Ashgar Farhadi returns with his greatest drama since 'A Separation'; Jessica Chastain, Lupita Nyong'o, and others team up to save the world; and George Clooney directs another snoozer.
No big, happens all the time but is a pet peeve of my wife. Shameless plug for her hometown, Medellin these days is one of the most beautiful and delightful cities I’ve ever visited.
It may not be great but it's so weird to look back at how The 355 was conceived with Fan Bingbing as one of the first casting choices, for a very pre-production central role, to appeal to international markets—and then the great Chinese Film Industry Re-Education happened where any film she was involved with wouldn't be shown in China.
I think he's done one good movie: Good Night, and Good Luck. But he's a woeful director, and often lets down material. I'm sure another director would have done better with Charlie Kaufman's Confessions of a Dangerous Mind script, and I don't know how you make early, old-timey football as dull as Leatherheads.
I've thought about seeing Confessions of a Dangerous mind so many times, but I have such a strong feeling I won't care for it. Charlie Kaufman is definitely one of those screenwriters who needs more of a gonzo director with stranger sensibilities. Jonze and Gondry were such good partners with his material. I honestly preferred those ones to Kaufman directing his own work, though they've all been really fascinating movies. They just lack a certain heart that Jonze and Gondry brought to the table.
I feel like every movie Clooney has made comes with a full plate of interesting things but, almost to a T, he makes the least interesting version you could possibly knock out.
I DO think Confessions actually is pretty good - it feels like he thinks he needs to be more showy in that one (first movie, Kauffman script) and I think he does some interesting things and doesn't get in the way of the really good cast.
I actually think Good Night and Good Luck is where he finds his directorial voice tho - movies that'd make a great New Yorker article (or short story) whipped up as non-imaginatively as possible. Good Night has a lot going for it (great story, Strathairn, the under-appreciated Ray Wise) but it's SUPER straightforward and he was heavily praised for it and so, now here we are. Pretty much everything since has some whisper of something he takes from a great director he's worked with - Coens, Soderbergh, Bird I guess) - but still comes out flat as can be.
Disappointing sophomore effort from Kinberg who, as some genius on the Blank Check podcast reddit pointed out, holds the distinction of having the most financially successful first movie of a writer-director in Hollywood history (Dark Phoenix).
"Colombia". Unless that accent is from the District. It certainly isn't from Colombia.
Ah. Ugh. Fixing.
No big, happens all the time but is a pet peeve of my wife. Shameless plug for her hometown, Medellin these days is one of the most beautiful and delightful cities I’ve ever visited.
It may not be great but it's so weird to look back at how The 355 was conceived with Fan Bingbing as one of the first casting choices, for a very pre-production central role, to appeal to international markets—and then the great Chinese Film Industry Re-Education happened where any film she was involved with wouldn't be shown in China.
George Clooney has directed 8 movies?! Have any of them been any good? They all seem to get these kinds of middling to poor reviews.
I think he's done one good movie: Good Night, and Good Luck. But he's a woeful director, and often lets down material. I'm sure another director would have done better with Charlie Kaufman's Confessions of a Dangerous Mind script, and I don't know how you make early, old-timey football as dull as Leatherheads.
I've thought about seeing Confessions of a Dangerous mind so many times, but I have such a strong feeling I won't care for it. Charlie Kaufman is definitely one of those screenwriters who needs more of a gonzo director with stranger sensibilities. Jonze and Gondry were such good partners with his material. I honestly preferred those ones to Kaufman directing his own work, though they've all been really fascinating movies. They just lack a certain heart that Jonze and Gondry brought to the table.
I feel like every movie Clooney has made comes with a full plate of interesting things but, almost to a T, he makes the least interesting version you could possibly knock out.
I DO think Confessions actually is pretty good - it feels like he thinks he needs to be more showy in that one (first movie, Kauffman script) and I think he does some interesting things and doesn't get in the way of the really good cast.
I actually think Good Night and Good Luck is where he finds his directorial voice tho - movies that'd make a great New Yorker article (or short story) whipped up as non-imaginatively as possible. Good Night has a lot going for it (great story, Strathairn, the under-appreciated Ray Wise) but it's SUPER straightforward and he was heavily praised for it and so, now here we are. Pretty much everything since has some whisper of something he takes from a great director he's worked with - Coens, Soderbergh, Bird I guess) - but still comes out flat as can be.
Disappointing sophomore effort from Kinberg who, as some genius on the Blank Check podcast reddit pointed out, holds the distinction of having the most financially successful first movie of a writer-director in Hollywood history (Dark Phoenix).
Dark indeed.