Sneha Jaiswal's Blog, page 205

‘Lou’ Review – Allison Janney’s Pitch For A Survival Drama

The first few seconds of ‘Lou’ were a little disorienting, the scenes looked straight out of ‘The Walking Dead’ universe, and Allison Janney who plays the titular protagonist seemed eerily like Melissa McBride’s popular character Carol. And while the characters come from starkly different worlds, they are both badass women who know how to work a gun and survive on their own under brutal circumstances.

Directed by Anna Foerster, with screenplay by Maggie Cohn and Jack Stanley, the 2022 Netflix thriller is well-shot, well-acted, but poorly scripted, so as long as the viewer doesn’t apply too much logic, it makes for an entertaining enough watch. Allison Janney’s Lou is a mysterious loner woman, who helps neighbor/tenant Hannah (Jurnee Smollett) whose daughter’s kidnapped by her ex-husband Philip (Logan Marshall-Green). With a terrifying storm raging, the two women navigate a treacherous terrain to save little Vee (Ridley Asha Bateman), but they aren’t prepared to face some of the dark secrets their mission will unravel.

Since the plot unfolds on a remote island, the makers are able to sneak in some stunning shots of the landscape. Nima Fakhrara has done a fantastic job with the movie’s sound-score, there’s an intense stylish thrumming through the runtime which keeps thing seem pacier and scarier than they are. Allison Janney leads the film with much gusto and gets some gripping action scenes to boot. Jurnee Smollett’s role is a lot briefer, but she does the best out of the little her character gets. Logan Marshall-Green comes off every bit as psychotic as his antagonist Philip is supposed to be.

An unexpected twist in the second-half of the film makes ‘Lou’ a lot more about family than it appears to be, however, the drama doesn’t elicit the kind of emotions the makers perhaps hoped for. The climax was a little long-drawn and could’ve been shorter. The film would serve as a pretty good pitch for Allison Janney to star in a survival drama or maybe get a cool cameo in ‘The Walking Dead’ universe.

Overall, ‘Lou’ is a pretty decent thriller. It’s a 6/10 from me.

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Listen To ‘Do Revenge’ Review – Camila, Maya Make A Mean Duo!

‘Ye’ Graphic Novel Review – Whimsical, Magical

For some reason, ‘Ye’ by Guilherme Petreca reminded me of ‘Tintin’ and ‘Little Prince’, even though it bears little resemblance to them… unless you count the story’s spirit. It’s a whimsical fantasy like adventure about a boy called Ye, who is mute and only responds with ‘ye’ to everything.

It’s the art in this graphic novel enrapturing, so if you like Petreca’s work like I did, the book will be over before you know it. The artwork is an beautiful blend of medieval European styles and modern strokes. Set in a distant time, where pirates, witches and magicians were common sight, ‘Ye’ is spread over 150 pages, but feels like it gets over in just 5 minutes.

The plot is pretty simple, Ye the young protagonist is marked by a curse and he sets out to find a witch who can help him, but his journey is beset with challenges. He meets some quirky people along the way and readers get a quick conclusion to the tale. I was disappointed to find the book get over too soon, but since Petreca’s gorgeous panels provided a wonderful escape for a little while, it’s a 5/5 from me.

The ebook is available on Kindle Unlimited.

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Listen To – Should You Read ‘A Man’ by Keiichiro Hirano?

Should You Read ‘A Man’ by Keiichiro Hirano?

By Sneha Jaiswal (Twitter | Instagram) | Click Here For Audio Review

There are plenty of slow contemporary fiction stories that are so life-like, they can be mundanely emotional, ruminative, and unnecessarily descriptive. Some readers might savor the little details, others might quickly lose interest. The Japanese novel ‘A Man’ by Keiichiro Hirano is all those things, it still had me turning page after page, because despite being padded up with some sub-plots and themes that weren’t exactly gripping, it had an intriguing exciting primary plot.

The novel begins with a prologue, where the author introduces the protagonist as divorce-lawyer Akira Kido; he tells us that Kido is the kind of unique man who writers seek to fashion their heroes after.  But before we can get to Kido’s story, chapter one surprisingly begins with the tale of a completely different person, a woman called Rie who loses her beloved husband Daisuke in a logging accident. She contacts Daisuke’s estranged family for the first time, only to find out her husband was not who he claimed to be. Shocked to find out she didn’t even know her husband’s real name, Rie seeks Kido’s legal advice to find out his real identity. The lawyer baffled by the case, becomes obsessed with finding the truth about both the real Daisuke’s whereabouts and the man who was pretending to be him.  He is simply referred to as Mr X from thereon.

What follows next is a slow-burn investigation into Daisuke’s past and leads on who Mr X could’ve been. As Kido attempts to piece the life of a stranger, he also battles some of his own personal demons – like his mixed feelings over his Korean ancestry and his failing marital life. Author Keiichiro Hirano paints a vivid picture of all the central characters, however I found Rie’s son Yuto to be the sincerest and endearing of them all, despite making only brief appearances. He is a sensitive child, who comes to love and admire his stepfather and has a hard time dealing with the unexpected loss; but at the same time, he is thoughtful of the feelings of those around him.

‘A Man’ investigates the complex world of ‘identity theft’ and ‘identity swapping’ and readers get a detailed sense of what drives someone intro completely abandoning their past. Kido goes out of his way to get to the bottom of Rie’s case, doing detective work for three years for a paltry remuneration. Through his work, Keiichiro Hirano makes reader ponder upon whether they’d be willing to cast off their identities if they could afford the chance to start afresh. Does it take courage or cowardice to do such an act? If someone’s deception does no harm, are they deserving of forgiveness?

The fact that the story starts off at an unknown rural area simply known as ‘Town S’ lends a mysterious and rustic touch to the tale. You are transported to its deserted streets, out of business shop windows and the company of the few who either refused to leave their hometown or couldn’t find an opportunity.  There’s a subtle juxtaposition of Rie’s content marital life in the boondocks against Kido’s own strained marriage in the big city, which makes for a compelling case study. It’s not like there is some sort of deliberate messaging that rich, successful upper-class couples can’t keep their marriage intact for long; instead, it’s just a hopeful look at how one can lead a satisfying enough family life in the countryside.

For international readers, Keiichi Hirano’s exploration of xenophobia in Japan might make for an enlightening theme. The novel gives one a fair glimpse into the second-hand treatment meted out to Japanese citizens of Korean descent, even though Kido has a prejudice-free childhood since his family adopted Japanese names to escape scrutiny and bullying.

Slowly and steadily, the novel gathers pieces of Daisuke and Mr X’s life, two men from two completely different worlds and clashing temperaments. Spread over 300 pages, ‘A Man’ takes its time to unravel its core mystery, the progression sometimes made me skeptical and worried about whether readers would get any closure on who Mr X was or what happened to the real Daisuke. All I can say is… that for a slow-burn mystery puffed up with many themes, the novel comes to a satisfactory    conclusion. I’ve already recommended a bunch of my close friends to read it, and if a realistic mystery set in Japan sounds like your cup of tea, check this work of fiction out.   

‘A Jazzman’s Blues’ Movie Review

Written and directed by Tyler Perry, the 2022 Netflix movie ‘A Jazzman’s Blues’ tells the story of an unsolved murder case of a black man in the 1940s through the letters to his lover. Joshua Boone plays Bayou, a shy young man who falls deeply in love with light-skinned Leanne (Solea Pfeiffer), whose mother forces her into pretending to be white and marries her off to a wealthy man. What follows next is a tragic love story filled wish a few rash decisions, terrifying racial discrimination and some joyous jazz music.

Better known for writing & directing comedy content, Perry’s attempt at a vintage story about love, betrayal and despair is earnest and has some poignant moments. However, I feel like it would’ve worked better if all the focus wasn’t on the romantic plot, especially because Leanne’s character is very grey – she may have redeeming qualities, but everybody can see she is an extremely selfish young woman whose actions put others at risk. I would’ve preferred if the story was told through Bayou’s mother’s perspective or if they had focused on the mother-son relationship more. Amirah Vann is radiant and inspiring as Hattie Mae, Bayou’s fierce independent mother, who knows how to take of herself and her own.

While Joshua Boone is charming as the shy but musically talented Bayou, Amirah Vann is a lot more riveting when she croons fun numbers at her cozy jukebox joint. Austin Scott as Willie Earl does the despicable, narcissistic older sibling act with conviction. Ryan Eggold’s small cameo as Jewish-German Ira is both empathetic and opportunistic; he helps the brothers make a career in music. ‘A Jazzman’s Blues’ best captures the essence of live music in the 1940s, it wasn’t just a means of entertainment, it uplifted people’s soul, brought communities together, gave reason to even the most impoverished and oppressed to take a break, sing a song and make merry.

It’s a 6/10 from me.

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Listen To ‘Do Revenge’ Review – Camila, Maya Make A Mean Duo!

‘About Youth’ Review – Soft, Simple, Forgettable

Simple, sweet, soft and almost silly, that’s 2022 Taiwanese teen romance series ‘About Youth’ for you. Competing in a genre that now has big hit shows like ‘Heartstopper’ and ‘KinnPorsche’ from the same year, ‘About Youth’ is pales out in comparison. That said, it’s a decent ‘one time watch’, with a very generic story.

Directed by Tsai Mi Chieh, the show stars Shen Jyun as aspiring singer Xu Qi Zhang, Li Zhen Hao plays his crush & campus star Ye Guang. The other lead couple, who also happen to have more chemistry, is portrayed by Hsu Shuo Ting and Andy Huang. There’s a basic rich boy vs poor boy theme, Xu Qi Zhang is raised by a single struggling mother and often bullied by his uncle, whereas Ye Guang comes from a wealthy family but has extremely strict parents who treat him like an asset. The two become friends and eventually the friendship deepens.

The show’s music is quite nice, but it’s all too soft. The primary couple has close to no chemistry, they are just two giggly teens who are more coy than one would expect them to be. With just 8 episodes to boot, while the story isn’t exactly rushed, it’s weirdly both slow and fast. While it feels like not a lot is happening, the relationships between the two leads escalates at an absurd pace. Watch it if you are looking for a simple teen romantic series with a cute cast.

It’s a 5/10 from me.

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Listen to ‘Do Revenge’ Review – Camila, Maya Make A Mean Duo!

‘Windfall’ Review – Not The Noir Thriller It Wants To Be

Things are off to a deceptively gorgeous start in the 2022 thriller ‘Windfall’, if it weren’t for an ominous 60s style background score, you’d think it’s an alternative beginning to a romantic flick like ‘Call Me By Your Name’. There’s a beautiful vacation home, complete with a swimming pool surrounded by stone walls and white parasols. Then we spot an intruder, a man who clearly doesn’t belong.

Directed by Charlie McDowell, who’s also co-written the story with Jason Segel and Justin Lader, the film is a weak attempt at social satire. Jason Segel plays an unknown man who breaks into the vacation villa of a tech billionaire. Just when he was about to leave the property with some jewelry and cash, the owners turn up at the property on a surprise visit, ruining the stranger’s plan of looting and scooting.

The music by Danny Bensi and Saunder Juriaans is very old hollywood style, but it add a dramatic touch which doesn’t compliment the story unfolding on your screen. Jesse Simons and Lily Collins play the wealthy couple, who are trapped in their own property, and while they both deliver their roles per script, their characters are unbearable. And because as a viewer I couldn’t care less about what happens to two snooty rich folks, the movie gets boring midway. The creators try to address the issue of class divide, but the conversations between the rich man and poor man are too dry and mundane.

You have cliche after cliche stuffed in, there’s the rich arrogant white tech billionaire, a trophy wife who feels trapped in the relationship and an unsuspecting thief who was seconds away from a successful heist but now needs to deal with two unexpected witnesses. It’s almost like the intruder is the victim in this tale. The climax was on predictable line and I was glad the film was finally over.

It’s a 4/10 from me.

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Cuttputlli Vs Black Phone – Tale of Two Child Serial Killers

‘I Used To Be Famous’ Review – Leo Long’s Stevie Is A Wonder

Once a part of a popular boy-band, Vince is now a middle-aged unemployed man desperately looking to play his music in anywhere for some money, but nobody is interested in his unfinished and un-imaginative tracks. While practicing the piano at a market square, a young drummer jams along with him and the pair has onlookers thrilled. The 2022 Netflix movie “I Used To Be Famous” follows the bitter-sweet friendship between the autistic teen drummer and the much older man who was in need for some inspiration.

Directed by Eddie Sterberg, the film is a great pick to watch with family. Newcomer Leo Long who is neurodiverse in real life, lights up the screen as Stevie, the teen drummer whose true love is music. He is both childlike and mature beyond his age in his portrayal of a teen who want to break out of the cloistered cocoon his over-protective mom builds for him. Ed Skrein on the other hand doesn’t have pop-star charm, but it fits well with the character of Vince ‘who used to be famous’. He does remind one of Coldplay frontman Chris Martin, but the vocals are incomparable. For a music themed movie, the songs in ‘I Used To Be Famous’ are mediocre and forgettable. But the beautiful friendship between Vince and Stevie is endearing.

Eleanor Matsura, who some may recognize from ‘The Walking Dead’, plays Amber, the single mom who gives up her own dreams to build a safe sheltered life from her son. I did expect a lot of drama pertaining to her character, and Amber is like a lot of onscreen moms, yet she is a lot more measured. Matsura’s performance is understated yet poignant, which helps keep the spotlight on the lead duo.

With a crisp 90-minute runtime, the film keeps you entertained despite its exploration of often seen tropes. For a change, the biggest conflict in the tale comes right in the middle of things, instead of unraveling in the ending. So, in a pleasant surprise, the climax is drama-free and heartwarming.

I loved the simple sweet ending and how the story never dilutes its attention from the main theme – the therapeutic powers of music and unlikely friendships. It’s a 7/10 from me.

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Listen to ‘Do Revenge’ Review – Camila, Maya Make A Mean Duo!

‘Iscariot’ – Quick Graphic Novel Review

A child leaps into the air, sword in hand, a cat seemingly flying over her head as the evening stars softly sparkle against a dull blue sky… The cover for the graphic novel ‘Iscariot’ by S. M. Vidaurri promises a magical journey into fantasy fiction to its readers, but doesn’t live up to it.

First off, the story is all over the place. While it took me less than an hour to finish reading the book, I don’t know if I want to spend time thinking how to write a good ‘plot overview’ for this review. So, here’s the blurb instead

When Carson, a young girl living with cancer, is bestowed with age-old magic by a rebellious sorcerer named Iscariot, she must navigate her new powers, face the life she had thought she left behind forever, and take on the order of magicians who want to control her destiny. Carson discovers that Iscariot’s intentions might not have been as altruistic as it first appeared, and learns the hard way that magic comes at a cost.

part of the blurb for ‘Iscariot’

Yeah… I don’t think Carson learns anything in the graphic novel. In fact, even the readers don’t learn much about anything. Iscariot is just a shady ‘rebel’ figure with a brief cryptic backstory, whose motivations are unclear for most of the novel. There’s very little magic in the book and Carson’s life barely changes from getting ‘powers’; she is simply whiny little girl who has little respect for her mother.

The artwork isn’t very detailed and the panels look like rough sketches off a storyboard, not out of a finished graphic novel. Some readers might love the style, but it didn’t have me captivated. That said, I did like the color palette, it was pleasant to look at. If the creator had put in some more work into the story to make sense of what’s happening, ‘Iscariot’ could’ve been more than just an ‘OK’ read.

It’s a 2/5 from me. You can find the ebook on Kindle Unlimited.

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Ep 79 – Five Graphic Novel Adaptations Worth Checking Out

‘The Catholic School’ Review – Terribly Shallow

Feelings of disgust, despair, anger filled me up as the Italian film ‘The Catholic School’ headed to its climax. Based on real events known as the ‘Circeo Massacre’, the plot begins with a male narrator who talks about what it was like to study in an all-boys Catholic School. If someone ends up streaming this title on a whim on Netflix, they are going to be confused as hell about the focus of this casually paced story. “Events leading to the brutal rape and murder of two young teen girls by three privileged schoolboys” is going to be their last damn guess.

Stefano Mordini directs this terribly shallow film told through the gaze of a male narrator. It’s also based on a novel by a male author, and the screenplay is written by, surprise surprise – two men. If not for the fifteen minutes of the actual crime, the following would’ve perfectly summarized ‘The Catholic School’ – horny Italian boys/men try to get laid. I don’t even know what the point of the movie was… and it dangerously tilts towards justifying sexual abuse. In-fact, the makers do blatantly put across the message that the perpetrators of a crime are victims themselves; which might be true in many cases, abuse is a cycle; but young impressionable minds are not going to grasp the nuances of such posturing. By labeling perpetrators as ‘victims’, it’s implied they deserve to be forgiven, no matter what their crime.

Had the film just been about a flawed education system, or about a teen recalling his experiences of studying at an all boys school, it would’ve been fine. A little over 90s minutes long, for most parts, the story does follow one guy talking about his romantic life, his friends and the things they are up to… and then out of nowhere, two different boys, who up until the middle on the film seemed like random supporting characters, take center-stage. They lure two girls, take them to a villa, hold them at gunpoint to rape and torture them. A third boy joins them later and the trio eventually murders the girls, but one of them miraculously survives. There’s a hurried climax about how the town is shocked and the movie ends with some facts on the case.

The girls aren’t just treated as pieces of meat by their rapists, but also by the makers of the film. While we get enough glimpses into the lives of other supporting characters, we get nothing on the girls – they are reduced to two gullible strangers who were stupid enough to go to an unknown house on their first date, instead of going to the movies as planned. The director may as well have put up a poster saying “they had it coming”. The treatment of the crime and aftermath is so fleetingly superficial, it infuriated me as a viewer. What started off as a promising tale, ends up a muddled failure. Too bad, because the young cast is talented and deliver their parts with a lot of conviction.

It’s a 2/10 from me.

‘Do Revenge’ Review – Camila, Maya Make A Mean Duo

By Sneha Jaiswal (Twitter | Instagram)

Drea is beautiful, fashionable and the most popular girl in high school… until her sex tape goes viral, and she suspects her boyfriend of leaking the clip. Then there’s Eleanor – awkward, plain and in therapy ever since a pretty girl in middle-school spread a nasty rumor about her. United by hatred against their peers, the two girls forge a secret friendship and plot to carry out their revenge for each other.

‘Shit! Should’ve streamed this with my girl squad,’ was one of my first thoughts while watching ‘Do Revenge’. Directed by Jennifer Kaytin Robinson, the 2022 Netflix film stars Camila Mendes as feisty but narcissistic Drea and Maya Hawke is new transfer student Eleanor with a blank slate. Before the girls get their hands dirty and go after their bullies, first there’s a makeover. Obviously. Then, Eleanor goes after campus God Max (Austin Abrams), while Drea targets Carissa (Ava Capri).

Like typical teen flicks set in a fancy rich-people school, ‘Do Revenge’ has glitzy posh pool-side parties, multiple cliques, no signs of adult supervision and kids wearing over-the-top outfits that look out of a fashion show. While that makes ‘Do Revenge’ exceedingly un-relatable for most viewers, it’s also ridiculously entertaining, in large parts due to the unlikely friendship between the leads. Camila and Maya make a mean duo, they are both adorable and despicable as two teen girls meticulously ruining the lives of some of their peers. Maya as Eleanor will remind “Stranger Things” fans of Robin, the two characters share quite a few traits; although we do get to see the actor in whole new shades too. Camila is chameleon like as the gorgeous Drea, from being a vulnerable ‘outsider’ who’s on a scholarship unlike her privileged classmates, to being a plain nasty narcissistic bitch… she makes you both like and hate her. I loved the platonic friendship between the protagonist and there are some poignant reflective tender moments that capture female companionship. If they made a post high-school ‘Adventures of Drea and Elanor’, I’d watch it in a heartbeat.

If nothing else, ‘Do Revenge’ screams girl power in its own twisted way and has a whole bunch of interesting women characters. Sarah Michelle Geller in her small cameo as the headmaster however was a little weird and out of place in the movie. Sophie Turner has a riotous little part as one of many bitchy girls you’ll meet through the runtime. The men just pale out. For example, Austin Abrams who plays Max, one of the antagonists, looked just right for the ‘rich, entitled asshole’ role, however, something felt lacking in his performance. He would’ve made a better lackey, than the all powerful, politically connected prick/campus King; but to be fair – Nawabs needn’t a personality.

While ‘Do Revenge’ gets a lot of ingredients right for an entertaining teen revenge drama, they creators go get a little ambitious with a runtime. With an almost 2 hour long story, things begin to get slightly overstretched. There was a pretty good twist towards the 90 minute mark, and they should’ve wrapped the film in the next 15 minutes, instead thing trudge along for another 15. So, the final climax is a little to unrealistic to be true, but heck, it makes for a fun watch nonetheless. A pretty good pick for ‘girls night’ or well, ‘friends night’.

It’s a 7.5/10 from me.

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Listen to ‘Cuttputlli Vs Black Phone’ – Tale of Two Child Serial Killers