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WR: Mysteries of the Organism, a review by Danae Cassandra

WR: Mysteries of the Organism
Year of Release: 1971
Directed By: Dusan Makavejev
Starring: Milena Dravic, Ivica Vidovic, Jagoda Kaloper, Tuli Kupferberg
Genre: Fantasy, Comedy, Drama

Overview:WR: Mysteries of the Organism begins as an investigation into the life and work of controversial psychologist and philosopher Wilhelm Reich and then explodes into a free-form narrative of a beautiful young Slavic girl's sexual liberation. Banned upon its release in the director's homeland, the art-house smash WR is both whimsical and bold in its blending of politics and sexuality.

My Thoughts:
Subversive, anarchic, but also ultimately a product of it's time; this was an interesting watch. It's very much a surrealist film - part documentary, part montage, part narrative, part social critique via music video - it's a weird film. It's also a film that shows its age. It could only be a product of the late 60's/early 70's, for all that it's actual critique is timeless. Some familiarity with Stalinist policies and Communist Yugoslavia is helpful in viewing. Recommended only to serious art film lovers.

Bechdel Test: Pass

Overall: 4/5

(From March Around the World 2016 on March 11th, 2016)

The Young Mr. Pitt, a review by Antares

The Young Mr. Pitt (1942) 72/100 - Entertaining bit of British wartime propaganda from 1942. Robert Donat gives another great performance as William Pitt the younger, Great Britain's youngest Prime Minister ever. Many scenes echo the events and sentiments of that time, modern, besieged Britain, at war with the Nazis. Substitute Hitler for Napoleon, the "We are alone now" ideology and somewhat, Pitt as an amalgamation of both Winston Churchill and Neville Chamberlain, and you have a film which pushes all the right propaganda buttons, but has no great climactic moments. It kind of ends with a whimper, but I was entertained.

Teal = Masterpiece
Dark Green = Classic or someday will be
Lime Green = A good, entertaining film
Orange = Average
Red = Cinemuck
Brown = The color of crap, which this film is

(From Antares' Short Summations on July 13th, 2020)

Tom's TV Pilots marathon, a review by Tom

Welcome to the N-H-K: Collection Part One (2006/Japan) IMDb | Wikipedia FUNimation Entertainment (United States) Length: 300 min. Video: Anamorphic Widescreen 1.78 Audio: English: Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo, Japanese: Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo Subtitles: English

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Plot:
Some people's lives get stuck in a rut and others go through a few rough patches. Sato's life, on the other hand, seems to be going to hell in a hand basket filled with cheap takeout dinners! Between dropping out of college, never going outside and living on a diet of internet porn, Sato's slowly turning into a human fungus. But what if it's not his fault? What if it's actually a dark and sinister conspiracy on the part of the television networks? And what if all those adorable images of cute anime girls are actually part of an insidious plan of brainwashing designed to turn viewers into jobless, social recluses? Can Sato overcome the horrible plot that has been hatched by the nefarious N-H-K? Will he fight for his future, get a job and even meet girls in order to counter this evil organization? The battle is on in Welcome to the N-H-K!


Welcome to the N.H.K.
Season 1.01 Welcome to the Project!
Writer: Tatsuhiko Takimoto (Original Material By), Kendi Oiwa (Original Material By), Satoru Nishizono (Screenwriter)
Director: Yusuke Yamamoto
Cast: Chris Patton (Sato), Greg Ayres (Yamazaki), Stephanie Wittels (Misaki Nakahara), Luci Christian (Hitomi Kashiwa), Monica Rial (Megumi Kobayashi), Luci Christian (Additional Voices), K. C. Jones (Additional Voices), Monica Rial (Additional Voices), John Swasey (Additional Voices), Serena Varghese (Additional Voices), David Wald (Additional Voices), , Yutaka Koizumi (Tatsuhiro Sato), Yui Makino (Misaki Nakahara), Daisuke Sakaguchi (Kaoru Yamazaki), Sanae Kobayashi (Hitomi Kashiwa), Risa Hayami (Megumi Kobayashi), Rumi Shishido (Pururin), Kimiko Saito (Misaki's Aunt), Katsui Taira (TV), Ryo Sugibayashi (Refrigerator), Yasushi Miyabayashi (PC), Asuka Ideno (Air Conditioner), Hikari Yono (House Wife), Akiko Matsuzaki (House Wife), Kaoru Katagai (House Wife), Mari Orito (Female High School Student)

Overall I enjoyed this series, but this pilot episode is a little bit of a slow start.

Rating:

(From Tom's TV Pilots marathon on November 14th, 2012)