Tiny Reviews Department: "Triangle of Sadness", "Elvis" and "Turning Red"

• TRIANGLE OF SADNESS

The attempt of being brilliant is Triangle of Sadness' major flaw. Ruben Östlund wrote a comedy composed by three acts: the first one feels overlong and it is totally forgetable; the second one is funny with a couple of hilarious moments; the third one is interesting (a bit overlong, but quite fine when compared with the first one) and provides a true social critique through the characters actions, but it wastes everything with its WIDE OPEN ending. The critique might feel a bit one note and a bit too obvious - Östlund gives you everything on a plate and the audience doesn't need to reflect about the social commentary because it always feels quite obvious. The cast delivers great acting, with the unknown Dolly De Leon delivering the best performance of the bunch when you reach the 3rd act, but you can find a lot of fun by watching Woody Harrelson, Zlatko Burić and (specially) Sunnyi Melles in the 2nd act. Triangle of Sadness is not bad, but it is a fail by trying too much and too obvious.

RATING: 5 / 10 

(I was thinking about a 6, but I feel I like the movie less than right after watching it)

• ELVIS

Baz Lhurman is back with all the visual splendor his movies are known for, but what Elvis exceeds on the surface it lacks a more sensitive approach. Don't get me wrong: Elvis succeeds as a movie that goes for paying homage to its title character, but it succeeds because of Austin Butler's AMAZING performance. The CAPSLOCK directing style of Lhurman sure impress audiences but everything kinda feels out of control sometimes - thank God for Butler's acting turn which works as a lighthouse for all the other elements of the movie. In fact, the young actor carries this big-scale movie on his shoulders... and that's quite impressive! As for Tom Hanks, he might well deliver the less accomplished performance I've seen from here - one that only fits the narrative purpose. Catherine Martin presents us once again with beautiful costume design and production design works and the makeup work is also impressive. The movie's weakest spot might well be a screenplay that's not strong enough to keep Lhurman signature cinematic excess on track. Still, go see Elvis - Austin Butler's performance deserves your attention.

RATING: 5,5 / 10

• TURNING RED

I must start by lauding Disney/Pixar for bringing some sexual awakening issues and an approach to a girl's menstruation - Turning Red might be an animated feature for kids, but it deals with adolescence themes we don't see that often in movies (unfortunately). Turning Red feels fresh, but then it falls in the "family love power narrative during the last act - which is a bit of a letdown considering the early crazy-fresh promise. Still, it is a very film, with good animation, inspired voice acting performances and super catchy songs like "Nobody Like U" or "U Know What's Up" that fuel the movie with big loads of teenage energy! The traditional Disney/Pixar narrative formula with some freshness added to it.

RATING: 7 / 10