Senmayan

These projects with hundreds of singers involved and concepts often interrupted by voices and spoken parts don’t really convince me; they run the risk of being either too pompous or too sprawling, even though almost all of them involve a compositional effort greater than a simple album. In fact, "Into the Electric Castle" by Ayreon doesn’t blow me away—it's too long, with too many interruptions between tracks and overly intrusive keyboards. Instead, his first album, "The Final Experiment," was a delightful surprise when I listened to it back in 2003; it was fresh, with very original and unique melodic lines. The work wasn't short, but its length didn’t weigh it down, and it was quite compact, transitioning from folk to rock opera. I recommend that album. Fresh, dynamic, not pompous, and with melodic lines you don’t hear every day. As for the rest, I’m not really interested in this artist anymore, partly because he often mimics Pink Floyd a bit too much. But damn, Lucassen must be quite a rich guy to call so many artists to him, keep them at his estate, and self-produce. Kudos!

After listening to in the court.., the listening experience of this album was somewhat disappointing for me, due to the first part with beautiful songs that are too similar in form to those of the debut; it lacks the atmosphere of the debut album. Unfortunately, I find myself comparing it to in the court simply because it partially takes up its style, which penalizes it quite a bit. Rating: 3.5

but in fact we are not talking about once upon a time in the west...

It's an anachronistic film, so I trust the reviewer's vote. Lino Banfi is no longer the same; he's light-years away from the first remake or from "Vieni avanti cretino." He has softened up and has nothing in common with past films, and in his appearances, for example, on Italia 1 to promote the movie, his "acting" seemed out of place and gave him a rather pathetic air. Moreover, a film promoted in this manner and with mediocre actors like Anna Falchi could only result in something like this. At least in the first film, there were semi-unknown actors and less showy performances; it seemed like a more artisanal production.

Yes, but Leone has established this canon once and for all; I'm not talking about better films, but about importance in cinema, and the Dollar Trilogy has the same significance in the western genre as Red River does, as brilliant and original as Peckinpah is (The Wild Bunch is my favorite western). It’s Leone (perhaps because he is more publicized) who has truly changed the standards of the modern west. Then, Poletti, you talk about Hawks and Kurosawa; those are influences that every director has, but it doesn't seem to me that Kurosawa made westerns. Every director has their own influences, so the fact that there are influences of Kurosawa in Leone doesn’t make sense to me; it doesn’t detract from his importance. In fact, Leone also removed the obligation of female presence in westerns (among other things) and showed not only the anti-hero but also the violence that was hidden in previous westerns.

Yes, for me the challenge between In Flames and Dark Tranquility is won by the former, who are more experimental and daring. Dark Tranquility, on the other hand, are a bit too traditionalist, having remained too anchored to the genre. Then again, Jester Race and Whoracle (but also Reroute to Remain) are great albums.

That Ford beats Leone 3 to 0 doesn't hold water; in fact, these two directors are the ones who set the rules in the Western cinema. Ford is the pioneer, Leone is the one who revolutionized it. Before Leone, the Western was different. With Leone, starting from "A Fistful of Dollars," which is the first film of the Dollar Trilogy to which this reviewed film also belongs, everything changed, especially the obsessive close-ups on the characters—something never seen in the West, where the frontier and landscapes often overshadowed the characters themselves. The hero, before Leone, had to be positive; here, however, it’s a hero who is always negative, etc. So don’t spout nonsense like Ford beats Leone 3 to 0 because it means knowing nothing about Western films, or rather, the history of cinema.

Cute, but I prefer the one from the 70s; Burton has done better and more original things. Anyway, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory is a story that fits well with the atmospheres and plots of Tim Burton's films. It's really a Tim Burton story, even though he didn't write it.

I have seen the first 4 of the decalogues, and since I have not seen the entire work and have only seen these episodes, I wouldn’t give it a high rating, even though it is an interesting piece.

I agree with you. I walked into the cinema hoping to see an autobiographical film, only to find myself (to use your amusing metaphor) with "a disc" that is experimental and makes no damn sense, or rather, only those who know the ins and outs, the nitty-gritty, and the miracles of Bob Dylan can understand something. It's an unabashedly snobbish film, and I didn't know anything about Bob Dylan when I first saw it. What’s the positive aspect that makes me give it such a high rating? The beautiful music made me want to learn about the artist; from a directorial standpoint, it’s a very beautiful film, excellent cinematography, and some images are evocative, blending the dreamlike with the real! Despite everything, I managed to understand it by delving into the artist's life. In short, it’s a brazenly snobbish work, with its nose in the air and paradoxically pleasing for that very reason, featuring an exceptional soundtrack and evocative atmospheres.