It's impossible to remain indifferent to this film... and for me that happens in a positive way. I could be here constructing a complex list of profound reasons why I think this film is a good film. I could say it's all about the fragility of our existence and other things like that, but I actually liked the film because it captivated me, because it made me wait anxiously for the end. This fact alone was enough, but I loved the rhythm and many of the bizarre things that filled the narrative. In a more functional analysis, the actors are good, the sets are cool, the soundtrack didn't disappoint either. I imagine that anyone who loves popcorn movies with final fights between bad guys and good guys won't enjoy this movie, but it's a very interesting product.
Reviews
50 Reviews
Eram Duzentos Irmãos
(1952)
A naive propaganda film.
4 May 2024
It will be of some interest as an example of the propaganda film of the Portuguese fascist regime. Loaded with mantras typical of nationalist, patriotic and conservative culture, it is nothing more than a very simplistic and sometimes surprisingly naive film. It is also the film where one of the greatest Portuguese actors - Ruy de Carvalho - made his debut, in one of the main roles. Interestingly, it can be seen that despite this film's shortcomings, Ruy de Carvalho asserts himself as having the best performance of the entire casting. Younger people, when watching this film, will certainly be surprised by the sexist messages, typical of the time and which made me smile. The means used are so poor that the Sagres ship's trip to Brazil is reduced to a few takes in the sea near Lisbon.
Terra Nova, Mar Velho
(1983)
A must if you like movies about the sea.
20 April 2024
I saw the film today, in a version digitized to 4K, for the first time. It is a very interesting documentary for anyone who knows the history of Portugal in cod fishing, carried out by the Portuguese in the North Atlantic. The film portrays four months on board a ship with forty-eight men, eager to catch a thousand tons of fish and return home. It is a documentary but with some fictional parts, remembering the Portuguese presence at sea, but also the problems, emotions, joys and sadness of these men. Some of the characters are simply fabulous, especially the cook José Cid - a grump and with a unique sense of humor. I really liked this film.
Bull
(2021)
I have to see the rest of this director's films.
29 October 2023
There is something irrational about the rating I gave this film. I really enjoyed watching it, I watched it carefully throughout every second of its duration, I let myself be absorbed by the soundtrack and the unexpectedly dark atmosphere. I loved the absurd inconsistencies and the bizarre way of telling a story that has already been told many times. The characters of Bull and Norm are very well developed and constructed, the actors are excellent, the horror is effective.
In short - the story of a criminal who returns and decides to take revenge on those who did him harm, has already appeared in many works in the History of Cinema, but this film has something unexpected and different that made me focus while glued to the screen.
In short - the story of a criminal who returns and decides to take revenge on those who did him harm, has already appeared in many works in the History of Cinema, but this film has something unexpected and different that made me focus while glued to the screen.
Last Sentinel
(2023)
Great atmospheric movie.
31 August 2023
I just watched this film on a cable channel and when I went to the IMDb app to confirm who the director was, I was surprised by the low rating. It is a film full of intention and strength, a way of looking at science fiction as a moment to reflect on our future, without being simplistic and obvious, without worrying about details, but rather building an increasingly difficult and complex. It's really good that films like this still exist, without constant noise and where everything is explained to the viewer as if everyone had a mental age of five years. It's an excellent mystery story, full of tension. Well told and with a well thought out narrative.
Duck, You Sucker!
(1971)
Best Leone Western?
17 August 2023
I think I've seen most of Sergio Leone's westerns, but for whatever reason I haven't had the opportunity to see this one! In short - it's the best of them all. The package is pretty much the usual with music by Baladamenti, actors who were international stars and filmed in Spain. But this one escapes, in the narrative and in the subject, the common places of the western as the dichotomy of the good and the evil, the search of the redemption or the affirmation of the strongest one. It's a well-written story told by Leone, with humor, creativity and even disruption. The usual Manichaeism dissolves and an epic and historical scenario emerges in which nobody is totally bad or good. The resources used are a little higher than usual, with explosions, battles and dramatic scenarios. The main actors are excellent.
Knock Knock
(I) (2015)
Bad... That's it.
7 July 2023
Incredibly bad. I don't even know what to say... Why did Keanu Reeves consciously decide to participate in this thing? Inconsistent, unjustifiable, lack of imagination from beginning to end, five minutes of Ana de Armas in a sexy dress (not enough to see this miserable film). The only positive thing I remember is the length of the movie - it's short. It has a small curiosity, which is the inconsistency of the location and nationality of the characters. The film was made in Chile but, apparently, it intends to take place in California, but the characters behave as if they were on vacation in Madrid. Right now I'm trying hard to remember a decent movie (besides Matrix 1) where Keanu Reeves appeared... and I can't remember.
The Distinguished Citizen
(2016)
A delicious movie!
28 January 2023
I saw this film by pure chance on a local television channel, at the same time that the last Avatar is shown in cinemas (in January 2023). Avatar cost hundreds of millions to make, but it left me feeling like I'd wasted three hours of my life on a silly, goofy story with blue people. I struggled with sleep throughout Avatar, but I loved every minute of this movie on a minuscule budget compared to the Hollywood monster. All this to say that this is an intelligent and sensitive cinematographic moment, full of simple but brilliant humor, which goes from the settings to the unexpected and touching dialogues and situations. Spanish cinema has accustomed us to finding beautiful gems and this film is one of them. I prefer not to tell anything about the story so as not to spoil the experience of those who decide to see it, because it is really worth doing so.
Claustrophobic, full of strength and with a different vision of what it is to make cinema
2 January 2023
I saw this film by pure chance at a small film festival about the sea, in my small town in Portugal - Ílhavo. When the film ended, I remember thinking how impossible it would have been for Hollywood cinema to tell this story in this claustrophobic, almost sickening way. How do you narrate someone's long journey on a ship and across the Atlantic without ever, not even for a second, having the opportunity to see the English vessel that transported Dom Pedro from Brazil to Portugal? The film is built on the growing tension between the characters and an almost macabre vision of these relationships. The emperor's psychotic existence dominates the story told and the climate generated by this labyrinth of tensions, fears and doubts only accentuates it.
The Peanut Butter Falcon
(2019)
It is what can be called a touching film.
2 January 2023
As a teacher who works with children with Down syndrome, of course I was especially touched by this film. An enchanting story, with simple but intelligent humor. If you haven't seen it, check it out because you'll like it for sure. It has solid characters and a narrative that captures the viewer's attention. Dakota Johnson, who got on my nerves just for having appeared in that silly film of the gray shadows, is charming and that smile was enough for me to have liked this simple film. The question of how we deal with difference can be addressed through a four-hour scientific documentary or through a beautiful and heartfelt movie.
Nope
(2022)
Pathetic...
31 August 2022
It's just a pathetic movie. Anyone who thinks this thing is a masterpiece for being terribly original can only be very young or completely unaware of the History of Cinema. Anyway, President Trump was also terribly original in his work, wrote stupid tweets every day, thought no one knew as much about science as he did, etc... but that didn't make him a good president. This film, too, may have some originality, but it is nothing more than an incoherent collage of meaningless anecdotes. In my opinion, it's not even pure entertainment and I had a hard time staying awake until the end. A few years ago it could still be said that at least "it's an excellent visual show", but even that doesn't matter in this time of continuous screens and images. Some of the oddities become particularly irritating, lacking Lynch's cinematic construction and just being there for the sake of being. In my opinion it's not really worth it and we wait for the next one, hoping that it will be as good as some of the previous ones.
Promising Young Woman
(2020)
After seeing the trailer I was expecting something more obvious, but after all it's a very interesting movie.
19 June 2021
I remember this actress as the "Drive" girl and little else. Carey Mulligan ends up building a solid and unexpected character and that fact changes everything. Besides the quality of the actors, it's easy to find great ideas here - from the dialogues to the art direction (Cassandra's parents' house is really fantastic), almost everything is disruptive enough to make us like this kitsch-chic fantasy about someone who has suffered trauma and wants others to suffer too. This excellent work by Emerald Fennell is really worth seeing.
The Titan
(2018)
Bad... that's it.
15 December 2020
Do not waste time with this film, this is my sincere and honest advice. Basically, it is nothing more than a dull and uninspired sequence of common places and a lack of imagination. It irritates only by predictability and pathetic scientific errors. The competent actors are not enough to save this thing.
Santana
(2020)
Very amateur work but deserves to be watched for being a pioneer.
30 August 2020
I'm Portuguese and so I was curious to see this first "action film made in Angola". It is evident that the film is not well written nor has anything extraordinarily positive, but we must not forget that Angola has almost no path in the film industry. I would consider it a pioneer and demonstrate an honest will to do something that reaches the public. By the way, unfortunately, we know that corruption rules this wonderful country in Africa and that if there is a truly honest police interested in arresting criminals, there will be a lot of work ahead of them. In the middle of the film, the minister says that "we cannot jeopardize the country's reputation", which turns out to be a comic speech.
Amateurism in many aspects of the film clearly compromises him but with a little effort we managed to reach the end, knowing that we are witnessing a historic work.
Cold Pursuit
(2019)
Hans Peter Moland loves "Fargo" (1996) and made this one twice!
29 August 2020
Of course I'm kidding, this film is not a copy of "Fargo", but when we see it with its immense whiteness, blood splashes and black and subtle humor, it is impossible not to remember the Cohen brothers' masterpiece . Hans Peter Moland is a Norwegian director who made this same film in 2014 but with the Swedish actor Stellan Skarsgård. In 2019 and with Liam Neeson, he returns to make exactly the same film, with many similar scenes but with slight adaptations that contextualize it in the United States of America. It is not new in the History of Cinema, but it is rare, because adaptations of European films for the American market are generally performed by directors accustomed to that market and are very simplified in the narrative in order to please a wider and less demanding audience. To shorten my analysis of the film, it is good and even shows interesting and original ideas that the trailer does not anticipate. When we see the trailer, it looks like it's just another action movie with Liam Neeson (an excellent professional, versatile and talented in many ways), but it ends up offering us a black comedy that resembles much of the work of Brother Cohen. Excellent in all aspects - art direction, dialogue, direction of actors, filmography, and yet another demonstration that Liam Neeson is one of the best.
Making of Last Days
(2005 Video)
I love this making of because...
14 July 2020
I used it as a teaching tool a lot of times when I was trying to change the point of view of young kids. Teaching movie making to 15 year old pupils it's not so easy. This little "making of" and others helped a lot, but this one is still my favourite.
Curling
(2010)
There was a strong idea here but...
4 May 2020
The best thing about this film is the Jucifer song in the end credits. There is a strong idea here, but I suspect that it ended up overshadowed by an inexplicable desire to make "Curling" a collection of bizarre inconsistencies. Trying to explain better what I mean, when David Lynch fills us with bizarre situations, we feel an authenticity that justifies them, here I don't feel the same because the bizarre aspects exist in isolation without building something authentic. The desire to do something ... different is so strong that it overlaps the narrative. But not everything is bad, there is a subtle and intelligent mood that survives and that made me see the whole movie without suffering and pain.
Please Stand By
(2017)
Excellent movie
3 April 2020
If you don't mind watching a very well written story. The mood of the entire film is warm and positive and touched me in a special way, because I work with people like Wendy.
Not only a good cinematographic piece, could also be considered an educational tool.
Doctor Sleep
(2019)
Unnecessary.
19 March 2020
Warning: Spoilers
1316/5000
Making a film that was the continuation of a masterpiece by one of the greatest masters of cinema in the twentieth century, would initially be an ungrateful task, certainly the target of criticism and censorship from purists and those who have a stricter view of the seventh art. I am convinced that I am not part of that group but I was not expecting a film as pathetic and childlike as this Doctor Sleep. The foolishness and narrative simplicity typical of a youth film, span the two and a half hours of film, from beginning to end we can watch a tedious series of cliches very close to titles like "Twilight" or even "Lord of the Rings". Those who remember the subtle complexity of "Shining", are faced with a vampire adventure in which there is no shortage of final fights between good and bad, futuristic gadgets, caricatures from the Kubrick film, very good people and evil-laden monsters, for that everyone understands the story well. The comparison between the 1980 and 2019 film could easily lead us to sociological considerations, differences between generations, extreme simplification of the cinematic language, etc., etc. What I think is important to mention is that this thing is a shameful little story that does not honor Stanley Kubrick's memory and artistic heritage and that was certainly unnecessary.
Ford v Ferrari
(2019)
Great if you are a petrol head.
12 February 2020
Efficient and well made... and that's it. A simple and straight story with another "American Hero" (maybe a couple of heros) and a lot of simplistic and a bit silly stereotypes. A bit childishly from my point of view, but ok if you are looking for a simple and easy to understand pic.
Double Jeopardy
(1999)
That's how you make an excellent thriller.
12 January 2020
This is one of those movies... there's nothing new or disruptive about it, because there's no need for it. I watched several times on TV and I can remember a lot of good things about it: a great idea, Tommy Lee Jones, a wonderfully written script, truly good characters, decent general production. It will not change your view of the universe, but it's awfully fun.
A clever comedy.
29 December 2019
To fully understand the humor of this movie, it is absolutely necessary to know the pop culture of the era portrayed. It seems to me that many of the negative opinions read here originate from young people who do not know who Roman Polanski, Sharon Tate or even Steve McQueen was. There are a number of historical incongruities in the film, but they are not particularly important. In short, it's a clever comedy that will touch those who love Hollywood's golden age film culture.
Ad Astra
(2019)
Pointless.
23 December 2019
It's an uninteresting movie, and it's not because of the constant scientific and technical nonsense that just makes it ridiculous. Art direction subdues narrative when it should be the other way around. The story is pathetic, inconsistent, uninteresting. Film language is pretentious and inconsequential. It seems to me more like a case of someone looking for a 2001 they can't find.
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