design and unfortunately a few reservations, some of which are the fault of the Czech version (the songs have almost no energy) and some of which are the fault of the original (again the song, this time King Louie's, which doesn't really fit the scene, the underused snake Ka and the ending, which is surprisingly more fairytale-like than in the original cartoon). Otherwise, I liked The Jungle Book and I'm glad that Jon Favreau got the money for it after the general dissatisfaction with Cowboys & Aliens and that he did a good job. John Debney's music was also successful, relying mainly on well-known motifs, but he also has a few ideas of his own, and the best character is, of course, Baloo with Bill Murray's facial expressions.

A masterpiece with all the trimmings. You couldn't cut the tension, as it's practically omnipresent, not least because Hitchcock cared about the characters as much as he did. James Stewart trying in vain to sit down in a Moroccan restaurant and then struggling with the food, Doris Day singing and dancing with her son, these are all such beautiful moments that make the characters just grow on us so much that we don't even hold our breath waiting for the cymbals during a riveting scene at the Royal Albert Hall.

Thanks to the Finále Plzeň festival I saw the version without sound and I have to say that it is perhaps one of the most thrilling silent films ever. Only Anny Ondráková was awkward at times (immediately after the murder she behaved in such a way that she was really terrified, but I'm not sure if that was the intention). However, Alfred Hitchcock obviously did his best, used a lot of imaginative directorial tricks, made the ending very action-packed and as a screenwriter he didn't forget about black humor - when a customer in a shop condemns knife murders, whereas she doesn't mind beatings with a brick.

It's a good thing the ever so greedy ravages of time have thankfully left The Jungle Book alone - it's still as lovely fun as it was years ago. Plus, it's very nicely animated, not overwrought, features the catchiest songs from all the "classic" Disney movies, and the lessons about finding yourself are not the least bit awkward.

The very opening episode had me wrapped around its finger, but I don't know if that was entirely a good thing because none of the subsequent episodes topped it. The main strengths of Fargo are the actors, especially Martin Freeman, Billy Bob Thornton and Allison Tolman, and the fact that it is not an ordinary remake, but a quite clever sequel that reminds us of the Coen brothers' film every now and then. I don't give it a five-star rating, however, because some things some people got away with too easily and most of the police force, not to mention the FBI, acted really incredibly obtuse. Also, the writers could have gone to some trouble to finish some of the stories, since they told so many - for example, what happened to Chazz and his family?

It's a really big... disappointment. You just don't make a film about three people locked in an underground bunker (where one of them is weird, the second is weird and dangerous, and the third would just like to get out) without even a bit of suspense. And as hard as John Goodman and Mary Elizabeth Winstead try, the script makes them stupid. Without wanting to give anything away, I have to say that various things happen in 10 Cloverfield Lane simply to be surprising, but they are not logical, and when I asked myself for about the fifth time "Why in God's name...?", I realized how boring the film actually is. Yes, the ending finally had decent momentum, but if anyone is looking forward to seeing something this time - without the constraints of a handheld camera - they should indulge their appetite, because apart from a few brief shots, the picture shakes just as much as it did seven years ago. Two and a half.