Morning Reel

"Flow" is an Academy Award-winning animated film directed by Gints Zilbalodis. He earned it, plain and simple. Shout out to him and the country of Latvia. It's Latvia's first Academy Award, respectfully. This is a film created with the application called Blender. Imagine that? A film created by Blender, beat Disney AND DreamWorks at their own game. Millions upon millions of dollars, and "Flow" took the cake. Bravo. This is a film about a cat who joins other exotic animals as they journey to find a better place for their lives as it was disrupted by a crazy environmental event. There is no dialog, only sound. IMAGINE THAT? Only sound effects of the animals and the environments they go through and music definitely plays along with it, definitely adds to feel of the film. You care for these animals, you want to know what happens next. That's their dialog and how the journey flows from one place to another, and as we learn about these animals who are the characters themselves, dissecting different personalities and how they with one another. It's crazy how universal it is to be that self-aware about yourself when you look at the mirror. When you do that type of action, you gain a great level of consciousness and these animals did that. Not an easy thing to pull off but Zilbalodis did that. I talk about how animal actions drive the plot forward. I talk about the characters of the film, how they act on a very animal-like level but all that is so relatable as how we humans interact with each other. Its as if we are all one, but in bits and pieces. At some point, they become the humans and we wish we can be there to witness half of it. Finally, a film where all audiences that enjoy but it also challenges the viewers - to look ourselves and at each other and be aware of what we have and how we can make it slightly better.

Four out of four tokes.

I'm joined here with fabb_999 on this episode reviewing "American Me" directed and produced by Edward James Olmos who shows us a life of a man who's spent half his life in the prison system, trying to reclaim himnself in society after he gets out. It's a very masculine but truly humbling film. Olmos did a great job showing us that he can not only act, but direct as well. I was impressed with the shots he used in the film, some that I pondered as to why he would use it and I understood why. He's a creative indivisual and gave us something DIFFERENT to look at. Faby and I talk about about film, it's explosive cast of characters, the iconic one-liners, it's controversies, the elements of theater displayed into the film, the way lighting is used to make things look realistic, how a film like this still resonates to this day spreading its message beyond East Los Angeles, beyond Folsom State, beyond California period. It's a powerful film by Olmos and a story of this kind needed to be told. It's important that even in filmmaking, we need to be a melting pot of sorts of sharing stories that created a culture that is still powerful to today's societal means.

Four out of four tokes.

#americanme #edwardjamesolmos

"Cameraperson" is a documentary directed by Kirsten Johnson that treats the film as a memoir of her life. In this day and age with ties to social media, almost no moment is lost. We share everything and not all of it is worth sharing. Let's just be for real. This film shows us who Kirsten Johnson is through not only her work but her personal life. She shares us crime, loss, and murder. We also see new life, love, and the freedom of where she lives which is the USA. She goes to places where she she purposefully puts herself and company in danger but all of this, to understand life. To Understand people, to make a sense as to what we can provide for life. I like this documentary a lot. We see it through lengthy shots of all kinds situations and they all tie in together, good editing. I liked learning how to interview people. Johnson is very particular about how she films. She definitely puts thought into how she wants the shot to look like and it definitely doesn't want it to be plain and simple. I like the consideration of the shots she chose because I'm sure she has hard drives upon hard drives of footage. She shares us her own vulnerability with footage of different points of her aging mom and you can see how impactful it to her. What's crazy overall about this film, is the fact that there's no voice-over talking points. Just footage. RAW footage. When pieced together the way she did it, she wins in life. Forever.

#cameraperson #kirstenjohnson

Tim Burton directed "Batman Returns", the sequel to the first Batman film of the iconic franchise that came out of a comic book created by Bob Kane and Bill Finger. This sequel had an all-star cast that included Danny DeVito, Michael Keaton and Michelle Pfeiffer who played a great Catwoman. I think "Batman Returns" is an okay film by critical point of view but I sure enjoyed the hell of the it. It is fun to watch due to its entertainment value. It has action, some type of drama when it comes to local politics of a city, romance stemming between Bruce Wayne/Batman and Selina Kyle/Catwoman, and the villain. You gotta have a villain that stands out and Tim Burton's version of Penguin. The design of the Penguin is forever iconic, but how DeVito brings this type of character out. You almost want to root for him and we do actually! We are amused and intrigued as what his goal in this film beside being a mayor. It's a film that's easy to enjoy and part of the reason is not Tim Burton's vision, but the one-liners that almost every character possesses. I'd say, half the time, it works! You really have to see the film to be embraced by the corny-ness of it all. Apart from that, I do like Burton's version of a gothic, dirty Gotham City, where you never seen the sun, lights blind the viewer, and technology seems to be lost in time. I do like cinematography, Burton made great decisions of what kind of shots we should see. A lot of them feel as if they did come from a comic book page. Every shot is different, proposing its purpose. I like the use of blue in the film, especially to mimic moonlight. What's great of the film is how these actors play these characters and play them respectfully toward the screenplay. The way Burton displays the interaction of Batman and Catwoman in the action and dramatic scenes are almost a masterclass of it's own. We honestly forget that we are watching two people dressed in costume. We forget their masks and false identities and realize underneath that are hungry human beings trying fill personal voids and Burton did a great job creating that.

three out of four tokes.

#batmanreturns #timburton

Martin Scorsese directed a brilliant film that will stand the test of time. It's film that we all love and enjoy and we don't care that the characters are bad guys, like, really BAD guys. Scorsese has that visual power where we get to see, envy, the glorification of "GoodFellas" featuring my good friends of the We Don't Smoke the Same podcast - E-Zone and XG. We dissect the film by pointing out favorite scenes, discuss the power of being a gangster and the culture it influences, and how drugs come into play in the mob business. I dig the film for it's realism on these characters and how they handle situations. Scorsese does a great job providing different senes that highlight the highs and lows of the various characters that play off each other. Every time I see the film, I learn something new about it and the director and how it all works.

Four out of four tokes.

E-Zone
http://flavorsbyezone.com

XG
http://fullytoxic.com

#goodfellas #film

"My Dinner With Andre" is beautiful simple film directed by Louis Malle. A legendary filmmaker decided to film two theater guys talk about life while they eat in what looks like to be a fancy restaurant in New York. This film is unqiue due to the fact that it's simply two people who meet up and dine. And they talk for 111 minutes. For us nowadays, one will say "oh, well that's just a typical podcast". True, but it's the FIRST. And honestly the only of it's kind. There's really not a film like "My Dinner With Andre". These two men talk about life, throw in their perspectives. There is a point to the film. There is a beginning, middle and end and it's great. It all works very well. I love how these characters make life seem real by talking about things that are real to some of us. A scripted as it can be, they were able to create something that we can all relate no matter who we are, where we're from. I like the they it shot as well. There's an intensity with Andre Gregory that Malle was able to get down. When you see that close up, you feel the words that Andre is saying. You see that vulnerability and contrast it with Wallace Shawn's realistic approach of life. They are great together. You can tell Shawn is skeptical but he loves his friend. He has a respect for him that you can see and Malle, again, shoots it so dignifying, I can't help but just stare and figure if there's more to it and turns out in this film, there's not, haha. I'm actually going to watch it again. There's layers in the topics they discuss and it's fun to see something so real to be just fiction but it's that darn believable.

Four out of four tokes.

#mydinnerwithandre #louismalle

Danny Boyle directed a good film that was written by Aaron Sorkin called "Steve Jobs". It's a biographical film depicting Apple Computers Co-Founder and Visionary Tech Giant, Steve Jobs. The film centers around three key moments in Jobs' life and in each of the periods shows us who this guy Steve Jobs is and we should care about him and the people who surround him. The scenes really give out a clear but complex picture of Steve Jobs. To be a visionary such as himself, you must some type of complication, something that stand out in your life. I dig the film for its intense dialog concerning the task at hand, which is basically making the unveiling of the future is as perfect as it can try to be. I dig the cinematography, where the space of a setting is used. Boyle gave us the feeling of a play of sorts because characters spent their time in closed doors in a public venue. Interesting to see how actors can use their space and setting for their effective skills. the use of editing where characters appear and disappear in the film and how we get the reaction shots from the characters which relates as how WE would react to a certain exchange of dialog and/or action. The flaw I would give for this film is partially on the type of character this version of Steve jobs is. Almost an egomaniac. It has a bit hard to swallow that pill.

Three and a half out of four tokes.

"Mona Lisa Smile" is a universal film that aimed towards people who thnk they have their futures written in stone. A film directed by Mike Newell, stars Julia Roberts as this free-spirited teacher who travels over to the east coast to teach at an institution where women are guided to be submissive wives/partners. This was set in the mid-'50s. I never really focused on Roberts in films but this one really swept me to a point. I love her character as Katherine Ann Watson. She doesn't let anyone really dictate her life and style. The film is not about style but about how to hold on to your own and that you're not confined anywhere especially if you have personal goals set. I did like that they did a good job balancing the principle characters' dilemmas which is difficult to do in screenwriting, period. The plot is all right but I didn't like how they tackled it where it was an examination of the women in the film rather than playing high stakes. I didn't mind how it played out for Roberts' character but in connection to the other characters that support her morals & goals as a film, was weak and needed more work to established.

Three out of four tokes.

"Paddington 2" is the most positive reviewed film in the history of cinema and it came out in 2017, beating "Citizen Kane" directed by Orson Welles. Imagine that? Anyways, I love this film. I didn't mention it in the review but this a "perfect" family film. It has everything - comedy, action, moments of wonder & curiosity, drama, but most of all, this film has heart and that heart is the character himself - Paddington. The cast in the film great, even to the villains. Hugh Grant was great in this film, you can tell he was having a blast playing a villain and made it so self-centered, it's great. He's a character you can fall behind because he goes all the way as who he is and what he wants. I was impressed to take in the fact that it's a live action film with a CGI bear and honestly, I didn't even notice. I mean, you can tell it's fake but they way they animated Paddington and what they have them do, took a lot of consideration. I was too convinced and hooked on the bear, the sweet and courageous bear named Padddington that can turn a criminal into a friend. Imagine having a buddy like that in your life? E-Zone, fuck Baby Yoda. Paddington is the guy you want on your side. He's the "voice of reason" and all that's thanks to his Aunt Lucy, which is the basis of the whole plot itself. It's hard for sequels to out-do the first film, but this surpasses it (respectfully) at a level that pulls the heartstrings. The film only goes higher as the stakes get tough for the bear to clear his name. When times get tough, stay strong and follow through with the faith you got but also take matters your hands.

Four out of four tokes.

"As Tears Go By" is the debut of filmmaker Wong Kar-wai. It's his love letter to the film "Mean Streets". He shares a tragedy where love is lost, both of the romantic and of the brotherly. I was amazed to see a style of filmmaking and it came out in 1988. It's very stylistic and isn't afraid to push narrative boundaries. My favorite scene of the film is honestly, the ending. I wont say why but it's an effective ending that you don't really get to see in cinema nowadays. It's a film that drama, romance, crime, some comedy, and even existentialism. It's a film about a gangster who tries throughout the whole film, to look out for his best friend, and honestly, his only friend, especially in the world they're in. His friend is always messing up and he has to figure out a way to chamge, or else...
It's great film in it's style of filmmaking and a story that's engaging and doesn't spoon feed you

#astearsgoby