Stanislaus

I had kept the original Disney Cinderella "in the closet" for quite a long time and after watching it, I have to say that I was not that impressed. The animated Cinderella definitely appealed to me less than the live-action remake by Kennet Branagh or the legendary Czech version by Václav Vorlíček. I was surprised by the complete neglect of the prince, who has only a few lines and one major scene in this classic adaptation. The animals were cute, although I found them a bit annoying at the end (the mice), but they formed a bright counterpoint to the demonic Lady Tremaine, her silly daughters and the dastardly Lucifer. I think the scene with the Fairy Godmother and her chaotic spells amused me the most. P.S. It may sound strange, but it was only with this version that I realized that the iconic glass slipper was supposed to disappear together with the other enchanted items after midnight (right?!).

Catching up with the Disney classics when you are older has its advantages and disadvantages. You no longer look at the film through the eyes of a child, you do notice things that a young eye and mind will miss. Bambi offers a mostly simple story about the circle of life with all the good and not so good moments. From a carefree playful childhood with a bittersweet aftertaste (who doesn't know the sad fate of Bambi's mother?), to a "frumpy" misguided adolescence (with more than one "adult" reference that a young child won't understand), to responsible adulthood. In terms of animation, this is a solidly made timeless film – though I watched the remastered version – that appeals for its innocence and rawness at the same time.

I approached the live-action version of Mulan with a clean slate, so I decided ("for peace of mind") to watch the original film as well to have some comparison. Unlike the new Jungle Book and The Lion King, the live-action adaptation of Mulan is in many ways different from the animated original, which has its pros and cons. The film's comedic-fairytale line has been replaced, in a rather non-violent way, by a primarily war-drama-action dimension, and there are some changes in the cast of characters (here I very much appreciated the presence of the witch). The film offers some audiovisually impressive sequences (the avalanche or Mulan's encounter with the witch), while the plot is a bit more grounded and at times is too blatantly laced with feminist overtones. On the other hand, I appreciate the camera work and the pleasant musical score. Personally, I think the new Mulan definitely deserves a more favourable assessment.

Right after watching the live-action version of Mulan, I decided to broaden my horizons and watch the original animated film, which I had avoided for a long time. The original Mulan intrigued me above all with its story, which, although simple on the one hand, conveys a clear message, both about finding oneself and about equality between people regardless of their gender, timeless and still relevant themes. Apart from the more serious and action-war level, I also had a royal good time with Mulan, thanks to the huge contribution of the little dragon Mushu, whose wisecracks and poses were truly funny, while he was well supported by a cricket, a horse and a grandmother.

In The Blond One, Marco Berger follows similar narrative techniques as in his previous works, but in this case his film probably got to me the most in terms of plot. Berger is really excellent at building sexual tension from mere innuendo to pure physical action, and I personally think that in The Blond One he has gone the furthest in these waters. The only thing I would fault the film for is the somewhat longer running time, but I still enjoyed watching the slowly developing and, due to their differing outlooks on life, complicated relationship between the two men. The minimalist musical score and the mundane dialogue "about nothing and everything at the same time" added to the believability of the film.

The Band does not get old even on repeated viewings and every time it puts a smile on my face, which is of course (as always) due to Louis de Funès, who is perfect for the role of a caring and somewhat crazy choreographer taking care of his "kids". The captivating storytelling or the frantic tap-tapping or the memorable scenes like the "diet" dinner (and weigh-ins) are always guaranteed to entertain.

The New Mutants is labeled as a horror, sci-fi and action film, but after screening it, I have to conclude that almost none of the genre levels work as I would have liked and expected. The trailer had more of a scary and action atmosphere than the film itself, which is really a shame because there was a lot of potential and a touch of otherness to the other pieces from the X-Men universe. The characters and their abilities are interesting on the one hand, but somewhat threadbare, so that you don’t really feel compelled to root for them at all – the only character I was at least a little bit interested in was Illyana (and Lockheed and her demonic “smiley faces”). Even the proven hospital setting didn't work as well as it could or should have. My expectations were simply too high for The New Mutants.

I put Dark off for quite a long time and I'm glad I waited until the very end of the series, as it allowed me to enjoy the whole story at once and without interruptions, which I think is an advantage given the incredible complexity of the plot and the characters. In the beginning, the viewer is confused and has absolutely no idea who, where, when, how and why. Then the puzzle pieces begin to fall into place, which basically stops in the final minutes of the third season. Some of the plot twists (especially regarding the interconnectedness of the characters) were indeed unexpected, others were somewhat predictable, but even so the creators managed to keep me in constant suspense and "groping in the void". I commend the casting, who mostly managed to select physically similar actors for each time period, which made navigating the plot a little easier. As the number of episodes increased, so did the complexity of the story, but somehow it still worked and held together pretty much right up to the very end, the denouement of which I think the creators pulled off quite well. My only major complaint would be with the characters, who I often found really annoying and irrational in their actions, so I had trouble forming a positive relationship with them at times (Magnus, Bartosz, Hannah and Katharina). Out of all the characters, Claudia Tiedemann appealed to me the most overall. Last but not least, I can't fail to mention the distinctive musical score with a touch of the Doppler effect. In the end, it would have been four and a half stars, but in this case I'll give myself an extra one - especially for the courage of the creators to embark on such a challenging project.

Every new film from Christopher Nolan is a major cinematic event that is always worth waiting for (even despite repeated postponements of the premiere due to the covid pandemic), and Tenet is another prime example of Nolan a great director. Thankfully, the trailers didn't give much away, so I went into the cinema essentially as an unwritten piece of paper. Even though Tenet is two and a half hours long, it doesn't get boring thanks to the properly dosed action – you watch a convoluted story in which time is relative and the usual rules don't apply. Playing with time is a rewarding yet dangerous subject, but Nolan has succeeded in serving up a story that makes sense. It was thrilling to watch how things gradually back a little bit at a time during the course of the plot, making the pieces of the story fit together perfectly. The soundtrack was truly impressive and I was quite surprised that it was not Nolan's court composer Hans Zimmer but Ludwig Göransson, whose music, however, strongly evoked Zimmer's work for me. Technically, I have nothing to complain about – excellent cinematography and tight editing. The only thing that didn't sit well with me was the somewhat cold and mechanical performance of some of the actors, especially in the first third of the film – at least that was my impression. Either way, this is a quality film experience that needs to be seen in the cinema (and more than once). A weaker five stars!

I was perhaps looking forward to Charlatan a little too much, given the strong subject matter and the people involved, and so I was a little disappointed in the outcome. From a technical standpoint, Charlatan is handled mostly well – the assured camera work and the unmistakable score are proof of that. The acting was, as expected, really convincing, without unnecessary theatricality. Besides the almost unquestionably excellent Ivan Trojan, I must not forget to mention the young Josef Trojan, who was a great second to his father, then the grounded performance of Jaroslava Pokorná, and last but not least the solid part of Juraj Loj, unknown to me so far. What bothered me about the film, however, was its narrative lack of coherence in several places, for example the kittens, which many have already mentioned, or especially the last minutes of the film. On the one hand, this is a bold and, by Czech standards, above-average film with some really evocative moments (the death of Zapotocky, the arrest by the Gestapo) that, alongside the "quackery", addresses same-sex relationships in the post-war era, but on the other hand, there were a few places where I just felt it was missing something and that it somewhat deprived me of the desired experience. A weaker four stars!