Marigold

Although this film stands outside the legendary trilogy and has never achieved the fame of The Treasure of the Silver Lake, it is a very entertaining contribution to the May western family. Although... It is obviously connected to the work of Karl May only by the names of the heroes, and unlike the film trilogy, it exhibits slightly incomprehensible deviations in the atmosphere (it tries to be more epic and kind of more credible in terms of realities, but the result hardly impresses) and the personalities of the characters (Winnetou gives off an animal and reckless impression)... The plot owes very much to Winnetou: Last of the Renegades, and its better variation can be found in The Last Shot, but... It's exciting, the Yugoslav natural gems are a delicacy for the eye, cardboard cacti are a dessert for the diaphragm, and Lex Barker is just as heroic as when I adored him as a child. The soundtrack is a pretty decent robbing of spaghetti westerns, and because of it, the overall impression corresponds to more like three stars... It just lacks the warmth and homeliness of the more famous May films.

Horrible. It doesn't have a story, the main heroes go back and forth, and what has to happen is clear from the beginning. The musical backdrop by Zdeněk Liška gave me a panicky feeling that my automatic washing machine had broken down (keys model JZD Slušovice, very sexy). The acting - brutal. Type selection – terrible. At a Spartakiad, maybe... Štorch's books really passed me by me amongst the competition of "May books" but I still found some decent moments in this "prehistoric" trilogy, but none of them are in this episode. Everything feels awfully artificial and violent... This was really terrible.

To be honest, I don't really understand the big hype surrounding this movie. I think we've had the privilege of seeing funnier, more apt animated films. The Incredibles isn't nearly as amazing as it could have been, yet the film belongs to the wider elite of the genre. From my point of view, especially the style they copied from the classic adventure films of the 1960s, and which is powered by Michael Giacchino's phenomenal soundtrack, proudly claiming the swing feeling of John Barry's unforgettable works (007 fans know who I'm talking about ;o)). Otherwise, The Incredibles offers a slightly readable plot with a villain who hides his secret in a volcano (have I seen this before?) and plays a rather funny game with a family of superhumans who are not allowed to show their abilities, which, of course, bothers them greatly. But the joke of this "masquerade" is somewhat drowned in a lot of family dialogues that have no spark, and after a few minutes they start to annoy slightly. Fortunately, the film picks up a very decent pace after a while, the animators outdo themselves, the action performances of the main protagonists glue you to your seat, and the frantic retro-flavored ride successfully reaches the finish line. It's not that courageous, it's a bit repetitive, some of the supporting characters are excellent (especially the eccentric tinkerer Edna, that would be the equivalent of Mr. Q.?), others somewhat tasteless, some scenes are great, others are a little faint, but overall it serves a purpose – it entertains and it just can't disappoint fans of old spy films. Still, I'm telling you, the top Bond movies were much funnier without the elastic heroes and beaters with the power of a steam engine. If there's one thing I can attribute The Incredibles, it's the ease with which the film was able to bring deadly serious elements and "real" "acted" tension to a cute animated film. Perhaps this film will become a pioneer of another line that will be associated with the trend of CGI films and create... what, actually?

David Suchet is a true master, and after his Poirot creation, I had considerable problems with the Agatha Christie book. The television version is beautifully "old-fashioned" gloomy and charming and extraordinarily confident, and the conceited master of the grey cortex of the brain navigates the whole plot with unprecedented interest, and partly also the confusion which a very complicated plot with the false accusation of one beautiful lady brings him. Director David Moore lets the charm of the gloomy interiors of the English mansion sound in contrast to the green interiors, and he skilfully leads the film at a tolerable pace (faithful to the book where possible) to the ending. However, this series is primarily the work of the great Suchet; otherwise it is only a decently filmed TV movie...

Decent, sometimes immersive, but most of the time only poorly masking the affectation and unconvincingness of key acting performances. The theme looks really beautiful and the environment literally points to extraordinarily strong workmanship, but K2 (like most similar films) slides on the surface and only grabs on to what is most grateful (or most visible). However, for the layman, the drama of the alpine environment is captured quite suggestively, and the film keeps one’s attention up to the end credits.

Hitchcock's classic is not ageless, rather the opposite. Each time you watch it, you can see how it is falling apart and losing out, leaving a few really masterful scenes and a lot of conversational improvisation that fades out into nothingness. But two things still keeps The Birds afloat – the director's unique talent for suspense, composition and sensitive "staring" and the fact that this film was quite possibly one of the best horrors in the first and later flurry of animal killers. Unlike the real Hitchcockian peaks, however, the film visibly loses breath and gains more awkwardness and boredom over the years. The master simply has brighter films that don't fade.

A rather uncharacteristic war film from the '70s... or have you ever seen a Nazi as likable as Caine's fair killer Steiner, or a sympathetic collaborator like Sutherland's Irish adventurer Devlin? The plot stands on the thin ice of "historical" events... Under the influence of the ominous development of the war, German leaders choose to attempt a mad act – to kidnap Winston Churchill directly from the Isles. So they send in a unit of "Polish" paratroopers, headed by Steiner. Sturges certainly didn't conceive the bad guys in any monstrous way, recounting them as a bunch of soldiers carrying out a mission that is already lost, whilst retaining at least a fraction of humanity. Controversial? Not really. It’s rather refreshing and excellently acted, although thanks to the aforementioned pair of gentlemen on the wrong side, the audience's sympathies turn in a surprising direction, because there are not as many charismatic heroes on the “good" side. The Eagle Has Landed is a typical piece of war craft. It has dramatic moments, decent momentum and finally even tension that escalates in the surprising outcome of the plot.

Riggs and Murtnagh took everything essential into the second film – vulgar and infectiously adolescent humor, deliciously desolate gags, a decent story and perfect action sequences. And, of course, their main protagonists, who are the main spice of the film – self-liquidating lunatic Gibson forms a really explosive duo with the old fart Glover, which won't bore you. In addition, the writers cooked them some really delicious delicacies to play with (the famous scene with Murtangh's toilet, condom commercials and other "silliness"). Lethal Weapon 2 is simply one of the best "cop films" in history and as an action crime (comedy) film, it cannot disappoint.

If Hero possessed the special charm of polygonal storytelling and only a slightly implied but impressive point, then House of Flying Daggers is a linearly-narrated love story with an overly obvious calculated ending that exaggerates the aspect of playing to the viewer's feelings. It is nothing more than a wonderful visual essay in which Zhang, for his desire for absolute beauty, has completely neglected what is beneath it. In Hero, beneath the gloss of colors and brilliant choreography, there was a very interesting story about the beginning of the Chinese state and also about the nature of heroism and tyranny, but in the House of Flying Daggers there is only a very faded love story beneath, which is not even saved by the surprising twist at the 3/4 mark of the film. If Yimou Zhang had paid more attention to the characters the entire time and given them some kind of interior, then perhaps the ending would have been emotional, but this does not go beyond the mere depicted fascination. All I really have left is a feeling of refined aesthetics coupled with the rancid aftertaste of self-purpose, schematicity and emptiness. Yet it is precisely through its visuals that the House of Flying Daggers is one of the films worth seeing – also because, unlike Hero, it is more connected to reality – both the battles and the scenery seem somewhat more from this planet, since CGI and wire-fu have clearly declined, which is not a bad thing at all. The camera and choreography are a triumph. On the other hand, the soundtrack is too conventional in places. The result? Slightly disappointing for me, but also an interesting film.

Sean Connery made this film. His Mason is a truly desolate version of James Bond after 30 years in prison. His sarcasm and dry humor are simply great, and when I say that despite being at the retirement age, Connery does not lose the sparkle and viability of his youth, I am not far from the truth. Michael Bay did his job decently, and I would like to kick his ass for the occasional pathetic blabbering, which is underscored by agitation compositions with the American flag and an F-18, but I have to say that the film flows very nicely. If it wasn't for the great actors, it would be barely as good... unfortunately, the "villain" Ed Harris is extraordinarily likable, and "good guy" Connery is totally incalculable, so there is fun to be had. Add the possibly overacting neurotic Cage, great editing (especially the opening sequence with the warehouse robbery is excellently rhythmic), Hans Zimmer's perfect soundtrack, and we can fill the hole left by the starlet missing from the film from Connery's stockpile. Here we have action relaxation with style.