Tag Archives: Real-life story

Critical Thinking (2020) ☆☆☆(3/4): Predictable but exemplary

Posted on September 7, 2020 by

“Critical Thinking” is another inspirational sports drama film based on a real-life story, but it distinguishes itself to some degrees compared to other similar films out there. While it is rather predictable and contrived at times, it still holds our … Continue reading →

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Rising Phoenix (2020) ☆☆☆1/2(3.5/4): They are indeed superheroes

Posted on August 30, 2020 by

Netflix documentary film “Rising Phoenix” is an uplifting examination of the Paralympic Games and a number of various participants. Rather than merely living with their disabilities, these and many other disabled athletes push themselves really hard at the Paralympic Games … Continue reading →

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Boys State (2020) ☆☆☆1/2(3.5/4): Meet future American politicians

Posted on August 29, 2020 by

Documentary “Boys State”, which won the US Documentary Competition Grand Jury Prize at the Sundance Film Festival early in this year, gives us a close and intimate glimpse into a bunch of boys who may be the future of American … Continue reading →

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Tesla (2020) ☆☆1/2(2.5/4): An unorthodox failure

Posted on August 24, 2020 by

Nikola Tesla was indeed an inventor ahead of his time. Although many of numerous things envisioned by him were not realized during his life and he eventually died alone in poverty in 1943, he was surely one of the pioneering … Continue reading →

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The Current War (2017) ☆☆1/2(2.5/4): AC vs. DC

Posted on August 24, 2020 by

“The Current War”, which was premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival in late 2017 but only got released in US around two years later due to several reasons including Harvey Weinstein’s involvement in its production, does not have enough … Continue reading →

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Mississippi Burning (1988) ☆☆☆1/2(3.5/4): Flawed but incendiary

Posted on August 20, 2020 by

One of my friends often mentions the last places he wants to visit in US, which are usually the ones reported on the media for infuriating cases of blatant racism. I felt same about Mississippi when I revisited Alan Parker’s … Continue reading →

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Balloon (2018) ☆☆1/2(2.5/4): A passable film based on one extraordinary real-life story

Posted on August 16, 2020 by

I was quite interested in watching German film “Balloon” for a personal reason. It is based on an unbelievable real-life story which was also the basis of 1982 Disney film “Night Crossing” (1982), and that movie was incidentally one of … Continue reading →

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Russian Penguins (2019) ☆☆☆(3/4): A risky sports business in Russia

Posted on August 9, 2020 by

Documentary film “Russian Penguins” is as absurd as its very title suggests. Although I really have no idea on how much of the testaments from the interviewees in the documentary is actually true, the documentary is still engaging as cheerfully … Continue reading →

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The Fight (2020) ☆☆☆1/2(3.5/4): ACLU lawyers against the ongoing injustices

Posted on August 9, 2020 by

Documentary film “The Fight”, which deservedly won the US Documentary Special Jury Award for Social Impact Filmmkaing when it was shown at the Sundance Film Festival early in this year, gives us the inspiring stories of several lawyers of the … Continue reading →

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The Go-Go’s (2020) ☆☆☆(3/4): When they got the beat

Posted on August 4, 2020 by

I like good documentaries which illuminate things beyond my current knowledge, and documentary film “The Go-Go’s” is one of such cases. Following the short but impressive history of a famous all-female American punk rock band during the early 1980s, the … Continue reading →

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