Jeff's Reviews

Thoughts on every movie I've ever seen.

recent product reviews

LA 92 (2017)

Reviewed on Jan 2, 2023

Definitely a lot of footage I haven’t seen. I knew the violence and destruction were bad, but I didn’t know this bad. And some cross-cutting at the end that ominously implies that things haven’t changed and likely won’t change anytime soon. Definitely one of many scars on the face of…

Full Review

Green Lantern (2011)

Reviewed on Dec 30, 2022

Silly story, characters, dialogue, and visuals. Iron Man had come out 3 years earlier, why couldn’t this movie take some cues? Effects are dated and overdramatized with cool colors and cool camera movements and cool sounds. We were supposed to be done with that in the 90’s. Reynolds and Lively…

Full Review

Jeanne Dielman, 23, quai du commerce, 1080 Bruxelles (1975)

Reviewed on Dec 30, 2022

Recently crowned best movie ever by Sight & Sound magazine, so I had to give it a shot. Admittedly, there is something voyeuristically interesting about this. The long takes combined with dioramic, flat, Wes Anderson camera angles in rooms and hallways are strangely captivating. But the novelty wears off. Watching…

Full Review

My Octopus Teacher (2020)

Reviewed on Dec 25, 2022

Surprisingly delicate and sweet and sad. Foster seems like an interesting, articulate, humble, spiritual guy. His narration is well-paced and natural. His voice and accent are very zen, and I think that does a lot to make the film very gentle and warm and contemplative. I can’t imagine a guy…

Full Review

The Rescue (2021)

Reviewed on Dec 24, 2022

Claustrophobic and gripping, with incredible suspense and tension throughout. Gentle scoring really works well to sustain the mood. Helpful, beautiful graphics are combined with great explanations by the cave divers. You really do admire these rescuers in the end. Despite their admitted social anxieties and insecurities, they’re intelligent and well-spoken…

Full Review

Avatar: The Way of Water (2022)

Reviewed on Dec 21, 2022

A long wait for this one. Was it worth the wait? Almost. Overall, another technical masterpiece from Cameron. There’s no disputing that the beautiful world he has created and the visual effects used to bring it to life show a creativity and technical competency that makes him one of the…

Full Review

Marcel the Shell with Shoes On (2021)

Reviewed on Dec 15, 2022

A cute and pleasant film. I really enjoy how they avoid Marcel’s whole origin story and completely gloss over the fact that Marcel is a sentient, anthropomorphic shell. Biggest issue is that not a lot happens, and it starts to get a little boring after the novelty wears off. Slate…

Full Review

Everything Everywhere All at Once (2022)

Reviewed on Dec 1, 2022

This year’s WTF art movie. But what kind of movie is it supposed to be? Funny? Cool? Interesting? Complicated? Philosophical? Quirky? Inspirational? Romantic? Touching? When it tries to be all at once, it succeeds at nothing. And if every 7 minutes we have another climax with a time-distorted, magical confluence…

Full Review

In Bruges (2008)

Reviewed on Nov 1, 2022

Things feel a little weird in the beginning, with loosely edited dialogue and light comedy that doesn’t really work. But as the story deepened and the characters developed and the beauty of Bruges slowly revealed itself, it all grew on me. By the end, we have a cleanly told, symbolism-filled…

Full Review

Confess, Fletch (2022)

Reviewed on Oct 31, 2022

Hamm channels Chevy in expression, habit, and quick wit, but he’s not Chevy. I’m just not convinced Hamm is all that funny. Some of his dialogue feels a bit scripted and forced, and a smart-ass who is not that funny starts to get annoying. Izzo looks like a mix of…

Full Review