Garden State (2004)
A funeral sparks rebirth as a chemical fog lifts when Andrew, numbed by prescriptions, meets Sam, a grounded manic pixie dream girl who radiates sans cloying artifice. Expertly maneuvering clichés with earnest sweetness; each new apt soundtrack elevates his awakening. Though underutilized, the father and he together suture the chronic wound, feeling closure's quiet catharsis. After long night, sunrise.The Shop Around the Corner (1940)
James and Margaret are bickering clerks unknowingly courting via epistolary exchanges filled with adoring prose. A timeless manuscript of hate-to-love romances, etched permanently into cinema's DNA. The simple predominant setting elevates characters' depth, including the side characters to beyond mere fixtures. Eternally charming.The Menu (2022)
Overcooked satire skewers haute consumerism with the subtlety of a cleaver. Chef’s lament, “he aspires for greatness but he’ll never achieve it” echoes the film’s fate. Theming and plating entices as we're given an amuse-bouche of compelling premise giving way to an entrée of undercooked absurdist narration and a dessert of bland resolution. Style over sustenance; as our protagonist, Margot, says, "I'm still fucking hungry."KPop Demon Hunters (2025)
Delivering exactly what the title promises, a generic synthesis of K-pop and their idols while slaying demons. Tropes abound as if produced in autotune, character depth flatlines like a dropped verse, and animation occasionally stutters but the original songs in K-pop style, true fandom archetypes, and exaggerated anime-esque reactions crackle with youthful fun verve. Formulaic as K-pop's mandatory concept change, yet easily palatable like listening to American Top 40.The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim (2024)
Hark! An avaricious shadow falls upon Middle-earth and another withered branch upon the White Tree. Hallowed memory desecrated by this wraith of the Riddermark; landscapes faithfully rendered in mimicry, pallid heroes bereft of myth and soul, animation jerks with the grace of orcs. This is no heir to Peter Jackson's reverence. Fly! Even The Hobbit’s follies shone brighter.Caught up on some Marvel movies the past 2 weeks: Thunderbolts and Captain America: Brave New World. Thunderbolts was ok, but I found it lacking, like something is missing. Captain America wasn't good.
Also watched Ballerina. The action was great. Story is pretty meh, but that's expected on the John Wick films, except for the first one which was executed well. My wife and I found it funny that Eve was particularly brutal towards the Asian henchmen lol. I know it was just coincidence.
Diablo starring Scott Adkins and Marko Zaror.
I watched Tamala 2010: A Punk Cat in Space (2002) this week in preparation to see Tamala 2030: A Punk Cat in Dark on Sunday.
It was pretty weird and I had to watch a YouTube video to help me understand a bit more. I still liked it though, the music was great, there was some good visuals and I prefer watching weird shit over boring Hollywood regurgitation.
