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furbicide wrote: Fri Apr 23, 2021 2:13 am From the IMDb Parents Guide listing for Stalker:

Frightening & Intense Scenes
A black dog is seen throughout many of the scenes staring at the camera (viewers) which can be scary and intense. It can be thought that the dog is having evil intention when it approach some of the characters, though it doesn't do any harm.

I never thought of the dog as being intended as a particularly malevolent or disturbing presence, but your (cynophobic) mileage might vary!

Successfully standing up to capitalism, resisting its gaslighting techniques, and opening your mind to its negative effects require some combination of 1) honestly reassessing history, 2) separating your current self from your own past and ego, 3) making moral, equitable decisions moving forward, and 4) directly fighting against oppression. This is what is required to literally break the glass ceiling.

Oscars
Last, I do want to say a few words about last week’s pandemic-challenged ‘woke’ Oscars. There was an article in one of the trades following the non-event that the hostless show would have benefitted from an emcee. My feeling is that the Oscars would benefit next year by going ‘showless’. Yeah, it's time to pull the plug. Any future iterations of the Academy Awards will only serve to damage the legacy of the Oscar winners of yore that literally built the industry. I’m sorry, but Nomadland isn’t keeping anything alive. Neither are Frances McDormand’s self-righteous acceptance speeches. Worse, how is a middling talent like Regina King given license to warn middle America that she would have come for you had the verdict on the Derek Chauvin trial gone the other way? What does that have to do with showbiz? Nothing, which was pretty much the tone the whole night. It’s time to replace the the Academy Awards with a whole new awards system that focuses on achievement in social and political messaging on film and leave Oscar history intact. Sort of. It won’t happen, obviously, but it will be way worse next year when Best Picture qualifiers will have to tow a proscribed diversity and inclusivity line when it comes to casting and story. Tarantino is calling it quits at the right time, because under next year’s Orwellian rules, Once Upon A Time….In Hollywood would never get near a nomination. If you have some cogent concise thoughts on the issue share them on our Twitter feed, and we might include them in our June issue and send you a little something for your trouble.

An NYPD Detective is shot by one of his own, benevolent brothers in uniform. Communities are ignited to march for justice. Gangs put their differences aside for a united fight, an equal opportunity. "That people not be judged by the color of their skin but for the content of their character." The movement and unity impacts City society and leads to a Blue Wall intervention within the Police force. White cops' lust for change and act on it by flushing out racism. Not an easy fight. In the end, what was considered impossible, became possible.

Cool as Ice is loaded up with so much '80s ridiculousness that it does not need to tell a good story to be entertaining. If this very, very obvious point remains elusive to you, well, this film isn't for you. It is that simple.

He looks funny, he looks cool, and yes, he can definitely sing and dance.

The highlight of the film, at least as far as this writer is concerned, is the segment that features "Never Wanna Be Without You". The two leads have a perfect chemistry together, and the beautiful colors and terrific music create a tremendous atmosphere.

Camille Paglia wrote:Mise-en-scène—the background details that provide social context—is a lost art.

Like his previous 2017 film, Good Time of 2017, The Safety Brothers ‘Uncut Gems is a serious’ 70s-style flamboyant character that raised its settings to eleven to raise your concern. Pyaar ‘them or hate’, the pair have the typical frantic story of their films and the way they can detect addiction in many forms, but especially the idea of a big score that will eventually give you. The life you’ve always wanted.

The Safdies only continue their style, even testing their film (and breakdowns) as to how the limits of actually forcing an unmatched hero can be. Powered by Adam Sandler’s note-perfect turn, Uncut James is a stylishly creepy work that is as inevitable as it is insane and tedious.

Sandler starred as Howard Ratner in Uncut Gems, the owner of an NYC jewelry store that created a chaotic mess in his life; He knows almost everyone that he is on the verge of leaving his wife Dinah (Idina Menzel) for his young employee Julia (Julia Fox), and the other has any extra money to wager for a professional basketball game puts away. However, when he lays his hands on a precious Ethiopian black opal and finds a buyer in NBA superstar Kevin Garnett (as himself, circa 2012), Howard believes he is finally icing on the cake. Of course, he is assuming that he can get his plan from anyone before deciding to do it for cash.

The characters are constantly talking to each other (nay, yelling), and this is a testament to the sound design of the film that you can tell everything that is being shouted at once (assuming that It doesn’t just overwhelm you). This is the world Howard lives in and as one can get to put it, the Safdies do an impressive job to bring it to cinematic life.

The pair were later exposed to the beautifully unpublished cinematography of Darius Kondji, which displays an obnoxious portrait of NYC and its residents with scenes of black opal and cosmic grandeur. And Good Time, aka Daniel Lopatin. Oneohtrix Point does not compose a vibrant electronica score that feels unmatched gems even in its rare quiet moments. This brings us to the film’s biggest problem: Howard. A film does not require a similar lead to success, but it is difficult to find Howard as a hero when he is once so dull, self-serving and silly.

Uncut James asks the audience not to be sympathetic to him, because he has pity, but even harder because as far as opponents go, Howard is not such an attractive sled-ball as he is right, just Is a slap. -Child. And while the film certainly does not glorify him, his plot begins to become repetitive, as Howard repeatedly shrinks over the ways of moving fast. Good Times’ Connie Naik was also dull and privileged, but her gentle intentions made her sad; Uncut Ratna portrays Howard as more tragic, but the darker humor of his story is stronger than the tragedy.

Sandler’s performance, however, is another matter. Howard’s role is, in many ways, tailor-made for the actor; He is more like a realistic version of Amir Golmaal Dudes, who have largely roasted their breakup over the past decade, similar to the punch-drunk love Barry Egan, compared to the earlier human-hair Sandler. His career was like a version.

Sandler makes the character more appealing despite his vicious nature, and it’s easy to believe that he reads to the people around him (eg, Howard Stanfield to Howard’s partner, Demoney), as he does. Fox is also charming as “Jules”, an existentialist who knows how to navigate the preferential world of rich old men who come upon young women, yet allow themselves to be truly vulnerable by Howard Is and gives the opposite. The rest of Uncut Gescast feel a bit clumsy, however, when they pop up for a scene or the two Yukers in Howard are fierce (which must be weird), learn about Meera from them.

In the case of Uncut Gems, this is a film that takes you on a proper roller coaster ride, but one where it becomes easier to spot over time, leaving you feeling that emotionally Has invested in its shady leadership. Those who appreciated the previous work of the Safidos would probably dig it too; Everyone looking for their next big score can be better than anywhere else.

Based on the novel written by Louisa May Allcott in 1868, Little Woman is a story that dates back a century and more than a century, including adaptations over the years on stage, film, and TV. Huh.

Note to self: deaf people don’t make noise when you shoot them.