The MacGuffin - Latest Comments

Re: Film Review – The Super Mario Galaxy Movie

windows — Fri, 03 Apr 2026 00:44:32 -0000

Short version of this guys review - "I'm mad mario didn't kiss luigi"

Re: Film Review – Hostiles

Jennie Batra — Thu, 11 Dec 2025 03:01:37 -0000

Another liberal SJW who gets offended by stuff. I'm glad the film was Told from Joe's POV.

Re: Film Review – The Ice Forest

Neustrum — Sun, 17 Aug 2025 21:54:15 -0000

There were so many guys with beards, it was hard to keep the characters straight. And what was the burning cross about? For a film to have meaning, the audience must become invested in the characters which requires some understanding of their motivations. This was all just confusing.

Re: Film Review – The Apprentice

Laurie K — Sat, 19 Oct 2024 10:12:36 -0000

I give this review a C-. I give the movie a solid A. The reviewer discusses a piece of art in terms of how it meets his a priori expectations, instead of how it creates a world, stays true to it, and then how that world reflects on the one we live in.
. The film is brilliant and disciplined. It manages to offer a fresh take on a relationship depicted in many documentaries in such a way that the audience must grapple with the humanity of unattractive souls. I loathe Donald Trump, but I was sympathetic to a young man trying to realize dreams. It made me stretch. To accomplish this at such a time as we are living, well this is just remarkable.
Finally, I came away from the film with an ominous sense of how corruption advanced Trump's career from the start. Cohn's secret recordings became leverage persuading elected officials to do Trump's bidding, starting in the mid 80s. If this is the practice, a lot makes sense. I appreciate that the film tool a light touch with this-- staying true to its tone of understatement. Even a rape is understated. It is an event, in the context if a fight between two imperfect parties. It is quietly... monsterous. Brilliant, brilliant movie.

Re: Film Review – The Apprentice

James Steevens — Sat, 19 Oct 2024 00:57:52 -0000

I wonder why this was released under only one month until the election ?

Re: Film Review – Atlas

Jon Pierracos — Tue, 28 May 2024 08:57:27 -0000

I don't know what movie you were watching but I enjoyed every minute of this movie!

Re: Film Review – Atlas

film11 — Mon, 27 May 2024 23:56:28 -0000

Not great but better than the movies you mentioned

Re: Bird Watching – I Don’t Get Nicole Holofcener

Richard Wagner — Sun, 14 Apr 2024 23:20:35 -0000

Hello! I recognize that your post is 13 years old, but I thought I'd respond.

Has your opinion changed?

Sadly, I'm NOT the fan that will initiate you into Team Holofcener; many of your thoughts echoed mine. In fact, I came across your blog when I googled "Nichole Holofcener what am I missing?" Like you, I really want to like her work, but I just can't get any traction. . .

It seems she introduces wonderful themes, but then, there's no growth. No development. In "You Hurt My Feelings" (the film I just finished watching) one of the themes is the tension between authenticity and acceptance, honesty vs. support: a wonderfully complex and relevent theme worthy of developing. And she gives several examples from several relationships (parents and children, customers and consultants, therapists and clients. . .) , but there's no growth. No development. I found myself pausing the film several times to, to myself, continuing the dialogue in a way that was interesting and meaningful to me, and made me care about the characters. For example, when Julia and her mom visit the doctor, the mom, who is known for frank honesty, lies to the doctor. It would have been great for daughter to ask mom why she lied to the doctor to spare HER feelings, but not with her own kids. I think it would have fleshed out the characters, making them warmer and more human.

And her films are short, like 90 minutes, so she has plenty of time with which to explore/develop those themes.

Watching her films is like talking with some of my friends, sixty-years-old, but still relating like children: so eager to make a joke or quip that they sacrifice the profundity. So I am confused as to whether they have any depth, or are scared to share it. In the end it doesn't matter much; it's a chore to have a conversation with them, as it's a chore to watch Holofcener's films.

Anyway, just wondering if you've given up on her, or if your hope has expired.

Re: Film Review – Miss Julie

Melglid — Tue, 13 Feb 2024 16:47:27 -0000

To say you were overwhelmingly unaffected, is by far the most pompous and condescending remarks I've read by a basement dweller, in a long while .

One would have to be pretty soulless, to not be affected by the horror of harming the pug, for such a crime as to be ambushed. Not to feel disgust, horror or shock, over the senseless killing of such a beautiful innocent, as the helpless canary, is pale.
Both of which foreshadowed what was truly horrific.

This was an incredible story, the twists and turns in a power dynamic, the overtones of contempt, the helpless subservience of people tied to the class system, and the darkness magnified by man's inhumanity towards man, for personal gain, is portrayed amazingly in this production!

It left this person feeling exhausted and disgusted , having watched such an excellent example of depravity, self indulgence and greed.

Re: Double Feature Showdown – A Stolen Life vs. Dead Ringer

1vanessasherry1 — Mon, 15 Jan 2024 05:22:24 -0000

How can either not be great with Betty Davis as the star. I do prefer Dead Ringer.

Re: Film Review – Passengers

Josie Q — Sun, 29 Oct 2023 03:49:47 -0000

I love how unwilling you are to "forgive" the character. Look at your weak fucking over-socialized face! Two hours out of your pod you'd be smashing open everyone else's, because fuck everyone else! If YOU have to suffer so do they!

You dull, dull hypocrite.

Re: Film Review – Tollbooth

tharpa — Fri, 13 Oct 2023 23:51:23 -0000

Not even sure why people call it a comedy. Quirky yes, comedy, no.

SPOILER ALERT:

And why did Ofc. Catrin let him go? Granted, when she was alone with Tollbooth at the toolbooth, she didn't have much choice. If she had tried to take him in, he would have killed her. But what kept her from reporting him to the feds afterwards? Was she just another corrupt cop in the tradition of her boss?

The deal she made with Tollbooth was taking in a hit and run guy. Doesn't seem like much of a trade compared to a guy who had killed many people.

Re: Film Review – Hidden Blade

Grace Lin — Sat, 18 Feb 2023 14:00:06 -0000

I Watch On Feb. 16, 2023, And I Loved It. Both My Husband, And I Love Wang YiBo Very Much, So My Husband Gladly Took The Day Off To Take Me To The 1st Showing. Aside From The Slow Beginning At 1st, And YiBo Not Being Shown In The Beginning, It Was A Totally Awesome Movie. YiBo Did All His Own Stunts, And Did A Excellent Job. The Fight Scenes Had Me Gringing, And In Near Tears, Because Of YiBo. It Was Seriously A Crazy Movie That Turned Out Totally Different Then What You Expect, But You Do Kind Of Get Hints Here, And There, To Make You Wonder, Hummmm... What The Person Writing This Article Didn't Mention Was That Wang YiBo Is ONLY 25 Years Old! A Little Background History For You, Wang YiBo Has A Lot Of Haters, Anti's, And What Chinese People Call Black People, DO NOT MISTAKE THEM AS AFRICAN AMERICAN'S, These People Insault, Criticize, Make Up Lie, And Create Stuff Up Such As Scandals, FOR WHAT I DON'T KNOW! The So Called Human Beings Have Created So Many Negative Reviews About Hidden Blade, That Many Fans Of Wang YiBo Were Worried It Would Affect The Out Come Of The Movie, It's Already Made Over 1 Billion Dollars, So... Wang YiBo Has Had A Very Hard Life, At A Very Young Age He Would Always Get Sick, So When He Saw The Doctor, The Told Him He Had A Heart Condition Midocondriac He Had To Get 7 IV Drips A Day, Until He Got Better, When He Did, He Loved To Dance, He Begged His Parents To Go To Dancing School, They Agreed, So At The Age Of 13 The Went To Korea To Learn Dancing. YES 13!!! He Joined A Korean-Chinese Band Called EoEo Uniq, At The Time He Was In The Band, They Were In Thailand Doing A Fan Meet, Some Crazy Person Threw Red Paint At Them, BUT I BELIEVE THE TARGET WAS YIBO, BECAUSE HE GOT MOSTLY ALL THE PAINT!!! Seeing That Video Made Me So Angry, He Was Maybe 13-14 Years Old, Why Would You Do That To Him? He Was A Innocent Young Boy, I Don't Understand How You Could Hate Someone That Much, That You Don't Even Know To Do That. Unfortunately His Agency Did Not Care About Him Back Then, So Nothing Was Ever Done. He Is Now 25 Years Old, And He Is A Professional Actor, Dancer, Singer, Model, Motorcycle Rider, T.V. Host, Ect. There Is So Much More, But YiBo Has Had A Hard, And Difficult Road To Get To Where He Is Today, So The Next Time You Want Create Lie's Or Make Up Stuff About Person, MAYBE LOOK INTO THERE BACKGROUND 1ST, And See What They Have Gone Though To Get To Where They Are, Instead Of Being Jealous Of That Person.

Re: Film Review – Dolittle (2020)

Crimes — Sat, 26 Nov 2022 12:06:43 -0000

robert downey and company : i personally refuse to watch anything "new" that they, anyone, puts out because it is stolen from someone who has almost nothing in fact, stolen from her mother who's maiden name was steele. her taken also from me. Crime circuit attacked me and used me with many a list people and families. this movie is an exact remake of when it was done years before. when you are involved in this kind of torture, always stay focused and have money reserved somewhere and do not give these people making money and living good and the poor one gave children to love and be happy with when you and others are not and never will be. kill the dragon when it comes and tell that to all the kids because we are being intimidated.

Re: Film Review – Passengers

Viscas — Fri, 06 May 2022 01:37:48 -0000

You let the whole movie go because you can't handle human behaviour? I don't think you should be making movie reviews.

Re: Film Review – King Arthur: Legend of the Sword

Lucius Edward — Wed, 20 Apr 2022 14:51:24 -0000

n from television to the big screen, plays Arthur fairly straight, acting as though he has a plan up his sleeve even when he doesn’t. The writing and direction turns Arthur into a physical

Re: An Appreciation – 8½

michael — Mon, 11 Apr 2022 22:04:07 -0000

8-1/2 is the story of an existential confrontation in the manner of Albert Camus. The director is
in a predicament where rationality fails to help him: in way over his head, his entire world is demanding he provide what he is unable to. As the Amerjcan reporter tells us gleefully, shouting directly to the audience, “HE HAS NOTHINGTO SAY!!! HE HAS NOTHING TO SAY!!! HE HAS NOTHING TO SAY!!! This is every artist’s nightmare, and there is no escape. In Camus’s existential confrontation with the absurd, time stops, and there are only two choices: suicide, and going on with life accepting that it is absurd. As the gathering rages on unaware of the director’s timeless moment, he crawls under the table with a gun and shoots himself (first choice.) But then he is not dead! He gets the second. choice! Everyone holds hands and they dance around in a circle, led by himself as a child dressed in a Harlequin costume. There is no meaningful solution but to accept a life where reason cannot save you.
Forgive me Fellini—I know you claimed Americans always over analyze your films; guilty as charged!
Michael Russom

Re: An Appreciation – Cléo from 5 to 7

oblomov — Sat, 26 Mar 2022 22:02:00 -0000

It's one of my favorite films. The opening scene with the tarot card reader that does in fact foretell the story that then unfolds for us is brilliant.

Re: An Appreciation – Lost in Translation

Brian — Thu, 30 Sep 2021 23:33:16 -0000

This is one of my favorite movies and still remember seeing it in the theater, which was an oddly intimate experience being in a dark theater. Wish the IMDb message board was still around, some good discussions with like-minded fans.

Re: Film Review – Chappie

TheForexDojo — Sun, 05 Sep 2021 01:35:47 -0000

STFU... Let's see you make a better movie.

Re: Film Review – King Arthur: Legend of the Sword

RussellLHJR — Sat, 28 Aug 2021 23:05:29 -0000

I just watched this movie. While not the least bit historical...didn't even try to be, as the 2004 King Arthur, did...it was still very very entertaining. So...how does it earn a negative score from you on Rotten Tomatoes, while you fully admit, "
but by God is it entertaining." You see, that's all that the audience cares about. Am I going to regret spending my valuable time watching this, or not. If I'm entertained, I will not regret the time spent. I did not regret the time spent watching it.

So how is it that you and I are in agreement on the fact that it's very entertaining, and yet you gave it a negative score. You see, THIS is why so many of us no longer even look at the critic's score on Rotten Tomatoes. We look at the audience score. As I counseled a young friend...are you a critic, or a member of the audience? He of course agreed he's not a critic. So I said, "Then the critics score does not apply to you. Ignore it. The audience score is a better gauge as to whether you will like the move and be glad you watched it."

Critics forgot that we are not looking to be dazzled by your ability to dissect a movie down to its parts. We simply want to know, "Will I enjoy watching it." THAT is what you should base your score on. How much will I enjoy watching it. You can pontificate on all the finer details of the movie, the acting, the special effects, etc...but your score should reflect whether I will enjoy watching the movie. In this case, I really enjoyed it. I would give it a solid 8.5 out of 10.

To score higher, it would need to be longer, maybe an hour longer, which would put it on par with Braveheart in length. But that would have allowed the movie to excel in the one area that the movie failed, IMHO. The ONLY thing the movie did not do well with, is make you really care about the characters, other than Arthur. The character development wasn't very good, for the other characters. Not the worst I've seen, but not as good as, for instance, Braveheart. But maybe that could have happened, had Guy Ritchie been able to do his 6 part series. Sadly, we will never know.

Re: Film Review – The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It

WTF — Tue, 08 Jun 2021 20:25:18 -0000

Tediously boring movie. I would've walked out except I had nowhere better to be with a bag of popcorn & a coke.

Re: Film Review – What Happened to Monday

amyjane — Mon, 19 Apr 2021 17:02:15 -0000

Re: China... I suggest you see the documentary One Child Nation.
I appreciated this review!

Re: Film Review – Unhinged

Xavier Rodrigues — Mon, 19 Apr 2021 01:29:38 -0000

Absolutely agree that this film shoots past the line of films that stay within the boundaries of reasonably sensible action entertainment, and instead ventures almost into the horror-slasher and home-grown terrorism category. The focus is upon a story of a lone-wolf, small-scale, homegrown, independent terrorist. Terribly shocking scenes of brutal, gory violence occur throughout the film on a constant basis. This film's violent scenes are paced at a terrifying rate, from one scene to the next, leaving zero breathing space for the audience. Be prepared for a shocking ride, through a modern day, one man vs the world, story, that rings all too close to reality for comfort. My first viewing came with a flood of angry emotions, until I realized this is the bitter pill most Americans wish we don't have to swallow- lone-wolf terrorism. The truth is, Russel Crowe paints the modern day psychotic breakdown of a man that wants nothing more than the world to burn with him, perfectly. Be prepared to see the grim reality that many have faced during recent American incidents of mass shootings and lone-wolf terrorism.
This film follows behind a few similar films that have been shocking & suprising or flat-out irritating and turning-off audiences recently, like for example Netflix's recent "I Care A Lot" with Rosamund Pike, or the recent film "BodyCam", though "Unhinged" seems to be the movie that has completely outdone those two correctly by faithfully recreating the feeling of anger that comes from watching senseless terrorism and the fear and shock that comes from that experience of such an adrenaline filled ride, from an all too perfect picture of a brutal modern day reality. Many will either hate or love this film, depending on whether or not one can handle such a violent ride, filled with non-stop adrenaline, and little breathing space, once started, and continuing at an audience-wrenching pace. This movie comes with a shocking level of random violence warning ⚠️, as if you are watching a slasher film. If you loved the "Saw" horror movie series, then this is the one for you, lol! Driven by the pure emotion that is rage, it is a racing non-stop onslaught of fear and surprising violence. This film's suspense and racing-paced story of road-rage sets it apart from the usual thriller movie. Rottentomatoes has the audience score at around 77% though the critics are around 48%, and in this case I am leaning towards agreeing with both the critics and the audience consensus here, a little too much angry random violence for me but it very clearly represents the reality of our day- that there are people snapping like this all time, all over the country and world, people that kill numerous other innocent people that are usually surrounding the originally targeted person or people . Even now I have had to rewrite my review from having to rewatch this film, because of the shock that came from the first viewing. Yet I realized this is where America is at now, the need for more Mental Health help has never been greater.

Re: Film Review – Greyhound

HiRez — Sun, 06 Dec 2020 14:41:50 -0000

This is a great review, I had the same thoughts. I was even thinking about Crimson Tide when I was trying to figure out what was so disappointing. There's a few things to like about Greyhound, but so few and far between, and even Tom Hanks wasn't particularly convincing, something that hardly ever happens. There should have been a good story to tell here, but they didn't find it. Something about the effects looked very cheap for a big-budget movie in 2020; that wasn't the biggest problem here, but I was distracted by it constantly.