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| EFC STATS |
| Movies Listed: |
30753 |
| Total Ratings: |
246591 |
| Total Reviews: |
27639 |
![[158269300 Hits]](/cgi-bin/gd.cgi?158269300)
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| STRONGER |
"A Step Above."
Peter Sobczynski says... "I must confess that every time a movie comes along that purports to tell the inspirational true story of someone triumphing over incredible odds, especially if the narrative somehow involves a great tragedy, the hairs on my neck begin to rise. For actors, such films are catnip because there are few things more likely to attract the attention of Oscar voters, especially if some kind of debilitating physical impairment is thrown into the mix as well. That is all well and good for them but I have begun to develop a genuine distaste for such things over the years for a variety of reasons—the stories all tend to be the same in the broad sense, the actors seem more interested in replicating the physical actions of the characters than in inhabiting them emotionally and, perhaps most importantly, the films tend to straddle the line between relatable drama and naked exploitation and more often than not end up leaning towards the latter. However, when such a film is done well and with dignity and intelligence, I am perfectly capable of responding to it in a favorable manner and that is the case with “Stronger.” On the surface, it may look like the usual slice of vaguely nurturing and somewhat enervating Oscar bait but in the hands of the wonderful filmmaker David Gordon Green, it becomes a film that is acutely aware of both the pitfalls and cathartic pleasures inherent in this type of storytelling and does a very good job of largely avoiding the former and arriving at the latter in an honest and entertaining manner." (more)
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| BATTLE OF THE SEXES |
"Needs To Grow A Little More Hair"
Peter Sobczynski says... "Although the ads and trailers only suggest one, there are actually two different stories battling for supremacy throughout its running time. The one being advertised is, of course, a chronicle of the infamous 1973 exhibition tennis match between retired men’s champion Bobby Riggs and reigning women’s champion Billie Jean King that became both a jaw-dropping spectacle and an unexpected referendum on the then (and sadly still)-emerging women’s rights movement. The other one involves the two battles that King found herself fighting off of the court—a public one that finds her demanding that women athletes be treated and paid the same as their male counterparts against forces that do not even try to disguise their blatant sexism and a private one in which she finds herself wrestling with questions about her sexuality at a time when mere whispers suggesting such a thing could destroy a career. Both topics are interesting and could have easily led to fascinating films but by trying to jam the two together, both wind up getting a bit short-changed in the process and the end result is a movie that, while undeniably crowd-pleasing for the most part, never quite comes together in a fully satisfying manner." (more)
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| SIMRAN |
"Carefully avoids all the interesting things it could be doing."
Jay Seaver says... "Half of the places listing "Simran" online showed a 238-minute running time, and while in some ways it was a relief to see the film actually just over half that length when it wound up being bad, I must admit that thinking it was that ridiculous length was what drew me to it. Something that seemed as simple as "Hindu maid in Atlanta turns to crime to pay off debts" must have had some real twists or depth to justify that length, or at least some big heist scenes or satirical music numbers. Instead, it's bland enough to seem bloated at 125 minutes." (more)
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| FIRST THEY KILLED MY FATHER: A DAUGHTER OF CAMBODIA REMEMBERS |
"Worth a big-screen watch."
Jay Seaver says... "It's a bit surprising to me that "First They Killed My Father: A Daughter of Cambodia Remembers" didn't have its name cut in half during the transition from page to screen, and not just because it may look unwieldy on a VOD menu (let alone a marquee in the small number of theaters that are booking a Netflix original). That title implies adult reflection, while the film is almost entirely devoted to the child's point of view. That's often a source of its power, although it sometimes denies the film some of the clarity director Angelina Jolie looks to find elsewhere." (more)
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| ABRACADABRA |
"Maybe not quite magical, but more than it first appears to be."
Jay Seaver says... "It's a bit strange when a filmmaker makes waves with something as distinctive as "Blancanieves", Pablo Berger's 2012 silent version of Show White set in the world of 1920s bullfighting and then follows it up with something as superficially mainstream as "Abracadabra", set in present-day Madrid and opening with gags that would seem right at home in much more conventional comedies. Eventually, one does see a similar sort of cock-eyed ambition, and while this follow-up isn't as obviously ambitious, it is quite impressive when looked at in total." (more)
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| MOTHER! |
"Ooh, Ahh, Is It Just A Waste Of Time"
Peter Sobczynski says... "The advance word on “mother!,” a film whose production was shrouded in such secrecy that most people did not even know of its existence until a couple of months ago, has been that it is one of the most grueling and brutally visceral cinematic experiences to hit movie screens in a long time, especially for one getting a wide release from a major studio. Considering the fact that it was made by Darren Aronofsky, the guy behind such dark and bizarre films as “Pi,” “Requiem for a Dream” and “Black Swan,” that is a mighty bold assertion to make. For once, the hype turns out to be true because it is possibly the most sensorially overwhelming and formally radical films to be given a major release since Oliver Stone’s “Natural Born Killers” and there is an excellent chance that a large portion of the multiplex crowd that turns out for it based on the presence of superstar Jennifer Lawrence or even lingering affection for the unexpectedly successful “Black Swan” is going to hate it with a fiery passion. And yet, what will those who made it all the way to the bitter, brutal end when the film is done and the smoke, literally and metaphorically, has cleared? Some will no doubt find it to be a powerful cinematic meditation on life, love, art, religion, gender roles and any number of other heavyweight subject while others will undoubtably consider it to be a pretentious wank that doesn’t know what it is trying to say but figures that if it throws enough things against the wall in the most relentless manner imaginable, enough of them will stick to create the appearance of something meaningful. Personally, I find myself somewhere in the middle of those two viewpoint because while “mother!” is an undeniably ambitious work that contains any number of powerful moments and images surrounding the quartet of fine performances at its center, the film as a whole spends half of its time threatening to go over the edge into complete absurdity and the rest of the time on the other side of that line. When it was all over, Watching it is indeed an experience but it is one that, for all the huffing and puffing, is all a bit silly when all is said and done." (more)
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| TOM OF FINLAND |
"Mostly upbeat and leathery, the way he drew it."
Jay Seaver says... "SCREENED AT THE 2017 FANTASIA INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL: There's delightful release toward the end of "Tom of Finland", as the title character visits California and discovers a world where things may not be perfect, but he doesn't have to hide that he likes men, and muscles, and leather. It's a moment of wonder that gets across just how much the audience, like Touko, has grown so used to the limits placed on him that they seem invisible until they're gone, and by getting in a spot to communicate that moment of joy, the filmmakers have perhaps done the best thing that biographers can by letting the audience understand their subject for a second, on top of just knowing the facts." (more)
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'THAT'S WHY WE LIKE YOU, MULDER. YOUR IDEAS ARE WEIRDER THAN OURS.'
- Lone Gunman, X-Files
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