faxanadonts Reviews

House of Hammer (2022)

Poorly executed documentary

[3/10 · 24 June 2023]

Considering this is three parts you would think there is a lot of documenting here in a supposed documentary, but there is not. Part two is interesting as it actually has facts about the family history, but beyond that Its yet another gossip fest pretending to be a documentary which is in vogue these days. With no actual proven crimes and all unsubstantiated allegation it really ends up feeling like speculation that he was, "kinda sorta doing bdsm wrong or something like that ... sorta". There might have been crimes committed, but maybe not, and so this seems like a shaming before knowing type thing. When hearsay pretends to be a documentary no one wins, everyone loses, and it gets boring fast.

Jimmy Savile: A British Horror Story (2022)

Feels hollow

[6/10 · 2 September 2022]

I would say it's extremely likely that Jimmy Saville is guilty and ruined people's lives. The problem is because the allegations were not taken seriously by police, no proper investigation ever took place and so they, at heart, are still only allegations. There lies the real blunder. This documentary assumes he's guilty, but really you can't assume this just from hearsay even if there is a lot of it and it's likely true. That's why the judicial process is so essential. Without it, the victim's only have the media to expound their pound of flesh, and as seen when the media were lauding praise on Jimmy Saville previously, the media could give an F about actual justice, they just want ratings and an interesting story. Because the allegations were not taken seriously justice is stuck and mob justice takes over which as we see today is abhorrent because when it happens it doesn't have to be connected to evidence and so robs victims of actual justice. The mob justice all too common today is a symptom of the disease of looking the other way and not investigating rationally and practically and patiently before. When you ignore something that might be something it always will become something way worse later whether it was something or not in the first place. Investigate as soon as possible to avoid the cancer later on. Otherwise everything will feel empty and hollow later because the substance that would have been there if you looked into it is missing. There now lies a lonely void.

Jurassic World Dominion (2022)

Reheated lifeless leftovers that go on and on and on ...

[5/10 · 16 August 2022]

There is so little effort put into this movie that there is almost nothing here. It's a rehashing of old characters with no story in sight. Plus its very long.

American Murder: The Family Next Door (2020)

Compelling but mysterious

[7/10 · 10 October 2020]

The body cam footage and texts make it compelling and interesting, but you don't really gain any insight into why he did it as opposed to just leaving. It's very surface reconstruction, which is good in a way, as it sticks to the facts, but there is something missing and by the end you feel it. You don't really feel that the event is explained in a satisfying way. I can see how she is super annoying though. Obviously no one ever deserves to be physically hurt or killed, but it's important to note if you try to de-ball a man or make him feel little, especially over time in a long marriage or relationship, a rage will potentially build up that can be dangerous. Make a person feel like they are nothing and have no power, and eventually one day they might show you that they do, with tragic results all around. Physical harm is never justified, but that doesn't mean it's not important to find out what led to it, so that it can be avoided in the future.

Hannah Gadsby: Nanette (2018 TV Special)

Errrr ...

[31 August 2020]

Imagine you go to a restaurant to eat out and instead of bringing you food the waitress comes out and tells you she was raped and hates men. It's interesting but it's not really what you were looking for. This is not comedic stand up, it's a one person show. If it was marketed that way it would be fine. If you are going to see a one person show then you know you are in for watching a self involved person baring their pain and resulting skewed hate that they rebrand as moral philosophy, and you can mentally prepare for that, and it's interesting because it's people watching at its best. But if you're expecting comedy and you get this, it's a bummer and annoying. So my review is it's a bummer and annoying.

Jeffrey Epstein: Filthy Rich (2020)

Great, but there should really be a different category for these ...

[6/10 · 28 May 2020]

Allowing the victims to speak their truth is invaluable and thus is an incredibly important service the filmmakers have done buuuutt ... there should be a different category for these than, 'documentary'. This film, the R. Kelly one, the Michael Jackson one are all just basically 5 hour long victim impact statements. To me the term, 'documentary', means someone does the arduous work of zooming out through research research research and more research and then more documents and more research and then presents the facts without an emotional heavy hand leaning one way or the other. It documents. Victim impact statements are one of the most important parts of any story but I'm not sure it should be considered the whole story or 5 hours of it. Overall though, this is impactful and definitely worth watching.

Too Hot to Handle (2020– )

Watch it as if it's a Christopher Guest movie ...

[4/10 · 19 April 2020]

This show is hilarious!! They are utter morons. As a result they are funny. That's all ... that's the whole premise of the show. Don't over think it. The sex appeal is just the add on to make listening to their funny moronic talk funny as opposed to just sad. It's weakness makes it strong. :-)

Sincerely Louis C.K. (2020 TV Special)

Simply Brilliant

[10/10 · 6 April 2020]

I love how this feels honest, raw, straightforward, and hilarious. No bells and whistles. Just funny. Of course to get that requires incredible talent and years of hard work, but the experts at the top of their fields always make it look easy. An ounce of Louie can help the world make more progress than ten million tonnes of empty headed social justice warriors. Because Louie is full of truth, talent, and funny. And that's everything and you can feel that in your heart as you watch this. It gives me hope. And it makes me laugh so hard and that feels so good. Thank you Louie.

My Next Guest Needs No Introduction with David Letterman (2018– )

David is now just another mediocre interviewer

[4/10 · 15 November 2019]

Both seasons are generically interesting, but these interviews could have been done by any number of people and been just as mediocre. Of course everyone changes as they get old, but that's why it's good to retire. David Letterman was interesting and had an edge. My feeling is he's become a better person and we the viewers are worse off for it. These interviews are a boring love fest and not worth watching in the least. His name gets the wide variety of very cool and intriguing people to show up, but once they do there is no show. It's annoying because one feels hopeful at the start of each interview but then by the end one is certain that it's just ... bleah ... kind of nothing. The Howard Stern one is the only one of these worth watching. On that note, Howard Stern got older and wiser, but still is fascinating and entertaining on his show. Howard forever! Hey nowwwww.

Prank Encounters (2019–2021)

Sooooo worth it!

[9/10 · 28 October 2019]

Sure it may be a little boring in some parts, but it's so worth it to see the people freak out. Seeing the real reactions of pure freak out is fantastic. The captured true emotion is worth everything! Where else can you see well produced guilt free real genuine emotional freak out? This is a rare precious commodity. It's freakin hilarious and the actors are awesome. I love the plastic surgeon episode. So great! A worthy follow up to Scare Tactics. I hope there is a second season.

Between Two Ferns: The Movie (2019)

Weird tension relieved by absurdity that feels worth it by the end

[8/10 · 23 September 2019]

In parts is a bit boring but it is original enough and odd enough to eventually feel hilarious after the fact even though it is like attending a tense sort of funny cocktail party.

Bill Burr: Paper Tiger (2019 TV Special)

Amazing! Walks the line like a gunslinger.

[10/10 · 10 September 2019]

Bill Burr is a gunslinger. He has so much confidence on stage that you go along for the ride as he slings comedy in your face and it makes one go, "Thank you sir may I have some more?". Underneath his confidence are lots of well thought out honest bits that land because they connect with real human emotion and thoughts, and his bits are smart even when talking about the dopeyness of humanity that runs through us all. PC culture seems to want to sanitize the world ... ironically this glosses over the nuance of what really exists in minds and hearts. Truthful comedy like Bill Burr's shines light on what is really in our brains while making hilarious jokes about it at the same time. In the end this is way more valuable to progress than PC culture ever could be.

The Righteous Gemstones (2019– )

So Funny! And Edi Patterson is so great!

[9/10 · 2 September 2019]

The Foot Fist Way and Eastbound and Down blew me away, and from then on I knew I had to watch anything written or created by Danny McBride. Just because of who he is, everything that flows from him is funny. I get the same feeling from Edi Patterson. Every line from her in this series is so fricken funny! Her demeanour and the way she delivers lines has something that is never not funny. I love that she is in this series in combination with Danny McBride (and also in Vice Principals). The combination is just fantastic. Thanks for another great series!

Dave Chappelle: Sticks & Stones (2019 TV Special)

Awesome! Its as if a Mark Twain quote that exposes hypocrisy and group think was expanded into an hour comedy set.

[10/10 · 27 August 2019]

Outside of the sanitized politically correct pre packaged news/infotainment, that is meant to offend no one, and designed specifically for the mob to digest in their echo chambers and then crap out into nothing of particular value besides their egotistical virtue signaling ... outside of that, there is, on the other hand, human truth, that is carefully considered and put into joke form by comedic genius minds, and when it comes out of their mouth it is a gut punch, because, it has value and resonates and means something, as opposed to when the product produced is geared towards not meaning to mean certain things so that no one gets offended while towing the line of the mob and dogma that one belongs to. Truth untainted by in group dogma hits at the core, below the surface. At surface, things are often leveled by dogma to suit the mob its aimed at.

This comedy set has value and is important and you can feel it.

So much of the news and entertainment has been poisoned by the social media platforms, as the hive mind mob mentality of political correctness and judgment allows for no critical thought, because critical thought means you will mistakes in the process as you consider both sides and weave back and forth, and it seems today even making one mistake in thought or speech is not much allowed anymore, as there is the fear, 'Will the mob come for me today?'. So instead for respite from the idea that, "you must say this and think this or else you are this and you are that", we must turn to the comedic genius' who carefully consider everything they say, hone it down, then go up on stage and provoke, and ironically this allows us to think, "Hey! I can think differently and be ok to meander in my thought, as long as I tow the line of human truth in my intent". Because at its core comedians like Dave Chappelle and Ricky Gervais and others stand in front of the mob, and because of their talent and hard work are able to expose the hypocrisy we all have while still making us smile and laugh.

This is why we need comedians. To disrupt and make us think and to make us laugh. Even the silly one's like Conan are taking truth and twisting it and making it silly, but the laugh comes from truth.

Thanks! This was an awesome comedy set.

The Predator (2018)

I found two good things among the mess ...

[5/10 · 13 August 2019]

It becomes obvious fairly quickly this movie is terrible and laughably bad. So if one can get over the fact right away that it is going to underachieve in every way possibly possible then you can laugh at it. Sort of like going on a bad date and realizing it will make a good story later on, as per the idea that life is usually hilariously stupid. Otherwise it is just extremely annoying to watch.

The first of the only two good things in the movie is Olivia Munn. Her bum and breasts and face and hourglass shape are so freaking awesome, it is almost artistic to the Michelangelo degree. If Michelangelo sculpted something when he was a super horny teenager and obsessed with girls, it would be Olivia Munn. She exudes nerd sexy from every pore (sexyness with intelligence behind the eyes). Ohhhhh yes, she is fantastic. I guarantee she must have amazing nipples. Also, her acting is good (that's right, and you thought I was just sexist, but I am noting for good measure her acting is quite good as well). The second thing that is good in this movie is the line that the predator is, "A Whoopi Goldberg Alien". C'mon, now that's a pretty funny line. Oh wait, I forgot Keegan Michael Key is naturally funny. Okay three things are good about this movie. Actually, as I write this I am coming around on this movie. Now I'm starting to think it is pretty great ... maybe just in retrospect. Aaaanyways, watch it if you dare!

Unsane (2018)

Claire Foy is captivating from the first scene

[9/10 · 2 August 2019]

I love Steven Sodenberg. His style of film making somehow balances a raw visceral feeling with a polished feel. It makes total sense that he could pull off a film shot on an iphone and make it great. I love Claire Foy's acting. She immediately draws you into her character. Right away she manages to convey the, "there is something off here with her ... or is there?", vibe and it carries throughout the movie, and matches with the story arc as well. So good! It kept me on my toes. I have been committed against my choice in a facility before, so I could relate and was riveted with that panicy feel in the beginning and then that flowed into the scary twists throughout the movie. Such a great scary movie!

The Big Lie: American Addict 2 (2016)

Slightly Biased but useful information

[5/10 · 28 June 2019]

It seems a lot of the talking heads in this documentary use confirmation bias for a lot of their unsubstantiated claims as they crowbar in anecdotal news to support their opinions. For instance, "A lot of school shooters are on antidepressants", is worth looking into but does not immediately mean, "antidepressants cause school shootings", and the, "experts", in this documentary immediately jump to this conclusion and claim without any reservation and almost with glee it seems because it supports what they want to believe. This type of thinking permeates this documentary unfortunately because it also has a lot of valid information about the FDA and the corrupting influence of money and the revolving door. As well there is always an irony as, "addiction experts", pontificate and preach if they themselves are overweight significantly. Food addiction is real and as it states at the end of this documentary, "to avoid becoming an American addict begin develop a disease preventing lifestyle today. Seek out a qualified nutritionist, bloodwork, and a way of eating that is healthy for the rest of your life. Do some type of physical exercise everyday, and try to incorporate both strength training and cardio into your regimen. The best way to avoid the need for medication is not to be sick in the first place." Hey ... Peter Breggin! Take your own advice! So next time maybe you wont' waddle onto a film set with your gut hanging over your belt. When Breggin drones on in a condescending voice about what everyone ELSE needs to do and as he tries to imply how silly and moronic everyone ELSE is being, it's hard to take his judgemental tone seriously. Sure, a hypocrite can still have useful information, but a hypocrite that preaches in a condescending tone ... ermmmm ... it's just hard to take on any of his extreme black and white thinking on medications in the first place, let alone when he seems to be unaware of his own failing. If you're going to be a cocky jerky jerk at least look the part of an overachiever in the field is what I'm saying, I guess. :-)

Perfect Bid: The Contestant Who Knew Too Much (2017)

Ted Slauson is awesome

[8/10 · 8 May 2019]

I loved this documentary. It moves along at a slow pace, but it's great hearing Ted Slauson's story. He's so humble and likeable that it's fairly infuriating that he didn't get to win any of the prizes from his perfect bid calculation. But the fact that he was able to get a perfect bid in indirectly, and have his story told on Netflix, no less, is awesome. Long after Terry Kniess' material prize possessions disintegrate into dust, the story of all the crazy hard work Slauson put in memorizing via cool retro coded Price Is Right computer programs, will live on. After all, the story is now digitized, and so Slauson is immortal. Digital lives forever biotches!!! Woo hoo! :-). Also, any future AI super intelligent overlords will appreciate the nostalgic coding done in BASIC on the Commodore 64, and likely reanimate Slauson as a clone in appreciation. So yeah, that'll be cool beans.

Dirty Money: Payday (2018) Season 1, Episode 2

The lack of self awareness of Scott Tucker is astounding

[8/10 · 5 May 2019]

I'm not sure if it was the intention of the director or not, but by allowing Scott Tucker and his family to talk extensively about the financial and emotional problems from their new financial woes and how it affected them it perfectly showed how totally in denial a person can be about how their own actions affects other people. All their hardships he goes on and on about are almost EXACTLY the same as the hardships HE CAUSED TO 1.5 million people with his predatory lending practices. His brother committed suicide and that's tragic, but I guarantee the crushing stress he caused millions of people led to plenty of self harm and suicides. Crushing debt is a big contributing factor in suicide. It's tragic all around but that's not surprising ... savage selfishness usually leads to tragedy all around. The fact that Scott Tucker goes on and on about his problems without any self awareness of the same misery he caused to millions of Americans is a perfect case study of the denial a person can have about their own behaviour when they focus on what others are "unjustly" doing to them despite the same massive financial misery he was spewing out on others for years. It's kinda depressing but very interesting at the same time. Anyways, I thought it was definitely worth watching.

Where Is Robert Fisher? (2011)

Worth sitting through just to get to laughable Psychic

[5/10 · 26 April 2019]

This documentary was fairly interesting, but also kind of boring and draaaaaged along in parts. It gave good straightforward info but then all of a sudden, just before it ends they crowbar in a ridiculous interview with a psychic, and it's presented as if this is supposedly potential valid information alongside all the facts presented beforehand which was done by actual rational fact based investigation. This psychic interview thereby undermines all the previous information presented in the documentary. It's so funny that it's ruined in the very last scene. Almost comedic in its timing. Thanks a lot psychic lady! Yet another attention seeking deluded psychic ruining anything they touch with their crazy making words. Lol. Oh well, it takes all kinds I guess, but one would hope all these kinds are not presented in such a way in a serious documentary. Wonk, wonnnnk fail. :-)

Gaga: Five Foot Two (2017)

An investigation into ego

[4/10 · 18 November 2017]

This documentary is interesting but seemingly not for the intended reasons. I love documentaries because it allows one to people watch without feeling bad about staring. Even when a documentary feels ham handed and like it might have an agenda, the truth of a person comes through by watching their interactions and mannerisms. There is the narrative that is attempted to be told, and then there is the truth of the person underneath the narrative. I suppose being a rock star and being a narcissist kind of go hand and hand, but some rock star narcissists are humorous and some are god awful annoying. Gaga is annoying. Her talent is impressive, whereas the person she is, is not. Her narcissism poisons any likability potential. This becomes so obvious to me in the scene with Florence Welch of Florence of the machine. The scene only lasts a minute or two but immediately one can see Florence is down to Earth, awesome, talented and a person who is a person. All her mannerisms and the way she holds herself point to Florence's awesomeness. She seems to be a person one would want to hang out with and ask questions to ... a person one can learn from and be impressed by. On the other hand, Gaga is all ego. The more ego the less impressive someone becomes. Too much ego makes a person a vampire. A person with a huge ego takes from any person they interact with. Gaga gives the world amazing music but after watching this documentary it makes one think she does it for the benefits she reaps ... to feed the ego. Her talent creates and gives us all so much, yes, but this doc makes one think Gaga's intent is to feed her ego as opposed to feed humanity. It made me feel sorry for Gaga, but also in the end mostly just be annoyed by her. Who knows if this is really how she is. But this documentary definitely made me think so.

American Anarchist (2016)

Extremely Biased. Leads me to judge the director more than I would judge William Powell

[4/10 · 9 August 2017]

The best documentaries I have watched have been done about flawed people in an unbiased manner. This documentary did not come close to achieving this. Of course, it is impossible to have recaptured and edited reality without some bias accidentally added, but it is a gift to humanity when one senses that a documentary was made with huge energy devoted to trying not to have the directors heavy handed preconceptions all over the material. A heavy hand in a documentary leads it more toward propaganda as opposed to a documentary. A documentary is a gift, propaganda is a curse.

As the documentary goes on it becomes apparent that it is a fascinating subject ... how does a person deal with a mistake made during his teenage years that continues to follow him? How does he figure out how much responsibility he should feel? How does he continue to be a positive force in the world as a teacher while at the same time accepting responsibility for a book he wrote when he was 19 that continues to be in the news? The director doesn't seem to care about these questions. The director wants the subject to say things he wants him to say according to the directors world view of how people should act and behave. The director wants to capture the reality he wants to see and then replay it to us. This makes watching this documentary frustrating. But interestingly, I think, it backfires on the director. Because his questions of William Powell are so obviously biased, both in their content and emotion behind the questions, I think, it causes the viewer to sympathize with William Powell, as the director becomes a metaphor for the society which is quick to judge a person for a mistake, as opposed to take the full context into question and let a person speak their truth as opposed to try to get the person to speak the truth you want to be true. Which is quite ironic, as a documentary is supposed to take the full context of the situation and allow a deeper investigation in the subject. Instead it was the opposite.

To me this documentary was a character study of the, 'quick to judge', archetype. The best part of the documentary for me was when the director asks, "Do you feel that Bill has been unfairly treated?", and his wife answers, that some of the directors questions have been, 'leading', and therefore unfair in a way. And the director replies, "Oh I didn't mean unfairly treated by me". The director is oblivious to the fact that the only truth that has become clear to both William, his wife Ochan, and the viewer, is that he is obviously treating William in a biased and unfair manner. It hits home in this moment that the director has become the subject of the documentary, and not the observer. That was the one moment of truth in the documentary and almost makes the documentary worthwhile. It is a super condensed moment of truth, where it becomes apparent in one second why the biggest rule of most documentary film making is to try one's best not to insert your preconceived ideas or oneself into a documentary, because then the movie becomes primarily about one persons reality (the directors). Which reveals a catch-22, about this moment. Kudos for the director putting this moment in, because putting this moment in reveals in a very telling way how biased the film has been, but also by putting this moment in and not cutting it out the director is being truthful and not totally unbiased about his biasedness (not really a word but sort of). It makes the documentary interesting, but in a frustrating way. That should be the title of the film, "Interesting, but in a frustrating way".

In the end I think I feel more sympathy for William Powell. It is obvious his book does not match who he has been for most of his life - A compassionate and thoughtful man. Also, William's flaws seem more relatable to the universal human condition of youthful mistakes and the struggle to see ones place and previous actions within the large context, as opposed to the more annoying and petty human condition of being overly judgemental, which the director displays. Also I am being a big judegmental now about being people being judgemental. Another catch-22. Catch-22 is a good book. I haven't seen the movie. I think I will watch it now.

Horace and Pete (2016)

Chunks of funny truth in play format

[9/10 · 14 February 2016]

I have watched a lot of Louis CK's stand up comedy and it seemed to me that his amazing humour came from him extracting the absurdity of life and him talking about it on stage in a way that was both very funny, honest, and engaging, which is not easy feat I think (the feat being presenting the absurdity and confusing nature of life in way that both the presenter and audience can laugh together at it, as opposed to be terrified/confused/annoyed by the confusing universe). Even though the episodes of Horace and Pete feel formatted more in the way of a play, to me it is still fantastic in the same way. Family and life can be infuriating because as we grow up we see that the more we know about family/life/universe the more we realize that we don't know (that whole Socrates thing), but that doesn't mean we give up hope ... instead we can find it absurdly funny and laugh in the face of absurdity, and try and learn from it, and move forward in a better way, especially when there is a master funny man like Louis CK to extract amazing funny thought lines from the absurdity. In this way it is an honest reaction to the confusing nature of life instead of simply trying to create a sanitized narrative to our lives that might make us feel less fear, but doesn't really address the reality. Anyways, that is more my emotional mumbo jumbo response to why I think this is a really good show, but in more specific terms I find the dialogue really great, the acting great, and the jokes great, and therefore I find it ... very great! Thanks Louis CK!

Neurons to Nirvana (2013)

Great documentary, except for their disparaging comments about antidepressants

[8/10 · 19 June 2015]

This documentary had great insights into the realities of various drugs, and I liked how they made an effort to focus on facts as opposed to fear based opinions on psychedelics. Ironically, I feel like when they mentioned antidepressants the people interviewed gave an emotion based opinion as opposed to sticking to the facts ... because pharmaceutical antidepressants are produced by corporations, and the doctors and pundits in the documentary were more liberal leaning they talked about the antidepressants, 'dampening', and 'hindering' the 'true human' in the brain, whereas non corporate psychedelics or other non monetized drugs, they felt, helped people overcome depression through, 'true insight'. In reality, all plants or chemicals, whether corporate or non corporate are altering brain chemistry, dampening some parts of the brain, while allowing others to flourish. Its true that using antidepressants without talk therapy can lead to relapses in depression, but if one sticks to the facts, it is clear to see that antidepressants can modulate depression allowing one to do talk therapy they never would have had the strength to do if not for the antidepressants. Crippling depressions is just that ... crippling ... and antidepressants can help one come to deep insights, just like other psychedelics can. Overall it is infuriating when strong conservatives are hypocritical and say all illegal drugs have no redeeming qualities or benefits, but also equally hypocritical and infuriating when far leaning liberals spout generalizations that drugs produced by pharmaceutical are just there to make money and enslave the populace by treating symptoms and make the corporations money, and dampen the human spirit through numbing out the populace. Both generalizations are not true, and the path forward to truth would be better served if the doctors and people with knowledge are vigorous in analyzing whether they are speaking with emotion or facts. Overall though, a great documentary and thought provoking.

Strongman (2009)

Beautiful Raw Documentary

[8/10 · 8 May 2014]

I love this type of documentary. Unlike supposed, 'reality TV', this documentary contains poignant raw moments. Similar to Grey Gardens, this film displays straightforward eccentric characters being themselves and by being themselves the base longings shared through humanity can be felt in a way that pulls at the heart. Strongman, 'Stanley Pleskun', wants to be impressive, wants to be loved, and wants to be strong. Whether it is Stanley Pleskun or Stephen Hawking these are the things that drive all humans and documentaries like this remind us that no matter how complicated we might be, or how complicated we might believe ourselves to be, we can all see ourselves in Stanley Pleskun and the people that surround him, and this is both beautiful and sad at the same time, which is no coincidence as life is comedy and tragedy, beauty and sadness at the same time, and often contain moments which are absurd in a hilarious way. If nothing else it is worth watching for the absurd hilariousness of the conversations between Barbie and Stanley.