von Kenni

Strong 8/10 (as a reference Last of Us was 6/10 for me...had high notes like episode 3 but then character developments and writing ended dissapointing toward the end). I know the game but didnt ever play it. The first episode was a bit mixed but got better after that and the season ended on a high note. Main character and the ghoul were great acting and character arc wise. Maximus was a bit annoying but got better toward the end. The dark humor with a right amount of gore for me was a joy. Themes were nice but a bit watered down but maybe for this it's the point, to have a fun ride and not have too high concept, deep themes to get in the way. Stakes felt okay and episodes had some nice novelty factors. One Piece was a 9/10 for me but somehow I'm more eagerly waiting the next season for this than for One Piece. I guess the world of Fallout with the vaults, mechs, time jumps, and ghouls is more interesting.

I wonder how long it takes until Dune turns sour. Probably after Villeneuve leaves it and others come to milk it. I guess this is the natural cycle for most IPs.

Fair points and I agree on the development hell parts too and the OG makers being the reason that the GB 3 wasn't ever made. Yeah, I made it sound easy but regardless of reasons why GB has gone as it has I wanted to bring my own perspective as a fan of the original. They was referring to the whole bunch of studio execs, original filmmakers, and new ones but that wasn't so much the point what I made but how I felt that the IP could have gone and be in a better position right now. We can always fall back how it's all arbitraty to get anything good through the production hell but can also think how things could have gone. A great script with all that time is a fair ask too or not to do it at all. Okay l, studios want to just do with what they have to milk it, but that's not a reason to just let it be and not express what is inherently wrong with G2016, GBA, and GBFE (and to certain extent GB2).

Just anecdotally how I feel about Ghostbusters and why I didn't go to see GBFE even though I'm a fan of the original and their cast. I think the IP has been mismanaged by timing and lousy storytelling. There's no reason why GB III wouldn't have been a huge success with the original cast at the end of the 90s or early 2000s IF it would have had a story worth telling, a story found and not created. Then we got a 2016 reboot that threw the original cast out of the window (literally). When I watched it I thought it was in the same "universe" but during the movie, I realized no (I missed the online chatter). I was just wondering why they did this? Reboot the whole thing? Don't they have the creativity to do something new with the original cast? GB2016 had some moments I liked but overall the slapstick comedy didn't work for me and especially the ending made the whole thing feel mediocre at best. As a side note, I've watched almost all of Melissa McCarthy's films but this is at the bottom end for me. Okay, so that's it for GB I thought until I found out about the GBA and possibly seeing the old gang there one FINAL time. Trailers and promotions made me feel that they had captured some of the original DNA and my expectations got high. Saw it and walked out okayish...but deep down I felt mixed. It had potential, and the ingredients were there, but again the story was more created as with 2016 and not found. The original crew appeared mostly just at the very end and almost wheeled on the stage for some arbitrary reason at the very end. Okay, not the best, but at least some closure with the original gang, and now they can go and make stranger things versions with the kids that I probably don't care much seeing (unless the story is there, but what are the chances of that happening...). Then GBFE came and suddenly the old gang is prominently shown in the promotions and the trailer. Based on the trailer and seeing again redone scenes (the mayor's office!) my feelings for this were just apathy at best and mostly indifference. I wasn't expecting a great story and any new original angle to GB so even $5 T-mobile tickets didn't get me to see it. Too little, too late. Maybe if there weren't GB2016 and GBA I would have gone to see this movie, at least 20 years ago, but not now. To sum it up, of course, it's not about just the old characters but for the people that grew up with GB 1 & 2 and loved them, they are a multiplier. I.e. story x execution x characters/original DNA. I don't doubt that the execution is there for GBFE but if the story is just a mixed bag of memberberries, redoing old scenes, a weak baddie, and a million characters without space for character arcs, it's going to be 30% * 80% * 90% = 22% -> rotten for me. In hindsight, they should have done GB III in 2016 with the old gang doing one final appearance and passing the torch to a younger generation (if the franchise money must flow) but with a great script and story and not with weak ones like with GB2016, GBA, GBFE (likely because haven't seen it), or even GB 2. You can't recreate the OG lightning in the bottle. You don't need to, but there's no excuse that with a quarter of a century, you can't make better scripts than the last three have had!?

True. I've always had a soft spot for him.

Yeah, the subplot with the pigeon lady gets me always in tears.

There's a depth, intelligence, and mystery that Chalamet has that Holland with all his lovable self is lacking in comparison.

Just now realizing what the Twisters is. The creativity of modern day Hollywood never seize to amaze me...

Yeah, now that we got Dune out, Horizon is what I'm most waiting this year. I hope Costner's life experience and love for the genre pays off. Wishing the stars align.

Yeah, seeing the trailer in IMAX before doing gave the same vibe as the last Transformers. Especially the moment "we made some upgrades" make me feel But I have to say that I'm warming up a bit and maybe the unadulterated monster bashing could be fun. I left my Godzilla for the 90s version with Matthew Broderick which was the first film ever for me that I used fasforwarding on vhs player for a movie. I always had a rule that if I start to watch a movie I watch it completely regardless of quality. Godzilla was the first one that I couldn't finish. Even Independence Day was a work of art compared to it. Maybe time to give a second chance. PS. Seeing the mayor scene on GBFE on its IMAX trailer had the same feeling. They really drove that IP off a cliff when they diverged from GB 3. Furiosa was beautiful but I remain skeptical. Can go either way.

This coming from WB and loving the Ralph Bakshi animation, I'm definitely giving it a shot without yet knowing anything about it. Maybe it can be palette cleanser after the Amazon Studios crap.

Dune doing around 130% more than the first part USD wise is excellent and even the exchange rate adjusted +80%? is great growth from the first one. There's not much that you can do for the inherent interest for Dune type of sci-fi and its cultural roots.

With those numbers $700m WW is very likely. Has a shot to $750m, may it be unlikely.

I just came from a 3rd viewing in IMAX and again, what an achievement. I prepared myself to be as receptive as possible without overthinking anything, especially since I love the depth of Frank Herbert's original creation. This is just an incredible adaptation and shows how Denis Villeneuve understands the source material deeper than you could expect from a Hollywood blockbuster director. It is a sheer culmination of his life's work, his growth as a filmmaker, and his team of equally incredible craftspeople. The cast is on point and the minuscule imperfections of the film highlight how perfect it is. They are so small that you wonder how this was ever made in the sea of mediocrity. Maybe it is his French heritage that brings a deeper understanding of esthetics to the screen. Looking at those compositions, the sound, the music, the play of everything. It is like a symphony on screen. The depth in detail and the lore of Dune was a tour de force. Things like someone at the end kissing someone's ring without kissing it like in good aristocratic manners. Or visions that are part of the Messiah. Or having specific dialects of Fremen language. The God mode that the film jumps toward the end... Sheer cinematic power. Timothy Chalameet is the perfect Paul and when you know the inner dialogues in the book or the prescience that he has, knowing where his choices lead, and the bittersweetness of all of it, he deserves an Oscar for the performance that was filled with nuance. I can see the countless discussions with Villeneuve that he has had about the reasons for Paul's actions. The subtext that we see on screen is evidence of it. Javier Bardem had such a levity and natural ease in his performance. Though the character didn't have much depth on screen, his performance earned another Oscar. Rebecca Ferguson and Florence Pugh shined too. Souheila Yacoub as Chani's friend was a delight. There weren't any weak links in the cast. This should get 10+ Oscars of which Villeneuve is first in line. But whatever the number of Oscars it receives, nothing can take away the fact that it is a masterpiece.