EvilPhoEniX

For me, an average French comedy with a strange and uninteresting theme. Making a film about looking for a lost teddy bear seems quite crazy, it significantly lacks both situational and gag humor. The advantage is the 80-minute running time and one legendary scene with a crazy security guard and his crazy dog, it lasted about five minutes and is among the best things the film offers (If they made him the protagonist, it would be awesome). It's a shame that the rest of the characters lack humor. It was watchable, but France can do much better. 5/10.

Leo didn't seem to me like a groundbreaking animated film, but it must be acknowledged that it is perhaps the best animated film of this year. Pixar and Disney is starting to become tiresome and their fairy tales haven't been worth much lately, whereas Netflix is doing quite well. The Mitchells vs. the Machines was a pleasant surprise, and this is no exception. Adam Sandler is unmistakable. The story is about a iguana and a turtle who live in a terrarium in a school classroom and gradually start getting to know all the children, who are assigned to take Leo home for a day. Once they find out he can talk, he begins to help the children with their problems, which is not only original but also very educational and beautiful. It is partly also a musical, but the songs fit nicely, each child has an interesting problem that they need to solve, Leo is a very likable character whom the audience cheers for, and the turtle is very funny. I laughed politely a few times, it also has a pleasant pace, and it is decent entertainment for the whole family. Yes, this was good. 8/10.

A pretty pleasant feel-good comedy about a man who goes from one job to another, only plays games on PlayStation, and doesn't have a great standard of living. He accidentally gets into trouble and will have to work two months of community service at a retirement home, where he will meet the likeable Gerard Depardieu (a former boxer and one of the best characters). Some of the characters are entertaining, though I expected a slightly crazier humor from the French. It's more of a pleasant and nice film, without any bursts of laughter to be expected. The story follows the classic template, but thanks to the likeable characters, pleasant pace, and feel-good atmosphere, it turns into a non-offensive one-off. (I liked the reference to the TV series Money Heist) 6/10.

Finally, I caught up with this acclaimed thriller from one of the best Czech directors, Pavel Soukup, whose recent film #annaismissing left me craving for more, and this is indeed a similar masterpiece. The film starts off shockingly, with a truck driver hitting a 15-year-old boy named Marty, who dies on the spot. The parents' depression and despair are present from the very beginning, and the atmosphere is definitely unpleasant and unenviable. However, things start to get interesting when the father opens his son's computer, gradually uncovering more and more terrifying secrets that he was hiding. He was forced to carry out chilling tasks, often crossing the line of the law. Pavel Soukup certainly knows how to hold the audience's attention and presents them with the current topic of social media and the dangers that can lurk there. The series is not far from its American counterparts, Searching and Missing, and those who enjoy such films will not be disappointed here either. #annaismissing was a more thought-out thriller, where the audience could guess the killer, but here I had no idea, as there are no clues, and the revelation is definitely unexpected and great. It is well-shot, well-acted with a fantastic atmosphere and a powerful message. If you haven't seen it yet, catch up immediately! 8/10.

This new Christmas horror film from the Norwegians would like to become the sibling of Wirkola's Dead Snow, but it is miles away; unfortunately there is nothing interesting to see here. A family moves to a mountain cottage in Norway before Christmas. There is a goblin elf hiding in the barn, he likes his peace and strict rules must be followed to not piss him off, which of course fails. During the first 50 minutes almost nothing interesting happens, the family is unlikeable, except for the sexy step mom, she was nice, but the father was a terrible loser and the kids were uninteresting. Once the elf gets pissed off and an army of elves appears, there is some action, but it's boring. We don't get any decent gore, it's a light/soft horror film for children. The humor doesn't work, overall it's quite bland and uninteresting, where no element stands out in anything. Visually, it's not completely bad, but if I went to see it in the cinema, I'd leave even more pissed off. It may serve well as a background while baking cookies or unwrapping gifts at Christmas, otherwise it's a waste of time. 4/10.

French gangster-flick master Olivier Marchal shot a series on his favorite theme, the world of drug gangs, a genre where he feels at home, so it's exactly what the viewer expects. Although it does not reach the peak of his other works and does not attempt a groundbreaking story, the cards are quite clearly dealt, but those who are not tired of these tough gangsters from authentic France will certainly not be disappointed. Marchal has not disappointed me yet, and it didn't happen this time either. We have tough cops who are not afraid to get their hands dirty, they go from one trouble to another, and the viewer will like them. On the other hand, there are also two drug gangs. In one them there’s Murillo with the Indian and in the other there is Ali-Arab from Dubai, who comes to Marseille to take over the city. For me, it is the best character of the series, an incredible dude, a typical gangster, a role perfectly tailored. The only thing that annoyed me was that he didn't get more space, especially in the last two episodes, which was a shame. I liked that the series doesn't waste time with unnecessary side characters, we either follow the police or the gangsters, so boredom is definitely not a threat, and I appreciate that there is no unnecessary filler. Each episode contains one prominent French track, which was always great. Technically, of course, it's top-notch, the action is raw and uncompromising, but there isn't much of it, I definitely expected more, and in the last two episodes, when it should have kicked into high gear, it slightly falls behind instead, and there is no big action finale, which is a minus. But I watched the series in one go, it's my favorite theme, one I don't easily get tired of, so I had a great time, but I didn't sit on the edge of my seat. 7/10.

An enjoyable feel good genre film from high school. It lacks proper humour, but is likeable, lively, nicely shot and fast paced. The girls start a fight club in high school and get they beat each other up. There are a lot of lesbians, but the characters are fine, the soundtrack is good and the final fight with the football players on the field is great. It was also unexpectedly suspenseful at times, so I'll give it a weaker four stars. I had an unexpectedly good time, plus I miss these comedies from high school and I don't think there was a better one this year. 70%

A new short story anthology based on the myths of Latin America, featuring some of the best Latin American filmmakers, but unfortunately I found it mediocre. The police break into a house in El Paso and find a pile of dead people with one survivor who is taken to the station and questioned. He tells various horrific stories about his life, and that's the main connecting story. The second story is about a man who opens a portal to the underworld, and there's a really disgusting demon. This one was handled by the famous Demian Rugna, who knows how to work with gore and make-up effects. After the recent When Evil Lurks, I was expecting him to grind me again, but besides the demon, the story didn't offer anything particularly interesting. Better average. The third story is about a vampire who enjoys a night of killing people on Halloween, only that he forgot that it dawns an hour earlier due to the daylight savings time change. It's presented in a comedic style and it's quite funny, there's also some gore, so it's better than average. It was directed by Eduardo Sánchez, who has done The Blair Witch Project and Exists. The fourth story is the closest to Mexican folklore. A CIA informant falls captive to shamans and indigenous people and it features an interesting ritual. The setting and the make-up effects are nice, there’s a bit of mythology and it feels like the Mexican version of The Wicker Man, but again the potential was higher. This was shot by Gigi Saul Guerrero, who has Barbarous Mexico to his credit. The fifth story is again in a comedy style, where a boyfriend wants to kill his ex-girlfriend who is possessed by a demon. It's kind of a fight between the two where a even giant wooden dildo is used. It's by director Alejandro Brugues (Juan of the Dead), but I found it to be the weakest and least interesting. The ending climaxes with El Muerte arriving at the police station, where a bloody shootout ensues, and it's a pretty nice climax, but it doesn't elevate this anthology to above average. There's a bit of humor, blood and Mexican mythology from everyone, but I wouldn't give any story more than 4 stars. 55%

The prequel to The Hunger Games isn't a bad movie, it has its bright moments, but the actual Hunger Games, which should have been the main highlight are unfortunately not as engrossing as I expected. The 10th Hunger Games begins. Each of the students becomes a mentor and gets one assigned from each region and their job is to win the Hunger Games together. The main character is the likeable Coriolanus Snow, who gets a girl, and underdog, who can only sing. I liked the chemistry between them, Rachel Zegler is a very beautiful woman (and sings very nice), the emotions and romance work and these two pull the film up nicely. Of the characters, Peter Dinklage is also a great. Visually, of course, the film is on par, and even though it doesn't have a very thrilling pace, it certainly doesn't get boring, and the Hunger Games are quite thrilling, it's just a pity that there aren’t more traps, challenges and pitfalls. It's kind of Battle Royale style but without the gore, so I didn't get much excitement. There's not much action outside of the game itself, but it's quite imaginative and clever (the decisions Snow makes are pretty cool), it's just a shame that the main character doesn't fight at all. The second half surprisingly turns into a completely different movie and we watch Snow's interesting character development undergoing a really interesting and unexpected transformation. There are more songs than action for my taste, but they were at least enjoyable to listen to. All in all, an enjoyable film that I don't regret watching, but nothing that would make me sit on my ass. I have it between 3 and 4 stars, but I'll be more strict this time. I don't need to see it again. 65%.

An artsy court thriller from Canada! The trial begins for Ludovic Chevalier, who has been convicted of the murders of three young girls, which the sales of snuff videos on the Dark Web, definitely an interesting court case. We watch the film from the point of view of a model-juror who becomes obsessed with the case and starts to be a pretty decent psycho. The courtroom verbal barrages are fine and definitely go a long way to fixing the taste for the awful Anatomy of a Fall, though I wish there was more of the trial. At times the film focuses on stuff that isn't entirely appealing. I loved the conversation of the Dark Web expert, and the ending is captivating with an intense and thrilling poker game with Bitcoins that is one of the highlights of the entire film. It's a shame the snuff scenes are out of focus, but I can see how it wouldn't pass. It probably could have been made darker and more intense, but I'm still happy with this understated thriller, it's definitely worth a watch, but it's not a genre-defining film. 7/10.