socrates4

A COMPLETE UNKNOWN is a well done, if predictable, biopic. In my humble opinion, it is a bit overdue. Bob Dylan has made a huge mark in music and culture, and it is actually quite surprising that it took them this long to tell the story of his life.

The film "suffers", if you will, from some of the regular symptoms of the genre. It does not necessarily do anything new to improve on the innate tropes that come with the territory, trying to sum up a big chunk of a beloved musician's career in a reasonable span, but it tackles the formula as well and as efficiently as can be expected. It does feel more like a fluid story than films like WALK THE LINE, for example, as it focuses on a relatively shorter chapter in the protagonist's life rather than several decades. The story is interesting and never drags. Recommend.

Christopher Nolan has been one of the biggest filmmaking names of his generation, if not the biggest. In his career he has tackled a wide range of genres, from action to thriller to crime to sci-fi to superhero movie. But in that time his films have always had the distinctive feel of a Christopher Nolan picture. It's not something that can easily be described in words, and I won't attempt to do so here, but if you've seen one of him films (and you probably have) then you know what I am talking about. Even his war film Dunkirk had that trademark Christopher Nolan vibe the same way that his Batman trilogy did.

Now he tackled a new genre, the biopic, in a way that only Christopher Nolan can do. It feels every bit like a Christopher Nolan picture while still covering new ground for the talented director. While on the surface it tells the real-life story of theoretical physicist Robert Oppenheimer, it is at the same time an epic thriller, putting Christopher Nolan's unique spin on the biopic genre. Those who know me know that I've not always been the biggest fan of the director. His films are hit-or-miss for me, but I've always given him his fair shake, and I say Oppenheimer is a win. Highly recommend.

CASHBACK is a movie that's a whole lot of fun and even tugs at the old heartstrings a little bit. It's got a fair amount of nudity in there, but I promise it is all tasteful. To be fair, it's right on the line of tasteful and obscene, but I like it either way. There are some really great shots, to be sure.

And it's funny! It's funnier than I was expecting. Included in the running time of this feature is the entire short film it was based on, and they did an excellent job of expanding on that. I think it's better than the original as it really fleshes out these characters. Recommend for fans of British humor.