Watched on Amazon Prime Video (Theatrical Cut)
Until 2018, Christian Gudegast has primarily attracted attention as the screenwriter of movies like "A Man Apart" and "London Has Fallen". Consequently, he made his directorial debut 7 years ago with a movie with the star of the latter film in a leading role.
"Den of Thieves" is a cops versus gangsters piece in the vein of Michael Mann's benchmark-setting "Heat" and makes little effort to conceal its inspiration from the outset. Not…
Watched in the cinema (180th visit in 2024)
"Twilight of the Warriors: Walled In" is the film adaptation of the novel by Yuyi and the comic by Andy Seto. The project has been in the making since the 2000s, with John Woo and Johnnie To set to co-direct. The cast was also a who's who of well-known stars from Hong Kong, including Chow Yun-fat, Andy Lau and Tony Leung. However, the project didn't get off the ground for a long…
Watched in the cinema (177th visit in 2024)
Writing synopses for movies is always a tricky business. How much can I say without it becoming a spoiler? How much do I have to say so that the audience knows what to expect? The usual thing is to simply describe the initial situation, on which everything else is built. But sometimes even that is difficult, as the case of "Strange Darling" shows. The beginning here is not the beginning of the…
Watched in the Arte Media Library
Sergio Sollima actually became known for his westerns, leaving behind three genre classics with "Face to Face", "The Big Gundown" and "Run, Man, Run". At the same time, however, he also tried his hand at crime and thrillers. With "Violent City" in 1970, he achieved a major success, although the film was and still is clearly overshadowed by his other works. In Germany, it was difficult to get hold of it for a long…
Watched in the cinema (171st visit in 2024)
When you read about the internet phenomenon of Red Rooms, it sends shivers down your spine. Allegedly, these are websites on the darknet where people are murdered, tortured or sexually abused via live stream. Spectators can take part for large sums of money. The actual existence of these sites has never really been proven; in fact, streaming within the darknet would not even be technically possible. The rumours are based on a…
Watched on Blu-Ray
The sunrise over Los Angeles determines the picture frame. The day begins. Cut. The look in Officer Jake Hoyt's (Ethan Hawke) eyes sets the scene. The working day begins and a twenty-four hour window of time opens. After Jake Hoyt has spent nineteen months as a patrolman, this day, his "training day", offers him the chance to make the leap into the drug squad and one day become a detective. When his wife tells him shortly before…
Watched on Amazon Prime Video
By the mid-2000s, Woody Allen had clearly taken a liking to England. After visiting the land of umbrellas in 2005 with "Match Point" and undoubtedly delivering one of his strongest films of the new millennium, "Scoop" followed just one year later, in which Allen mingled with the British with delight. Of course, none of this has anything to do with any form of cultural truth, as you will know if you've seen Allen's excursions into…
Watched on Blu-Ray
Schocktober 2024 #29
The world into which "American Psycho" transports us is a world that has been planned down to the last detail: the sequence of the training programme. The course of the care programme. The course of the sex life. Nothing is left to chance. Patrick Bateman (Christian Bale) attaches great importance to control and controllability. The wealthy investment banker only loses his cool when he is unexpectedly outdone - for example, when one of his…
Watched on Amazon Prime Video from October 12th until October 16th
Schocktober 2024 #16
Stories about serial killers are very popular on streaming services. Netflix is of course leading the way with its countless true crime productions, which are released almost weekly. But the competition is also happy to join in the hunt for bloodthirsty viewers. Two years ago, Apple TV+ launched "In With The Devil", in which a criminal seeks the company of a psychopathic girl killer. So it's…
Watched in the cinema (155th visit in 2024)
Some people become stars as a child through acting. For others, however, it takes a little longer - after all, it's hard to plan a breakthrough like that. But June Squibb is a real extreme case. She only started appearing regularly in front of the camera in the 1990s - when she was already more than 60 years old. She didn't actually become famous until 2013, when she received an Oscar nomination…
Watched on Netflix from October 1st until October 7th
Schocktober 2024 #7
As is well known, Netflix has had good experiences with true crime. New documentaries are constantly being released that report on some particularly heinous or mysterious crime. From time to time, however, there are also fictionalized adaptations with a real ensemble. These can also be very successful. Two years ago, for example, "Dahmer- Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story" about the notorious serial killer became a phenomenon. Now "Monsters:…
Watched on Amazon Prime Video
Schocktober 2024 #6
After Sam Raimi won the hearts of horror fans with the "The Evil Dead" trilogy and created an absolute cult series, he went on to show considerable versatility when it came to genres. Whether superhero action, sports drama, western or fantasy adventure, he tried his hand at everything. With "The Gift" in 2000, he seemed to return to his horror beginnings. At least that's what you might expect from a film that…