Movie reviews

KRIME STORY. LOVE STORY

Watchable. Most of all, I enjoyed the humour, e.g. "Niech pan nie idzie w stronę światła! Niech pan w ogóle nigdzie nie idzie! Żyjemy, żyjemy!" ("Don't go toward the light!" Don't go anywhere at all! We live, we live!"). Kamila is beautiful, "Krime" is well cast too. Costumes, make-up and hairstyling are superb, acting much in the style of a gangster flick. Only the plot is far-fetched. The soundtrack consists of lots of Polish hip-hop with language mistakes. The movie is good fun even if unsophisticated.

TRE PIANI (THREE FLOORS)

Recommended. It begins with a bang and then the tension, though subtle, not always palpable, keeps growing. The saga of three families inhabiting one building is engaging from the start and moving towards the end. The film deals with integrity in a very humane way. Their stories are consistent but never predictable - like life itself. 

GIEREK

Recommended. Where documentary "1970" ends, "Gierek" takes off. It's a gripping political thriller. Famous actors, the reality of the 70s in Poland, a tear-jerking Christmas Eve scene all make for an exciting watching. Last but not least, it's comprehensible to outsiders.

8 RZECZY, KTORYCH NIE WIECIE O FACETACH (8 THINGS YOU DON'T KNOW ABOUT MEN)

Recommended. Dodgy paramedics, a false priest who kicks thugs off a bus wishing them "z Bogiem!" ("God be with you!") or is proud of "mój syn!" ("my son!"), a guy falls on a truck to which the drivers react: "E! Mamy imigranta na pace!" ("Hey! We've got an immigrant on the back!") and a handful of situation gags. Hilarious, unsophisticated, crazy. I was laughing out loud. And I wasn't the only one. 

SPIDER-MAN: NO WAY HOME

Watchable. The string theory, however vague it is, is the quasi-scientific basis for the plot. Other than that, Spider-Man buffs will be caught into the web of the franchise memoirs and potentials, e.g. Jamie Foxx considers the possibility of a black Spider-Man. Tom Holland is superb in the leading role, J.K. Simmons brilliant as a journalist. Willem Dafoe excellent as Green Goblin. Wong makes a cameo. There's a hilarious bit when Peter Parker's pal accidentally calls three Peter Parkers together. Quality visual effects but monster and adventure overload. The touching and wonderful finale is the best part. The mid-credit shows Venom on holidays in Mexico. Much more promising is the end-credit teasing you with the Multiverse and superb CGIs.

THE LONG GOODBYE

Watchable. Riz Ahmed's Oscar-winning short film. He acts in it unfortunately and he's such a bad actor that when his character is gunned down you feel relief. Not for long though, since it's then that he starts rhyming an essay about origins. Itself an insightful piece of literature but it needs to be recited, not uttered by Riz Ahmed whose emotions are undecipherable and who sounds as if he had a speech defect. What a waste! Not that the script makes much sense - if it's supposed to be Britain, then armed skinheads are off place. 

Seen online.

PIOSENKI O MILOSCI (SONGS ABOUT LOVE)

Watchable. When it opens in black and white and you know the title you expect an attempt at "Zimna wojna" ("Cold War"). Far from that quality. I barely sat through this protracted tale with average music. It's a typical Polish drama, with typical Polish songs. The couple have some annoyingly silly conversations for fun and can't communicate in vital matters. I stayed just because I was curious how their career would develop. But it's so snail-paced and fake and forced, the protagonists' motivations inexplicable, especially Alicja's, it's was a gruelling experience.

LES AMOURS D'ANAIS (ANAIS IN LOVE)

Recommended. The original title reflects the plot better: Anais's loves. Beautiful and wonderful actresses Anaïs Demoustier and Valeria Bruni Tedeschi shine in this film filled with joie de vivre. Both are sensual, Anaïs Demoustier appears naked but she looks so natural, so pleased. This happy-go-lucky attitude to life is inspiring. The film's filled also with southern sunshine even though it's based in Bretagne.

MILOSC JEST BLISKO (LOVE IS NEARBY)

Watchable. After I had thought Wojciech Solarz deserved to act the male lead in a romantic comedy he was finally offered such a part. Another comedy talent Janusz Chabior appears in it too. Both are failed by this family drama about two single parents with just one hilarious scene in which a man is telling his love he decides not to be jealous right when the chap he was suspicious about is hiding under her bed. The rest isn't funny in the slightest. In fact, it's dull. It's basically about what jerks men are. Awful Polish music by Sekcja Muzyczna Kołłątajowskiej Kuźni Prawdziwych Mężczyzn further mars the film. Directed by Radek Dunaszewski, scripted by 4 different people: 2 men, 2 women - six cooks spoil the food. At least Góry Stołowe provide decent landscapes. Still. best to keep away from this faulty drama pretending to be a comedy.

Reviewed from the distributor's screener, cinematic reception might differ.