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Nephelith
Warning: I'm a highly sensitive person, so I can live series and films with intense feelings, which may reflect in my reviews. I watch and review more with my heart than with some intellectual pros-cons perspective or whatever you may call it. Also, I don't believe that there is such a thing as objectivity when it comes to art - so, yes, my reviews are deeply subjective.
Blog : http://nephelith.blogspot.com
Ratings
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Reviews
Blade Runner (1982)
A boring visual gem
The aesthetics are mindblowing, even in 2021, but the plot is dull, weak and predictable.
I had to skip over several scenes that were unnecessarily violent and some other things were absolutely unconvincing - such as always finding the one person you're looking for in the most overcrowded city of all times, or the love story that you can see coming from miles away. As much as I enjoy slow-paced and ambient films, Blade Runner's slowness is due to its ridiculous lack of plot development. The story is one big void.
Good visuals sadly aren't a seal of a quality story.
Musta jää (2007)
Quite weird but entertaining
Both the concepts of cheating and of blaming the lover instead of the cheater are things I simply can't understand. Needless therefore to say that stories about cheating aren't my thing. This one though, it has something. Another user called it a 'twisted revenge', and that's pretty much what it is. It's weird, cold, manipulative and even disurbing at times. But the several layers of quiproquos and masquerades are clever, and the characters are very well portrayed and full of charisma, which makes the film entertaining.
Sorjonen (2016)
Noir and froid
Sometimes cases felt rushed and sub-plots felt unnecessary. But overall, Sorjonen / Bordertown was truly interesting. It was my first ever Nordic Noir and I adored the entire ambience and aesthetics. I also got quite attached to some characters, and truth be told, I miss them. It's also truly pleasant to see a main character who is highly sensitive and seemingly on the autistic spectrum. Well, medical terms or not, Kari is most definitely unique and excentric in his way and it is truly refreshing.
Sorjonen is dark and slow, to my greatest pleasure. The series shows surprisingly grim stories and twisted minds which can be quite unsettling - but that's the whole point of it. The cold-blood murders in Lappeenranta seem to align with the cold of Finnish winters...
Control (2019)
A gem. Period.
I don't think I can bring an interesting review, everything has been already said. Remedy are proving yet again that they have their own style. Control is such a unique game, and after 64 hours I am still in awe. Unique architecture, amazing gameplay, interesting and immersive story, exentensive lore, touching characters, Control has it all. I couldn't be more in love with this game!
Alamaailma Trilogia: Vanki (2010)
Better than expected!
On paper, the story seemed ridiculously simple, but I really wanted to see something with Martti Suosalo, and I was pleasantly surprised! Vanki is far from being a revolutionary mini-series but it was much better than I excepted it would be. A solid 8 for sure, if you ask me.
Suomen hauskin mies (2018)
Heartwarming and funny
I am not into war films, nor I am into comedy. But this film is absolutely brilliant! A heartwarming story of the power of laugh and the beauty of camaraderie.
Project Blue Book (2019)
Immersive and addictive
Honestly, I don't have much to say about Blue Book. It feels basically perfect to me. Gripping UFO investigations: check. Beautiful aesthetics: check. Immersion in the 50's: check. Real character developement: check.
Hynek and Quinn are extremely charismatic both separately and as a duo, and so is the Mimi-Susie dynamic, and so is everything and everyone else.
Project Blue Book is such a huge favourite. It was love at first sight, and I hope it will be renewed for a third season!
PS : Just like Vikings or Versailles, this is not a documentary. It's a fictitious drama, based on facts, but based only. In any case, it's been made with the real Hynek family's blessing and help, so it doesn't really make sense to complain about how untrue some things are, does it?
Interstellar (2014)
Overall unconvincing
Nothing in this film was believable to me. It felt like a parody.
In a world where people think Apollo 11 was fake, a guy randomly flies to another galaxy and walks other planets like it's no big deal, after zero training and literally five minutes after having discovered he would do that, leaving his two underage kids behind.
Suddenly, they mix space travel with time travel that modifies the past. Because, obviously, this is realistic.
I don't even know how to put in words how much the "a few minutes here means 23 years back on Earth" was ridiculous.
The overall unconvincing and unbelievable feeling is enhanced by the surprisingly very poor CGI / 3D.
Also, the main character's actor doesn't know to articulate and it's deeply annoying.
The only two positive things I have to say: there were two or three really gripping moments, and the music is an incredible masterpiece.
But overall, yes, this film felt so deeply uncovincing. Nothing felt real.
Containment (2016)
Beautifully intense
There may be procedural inaccuracies - I have no knowledge in that field, and to my eyes, everything was credible, and that's what counts.
Containment is a beautifully intense series, in which the urge to live and to survive is so strong you can feel it through your screen.
Also, a scene in episode 8 is the most poetic scene I ever watched, and the end of episode 11 is so violent it leaves a scar...
Containment is a humane series above all and benefits from touching characters as well as an addictive biohazard story and a beautiful general realisation.
The Vampire Diaries (2009)
Unique and difficult to let go of
TVD is, to me, the best example of a well-made long-running show. 8 seasons, 171 episodes, and yet absolutely no arc felt boring. So many series just go downhill after two seasons and lose themselves in nonsense plots, but TVD kept on being interesting and well-made.
It starts as a regular teen drama, and for me who's used to British series, seeing 25+ actors play 17 year-olds felt weird. But TVD switches very quickly from teen to young adult, and overall, the whole series is way more mature than you'd expect. The whole universe and lore is super developped and interesting, most of the characters are neither entirely good or entirely bad, and you get attached to many of them.
It's a bit difficult for me to review TVD, because it basically became a massive part of my life. But I think that even this fact shows something about it...
The Vampires Diaries in one word: fascinating.
Dracula (2020)
Innovative and clever
An innovative take on Dracula's legendary story. The transposition in our modern days is very well and cleverly done, the main characters are deliciously sassy, and it's aesthetically pleasing. A really, really great version of Dracula!
But don't watch it if you're not open to a modern, less Bram Stoker Dracula. This version is not a simple adaptation of the novel, and if that's what searching for, you'll be disappointed. This version is different - be ready for that.
V-Wars (2019)
Misleading advertising
A show advertised as a vampiric biohazard, and yet it's far from it.
Instead of being a mature series in which vampirisim is a virus/disease, V Wars is a teenage series in which vampires are a werewolf-like faction with completely unrealistic body changes. The scientific aspect of the series is barely present, as they prefer to show absolutely pointless sex scenes and subplots.
Also, what on Earth was that end? Without a second season, such an ending makes no sense.
V Wars was a huge disappointment.
The Craft (1996)
Wannabe esoteric horror
The first half of the film was rather enjoyable. Then it went downhill.
The Craft is a poor CGI festival. It starts as a kitschy teen comedy but evolves into some wannabe esoteric horror with negatively disturbing scenes.
Trauma (2018)
Desperation and madness
Scariest John Simm I ever witnessed. In three little episodes, you can see this broken father spiralling down to a level of desperation that makes him lose it, in a very dark and creepy yet very realistic way.
Trauma is the best series of my collection when it comes to the depiction of such characters and stories. And the short three-part format makes every episode valuable and important, no time is wasted. Perfect, that's all.
(And, with all due respect to other critics out there - you know that each individual is unique and has their own behaviour, right? There's nothing unrealistic in Bowker's behaviour, on the contrary - despair and sudden grief, especially when being already mentally unstable can screw your mind pretty badly. The fact that you didn't act like that doesn't mean no one does or no one can).
Mad Dogs (2011)
Disturbing and addictive
The hot Majorca temperatures gets to your head. Madness progressively takes over everything and everyone, and leads to an extremely disturbing ending...
With Mad Dogs, be ready to embark on a funny yet terribly dark ride. A brilliant and unique series that's not easy to forget!
Attack the Block (2011)
Annoying
This film is simply annoying. I feel like it's 1h30 of the same scene over and over again. Everybody keeps screaming, so many useless gun fights and car actions. I would have probably enjoyed it more if I were a 12 year-old wannabe gangsta. Such a shame, since Jodie Whittaker is brilliant - she's saving the film from being utterly mediocre.
Legacies (2018)
Not bad, but not great either
Legacies is simply more childish than TVD. But the main problem is: while there is supposed to a red thread directly linked to TVD - the Gemini Coven, I mean - this is barely spoken of after two and a half seasons (let me repeat: two and a half seasons!).
Legacies is basically a low-quality Doctor Who: one episode, one monster. But the monsters (be it CGI or latex) are everything but credible, and generally speaking the fact that there are 'monsters' isn't credible either in the TVD universe. Of course, since vampires, werewolfs and witches exists, why not mummies, sphinxes, fairies, mudmen and so on? Technically it could exist, but I don't know, it feels too much, it's too over-the-top to be credible.
I keep watching it because the characters are rather attaching (despite their young age) and I'm curious whether they will do something with what's supposed to be the basis of the spin-off.
But overall, if you don't care about Alaric, if you're not interested in the Gemini Coven / the merge / Kai TVD arc or if you're not into 'monsters', I would advise you not to waste your time.
Deadwater Fell (2020)
Very dark, but not very convincing
We have here a progressively scary David Tennant, who is, as always, very convincing.
Unfortunately, I felt it to be too long. I can imagine this being better in a three-part format. Or even maybe in a two-part format.
Overall, Deadwater Fell is a Broadchurch-like series, but it doesn't reach its level. It's more of a very dark and morbid series than a beautiful and ovewhelming one. And of course, that's fine, as these are two different series - but the 'dark for the sake of being dark' is mainly why it feels simple and too long.
I do recommend it, but I can't lie, it didn't leave a big impact on me.
Not Safe for Work (2015)
Not your typical office comedy
I opened my IMDB account to review this. Not Safe For Work is, I believe, my most favourite mini-series of all time.
This is not your typical office comedy. This is the story of a group of people failing at life, but in a realistic way. It's both very funny and very dark, and while at first it may seem cringy and over-the-top, you quickly get into these weird people's weird lives and personalities - as Morticia Addams says, 'normal is an illusion'.
At first you start with archetypes, such as the junkie, the awkward chatterbox or the guy with anger issues, but the characters unravel and become absolutely attaching (especially the Danny-Angela duo, as far as I'm concerned).
In the end, these people and their stories are really touching and I simply didn't want to let go of this lot.
My only complaint is that it's way too short!
Broadchurch (2013)
A gem like no other
The story, the characters, the music, the camera, the angles, the colours... everything makes Broadchurch a gem like no other. It's a series of pure intensity, that's all I can say, quite frankly. I watched it when it first aired, and years after, just thinking about it brings back memories and emotions that no other series made me feel.
Broadchurch isn't something you simply read reviews about, it's something you experience.
Bliss (2017)
Entertaining
I can't say that Bliss is a masterpiece, but I nonetheless found it entertaining and funny - despite the very grave turn of the events.
I won't classify it in my favourites and I don't think it's extremely memorable, but it's definitely worth the shot for a short entertainment. I found Bliss to be interesting from the begining to the end, leaving no gap whatsoever, and I was constantly thinking 'dude, what on Earth are you doing, and what are you going to do next?!'. So, yeah, not memorable but interesting, funny at times (I don't see this as an actual comedy) and entertaining nonetheless.