3 more reviews

1. ›MINDCAGE | MOVIE REVIEW@josehany884d

   Netflix has been highlighting this title a lot to me lately, and to be honest it hadn't caught my attention. But sometimes you are in that moment where you are going to sit down to eat and you want to enjoy that moment watching a movie, well, this was my case.

   This is a film from 2022, I remember that in that year I was more concerned about first checking the ratings of the films before watching it, now I only do it following an instinct because I understood that I cannot always let myself be carried away by the masses. The cast of this film surprised me, because it is a strange combination, we have Martin Lawrence, Melissa Roxburgh and John Malkovich as the protagonists. And what can come out of here?

   Últimamente Netflix me ha estado resaltando bastante este título, y para ser honesta no me había llamado la atención. Pero a veces estás en ese momento donde te vas a sentar a comer y quieres disfrutar ese momento viendo una película, bueno, este fue mi caso.

   Esta es una película del 2022, recuerdo que en ese año estaba más preocupada de primero revisar los rating de las películas antes de verla, ahora sólo lo hago siguiendo un instinto porque entendí que no siempre me puedo dejar llevar por las masas. El cast de esta película me sorprendió, porque es una combinación extraña, tenemos a Martin Lawrence, Melissa Roxburgh y John Malkovich como los protagonistas. ¿Y qué puede salir de aquí?

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   Well, mindcage is a movie about two detectives who are forced to ask for help from a murderer called “The Artist.”

   Bueno, mindcage es una película que trata de dos detectives que se ven obligados a pedir ayuda a un asesino llamada “El artista”

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   The thing goes a little like this: it begins with a murder, a woman is found in a church by a priest and when they show her on camera she is completely disguised as an angel but it is a production that took a lot of work, because every detail is well done, It really looks like a very artistic work but SHE IS DEAD, her murderer did that.

   La cosa va un poco así: inicia con un asesinato, una mujer es encontrada en una iglesia por un cura y cuando la muestran en cámara está totalmente disfraza como un ángel pero es una producción que llevó bastante trabajo, pues cada detalle está bien realizado, realmente se ve un trabajo muy artístico pero ESTÁ MUERTA, su asesino hizo eso.

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   And this is the reason why these two detectives go to seek help from a murderer, since this murderer was the one who used to make his victims the same artistic work and then exhibit it in a place, everything is exactly the same, like everyone believes that he is an imitator, it is possible that this man has some information to catch this new murderer.

   Y este es el motivo por el cual estos dos detectives van a buscar ayuda de un asesino, puesto que este asesino era que él que solía hacerle esos sus víctimas, el mismo trabajo artístico y luego exhibirlo en un lugar, todo es exactamente igual, como todos creen que se trata de un imitador, es posible que este hombre tenga alguna información para atrapar a este nuevo asesino.

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   Lawrence and Roxburgh play detectives. The truth is that it seemed very strange to me to see Lawrence in this film and I really couldn't take him seriously, unfortunately I didn't like his performance here very much, and don't get me wrong, I have enjoyed films by this actor. On the other hand, Roxburgh I remember having seen her in Star Trek but I really got to know her completely in Manifest, she seems to me to be a very beautiful actress who is still trying to establish her career, now I feel like she lacked a little more spark in this movie.

   The movie left me with many unknowns regarding the murderer “The Artist.” I liked the character but at the same time you think about it while watching the movie and you put on an uncertain face and say, “Why?”

   The point of the movie is to catch the murderer and they do it but it loses its meaning in the middle and everything takes another direction that seems more like science fiction and fantasy than the same thriller, and you don't know what to think. I liked it to a certain point because the beginning is quite promising but in the end it is terrible, and kills all the expectations created from the beginning. Today was more of a criticism than a review

   Lawrence y Roxburgh hacen el papel de detectives. La verdad se me hizo muy extraño ver a Lawrence en esta película y la verdad no pude tomármelo en serio, desafortunadamente su actuación aquí no me gustó mucho, y no me malinterpreten he disfrutado películas de este actor. Por otro lado, Roxburgh recuerdo haberla visto en Star Trek pero realmente la llegué a conocer del todo en Manifest, ella me parece una actriz muy bella que está tratando aún de asentar su carrera, ahora siento que le faltó un poco más de chispa en esta película.

   La película me dejó muchas incógnitas con respecto al asesino “El Artista” el personaje me gustó pero al mismo tiempo piensas en ello mientras ves la película y pones una cara de incertidumbre y dices ¿Por qué?

   El punto de la película es atrapar al asesino y lo hacen pero pierde el sentido en la mitad y todo toma otro rumbo que parece más de ciencia ficción y fantasía que del mismo thriller, y no sabes qué pensar. Me gustó hasta cierto punto porque el inicio es bastante prometedor pero al final es terrible, y mata todas las expectativas creadas del inicio. Hoy fue más una critica que un review

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2. ›Incarcerated Yet Free —Review Of Mindcage (2022)@kemmyb1259d

   

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   One film genre I admire and love to watch or read about is mystery with a touch of psychological thriller and supernatural. When I first saw Mindcage (2022) on my streaming site, I assumed it was one of those copycat murder mysteries where the detectives would have to liaise with the original killer in prison to catch the copycat. Well, I was kind of right.

   Murder mysteries have a lot of things in common and can make an audience bored if it's the same old story or plot. However, this director, Mauro Borrelli, towed a different direction which made this film gripping and a must watch.

   Mindcage focuses on an incarcerated killer known as 'The Artist' and his copycat responsible for murders of women dressed, painted and posed like angels in death. Martin Lawrence (as Jake Doyle) played the part of the lead detective who arrested The Artist years back for a series of murders. He was called upon to work the case again but with another partner, Mary Kelly (played by Melissa Roxburgh).

   What makes this film thrilling was that The Artist was happy for the attention because he was fascinated with Detective Mary Kelly. So they both spent time together rather than with Jake Doyle. This film focused on Mary Kelly, her connection with The Artist and the murders.

   The Artist, being a brilliant psychopath, engaged Mary Kelly in a twisted, diabolical game where the copycat killer was always steps ahead. Every information he divulged to Mary was always spot on and led to dead ends and more murders, leaving the detectives confused. Who then is the copycat when the original killer is in prison?

   ^{_{*[Source: YouTube](https://youtu.be/7d8XdU8cb18)*}}

   Review

   Mindcage reminds me of the psychological thriller Silence of the Lambs, the TV series Hannibal and the crime novel, Da Vinci Code. It's a film about serial killings of prostitutes, art and paintings with a special focus on religious arts and paintings, hence the name, 'The Artist'.

   Though some red herrings made this film impressive, there were also plot holes that revealed its weakness. Such as: Could Mary Kelly's weird and religiously devout boyfriend be the copycat? Was it The Artist's mother who hated to see him paint that committed the serial murders? Why does a crazy homeless man follow Mary around? What does this homeless man have to do with the mysterious 'The Artist'?

   

   

   

   

   The plot is brilliant but the setting and storytelling are good but not great, in my opinion. I felt some of the characters were not fully explored, most especially Jack Doyle played by Martin Lawrence.

   The cast of the film is not a big one. I enjoyed Martin Lawrence's portrayal of a detective with a haunting history involving The Artist. We see it from the pills and coffee he takes. It was revealed he had therapy sessions after the arrest but we don't know the reason for this. Also, why does Jake keep a book on exorcisms in his car glove compartment? Why does he take Mary to see a priest who specialises in exorcisms?

   I understand that Jack Doyle is at the centre of this intriguing film yet more action time should have been allotted to him. His character had a depth that was not pursued. Instead, we are left with flashback scenes of Jack Doyle in action until the ending where we truly see him. Still, I give the director and writer kudos for surprising me at the end. It was an unexpected one.

   With Melissa Roxburgh, however, her dogged performance was great. I enjoyed how she portrayed Mary Kelly as a tough yet frail detective with secrets and a tortuous childhood. Viewers could easily be fooled by this demeanour until you watch her in action at the end of the film. Brilliant!

   Some parts I did not like so much were the terrible lighting, poor production design, poor editing and cinematography. They were dull but the film's plot made up for these shortcomings.

   In conclusion, Mindcage is a mystery worth watching. I give it 3.9 stars out of 5. Do you love psychological thrillers and murder mysteries? If yes, then you should watch this one.

   Thank you for visiting my blog.

   ^{_{Other images are screenshots from the movie}}

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3. ›Martin Lawrence's Mindcage Movie Review@esther-emmanuel1284d

   

   Since 2020, I haven't seen Martin Lawrence on the screen, but this year he showed up with a diabolical thriller. Though the movie has received some harsh negative reviews, I tell you it is not the case if you see movies beyond their surface storyline. Though I see this movie as a copycat of a movie titled, 'The Silence of the Lambs' which was produced in 1991 and starred Anthony Hopkins and Jordie Forster, but in the case of this movie, it was involved with Art, not cannibalism. Mindcage is a movie with deep messages, lessons, and meaning underneath if you look closely but a lot of people watch this movie based on the surface story hoping for a more exhilarating thriller that will tickle their fantasy. This movie is enjoyable and good to watch. It was a good watch for me.

   Mindcage (2022), an American mystery-thriller film revolves around two detectives who are after a copycat serial killer but instead get stuck in a maze game by the original serial killer himself who is called 'The Artist'. This movie starred Martin Lawrence, John Malkovich, Melissa Roxburgh, Robert Knepper, Jacob Grodnik, and Aiden Turner. The idea of the story of this movie was created by Mauro Borrelli and also directed by him. We have always seen Martin Lawrence's comedic roles, but in this movie, he acted seriously which makes this movie his first major non-comedic role.

   

   

   The movie started off with a murder crime scene of a woman who was killed, decorated with angelic features, and whose body was coated in a resinous substance. Detective Mary and Doyle were called to the scene to take up the case. They realized that it was a copycat murder of the previous work of The Artist. As fate will have it, Mary discovered later that her partner Doyle was the one who caught the original serial killer aka ' The Artist'.

   

   

   Mary then convinced Doyle and the police department to go seek help from the Artist and probably cut a deal with him to help them catch his copycat before any more murder surfaces. As we have, time was not on Mary's side when two more murdered victims were found in the city. Mary began to intensify her investigations with the Artist by searching for answers within their discussion during psych evaluation but the Artist began to divulge clues that led Mary a step backward with the copycat serial killer.

   

   

   Mary became frustrated and pressed further for more clues and answers from the artist which then led Mary and Doyle into a diabolical game in a maze and a quest to discover the truth. Then the true mystery of the movie begins to unravel as a lot was discovered about the background of the Artist and the copycat killer. Did Mary and Doyle get the copycat killer? You will have watched the movie to know.

   Positives Of This Movie.

   First of all, I want to commend the extensive use of the mystery genre in this movie. It was extensively used in a way that was unexpected and shocking. It had me guessing what would happen next and what the ending would be like. You'd think you know where the movie is going or what is going to happen next in the movie but you are wrong. The use of mystery in this movie made it more interesting, intriguing, and fascinating. Also, it made the ending of the movie unexpected and enjoyable for me. The thriller aspect of this movie was close to horror but what makes it all exciting is the fact that there is a thin line that differentiates it from horror and thriller. Overall, it is a decent thriller.

   The cast was amazing, especially the Artist (John Malkovich) and Mary (Melissa Roxburgh), though Martin Lawrence did amazingly well, I am still not used to seeing him in serious movie roles. The location used for the movie was befitting and perfect. The setting sequence of the scene was amazing, you can't predict how the movie would end. Also, I commend the cinematography of this movie. It was perfectly done to fit the plot of the story and also add more suspense to the movie.

   Negatives

   The plot of this movie was written well but it wasn't that perfect. The positive thing about the plot was the suspense and twist of the storyline, but the plot had some potholes which were missing background stories and unnecessary scenes that were not explained. For example, the introduction of the use of sage on the murder victims. What was the usefulness of the sage? Why did the killer use sage to design his victims? These questions, I have no answer for these questions as they were not explained in the plot.

   Some aspects of the movies were not explored fully, like gore, killings, and the Artist's character. This movie would have been more of a masterpiece if those aspects were explored fully. I see this movie has a paranormal and supernatural genre but the genres were not explored and explained. For example, the Artist has a special ability to possess a person he sketches and uses them as his tools. How did he come up with that ability? Is it a supernatural curse? How possible can a human have that ability based on scientific facts? If these aspects were explored, this movie would have been a blockbuster with more sequels to come in the future.

   My Rating and Recommendations.

   Overall, this movie is a good watch and a decent thriller. There was no strong language used, no nudity or gore. Rating this movie, I will be giving 4 out 5 stars and I will be recommending this movie to Martin Lawrence fans, thriller movie lovers, and mystery movie lovers. If you have second thoughts about watching this movie, don't just watch it and give it a chance. You would enjoy the mystery, suspense, and ending.

   All images above are from the movie screenshots

   Poster image source

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