TINY REVIEWS: "Wicked", "No Other Choice", "It Was Just an Accident", "Train Dreams" and "After the Hunt"

WICKED: FOR GOOD

It suffers from the fact the second part plot isn't as interesting as the first one's and the songs are much less iconic, but WICKED: FOR GOOD still delivers an entertaining and engaging cinematic experience, mostly because of a duo made in Heaven (Cynthia Erivo & Ariana Grande doing even better than in the previous movie, specially Grande who gets the opportunity to explore her character deeply). Great costume and production design, an improvement in cinematography and some interesting editing (see "The Girl in the Bubble" scenes) sure compensate the pretty average VFX work, . John M. Chu proves once again he loves the material and it shows. Not as good as the first one (I found Michelle Yeoh particularly bad in this one to be honest), but it still good enough to enjoy and be amazed by some parts. Their rendition of "For Good" got me crying almost as much as Elphaba and Glinda.

RATING: 6,5/10

NO OTHER CHOICE

Led by a mesmerizing performance by Lee Byung-hun, NO OTHER CHOICE is another masterfully crafted wonder from Park Chan-wook. Way funnier than I expected, it offers a satirical look at savage capitalism, toxic masculinity and pride as the director unveils what could be just a narrative of a desperate man on the verge of a mental breakdown. Beautiful production design values and amazing cinematography and editing works (as usual in Park Chan-wook's films) give distinguished visuals to a distinguished (and quite Smart) narrative. NO OTHER CHOICE is a perfect balance of style and substance and it never forgets its mission: to entertain!

RATING: 9,5/10

IT WAS JUST AN ACCIDENT

I was not blown-away, but IT WAS JUST AN ACCIDENT has what really takes to be as good as it is: a near-perfect screenplay and a sensitive directing hand from Jafar Panahi who handles its subject with the ambiguity it recquires. The last two scenes left me in a nail-biting state with tension. A parable about accountability, grief, forgiveness and finding humanity in the most desperate moments. A very smart film indeed! Mariam Afshari and, specially, Vahid Mobasseri make for engaging and empathetic leads. I still think about that ending.

RATING: 8,5/10

TRAIN DREAMS

Beautiful cinematography, a soaring score and a beautiful performance from Joel Edgerton make for enough reasons to watch TRAIN DREAMS. A film of delicate beauty that's also a meditation about grief, loneliness and the insignificance of one's condition. A moody slow-burner that takes too much time before igniting a flame, yet it will be a great view for a grey and rainy afternoon since you also get trapped in Grainier's loop of sadness and death, which ends up being a really heavy watch... Yet it touches you! There's a lot of beauty here, but it will take you a lot of preseverance.

RATING: 6/10

AFTER THE HUNT

It didn't feel like a Luca Guadagnino film, but a Woody Allen's instead: from the lettering (including the cast in alphabetical), to the characters, to the dialogue... Guadagnino clearly seems to avoid his own directorial style (or maybe his style is his chameleonic ability), but AFTER THE HUNT is mostly effective thanks to the central dramatic performance from Julia Roberts who devours the role as a Yale academic teaching "diva" trapped in doubt as she navigates versions of the same story, as she explores a cultural moment and as she questions herself about the weight (and intentions) of such accusation towards a dear friend of hers. Garfield is competent, Edebiri underwhelms and Michael Stuhlbarg proves to be one of the best character actors working these days by doing so much with so little. Costume design values are impeccable and the score is haunting sometimes. I loved how Guadagnino tried to explore the grey areas of a minor script and I loved how he left the audience questioning right until the end. Is it some kind of movie homage to Woody Allen? No matter what, I felt engaged and I found this one an intriguing film. Plus, I missed Roberts in such movie roles like this.

RATING: 7/10