Lazy Octopus

Acolyte feels like a poorly written fanfic, where author had some interesting ideas but did not know how to develop and connect them. Instead we got this attempt at moralising. It's not that you shouldn't comment on social or political issues, Andor does it and does it well. But there's performative ranting and there's story telling. I feel like I watched an 8 episode rant on "Jedi are bad y'all", with a hint of "not all Sith". Yikes. Motivation behind characters felt forced. Am I really to believe that a Jedi decided to kill a bunch of women based on a hunch? Just one example, but there were more situations like that. I've also found many characters unlikable. The witches, they didn't feel fleshed out enough for me to care for them. Sol was so one dimensional and the Sith guy was just contradicting himself all the time. I did like Osha, I hated Mae. But again, Osha's motivation to join Jedi five seconds after she sees them felt like a poor writing choice. Why would she care about them more than she did about her family? As a writer shouldn't you ask yourself that?

The moment we arrive at the Romanian outpost I knew this was going to go sideways. The movie lacks subtlety in its depiction of supernatural horror, everything is so in your face. Ellen's visions are cheapened by the whole violent pelvis thrusting, making it almost comical. Again, no subtlety. It felt as if the characters were one note and paper thin. I didn't care for any of their deaths. Additionally, this adaptation brings nothing new to the genre, so for me it was a snore fest. Just because you can do it, does not mean you should. When will movie makers stop remaking stuff and come up with original ideas? I expect from a horror to keep me on my toes, this was simply another poorly written and boring movie.

From the description it sounded like one of those movies that are just made bad intentionally. But it stars (briefly) Hannah Hoekstra. That and I had nothing else to watch anyway. Have you ever seen a bear snorting cocaine? It's so absurd it's hilarious! I fully expected the movie to be over the top, badly made camp but it in fact delivers entertaining dialogue, solid acting and dark sense of humour. Which counters the absurd idea of cocaine snorting bear, making it a really fun movie to watch. Overall I would say that Cocaine Bear is a well crafted dark comedy that might be worth a watch over some of the overhyped productions out there. I am glad I didn't write it off!

Spoilers ahead. Season 1 was actually entertaining even though it struggled with logic and some one dimensional characters (the VIPs). I did not like the cop plot at all, right from the start. Are you telling me it's really that easy to tail the bad guys, infiltrate their ranks and not get caught right away? And then somehow the bad guys can't find the cop, because they don't think to search the captain's quarters. That's just lazy writing. The moral struggle of players was something to think about and the strongest aspect of the entire season 1. Acting was generally good. And despite his flaws, the main character was likeable. Overall season 1 would get 3/5 from me. But it is being lumped together with season 2, which is a disaster. Somehow in this season player 456 decides to throw his money on a bunch of amateurs to find the place where games are being held. And the results are equally amateurish. The cop is back with another brainless plot where you can see what happens next from miles away. Writing just gets a lot more lazy in this season, I wasn't able to find any redeeming quality in the story. Characters end up delivering either winded monologues that are somehow supposed to inspire their fellow players or they engage in childish conversations. And sadly, season 2 acting is pretty bad. Most of the actors seem to be playing caricatures rather than real people that we could connect with. With that said, I did like about two characters in season 2. It was the old mom and the trans lady. Especially the trans lady, she's a surprisingly badass character. Both vulnerable and strong. Why more characters didn't get similar treatment in writing? Even 456 is disappointing, and I liked him in s1. Music choices were weird. Plot was non existent, writing lazy, acting bad. That I think sums up what I think of the season 2. Won't be coming back to watch the 3rd.

I'm genuinely disappointed with the reactions to the movie, but not really surprised. Vast majority of entertainment is just mediocre slop and people gulp it like there's no tomorrow, asking for seconds with stupid smiles on their faces. So when something dares to be different and challenges their views, those smiles turn upside down. Spoilers ahead. I loved the first movie and I love this one as well, it's simply brilliant. The creative choice to use songs as representation of Joker's and Lee's shared delusion was perfect. Arthur's struggle between holding on to his humanity and fitting into narrow expectations projected onto him by his lawyer, Lee, the society feels like a mirror pointed at us. You're either this or that, nothing in between, so very removed from reality. In the end Arthur rejects this and fully embraces his self. Only to be reminded that nobody wants the real him. People want the Joker, the symbol of whatever it is they want to see in him. The ending very much cements that idea. If you want something that will leave you wondering, then go for this one. But skip it if you're expecting an action movie.

Just more of the same Netflix slop, sadly. When I read about the show, it already gave me familiar vibes (The Fugitive) but decided to give it a chance anyway. Derivative doesn't always mean worse. But four episodes in and I feel like I'm wasting my time. Unfortunately the show suffers from lazy writing. It's pushing the plot with no regard for logic, stretching out already thin material. And I understand that sometimes logic clashes with creativity however... this show is anything but creative. This is about as much as I can write without spoiling the story to those who still want to give it a try. I'm done with the show myself.

Rewatched recently and still found it relevant. I enjoyed different, more complex approach to human/alien relationship than is usually present in sci fi. Here it's more of a social commentary rather than an invasion and military conflict for the sake of it. Making the story relevant is what makes the movie stand out in a good way. The visuals are seamless, further grounding the setting and making it believable even when you see the aliens roaming around their district, with mothership hovering in the background. It's a relatively old movie but still holds up and is a proof that you don't need flashy special effects and a huge budget to make a good one.

Often I can tell when a movie is going to be a trainwreck after watching a trailer. For some reason sci fi movies just don't get a lot of love from high profile directors with good portfolio. From unoriginal and illogical plot to terrible acting and cheaply done music, Atlas has it all. It's yet another movie that wants to warn people about technology being evil. Such overdone and simplistic trope. And it's not even a solid take on the trope. I still wanted to watch it for the visual library. My mistake to assume it would deliver at least on that front. It's just artificial and ugly looking. I did myself a favour and stopped watching after an hour.

This went under my radar, so I wonder how much promotion the movie has received prior to its release. Anyway. Biopunk genre is so underrepresented in entertainment, this movie was a welcome discovery. It's quite gloomy and leaves viewers with only a seed of hope at the end. But Vesper's journey is so grounded it feels like you're there with her, making you root for her endeavours to recreate life. It was refreshing to see such smart, determined and loyal character, who hasn't lost sight of what's beautiful despite of living in such grim reality. I did enjoy most of the plot, but there's always room for improvement. Still if you want something unique, something different from the mainstream, I highly recommend giving this a chance. Just don't expect fast paced action or tons of CGI. This one is about a meaningful journey.

Best SW show so far. Good acting, well paced engaging story and no typical Disney cheese. All that wrapped in beautiful visuals and music.