Short opinion pieces about films and TV shows that I’ve watched since 2024-12-08.

Film

Nosferatu the Vampyre | Nosferatu - Phantom der Nacht (1979)

Didn’t like it at all: Too boring and stylewise too much 1970s realism for a period horror piece.
★☆☆☆☆ 1/5 stars

Nosferatu (2024)

Now, on the contrary, this version is stylish a.f. While the plot itself and the characters don’t add much new to this old motive (fine with me, in this case), it was very well filmed.
★★★★☆ 4/5 stars

Hot Shots! (1991)

Rewatch – I remember that I liked this as a kid/teen, because it has the same style of humor as The Naked Gun, but I haven’t seen it in years (decades), and sometimes, comedy doesn’t age well. But luckily this one landed again in the right spot for me.
★★★★☆ 4/5 stars

Hot Shots! Part Deux (1993)

Rewatch – Same for the second part; pretty much the style as the previous movie (and why should one change a winning system? At this point, it all still worked very fine. If it were the 6th or 8th part, it would certainly have felt stale).
★★★★☆ 4/5 stars

Heretic (2024)

It was interesting and OK – for the first half (due to the dialouges).
But the second half was letdown for me (and especially the third/final act).
★★★☆☆ 3/5 stars

Young Frankenstein (1974)

Don’t think I’ve ever seen this one before, at least not fully. As mentioned before, in other reviews: Mel Brooks is a bit of a hit-or-miss comedy genius for me; luckily this film was again a “hit”; maybe not the very best of him, but very entertaining.
★★★★☆ 4/5 stars

John Wick (2014)

Rewatch – I’ve watched all (four, as the time of writing) parts of the John Wick franchise, and while the look gets more and more stylish on each iteration, the feel was getting very stale for me (already with the second part). There are very cool moments and scenes in each of the (too long) later movies, but overall, this series is an one-trick-pony.

Going back to the beginning after “Chapter 4” felt like a breath of fresh air: Less bloat, less style-over-substance, less lore and a shorter runtime; overall way more low key.

That said, I now don’t feel different to what I felt ten years ago, on my first watch: It’s a nice little action flick, where an actor with limited range can be enough – but not more. I still can’t understand why this was so successful that it spawned a franchise/multiple sequels; it’s OK, but also a rather generic run-of-the-mill, mid-budget action vehicle.
★★★☆☆ 3/5 stars

Akira (1988)

Rewatch – As a teenager, I wanted to like animes/mangas (which where a new hype to the west at that point). And I was interested enough to buy several of the “Akira” books (which were extremely expensive for a pupil!). But after a while, it stopped again: My fascination with all of this was waning and, as mentioned, it was also an expensive hobby. But at least there was now this film…

Well, it didn’t work too well for me, not back then on my first watch, and not now on my rewatch: I couldn’t (and can’t) really connect with it (probably a culture thing); and neither story nor characters grabbed me much.
★★☆☆☆ 2/5 stars

Crimson Tide (1995)

Rewatch – A (very) good movie, with a good script, an excellent cast, and impressive cinematography (considering the tight space where most of the movie takes place).
★★★★☆ 4/5 stars

Trading Places (1983)

Sorry, but I don’t think it’s very funny. It had all the right ingredients, but for some reason, this is a comedy that didn’t work for me – at all.
★★☆☆☆ 2/5 stars

A Simple Favor (2018)

Hm, alright, I guess, for a light watch, but not remarkable.
★★★☆☆ 3/5 stars

Support Your Local Sheriff! (1969)

Rewatch – It’s an old movie, but the humor and cast are still great.
★★★★☆ 4/5 stars

Heavy Metal (1981)

Rewatch – I was dissappointed by it on my first watch (decades ago, as a teenager), because I had high expactations for it: The film had a notorious and legendary reputation even back then, but I couldn’t connect with it.

That hasn’t changed; in fact, now with more (watching) experience under my belt, even with squinting eyes, I can’t find much redeeming things in it.

It gets two stars (instead of one), just because I can imagine that it was something “new” and “different” in 1981…
★★☆☆☆ 2/5 stars

Hang ‘Em High (1968)

It’s OK, but since I’m not a big fan of the old classic Western genre in general, this rather generic entry didn’t do much for me.
★★★☆☆ 3/5 stars

The Godfather (1972)

Have I ever seen it before? If so, it must have been ages; or not complete.

Regardless; this is one of those films that always get such a high appraisal that I’m afraid to watch because I may not like it as much as the rest of humankind… Fortunately, in this case I did indeed like it quite a bit. It’s in my eyes maybe not that great masterpiece that others see in it, but I also guess that’s more on my side:
It is an old classic, that influenced similar films later (which I probably saw earlier than this original work; the Citizen Kane problem); and also because in general, I’m not so much into the “Mafia crime drama” genre.
★★★★☆ 4/5 stars

eXistenZ (1999)

Rewatch – Long (very long) time no see. I dimly remembered that I had high hopes for it (being a Cronenberg movie), and then being very disappointed and irritated by it – almost the same now, on a second viewing…
★★☆☆☆ 2/5 stars

High Plains Drifter (1973)

As mentioned before: I’m not a big Western fan, but this one here was slightly more entertaining. But it also had enough weak points (in writing) that I still find it only OK.
★★★☆☆ 3/5 stars

Crawl (2019)

It’s an OK “creature-feature”; has some fun scenes, but overall not much of a deal.
★★★☆☆ 3/5 stars

Texas - Doc Snyder hält die Welt in Atem (1993)

Hm, the humor is special and different; very special and very different – unfortunately not in a good or compatible way.
★☆☆☆☆ 1/5 stars

The Whale (2022)

Interesting watch, but distinctively also just a theater play put on film.
★★★★☆ 4/5 stars

Slap Shot (1977)

Rewatch – I know that I’ve seen it before (and liked it), as a kid. Now, many decades later, I still enjoyed it very much, for different things.
★★★★☆ 4/5 stars

Lensman (1984)

Not totally terrible, but very far from being any good.
★★☆☆☆ 2/5 stars

Robot Carnival | Robotto kânibaru (1987)

A few interesting moments, but too little to consider it a (decent) film.
★★☆☆☆ 2/5 stars

Running Scared (1986)

Entertaining 1980s buddy-cop actioner; but a bit too middle-of-the-road.
★★★☆☆ 3/5 stars

Missippi Burning (1988)

Rewatch – I’m pretty sure that I’ve seen it a least once before, but I couldn’t really recall any of the plot. So, in practicality, a new film for me – which I respected for what it is trying to tell.
★★★★☆ 4/5 stars

Throw Momma From The Train (1987)

Rewatch – Had a few giggles and chuckles, but not enough to consider this a (good) comedy.
★★★☆☆ 3/5 stars

Streets of Fire (1984)

Not my cup of tea.
★★☆☆☆ 2/5 stars

TV

Halt and Catch Fire — Season 1 & 2

The first season was interesting, but also a bit tame; but with the second season, it found its footing.
Season 1: ★★★☆☆ 3/5 stars
Season 2: ★★★★☆ 4/5 stars

Star Trek: The Next Generation — Season 7

Rewatch – As usual with TNG: Some mediocre and some excellent episodes in this final season of the show.

(And while the individual ratings of each season, almost 30 years later, may indicate otherwise:
This was one of the most formative shows for me, back then, as a kid!)
★★★★☆ 4/5 stars