Mini-Review: Ugh ...

Mini-Review: Surprisingly not dull; I enjoyed the very slick and strangely 70's-ish suspense sequences (lots of panning and zooming). Also a good, unusual cast. Some scenes are surprising, others are handled in an unusual way. Spielberg gives no message (for once); just inviting debate and highlighting some important, little known events. Shallow characters maybe, but I was entertained (could say the same about a more overrated movie like Inception really ...)

Mini-Review: Delicious. Especially the Gothic haunted mansion dream-trap time-looping sequence where the protagonists are rescued by obscure German mythological symbolism (and this is all orchestrated in cyberspace by hackers ...) I love that the GITS movies (and animé in general) aren't afraid that the audience can't keep up. And I really CAN'T at times, probably because I don't have a well-functioning cyberbrain ... whatever. Mmm, pretty animation.

Mini-Review: It's Altman, being great.

Mini-Review: Very striking images, but ultimately monotonous and dull. After a while you're thinking "no, stop moving your hands over and around your face in seemingly meaningful ways". Then you start thinking that you want to watch a Bergman movie, where stylish excess usually means something or is at least more restrained.