The Bikeriders

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The Last Duel

One is tempted to suggest that this movie gets hoisted on its own petard. It presents one story told from three different perspectives, with the heavy hint that only one version is the "truth." But...by presenting the notion of unreliable perspectives, the filmmakers suggest--perhaps unintentionally--that ALL the versions of the tale contain untruths. An intelligent analysis must recognize that the woman’s story isn’t automatically true just because she’s a woman. Only by way of a an uncritical acceptance can those watching take at face value the notion that only one of these accounts is factually accurate and honest. That conundrum diminishes the impact of the work as a whole, despite its fine performances and meticulous presentation of the period. (Director Ridley Scott is an old hand at putting spare-no-expense visuals on the screen.) This is hardly a bad film, for sure, but one can’t help but think that, perhaps, this could have been a more forceful work without indulging in the narrative puzzle-making.

Free Guy

I find it almost impossible to give this film the credit it may, possibly, deserve. Perhaps because my tried and true rule of thumb—movies based on or about video games are always bad, or at least major disappointments—should apply here. Ryan Reynolds' well-honed likability as the lead goes a long way towards overcoming that pitfall, while the storyline does just enough to transcend its familiar tropes and bland predictability to remain largely entertaining throughout. Still, it’s difficult to watch this film, as an intelligent human animal, and not be baffled by how far people today go with their gaming obsession—and how normal that is now considered to be. Shrug. There must be a certain amount of downgrade for that; hence, this one rates a MEOW—but with certain tweaks, it could have been a PURR. What can I say? Moviemakers have to learn to level up, too.