Doctor Strange (2016)

	Also Known As: -
	Year of first release: 2016
	Director: Scott Derrickson (The Day the Earth Stood Still, Sinister)
	Actors: Benedict Cumberbatch (Sherlock TV-series, Star Trek Into Darkness), Chiwetel Ejiofor (Children of Men, 2012), Rachel McAdams, Tilda Swinton (The Curious Case of Benjamin Button), Mads Mikkelsen (Hannibal TV-series)
	Country: USA
	Genre: SF, Fantasy
	Conditions of visioning: 10.12.2016, Cineplanet Costanera Center.
Synopsis: The genius but egocentric Dr. Strange (Cumberbatch) is victim of an accident. To recover his capacities he goes as far as Katmandu to meet some kind of Sorcerers whom at first he doesn't believe.
Review: "While heroes like the Avengers protect the world from physical dangers, we sorcerers safeguard it against more mystical threats": this is how Dr. Strange fits in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The story is OK, although now becoming quite repetitive with all those super-hero movies. In fact the character of Dr. Strange reminds a bit of Tony Stark in Iron Man: selfish at the beginning and looking for redemption later on. The threat seems new, but again aliens from other dimensions who wish to invade Earth... deja vu. Is the look and spirit of the movie original? Not really, the special effects look as good as in any other Marvel movies, and the offbeat humour of Dr. Strange reminds, again, of Tony Stark, although I have to admit that some jokes did make me smile. Actors? Good, including Swinton, Mikkelsen and the trendy Benedict Cumberbatch in the title role, however not as remarkable as Holmes in Sherlock, Kahn in Star Trek Into Darkness or even as Smaug in The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug. What is the new is the range of weapons with which the heroes fight our enemies, and we are back to the original quote here: no metal armor or radiation poisoning or assassin talents, but the power of the mind to alter reality or the vision of it. This leads to Epic battle outside of our dimension, with a look a-la-Inception. A valid addition to the Marvel Universe, but nothing transcendent.
Rating: 5 /10

For the Love of Spock (2016)

	Also Known As: -
	Year of first release: 2016
	Director: Adam Nimoy
	Actors: Adam Nimoy, Zoe Saldana (Avatar), Chris Pine (Star Trek 1-3), Mayim Bialik
	Country: USA
	Genre: Documentary
	Conditions of visioning: 10.12.2016, VOD, 10" tablet screen.
Synopsis: About the influence of Leonard Nimoy and his interpretation of Star Trek's Spock on modern pop culture.
Review: The director of this Documentary is no other than the son of Leonard Nimoy himself. He tells us right from the start that the movie was originally supposed to be about the character of Spock (interpreted by his father in the 1966 Star Trek TV-series), but that since his death in February 2015, the purpose has change to be also about his his father's life. In this touching and interesting Documentary, Adam is very present: on archive photos and videos, in interviews with his father, himself interviewing relevant acquaintance of Leonards: Family members, original Star Trek co-stars, new Star Trek movie interprets, other people from the show business that were influenced by Spock. I am not sure this Documentary teaches anything to the hard-core fans, but I found it to be nice and informative for those who just want to know more about Spock, and beyond the character about the man who gave him life, told with apparently no double talk by one of the persons better suited for that: his own son.
Rating: 5 /10

Spectral (2016)

	Also Known As: -
	Year of first release: 2016
	Director: Nic Mathieu
	Actors: Emily Mortimer (Match Point, Harry Brown, Shutter Island), Clayne Crawford, James Badge Dale (Iron Man 3, World War Z), Max Martini (Pacific Rim), Bruce Greenwood (Star Trek 1-2)
	Country: USA
	Genre: SF, Action. War
	Conditions of visioning: 09.12.2016, VOD, 32" TV.
Synopsis: Clyne (Dale) has created multi-spectral goggles for the Army. When they reveal some ghost-like images during a conflict in Macedonia, he is called on the field to study the apparitions.
Review: Netflix is not only producing TV-series and Documentaries, now also full-length features like this one. Like for its other productions, I could feel the equations ruling the story. Among the TV-series you feel that Jessica Jones is customized for a female audience, Luke Cage for an Afro-American one... In Spectral you can feel the borrowings from box-office successes: a bit of Edge of Tomorrow, some Aliens, Battle Los Angeles, The Darkest Hour, Final Fantasy, ... and a bunch of actors that you have liked in supporting roles but that don't cost as much as more famous ones. Fortunately the equation is better used than in SyFy productions for example. The budget may be at a different level as well. And good AF / Alien Invasion / War movies are pretty rare, so this one is in fact pleasant to watch. The special effects are very good on the video streamed by Netflix in HD. The story and characters reactions are sometimes far-fetched, which is the main criticism I can tell about Spectral and which may show you that Netflix is young at this exercise, but they hired the right crew. Let's see what they will come up with next.
Rating: 6 /10

Armageddon (1998)

	Also Known As: -
	Year of first release: 1998
	Director: Michael Bay (Transformers 1-4, The Island)
	Actors: Bruce Willis (Die Hard 1-5, Cop Out), Billy Bob Thornton (Fargo season 1), Ben Affleck (Paycheck, Daredevil), Liv Tyler (The Lord of the Rings 1-3), Steve Buscemi (Con Air, The Big Lebowski), Owen Wilson (Meet the parents, Zoolander)
	Country: USA
	Genre: Action, SF
	Conditions of visioning: 08.12.2016, VOD, 10" tablet screen.
Synopsis: When a huge meteor is about the strike the Earth, a reckless team of deep core drillers led by Harry Stamper (Willis) is called to the rescue.
Review: Released at about the same time as Deep Impact, Armageddon choose a diametrically opposed approach. And with my usual enthusiasm I chose to watch them back-to-back. A better sound and image quality was definitely lacking to watch this one, but fortunately I could draw on my memory of seeing it many times in the past and the feelings it brought me then. There is to me no doubt that after practicing on Bad Boys and The Rock, Michael Bay upped the ante and defined with Argameddon the vocabulary of what disaster and Action movies would be in the 20 years to come, nothing short of that. The scenes of destruction by meteors in New York, with all the explosions and original camera angles and doves taking off in slow motion will forever be engraved in my mind as nothing like that was even seen before at that time. I have been seldom as impressed by the special effects in a movie as I was by this one. Now beyond the outstanding visuals, the story and characters are as dumb as can be: only 18 days before the meteor strikes, a crew of core drillers to the rescue, the conflict between the cute talented young guy and the father of his fiancee, all the comedy scenes... That could just be more that one can take, but thanks to a magic mix (that has aged a little I have to concede) it was and still is just fun to watch. And if you want to enjoy it just stop at that: it is just entertainment. Sit back, relax, eat pop corn and alternatively let your jaw drop at the overwhelming destruction scenes and laugh at the non-stop show delivered by Steve Buscemi, Bruce Willis, Owen Wilson, Peter Stormare, Michael Clarke Duncan... The comparison wih Deep Impact is not even worth drawing as the two have totally different objectives, both valid on their own and both fulfilled.
Rating: 6 /10

Deep Impact (1998)

	Also Known As: -
	Year of first release: 1998
	Director: Mimi Leder (Thick as Thieves)
	Actors:  Robert Duvall (True Grit, The Godfather 1-2), Téa Leoni (Jurassic Park 3), Elijah Wood (The Faculty, The Lord of the Rings Trilogy, Maniac)
	Country: USA
	Genre: SF, Drama
	Conditions of visioning: 08.12.2016, VOD, 32" TV
Synopsis: An astronomer discovers that a comet will crash on Earth. The government prepares for that event while reporter Jenny Lerner (Leoni) investigates the resignation of the minister of budget.
Review: Deep Impact and the similarly inspired Armageddon (a comparison is drawn in the review of that one) came at a time of renewed interest in the disaster movie genre, two years after Twister and one year after Volcano and Dante's Peak, when the studios were at their best in copying each other (remember in 2000 Mission to Mars, Red Planet and Ghosts of Mars?) I have a found memory of this one, and remember watching it countless time on VHS. Enjoying it again many years later I can remember why: for starters it does speak to the scientist and astronomer in me, although I now spotted many outrageous mistakes in the first 5 minutes of the movie. When I left those aside I could enjoy the rest of it. Then it shows a different take at the disaster movie, a bit like attempted in 2012 with Seeking a Friend for the End of the World directed by another woman Lorene Scafaria (more on that later). Indeed Deep Impact if profoundly focused on its human characters, not on the science of how to save to world or on the incumbent destruction scenes, although the few ones offered are remarkable in special effects and impact. My theory has always been that this quality was thanks to the female director Mimi Leder that did what no male could have done: bring sensitivity and focus on feelings in the middle of a world-class extinction event. It is done with talent, sometimes too much feeling, but always honesty. And I found that the editing as well was helping a lot progressing in the story thanks to many well-placed ellipses. I also remember thinking at that time that the movie was bold as being the first mainstream one (to my knowledge) casually showing an Afro-American president played wonderfully by Morgan Freeman at his best. Since then not only in the movies. An example of what disaster movies should show: how such events can bring the best in humans, not only how entertaining it can be to watch scene after scene of massive destruction.
Rating: 8 /10

Star Wars: The Clone Wars - Season 4 (2011)

	Also Known As: -
	Year of first release: 2011
	Creator: George Lucas
	Actors (voices): Tom Kane, Dee Bradley Baker, Matt Lanter
	Country: USA
	Genre: SF, Animation
	Conditions of visioning: 2016, VOD, 11" tablet screen.
Synopsis: The war between the Republic and the Separatists rages on, one side led by the Jedi and fought by the Clones, the other led by Count Dooku and fought by droids.
Review: A radical change can be noticed in this fourth season. The second one was already going sideways with more romance and emphasis on characters I was not found of. Those past changes seem to have been reverted now: we focus mostly on the Jedi and their enemies, and even the emphasis on R2D2 and the Clones have gone to leave room for more central characters. But the main change is in the structure: now almost every story is told in more than one episodes so that the whole season can be divided into a handful of story arcs: S4E1 Water War to S4E3 Prisoners: an underwater war with strong presence of Padme that didn't make much sense to me (chairs under water?!?) except for the introduction of the future Admiral Ackbar. S4E4 Shadow Warrior to S4E6 Nomad Droids: emphasis on C3PO S4E7 Darkness on Umbara to S4E10 Carnage of Krell: probably the best of the season. The Clones are once again at the heart of the story, led by the ruthless Jedi Master Krell who doesn't show towards them the empathy that Anakin does for example. This Master is from the same species with a cool design as Dexter Jettster seen in Episode II Attack of the Clones. S4E11 Kidnapped to S4E13 Escape from Kadavo show for once Obi-wan Kenobi in a difficult position, submitted in fact to Count Dooku. S4E14 A Friend in Need is an episode that stands alone and links to the better understanding of the relationship between Separatists and the Republic, as seen in previous seasons' episodes like S3E10 Heroes on Both Sides. The longest story spans from S4E16 Deception to the end of the season with a climax and the revelations in S4E21 Brothers and S4E22 Revenge, however spoiled by the poster of that season. Although this story features the characters of Asajj Ventress and Cad Bane that I like, I didn't find it particularly exciting. But the climax promises twists in the next season. I will keep on watching the series, the episodes are short and easy to watch, and new hints around the Star Wars Universe are always exciting to me, especially in the Rogue One period.
Rating: 5 /10

4 days at the Buenos Aires Rojo Sangre Festival 2016

The Buenos Aires Rojo Sangre, or BARS, is not like the Festivals we are used to attend in Europe and that are mostly working on subventions. This one has started 17 years ago as a group of friends wanting to show low-budget movies made by other friends, and has kept the same spirit over the years even though it now features an International competitions, shows movies from all over the world and welcomes guests like the Italian director Ruggero Deodato this year.
JoRafCinema was glad to spend a couple of days there and here is a report on what it felt like.

Snapshot of the mood in front of the main venue.

Memoirs of an Invisible Man (1992)

	Also Known As: -
	Year of first release: 1992
	Director: John Carpenter (The Thing, Big Trouble in Little China)
	Actors: Chevy Chase, Daryl Hannah (Kill Bill), Sam Neill (Jurassic Park)
	Country: USA
	Genre: SF, Thriller
	Conditions of visioning: 28.11.2016, VOD, 11" tablet screen.
Synopsis: Narcissistic Nick Halloway (Chase) is accidentally turned invisible. Chased by the authorities and the tireless David Jenkins (Neill), he tries and fails to live a normal life.
Review: The one movie by John Carpenter (my favorite director and now an accomplished musician) that I do not own because it is so hard and expensive to find, not that it usually stops me! Thanks to Netflix for allowing me to watch it again after maybe 20 years. A good part of the movie relies on the talent of Chevy Chase, comedian rather unknown in Europe even in the 80's, but he makes it easy to sympathize with the character. He is accompanied by Daryl Hannah that I later discovered in the TV-movie Attack of the 50 Ft. Woman (remake of a 1958 classic) and the cults Blade Runner and Kill Bill, but I remembered more the Kiwi Sam Neill that played the next year in Jurassic Park and the following one in the other Carpenter masterpiece In the Mouth of Madness. The approach selected for the story, even though inspired by the same H.G. Wells classic, is different from the one in Paul Verhoeven's Hollow Man (scientist testing the thing on himself and turning bad) or in the TV-series The Invisible Man that I was watching in 2000 (man unwillingly working for the authorities using his revertible power), and I won't mention Milo Manara's Le Parfum de l'invisible. That story is well focused on the main character, as it should be because we want to see his reaction when facing this new condition, and the reactions of this Mr. Nobody are quite believable. A little love story and the tension brought by Jenkins complete a well done movie, throughout which you can recognize the style of its maker: long shots, an unmissable but not dated 80's touch, efficient music and perfect use of CinemaScope, among other qualities. The special effects are also pretty good for that time. In the end not a masterpiece but I was again not disappointed by the Master.
Rating: 6 /10

Kick-Ass (2010)

	Also Known As: -
	Year of first release: 2010
	Director: Matthew Vaughn (X-men: First Class, Kingsman: The Secret Service)
	Actors:  Aaron Taylor-Johnson (Godzilla), Nicolas Cage (Knowing, Con Air), Chloë Grace Moretz (Hugo, Kick-Ass 2, The Equalizer)
	Country: USA, GB
	Genre: Action
	Conditions of visioning: 25.11.2016, VOD, 10" Tablet screen
Synopsis: Dave Lizewski (Taylor-Johnson) wonders why has nobody ever tried to become a real-life vigilante. At his first attempt he gets his ass seriously kicked, but not enough to make him give up.
Review: I had seen Kick-Ass on the year it was released, at about the same time as the seemingly similar but different Super, and was curious to watch it again now that I have seen its disappointing sequel. It really had a great concept and was released timely by the visionary Matthew Vaughn (Layer Cake, X-men: First Class, Kingsman: The Secret Service): it is easy (at least for me and a growing part of the population) to identify with this sorry bunch of nerds. You get all the clichés you could expect: the geek with glasses not good at sports nor at talking to girls... but persistent with his fixed idea. And around this simple concept, Vaughn creates a much vaster Universe that includes all the basic rules of a super-hero movie (the rich bad guy, special weapons, costumes, the hero hanging his cape at some point, ...) but with an extra-layer of awesomeness like they would say in the movie. For example the couple Hit Girl / Big Daddy (excellent Nicolas Cage) is totally unexpected and their characters quite original and in opposition with the rather amateur Kick-Ass. The story behind Red Mist is also funny. And very importantly you get to see some serious fights, not shy on blood and violence even with a 12-years old participating. A satisfying movie until the very end.
Rating: 7 /10

The Man from U.N.C.L.E. (2015)

	Also Known As: -
	Year of first release: 2015
	Director: Guy Ritchie (Snatch, Sherlock Holmes)
	Actors: Henry Cavill (Man of Steel, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice), Armie Hammer (The Social Network), Alicia Vikander
	Country: USA, GB
	Genre: Polar, Action
	Conditions of visioning: 18.11.2016, In-flight entertainment, 10" tablet screen
Synopsis: At the peak of the Cold War, two agents from the opposite sides (Cavill & Hammer) have to unite against a common threat.
Review: This is a cinema adaptation of a 60's TV-series which I had never heard of. The setting is interesting, a kind of Mission: Impossible uniting natural born enemies. The Russian agent has a character as dark as his past, while the American one used to be bank robber. Add in the mix a sexy Italian girl and you get an original spy story well directed in the style of Guy Ritchie, both visual and auditory, although quite tuned down compared to his previous works like Snatch. In theory a good movie, but that will not really stay in my memory. The best parts in it are the scenes in beautiful Rome and the 60's wardrobe including some colorful short skirts fitting Alicia Vikander like a glove. The rest either was already seen or is over-the-top. Note the existence of a 1970 erotic parody to the series that I discovered while researching for this review and entitled The Man from O.R.G.Y., standing for Organization for the Rational Guidance of Youth instead of the more boring United Network Command for Law and Enforcement.
Rating: 4 /10