Gosford Park (2001)

STORY – 0
DIRECTOR – 1
ACTOR – 1
MUSIC – 0
CULT – 0

 

 

VERDICT – 2/5

 

 

PROS –
1) A wealthy man is murdered by his old mistress as an act of revenge for abandoning their bastard son. The murder mystery is woven around a shooting party over a weekend arranged by a wealthy English industrialist at his country estate, Gosford Park.
2) A great insight into the lives of wealthy English people and their domestic servants in the post-Edwardian era.
3) An Agatha Christie-style whodunit that also pays its due respect to Charlie Chan movies.

 

 

CONS –
1) Boring screenplay. The murder is a subplot.

 

 

QUOTE –
Mrs. Wilson: What gift do you think a good servant has that separates them from the others? It’s the gift of anticipation.

The Boxer (1997)

STORY – 0
DIRECTOR – 1
ACTOR – 1
MUSIC – 0
CULT – 0

 

VERDICT – 2/5

 
PROS –
1) An ex-IRA volunteer trying to rebuild his life after spending 14-years in prison amid a turbulent Northern Ireland. Gerard McSorley’s performance as the primary antagonist Harry is the only noteworthy character from the movie.

 
CONS –
1) It’s neither a full-fledged sports-drama nor a conventional romantic movie. IRA skirmishes remain the core of the movie.
2) For a movie named The Boxer, the boxing choreography is quite mediocre.

 
QUOTE –
Danny: I’ve lived with your face in silence for fourteen years. It’s hard to talk to the real you.

Punch-Drunk Love (2002)

STORY – 1
DIRECTOR – 1
ACTOR – 1
MUSIC – 1
CULT – 1

 

VERDICT – 5/5

 
PROS –
1) A love story of a sociopath. I see shades of Marty (1955).
2) Unique soundtrack by Jon Brion including “Hands and Feet”.
3) Adam Sandler vs Philip Seymour Hoffman epic confrontation over the phone.
4) Exceptional cinematography by Robert Elswit

 

CONS –
N/A

 

QUOTE –
Barry: I have a love in my life. It makes me stronger than anything you can imagine.

Chernobyl (miniseries)

STORY – 1
DIRECTOR – 1
ACTOR – 1
MUSIC – 1
CULT – 1

 

VERDICT – 5/5

 
PROS –
1) Chernobyl (2019) will go down as one of the greatest mini-series in the history of TV along with Band of Brothers (2001)
2) Thanks to this series we now know the level of disaster and how entire Europe was at stake due to this man-made catastrophe.
3) The series provides great insight into the sacrifices made by Russian miners, soldiers, doctors and the common Russians conscripted in the Exclusion Zone, contrary to the constant negative portrayal of Russians in Hollywood movies.
4) Storytelling: The series is based on a real-life disaster which is part of documented history. The makers of this show did an exceptional job pulling a thriller out of it.
5) The finale with Legasov explaining how an RBMK reactor explodes. The ease with which the Nuclear disaster was explained was exemplary.
6) The eerie dosimeters clicking soundtrack will make any viewer experience the dangerous level of harmful radiations.

 

 
CONS –
N/A

 

QUOTE –
“Every lie we tell incurs a debt to the truth. Sooner or later that debt is paid.”

Synecdoche, New York (2008)

STORY – 0
DIRECTOR – 0
ACTOR – 0
MUSIC – 0
CULT – 0

 

Verdict – 0/5

 

Pros –

 

1) Surreal meta-drama full of analogies, motifs, and symbolism

 

 

Cons –

 

1) Incomprehensible, pretentious and boring like an abstract art.What’s the purpose of making a feature film if the main intention is to confuse average audience? It’s a movie only for film festivals.
2) Unexplained weird time-leaps. Halfway through, the movie stops making any sense at all.

 

 

 

Quote –

 

 

“Die”