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Give Black Summer a chance. It may just become your new guilty pleasure. Make that a very guilty pleasure.

I did not expect to like Black Summer at all. I sat staring aimlessly at my tv for about 10 minutes deciding whether or not to take the chance knowing that there was a 95% chance I would be let down and quit halfway through the first episode. I checked IMDb and saw a surprising amount of very, very positive reviews so I decided to pull the trigger. Not only was I pleasantly surprised, I binged the entire thing over the course of one night/the next afternoon. Black Summer has a lot going for it. It's almost impossible to stop watching...but that's not to say it's without flaws. Despite these flaws...right when you're sitting there shaking your head, chuckling to yourself...just when you think you're out..they pull you back in *insert Michael Corleone impression here*.

Before I get into those flaws I wanna start with what this show got right so as to not dissuade anybody from at least giving it a shot. For one thing, the method of storytelling is a large part of the reason why it's so hard to stop watching. It's similar to the technique Game of Thrones uses (hang on I know that sounds crazy) in that there are several different characters on the same storytelling plane who switch between being on their own and overlapping with other characters. This keeps you involved because you never get bored with one story. It's also more than a show about zombies. The show focuses a lot more on the relationships between strangers, good and bad, that are formed when society crumbles and there's nothing left. These aspects of the story are really what keep you engrossed in the brief 8 episode season despite a few aspects of the show that leave you scratching your head.

Before I get into the flaws I want to reiterate I cannot emphasize enough I definitely recommend at least giving Black Summer a shot.

I've seen a few reviews drawing comparisons to the Walking Dead saying that it's a better version of the amc classic. Let's not get carried away here people. The Walking Dead, when released, was fantastic for about 5-7 seasons and surpasses Black Summer in literally every way. They aren't even in the same league. TWD fell out of favor with viewers over time, reasonably so..I quit watching along with a lot of people because it got played out, but that can't take away from the level of brilliance that was involved when the show first came out. So if you're expecting another TWD you've gotta check those expectations at the door. The acting isn't as good, the storytelling isn't as thorough, and there's not as much content per season.

Also, this is a direct note to Netflix. If you're reading this.....8 episodes?????? I can get behind 8 episodes if you're feeding me an hour of tv...but multiple episodes fall under the 30 minute mark...the finale is 15 minutes for Christ's sake. There are episodes in this series that are 50 minutes long which focus way to much on things other than zombies. I can appreciate the depiction of the post-apocalyptic society, the fight for survival, and I don't need non stop zombie violence...but if your finale is gonna be 15 minutes it seems odd to spend 15 minutes one episode on zombies, and 50 minutes in another episode focusing on some Lord of the Flies action going on in a school. They've gotta learn to balance the two out in season 2 and ditch this 15-25 minute episode garbage.

Also...last note....WHERE IS THE ZOMBIE VIOLENCE?!?! I wanna see somebody get eaten!!!! Almost all gore/violence happens off screen. Humans are shot in the head with assault rifles and there's no blood. Zombies bite out jugulars and there's about as much blood as a paper cut. I'm not asking for the whole show to be blood and guts, but who watches a zombie show/movie who doesn't wanna see a little bit of stomach-turning gore? I'm literally begging Netflix to show me a little something in season 2 because if I don't see someone get eaten I'm gonna have to quit.

Im giving it 6 out of 10 because regardless of what you think you can't seem to stop watching. The good outweighs the bad (if even by the slimmest of margins) and if Netflix fixes a few things for season 2 this guilty pleasure of mine could turn into something pretty good...

I can't figure out how to describe how awful this is. As far as attempting to be entertaining I'm not sure anyone has ever failed more miserably. This was singlehandedly the biggest waste of time I've personally invested in watching a movie, and that's saying a lot given some of the movies I've seen. How many more Netflix Original flops can they put out before they stop trying? This was not exciting, it didn't keep you invested, it definitely wasn't scary, and I didn't give a hoot about a single character in the entire movie.

Velvet Buzzsaw attempts to create an in depth portrayal of modern art society where we're introduced to an intertwining web of characters who all share different relationships. Aside from their personal relationships they are tied together via their various business relationships in the art world as well. These relationships become more intertwined upon the discovery of an unknown artists work name Dease. Throughout the film a sinister supernatural attachment to the art begins to dispose of these characters who would seek to exploit this work for their own personal profit. In less words it can be described as the biggest snooze fest in recent history. About 30 minutes of the almost 2 hours of runtime serves any purpose aside from satirical stereotypes regarding people who make up these high end modern art communities. I'm by no mean offended by these stereotypes, rather bored to death by their monumental lack of substance. The death scenes aren't scary, there's no tension throughout the movie at all, and the story arc could be better described as a very, very shallow story plateau. The special effects look cheap, and ingenuine, and this doesn't help add any tension or fear to what's meant to be scary. And do I even need to mention the Goliath sized plot holes that have become a staple of Netflix Originals at this point?

The one thing this movie has is loads of talent, aside from Zawe Ashton who played Josephina. I could walk outside, throw a rock, and it would land next to someone who could do as well, if not better than Zawe. Aside from that, Jake Gyllenhaal, Renee Russo, Toni Collette, and even Natalie Dyer show just how well they can truly act. Even in a movie that fails to be any sort of good their talent manages to shine. It's a shame this talent was wasted on an utterly empty story. People who disagree with me will say I didn't understand, or couldn't appreciate the point the movie sought out to make. I understand this film seeks to illustrate that the reduction of art in this society to nickels and dimes ultimately hurts art as a whole, and in turn the people who committed this crime against Dease's work were hurt back. Frankly, I just don't care. If you want the audience to care about this point the film has to be powerful, gripping, or at the very least exciting. This movie is nothing but boring.

Save yourself two hours and pick something else on your watchlist. Take my word that you truly aren't missing anything with seeing. If you choose to ignore this advice I personally guarantee you'll contemplate turning it off before the 40 minute mark. If I didn't set out to make this review I would've turned it off on about 3 separate occasions. 3/10 stars for some truly brilliant acting talent.

I saw mixed reviews for You Were Never Really Here and it made me put off watching this film for 2 years. That was a mistake to say the least. YWNRH is a fantastically shot, gripping stray away from your typical blockbuster crime drama. While this movie isn't perfect, most negative reviews I've seen for this movie are nonsense. This movie is more than worth the hour and a half runtime regardless of whether or not you're typically drawn to the genre. Without spoilers, this review will tell you what you can expect, give you pros and cons, and debunk the faulty overwhelmingly negative reviews some people gave it.

Don't believe the reviews saying there is a "nonexistent, boring plot". The people who think that are the people who need a plot spoon fed to them with in your face exposition and unrealistic, unnecessary character dialogue so they can follow along without having to pay attention. Not only is the plot very clear, it's also very well written. While I'm not sure I would call this movie a thriller, it is a gripping, gritty, crime drama. The plot, despite not being battered into the front of your brain, is straightforward and easy to follow. A man suffering from several traumatic life experiences bides his time finding, and avenging missing girls in an attempt to find peace within himself. Initially, you are left in the dark regarding the main character. His character is developed throughout the story via fragmented displays of flashbacks chopping up his daily life. Through this you simultaneously gather information regarding his daily life, his occupation, his past, and his motives. I believe the way these flashbacks are used are why some people incorrectly believe there is a weak or incomplete plot, but to be frank they couldn't be more wrong.

The use of flashbacks in this movie is not only masterful, but incredibly unique. They are not given to the viewer in their entirety, and they are not meant to give us the entire picture on Joaquin Phoenix's background. They give you enough to understand him, but serve to convey a more important point. The use of these choppy, fragmented flashbacks seen from the main characters perspective convey the hardships of daily life for someone suffering from traumatic experiences. Constantly being reminded of something they'd like to forget, but can't. The seamless and uncontrollable drift from present to the past triggered by random occurrences encountered in day to day life that takes a toll on a person. The director did a phenomenal job conveying this with her technique, while also creating a complete character.

This film is also incredibly well shot. While I'm sure someone could reference several influences this movie draws from I was taken aback at how unique each scene is in how it is shot. This movie strays from the norm and does it extremely well. This individuality not only creates very powerful, gripping, exciting scenes, but makes it easy to focus on less exciting, build up scenes as well. If only based on cinematography I would give this film a 10/10.

While the pros of this movies far outweigh the cons, no movie is perfect. One critique I have is that some of the audio during Joaquin's flashbacks is so quiet I would've completely missed it had I had the subtitles off. Because, as I referenced earlier, the flashbacks are incredibly fragmented each second really counts when establishing the main characters background. Without subtitles, while the quiet, layered audio creates a nice effect to describe the feeling in the main characters head, you lose some relatively important exposition to truly help you understand his past. It's not major and doesn't take away from anything, but it's a critique nonetheless. Same goes for dialogue in a few important character interactions. You really can't fall asleep for a second during this movie if you want to get every detail. I had to rewind another scene that wasn't a flashback just because I missed someone's name. Again, not a deal breaker, doesn't change the plot, but would slightly change your understanding if you missed it.

Overall I give this movie somewhere between a 7/8 out of ten. The only thing holding it back from a 8/9 or a 9/10 was a few minor plot holes at the end. Nothing major, especially when compared to the gargantuan plotholes most Hollywood blockbusters ignore these days, but I'm nitpicky and watch too much CinemaSins on YouTube. Great movie I would highly recommend to anyone.