nqsferatuslair

With very few creatives in the world being willing or able to produce stories of this nature, I applaud the attempt and intent.

However, it just isn't very good overall. Not terrible either, just... barely adequate.

The premise is funny, politically and socially valid but the execution leaves a lot to be desired.

The actors mostly do a good job, Matt Walsh steals every scene he's in, but the direction, cinematography and editing were just passable.

Coming from an independent conservative media group seems to be a double edged sword for the production. They can have an absolute field day with thematic freedoms others just don't have, yet are simultaneously stifled by a logical foundation of understanding when it comes to creativity.

The result is a premise with huge potential that comes out a bit bland. The product placement was a terrible choice but, if it was absolutely necessary, they at least got it all out of the way in one segment and moved on.

The story has a moral, the outcome is relatively wholesome, there are certainly quirky characters, humourous events and some level of entertainment to be had here. Given the almost complete lack of comedies produced these days, and the fact its themes are verboten throughout almost the entire entertainment industry... you could do a lot worse for something to watch.

I had similar sentiments after seeing Sound of Freedom, a film with much better production values and talent. A very important and topical film which will have nowhere near the impact or historic longevity it deserves because of uninspired artistic achievement.

The ingredients are all there but they're being prepared by short order cooks and not world class chefs. Unless these types of productions can make a deal with the Devil and coax an unhinged artistic genius into their cause, this trend will likely continue.

There IS a thing called movie magic, and people who don't believe in magic can't perform it. Without it you don't have art, you only have a product. Maybe that's enough these days given how little of it remains but with it, the impact would hit so much harder.

Anyway, watch it, enjoy it for the bland yet rare thing it is. And maybe someday, an important film will achieve the artistic gravitas needed to perform its function well.

Sure, season 1 had its issues. Unbelievable scenarios, undercooked characters and weird pacing with it peaking at the halfway point, and then lumbering onwards. So yeah, you had to turn a significant portion of grey matter off to enjoy it, but man, it was worth it for the fights/shootouts choreography, editing and brutality. And if you could suspend the huge amount of disbelief and shark jumping, it was pretty entertaining with how over the top it ended up being.

Season 2, on the other hand, has made the mistake of doubling down on all the ridiculous and sub par elements of character writing and plot, asking us to turn off our brains to the point of drooling lobotomy, whilst offering almost none of the rewards of excellent fights/shootouts, editing, creative camerawork and crazy conspiracy cheese of the previous season.

I can't even be bothered to list or explain how bad all the elements of season 2 are. It is just SO stupid, it's beyond belief! Beyond the suspension of disbelief capability of anything with a consciousness.

From the practically total absence of police/ bystanders or concern for leaving evidence everywhere. Like just dragging a freshly murdered gangster from a car, for no reason, in front of security cameras and an amazingly oblivious staff member. To having a skinny woman who you could believe with some effort, could be capable of shooting many men in season 1, to entirely unbelievably beating a number of beefy men in hand to hand combat in season 2. To the point where a main character somehow has a 10x zoom level on a 1x optic at the end, to the ammo capacity of handguns rivalling a drum magazine, to the very poorly integrated digital blood/fire/explosion effects... to even call season 2 stupid is an insult to stupidity.

I don't know if the new producers, apparent non-involvement of Gareth Evans, if the budget was drastically reduced, if some kind of Covid related restrictions/ people just not bothering to do a half decent job at anything any more, or what is responsible for it... but it is borderline unwatchable now. However it does continue the story and have occasional flashes of what made season 1 good.

I can't fathom anyone greenlighting a season 3 after this, but if they do, they'd better make sure they wrap it up with a home run.

Here's the issue with trying to review series, where one season is vastly inferior to another. I'm leaving my overall rating as is, for the excellence in parts of season 1, which truly do deserve merit.

Season 1 - 8/10.

Season 2 - 4/10.

I see reviews of films all the time, where the reviewer can't enjoy or appreciate a film, calling it "boring, slow, tedious, confusing, uninteresting or pretentious" etc. I tend to take these reviews with a grain of salt, as I know the likelihood is, that the reviewer just has a very narrow range of appreciation.

My absolute favourite criticisms are "like watching paint dry" and "{insert film run time} of my life I'll never get back". So I'm unhappy to report, this film is all of those things.

When it comes to the positive reviews of this film, it may not be the cinematic equivalent of visiting a minimalist, post modern gallery exhibition and witnessing a pack of snooty, pseudo-intellectual posers pondering the deep meaning behind the mop and bucket the cleaner left sitting against a wall, which isn't actually part of the exhibition... but it's damn close.

I don't know how this film manages to take such interesting themes and make them so unengaging. I felt nothing but annoyed by almost everything, the soundtrack, pacing, acting, even the cinematography (with some rare exceptions).

The events that take place make no sense, whether taken as literal or metaphor, whilst simultaneously being much easier to understand than people have made it out to be. It has some substance and a little style but the execution and result are so bland it left me baffled and irritated.

While I detest this film, I'm glad A24 are supporting things like this, and have to give it credit for its themes, daring and technical competence.