Tag Archives: Hollywood

Jay Kelly (2025) ☆☆☆(3/4): A star in middle-life crisis

Posted on December 6, 2025 by kaist455

Noah Baumbach’s latest film “Jay Kelly”, which was briefly shown in theaters before it is released on Netflix in this week, is a humorous story about the middle-life crisis of one big movie star. While it is quite typical in … Continue reading →

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Mulholland Drive (2001) ☆☆☆☆(4/4): An ultimate David Lynch film

Posted on February 6, 2025 by kaist455

Somebody must be sad, regretful, and fading away. That is a lingering impression I get whenever I visit David Lynch’s 2001 film “Mulholland Drive”, which happens to be re-released here in South Korean theaters not long after Lynch’s death in … Continue reading →

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The Substance (2024) ☆☆☆1/2(3.5/4): The wildest movie of this year

Posted on December 6, 2024 by kaist455

Coralie Fargeat’s second feature film “The Substance” is probably the wildest movie of this year in my trivial opinion. Deliberately shocking and excessive in many aspects, the movie pushes its weird and grotesque promise all the way for its dark … Continue reading →

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MaXXXine (2024) ☆☆1/2(2.5/4): Maxine goes to Hollywood…

Posted on September 9, 2024 by kaist455

Ti West’s latest film “MaXXXine”, the third installment of West’s X film series after “X” (2022) and “Pearl” (2022), is willing to go further from what was modestly but impressively achieved in its two predecessors. It surely has a lot … Continue reading →

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Babylon (2022) ☆☆1/2(2.5/4): Excessive to the extreme

Posted on February 2, 2023 by kaist455

Damien Chazelle’s latest film “Babylon” is a relentlessly excessive piece of work which quickly made me feel distant and exhausted even before its first hour passed. While I appreciated some admirable efforts from its crew and cast members shown from … Continue reading →

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Sidney (2022) ☆☆☆(3/4): A respectful tribute to Sidney Poitier

Posted on October 3, 2022 by kaist455

Documentary film “Sidney”, which was released on Apple TV+ in last month, looks into the life and career of late Sidney Poitier, who was one of a few major black Hollywood stars during his prime in the 1950-60s. Although it … Continue reading →

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The Beta Test (2021) ☆☆☆(3/4): He had it coming, you know

Posted on December 7, 2021 by kaist455

“The Beta Test” is a vicious and morbid black comedy which often goes wild with its edgy sense of black humor to our horror, embarrassment, and amusement. Mainly revolving around one very unlikable Hollywood dude who surely deserves all those … Continue reading →

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RKO 281 (1999) ☆☆☆1/2(3.5/4): A terrific TV movie to complement “Mank”

Posted on December 14, 2020 by kaist455

To be frank with you, it took some time for me to appreciate the greatness of Orson Welles’ “Citizen Kane” (1941), which has been regarded as one of the greatest works in the history of cinema during last several decades. … Continue reading →

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Mank (2020) ☆☆☆1/2(3.5/4): As he writes “Citizen Kane”

Posted on November 18, 2020 by kaist455

David Fincher’s new film “Mank”, which is released here in South Korea today and will be available on Netflix early in December, presents a personal perspective from the writer who co-wrote the screenplay for Orson Welles’ “Citizen Kane” (1941), which … Continue reading →

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This Changes Everything (2018) ☆☆☆(3/4): Why they need more women in Hollywood

Posted on November 4, 2019 by kaist455

Documentary film “This Changes Everything”, which is currently being shown as “Woman in Hollywood” in South Korean theaters, attempts to illuminate a longtime gender issue in Hollywood. Although it does not go that far beyond what I have learned on … Continue reading →

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