Me, Cinema, On a Sunday, not in the evening… the hell. Yea i know but this film is 3h long so a noon showing is perfect for me otherwise its not ending til like midnight for the other showings i can go to, no no no. But this has been on my hitlist for the last 2 years so lets go go go.

a third full which was pretty good. Most people were millennials like me so that was pretty cool. A few older couple like late 40s early 50s but no one really older than that.

Trailers Plane (do funny that ive seen that already) The Fablemans (yes) The Whale(booked up) & Missing (booked up) so yea you didnt need to get me onside cineworld, im down for all of that.

& then the film started… & its beautiful & clever & fun but its long, its really really long.

Yea its bloody long. It did not need to be that drawn out. When it knew what it was doing it flowed & was good, but the filler stuff & the start of act 3 was not needed. It took weird turns at times that it didnt need to do. It had a moving plot device to move with & then it changed it up.

He doesnt know how to end a film does he. Other than first man, i dont think hes nailed the end of his 3rd act yet & lets be honest in first man it was there for him to nail & had to be right. I mean it was nostalgic what he did show, but there were bits of it that were a bit like oh come on now, so we need to see this really. You just showing off & yes its good to praise others, but it became the DiCaprio meme if you get me.

Im not sure (well i do know) why Brad Pitts name gets first billing, its to get you in seats in the cinema. But its not his film, its Margot’s. & she is terrific & outstanding & anyone who says other wise is wrong. Its her best performance by a country mile & she needs all the plaudits for it. She is mesmerising & you cant take your eyes off her whenever shes on the screen. Stunning.

yea the start of Act 3 i know we needed to prove a craziness point but that was too much for sure & we went off in a weird world. I mean i had forgotten that person was going to be in the film & when they appeared i was like ahhhh of course, but that whole 20min section was weird & not needed & i felt uncomfortable watching it. I really did. I didnt enjoy it. & it knocked some stars off it if im honest.

The films opening with the party however… wow! just spectacular. There is so much to unpack from that whole sequence until the films title appear. The music, the outfits, the drugs, the singing, the orgies & the fucking elephant in the room. Crazy. But oh my god so amazing. I loved it. I know the film then needs to move on but to go from that to that weird part in act 3, no no nope. Insanely epic.

The music & score is something Damien always gets right. I loved it. It was an assault on the sense & my ears loved it.

This film was more about the style & the way of life in the golden days of Hollywood as it turned into the talkies than the actual story, which was lacking. Its not the best written thing. The best written bits are when the directors are giving notes on the filming process, which guess what a film maker really should properly know, so thats why that bit worked because its what they actually know about.

There was one point where it was a little bit out of focus, & i wasnt sure if it was my cinema screen or was meant to happen, but then it regained it so im guessing it was meant to be, which was a bit random at points. The dramatic effect of it didnt help.

Who wants to fight a snake… not me… & the panic after that ahhhhhhh

Time wise we are told at points where it leaps to, & then others we arent & its like hang on how many months or years have passed. Be consistent with your time leap narratives please people. Tell me or dont tell me, but make that clear.

I know we think of ourselves as progressive & inclusive now here in 2023 (we still have a way to go i know, i know) however there were some really really bad attitudes in the 1920s & 30s. I am aware that this as how it was at the time but it was just a little bit like really were gonna do that are we. Especially with relationships.

It taught me about more of a studio set up then the making of a film, & because it was set back in the day, it didnt help as much as i thought it would. This is now the 3rd film ive watched recently about the love of cinema & film making & ive seen better for sure (one more to go)

What i saw was clever & enjoyable, but i was expecting more from after that grand amazing opening & it never reaches that peak again. I wanted the spectacular & the glamour of the 1920s & original cinema, & what i saw was good, but i wanted more. Which i guess is the point due to the subject matter.