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In the mid-90s, topics began to be sought that would refresh classic romantic comedies. The supernatural was one way to achieve this refreshment. Emotions play a big role here, as everything is fatal. The night scenes are very tender, but overall, is not that great of an experience. Michelle Pfeiffer later made the slightly better supernatural film What Lies Beneath, as well as the alternative romantic comedy The Story of Us. This genre swallowed itself long ago.

A formally interesting experiment (being created concurrently with the book of the same name by Martin Amis), drawing attention to a topic that we should have already processed. Many fundamental questions concerning the primary human attitude, such as "How could the main commander of the Auschwitz concentration camp, Rudolf Höss, calmly sleep, go home every day, and peacefully have dinner with his family...?" should not be posed for the first time by a co-produced film. Similarly, the everyday life of Höss's wife, Hedwig, should not surprise or fascinate us for the first time. On the contrary, we should have a rich knowledge of the reality of the war and be able to work with it. Many prominent women from this time have written memoirs, which in many ways only repeat, complement, and explain to us what and why happened in their lives. They serve excellently as memories, especially the memoirs of secretaries Traudl Junge, Brunhilde Pomsel, and Louise Fox. The question of obedience to authorities and blind fulfillment of orders was thoroughly analyzed by Hannah Arendt in her series of reports "Eichmann in Jerusalem: A Report on the Banality of Evil". Furthermore, we should be immune to demonizing the German language itself and always remember that the Third Reich existed for only 12 years and is primarily the language of Goethe, Schiller, and Rilke. It is absurd to what extent the current public is not interested in the new film Terezín, but the Oscar-nominated The Zone of Interest naturally appeals to moral values and interest in the matter. However, if this trendy film brings some understanding even to those viewers who only watch new titles, this concession can be accepted.

This film on the topic of 9/11 could have been incredibly moving. With the cast of Tom Hanks, Sandra Bullock, and Max von Sydow, it was practically impossible to go wrong. Nevertheless, the result is only awkward, illogical, and uninteresting. The eponymous book by Jonathan Safran Foer managed to captivate its readers more. Perhaps due to its creative annexes.

Somewhere between The NeverEnding Story and Labyrinth stands this unofficial continuation of The Wizard of Oz. Stylistically, it is a purely dark fantasy adaptation of the second and third parts of The Marvelous Land of Oz and Ozma of Oz. I thoroughly enjoyed it in this spirit. Little Fairuza Balk is amazing, and Jean Marsh is devilishly brilliant. L. Frank Baum's fairytale doesn't feel overly childish, but rather very imaginative. The special effects are brilliant, and the set design is magnificent. In addition, my favorite Oz characters, Jack Pumpkinhead and Tik-Tok, are here.

Front Row Center used to be the name for a television series of original dramatizations, often broadcast live. The first version was aired in 1949 on DuMont Television Network (only one episode from this era has survived), and a similar program started on CBS in 1955. During this era, television broadcasted adaptations of Broadway dramatizations of that time, and it was the highlight of weekend television. I have seen an episode dedicated to the last novel by F. Scott Fitzgerald "Tender is the Night" (the 10th episode of the 1st season aired on September 7, 1955) and surprisingly I had a more interesting viewer experience than what I got from the problematic feature film version Tender is the Night from 1962. The drama was shortened to an hour, the characters had to become more readable, and the atmosphere was intentionally made stifling, to the point that you could cut it. An interesting battle for form took place in American television in the 1950s.

At the turn of the 90s and the millennium, there were a lot of changes happening at Mattel. The famous era of Super Star Barbie full of fantasy, fluffy hairstyles, and pink beauty came to an end. The new narrative, Generation Girl, introduced a group of high school girls attending an international school in New York. And even back then, in 1998, that group was truly diverse. Barbie became just one of many characters, with others like Nichelle, Tori, Chelsie, Lara, and Ana representing different ethnicities. The toy line was accompanied by a series of 12 novels, meticulously thought out to the last detail. Everything seemed ideal, however, the premature end of Generation Girl was caused by 9/11. A restart was necessary at that time. Therefore, in 2002, the concept of My Scene was introduced. New York remained, and Barbie was one of many characters as well. This time, her friends were named after locations in New York City: Kennedy, Madison, Chelsea, Delancey, Nia, and Hudson. That was the first time web episodes of an animated series were released alongside the toy line from Mattel, later accompanied by standalone movies. The episodes were released on the My Scene website, while the movies were available on VHS/DVD as an addition to the dolls, and they were also shown on Nickelodeon. Today, something like this is a given, and thanks to YouTube, similar series are a global affair, and even toy boxes come with a notification about which animated series the toy is connected to. What was the series like back then? Surprisingly good for its time. The purpose was clear - to introduce individual characters, and their relationships, and portray the fashion style in which the dolls could be found in stores. The basic series ended in 2005 after 23 episodes. At the turn of 2008/2009, Mattel tried to introduce a new animation style, but the following 10 episodes did not have the success that was expected. Barbie's character was replaced by her doppelganger, Kennedy, and nobody could make sense of such chaos anymore. Additionally, there was a dispute going on with the competing company MGA and the Bratz dolls, which later led to the end of both My Scene and Bratz, making room for other new releases to take the stage.

Let's recap. In 2014, the MCU was already in its 6th year, and the DCEU had joined in the 2nd year. Comic book reading was in full swing among both mainstream audiences and academics. Logically, an art project came along that maximized this situation. Alejandro González Iñárritu reached for Raymond Carver's play "What We Talk About When We Talk About Love" (1981) and built a Broadway backstage drama on its blueprint. And not just any drama, but one flavored with a midlife crisis and the superhero subgenre. Because the lead role went to Michael Keaton, aka Batman, there is nothing to do but applaud. Some might argue that it is a somewhat self-centered form - and it is. Individual long shots filmed with a handheld camera are rehearsed like separate little theater productions, and the music is provided almost exclusively by an improvising drummer. But that's how art works, the form and content vie with each other. Fortunately, here everything fell into place in one absorbing whole with an unusual pace.

It's fun, suspenseful, and seemingly a classic variation on The Man from Acapulco, but that's not the main thing. The main thing is the beautiful Bryce Dallas Howard (spoiler). This time, the marketing plays a game completely independent from the actual film. I'm really glad it's not another Kingsman: The Secret Service. Because there's only one Bob Saint-Clare.

A low-budget adaptation of the second book from the series "The Wizard of Oz." The second part, The Marvelous Land of Oz, was completely unknown to me for many years. Therefore, it is interesting to see a separate adaptation, even though it is at the level of a weak television production. The costumes are funny, and the set design is not worth mentioning, but strangely, it is very pleasant to watch. We meet the Tin Man again, the Cowardly Lion, and the good witch Glinda. L. Frank Baum wrote the sequel as a direct response to the desire of many children who fell in love with the land of Oz thanks to the original book and the first play. Thus, he established a phenomenon of gigantic proportions. He completed the basic 14 books during his lifetime, and many more sequels have been published since then. I would definitely include this treat in the series of the most interesting Baum adaptations, alongside The Wizard of Oz (1939), The Wiz (1978), Return to Oz (1985), Tin Man (2007), and Oz: The Great and Powerful (2013).

Her Doctor is a transcript of a classic comedy in three acts, "Zázračný lékař" (The Miracle Doctor), written by Bedřich Vrbský. For Vrbský, it was an exceptional opportunity to see how his concept transformed on the silver screen. The resulting film is a pleasant variation of the most popular concept of the 1930s, a comedy full of confusion. The couple of Hugo Haas and Lída Baarová is wonderfully cute, Míla Reymonová and Vladimír Borský bravely work alongside them, and the older couple of Jindřich Plachta and Antonie Nedošinská is routine itself. A sweet, affectionate film.