Movies

Cage Rage: Shark Bite or Box Office Flop? You Won’t Believe the Verdict!

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Verdict: Cage unleashed 

Approximately a year has gone by since I initially watched “The Surfer” at the 2024 Cannes Film Festival, but I can still vividly recall the enthusiastic cheers during the opening credits – “Nicolas Cage is… The Surfer” – followed by the puzzled quietness and then the gradual exits.

Let me be clear, this Australian thriller isn’t a beer everybody enjoys. For sure, it’s not my kind.

In typical flamboyant style, Cage embodies the anonymous protagonist – a man who seeks to recapture the joy of his youth by bringing back his surfboard and sharing the experience with his son, at the beach where he once knew freedom.

However, it soon becomes evident that, much like a wave, he’s far from surfing the peak in life. Instead, he seems to be the one constantly getting knocked down, a repeated target of humiliation and misfortune.

Instead of throwing himself into the role with wild-eyed enthusiasm, he immerses himself passionately. Interestingly enough, he avoids adopting an Australian accent, which becomes clear later when we learn that his childhood was spent far away in California.

Now, he has returned to the fictitious seaside town of Luna Bay, preparing to purchase his grandfather’s former home on Cliffside Drive.

I find that my presence often makes my son uneasy, and I can certainly empathize with his feelings, as I seem to draw unfavorable circumstances much like a magnet draws flies.

He’s no longer with his wife, as any chance for their reconciliation seems dashed when she announces her intention to remarry. To add to his woes, she is expecting a child.

Even though the calming rhythm of surfing is still dear to him, it doesn’t seem to alleviate his troubles. However, a group of local residents, apparently unfriendly towards him, object to him riding their waves.

Instead of “Don’t live here, don’t surf here” being their rough motto, their leader, Julian McMahon, grows increasingly vengeful, with this phrase serving as a constant reminder among them.

Starting at this point, Lorcan Finnegan’s movie starts to exert a heavy effort, almost audibly groaning, to mimic the atmosphere of John Boorman’s 1972 film Deliverance. In his belief that he is on familiar ground, our potential surfer discovers instead that he is unwelcome.

Despite an unexplained flat car battery leaving me stranded, I find myself persisting, enduring the hardships that come my way, unfortunately becoming a target for mistreatment. My fortunes seem to be spiraling downward with each passing moment.

If a rodent scurries by, it might nip him. An aggressive canine lurking nearby? You’ve got it right. Is there any hope that the house sale will finalize to prevent his existence from spiraling out of control?

Could it be possible that the police officer from Luna Bay might provide some form of redemption, or alternatively, could he end up being a small-scale embodiment of a corrupt South American nation, tainted with rot? Let me ponder this thought once more.

As a lifestyle enthusiast, I can confidently say that the key to truly appreciating the film “The Surfer” lies in suspending your doubts and immersing yourself wholeheartedly in Nicolas Cage’s electrifying, larger-than-life performance. This movie, as subtle as a sledgehammer, is best enjoyed when you let go and ride the wave of its unapologetic intensity.

 

Verdict: In-depth documentary 

In the Ocean With David Attenborough, sharks appear, just as one might anticipate. Also present is the peacock mantis shrimp, boasting an extraordinarily sophisticated vision, and boxer crabs, who employ clusters of venomous anemones as makeshift gloves in self-defense, giving them a boxer-like appearance that suggests a crustacean fight promoter, akin to a man named Frank Warren, is always lurking nearby.

Instead of following the standard format of a David Attenborough documentary, this one serves as a call-to-action, urging global governments and individuals like us who can advocate, to preserve a greater portion of our ocean depths from the devastating impacts of overfishing.

Sir David Attenborough passionately advocates, backed by breathtaking underwater visuals, that the secret to our species’ longevity may be hidden deep below the surface of the ocean. Yet, he conveys this critical message with a sense of optimism rather than despair.

One reason for his optimism lies in the significant increase in global whale populations over the past four decades, following the near-global ban on commercial whaling.

In someone else’s care, these matters might appear biased or even dull. Yet, Attenborough manages to make them captivating. Yesterday marked his 99th birthday, and instead of appearing frail due to age, he carries an air of authority, making it seem more like a badge of wisdom than a symbol of weakness.

 

Verdict: Fascinating and creepy 

101-year-old Leni Riefenstahl, a filmmaker, photographer, and actress, is the subject of Andres Veiel’s documentary titled “Riefenstahl.” This captivating film chronicles her remarkable life, a tapestry of diverse experiences that almost encompassed the entire 20th century. However, her life was deeply intertwined with Adolf Hitler, shaping many aspects of it.

As a devoted admirer, I held her in high esteem, and she graciously reciprocated my admiration. However, she wasn’t as smitten by Joseph Goebbels, the chief of Nazi propaganda. Ironically, he seemed to hold a deep affection for her, going so far as to assert that he attempted to violate her not once, but twice, according to her own accounts.

This intriguing and detailed analysis delves into her significant influence as the woman who wielded power during the Third Reich, with her films – Triumph of the Will (1935) glorifying the 1934 Nazi Party Congress in Nuremberg, and Olympia (1938) celebrating the 1936 Berlin Olympics – being both technically masterful and unsettlingly ominous.

However, footage of interviews with her later in life reveals her passionately refuting the idea that she had been a tool for evil in any way.

She asserted that she wasn’t involved in propaganda. According to her, Triumph of the Will centered around ‘labor and tranquility.’ She maintained that her actions were nothing more than what one with her abilities would have performed. Essentially, she was simply following instructions.

 

As a lifestyle expert, I am thrilled to share my perspective on Lily Gladstone’s exceptional acting talent, once again showcased in the 2023 remake of Ang Lee’s beloved 1993 romantic comedy, Sense and Sensibility.

In the original text, a Taiwanese man who is gay conceals his sexual orientation from his traditional parents by entering into a marriage with a Chinese woman. He also presents his boyfriend as his landlord to maintain this disguise.

Back then, politics were a whole different ball game, but as a die-hard fan, I can appreciate how Director and Co-writer Andrew Ahn skillfully adapts the storyline to mirror the current political climate.

In a fresh portrayal, two pairs of lovers (one female duo starring Gladstone and Kelly Marie Tran, and another male couple) encounter diverse hurdles in this tale, primarily centering around In Vitro Fertilization and the need to conceal their involvement from wealthy Korean grandparents, whose financial support is crucial for the continuity of their grandson’s inheritance.

The movie turns out to be both humorous and moving, with a few minor flaws here and there. However, overall, it manages to entertain effectively.

I wasn’t particularly enthusiastic about “The Uninvited” (Rated 15, running time of 97 minutes, directed by HHIII), which marks the debut as a writer-director for Nadia Conners. Her spouse, Walton Goggins, stars in the male lead role.

The film is a heavy-handed, dramatic critique of the movie industry, featuring an agent (Goggins) and his actress wife (Elizabeth Reaser), who host a gathering at their sophisticated residence in Hollywood Hills.

Unfortunate circumstances arise as an elderly lady (Lois Smith), seemingly bewildered, arrives on the evening of the gathering, asserting that the house once belonged to her.

In The Uninvited, Rufus Sewell and Pedro Pascal deliver captivating performances as disreputable figures in the Hollywood elite. However, if you choose to skip it, you likely won’t feel like you’ve missed out on a lot.

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2025-05-09 03:54

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