The daughter was curious as to watch this so I watched it first so we could discuss it.
It's received a fair bit of press, and I haven't yet read a negative review. Which is strange...so - here it comes.
A short list of the movies it's ripping off:
- Lone Wolf and Cub
- The Seven Samurai
- John Wick II
- Cat meowed at Yoda - borrowed from Miyazaki's "My Neighbor Totoro"
- Music hints at Sergio Leone's "The Good, The Bad and The Ugly"
- The Mandalorian - sounds more than a bit like Clint Eastwood and speaks with an inflection that I'm pretty sure he borrowed as well.
- These are just the ones that I noticed. I'm sure if you were a little more culturally fluent you'd recognize more. Suffice it to say there isn't an original bit of material in it.
Questions: Why does every outpost and every intergalactic port look like a ghetto in a third world country? And, really? Really? Are they STILL using plastic?
Now, the ripping off - the film-literate Star Wars fan might suggest that these are just "homages", tributes to the Disney Imagineers favorite films. Except the quality of this is so abysmally low that any one who sat through any of the above movies referenced isn't going to be able to sit through this without a lot of squirming very uncomfortably in their seat. So, not "homages" - this audience isn't going to understand - this is just a rip-off.
Now the dialogue - written for 5-year-olds, the acting - well like the actors realized at the last minute they'd just signed on to terminate their theatrical careers - abysmal - like out of a kids muppet movie - worse even - episode 4 - "Mandalorian interacts with barmaid"...painful, literally burn your eyes out painful. And - the solution to the many plot stalls is to throw in another crazy looking alien or robot. How about a new ice monster? Now you're thinking...
The Imagineers in a Brainstorming Session:
- "Lets add a silly robot..."
- "yeah, great idea, how about a killer silly robot?"
- "Hilarious! And it's got to want to blow itself up every time things go wrong..."
- "Now you're thinking..."
Inane.
Having sat through almost 4 hours of this - so you won't have to - I can tell you - not everyone needs a back story. Not Boba Fett, not Yoda, "The Mystery Character" is no longer a mystery character if you devote a whole fucking series explaining who he is. I'll tell you what needs explaining, What really needs explaining in this is how on earth Werner Herzog signed on to this...he better be fundraising for something great because he's got some atoning to do...
This is the world of corporate creativity, Disney's own milquetoast brand of "creative" storytelling, less plot, less dialogue, more visual effects. The Dystopian Disney...their corporate "imagineers" plundering all the best moments of popular culture and reducing them, dumbing them down to the absolutely lowest common denominator.
End Episode 4: " "I'' miss you 'baby Yoda' sooo much...". Don't you worry you little brat, Disney's going to make sure you can buy a lifesized replica just in time for Xmas...
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Great writing credits - Henry James & Truman Capote, a bit close and stifling - too much of the period, but clever in the multiple ways it allows the viewer to resolve the events in their own mind.
And - as perhaps proof of it's success I had a dream of evil, presentiment, a disembodied presence that haunted near to me, and woke up disturbed. Which - generally, should be to it's credit.
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Meanwhile, a brief summary of what I've been up to in my movie watching the past several weeks. Films that don't necessarily deserve a review on their own...
- Bruno - with Sacha Baron Cohen. Yeah, stupid, stupid, stupid, that said I couldn't help but laugh when he's trying to get into Mike's tent after "a bear ate all my clothes...he devoured everything but these condoms" and "I'm pretty sure Donny's gay". And the scene with the gerbils. And ... well, for such a stupid movie it was surprising how many scenes made me laugh out loud.
- The Evil Dead II - Brilliant, macabre. Would not want to see this on Acid or Mushrooms.
- The Kingsman - I was inspired to see this with the daughter after watching the Trump Mashup (here). Hate to say it but despite all the glowing reviews the Trump Mashup was the best thing about it.
- Parasite - by Bong Joon-ho. Good, Surprising, meaning it rather thwarted all expectations in a rather intelligent fashion, but I wouldn't say that I enjoyed it. Not was I was looking for.
- The Ring - The pick for Halloween with the daughter. The original, "OK" to "Meh", but an interesting twist at the end.
- Silence of the Lambs - Took the daughter to see. A classic but "Meh". I used to bug a guy who's name rhymes with "Ben" about raising butterflies and the well in his basement, forgot "It must put on the Lotion" line. When I see him next I'll bring it up. The daughter was properly horrified,
And that catches me up.
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This was the version I meant to watch, it appears to be in part inspired by the 2016 version. We'll see, I can't do 2 of these in a row...
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