Necrotongue

This two-hander had me royally entertained. The play was superbly written, excellently staged and perfectly acted. The choice of actors was great, although I didn't find Daniela Kolářová nearly as relaxed as Milan Lasica, whose performance was impeccable. Both of them gave me fits of laughter in this clash of male and female perspectives on life. I enjoyed every minute of it, and it certainly wasn't the last time I've seen Pierre and Laurence.

I was expecting to laugh a bit more, but the mood of the film was rather melancholy. I was okay with that as soon as I realized that this wasn't going to be one of Svěrák’s typical comedies, and I quite enjoyed the film. I really liked the atmosphere of rural idyll spiced up with war events. What I loved were the performances of Oldřich Kaiser and Tereza Voříšková and the film’s subtle humor. It was an incredibly relaxing and feel-good film.

I was pretty bored in the first half of the film. All in all, it irritated me rather than kept me on the edge of my seat. I couldn't help feeling like I was watching an invasion of barbarians into the household of normal, adaptable citizens. I kept waiting for the big twist at the end, but to my surprise, the film ended in a completely predictable way.

While the film had its bright moments, they were outweighed by boredom, plot nonsense (the flawless emergency landing of a practically dead pilot) and a totally mind-numbing ending. Not that I want to underestimate Idris Elba's parameters, but The Mountain Between Us? Come on. I got over the title eventually, but the two survivors deeply disappointed me by leaving the pilot for later, but completely ignoring him afterwards, and then constantly lamenting over the lack of food. I was appalled by the highly unsanitary scene in the cabin, and I was incredibly happy that the screen cannot transmit odor along with picture and sound. I also didn't understand why those two kept acting like it was freezing cold, when it turned out that the ice on the lake was pretty damn thin. I’d rather not comment on the ending. Anyway, the scenery was breathtaking.

I'm giving the film two totally subjective stars because it contained too many of my pet peeves. It was too multicultural, there was too much melodrama, American patriotism, too many moral lessons, and it reminded me too much of Independence Day. Plus, the whole time I felt like I was watching a film that was made in the 90s, only with updated special effects. At least the German woman didn't look like Angela...

The first half of the film was incredibly boring. Although the second half got more interesting as the plot finally started to show signs of life, I couldn’t help feeling that it was just trying to cash in on the cult that had formed around the original film. It didn't seem to have much to say, the plot was based on the original Blade Runner and was pretty lame if you ask me. The result was a sort of action/sci-fi Finding Nemo/Unbreakable.

The only thing I liked about the film was its great action. The story itself was rather far-fetched. The main character was really funny and, the way I see it, it was just about making me believe that Big Brother can do anything he puts his mind to. The biggest problem for me was that I just didn’t buy that the CIA would make a top agent out of an unmanageable skinny kid with PTSD, and that this muscleless expert could beat with his bare hands a guy at least forty pounds heavier (and trained), etc. I also really liked the maneuver of the 6th Fleet, which bravely turned their sides to the giant wave. After all, an American ship will endure anything. It was just as dumb as Admiral Halsey thinking he could win against a typhoon.

No, I don't know, I didn't really enjoy the first episode of the third season. The creators have already proven to me that they can create worse episodes, but I know they can also create much better ones and I would be glad if they returned to those higher quality ones. The humor they used this time reminded me of Mistr Troška, and that really spoiled my mood.

I was secretly hoping for someone to finally bring a new angle to the romantic comedy genre, but I was disappointed yet again. The filmmakers slavishly copied the established format. Apart from a decent cast, there was practically nothing to be excited about. Actually, there was something. I was glad that there wasn’t too much pathos to wade through at the end. I was also surprised that there weren’t that many funny moments; I would expect some given that it was a comedy.

I didn’t have high expectations for this film and I enjoyed it all the more. The film was serious throughout, but I still found moments that made me laugh out loud. I'm not a big fan of Woody Harrelson, but I must admit he was an excellent choice for the role of Arthur Poppington. I wasn't bored for a second and would have even added a fifth star if the ending hadn't been drowned in a pool of pathos.