Stanislaus

While Once Upon a Time, There Was a King... treats the fairy tale theme with a good dose of humour and wit, Salt & Gold sticks exclusively to the fairy tale atmosphere and has a gloomy and even cold 1980s look. I liked the scenes from the Salt Kingdom and I praise the fact that, as in Three Wishes for Cinderella, the character played by Libuše Šafránková is not dependent on the prince (who is basically only a number) and acts very much on her own. Of the supporting characters, I was most impressed by the fool with his sober outlook. Despite its aloofness, Salt & Gold is worth watching.

The Old Blunderbuss Mystery 2 should have been released directly in TV rather than passing itself off as a cinema film, as it still feels quite TV-like and doesn't offer much that could stand out on the big screen. Except for Tomáš Klus’s monkey, I practically didn't smile, the action-adventure line didn't work much either and the romance between Ondřej Vetchý and Veronika Khek Kubařová made a rather dull impression on me. Jiří Lábus and Miroslav Vladyka basically just parody their characters from the first film and Markéta Plánková was not funny. The result is utterly wasted potential, drowning in an overwrought execution. A sequel that somewhat feels like a dagger in the back.

The first Puss in Boots made a rather mediocre impression on me, but The Last Wish completely captivated me in the cinema. Thanks to the unconventional animation, like this year's The Bad Guys or Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, the film seemed to gain another, unprecedented dimension, which at times strongly evoked comic book art and added to the Cat's action zest. Then, of course, there's the story, which, while inherently simple and not surprising, leaves a deep impression nonetheless. If I exaggerate a little, I almost felt like I was watching Logan within the Shrek universe: for the first time, Puss realizes his mortality and maybe he should slip into his legendary boots. The film is certainly not lacking a certain insight and the associated targeting of older audiences, who, alongside the gorgeous visuals, will appreciate the existential questions it deals with. The icing on the cake was the character of the Wolf, whose whistling was truly creepy.

It is quite difficult to rate a film that is essentially a compilation of humorous videos that you often come across on YouTube, Instagram TikTok, etc. If they had revealed more of the famous Abatutu's life and cut down on all those videos, the final product would certainly have looked much better and would have had at least some narrative value.

Waiter, Scarper! is undoubtedly one of the cult classics of Czech comedy filmmaking, with the participation of the star creative duo Svěrák-Smoljak. But one think about the plot, it is actually a very bitter tragicomedy, which takes a humorous (but still self-aware) look at many human weaknesses, be it fraud, womanizing, or just simple false bragging. The film thus serves us many truly humorous and even absurd moments and enriches us with a number of lines that have become humanized over the years.

The idea for I Believe in Santa was either born out of creative desperation, or in a momentary lapse of the writer's (and the lead actor's) mind; or it just looked good on paper, and then something went wrong in the production process. This Netflix production is a truly bizarre piece of work in terms of story, with the central couple's expressions adding to the bizarreness. The daughter and the multi-cultural pals were fine, and that Christmas vibe was really unmissable (but endearing).

A Christmas Story is like a Czech answer to the cult-classic Love Actually that impresses at first sight with its cast and the setting of Christmas in Prague. The storyline is a weaker take on the aforementioned classic: at first several separate stories gradually become more and more intertwined, until in the end it becomes one big tangle that doesn't impress, but doesn't offend either. Karel Roden didn't suit me well in a comedic role and Oldřich Kaiser's character seemed somewhat "schizophrenic", but in combination with Jiří Lábus it worked. The "casting" of Pierre Richard was really more for effect and the ending was unnecessarily cheesy. Christmas dullness for just one viewing!

Of the films I have seen from Nicholas Stoller, I liked Storks the most, which he co-directed, and his (romantic) comedies made a mediocre impression on me. Bros unfortunately don't really stand out from the director's genre work, which is quite a shame. There are more and more LGBTQ films being made every year, and Stoller's is easily lost among them. The LGBTQ cast is fine, because, as it is said in the film, the actors are not acting but being themselves, but I found it a bit futile with a few exceptions. The biggest stumbling block was Billy Eichner in the leading role, he was hard to sympathize with for most of the running time. The mini-role for Debra Messing, was nice, though.

James Cameron made us wait for thirteen long years for a sequel to one of the most spectacular films of the 21st century, and so the question is posed at the outset: was that wait really worth it? I confess to having a considerable fondness for both Cameron's films and Avatar, so I'm willing to overlook certain facts that are addressed in the reviews here. Yes, The Way of Water, like the first film, doesn't offer a very layered story, and at many points throws in glaring references to the first film – whether it be some very similar scenes or musical themes taken from the unfortunately departed James Horner. I understand that many will take this as an unoriginal rip-off of what they've already seen, but I saw it as a pleasantly nostalgic nod and reminder of the revolutionary first film, thirteen(!) years since its premiere. Of course, if Cameron's plan of plying us with more films every two or three years in the future comes to fruition, the plot will need to be fleshed out and deepened, not just interspersed with borrowed references. Speaking of referencing, connoisseurs and especially die-hard fans of the director's work will not escape the many scenes that recall Cameron's previous iconic films – from Terminator 2, to The Abyss, to Aliens and Titanic (ft. Poseidon). In this respect, as a die-hard fan, I thoroughly enjoyed the screening! In terms of building the Pandoran mythology, I welcomed that the plot moved from the forests and rocks to the water world where Cameron feels at home – and makes it clear. The years of post-production really show, and we can immerse ourselves for three hours in a wonderful world full of old and familiar creatures, but also brand new and equally amazing ones. It probably won't surprise anyone that in terms of visuals The Way of Water is like a film from another dimension – as if you were watching an alien documentary from the BBC, in which our Earth appears as a shabby little sibling of Pandora. Cameron's unwavering penchant for artisanal perfectionism and depictions of the previously unseen thus takes on further spectacular dimensions in the second Avatar. In addition to new locations and creatures, new characters have entered the storyline, and while they suffer from flatter characterisation in keeping with the genre, they still have potential for future sequels – especially Kiri, but also Quaritch, who sets his unbloody face. Kiri, in fact, was at the centre of two scenes (out of four) during which, as I say, there was an excessive onion presence in the cinema. It was good to hear and even see Sigourney Weaver, whose Grace I really liked in the first film. I was equally happy for the casting of my much-loved Kate Winslet, who once gloated about never ever again working with Cameron after Titanic. In the cinema, the 190 minutes flew by, even though the second film is in some ways more intimate and less sweeping than the first. The ecological and action-adventure levels remained, but instead of the romantic one, the family one came to the forefront, but it certainly has more to offer in the sequels. So the answer: yes, the wait was worth it! BUT: In any future films, there will need to be more storytelling, development and depth in addition to showing and audiovisual candy for the eyes and ears.

Pinocchio has become very trendy in recent years, and every director has had a different approach – the Italian version with its distinctive make-up effects and quite violent scenes, or the live-action remake of the classic Disney film. Guillermo del Toro, the master of visually captivating and macabre stories, now comes forward, and I was quite curious to see his first animated and musical film, as I have him pegged in completely different genre territory. By del Toro's standards, it's a fairly low-key piece, but at the same time it's not entirely suitable for younger audiences who will probably get very bored at certain points during. Apart from the beautiful stop motion animation, the film is particularly interesting for its different take on the story of the animated puppet who wishes to become a boy – whether it was the issue of losing a loved one, the perception of world wars and the view of political and religious issues (not only) through child characters, or depictions of the afterlife. All in all, a weaker but still four stars for me.