Author Archives: kaist455

Motherless Brooklyn (2019) ☆☆☆(3/4): An offbeat neo-noir film from Edward Norton

“Motherless Brooklyn” often frustrated me but engaged me enough at least. Although I sometimes struggled to gather what is exactly going on around its inherently flawed detective hero throughout most of its running time, I enjoyed a number of offbeat … Continue reading

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Miss Americana (2020) ☆☆☆(3/4): Taylor Swift on her life and career

Netflix documentary film “Miss Americana” attempts to give us a close and intimate look into the life and career of Taylor Swift, who has been one of the most popular pop stars in the world since she suddenly rose to … Continue reading

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The Cave (2019) ☆☆☆1/2(3.5/4): A doctor’s struggle in the Syrian Civil War

Documentary film “The Cave”, which won the People’s Choice Award for Documentaries at the Toronto International Film Festival in last year and recently received an Oscar nomination a few weeks ago, is often difficult to watch to say the least. … Continue reading

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Suicide Squad (2016) ☆☆(2/4): Not villainous enough

As many of you know, some movies go through considerable subsequent re-evaluation despite getting heaps of negative reviews at first, but, in my inconsequential opinion, David Ayer’s “Suicide Squad” is definitely not one of such cases. Although I decided to … Continue reading

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Spies in Disguise (2019) ☆☆1/2(2.5/4): Your average spy action comedy animation film

“Spies in Disguise” is your average spy action comedy animation film, and that is all. Although it is occasionally amusing as diligently throwing gags and jokes, the film does not feel particularly fresh while doing lots of predictable things inside … Continue reading

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Give Me Liberty (2019) ☆☆☆(3/4): One hectic day

Watching “Give Me Liberty” was often emotionally exhausting and frustrating for me. As constantly throwing me into its intense and boisterous cacophony of raw emotional moments, the movie breathlessly drives its story and characters back and forth between whimsical comedy … Continue reading

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Where’s My Roy Cohn? (2019) ☆☆☆(3/4): Extremely Vile and Incredibly Amoral

Documentary film “Where’s My Roy Cohn?” gives us a close look into the life and career of Roy M. Cohn, a powerful and notorious lawyer who has still exerted his toxic influence on American society and politics even though he … Continue reading

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Bait (2019) ☆☆☆(3/4): A odd, distinctive filmmaking exercise

British independent film “Bait” is an odd, distinctive piece of filmmaking exercise you will not easily forget. Adamantly rough and old-fashioned in technical aspects, the movie feels rather distant and disorienting at times, but it still works on the whole … Continue reading

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Mine 9 (2019) ☆☆☆(3/4): 2 Miles Below

“Mine 9”, which is also known as “2 Miles Below”, is a small but effective genre piece to be admired for efficiency and verisimilitude. As firmly focusing on several characters suddenly stuck in a grim and perilous situation, the movie … Continue reading

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Monos (2019) ☆☆☆(3/4): Young beasts of a war

There are a number of absolutely stunning moments in “Monos”, which won the World Cinema Dramatic Special Jury Award when it was shown at the Sundance Film Festival early in last year. While I often struggled to follow and understand … Continue reading

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