Disclaimer: There may be spoilers below, so if any of the content pictured below is of interest, proceed with caution.
Chopper shows up on a lot of "must see" Australian movie lists. It's based on a memoir written by a real criminal, Mark Brandon "Chopper" Read. While I didn't love this movie, it deserves a chance. The director succeeded in doing something different and doing it well.
Eric Bana makes the movie with his appallingly convincing portrayal of a psycho. Oversaturation and styling give it an authentically 1970s-1980s feel - you forget it was filmed in 2000. Everything is compressed. There's no wasted minute or line and the scumminess and depravity are both over the top and believable. The weakest point is the plot or lack of a character arc. It's less a dramatic story than a series of vignettes that paint a portrait of someone who is probably not capable of change.
First, this review is for The Yin Yang Master not The Yin-Yang Master: Dream of Eternity, both of which are on Netflix (more info on the difference), which gets more confusing as Netflix calls it The Yin Yang Master while Wikipedia calls it The Yinyang Master. This is the story of three realms; that of humans, spirits, and demons. The scenery and artistic visions of each realm are beautiful making it a visually stunning movie. While there are spells and swordplay, the movie isn't dominated by that which lends itself to character development and storytelling. The familiars in the spirit world are a tad on the cheezy side as far as graphics, but they are a lot of fun. Except that they keep calling them "the ferrets" when they look more like raccoons. Otherwise, the movie keeps at a good pace and is great to unwind to if you want to enjoy a simple story that looks great on screen.
Merciful Minerva, is there anything Robin Wright cannot do? Quick plot: Recent widow, having lost only child & spouse, throws away mobile phone, packs up, buys a log cabin with a view, and segues from urban utopia to rural utopia. Inevitable self-neglect & grief descent result in passive suicide attempt following Mother Nature cameo. Discovered by a widower, who also lost their only child, aided by a local nurse, and we're off to the races...w/ our protagonist's journey/ascent through grief with an occasional plot twist. According to IMDB, when the original lead performer had a scheduling snafu, Wright agreed with the producers' suggestion to star (in addition to direct). Jesse Chatham and Erin Dignam have written an extraordinary tale of human kindness. Demián Bichir and Sarah Dawn Pledge deserve some gold-plated statuettes. Cast & crew hit it out of the park. Filming took barely a month. Wright's motion picture directorial debut borders on masterpiece.
This German TV show can best be summarized as a headfuck. I'm sure there is a 48-character German word for that too. Between subtitles (screw dubs) and a very intricate subject matter that just gets more intense, this is not a series you can half-watch. Season one introduces us to a small town and a sizable cast of characters, each with their own lies and secrets. Everything revolves around the disappearance of a child, then another. Rather than a "whodunnit", we quickly learn it is a lot more complicated and interesting than that. Over ten episodes it drags out some and may be rough to get through, ultimately leaving you with a "omg wow, that is exactly what we saw coming" but there is some satisfaction that it is confirmed. That sets up season two which gets a *lot* better and moves at a much faster pace. Several parts of the trailers on Netflix and still images are from season two which is deceptive. Season three doubles down on everything, getting even more complex and gives you more to keep track of. In addition to keeping track of a big group of people through multiple time periods, this adds yet another layer to everything.
The good: Ultimately the three season arc tells a solid story that is more engaging and stimulating than a majority of U.S. television. It is a very creative show in some regards and demands your attention.
The bad: Season one could have been shortened by three episodes just by cutting out two things: 1) two people awkwardly staring at each other 2) someone simply standing in the rain. Both were way overdone. Season three could have been shortened to half the episodes and cut out a repeat of some of what happened in the first season, to focus on the new element that brought it all together.
Dark is the greatest TV show ever. Fight me.
