Original Movies (not sequel, not reboot, not spin-off)
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Strange Way of Life (2023) directed by Pedro Almodóvar
Short film about of a couple of gay cowboy/gun slingers. The actors tried their best, but ultimately not all that memorable, not very remarkable.
The Human Voice (2020) directed by Pedro Almodóvar
Short film (packaged with the above as a "double feature") about a woman falling into despair and ended up immolating herself. It's mostly a monolog. The actress tried, but again ultimately not all that memorable, not very remarkable.
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She Came to Me (2023) directed by Rebecca Miller
Romance/drama, with bits of comedy thrown in. An operetta composer is creatively blocked, then after having an affair with a tugboat captain, got the inspiration to compose a new work that made the tugboat captain's character a serial killer. Recommended on the account that it does break out of the usual rom-com formulae and gives the world something new and not easily predictable, there is good complexity to this movie. Recommended.
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Thank You for Coming (2023) directed by Karan Boolani
Hindi sex comedy -- not rom-com, the protagonist searches for sexual pleasure, not romance. The protagonist is a woman who have trouble achieving orgasm, but the morning after her engagement ceremony, she work up recalling having had orgasm the night before, but cannot remember who she slept with. Shenanigans and hilarity ensue as she search for "the one" who managed to got her to climax. There may be some empowerment for Hindi-speaking women given their likely cultural background but probably not that much for the Western audience. I might have missed some of the jokes for not being able to follow the dialogue in Hindi (had to rely on translated subtitle.)
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Dicks: The Musical (2023) directed by Larry Charles
A musical with lots of vulgarities, crass and outrageous jokes. I don't know how the director/producer did it, but they talked Nathan Lane into playing a scene where he performed premastication for two caged "monsters", a scene (like many others in this movie) that seems unnecessarily gross and stupid. You have to really want vulgarity to watch this movie/musical. And no, there is not a good "moral of the story" at the end. I am not necessarily against vulgarity in movies, but I have found nothing redeeming in this one.
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The Other Joey (2023) directed by Sara Zandieh
Rom-com, mistaken identity. Boy with amnesia mistaking another girl with the same name as his girlfriend for his girlfriend, and oh, that girl does not be believe in rom-com. Not bad, but also not great. Well acted, and can foot the bill just fine if you just want some light "comfort food" to pass 90 minutes.
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Inspector Sun (and the Curse of the Black Widow) (2023) directed by Julio Soto Gúrpide
Animation. An arachnid inspector investigates crime and foil evil plot on a seaplane. An OK animation, probably better than the straight-to-TV stuff, but not quite at the same level as the Disney/Pixar/DreamWorks stuff.
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Freelance (2023) directed by Pierre Morel
Action, rom-com. Ex Special-Ops hired as bodyguard to protect a journalist sent to interview a third world dictator. They end up getting mixed up in a coup d'etat and save the day. Certainly have exciting action scenes, not a great movie, but still good entertainment. A good popcorn flick that can be enjoyed without engaging the brain.
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Bad Blood (Ke an Danh) (2023) directed by Dan Trong Tran
Vietnamese action flick. Ex gangster henchman retired to a quiet neighborhood reenters the gangster world after his stepdaughter is missing. Like a Liam Neeson plot made in the style of a Bruce Lee film, and still not as good as either. The action style is Vietnamese (not "kung fu"), so there is something different there, but that's about it.
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What Happens Later (2023) directed by Meg Ryan
Romance? Old, divorced couple reminisce about their past relationship while stranded at an airport. This is basically a two-person show; no action, mostly just dialogue. Nothing particularly memorable, not all that remarkable.
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The Persian Version (2023) directed by Maryam Keshavarz
This one I like a lot. Drama/comedy. In some sense, it is an immigration movie (Persian/Iranian family that immigrated to the USA), but it is so much more. The first generation with their baggages (cultural and personal) from the old world and the struggle to make a life in the new world, the rebellious second generation trying to find their identities and place as they grow up in the new world, the complicated relationship between the USA and Iran that changed dramatically over time. Entertainment and good stories aside, there is a lot to unpack and mull over in this movie, intellectually and emotionally. Probably haven't seen an "immigration movie" as fresh and thoughtful in a very long time. Highly recommended.
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The Holdovers (2023) directed by Alexander Payne
Some problem boarding school kids are stuck in school during winter break under the supervision of a not-personable teacher, along with a cook and another support staff. Stuff happens that made the kids and the teacher better people and helped them get over some personal issues. The overall contour sounds well-trodden but this is actually a well-executed and thoughtful movie, in my estimation among the better ones in this genre. Recommended.
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It's a Wonderful Knife (2023) directed by Tyler MacIntyre
Slasher, with some comedy thrown in. Holiday related serial killing -- think the "Holloween" franchise, except this one is just the first film and it may or may not make it into a "franchise." In this one the holiday is Christmas. Many people die, lots of blood and gore, before the killer is identified and the motive exposed. Good enough entertainment, and among the better ones in the genre, if you ever want a Christmas-themed slasher film.
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Wish (2023) directed by Chris Buck and Fawn Veerasunthorn
Disney animation/musical. Something or other about magic and the power of a wish; not sure if the details are all that important as the plot and premise are contrived anyway (and with most animation/fantasy). Not really feeling the music in this one. Animation and computer graphics are good but nothing groundbreaking, technologically or stylistically. Still a good family movie, just not "special."
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Thanksgiving (2023) directed by Eli Roth
Slasher, with some comedy thrown in. Holiday related serial killing -- think the "Holloween" franchise, except this one is just the first film and it may or may not make it into a "franchise." In this one the holiday is
ChristmasThanksgiving. Many people die, lots of blood and gore, before the killer is identified and the motive exposed. Good enough entertainment, and among the better ones in the genre, if you ever want aChristmasThanksgiving-themed slasher film.Compare to It's a Wonderful Knife (2023) reviewed in post #188.
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Deep Sea (2023) directed by Tian Xiaopeng
Chinese animation/fantasy. Something around a magical "undersea restaurant." It tries to be imaginative with the aesthetics and bombastic with the action scenes, and it tries to tear-jerk at the end. But ultimately I do not find the resulting product special or convincing as a whole. It sure looks like many people put in a lot of effort into the production though.
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Dream Scenario (2023) directed by Kristoffer Borgli
Drama. A college prof. started appearing in people's dreams. The prof. does not "cause" this to happen, he has no control over it what so ever. His colleagues, students, neighbors, friends, acquaintances, towns folks, strangers, etc. would dream of him, doing whatever or doing nothing in their dreams. Of course some of the dreams are "bad" or nightmarish, and over time some people start to find him "triggering" because he reminds them of whatever bad things that happened to them in their nightmares. The protagonist lost his job and became a pariah. After a while, with no rhyme or reason, the phenomenon fades away -- few and fewer people dream about him, and eventually things return to normal. The movie ends with some tech entrepreneur inventing a wearable device that would allow other people to "enter" the wearer's dream, and a new industry is born -- dreams become advertising spaces with "dream influencers" entering people's dreams to advertise things.
The premise is a neat idea, and kudos to the writer and director for their restraint to not turn this into something to be explained or turn this into some psycho thriller or supernatural flick. The movie just explores, in ways that are quite grounded to reality, what might happen if a person starts to appear in people's dreams. Of course there is more that can be explored, but I think the writer and director have done a good enough job of exploring the premise. Recommended.
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The Shift (2023) directed by Brock Heasley
Basically a Christian movie with a sci-fi skin. Satan tries to recruit some dude to be one of his minions who will torment souls by "shifting" them to different parallel realities (think multiverse). Dude ended redeeming himself by sacrificing his own desire/happiness to save someone else. Not a bad movie, but ultimately nothing all that new or groundbreaking.
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Saltburn (2023) directed by Emerald Fennell
A tale of a young man slowly taking over a rich family's estate and fortune, with many disturbing scenes and events involving kinky obsessions, sexual debaucheries, and murders. Also a warning: prolonged scenes depicting male full frontal nudity. Captivating, recommended, but nor for those with a weak stomach.
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Silent Night (2023) directed by John Woo
Dude's family killed by gang members on Christmas Eve. Dude took a year to train and plan, then exact revenge on those gang members on the next Christmas Eve. A competent production, but the plot is too well-trodden and this movie does not introduce anything that's new or interesting to this tired plot.
