Tag Archives: Dark Comedy

Exploring the Past – The Great Buddha+ (Dà fó pǔ lā sī, 大佛普拉斯) (2017)

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TL;DR – This is a film of dissonant halves, both funny, yet confronting, sad but also hopeful, engaging but also infuriating

Score – 3.5 out of 5 stars

Post-Credit Scene – There is a mid-credit scene but it does not offer any answers

The Great Buddha+. Image Credit: MandarinVision

Review –

Today I get to review a film thanks to the Brisbane International Film Festival that I would not have normally been able to see. I have been trying to increase the films that I have seen from Asia, and while this has included films from Hong Kong and China, today is my first dive into Taiwanese filmmaking with Huang Hsin-yao’s odd The Great Budda+. This is an interesting film but also a frustrating one at times, so to properly review it we will first give a general overview before we enter into spoiler territory as we dissect its ending, and what an ending it is.

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Movie Review – A Simple Favor

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TL;DR – Crazy, absurd, ridiculous, tense, and an amazing ball of fun

Score – 4 out of 5 stars

Post-Credit Scene – There is no post-credit scene

A Simple Favor. Image Credit: Lionsgate

Review –

The tone is something that can make or break a film, and you would think it would be an easy thing to get right, but alas it can be a tightrope to walk at times. This is especially important when you are blending genres and still trying to make it feel like a constant whole. Today we look at a film A Simple Favor that walks that tightrope from absurdity to high strung tension and makes it look effortless. Now before we get into the review proper, I do want to say that I have not read the book so I will leave it to others more knowledgeable than me to let you know if it is a good adaption or not, and I’ll just focus on the film.

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