POMO

The pitting of Ed Harris against Liam Neeson is the best thing in this film. And to make it into guys-only entertainment par excellence, casting Vincent D'Onofrio and Nick Nolte as their sidekicks was an equally fortunate choice. But it does not change the fact that: 1) almost all of the characters are nut-jobs who literally deserve to die, 2) it is once again based on a clearly defined genre template and 3) it focuses more on superficial formal effectiveness than on telling an honest crime drama such as We Own the Night. Now that was a genre movie deserving of four stars in my opinion. And it doesn’t lack shootouts or an exciting car chase.

Lesbian D/S poetry in irresistible, hypnotic retro garb. It is a pity that the subtlety and sophistication of the relationship portrayed (I’d give the first half of the film five stars) gradually dissolves into artsy symbolism and does not come to any conclusion. The late Jesús Franco would’ve definitely liked this, though.

Two decades of my favorite genre on one plate. Intense music and street Steadicams of the early Carpenter, sometimes escalating into giallo-like psychedelics, working with the mystery of a hidden horror like a modern version of The Ring, while preserving the narrative logic and believable behavior of the characters. Moreover, the horror is spread by sex between attractive teenagers led by a pretty, delicate blonde, and is not a form of pleasure, but an act of guilty suffering. In addition, we get to enjoy the dark setting of the ghost-town parts of Detroit. It Follows is a delicacy for genre connoisseurs that could have been the best horror-movie event of the decade had the brilliant blend of historical directions been crowned by a visionary outlining of a new path. ****1/2

Dream to Fly is a visually beautiful and spiritually colorful film about the history of flying, from Da Vinci's first ideas to the present, when we transport cargo air and flying is the safest means of travel.

A visually spectacular, plotless ride through space, the inside of a rocky planet, etc. Suitable for a 5DX simulator. Music stolen from The Dark Knight and shiny marine objects from The Abyss.

A more scholarly take on the formation of the universe, the functioning of galaxies, etc. Visually attractive, Dark Universe is more suitable for adult viewers than for kids.

An average and, next to films like Bloody Sunday and In the Name of the Father, unnecessary short film from the Belfast “war zone”, with a musical background in the form of two five-star songs by U2. The use of “The Troubles” has its moments, but the use of “Every Breaking Wave” is forced and doesn’t really make sense.

While watching this raw whatever-this-is you can come to only one conclusion – some guys shot an hour of material in which somewhere on an island, a handful of people are jumped by a small monster that scratches them with poisonous claws until they die. The film’s star is said monster, a kind of black-faced Lilliputian creature with sharp fangs, optically twisted so that it looks even smaller than it actually is. The guys then showed this raw, wannabe horror-movie material to the investors to increase their budget so it would cover the fees for David Warbeck and Janet Agren, a famous acting duo from popular Italian horror flicks who looks good in the cast if you want to distribute the film abroad. The guys shot the duo’s journey to the island, as one of the characters there is supposed to be Janet’s sister, whom Janet has not heard from for a suspiciously long time. These scenes alternate with the “horror island” ones and David and Janet almost don’t get to meet anyone, as they just talk to each other while riding in their car, etc. SPOILER: Janet and David arrive late and don’t meet a single character from the “horror” storyline. So what is the movie like? There are no words to describe this; you’ve just got to see it for yourself. But I wouldn’t recommend that.

If this movie were about a teenage hetero couple, it’d be mundane and uninteresting. If it were about two gay boys, it’d be unwatchable for most viewers. But it’s about two lesbians and the Cannes jury, led by the king of Hollywood, awarded it the Golden Palm. Like Linklater’s three-hour- long Boyhood, the three-hour-long Blue is the Warmest Color slowly and not too dramatically talks about everyday life issues. But unlike Boyhood, it focuses on one particular stage in the main character’s life and goes so deep that the last part of her story moves the viewer to tears. Because we all know how that hurts, no matter what our sexual orientation is. The sex scenes are very open, but not self-serving. On the contrary, they are very important for the physical and emotional absorption of the story, which is its alpha and omega. The central duo of young actresses is incredible in every word, feeling and look.

Nice visuals, weak content. The characters are uninteresting or irritating, the conflicts between them moderate or feeble, including the final one that the whole film escalates towards – and nothing essential happens in it. A forgettable film with a single great long crowd shot.