This is a blog that between 2011-2021 dealt with reviews, and from here on it is the home of all my projects. Posts are going to be more random, but the comment section is always open. Check out the links for how it begun, and see how I ended my ten year run on the right panel. Look around, leave a comment, and enjoy my content: I made it with all my heart!
I have compiled a list of movies I have seen since as long as I can remember. Now, I am going through that list and just writing down movies that I would like to talk about a little bit. These were surprises, hated movies, and some that just worked their way into my hear unexpectedly. So let us get in deeper:
A buddy-cop comedy about and uptight FBI agent with no friends, who gets paired with the weirdest, but also the best cop in order to take down drug dealers. The two develop a friendship despite being complete opposites, and in the end take down the bad guy in their own way.
I wanted to write truly just a couple of sentences about this movie, because there is absolutely no need to go into detail: This movie is awesome. I honestly did not think that I would like it, because I have seen 300 movies like this already, and well, not all of them hit the right notes when it comes to comedy. And thank god my sister told me to watch it with her, because otherwise I would have written this movie off like all the others with a similar premise.There are always a couple of good jokes, then the forced toilet humor, and of course the predictable ending of the two cops become the best of friends. However, what I did not predict was that this movie would not forget that it is a comedy until the very last scene. I have found myself cry laughing and trying to catch my breathe multiple times. These movies always cast people who are also different on the surface, not just in their personality, and well, I think here that played out better than expected. Bullock and McCarthy had wonderful chemistry on screen, which made me in the end crave for even more of the adventures of these two weird but highly entertaining ladies. I applaud the screenwriter, the director and the casting director, this was a home-run on every front for me and one of the best buddy-cop movies I have seen in the 2000s!
Watch it? Definitely. Be ready to laugh your ass off, and do not look up reviews or spoilers or anything, really, just pop it in and let this wild train you wherever it may go. Trust me, of all the movies out there, this one you do not want to miss! I could be sitting here for hours thinking of bad things to say, but nothing would come to me. For me, this is 10/10.
I have compiled a list of movies I have seen since as long as I can remember. Now, I am going through that list and just writing down movies that I would like to talk about a little bit. These were surprises, hated movies, and some that just worked their way into my hear unexpectedly. So let us get in deeper:
Five teens get Saturday morning detention at school, but they come from all angles of the school, and at one point, they can't help but wonder, how did they all get here? As the day progresses, they defy some more laws, but get to know each other better. Detention becomes the one loophole in the high school hierarchy where a brain, an athlete, a basket case, a princess, and a criminal can become friends.
I was too young when I saw this movie, as I felt related to it, but my English was not perfect and some of the story was lost on me. But as a result, I went and watched it over and over again... and well, I was lucky, there was no real hierarchy when it came to high school for me: there were no cheerleaders or jocks, thankfully. Nonetheless, I knew those people that I would never talk to in my life, and indeed I have not. Somehow, however, life might bring us together in the most unlikely of places, simply because life is unpredictable. These kids suffer a lot, there is plenty material there when it comes to parenting: some of them are neglected, others experience pressure that is hard to deal with at a young age. This is not purely a movie on clicks or bullying, but showcasing that sometimes outside of the family, teachers, schools, the places that children turn to for safety are in fact what may be the cause for distrust.
I am a huge fan of 80s movies, and I find that John Hughes movies stand out for their story telling, their soundtrack, their cast and altogether the experience you go through as an audience member. I feel like I am part of the story, the people on the screen are my friends, or my enemies and I care deeply about how the story unfolds. They remain, however, very down to Earth and true, which makes them far more superior to stories that go overboard to get you interested, either with fantastic elements or simply impossible situations. This movie holds new gems for me every single time when I re-watch it. I do believe that years from now, even when technology will be of second nature to us and especially to teenagers, the lessons that were taught in this story will still be valid.
"We're all pretty bizarre. Some of us are just better at hiding it, that's all."
Watch it? I think that if you wish to see a story about how high school students who are not merely worrying about their prom dress, or about suicide (which seems to be the new favorite trope in television recently). I am sorry, but many shows that I have seen in the past years focus on tragic outcomes to get the viewer to watch. This movie, with very simple, long scenes, of children sharing their fears and thoughts and dreams made me glued to the screen far more than any other current series in television about high schoolers. I do believe that John Hughes was an amazing and one of a kind director, so let us not try to remake this sensational piece, let's just re-watch it.
Just a couple of weeks ago Hulu released its adaptation of John Green's first solo novel "Looking for Alaska". I had previously read the book, not just in the anticipation of the mini-series, but because my girlfriend is a major Green Brothers fan and she introduced me to the world of nerd-fighters and made me realize I was a part of it all along. The more I got to know about these two, the more I grew interested in their works, and as so, I began Green books in order, this being the first. Now that the adaptation has come out, I wish to talk about both the book and the miniseries.
Miles Holter decides to enroll in a high school to get away from his current one, as he has no friends and does not enjoy any aspect of his teen years. Once at Culver Creek he hopes to find something bigger than himself, and he does as he immediately makes friends with his roommate, the Colonel, and his best friends, Alaska and Takumi. Alaska is a mysterious and powerful being that Miles starts to look up to, as her energy to life is something he did not know was possible. As she gets closer to his heart and he finds that the only thing that matters is having her by his side, he loses her. The story concentrates on his loss of Alaska, and how his friends deal with it as well.
"So I walked back to my room and collapsed on the bottom bunk, thinking that if people were rain, I was drizzle and she was a hurricane."
So a young Chad Micheal Murray and a young Margot Robbie fall in love... fine, it was other actors, but I know who they would have cast if it was indeed shot in 2005. That said, I was blown away by the young actors in this adaptation. The magic about Green's book is that he writes complex young characters, to me even showcasing that we do not see what is under the surface whatsoever. Even though I was a teen myself one day... but they are often misrepresented. I believe that Miles' talk with his mom, after he loses Alaska, was one of the most powerful dialogues ever written: he highlights, that he does not want to be over this, that it isn't fair, that nobody should be forgotten after they are gone. What I also liked is the adults in this adaptation. Of course, since the book was written from Miles' perspective, we do not get to see everyone or get to know at all some of the characters that do have an impact on the life of these teens. The miniseries took seriously the idea of bringing characters to life, from 2D to 3D literally. Even enemies or seemingly distant and impatient teachers revealed to be much more than meets the eye. These people have decided to take care of these children and as people devoted to their professions, it is clear that there is a story to be told there too. I loved the casting and I loved the interactions between the young and the old citizens of Culver Creek.
"We need never be hopeless because we can never be irreperably broken."
Now, I unfortunately had two issues with the book, that just did not let me enjoy the ending, and one of those was very much brought over to the adaptation, although it was made a bit better. First, when the boys are trying to find out what it could have been that triggered Alaska, it drove me insane that none of them thought of the passing of her mom, since when it was revealed it shook everyone. As she yells out that she forgot something, even if I can understand that she would much rather share the happy notion that her anniversary with Jake is on the same date (which OK, were on the same date?), I would still feel like they should have remembered or at least said "Her mom could not have died on her anniversary with Jake, could she?". On top of that, I could not believe that her father, somebody who was completely sane and composed at the funeral in the book would not mention whatsoever that both his daughter and wife died on the same day. Even more so, in the adaptation, where he was crying and drinking... That is why, me knowing that this SHOULD be the link to the question of why she ran off that night, when it did turn out to be that, it was just completely underwhelming... I do not know if I am more of attentive reader with an attention to detail (which is something people have told me) or that the reader was supposed to be in the loop at all times, but when it came to the moral lesson of we will never know, when half the book is about trying to find out why, I was not happy... but the second thing was having given us such in-depth characters, it bothered me that Miles loves this girl so much whom we don't really know anything about. The adaptation approached her portrayal from a much tender angle, making me want to hug her most of the time, which was a very smart thing to do. I might not go so far as to fall in love with her, but I sure wanted to protect her and embrace her. The mystery of who is Alaska, where she comes from and where she is going, might be part of her charm. Of course, our first love is different than all the others, I need to be more open to that, I was told; but nonetheless, I did not know enough about her to feel Miles' love for her, and that really bothered me when I read the book.
"If only we could see the endless string of consequences that result from our smallest actions. But we can't know better until knowing better is useless."
Watch it? I do believe you should. It was amazing to me that 2005 is now part of an era, that has defining music and hair cuts, that make it stand apart from the other decades. I for one did like the adaptation more, as it somewhat ironed out questions that I had, and doubts about the relationship between these children. As always, adaptations are never the same as the original, but I do not mind the changes that were made, as they gave out a coherent and beautiful story about losing someone too soon. And hey, I do recommend reading the original if you can!
I decided to write about a classic, I have included this in other lists before, but as the news broke that Disney+ is developing a sequel, I felt it fitting to go back to this classic, which has since grown itself into a fan favorite worthy of further discussion.
Three witches that sealed themselves in order to survive the Salem witch trials are awoken by a group of youngsters out trick-or-treating on the night of Halloween. The witches have to re-adjust to the 20th century surrounding them, but their powers are as strong as they were before and our team of youngsters have to be very creative in the way they try to defeat the three witches that appear to be invincible.
I was very young when I first saw this movie, it came out when I was just two years old, and I remembered seeing parts of it, but never the whole movie. When I was a teen my sister got a hold of it and we watched it from beginning to end, only to find out that it was not the major hit that I always thought it was. This movie is still a 6,8 on imdb, and actually people have become fans years after it actually came out. In that regard, I am awesome and hipster because I loved this movie far before others did. I had seen some nostalgia reviews, that pointed out how perhaps the wrong things were in focus (like, virginity and therefore the lack of sexual activity), but I think it flips it around just in time to focus on the fact that this was a good trait of a character rather than a negative one.
I am still scared of this movie to today. It is kind of a nostalgic fear, of course, as I child I did not know how they were going to defeat these witches, and every time they tried, something happened, a spell or a curse that protected them. They managed to keep me entertained and afraid at the same time, which to be honest, is proof of especially good story writing. I look forward to a continuation, although scared that this perfect balance won't be achieved, but perhaps Disney will take proper care of it. I know I wouldn't mind seeing it in the theater and share that experience with a bunch of people in costumes on a Halloween night in the near future.
Watch it? Oh my god, yes! Those movies that become classics do so for a good reason: just because the release time of a movie or the company in charge of production did not do a good job, does not mean that a movie is not outstanding. Some of the best movies in history are under independent companies and will never reach a wide group of people. Funnily, this was a Disney production, and I think even they did not account for its success later. Just to show you: it was released in 1993 and in 2019 we are talking about a sequel... that is over 20 years of fans gathering and requesting this movie, loud enough to reach producers. Or maybe there was a spell cast on us... who knows?
It was a year ago that I wrote about my favorite youtube channel, Game Grumps (now with the addition of The Grumps, featuring videos other than let's plays!), and coincidentally, it is also exactly 10 years since Ninja Sex Party posted their first video ever, "I Just Wanna Dance". The reason we are here, is because I had the pleasure to see them live for the first time in my life and I just had to write about it!
A few months ago, in a separate video, Danny Sexbang (Daniel Avidan) and Ninja Brian (Brian Wecht) hinted at the fact that they would not have concerts in America in 2019 anymore, aside from their 10 year anniversary arena show, *wink wink, meaning that they have things scheduled elsewhere. Seeing that they already had a tour in Australia, I knew that Europe had to be next, and sure enough, they came finally as close to me as they could! The minute the announcement came of a European tour, I put my money aside and waited for the locations, seeing London my eyes lit up "I can go there!" [from Hungary], I yelled out and immediately bought tickets for a concert in Camden Town that ended up being sold out in a matter of days. Then the count down begun for October 20th...
A small band called Planet Booty opened for NSP, singing three songs with one very important message: self-love. All these bands actually emphasize how you should face yourself in the mirror and learn to love yourself because you are just wonderful the way you are. I am not sure how long they have been opening for NSP, but they just seemed so humble and happy to be here with them that it made me love them even more than I could have imagined. They have catchy songs and truly beautiful voices for people who sing about booty and asking people to take their pants off. I also loved that their songs were not just for the ladies, or the men, but everyone in between with the emphasis on it being "consensual". The room went insane when they sang that part of the song! I cannot for the life of me think of any other band singing about sex and love making that emphasizes that it has to be consensual... so that alone makes them my new favorites!
What followed were forty minutes of the Tupperware Remix Party, who are simply breathtaking on stage. However, I was not pleased... the band members, Doctor Sung, Lord Phobos, Havve Hogan, and Commander Meouch are probably among my favorite musicians of the 21st century, with songs that beat Daft Punk in my humble opinion, but... the microphone was terribly calibrated. Every time anything in the background started to play, a new song was being prepared e.g., for Doctor Sung to take the lead, I could not hear a single thing he was saying. He has this peculiar way of talking that reminds of me of the terrible English dubbing they used to have over Japanese movies, which is very fast with strange pauses for air and I got lost sooooo fast... which made me particularly sad, because he had great jokes and the message of self-love was not lost on them either. I love this band and they have wonderful stage presence, a lot of which was lost thanks to the mic not being set up properly. The one thing that they did do, that made me enraged, was playing "No Pants Dance", which features Danny Avidan, WITHOUT him coming out and singing it... what was the point of that? He was right backstage! I kept waiting for this to be his entrance, which would have been also awesome, since they sang all other songs they have collaborated on once they were on stage. I just do not agree with the set-list. It was not at all what I expected it to be, and that might not be a could argument, I realize, but some decisions did not make sense to me. Maybe they did not want to overshadow TWRP once onstage, but as much as I love them, and am thankful that they work together with my favorite comedy band of all time, I just felt an incredible imbalance, which could have been fixed with my ticket saying "NSP AND TWRP concert". ... followed by Ninja Sex Party
My shelf at home
It has been some nine years since I have been a fan of this band. I got to know them through Arin Hanson, as my brother followed Egoraptor previously, and he made their video "Dinosaur Laser Fight", (which they also sang at the concert in an acoustic way). So Danny and Brian finally came on stage and they sang songs about "Unicorn Wizard"s, about fighting bullying through the help of "Cool Patrol", and what their songs about sex have been leading to all along: the real "Heart Boner" to end an era of awesomeness (for now). They also sang a cover song, as they have two albums and a third one coming out (but I would have liked more of that too); which gave Ninja Brian the chance to misbehave on stage and his interactions with Danny were perfectly in sync with the two characters we got to know and love through their music videos. It was amazing, to experience in front of them the same kind of excited butterflies in my stomach I have every time I see them upload a new music video! They came out, "We are Ninja Sex Party!", the crowd went wild, Danny's parents and Jacksepticeye up on the balcony, a room full of fans from literally around the world, a line that went around the block before we could head into the building... I was in awe.
Overall, I wanted to see a Ninja Sex Party concert, and I feel like I did not get enough of them... I do not know what the contract is between them and TWRP, and I know that Danny loves that they have a live band behind them to sing their songs, and working on the Under the Covers albums gives them a chance to have just that, but it was not nearly enough. It was two and half hours, out of which just one hour was with NSP. But am I really complaining? Oh, fuck no. I cannot believe for the life of me, that after sticking with these boys for all these years, a simple youtube band starting out when youtube was NOTHING, was able to grow so big and travel near enough for me to be able to say that I have seen them live! Because of that I have to thank all the other fans too, I alone could not have done it, of course, but I will be there to like every video and buy every single album as long as they make them. I still wish to see Starbomb live too, which I find would be closer to my expectations. But it was all money well spent, and this is just a review, and the world will keep going on even if I share some thoughts of disapproval.
I still cannot believe that I saw them live, and I hope that this feeling never fades away. I also wish to be there at the 20th year anniversary concert and many more. I wish to take my brother and sister too, who are huge fans, and my girlfriend, who lets me educate her in the ways of NSP ever since we started dating. I wish to be able to use words to express how much I love this band and their music, and I wish contribute to their success whenever I can and when I can. Thank you for all these years of awesome, keep on rocking!
Happy 10th Anniversary,
With all my heart,
a Hungarian lovely
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There is a reason, however, why I might have been so sassy about my experience... and that is because the Electric Ballroom in Camden Town can go suck my d*ck. Before getting in, they checked my bag, which is fine, I get that, but the dude then got my empty water bottle (which I emptied just at the entrance in order to be able to take it inside) and he just threw it out! Like what the f*ck, I thought, OK, they want me to spend money in here, don't trink water from tap, OK, I am not cool with that whatsoever (not to mention that I am not from London, I was a tourist and money was an issue on my trip, and now I had to buy ANOTHER plastic bottle (which I already hated to do), for this a**hole to just throw it out at the entrance? And only THEN I saw, at the end of the concert, that the bar had PRE-PREPARED cups of PLASTIC filled with FREE tap water on the counter for everyone to take... WHAT?! What was the point of throwing out my bottle if they are fine with us taking the previous free water anyway? AND DO THEY KNOW HOW MUCH WASTE it is to have all of those plastic cups thrown out afterwards? I was literally disgusted. All of this on top of the fact that gigsandtours.com failed to deliver my tickets to Hungary, which is beyond me, and told me that I would find them there at the sight. I went to the ticket office, the girl had my name OK, but instead of a ticket she gave me a small green paper at the size of a pen cap, that said "adult", and that was my only way in, and the guy took it from me right away. No ticket. NO EFFING TICKET. This was my dream concert and I have NOTHING to show for it! I cannot believe this, if they had already f*cking printed a ticket out for my delivery why was it not there?!! Thankfully I could ask a girl to take a picture of hers, so I have a bootleg version, but I was enraged. This place was just terrible and I will try my best to avoid buying ticket through them.
