Here you can read my reviews of metaphysical, spiritual, and other movies which Juanzetta and I have seen.
You can also click on a link to see a full review on Amazon and then there on a product page of the movie.
This is purely my initiative, I have no kickbacks or other benefits from Amazon because of that.
About Time:
Another Earth:
Reviewed in the United States on September 2, 2023
I do not know if the screenwriters Mike Cahill and Brit Marling are familiar with the works of one of the greatest science fiction writers Stanislaw Lem and especially with his 1961 famous novel Solaris. As he writes in it “We have no need of other worlds. We need mirrors. We don’t know what to do with other worlds.” Cahill and Marling created image of identical, mirror like Earth to play with this idea and motivate you , dear reader, to contemplate all possibilities. They never show how it is on that another Earth even everyone can see her big with the Moon high on the sky, so you can choose and have your own phantasies about it. They are presenting it as the broken synchronicity. I suggest another possibility how it could happen. We are very complex multidimensional beings having connections from our physical bodies on Earth to our higher spiritual bodies in another dimensions. Metaphysical researchers know from their travels that we exist also in the first higher dimension, which is here on our planet usually called the Fifth Dimension. And everything there, environment including our body forms is identical with our physical forms on the Earth. The difference is that everything there vibrates on higher frequencies and it is not visible to us, similarly as we cannot see cellular or Bluetooth signals. The lowering of those frequencies by higher intelligences could enable us to see our identical Earth in the Fifth Dimension, like in the movie, but not enough that it would materialize and gravitationally affect our physical planet. The SETI lady in the movie was actually having the conversation with her Higher Self in the Fifth Dimension. Just something for you to think about when you found this and are reading it. The movie is also touching redemption story, where the guilt is washed out by giving up the lifelong dream fulfillment.
Vanilla Sky:
Reviewed in the United States on August 17, 2023
Being very busy with life I missed this quite famous movie when it came out in 2001. We decided to see it now, 22 years later with my wife. It is one of the movies coming out around the break of the new millennium, when some people especially those being very rich started to have phantasies about somehow avoiding the physical death. Now we have another wave when some people again think they can avoid dying and death with the help of computers and so-called artificial intelligence. It is not that difficult to mix up your dreams with the physical reality, especially when you practice or get training in lucid dreaming as main protagonist of this movie David Ames. The first part of the movie is little bit boring, until everything really starts after the intentional car accident. Then we are provoked into some very interesting contemplations. Is it really better to dream than live a real life, as Marcel Proust years back was suggesting? Is it really so hard to recognize that we are dreaming, as David struggles? Can a lucid dreaming be better than the physical reality? Would you say yes if you practice lucid dreaming? Can we reach the state of science when we would be able to erase someone’s memories stored in the physical brain and implant the new ones? Would you like to be frozen and revived in the future like David? I would not, maybe you would. Was technical support guy taking David to his Higher Self into much higher vibrations of our existence? Elevators in the dreams usually mean that. Is movie suggesting that David decided to commit suicide and incarnate again into another human body in another time in his hope to find Sofia again? The movie certainly avoids direct answers to these and similar questions. However, it is very inspirational for you to seek those answers yourself. Try, it is not so difficult. Worth to see this provocative picture.
I Origins:
Reviewed in the United States on August 6, 2023
Yes, it is the movie about reincarnations, but not about the origin. The origin of our existence is far beyond that. Why they named it I Origin one can only guess. The creators of this marvelous movie are playing with contradiction of scientific and metaphysical (or spiritual) perception in the movie as a whole, but some scenes in it are more detailed about the supporting evidence. While the science is building its case on constantly developing knowledge based on our perception by five senses at the present moment in the history, true spiritual researchers and travelers go beyond that. They go beyond the time, space and physical reality. The current state of our knowledge that physical reality compared to ultimate reality might be just an illusion. Sofi’s argument with Ian in the lab touches on that when she talks about some people having sixth sense. She points at the worms, living beings in Ian’s tanks having only two senses as perhaps expressing comparison to our limited thinking. Let’s just remind everyone that the science was not that long ago telling us that Earth was flat. Of course we all are happy and thankful to the science for a lot and that science has also its argument that nothing metaphysical or spiritual was ever proven. The main protagonist Ian’s doubts about his scientific knowing are slowly building to the moment of the truth when Salomina is facing the elevator which cut her legs and killed her in her previous life being fallen in love with him. Many New Agers believe that reincarnations are being proven by comparing physical signs, whether they are irises in the eyes or some kind of the scars on the body. There are more important aspects than that, like mutual love and other emotional and spiritual connections beyond human senses. The culminating scene in the front of the elevator is brilliant. Salomina’ s fear was just the step or tool to the true recognition. And following spark of love between them created no doubt in Ian’s mind that he met Sofi again being in another human body. And that is why this movie is so great, not the elevator, but love enabled that. The elevator was just the trigger. Experienced metaphysical travelers (or meditators, choose which one you like) being in the highest state of mind (samadhi, satori, ultimate bliss, Elohim field, being with God, again choose which one you like) know that there in that state are no human senses, only feelings of love and awareness of the ultimate reality.
The Pope’s Exorcist:
Reviewed in the United States on June 25, 2023
This motion picture based on the story of real longtime Vatican’s exorcist has the potential to make you think about the ways evil forces from other side are trying to seduce us into harming other humans, even our loved ones. That can apply to you whether you are Roman Catholic, any other Christian, Muslim, or any other religion’s believer, agnostic or even pure atheist. We all are facing devilish suggestive forces from beyond this physical reality, some of us more, others less and we can become seduced into such thinking and even possessions as in the movie. If you would tell me that you never had thought to harm someone for a reason or even for no reason whatsoever, it would be hard for me to believe you that. Most of us are basically good, because we are able to suppress such thoughts when they start and we do not allow to overgrow them in our minds. There are many sources of negative energy trying to influence us, and we gave them names, like Satan, but none of them can equal our Creator. There is simply no opposite of God, ultimate goodness, or however you would like to call it. The child who exorcist Gabriele Amorth is trying to save can also be a metaphor for our mankind future. We all know that we are in troubles because of evil influences are on the rise and we might perish, when evil finally overcome good. This movie was for me not just entertainment but a message. It is quite interesting it came out this year, when religions, especially Roman Catholic church, but others as well seem to be under permanent attacks from variety of other movements. My wife and I enjoyed easiness with which double Oscar winner Russel Crowe dived and immersed himself into the character of Gabriele Amorth. He should win the third one for this, but I doubt. It is a quite positive religious story. Many other agendas are much more important these days.
Mr. Nobody (Extended Director’s Cut):
Reviewed in the United States on June 19, 2023
Great movie to see if you like to ponder or speculate about why we came here and what we are doing here in our physical bodies. Even the Extended Director’s Cut is quite long, it is never boring and you always want to know what is coming next. Several aspects of this story suggest that time is not just linear, but actually fluid. The happenings usually going forwards can in this story told by an old man run simultaneously and even go backwards. The incarnation to our planet is portrayed the way known to many metaphysical and spiritual travelers. We are coming here with erased memories of our origin or our previous incarnation ( you choose which one). The erasing in the movie is executed in a wonderful scene by “angels of oblivion.” Choosing of our parents when incarnating is portrayed beautifully as well. I liked dying being portrayed with rather chaotic scenes in parallel understanding of time, when everything happens on the same time in a dying physical brain. Filmmakers usually portray it as a sequence of chosen memories, what is rather wishful thinking. The movie very courageously touches possibility of reversing global time and ensuing start of what is known as the Big Crunch (opposite of the Big Bang). That might happen when evil overcomes good. The shrinking of everything and reversal of time portrayed in the impressive scene of melting city buildings can happen slowly like current accelerating expansion of our universe, but also quickly as the Big Bang happened. Then pondering about immortality will loose any meaning. Anyway, would you really want to be physically immortal? I don’t.
The Sweet Time of Kalimagdora:
Reviewed in the United States on May 22, 2023
I learned about this movie 55 years ago from my girlfriend at that time and future wife in my native Czechoslovakia. She was working at the chemistry laboratory of Slovensky Film (Slovak Hollywood). As an employee she has had the access to movies before their distribution for general public. The communist party under the First Secretary Alexander Dubcek started reform movement which did not end well by Soviet and Warsaw Pact’s invasion into the country that year. The movie director Leopold Lahola lived abroad, but was rehabilitated and allowed to come back year before. He has died only 50 years old when the movie was still in the production.
The movie came nicely packed from Czechia. It has English subtitles and now I could see it with my current American wife during our weekly movie time. Czechoslovakia divided herself in 1993, but countries of Czechia and Slovakia still attain rich mutual relations. The movie in the country at that time still under the communist regime was considered to be a confession of a man who left his motherland, which opened her arms again for him to come back home. The environment and scenes are mostly from abroad and the movie is completely apolitical. After many years seeing it again, however, I offer you an alternative understanding and inspiration.
Only few people at that time in Czechoslovakia would think or talk about something like reincarnation, that was for Indians far away. Now when I have a lot of metaphysical studies behind me, I see the movie differently. The story of a man needing to sleep all winter in order to be able to live again advertised as a fantasy is there for many of us to think about a cyclical nature of our existence. Jonas Rebenda must always start as a child, then going through wild need to enjoy living until completely exhausted and tired he finally finds his Kalimagdora again. He is making the same mistakes again with only few adjustments and remembers only fragments from previous cycle of his life.
Dear traveler, you who are here, aren’t we perhaps doing the same again and again? There are many people on this planet who seriously study the issue of a cyclical existence of independent soul and consciousness returning into the same environment. They want to improve and then master their understanding of a human nature. Jonas Rebenda sleeps in the small cabin on the mountain like many subjects do in lives between lives movement. How about many metaphysical travelers bringing information about independence of our soul from the other side? Are Kalimagdora and her mother representing loving and forgiving death when we completed another cycle of our existence? Is their tiny house representing hereafter? Are we returning to our true home after one life being like on a vacation or in a suffering, which became to be too long? We cannot ask Leopold Lahola, he is gone. But he gave as a chance to think about it.
The movie came nicely packed from Czechia. It has English subtitles and now I could see it with my current American wife during our weekly movie time. Czechoslovakia divided herself in 1993, but countries of Czechia and Slovakia still attain rich mutual relations. The movie in the country at that time still under the communist regime was considered to be a confession of a man who left his motherland, which opened her arms again for him to come back home. The environment and scenes are mostly from abroad and the movie is completely apolitical. After many years seeing it again, however, I offer you an alternative understanding and inspiration.
Only few people at that time in Czechoslovakia would think or talk about something like reincarnation, that was for Indians far away. Now when I have a lot of metaphysical studies behind me, I see the movie differently. The story of a man needing to sleep all winter in order to be able to live again advertised as a fantasy is there for many of us to think about a cyclical nature of our existence. Jonas Rebenda must always start as a child, then going through wild need to enjoy living until completely exhausted and tired he finally finds his Kalimagdora again. He is making the same mistakes again with only few adjustments and remembers only fragments from previous cycle of his life.
Dear traveler, you who are here, aren’t we perhaps doing the same again and again? There are many people on this planet who seriously study the issue of a cyclical existence of independent soul and consciousness returning into the same environment. They want to improve and then master their understanding of a human nature. Jonas Rebenda sleeps in the small cabin on the mountain like many subjects do in lives between lives movement. How about many metaphysical travelers bringing information about independence of our soul from the other side? Are Kalimagdora and her mother representing loving and forgiving death when we completed another cycle of our existence? Is their tiny house representing hereafter? Are we returning to our true home after one life being like on a vacation or in a suffering, which became to be too long? We cannot ask Leopold Lahola, he is gone. But he gave as a chance to think about it.
.
Meet Joe Black:
Reviewed in the United States on April 1, 2023
The fairy-tail rich soon to be 65 years old businessman Bill Parrish (played by Sir Anthony Hopkins) does not need a lot of time to understand that his life will not last much longer when he encounters angel of death occupying human body of a gorgeous handsome young man (Brad Pitt). The beginning of the story was a little bit reminding me of the Seventh Seal of Ingmar Bergman and Antonius Block playing the chess with the death in it. However Parrish quickly realizes, that his remaining time can be better used to accept his destiny, get his things in the order and say good bye to everyone with expression of love instead of useless bargaining. And such an attitude is more important not only for us older folks, but for everyone, because it brings tremendous freedom to act, enjoy, love, and finally leave this world in the style. Even if you are younger, you can learn a lot from this wonderful movie. We all are dying alone, but help in the transition from our physical planet is important, especially when it is coming from non-physical reality, other side, heaven, etc. Choose what you like, believe, on for some of you what is based on personal experiences from travels beyond the physical body. Of course there is no proofing of that here and never might happen, but what if there are higher spiritual beings, like angels, entering human bodies to help us in our transitions as in this movie? For sure we will encounter a lot of helpers after we depart, if we continue and it is fully up to us what we choose and ask for. Larger majority of people on our planet believe in afterlife in one form or another. My wife and I fully enjoyed every minute, even the movie is 3 hours long. So you can do as well.
The Duke:
Reviewed in the United States on February 27, 2023
My wife and I have movie night every week and alternate in suggestions by giving three options to choose from. I chose The Duke suspecting it could have something to do with the First Duke of Wellington, commander of British forces at the Battle of Waterloo against Napoleon in 1815 and after whom the Capital of the New Zealand is named. Story of Waterloo was one of my Dad’s stories I heard from him as a child. I also heard from him story of another quite different man, fictional character of Don Quijote de la Mancha from Spanish writer Miguel de Cervantes. This two characters came to my mind when watching this lovely movie based on the real story from sixties. The simple yet bright man starts impossible fight against all powerful government of mighty empire by choosing bizarre reason – concession fees for watching the state television. For me the clear parallel with Don Quijote’s fighting windmills is obvious. He risks everything including loyalty of his wife and ends up in the prison, what is not stopping him. The $ 140,000 picture of Duke Wellington ends up in his house as a part of his quest. Weirdo? Yes, but hell so brave! Common criminal? Hell no! That is why he earns admiring of the whole nation including almost everybody in the courtroom when facing the judge. Very entertaining story worth to watch and think about.
The Man Who Knew Infinity:
Reviewed in the United States on February 9, 2023
The movie is a life story of phenomenal very young Indian Tamil mathematician Srinivasan Ramanujan who is sometimes portrayed in the popular cable television series Ancient Aliens. “Ancient alien theorists” as they call themselves are expressing their theories that he must have been guided from beyond our physical reality, in their words by “extraterrestrials”. His Cambridge mentor Professor Hardy (played by Jeremy Irons) repeatedly wants to know from Ramanujan (Dev Patel), where he is getting all his breakthrough formulas from. Ramanujan finally reveals the name of Hindu goddess Namagiri. Those who were or are bringing extraordinary abilities and knowledge to this world by tapping beyond our reality, understand that the names of such entities as Namagiri or else really do not matter. What matters as Ramanujan proved is their ability to ask questions and listen to higher beings who are trying to help our troubled humanity by any way possible. You can tap into such reality as well, my friend, if you want and will put your effort and determination into it. You shall find your way and get your personal breakthrough. Think about it.
The Family Man:
Reviewed in the United States on December 26, 2022
We chose to watch this movie on Christmas evening and it was a good choice, even though it was a Christmas movie only by name. It was set up on Christmas Eve and Day. It plays with the idea of alternate reality, living in a parallel universe and the option to bring experiences from living there back to our reality. It stars Nicolas Cage and Tea Leoni, a star from another visionary movie Deep Impact. Today we talk a lot about things like androids and AI much more than in 2000 when this movie was produced. That is why I see it to be visionary. I actually got my first cellphone on Christmas 2000. You can think that the main protagonist Jack was just dreaming, which could be an easy explanation for many viewers and also perhaps for the creators themselves. Jack’s life change was obviously created by the angel, even though it was not said so anywhere in the movie. The angel created for him ” the glimpse” beyond the time in which he could see what he lost by making the wrong decision years back. Would it not be beautiful if we really would be able to do that, go into a parallel reality, correct our mistakes, change our lives and become better humans? I have no doubt that we will be able to do so in a not so distant future and master our consciousness for such a purpose. We are well advanced in computer sciences and AI, but not in the understanding of our soul power. AI is our material creation and always will be, it is not going to be human. How about if we could be able to contact angels instead of just being lucky as Jack was? Watch the movie and think about it.
The Christmas Candle:
Reviewed in the United States on December 20, 2022
Yes, they do, regardless of who we are and whether we believe they can happen or not. If you want to see an uplifting encouraging Christmas movie in this special time of the year, this is the one. The production was done at Isle of Man, from which my favorite pop music group originated, the Bee Gees. There is also surprising appearance, even somehow limited, by amazing Susan Boyle with her angelic voice. At first I thought that the lost candle initiated a little selfish cheating, but instead it multiplied power of believing in miracles and multiplied miracles themselves. What an amazing idea! We all need miracles especially in current troubled times and we just have to intend to create them. We all together. I loved this great motion picture, especially because I met my wife and fell in love through miracle caused by appearing of unexpected weather event. If the snowstorm would not happen at the place where I was heading, I would never meet her. It was caused by powers from “above” wanting us to meet for the reason. So yes, she and I just not only believe in miracles, we know that they are happening indeed.
Papillon:
Reviewed in the United States on December 16, 2022
My wife and I will be stopping in French Guiana at Iles du Salut or Salvation Islands during our Viking Cruise. That is why we decided to watch this today already classic prison escape movie. We opted for 1973 version with Steve McQueen and Dustin Hoffman, even they also did a remake in 2017. Escape stories always remind me a little bit of my own story of escaping from Czechoslovakia while still under the communist regime. Even I have had relatively decent life comparing to other people, I always thought I was in a prison. I often felt like I could not freely breathe there. I decided to change my life many years ago by risking to be caught and escaped. Later I was actually sentenced for 3 years just for illegally leaving country while already in the safety of my new adapted homeland. I like and compare determinations of protagonists with all risks and ensuing additional punishments who never give up to my own. It was good to see this wonderful movie again after many years. I was just wondering why during the second escape try they were sailing to Honduras, it is too far from French Guiana all way through Caribbean. Henri Charriere talks in the book about Venezuela. The checking on Internet led me to other blunders in the movie. However, instead of listing them I want to tell you, potential viewer, try rather to see a big picture, for example as I described what this wonderful movie reminded me of again.
Hereafter:
Reviewed in the United States on July 17, 2022
If you want to see how power of instant falling in love, intention and desired manifestation can overcome seemingly impossible, you have to see this Clint Eastwood’s masterpiece about near death experience, communication with departed physically dead people and psychic possibilities with Matt Damon and lovely Cecile de France all way to the end…
Everything Everywhere At Once:
Reviewed in the United States on June 19, 2022
At first, I thought about halfway into the movie, that my wife and I were watching a parody or mockery of all the speculations about multiverses, parallel universes, sophisticated video games and virtual reality. Well, that opinion changed into one of a courageous and visionary piece of modern art. Sometimes I think that the creators of metaphysical movies like this either do not want to talk about their real intentions, or they simply might not fully understand their own beautiful creations. Metaphysical travelers know that time is just a local concept in our universe and that everything is happening simultaneously. The movie creators displayed that wonderfully by glimpses of the protagonists’ lives in parallel universes. Two heroines, mother and daughter, have two different outlooks for the meaning of our existence, its purpose and outcome. Mother Evelyn as a simple, troubled woman is discovering the variety of her parallel lives where she is a powerful and successful individual. She is collecting all of her knowledge, experiences and emotions to become an ultimately powerful and complex spiritual person without any doubts. And then to do what? She is forced into a decision by her earthly daughter, Joy, who has already done that and is equally or even more powerful. She says “nothing matters”, because she has already experienced everything and is bored. That is why she wants her mother to join her in disappearing into the “donut.” However, the donut for me is clearly a portal into the unity with our Source or God, choose which one you like, where our spiritual identity disappears and is not needed anymore. I prefer the word Stargate, out of the stars, for such an ending. Perhaps, as Joy said, because “nothing matters.” How to get there is up to you, dear friend, if you want. However, mother Evelyn decided not to go with her, because there is something which does matter. Love.
Father Stu:
Reviewed in the United States on June 4, 2022
One of the best transformational character movies I ever saw. Very well written, especially rough dialogues between the estranged father and son. The first part reminded me of the famous Midnight Cowboy story about over-confident yet naïve young man sure to quickly achieve future success. Then he transforms himself into a man who finds his higher purpose wanting to be a priest in a Catholic church. It paradoxically happens because of love of a woman who is trying to make him a better man and then she loses him because of that. I would personally put also another aspect of his transformation into the description of the story, his obvious near death experience in which he interacts with Virgin Mary. He follows his new calling, like Beckett in another classical movie, even considering his personal suffering to be blessing. Very emotional deep story, you can cry.
The Spirit of Pong (the book):
Reviewed in the United States on February 12, 2022
I received this 2015 book last year as a random drawing prize at a little tournament in Athens, Georgia. I am an average long time competitive table tennis player with 136 official USATT tournaments played. I have met Larry Hodges many times in his club in Maryland and elsewhere at the tournaments all over the country. I can hardly imagine United States table tennis without this amazing table tennis activist, writer, recognized coach, over forty USA hardbat reigning champion and USA Table Tennis Hall of Fame member.
I am also a metaphysical writer and, as such, I am challenging you to see this book in a little bit different light than other reviewers. Instead of “putting a fantasy hat on your head” why don’t you disconnect yourself from pure materialistic judgement about what Larry Hodges has written. If you can do that, you can perceive another reality of this beautiful game we all love. You can better your game by applying metaphysical principles existing beyond our five senses. Ask yourself how many times you hit and returned the ball with devastating force, speed, and accuracy without knowing how you did that. If that is happening only occasionally for you, try to create a routine.
There is no doubt that top players can literally condense and stretch time, see, and execute much more in the blink of an eye than you and me. Larry’s book is full of these references, when his hero Andy “Shoes” Blue is doing exactly that. The night becomes a year, and a second can be stretched into minutes. You can also do this, play with time, analyze your successes and failures in altered state of mind. Any kind of meditation can you help with that. Model a variety of situations and your mind will remember and utilize your winning metaphysical scenarios without your conscious effort when you need them. And then your game might get another dimension, regardless of whether you will call it a subconscious action of your brain or an action of your trained spirit. For me, Spirit oversees my playing; how about you?
This lovely little book is loaded with a lot of information about the giants of the game. It brought me all the way back into my childhood’s admirations of them and my own dreams. I am happy that I was able to read and enjoy it. I must say that I was very surprised by Larry’s seeing and understanding of other realities. I always, as an independent observer and a little ping pong guy, saw Larry as a business-like and responsible table tennis giant ready for all those armies of talented and less talented kids who needed him. Kudos Larry for seeing the things not many people are even trying to see!
I am also a metaphysical writer and, as such, I am challenging you to see this book in a little bit different light than other reviewers. Instead of “putting a fantasy hat on your head” why don’t you disconnect yourself from pure materialistic judgement about what Larry Hodges has written. If you can do that, you can perceive another reality of this beautiful game we all love. You can better your game by applying metaphysical principles existing beyond our five senses. Ask yourself how many times you hit and returned the ball with devastating force, speed, and accuracy without knowing how you did that. If that is happening only occasionally for you, try to create a routine.
There is no doubt that top players can literally condense and stretch time, see, and execute much more in the blink of an eye than you and me. Larry’s book is full of these references, when his hero Andy “Shoes” Blue is doing exactly that. The night becomes a year, and a second can be stretched into minutes. You can also do this, play with time, analyze your successes and failures in altered state of mind. Any kind of meditation can you help with that. Model a variety of situations and your mind will remember and utilize your winning metaphysical scenarios without your conscious effort when you need them. And then your game might get another dimension, regardless of whether you will call it a subconscious action of your brain or an action of your trained spirit. For me, Spirit oversees my playing; how about you?
This lovely little book is loaded with a lot of information about the giants of the game. It brought me all the way back into my childhood’s admirations of them and my own dreams. I am happy that I was able to read and enjoy it. I must say that I was very surprised by Larry’s seeing and understanding of other realities. I always, as an independent observer and a little ping pong guy, saw Larry as a business-like and responsible table tennis giant ready for all those armies of talented and less talented kids who needed him. Kudos Larry for seeing the things not many people are even trying to see!
Reviewed in the United States on May 1, 2021
This wonderfully done movie can connect with you easily. And if you are also an immigrant, you can see a lot of yourself in it, regardless of your race, ethnicity, language or national origin. It spoke to me deeply and I could see a lot of similarities with my own story even after being a naturalized American citizen for more than 27 years. Before my wife and I could reach our American dream, we struggled like Jacob and Monica, their kids and Grandma and the modest success was not enough. My wife and I were unable to stay together; we crashed even though we did not have to go through a literal hell like the couple and the whole family in the movie did. Years back I knew other immigrant couples who failed in their marriages, too. Despite that, I reached success in this country and found my American dream. And you, Americans born here, think about how much we immigrants can contribute to society. Most of us are coming here to contribute and shame on those who have other intentions. The acting in the movie is just superb; no wonder that Youn Yuh-jung received an Oscar. Will Patton reminded me of his magnificent performance as one of the astronauts in the great movie Armageddon. My current American wife chose this movie for our Friday movie night. She wanted to see it, because it was nominated. Good choice, even though I am generally skeptical of reviews. If I would not be, I would never have seen such gems as Truman Show or Waterworld. I need to have my own feelings and observations before anybody can influence me.
The Father:
Reviewed in the United States on April 10, 2021
Sorry, but the brilliance of Anthony Hopkins does not necessarily guarantee a good movie. Sometimes I feel that we are kind of forced by our celebrity driven culture to immediately expect that a movie must be good because of superstar acting. Yes indeed, Anthony Hopkins stars in it as he is always able to, and Olivia Colman as well. It is very confusing to follow the story, unless you really understand the metaphysical nature of time. The protagonist Anthony remembers names and details of his life but there is no timeframe anymore existing for him. Those parts of his brain working with linear time are deteriorating and some parts working with the emotions became more prevalent, and at first he becomes aggressive, and later he acts as a child. OK, but what are we supposed to take from it? That many of us can also end up like that? Scary proposition, indeed! Not easy to watch. It makes you think to take care of the situation with outside help and euthanasia makes sense, if you do not have enough power to kill yourself. One of my dear friends, who even wrote a book about dying, crossed the point when she could not decide to depart her physical body. It was too late and she was not much able to control herself. However, she was indicating all way to the end that she was happy. Watch the movie, dear friend, and you can contemplate what you would do, if it would happen to you.
What Dreams May Come:
Reviewed in the United States on April 3, 2021
My very spiritual wife suggested this excellent work for our Friday movie night. Wow, how much I did like it! You never know when you might leave this beautiful planet. You can be surprised that you just moved to non-physical reality, like the characters in the movie, especially when your physical death was unexpected. And then what? As experienced spiritual travelers still being in their physical bodies would tell you, that reality is vast and very thought responsive. Unlike characters in the movie, you can prepare yourself for that here in and from your physical body regardless of whether you believe in such stuff or not. There are many ways how to do it, how to visit metaphysical world, how to gain self-confidence and be ready to use power of your mind after the physical death and how your love can help you to do incredible, as it helped Dr. Chris Nielsen played by Robin Williams. But not being prepared can put you into the misery as it happened to his wife Anne, portrayed by very pretty Annabella Sciorra. I however disagree with the notion that all who commit suicide end up that bad. That is religious conditioning bogus. Even that situation depends on the power of your mind which can go with you when you die. But you have to build it. Your mind can travel out of your body to experience scenery of afterlife and communicate with beings, whether they are your deceased family members or friends, or even some higher more knowledgeable beings. So far, this movie based on the book by Richard Matheson is probably the best movie about possibilities in afterlife I saw, even though all in it is happening only in lower astral form based vibrational areas of metaphysical reality.
The Sixth Sense:
Reviewed in the United States on March 28, 2021
Another movie from my bucket list I could finally see after previous busy life and finally retiring. Challenging look at children’s ability to connect to the other side which is l generally still being debunked by parents and society. Refusals to study subject deeper continue despite numerous reports about children talking about having so-called imaginary friends or seeing dead people, as in this courageous movie made already 22 years ago. See the movie and think about it yourself. And if you have a kid talking like that, communicate with her or him, ask them questions showing your genuine interest. A brilliant work with surprising ending. It shocked me, although I fully understand the challenging topic and expected something completely different. The creators must, however, not provoke especially critics too much with metaphysical and spiritual topics. I saw such brakes in many movies. Apparently otherwise the movie might not see the light of the day.
The Little Indians:
Reviewed in the United States on March 16, 2021
I saw this movie in Czechoslovakia in late sixties in dubbing. The title in Slovak there, when translating back into English was actually Ten little black boys. When I asked my wife I was surprised that she did not see it yet, even she is a mystery fan. While we were watching the movie, I knew what was coming, except I remembered a different ending. But watching my wife next to me I knew she was very excited every minute in expectation what would happen next. Only after we enjoyed it we learned about the racial controversies and changes of the title, offensive even at the time, when Agatha Christie wrote it. However setting of the story and buildup are simply brilliant.
Linda Ronstadt: The Sound Of My Voice:
Reviewed in the United States on March 16, 2021
I am a big fan of classic country music. I never paid attention to Linda Ronstadt even I was familiar with several songs in the movie. I considered Fall to Pieces sang by Patsy Cline to be the best country song ever. Then I heard Linda Ronstadt’s interpretation and surprisingly for myself had to admit that it was better. More dynamic, emotional and believable. My son told me about this beautiful documentary. What an amazing singer able to sing literally every genre and still humble and always studying the possibilities and working hard, never giving up even experts were suggesting not to do it. And she always was winning, whether it was a rock and roll, country, musical or singing with the mariachi band. Very uplifting movie about determination to utilize obvious talent in any way possible. I am recommending to you see this movie, you shall be not disappointed.
Doctor Zhivago:
Reviewed in the United States on March 10, 2021
I had this movie on my bucket list for a long time, but never got to it for my busy life. It was produced in 1965 and excellent quality of picture and sound on our 65 inch TV literally shocked me. I was living in Central Europe at that time under the communist regime. We learned about dissident Boris Pasternak’s book, which the movie is based on, only from Western media. Anyone who worries about possible future dangerous parallels between what is going on now in our society and what happened in former Soviet block countries, China and under other totalitarian regimes should see the movie and think deeply about it.
The Big Blue:
Reviewed in the United States on February 27, 2021
A European, French, classic from 1988, the time when many movies made a lot more sense than today. The great movie based on the true story about two childhood friends who as adults became the utmost competitors in deep diving without breathing equipment. Also a very romantic story about long distance love. The calling of the sea depths reminded me of a great earlier Soviet movie, Amphibian Man, from 1961 based on the story written by Alexander Beljajev. And a very similar sad ending made much more sense than the happy endings in a lot of Hollywood movies. Those who were swimming with the dolphins as I did, also experiencing touch with their mind through telepathy, can understand how strong the calling of a wild can be.
The Last Temptation of Christ:
Reviewed in the United States on February 22, 2021
I saw this Martin Scorsese’s piece of cinema’s art after more than 30 years again. I saw it at that time shortly after coming to the United States and also seeing protests in front of the movie theater in Washington D.C. It was fascinating and still is after all those years. Willem Dafoe’s Jesus is one of the best. The movie is both very spiritual and metaphysical. It could really happen like that. Those studying metaphysics through extra-dimensional travel probably understand why. I also liked portraying Judas in the more positive way unlike in the most religious denominations.
Mary Magdalene:
Reviewed in the United States on February 22, 2021
Rooney Mara is fabulous in the movie. Joaquin Phoenix’s Jesus sounds very pathetic, although I admire actor very much otherwise.
Last Days In The Desert:
Reviewed in the United States on February 22, 2021
Little disappointed. Reviews promised the good value. Story is good, but created indifferent feelings.