Movie Reviews
-
Swipe, swipe, swipe, It's not easy to find love online, so when Cecilie matches with a handsome billionaire playboy, she can't quite believe it when he turns out to be the man of her dreams. But dreams aren't reality and by the time she discovers this international businessman isn't who he says he is, it's too late. He's taken her for everything. Where this fairytale ends, a revenge begins.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Tinder_Swindler
The Tinder Swindler is a British true crime documentary film directed by Felicity Morris and released on Netflix on 2 February 2022.[1] The documentary tells the story of the Israeli conman Simon Leviev (born Shimon Hayut) who used the dating application Tinder to connect with individuals who he then emotionally manipulated into financially supporting his lavish lifestyle on the pretext he needed the money to escape his "enemies."
An Israeli man, born Shimon Hayut, travelled around Europe, presenting himself as the son of Russian-Israeli diamond mogul Lev Leviev aka the Diamond King.[3] He used the dating app Tinder to contact women as Simon Leviev, and tricked them into lending him money that he would never repay. He would charm women with lavish gifts and take them to dinners on private jets using money he borrowed from other women he had previously conned. He would later pretend he was being targeted by his "enemies", often sending the same messages and images to each woman, indicating that he had just been attacked with a knife, but that his bodyguard had saved him and was hurt. He then asked his victims to help him financially due to the breach of 'security', supposedly hindering his use of his credit cards and bank accounts; the women would often take out bank loans and new credit cards in order to help.[4] He would then use the money gained through the deception to lure new victims, while essentially operating a Ponzi scheme.[3][4] Later, he would pretend to repay his victims by sending forged documents showing fake bank transfers[4] and then break off contact with the victims.[5] Sometimes he would even go as far as threaten them and use manipulation to get more money from his victims. It's estimated that he swindled $10 million from people across the globe
On Netflix
-
"My pronouns are FA/FO." - Mik, 2024
-
Story about "The Big Grift."
It's a "Sting" wannabe, but it doesn't have the charm or the character draw of The Sting. Hoffman is, as always, great.
Jake Vig is a consummate grifter about to pull his biggest con yet, one set to avenge his friend's murder. But his last scam backfired, leaving him indebted to a mob boss and his enforcer.
The storyline is a bit too complicated for its own good, and you never really get invested in the characters. Lots of noir cinematography. The entire movie is a flashback of Burns explaining the grift - at least up until the last 5 minutes, it is.
Not a bad way to
wastespend an hour and a half or so, but there are better heist/scam/grift movies out there.2.5 stars.
-
Most interesting documentary about Alexei Navalny.
Link to video -
"Tetris" on Apple TV.
The story of how the battle for licensing the game on various platforms (console, PC, handheld) played out across various continents. The fight between the Soviet Union, Atari, Nintendo and others....
Not a bad piece of fluff, which, I'm sure is Hollywood-ed up.
"Based on" a true story.
Still a nice distraction for a couple of hours.
Link to video -
Swan Song:
Link to videoPremise - protagonist is dying of a terminal disease. He decides to have an exact clone of himself to take his place so that his wife will not miss him. The clone shares his DNA, his memories, everything.
And he doesn't plan to tell her when the clone takes his place.
Interesting story told in a quiet type of way.
I enjoyed Marjorie Prime (another "clone"movie), and this reminds me of that film.
3 stars out of 4. Maybe 3 ½.
-
Babylon is a "2022 American epic period black comedy-drama film written and directed by Damien Chazelle. It features an ensemble cast that includes Brad Pitt, Margot Robbie, Diego Calva, Jean Smart, Jovan Adepo, and Li Jun Li. The film chronicles the rise and fall of multiple characters during Hollywood's transition from silent to sound films in the late 1920s."
Long (3 hour) movie. I watched the first hour, and I can see how it's terribly polarizing. The craftsmanship of the movie is great. Plotline is also interesting, and Brad Pitt is totally satisfying as an over-the-top silent movie star.
It's on Amazon Prime.
Give it half an hour and see if it grabs you. It grabbed me, but I got distracted with Connelly this afternoon. I plan to return to it.
Oh, lots of debauchery, nudity, drugs, obscenity....
"Now look here, you Baltic gas passer... " - Mik, 6/14/08
The saying, "Lite is just one damn thing after another," is a gross understatement. The damn things overlap.
-
@George-K said in Movie Reviews:
Babylon is a "2022 American epic period black comedy-drama film written and directed by Damien Chazelle. …
-
@Axtremus excellent review.
I enjoyed "Once Upon a Time...", so you're right. Perhaps I'll dive in to finish the movie tomorrow.
Somewhere, I read that the director is all about the "long shot." This can be a gimmick, but his use of this "one long take" technique really immerses you into the scene.
Link to video -
last night I came across a 2023 b-movie thriller with an inexplicable cast, including Morgan Freeman.
https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/the_ritual_killer
It piqued my interest because I saw Vernon Davis listed in the credits. I thought I recognized the name and googled him, and sure enough, it's the retired NFL tight end who, as I recall, was remarkable for being an athletic freak. He's into acting now, and this is his sixth movie. He plays the main bad guy, and even put on an accent for the role. Fun to watch him. Movie was terrible, but I napped through most of it anyway.
-
G George K referenced this topic on
-
Link to video
A great performance by Hugh Jackman.
It was pushed as a comedy, but it's really not that at all.
Basic story, superintendent of a very successful school and a member of his staff have some "creative accounting" when it comes to funding a building project at the school. Student journalist discovers the creativity...
True story. It's a nice Saturday afternoon movie.
-
On Prime...
It is loosely based on the true story of lawyer Willie E. Gary and his client Jeremiah Joseph O'Keefe's lawsuit against the Loewen funeral company, as documented in the 1999 New Yorker article of the same name by Jonathan Harr....
In 1995, Willie E. Gary, an unconventional personal injury lawyer with an impressive track record, helps financially troubled funeral home owner Jeremiah Joseph O'Keefe sue a large funeral home company, the Loewen Group, over a contractual dispute.
Link to video
Pleasant movie, well acted by Foxx and Jones.
Of note, I think it's the only "courtroom movie" I've seen that does not have a depiction of closing arguments. Didn't need to.
-
Just watched a movie called "Life of Brian". Oh my gosh, it was quite funny. About a baby name of Brian that was born at the same time as Jesus and some people think that Brian is the Messiah.
Not very "politic correct" but quite funny.
Typical scene:
Link to video
Jesus is speaking to a crowd. The people in the back can't hear.
"What is he saying?"
"Something about that the cheesemakers will inherit the earth."
"What's so special about cheesemakers?"
etc.
LOL -
@taiwan_girl said in Movie Reviews:
Just watched a movie called "Life of Brian".
If you liked that, you should look up a comedy group called "Monty Python."
Please love yourself.
-
@Aqua-Letifer said in Movie Reviews:
@taiwan_girl said in Movie Reviews:
Just watched a movie called "Life of Brian".
If you liked that, you should look up a comedy group called "Monty Python."
Yes, they have another one on Netflix I will probably watch.
