Films I Watched This Week — Aug 26 – Sep 1, 2024
The Bad News Bears (1976)
Great movie! Explores very dark and brutally honest themes like alcoholism, racism, sexism and the gritty elements of competitive sports, especially on how they can negatively affect young children. And yet it is still very funny, sweet and a child's film at heart.
Dune: Part Two (2024)
I just finished Denis Villeneuve's Dune 1 & 2. I believe them to be the greatest epic fantasy films successfully done on such a grand scale since Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers. Already creating two of the greatest sci-fi films from the previous decade with both Blade Runner 2049 and The Arrival, Villeneuve can now add another masterful sci-fi achievement into his filmography. Like all great fantasy science fiction stories, Dune 1 & 2 explore thought-provoking themes, especially fanaticism governed throughout religious sects. Prophesies, superstitions, and above all, the belief in a messiah who offers us promises have only led to tragedy. Unlike most fantasy stories in mythology, I love how Paul, the lead protagonist, is not the savior the desert Fremen believes he is. He is a self created disaster made up by the dogmatic Freman religion. The superstitious prophecy that he is given by them ultimately gets manipulated by the Atreides people through their own technological propaganda and used against the Framans' fear and vulnerability. When you mix tribal thinking with technological weaponry, it is a sure receipt for bloodshed. Now that Paul is fully seduced by a massive power trip at the end of the film, it is inevitable that he will lead all these Fremen into blind annihilation. Dune 1 & 2 gave me utter chills at its conclusion because these kinds of events happen all throughout human history and are currently happening today. The oppressor manipulate the oppressed while scheming and deceiving the very people closest to them for their own personal gain and greater power. This is in our nature to conquer. I am so ready for the third and final film. Bring it on Villeneuve!
Dune (2021)
I just finished Denis Villeneuve's Dune 1 & 2. I believe them to be the greatest epic fantasy films successfully done on such a grand scale since Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers. Already creating two of the greatest sci-fi films from the previous decade with both Blade Runner 2049 and The Arrival, Villeneuve can now add another masterful sci-fi achievement into his filmography. Like all great fantasy science fiction stories, Dune 1 & 2 explore thought-provoking themes, especially fanaticism governed throughout religious sects. Prophesies, superstitions, and above all, the belief in a messiah who offers us promises have only led to tragedy. Unlike most fantasy stories in mythology, I love how Paul, the lead protagonist, is not the savior the desert Fremen believes he is. He is a self created disaster made up by the dogmatic Freman religion. The superstitious prophecy that he is given by them ultimately gets manipulated by the Atreides people through their own technological propaganda and used against the Framans' fear and vulnerability. When you mix tribal thinking with technological weaponry, it is a sure receipt for bloodshed. Now that Paul is fully seduced by a massive power trip at the end of the film, it is inevitable that he will lead all these Fremen into blind annihilation. Dune 1 & 2 gave me utter chills at its conclusion because these kinds of events happen all throughout human history and are currently happening today. The oppressor manipulate the oppressed while scheming and deceiving the very people closest to them for their own personal gain and greater power. This is in our nature to conquer. I am so ready for the third and final film. Bring it on Villeneuve!
Endless Poetry (2016)
Not my favorite Jodorowsky with only a few scenes that stuck out as shockingly memorable (one involves a female dwarf and blood and I will leave it at that, lol) His most accessible film with a optimistic compassionate message about forgiveness. That ending with his father was extremely touching.
Dead Ringer (1963)
Great thriller! It was a blast to see Bette Davis pull off playing twin sisters. More a thriller than a horror, with a touch of film noir, this was a great film full of suspense and surprises!
The Small Back Room (1949)
Powell and Pressburgers weakest film. But I still found it a very interesting character study on a alcoholic. A broken man who felt inadequate because of his artificial leg and who covered his pain and sorrow up with alcohol. A man who was with a woman much too good for him. And yet she loved him unconditionally. The ending bomb diffusing sequence was quite intense and I love the dark noir story elements. The film was very visually restrained, which goes against the vibrant colorful exuberance of most Powell and Pressburgers films.
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