Stanislaus

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!

Palm Springs doesn't build on any innovative theme, time loops have been a quite popular theme across genres in recent years (Edge of Tomorrow or Happy Death Day), but it's shot in such a pleasantly lighthearted way that you can forgive the clear rip-off of previous films and let yourself be entertained for an hour and a half by Nyles and Sarah, who met under truly bizarre circumstances. I would have liked to see the origin of Nyles' loop a bit, but whatever, I was more focused on the relationship building between the two "loopers" anyway. Throughout the film, a question kept running through my mind: If I had the chance to live one day infinitely, what day would it be? Plus points for J.K. Simmons' wacky performance and a solid plot-twist regarding Sarah and her awakening. A weaker four stars!

"'Nuff people say, you know they can't believe, Jamaica, we have a bobsled team." Cool Runnings is an incredibly easygoing film that entertains and enlightens even on repeat viewings. The comedic element was mainly provided by the (as always funny and natural) John Candy and Doug E. Doug with his "Rastafarian stuff". Along with the comedy and sporting line, there are a few more serious moments that have a bit of kitsch in them, but still always get me, especially in the case of the final race. An enjoyable and heartfelt film about how it's not important to win, but to participate and go proudly after your dream regardless of the reactions of others.

Loners impresses at first glance with its (almost) short story plot structure that seems to evoke overseas filmmaking, helped by the choice of soundtrack and the play with imagery, but for most of the running time I felt the film was superficial and didn't really get down to the nitty gritty, at least on a dramatic level. The comic moments were mainly (and quite possibly only) provided by the permanently stoned Jiří Macháček, whose performance was rightly awarded the Czech Lion. Ivan Trojan didn't really fit the role of the crazed stalker and the line with the Japanese was completely out of place. Given its cult status and high ratings, I was expecting something more from Loners.

I've been putting off the cult classic The Inheritance for a very long time, and since it's one of the most quoted Czech comedies, the film didn't have much to surprise me anymore. The script by Věra Chytilová and Bolek Polívka is full of memorable gems, no doubt about it, but on the other hand there are some pretty futile parts with a supremely awkward touch, especially in the first third of the film. The Inheritance would certainly not be what it is if it wasn’t for Polívka in the lead role, who managed to portray the drunken and boorish Bohuš in a very convincing way – quite possibly he didn't even have to act much and was just being himself. Besides him, there the film features other memorable characters: the mini-aunt, Bohuš's mates, his two "femme fatales" Irenka and Vlastička. In the end, I found the film incredibly absurd – imaginative, yes – but somewhat bizarre and out of step with the overall concept. I can definitely understand any rating for The Inheritance. I liked the film as a humorous probe into the lives of the village hicks who are confronted with the seductions of the material world, but I was also tempted to turn the film off several times just because of these overly boorish characters.

Made in Italy is a really nicely made film that mixes comic and dramatic elements in appropriate doses. In addition to the beautiful Italian setting and the Southern European atmosphere, the film offers decent performances, which, although somewhat mechanical in a few moments, are grounded for most of the running time, which is certainly helped by the fact that the two main characters are father and son off-screen. I have to admit that at times there was a higher concentration of onion in the cinema, especially in the scenes involving the mother, as I always pictured the tragically deceased Natasha Richardson at that moment. Even though the plot is rather bland with not much to surprise within the genre, it was nice to watch and I have to say that James D'Arcy managed to make his feature debut quite tidy. Plus points for a well written character with Lindsay Duncan's face and the small episodes with the ferret and the workers. A weaker four stars!

In the case of The Quake, I could write practically the same as I did for The Wave. This time, the action moves from a small Fjord town straight to the Norwegian capital and the devastating catastrophe is more spectacular. When it comes to the genre and the plot, the film doesn't have much to surprise, but I still have to admit that the sequence from the collapsing skyscraper was really cool and managed to make me tense (it’s like a scene in Jurassic Park 2 and it never gets old). On the other hand, it is true that the film had a somewhat slower start and I think it could have easily been a quarter of an hour shorter. As for the characters, I found Kristian a little too annoying at times, and little Julia could learn to listen to adults in catastrophic situations. Despite all this, however, this is still a solidly made film within its genre that certainly won't get lost among its American "cousins". Plus, there has been enough destruction of New York and San Francisco.

The open ending of the first Alien vs. Predator called for a sequel, which we got a few years later, unfortunately with a qualitatively lower value. The sequel completely ignores the story, doesn't try to build a universe around the two dreaded monsters, and simply focuses on the action, which, while abundant, feels cheap and cluttered. The oppressive atmosphere is gone, and this time everyone gets murdered on sight, the motto must have been "The more holes in the head, the better!". The characters are flat, incredibly stupid and in fact it could be said they are just for number; the protagonists are mainly the two monsters (and the hybrid), but in this case they lack most of their "cult charm". As far as that ignored story goes, the film slaps several storylines (family, relationships, and misuse of technology) together, but they're only held together by force of will. As a mindless one-view action film, this movie can be survived, but that's really a shame because the material was solid.