3DD!3

Godzilla -1.0 is a film about the tragedy of inaction and fear and the motivation that drives individuals to action and the ultimate sacrifice. The opposite of the cheerful American fooling around, made for relaxing entertainment I saw a few days ago. The Japanese open old wounds here, using a metaphor derived from the two nuclear bombs that Oppenheimer served up to the US military for quick use. Broken people slowly getting back on their feet after a lost war, only to be trampled by another disaster. Stunning destruction, backed by a roaring musical score, vivid characters where you care who survives and who doesn't. Surprisingly, the main character, a coward, lives.

Godzilla is enjoying a vacation in Europe and Kong is looking for more apes in the hollow earth and has a toothache. A modern version of the Verne films, which degenerates into unadulterated Kaiju-porn at the end. Swashbuckling battles, solid visual effects, 80's soundtrack backed by Holkenborg synths, tremendous destruction and people who don't get in the way but are props for the main fighters. It's rubbish and digital crap, of course, but it's fun and even in neon colours with a pink Godzilla who justifies the change by sucking out nuclear power plants in Europe to fulfil his part of the Green Deal. It's got a bunch of subliminal messages. The villain is OK, but the main asset is Adam Wingard's wacky ideas, which somehow manage to get implemented. The most entertaining entry in the franchise.

The good, the bad, the ugly... Fallout mode. It's got pace, it's got cynical humor, it's got bloody action, and it's got a very timely theme. Walton Goggins is impeccable in both timelines and he also has the most interesting role. The others act like morons at times, but you'll forgive them for the perfect atmosphere. Jonathan Nolan is a fan and has looked after every important aspect of the adaptation. The twist is downright delicious, even though it was perhaps foreshadowed well in advance. The finale is taut as a string and Kyle MacLachlan rocks it incredibly. Even though it looks like chaos reigns, that doesn't mean no one is at the helm.

MONKEY MAN! MONKEY MAN! MONKEY MAN! MONKEY MAN! A bloody action romp with a mystical intermezzo and a subtle political background. Dev Patel is the writer, director and star of this heartfelt revenge project. The cleansing of the indigenous population for the sake of building a factory (probably for biscuits) resonates nicely, but the audio-visual package takes this unconventionally told traditional story to a new level. Contact battles alternating points of view, a high-paced chase through crowded streets, sweat and blood, and a cut through social groups from the bottom to the top. All beautifully framed by the tale of Hanuman. A unexpectedly mature work.

A perfect crime drama set in Tokyo at the end of the last millennium. The brilliantly recreated realities make you forget that the writers sometimes make things up and you are unpleasantly taken out of focus when some of the characters behaves downright stupidly in order to heighten the tension. The actors are great and the character development is exemplary. Whether it's Ansel Elgort’s Adelstein (though the return to his family is strong, but lacks the resolution of his sister) or Shô Kasamatsu yakuza guy. Ken Watanabe has mellowed a bit over these two years, going from a tough detective to more of a grizzled mentor. I'm hoping for another season, but there they would have to go straight into government circles to raise the bar.

This detached, austere, almost documentary reconstruction of the life of the diver/cashier/porn star Andrea Absolonova surprises with its quality. Natálie Císařovská doesn’t give a toss about the audience's expectations of porn cinema and rather observes, doesn't comment, doesn't judge. There is no great dramatization, not much is said, and the disapproval of the profession is shown only through sarcasm and disdain. Natalia Germani's performance is fantastic. I don't know if she hit her mark (I'm not familiar with her work), but she handles the rise and fall with aplomb. The audiovisual aspect is first class, too.

Impressive scale, a strong story that goes brutally against all modern trends and a young cast in top form (Austin Butler is demonic). It looks gorgeous, the polished design (a black and white planet!) where they paid attention to every detail surpasses the benchmark first film in places, and Hans Zimmer has taken the score to an even higher level. I liked the first part of Dune a bit more, though. It was more meditative and fresh. Here we're playing it safe and the cinemas are bursting at the seams. SPOILERS: It's interesting that a film about a colonizer who infiltrates a terrorist organization of religious fanatics and declares Jihad (it's interesting that they avoid that label) on the entire world order to avenge the death of his father gets this kind of space. Prophetic? We shall see. Denis Villeneuve has been mum about the third installment so far, and he's doing well because the leap to Savior is huge. Much more personal and the scale is smaller. The ending is bleak.

Solid craftsmanship, wonderful story. Robert Zemeckis' now classic intellectual sci-fi film about whether we are alone in the universe features an excellent Jodie Foster, ably seconded by a young Matthew McConaughey. The gradual narrative doesn't forget the broad scale, showing humanity in all its gullible and skeptical scope. On reflection, the three-body problem is a dark answer to the questions raised in Contact. It fits together beautifully for me now.

The cooking madness continues. This time, however, they need to build some of the good stuff to make things work, so we get a dream restaurant and Clairebear. Jeremy Allen White is going all out and about halfway through the Christmas episode, he gets such a cast of sidekicks that it will make all the hairs in your body stand up. Surprisingly, though, this isn't the best episode, the one right after it wraps up the most fucked up character's story arc, which Ebon Moss-Bachrach handles it with aplomb. The ending in the freezer is disarming though, it takes all the joy and leaves it on ice. I can't wait for the next season.

Michael Mann chose to film a period in Enzo's life that would have made most people into quivering, weeping wrecks in bed. He starts by outlining a relationship situation, a value scale, and lets someone die. Masterful exposition with an absolutely spot-on Adam Driver and a terrifying Penélope Cruz. A story strong in detail. A harrowing family drama of a disaster-stricken factory worker, interspersed with an equally gripping racing inferno that, if you don't know what was going on in the Mille Miglia at the time, will chew you up with a minor detour into the life of an Italian family. Erik Messerschmidt pulls you right in between the roaring cars, Mann also keeps an eye on the sound so the engines roar and the sheet metal squeals like a cowpoke. Add to this Enzo's brilliant tactics – lying and twisting reality, tailor-made for each of the racers. The attention to detail shows the strength of Mann's filmmaking, and I hope we won't have to wait as long as we did for Ferrari for another such tidbit.