Reviews

First thing - this is by no means a BAD movie. But giving it a 6/10 after being bored through 75% of it seems generous. However, I'll stick with it for the gorgeous cinematography, and great acting. That earns an 8/10, while the story that was told is about a 4/10.

For the love of god, someone reel in Martin Scorsese. The Irishman was 60-90 minutes too long, was a bit boring, but at least kept me interested through a good portion of it. Killers of the Flower moon had me looking at my watch and saying "my god, we still have two hours."

Major point of feedback is this took way too long to get going. It was about 80% setup which was done poorly with too much empty dialogue, boring conversation, and below average character development. It was the only Leo movie where I completely struggled to get interested in his character. The last 20% of the film was the FBI getting involved and investigating the situation surrounding Ernest (Leo) and Hale (DeNiro). In my opinion, the film would've been significantly more interesting if it was closer to an even split. It wasn't until I left the theatre and did some reading on my own that I realized just how truly horrific this story was, and the lack of real criminal investigation being shown was the reason this was failed to be hammered home. It happened in the end, but by that point, I was just glad to leave.

Scorsese - go back to 2-2.5 hour films.

"Remember, remember, the fifth of November...."

Heavy plot, deep characters, and a real motive for the perfect antihero. V for Vendetta is a true storytelling masterpiece.

From the moment we met V within the first 5-10 minutes of the film, his opening monologue will grip you like a vice. And if that didn't do it, the subtle explanation of the mask and purposeful intent behind the date of November the 5th will remind you of an often glossed over piece of history (at least for an American like me) that will serve as the blueprint for V's plan to foil the dystopian, fascist government that now presides over England.

There's been few movies that pulled me in from the moment the camera rolled and not just held on, but gripped tighter and tighter until the final credits. Do yourselves a favor an put this on the top of your watchlist.

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind explores the relationship of Joel (Carey) and Clementine (Winslet) through dream-like memories while Joel undergoes a procedure to have her erased from his memory following her decision to do the same, post-breakup.

This idea is one to build upon and craft a story around, however a large majority of the movie is while Joel is inoculated during the procedure trying to run through his memories of Clementine in a fast moving, screen shifting pattern that leaves the viewer little time to digest each memory and fully understand what had gone on. I think this movie would've been better suited if we actually had a chance to see the breakup occur, do 30 mins or so under the procedure to give the viewer a quick idea of how happy they were at one point, then take the rest of the movie showing us their journey back to one another.

Additionally, the characters are just unlikable. Both Carey and Winslet play their parts convincingly, as they always do, but Joel is a soft spoken, uninspiring pity party while Clementine is a rash, over the top head case who prides herself on her eccentricity when in fact it just comes off as her being a (redacted).

All in all, this movie can be summed up by the anticlimactic final line: "OK."