randomStuff101 Reviews

The Mandalorian (2019– )

Star Wars for big kids - great to see.

[9/10 · 6 March 2024]

Just discovered this series this year (2024). Great to see a star wars series with more meat on the bones. Nicely executed, efficient story-telling. Finally something with more adult themes and tone.

After all, the kids of the 80s are all grown up and some still like Star Wars, but tired of seeing the children's safe version with flashy light shows and too many young actors.

When I heard about this series, I was doubtful a baby Yoda would be interesting. Surely a gimmick. But it works well having this dark and depressed Mandalorian character looking after Yoda.

Excellent soundtrack too, nice ambient sci-fi.

Barbie (I) (2023)

Fresh & funny surreal scenes. With big problems.

[4/10 · 16 February 2024]

It was going well before they began over-explaining certain issues and ideas. Determined to make points and say it like they think it is. Lengthy ramblings and reinforcement tone.

On the plus side, colour and fun vibrancy in many scenes for a nice ride. Margot is great. But the dwelling on certain ideas and pushing of those ideas was drawn out, laboured.

Self-referential, as if they were too scared not to. Imagine a Barbie movie that didn't come with a toxic masculinity lecture? Who would dare make that?

A truly bizarre narrative intrusion at one point. Something about Margot Robbie's looks being incompatible with the Barbie character's vulnerable moment? In effect disallowing the Barbie character from having that emotion because the actor playing her is pretty? Very strange.

Immature writing in many ways. There are good lines from Ken and Barbie, but also really awkward material.

Prey (I) (2022)

Oh no, not again.

[4/10 · 12 November 2023]

What's the problem with elevating a young girl to super-warrior ability, agility and strength? It's unbelievable and implausible.

We're asked to believe too much. It's not a "predator movie", it's more "Hunger Games".

Okay, the girl can throw an axe. But we are expected to believe she goes from that to basically wonder woman. Able to out-smart and take down a predator on her own.

All she needs to do is a few flips and spins, some acrobatics, wrestle the predator a few times, defy death and injury over and over again, and watch her complex plan for a trap come together perfectly. We then see her stroll out uninjured, the predators blood on her clothes and face. Riiiiiiight.

The formula-agenda cringe is tedious. Unfortunate to see this again. "Girls can kill predators too" is the main point of this movie. Nothing ruins a good movie more than busting stereotypes and "representing" or whatever studio motivations are behind these projects.

Hijack (2023)

Underwhelming ordinary generic

[4/10 · 5 September 2023]

Some drama and suspense here and there, but ultimately a disappointing and overrated series. By the end it becomes implausible and far removed from reality. The fate of characters won't be of much concern by the end. Live, die, who cares.

The way they portrayed the evil genius bad people on the ground directing the hijackers, was in contrast to the awkward blunt demise of those on the ground. Get them out of the narrative so the story on the plane can continue. Way too convenient.

The "cleaners" turned out to be a couple of clowns not far from Home Alone level.

Not great TV. Even with the big Apple name behind the production, they go for a Sunday drive fluffy hijack story.

The main dude didn't have any special skills... ending up nearly ruining the whole thing multiple times. I was expecting him to be a crafty negotiator tactical guy or something, but he made dumb moves during the hijacking. He would have died if not for the unrealistic screenplay to his rescue.

Solo: A Star Wars Story (2018)

He grins too much

[4/10 · 29 November 2022]

The dude grins every few seconds, grin grin grin.

Someone told him to grin because it's that sort of movie, but that was a mistake because now he grins too much every scene.

What's to grin about? Almost dying horrible deaths etc, yeh I know it's star wars universe but still some actual serious tension and darkness would be useful to balance the squeaky clean material.

Instead we get a Ron Howard feel-good grinning festival. Bland cliche characters and plots, it's all so packaged and sterile. Would have been better with Chewy as main character, and Solo for one scene. Apparently I need to write more to meet some silly character quota.

Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021)

Cringe overload. Too long. Boring talking scenes.

[4/10 · 16 October 2022]

Long, boring talking scenes about nothing. This movie needed a better editor and writer.

Some good action scenes, ruined by tedious back and forth conversation filler.

Numerous awkward plot holes. Implausible, stupid decisions by key characters. Dr Strange for some reason gets outsmarted by Spiderboy's "geometry", as a way to keep Dr Strange out of the picture until the end.

Spiderman is an annoying brat the whole time. Whinging and yapping about this or that.

The scenes with all three Peter Parkers were yawn-inducing. There was one funny line, about not having spidey sense for bread.

The scene at end with Parker stumbling over his words, gazing for 3 hours at MJ in the store, asking for a coffee. So unrealistic. If she had no memory, she wouldn't be standing there for ages gazing into a customer's eyes. Awful, clunky editing.

Did the spell magically erase everything written down too? I thought it was a "memory wiping" spell, but apparently it changed everything ever recorded on video or written about Peter Parker as Spiderman.

Good film-making is about the courage to cut things out, leaving a tightly paced efficient story. This movie fails in that task, and is only somewhat saved by a few good action scenes, the effects, and Dr Strange.

The writers lose the plot with implausible nonsense, generic cheesy emotion and a mess of ideas. It causes a separation of viewer and content, where you don't care anymore because anything can happen. So you just watch the forgettable light show.

Captain Marvel (2019)

Nice light show

[3/10 · 15 October 2022]

Overcooked story and characters don't fit with other Avengers. It's a mess of clashing design concepts.

Tries to please teenage girls with blunt messages of girl-power, and "never give up" but ends up like a corny Power Rangers.

Brie Larson is unconvincing as a hero of any sort. Even as a normal fighter pilot she is out of place. She's the girl next door with perfectly shampooed wavy hair, no matter the physical ordeals encountered. Her whole look and attitude is boring, like she wandered off the set of daytime TV.

It's the 1990s. We get it. Computers are slow, and let's play the popular songs of the day. The Nirvana track lands awkwardly in the most unfitting scene ever for that song. Other 90s songs are plastered awkwardly over fight scenes.

Her powers... over the top is an understatement. Why would she lose any fight? She's basically God. I almost expected her to fly around the Earth to reverse its spin to go back in time.

At the end, a volley of future tech missiles rain down, but don't worry because Captain Marvel just needs to fly directly into them, blow them up, fly through the explosion into space, and just do whatever she wants.

No wonder they needed her to be "on the other side of universe" because otherwise there would be no need for any other Avengers. She could just take care of business by herself.

The story, concept, characters and script, clash horribly and the result is the worst of the Marvel films to date. Anything good? Some great effects, it's a nice light show at times.

Thor: Love and Thunder (2022)

Fun ride and visual treat

[7/10 · 4 October 2022]

Doesn't take itself seriously at all. Completely free to do whatever it wants.

I had low expectations because I read a few average reviews, but happy to find a very entertaining and spectacular ride. With all the stress and division in the world, it's good to let loose with a movie like this.

We've seen so much Thor and Marvel characters, so it makes sense to just open things up and have a jam, so to speak. Play with characters, jump around in the sandpit of the Marvel universe and have some fun.

That's what this is about. Fun. Over the top thrills. Escapism from the real world of wars, politics and sinking economies. Thor is great and really holds it together, and a few surprises thrown in.

I really can't understand some of the grumpy reviews, this is the good stuff.

Pretend It's a City (2021)

I did not laugh.

[1/10 · 1 October 2022]

I waited patiently for something clever, witty or funny. I waited but it never arrived. I am left wondering why this show has a high rating and what exactly people were laughing at.

"I wouldn't use the word lifestyle"... and everyone in the audience laughs. Why? Perhaps people are laughing at the way she says it, or because Martin Scorsese is on stage cracking up every time she says anything.

Sometimes Scorsese was bent over, laughing hard at completely mundane things she'd say. Like how everyone in NY complains about noise. Mildly amusing I guess, but why is he laughing so hard? Scorsese never made comedies, and I think I know why. Comedy is not his thing. Identifying comedy is not his thing either!

Okay.. so I did not watch all episodes because I couldn't bare it any longer. But I did randomly skip to different episodes looking for signs of life. But all we get is a rant without the wit. Like if Woody Allen had his comedic gift surgically removed, what remains would be something similar to this.

Nice lighting? Sound recording on point? I can't think of anything positive to say.

Perhaps her writing is good. I've never read anything she's done but perhaps people feel compelled to enjoy her so called public speaking.

I expected better, it's New York after all. It makes me appreciate the great show "How to with John Wilson" which is the best thing I've seen out of NY in recent times. That was quality. This was not. Maybe I just don't get it. But what's to get?

Ghosts (2021– )

Good remake. Better than UK version.

[7/10 · 20 September 2022]

Watched some of the UK version, and this version is also shot well and decent production quality. I prefer this version.

Actors are having fun in their roles, it's good entertainment. Stories are short, almost sketches. I like how the episodes are short. For some reason this kept me watching until suddenly I'd finished first season.

I prefer the characters in this version to the UK version. The main couple are both good. There's plenty of funny moments. The arrow guy has good lines, the opera singer has funny facial expressions. Perhaps the hippie girl is a little overdone, she is the weakest character.

Not all jokes hit the mark, but it's light entertainment so whatever. It's not trying to be a serious show, so an in-depth analysis isn't needed.

Neighbours (1985– )

Should have been cancelled years ago.

[1/10 · 29 July 2022]

No story in the usual sense, just people sitting around complaining to each other and looking concerned. Hyped in the media beyond reason.

Editing, camera, sound, sets and general design is bad, sort of amateur. Yeh some cool actors went through and came out the other side. But they could have done anything else too and still reached their potential. They didn't need Neighbours, if anything that set harmed their acting range.

Rambo: Last Blood (2019)

Not good. A giant step down from Rambo 2008.

[3/10 · 19 July 2022]

They should have ended back in 2008, with the excellent movie set in Burma. That was a great movie. I liked how Rambo didn't say much, then unleashed on those gangs in the jungle.

But this time around, we have a weak story about the teenage girl, and then Rambo basically gets beaten up and left for dead. Only a plot hole can save his life.

The story is so lame. And the bad guys are just crack heads with machine guns, who for some reason let Rambo live, only to walk into an obvious cheesy trap, like NPC movie extras, bowled over like pins one after the other. Yawn. Waste of time.

Les Misérables (2012)

Russell Crowe was bad casting decision

[8/10 · 2 July 2022]

They likely chose Russell Crowe because of his name, not what he would bring to the role. A million other actors would have been more suitable for the role of Inspector Javert.

I don't just mean the horrible singing from Crowe, but just... he wasn't needed in this movie. His whole look and presence seemed out of place.

Hugh Jackman and other stars were already enough without needing Crowe.

Love the photography and production anyway. Brilliantly filmed, an amazing achievement. I just wish they'd found someone else for the Inspector.

No Time to Die (2021)

dull overcooked generic fluff

[2/10 · 19 April 2022]

Mr Robot speaks monotone trying to be an evil cliche. Press 'Enter' to begin evil villain monologue.

2 stars because I'm feeling generous. I note the high average rating, and am skeptical the rating is a true reflection of what audiences think. That average rating should be less than 5, when comparing this Bond movie to others.

Story and script sees Bond dwelling on expressing his love to his woman more than once. Thanks for the TV soap.

They decided to end the movie this way because? Woke issues formed the majority of sticky notes on the whiteboard?

Fighting toxic masculinity or something becomes an invisible supporting cast member. Constructed side-agendas rather than simply a good entertaining story with no limits or social policy shackles.

Why is formula-driven, lazy writing rewarded? Nothing much happens except cliche action. A series of unlikely near-misses, chained together like on theme park rails, in the hopes it adds up to entertainment.

Who cares or remembers details and characters from previous Bond movies? They should have started fresh.

The end result looks like the script went through a meat grinder and some horrible meatloaf the result.

Alita: Battle Angel (2019)

Excellent, fun, action, effects, entertaining.

[9/10 · 22 March 2022]

Definitely amazing how the real actor's expressions and acting essence comes through the digital character. A step above any previous effort.

This technology should make actors feel better about doing animated characters, since their subtle acting skills come through.

Story entertaining, plenty of action. Good pace, atmosphere.

In its own right, it's a great movie. And the cherry on top is the advanced digital character and live blended action.

Not sure how I didn't hear about this movie until now, 2022.

Raised by Wolves (2020–2022)

Other-worldly treats await. Best sci-fi series in ages.

[9/10 · 6 January 2022]

It even has a nice original opening title sequence that sounds pretty good.

Production values high, spacious set, good pacing. Goes to unexpected places. Confident script.

Plausible androids and plot for the most part. Fun surprises delivered early, and more plot twists along the way. Cast is fun, suit their roles.

It's interesting to think that one day the human race will have such challenges. Important missions for androids, tasked to help humans with matters of survival. It's the sign of good sci-fi when it sends your mind into the future to wonder the stories.

Adrienne (2021)

sad

[31 December 2021]

Sad and shocked to learn about Shelly's fate all these years later.

I'm not rating this because there's not really anything special about the doco. Technically it's a simple presentation. I see it more as something for fans of Shelly to find out what happened to her. I felt I needed to learn what happened, as I liked her work from the 90s. It doesn't feel right to give it a score out of 10.

Trust is such a classic. Shelly owns her role in that movie. This doco is a fitting tribute, it shows home footage of Adrienne's life, her work and friends. Shelly's daughter seems to have similar voice characteristics to her mother, that crystal clear tone.

For human life to be violently taken that way, is a great shame of society. We have a long way to go. When it's someone like Shelly who is taken, it makes it more important to do something positive in response. I think this doco and the other work in memory of Shelly is that positive response.

The Matrix Revolutions (2003)

Buckle up for generic cheese and overcooked villains

[3/10 · 29 December 2021]

Both this and Reloaded are disappointingly dull. I do not hold promise for the 2021 movie after catching up on Matrix 2 and 3 from 2003.

The dialog is lacking depth, there's persistent mediocrity. Some of the lines sound like web search results for "examples of filler dialog in action movies".

The original Matrix was good, but the next two are terrible. Cringey at times.

It was a mistake to go down the smoochy love story between Keanu and Trinity. Add sub-subterranean ravers, cookies, oracles and implausible gun fighting nonsense.... it departed the originality of the first Matrix and became a producer's box-ticking project.

I hated the "sci-fi orchestral" music, how it sounded like generic star wars. Every scene was filled with cliched action theme background music. Big brass, horns, strings blaring constantly. What happened to atmospheric sound effects? Why must we suffer trumpets and woodwind the whole movie like a bad music video?

Monotone delivery of simplistic one-liners. Annoying "explain to the audience in ominous tone" scenes. Overcooked villains.

Devs (2020)

Starts well, gets silly. Your patience is tested, never rewarded.

[3/10 · 11 December 2021]

Had hopes in the beginning, the premise seemed interesting and a mystery unfolds progressively revealing more and more.

The problem is, when you learn what's going on, you see the writers have pushed the story down a big hill and it's all over the place, an unrestrained implausible plot is what you're left with.

Characters stare out window not saying anything, with loopy electro background music ramped up beyond reason. Long abstract time-wasting shots seemingly for mood, or just because.

The side-kick woman who is part of the company, she is permanently stuck in "smug all-knowing mode". She seems to know everything that will happen, because fate or whatever.

The teenage whiz-kid techie completed the cliche geek-casting. His performance is forced. His fate is also one of many ridiculous elements of the story that may leave you angry... as in "nobody would be that stupid". You may feel cheated and want your time back.

Free will emerges in the form of a gun that may or may not be used.... very lazy writing to fall back on guns. In a series about other-worldly impossible future technology, they still relied on generic ideas involving a gun prop, and actors pointing it at other actors.

I liked it to begin with, but it went off the rails and was unremarkable by the end. The writers mainly the problem... the story just didn't get resolved, and lacks substance by the end.

Dave (2020– )

good

[8/10 · 10 December 2021]

Good value TV series, with beats and performance and funny scenes. Sometime I don't want to see gross stuff though, like human waste explosions etc.

The jail chapter is a self contained achievement. I like this performance angle to TV series, and the build-up to rapping and finales. This show is a unique balance of TV and music.

Devs (2020)

Painful. Infuriating. Slow. Forced. Ridiculous.

[3/10 · 9 November 2021]

Starts okay but lowers itself to a ridiculous plot-hole ridden implausible mess.

The solitary "free will" moment in an ocean of inexplicable determinism ends up being a cheesy moment with a gun. Weak writers can't do anything without the main character holding a gun and pointing it at someone. Big deal. Will she shoot? Who cares. So boring.

The smug "all knowing" attitude of the character named Katie, will test your patience. Apparently they're all stuck on rails, unable to make alternate decisions even when they know what the future is! This is never explained, and they all stumble into their pre-determined actions without any way to change their decisions. But wait! She doesn't pull the trigger, she doesn't shoot! So at least one decision was made, and it was not to shoot a gun.... YAWN. That is lazy writing.

The cliched teenage computer whiz kid who jumps to his death is one of many implausible, boring moments. "He gets it!" so jumps to his death with the all-knowing irritating Katie standing there expecting it all to play out. That is a really bad scene.

Seems like they hired a "tech consultant" for 30 min to make sure they had some lingo to throw around.

Don't believe the hype, this series starts off okay but then runs out of steam half way. I ended up skipping ahead a lot where literally nothing happens except someone staring out the window or walking around a room or engaged in boring pretentious conversations.

The Dark Knight Rises (2012)

Sleepy script, music stuck on repeat, empty story

[4/10 · 16 August 2021]

This site has zero integrity left when multiple reviews can be posted so easily by same person. They all repeat same line about "wonderful trilogy" or some nonsense, saturating the ratings with perfect 10 scores. Batman nerds or bored trolls, who knows. Maybe a legion of reviewers with bad taste in movies.

I wanted to like it, but it has no heart. Very sloppy and clumsy fight scenes. The constant music tries to sustain suspense, but ends up being a wall of irritation.

Bad guy Bane was fun, but that's about where the good stuff ends. Everything else was labored and generic. People go on about Nolan, but this movie came out of a vending machine, it's trash.

Now I know why I avoided watching this until now. The poor reviews I read years ago kept me away. They were right. Don't bother, it's much weaker than previous Batman movies. I was shocked how bad it is.

A Quiet Place Part II (2020)

script was a bit dull, talking scenes, generic action

[3/10 · 2 August 2021]

The dialog in some scenes is laborious. I had to skip through some scenes.

Some action scenes try to be like a video game, with "nick of time" escapes and implausible near misses. This becomes tedious.

The first movie from 2018 was enjoyable, but in this sequel you might end up cheering for the aliens.

Pain & Gain (2013)

at least camera is steady, not shaky

[7/10 · 31 January 2021]

A steady camera is appreciated, and this time the camera is thankfully not hand-held.

It's a good ultrawide image. Maybe a bit too hyperactive on the quick cuts at times, but it's not too overdone.

Fun cast, funny, kind of violent at times, dark comedy. Wahlberg is great, it's gritty, crazy, reasonable. The performances were key in getting it across line to 7.

I thought the over-processed colour grading effect was a bit too much. And sometimes the shot choices were too close, too many tight shots. I hope that doesn't mean they're pandering to mobile phone users and small screens. I watch on large display, need more wide shots, not less.

Power (2014–2020)

Shallow acting and story

[2/10 · 24 November 2020]

Not sure how this show has a high average rating, or lasted so long. It celebrates cheap violence and corny ego-fueled trash.

The main guy Ghost might be the exception to the bad acting, he delivers a consistent presence and reasonably strong, if repetitive performance. Everyone else tries too hard to express feelings. It's like watching a screen test for acting school, and these are the rejected applicants.

If you can forgive the bad acting, the next hurdle is a shallow script, and forced narrative. Your brain is not required. It's cheap thrills, but the thrills are diluted by unlikely scenarios and generic cheesy bad/good guy plots.

What happened to good stories and good storytelling? It's nowhere to be found here.