rasthompson Reviews

Death Note (2006–2007)

This is what will get you into anime

[9/10 · 2 June 2016]

The anime series I had watched before this one, Ano Hana, was a solid show but definitely didn't make me fall in love with anime. It had some clichés, some horrific plot holes and overall just didn't blow me away like all my friends said it would. This show, Death Note, was what got me into anime. I'd recommend you go into this anime knowing nothing as all I knew was that it was about a high school student who used a notebook to kill people. The story is written so well and unlike most television series' it doesn't make you anticipate a thing. When you start wanting to know what a character looks like or wondering where a plot point goes it reveals it to you almost immediately yet only then unfolding more plot points and complications to always keep the series tight. The story is so well-written and it's at it's highest point when the characters show off how smart they really are. Also what's so amazing about this show is how many different directions it goes that you just wouldn't expect. Nothing gets dull as interesting situations are always happening and they are presented in such fantastic ways like the subtlety in story-telling, the awesome art-style and really cool music.

The story's themes surround morality and it's presented in such a clever way that you start questioning yourself and who you are really rooting for. A few flaws I have with this anime is that a few plot holes arise at around Episode 20 and the show get's a little underwhelming between Episodes 32-36 but it is horrible because it finishes off brilliantly at Episode 37. This series is impeccable and I recommend it to everyone,especially people who are first getting into anime. 9/10

The Revenant (I) (2015)

My Favourite Film of 2015 so far

[9/10 · 24 May 2016]

I am a 13-year-old student so I'm not able to see as many movies in cinemas as I'd like to so I missed this one. 6 months I waited to see my favourite directors next film after it had already come out and wow, was I stunned after I finally watched it on a large television with surround sound. The cinematography beats Birdman for me.

Is this better than Birdman? Probably not, but Birdman has never been the same than in the movie theatre. I think the setting alone, and the way the brutal action sequences take place really give this film opportunity for some beautiful shots. The film is emotional and you understand Hugh Glass's motivation as a character and even though the revenge story doesn't kick in until the 50-minute mark what leads up to that is only excellent cinematography, brutal battle sequences, character development and the setting up for the character conflict and Leonardo DiCaprio as Glass and Tom Hardy as Fitzgerald really sell their butting of heads. They are both fantastic. Both are great. I would say Leo has been better but it's not like he wasn't absolutely incredible in this one. His physical performance alone is extremely impressive and the range of emotions he is able to display on his face comes as no surprise. I haven't seen enough of Tom Hardy's films to say this is his best performance but this is definitely his best from what I've seen. Everyone else is brilliant and you care enough about every one to genuinely feel concerned about what is going to happen to them except Tom Hardy as Fitzgerald who you will definitely hate.

Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu is excellent at displaying tone and atmosphere and through the aesthetics, cinematography, the music and the fact that they are on location filming with natural light makes you truly feel like you are in this cold, brutal environment.

I also love how the Revenant changes up it's story before any segment gets either boring or tired which is why I was always engaged and never bored.

There is one technical flaw that I noticed and it's probably about 1 minute of the film spread out in about a 20 minute segment and that was how the dialogue only just didn't match up with the lips of the actors. And a flaw in the presentation was any time Hugh's dead wife is doing something inhumane in one of the dream sequences it's kind of hilarious but those flaws really only take up about three minutes of the movie in total.

To sum it up, I loved this movie. I thought it was an incredible experience with amazing visuals whether practical effects, long, beautiful shots of physical brutality or an amazing looking CGI bear, it's themes were presented in a visual and non- preachy way and I loved at the end where it suggested Hugh's in-capability to die through his continuous breathing despite being so severely wounded thus the Revenant and once someone pointed that out to me it made me appreciate the film even more. This film was an experience, something this incredible film-maker does so well and I cannot wait for his next film and that is why I'm giving the Revenant the first 9/10 of 2015.

Anohana: The Flower We Saw That Day (2011)

Good show

[4/10 · 23 May 2016]

This was the first anime I watched through and through so this will be always be special to me. It is pretty funny though as every aspect of the show is great though also quite flawed. The characterisation is all well-done and you feel for everyone and understand their motivation although sometimes you think to yourself, "This tragedy happened when they were really young, do you really think it would scar them to this unhealthy degree?" and sometimes character logic is just hilarious. The feels are there and work but sometimes the characters cry way too loudly for way too long but this is just a few times. The animation is pretty great, especially for the flashbacks and opening theme song, no real flaws there although I would say that the opening theme song has a hilariously quotable line, "There is a soda in my right hand, but my left hand is still searching for you," but the rest of the opening theme song is great and whoever sings it has a very powerful voice. The music has some good parts but is pretty mediocre for the most part and over-used to an atrocious degree that sometimes the emotional beats rely on a passable score instead of legiitamently captivating drama because some aspects of this show are awfully written. The story in it's simplicity is beautiful and actually made me feel a bit better about my life and you grow to love the characters but there are so many flaws that come with this anime. There are way too many plot conviences and if one convenience wasn't there the show would be literally half as long and I think that just comes down to some lazy writing. The voice acting is great, I guess it would be just some lines of dialogue that kind of affect it a bit. I would say that I hated the character of Menma in the first three minutes before I understood what was going on so just push through that and everything will be fine from there on. Anyway I quite liked this anime and I thought it was pretty good even with it's flaws and that's why I'm giving it my "GOOD" rating-6/10

Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance) (2014)

One of the Best Films of All Time

[10/10 · 4 May 2016]

Birdman is a powerhouse of cinema. Throwing away the commentary on critics and the movie industry and artistic integrity; it's still a live, thriving beast that has so much unpredictability in every scene. It has raw, powerful, career-defining performances, ridiculously impressive camera-work, surrealistic cinematography and an always involving story that gives the film ground even with it's surrealistic moments (something the Tree of Life lacked a bit). You can just feel the energy, the tension, and the off-beat score drum score is impeccable. Anyway that's all I have to say about Birdman. It's my 2nd favourite film of all time (after Synecdoche, New York) and the only problem with this film is that it's too big, too alive to watch on a normal television screen. Honestly, it's not Gravity, Avatar or even Intestellar. This is the definitive cinema experience. 10/10

Captain America: Civil War (2016)

The Best Marvel Movie

[6/10 · 3 May 2016]

The character conflict in this movie is built up so well. It takes it time and lights a fuse, making not so great Marvel Movies relevant and demonstrating that there were consequences in those films while also having thrilling action and a story that you can really get invested in because of how well-realised the characters are in this film. Forget Avengers. This is the pay-off to those stand-alone movies that ranged in quality that we sat through. We have twists, broken people and relationships, enthralling action and an amazing well-done emotional undercurrent. The action choreography is so well-done and instead of having standard fight choreography like in Winter Soldier the settings combined with the great idea to make a legitimate action sequence instead of some bloated CG fest prevent any action sequence from being repetitive and dull and all of them are quite phenomenal and the character conflict make it more meaningful.

And the motivation behind characters is so understandable because of their past experiences and that clash of belief ends in a dark, emotionally intense finale. Though it is still entertaining. There is humour and this movie has most fun character ensemble in a Marvel film ever and just gives out so much fan service while still feeling tangible and Civil War is throughout always entertaining. There are some flaws, most noticeably a scene at the start of the film that gave me deja vu of the most terrible parts of AOU though luckily that was one scene. There was also a bit of a lull and slow-pacing during one point in the film that affected the building intensity this film had ever so slightly and took me out of the film a little bit and there is one funeral scene that was a bit executed ever so cheesily but that is just a nit-pick. All up this film has tiny flaws and is definitely the best Marvel Movie. I love this movie and I'm pretty sure it is an 8/10 but I will have to view one more time to solidify that rating so for now I am giving it a 7.5/10.

Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014)

Good

[6/10 · 30 April 2016]

Captain America: The Winter Soldier is a well-done film, I just don't get any personal investment out of it. Everything is well-done from the action sequences to the story but nothing holds me tight and truly grips me for me to enjoy like a lot of other people do. I definitely thought the action was really good and there were some genuinely interesting sequences but the film feels sort of...light. It's not like I can't appreciate the films efforts and there succession into crafting genuinely entertaining sequences, I just don't find it very enthralling and I don't think it deserves to be hailed as a masterful political thriller.

Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked (2011)

A Masterpiece of Cinema

[10/10 · 29 April 2016]

Alvin and the Chipmunks is a cinematic masterpiece with it's beautifully pitched music that is not only excellent and but does not stilt the film. And the pacing. It let's emotional scenes grow and allow time for them to breathe and the comedy is edited very snappily and it all blends together seamlessly. The attention to detail in the animation is superb and the subtlety in the voice acting really gives an art-house buff like me really something to chew on. And the cinematography, capturing beautiful strokes of scenery, and the direction that really captures tone and every shot is set up so masterfully it's reminiscent of Michael Haneke. It also has the wonder and magic of Spielberg and the blending of CG and practical effects has not been as impactive since Jurassic Park. The emotional punches hit also and gives off such visceral and raw emotion you feel like you are standing with the Chipmunks. The characterisation is superb, with a fantastic screenplay slowly revealing characters nuances quietly so you are always engrossed in the characters and relationships and the story while intricate with hidden metaphors, also is a great platform for the characters to show their traits during stressful situations. I think the only flaw with this film is that you have to pay close attention to get the full experience so I would recommend only hardcore film buffs to watch this film as it is an essential piece of cinema, more impactive than the Godfather and more intricate and intellectually mature since Synecdoche, New York. A masterpiece of art-house cinema and I highly recommend. 10/10

The Jungle Book (2016)

Visuals not as good since Avatar.

[6/10 · 12 April 2016]

The Jungle Book is a good film and for quite a while a great one, able to raise intensity, conflict and display beautiful visuals. It beef's up it's characters for a good 45-minutes of the film. But after a while the film seems to lose it's sense of conflict and urgency and the pay- off to what was set-up feels very safe and timid and not as ballsy as it could have been. The ultimate character conflict of Sheer Khan and Mowgli just doesn't feel strong at all after long stretches of time the film-makers don't even touch upon it. The other character relationships are touched upon and are realised just not as fleshed out as to make you feel emotional as certain key scenes play out. Though the films positives certainly outweigh it's flaws.

The young actor, Neel Sethi, while having some on-and-off line delivery truly convinces you that he is in that world. The voice acting, all of it, is phenomenal and every animal is beautifully and realistically animated.

The first 45 minutes of the film are fantastic showcasing the best-looking CGI since Avatar, building up the atmosphere, the world of the Jungle and the tone of the film. The scenes that follow are very entertaining, introducing humour and songs into the mix but it just felt so tonally jumbled and the dramatic sequences following had hardly any weight. I just didn't feel the goosebumps ever again after about 45 minutes and the film became more popcorn entertainment then a riveting film. Though there is greatness throughout the film it just doesn't keep a consistency. And that's really my major flaw with the Jungle Book: it goes from playing it safe to capturing the magic, the fear, the beauty of old-animated films and modernising it nearly perfectly.

Even though I stick by my opinion of the film I can't figure out a way to write in a way that does justice to the film. I would recommend you go see this film as it is a wonderful theatre experience and if you come out loving it and thinking it as a 10/10 film then I wouldn't blame you because with my flaws it is a pretty impressive kids film and at times a really impressive film on it's own which is why I'm giving it my "GOOD" rating: 6/10

Zootopia (2016)

My review of the refreshing animated film Zootopia

[6/10 · 10 April 2016]

In my opinion Zootopia is one of the best children animations since Rango as it attempts to tell a competent and interesting story instead of just projecting ideas and messages with only leaving stereotypical characters and thin story arcs left.

Zootopia focuses on its two main leads, Judy Hopps and Nick Wilde and fleshes out their characters and why they are the way they are.Their relationship is well-realised except for one aspect that is a "spoiler" but it happens in so many movie's that you'll know it's coming. The twists aren't nearly as predictable then in other Disney films which is refreshing and the story overall is very investing and is able to have a message about racism without it feeling shoe-horned in. In terms of animation it is nice in it's simplicity like Judy's apartment and the way the action sequences are filmed are full of energy and are all throughout the film. Some wide- shots of the city are unexceptional but the rain forest and polar setting within the film looked excellent and water in CG animation is simply now perfected. The humour lands about 80% of the time with only some jokes being meh. The movie is clever in reflecting real-life and how the way something is in real-life can be covered in a sheen through publicity and an emphasis on that through advertisement. The film's messages are clever and well- thought out and while obviously there aren't in your face about it.

The film is not flawless though. There are about 5 lulls in the story that affect the pacing, dialogue sequences between the two main leads should have been a lot snappier (which ironically enough most of them took place straight after the Sloth sequence). Towards the latter half of the film plot conveniences show up and aspects are pretty dumbed down. And lastly, the song that was shoe-horned which is extremely mediocre but awful compared to most other Disney songs made for an awkward feeling in it's badness.

Overall Zootopia is a great animated children's film and a pretty good movie on it's own. It's flaws deter it quite a bit but with every scene either having humour, fantastically directed and animated action, great character development and sometimes even scares Zootopia's quite large amount of flaws are outweighed by it's consistency to entertain and just be an investing film. There are some modern animated films from the 2010s that technically are on the same level as this film but the attempt to do something different and it's succession is why I like it a little bit more but it's too heavy on slow moments and it is quite flawed so this is why I'm giving Zootopia my "GOOD" rating-6/10

Jurassic Park (1993)

Jurassic Park directed by Steven Spielberg

[8/10 · 13 February 2016]

Jurassic Park is an adventure film directed by Steven Spielberg and stars Sam Neill, Richard Attenborough and Jeff Goldblum. I tried to watch this film not too long ago but I wanted to watch a film that had the big blockbuster thrills of Jurassic World (the only Jurassic Park film I had seen at the time) and didn't want to go through the slow-burn beginning. But when I became a little older and a little wiser I put in Jurassic Park once again and viewed it with a lot of pleasure. The slow-burn beginning I now appreciate for the scientific ideas it raises to how a dinosaur could be brought back to life-though I do understand that was from the book. The beginning also sets up the characters who are all well realised by actors subtle and realistic performances and the beginning also has moments that are awe-inspiring still today with the timeless music and blend of amazing practical dinosaurs and CG that still makes me believe that I am seeing a real-life dinosaur moving. But even though I do love the beginning I love the rest of the movie ten times more. Every scene after that is memorable scene whether it's a car falling through a tree or velociraptors trying to kill kids in a kitchen or even just innocent scenes with herbivore dinosaurs. Steven Spielberg's direction and unique camera techniques I could go on forever but you already know what he's like. His direction strongly elevates the film to such a higher level than if the film was directed stalely and stiltedly like a very intense kitchen scene that instead of just cutting to close- ups every ten seconds pans for long amounts of time. Now that might sound that it doesn't mean much but it really gets you more invested in the situation. Now I don't want to make too many comparisons between films but what elevates the dinosaur aspect of Jurassic Park from Jurassic World is that Jurassic Park uses practical aesthetics whenever it can which gets you much more into the scene than if it's complete CGI. But just for clarification I thoroughly enjoy Jurassic World as a blockbuster monster thriller but it's clear which film comes up on top. Now as for the cast they have to be well-acted and likable for you to root for them and hope that they don't die. The two children, the brother and sister aren't annoying and stupid but are genuine kids who are terrified but don't just stand there wide-eyed in front of the dinosaur waiting to be pushed out of the way by an adult. They're genuine kids who would certainly be terrified but they get on because just because they are kids in a movie doesn't mean they shouldn't have the basic human instinct of survival. Sam Neill plays a solid, grounded and kind character that tries to protect the kids and while doing that learns something about him, Jeff Goldblum could be deemed the funny guy but he really is just a good character with some very witty dialogue and Richard Attenborough is excellent as the excited Park manager. My only flaws with the film is that I would have liked a tiny bit more of T-Rex action and I could sort of tell a disposable character would die but the T-Rex action bit I think will be fulfilled in the sequel when I get around to watching it and the disposable character death's while predictable had a brutal pay-off. But apart from those nit-picks I was immersed into the situation and looking back on it I don't think that there was one disposable scene. I was in awe at Spielberg's direction, the practical aesthetics and ground-breaking CG that created the dinosaurs and impressed by the really good performances so for that I am going to give Jurassic Park an A