matepolcz

Monkey Man is a generic revenge story, but it has amazing ligthing.

Its story is the typical revenge, action type, but it has great Indian lore whether it's real or made up. I don't know much about how things are in India, but even if these events are fictional, I'm certain they're rooted in the truth and because of that, it feels personal. The main character is generic, but I felt emotionally connected to him. Alphonso's funny, he was my favourite. The dialogues are quite well-written in my opinion.

The directing is simply good, the movie is well-put together, but it has some issues. The cinematography is mostly positive. In the first half the shaky camera movement was dizzying, but the lighting and the framing was always absolutely incredible. To be honest I expected more wide shots and longer takes, which appeared in the third act and I loved them. The editing is mixed. I loved some of the transitions, but the pacing isn't good in my opinion. There are parts in the middle, where I felt that the movie really dragged. The production design is awesome, the effects are great and the acting performances are good.

Monkey Man would be generic without it being personal and the amazing ligthing.

Allied is good enough, but you can feel it wants to be more, but can't.

The characters are a little bit more than generic. Both leads have certain traits that differentiate them from the stereotypes. I was confused after the first act, because I realised I didn't know what this movie's about. And I remained confused for 10 minutes, until (around) the middle point. Overall, I liked the story, but the dialogues were sometimes out of place. In the end this movie made me feel something, because it was able to connect me to the characters and I love that.

I also loved the cinematography. The lighting was good and the spinning cameras are one of Robert Zemeckis' reoccurring traits I love. The production design is good, but much of it felt CG. Speaking of visual effects, I was expecting more from a 2016 movie, from that aspect the movie disappointed me. On the other hand the score is incredibly subtle and actually there's not much music and that was a great decision to build more tension. The acting performances are good enough and the main reason I watched this is Brad Pitt's movie star energy, which I felt fulfilled with.

Allied isn't exceptional, but it does enough to be more than generic.

Nightcrawler is a movie I have mixed feelings about, but mostly positive.

The writing is absolutely incredible. The characters are perfectly written. Their actions, mannerisms, behaviour tells you everything you need to know. Rick is basically the morality meter and he is a key element to film, because I don't think it'd work so well without him. Nina is probably the most interesting, it would be an endless conversation to discuss why she does what she does. Louis Bloom is an extremely complex character, but in 2 hours time we get to see every aspect of his personality. This movie wouldn't need dialogues to work, but since it does have lines, Dan Gilroy wrote every piece of dialogue perfectly. Many of the lines have double meaning, while others reveal something about the character who said it. On the other hand this film is not easy to watch. There were moments when I laughed in my discomfort, but there were scenes where I just covered my face like it was a scary horror film.

The directing is great, the film has a unique vibe to it and the visuals are simple, but beautiful. That's mostly because of the lighting and color grading. The slow camera movements add a lot to the tone, but the framing is absolute perfection and my favourite aspect of the cinematography of this film. The editing is great, the movie has a slow pace, but it's never boring. The production design is great and the effects look convincing. The acting performances are all great, but Jake Gyllenhaal gives the performance of a lifetime.

Nightcrawler is an incredible movie, but it's not always enjoyable to watch.