Corvin

Nomadland the movie is not Nomadland the book. Every body-breaking horror of capitalism is slowed down and fuzzed away. As any factory or warehouse worker who watches the Amazon scenes knows. As anyone who read the book or worked a beetfield harvest knows. The closest thing to the book was the camp host scenes. Hard to gloss over cleaning portapotties, maybe. Not a terrible movie. The book is better. The book is the closest to the real thing you'll get unless you're already living there. And at least the book doesn't blame the victims. The movie has some victim blaming.

Every beautiful moment is encapsulated in the dance scene. Before and after he walks in.

[SPOILER ALERT: This review contains spoilers.]

Well done, informative, and entertaining, but with the sad ending that Snowden himself predicted: His worst fear was that nothing would change (except to get worse). And so it is.

A great overview on the basics. Those interested in delving deeper into the history and research should access the many lectures given by Taubes and Lustig for free on Youtube. If you've already studied this issue you'll probably find Fed Up to be a bit basic, however it's still compelling. It puts a face on the devastation. Very young and desperately unhappy faces. It's heart wrenching when a child is obese because the parents swallow the hype of Lean Hot Pockets and breakfast cereal and worse, they can't afford to feed their children better than they are anyway. The one quibble I have with Fed Up is the claim that healthy food is just as cheap or cheaper than unhealthy food. Simply not true. If you go to the grocery store with $20 for a week you won't be buying fresh meat and produce. You'll be buying bread, Mac and Cheese, and sweets. The comparison Fed Up made was between restaurant food and grocery store food. The real comparison needs to be made between grocery store meat and produce and grocery store processed food.

A fantastic dark comedy for those of us who have lived on a steady diet of reality crime and have sometimes stooped to lapping up the salacious content of crime show talk shows. I wonder, was Nancy Grace flattered or offended by the obvious (and brilliantly executed) spoof of her persona?

Whether through brilliant editing and brilliant subject selection or through genuine portrayal, the trainers come off as wholly sympathetic. And it is clear that many of them are distressed over the treatment of the animals in their care and over their own participation in the exploitation of killer whales. Seaworld Parks & Entertainment, meanwhile, comes off as devious, ruthless, and wholly unsympathetic. For me the salient points in determining that those running the park are indeed all of the above are the lies they told the public through their trainers. First lie: Orcas don't live as long in the wild as they do in captivity. This is a blatant falsehood, the lifespan of orcas in captivity is much shorter than that of orcas in the wild. Only through cunning manipulation of statistics can Seaworld even attempt to assert otherwise. Orcas in the wild have a lifespan similar to humans. In captivity, it's a rare orca that lives to see age 30. Even worse is the lie that calves are not separated from their mothers (as told to the public in Seaworld's spin ads after Blackfish released). Calves are indeed separated from their mothers, and when Seaworld denies this, they are using verbal trickery and hoping viewers don't realize that in the wild orcas stay with their mothers all their lives. So when Seaworld says it doesn't separate calves, what it means is, it permits calves to stay with their mothers for a certain number of years before separation. This does not mimic wild behavior. In fact, Seaworld does not even wait until the calves are in their teens to inflict separation, even though orcas don't reach full maturity until then. When a trainer expressed her concern over a calf being separated from its mother, she was mocked ruthlessly by a Seaworld exec. The trainers have genuine love and concern for the animals in their care, but the corporate decision makers are infinitely ruthless. Furthermore, orcas are not in family groups while in captivity. Orcas from different parts of the globe (with correspondingly different languages and customs) are forced together in ways that would never take place in the wild. And because of the close quarters, all orcas are forced into unnatural acts of aggression, since a dominant member cannot chase away a rival because there is no open ocean for the rival to flee to. Finally, it is evident from the documentary that, while the trainers were dedicated and to some extent well-trained, they were not always made aware of the dangerous nature of their employment. Attacks were explained away as trainer error or non-aggressive behavior, and the danger presented by Tilikum in particular was not fully revealed to his trainers, though it was clearly known to the higher ups. I grew up in Orlando, and I have many happy Seaworld memories, but I'm convinced by Blackfish: Orcas don't belong in captivity.

Loved all of the acting and the dialogue, especially the humor. I'll be vague on my two quick nitpicks so as not to give anything away: The bridge scene came off as too coincidental and unrealistic and the outcome of the daughter's party seemed unnecessary to the plot. But the answer to poverty and exploitation is not to hope your kid runs fast enough to escape it. The answer is to end poverty and exploitation. I hope one day Disney makes films about labor movements (we have a rich, violent, and riveting history to draw from up to the present day). Or how about a film on the Black Seminole slave rebellion? It's a story never been told that would make an amazing movie.

Five stars even though this movie came out silly. Star 1: Anti-capitalist theme. Hey, I'm a commie and not even afraid to say so. I enjoy two things in movies above all others: transcending our ultimate human physical limit, which is death, and transcending our ultimate human psychological limit, which is selfish greed. Star 2: I want those skates. I want a lot of the technology in this movie, in fact. Star 3: I enjoyed almost all of the make-up and costuming effects. Star 4: This movie could have been solid as a year long series or even a mini-series but that would have made the special effects impossibly expensive. Sadly, the characters and plot just didn't have time to develop in a believable way as a film. Star 5: I played The Secret World, which referenced the bee mythology, so I had a vague idea of where they were going with that. Again, sadly, no time to realize the potential there.

I'm thankful that I didn't read a detailed plot synopsis or do more than skim a few reviews before finally seeing Her. More than any movie I've ever seen, my opinion of this film is based on who I am and where I've been in my life, and I think that will be true for everyone who sees it, whether they love it or loathe it. In its own way, this alone makes Her a work of art. Regardless of what you bring to this film, writers, particularly screenwriters, will benefit from studying the superb craftsmanship, particularly the flawless foreshadowing and its use in the expression of theme.

[SPOILER ALERT: This review contains spoilers.]

[SPOILER ALERT: This review contains spoilers.]

The trailer was snappy and hilarious. Sadly the movie was not, except for a few rare moments. Gets a 4 from me for those moments and for the talented cast.

It had its moments and the acting is good, but the standard military setting and hero cliches dragged it down, even if the main character doesn't start out fitting that hero cliche. Which is a cliche unto itself anyway. And perhaps a lifetime of single and multi-player games has warped my perceptions a little. I alternated between thinking, 'running out of quarters' and 'MMO dungeon with a new player to teach, this time let's hope he doesn't stand in the fire' for much of the film.

As a fairly new atheist (and therefore more snarky about religion than I have any right or reason to be) I thought I'd get a laugh a minute out of this whole thing. But it was really sad how easily a charismatic rascal in colorful garb can start a religion. The world is too full of hurting, broken people, and the human condition is just entirely too pathetic. I'm left with a question: Did he really feel any sorrow for his deceptions and any real affection for the people he tricked, or was that an act, too? Kumaré gets a 10 from me regardless of the primary actor's true character. It's thought provoking. And I'm glad I couldn't laugh at the people who were taken in by him. They're just good people who were looking for answers in the wrong place. And who hasn't done that at one time or another, one way or another?

It would be difficult for any movie to live up to the premise of Transcendence. Even as a novel the concept would struggle, for without conflict there is no story, and "Man dies, takes over internet, and turns the world into a great place for everyone," just won't cut it. So I wasn't surprised when the movie was more Frankenstein, Swarm, scientists-create-zombie than a science fiction masterpiece. However, there was some fine acting, interesting character development, and foreshadowing, and the ending almost does manage to transcend its limitations.

I see why many critics weren't happy with 47 Ronin. The plot was predictable and well-worn in places as was some of the dialogue. But it was a fun action picture with lovely cinematography. Keanu Reeves does facial expression nuances well. I went into it knowing it wasn't going to be winning any awards for thoughtfulness and depth, and I came out satisfied, having enjoyed this movie for exactly what it was.

This one has some funny moments thanks to Johnny Depp but is too heavy-handed with the slapstick action escapes. I also detested the title character a bit more than perhaps the writers intended or would have wanted, since it kept me from engaging more with the film.

[SPOILER ALERT: This review contains spoilers.]

If you haven't let someone spoil Oblivion's late-plot twists for you, do yourself a favor and tell them to shut up while you shell out the cash to catch this one in theaters. The visual and audio effects make Oblivion at least worth the matinee prices, and going in not knowing everything will make its flaws (a few plot holes, a convenient coincidence or two, and an annoying plot device named Bob) well worth overlooking.

By far the funniest musical I've ever seen. Never mind that it isn't supposed to be funny. If you read this review and then go see Les Miserables anyway, you better know how to entertain yourself. I laughed my way through the final two hours by making up Weird Al style verses to substitute for the piteous wailing and moaning and brow beating and self-flagellation that makes up the actual verses. Even my 66 year-old mother was making wisecracks by the end of it. Her final verdict was the movie needed less singing and more fighting. Sadly Les Miserables also lacks a guillotine, so you will have to hear the entire cast of characters go on and on in sobbing song until you long for a short, unmusical death scene. Preferably a scene involving the entire cast.

Beautiful but boring and shallow. This movie had me fidgeting in my seat and impatiently checking my watch almost from the opening scene. I give it a 6 solely for the cinematography.

Before I launch into some gleeful pointing out of this movie's plentiful plot holes, I want to say that I thoroughly enjoyed Total Recall. Possibly because it borrowed from some of my favorite movies. Not just Total Recall, but also hints of The Matrix, Fifth Element, and Mr. and Mrs. Smith found their way in, with perhaps a dash of Terminator and a sprinkle of Johnny Mnemonic, to name a few. Also, the special effects were excellent, and the protagonist and his love interest were relentlessly appealing, not to mention almost supernaturally attractive. The final five minutes might have viewers grown weary of climatic fist fight scenes rolling their eyes, but other than that, it was well paced and extremely enjoyable. Now, on to pointing out plot holes. Warning, spoilers ahead! If you have the technology to send your wage slaves through the core of the Earth to build your robot army for you, you would have the technology to create radiation proof housing, with proper ventilation and tasteful decoration, to ease overcrowding. If you have the technology to create robot forces, you have the technology to create robots to make your robots, so you don't need wage slaves traveling through the core of the Earth (however cool and essential to the plot that mode of transportation might be), to make your robot army for you. One also wonders why the only way to travel from what was once Australia to what was once Europe is through the core of the Earth. Sure, it's fast, but it was really the only way post-apocalyptic blue collar workers could commute? But then again, because it was made clear that this mode of transportation is the only mode of transportation, it really helped wrap the plot up neatly. It also seems that humanity, while creating a robot army, a subway tunnel through the Earth, and a cellphone implant, failed to create a way to subdue a civilian population that didn't involve a troop transport of soldiers marching in, however robotic the rank and file of those soldiers might be. Of course, they wouldn't want to simply blow the civilian population up, seeing as how, for some bizarre reason, they still needed human workers. And clearly the human workers needed subduing by the robot forces, because even though the evil overlords in Europe had the technology to completely wipe a person's memory, they must not be able to create Stepford Aussies to do their work for them.