Skip to main content

Three-Star Thursday: Killing Gunther (2017)

Welcome to three-star Thursday where I find the underrated gems amongst the most average of ratings. I never pick a movie by the viewer rating. I look at the cast and the director and choose names I trust. That's not to say I never watch anything by knowns, but I still go off instinct and the movie trailer rather than reviews. Why you ask? If you actually read most of reviews....well, some actually review the movie but others go off on all sorts of weird tangents. Pointing out plot holes and character inconsistencies, wonderful, that's useful info! Reviewing the quality of the font used for the credits or stating that the lead actors chin dimple is distracting, what?


My first buried treasure is Killing Gunther (2017), written and directed by Taran Killam. It is a smart, hilarious, and fast paced dark comedy. Think every Bond villan stereotype uniting to take out Keyser Soze, all filmed documentary style.

The writing is sharp, the chacterization and acting is on point, the plot is well thought out, replete with hook, crises, climax, and denoument. Not to mention it is laugh-out-loud hilarious. I would give it 4.5 stars.

Why only 4.5? One little thing was missing, but it's a bit of a spoiler so if you don't want to find out too much about the movie, stop reading here.

Okay, so Arnold Schwarzenegger is on the cover, he's all over the trailer, hell, he has first billing, but this I suspect has more to do with the skill of his agent and the fact that he has agreed to do an indie movie with actors who, shall we say, do not run in the same circles the former governor does. Fact of the matter is, he doesn't come into the movie until the last twenty minutes. Still, he's definitely worth the wait. He shows that his comedic talents are still alive and kicking. He holds his own with a cast chock-a-block with the up and coming, hipster comedic actors of this generation.

The point is, if you are looking for a dark comedy to provide solid humor throughout the entire film, Killing Gunther is for you.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

The Rain King by Cindy Henson Wiggins

It's WIP Wednesday here on Clean! I found this manuscript as I perused my bag of bones. I started the novel for my son, as bedtime story. We got pretty far along into our world of make believe. The book is almost complete, just needs a little spit polish. Hope you enjoy the excerpt! Chapter One Once upon a time―because all important stories begin with the words “once upon a time”―there was a boy named Zach. He went to school and did his homework and played baseball. He liked video games and building castles and occasionally his toy pirates would attack his superhero action figures. These things happen in the life of a normal child and Zach appeared for all intents and purposes to be perfectly normal. But he wasn’t. Every time it rained, Zach would run outside and splash in the puddles. When he came inside wet and splattered with mud his mother would sigh. “Why must you play in every puddle you find?” she would ask. With a shrug and knowing smile, Zach would dry off ...

Making a Difference Just Trying to Be Good

Being firmly rooted in  Gen X , I can't tell you how surreal it is to read Tweets from the Dalai Lama . Though given what I understand of  Buddhism , his Twitter presence makes perfect sense. Wisdom isn't something to hoard or make accessible to an elite few. Wisdom is to be shared and built upon through democratization. And as good wisdom usually is, one of his latest Tweets is perfect in its simplicity: "The basic foundation of humanity is compassion and love. This is why, if even a few individuals simply try to create mental peace and happiness within themselves and act responsibly and kind-heartedly towards others, they will have a positive influence in their community." -- The Dalai Lama It's the last two words that, to me, resonate the most, "their community." I've admitted often enough to feeling as though I'm screaming into a void, but one reason I stay part-time at the EDJ is not only the supplemental income, but also the feeling ...

Everything Is Your Fault....Or Why Tom Bilyeu Is Brilliant

Writing is lonely business. Whether you write from home or surrounded by like-minded individuals, when it comes down to it, putting word to page is just you and your thoughts trying to make sense of a mad, mad, mad, mad world. To produce articles and novels on the reg requires Herculean amounts of self-discipline and self-motivation. The self-discipline I've got. I've written more in the past couple weeks than most people do their entire lives. Even self-professed "writers". The motivation, well, that's the sticky wicket. Don't get me wrong, I am more than motivated to write. For me, it is a need, not a want. I always love finding out what I've got to say. More often than not, I surprise myself with my turns of phrase. I read my work and think,  Did I write that? Wow!  I'm my biggest fan. You have to be otherwise you have no business writing. The problem comes in when it seems no one else gives a crap about what I have to say. It'...