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pahlito
Reviews
Obliterated (2023)
Cheap, predictable and awkward
In my native language there is a word that doesn't quite exists in the english language, but it roughly translates to "shared shame" - when you feel awkward and ashamed on behalf of someone/something. That's the closest feeling I can think of when it comes to this show.
It's not so much the predictability or unoriginality that bothered me, it just feels clumsy and cheap. The quality is mediocre, the acting is subpar, the jokes aren't particularly funny, the stereotypical characters don't bring anything new to the story.
I don't want to sound like a snob - I enjoy "dumb" humor and over the top action when done right. I don't mind "turning my brain off" ans one reviewer suggested to enjoy something that is simply entertaining. I have no issue with violence, nudity, sex, alcohol or drug abuse when these are used in an interesting, clever or funny manner. Obliterated falls short on all fronts.
Logan (2017)
Gritty, dark and hopeless
I had a rough idea of what the movie would be about, so it offered no major surprises.
The picture of Logan as a hopeless drunk felt a bit too stereotypical. Yet he finds the capacity to fight every time when needed, of course. You could tell minutes before when the bad guys show up. However, it wasn't the predictability that was the biggest issue for me. That's to be expected in superhero and Marvel movies.
What I didn't like about Logan was the misery and hopelesness that went on all the way to the end. I'm sure many will disagree, but I don't want to feel miserable at the end of a film. I think loss and death is an essential part of movies like this, but so is a happy ending, at least to some extent, or some character. In Logan, no one got that.
The most important characters in the whole X-men franchise were killed after being endlessly tormented. Professor X by losing his mind and health, only to recover for a short moment before being stabbed to death. Logan, who had lost everything over and over again, being tortured for all his life and constantly facing death, finally facing his own with his daughter watching. This felt over the top dramatic and mostly made me pissed of at the writers - will you give this character a break?
There was obviously a clear decision that this won't be a happy movie and thats fine, but I think there is always a balance. Despite the kids fleeing in the end, the over shadowing feeling was despair. One of my all time favorite books and movies, The Road by Cormac McCarthy, is also one of the saddest. Yet it leaves a grain of hope and closure. I didn't feel enough of that in Logan.
Andor: The Eye (2022)
Best episode of a phenomenal show
I'm a fan of all the Star Wars live action shows to date, but in my book Andor has topped everything so far. I rarely review individual episodes, but this particular one was one of the best episodes of ANY television shows I've ever seen. Perhaps it was the building up of the series up until this moment, and then the extreme suspense of this episode that made it work so well. It literally had me shaking with tears in my eyes. As a Star Wars fan, this was everything I could hope for. The show has brought an entirely new perspective to the the empire, the rebellion and the whole SW universe. This episode was the best of the season but I recommend the whole show. It's one of the very few shows I've watched twice in a row and wouldn't mind doing so again.
Iron Fist: The Mistress of All Agonies (2017)
This did it for me
I've been going through the Marvel Netflix/ABC series and so far I've enjoyed most of them. Iron Fist felt lower quality from the get go, but the beginning was watchable. It gradually got worse and the plot more ridicilous. The characters are less and less believable and the acting is getting worse. The fighting scenes are inadequate and choppy. This episode is the definitely the worst one so far and made stop watching the series. I might pick it up at some point because I wanted to watch all the shows, but this is making me question that choice too. Does the quality overall decrease like this? I hope not....
Daredevil: A Cold Day in Hell's Kitchen (2016)
A slight let down after a big build up
There were a lot of unanswered questions going into this episode and I felt hardly any were answered. Maybe this is because I know nothing about the comics, but I feel like this seriesnshould work on it's own and the season should also function as it's own story, like season 1 did. I still don't know who is Stick is or what the organization he works for is. What is the "Hand"? Who is Nobu and why is he seemingly immortal? Who/what really is Elektra and what is Black sky? What is the Japanese gang doing? I'm sure some of these were answered in season 3, but I don't like it when everything is left unanswered after a full season.
What goes for the episode itself, I felt like it was more messy, that some things were forced into it and the action scenes were not on par with prior ones. Particularly the roof top scene was borderline cringe worthy with it's pacing. I'm sure the next season will improve on this, but this was a let down.
Ojing-eo geim (2021)
Depressing and predictable
This show started of interesting but in the end it was a let down. The characters became annoying and predictable and the story left too many questions unanswered. There is a difference between leaving the viewer wanting to know more and simply leaving too many blanks, in my opinion Squid Game did the latter.
At the end, you've spent the entire season watching a miserable guy get kidnapped, beaten, everyone close to him killed and at the very end he leaves his child hanging once again. If this was a build up to a second season, I really don't care. I regret buying into the hype of watching this.