I'm a Cyborg, But That's OK (2006) Movie Review

 Dedicated to that special someone

 

  After Park Chan-wook finished making his Vengeance Trilogy (Oldboy, Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance, and Sympathy for Lady Vengeance) he wanted to make a film his daughter would like. Thus “I’m a Cyborg, but that’s OK” came into being, which was definitely a big leap from that ultra-violent trilogy. This is more light hearted, fantastical, bright, and ridiculous in the best possible way. The film is very original and provides a very unanticipated debate on one of the most important philosophical question on the purpose of existence from an adolescent point of view. Essentially this is a very quirky Korean rom-com that so happens take place in a mental institution. 

   The film focuses on Young-goon Cha who has been committed in a mental institution after she slit her wrists and connected a cord to her wrists causing her to get electrocuted while she was at work at a radio factory. She wasn’t trying to commit suicide, but she truly considers herself a cyborg and just needed a recharge. She talks to machinery and she starves herself for the fear that food consumption may cause her to malfunction. She licks batteries for nourishment and recharges herself by listening to educational broadcasts on her radio. In the ward, Il-soon Park is falls for her. He himself has his own issues. He’s nonsocial, a kleptomaniac, wears paper masks, and is a schizophrenic. He steals just to incorporate their personality traits into himself, before he eventually returns the stolen items. He wants to help Young-goon and finds out that she’s killing herself by not eating. He tells her that he’s a technician and he’d repair her if she malfunctions since she has a life time warranty. That eating rice is like an algorithm. I find it to be a sweet tender moment between the two characters.

  The film switches from reality to fiction. Since Young-goon believes she is in fact a cyborg. So due to her hallucination she views her body as just a mechanical mechanism consisting of gears and bolts. Not just her, but other patients convey their delusions on screen also. These views the patients have become so strange and disconcerting, but the visual presentation truly pins the awkwardness and insanity so many of the characters express.

   I never liked using the term “insanity” due to my psychology background. I prefer saying a person is mentally unstable than slinging the term insane. In the world we live in, the larger the term of “insanity” becomes. Love in a way can be a form of “insanity” since it makes people do things that are completely out of character. Yet one could debate this idea that if one is already mentally unstable that falling in love could be a basis of sanity for the person. It can aid in the route recovery. Love is sorta funny that way. At the core of the film is in fact a love story.

   As stated earlier, Il-soon is a kleptomaniac. He steals sympathy. Stealing this came with its own side effects. At the start he was diagnosed as being nonsocial and he begins feeling things for the first time in a very long time. Sympathy was what he profoundly needed. If he did not steal sympathy, this love story would have never come into realization. Il-soon knows what makes others tick on a much profounder level than the psychiatrists do. In a way he helps aid the patients to that path of recovery. This is by stealing what troubles them.

   In a way this film is a happier Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind with the psychological tones. The music is phenomenal and the film even makes use of Rain’s outstanding singing skills by making him steal a patient’s yodeling ability in order for him to serenade Young-goon. This film proves that not only is Rain a great musician, but also remarkable actor. Im Soo-jung also did a pretty great job as the lead. She deserved an award for her role. This is hands down my favorite film Park Chan-wook has directed. The film is truly magic at its purest form.

5 out of 5

The Ballad of Buster Scruggs (2018) Movie Review

“Pan-shot!”

    The Ballad of Buster Scruggs is a series of six short western stories full of gothic horror, romance, and of course some violence. It’s of course directed by the Coen Brothers who directed such films like Fargo, The Big Lebowski, True Grit, Raising Arizona, No Country for Old Men, and O Brother, Where Art Thou? So how did this western anthology film rate compared to their other films? Well it’s definitely not as bad as The Ladykillers, but it’s not as good as True Grit.

  If you know anything about the Coen Brothers films you’d come to expect: random endings, great dialogue, and the many strange characters in odd stories. As expected, that’s exactly what the Ballad of Buster Scruggs is. The dialogue is what you’d come to expect… phenomenal of course. Right off the bat the film makes you feel like you need to pay close attention, which is good because every performance is worth paying attention to. Great cast choices and fun cameos in every story. Although Clancy Brown as Curly Joe needed more screen time. The Kurgan is great in everything he is in and always needs more screen time.

  It’s a gorgeous film about how life was out in the Wild West. Putting some of its characters in the most extreme situations. Of course, they use the typical clichés that westerns use, but it doesn’t stop the film from grabbing your attention. The first two stories are humorous and the others are rather depressing. 

  I’ll start with what I didn’t like about the film. With every anthology film there will always be some stories that fall flat while others shine. Some of the stories do kind of fall flat and dragged on longer than they should have. The overall film was a slow burn. Some scenes could have been cut.

 

   The first story is of Buster Scruggs. Buster Scruggs represents the old singing cowboy westerns and the kid represents the Clint Eastwood style Spaghetti Westerns. The moral of this story is that there’s always someone that’s better than you. The songs that Buster Scruggs sings get stuck in your head weeks after you watch the film. That can either be a pro or a con. Near Algodones, the second story, involves James Franco as a bank robber who has gotten out of hangings due to unforeseen things out of his control. The moral of that story is that we must accept our fate. There will be many unpredictable twists and turns that we can’t control. That we might as well embrace death when it comes knocking on our door. The Meal Ticket (the most depressing story) I felt was an allegory for show business. Once you start losing your wow factor, Hollywood will throw you out for someone else. It also proves Liam Neeson excels at playing a dick. All Gold Canyon, the fourth story stars one of my favorite musicians Tom Waits as an old prospector in search of Mr. Pocket, a giant chunk of gold.  The Gal Who Got Rattled, the fifth story is also quite depressing. It goes to show you that optimism is a sham and what counts in life is your survival instincts. The final story “The Mortal Remains” is about a stagecoach ride with some unusual characters. To me, this story could have been left out and felt very lackluster even though I do love me some Tyne Daly. The first story is probably my favorite then the Meal Ticket although it lacks that western feel. 

    I think the film gets better with multiple viewings. Especially with the Coen Bros unique style. The compilation of stories are well written with some damn fine dialogue. Cinematography is beautiful. Overall it was a good film, but a decent Coen Brothers film.

4.1 out of 5

Marry Me (2022) Review

     Marry Me stars Gigli star Jennifer Lopez as Jennifer Lopez and that “wow” guy who is sometimes in a Wes Anderson film. That’s right Bill Murray! Wait no not him. Luke Wilson’s brother. They get married at a concert. Well it wasn’t legal. The film is a more dull “Notting Hill” starring J.Lo. It’s essentially a Hallmark film where two people are somewhat attracted to one another, something prevents them from staying together, and in the end they overcome such obstacles. 

   Want to see the film? Well just watch the trailer. That’s the whole movie told through two minutes. I only saw it because someone wanted me to write a review on it. So the chemistry… there isn’t any. Marky Mark and the plastic plant had more chemistry in The Happening and I hated that film. Marry Me should have been called Divorce Me. Since they probably won’t last.

  The plot if you want to call it that is about a divorced middle-aged middle school math teacher who wants so desperately to look cool to his daughter. So when his annoying co-worker played by the ever so annoying Sarah Silverman invites him and his daughter to a J.Lo concert. How could he say no? He holds up a “Marry Me” sign at the concert. Right when J.Lo is about to go on stage to perform the song “Marry Me” she finds out her partner has cheated on her and ends things. So when she finally goes out on stage she sees Luke Wilson’s brother holding the sign, she pulls him on stage, and they get married. That’s the film. Don’t watch it. Stay away from it. Almost as bad as Gigli. This film feels like Lifetime Channel and the Hallmark Channel decided to join forces to make the worst romantic comedy to date. It’s just one long J.Lo music video featuring Luke Wilson’s brother.

  0 out of 5

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004) Review

“Why do I fall in love with every woman I see who shows me the least bit of attention?”

    Ever wish you could completely vanish portions of your life? Although many people already do this through denial, alcoholism, and drug use. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind imagines this. That for a price you can go through a safe procedure, which helps eliminates painful memories. Which memory would you erase if you could? An embarrassing thing you did, a traumatic event, a painful breakup, or things you shouldn’t have said to a loved one?

  Memory is the basis for all of our relationships. Memories are often taken for granted. We rarely cherish them. We sometimes focus more on the bad memories than those that are good. So naturally painful memories would be the bulk of the procedures and with the film the focus of the mind being erased is the pain caused by a breakup. 

  Jim Carrey plays Joel who thoughtlessly tells his girlfriend Clementine some hurtful things and she walks out on him. Sometime later he tries to talk her, but she acts like she doesn’t know him, which absolutely tramples on his broken heart. He finally learns that she actually doesn’t know who he is. She went to get the procedure to have her memory of him erased forever. Depressed and distressed, he decides to go through the procedure as well. During the procedure he dreams through all the memories of Clementine. It’s going fine until Joel  gets to a state of clarity and realize he’s asleep and slowly saying goodbye to every little special thing that he and Clementine had. In the process of erasing her he falls back in love with her. Saying goodbye to their love both the happy and sad memories. 

    I like the fact the film doesn’t bother with the mechanics of the memory wiping procedure. It’s just accepted and people accept the use of this technology despite the conceivable negative outcomes is unnervingly accurate to the world we live in these days. Visually its stunning and the cinematography is phenomenal. The performances are great. The actors play off one another realistically. The love story isn’t going to captivate you like Somewhere in Time, but definitely has depth than your typical mindless romantic comedy. The best part of the film, to me, is its sincerity. It’s not pretentious. It’s quite heartfelt. Anyone who has said things they instantly regretted or have been in a bad breakup would definitely feel the everything Joel and Clementine go through.  

4.8 out of 5

The Matrix Resurrections (2021) Movie Review

“It is so much simpler to bury reality than it is to dispose of dreams.”

   When it was announced that there was going to be another Matrix sequel I was on the fence. I didn’t want just another conventional sequel that followed Neo, Trinity, Morpheus, and the rest of the crew. Then the trailer was released and then I became excited. It took some of the elements from the trilogy taking the concept we all know and breathing new life into it.

   To me I’ve always viewed the Matrix trilogy as a love story of Neo and Trinity. At its core it’s a love story. Of course, I loved the deep messages, the action, philosophy, special effects, and so on. The thing that always makes me revisit it so often is the love story. Love is the key to all the choices they make. I liked the idea that Neo and Trinity together equal the one. There is no Neo without Trinity. There is no Trinity without Neo. It’s nice to see they finally got the life they wanted.

    I quite like the idea that the design is a much more resourceful system where the Matrix isn’t a paradise or hell, but somehow in the middle. A system where people want to achieve something that’s almost within reach, but can never get it. It appears so close that they never give up trying, but in the end that was the purpose of the design. I find that a good commentary on our modern society where we are trapped unhappily, but nevertheless can’t see the alternative out. That’s why I liked Neil Patrick Harris as the Analyst. The Architect was an unfeeling software, but the Analyst was a social media algorithm that thrives on influencing people’s feelings and provoking engagement from negativity.

   Much like art, everyone will have a different takeaway from the film. To some it’s about politics, finding their sexuality, coping with middle age, and it’s all right to each person interpreting it. To me Lana Wachowski was trying to say that many people need to be encouraged to put themselves out there more and enjoy reality. People have convinced themselves that they have taken the red pill and they are in reality. The question is what is real? If someone puts all their life into a fantasy that fantasy becomes a reality to them. Escapism in moderation is fine, but for many people they use escapism way too much that it becomes reality to them. We need to do something new. Challenge ourselves to wake up and overcome the weight and complacency. Discover new things the world has to offer. Free your mind if you will. Of course, there will be endless interpretations of the film. 

    I truly enjoyed this film. I remember people hating the sequels Reloaded and Revolutions along with the Star Wars prequels, but are now loved by a majority now. In time, I believe, people will love this film. People have it in their minds what the sequel should be like and when it’s not how they imagined it they become mad or disappointed by it. When I first posted my rating, I received so many hateful comments on how I could enjoy a film like this. The internet is fueled by anger. So people who didn’t like it will let you know and boy did they let me know. You know who you are. It’s like they are looking for validation and to vent, but I simply don’t have to argue anything with you. I’ll just tell you I liked it because I did and I have a right to my own opinion just like you. It’s the reason why I waited so long to post this review.

    I can acknowledge that the action is lacking, but that’s because Yuen Woo-Ping didn’t return to choreograph the action sequences. Visually the film was very pleasing on the eyes. A nice change from the first three films. The acting was good. The new Agent Smith was fun as well as some of the new characters like Bugs. All-in-all I loved it.

4.9 out of 5

The Batman (2022) Movie Review

    I’ve been thinking about this film for a while now. I had to gather my thoughts before I wrote a review. I’ve been waiting for a Detective Batman film since I began reading the comics way way back. They’re either too campy or didn’t really feel like Batman to me. I loved the Dark Knight trilogy, but it wasn’t for Christian Bale. It was for the villains. Yes the Dark Knight is a masterpiece and so is Dark Knight Rises, but once again Joker and Bane stole the show for me. When I first saw the trailer to the film I was simply blown away. Was this the Batman I was waiting for? Robert Pattinson has been killing it lately with “The Lighthouse”, “Lost City of Z”, “Tenet”, and “Good Time” So he’s done enough to prove he’s no longer that Twilight actor, but would he be a great Batman. The answer is yes. HE IS BATMAN.

  The film opens on Halloween night playing the Nirvana’s song “Something in the Way” along with Batman’s narration. “We have a signal now for when I’m needed. When that light hits the sky. It’s just not a call. It’s a warning… to them. Fear is a tool. They think I’m hiding in the shadows. Watching. Waiting to strike, but I am the shadows.” I personally loved that. The BATMAN is cinema at it’s purest form. It’s dark, it’s gritty, and a beautiful psychological thriller film noir. It’s a refreshing outlook on Batman to be sure. It takes inspiration from many of the stories of Batman especially “The Long Halloween” (one of my personal favorite Batman stories). 

   First, I want to focus on the score. My god the score was beautiful! It was so heavenly to hear. The score has been on repeat since I saw the Fan Event. Michael Giacchino outdid himself. Second is Gotham City. Finally, we get the Gotham City we deserved. It’s either, once again, too campy or just doesn’t feel like Gotham to me. It’s more realized than ever before.  Cinematographer Greg Fraser and director Matt Reeves gave it a distinct Gothic look. Now onto the amazing cast of characters. Pattinson is my all-time favorite Batman. He’s Batman come to life. He is the near reflection of Gotham confined by an endless night. There’s hardly any Bruce Wayne screen time it’s mainly 90% of Batman, which is what I always wanted. He is livid, emotional, brooding, and in search of his identity during his early years as Batman. The film explores him in search of his identity and I believe it achieves this perfectly with the psychological exploration.  Paul Dano, every film’s secret weapon. The Riddler is like a mix of his characters from Prisoners and There Will Be Blood. Definitely better than Jim Carrey’s outrageous portrayal of the character. Dano’s version is more terrifying and he is a complete psychopath. I liked his monologue to Batman near the end of the film about orphans and how the society views people.  Collin Farrell is nearly unrecognizable as the Penguin. His role is small, but he steals many scenes. Can’t wait for his HBOMax spinoff series. Jeffrey Wright is amazing, per usual, wirth his role of Gordon. Zoe Kravitz was a good Catwoman. She’s no Julie Newmar or Eartha Kitt, though  but nevertheless a good Catwoman. Her motivations for what she does is much better than the last 3 film portrayals of her character. I loved Matt Reeves direction with this film. I can’t praise it enough.

   Now onto my complaints. Andy Serkis is a phenomenal actor there’s no denying that. He makes for a great Alfred in theory, but he was terribly underused and his presence isn’t as strong as it should have been. I personally loved how the Riddler was like the Zodiac killer, but those weird creepy hostage videos involving him were too much like the Joker in Dark Knight. Especially when his voice suddenly went deep like the Jokers. Then one of the last riddles near the end of the film I was like the Riddler wouldn’t be that clumsy with a riddle. Other than that the film is on the brink of near perfection. It may have my favorite Batman, but it’s not my favorite Batman film that goes to Dark Knight Rises, which I will always have fond memories of. 

 

 It’s a Batman film that is heavily character driven and you can feel that it was made with love and care. It was Se7en and Saw mixed with the Zodiac film disguising itself as a Superhero film. It’s unique and has a fresh take on the caped crusader. It’s nearly 3 hours long, but never once losing it’s pace. Although it did drag on one scene. With that being said, it definitely deserves to be seen in the cinema. I can’t wait to see the direction Matt Reeves takes on the trilogy. Maybe we will see the Court of Owls, maybe Mr. Freeze, or maybe even HUSH. Nevertheless, I’m excited to see what the future holds for my Batman.

4.8 out of 5