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dalfak96
Reviews
Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021)
Top notch production with several stupid plot holes
The good: The production design, drama, acting and action is pretty much flawless. Nostalgia is also well performed.
The bad: The story, while engaging, is dependant on several really stupid plot holes. The first of which is Doctor Strange (who is supposedly very intelligent) casting a spell with potential to rip space/time apart without any preparations what so ever, like going through alternatives and what consequences the spell will have for spidey, who very predictably have objections. It is never explaned why one of the seemingly good guys suddenly switches sides.
And ending... Why no exceptions, at least one or two? And wouldn't also the other Spidermans be affected by the spell?
As much as I'd like to, I could not get past these problems, and ultimately they pretty much ruined the movie for me.
John Wick: Chapter 3 - Parabellum (2019)
John Wick is getting old, slow, and most of all - stupid.
The first movie was a fresh start on the kliché hitman trying to stay out-franchise. The fighting techniques were as real as they were choreographed and Keanu has been training hard with competent instructors.
The the second movie were as sequels usually are - more of everything, but still managed to retain somewhat of a engaging storyline and refine further on the concept.
Parabellum, however, is a step back. John Wick has gotten plain stupid. He clears area after area of assassins armed to the teeth, but leaves unarmed himself. In one episode the fight takes place in an arms museum of some sort, but Mr. Wick still leaves unarmed. He is also obviously slow in hand to hand combat. Probably signs of both age and the apparent disadvantage of always fighting in a suit.
The adversaries are very considerate however, and the only reason John Wick survives. Not only do they time and again obviously wait for Mr. Wick to strike first or get away, they try to wrestle him from behind instead of stabbing him with held knifes or using holstered pistols, they also refrain from chances of fulfilling their given mission to kill him, to instead offer a hand so Mr Wick can get up.
The motorcycle scene is especially stupid. Trained assassins with swords that only attacks the head and upper torso, that can actually avoid the attacks, instead of targeting the lower body that has nowhere to go. Oh, they also have guns, but they don't just shoot him. Honorable assassins don't do that, I suppose.
It is so stupid and unbelievable that it takes me out of the movie experience. I can accept unrealism in a movie, after all it is a movie. But I can't accept "professionals" acting incompetently or irrationally in their professional functions.
The Punisher (2017)
Started great, heading towards mediocricy.
The first season was really great. Solid performances and great story. Score: 9/10
The second season has a good start but devolves fast into a weak plot. Character development seems to have stalled. The new additional main character comes off as uninvolving and flat to me. I have forgot about continuing seeing this season several times, not good... Score: 6/10.
The Gene Generation (2007)
Pretentious without substance or workmanship
The film is not all bad, it has it's charm but the good parts are too few and far between. The acting is generally very unconvincing, still Bai Ling and Alec Newman are more or less OK most of the time. Parry Shen is awful and overacts all the time, a shame since he has a big role in the movie.
The story is weak with terrible plot holes. The emotional development is rushed and very hard to relate to. Bai Lings hard core assassin with a yearning for romance feels like two characters pushed into the same person.
The CGI is very sub-par for a movie made in 2007, I've seen Xbox 360 games with more realistic graphics.
The movie seems to rely entirely on Bai Lings push-up costumes and she is heavily exploited throughout the movie.
The worst part, however, is the pretentious artsy cuts and slow scenes that wants to make this movie into a cult classic, all of which feels embarrassing considering the apparent weaknesses of the narration, pacing, acting and CGI.
Watch it if you're a sucker for the genre, like I am. But keep your fast forward button handy.