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Flash Movie Review: Burning
I FELT LIKE I WAS WEARING a disguise because he did not recognize me. One night I was about to start my yoga class when an unfamiliar couple walked in. As was my custom, I went up to introduce myself and ask if they had ever done yoga before. Through the conversation, I never let on that I recognized the man; I was friends with him in elementary school. Granted, I had lost a lot of weight, had a beard and was wearing a baseball hat; so, chances were he would not have remembered me after all these years. However, after class I went up to ask both how they felt. At some point during the conversation, I came out and asked if he recognized me. He looked at me for a moment and said no. I chuckled and asked how his sister was, to see if that would jog his memory. His face showed such utter confusion that I chuckled and told him my name. Not only did he stare at me in disbelief, but he asked me what happened to me, that I was so skinny now. It was my turn to chuckle before I answered him. I TOLD HIM EVERYTHING I LEARNED about fitness; I learned after I left high school. That statement got us started on talking about our years together in school. I mentioned that I could only recall us having a gym class together in high school and he said he remembered the class; but he cut it often. I shared with him how I had to cut gym class sometimes out of concerns for my safety. That is not a typical statement, I know; he asked what happened. From what I told him, we each shared our horror stories about high school. The thing that amazed me the most was how my perceptions of him did not match who I thought he was in school. Because of his laid-back appearance and lack of enthusiasm during the school day, I thought he had little motivation. He explained how he found most of the classes boring, naming a few teachers he thought were the worst. When he would cut class, he would go downtown to explore the different museums or go to a particular exhibit or concert. I was so surprised to hear this since I interpreted his actions as a slacker. On the contrary, he was at the city’s main library studying the same school subjects we were, but he really wanted to learn about the assigned topic. What a surprise! It just goes to show, you can never assume you know how a person will turn out from your childhood. It can be seen in this film festival winning, mystery thriller. IT WAS A BIT OF A SHOCK that the employee during her performance was flirting with him. It was a bigger shock when she said she knew him. With Yao Ah-in (The Throne, Voice of Silence) as Lee Jong-ju, Steven Yeun (I Origins, Minari) as Ben, Jeon Jong-seo (Nothing Serious, Mona Lisa and the Blood Moon) as Shin Hae-mi, newcomer Kim Sao-Kyung as Yeon-ju and newcomer Choi Seung-ho as Lee Yong-seok; this drama was a slow burn, pun intended. For the beginning portion of the movie, I kept wondering when things would pick up. Things slowly took place in what seemed to be no particular direction. On a better note, I was fascinated seeing on display the Korean culture and landscape. One could argue there were different stories taking place, that were filled with symbolism and metaphors. Maybe there was, but I am not the type to delve into a movie story’s psyche and try to figure out what the writer and director were trying to say. Korean was spoken with English subtitles.
2 ¾ stars
Flash Movie Review: Nope
I WAS DEFINITELY IN THE MINORITY at the concert. Gratefully the venue had stadium seating; otherwise, I would have been ticked off with all the phone screens blocking my view. The place was packed with fans, and I was there with a couple of friends. As the band was performing, it seemed as if every person around me was watching the group through the screen of their phone as they were snapping photos and videos. Everywhere I looked there were people with their arms up, pointing their phone cameras to the stage. I sat there and wondered how many photos did a person need of their favorite band? It was crazy; instead of sitting there and enjoying the music, everyone was focused on capturing the musicians with their phones. It could not have been comfortable to hold one’s arms up for such a long time. I found it distracting because I did not pay good money to have these phones waving in the air. If I had been sitting on the main floor, I would have had a fight with the people in front of me if they had been using their phones. Why couldn’t people just allow themselves to enjoy the show and let it settle into their minds, to become a fond memory? CAPTURING AN EVENT ON “FILM” IS not exclusive to concerts; everywhere I look, there is someone snapping a photo. Restaurants are a popular location for people to snap pix of their food; I am not sure why they do it. Sure, some dishes look great; but unless one is going to try and reproduce it, I am not clear why one would want to have a photo of it. I know I am more old school, but I do not see the fascination of posting things about myself on social media sites. I am astounded with the amount of people’s video clips that show up on my sites’ feeds. People dancing, pranking, posing, dressing up and so on; it is like a different world for me. There are many individuals who, I believe, see this as a way to earn income and fame. The more outrageous antics are done, I think, with the hope of acquiring a bigger following. And once there is a bigger following then the next step is to find a way to monetize one’s site. I know someone who has been focusing on making a living by getting corporate sponsors or products to promote while flying to various circuit events. So far it looks like they are succeeding. I am not sure I can say the same thing for the family in this dramatic, science fiction mystery. A BROTHER AND SISTER ARE TRYING to keep the family horse business going despite unusual things taking place around their ranch. With Daniel Kaluuya (Judas and the Black Messiah, Black Panther) as OJ Haywood, Keke Palmer (Hustlers, Alice) as Emerald Haywood, Brandon Perea (The OA-TV, Insurrection) as Angel Torres, Michael Wincott (Talk Radio, What Just Happened) as Antlers Holst and Steven Yeun (Minari, I Origins) as Ricky ‘Jupe’ Park; there were parts of this film that were bold and spectacular in a Hollywood way. I thought Daniel and Keke were outstanding, especially Keke; this was such a different role for her, and I was totally impressed. There was a lot going on in the story and to tell you the truth, if there was a lot of symbolism or meaning, it was lost on me. The first part of the movie dragged for me, taking some time before I felt I was engaging with the story. I still am not sure about the chimpanzee scenes and that is all I will say about that. Having some quality moments in this picture, I wished it connected more with me. Or maybe that is the point.
2 ¾ stars
Flash Movie Review: The Star
A FIXTURE OF THE establishment for so many years, most people coming in to the place simply look past him. They do not know what an impact he has had on the business over the years, but I do. Unassuming, close to being an introvert, he is politely quiet; he only engages in a conversation if you start it. I have only seen him dressed in neutral colors and if there happened to be a logo on any of his clothing it usually was from one of the local sport teams. Despite his, shall we say meek appearance; when it comes to a life or death situation he becomes a whole different person. Out of everyone who works with him, he has saved the most lives. You could try to argue it is because of his work schedule that he is at work when there are more people coming into the place, but it would not stick because the employees agree he doesn’t waste a second nor second guess himself when an alert is announced over the loudspeakers. TO ME HE IS an unsung hero; he doesn’t look for accolades or monetary gain when racing to save someone’s life. He is not the only unsung hero I know; there are others who have made a difference and are some of the most unassuming individuals you could ever know. In fact I know a couple of unsung heroes who are not even human. There is a person I know who was saved by his dog. He and his family were sleeping one night when an electrical fire started in one of the lower levels of their house. Since they were all upstairs they did not get woken up by the smoke or noise. However the family dog went into action by jumping up on the parents’ bed, barking and pulling at the blanket. All the family members woke up with a start and immediately smelled the thickening smoke from below. Calling 911 they quickly gathered together and made their escape. Who knows what would have happened if their dog had not run into their bedroom to wake them up. If you want to learn more about other non-human unsung heroes then feel free to watch this animated, adventure comedy. WANTING TO DO MORE with his life Bo, voiced by Steven Yeun (I Origins, The Walking Dead-TV), can only think about breaking free of his restraints. Little did he know he would play a part in the very first Christmas. This film festival winner included Keegan-Michael Key (Keanu, Tomorrowland-TV) voicing Dave, Aidy Bryant (Saturday Night Live-TV, Shrink-TV) voicing Ruth, Gina Rodriguez (Deepwater Horizon, Jane the Virgin-TV) as Mary and Zachary Levi (Shades of Ray, Chuck-TV) voicing Joseph. This movie was a mixed bag for me. On the one hand I did not mind the animation or the idea behind the story; however the script kept bouncing back and forth between slapstick, goofy scenes to holier reverent action. I found it odd. On one level I thought the script could have been narrowed in scope to focus on one aspect of the story. In a weird way there were times I felt the writers were disrespectful of the story. Also I got bored in a couple of places. Granted most viewers could easily figure out the ending of the story, but why couldn’t the writers add either more consistency or excitement into the story? I think my telling of the dog that rescued the family would have been a better idea to make a movie about than this picture.
2 stars
moviejoltz 