Goldbeater

Well, what can I say, City on Fire is no Towering Inferno. Instead of putting the characters in a cramped space with no escape, the filmmakers chose the open setting of an entire area of a burning city and then immediately looked for convoluted ways to get the characters into cramped situations. That is certainly not a good way to build tension. Still, at least a thumbs up for the sincere effort and practical special effects.

The weak lead character and the slow pace slightly undermine the film, but both can ultimately serve the effectiveness of the finale, which works well as satanic horror film and religious satire. As a result, this is a very solid genre film, one which we can only envy our northern neighbours here in Czechia.

Flamboyant costumes, set design, make-up, dancing, performances, and all this over and over and over again. The plot begins as simply, unnecessarily and built on scripted crutches as it is resolved in the finale. And it doesn't really matter, because Black Panther: Wakanda Forever is nothing more than another padding link that has no significance to the franchise other than introducing new characters that can be used in the future. The 160 minutes are a total blowout, because Ryan Coogler practically got a blank check to do whatever he wanted. To its credit, it doesn't try to throw in a joke every 5 seconds like Thor: Love and Thunder, but even so, the little bits of humor here are embarrassing to the point of sticking out like a sore thumb over the rest of the film. Visually it's nice and it can entertain the audience, but for me it's a largely useless film, or nothing more than the essence of the whole lame Marvel Phase IV. Useful note: There’s no post-credit scene, go home.

It's a bit heavy-handed and crass, but Argento manages to duplicate the atmosphere of the older giallo films quite nicely, and especially thanks to Arnaud Rebotini's pulsating score, Dark Glasses is a stylish spectacle from a fan for the fans. And thumbs up for the practical effects.

The next time I want a similar viewing experience, I'll give the the money for the cinema ticket to the nearest homeless guy to go to my house for two hours and give me a "boo" every two minutes. I'll save myself a trip to the cinema, do a good deed, and with his alcohol breath, I'll even get it straight as 4DX. Technically it's nicely shot, the effects are solid, it doesn't offend in any way, and despite its lack of originality it hides a solid horror theme, but what's the point if the filmmakers trade horror atmosphere for constant cheap jump scares? Even the transitions between scenes are cut quickly and with a strong sound effect to make it worthwhile. This is a really bad viewing experience for me, I didn’t enjoy it. Those two hours were excruciating.

A completely unconventional film about friendship that begins with the fact that the friendship suddenly ends unilaterally. Of playwright Martin McDonagh's films to date, The Banshees of Inisherin is by far the most intimate and reminiscent of a stage play, so don't expect any dynamic action. The alternation of humour (often very black) and depressing themes has always been a strength of this British screenwriter and director, but this is a roller coaster of contradictory emotions that, despite the numerous bursts of laughter at the end, will leave you totally depressed. The performances of all involved are superb, especially Colin Farrell's incredible portrayal of the guileless and headstrong Irish misfit.

In terms of sentimentality and weepiness, Darren Aronofsky takes it to absurd lengths, and while I don't feel that it ever slips into the realms of emotional blackmail, I imagine that many viewers will have a big problem with this. I was able to get over it, mainly thanks to the almost hypnotic performance of the lead actor. Yeah, if there's anything about this movie that really needs to be highlighted and remembered, it's Brendan Fraser. He simply pulls it off on his weight as far as his heart and blood vessels will take him, and the whole film relies on his performance. I was also pleased to see that Aronofsky went for a more civil, intimate and straightforward material and was not as overly pretentious this time as he is wont to be. He could have cut down a bit on the tearfulness, but it's definitely a morbidly fat thumbs up for me.

The Nightsiren is made on a very high production level and offers an engaging mystery plot, although some segments are quite predictable, but under the weight of the interesting visuals it doesn't matter at all. It's more of a dark family melodrama than the horror film that the marketing primarily tries to make it out to be, which will probably disappoint many viewers, but for me it's still a very solid step out of the comfort zone of Czech/Slovak films and in its own way a very interesting genre piece that works well with themes such as dangerous superstitions, ingrained prejudices and misogyny.

Established Iranian actor Ali Mosaffa has made a film in Czechia about a character who searches for his father's past in Prague and discovers that his dad not only had some family secrets, but may well have done some nasty things for the Communist Party. The narration may be a bit heavy-handed, but I have to give at least some credit to the film, because it managed to keep my attention and hunger for explanation with its mystery.

Ordinary Failures is a beautifully written relationship drama, sensitively shot by a sure hand, very well acted by the main female protagonists and reaching into the realms of genre-tinged cinema, something rare in Czechia. For me the strongest emotional experience of this year's Pilsen Film Festival.