MarkDoesMedia

           Game of Thrones  is a very special series to me, I've been watching it every year since season four came out. I can't even describe how devastated I was over the last two seasons and how bad they were, it felt like a waste of many years of investment and, for a while, I cast that dislike over the entire show and thought I wasn't into any of it because the last two seasons left such a bad taste in my mouth.      Now, after a long time of reflection and a rewatch of the earlier seasons, I realize that I still very much love Game of Thrones . The production design, visual effects, casting, story, pacing, everything is done so exceptionally well that it puts most Hollywood movies to shame. It essentially ruined any other kind of medieval-themed show for me since they all look cheap and fake in comparison. I still love most of the characters and plotlines and the show is structured in such a brilliant way where it doesn't spen...

     Denis Villeneuve is one of the best directors working today and the fact that he is given massive budgets to work with is as amazing as it is worrying. What makes his films so special is his absolute mastery of storytelling, tone, and atmosphere but, unfortunately, many of these qualities do not directly translate into mainstream appeal. His films tend to be very methodically slow-paced and constructed, with well-thought-out plots and fascinating characters and they also tend to be very moody and dark.      Blade Runner 2049  is a fascinating film to look at from a blockbuster angle; it is a nearly $200 million dollar, almost 3-hour long, R-rated art film. It is not at all interested in exciting action set-pieces or making the audience feel good. It is a dark, brooding meditation of humanity and the world we live in with an incredibly thick atmosphere and a believable science fiction world. Roger Deakins' cinematography is as beautiful as it is sl...