Author Archives: kaist455

Dumb Money (2023) ☆☆1/2(2.5/4): How they beat those Wall Street guys

Posted on January 20, 2024 by kaist455

“Dumb Money” tries to present the absurd aspects of the GameStop short squeeze incident in 2021, but it somehow fails to intrigue and engage me enough despite some entertaining moments. Sure, its main subject is certainly an interesting example showing … Continue reading →

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Alienoid: The Return to the Future (2024) ☆☆1/2(2.5/4): An obligatory finale

Posted on January 19, 2024 by kaist455

South Korean film “Alienoid: The Return to the Future” is not as boring as I feared, and that is the only consolation for me. Thanks to the sprawling narrative of “Alienoid” (2021), the movie has lots of things to gather … Continue reading →

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The Old Oak (2023) ☆☆☆1/2(3.5/4): A community place for him and others

Posted on January 18, 2024 by kaist455

Ken Loach’s latest film “The Old Oak”, which is supposedly his last movie, is another bittersweet British working-class drama you can expect from him. While it is a bit preachy and sentimental at times, its quiet but big heart is … Continue reading →

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The Persian Version (2023) ☆☆☆1/2(3.5/4): Her Persian family

Posted on January 17, 2024 by kaist455

“The Persian Version”, which won the Audience Award when it was premiered at the US Dramatic Competition of the Sundance Film Festival early in last year (It also received the Waldo Salt Screenwriting Award, by the way), is funny, charming, … Continue reading →

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Albert Brooks: Defending My Life (2023) ☆☆☆1/2(3.5/4): Brooks on Albert

Posted on January 15, 2024 by kaist455

I must confess that it took some time for me to appreciate more of that immense talent of Albert Brooks. When I was just a young South Korean moviegoer a long time ago, he seemed to me like a merely … Continue reading →

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Little Richard: I Am Everything (2023) ☆☆☆(3/4): Beyond his legendary flamboyance

Posted on January 14, 2024 by kaist455

Documentary film “Little Richard: I Am Everything” looks around the life and career of Little Richard, who has been regarded as the ground-breaking pioneer of American Rock and Roll music. As looking beyond his legendary flamboyance, the documentary illuminates an … Continue reading →

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No Bears (2022) ☆☆☆1/2(3.5/4): Another interesting work from Jafar Panahi

Posted on January 14, 2024 by kaist455

Iranian filmmaker Jafar Panahi’s latest film “No Bears”, which won the Special Jury Prize when it was premiered at the 2022 Venice International Film Festival, is fascinating for how the director willingly pushes his artistic vision further despite lots of … Continue reading →

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Wish (2023) ☆☆(2/4): You will wish for a better one

Posted on January 12, 2024 by kaist455

The most surprising thing about new Disney animation film “Wish” is how dull and uninspired it is. Often lacking in spirit and personality, the film merely serves a run-of-the-mill fantasy tale which does not engage us much due to its … Continue reading →

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Migration (2023) ☆☆1/2(2.5/4): A Mallard Tale

Posted on January 12, 2024 by kaist455

Animation feature film “Migration” is not as bad as I feared, but it is also not as good as I wished. As many of reviewers have pointed out, last year was a curiously weak year for animation films without much … Continue reading →

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Society of the Snow (2023) ☆☆☆1/2(3.5/4): Under that unimaginably extreme condition

Posted on January 8, 2024 by kaist455

What would you do under a situation as grim and extreme as whatever the survivors of the Andes Flight Disaster experienced in 1972? This is surely a hard and difficult question, and Netflix film “Society of the Snow”, which was … Continue reading →

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