NinadeL

A weaker animated film with Superman. In retrospect, it is perhaps only interesting because Team Elite became part of the Supergirl series and it's worth comparing the different approaches to these characters. Otherwise, it's just too over the top and all politics.

A thoroughly enjoyable film based on the comic book "Superman: Brainiac." This is the second animated film where Supergirl gets a lot of space. We get her origin in Superman/Batman: Apocalypse and here it's all about a fast flawless ride.

A traditional Czech film. It has a few good ideas, but otherwise, it is very ordinary, it’s all been seen hundreds of times before, and it’s interchangeable and ultimately useless. The basic idea has been seen in plenty of other films and really the only interesting thing here is the room at the bottom of a drained pool. Honestly, that's not enough for one, let alone two films.

The crossover was good this year, as it always is. However, the beginning of Season 4 is such a shower that I'm going to have to put it on ice again for a while. The cuts between the series are demanding. Nothing much builds on itself, and new characters freely arrive. And even something like Superman on Argo is solved in one sentence. That's not very pleasant. And then there's that Soviet Supergirl... The further developments with Agent of Liberty are downright unpleasant. I understand that what's happening in Trump's USA must somehow affect pop culture there, but this is really something. I have similar problems with AHS: Cult. If such a message could be found throughout the Arrowverse, I could understand, but Batwoman, for example, is just minding her own business. We have long been lacking a quality L drama, but now we have a tranny who is also a mix of human and alien. Well... The first two-thirds of the series was so off that the quality of the last five or so episodes can't save it. It's a big risk to gamble with the audience like that.

The very tasteful idea for the Schlagerfestival series started in 1975 and always went back 50 years in time. The most interesting performance is probably Karel Gott's "Über die Prärie," which is a German version of "Indian Love Call" from Rudolf Friml's operetta "Rose-Marie." Theo Lingen is also great with his hit "Die Polizei, die regelt den Verkehr." Of course the German version "Yes Sir, that's my Baby" is full of energy just like "Küss mich, Schnucki-Putzi."

This is a film that reminds people that there is no need to always remember the normalization period in Czechoslovakia. It's actually quite alright.

A thoroughly enjoyable family film. The Sun Comes Up is an adaptation of Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings' 1947 story "Mountain Prelude" and the last film of the famous diva of big-screen musical theater, Jeanette MacDonald. While the viewer is still absorbing the aria from "Madame Butterfly," drama unfolds on the screen. Helen Lorfield Winter (our protagonist) has not only lost her husband, she has also lost her son, and the only soul that remains close to her is the collie Lassie. Winter goes to the countryside with her dog, and there she befriends a local orphan... Beautiful, moving, and shot in perfect Technicolor.

While Season 1 was finding itself and was overall very nice and positive, and explicitly girl friendly, Season 2 added an excellent guest cast and amplified the alien mythology (which I appreciated as a devotee of classic Martian stories from the pen of Burroughs)... So how’s Season 3? The atmosphere has darkened a lot, even Kara Zor-El herself has become more serious, and the main themes don't follow the light-hearted stories as much anymore. However, instead of the promised proper L wedding, we have a breakup, a Kara grieving after Mon-El, a total coup on Mars, and Lena Luthor on her back. It's no fun. And certainly not with Reign. Anyway, very interesting are the occasional music, and references to Glee here and there, meaning we get to hear Britney Spears and Gwen Stefani. The flashback episode of Midvale is also thoroughly enjoyable. The more adventures they have on other planets, the better.

As much as I was enthusiastic about the 1936 version of Rose-Marie, I completely condemn this cinemascope version. Yes, it's a gorgeous widescreen and features the beautiful Canadian landscape, but that is all. The story is nonsensically adapted in the style of a post-war utopia in which women are just human primitives. While at the age of 36 the main character has a great adventure saving her brother and also has an excellent musical career, less than 20 years later the same protagonist is practically a civilization outcast who speaks good French (maybe), broken English (definitely) and has to be taken from the arms of nature and made into a modern-day Pygmalion. Which is awkward enough in and of itself. It has in it a bit of Daughter of the Regiment, and a bit of The False Pussycat. In any case, it is nonsense, which massacred Friml's original operetta and left no trace of it.

I'll always look forward to a new Irena Pavlásková film, even though the risk is getting greater. The Prague Orgy did not do well in the movie theaters - the film whizzed through so quickly that they were gone in no time. It's a shame, it could have been really great. It’s based on a popular novel and a great story about how Irena got herself the copyright. But unfortunately, it was somehow forgotten that the famous novel, originally published by Sixty-Eight Publishers, is only one part of the Nathan Zuckerman series, so the viewer who is not familiar with the context has nothing to latch on to. He doesn't know the characters, he has to cope with very unbelievable sets, and unknown faces in the main roles. On the other hand, if you've already started reading the book, the film illustration serves quite well as a supplement, but you mustn't want more than that. Unfortunately, two great catchphrases and an adorable supporting role by Jan Hrušínský are definitely not enough to make the whole film good.