Isle of Dogs

                                                                                 

I watched "Isle of Dogs" without most English subtitles for the Japanese dog conversations, so my impression may be slanted. It is a sound movie, though the plot development (but not the premise) seems too formulaic to reach to the level of the Wes Anderson's best movies (see my review for "Budapest"). There are typical "Andersonisms" appearing in each of his movies: people running perpendicular to the line of sight. But there are also great cameos--corrupt mayor of the city with the large cat tatoo on his behind--or the hacker in the makeshift tent defeating the mayor poisoners' army when everything seems to be lost. And, of course, the star cast (Murray, Swinton, Goldblum, Balaban, Herwig, Schrieber) "for the love/life of dogs"--what can be better? In the language of Magical Max, only the MLT sandwich.

Tully

I already plead that I, as many men of my age, can watch Charlize Theron doing almost anything on screen, even reading multiplications table. And Charlize disheveled paired with Mackenzie Davis unusually well kempt is even better. Movie is going strong, but not as strong as another unrecognized indie by Charlize Theron, Young Adult.

P.S. Can anything resolve the riddle of Tamara Jenkins present on this photo?

Mamma Mia (here we go again)

This sequel to Mamma Mia is more coherent in its storyline than the original, which was just a set of musical numbers interrupted by superficial talking but without participation of the formidable Meryl Streep. Sher shows everybody how to sing.

Fireworks, should we see it from the side or the bottom?

The 40-something percent approval rating of the Ghibli on rottentomatoes.com signifies only the mental paucity of the US critical universe. They shudder of anything remotely ambiguous, while applauding any movie speaking to their "values": patriotism (Dunkirk, the Darkest Hour), any gay-liberation or black-resistance themed movie, no matter how formulaic or artistically weak its cinematic story is. While a hodgepodge of Anime cliches, it is a wonderful, pristine movie about teenage love, angst and tribulations of mid-to-high school life.

Don't worry, he won't get far on foot. Gus Van Sant.

Technically near perfect, as a typical Gus Van Sant movie--timing, shots, casting, actors' performances--this movie only proves that 12-step AA program works for the self-absorbed characters, whose main concern is the quality of their sexual lives (or, gay Christians). Joaquin Phoenix is marvelous but his girlfriend, talented Rooney Mara, was given such a non-expressive role that one wonders were not her participation a request from Joaquin.

Genius. Picasso.

Feeble series; even feebler than the last series about Einstein. The Einstein series leaving aside his science after c. 1919, were, at least, livened by the incomparable Geoffrey Rush (though, great and underrated Emily Watson was not given much of a go). But Picasso series, incoherent as they are, left his artistic development together with the brilliant Alex Rich, playing young Picasso. The rest of the series are only concerned with his womanizing, solid, but no match to the current President of the Unites States.

Love, Vincent

This is a genial animation with final days of Van Gogh reconstructed from his numerous letters and positioned as a whodunit story with the implied suspicion that Van Gogh was murdered, rather than committed suicide, ostensibly by good-for-nothing teenagers he befriended in his drunken roaming. But: the movie making technique where the characters are played by the human actors and then reanimated by drawing bears its descent from an unwatchable but equally genial "Waking Life" by Linklatter.