Project Power (2020)

A teenage drug dealer, a former soldier and a policeman unexpectedly interact in a reality that contains pills that turn any individual into a superhuman for five minutes.

An action and sci-fi film that uses ideas borrowed from X-Men in an innovative and very satisfying way. The characters are well written, charismatic and showcasing a very convincing and pleasant chemistry. The action is well oaced and the surprises well thought out, and constrained or exaggerated perfectly, as the moment requires. Unexpected musical elements are cleverly used to help sketch the characters.

Directors:  Henry Joost, Ariel Schulman     

With: Jamie Foxx, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Dominique Fishback, Rodrigo Santoro

Rating: 8/10

Hotel Artemis (2018)

Intr-un viitor apropiat, Nurse conduce un spital  ilegal cu drepturi speciale pentru membrii sai ce apartin exclusiv lumii interlope.

Un thriller de actiune cu accente SF si elemente caricaturistice. Bine facut, bine jucat, cu personaje detaliate indeajuns, Hotel Artemis intretine atmosfera eficient prin dialogul bine pus la punct si interactiunea interesanta a personajelor. Mai incet decat fanii genului ar dori, filmul nu este perfect si se pare nici prea bine primit, ceea ce este pacat, deoarece va fi uitat repede pe nedrept.

Jodie Foster revine dupa ani de absenta intr-un rol neasteptat in care interpreteaza un personaj mult mai in varsta decat ea insasi.

Regia:  Drew Pearce    

Cu: Jodie Foster, Sofia Boutella, Dave Bautista, Sterling K. Brown, Jenny Slate, Zachary Quinto,  Charlie Day, Kenneth Choi

Rating: 8/10

Also read in English

Hotel Artemis (2018)

In a near future, Nurse runs an illegal hospital that reserves special rights for its members who belong exclusively to the criminal world.

An action thriller with SF accents and comic book elements. Well done, well performed, with enough detailed characters, Hotel Artemis maintains its atmosphere efficiently through the well-developed dialogue and the interesting character interaction. Slower than the fans of the genre would probably like, the film is not perfect and does not seem to have been too well received, which is a shame, because it will be quickly unfairly forgotten.

Jodie Foster returns after years of absence in an unexpected role in which she plays a character much older than herself.

Director:  Drew Pearce    

With: Jodie Foster, Sofia Boutella, Dave Bautista, Sterling K. Brown, Jenny Slate, Zachary Quinto,  Charlie Day, Kenneth Choi

Rating: 8/10

The Curse of la Llorona (2019)

O asistenta sociala se confrunta cu o entitate supranaturala cu intentii negative dupa ce atrage atentia acesteia asupra copiilor sai printr-un caz la care lucra.

Inca un film horror din universul The Conjuring, cu The Nun ramanand cel mai slab. Pare un subiect vazut adesea, dar mitul lui La Llorona exista si merita atentia acordata. Povestea in schimb nu este prea originala si executia si mai putin, folosind clisee ale genului prea evidente si nici una din subtilitatile originale ale filmelor din serie. Are cateva atuu-ri ca jocul lui Linda Cardellini in rolul mamei, ce e minunata alternand o persoana speriata de ceva fara explicatie si o mama ce se teme si isi apara copiii, precum si umorul unor replici aplicate complet neasteptat in momente inoportune cu un efect benefic impresiei generale a filmului.

Regia:  Michael Chaves   

Cu: Linda Cardellini, Raymond Cruz, Patricia Velasquez, Marisol Ramirez

Rating: 6/10

Also read in English

The Curse of la Llorona (2019)

A social worker has to confront a supernatural entity that has bad intentions after she draws it's attention to her own children through a case she was working on.

Another horror film from The Conjuring universe, with The Nun still remaining the weakest of the bunch. It uses a topic often seen in various forms, but the myth of La Llorona exists and actually deserves some attention. The development of the story though is not very original and its execution is even less, using genre clichés that are too obvious and none of the original subtleties of the first films in the series. It gets some extra points for a few pros: Linda Cardellini's role as the mother, who is wonderful juggling a person that's scared of some unexplained something and a mother who is afraid for and defends her children, but also the comical effect of some completely unexpected lines just dropped on the audience at inopportune moments with an effect that's actually quite beneficial to the overall impression of the film.

Director:  Michael Chaves   

With: Linda Cardellini, Raymond Cruz, Patricia Velasquez, Marisol Ramirez

Rating: 6/10

Dark (2017–2020)

The disappearance of a couple of children triggers a series of connected events in unexpected ways once the time factor is manipulated.

A surprising series that's based on ideas that are often reused like temporal paradoxes, but taken to an extreme so efficiently and artistically, contributing to a network of connections so complex that some fans decide to watch Dark with a pencil in their hand. The scientific explanation becomes somewhat of a secondary focus while the cause&effect network becomes the main attention and the generator of much fascination and curiosity. Nothing is accidental in Dark, and the few poetic licenses it adopted increase the initial fascination which remains constant right up to the freeing finale at the end of season 3.

The attention to detail is admirable and many may notice that the actors are not chosen at random, because all those who play the same character at different ages look alike just enough so you actually know which character they are without them being introduced.

Production:  Netflix  

Creator:  Baran bo Odar, Jantje Friese   

Duration:  the first season has 10 episodes, followed by 2 seasons of 8 (1 hour each)   

With: Louis Hofmann, Karoline Eichhorn, Lisa Vicari, Maja Schöne, Andreas Pietschmann

Rating: 9/10

Dark (2017–2020)

Disparitia unor copii declanseaza o serie de evenimente conectate in moduri neasteptate odata ce factorul timp este modificat.

Un serial neasteptat ce este bazat pe idei des refolosite ca paradoxuri temporale dar dus la extrem foarte eficient si artistic contribuind la o retea de legaturi atat de complexa incat unii fani decid sa urmareasca Dark cu un creion in mana. Explicatia stiintifica devine oarecum personaj secundar in timp ce increngatura dependentelor devine atentia principala si generatoarea de fascinatie si curiozitate. Nimic nu este intamplator in Dark, iar putinele licente poetice adoptate sporesc fascinatia initiala ce ramane constanta pana la finalul eliberator de la sfarsitul sezonului 3. 

Atentia pentru detalii este de admirat si multi pot observa ca actorii nu sunt alesi intamplator, deoarece toti cei ce joaca acelasi personaj la diferite varste seamana de ajuns incat stii cine sunt fara a se prezenta.

Productie:  Netflix  

Creator:  Baran bo Odar, Jantje Friese   

Durata:  primul sezon de 10 episoade apoi 2 sezoane a cate 8 (de 1 ora fiecare)   

Cu: Louis Hofmann, Karoline Eichhorn, Lisa Vicari, Maja Schöne

Rating: 9/10

Also read in English