David Ray Gallagher (rebvodka042099)

The Deep Blue Sea Unrated

I found it extremely dull and uninspiring. Tom Hiddleston's performance was good, but every other member of the cast gave wooden performances. I didn't care for the characters or the era it portrayed, since it was done in an aloof fashion. I'm surprised I managed to watch it without falling asleep, or worse, stop paying attention to it. I'm not a fan of movies that portray this era, and I'm sure that played a role, but this movie isn't making me a fan for sure.

Shame NC-17

Shame to the Oscars for nominating crap like The Descendants and not this. Intense, gut-wrenching, dramatic and awe-inspiring. I wasn't a fan of the previous Steve McQueen/Michael Fassbender co-operation but I truly take a bow here. Fassbender was beyond magnificent in his role, and I read real sex addicts' comments on the film, saying it's very realistic. The boldness in which it portrays Brandon's life, the incestuous undertones, the way it shows us two damaged people trying to have a life of sorts is mesmerizing. I wait for films like this for long, but dammit, is the wait worth it; oh, yes it is.

XXY Unrated

The only reason I'm sorry for, is that I didn't get to see this film when it came out two years ago. It was a powerful hit to the stomach, a film that is infused with subtle intensity, a movie about an unusual human drama. For me, this movie was about antitheses: prejudice vs. acceptance, male vs. female, freedom vs. oppression, love vs. neglect, heart-break vs. fulfillment.

The performances are simply brilliant, and although Argentinian cinema is one I'm the least familiar with, I was just proven that indeed the greatest movies don't require neither Hollywood nor billions worth of budget, nor happy endings.

A most powerful film about humanity, sexuality, acceptance, growth and tragedy. I literally didn't want it to end. Lyricism that flies off the screen straight to the heart. No taboos, no restrains, no limits. Real cinema. At last a movie I can call a masterpiece.

J'ai tué ma mère (I Killed My Mother) Unrated

Oh, I wish there were words capable enough to describe this film - to describe how it made me feel. But maybe there aren't. So, we'll make do with those we have. I saw this movie at the 50th International Film Festival of Thessaloniki - a festival I've been going to for about 8 years, give-or-take. And this is the best movie I've seen in all those years, through all those movies. It's so intense it rips you apart, full of the most sublime poetry, simplicity raging and screaming. The direction is so meticulously studied - nothing left to chance - every single take and scene offering gravity to the characters. Even now, that I see the poster of the film, it's so brilliant is ridiculous how much. It has this sad-looking child on it, when in the film, we only see a child for seconds, and it is a happy-looking child in those seconds. After the second half I was constantly crying. I can bet that I'm from the few people who have cried in this film - if not the only one. Because there really isn't something in it that can prompt tears. But it is one of the most intense, most human, most real films I've watched in my life. I wanted to explode, to stand up and shout. I kept switching positions in my seat, I shook my head and laughed and wanted it to end because I couldn't take anymore. And when it was over, I wanted to watch it again. It's so far my favorite movie of this year. No, scratch that. It's my favorite movie of the last few years. If not my favorite movie amongst the few I hold so dear. I wish Xavier Dolan can be funded to create more, more, more films in the future. Even though, I already think he has created his chef-d'oeuvre.