Longform reviews of films, TV, anime, books, and audiobooks, written by the scrobble.life community and published to the Hive blockchain, so each one is owned by its author and can earn rewards from readers. 60,120 reviews and counting.
Hello! As part of our ongoing efforts to improve both interaction and curation in the Movies and TV Shows Community, this post is one of many to highlight and boost members of the past Day that have Hola cinefilos de Hive! Today I bring you a review of one of the best movies I've seen lately. A real pain, from last year (2024) directed by and starring Jesse Eisenberg is a drama that shows us an honest and sensitive portrait about grief, brotherly bonds, guilt and the human essence.
Hola cinefilos de Hive! El día de hoy les traigo la reseña de una de las mejores películas que he visto últimamente. A Real Pain, del año pasado (2024) dirigida y protagonizada por Jesse Eisenberg es un drama que nos muestra un retrato honesto y sensible sobre el duelo, los vínculos fraternos, la culpa y la esencia humana.
In the world of cinema, where many directors avoid uncomfortable stories, comes a blockbuster entitled “A Real Pain”, written and directed by Jesse Eisenberg, which invites us to face the painful from an intimate, contradictory and very human space. The film narrates the reunion of two cousins, David (played by the director) and Benji (played by Kieran Culkin), who travel to Poland to pay tribute to their deceased grandmother, a Holocaust survivor. What begins as a memorial tour, turns into a very emotional journey, full of somewhat crazy moments, old wounds and questions without certain answers.
The tone of the film veers between comedy and existential drama, which for me is closer to drama because the “comic” moments only reflect wounds in the characters. Eisenberg plays with the uncomfortable, with what can't be said or won't be said, with silence, with those who love each other but don't understand each other and with how difficult it is to grieve. David is a reserved man, very quiet and somewhat anxious; Benji, on the other hand, is unpredictable, sensitive and intense. This contrast makes for an interaction that is as painful as it is funny. Their conversations, gestures and disagreements are filled with a tension that reflects not only personal differences, but also the different ways in which grief and the past can be dealt with.
En el mundo del cine, donde muchos directores evitan las historias incomodas, aparece un peliculón titulada "A Real Pain", escrita y dirigida por Jesse Eisenberg, la cual nos invita a enfrentarnos a lo doloroso desde un espacio íntimo, contradictorio y muy humano. La película narra el reencuentro de dos primos, David (interpretado por el director) y Benji (interpretado por Kieran Culkin), quienes viajan a Polonia para rendir homenaje a su abuela fallecida, una sobreviviente del Holocausto. Lo que comienza como un tour conmemorativo, se convierte en un viaje muy emotivo, lleno de momentos algo locos, heridas viejas y preguntas sin respuestas certeras.
El tono de la película circula entre comedia y drama existencial, lo cual para mi se acerca más al drama porque los momentos "cómicos" solo reflejan heridas en los personajes. Eisenberg juega con lo incomodo, con lo que no se puede decir o no se quiere decir, con el silencio, con los que se quieren, pero no se entienden y con lo difícil que es llevar un duelo. David es un hombre reservado, muy tranquilo y algo ansioso; Benji, en cambio, es impredecible, sensible e intenso. Este contraste da lugar a una interacción que resulta tan dolorosa como divertida. Sus conversaciones, gestos y desacuerdos están llenos de una tensión en la que se refleja no solo las diferencias personales, sino también las diferentes formas en las que se puede lidiar con el duelo y con el pasado.
One of the most relevant aspects of the film is the way it reflects on memory and inherited trauma. After visiting concentration camps, listening to historical data, and sightseeing, they question whether it is really possible to connect with all that past suffering. Benji, in particular, rebels against this experience, he is a bit bothered by the fact that it is merely about tourism for morbid curiosity, leaving aside the emotional part of the people who really lived through all this chaos. It raises a subtle but powerful critique of “trauma tourism”.
Kieran Culkin's performance was brilliant, he is undoubtedly one of the pillars of the film. His performance apart from earning him several major awards, including the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor. He manages to convey what the director wanted; that vulnerability, that messy, euphoric and yet tender personality that is all that makes up the character. From the beginning Eisenberg was convinced that the role would be perfect for an actor who had the essence of Kieran and he wasn't wrong. Eisenberg not only holds the perfect balance as the counterpart, but also demonstrates great maturity as a director. The staging is sober, with warm, gray and somewhat melancholic landscapes that accompany the tone of the story, and along with it Chopin pieces are included, so everything becomes a little more emotional.
Uno de los aspectos que mas tiene relevancia en la película es la forma en la que se reflexiona sobre la memoria y el trauma heredado. Luego de visitar campos de concentración, escuchar datos históricos, y turistear, se cuestionan si es posible realmente conectar con todo ese sufrimiento pasado. Benji, en especial, se rebela contra esa experiencia, le molesta un poco el hecho de que se trate meramente del turismo por morbo o curiosidad, dejando muy de lado la parte emocional de las personas que realmente vivieron todo este caos. Plantea una crítica sutil pero poderosa al “turismo del trauma”.
La actuación de Kieran Culkin fue brillante, es sin duda uno de los pilares de la película. Su interpretación aparte de que le valió varios premios importantes, incluido el Oscar a Mejor Actor de Reparto. Logra transmitir lo que el director quería; esa vulnerabilidad, esa personalidad desordenada, eufórica y a la vez tierna que es todo lo que compone al personaje. Desde el principio Eisenberg estaba convencido de que el papel estaría perfecto para un actor que tuviera la esencia de Kieran y no se equivocó. Eisenberg aparte de que sostiene el equilibrio perfecto como contraparte, también demuestra una gran madurez como director. La puesta en escena es sobria, con paisajes cálidos, grises y algo melancólicos que acompañan el tono de la historia, y junto con ello se incluyen piezas de Chopin, así que todo se torna un poco mas emotivo.
With a running time of 90 minutes, A Real Pain doesn't pretend to solve anything. There is no plot twist, no forced closure. Its strength lies in the ambiguity, in the clash between humor and pain, in the small fissures of family ties. It is a film that talks about what hurts without falling into extreme drama, and that leaves room for us to reflect on our history and be aware of our essence.
If you are interested in films that combine the personal and sentimental with the historical or specifically with what happened in the Holocaust, that do not underestimate the intellectual capacity of the audience and that dare to make us uncomfortable and allow us to cry, this is a gem that you should not miss.
Con una duración de 90 minutos, A Real Pain no pretende solucionar nada. No hay plot twist, ni cierres forzados. Su fuerza está en lo ambiguo, en el choque entre el humor y el dolor, en las pequeñas fisuras de los vínculos familiares. Es una película que habla de lo que duele sin caer en el drama extremo, y que deja espacio para que también podamos reflexionar sobre nuestra historia y estar consientes de nuestra esencia.
Si les llama la atención las películas que combinan lo personal, y lo sentimental con lo histórico o específicamente con lo que se vivió en el holocausto, que no subestiman la capacidad intelectual del público y que se atreven a incomodar y a permitirnos llorar, esta es una joya que no deberían dejar pasar.
As a movie lover and an adventurous soul, I’m very selective when it comes to watching movies. Sometimes, it may not have to do with real life experiences or something we can learn from but something entertaining.
When it comes to my type of movies, I love movies that makes me think far and make me outside of the box or outside of the world. Sometimes, some movies get me carried away and makes me feel like I’m in that world. I’ve noticed that such movies makes me forget the worries of this world while watching them.
I’ve watched so many adventure movies but I feel the one that reasonates more with my soul is titled Slumberland, an American fantasy adventure movie.
Nemo, a young girl whose widowed father, Peter, tells some bedtime stories to every night learns about Flip, her father’s old time partner in one of his stories.
One night, Peter steps out to rescue a boat but lost his life along the line. Carla, a family friend, informs Nemo about the loss of her father and it resulted into Nemo living with her uncle, Philip but these two find it difficult to adjust to each other.
While living with Philip, one night, her toy pig comes to life and Nemo finds herself in slumberland while she’s asleep in real life. In the Slumberland, Nemo meets Flip whom she has heard about in one of her father’s stories.
After her findings, Nemo realizes that Flip has refused to wake up from his long sleep in real life. Eventually, it was found that Flip is Phillip’s alter ego and Nemo uses her last wish to save Flip. On saving Flip, Phillip’s excitement attitude came back to life and he stopped being a boring person.
That didn’t happen as an easy journey. There was a time in the movie where Nemo fell of the boat and was rescued by her uncle, Phillip because he has gotten back his old attitude.
At last, Nemo was able to see her father for the last time in the dream world and she lived a normal life with her uncle Philip again in the waking world.
Are there scenes I love in the movie?
I feel like there is absolutely no scene that is better than the last scene where Nemo and her father, Peter saw each other for the last time.
It kinda makes me think about waking the dead or having a last chance with them. If I could meet the dead again, I’m going to say hi to my grandmother.
I didn’t know the moment when tears rolled out of my eyes. The pain of losing someone can be real and it becomes more crazy when you have a final chance with them but you’re sad that you’ll never get to see them again. I guess that’s where the most tears comes in.
What do I love about the movie?
I love how the movie introduces us to the imaginary world. Do you know how many things the movie made me think about?
At some point, I wished I was Nemo. I just wanted to go to the slumberland and meet some people. They may not be late. They may just be my favorite celebrities or other people who I feel I may not meet in real life but meet them in slumberland.
This kind of movie boosts the creativity of whoever is watching it. The concept of slumberland in the dream is a nice one and that’s what I love most about the movie.
Watching the movie makes you think far. Many times, it may make you think about the impossible. “If I had that opportunity, I will make a request to be the very rich,” that’s what I said to myself.
It influences me in a way that I just want to be Nemo for a short while and make a request that will last me forever. This is a kind of adventure movie that takes you to another adventure in your thoughts.
It’s a fantastic movie and I’ll give it a 9/10 rating. It’s filled with thoughts and emotions. Watch this and you’ll surely enjoy it.
Thank you for reading and this is my entry to CineTV contest.
Hi friends, how are you all? I hope many of you are well. After a long time, I saw a great action movie from the Chinese industry. I have kept this movie in my wishlist to watch for a long time, but haven't seen it for a while. Finally got a long vacation, now I will watch several movies and share them with you. I will share some things about the movie that I saw today.
At the beginning of the movie, a group of people attack a place and kill everyone there. A child is shown trying to run away. The scene changes to a place where a businessman is loading his goods onto a car, a group of terrorists attacks and takes away all his money from the businessman, three of them walk towards the businessman and rescue the businessman from the terrorist group. Those three are the main characters of this movie, meaning the hero of this movie and the other two can be called the hero's associates or friends. This is how the movie started. At the beginning cool and interesting.
This movie is an action movie. But it would be wrong to say only action, there are several suspenseful scenes that you will like very much. This suspense can be seen in Chinese movies, which are liked by the audience. And the story of this movie is very beautiful, I can guarantee you that you will like it from the beginning to the end. This director has proved that such a beautiful movie can be made with such a small budget. The director did not have to use too much space or too many locations to present his events or stories. But the places or locations used are amazing.
Those who have worked in this movie, be it small characters or big characters, have presented their work very well. I liked everyone's performance. Especially in this movie, the action scenes of the hero have been presented, and I like them very much.
Those of you who have seen this movie will agree with me. For those who haven't seen it yet, if you like action movies, you can watch it if you want. In this movie, as you will get action scenes, you will get suspense and twists. All in all, a beautiful movie.
Quien diría que la serie más popular de Netflix acabaría siendo una producción coreana, que traería un concepto fresco, mezclando una especie de battle royale, una sociedad misteriosa detrás e interesantes personajes. Ya pude ver su segunda temporada, que ha elevado la apuesta en la producción. Estrenada a finales del 2024. Dirige Hwang Dong-hyuk.
Who would have thought that Netflix's most popular series would end up being a Korean production, bringing a fresh concept, mixing a kind of battle royale, a mysterious society behind and interesting characters. I was already able to watch its second season, which has upped the ante in production. Premiering at the end of 2024. Directed by Hwang Dong-hyuk.
Sinopsis: Luego de los eventos de la primera temporada, Sung Ki-hoon está obsesionado por descubrir a los creadores del juego, y acabar con ello. Para ello, se aliara con diversos personajes y trazaran varios planes. A su vez, la nueva edición de “el juego del calamar” está apunto de comenzar, y variados nuevos personajes estarán interesados en participar.
Synopsis: After the events of the first season, Sung Ki-hoon is obsessed with uncovering the creators of the game, and putting an end to it. To do so, he teams up with various characters and hatches various plans. At the same time, the new edition of “The Squid Game” is about to begin, and several new characters will be interested in participating.
La temporada está dividida en 2 partes, en donde al comienzo el jugador 456, tratará de buscar a los involucrados en el juego, con ayuda de varios aliados, como Hwang Joon-ho el policía que logró llegar a la isla, en la anterior temporada. La 2da parte, desde el capítulo 3 para adelante, veremos la nueva edición del juego. Donde hay una nueva mezcla de tensión, tragedia, drama humano y unos potenciados juegos infantiles.
The season is divided into 2 parts, where at the beginning, player 456 will try to find those involved in the game, with the help of various allies, such as Hwang Joon-ho, the policeman who managed to reach the island in the previous season. The 2nd part, from chapter 3 onwards, we will see the new edition of the game. Where there is a new mix of tension, tragedy, human drama and some enhanced childish games.
Tiene un buen ritmo y es adictivo, te puedes acabar todos los capítulos rápidamente. Es interesante que le dan más importancia a los pensamiento de los jugadores, con ideas que varían a la anterior temporada, como la autojustificación para un acción irracional.
It has a good rhythm and is addictive, you can finish all the chapters quickly. It is interesting that they give more importance to the thoughts of the players, with ideas that vary from the previous season, such as self-justification for irrational action.
La producción me parece asombrosa, en especial en el tercer juego, el despliegue es increíble. La fotografía y edición sigue realizando un buen papel. Logrado lo que hizo la primera temporada, no se han guardado nada, incluyendo la buena interpretación de los nuevos actores, con unos personajes bastante llamativos o que te permiten empatizar.
I find the production to be amazing, especially in the third game, the roll out is incredible. The photography and editing continues to perform well. Achieved what the first season did, they haven't held anything back, including the good performance of the new actors, with some pretty striking characters or allowing you to empathize.
Una mención final a la música, que nos deja con nuevas canciones y melodías que querrás llevar en tu playlist. Mi canción favorita “To you” de Shin Hae Chul.
A final mention to the music, which leaves us with new songs and tunes you'll want to carry in your playlist. My favorite song “To you” by Shin Hae Chul.
Excelente segunda temporada, y que te deja con altas expectativas por la tercera, estrenada este año.
Excellent second season, and one that leaves you with high expectations for the third season, released this year.
Digging deep into the anime realm, I can say my life and interest in watching anime have been on the rise recently. I don't know why, but I felt the switch happen. I also watch other genres of movies, but now I am more into anime.
I have heard about Naruto and its long episodes, an anime that has been released over ten years. Now, I just have to enjoy it all. But am I prepared for those long and unending episodes?
I felt I should rather watch some other ones pending the time I would be mentally prepared to embark on Naruto’s long episodes.
I stumbled across Vinland Saga. The title wasn't giving the vibes when I got the recommendation from a friend to watch it. It doesn’t sound interesting like Black Clover, or Demon Slayers. But I felt I shouldn’t underrate it yet since it was recommended by a friend.
I furthered by reading the plot and also watching the trailer and I realized it is something I can give a trial of doubt.
Vinland Saga
Vinland Saga is a Japanese anime series that depicts the old Vikings era; its release ran from 2005 till the present. It has an episode of 24 in the first season with a duration of 24 minutes on average.
The plot.
Thorfinn the son of the great warrior “Thor” was on a quest to seek revenge for his father’s death, and this made him render his submission to Askeladd, his father’s killer. He seeks a fair duel with him so he can kill him and take revenge.
Thorfinn lived on with a heavy vengeful spirit and tried as much, but was used by Askelad as a tool towards his achievement. Prince Canute, the son of the Danish kingdom king got sent out to war, so he could be assassinated but instead became a treasure that could change Askelad's life and that of his motherland Wales.
Thorkell the Tall was also an antagonist who betrayed the Danish empire and served as a tool for the Britannia empire. After a fair battle between Thorkell and Askeladds army, Prince Canute showed his true self-worth by becoming the king of the empire. He was able to overcome his fears after he lost his favourite guardian Ragnar to an assassination by Askelad.
Askelad used the Prince to get closer to the king from which he was able to accomplish his mission of killing the king to save his motherland Wales from war. He acted mad and was killed by the prince Canute. Funny enough how Askelad had to become a sacrifice for the prince to get on the throne.
Casts
Thorfinn
He played an amazing role and he is surely one of the main characters of the series. There is no way you won’t want to see more of his acts. His aggressiveness and urge for revenge got him to become a beast he never expected himself to be.
Askeladd
I read somewhere that Askeladd would have been so much appreciated if he didn’t play the role of a villain in the movie. Askeladd got me thinking about what his next move would be, so unpredictable and cunning. He is so ambitious that he is blind to anything other than his mission. He accomplished it even though a lot of lives had to pay for it.
Thorkell
The giant, I just can't take my eyes off him. He is funny and as well stood out from all the others. I just kept on wondering how such a creature could exist. In the end, he took advantage of his stature and became one of the most feared warriors.
In Conclusion, I have finished the first season of the series and I am watching the second series. So ranking it on a scale of 10 I will give it an 8/10. Anyone interested in watching adventure, action, revenge, thriller, and suspense can opt for Vinland Saga.
🎬 Review: La maldición de Hill House — Un terror que se mete bajo la piel 🏚️👻
Soy fan del terror desde siempre 😈, y como muchos sabrán, encontrar una buena película o serie dentro del género es una tarea complicada. Hay mucho contenido, sí, pero la mayoría suele caer en clichés, sustos predecibles o tramas que se desinflan a mitad de camino. Por eso mismo, cuando se estrenó La maldición de Hill House, no me llamó particularmente la atención. Pensé que era otra serie más de fantasmas. La dejé pasar… hasta que, años después, decidí verla por curiosidad. Y vaya sorpresa me llevé. 🙌
The Haunting of Hill House (título original) es una serie de Netflix creada por Mike Flanagan, un director que, en ese momento, no conocía. Y sinceramente, después de ver esta obra, empecé a seguirlo muy de cerca. Flanagan logra lo que muchos intentan y pocos consiguen: hacer terror con alma, con historia, con emociones reales. Esta no es una simple historia de casas embrujadas. Es una historia sobre el trauma, la familia, el duelo y los fantasmas —tanto literales como metafóricos— que nos persiguen a lo largo de la vida. 🥀
La serie es una adaptación (libre) de la novela homónima de Shirley Jackson, publicada en 1959. Esta obra se considera uno de los pilares del terror psicológico del siglo XX, y no es la primera vez que se lleva al cine o la televisión. Sin embargo, la versión de Flanagan toma el material original como punto de partida para crear algo completamente nuevo: una historia moderna, profunda y escalofriante, que mezcla el presente y el pasado con una narrativa fragmentada y envolvente. 🕯️
La trama gira en torno a la familia Crain, que se muda a Hill House con la idea de renovarla y venderla. Pero la casa, claro, tiene otros planes. A lo largo de los episodios, vemos cómo la experiencia en esa mansión va marcando a cada uno de los hermanos, y cómo los traumas de la infancia siguen presentes en su vida adulta. Cada capítulo se enfoca en un personaje, y esto no solo ayuda a desarrollar la historia desde distintos ángulos, sino que nos conecta emocionalmente con ellos. 📖💔
Uno de los grandes aciertos de esta serie es el uso del terror psicológico. No se basa en jump scares gratuitos (aunque algunos tiene, y muy bien logrados), sino en crear una atmósfera inquietante, donde lo sobrenatural se mezcla con el dolor humano. La tensión se construye poco a poco, hasta que llega a puntos realmente angustiosos. No te asusta por lo que ves, sino por lo que imaginas, por lo que sientes que se esconde detrás de cada sombra. 🖤👁️
Y hablando de momentos memorables, no puedo dejar de mencionar la escena del niño que baja al sótano por el ascensor de los lavaplatos (el montaplatos). Esa escena me dejó helado. La forma en que está filmada, la oscuridad, el silencio, y lo que se sugiere más que lo que se muestra… es terror puro. Uno de esos momentos que te hacen pausar la serie y mirar alrededor. 🧒⬇️📦😨
La fotografía, el diseño sonoro, los efectos especiales (muy sutiles, nada exagerado), y la actuación del elenco —especialmente de los niños— están a un nivel altísimo. Es una serie que te atrapa no solo por su historia de terror, sino por su calidad técnica y artística. 🎭🎬
En conclusión, La maldición de Hill House me sorprendió gratamente. Es de esas joyas escondidas que uno descubre tarde, pero que valen cada minuto. Si te gusta el terror que te hace pensar, que te toca el alma, y que te deja con el corazón apretado más allá de los sustos, esta serie es para vos. La recomiendo totalmente. 👏📺🔥
🎬 Review: The Haunting of Hill House — A Horror That Gets Under Your Skin 🏚️👻
I’ve always been a horror fan 😈, and as many know, finding a good movie or series in the genre is no easy task. There’s a ton of content out there, but most of it falls into clichés, predictable scares, or stories that lose steam halfway through. That’s why when The Haunting of Hill House came out, it didn’t really catch my eye. I figured it was just another ghost story. I let it pass… until, years later, I decided to watch it out of curiosity. And what a surprise it was. 🙌
The series, created by Mike Flanagan (who I didn’t know at the time), is a Netflix production that left me hooked. After watching it, I became a fan of his work. Flanagan accomplishes what many try but few succeed at: creating horror with heart, story, and real emotion. This is not just a haunted house story — it’s a tale of trauma, family, grief, and the ghosts —both literal and figurative— that follow us through life. 🥀
It’s (loosely) based on the 1959 novel by Shirley Jackson, a literary horror classic. While the show takes many liberties, it uses the original story as a foundation to build something modern, haunting, and emotionally rich. The narrative weaves between past and present with a fragmented but engaging rhythm. 🕯️
The Crain family moves into Hill House intending to fix it up and sell it. But of course, the house has other intentions. We see how their time in the house leaves a deep mark on each sibling, with childhood traumas still affecting their adult lives. Each episode focuses on a different character, which allows us to connect with them deeply. 📖💔
One of the show’s biggest strengths is its use of psychological horror. It doesn’t rely on cheap jump scares (although there are a few, and they’re great), but instead builds a deeply unsettling atmosphere where the supernatural blends with emotional pain. It’s not about what you see — it’s about what you feel lurking in the shadows. 🖤👁️
And speaking of unforgettable moments, I have to mention the scene with the kid riding the dumbwaiter down to the basement. That scene froze me. The way it was shot, the darkness, the silence, and what’s suggested more than shown… pure horror. It’s one of those scenes where you pause the episode and look around the room. 🧒⬇️📦😨
Everything from the cinematography to the sound design and performances — especially by the child actors — is top-notch. It’s a show that pulls you in with more than scares — it grabs you with its artistic and emotional depth. 🎭🎬
In conclusion, The Haunting of Hill House genuinely surprised me. It’s one of those hidden gems you discover late but is totally worth it. If you enjoy horror that makes you think, touches your soul, and keeps you uneasy for the right reasons, this one’s for you. Totally recommended. 👏📺🔥
I was supposed to wash my car inside today before going on vacation, but the car wash owner had to go somewhere special and canceled. So I stayed home and took advantage of the fact that beta testing of a new game in the DB universe had started. I usually ignore games based on M&A franchises, because most of them are mediocre at best and sold for triple A or even higher. However, this is DB + MOBA, so as a fan of both, I couldn't deny myself this pleasure.
The MOBA genre outside of DotA2 and LoL is generally dead. This is mainly due to imitators copying trends too much. While this didn't apply to the FPP/RTS boom in the '90s (and up until about 2005) or the beginning of 3D games, it does now. The market was sucked in much more, so even small creators could make money by creating a copy of a copy if they tried even the slightest. With open-world games it was a bit better than with MOBA, hero-shooter service games, etc. but it still wasn't the craze that came close to FPP, RTS, 3D. However, if the creators have an idea for a game (or do something different) or base themselves on a well-known brand, they can achieve success. The creators of the DC comics-based MOBA game failed at this trick. Blizzard did too, although they lasted much longer. I don't know the reasons for the failure of the DC game (apart from the fact that it was not very popular). Similarly in the case of Blizzard, with the difference that due to my many years of loyalty to this company, I know several Blizzard-MOBA players whose opinions are consistent with the voices of internet users. The game was too similar to DotA2 / LoL and offered too few new solutions.
The game I am writing about now has a powerful brand behind it. Bigger than Gundam and One Piece, two giant brands and most importantly, more popular in Japan as a whole. Yes, in individual aspects DB is more well-known, but looking at recognition across all age groups etc. DB has long been inferior to OP or Lupin III. Or at least that was the case for most of my life. So they're covered in that regard, but what about the game mechanics? I won't pretend I was skeptical before I started playing. I didn't like the first and second games either, but each subsequent one got better and easier.
The map is illegible, but that's normal. There's a lot going on in MOBA games and you need some practice (+ accustoming your eyesight) to know what to look at and what not to. It gets easier with each subsequent game. Everyone has this problem at the beginning, no matter if they're regular people or experienced players - a lot of my friends who liked DotA / LoL complained about the chaotic battlefield at first. However, in the above games there's a better color scheme, which makes it easier to distinguish character models from the effects of their attacks and elements of the environment. You play 4vs4 on two lines + space between them, something like the jungle in DotA / LoL. Another nice feature is the videos of the two of us finishing off a character.
We don't waste time either. We choose a Tank, DMG dealer or Support hero, fast exp and fight. From what I see, Bandai has developed the formula with 2 towers and added various variables + mechanics. In general, it looks like in a classic MOBA game - we have to push at least 1 line and destroy the main building in the center of the Base. There are no items, skills are automatically unlocked with level up. Matches lasted a few minutes or a dozen. Even when we lost most of a given match, we managed to rebound and win a few times. The same in the other direction, we dominated a few times at the beginning and in the middle of matches, only to end up as losers in the end.
I didn't pay attention to the character balance, it seems pretty good to me. Some characters, like Freezer, have different mechanics than the other characters. Something like Meepo from DotA, only instead of his clones, he had Zarbon and Dodoria at his disposal. Did I like the game? It's neither exceptionally good nor exceptionally bad. It works as a time-waster, for 30-60 minutes after a hard day, when we want to relax. Even if we get a worse team, we'll start another match after a few minutes. I probably won't buy this game, but if it was for, say, PLN 100 (I already know it won't be that cheap xD) or free + paid skins, why not?
As for the DLC for W3... At first I didn't believe it, because Eurogamer is not a very reliable source. However, I know the source of this information. I don't really like Rock Alone because it is extremely bland and not very reliable, but it was thanks to him that I met Boris. I don't watch them regularly, until about half a year after the premiere of CP2077, I saw most of their episodes. Why am I talking about them for so long? Because Boris has very good sources inside CDPRed. All the important information he talked about before the game's premiere turned out to be true. And he didn't say it right before the premiere, but long before it, probably 6 months before December 10th.
Creating such an add-on shouldn't be a problem. It's not a common trend, but it does happen. After all, what's the problem with taking the code of an old game, improving it, adding a few new things and selling it? This is what the creators of AoE 2 did 2 or 3 times. Yes, the Red Engine is problematic, but the one for W3 is more stable than the CP 2077 version. Additionally, W3 is not affected by the argument I often bring up - financial issues. The game is still popular, people still play it and feel a sense of nostalgia for it. The feeling is not as strong as in the case of DBZ, but people are just as "heated up" for the Polish game. I've seen too many positive comments. Recently, the hype for the fourth part started to build, so many people will return to the third. Mods will also add theirs - CDPRED wants to develop modding of their game on consoles as well. Money is literally lying on the street, all they have to do is make good quality products and grab it. The company doesn't lose much from this - they will delegate some nerd who will check if the plot is consistent with the lore and that's it. Or maybe a second guy who will take care of making sure they don't break anything in the code. Maybe thanks to this, the people from Fool's Theory will make an add-on to CP2077 in a few years? It happened a few times in history that smaller studios got a well-known brand and thanks to that they became more popular.
The only thing that surprised me was the fact that the company wants to release a remake of W1 after the premiere of W4. I would do it earlier, especially since the production process started earlier. I think it was 2 or even 3 years ago that I saw the first information about this remake. Especially since W4 in my opinion will come out the earliest for Christmas in 2027, and that is still a pretty optimistic date in my opinion. I'd bet more on April/May 2028. But marketing is relentless - it's better to release an unfinished product for the holidays, make money on it, add a few crap for free than release a polished product for the holidays with the Bunny. Why? Money. This is a period that is rooted in our consciousness as a "magical time". Some people will want to buy themselves a gift, if only because of heavy shopping and work before the holidays. Some will buy it for their loved ones - since I'm from Poland, I know dozens of situations in which a woman / man bought their better / worse half a game as a gift. Besides, it looks nice at the end of the fiscal year, which is around April. Such a huge bonus. I don't know how it will be, but if I had to bet money, there's a bigger chance for it than for the DLC for CP2077, which I wrote about recently.
Miałem umyć dzisiaj auto od środka przez wyjazdem na urlop, ale właściciel myjni musiał gdzieś specjalnie pojechać i odwołał wizytę. Dlatego zostałem w domu i skorzystałem z faktu, że rozpoczęły się beta-testy nowej gry w uniwersum DB. Z reguły ignoruję gry oparte na franczyzach M&A, bo większość z nich, to w najlepszym razie przeciętne produkty sprzedawane w cenie triple A lub nawet wyższej. Jednakże to DB + gra MOBA, więc jako fan obu rzeczy nie mogłem sobie odmówić tej przyjemności.
Gatunek MOBA poza DotA2 i LoL jest generalnie martwy. Wynika to głównie z tego, że naśladowcy za bardzo kopiują trendy. O ile w przypadku boomu na gry FPP / RTS w latach'90 (i do mniej więcej 2005), czy początku gier 3D to nie obowiązuje, o tyle teraz już tak. Ssanie rynku było znacznie większe, więc nawet mali twórcy mogli zarobić na stworzeniu kopii z kopii, jeśli postarali się chociażby w najmniejszym stopniu. Z grami typu open-world było trochę lepiej niż z MOBA, grami-usługami hero-shooter etc. ale ciągle nie był to szał zbliżony do FPP, RTS, 3D. Jednakże jeśli twórcy mają pomysł na grę (względnie zrobią coś innego) lub opierają się na znanej marce, mogą osiągnąć sukces. Twórcom gry MOBA opartej na komiksach DC nie udała się ta sztuczka. Blizzardowi też, choć wytrzymali dużo dłużej. Nie znam przyczyn klęski gry DC (poza faktem, że cieszyła się niską popularnością). Podobnie w przypadku Blizzarda, z tą różnicą że przez swoją wieloletnią wierność tej firmie, znam kilku graczy Blizzard-MOBA, których opinie są zbieżne z głosami internautów. Gra była zbyt podobna do DotA2 / LoL i oferowała zbyt mało nowych rozwiązań.
Gra o której teraz piszę ma za sobą potężną markę. Większą niż Gundam i One Piece, dwie gigantyczne marki i co najważniejsze, popularniejsze w Japonii jako całokształt. Tak, w poszczególnych aspektach DB jest bardziej znane, ale patrząc na rozpoznawalność we wszystkich grupach wiekowych etc. DB od dawna ustępuje OP, czy Lupin III. A przynajmniej tak było przez większość mojego życia. Zatem w tej kwestii są zabezpieczeni, co z mechaniką gry? Nie będę udawał, byłem sceptyczny przed rozpoczęciem gry. Pierwszy i drugi mecz też nie przypadł mi do gustu, ale z każdym kolejnym było lepiej i łatwiej.
Mapa jest nieczytelna, ale to normalne. W grach MOBA dużo się dzieje i trzeba trochę praktyki (+ przyzwyczaić wzrok), by wiedzieć na co patrzeć, a na co nie. Z każdą kolejną rozgrywką jest łatwiej. Każdy ma ten problem na początku, nie ważne czy zwykli ludzie, czy doświadczeni gracze - mnóstwo moich kolegów, którzy polubili DotA / LoL, narzekali początkowo na chaotyczne pole bitwy. Aczkolwiek w w/w grach jest lepsza kolorystyka, dzięki czemu łatwiej odróżnić modele postaci od efektów ich ataków i elementów otoczenia. Gra się 4vs4 na dwóch liniach + przestrzeń między nimi, coś jak dżungla w DotA / LoL. Fajną zaletą są również filmiki, jak we dwójkę dobijamy jakąś postać.
Nie marnujemy też czasu. Wybieramy bohatera typu Tank, DMG dealer lub Support, szybki exp i walka. Z tego co widzę, Bandai rozwinęło formułę z 2 wieżami i dodali różne zmienne + mechaniki. Generalnie wygląda to tak jak w klasycznej grze MOBA - musimy przepchnąć przynajmniej 1 linię i zniszczyć główny budynek w centrum Bazy. Przedmiotów nie ma, skille automatycznie odblokowują się wraz z lvl up. Mecze trwały parę minut lub kilkanaście. Nawet jak przegrywaliśmy większość danego meczu, to parę razy udało nam się odbić i zwyciężyć. To samo w drugą stronę, kilka razy dominowaliśmy na początku i środku meczy, by na końcu skończyć jako przegrani.
Nie zwracałem uwagi na balans postaci, wydaje mi się, że jest w miarę nieźle. Niektóre postacie, jak np. Freezer, mają odmienną mechanikę od pozostałych postaci. Coś jak Meepo z DotA, tylko zamiast swoich klonów, miał do dyspozycji Zarbona i Dodorię. Czy gra mi się spodobała? Nie jest ani wybitnie dobra ani wybitnie słaba. Sprawdza się jako zapychacz czasu, tak na 30-60 minut po ciężkim dniu, gdy chcemy się zrelaksować. Nawet jak trafimy na gorszą ekipę, to po paru minutach zaczniemy kolejny mecz. Raczej nie będę kupował tej gry, ale jakby była za powiedzmy 100 PLN (już wiem, że nie będzie tak tania xD) lub darmowa + płatne skiny, to czemu nie?
Jeśli chodzi o DLC do W3... Początkowo nie wierzyłem w to, bo Eurogamer jest średnio wiarygodnym źródłem. Jednakże znam źródło tej informacji. Niespecjalnie lubię Rock Alone z uwagi na to, że jest wybitnie bezpłciowy i średnio rzetelny, ale to dzięki niemu poznałem Borysa. Nie oglądam ich regularnie, mniej-więcej do pół roku po premierze CP2077, widziałem większość ich odcinków. Czemu tak długo o nich opowiadam? Bo Borys ma bardzo dobre źródła wewnątrz CDPRed. Wszystkie ważne informacje, o których mówił przed premierą gry, okazały się być prawdziwe. A nie mówił tego tuż przed premierą, tylko na długo przed nią, chyba 6 miesięcy przed 10 grudnia.
Stworzenie takiego dodatku nie powinno stanowić problemu. Nie jest to częsty trend, ale zdarza się. W końcu co to za problem wziąć kod starej gry, poprawić go, dodać parę nowych rzeczy i sprzedać? Tak zrobili twórcy AoE 2 ze 2 lub 3 razy.Tak, Red Engine jest problematyczny, ale ten dotyczący W3 jest stabilniejszy niż wersja CP 2077. Dodatkowo W3 nie dotyczy argument, o którym często mówię - kwestie finansowe. Gra nadal jest popularna, ciągle w nią grają oraz czują wobec niej uczucie nostalgii. Uczucie nie jest tak silne, co w przypadku DBZ, ale ludzie są równie mocno "nagrzani" na polską grę. Widziałem zbyt wiele pozytywnych komentarzy. Niedawno temu z kolei rozpoczęło się rozkręcanie hype'u na czwartą część, więc wielu ludzi wróci do trzeciej. Swoje dodadzą też mody - CDPRED chce rozwinąć modowanie swojej gry również na konsolach. Pieniądze dosłownie leżą na ulicy, wystarczy zrobić produkty niezłej jakości i go zgarnąć. Firma niewiele na tym traci - oddelegują jakiegoś nerda, który sprawdzi, czy fabuła jest zgodna z lore i tyle. No ewentualnie drugiego gościa, który zajmie się dbaniem o to, by nic nie zepsuli w kodzie. Może dzięki temu ludzie z firmy Fool's Theory zrobią za kilka lat add-on do CP2077? Zdarzyło się kilka razy w historii, że mniejsze studia dostały znaną markę i dzięki temu stali się popularniejsi.
Jedyne co mnie zdziwiło, to fakt, że firma chce wydać remake W1 po premierze W4. Ja bym to zrobił wcześniej, tym bardziej, że proces produkcyjny rozpoczął się wcześniej. Chyba 2 lub nawet 3 lata temu widziałem pierwszą informację o tym remake'u. Tym bardziej, że W4 wg mnie wyjdzie najszybciej na święta Bożego Narodzenia w 2027, a to i tak dość optymistyczny termin wg mnie. Stawiałbym bardziej na kwiecień / maj 2028. No ale marketing jest nieubłagany - lepiej wydać niedopracowany produkt na święta, zarobić na nim, dodać parę pierdół za darmo niż wydać dopracowany produkt na święta z Króliczkiem. Czemu? Kasa. To jest okres, który jest zakorzeniony w naszej świadomości jako "magiczny czas". Część ludzi zechce zrobić sobie prezent, choćby z powodu ciężkich zakupów i pracy przed świętami. Część kupi go dla swoich bliskich - jako że jestem z Polski, to znam kilkadziesiąt sytuacji, w których kobieta / facet kupili swojej gorszej / lepszej połówce grę w formie prezentu. Poza tym ładnie to wygląda na koniec roku fiskalnego, który jest w okolicach kwietnia. Taki olbrzymi bonus. Nie wiem, jak będzie, ale gdybym miał obstawiać pieniądze, to jest na to większa szansa niż na DLC do CP2077, o którym niedawno temu pisałem.
Hello Hive friends, I hope you're all doing well today. This time I want to share with you all my personal thoughts on a movie that was on everyone's lips a while back. I'll tell you about "The Menu." Let's see, the name is kind of simple, isn't it? But believe me, there's nothing simple about it... imagine this: a small group of, let's say... interesting people go to a super exclusive, but ridiculously remote island. Or, what for? Well, for dinner, obviously! But not just any dinner, eh, we're talking about a once-in-a-lifetime tasting menu!, created by Chef Julian Slowik himself, played by the one and only Ralph Fiennes... yes, Voldemort himself!, but now, instead of wands, he brings knives and culinary art... the guest list is truly varied, and that's what makes it fascinating from the start... we have couples trying to rekindle the spark, groups of friends who clearly have money to spare, and they've also included people from the industry, from the scene, imagine food critics, the kind who with one review can make or break a restaurant, and even an actor, one of those that no one remembers anymore, clinging to his past glories.
It’s like a “who’s who” of people you want to watch right now… from the start, the film immerses you in a super intriguing atmosphere, it’s like a dark comedy, but at the same time it leaves you thinking, it unsettles you… visually it’s crazy! The way they film the food, wow, you almost put your hand through the screen to grab a piece, and you know something weird is going on! And the sound? It scares you… everything is clear, precise, making you notice every clink of cutlery, every spark in the kitchen, it really creates an atmosphere like… I don’t know, have you seen those augmented reality things? It’s like everything is too perfect, which puts you on alert.
Hola amigos de Hive, espero que estén súper bien el día de hoy, en esta ocasión quiero compartir con todos ustedes mi opiniones personales sobre una película que estuvo en boca de muchas personas hace un tiempo, les hablaré de: "The Menu" a ver, el nombre así como que simplecito, ¿no? Pero créanme, aquí no hay nada de simple.. imagínense esto: un grupito de gente, digamos... interesante, que va para una isla súper exclusiva, pero ridículamente alejada, o y para que? Pues para cenar, obvio! Pero no cualquier cenita, eh, estamos hablando de un menú degustación único en la vida!, creado por el mismísimo Chef Julian Slowik, interpretado por el único e inigualable Ralph Fiennes.. sí, El mismísimo Voldemort!, pero ahora, en vez de varitas, trae cuchillos y arte culinario.. la lista de invitados es una verdadera variada, y eso es lo que la hace fascinante desde el inicio.. tenemos parejitas tratando de revivir la chispa, grupos de amigos que se les nota que les sobra la plata, y ahí también metieron gente del medio, del ambiente, imagínense críticos de comida, de esos que con una reseña te levantan o te destruyen un restaurante, y hasta un actor de esos que ya nadie se acuerda, aferrándose a sus glorias pasadas.
Es como un "quién es quién" de gente que al mismo tiempo quieres observar.. desde el principio, la película te mete en un ambiente súper intrigante, es como una comedia negra, pero a la vez te deja pensando, te inquieta.. visualmente es una locura! La forma en que graban la comida, wow, que uno casi mete la mano en la pantalla para agarrar un pedazo, y eso que uno sabe que algo raro está pasando! ¿Y el sonido? Te asusta.. todo nítido, preciso, que te hace notar cada tintineo de cubiertos, cada chispa en la cocina, de verdad que te crea una atmósfera como de... no sé, ¿vieron esas cosas de realidad aumentada? Es como si todo fuera demasiado perfecto, lo que te pone en alerta.
Speaking of genres, this is a real rice pudding. It's a strange mix. It's a dark comedy, but a BLACK one. But it also has a touch of social criticism, especially when it gets into the whole gourmet food thing and the people who take it too seriously—you know, those critics who analyze every little green leaf and talk to you about "mouthfeel" as if it were the most profound thing in the universe. The film goes all in on that world, and it does so in a way that makes you happy, but it doesn't end there, because just when you think you've understood that it's a critique of wealthy people, things change completely. There are moments that truly veer towards the thriller side, they even flirt with horror! I mean, let's see, there are dead people! Not in a funny or ridiculous way, no, no... things get tense, anyway. I think in the end it leans more towards a thriller than pure horror.
It's more about how you feel inside, that anguish it gives you, than about the sudden jump scares, which for me, are much more effective. And Ralph Fiennes? He's ABSOLUTELY incredible as Chef Slowik, offering us an intensity that makes your hair stand on end. He's not constantly shouting or hitting people, it's all in his gaze, in the way he stands, in the way he speaks. He's so controlled, so precise, he's like a robot... he dominates the kitchen, he dominates the restaurant, he dominates everything... every time he appears, you feel the tension rising and rising. He's like a spring about to explode, ready to release something... and you're there, waiting to see what's going to happen, he's the perfect villain, but not one of those cartoonish ones... he's fucking real, and that's what makes him even more terrifying.
Hablando de géneros, esto es un verdadero arroz con mango, es una mezcla rara, es comedia negra, pero NEGRA. pero también tiene ahí una onda de crítica social, sobre todo cuando se mete con toda esta movida de la comida gourmet y la gente que se lo toma demasiado en serio, ya saben, esos críticos que se ponen a analizar cada hojita verde y te hablan de la "textura en boca" como si fuera la cosa más profunda del universo. La película le apunta con todo a ese mundo, y lo hace de una manera que te da gusto, pero ahí no queda la cosa, porque justo cuando uno piensa que ya entendió que es una crítica a la gente con plata, la cosa cambia por completo. Hay momentos que de verdad se van para el lado del thriller, hasta coquetean con el terror! O sea, a ver, ¡hay muertos! no de una forma chistosa o ridícula, no, no.. la cosa se pone tensa, igual, creo que al final tira más para el thriller que para el terror puro.
Es más sobre cómo te sientes por dentro, esa angustia que te da, que sobre los sustos de golpe, que para mí, es mucho más efectivo. ¿Y Ralph Fiennes? Está ABSOLUTAMENTE increíble como el Chef Slowik nos ofrecen intensidad que te pone los pelos de punta, no anda gritando ni pegando golpes todo el tiempo, todo está en su mirada, en cómo se para, en cómo habla. Es tan controlado, tan preciso, que parece un robot.. domina la cocina, domina el restaurante, domina todo.. cada vez que aparece, sientes cómo la tensión sube y sube. Es como un resorte a punto de estallar, listo para soltar algo… y uno ahí, esperando a ver qué va a pasar, es el villano perfecto, pero no de esos de caricatura.. es jodidamente real, y eso es lo que lo hace aún más aterrador.
We also have Anya Taylor-Joy, who plays Margot. She’s just like us normal people. She’s there with Nicholas Holt’s character, Tyler, who is basically your typical intense rich kid, obsessing over every detail, mentioning chefs like they’re gods, and being, honestly, a bit of a pain. Tyler is HAPPY to be there; for him, it’s like going to the Grammys for food. But Margot? She feels out of place from the moment she arrives. She’s not from that rich people world, she doesn’t understand why they give so much thought to every bite… honestly, thank God for her character! She’s the one who questions what we’re all thinking, the one who sees through the clown act, she’s level-headed, she’s smart, and she becomes our grounding ground in this situation that’s getting increasingly weird and murky.
They explain things to her, and so they explain them to us, the ones watching, making her someone super important to connect with the story, you kind of take her side because everyone else around her is like... on another wavelength, totally disconnected from reality... visually, like I told you, it's amazing, the photography is on another level... they get stuck showing the food in almost sensual close-ups, which make it look incredibly appetizing and, at the same time, a little disturbing. It's like, is this art? Or what? The way they show the kitchen, all stainless steel and straight lines, compared to the dining room, which is all elegant and minimalist, creates a contrast that leaves you thinking... the music, ugh! It's incredible, it's not your typical movie music, more like... ambient sounds... they use music and sound effects to highlight the culinary aspect, so you see the art in the food, but also to create tension.
There are moments when the music swells as a dish is introduced, almost as if it’s a super important thing, but then it suddenly changes and becomes more menacing. It’s incredibly effective, really. What blew my mind was the social critique… it’s not just about people believing themselves to be superior because of food, it’s a bigger critique of elitism, of pretentious people, of people who are so caught up in their own world that they forget about, well, everything else. Nicholas Holt’s character is a perfect way to show this… he represents those critics who are so busy analyzing, picking apart everything and judging, that they totally miss the point. They think they understand the art of cooking because they can write about it, but in truth they wouldn’t be able to create anything themselves, and the film leaves you thinking that this kind of critique, this disconnect…
También tenemos a Anya Taylor-Joy, que hace de Margot, ella es como nosotros, la gente normal, está ahí con el personaje de Nicholas Holt, Tyler, que es, básicamente, el típico niño rico intenso, obsesionado con cada detalle, mencionando chefs como si fueran dioses y siendo, la verdad, un poco insoportable, Tyler está FELIZ de estar ahí; para él es como ir a los Gramys de la comida. ¿Pero Margot? Ella se nota fuera de lugar desde que llega, no es de ese mundo de gente rica, no entiende por qué le dan tanta vuelta a cada mordisco.. honestamente, ¡gracias a Dios por su personaje! Ella es la que pregunta lo que todos nosotros estamos pensando, la que se da cuenta de la payasada, es sensata, es inteligente, y se convierte en nuestro cable a tierra en esta situación que se pone cada vez más rara y turbia.
A ella le explican las cosas, y así nos las explican a nosotros, los que estamos viendo, convirtiéndola en alguien súper importante para conectar con la historia, uno de una se pone del lado de ella porque todos los demás a su alrededor están como… en otra onda, desconectados de la realidad total.. visualmente, como ya les dije, es una pasada, la fotografía es de otro nivel.. se quedan pegados mostrando la comida en unos primer planos casi sensuales, que te la hacen ver increíblemente apetecible y, a la vez, un poco inquietante. Es como, ¿esto es arte? ¿O qué onda? La forma en que muestran la cocina, toda de acero inoxidable y líneas rectas, comparada con el comedor, que es todo elegante y minimalista, crea un contraste que te deja pensando.. la música, ¡uff! Es increíble, no es la típica música de película ed más como… sonidos ambientales.. usan la música y los efectos de sonido para resaltar lo culinario, para que veas el arte en la comida, pero también para crear tensión.
Hay momentos en que la música sube de volumen cuando presentan un plato, casi como si fuera algo súper importante, pero luego cambia de repente y se vuelve más amenazante, es increíblemente efectivo, de verdad, lo que a mí me voló la cabeza fue la crítica social.. no es solo sobre gente que se cree superior por la comida, es una crítica más grande al elitismo, a la gente pretenciosa, a la gente que está tan metida en su mundo que se olvida de… bueno, de todo lo demás. El personaje de Nicholas Holt es perfecto para mostrar esto.. representa a esos críticos que están tan ocupados analizando, separando cada cosa y juzgando, que se pierden totalmente lo importante, ellos piensan que entienden el arte de la cocina porque pueden escribir sobre ella, pero en verdad no serían capaces de crear nada ellos mismos, y la película te deja pensando que este tipo de crítica, esta desconexión..
And the plot... well, without spoiling too much, things start to get really weird... really weird, right? Because as the night progresses, and dish after dish is brought out, you realize that it's not just good food here... Chef Slowik has... other plans, and plans that leave you thinking... the guests start to realize that they're not there just to fill their bellies; they're part of something much bigger, much darker. There are surprises, and definitely a feeling that something bad is going to happen, which haunts you the entire movie, yes, there's even a "surprise dish," so to speak. Let's just say it's a moment you won't easily forget... it's a key point that changes your entire perspective on the movie. Honestly, when I started watching it, I had no idea what to expect.
The trailers looked interesting, but kind of confusing... I thought it was going to be more of a jump-scare horror movie, or maybe a bit more of a comedy, but the movie completely exceeded my expectations. It's smarter, has more twists, and leaves you much more uneasy than I imagined. It's one of those movies that stays in your head... one you want to talk about and analyze with someone. So, what score do I give it? I give "The Menu" an 8.5/10. It's not perfect, maybe the ending is a little cliché, but overall, it's a brutal experience! It's entertaining, it keeps you tense, it makes you think, and it's really unlike anything I've seen before. If you're looking for something different, something that keeps you glued to your seat and makes you think for a while, you have to see "The Menu," although you might not go on an empty stomach... and well, that's it. Have you seen this movie? What did you think? Tell me. We'll see you in the next reviews, take care of yourselves, bye!
Y la trama.. a ver, sin spoilearles mucho, la cosa empieza a ponerse rarísima.. pero rarísima en serio, ¿eh? Porque a medida que avanza la noche, y van sacando plato tras plato, uno se da cuenta de que aquí no hay solo comida rica.. el Chef Slowik tiene... otros planes, y planes que te dejan pensando.. los invitados empiezan a caer en cuenta de que no están ahí solo para llenar la panza; son parte de algo mucho más grande, mucho más oscuro. Hay sorpresas, y definitivamente una sensación de que algo feo va a pasar, que te persigue toda la película, sí, hasta hay un "plato sorpresa", por decirlo de alguna manera. Digamos que es un momento que no se te va a olvidar fácil.. es un punto clave que te cambia toda la perspectiva de la película, la verdad, cuando la empecé a ver, no tenía ni idea de qué esperar.
Los trailers se veían interesantes, pero medio confusos.. pensé que iba a ser más terror del susto fácil, o capaz algo más de comedia, pero la película superó mis expectativas por completo. Es más inteligente, tiene más vueltas de tuerca, y te deja mucho más inquieto de lo que me imaginaba, es de esas películas que te quedan en la cabeza.. de las que quieres hablar y analizar con alguien. Así que, ¿qué puntaje le pongo? A "The Menu" le doy un 8.5/10, no es perfecta, capaz que el final se va un poquito a lo cliché, pero en general, es una experiencia ¡brutal! Es entretenida, te mantiene tenso, te hace pensar, y de verdad que no se parece a algo que ya haya visto.. si andan buscando algo diferente, algo que los tenga pegados al asiento y los haga pensar un rato, tienen que ver "The Menu", aunque, capaz que no vayan con el estómago vacío.. y bueno, eso es todo, han visto esta peli? Que es pareció? Cuéntenme. Nos veremos en las próximas reseñas, cuídense mucho, byebye!
Tell me... have you seen this movie? Has it caught your attention? Tell me what you thought of this review with my opinion, and tell me if it has made you want to watch this movie. You can leave me in the comments your recommendations for future publications! 😊
Cuéntame.. ¿Has visto esta pelicula? Te ha llamado un poquito la atención? Dime que te pareció esta reseña con mi opinión, y dime si te han dado ganas de ver esta pelicula. Puedes dejarme en los comentarios tus recomendaciones para las próximas publicaciones!! 😊
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Written by: George F. Slavin & Stanley Adams
Directed by: Jud Taylor
Running Time: 50 minutes
In 1968, the same year that Star Trek: The Original Series (TOS) entered its third and final season, the Stanford biologist Paul Ehrlich published The Population Bomb, a polemic that would reverberate through the latter half of the 20th century with apocalyptic urgency. Ehrlich’s thesis—that unchecked human population growth would precipitate ecological collapse, mass starvation, and societal ruin—struck a nerve in an era grappling with Cold War anxieties, environmental degradation, and the spectre of nuclear annihilation. His prescriptions were as radical as they were chilling: immediate, draconian measures to reduce global population, including forced sterilisation, economic coercion, and even the withholding of aid to nations refusing to comply. These ideas, though controversial, seeped into the intellectual and political mainstream, influencing environmentalist movements, technocratic elites, and transhumanist thinkers, while manifesting in real-world policies such as China’s One Child Policy (1979–2015) and Indira Gandhi’s mass sterilisation campaigns in India during the 1975 Emergency. Science fiction, ever a mirror to societal fears, absorbed Ehrlich’s dread like a sponge, producing a deluge of dystopian narratives—from the overcrowded megacities of Soylent Green (1973) to the eugenicist regimes of Logan’s Run (1976). It is within this cultural milieu that The Mark of Gideon emerges, a TOS episode that attempts, with mixed results, to grapple with the existential weight of overpopulation, only to falter under the burden of its own conceptual limitations.
The episode’s origins lie in the pen of Stanley Adams, an actor best remembered by Star Trek fans for his comedic turn as Cyrano Jones, the itinerant trader of “troublesome tribbles” in the beloved Season 2 instalment The Trouble with Tribbles. That earlier story had treated overpopulation as a farcical premise: a species reproducing so rapidly it threatens to engulf a space station in a tide of fuzzy, purring chaos. Yet Adams’ son, motivated by genuine concern over Earth’s demographic trajectory, pushed his father to confront the issue with greater seriousness. Collaborating with George F. Slavin, Adams transformed this familial dialogue into a script that sought to blend TOS’s didactic sci-fi ethos with Ehrlichian alarmism. The result, however, is a narrative that oscillates uneasily between earnest allegory and narrative incoherence, undercut by the constraints of a shrinking budget and a studio increasingly indifferent to the series’ creative potential.
Plot-wise, The Mark of Gideon opens with the Enterprise orbiting the planet Gideon, a world long isolated despite its apparent paradisiacal qualities. The Gideonians, hitherto xenophobic, abruptly seek Federation membership—a shift that prompts Captain Kirk to lead a diplomatic landing party. Almost immediately, the plot thickens: Kirk vanishes mid-beamdown, his absence denied by Hodin (David Hurst), the Gideonian ambassador, who insists the transporter malfunctioned. Spock, eager to investigate, is stymied by Federation bureaucracy and Hodin’s obstructive diplomacy—a subplot that strains credulity, given the Enterprise’s usual autonomy in crisis scenarios. Meanwhile, Kirk awakens aboard what appears to be a derelict Enterprise, populated only by the enigmatic Odona (Sharon Acker), a woman who claims ignorance of her own circumstances. The twist, when it arrives, is both macabre and muddled: Gideon, we learn, is not a paradise but a planet suffocating under the weight of its own overpopulation, its surface teeming with billions of inhabitants forced into perpetual motion to avoid suffocation. To preserve their society’s cohesion, the Gideonians have engineered a replica of the Enterprise as a quarantine zone for Kirk, whose germs would serve as a population-control pathogen.
At first glance, The Mark of Gideon is a passable entry in TOS’s uneven third season. Director Jud Taylor—a veteran actor-turned-director—manages to inject visual flair into the proceedings, particularly in the hauntingly empty corridors of the simulated Enterprise, a setting that evokes both isolation and existential disorientation. The Gideonian costumes, with their organic, almost fungal textures, hint at a culture shaped by overcrowding, while the use of negative space in key scenes underscores the paradox of a “paradise” overflowing with life yet devoid of personal freedom. Yet these aesthetic merits cannot compensate for the script’s foundational flaws, which accumulate like compound interest on a bad loan. Chief among these is the implausibility of the Gideonians’ machinations: why construct an elaborate replica of the Enterprise to isolate Kirk when a secure medical facility—or even direct negotiation—would suffice? The deception feels less like a narrative necessity and more like a cost-cutting exercise, a means to reuse existing sets rather than invest in new ones. Similarly, the Federation’s sudden descent into paralysing red tape—a recurring theme in the series’ final season—serves no purpose beyond artificially extending the plot, undermining the franchise’s core ethos of pragmatic problem-solving.
The episode’s climax, in which Kirk offers contraception as a humane alternative to biological warfare, only deepens its contradictions. The Gideonians reject this proposal on the grounds that their cultural taboos forbid birth control, a resolution that rings hollow given the script’s failure to establish the specifics of Gideonian ideology. Moreover, Kirk’s solution feels glib—a deus ex machina that reduces a complex socio-political crisis to a matter of individual choice, as if access to contraceptives alone could dismantle centuries of cultural inertia.
Sharon Acker’s Odona, meanwhile, epitomises the episode’s narrative disarray. Cast as both damsel-in-distress and accomplice to the Gideonian scheme, her character oscillates between agency and passivity, never settling into a coherent arc. Acker, whose prior role in Point Blank (1967) showcased her talent for conveying moral ambiguity, is given little to work with beyond the trope of the “tragic beauty” trapped in a dystopian system. Her chemistry with William Shatner’s Kirk is negligible, their exchanges lacking the spark of earlier TOS romances, and her eventual fate underscores the episode’s indifference to female characters as anything other than narrative props. Odona, like the episode itself, becomes a cautionary tale: a reminder that even the most pressing themes can be squandered by lazy writing and underdeveloped characterisation.
In sum, The Mark of Gideon is a textbook example of Star Trek’s third-season struggles: an episode burdened by ambition yet shackled by compromise, a story that gestures toward profound ethical questions but lacks the courage—or the budget—to explore them with rigour. Its engagement with overpopulation is both timely and timid, a reflection of 1960s anxieties that feels oddly disconnected from the franchise’s optimistic vision of the future. Where Ehrlich’s The Population Bomb sought to shock readers into action, The Mark of Gideon shocks only through its narrative ineptitude, a cautionary tale not about demographic collapse but about the perils of conflating moral urgency with artistic laziness. For all its lofty intentions, the episode remains a footnote in the Star Trek canon—a reminder that even the most enlightened sci-fi can falter when ideology outpaces execution.
Hello movie lovers and members of cinetv community. It’s another week for the cinetv prompt and this time we are to talk about a film that deals with lots of adventures. The reason why I’m happy about this week prompt is because there was an adventure film I just watched, an animation with the voice character from one of the most famous movie of all time “Pirate of the Caribbean” but that’s not the movie I’m talking about, I’m talking about
Yeah, that’s just the title Rango. Honestly, I was just watching Tv and I saw the movie on my dstv, I decided to give it a try and it was all worth it. Now let’s heard to the review.
After doing my search about "Rango" because I always do my research about a movie after I finish watching it, I discovered Rango is a modern classic that has aged like a fine wine, that is, no matter what year you watch it, it would still give you that fresh feeling of those that watched it back then. It was released in 2011,and this animated western film is filled with comedy and adventure. The film has become a beloved favorite among both kids and adults. The movie tells the story of Rango, a chameleon who finds himself in the dusty town of Dirt, where he becomes the unlikely sheriff.
The storyline is engaging and full of surprises. The film started of with Rango, voiced by Johnny Depp, he is a chameleon who's lost his sense of purpose. After accidentally ending up in Dirt, he becomes the town's sheriff and must navigate a complex web of corruption and danger.
How did he became the town sheriff, it was all lies and luck on his side. After lying to the people of the town about his great feets outside of the town, how he killed bandit and saved a town with one bullet, the town people believed in him and then the biggest predator attacked “The Hawk” Everyone went hiding but Rango didn’t know why until he was chased by the hawk. He ran and in the attempt to save himself with his gun from a rope that was binding him down, he shot the rope but the bullet went else were, bouncing from one place to another until it hit a big iron that fell on the hawk. One bullet. The town people praise him and they made him the town sheriff.
Along the way, he befriends a variety of quirky characters, among this characters are some wreaked one like Beans, a tough desert tortoise, and Rattlesnake Jake, a menacing western diamondback rattlesnake.
The Adventures
After Rango became the town sheriff, they were hit with another disaster, the last water that the town people rely on for survival was stolen and no one knows who did it. With Rango as the Sheriff, they set out to claim their water back and this was a whole new adventure for them.
The process of investigating the crime scene, the thieves, the returning to the town and all was well acted.
Lessons to Learn
One of the most significant aspects of Rango is the lessons it teaches, Courage, True leadership, The power of friendship and community.
Overall, Rango movie is a masterpiece of animation that I believe everyone should see. It’s fit for both adult and children of all ages. Watch it and thank me later.
Rainer Werner Fassbinder, the enfant terrible of post-war German cinema, is a paradoxical figure in film history. His career, though abbreviated by his death at 37, was astonishingly prolific, yielding over 40 feature films, operas, and theatrical works in barely two decades. A director notorious for his unflinching exploration of societal decay—whether through the lens of racism, homosexuality, or the moral rot festering beneath West Germany’s economic miracle—Fassbinder’s films often alienated mainstream audiences despite their critical acclaim. His aesthetic, a collision of Fassbinder’s self-proclaimed “Hollywood irony” and the stark realism of the New German Cinema movement, left him stranded between artistic ambition and commercial viability. Lili Marleen (1981), released a year before his death, stands as his most explicit attempt to bridge this chasm. A kaleidoscopic blend of biopic, musical melodrama, and Holocaust story, the film is both a testament to Fassbinder’s ambition and a cautionary tale of a visionary straining to reconcile his idiosyncratic voice with populist appeal.
The film’s classification as a “biopic” is, at best, a tenuous claim. While Lili Marleen draws loose inspiration from the life of Lale Andersen (1905–1972), the German singer immortalised by the titular song, it functions more accurately as a roman à clef. Andersen’s semi-autobiographical 1972 novel Sky Has Many Colours—a fictionalised account of her wartime experiences—provides the skeletal structure for Fassbinder’s narrative, though the director embellishes and reconfigures events to suit his thematic preoccupations. Andersen, a polarising figure who endured censorship under the Nazis and later represented West Germany at the 1957 Eurovision Song Contest, was a woman whose career became inextricably tied to the contradictions of 20th-century German identity. Fassbinder, however, eschews biographical rigour in favour of allegory, transforming Andersen into Willie, a fictionalised cipher for his broader meditation on complicity, art, and survival.
The plot unfolds with a mythic simplicity that soon spirals into operatic complexity. Set against the encroaching shadow of World War II, the film opens in 1938 Zurich, where Willie (Hanna Schygulla) ekes out a marginal existence as a cabaret singer. Her affair with Robert Mendelsson (Giancarlo Giannini), a Swiss-Jewish pianist, is as much a collision of passion as it is of ideological friction. Robert’s father, David Mendelsson (Mel Ferrer), a wealthy businessman orchestrating the escape of Jews from Nazi Germany, views Willie’s perceived moral ambiguity with disdain. Through his connections, he arranges Willie’s deportation to Germany, where she falls under the patronage of Roman Henkel (Karl-Heinz von Hassel), a Nazi official whose sponsorship enables her to record Lili Marleen—a song based on Hans Leip’s poem. Initially a commercial failure, the song’s fortunes pivot with the outbreak of war, becoming a wartime anthem beloved by Axis and Allied troops alike. Willie’s ascent to stardom under the Nazi regime—and her simultaneous exploitation as a propaganda tool—mirrors the moral ambiguities of survival in a totalitarian state. Meanwhile, Robert embarks on a quixotic mission to infiltrate the German resistance, a subplot that veers between poignant and preposterous.
Fassbinder’s intent to court international audiences is evident in every frame. Shot in English—a rarity for the director, whose previous works were staunchly German-language—the film’s narrative scaffolding leans on the familiar tropes of wartime romance and moral dilemma. The casting of Giancarlo Giannini, an Italian star with crossover appeal, as the romantic lead, and the reported interest in courting American actors like Richard Gere and Michael Douglas for the role (ultimately abandoned due to budgetary constraints), underscores Fassbinder’s ambition to transcend his art-house niche. Yet this bid for accessibility sits uneasily with his signature stylistic flourishes. Cinematographer Xaver Schwarzenberger, alongside the uncredited Michael Ballhaus, bathes the film in hyper-saturated hues that evoke the artificial glamour of 1940s Technicolor musicals. This visual opulence, juxtaposed with the grim realities of war and genocide, risks accusations of aesthetic detachment. Critics have derided the film’s “kitsch” sensibilities, yet this critique misses Fassbinder’s deliberate invocation of melodrama as a narrative device—a means to interrogate the dissonance between personal desire and historical catastrophe.
Peer Raben’s score, while not a standout in the composer’s filmography, serves as the film’s connective tissue. The recurring motifs of Lili Marleen, arranged in myriad forms—from wistful ballad to militaristic march—anchor the narrative in a cyclical rhythm, echoing the song’s dual role as a symbol of unity and oppression. Fassbinder further amplifies the film’s meta-commentary by repurposing combat footage from Sam Peckinpah’s The Cross of Iron (1977), a choice that underscores his fascination with the intersection of art and exploitation. The recycled war scenes, jarring yet effective, serve as a reminder of cinema’s capacity to aestheticise violence—a theme central to Fassbinder’s oeuvre.
The performances, while uneven, are anchored by Schygulla’s magnetic portrayal of Willie. A Fassbinder muse since her breakthrough in The Merchant of Four Seasons (1972), Schygulla imbues Willie with a haunting vulnerability that transcends the script’s occasional underdevelopment. Her character, torn between ambition and guilt, becomes a vessel for Fassbinder’s recurring interrogation of artistic complicity. Giannini, though credible as the tormented Robert, lacks the gravitas to elevate the role beyond its schematic contours. The supporting cast, however, delivers moments of brilliance: von Hassel’s portrayal of Henkel oscillates between charm and menace, capturing the banality of evil with chilling precision, while Mark Bohm’s Taschner—the loyal pianist whose quiet heroism contrasts with Willie’s flamboyance—provides a moral counterpoint that resonates more deeply than the central romance.
Yet Lili Marleen’s most glaring flaws lie in its narrative structure. Fassbinder’s script, co-written with Thea Eymèsz, attempts to juggle multiple genres and subplots with mixed success. The subplot involving Robert’s espionage mission to gather evidence of Nazi death camps feels perfunctory, tacked onto the melodrama without sufficient emotional or thematic integration. This tonal dissonance reaches its nadir when Fassbinder, in a moment of uncharacteristic self-indulgence, casts himself as resistance leader Günther Weissenborn—a cameo that borders on self-parody. Worse still, the film’s final act includes a baffling reference to Fassbinder’s own Berlin Alexanderplatz (1980), a television miniseries that would have been utterly obscure to all but the most ardent cinephiles. These choices betray a director torn between populist storytelling and avant-garde pretension, resulting in a work that never fully coalesces.
Nevertheless, Lili Marleen remains a fascinating artifact of Fassbinder’s career—a film that, for all its imperfections, encapsulates the contradictions of its creator. It is a work of audacious ambition, blending historical inquiry with operatic excess, and a film that dares to ask whether art can ever transcend the moral compromises of its creation. While it may not rank among Fassbinder’s masterpieces—Ali: Fear Eats the Soul (1974) or The Marriage of Maria Braun (1979) remain more cohesive expressions of his genius—it offers a compelling entry point into his oeuvre for viewers unacquainted with his more challenging works. For historians, it serves as a provocative meditation on the role of artists under totalitarian regimes; for cinephiles, it is a testament to Fassbinder’s restless experimentation with form.
Welcome to another art post here in the community.
I didn’t know much about The Fable before watching it. I had only read somewhere that it was an anime about a hitman who had to live peacefully for a year without killing anyone. It sounds simple, but what I found was one of the most fun, weird, and even unexpectedly absurd experiences I’ve had with an anime.
Right from the start, the premise had me hooked, I think.
The protagonist, known only as Fable, is a professional hitman who never fails or never used to. He does the job calmly, without getting worked up, wasting time, or showing emotion. He seems like a machine (Anyone here know Hitman?). But after so many years of killing, his boss decides to give him some “forced vacation.” The order is clear: he must live like a normal person for a year. No killing anyone.
Not even in self-defense.
The funniest part is that Fable takes this new mission as seriously as any assassination contract. He starts introducing himself as Akira Satō.
He moves to Osaka with his “sister” (who’s actually his assistant, the hilarious alcoholic Yōko). That’s where everything begins to unfold.
The big twist in The Fable is the contrast.
You take someone who can kill in a thousand ways, who has modern ninja reflexes, and throw him into a world where the biggest challenge is understanding how to talk to people or working as a fried chicken mascot illustrator.
Yes, seriously.
He gets a job as an illustrator for a chicken mascot.
And he takes it seriously...
The comedic part of the anime works really well. Fable is completely disconnected from human emotions, but at the same time, he tries to be “normal.” He studies how to laugh at jokes.He finds it weird to sleep eight hours. He trains every day but hides it like an addiction. Unlike other comedies that rely on forced gags, here everything flows naturally. We laugh not because he’s clownish, but because he genuinely doesn’t know how to be human.
But The Fable isn’t just jokes. There’s real action, with well-choreographed scenes, chases, and fights against mobsters and criminals who have no idea who they’re dealing with. And that’s another high point: the way the anime blends humor with real danger. The villains are cruel. There are tense scenes, innocent people at risk, and Fable has to restrain himself from breaking the no-kill rule.
The animation isn’t amazing, I’ll be honest.
It’s not on the level ofJujutsu KaisenorAttack on Titan. It’s simple, and at times even feels a bit static. But it never really bothered me.
The writing and characters carry the anime with ease. In fact, the simplicity of the animation might even match the show’s down-to-earth vibe.
The side characters are also really good. As I mentioned, Yōkosteals the scene multiple times. She’s a sarcastic alcoholic but smart, and she balances Fable out. There are also yakuza members watching him some trying to start fights, others trying to protect him. The anime handles relationships well, even if subtly.
One thing that surprised me was how the anime handles violence. Even though it’s a story about a hitman, it’s not a gore anime. There’s no pointless blood splatter. When violence happens, it’s quick, precise, and direct. This gives more impact to the scenes because they aren’t gratuitous.
Another surprise was the social commentary hidden between the lines. Fable is a product of a system where killing is business. He lives on the edge of morality and duty, and when he tries to live as a civilian, he realizes just how out of place he is. At times, the anime even lightly touches on issues like abuse, power, status, and how we treat people with “invisible roles” in society.
The pacing is good. There are 25 episodes split into two parts (two cours). No episode feels like filler. Everything is well constructed, with a beginning, middle, and end. And yes, there’s room for continuation. The manga has a lot more story, and from what I’ve read, there’s still plenty of great material to adapt. Hopefully there’s more to come.
Speaking of the manga, it’s worth mentioning the author:
Katsuhisa Minami. He wrote and illustrated The Fable, and also worked on the sequel called The Fable: The Second Contact.
His style blends dry humor with intense action, and that’s a strong hallmark of the series.
The anime was produced by Tezuka Productions, known for classics like Astro Boy and Black Jack. It was directed by Ryōsuke Takahashi, a veteran with experience in military anime like Votoms, which adds weight to the action scenes.
Overall, The Fable was a pleasant surprise.
An anime that blends action, comedy, and a good dose of drama, without overdoing any of it.
It’s the kind of story that hooks you because it’s different. There are no superpowers, no teenagers saving the world, no villains yelling clichés. It’s a story about a man trying not to be what he always was. And that, to me, is what hit the hardest.
[Source / Fuente](https://co.pinterest.com/pin/19844054604324023/)
