WARSAW KOREAN FILM FESTIVAL (ONLINE)

파고 (HEIGHT OF THE WAVE)

Watchable. The scriptwriter's introduction to the film is more moving than the picture. It drags unbearably. And the crime is just a pretext for a psychological drama with a number of protagonists - virtually everyone has a problem. In the social background, patriarchy is the root cause both of corruption - moral and financial and of the girl objectifying herself to the point it's hard to determine whether a crime has taken place. Disturbing when you come to think of it. Cinematography lacks clarity and is as subdued as the plot. 

The festival, on the mojeekino.pl platform, required you to start the movie precisely on time. It ran rather smoothly, though a bit too quiet to hear the original well. But at least you could choose between Polish or English subtitles.

Now I'm looking forward to the Ukraina! Film Festival. The 5th edition, which has taken place in Warsaw already, runs from 2 November to 9 November online, on the same platform but flexibly in terms of days and times.

HALLOWEEN MARATHON

For a number of reasons I ended up watching just one of the four movies in the marathon:

ALIVE. (2018)

Recommended. Two people, of identities unknown to themselves, are kept in an abandoned hospital by a mad doctor. Tortures, glimpses of memories are enough to get your adrenaline pumping. Strong imagery, especially bloody body parts and corpses as you explore the building, enhances the horror. Behind all this lies a mystery. Towards the end certain place gave me a clue to their identities but the final revelation was even more shocking. And what comes after that is the most frightening part in an already blood-curdling horror. There's a mid-credit and a post-credit - not to be missed either.

HELMUT NEWTON: THE BAD AND THE BEAUTIFUL 

Watchable. OK, his pictures were impressive, creative and manifested the power of the body which I associated with Nazi-time photography before this inspiration was cited in the documentary. But how many nudes, all in the same powerful poses, can you watch? With the same model testimonies of how confident they felt working with him. It's just tedious. There's a little mid-credit which doesn't bring in anything new.

Seen online, cinematic reception might differ.

POLOT

Watchable. A completely niche topic: a young zeppelin constructor and his start-up in the contemporary Polish reality. Technical details don't help the feeling the story's fictitious. Of course it is, but watching a movie you shouldn't feel it, should you. While the storyline's clear enough, the first act runs too fast, especially the crash which makes the subsequent plot superficial. While the 3 young start-up guys (acted by: Maciej Musiałowski, Eryk Kulm Jr. and Tomasz Włosok) are convincing, the lead's love interest (Pola Błasik), his mother (Izabela Kuna) and the businessman (Andrzej Konopka) are miscast which decreases the plausibility further. The majority is well shot but rain, especially the second one, looks superimposed and the guy doesn't look wet. 

Has Cessna rental got so cheap recently? They've been used in another recent Polish movie - "Tarapaty 2" "Triple Trouble"), sadly with no special purpose in either production.

IL NIDO (THE NEST)

Recommended. An unusual horror. The opening is foreboding and it's a sombre affair throughout, the grim picture never goes away, even at joyous moments something is looming above the boy. The family is weird, their customs horrifying and inexplicable. Till the finale which clarifies everything and puts everyone in a different light. The whole message is petrifying.

Reviewed from an online screener, cinematic reception might differ.

CZYSCIEC

Watchable. A chaotic documentary with a handful of acted scenes. Often philosophically abstract, at times intriguing, even spooky at some point and occasionally moving. It switches from one form and time period to another constantly, changes moods frequently and juggles Polish, Italian and French commentators ranging from a doctor, through a number of priests to the controversial (not in the film but in real life) founder of the Wojownicy Marii (Mary's Warriors) sect. The documentary makes it clear that the idea of a purgatory was accepted by the Church as late as at the 16th century Florentian synod, based on much older common people's beliefs. It also states that 25-30% of those who've been through clinical death have memories of out-of-body experiences. Cases of hearing voices in abandoned or isolated places like monasteries are presented in the context of purgatory souls. The necessity to confess your sins is emphasized several times. And you're told that a soul can't be saved if their family won't pray. Is it supposed to absolve Catholics from personal responsibility for their own actions? The whole thing sounded quite construed. 

SAINT MAUD

Watchable. Hardly a horror. Anything supernatural only starts in the 54th minute of the 83-minute long movie and one brief scene towards the end truly belongs to the genre. The rest is an engaging drama about seeking connection with God and what it takes to become a saint or about a mentally disturbed young woman - depending how you look at it. It also delves into issues of control, dying, our assumptions regarding other people's needs. If I understood correctly, the language Maud hears from God and speaks herself in the finale is Welsh - God only knows why, so to speak.

17TH DOCS AGAINST GRAVITY FESTIVAL - THE FREE ONLINE PART

JOVANNA FOR FUTURE 

Watchable. A 15-minute film about children climate demonstrations. Giving hope and naive at the same time.

WINTER LAKE

Recommended. An inspiring 15-minute film about camping in winter. Finnish winter, with owls, seals, woodpeckers and snowshoeing, silence and occasional aurora borealis.

DEUX (TWO OF US)

Recommended. A subtle psychological drama with a number of twists of action and food for thought. How do we know what's best for our loved ones? Where's the borderline between violence and care? The movie starts ordinarily but soon becomes gripping as you never know what's going to happen next. Ah, and the lyrics of the song matter too.

PREMATURE

Recommended. Harlem, NYC. A beautiful young couple (Zora Howard played the girl and co-scripted the movie) in a love flick for teenagers which is both down to earth and engaging. First you meet a bunch of sociable and outgoing girls that are just fun to watch, especially as you begin to follow the relationships of the lead. Particularly one affair. Each line of the dialogues and each scene are thoroughly realistic. First you take to both leads or maybe even the entire bunch of friends, female and male, and then you really feel for the girl. Masterfully written. And in spite of their minor faults, they're all amiable, live decently and can be achievable role models for the young black youth.

Both movies reviewed from online screeners, cinematic reception might differ.

17TH DOCS AGAINST GRAVITY FESTIVAL - THE FREE ONLINE PART

WHAT YOU GONNA DO WHEN THE WORLD'S ON FIRE?

Switched off. Very mundane lives of relatively poor Afro Americans. Occasionally they gather to blame whites for their own failings. At the same time, they are clearly uneducated and have no drive for it. 

Original dialogues are perfectly audible. Polish subtitles are rather small. In this case they'd be useful since the protagonists speak English with hard African accents. 

ACCOMPLICE + RETURN TO EARTH 

Recommended. What a ride! Mind-blowing mountain bike stunts, exhilarating music, awe-inspiring vistas of mountains and of nature - Ladakh (I admire the girls riding down the steep Himalayan stokes), British Columbia, Oahu etc., masterful shots, e.g. of a dog running, apart from the aerials. While both parts pump your adrenaline, the first is a series of amazing sports shows + a biopic and the second a series of amazing sports shows + musings on life. A big screen is a must.

The presence of some unmasked people in the audience gave me more adrenaline than I wished for.

17TH DOCS AGAINST GRAVITY FESTIVAL - THE FREE ONLINE PART

ONCE THE DUST SETTLES

Watchable. Slow, could be easily cut short, depicts ruins which, after a couple of years, turn into tourist attractions. The first story - on Italian earthquakes - only briefly mentions the disaster, focusing rather on the locals retrieving their saint figures and assembling at a church, the second explores the Chernobyl life before, during and after the catastrophe and takes you on a tour of Pripyat - radiation-free for the film audience, the last part deals with Syrian Aleppo and is on the dull side again.

NOWE HORYZONTY FESTIVAL AND AMERICAN FILM FESTIVAL

Both the 20th Nowe Horyzonty and the 11th AFF will take place online. Some movies will be available at the Nowe Horyzonty cinema too. Nearly 140 movies online. "Zabij to i wyjedź z tego miasta" ("Kill It and Leave This Town") will open the festival and "Druk" ("Another Round") will close it. The AFF will offer independent, usually new directors discovered at Sundance, South by Southwest, Tribeca as well as documentaries, including one revealing still unknown facts about Bruce Lee's career. This year the NH jury will be all Polish, though one of them is the Toronto Film Festival programmer. Isamu Hirabayashi's "Shell and Joint" is to reflect human relations in the form of insects. Also some movies from recent Kino Dzieci will reappear at the upcoming festival. Films from Berlinare disappeared later because of the pandemic. So SNH don't want to repeat Berlinale's mistake. From a few hundred sold passes fewer than 20 people have returned them once the festival moved online. 90% of NH and 70% of AFF has been moved online, negotiations with sells agents and distributors are ongoing regarding the rest. No red carpets this year. Safety first. At cinemas, 25% of seats in the largest screening rooms will be available. Online, no time blocks, all movies will be available all the time, flexibly. Each movie has a limit of screenings. At Kino Dzieci 2500 thousand people watched simultaneously. Now they're prepared for bigger numbers. No festival queues. Once you press play, you have 48 hours to see it. If the online version is successful, such a hybrid option may stay for the future. If you click at 23:59 on the last day of the festival, you can still see the movie. The last purchase chance on 15th November, still 2 days to watch.

GUNS AKIMBO

Watchable. Poles have a special term for that: "patostreaming". The local, Polish-invented English-sounding word can be defined as streaming pathologic behaviours. I thought Dumb Akimbo might be a more direct title but that would be too mild. The movie's moronic, it's a visual equivalent of junk food. Why did I keep watching? It has superb music. Put your grey cells to sleep and enjoy the soundtrack accompanied by unsophisticated yet rhythmic actions.

Reviewed from an online screener, cinematic reception might differ.

BANKSTERZY

Recommended. It follows in the footsteps of "Pitbull. Ostatni pies" ("Pitbull: Last Dog") and does it fully professionally: fine performances all round, a straightforward script with aces up the sleeve, masterfully directed and shot, with superb music. This fact-inspired business-political thriller keeps you on the edge of your seat. Most importantly, it clarifies the whole situation of "frankowicze" ("franc debtors") to ignorants like me. On a serious note, it made me wonder if the scam victims would be able to afford a cinema ticket to see this production themselves.

17TH DOCS AGAINST GRAVITY FESTIVAL - THE FREE ONLINE PART

WESTWOOD: PUNK, ICON, ACTIVIST

Recommended. Another, beside Alexander McQueen, British fashion icon who got no education but has been so spatially skilled since childhood she could design any shoes or clothes she fancied. You get to see her at work and get to know her current and past relationships. Malcolm McLaren turns out to be full-of-himself and malicious - quite a disappointment to a punk fun like me. Kate Moss says - that's rare, she doesn't speak up normally - she just wanted to get out of Croydon. And Vivienne Westwood's current partner, Andreas Kronthaler, met her as her student, twice younger than Vivienne, became totally besotted with her and has been half-designing with her ever since. A fascinating personal history and quirky, British to the core, outfits. 

THE SECRET GARDEN

Watchable. Having seen the trailer, I expected a brighter adaptation, even more magical. The movie turns out to be all gloom. Still, even within this steadily despondent atmosphere, it makes use of changing light several times, an eruption of colours when all flowers blossom or deepened darkness of the estate, all accompanied by music setting the mood. The beginning stresses the time of unrest just before the split of the colony into India and Pakistan as well as the cholera epidemic which resonates both with current civil upheavals and, even more so, with the Covid pandemic. But that, once the tone is set, gives way to the aristocratic cold upbringing where the girl's British life on the moors mixes with her memories of life with parents - most notably a depressed mother, which adds to the moroseness of the situation. The film is relatively slow-paced, at the same time skimming the literary original of its complexity. I think the duration of the movie could have been used better. On the other hand, I enjoyed the fact the film is deeply rooted in British values: not only the love of gardens but also that specific grit and resolve characterizing the English when faced with hardships. Lovely, perfectly matching music ends in the final song over the end credits, "The Secret Garden" by Aurora. Atmospheric but sombre and depressing.

17TH DOCS AGAINST GRAVITY FESTIVAL - THE FREE ONLINE PART

CUNNINGHAM

Watchable. Impressive contemporary dance choreographies and no story to speak of. The only line distinguishing it from other dance documentaries is that when you dance "you work with material which deteriorates in time." That's not delved into. Instead it covers the inter-human relations within the dance company too much - who cares? Admirable dancing is the main attraction. Colourful tightly-fitting uniforms increase your awareness of the dancers' postures and moves and those are extraordinary at times. 

The screening had loud original dialogues and visible Polish subtitles at hand too. 

LASSEMAJAS DETEKTIVBYRA - TAGRANARENS HEMLIGHET

Watchable. Another kids' flick in the series. The plot's very naive, adults are silly and even the criminal good-natured. I've seen better even within this franchise. In Poland, it's available only dubbed in Polish.

Reviewed from an online screener, cinematic reception might differ.

RAZ, JESZCZE RAZ

Walked out. I got to the screening late and... left early. I gave it half an hour (my minimum for feature-length screenings, to give every film a fighting chance) and within that time I heard: locker room talk - only, technicalities of pissing - by pissed protagonists of course - and of entering a brothel, slurping, famous actors doing the same locker room talk with theatrical poise, I saw drunks, also pissing - a recurring motif in the picture, scruffy men, colours off, grainy texture. Virtually each line of the dialogues is filled with filth, curse words - the lowest sort of language and people and completely accidental music. Only sound was of decent quality. Target audience? Only unsophisticated, uneducated men, best drunk.

The movie makers laughed every now and then at the premiere. I'm glad at least they enjoyed the film.

 PRZEMIANY FESTIVAL 2020 - YEAR ZERO (ONLINE)

THE WOLFPACK (2015)

Recommended. People complain of brief lockdowns imposed because of the pandemic. Imagine living like that for 15 years! Well, the brothers bear a grudge against their father who home-jailed them. But they had decent living conditions, a loving family and plenty of movies to watch - not too bad. Unfortunately they have a controlling, far over-protective and overbearing father who exhibits signs of a mental illness. Still, the boys, even though very young, are insightful, self-aware - their camera experience shows how they know they're being filmed, have top-notch social skills - unbeknown to themselves - and a flair for movie-making. They script, act, create their own costumes - some are pretty amazing and set design. One has ventured into the field already, becoming a PA to a production team. I hope others will follow. One thing years of film-watching did to them is empowering them to rebel. Quiet wolf howling can be heard at the very end of final end credits.

PRZEMIANY FESTIVAL 2020 - YEAR ZERO (ONLINE)

UNTITLED

Watchable. A skillfully shot travelogue which is pleasant at the time of the pandemic: wrestlers in sand - probably in Senegal, post-war empty brick houses in former Yugoslavia, people and goats co-existing happily round a landfill. I don't think I'd see any of these otherwise. But at some point the pictures feel drowsy. 1.5 hours is a bit too long. It also doesn't inform me of anything I didn't know before but it shows things I have mostly only read about. Pleasant.

DER SIEBENTE KONTINENT (THE SEVENTH KONTINENT) (1989)

Switched off. Tedious. Very ordinary lives. My own life is more interesting.

Both films were perfectly audible, with big, thick Polish subtitles."Untitled" had Polish voice over for some reason.

ZABIJ TO I WYJEDZ Z TEGO MIASTA (KILL IT AND LEAVE THIS TOWN)

Watchable. Phenomenal animation, star voicing cast but no plot. The animation is superb: changing grey hues convey the image of communist Poland, spots of bright light or blood red stand out, at certain point rain behind train windows looks quite real. It also depicts the grim reality of those years perfectly: harsh child upbringing, elderly people's behaviour, attitude to customers in general, the look of train carriages, towns and hospitals - disturbing at times. At the same time it manages to capture the callousness we lived in which transports us to modern animal liberation movements, especially when little human figures are beheaded and gutted the way carps used to be. But it's all fragmented, there's no storyline, just impressions - to the point but pointless.

 HALVDAN VIKING (THE ADVENTURES OF HALVDAN VIKING)

Switched off. You just watch children playing outdoors in the summer. And they don't do anything special. The fact they live in a Viking village doesn't change that. 

Reviewed from an online screener, cinematic reception might differ.

PINOCCHIO

Watchable. I barely remember the story from childhood and what I recall the most is that I didn't like it and didn't want to watch it any more. The new version, however, is so skillfully enacted that my main objection is that the tale is so dark I doubt it's appropriate for children. But as dark tales go, Matteo Garrone is a specialist and the new adaptation resembles his earlier "Il racconto dei racconti" ("Tale of Tales") at times. Star cast and the use of traditional Italian architecture make the film compelling from scene one till the very end. And that's in spite of its theatrical style, e.g. Cat and Fox are people, other characters take hybrid forms, e.g. a cricket, a snail or a fish have human faces. And parts of the movie tell of a puppet theatre or a circus. Having said that, those venues, derived from the original book, together with other literary tropes, mean the movie is quite true to the book, even the hanging is shown, though he gets rescued in the film. His nose growing when he tells lies appears in one scene only. This interpretation is sympathetic to the wooden boy. He's naughty but that's because he's so gullible, silly, inexperienced in life. It's dubbed in Polish, meant for child audience from the age of 8. Are they sure? Well, it has some educational value since it persuades children they should obey their parents, study diligently and tell the truth. I don't know why it seems to teach them to kiss people around them too - that was weird. But the storyline is morally consistent and totally engaging. Visually, golden-dark. Taken the number of fantasy characters, they could have made it more colourful. 

Reviewed from an online screener, cinematic reception might differ.

PRZEMIANY FESTIVAL 2020 - YEAR ZERO (ONLINE)

ROBOLOVE

Watchable. A widespread presentation of current developments in android-building - from their 'bodies' to A.I - and some reflections on the human need for others: human, animal, doll or android. While the android builders try to persuade us that we're driven by programmed and programmable emotions which act like instincts rather and that the physical and verbal representation of feelings can be and is often faked, it sounded quite cynical to me. And although they claim such androids will be of help to the elderly, the only interest actual customers, aged or not, have in them appears sexual. Are we so shallow? Or as vain as to transport our minds into android 'bodies' to immortalize ourselves? The inventors certainly are.

The documentary had white subtitles on often whitish pictures. It was also quite audible in the original languages (mostly Japanese, Korean, Chinese, English and Spanish).

PRZEMIANY FESTIVAL 2020 - YEAR ZERO (ONLINE)

DAS FORUM (THE FORUM)

Watchable. Following the official meetings of two years feels a bit as if you had to wear a suit and sit with a stiff upper lip yourself. But you do learn why, how and whether it works. I was relieved that most participants - the world's richest and most powerful - did consider the consequences of their actions for the deprived ones and for the climate. So why does it not work? It also lets you look at controversial companies like Monsanto or politicians like Bolsonaro from a different angle - not justifying them but highlighting the issues aren't black and white.

The documentary had big subtitles on black background under the picture and was even quite audible in the original languages (mostly English and German).

KINO DZIECI FILM FESTIVAL ONLINE

CHIEN POURRI (STINKY DOG)

Recommended. The animation is based on the original book illustrations by Marc Boutavant. The set of 4 short films depicts 4 quirky stories: the dog takes his love interest to dine in a dumpster, thinks he's flown to the Moon, wants to rent a holiday carton from a rat, fleas on his beret are looking for a lost family member and the dog is so dumb he can't recognize his best friend Flatty Cat when he's covered in paint. I was just dying to know what was going to happen next. Admirable attention to detail in the scripts.

The film set is shown in English version which is brilliant language-wise, e.g. "I told the fleas to flee" but appears off taken the pictures show Paris.

PELLE SVANSLOS (PETER NO-TAIL)

Watchable. Why do people write scripts when they don't have truly original ideas? Being forced to participate in circus-like performances, bullying, forgettable songs - why any at all? These tropes are neither pleasant nor original. The love subplot doesn't make much sense either. I seriously considered switching it off. But the main cat protagonist was cute and the second half of the film less predictable and less frustrating. Dark tale.

MADISON (MADISON - A FAST FRIENDSHIP)

Watchable. About teenage mountain biking enthusiasts but engaging not only for them. I was curious both whether Madison would succeed in the race and how her friendships and her and her friends' puppy loves would develop. Views of Tirol throughout and great music over end credits.

CITY PLAZA HOTEL

Watchable. An important short film about memories of life in a war zone. Vivid images. But no new news.

LEARNING TO SKATEBOARD IN A WARZONE (IF YOU'RE A GIRL)

Recommended. The title didn't convince me for a long time. But this short film deserves its last year's Oscar win. Within 39 minutes it manages to present comprehensively women's and girls' position in Afghanistan now and until 17 years earlier when the country was under the Taliban rule. The eponymous skating is in fact a lesson in courage. So are several other tasks in class. That's the only way for a societal change. Also, it appears to be an oasis of freedom where the girls genuinely laugh and enjoy themselves outside the constraints of their strict families. Enlightening.

I loved this year's festival. While the festival period was busy for me so I saw a limited number of movies, the online formula allowed me to: watch everything from the safety of my place, write reviews in between the films or even stop them to cook dinner and continue later. Quality recordings with truly audible sound meant I didn't feel missing out on anything. And mind it, at the platform trial a few weeks ago I couldn't even start a movie.

KINO DZIECI FILM FESTIVAL ONLINE

COEUR FONDANT (MELTING HEART CAKE)

Watchable. I spent the 10 minutes of this short film looking for the signs of friendship the title promises. The post-credit of the fly tossing a pancake sums up the production well: most of the dolls resemble small or gigantic hairy flies or moths which is kind of scary. But the creatures are nice to each other. The background looks like rubbish - literally. Weird stuff.

UN LYNX DANS LA VILLE (A LYNX IN THE TOWN)

Watchable. Another short film. Rudimentary pictures, black-grey-white with a splash of orange for the over-sized lynx only, a simplistic story. No words are spoken but it's all clear.

LISTEK (LEAF)

Watchable. More of a brief impression than an even short film. Very basic drawings, mostly autumn colours - exudes nostalgia after the season.

보리야 (BORIYA)

Watchable. Korean-created French-produced. The animation is wonderful: the landscapes and plants are detailed and delicate, they look like in traditional Asian paintings. Human characters in turn, are almost Disneyesque. Translucent water is bewitching. Together, the mixture gives a beautiful effect. Next to none plot however, means even the 13 minutes of the film make you drift away.

JUNU KO JUTTA (THE SHOES OF A LITTLE GIRL)

Watchable. A simple short film about a girl learning how to wear shoes. An exotic Nepalese view on her way to school. That's it.

BENIM KUCUK SOZLERIM (MY SHORT WORDS)

Switched off. Nothing much happens. You just follow a group of boys who don't do anything of interest and don't talk about anything important.

나는 보리 (BORI)

Watchable. It's very good: the plot's original, characters likeable, showing subtly but in-depth what it's like to be deaf in the society. The movie's masterfully shot, the seaside town pleasant, the film's plausibly acted and totally involving in spite of a niche topic. What's missing is the parents' professional life. They seem reasonably well-off but, taken how they are either involuntarily or deliberately but surreptitiously discriminated against, it needs further explanation how they make a living. From working on a ship at nights by the father alone? He's poor at fishing. So that context is missing. Also, the shop situation lacks a satisfactory closure which left me vexed.

Sadly, in Poland, it's translated via English instead of directly from Korean.

KINO DZIECI FILM FESTIVAL ONLINE

KARSTEN OF PETRA BLIR BESTEVENNER (CASPER AND EMMA - BEST FRIENDS)

Watchable. Cute, with lovely animations flying in the air, a touching moment when the girl talks to her mum after her grandpa's visit but silly at times too. I also didn't like the songs - at least their Polish versions. The whole thing is perfectly suitable for nursery-age children though.

The system cut me off 15 minutes before the end due to the reservation expiry. Luckily there was technical support at hand and I got help immediately.

KUTOPPEN (CATTLE HILL)

Watchable. Pleasant animation style, an engaging story, though Klara's dream is derived from teenage cinema and her father's problem from several other movies for all age groups. Still, the worst downside are Polish versions of songs. Only the original one over the end credits was quite pleasant.

OPERASJON MUMIE (OPERATION MUMMY)

Watchable. Superb cartoon opening credits. What follows is a run-of-the-mill story of underage detectives and a robbery in a museum. Fun to watch but nothing new.

KINO DZIECI FILM FESTIVAL ONLINE

BINTI

Switched off. Crazy, unnatural acting, no plot.

KARSTEN OG PETRA PA SAFARI (CASPER AND EMMA ON SAFARI)

Watchable. The little children with their talking mascots are as silly as ever but in this movie you can admire beautifully shot African animals. I also liked it when their grandpa (wonderfully acted) got caught in a trap and I enjoyed the African song over the end credits.

GREENLAND

Watchable. This typical Hollywood blockbuster swings from a psychologic drama to "an extinction level event" and back a few times. It tugs on your heartstrings and pumps your adrenaline where and when needed. Facts are revealed gradually, together with the protagonists' gaining knowledge of the catastrophe. The situation changes constantly so there's no minute of boredom. But it's decently executed rubbish. The whole family is phoney. The guy has a much younger wife and it was he who cheated on her.The kid is obligatorily chronically ill - at least it's diabetes, not cancer ruling most tear-jerking movies. The idea of secret shelters under military air bases across the globe is far-fetched too. I wish they existed and were able to house ordinary people in case of a comet hitting Earth but people in general are poor at predicting disasters and even worse at preparing for them. All drivers easily finding airports of unspecific location without car navigation - most likely not working under the circumstances - don't appear plausible either. Somehow no one gets lost, even if they take - and find - a less travelled route. CGI-wise, the sky looks flat. The best bits are the ruins of world-famous cities like Sydney or Paris. But birds in Greenland where you can't spot any even without a disaster, let alone after 9 months of ashes in the air, detract from the experience.