Movie Tab II [Archive] - Page 109

thracian dawg

07-04-19, 02:36 PM

★★ (http://www.filmsufi.com/search/label/**%C2%BD)

Boundaries —(2016) — Feste
A daughter takes three days off work to deliver her colorful father (he has gotten kicked out of his retirement home) to a second daughter in Los Angeles. This film didn’t quite jell. When you think Vera Farmiga … no great knee slappers come to mind (comedy is not her forte) but clearly more of the fault lies with the director. Drama can happen, for comedy to work: all the gags need to be set up. For instance, the film opens during a therapy session where our heroine thinks she is doing so well she suggests cutting back on the therapy sessions. Her therapist then begins a serious run down all her emotional tangles. A much better opening would have been her heading to the therapy session and her stumbling across an adorable stray dog and after a great internal struggle; she finally wrenches herself away from it and walks into the building proud of herself. Then when the therapist asks: how many stray dogs and cats (all you have to do is feed them and they will give you unconditional love) have you adopted this week? When the little dog pops its head out from her hand bag this would have gotten a big laugh plus oodles of insight into her character.

★★½ (http://www.filmsufi.com/search/label/**%C2%BD)

Blade Runner * (1982) — Scott
After a while, all the artsy fartsy design got tiring; a probing search light outside of every window; Venetian blind shafts cut across every room; the fog, mist, and shadow machines going full blast. Deckard is basically a repellant, cold blooded killer; the film hides this by having him shuffle around some papers and do some minor detective work. The focus is wrong in this film; this is actually a story about a hidden slave revolt. Our sympathies should be with the synthetic immigrants; amazingly life-like, sub-humans (wow, what a dead giveaway!) Two of the synthetic workers are military grade drones, so if you gave them an elastic band or a pea shooter they would have had no trouble dispatching Deckard. It’s kind of laughable they let Deckard do them in.

Annie Oakley—(1932) — Stevens
There is a kind of rudimentary romance between two snipers in a traveling Wild West show. This was dated: it was clearly racist in certain areas, although Chief Sitting Bull is given some nice gags. On the other hand, it’s nicely dated in other areas; when a peroxide blonde strolls into a saloon the men all keel over from shock, they never thought they would live to see the day.

L. 627—(1992) — Tavernier
This French police story has the distinctive anti-Hollywood feel. These are not heroic superman battling evil, but normal guys fighting a losing battle and losing their humanity in the process. The narcotics section is a trailer parked in the vacant lot outside the run-down police station. Our hero is outraged when the big boss simply pulls the plug on a stake-out detail because it’s late (he uses the surveillance van as his personal vehicle) and he wants to go home. Our hero is less outraged when he exploits his snitches or when he borrows a surveillance camera from work to make some extra money on the week-ends shooting marriage videos. The L627 is a form in the paperwork referring to the letter of the law in the war against drugs.

★★★ (http://www.filmsufi.com/search/label/***)

After the Wedding * (2009) — Blier
There is a great set-up where humanitarian worker travels from India back to his home country in order to secure funding for his orphanage and accidently (?) gets invited to a wedding where his own sketchy past returns with a vengeance. I loved the intimate, gestural close-ups of the character's eyes. The English remake of this will be showing up a few months from now … Julianne Moore impregnates someone? I’m officially intrigued as to how they are going to re-tell this story.

Me and Earl and the dying Girl * (2015) — Gomez-Rejon
I liked how the title matches our zero’s non-confrontational way of hiding in plain sight. Before the girl outed him, he was successfully Zeligging his way through high school. He refers to her in the past tense at least once and she drops the stage-four bomb, so the whole unreliable narrator becomes moot this time around, it’s more of a question of the inattentive movie watcher.

Black Butterfly — (2017) — Goodman
The writer’s block film usually has the writer meeting a stranger, having an adventure then writing about it. The blocked-up writer in a remote cabin also suggested Misery. The writer angrily flips off a trucker during a road rage moment then speeds away from him. With nowhere to go in the middle of the forest (and this being a movie) the trucker is simply going to pull into the parking lot down the road of the village’s one gas station/restaurant and continue the conversation. The writer becomes so weak and pathetic during the confrontation, I couldn’t stop watching because of this weird emotional hook to the story.

Tin Man—(2007) — Stevens
This wasn’t a remake of The Wizard of Oz or re-imagining of it since they took only took certain pieces of it to make a new story. There is not a lot of budget here but they really wrench every single penny out of the CGI and costuming; putting the henchmen into long black leather coats always works in a film. This is wonderfully cheesy. The flying monkeys are embedded in the wicked witch’s tramp stamp. Zooey “Blue Sky” ’Deschanel is costumed in a pair of flair pants and she runs like a girl during the numerous chase scenes. Alan Cummings plays the Tin Man with a just the tiniest suggestion of Michael Jackson.

* = rewatch

Nostromo87

07-19-19, 07:15 AM

Licence To Kill (1989)

Wildly underrated, over time that seems to be what I go for. Phenomenal villain played by Robert Davi, a fitting Timothy Dalton 007, and dazzling Bond girls makes this possibly my favorite film of them over GoldenEye (1995).

Rating: rating_4 8.0 / 10

Licence To Kill (http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=vQKaujX6R-U)

http://i.ibb.co/PFcfK5j/Licence1.jpghttp://i.ibb.co/6PFmJSs/Licence2.jpg

The Three Musketeers (1993)

They're Scoundrels, Playboys, Outlaws. Charlie Sheen plays a priest, Aramis, spectacular casting choice, joined by Kiefer Sutherland as Athos, Oliver Platt as Porthos The Pirate, as well as Chris O'Donnell. The movie wins my summer. It's better than everything.

Rating: rating_4_5+ 9.5 / 10

(http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=3ROHpQ2vSWs)The Three Musketeers (http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=pqZbNvNdJaU)

http://i.ibb.co/tz86XYc/Three-Musketeers93.jpg

Nostromo87

07-20-19, 12:04 AM

First-Viewings Over The Last Two Years

1. The Three Musketeers (1993) rating_4_5+ 9.5 / 10
2. Nightmare Sisters (1988) rating_4_5 9.0 / 10
3. The Breakfast Club (1985) rating_4_5 9.0 / 10
4. Urban Legend (1998) rating_4_5 9.0 / 10
5. Lionheart (1990) rating_4_5 9.0 / 10
6. The Three Musketeers (1973) rating_4 8.0 / 10
7. Carny (1980) rating_4 8.0 / 10
8. Licence To Kill (1989) rating_4 8.0 / 10
9. Halloween (2007) rating_4 8.0 / 10
10. Christine (1983) rating_4 8.0 / 10

https://i.ibb.co/Ny0DzFz/Nightmare-Sisters1988.jpg

Tri Eta Pi House party with sorority sisters Marci, Mickey, and Melody in Nightmare Sisters (1988).

11. Grease 2 (1982) rating_4 8.0 / 10
12. Kickboxer (1989) rating_4 8.0 / 10
13. Soldier Of Orange (1977) rating_4 8.0 / 10
14. Sleepaway Camp 2: Unhappy Campers (1988) rating_3_5+ 7.5 / 10
15. Bloodsport (1988) rating_3_5+ 7.5 / 10
16. Final Destination (2000) rating_3_5+ 7.5 / 10
17. Cocktail (1988) rating_3_5+ 7.5 / 10
18. One-Eyed Jacks (1961) rating_3_5+ 7.5 / 10
19. Deep Red (1975) rating_3_5+ 7.5 / 10
20. Twins Of Evil (1971) rating_3_5+ 7.5 / 10

https://i.ibb.co/9NycG7S/Cocktail1988.jpg

Elisabeth Shue and Tom Cruise meet at a Jamaican beach in Cocktail (1988).

21. Graduation Day (1981) rating_3_5 7.0 / 10
22. Night Of The Demons (1988) rating_3_5 7.0 / 10
23. The Initiation (1984) rating_3_5 7.0 / 10
24. Intruder (1989) rating_3_5 7.0 / 10
25. House Of 1000 Corpses (2003) rating_3_5 7.0 / 10
26. You're Next (2011) rating_3_5 7.0 / 10
27. Leatherface: The Texas Chainsaw Massacre III (1990) rating_3_5 7.0 / 10
28. Battle Of Britain (1969) rating_3_5 7.0 / 10
29. The Vampire Lovers (1970) rating_3_5 7.0 / 10
30. Sunset Strip (2012) rating_3_5 7.0 / 10

https://i.ibb.co/N1gy5qk/The-Initiation1984.jpg

Daphne Zuniga gets ready for prank night in The Initiation (1984).

31. Student Bodies (1981) rating_3+ 6.5 / 10
32. Night Of The Demons 2 (1994) rating_3+ 6.5 / 10
33. The Prowler (1981) rating_3+ 6.5 / 10
34. Friday The 13th Part VIII: Jason Takes Manhattan (1989) rating_3+ 6.5 / 10
35. Candyman (1992) rating_3+ 6.5 / 10
36. Psycho (1998) rating_3+ 6.5 / 10
37. Terrifier (2017) rating_3+ 6.5 / 10
38. Tourist Trap (1979) rating_3+ 6.5 / 10
39. Halloween... The Happy Haunting Of America (1997) rating_3+ 6.5 / 10
40. The Four Musketeers: Milady's Revenge (1974) rating_3+ 6.5 / 10

http://i.ibb.co/jzYpvSN/The-Four-Musketeers1974.jpg

Porthos carries Raquel Welch (Constance) in The Four Musketeers: Milady's Revenge (1974).

41. Halloween H2O (1998) rating_3 6.0 / 10
42. Exorcist II: The Heretic (1977) rating_3 6.0 / 10
43. Hellraiser (1987) rating_2_5+ 5.5 / 10
44. Tenebrae (1982) rating_2_5+ 5.5 / 10

Merry Go Round (http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=J2O69EO1QZc)

re93animator

07-30-19, 09:59 AM

Chasing Sleep (2000) – 4
When a man’s wife goes missing, he’s kept awake by incessant anxiety and ‘possible’ hallucinations. A very psychological thriller/horror confined to the protagonist’s sporadically filthy house. It’s not full of clichés, and it’s unpredictable enough to stay engrossing for someone who has seen more psych thrillers than you can shake a stick at. Highly recommended if you like modern psych thrillers.

El Patrullero / Highway Patrolman (1991) – 3.5
Tumultuous events in the early months/years of a young patrolman’s ethically tested career in Mexico. A more measured & mature crime movie from Alex Cox, though it still highlights the locale’s seediness and has a couple of odd flourishes. Not as offbeat engaging as Walker or Repo Man, but still such a well put together movie.

The Nose (1963) – 3.5
Surreal animated short about a man and his missing nose, based on Nikolai Gogol’s short story. Dialogue-free, odd plucky soundtrack, and charmingly imperfect and unique artwork.

I saw a short video detailing the animation too. It was done using a pinboard wherein the animators would meticulously push out tiny pins at certain distances until the shadows formed a desired image. A lot of work for little yield, but respect nonetheless. Both videos are on youtube.

Diary of a Lost Girl (1929) – 4.5
Tragic events in the life of a young lady that’s taken advantage of by the scummiest of people. F*cking brutal and painful to watch, with very little attempt to lift the mood at all. The acting is much less histrionic than its contemporaries, and the plot is harsher than most of today’s dark dramas. It’s hard to enjoy per se, but it’s riveting and heartbreaking.

The Student of Prague (1913) – 2.5
A poor student unwittingly sells his likeness to a sorcerer. Not too remarkable, but still a pretty eerie plot with a simple morale in the vein of Faust.

Underworld (1927) – 3
Early gangster movie involving a love triangle and a hot-headed rival mobster. George Bancroft’s proto-new wave hair is about 50 years ahead of its time.

He Who Gets Slapped (1924) – 4.5
A scientist resorts to getting a job as circus clown after being deceived and embarrassed. The plot details seem simple enough to have been devised in less than an hour, but tragic emotion is at the movie’s core, and that lends itself nicely to the era. Lon Chaney is an especially sympathetic underdog, even while the movie carries a dark undertone in waiting for his gasket to blow.
https://i.imgur.com/4HJxWZF.png?1
https://i.imgur.com/qkJJ1sI.png?1

The Docks of New York (1928) – 2.5
Some of the coolest cinematography I’ve seen from the time, aided by cracked walls with crooked windows, pervasive haze, and cramped docks. Unfortunately, it also carries a very chauvinistic tone, with a forced romance that just makes both leads more unlikable. The over the top 20s slang intertitles are amusing though.
https://i.imgur.com/trkjSYc.png?1
https://i.imgur.com/Y4K2132.png?2
https://i.imgur.com/7pa6LrU.png?1

Revolution #9 (2001) – 3
An indie film that makes a serious attempt at portraying a man’s descent into paranoia, as well as the consequences it has on those close to him. It seems that it was made with a lot of care and attention to detail, and it’s another (like DOALG) that aims to discomfort more than entertain.
https://i.imgur.com/X6olv6X.png?1

cricket

08-01-19, 08:45 AM

July, 2019 movies watched-

Us (2019) 2.5+ Decent but too slow.

The Birth of a Nation (1915) 4.5 Ugly but great.

Go West (1925) 3.5 Briskly entertaining and funny.

Cabiria (1914) 3.5 Impressive and influential epic.

Nosferatu (1922) Repeat viewing 3 I strongly prefer Herzog's version.

The Fall of the House of Usher (1928) 2.5 Recommended for anyone looking for a surreal short.

The Last Laugh (1924) 3 A different ending would've made a huge difference.

Cinema Paradiso (1988) 5 A great movie for people who love movies.

Megan Leavey (2017) 3+ A little better than the average dog movie.

The Battle at Elderbush Gulch (1913) 3.5- Entertaining Western short.

The Iron Horse (1924) 4 Early John Ford classic.

Incident in a Ghostland (2018) 2.5- Too many horror elements squeezed into one movie makes this a mess.

The Circus (1928) 3.5 Loved the first half, liked the second half.

Serenity (2019) 1.5 It has to be down there with the worst of the year.

Pet Sematary (2019) 3+ Above average horror remake.

Lonesome (1928) 2.5 Meh.

Battleship Potemkin (1925) 4- Not a personal favorite but extremely impressive.

Total July viewings-17
Total 2019 viewings-100

donniedarko

08-04-19, 01:10 AM

I've seen three movies since April, coincidentally all very good horror films

http://cinamigos.com/wp-content/uploads/hereditary4-1024x576.jpg
Hereditary (Aster, 2018)- 4-
Us (Peele, 2019)- 3.5+
Fright Night (Gillespie, 2011)- - 3.5-

thracian dawg

08-06-19, 04:19 PM

½ (http://www.filmsufi.com/search/label/**%C2%BD)

Adult Life Skills— (2016) —Tunnard
The director has a strange idea that every scene becomes more dramatic if everyone starts yelling; but once the volume is cranked up to eleven, everyone immediately storms off leaving everything unfinished until the next shouting match. The director seems to understand she has a thoroughbred at her disposal because there are a lot of scenes where Jodie Whittaker simply inks smiley faces on her fingertips disappears beneath a cardboard stage and waggles her fingers. So it’s a bit of head scratcher why did they make her twin, a male in the story? With an identical twin sister you would have dialled up the conflict and doubled the face time of your lead actress. This is quirky drama about a grieving woman on the eve of her thirtieth birthday; unfortunately, all the twists and turns in the story are painfully telegraphed.

★½ (http://www.filmsufi.com/search/label/**%C2%BD)

Café — (2011) — Erbaum
Everything seems to be allegorical here; the devil may be the drug dealer who sits in the back of the café, and God is not only a woman but 11-years old to boot. With a heavenly skype she informs a guy that he is merely an avatar in the simulation she has created and she can prove it. The film is hampered by the product placement, everyone one is either buying caffeine or drinking it and this is more of an office for the regulars. There are several writers tearing their hair out at the tables, and one woman conducts all her job interviews here, not to mention the evil dude dealing in plain sight of the cops who stop by for free coffee.

★★½ (http://www.filmsufi.com/search/label/**%C2%BD)

Late Night — (2019) — Ganatra
This is kind of a wonky re-make of The Devil Wears Prada with Mindy Kaling bravely battling the isms (sexism, nepotism, racism) and showing how super talented and adorable she is, all the while doing it in high heels and a dress. There is a difficult moment of disbelief when an Executive producer for a major late night talk show hires a factory worker (with absolutely no writing credits) for a coveted, six-figure staff job.

The Book of Love — (2016) — Purple
The Devil and the Deep Blue Sea popped up as an alternate title when I looked this thing up. A rebranded film is always a warning sign. This is the rare movie that scores a bullseye with two tiny opposing demographics. This is overloaded with cuteness and if it’s been a while between tear-jerkers the Kleenex crowd should get a decent blubber out of this. This is also a perfect candidate for the Friday night drubbing; i.e., where you gather a group of your friends together to mercilessly mock a hopelessly inept attempt at film making (the strange case of disappearing and wandering accents and the non sequiturs in the film are guaranteed to keep the laughter rolling.) I noticed also for the first time that Mary Steenburgen uses her hairdo (tightly framing her face at the eyes and cheeks) like other women use Botox. During a jogging scene where the lady obviously hasn’t been for a trot in years, I finally made a mental note to look up her age … she is four years shy of 70.

Galveston — (2018) — Laurent
This oddball couple are like metaphorical vampires who only live at night (she’s a hard luck woman with a limited shelf life, although she is still a little girl at heart; her body begins to innocently sway when she hears music. The film opens with the low rent killer for the local crime boss getting a cancer diagnosis for his persistent cough, and unable to process this revelation, he simply storms out of the doctor’s office and refuses all treatment, perhaps deciding in that instant to go out in a blaze of glory. The two main characters are both kind of damaged and desperate, and it takes the whole movie to warm up to them.

Lagerfeld Confidential — (2007) — Marconi
Early on, Karl is caught reading without his trademark sunglasses and he makes a mental note there is a camera stalking his every move and he needs to be now “on” at all times. The actual tidbits are few and far-between in this tell-all documentary. The ponytail is a stylish fix for his bad hair. He tips the staff not when he exits but as he enters a private jet. He needs a security pillow (his grandmother made it for him when he was a boy) on his tummy when he travels; otherwise he would be sick as a dog. He was sexually abused as a small child and when he told his mother she replied, “Well what do you expect—going to the beach dressed like that.” He shoots from the lip and can tell you what he loves and hates at any given moment day or night, but is that a personal revelation? He admits if he popped a button on a 1,000 dollar shirt, he’d have to throw it away because he doesn’t know how to sew. He is an armchair general who relies on the small, talented army gathered round him to make the magic happen. This is a man with a death-grip on his media brand and the mask never slips.

Cimarron — (1931) — Ruggles
A portrait of an unrepentant rolling stone who puts down stakes then heads off for another adventure every five years or so, abandoning whatever he has achieved there, however great. Yancey Cravat is a jack of all trades who collects job skills like some people collect baseball cards. This film works a little better as a series of vignettes about the founding of Osage, Oklahoma; which sprung up after the Oklahoma land lottery of 1889. The townspeople reflect its changing demographic where specific skill sets are needed during specific times in order to thrive. The first newspaper in the boom town folded at the first editorial where the editorialist mentioned the cowboy scum roaming the streets, he was simply shot in the back before the ink was dry. The second stab at a town newspaper comes from Yancey and when outlaws come clamoring for the author, he sends the lot of them (the quick draw being only one of his many skills) to boot hill. As a newspaper editor (and a man) he defends the weak and defenseless against the moral thugs and bullies. He writes a scandalous editorial urging that the Indians should be granted American citizenship; which is a staggering admission that they were simply seen as sub-humans during that period without the right to even exist. In this story, the government simply gave two million acres of their national heritage free of charge to any immigrant who wanted it.

Bunny Lake is missing — (1965) — Preminger
I liked the gorgeous black and white photography and the opening credit sequence where a hand is tearing back strips of black paper to reveal the various names. Some of the locations were nice; the doll hospital with all the broken dolls; the basement lab room with the caged lab rats and animals, and the lecherous landlord’s apartment decorated in early Marquis de Sade. Unfortunately, there is an editing mistake in the third act. The mother of the missing child knows only two places in London. So when the cops check the apartment she moved into earlier that morning then race to where she stayed the previous week; the film times out during the extended final sequence once the audience realizes the cops are not going to show up and save the day, but they are merely going to announce the end of the movie.

★★★ (http://www.filmsufi.com/search/label/***)

Cake eaters * — (2007) — Masterson
This is a quiet, small town drama with characters, outwardly calm but the emotional turmoil brews just below the surface. It’s like each of the characters stands outside a bakery with their nose pressed to the window, seeing the heaven of their dreams, yet unable to go inside grab it. This is particularly noticeable in the prodigal son who left to become a rock star and returns with nothing but heartache to show for it three years later and the life he left behind has irrevocably vanished. His mother has passed away and his childhood sweetheart has moved on and married (there is a suggestion her blond haired daughter may be his.) The clock ticks loudest for the teen-aged girl who is slowly dying. Watts, when are you going to direct a second film?

King of Hearts * — (1966) — De Boca
As a welcoming gift for the other side in World War 1, a retreating army rigs a strategic hamlet for demolition. The résistance gets wind of it and empties the village of everyone and also warns the advancing army of the death trap. The commanding Officer mistakenly sends the company’s ornithologist (in charge of the homing pigeons) to demine the village instead of an actual munitions expert. When our hero accidently releases the residents of an insane asylum into in the real world (there is a nice metaphor of songbirds leaving and returning to their cages in the film.) They all immediately choose to do astonishing: they all choose a job and an identity that will make them the happiest. 53 years after its original release, this is less an anti-war fable than a sweet story about mindless conformity and following your heart even when the world around you is going completely insane.

The Driftless Area — (2015) — Sluser
Early on Zooey Deschanel walks past some firemen heading to a house fire who don’t even bat an eye, even though she walks past them completely naked. The biggest hurdle in this tale about a ghost that needs to talk someone into avenging her murder is decoding when and where the magic realism actually kicks in. At times she is invisible and at other times people interact with her as if she was flesh and blood. One could advance the theory that there are multiple ghosts in the story; our hero may have also died already.

Executive Action — (1973) — Miller
One of the first of the JFK assassination films; they hammer out the inconsistencies in the cover story with dry workmanlike craftsmanship. It’s slightly funny during the hairpin turn onto Elm Street; all conspirators are glued to their television sets, as if it a routine motorcade was happening live on national TV. This was originally set up by Donald Sutherland, but he couldn’t get the financing and had to abandon it.

The witches — (1967) — Anthology
The title is misleading because there is not a bat wing or broomstick in sight; all the female characters in these short films (all featuring Silvana Mangano) depict a distinctive lack of any agency in their lives. In the first story, a frail super model turned actress (now trapped by her screen image) becomes the sacrificial witch the adoring public symbolically burns at the stake when she shows up an exclusive ski resort. In the candy colored third story, a clownish widower (an Italian comedy legend at the time) tells his son he will only remarry if he approves of his choice and they go on a relentless search together to find wife number two. There is a wicked punchline after the second wife also dies, her ghost shows up at the house ready to cook and clean again, and they simply go on as before because there is no notable difference (Ha Ha) from when she was alive. In the fifth story, a frustrated housewife has increasingly elaborate, revenge fantasies when her bank executive husband comes home and falls asleep every night in front of the TV. One funny scene: Clint Eastwood (he seems to enjoy skewering his macho image) runs across the room in flesh colored trunks (in her fantasies their bedroom is about the size of car dealership) and does a perfect swan dive into their bed to illustrate the passion at the start of their marriage. The attraction here is the set design and the different approaches by directors. There’s a nice comic book opening credit sequence

The Last Black Man in San Francisco — (2019) — Talbot
Although he spent most of his childhood in secret reading room hidden behind a bookcase because of the bickering between his parents; this is a young man is still in love with the house he grew up in and is obsessed with reclaiming the family heritage. He still drops by the house regularly to do upkeep on the exterior of the house and yard work even though the current owners are clearly antsy about this: but they haven’t got the heart to get the police involved. The understated theme of the film is the actual housing crisis going on in the city. Gentrification (a code word for “financial euthanasia”) is driving everyone except the super-rich out of the city; San Francisco has the highest concentration of resident billionaires in any city anywhere on the planet. This is interesting because of the depiction of the despair of the precariat is never shown in American films. Hollywood films are filled with part-time baristas who live in million dollar condos.

Wild Rose — (2018) — Harper
A honky-tonk woman from in Glasgow Scotland dreams of becoming a star at the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville. Her motto in life is tattooed brazenly on her forearm and the audience is waiting for the moment is when she applies this not to her fantasy but to her real life; she has two adorable young children she doesn’t quite seem to know what to do with. Long story short, she makes it to the rhinestone capital of the world only to discover you can throw a rock and hit someone with a demo CD plus her exact same dream. There is nice moment where she makes it on stage and belts out a show stopper to an empty auditorium, one of the security guards tells her after they’ve escorted her out of the building that this is a recurring event he has seen a hundred times. 30 years ago, Julie Waters would have starred in this feisty role, now she plays her dour, disapproving mother.

A Perfect Day —(2015) — Aranoa
A team of humanitarian workers are given tasks each day that would take 15 minutes in any other part of world. They have to navigate the various mine fields of politics (the group of sullen civilians standing before you could be local militia hiding in plain sight) add in personal agendas, revenge fever, booby traps, and bureaucratic red tape and these simple tasks become Sisyphean ordeals. I liked the unnoticed moments of triumph when disaster is averted and that their gallows humour becomes an essential coping mechanism against the madness of war.

Raw — (2016) — Ducournau
There is a nice institutionally grey teaching hospital set beneath perennially bleak and overcast skies. This first year student at the national Belgian veterinary school is going through a difficult period. The forced partying and the constant hazing are beginning to take its toll on her. For instance, she wakes up the first night with a strange man in her dorm room, she had requested a female roommate. He says that he’s gay so in the eyes of the administration that’s about the same thing. After a while, in close proximity, she begins to get ideas about him. This is a slightly grisly coming of age story with a nice mix of black humour and horror—one should abstain from eating snacks during this film.

Maiden —(2018) — Holmes
This is a documentary about the 1989 Whitbread Round the World Yacht Race. Immediately falling in love with this great adventure and wanting to participate; a scrappy young woman has to butt her head against the wall of sexism surrounding the race. She has to fight tooth and nail merely to get onboard a yacht in the only position she was deemed to be remotely qualified for … the below deck cook. As the only woman during the race, she becomes a funny, human interest story for the press. Since every position is forbidden and rather than knocking down the prejudices one by one over decades, she simply assembles an all-female crew for the next race. The film gains from the present day interviews, everyone’s hair has turned white. One journalist (a classic male chauvinist pig) during his race column at the time; unapologetically referred to them as a tub full of tarts; 30 years later the other sports journalists still giggle about it like schoolboys. This is a classic underdog story.

The Letter — (1940) — Wyler
The film begins with a slow pan from rubber trees bleeding into buckets to the orchestra of planation workers providing the diegetic score for the scene. The camera moves past the open air barracks of the workers sleeping in hammocks to the veranda of the big house where a man staggers out and a dame follows on his heels, and empties her gun in his back. She turns around and strolls back inside. Thus ends the film noir portion of the story and this becomes a delightfully over the top, court room melodrama where the outcome is never in doubt. Informed at work that there has been some sort of gun play back home, the killer’s husband has the presence of mind to have his criminal lawyer meet him at the house at the same time. He has a nice sub-plot where being loyal to his friends and doing the right thing, he discovers he is slowly going to hell in a hand basket because of it. This film was really well lit; a few exterior scenes happen during cloudy nights where the characters are obscured by darkness then are bathed in crystal clear moonlight.

* = rewatch

guideadda

08-16-19, 10:13 AM

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re93animator

08-23-19, 07:20 AM

A Warning to the Curious (1972) – 3.5
A ghost story about an archaeologist in search of a possibly cursed artifact. A good example of less being more. A few actors, a nice setting, a minimal score, and a cheap prop. It’s almost forced to stay subtle till the end. No flying chairs or violent indoor gusts of wind; just eerie anticipation.
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The Unholy Three (1925) – 3
A sillier than intended crime movie about a gang of circus criminals trying to pull off a con involving grown men disguising themselves as an old woman & cigar-smoking baby. There’s also a laughably gratuitous giant chimp. The plot is actually engaging though, and it’s fun seeing Lon Chaney mean mug his fellow goons while in old lady garb.
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Heaven Knows, Mr. Allison (1957) – 3
A WWII soldier gets stranded on a Pacific island inhabited solely by a nun. Beautiful island, some action, some jungle crafting, some tension between dissimilar leads; like a more polite precursor to Hell in the Pacific.

Canned Laughter (1979) – 3.5
Young Rowan Atkinson in a proto-Mr. Bean with clever dialogue and even more bizarre mannerisms. Only 30 mins, and on Youtube. :)

Brimstone (2016) – 3.5
A long, non-linear story about a mute woman threatened by a mysterious preacher. Exploitation levels of brutality. The plot is presented out of order to carry some big surprises, but I liked that.

Death on the Nile (1978) – 4
Evil Under the Sun (1982) – 3
Appointment with Death (1988) – 2.5
Entertaining though perfunctory Agatha Christie murder mysteries with Peter Ustinov in the lead. Death on the Nile gets bonus points for a beautiful escapist setting and much stronger characters. EUTS feels like more of the same, but with a less appealing ‘getaway’ setting and a less intriguing mystery. AWD has a horrid forced romance, rough acting, and some ill-fitting campy 80s music, but I still liked it for the first hour.
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cricket

09-01-19, 09:26 AM

August, 2019 movies watched-

7th Heaven (1927) 3.5+ Loved it until the ending.

Steamboat Bill, Jr. (1928) 3.5 Typical Buster fun.

Beast (2017) 3.5 Nice British thriller.

3 Bad Men (1926) 3.5 It seems like there's a never ending supply of good movies from John Ford.

The Phantom Carriage (1921) 3.5 One of the most haunting movies I've ever seen.

Laugh, Clown, Laugh (1928) 2.5 I liked the story but it left no impact.

It (1927) 4 A rare romantic comedy that I loved, especially as an older one.

Grandma's Boy (2006) 3 For fans of juvenile comedy.

The Freshman (1925) 3 I enjoyed it but didn't think it was very funny.

The Killer (1989) 4.5- Probably a top 10 action film for me.

The Doll (1919) 2.5 Would like to see an exploitation remake.

The Passion of Joan of Arc (1928) 3 Powerful film, but just to an extent for this viewer.

The Fighter (2010) 4+ Great job capturing the time and the characters.

The Sheik (1921) 3- A good watch but nothing I'd watch again.

He Who Gets Slapped (1924) 4 A certainty to make my list for the Pre-30's countdown.

Total August viewings-15
Total 2019 viewings-115

Daniel M

09-01-19, 10:39 AM

Steamboat Bill, Jr. (1928) 3.5 Typical Buster fun.
3 Bad Men (1926) 3.5 It seems like there's a never ending supply of good movies from John Ford.

Two of my favourite films. Nice to see some more love for 3 Bad Men, even though its a silent film, because of the way Ford uses imagery, cinematography and editing it plays out just like a normal Western we have come to expect of him. I've seen the bulk of his work but there are still a few more I want to explore, especially early ones.

HashtagBrownies

09-02-19, 07:35 PM

Seen in June

You Were Never Really Here: 3.5: Still love Lynne Ramsay. Shot incredibly well with great scenes of not much happening that focus on the characters. The use of violence was very creative. The only thing I didn’t like was the character Nina. She felt like a silent, creepy girl you’d see in an average horror film.

The Guilty: 4-: Another addition to the ‘People talking on a phone for 90 minutes’ genre. It’s an engaging police thriller with a great main lead. I just don’t understand why this was a movie though. It could of just been a play, hell, a radio play. A blind person would get the same experience out of this film as a seeing person. Maybe I’m not seeing the bigger picture and filmmaking was very necessary.

Marnie: 3.5-: A good Hitckcock. The writing for Connery’s character was pretty weird though. Despite wanting to help the main character he acts incredibly villainous.

400 Blows: 3.5: Kes for French people. A typical but effective coming of age film. The improv interview scene was definitely the best just for how human it felt.

Striking Vipers: 3: I didn’t know about you guys, but the romantic episodes of Black Mirror are my least favourite. Also this is the third time they’ve made an episode about being sucked into a video game. Ugg.

Smithereens: 3.5: A solid thriller with a brilliant performance by Andrew Scott.The ‘PHONES BAD’ message is pretty lame though and kinda brings it down.

Rachel, Jack and Ashley Too: 3: Probably the worst episode of Black Mirror. I was expecting it to be a dark tale of a girl having her mind broken by being emotionally invested by an emotionless ‘Yes man’ doll, but it turns into a goofy Nickelodeon movie at the end. Goofy movies are fun, just not for Black Mirror.

I hope they take a hiatus so they can REALLY quality control the next three scripts. If we get another ‘Shut Up and Dance’ or ‘Entire History of You’ I’ll be satisfied.

The Longest Day: 3.5: A epic scale retelling of D-Day. One of those movies you can have on in the background.

Midori: 3: Watched this purely for it’s controversy. Alot of the shocking scenes seemed to be there just to get a rise out of the audience rather than having a meaning (Like cmon dude, I didn’t need to see a dog getting brutalized today). The voice acting is hammy and the animation is so lazy; So many scenes have the characters not moving at all. The ending was very abrupt and out of place also. If there’s good things to say about it is that there is some cool scenes that I liked (Like the scene where the magician punishes the audience)

Climax: 4.5+: One of the best films I’ve seen 2019. The colours are wonderful. The long takes are shockingly impressive. The improv is fantastic. The second half of the film is genuinely disturbing, scary and messes with your head.

Also that opening dance scene might be one of the best opening to a film I’ve ever seen.

A Silent Voice: 4-: Quite long, but it’s a very emotional tale of two people with a horrible past trying to make things work. Good story, wonderful characters, cute romance, hilarious comedic relief, the Greek playwrights would give this a thumbs up.

The Strange Thing About the Johnsons: 3.5: There’s a character decision at the end that doesn’t make sense at all, but apart from that it’s an incredibly disgusting and interesting tale that kicked off the career of one of my favourite horror directors.

1408: 3.5: An enjoyable supernatural thriller that takes full advantage with the limited location.

Boogie Nights: 3.5+: Once again I find it very difficult to get invested in films told over decades, I still went into this film with an open mind. The story was good, the performances were great, the last act is intense and the direction is astounding considering Paul Thomas was in his mid-20’s.

Toy Story 4: 3-: It was fine, but it added nothing of value to the series in my opinion. Only four characters get any serious fleshing out and everyone else (Yup, even Buzz) is just a comedic relief. I did love that scene of Woody walking with Forky through the woods at night, very human and atmospheric.
Woody’s choice at the end of the film makes sense I guess? But it feels like a slap in the face to the themes discussed in Toy Story 2

Last Year at Marienbad: 3.5: Not exactly my thing, but I can appreciate it for what it tries to be. That one shot of the garden area in the dead of night was so beautiful and still stays with me today.

The End of Evangelion: 5: I always find one masterpiece during each year of watching film. I was afraid I wouldn’t find one this year, but here we are! I mean where do I start? The animation is f*cking amazing; pure museum stuff. The performances were above and beyond; The scenes crying and screaming actually hurt me like nothing I’ve ever seen. The English song used feels iconic. The story, the script, the fight scenes, characters, use of classical music, all perfect. Minor note but anyone who’s watched Bojack Horseman knows they have a rule of one f-Word a season for dramatic effect. Well they kinda do it here and it’s brilliant. The film genuinely frightened me from a philosophical and psychological view, and it’s not even a horror film! The placement of end credits in the middle as an intermission is a really good idea.

Also that final scene, I can’t describe it.

A Man Escaped: 3.5-: My first Bresson, and I liked it. The presentation of a prison break presented in a matter of fact and non-glorified way is a cool approach to storytelling and makes the suspenseful scenes that more effective. I didn’t like the emotionless acting though. I know that was Bresson’s style, doesn’t make it good. ;/

If you want to watch a French prison escape film, I’d suggest Le Trou.

The Devils: 3.5: Had this lying around for a while and watched it to get it out of the way. I can see why Mark Kermode loves it so much; The acting is good, the dissection of religion is interesting, and not to mention the wonderful sets. The sets look very surreal and draw in your eye.

The Shape of Water: 4: A love letter to a bygone era (and possibly an allegory for interracial couples in the 60’s?!). It’s a weird but plausible beautiful love story elevated by the clothes, music and exaggerated visuals that give a nostalgic, sentimental feel to it. Might be my favourite Del Toro.

The Hidden Fortress: 3: I liked it, the comedy and action were entertaining. I guess we can thank this film for inspiring C-3P0 and R2, even though they’re very different films.

Commando: [RE-WATCH] 4: Yup, still awesome.

One Week: 4: A very creative short that got a few laughs outta me.

The Most Dangerous Game: 3.5: It may have taken 30 minutes to get to the plot, but I still found it a very entertaining ‘Survival of the Fittest’ tale.

Matilda: [RE-WATCH]: 4: Childhood favourite. One of the best Roald Dahl adaptions. Very dark but with enough whimsy to leave you with a warm feeling at the end.

Moon: 4-: A great, slightly philosophical sci-fi that makes incredible use of it’s small budget; The lackluster cgi is kept to a minimum and there’s only about two actors in the film. I absolutely loved the sets.

Bad Taste: 3.5: Another low-budget film, except more like no budget! It’s incredibly silly and certainly feels like Jackson made it fjust for fun with his pals. If it weren’t for this we may not have gotten the adaption of Lord of the Rings that lots of people love.

John-Connor

09-03-19, 09:36 AM

First time viewings + Re-Watches July + August
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4.5 To Catch a Thief 1955 Directed by Alfred Hitchcock
4.5 Raging Bull 1980 Directed by Martin Scorsese (Re-watch)
4.5 Akira 1988 Directed by Katsuhiro Otomo (Re-watch)
4.5 Spirited Away 2001 Directed by Hayao Miyazaki
4.5 Parasite 2019 Directed by Bong Joon Ho

4+ Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans 1927 Directed by F.W. Murnau
4+ Un Flic 1972 Directed by Jean-Pierre Melville
4+ John Wick: Chapter 3 2019 Directed by Chad Stahelski
4+ Once Upon a Time in Hollywood 2019 Directed by Quentin Tarantino

4 Forbidden Planet 1956 Directed by Fred M. Wilcox
4 The Mercenary ‘Il mercenario’ 1968 Directed by Sergio Corbucci
4 A Bridge Too Far 1977 Directed by Richard Attenborough (Re-watch)
4 The Incredibles 2004 Directed by Brad Bird
4 Dragged Across Concrete 2019 Directed by S. Craig Zahler

3.5+ Gaslight 1944 Directed by George Cukor
3.5+ The Dirty Dozen 1967 Directed by Robert Aldrich
3.5+ Three Days of the Condor 1975 Directed by Sydney Pollack
3.5+ Straight Time 1978 Directed by Ulu Grosbard
3.5+ Clear And Present Danger 1994 Directed by Phillip Noyce (Re-watch)
3.5+ K-19: The Widowmaker 2002 Directed by Kathryn Bigelow (Re-watch)
3.5+ U-571 2000 Directed by Jonathan Mostow
3.5+ The Lost City of Z 2016 Directed by James Gray

3.5 Angel Face 1953 Directed by Otto Preminger
3.5 Charade 1963 Directed by Stanley Donen

3 Robinson Crusoe on Mars 1964 Directed by Byron Haskin

Monkeypunch

09-03-19, 07:37 PM

Ouija - A "by the numbers" horror flick for easily scared teens. Jump scares galore but no sense of dread. The sequel proves it could have been so much more. 1

Spider-Man: Into the Spiderverse - Trippy and fantastic animated film, has fun with, reveres, and subverts it's source material, with enough hidden jokes to merit a billion re-watches. This is how you make cartoons, people! 5

thracian dawg

09-20-19, 04:33 PM

★ (http://www.filmsufi.com/search/label/**%C2%BD)

Mara — (2016) — Tunnard
The psychologist in this horror film discovers that an unpunished mass murderer hiding in the community can summon the sleep demon to take up residence in town (one symptom the beast is lurking is sleep paralysis) then it feeds off the pools of guilt within each of her victims. The cover art has the heroine soaking in the bathtub, so one would naturally assume there would be at least one scene with a little gratuitous nudity, right? . . . Wrong.

★½ (http://www.filmsufi.com/search/label/**%C2%BD)

To Please A Lady — (1950) — Brown
There is zero chemistry and zero romance between a star reporter (with her own nation-wide franchise operation) and a race car driver. The sticking point in their relationship is that driver has been involved in a few fatal racetrack crashes and she suspects he may enjoy secretly causing them; she says as much in her feature article that gets him banned from racing. The gripping drama in the film consists of a few hyperbolic race announcers dramatizing the vehicular dog fights (midget cars going in circles) to the audience.

★★ (http://www.filmsufi.com/search/label/**%C2%BD)

Jeopardy — (1953) — Sturges
This is the story of a family fishing vacation (mom, dad and junior) on a deserted Mexican beach. Hubby gets his leg trapped beneath a condemned pier just as the tide begins to come in and mommy has to rush off to get help. An escaped convict heading north commandeers her and the car and couldn’t care less if her husband drowns. She gives him a twirl with the added promise of a lam romance and soon he’s back at the beach grunting and sweating to get the girder off her husband’s leg. Police sirens scream in the distance; the convict hot foots it down the beach; and the family sits down to roast some marshmallows over the camp fire, the end.

★★½ (http://www.filmsufi.com/search/label/**%C2%BD)

A Private War— (2018) — Heineman
You are here for the acting; Rosamund Pike crafts a great a swaggering pirate/journalist in this film. Even as a detached objective observer, one can’t help being emotionally scarred by the atrocities one sees; PTSD is an occupational hazard for the War correspondent. This was a questionable chew because of the hidden Geo-political bias within the film. (Real world example: as I write these lines, there is a classic textbook “fake news” event playing out in the media; Houthi rebels attacked a Saudi Arabian oil refinery a couple days ago, but the media doesn’t ask the question: why on earth would they do that? They don’t link up this event (duh) with Saudi Arabia invading and attacking the country next door [something impossible without access to American spy satellites and logistical support]. It makes your skin crawl that attacking an oil refinery is considered a war crime and newsworthy, while dropping bombs on the Yemenese people for the last four and a half years doesn’t rate a mention in the official press—and back to our film blurb currently in progress.) The West dismembered and lobotomized the Libyan state in the name of freedom and democracy (the film ghoulishly feasts on Gaddafi’s downfall) but now it’s a country where one can buy and sell human beings at open air slave markets. Notice no one points a moral finger at our depraved indifference to mass suffering.

Turn me on, Dammit!— (2011) — Jacobsen
At a party in this tiny Norwegian hamlet (they have to bus in all the 15 year olds in the region in order to make up technically a single Social Studies class of them in school) our heroine discovers the boy she secretly likes may secretly want to return her affection. She mistakenly confides to girl #2 who also secretly carries a secret torch for the same guy. (Damn, why are Norwegians so secretive?) Girl #2 immediately goes into bitch mode and orchestrates a campaign against her, soon our heroine finds herself branded as a super slut and ostracized at school. Which is the least of her preoccupations; she is a bit overwhelmed by her newly discovered libido which seems to have a one track mind all of its own. Unfortunately, the first-time director doesn’t quite know to best exploit the elements in this story. I liked that her best friend religiously avoids dating because that would be the beginning of end, a romance would lead to a marriage which would lead to a cradle and her tombstone and she would never escape this dead-end town and a dreary life.

News from Home — (1977) — Akerman
The director slowly acclimates to life in New York City in this experimental film exploring urban wallpaper. It begins with static shots of empty industrial streets, then musters up a little confidence to move the camera in a 90 degree angle pans and include a few of the urban denizens, before heading down into the bowels of the city. You can see her hit her stride when she does a 356 degree twirl in a crowded subway platform (not a 360 degree one, because returning to the original visual marker would have shown she now totally unfazed by the New York hustle and bustle.) There is one long continuous shot out an open car window moving down a street which wonderfully echoes the stops and starts in the subway scenes. All those antique trucks and cars were a blast, particularly all those old VW beetles. The dialogue in the film is the director reading a year’s worth of letters from her mother trying to guilt her into returning home.

Dawn Rider— (2012) — Miles
This cliché riddled western gains by the twisty plot and anachronisms. Given the time period, would a bank be foreclosing on a ranch someone built by themselves out in the sticks? Our hero has no back story; he returns home (on the run from the law) only to have his father die in his arms (for some reason dear old dad only speaks Spanish) but he never bothers to translate his father’s dying words, So each time he visits his childhood friend’s ranch, he always passes under the gateway to the “diamond” ranch and never the lair of the double cross gang. I loved that the letter of the law is just a line in the dirt that depends on where one is standing at that particular moment in time. It turns out, he is not a wanted man; a wealthy family back east out of revenge (mistakenly) has simply hired a posse of lawmen to bring him back dead or alive.

Louisiana Story— (1948) — Flaherty
This is clearly an industry film (commissioned by ESSO) to promote the benefits of the Petroleum Industry to a gullible public. After signing away the drilling rights to their land for a song; a drilling rig is installed a stone’s throw from their shack. The company representatives are honest dealers and the oil rig workers are always happy and smiling; the young boy is allowed to play on the platform (!) with huge slamming pipes and heavy steel chains continuously whipping around, When the well comes in (it remains dry until the boy blesses it with a Cajun prayer) the noisy drilling rig is then replaced with an underwater pipeline system (say what?) that magically allows the land to remain unscarred from massive industrial exploitation. The film gains from the subversive subtext where the director clearly shows the exact opposite is happening: Oil Companies usually fleece backwater rubes (and the city slickers for that matter) quicker than the local population can say “Hee haw”.

★★★ (http://www.filmsufi.com/search/label/***)

The Impasse of Desir*— (2010) — Roode
A psychiatrist discovers his wife is having an affair. When a new patient sees her in the street (she looks somewhat like the woman he is obsessed about) he thinks he is merely imagining her. It would be great therapy to symbolically kill this hallucination and the doctor manipulates the patient into knocking off his wife for him. His patient slowly recovers his wits (early on, there is a wonderful shot of him riding the bus and his head swivels around as if its disconnected from the rest of his body) and the shrink becomes progressively more deranged. Although the third act drops a lot of hints he may have been unhinged at the beginning; we overhear his office phone message where the psychiatrist refers to himself in the third person. Another patient mentions his second marriage is generally thought of as a bad match because his second wife is way too young and too pretty for him. Unfortunately, the psychological drama part of the film hides the black comedy of transference. This would make a great second feature with Lovesick (1983) because that film would tease out all the understated comedy.

In My Skin*— (2002) — de Van
This psychological horror film about alienation is definitely not for the squeamish. I think this works because the director set up just enough of the outer world which could be best described as lacerating. Her job in an advertising agency is highly competitive with the non-performers being quickly thinned from the herd and the go-getters seize all the promotions and lucre. This could also be described as a kind of sensual affliction because the heroine does everything with such warmth and passion; zeroing in tenderly on the object of her desire and openly declaring her love.

Harakiri*—(1962) — Kobayashi
During an economic downturn, an older samurai wanders into a shogun estate and asks to use their ceremonial courtyard to end his life in dignity. A few days earlier another samurai had asked the same thing and fearing if they gave one unemployed samurai a free hand-out, soon they would be inundated with thousands of other beggars so they quickly turned his request it into a cold blooded public relations stunt in order to save a few pennies. The spiritual emptiness of the so-called “noble” clan is immediately revealed by their complete bewilderment that another beggar would so quickly show up after the first. Didn’t he get the memo? The film is rich in irony. The older man has an air of desperation about him, he longs for the silence of the grave; he has no future, everyone he cared about and loved is now dead. His profession of heroic self- sacrifice and honor has been replaced with cowardly thugs and swaggering braggarts. This is another classic anti-authoritarian screed from Kobayashi pointing out the great grubbing men leading society are usually unfit to even work as dog park attendants.

Ombline — (2012) — Cazes
There is a nice opening scene where a mother quietly reads a book to her small child directly in front of the camera then returns to a scene when she entered prison after being sentenced to three years for a violent crime; she’s angry and surly, her face is stitched up from a recent fight, it’s almost as she was trying to calm herself down and not the baby. A fellow inmate in the bunk behind her says: “I’ve seen this before . . . I think you’re pregnant.” Unable to process big emotions, she flies off the handle at a moment’s notice, but they simply take her child away after these episodes and place her in isolation. Gradually the idea or perhaps the spritz of maternal hormones induces her to rebuild her life from scratch with her child at the center of her life.

La Capture— (2007) — Laure
This is a drama about a young actress and dancer overcoming a horrible childhood by stumbling upon the healing qualities of the art. There is a nice video piece of hers where she is followed by a small platoon of waiters on a forest path and each time she turns and looks back at them, they all swoon and fall to the ground at her glance. She has evolved to a place where she is happy enough and well-adjusted enough in her life to risk returning home to rescue her mother and brother and confront her violent father; a gregarious pillar in the community, but a jealous man with a hair trigger temper at home. I loved the late September/early October look that even suggested the early morning chill. The father’s (hunting?) jacket is color coordinated to go with the falling leaves.

On the Trail of Igor Rizzi — (2006) — Mitrani
Two criminal under-achievers struggle to find easy money in the city; their opening caper is a primer on how not to rob a house. One of the guys was once a famous European soccer star (his business agent stole his millions) now living an emotional Apocalypse of his own making; he thinks he’s made a home town pilgrimage. There is a strong Omega Man vibe to all this, he dribbles a soccer ball (during winter) through abandoned playgrounds and deserted streets which is a great in-joke, a simple reverse from these austere downtown locations would reveal streets bustling with cars and people.

Blue Ruin — (2014) — Saulnier
A typical “Man on Fire” revenge story made atypical by moving up the act of final bloody revenge into the first reel, so the story mutates into a wonderful meditation on the endless ripple effects of violence. The eponymous title is the abandoned car he lives in at the beginning of the story that has to be retooled for the road to get the job done.

Burning Palms — (2010) — Landon
Five vignettes in sunny Los Angeles about sketchy life partners, absent parents, stoned au pairs and relationships that are completely messed up. These stories will be icky and extremely offensive for most the audience but wicked black comedies for the twisted few. Spoiler alert: stop reading. I mean it. Okay, you’ve been warned. In one of the stories, two guys purchase a black market child. They get a great deal on the kid because she is stuck in a single setting, the mute mode. They immediately bundle her up in her Sunday best and leave her on a hiking path for the mountain lions after she drops the F-bomb.

Onibi: The fire Within— (1997) — Mochizuki (https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0595097/?ref_=tt_ov_dr)
This is a character study of a killer released after two decades in prison. In his younger days, he was feared as the “Ball of fire” in the Yakuza underworld. He has out grown the violence of his youth and is now bored stiff with anything connected to it. He actually turns over a new leaf and goes straight; he is both saved and undone by the love of a woman. When she finds out about his past, she immediately enlists his expertise in getting revenge on a sexual sadist who destroyed her sister’s life. He unemotionally coaches her through the steps of a successful hit, but thankfully she can’t go through with the murder. However he discovers she has no sister and the tragic tale of abuse is hers. This slowly begins to percolate and bubble up inside him, slowly eating away at his peace of mind.

★★★½ (http://www.filmsufi.com/search/label/***%C2%BD)

The Squid and the Whale*— (2005) — Baumbach
Two warring intellectuals enter the final act of their dramedy as couple and as a family. The audience is placed in a superior position of looking down this hapless couple because the presence of the other one seems to induce bad behavior; they are helpless against venting their rage, which fills the film with inappropriate parental choices and cringe moments. Almost immediately they enlist their children as pawns in the struggle. As a literature professor (and soon to be unpublishable novelist) Dad tends to pontificate on anything large and small; he can do a quick top five list on anything at the drop of a hat. He also has the tendency to loudly point out the woofers that surround him are not exactly smoldering, Italian screen Goddesses. The older boy pleads: “For the love of all that is decent and sacred! Please stop sharing! I don’t want to know the grisly details about your last bout of sex with your newest boy toy . . . mom.” On the cusp of releasing her best-selling novel, she tends to overwrite.

All That Jazz*— (1979) — Fosse
Despite gearing up for a long running Broadway show, the entire run time of this entire film could be less than a couple of fading heartbeats. This appears to be the proverbial life flashing before one’s eyes as one dies: he is almost immediately negotiating for extra time with the angel of death. Inside the theater, he’s a genius; outside of it, he burns the candle at both ends as a Dexedrine popping, chain smoking home wrecker. There is a completely insane moment when the director imagines his moment of death as a show tune; well at least he went out kicking.

Z*— (1969) — Costa-Gravas
If I had to encapsulate the film in a single word, it would be exuberant. There is a lively mise-en-scene with lots of energetic camera-work. There is a nice counterpoint between the stylized beauty of an evening of Russian ballet and the raw courage of people out in the streets risking their lives for a crumb of social justice and truth. Despite this being is a grisly tale of an outbreak of “the falling disease’” where progressive people and eye witnesses simply pass out (usually after they’ve taken a lead pipe to the head) the film is filled with black humour. There is a priceless moment when the prosecutor tells the General his testimony doesn’t jive with the facts, the victim couldn’t have possibly tripped and fallen to his death while crossing a street; an autopsy has revealed the victim died from a crushed skull. From his startled reaction the audience can almost read the thought balloon appearing beside his face: Why on earth would you go and do an autopsy? I gave you the official cover story. I’m trying to run a country here. Good God, I’m surrounded by idiots!

The film ends the military seizing power in a right wing coup where they simply prune all the subversive elements from society and make all the boo-boos go away. In addition to chucking great swaths of judicial law, culture, and learning; they also ban the last letter of the alphabet because as everyone sane person knows, it is clearly a large, blinking neon sign meaning radical socialism.

Tiresia— (2003) — Bonello
An amateur gardener snatches a delicate flower from the wilds (one of the prostitutes from the Bois de Boulogne park in Paris) to see if she can thrive in a basement cell without sunlight. I loved that you had to stop at certain points in the film and completely revise everything you thought was occurring in the story. If one film could be destroyed by spoilers; this meditation about the desperate search for spiritualty and a deeper understanding of life, would be it. Worry and despair is the lot of the ordinary people, and they will flock to anyone who will give them a glimmer hope or even the comfort of a deliberate lie which contrasts with the lack of turmoil in the spiritual caregivers, they all seem a rather untroubled bunch. The two main characters are both strangely thoughtful; she is particularly forgiving given the circumstances.

The Harder They Come — (1972) — Henzell
This is a vibrant tale shot on a shoe string budget in the Jamaican favelas about a country boy coming to the big city and discovering it is completely rotten to the core. The system is rigged at every turn against the little guy. No amount of inherent talent, drive or dumb luck will suffice. The crooks and the crooked always win out in the end. They start by taking your possessions and happiness then they start chipping away at your dignity. And if you refuse to kneel before them, they will nail your hide to the wall as a warning to others. There is an energetic soundtrack to the film.

*= rewatch

John-Connor

09-25-19, 05:44 AM

A few first time viewings and re-watches September
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5 Mud 2012 Directed by Jeff Nichols

4.5 Notorious 1946 Directed by Alfred Hitchcock (Re-watch)
4.5 Glory 1989 Directed by Edward Zwick (Re-watch)

4+ The Seven-Ups 1973 Directed by Philip D’Antoni
4+ Body Heat 1981 Directed by Lawrence Kasdan
4+ The Great Beauty 2013 Directed by Paolo Sorrentino
4+ Arctic 2019 Directed by Joe Penna

4 American Graffiti 1973 Directed by George Lucas (Re-watch)
4 The China Syndrome 1979 Directed by James Bridges
4 The Long Good Friday 1980 Directed by John Mackenzie
4 Ad Astra 2019 Directed by James Gray

4- Rope 1948 Directed by Alfred Hitchcock

3.5+ Wait Until Dark 1967 Directed by Terence Young
3.5+ Licence to Kill 1989 Directed by John Glen (Re-watch)
3.5+ White Sands 1992 Directed by Roger Donaldson
3.5+ Let the Right One In 2008 Directed by Tomas Alfredson
3.5+ All the Money in the World 2017 Directed by Ridley Scott

3.5 The Friends of Eddie Coyle 1973 Directed by Peter Yates
3.5 The Yakuza 1974 Directed by Sydney Pollack
3.5 Year of the Dragon 1985 Directed by Michael Cimino
3.5 Take Shelter 2011 Directed by Jeff Nichols
3.5 Outlaw King 2018 Directed by David Mackenzie

3.5- Black Rain 1989 Directed by Ridley Scott (Re-watch)
3.5- State of Grace 1990 Directed by Phil Joanou

cricket

10-01-19, 09:46 AM

September, 2019 movies watched-

The Great K & A Train Robbery (1926) 3.5- Nothing but a good time from the westerns list.

Broken Blossoms (1919) 3.5+ A very heavy movie for it's time.

Asphalt (1929) 3.5 Recommended for those looking for an early noir.

The Cameraman (1928) 4 Maybe my favorite Buster yet.

20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (1916) 3.5 More than any other silent film I've seen, it's one hurt by time.

The King's Speech (2010) 3+ A good movie but not best picture material.

Safety Last (1923) 3.5- An easy watch with plenty of good gags.

Booksmart (2019) 3 Good, nothing special.

Way Down East (1920) 4 The 4th D. W. Griffith/Lillian Gish collaboration that could potentially make my list for the Pre-30's countdown.

Hell's Hinges (1916) 3.5 Excellent watch for old western fans.

The Unholy Three (1925) 4 One of the silents I was most looking forward to and it did not disappoint.

The Broadway Melody (1929) 2.5 Not bad, but I believe it's the lowest rated best picture winner.

The Phantom of the Opera (1925) Repeat viewing 3+ Love it in parts but not as a whole.

The Navigator (1924) 3 Good but I think I'm getting Buster burn out.

True Grit (2010) 3 Totally enjoyable but it felt a bit off to me.

The Lost World (1925) 3.5 Lots of fun.

Greed (1924) 4.5+ One of the best of the silent era.

Life (1999) 3.5- Funny with good feeling.

Seven Chances (1925) 3.5 Maybe I'm not getting Buster burn out.

A Dog's Life (1918) 3 A nice way to spend 33 minutes.

A Page of Madness (1926) 3+ Didn't love the movie but loved the experience.

Total September viewings-21
Total 2019 viewings-136

thracian dawg

10-05-19, 04:51 PM

★½ (http://www.filmsufi.com/search/label/**%C2%BD)

Judy— (2019) — Goold
Unless you can name five Judy Garland songs off the top of your head (not including “Somewhere over the Rainbow”) this film probably isn’t for you. This is a bleak, pessimistic dirge (with tiny moments of grace) set near the end of her life when she was unemployable. Drinking brings out all her emotional demons; she is still smarting that a studio head stole her childhood. The film opens as she becomes homeless; the legendary singer flies to London basically to get fired.

★★½ (http://www.filmsufi.com/search/label/**%C2%BD)

The Silence of the Lambs*— (1991) — Demme
This is a sly feminist rant about a young woman slightly disadvantaged by all the slinging testosterone in the macho world of man hunters. Through hard work and dedication, this little bird quietly girds and toughens herself up and wins her moment of triumph and the reward of the delicious nosh at the pupa nursery. For some reason I found the characters directly addressing the camera a little annoying this time around. Also the film is missing a huge chunk to the story: the girl suit is endlessly primed through-out the film but is never revealed (granted it would be utterly disgusting to look at) still the film is missing that essential scene.

Vortex — (2019) — Gan
This is a Chinese thriller about a mechanic who gambles away his paycheck every week until he is up to his neck in debt and at the mercy of his bookie. With its raised subway and Gondola system the city of Chongqing features prominently. There is a lot of happenstance in the film; e.g., when he has to throw a duffel bag full of money into the river, a life preserver magically appears right beside him before his toss; or when he steals the car, he finds a duct taped kidnap victim locked in the trunk. The little girl is excellent, all she has to do is purse her lips and look forlorn and the gambler can’t abandon her. There are also some discernable differences in film standards, when the little girl gets between stuntmen, they really throw her around.

Emma Peeters — (2018) — Palo
Having organized her life around fruitless auditions and acting classes, Emma decides to chuck it all in on her birthday. The expiration date for any actress is 35; if you haven’t made it by then you never will. She uses her last seven days to tie up the loose ends, say goodbye to her friends and plan her (hopefully painless) suicide. This is kind of a cute rom-com.

★★★ (http://www.filmsufi.com/search/label/***)

The Young Lieutenant* — (2005) — Beauvois
The daughter of a super cop returns to head the homicide division after a leave of absence. She could have easily become the Chef of police but she loves actual police work too much. She loves fighting for the victims and nailing bad guys. The previous resident of her new office has hung expensive whisky bottle cartons on the walls like trophies and the first thing she does upon entering is to rip them all down. She hasn’t had a single drop of alcohol in 733 days—I loved that she was always surrounded by booze. There is a social aspect of unwinding and knocking back a couple of pints after work; she has to sit there perched on her bar stool with the ice cubes melting in her club soda, watching everyone else get ripped. Plus as a formality everyone offers her a free tumbler. She keys on the brimming enthusiasm of a rookie Lieutenant from the sticks. She takes him under wing realizing only later, if her only child had lived he would be the same age as he is now. Even though she is as tough as nails, there is a suggestion that the horrible things she sees (and does) as a murder investigator in Paris, is the thing that slowly eats away at her soul.

Bitter Moon* — (1992) — Polanski
A man regales a fellow passenger on a Mediterranean cruise about the great love of his life. He opens with the meet cute on a city bus in Montmartre (a district in Paris exclusively reserved for tourists) when he is thrown off the bus for being gallant, as it pulls away the beauty stares at him framed in the rear window; however, just below her on the bus is a large advertisement for the “Oh la la” escort service, suggesting his intoxication may not be with her person but rather the shape and hue of her dress (which has its own visual arc in the film, ending up later as a shiny latex skin). This serial romancer shows her the door when he finished with her, but she refuses to leave, agreeing any crumb of affectation he deigns to give her will be enough. He takes this as a personal challenge to fathom just how much cruelty and rejection she can endure. His story is a farce, hers is a tragedy. Hugh Grant plays the conservative stiff-upper-lip Englishman totally disgusted by the story, yet he hangs on every twist and turn, believing the little tramp will be his reward for listening. Unless you can pull out all the gallows humour in the situations and the sight gags (on the cruise ship she stays in the DS cabin [“déesse” is French for goddess]) you are going to find this film a bit of a slog.

Luce — (2019) — Onah
A popular straight-A student, out of boredom or idle amusement, wants to see if he can get one of his teachers fired for being annoying. On the surface this is about identity but this is another ode to the cold blooded sociopath; so the ending is wrong that shows him burdened with crippling regret and worry, he has pulled the wool over the eyes of everyone in the story; except for the one person who sees him for who and what he really is. He is a master manipulator of people (when his mother begins to doubt his version of the events, notice how he subtly pushes her away by switching to her first name.) Luc(ifer) has a great future ahead of him.

Story of a Love Affair — (1950) — Antonioni
A wealthy industrialist marries a young beauty, then after seven years of marriage, decides to have her past checked out, which is clearly an example of why one should let sleeping dogs snooze. The gumshoe he hires notices everyone in her home town is strangely tight lipped until he stumbles upon a suspicious death. The young man from her past (penniless then and penniless now) travels to the city to get their stories straight, which rekindles their romance. Although this is a Film Noir/crime drama, the first feature film by Antonioni is already imprinted with his restless loneliness and alienation.

God’s Comedy — (1995) —Monteiro (https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0599214/?ref_=tt_ov_dr)
Through the swirl of the Milky Way, from the other side of the universe, God watches with interest an Ice cream emporium in Lisbon, Portugal, The man in charge lives to make gourmet ice cream and his work is a labour of utter love. A single moment of inattention from one of the ditzy shop girls could ruin the ice cream parlour’s sterling reputation; so he is obsessed with their personal hygiene and cleanliness, (although this may be just be an excuse to run his fingers through their hair. This is definitely Art House with its long takes, slow reveals and leisurely pace. With his leather bound scrapbook of thoughts, at first he appears to be a trichophiliac who gets a little too greedy for his own good.

The Goldfinch — (2019) — Crowley
A young boy is orphaned after an improbable tragedy and the only person he can name is a kid in his class, so Children’s Services shows up at their expensive New York apartment, asking for a favor. What was to have been just a few days stretches into months and on the eve of being officially adopted, his ne’er do well father pops up and whisks him off to the barren Nevada desert. Years later, when he returns to Big Apple, he bumps into the rich kid who would have been his brother and learns the goofy/angry father was bipolar. There is a nice echo from the emotionally removed mother in the past to her entitled daughter in the present that has no problems marrying him, just as long as he knows she will never love him. The eponymous painting is a great metaphor; the bird is tethered to its perch with an airy chain. I loved the limited adolescent point of view, in his quest to set things right our hero never has quite enough information or insight to make sense of the world around him. He lives in a thicket of emotional theft longing for the moment of forgiveness.

Castle in the sky— (1986) — Miyazaki
The shots looking up at the drifting clouds . . . the aerial shots looking down at the earth . . . the moments of falling . . . floating . . . and gliding . . . one can almost feel the wind billowing on your face in this children’s anime. It gains by the tiny suggestions of adult things. The girl creeps up on her trench coat wearing nemesis about to club him over the head with a wine bottle, then cuts to a look-alike knocked over by the gun battle raging in the hallway outside then cuts back to him laid out on the floor. This cutting cleverly saved thousands of unfortunate incidents where three or four year kids watched the film then whacked someone over the head with a beer bottle. The castle in the sky is bizarrely called La Puta, isn’t that Spanish for “she who loiters at night on street corners”?

The Peanut Butter Falcon — (2019) — Nilson & Schwartz
Zak (a young man with Down’s syndrome) has fallen through the cracks and lives misfiled as a resident in an old folk’s home. He watches an old tattered VHS wrestling tape at least ten times a day. He has one dream in life, making it to the Salt Water wrestling school in Florida and becoming a professional wrestler. After another failed escape attempt (when he spots an opening, these attempts tend to done on the spur of the moment) he is flagged as an escape risk and transferred to a room with additional security features (like bars on the windows) his new roommate is completely sympathetic to his plight and supplies him a fool proof escape plan. This is sweet because his adventure is entirely dependent upon meeting all the right people at all the right times. When Zak finally blows that Popsicle stand (coated head to toe in butter to shimmy through the bars) hot footing it down the street in just his skivvies in the early morning mist, you are rooting for the guy.

Lady J— (2018) — Mouret
Lady J is bemused when a knavish libertine comes to visit her estate; even though he has pressing business in Paris, he can’t be torn away from their riveting heart-to-hearts and long daily strolls together. She must have something going for her because the weeks turn into months with ne’er a flagging of interest on his part. Although a visiting Parisian confidante points out the obvious, he can’t show his mug back in Paris until after he’s consummated the affair. Still it must be something like love because they become a couple. Until the day, in order to tease out more of a commitment from him, she announces that she is becoming a little bored with him and she is thinking of moving on. (There are only faint traces of Mouret’s patented deadpan absurdity in the film and this is one of them.) He immediately falls to his knees and smothers her hands in hot kisses then disappears in a cloud of dust like the roadrunner. She plops down on the sofa afterwards: what just happened here? They were together for years and remain affectionate; unfortunately, the lady holds a grudge and she wants her pound of flesh.

Marina Abramovi[B]ć: The Artist Is Present— (2012) — Akers & Dupre
This is a documentary of the retrospective and a performance piece the artist did at MoMA in 2010. Abramović re-invents that classic museum moment of staring down at a work of art (someone in the film says the average time spent in front of the Mona Lisa is 30 seconds.) One of the first participants to sit across from her is Ulay, once a lover and close collaborator; the piece itself is an iteration of their “Nightsea Crossing”. At the end he reaches across the table (and the years) and clasps her hands, the scruffy grandfather of performance art with his grizzled beard still unheralded and avant-garde; while the grandmother of performance art in her tailor-made medieval robe (her long grey hair meticulously dyed jet-black) has gone mainstream and commercial. It’s hilarious that the same gallery goers that would camp out overnight and line up around the block to enjoy a situational cuddle with the artist would be repulsed by the self-harm and violence of her earlier pieces. I loved her inventiveness with its simple emotional resonance; it doesn’t hurt that the object of heartrending beauty the artist is gazing at is the person in front of her.

Official Secrets — (2019) — Hood
After enduring the media barrage of elite politicians openly lying to the public night after night Katherine (a British espionage translator) shares a routine memo from the NSA asking for any dirt they can use to blackmail and strong arm certain recalcitrant countries into voting for a UN Resolution officially sanctioning the 2003 attack on Iraq. There are three different threads in the film; her personal battle; the legal story; and how the incident played out in the media. There are some delicious Orwellian moments like when an investigator suggests (slyly) to Katherine that he has also stood at the Ground Zero Peace memorial in Hiroshima and found it emotionally devastating, then asks: are you in favor of (mass murder) war? Or she learns that when one is charged under the official secrets act: they sit at both tables. She has agreed (one has to sign the confidentiality agreement in order to work there) to appoint them also as her official legal defence team . . . in their prosecution against her. In the terms of the specific parts of a story, the resolution section here is probably the best one I’ve seen all year.

★★★½ (http://www.filmsufi.com/search/label/***%C2%BD)

Manhunter* — (1986) — Mann
The character arcs between of the antagonist (a serial killer becoming the red dragon) and the largely hidden arc of the protagonist are almost identical right down the emotional and physical scarring, both are avid dreamers. Hannibal Lector gives a helping hand to both fledging dragons. Note Will Graham’s incidental cruelty: he falls asleep on a commercial flight with his grisly crime photos on his lap with a little girl sitting beside him. He baits his hook with a slimy tabloid reporter. He walks his aim up Dollarhyde’s body with (instant kill Teflon) bullets before the head shot. There is a great moment when Will realizes they share a passionate hobby of kill videos together. I loved the use of windows and mirrors (showing the white dragon emerging) until this mere reflection explodes fully materialized out of a pane of glass into Dollarhyde’s house.

The Verdict* — (1982) — Lumet
An old friend gives a lawyer a paper bag full of money for a couple hours of work in a malpractice suit. This guy is so down at out he no longer chases ambulances—he chases hearses (they are easier to catch) plus there is usually a decent outlay of finger food at the wakes. There is a great use of the (then) newfangled Polaroid camera where he sets the pictures on the foot of her bed in the hospital ward and waits for the image to develop . . . what also emerges is the stark revelation that this will be his final case, he’s finished after this. She needs someone to fight for her; he decides to go out slugging. This is just great story of redemption well told. If you have an eagle eye, you can spot a young Bruce Willis (who hasn‘t begun to shave yet) working as an extra who manages to strategically plunk himself right behind the plaintiff's sister and husband during the courtroom scenes.

Bright Star — (2009) — Campion
Mr. Brown loves to proclaim loudly that Miss Fanny Brawne is a pathological flirt and a menace to anyone in a uniform or a pair of trousers. He has her number and she most certainly has his: he’s a dunderhead. Together they form a triangle with John at the apex; both are in love with his great talent and opposed to the other’s bad influence on him. Fanny is expected to marry well and so she shall. The only time her mother is remotely concerned is when they watch him behaving strangely in the garden with Fanny and her little sister comes into the kitchen explaining that John is pretending to be a bumblebee and her mother comically rushes out to save her daughter from the sting of poetry. John knows (as does everyone else) that a relationship is out of the question plus he wouldn’t inflict his great pennilessness on her. They both know they will never be together, they are taking what Jack Foley and Karen Sisco in Out of Sight called a “time out.” Their time together is rendered with ethereal imagery and visual runners. This is a wickedly ironic, had John lived, the Brawnes would have only rated a mention in the official tome of his life as a family that resided briefly next door to him during the Hampstead period.

A Colony — (2018) —Dulude-De Celles
A coming of age story set in about the same narrative space as Eighth Grade, although there is an additional whammy here of a recent move to farm country (a last ditch attempt by her parents to save their crumbling marriage) and she doesn’t know a single soul in her new school. She spends the first week hiding out in toilet stalls and abandoned classrooms. This also suggests that school can be a way of removing the difficult task of forming your personal identity and education supplies scholarly factoids one can memorize and trot out occasionally to shut down any serious questioning; particularly in the history class where the students learn how the white man rescued the savages (despite living quite nicely without the white immigrants for centuries) and lifted them out of their astonishing ignorance. The native boy is visibly angry the teacher allows the racist running commentary from the Peanut gallery during the lesson.

★★★★½ (http://www.filmsufi.com/search/label/***%C2%BD)

Tomorrow— (2015) — Dion & Laurent
I was always wondering (until this film) whether or not the moment would come during a climate documentary when they would actually mention the obvious, that climate disruption isn’t going to be a minor inconvenience. As a species we have left the (11,500 year old) Holocene- and entered the Anthropocene period (which is incompatible with continued human existence). The impetus for this film comes from a 2012 report that mentioned the sixth great mass extinction event on earth is now underway. In a nutshell: all the poison and pollution we pump in the atmosphere will eventually return to surface acidifying the oceans in the process. As the oceans die they will gradually lose the ability to produce oxygen, slowly asphyxiating the life forms on earth dependent on it. That said, this documentary about how a sustainable future can be possible is hopeful and optimistic.

* = rewatch

re93animator

10-07-19, 11:03 PM

A New Life (2002) – 4
Vile experimental delirium that’ll appeal to much darker tastes. It often feels Lynchian, but the highly caffeinated cameraman, regular closeups, & out of focus shots give it a unique style.

The Plague of the Zombies (1966) – 2.5
A small English town infested with chalky green zombies. It takes some time to get going, but has enough campy fun to be watchable for genre enthusiasts.

Four Murders Are Enough, Darling (1971) – 3.5
A typically zany Oldrich Lipsky comedy, with an emphasis on comic book affectations. Fun with a wonderfully bombastic climax.

Beggars of Life (1928) – 3.5
Two vagabonds troublesome adventure. Dark melodrama, thrills, and some action. Entertaining all the way through.
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Valley of the Bees (1968) – 3
A young man who grew up in a religious order seeks to return home. Well shot, dour medieval setting with a deadpan lead.
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cricket

11-02-19, 06:05 PM

October, 2019 movies watched-

Flesh and the Devil (1926) 3.5- A little more excitement would have been great.

Rocketman (2019) 3 More entertaining than good.

Climax (2018) 4- My favorite of the 5 Gaspar Noe films I've seen.

Blood Diamond (2006) Repeat viewing 3.5+ Action/thriller mixed with real world horror and it works.

Cruel Intentions (1999) 3.5 Wonderful trashy fun.

Monsters, Inc (2001) Repeat viewing 3 Better than I can rate it.

The Music Man (1962) 3+ A better than average musical for me.

El Camino (2019) 3.5 As a Breaking Bad fan, I loved it.

High Noon (1952) Repeat viewing 3.5+ I got more out of it this time.

Blood Simple (1984) Repeat viewing 4+ One of my favorite Coen movies.

A Dog's Journey (2019) 3.5- One of the better dog movies I've seen.

John Wick 3 (2019) 2.5 It was ok.

Ghostbusters (1984) Repeat viewing 3.5 Deserving of it's classic status.

Elmer Gantry (1960) Repeat viewing 5 Didn't think I could love it more than before but I did.

3 From Hell (2019) 3+ Good fun even if not in the same class as The Devil's Rejects.

Total October viewings-15
Total 2019 viewings-151

Mr Minio

11-04-19, 05:49 PM

Haven't had much time for movies lately, but I managed to catch some.

Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018) - 1

https://hips.hearstapps.com/hmg-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/images/screen-shot-2019-09-22-at-10-35-10-am-1569162959.png

Look, guys, I'm all for progressive, but do we really need to make things all-inclusive? If the producers wanted to be really hip, they should have included a gender fluid Spider(wo)man, but no, they didn't have balls big enough for that. Also, the story is full of cliches I've seen in movies multiple times, and the flashy visuals are far from what I would consider pleasant. By the way, it's mildly amusing how Marvel made a watchable movie and the Internet is like OMG IS THIS A MASTERPIECE.

巨乳ドラゴン温泉ゾンビＶＳストリッパー５ [Big **** Dragon: Hot Spring Zombies vs. Strippers 5] (2010) - 0.5

https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-v_2yKxV7ZF0/Td5IQakXDsI/AAAAAAAAF2c/v9AXosgmkjE/s1600/PDVD_727.BMP

Just how hard is it to make those heavenly creatures known as Japanese girls look slutty? Answer: It's almost impossible. But guess what, the director nailed this one. Well, the title promises a lot, but the final outcome is an insult to any pure and serious appreciator of cinema. Sure, there are plenty of boobies to be found here, so if you're weak-minded enough not to be able to google "jav", you're probably gonna have a blast. Otherwise, just stick to Zombie Ass: Toilet of the Dead, a far superior exercise in Japanese sh*t cinema.

ユメ十夜 [Ten Nights of Dreams] (2007) - 0.5

http://asianwiki.com/images/3/3a/Ten_Nights_of_Dream-0012.jpg

You see, it's so sad to see old masters struggling to make a great film, and instead dabbling in technically competent yet underwhelming short stories. Not that Jissoji's and Ichikawa's stories were particularly bad... It's just that all the rest was but a mindless CGI fest trying to be as good as Hanagatami (2017), and needless to say, failing miserably. CGI monsters and jump scares were appealing when I was a kid. Now as an adult I demand something more refined.

風たちの午後 [Afternoon Breezes] (1980) - 3

https://youtu.be/Cs1UZxwb7gY

It's not a coincidence this was made by the director of one of the best films of the 90s (March Comes in Like a Lion for those of you who are illiterate in quality Japanese cinema). The story's depressing, but also creepily beautiful, and the proto-Noisy Requiem (1988) ending is parallel to the finale of director's sophomore effort. I reckon Setsuko Aya is the cutest sapphic stalker in the history of cinema, and the movie is so much superior to some lesbian festival bs like Blue Is the Warmest Color (2013) it's not even funny. It's so depressing you have to dig so deep to find quality cinema anymore..

Sedai

11-04-19, 06:06 PM

It's Minio!

Mr Minio

11-05-19, 01:25 AM

https://youtu.be/lQ-dq2Y4Z-Y

thracian dawg

11-09-19, 05:20 PM

★★ (http://www.filmsufi.com/search/label/**%C2%BD)

Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle — (2017) — Kasdan
I didn’t know that The Rock’s patented eyebrow crock was a contractual obligation for all his films. Here "smoldering intensity" is written into the character he plays (literally on screen) as part of the avatar’s skill set. There’s a little bit of humor with Jack Black playing a 16 year old girl crushing hard on a fellow same sex player, but then Jack Black being funny isn’t exactly a stretch. The film actually tells the audience that each successive sequence will ramp up the dramatic stakes and danger to insane levels, although the audience can see this is clearly untrue. The penultimate level in the film has a girl walking up to two dimwits guarding an isolated tool shed in the sticks. High stakes? Doubtful.

I Confess —(1953) — Hitchcock
There is a nice bit of dish where Hitchcock’s daughter relates how she visited the set in Quebec City and watched the villain wrap up his final monologue in ten minutes then it took Monty “what’s my motivation?” Clift four long hours to emote a single reaction shot to it. I can only imagine the fire storm of protest this would have provoked in the pious 50s had the story been released in its original version. This film demands a re-watch because nowhere in the film do you learn the Priest and the woman had a bastard child together and the pesky lawyer was blackmailer, as is this is a Hitchcock film that has had its McGuffin surgically removed.

★★½ (http://www.filmsufi.com/search/label/**%C2%BD)

Here Alone— (2016) — Blackhurst
This is essentially a low budget Huis Clos set in the forest in a post-apocalyptic world filled with vicious flesh-eaters. She lives in the woods because cites are zombie central; the mere whiff of raw skin is like firing the starter pistol for the 100 yard dash finale at the Olympics. Returning from one of her supply runs, the heroine stumbles upon an injured man and his daughter on a roadside and nurses him back to health, which allows her to work through her guilt of having out lived her own family.

Jour de Fête— (1949) — Tati
During a civic holiday in a small French village some pranksters show the local mailman a stunt film being show in a side show carnival tent involving helicopter pilots and parachutists and tell him this America delivers the mail. The next day the mailman “goes postal” trying to replicate the American efficiency on his route. This is a whimsical homage to comedies of the silent film era.

The Petrified Forest— (1936) — Mayo
This contains two of cinema’s most unlikely romantic Romeos ever, a hobo and a mad dog killer. The hobo, not having eaten in a couple of days, stumbles upon a last chance roadside diner in the desert and orders a meal, figuring the lumps he is going to take will be worth it. The radio blares the real time updates on the massive state-wide man-hunt for a mad-dog killer (Humphrey Bogart channelling the most notorious outlaw of the day, John Dillinger.) The diner also happens to be the designated rendezvous point for him and his girlfriend. At the end, even though the coppers tell him his girl ratted him out; he immediately heads back into the town to bust her guns blazing out of jail. All of the main characters have retreated into past (The Petrified Forest) and live entirely in the faded memories of their youth. The only person in the film dreaming about a better future is the waitress. The hobo has an idea to make all her dreams come true.

The Lighthouse — (2019) — Eggers
On the jerking boat heading towards (cabin fever) island, a grey phallic symbol materializes out of the mist and the fog announcing the metaphorical cockfight about to unfold between a new hire, who has to do all the grunt work and the senior man puffing on his pipe all the while huffing how bloody useless and stupid he is. With a black and white photography that pulls out every nook and crag of their ghostly faces; the small rooms lit with kerosene lamps and matchstick flicks; and the 1.19:1 aspect ratio you are here for the art house cinematography.

★★★ (http://www.filmsufi.com/search/label/***)

Glengarry Glen Ross* — (1992) — Foley
The police are summoned to a real estate office to investigate the theft of a couple of phones and a clutch of winning lottery tickets locked in a desk drawer. The cops grill the salesmen one by one because the thief can only be someone inside the office. The winning lottery tickets turn out to be merely a list of suckers sent from the head office’s market research they will use for cold calls; basically worthless in the real world. The schlubs who man the desks are basically conmen selling swamp-land in Florida as the steal of a lifetime. Each stick of dialogue is like a chisel stroke aimed at the heart and eventually with enough hits your heart comes apart. There is a classic scene where the Alpha male establishes his dominance by “flashing” the loser mutts; a real man could sell a million dollar mansion on the hill to a homeless person. This is a wicked 'winner takes all' satire of neoliberalism.

Juliet, Naked — (2018) — Peretz
The two main characters are birds of a feather; she has gone the safe route all her life and quietly done exactly what was always expected of her without protest. The rock star is the king of spectacular flame outs; his scenes in a music club bathroom and the hospital were almost painful to watch. If there is a wrong way to do something he is going to find a way to make it happen, about the only thing he does with a little foresight is that he has his heart attack at a hospital reception desk. Although this appears to be a light and frivolous rom-com, this is the heavy drama of two people coming to the metaphorical dead-end of their lives. They can either live on in quiet desperation self-medicating, or they can do the impossible and courageous; they can turn around and walk past the years and years of waste and try to salvage what remains of their lives.

The Criminal — (1960) — Losey
Johnny Bannion is the anti-hero in this hard boiled gangster film. He’s had years to think about the final score and when he gets out of prison in a couple of days, he’s going to make that happen. Unfortunately the underworld has changed in his absence, the old fence now belongs to new crime boss and instead of a polite gobble at his lucrative heist; he demands the whole enchilada. Most of his crew quickly end up in dumpsters when they refuse to fork over theirpromissory notes. The new boss sends him right back to prison as a way to loosen his tongue. A few weeks ago he ran the joint and now in his brief absence, he becomes the one with a target on his back scrambling to stay alive each day. There is a nice counterpoint between the clueless warden and a facilitating head guard with x-ray vision who knows exactly what is happening at all times but turns a blind eye to the outcomes.

The Naked Prey — (1965) — Wilde
I avoided this for years because at first glance this appears to be a one dimensional chase film, but there is an immediate reversal where the white hunter black heart character says that after their safari he is going to hang a shingle in the slave trade (the film takes place in 1880s Africa) and become fabulous rich. He then has to immediately choke down his own bitter bile. With the true nature inserts of big cats running their next meal to ground, the African shrub-land is shown to be a hostile place; simply stepping into a gopher hole and coming up lame probably means you’ll have to suffer the nightmare of watching yourself being eaten alive before nightfall. In reality the bush-men probably run for days chasing down their prey, yet put a skinny white dude in front them and they all suddenly become hilariously knock-kneed, asthmatic and unable to find the business end of their spears and arrows.

Sudden Fury — (1975) — Damude
A no-budget nail biter set during a pleasant ride through the countryside where a hen pecked husband thinks he is going to get his rich wife to fork over the cash for his latest get rich quick scheme. The two main characters here are typically nice Canadians just trying to be helpful. The husband can’t be a bad guy and always improvises his way forward by buying time until the very last moment possible when he is forced to be nasty. There is a hilarious bit where he knows his plan is foolproof (cottage country dies after the summer) so there won’t be a single annoying passer-by to help his wife yet at the same time he thinks his wilderness lodge idea will turn a healthy profit in this vehicular dead zone.

Belle and Sébastien — (2013) — Vanier
A children’s adventure film where a small French village is hunting a beast that is snacking on their sheep, they suspect a horribly abused dog gone feral. The small boy (who probably should be riding a school desk) spends all his time helping his uncle with the goat herd and playing on the mountain. He comes face to face with the beast several times and never once does it try to eat him. Eventually Belle loses her fear of boy and coaxed into a mountain stream, the dark mastiff with matted fur comes out the other side all fluffy and snow white. At the same time the Nazi’s arrive in the village and set up an outpost to cut off an escape route to Switzerland.

Each Dawn, I die — (1939) — Keighley
I liked this prison drama because certain medieval tortures like the being put on the rack, being boiled in oil, or being buried alive (the hole) disappeared with the advent of civilization, although solitary confinement still persist in certain backward sadistic nations: immolation is a great behavior modifier. After revealing their various crimes to the public, a crusading journalist, James “You dirty rat” Cagney gets sent to prison by the same criminal forces being powerful enough to stitch him up. This eerily echoes the fate of another crusading journalist whose crime blotter almost exclusively featured the open criminality of some of the world’s most powerful organizations. At his appearance in a Kangaroo court a few weeks ago, after only six months in “the hole” at Her Majesty’s Belmarsh Prison, the world’s most heroic journalist (being stitched up with total mainstream media indifference) appeared mentally disheveled, having great difficulty sorting out answers to simple questions like: where are you? What day is it?

The Ballad of Narayama — (1983) — Imamura
The peasants in this remote Japanese village savour the fleeting, earthy pleasures of a hard scrabble life dependent entirely on the feast or famine that nature concedes. They are quick to laugh and sing but quicker to protect the fragile food stores they need to in order to survive the winter. Backward superstitions with astonishing cruelty and prejudice are the norm. It’s a thing where at the first snowfall anyone 70 years of age is considered a useless eater and is lugged (sometime dragged kicking and screaming) to the sacred mountaintop and left there to freeze to death. But a great spirituality comes with living in roil of the seasons, the cycle of life has always been thus; it only appears cruel without another turning of the day. In the grandmother’s final waking moments, as a reward for a life well lived, she will see the face of God.

Timbuktu — (2014) — Sissako
The Taliban moves in and takes over the moral tutelage of a remote village in Mali. The desert is a harsh, unforgiving place to live your life so there is a de facto live and let live philosophy; the villagers accept the jihadists and their dopey philosophy at first. The film has a lot of poetic moments. On a routine patrol, a jihadist stumbles across a secure hiding place sheltered from the prying eyes of the village below and he cuts loose (he has had classical ballet training) on the rooftop. Another jihadist sentences any villager caught with a cigarette dangling from their lips to 20 public lashes, yet he drives out into the desert and hides behind a sand dune to fill his lungs with nicotine. At the beginning when sharia law is being first applied, a person (usually a woman) points out the absurdity of the ordinance, and there a few priceless reactions from the (gun-toting) foot soldiers obviously agreeing with her: wow that is completely nuts. Although they quickly shake it off and learn to turn a blind eye to their hypocrisy and casual cruelty. All the men become lady killers; if a local beauty refuses a prince charming, the guy can simply go old school, under sharia law women marry their rapists. The appeal of fundamentalism is one is never at a lost in a white and black world, all the questions and answers to life have been written down in the holy book, you just have to look them up and learn those pithy aphorisms by heart. True believers have the great gift of serenity knowing they can never be wrong, and everyone else on the planet can never be right.

★★★½ (http://www.filmsufi.com/search/label/***%C2%BD)

Les Félins — (1964) — Clément
This is a Gallic thriller about a jet-setting playboy/gigolo who fleeces rich women. During a stay in New York he seduces the wife of a mafia crime boss and has to return to the France over the kerfuffle. Unfortunately, the boss wants more than a pound of flesh and sends a few of the boys after him with a simple task; bring back his head in a box. It’s a little ironic when he escapes their clutches with just the clothes on his back he has to hide out in a homeless shelter in the French Riviera, the playground of the rich. When the thugs do a routine sweep there, he decides the next course of action is to somehow catch the eye of the shelter’s main benefactor, a lonely widow with a nun companion devoting their lives to helping the poor; hiding out in an isolated mausoleum crammed with life sized Giacometti sculptures and Picassos seems a much safer bet. Suffice to say, everyone here is working an angle. Costa-Gravas was an assistant director on this. The marble busts and a shrunken head the lady keeps on her desk are subtle reminders of his fate. There is a great brassy energetic score by Lalo (the Mission Impossible theme) Schifrin. This is alternatively known as The Love Cage and Joy House, but these don’t do the wonderful French title justice, what exactly in the film is felonious and feline? The meaning of which only comes with the last scene.

Booksmart — (2019) — Wilde
An academic overachiever and class president has an emotional meltdown when she learns on the final day of high school that all the druggies and wastrels have gotten into spectacularly great universities and colleges also; meaning they did all their homework assignments and the extra credits, plus they never missed a Friday night’s revel. This gives her and her LBF a single night to lose their reputations as clueless book worms. This is an epic party crawl told from a female perspective. The film gains from a few scenes where a few of the teen caricatures become flesh and blood when reveal their hopes and fears for the post-high school world. There are few great one-liners and a great paranoid drug trip in the film.

* = rewatch

JoaoRodrigues

11-11-19, 06:15 AM

Being watching horror films the last two months, but managed to see this as well.

The 13th Warrior (1999) - 1.5
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BNDZhZDk0ZTktZmNhMC00YTU1LWEwY2YtZmIyMWM5MTNlNDEwXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNjUwNzk3NDc@._V1_UX128_CR0,0,128 ,190_AL_.jpg
The average curiosity I had discovering those beasts are one of the only pluses I can think of.

Pathfinder (2007) - 1.5
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMTk5MDY0NTA1OV5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwNjE0MDM0MQ@@._V1_UY190_CR0,0,128,190_AL_.jpg
Not Apocalypto, not even close. The Vikings and the atmosphere are not that bad, everything else is.

Lessons of Darkness (1992) - 3.5
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMTI1ODU1NDkwOV5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwMTM1NjUyMQ@@._V1_UY190_CR2,0,128,190_AL_.jpg
The Kuwatian oil fields after the Iraqi war, an apocalyptic mess, captured as something out of this planet.

Into the Abyss (2011) - 3
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BNTQyODM2MzMxMV5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwNDIzNjY5Ng@@._V1_UY190_CR0,0,128,190_AL_.jpg
Death penalty all-in-1: the state, the executioner, the priest, the perpetrators, there victims and families.

Into the Inferno (2016) - 2.5
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMTAyNzYyNjg1NzJeQTJeQWpwZ15BbWU4MDY4NzE1MzAy._V1_UY190_CR2,0,128,190_AL_.jpg
Great shots, yes, but I hoped for something dramatic. Would appreciate more mythology as well.

City Lights (1931) - 4.5
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BY2I4MmM1N2EtM2YzOS00OWUzLTkzYzctNDc5NDg2N2IyODJmXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNzkwMjQ5NzM@._V1_UX128_CR0,0,128 ,190_AL_.jpg
Probably my favorite Chaplin's movie. The last scene is one of the apogees in cinematographic history.

banality

11-11-19, 10:06 AM

https://i.imgur.com/AUPFSIM.jpg

Lost in Translation
as a sort of essay film on hotel life I think it's good

3.5

re93animator

11-12-19, 11:23 AM

One Week (2008) – 2.5
The melancholic account of a recently diagnosed cancer patient going on a soul-searching trip through Canadian country. I want to bludgeon someone with an acoustic guitar now.
https://i.imgur.com/00Y4H43.png?1

Nothing but Trouble (1991) – 3
A snooty financial advisor is detained in a pg-13 house of horrors after ignoring a stop sign. The humor is juvenile and often falls flat, but Aykroyd and family are entertaining. Very emblematic of the time, and immodestly tries to mimic Tim Burton’s weird and goofy Hollywood vibe: ill-fitting pop interlude, colorful nighttime cinematography, silly brass-heavy score, and slimy plastic-y suits & makeup. I thought it was dumb fun.
https://i.imgur.com/8GtZ54N.png?1
https://i.imgur.com/3hZgbJL.png?1

The Far Side of the Moon (2003) – 3
A seemingly aimless story of a lowly man in the aftermath of his mother’s death. It has an effective bitter mood and some attractive cinematography, but the philosophical content isn’t enough to fully reward the tedium.

Memoirs of an Invisible Man (1992) – 2.5
Man becomes invisible and is pursued by unethical bigwig with paint guns. I had a John Carpenter obsession growing up, but this one always passed me by. Nothing really makes it a discernible Carpenter flick unfortunately, but it’s a decently entertaining Hollywood comic thriller.
https://i.imgur.com/rn3fZPW.png?1

Limbo (1999) – 3.5
I’ll stay away from a plot summary because I’d probably just make it sound boring, and the meaty parts happen halfway through. A beautiful and very well put together drama & thriller. Technical aspects are aptly (for a movie like this) unobtrusive. Story and characters take the lead: the people are very down to Earth, relationships feel realistic, actors have great chemistry… but the ending is the letdown of all letdowns.
https://i.imgur.com/j2JyvLs.png?1
https://i.imgur.com/5EUTTAW.png?1

Cold Fever (1995) – 4.5
A Japanese man travels to Iceland in order to fulfill a burial rite for his parents. This mostly follows a leading straight man encountering various idiosyncratic tourists & townsfolk. My kind of movie; offbeat dry wit, gorgeous cinematography, gorgeous airy 90s score, and an occasionally meditative bittersweet mood. This movie has a ton of soul & character. One of my new favorites. MonnoM, I’ll point this recommendation your way.
https://i.imgur.com/b0yRXMc.png?1
https://i.imgur.com/XpcPxc0.png?1
https://i.imgur.com/aDQp49z.png?1
https://i.imgur.com/hB5BGZT.png?1
https://i.imgur.com/zoStniN.png?1

MonnoM

11-12-19, 06:49 PM

re93animator added to the queue :up:

Mr Minio

11-13-19, 12:16 PM

Phoenix [War of the Wizards] (1983) - 2

https://www.clubdesmonstres.com/best/img/phoenixwarofthewizards04.jpg

An old Chinese proverb says: "there is nothing crazier or more incoherent than a Taiwanese fantasy wuxia film.". It's been a while since I've seen so inadequately made film! However, the special effects are quaintly beautiful, Richard Kiel fighting the protagonist is a pleasure to behold, and in case you don't know what you live for, it's probably just to see a pterodactyl fighting a stone golem, or whatever else that petrified f*ck was! The scene depicting a bunch of assassins eliminating each other to prove who's best for hire is as hilarious as it is badass. By no means the best of what Taiwanese fantasy schlock can offer, but still more than a worthy ordeal, and a reminder of how much you can achieve when you have no talent, but lots of heart!

The same opinion in Chinese (using pinyin cuz it's inhuman to learn those characters): Nĭ hăo. Nǐ hěn piàoliɑnɡ.

스윙키즈 [Swing Kids] (2018) - 3

https://youtu.be/RQjKtIX0Rpk

A new offering from the director of the ever-bright and life-affirming little gem SUNNY (2011) is an energy-packed marriage of a prison camp film and a dance movie. With its strong antiwar message, it's an unlikely treatise on the importance of dreams, on why one has to stick to them even in the direst of situations. It's about finding friends in supposed enemies. Finally, it's about the inability of leaving the shackles of ideology, the bitter truth that you can't change the world, but that even in confinement you can find freedom through your passion and connection to other people. Despite its deeply bleak melancholy, the movie reminded me of director's previous film SUNNY in how it reverses death and uses it to celebrate life.

The Modern Love scene is absolutely astounding, and one of the best choreographed sequences I've seen in a very long time. It's also the best scene in the movie, so if you watch it, and dislike it, you can skip the film, and just go rewatch La La Land or some other terrible music film Americans released lately.

(The third act was a little bit disappointing with its use of trite Hollywood tropes, but the finale avoids needless maudlin sentimentality, and confirms this is a three star film)

The same opinion in Korean: F*ck this sh*t, I'm learning Chinese instead.

Midsommar (2019) - 2

https://66.media.tumblr.com/58bc14591233f513ee7c5babf657e369/tumblr_pssj3rjCK51vt10pl_540.gif

Not as masterful a folk horror as The VVitch, but nevertheless a worthy ride. The Wicker Man of our century with an underlying theme of coping with loss and some pleasant cinematography to go with it. As a sidenote, Michael Snow had a point in how powerful an upside-down camera shot can be, how bizzare it feels, and how quickly it makes the viewer insecure. Oshima's use of it in The Man Who Left His Will on Film is yet another good example of this. I wish it was used in more films, but at the same time wish it wasn't. It would've weakened its impact.

The same opinion in Swedish: Helvete, Svenska javlar. Fika, fika, Ikea.

Trash Humpers (2009) - 0.5

https://fourfour.typepad.com/.a/6a00d83451b8c369e20133f4bed1f0970b-600wi

(F)art for edgy high school kids. This is like Gummo stripped off everything that made it good.

Mr Minio

11-22-19, 08:45 PM

https://ptpimg.me/1u00uk.png

風の歌を聴け [Hear the Wind Sing] (1981) - 1 - can't really remember much, but it wasn't terrible
ＢＵ・ＳＵ [Bu su] (1987) - 2 - early Ichikawa, very good, but also forgettable
赤×ピンク [Girl's Blood] (2014) - 0.5 - this had a lot of potential, but ended up as merely a passable watch
Love Is All (2014) - 0.5 - amor vincit omnia except for uninspired love scenes glued together
満山紅柿上山柿と人とのゆきかい [Red Persimmons] (2001) - 1 - a nice albeit kinda bland documentary
饺子 [Dumplings] (2004) - 0.5 - Doyle's cinematography is great, but the rest is simply uninspiring
向左走·向右走 [Turn Left, Turn Right] (2003) - 1 - a pretty neat romantic comedy with freakin' crane shots and one helluva ending, but sadly it's just a shallow normie trier romance - Johnnie To can do better
Passion (2008) - 2 - Hamaguchi is a beast, and I'm so glad this flick surfaced (along with 4h-long Intimaces!!!), this is kinda like Rohmer for those bored with French courtship and too insecure to watch his Korean doppelganger releasing the same downheartening anti-romance for the umpteenth time - the scene at school is freakin' glorious - watch this sheet just for it
団鬼六　女秘書縄調教 [Secretary Rope Discipline] (1981) - 2 - the title says it all, it's a great Oniroku Dan pinku, just not for the faint-hearted and vanilla-loving bores PS: Junko Mabuki > your girlfriend

Iroquois

11-23-19, 08:01 AM

The Wicker Man of our century

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e6i2WRreARo

Mr Minio

11-23-19, 11:55 AM

Iroquois This one is The Wicked Cage.

cricket

12-01-19, 11:24 AM

November, 2019 movies watched-

The Verdict (1982) 2.5 Pretty average I thought.

Cool Hand Luke (1967) Repeat viewing 3.5 Starting to appreciate it more.

The Missouri Breaks (1976) 3.5- Nicholson and Brando make it fun.

Rear Window (1954) Repeat viewing 3 I enjoy it but don't think much of it.

Phantom Thread (2017) Repeat viewing 4 Masterful director and cast.

The Long Riders (1980) 3.5 A good time western.

The Squid and the Whale (2005) 3.5 I love watching crap people.

Neds (2010) 3+ Troubled youth in Scotland.

Hana-bi (1997) 3 Good, but I can't find any modern Japanese films I like as much as the classics.

Ulzana's Raid (1972) 2.5- The first Western in a while I didn't think highly of.

Tombstone (1993) 3 Better than I expected and a good bit of fun.

The Irishman (2019) 4.5 I'd like to see it win best picture.

Total November viewings-12
Total 2019 viewings-163

Mr Minio

12-01-19, 01:43 PM

https://i.imgur.com/uXelPrq.jpg
The Irishman (2019) - 0.5 - unbearably tedious and more draining than two watches of Satantango in a row would be. I could forgive it the far-from-perfect production, and uncanny valley inducing deaging, but I can't forgive it being so painfully bland and a chore to get through. Other Scorsese gangster films weren't very good either, but at least they weren't 209 minutes long FFS.
https://i.imgur.com/duhsT8C.jpg
The Shooting (1966) - 1 - an interesting spin on the western genre resulting in a solid Acid Western.
https://i.imgur.com/XjLi9Nb.jpg
Szyfry [The Codes] (1966) - 2 - the few oneiric scenes were to die for. The rest was okay.
https://youtu.be/D2MyR4Hlor8
I Am the Ripper (2004) - 1 - early amateurish Gaillard-core that's more fun than a lot of professional action films.
https://i.imgur.com/XDpAOcc.jpg
狩人たちの触覚 [Hunters' Sense of Touch] (1995) - 0.5 - trying to complete Hisayasu Sato's filmography is hard given gay and contemporary flicks are all that's left.
https://i.imgur.com/RGDYLq4.jpg
T-Wo-Men (1972) - 1 - Apparently this was okay, but I can't remember anything about it, so idk.
https://i.imgur.com/DZY5VeQ.jpg
名前のない女たち [Love and Loathing and Lulu and Ayano] (2010) - 0.5 - all around the place. Still has hints of the atmosphere from his earlier movies, but it's diluted.
https://i.imgur.com/XjK3loh.png
The Guyver [Mutronics] (1991) - 1 - gotta appreciate how that old guy and every single monster all lecherously held that Chinese girl
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3l72gxO2l2E
Korkusuz [Turkish Rambo] (1986) - 0.5 - Cüneyt Arkın >>>>>>>>>>>>> Serdar Kebapçilar
https://i.imgur.com/QEu4vtm.jpg
セーラー服色情飼育 [Lusty Discipline in Uniform] (1982) - 0.5 - a subpar pinku, but absolutely freakin' love the way it ends. If it was made nowadays in America - I'd love to see all the feminists butthurt <3
https://i.imgur.com/EJBw9CN.jpg
Viva (2007) - 0.5 - quite enjoyable and slick-looking, but in the end amounts to nothing. The feminist message, just like in The Love Witch, is arguably the weakest part of it.
https://i.imgur.com/weitdEN.png
Morgane et ses nymphes [Girl Slaves of Morgana Le Fay] (1971) - 0.5 - Rollincore with no poetry. Freakin' no.
https://i.imgur.com/djh7YHn.png
Процесс о трех миллионах [The Case of the Three Million] (1926) - 1 - Protazanov is mah men, but this ain't Otets Sergiy nor Aelita
https://i.imgur.com/wfSuuck.jpg
Thelma (2017) - 2 - This looks and feels sooo good. The symbolism and meaning is a tad too obvious, but who cares if the penultimate scene is so beautiful.
https://i.imgur.com/x6XwPmM.png
蝶變 [The Butterfly Murders] (1979) - 2 - Tsui Hark be like: My debut's genre is Gothic Castle Natural Horror Wuxia Mystery Giallo Action Fantasy Thriller! And yours? A drama? Bitch, please!
https://i.imgur.com/QY0fxeU.png
Gambling, Gods and LSD (2002) - 2 - has some pretty sequences, and it's great how the director tries to create a quasi-metaphysical experience. It's very good, but not good enough!
https://i.imgur.com/DA7IsJS.png
Nous sommes tous des assassins [We Are All Murderers] (1952) - 2 - shocking, and gracefully beautiful at the same time, but the humanist bar was not high enough!

thracian dawg

12-08-19, 01:09 PM

★★ ½

Last Year at Marienbad* — (1962) — Resnais
After World War 2 the entire German population was expelled and the town renamed, so Marienbad is a lost city. The structure of the film is contained in the Nim card game which can be played as fast as four or as slow as 16 moves which mirrors the sequences in the film. But unlike the Nim game which always re-sets at the beginning, the game of remembering always takes up where you last imagined it. A classic example from cinema of subjective memory would be Louis Malle’s Au revoir les enfants. One of his friends from the same war-time boarding school relates that they were reminiscing about those days and Malle wasn’t even aware that it had happened, he had to be told the story, yet some 40 years later, he had became a central figure in the drama.

The key scene in the film is when the couple is arguing about the meaning of a two statues and the Doctor character explains that it is not a myth from antiquity, but a commemoration of king’s address before parliament: if everything in the film can stand in for something else, then this green lights any cockamamie interpretation of the film. My take? This is a classic tale of transference of a doctor falling in love with his patient. Early on, the woman drapes her left hand over her right collarbone and poses like a statue for the narrator, but when the doctor approaches, she places her right hand over her left collarbone and becoming a mirror image of the same pose, the two men are one in the same. As the one in charge of her dosage and prognosis (the game he never loses) she has to believe the doctor is sincere and has her best interests at heart. The narrator is simply the projection of his guilt.

The Game is Over — (1966) — Vadim
There is a nice opening that shows this wealthy Parisian family is a clearly little dysfunctional. The father is training his attack dogs in the spacious back yard and when he son approaches to watch him, they lock eyes . . . his father smiles . . . then sics his German shepherds on him. At first warm and compassionate, the husband is revealed to be a total slug, he simply stole the entire fortune of his heiress wife and socked it away in his business scams and he is now working on plan B to wed his son to a rich banker’s daughter to get his hands on that pile of loot. Alternating between the three different stories in the film, the movie suffers from a wandering point of view. It would have much stronger had it focussed on the wife’s tragedy, where she is fleeced out of everything then kicked to the sidewalk.

Jojo Rabbit — (2019) — Waititi
Making fun of the Nazis is serious business which requires mad skills to pull it off correctly, artistic chops the director clearly doesn’t have (notice there are not a lot of extermination camp comedies.) This children’s comedic fantasy of how delightful mass murder can be is marred by the two deep rips in the canvas revealing the deeper horror behind it. The first one is a kitchen scene, where the descent into barbarism so complete that if a mother did or said the wrong thing, her own child would denounce her as a subversive to the authorities. The second one is the city square, where the majority of people simply placidly stroll past a gibbet of their fellow citizens swaying in the breeze; agreeing tacitly that anyone who believes in human decency is a common criminal who deserves to have their neck stretched. Even those harbouring secret reservations about those magnificent men leading society have to walk past the gibbet with a vapid smile of approval pasted on their faces. I actually wanted to see those grim thrillers. One anachronism for the film, Hitler thought smoking was an utterly disgusting habit and wouldn’t have been caught dead offering anyone a cigarette.

Twenty-four Eyes — (1954) — Kino****a
Even though a recent graduate on her first teaching assignment transfers from the one room school house in a tiny village after one year to the bigger school down the road, she keeps in touch with her first classroom of children. There’s a little stunt casting; the first grade class was played by their own real-life siblings when they reunited for grade five at the big school (a 20 minute stroll) down the road. Even though she was pushed out of teaching during the war period for being unpatriotic, she has an unbreakable bond with each of her pupils over the next 20 plus years. This is kind of a Japanese To Sir with Love.

The Devil and Miss Jones — (1941) — Wood
A gruff old billionaire goes undercover at one of his big retail stores downtown to show his undercover agents how to bust a union and instead discovers how caring and wonderful everyone is; falling in love with one of his co-workers and even taking up the struggle on the side of the oppressed and exploited working class. Complete hokum, still, I enjoyed this puff of fantasy.

Cluny Brown — (1946) — Lubtisch
When her plumber uncle is out on another job, Cluny takes the opportunity to field an emergency call. She shows up with her tool box and simply rolls up her sleeves and attacks a clogged sink to save the social event of the season. A Czech professor fleeing Nazi prosecution (the university students secretly think he a freedom fighter) is immediately smitten. Cluny Brown is a decidedly modern girl in a decidedly unmodern world. Nice girls don’t plumb. They end up in the same luxury mansion in the country; he as a house guest, and she as the new maid.

Joe Kidd — (1972) — Sturges
The film isn’t held in greater esteem for two reasons: Eastwood is playing a real character and not his usual stoic screen persona. He begins the film sleeping it off in jail and at his sentencing for drunk and disorderly; he prefers to take another ten days rather than pay the fine. He is a quiet man retired from the wars, no longer interested in violence. The power structures in this frontier town always in flux; a character’s momentary authority depends entirely on the setting and the people involved. The Sheriff and judge are ineffectual. The Mexican rebel leader turns out to be vain and has no problem sacrificing innocent people to his cause. When the great man shows up in town, at first he is a successful entrepreneur, then selfish robber-baron, then finally just a sociopath who enjoys killing anyone who gets in his way. The film also reveals the uncomfortable truth of the legal land theft; the Mexican and Indian land deeds tragically went up in smoke when a matchstick hit wooden filing cabinet in a state capital office, giving full ownership to the new immigrants. Suckers!

★★★

Arsenic and Old Lace* — (1944) — Capra
The horror comedy hybrid isn’t a new genre, here’s a film from the 40s with a nice blend of screwball comedy and horror (four serial killers [arguing who is most lethal one] with a combined body count of 24) it even takes place on Halloween. There was an in-joke I didn’t quite catch; the camera holds several times on the villain’s face, he either looks like Frankenstein with all the stitch scars, or a famous actor (Boris Karloff) of the period.

Lola*— (1962) — Demy
Demy’s first official real film was to be a glorious Technicolor affair with singing, dancing, and fabulous costumes. He found a producer who fell in love with the script and agree to fund it with a couple of minor tweaks; he had to get rid of the singing, the dancing, the costumes and it had to be shot in plain old black and white. Still this is a light and airy confection about first love; a nice tension is added with all the characters being a little sketchy and amoral. Lola’s Prince Charming is a vision in white; they are both unwavering in their faith they will reconnect with one another despite the passage of years. There are lots of echoes in the story; a recurring “Sailor” character; a nice score; and all the women seem to be younger or older versions of the same dancing Matryoshka doll.

The Young Girls of Rochefort* — (1967) — Demy
Musicals are inherently silly and this film revels in terpsichorean splendor, even the characters are color coordinated. Thematically, all the characters are out of sync, either a moment too early or a moment too late to connect with their one’s true heart. The musical motifs are stated once are then taken up again or suggested briefly in other scenes. There are some great props; the “aquarium” concession stand in the city plaza that allows one to watch the world stroll by; plus the two immediately identifiable American dance icons. The city even allowed the film crew to paint each window shutter with a pastel highlight and give a brilliant coat of white to all the background exteriors to be pictured in the film. When this was shot, Catherine Deneuve’s real life sister (they play twins in the movie) was considered one in the family with all the talent and the bigger star of the two. She died in a car crash a couple months after the film was released.

Motherless Brooklyn — (2019) — Norton
The main guy for a small detective agency gets whacked and the other gumshoes are more worried about rent and concentrate on the paying customers. Motherless Brooklyn (MB) is an orphan the big man took under wing and became a surrogate father for him; so he wastes no time poking around his murder and quickly finds corruption and evil at City Hall. There is one glaring mistake in the film: MB explains over and over again to everyone he meets in the story that he has a brain problem. Usually Tourette's syndrome is used as comedic relief by a bit player, but here they try to use it dramatically for the main character who always apologizes for his verbal twitches. Norton should have gone with the audience superior position, explain it one time expressly to and for the audience, then let him take his lumps for the rest of the film that actually would have built up more identification with MB. If this had been shot in black and white, the audience would have no trouble settling back for a juicy Film Noir; certain shots intriguingly suggest what some of those older films may have looked like: imagine Gene Tierney in a flame red satin dressing gown.

The Good Liar — (2019) — Condon
This little heist film becomes a playful cat and mouse game with just a few suggestions; the old con man is walking down the sunny side of the street and he spots the rich widow pacing in front of the restaurant and he immediately gets into character by limping painfully; it is a point of personal pride that he is never late for an appointment, yet the widow is always the one quietly sitting there (looking like the cat that swallowed the canary) waiting for him to catch up with her; her grand-son is hilariously writing his doctoral theses on whether or not Albert Speer was a good German (he didn’t notice everyone around him was a psychopath?)

Pain and Glory — (2019) — Almodovar
A film director emotionally blocked since the death of his mother, and incapacitated from a horribly botched back surgery spends the days tenderly puttering around his apartment before its time to knock himself out for the night with pain killers. A re-mastered print of one of his earlier films leads him try to end a 30 year old feud with the lead actor and have him come onstage with him at the gala screening. After a lot of pleading he gains entrance to his house and in the backyard, the actor offers him some nose candy. He gives it a snort. Nirvana! All his pain magically goes away, he can move without flinching, he can pick up pennies from the floor; and ideas and scenes for a new film start falling out of the sky. In the past, he had zero tolerance for degenerate drug addicts, but regularly chasing the dragon makes him a little more tolerant and forgiving about heroin addiction. The glorious melodramatic moments in the film are impossible to resist, where great chunks of the past return in a new light.

A Constant Forge — (2000) — Kiselyak
This is a great introductory primer to the work of John Cassavetes, As a filmmaker he was interested in challenging the audiences preconceptions about their own lives by having his actors craft original dramatic moments. He didn’t give a damn about commercial success; I think he actually says in the film people only interested in money are spiritually dead and are ghosts wasting what precious time they have left. There are some funny bits, the audience loved a preview screening of Opening Night, and he immediately thought he had stumbled somewhere and re-cut the film to make it less accessible. Gena Rowlands shares a story where she faked getting slapped by John during a rehearsal (clapping her hands and falling to the stage) then laid there on the floor giggling while the stage crew had to be restrained from attacking him. What comes off is in this documentary is what a Mensch Cassavetes was.

The Crossing of Paris — (1956) — Autaut-Lara
This comedy is a slightly unflattering portrait of Parisians during the occupation. A grocery store sells out minutes after opening; then the owner goes downstairs and butchers a fat pig for the black market. When his regular partner is pinched, an unemployed taxi driver taps a guy nursing a glass of wine in a tavern to take his place walking 200 pounds of contraband meat to its next destination. His new partner in crime turns out to be a wealthy painter who doesn’t need the money but takes the gig out of curiosity. He’s got an attitude and quite the mouth, when he finds out they are getting peanuts for the risky job, he destroys the basement supply room until the crooked grocer agrees to a pay bump. He is also not averse to telling all the low lives they meet on the way what embarrassing pathetic cowards they are. The film was shot in color but processed in black and white so it has a nice look to it. They are supposedly travelling across a blacked out city, yet there is always a random lamp post to light the scene dramatically.

A Slight Case of Murder — (1938) — Bacon
After prohibition is repealed, a crime boss decides his whole criminal organization and brewery is going legit. He doesn’t drink beer himself and no one in the gang has the guts to tell him, his prohibition beer tastes like horse piss. Years later, things are finally coming to head during a week-end retreat; they plan to meet their daughter’s fiancé who turns out to be copper; the bank is about to foreclosure on his brewery; and a stick-up crew from the race track heist chooses to hide out in what they thought was an abandoned house (allowing the boys to fondly relive the good old days of violin cases and cement loafers.) A lot of the gags are about gangsters with busted up noses trying to be honest citizens by speaking in refined manner. The only one who really pulls it off is his wife, but she runs hot and cold, depending on who she is talking to, she switches from gum smacking moll to a high society dame in a heartbeat.

Animal Love — (1995) — Siedl
There is a nice range from simple snapshots of proud owners posing with their little ball of fur to vignettes and complete sequences in this Austrian documentary about pets. The pet owners turn away from human contact when their pets become intimate extensions of themselves. A homeless man buys a rabbit merely as a prop to better beg. A soap actress reads all her adoring fan mail but prefers cuddle with her husky. At times, the reality is sometimes so astonishing; one can only believe certain scenes must have been faked. In addition to simple companionship, pets can also become sexual substitutes—judging from the number of participants that had no problem frolicking on camera on their beds with their dogs. Unlike Herzog’s mockumentaries, there is always a line that is crossed in Siedl’s films, there is always something vaguely unsettling and unflinching in his gaze.

★★★ ½

Fences — (2016) — Washington
Troy, the garbage man, is full of bluster at home. He has worn down his first son from years and years of argument and now begins to chip away at his second son who may be an (athletic) chip off the old block. Certain conversations have an immediate lived-in quality; these are almost like serial confrontations. There is great depth to the writing and each scene crackles with tension. You are never quite sure if Bono (Troy’s best friend) is a sitting spectator or there to pull apart the combatants when the arguments become too rough. Washington as a director has always been a deliberate craftsman and this is his first effort with a little spit and shine. He is helped enormously that all the original actors from the stage production reprised their roles for the film. You are here for the drama.

Antigone — (2019) — Deraspe
This is a nice re-make of a Greek play thousands of years old focusing on the perversion of justice. In her innocence, Antigone (a high school girl) believes justice will prevail because it is the simple truth; little does she know the laws have been carefully crafted for the exclusive benefit of the powerful and the rich. The courtroom appears at first to be sympathetic to her plight, however the flimsy legal protections afforded her will be useless against the vicious assault (in the name of the law) about to befall her family. I did like that certain agents within the system were shown to be decent, but their hands are manacled by legal restrictions and job descriptions, and their goodness has only a nominal reach. There is a nice bit where a (dis)approving social media stands in for as a vibrant Greek chorus.

La Chinoise — (1967) — Godard
The film begins dramatically with the founding of the revolutionary Maoist Aden Arabia cell in Paris. They suffer almost immediate set-backs; they lose one member to a tragic house painting accident and another member is expelled for failing to raise his hand for a unanimous vote. There is marvelous gibberish: they borrow a huge dollop from anarchism’s direct action. The daughter of a wealthy banker believes she is proletarian because she once worked in an orchard one summer vacation; she takes the most glamourous elements (like Molotov cocktails) and runs with them. On one hand, they are passionate and earnest; there is a great tumult of ideas with the excitement of young people discovering the world of ideas and books. On the other hand, with no sense of history or political experience they doomed for some serious lumps. The revolution peters out right about the same time her parents return home from summer vacation to reclaim their apartment (now ruined with red, yellow, and blue highlights) and the next semester at University begins. The film quickly becomes an intellectual screwball comedy where political platforms are banana peels to be stepped on and philosophy is a custard pie to be faced.

The Earrings of Madame de — (1953) — Ophüls
This (almost unstated) tragic love story is revealed exclusively through visual echoes and character/camera movement. For instance, the jeweller’s great excitement about returning the “stolen” earrings to the general is revealed entirely by the way he orders around his shop assistant (like a chicken without a head) upstairs, while he waits placidly at the front entrance to the shop. When she first sells her earrings she sits down imperially as if a queen on a throne; whereas near the end when she tries to buy her earrings back, the same chair (removing the cushion riser) appears to swallow her up. At the outset she uses her fainting spells to manipulate the men around her, yet these spells have an arc that gets progressively worse during the film. It could be suggested that she is the earrings of her husband; her great beauty and flirtations are a way to publically lionize his reputation. There is some ironic humor; her husband goes ballistic not because the diplomat may have slept with his wife, but that he may have seduced his mistress.

* = rewatch
**** = it's something like a brown frankfurter

HashtagBrownies

12-08-19, 02:45 PM

Seen in November

(Didn’t see much in November but I hope to see more because of the Christmas holidays)

58751
[RE-WATCH
3.5
The older I get the more I appreciate the comedic aspects and the makeup (Not even the transformation scene but that badass animatronic-like wolf walking around Piccadilly Circus). I also appreciate the scary aspects more, like the moments before they get attacked or that excellent jumpscare (I won’t spoil it here if ya haven’t seen it.

58752
3.5
I’m a big fan of survival stories; It’s fun to see how much the human body can endure and what a person is willing to do to get back home. Lots of lovely shots of the Arctic landscape.

58753
4
If your film is 3 and a half hours long and I see it at the cinema, and I don’t get bored/my butt doesn’t cramp, you have yourself a great film! Even with some poor computer effects, It's a solid epic that is highly elevated above other Scorsese films by its last 40 minutes; It’s quite sad and somewhat reflects Scorsese’s position in life right now; It’s as if he intends for this to be his swan song before he leaves us.

Like damn, what a sad final shot.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HfwPL-bd_mk
3.5
Sometimes the best documentary’s are the ones about normal, almost insignificant people. These films provide something a history book can’t. I found this film quite funny at times but also quite sad. It even gets a bit intense near the end with the introduction of a new person.

Also oh my God, Mike is the most chill person I have ever seen.

58754
4
Saw this at a local film festival, it was the premiere in my country. A dramedy with a nice blend of funny moments and heartbreaking moments (I swear this might be the best audience I’ve ever had, they we’re laughing at every joke).

58755
4.5+
Same film festival, ALSO the premiere at my country. My favourite of the year so far and one of my favourites of the decade. It has such a unique feel to it; An old ghost story similar to something by Poe or Lovecraft, the darkly elements that happen feel similar to something they would write. The look of the film is unbelievable too; I don’t think a single shot from a film I’ve seen this year has impressed me more than the one with the two men standing on the rock waiting for the boat in the wind and rain. The time period relevant soundtrack is effective. The script is great too; Many funny moments, scary moments and hypnotic monologues.

58756
3.5
An emotionally heavy family drama. The film really makes you think about how primal humans actually are; Our decisions are often based on survival instincts that normal animals have, and sometimes they can affect the world in a negative way.

Also I don’t think I’ve seen such an intense crying scene before.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qYOr8TlnqsY&t=s
3.5
In summary, the man who recorded this piece of music witnessed 9/11 just as he was finishing the album. This film is a piece of avant-garde music playing over the last hour of daylight in NYC that the musician recorded.

It’s quite tiring, but it seems like quite a respectful way of honouring the people who passed away that way. I know this sounds weird but the best way to describe this film is it feels like that Youtube video of that guy comforting a dying rabbit.

58757
4
Feels very similar to Ed Wood and The Disaster Artist; An extremely inspired man’s journey to making a film. Just like those two films it’s very funny and very inspiring. I hope this is a return to form for Eddie Murphy, since his last good film was from 2004.

SPEAKING OF WHICH!

58758
[RE-WATCH
4.5+
This was nominated for the Palme D’or and I’m very sad I don’t live in one of the many alternate dimensions where it won.

58759
3.5
I love me a good murder mystery tale more than I like a good survival tale, especially one that messes with the formula. Suave, sarcastic and funny, overall a good time.

Mr Minio

12-16-19, 12:50 PM

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Exc1zWSF_rQ
J'ai perdu mon corps [I Lost My Body] (2019) - 2 - the visuals and music are the real selling point here; the story is okay
브이아이피 [V.I.P.] (2017) - 1 - a very solid Korean thriller with a trademark sexy 10/10 would bang (albeit he'd bang my head against the wall later) murderer, and a slightly more interesting than usual plot!
หมอนรถไฟ [Railway Sleepers] (2016) - 1 - slow train trips, man! You know, some time ago I spent 10 hours on a train in a single day! This brings back so many memories!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8DfAFViidcs
Medea (1982) - 2 - Zwartjes might be a poser and a pervert, but there is no denying he created some really thick atmosphere here! Not as kinky as his magnum opus Pentimento, tho!
Under the Silver Lake (2018) - 1 - Hitchcock + Lynch + boobs = a clusterfukk of a movie like this one!
刀 [The Blade] (1995) - 2 - Tsui Hark slays! Very entertaining! Too bad my favourite character - Blackie - was so poorly fleshed out!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lZmQCIbcm6w
Tokyo-Ga (1985) - 2 what we learn is that Ozu was a good man, and that Wenders has no sh*t on Marker! Also, some Japanese Murican-wannabes dancing to among others Blondie's Call Me is worth it!
Flores (2017) - 2 - one of the best shorts I've seen in a very long time. The omnipresent purple only adds to the beautiful, nostalgic atmosphere.
Die Tomorrow (2017) - 2 - Thamrongrattanarit's (I know, just when you thought you were smart because you remembered Weerasethakul's name) essay on death might not be very revealing, and it's shrewdy filled with clichés, but damn me if it isn't pretty and moving.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RNJ_YFtSKOk
Sailing a Sinking Sea (2015) - 1 - yet another disappointment, but at least it's short and you learn a thing or two.
The Piano Tuner of Earthquakes (2005) - 0.5 - really had my hopes high due to a high rating from a friend, but this one is just schmucky kitsch :(
鎖縛 [Sabaku] (2000) - 2 - apparently the movie is loosely based on the Murder of Junko Furuta (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murder_of_Junko_Furuta) (just don't repeat my mistake and don't read this before sleep ;_; ), put emphasis on loosely. Anyway, this is the best "gay" "pinku" "directed by" Hisayasu Sato. Why quotation marks? Because its point isn't really being gay, although it contains some gay sex scenes (the final one is absolutely beautiful). Because it's not a pure pink film even going by the loosest definition, and because the credits at the beginning mention a mysterious "Casino" as the director of the film. Trying to clear it up, the film feels more like a sadistic horror than a pinku - something like Sato's Naked Blood, but much, much darker with underlying themes of a perpetrator becoming a victim and so on. Some scenes are really out there and downright disturbing (or they should be for a sensitive viewer, I'm not one), but I'm not sure whether disturbing enough for Sato to be afraid to put his name on it, so I see two possibilities here: 1) This was indeed directed by Sato who for some reason took on the pseudonym "Casino" for it 2) This was (co-)directed by some beginner director "Casino", and most probably ghost-directed by Sato. Dunno why I keep blabbering about it, but I guess I'm just happy I found a gay pinku I loved, no matter how far-fetched the definitions are.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-lYKRFrytwE
世界 [The World] (2004) - 3 - FFS finally a really great movie. Absolutely astounding, even if quite obvious. The little moments of sadness really get to you, like the last note of Little Sister, or Zhao Tao meeting the Russian girl in the toilet. Also, this turned out to be a personal film for me for reasons I choose not to disclose.
小武 [The Pickpocket] (1997) - 3 - yet another gem from Jia Zhangke. This is like Bresson's... well... Pickpocket (duh) but stripped off its idealism!
任逍遥 [Unknown Pleasures] (2002) - 2 - this one is considerably weaker than the previous two, but still a very solid Zhangke film!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jp7T6sBUODk
漂泊者 [Hyohakusha] (2014) - 1 - occasionally pretty, but nothing too fancy.
ドキュメント路上 [On the Road: A Document] (1964) - 1 - eh... it was okay, I guess. I'm much more interested in Minamata: The Victims and Their World, tho!
Faust Sonnengesang (2011) - 3 - my 9000th film!!! (Everybody gasps in amazement. mark f laughs spitefully). 180 minutes of unadulterated visual masturbation is exactly what you'd expect me to love. Dat Napoleon-core triple screen towards the end, tho.
https://i.imgur.com/jLFLmzm.png
疾走 [Dead Run] (2005) - 3.5 - a typical ok doomer (◡‿◡✿) 5/5 would suicide again flick. WHATTA HELL SABU WILL YOU HAVE MY BABY?! For those who don't know, SABU is basically Takashi Miike for cool people, and his Postman Blues, Blessing Bell, and Monday (DOES EVERYBODY WANNA TWIST!!! COME ON!!! BABY BABY!!! anyone?) are all outstanding movies I loved in the past. Decided to watch more SABU, and stumbled upon this gem. I'm not even going to attempt telling you what the movie's about, and what the characters are. Lemme just tell you one of them is a priest! And you don't even know how afraid I was this is going to turn into a Bible-reading circle-jerk I READ BIBLE AND BECAME A BETTER HUMAN BEING Christian movie bs cliche, but SABU is the man, he would never let me down!!! And oh man, this sheet gets more and more intense, and touching, and simply devastating! I cried through the entire second part of the movie!!! Yep, and saying it's emo is a very poor excuse of not getting its greatness, haters! I really love SABU's use of silence, his development of characters, his shots, pretty much everything! See? I can't even critque it properly, I'm just fanboying over it, sheeet.
Wundkanal [Gun Wound] (1984) - 2 - very original and quite mysterious! You basically understand what's going on, and even get the final message, but the details are obfuscated, that is until you watch...
Notre nazi [Our Nazi] (1984) - 2 - which shows the making of Gun Wound. Turns out the actor was a real Nazi, and the shooting of the film a form of trial & torture for him. A really drawn-out film, but along with Shoah and Marcel Ophüls' documentaries the best thing of this kind I've seen!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UYrzz5hwVHU
アンラッキー・モンキー [Unlucky Monkey] (1998) - 3 - SABU doing Dostoevsky is exactly just like you'd imagine. Comical, surprising, touching! The protagonist's anguish reverbs through every scene - sad or funny, and the ending is purifying!
三峡好人 [Still Life] (2006) - 2 - back to China, and this seems to be director's second most beloved film among my RYM friends, so I hoped for another 3 star Zhangke - close but no cigar!
地獄無門 [We're Going to Eat You] (1980) - 1 - another Tsui Hark, his sophomore effort, is a kung-fu comedy with cannibals! Hoped for a more serious, gnarly & brutal film, but it plays like one of these Jackie Chan flicks. Entertaining, sure, but not brilliant.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XMhr6JY352g
Wisconsin Death Trip (1999) - 1 - the premise is fine, and the execution amazing, but it gets repetitive way too fast. I mean, too many broken windows for my taste.
Picture of Light (1994) - 1 - yet another hipter documentary that turns out to be merely watchable.
狛 [Koma] (2009) - 1 - a very enjoyable short from Kawase, but I NEED MOAR!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HqfH-SPstSk
ドライブ [Drive] (2002) - 2 - yet another SABU goodness. Batsheet crazy, and just the kind of humor I like. Doesn't pack quite a punch I wanted it to, but oh my goodness if these final scenes aren't adorable. :3 Also, I want to learn video editing just so that I can paste my face onto the body of the man in the video above. :P
戦ふ兵隊 [Fighting Soldiers] (1939) - 2 - this might be the best war documentary ever made, but I'm too dumb to understand it. Seriously, though, it's been banned, because the director who was supposed to glorify war basically made an anti-war documentary!
Temenos (1998) - 0.5 - I don't even remember a single frame of this avant-garde film. Oh well.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PnnPkvYCqlU
夏時間の大人たち [Happy-Go-Lucky] (1997) - 2 - a gr8 coming-of-age flick from Nakashima. Not as flashy as Memories of Matsuko and Confessions, and also not as amazing as the two, but still very enjoyable, and I like how it both starts and ends with basically a young boy commenting on somebody's boobs.
Bestiaire (2012) - 1 - look at this hipster director thinking he's making an important point. Oh well, at least it's pleasantly contemplative.
親密さ [Intimacies] (2012) - 3 - Hamaguchi nails it again. This is his most Rivettian film, but thank goodness it has nothing of Rivette's boring Out 1-core. The first two hours are spent on the preparation of a play, and the other two hours on the actual play - in its entirety! The final couple of minutes are soothing and cute!
https://youtu.be/lqew6ulya_g
The King of Comedy (1982) - 1 - yeah, it's so much better than The Irishman, but it doesn't really say much, because Scorsese's latest film was TERRIBLE. This one... it's simple and quite enjoyable.
采油日记 [Crude Oil] (2008) - 1
- Oh hai, Minio, I didn't know it was you. What did you do during the weekend?
- Oh nothing much, just watching a film. Spent 4 hours looking at men sleeping and going in and out of a single room, then another 4 hours looking at oil rig workers at work, and then 4 hours looking at men chilling in the middle of a desert, and then again chilling in some huts, watching TV... 840 minutes in total! Ha! And what was your longest film you've ever seen?
- It seems to me you're just easily impressed with long things!
- Why, you normie! Get back to your Avengers franchise binge, n00b!

I mean, when you're looking at a fixed shot of two men sitting almost motionlessly in a room for 15 minutes, a man entering a room feels like an extreme twist. Hell, I wish there was an audience cheering sound effect every time it happened, like in Lynch's Rabbits.But of course later on we do get out of the room (I really thought it's gonna be 15 hours in just this one room), and camera becomes more mobile, following the crew members all around the rig. Don't get me wrong, static shots abound, but there are some tracking ones which is also a sort of a twist.

It took me 2 freakin' days to finish this movie, and I also watched other movies inbetween the sessions. No doubt the most challenging movie-watching experience ever.
ハードラックヒーロー Hard Luck Hero (2003) - 1 - yet another SABU. Too much in your face, nothing is left to viewer's interpretation, but it's funny and very entertaining. :) I read that apparently "Sabu was commissioned to make this film to showcase the boyband V6.", so that would explain a lot.
https://youtu.be/xSm7Xh6QZAE
파란 대문 [Birdcage Inn] (1998) - 3 - been years since I've seen a Kim Ki-duk film, and I'm glad I left out his first three films when I was binge watching his filmography, so that I can watch them now! He seems to be universally hated safe for 3-Iron and the seasons film, but I absolutely love him, and even though I can see some criticism as in he's too forceful with symbolism, I don't give a flying damn. It's a really moving film, and the final scene is one of the most memorable ones I've seen recently.
カケラ [Kakera: A Piece of Our Life] (2010) - 0.5 - this has lots of potential, but the great moments are somehwat lost in the convoluted structure of the film. Hard to believe director's next film will be one of the best movies of the decade.
L' amour fou [Mad Love] (1969) - 1 - after loving Intimacies decided to give Rivette another chance, but even though the film has good moments, it's tedious, and pretty bland. I couldn't care less about most Rivette's filmography, which only further proves he's not a filmmaker for me.

Mr Minio

12-21-19, 03:55 PM

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ch9DADNdgTM
Fixed Bayonets! (1951) - 2 - maybe it's just me not having seen a war movie for a long time, but the explosions in this one felt very gritty and real! It's a rather typical well-made man's cinema war film, but what can I say, I really, really liked it! The minefield scene was tense!
The Effect of Gamma Rays on Man-in-the-Moon Marigolds (1972) - 1 - directed by Paul Newman! Yes, the Paul Newman! Still, it kinda fell over my head. :(
아리랑 [Arirang] (2011) - 1 - Kim Ki-duk's documentary (although he calls it a drama himself) in which you can't really tell which parts are real and which faked for the sake of the film. Oh well.
烹尸之丧尽天良 [Human Pork Chop] (2001) - 0.5 - other people made it sound as if it was one of the most gruesome and disgusting CAT III films. Hardly. It's not very good either. :(
Hypnosis Display (2014) - 1 - nice flickering colors are always cool, but once you've seen 100 films like this, it gets old
야생동물 보호구역 [Wild Animals] (1997) - 1 - Kim Ki-duk's sophomore effort shot in France (and starring Denis Lavant in a minor role!) is probably his roughest film (not just around the edges, but in the very core!). I'm not sure if that's intentional, but the director seems enamored with the 80s, kitschy, schlocky French cinema of the time and... HK action cinema (?!). The buddy part is really nice, so is the Paris-Texas-esque subplot which has its resolve in the final minutes!
Little Dieter Needs to Fly (1997) - 1 - a fascinating story, but told in a rather typical way, and there is not enough of Herzog narration!
Il deserto dei Tartari [The Desert of the Tartars] (1976) - 2 - watched this half-asleep which admittely wasn't a good idea, but ended up really liking it even though I was also a little bit disappointed given this was recommended by friends as a great masterpiece. The painterly quality of the cinematography kept me glued to the screen, tho.
紙の月 [Pale Moon] (2014) - 2 - an interesting and ultimately moving story!
真晝之星空 [Starlit High Noon] (2005) - 2 - a younger brother of Last Life in the Universe. Gotta love its aesthetic as well as the melancholic tone!
악어 [Crocodile] (1996) - 1 - Kim Ki-duk's debut and holy cow! So much gratuitous violence and (attempted) rape in this one! Only in the first 20 minutes three different men try to rape a woman, the last one succeeds, but almost gets his cock cut off for that!!! The movie is rough as f*ck (technically, too), and even the attempts at poetry don't change its sinister tone!
団鬼六　縄責め [Rope Torture] (1984) - 0.5 - a gr8 disappointment
Zuma (1985) - 0.5 - Who the hell thought it would be a good idea to make this 130 minutes?! It's laughable how Zuma chooses to rip off every girl's shirt/bra to uncover her breasts before he kills her. A very lurid and hilarious way to cater to the sex-hungry audience. There are not enough murders, but those that are there are pretty cool, e.g. using the snake he has attached to his neck to break through a girl's chest and rip off her heart! Brutal! LOL @ Zuma getting run over by a steamroller and needless to say surviving it! Obviously we have a forced romance, too!
다른 나라에서 [In Another Country] (2012) - 2 - the cutest and most charming Hong from those I've seen so far! Occasionally rough acting, but who cares when Huppert is so nice, and the adorable lifeguard is my hero. <3 "I WILL PROTECT YOU!"

mark f

12-21-19, 04:51 PM

minio, congrats on your 9000th.

Mr Minio

12-21-19, 05:24 PM

Thanks. I think I covered most widely agreed upon masterpieces as well as obscure and esoteric gems in these 9000. Obviously, I left out some movies, but you can never watch everything, can you? There are still some classics I'd like to see before I hit 10000. Namely some New Hollywood movies (Five Easy Pieces and Two-Lane Blacktop) that I never seem in the mood to watch, and many, many more.

I mostly focused on European, American and (East) Asian cinema, really deep diving into the last one in the recent years. I'm still almost completely ignorant of Indian cinema. It really seems like such a giant, undiscovered land to me, but sadly it never seemed particularly exciting to explore, so there's that - I really only know the basics of the basics - obviously Satyajit Ray and some Ghatak, Mani Kaul etc.

mark f

12-21-19, 06:51 PM

By the way, I'm watching Sátántangó now. I have Eastern European Movies (https://easterneuropeanmovies.com) again.

Mr Minio

12-21-19, 07:06 PM

Well, at last!!!

Monkeypunch

12-28-19, 08:14 PM

Uncut Gems - Adam Sandler plays a Jewish diamond merchant who has a serious gambling problem, owes money to some very bad people, and who is just a giant schmuck all around in this intense, anxiety causing nightmare of a movie. Is it good? Yes. Did I enjoy it? no. I honestly wanted to leave around the half way point. It's so ridiculously tense, I could feel it triggering a panic attack. Sandler's character is so unlikable, so pigheadedly stupid, that you just can't stand watching him screw up over and over again. At one point he starts crying "I don't want to do this anymore," and I was feeling that same way. I'd watch Grown Ups or Happy Gilmore a thousand times before I'd watch this again. Like I said, it's a well made film with even a few dark laughs here and there but it's so relentlessly loud, chaotic, dark and depressing that I found it too hard to watch. I felt depressed for hours afterwards. Maybe I'm getting too old. This wasn't for me. I don't even know what to rate it.

re93animator

12-28-19, 11:57 PM

Die, Monster, Die! (1965) – 3
A young man travels to a cagey old shunned manor to meet a lady. Poorly titled, campy early Lovecraft adaption with Karloff. Convenient lapses of logic, and brief action scenes wherein everyone suddenly gets bad knees, but a very good atmosphere and fun mystery.
https://i.imgur.com/qkzmvuo.png?1
https://i.imgur.com/qmczFaA.png?1

Bunker Palace Hotel (1989) – 3
In a dystopic future, a handful of upper-class people seek refuge within an odd, malfunctioning underground hotel. It’s mostly in French, but I feel that it’s bleak & stylish Eastern Euro sci-fi in spirit. Just not as good or philosophically potent as Tarkovsky and the like.
https://i.imgur.com/XYrhtMb.png?1
https://i.imgur.com/PLzPTLw.png?1

Fat City (1972) – 3
Gritty slice of life centered largely on a broke, washed-up boxer. The plot seems rushed at times, but most of it is depressing naturalism with a non-traditional story arc. Good if you like the sort.

Overlord (2018) – 2.5
American troops on a secret mission to take down a Nazi radio tower that turns out to be sheltering sinister experiments. Some dumb thriller logic and uncreative one-liners, but it’s pretty entertaining when left brain is set to dormant. The Nazis are smart enough to reanimate dead tissue, but not quite smart enough to realize that one of their motorcycle cops driving towards them with hands bound and mouth taped shut is a bad omen.
https://i.imgur.com/GTTBSzF.png?1

Mr Minio

12-30-19, 11:14 PM

An update right before New Year's Eve! Yes, below is the soundtrack to the post that is also the Letter From the Mountain soundtrack.

https://youtu.be/4BMKQLHSlLE

マリアのお雪 [Oyuki, the Virgin] (1935) - 1 - Mizoguchi does Stagecoach before John Ford! A moderately successful attempt and clearly before Mizoguchi got on his streak of masterpieces.
餓鬼草紙 [The Water Was So Clear] (1973) - 2 - no talking - just the way cool kids like it. Monks having to fight temptation is one of my favourite traits in cinema.
People's Park (2012) - 3 - an astounding one-take documentary on the never-ending park alleys full of people. I wasn't lied to when they told me there are too many people in China, but observing them in such an uncut, fluid manner was almost like being there, surely a tremendous experience!
Befrielsesbilleder [Images of Liberation] (1982) - 2 - von Trier's graduation film and also a great intro to his first full length. Great use of colour (oranges!) and thick atmosphere. Convoluted plot, but who cares?
Ways of Seeing (1972) - 2 - an insightful documentary that makes some interesting points on art. I found the point about the presence of a painting in company of other paintings that change its meaning super funny in our era of Tumblr in which classical masterworks of painting are displayed next to naked models and memes on never-ending scrollable Tumblr pages. Truly incredible times we live in.
여자는 남자의 미래다 [Woman Is the Future of Man] (2004) - 1 - it was okay, the two protagonists are extreme oddballs, and there are many blowjobs in this Hong Sang-soo film.
Dyn Amo (1972) - 3 - arresting! One of Dwoskin's best. The marriage of music and visuals is especially effective, and the final minutes of the film haunting.
El mar la mar (2017) - 1 - an okay experimental documentary from the director of People's Park. This time it's about USA border-crossing experience.
Hunted (1952) - 2 - this Bogarde thriller turned out to be unexpectedly touching - loved the understated yet poignant ending!
A Letter to Three Wives (1949) - 0.5 - uhm, it was watchable, but I really expected a better film. It was well written, after all it's a Mankiewicz picture... I wonder if somebody had to monitor this fridge 24 hours a day so that food doesn't spoil.
L' hirondelle et la mésange [The Swallow and the Titmouse] (1920) - 1 - well, the acting and everything else is quite realistic and untheatrical for the time of its release, but it's not really anything amazing...
Comizi d'amore [Love Meetings] (1965) - 2 - just when I thought I already watched all of his films years ago, it turned out I hadn't seen this Pasolini documentary. It's interesting how backwards-thinking people were back then. The film is entertaining, alright.
The Lighthouse (2019) - 3 - Robert Eggers sure nailed this one, and made this his second masterpiece after the engrossing The VVitch. This is like a remake of Gardiens de phare (1929) after 90 years with the screenplay written by Lovecraft and Freud (too many penises), and cinematography shot by Nykvist. Surely a work to revel in, and the attention to detail as well as the aesthetics are so special. Can't wait for his version of Nosferatu! Normally, if I heard the idea of remaking it, I'd say "Come on dude, don't do it, you ain't no Herzog", but now that I know Eggers will do it, I'm pretty sure he can pull it off!
Puika [Boy] (1977) - 3 - a Latvian masterpiece! Sort of like Zerkalo, but without metaphysics and Spanish guitarists. A beautiful poetry of everyday life in the 19th century. The Russian dubbing version has an unnecessary narrator, tho!
学校 [A Class to Remember] (1993) - 3 - Yamada delivers yet another beautiful and wise film and yet another dose of tears! A splendidly successful endeavour. Can't wait to see the other three parts. Yamada was my best discovery of 2018, and the discovery was indeed extended through 2019, too!
Heimat ist ein Raum aus Zeit [Heimat Is a Space in Time] (2019) - 0.5 - Penisshark xD. The director managed to make an even more tedious and uninteresting film than even the nastiest Straub-Huillet efforts. The first part concerning World War II is okay, but what follows is insufferable! Look, I don't mind your Brechtian, Commie-praising shenanigans, just make it more interesting next time kthxbye.
不貞の季節 [I Am an S+M Writer] (2000) - 1 - if you think about it, this is a really down heartening film about a dude being cheated on and what not, but it's played for laughs, and it has ropes, so I enjoyed it.
监狱不设防 [Jail House Eros] (1990) - 1 - crazy and enjoyable. The goofball comedy in the first two thirds is something you simple get used to after you've seen a lot of crappy HK cinema, but the final third has some really cool magic stuff!
Sudden Manhattan (1997) - 1 - kinda like Hal Hartley, but with the weirdness cranked up to 11. Adrienne Shelly RIP
阿弥陀堂だより [Letter From the Mountain] (2002) - 4 - scratch my ballsack and lick my soles!!! I'M SO PUMPED! This is the best film I've seen in a long time, and it made me cry several times, and not the way I cried on countless movie. When it ended I was crying so hard I would start choking. So powerful! It's out of this world aesthetically with stellar cinematography and wonderful music, and so touching. GHAA! It's about healing yourself by healing others, on life and death, and that even in Paradise people aren't immortal. It's so simple yet so incredible. I dunno if my strong reaction to it means it's a masterpiece or I'm just becoming a neurotic pussy, but I'd take it either way. Just watch it
Wołanie [Calling] (2014) - 1 - a solid Polish Lisandro Alonso-core!
A Spell to Ward Off the Darkness (2013) - 1 - don't really know what to make out of it, but it was quite good.

cricket

01-01-20, 10:26 AM

December, 2019 movies watched-

Hostiles (2017) 3.5 Not quite a contender for my westerns list but very much worth watching.

Marriage Story (2019) 3.5+ Was still hoping for more.

The Hanging Tree (1959) 3+ Solid atypical western starting Gary Cooper.

Dead Man's Line (2018) 3.5 Excellent crime documentary.

Lonesome Cowboys (1968) 1 The worst movie on the current westerns list.

Once Upon a Time in Hollywood (2019) 4.5 Nowhere near perfect yet perfectly awesome.

The Cowboys (1972) 4- A touching western?

The Salvation (2014) 2.5 Bleak and brutal the way I like it, but no better than average.

Black Killer (1971) 2 Mediocre spaghetti with Klaus Kinski.

Deadbeat at Dawn (1988) 3+ Recommended for fans of violent cult movies.

Face to Face (1967) 3.5 Very good spaghetti from the current westerns list.

Dolemite is My Name (2019) 3.5+ A feel good movie and entertaining.

Navajo Joe (1966) 3 Fun spaghetti with Burt Reynolds.

The Grey Fox (1982) 3.5 From the westerns list and featuring a great performance from Richard Farnsworth.

The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada (2005) 4+ A must watch for the westerns list.

Heller in Pink Tights (1960) 3+ Pretty enjoyable and much better than I expected.

The Mercenary (1968) 3.5- Good time spaghetti.

Skin (2018) 4.5- Surprisingly up there with American History X.

Red Sun (1971) 3+ Another fun western with a super cool cast.

The Misfits (1961) 3.5+ Quite haunting in large part to real life drama and tragedy.

Total December viewings-20
Total 2019 viewings-183
6 year total since keeping track-2163

Ultraviolence

01-06-20, 09:24 AM

A Spell to Ward Off the Darkness (2013) - rating_1 - don't really know what to make out of it, but it was quite good.

Not enough Black Metal!!!!

Ultraviolence

01-06-20, 09:47 AM

https://media.giphy.com/media/Nx0rz3jtxtEre/giphy.gif

Parasite (2019) - ★★★★
Dead Man’s Letters (1986) - ★★★★★
Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood (2019) - ★★★★
The Irishman (2019) - ★★★★
GoldenEye (1995) - ★★★

https://fanart.tv/fanart/movies/348/movieart/alien-4ff9b8c3cae22.png
Alien (1979) - ★★★★
Aliens (1986) - ★★★★★
Alien³ (1992) - •
Alien Resurrection (1997) - ★
Prometheus (2012) - ★★
Alien: Covenant (2017) - ★★

https://fanart.tv/fanart/movies/474350/moviebackground/it-chapter-2-5d91a8ec417f4.jpg
It (2017) - ★★
It Chapter Two (2019) - ★★

https://fanart.tv/fanart/movies/10/hdmovielogo/star-wars-collection-5410e7cfe45da.png
Star Wars (1977) - ★★★★
The Empire Strikes Back (1980) - ★★★★★
Return of the Jedi (1983) - ★★★★
The Phantom Menace (1999) - ★★
Attack of the Clones (2002) - ★★
Revenge of the Sith (2005) - ★★★★
The Force Awakens (2015) - ★
Rogue One (2016) - ★★
The Last Jedi (2017) - •
The Rise of Skywalker (2019) - •
The Mandalorian [TV] (2019) - ★★

Thank God they weren't stupid enough to make a Solo origin movie...

re93animator

01-30-20, 06:15 AM

A Perfect World (1993) - rating_3
https://i.imgur.com/jNGHM4B.jpg?1
An escaped convict kidnaps and gradually forms a bond with a fatherless boy. It's a good movie that occasionally forgoes common sense to milk the dramedy (e.g. tying the kid to the car roof with a thin rope to simulate a rollercoaster). I wanted to see the kid take flight like a blown off hat just to ice the cake for doing something so silly.

Color Out of Space (2019) - rating_4
https://i.imgur.com/ooydjJH.jpg?1
An extraordinary fallen meteorite starts to alter the area around it and encourages Nic Cage to be himself. A beautiful psychedelic haze met with Evil Dead-level schlock. Some questionable character choices, unnatural dialogue, and Cage sporadically doing what I'd describe as an angry Tarantino impression. Goofy, but fun, bizarre, and uber atmospheric. Given my love for Hardware and Dust Devil, I'm very biased because I want Richard Stanley to do well and make more movies.

Two Lane Blacktop (1971) - rating_3_5
https://i.imgur.com/FO1FFjO.jpg?1
Two drag racers pick up a girl and challenge Warren Oates to a cross-country race. A very good helping of 70s Americana.

"....... I'M NOT INTO THAT."

Charley Varrick (1975) - rating_3_5
https://i.imgur.com/HNd1N2b.jpg?1
Pro thieves hit a small town bank that happens to have mob connections. A cool 70s Don Siegal thriller with Walter Matthau and a characteristically peppy Lalo Shifrin score. I counted at least 4 baritone voices I wish I had.

The Towering Inferno (1974) - rating_2_5
https://i.imgur.com/HRFzeUE.jpg?1
An ensemble of people trying to escape a burning skyscraper for nearly 3 hours. I guess you could say it’s a… forget it.

https://i.imgur.com/rgag3nM.png?1
I doubt this could have been made elsewhere. Only we Americans understand that the best way to extinguish a fire is to blow a bunch of sh*t up.

cricket

02-01-20, 10:15 AM

January, 2020 movies watched-

The Ballad of Buster Scruggs (2018) 3.5- Not my type but it was really good.

Midsommar (2019) 2.5+ It really leveled off after a very promising start.

The Last Sunset (1961) 3 Pretty good from the westerns list.

The Magnificent Seven (1960) Repeat 3.5 A terrific remake even if it pales in comparison to The Seven Samurai.

Heaven's Gate (1980) 3+ Good movie that had to be great to be successful.

Day of Anger (1967) 3.5 Outstanding spaghetti western.

Joker (2019) 4+ Funniest movie since The Hangover.

The Proposition (2005) 2.5 Brutal Australian western that turned out average.

In the Realm of the Senses (1976) 1.5 Nauseating and boring.

The Quick and the Dead (1995) 3 Good cast and entertaining enough.

The Manson Family (1997) 3 Sick and crazy.

The Hunting Party (1971) 3 Great story, should be remade.

Total January viewings-12

Monkeypunch

02-22-20, 07:49 PM

Preparing for my directorial debut in May, I decided to revisit the films of my greatest influence:

Blazing Saddles - Mel Brooks' most scathing film, a relentless satire on racism and Western movies. He honestly thought his career would be over once the film was released, but he stood by it all the same and it was the biggest hit of the year it came out, and Madeline Kahn's supporting role won her an Oscar nomination. 5

High Anxiety - A funny but admittedly lesser Mel Brooks effort, this parody of Alfred Hitchcock's filmography has some really big laughs and just as many groans and lulls. Mel does not really make a great leading man, (Gene Wilder was forced to drop out due to scheduling problems, and this film would go up an entire rating if he'd done it, to be honest) and the film banks so much on his meager acting skills that it just sits there when it should be hilarious. Still, there's a few highlights. Madeline Kahn again as a ditzy Hitchcock heroine, and Harvey Korman as an unscrupulous psychiatrist get some laughs, even as the plot lets them down by making zero sense. That's the thing about Mel Brooks, even his most ridiculous parodies had real plots that people could follow and care about. This one not so much. Also it's filmed rather lifelessly, like a mid seventies TV movie, and Mel is a much better director than that. 3

cricket

02-29-20, 08:14 PM

February, 2020 movies watched-

Cat Ballou (1965) Repeat Viewing 3+ Worth seeing just for Lee Marvin.

Open Range (2003) 3.5+ A big surprise and a contender for my westerns list.

The Scalphunters (1968) 3 A lot of good but a little uneven.

Terror in a Texas Town (1958) 3.5- From the current westerns list, this one has a noirish feel.

Cheyenne Autumn (1964) 3 It didn't exactly keep me glued to the screen but it's a very well put together film.

Hustlers (2019) 1.5 Pretty much a total dud.

Meek's Cutoff (2010) 3.5 An aggravating ending but mostly terrific.

Keoma (1976) 3+ Good grimy spaghetti with Franco Nero.

How the West was Won (1962) 2.5 An incredible cast but nothing that'll stay with me.

February viewings-9
Total 2020 viewings-21

donniedarko

03-04-20, 07:42 PM

Since August 2019:
Parasite- 4-
Joker- 3+
Jesus is King- 2.5-
Vice- - 1.5

John-Connor

03-05-20, 06:51 AM

First time viewings + Re-watches December, January, February

61114

_
3 My Darling Clementine 1946 Directed by John Ford
3 Death Rides a Horse 1967 ‘Da uomo a uomo’ Directed by Giulio Petroni
3 Companeros 1970 ‘Vamos a matar, compañeros’ Directed by Sergio Corbucci
3 Queen & Slim 2019 Directed by Melina Matsoukas

_
3.5 Hombre 1967 Directed by Martin Ritt
3.5 Uncle Buck 1989 Directed by John Hughes
3.5 The Proposition 2005 Directed by John Hillcoat
3.5 Kubo and the Two Strings 2016 Directed by Travis Knight
3.5 Hostiles 2017 Directed by Scott Cooper
3.5 Honey Boy 2019 Directed by Alma Har’el
3.5 Marriage Story 2019 Directed by Noah Baumbach
3.5 1917 2019 Directed by Sam Mendes

_
3.5+ Bad Day at Black Rock 1955 Directed by John Sturges
3.5+ 3:10 to Yuma 1957 Directed by Delmer Daves
3.5+ Blast of Silence 1961 Directed by Allen Baron
3.5+ The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance 1962 Directed by John Ford
3.5+ A Bullet for the General 1966 ‘Quién sabe?’ Directed by Damiano Damiani
3.5+ El Dorado 1967 Directed by Howard Hawks
3.5+ A Fistful of Dynamite 1971 ‘Giù la testa’ Directed by Sergio Leone
3.5+ Sleuth 1972 Directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz
3.5+ St. Elmo’s Fire 1985 Directed by Joel Schumacher
3.5+ Out of the Furnace 2013 Directed by Scott Cooper
3.5+ The Last Black Man in San Francisco 2019 Directed by Joe Talbot
3.5+ Dark Waters 2019 Directed by Todd Haynes
3.5+ Richard Jewell 2019 Directed by Clint Eastwood

_
4- The Lost Weekend 1945 Directed by Billy Wilder
4- The Killers 1946 Directed by Robert Siodmak
4- Night and the City 1950 Directed by Jules Dassin
4- Last Train from Gun Hill 1959 Directed by John Sturges
4- Good Time 2017 Directed by Josh Safdie, Benny Safdie
4- Ford v Ferrari 2019 Directed by James Mangold

_
4 Murder, My Sweet 1944 Directed by Edward Dmytryk
4 Dark Passage 1947 Directed by Delmer Daves
4 Devil in a Blue Dress 1995 Directed by Carl Franklin
4 The Peanut Butter Falcon 2019 Directed by Tyler Nilson, Michael Schwartz
4 Dolemite Is My Name 2019 Directed by Craig Brewer
4 Joker 2019 Directed by Todd Phillips
4 Jojo Rabbit 2019 Directed by Taika Waititi

_
4+ Winchester ’73 1950 Directed by Anthony Mann
4+ The Hill 1965 Directed by Sidney Lumet
4+ The Sword of Doom 1966 ‘大菩薩峠’ Directed by Kihachi Okamoto
4+ Paper Moon 1973 Directed by Peter Bogdanovich
4+ Badlands 1973 Directed by Terrence Malick
4+ Dead Man 1995 Directed by Jim Jarmusch
4+ The Man Who Wasn’t There 2001 Directed by Joel Coen
4+ Uncut Gems 2019 Directed by Josh Safdie, Benny Safdie
4+ The Irishman 2019 Directed by Martin Scorsese

_
4.5 The Gunfighter 1950 Directed by Henry King
4.5 The Big Country 1958 Directed by William Wyler
4.5 Samurai Rebellion 1967 ‘上意討ち拝領妻始末’ Directed by Masaki Kobayashi
4.5 Piper 2016 Directed by Alan Barillaro
4.5 Knives Out 2019 Directed by Rian Johnson

cricket

03-31-20, 09:39 PM

March, 2020 movies watched-

The Tree of Life (2011) 3.5 A lot of great things but at least to me there were times it got in over it's head.

The Lighthouse (2019) 3.5 Genuinely creepy and it looks great.

Last Train from Gun Hill (1959) 3.5 Very enjoyable western thanks to Kirk Douglas and Anthony Quinn.

Parasite (2019) 4 The funniest Asian movie I've seen.

Gandhi (1982) 4.5- Amazing portrayal of an amazing man.

The Big Gundown (1966) 3.5 A great month going with all very good movies. This time it's spaghetti with Lee Van Cleef.

Babel (2006) 4.5 A new favorite and an excellent companion piece to Amores Perros.

My Best Friend (1999) 3.5- Werner Herzog documentary about his relationship with Klaus Kinski.

Jojo Rabbit (2019) 2.5 A fine film that's too whimsical for my taste.

Four of the Apocalypse (1975) 2- One of the westerns I was most looking forward to-fail!

My Left Foot (1989) 4 More entertaining and moving than expected.

Snowpiercer (2013) 2.5 Not quite for me, but not bad and worth watching.

March viewings-12
2020 viewings-33

neiba

04-01-20, 05:11 PM

Just realized my last post here was exactly 3 years ago...

March 2020

McCabe & Mrs. Miller (1971) 3 +
Bone Tomahawk (2015) 3 -
The Abyss (1989) 2.5
Platoon (1986) 4 -
Red River (1948) 2.5 +
Things to Come (1936) 2.5 -
Spenser Confidential (2020) 2.5 +
Parasite (2019) 4 +
Patton (1970) 4 -
American Made (2017) 2.5 +
Mission Impossible 2 (2000) rewatch 2.5
Mission Impossible 3 (2006) 2.5 +
The Amazing Spider Man (2012) 2 -
The Princess Bride (1987) 2.5 +
Mission Impossible 4 (2011) 3
Mission Impossible 5 (2015) 3.5
Mission Impossible 6 (2018) 4
The Scalphunters (1968)2 -
Sunshine (2007) 2
Jack Reacher (2012) 2.5 -
Naked Lunch (1991) 2.5 -
Secrets & Lies (1996) 4 -
Inglorious Basterds (2009) rewatch 4+
The Platform (2019) 3 +
The Gentlemen (2019) 3.5
My Neighbour Totoro (1988) 3
Rango (2011) rewatch 3 -

Month Count: 27
Year Count: 47

re93animator

04-26-20, 01:58 PM

The Tale of Zatoichi (1962) (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0056714/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_1) - rating_3
A blind swordsman with abnormally heightened senses gets mixed up in a clan rivalry.

If Zatoichi were alive today, I think he would have a youtube channel full of clickbait titles. BLIND JAPANESE MAN WITH AMAZING SWORDSMANSHIP SHOCKS PASSERSBY

The Eel (1997) (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0120408/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0) - rating_4
Years after murdering his adulterous wife, an emotionally detached man attempts to start a new life post-improsonment. There's a great cast of eccentrics, and a tone that ranges from dismal and sad to dryly funny.

Parasite (2019) (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt6751668/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0) - rating_3_5
A smart, desperate poor family cons their way into the employ of an extremely gullible rich family. Very entertaining and unpredictable story with a lot of clever comedy and Hitchcockian tension.

The Blind Swordsman: Zatoichi (2003) (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0363226/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0) - rating_4_5
Very unorthodox storytelling. It feels clunky, but in a good way; unusual and largely unpredictable. It's far from perfect, but I doubt something this free-spirited was at all interested in being a cohesive tale. It seems more about flexing the creative personality behind the tale, and telling its story in a way that no others would. I was expecting a dry and serious attempt to be 'badass,' but ended up laughing more than I have at a movie in a long time. The rhythmic stick fighting instructional killed me. A new favorite.

Black Rain (1989) (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0096933/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0) - rating_2_5
Two NYPD cops botch transporting a wanted Yakuza member back to Japan, and must treat every member of the Japanese police like they're stuck-up bureaucrats that just don't understand real bloody-knuckled policework. The Japanese-New York cop dichotomy is embarrassing to watch at first (especially when Andy Garcia partakes in nightclub karaoke to loosen up his new partner), but it has a great dark & steamy late-80s vibe with exactly the kind of airy percussion & Eastern plucky score you'd expect.

John-Connor

04-28-20, 04:04 PM

First time viewings + Re-watches March

63779

_
2.5 Tom Horn 1980 Directed by William Wiard
2.5 Clue 1985 Directed by Jonathan Lynn

_
3 Johnny Guitar 1954 Directed by Nicholas Ray
3 Day of Anger 1967 ‘I giorni dell'ira’ Directed by Tonino Valerii
3 Shane 1953 Directed by George Stevens

_
3.5 Viva Zapata! 1952 Directed by Elia Kazan
3.5 Seven Men from Now 1956 Directed by Budd Boetticher
3.5 The Tall T 1957 Directed by Budd Boetticher
3.5 Gunfight at the O.K. Corral 1957 Directed by John Sturges
3.5 The Professionals 1966 Directed by Richard Brooks
3.5 Face to Face 1967 ‘Faccia a faccia’ Directed by Sergio Sollima
3.5 They Call Me Trinity 1970 ‘Lo chiamavano Trinità...’ Directed by Enzo Barboni
3.5 The Missouri Breaks 1976 Directed by Arthur Penn
3.5 The Shootist 1976 Directed by Don Siegel
3.5 Miracle Mile 1988 Directed by Steve De Jarnatt
3.5 Unedited Footage of a Bear 2014 Directed by Alan Resnick, Ben O’Brien
3.5 Triple Frontier 2019 Directed by J.C. Chandor
3.5 Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker 2019 Directed by J.J. Abrams
3.5 Rambo: Last Blood 2019 Directed by Adrian Grunberg
3.5 Bad Boys for Life 2020 Directed by Adil El Arbi, Bilall Fallah

_
3.5+ The 39 Steps 1935 Directed by Alfred Hitchcock
3.5+ Ride Lonesome 1959 Directed by Budd Boetticher

_
4 Kiss Me Deadly 1955 Directed by Robert Aldrich
4 Little Big Man 1970 Directed by Arthur Penn
4 The Good, The Bad, The Weird 2008 ‘좋은 놈, 나쁜 놈, 이상한 놈’ Directed by Kim Jee-woon

_
4+ The Roaring Twenties 1939 Directed by Raoul Walsh
4+ My Name Is Nobody 1973 ‘Il mio nome è Nessuno’ Directed by Tonino Valerii
4+ Pat Garrett & Billy the Kid 1973 Directed by Sam Peckinpah
4+ The Gentlemen 2019 Directed by Guy Ritchie
_
4.5 The Straight Story 1999 Directed by David Lynch

neiba

05-01-20, 04:13 PM

April 2020

Je vous salue, Sarajevo (1993) 3
World of Tomorrow (2015) 3 +
A Knight's Tale (2001) rewatch 3 -
Star Trek Beyond (2016) 2 -
Talking Funny (2011) 3.5
Django (1966) rewatch 4 -
Un uomo, un cavallo, una pistola (1967) 2
E Dio disse a Caino (1970) 3 -
Once Upon a Time in the West (1968) 4.5
The Conjuring (2013) 2.5 -
Meek's Cutoff (2010) 2.5
The Grey Fox (1982) 3 -
Dirty Little Billy (1972) 3 -
Errementari (2017) 1
Murder, my sweet (1944) 4 +

Month Count: 15
Year Count: 62

cricket

05-01-20, 07:04 PM

April, 2020 movies watched-

Hotel Rwanda (2004) 3 Too much that's average to make it a great movie but it's an incredible true story.

Winchester '73 (1950) Repeat 3.5 I don't know how I couldn't see how good this was the first time.

The Searchers (1956) Repeat 5 All these years I went around saying I didn't like this movie. Unbelievable.

Dirty Little Billy (1972) 3+ A grungy look at the early life of Billy the Kid.

Lilo & Stitch (2002) 3.5 Very funny and I loved the characters.

The Furies (1950) 3.5+ Barbara Stanwyck and Walter Huston kill it in this melodramatic western.

Vera Cruz (1954) 3.5- Entertaining as Gary Cooper and Burt Lancaster work well together.

Duck, You Sucker! (1971) 3.5 2 1/2 hours worth of killing and explosions.

High Plains Drifter (1973) Repeat 3 Good, but not as good as I remembered.

The Outlaw Josey Wales (1976) Repeat 3.5 Great action, characters, and one-liners.

The Dark Valley (2014) 3.5- Grim and violent western.

Run of the Arrow (1957) 2.5 Dated but not a bad watch.

The Good, the Bad, the Weird (2008) 3.5 Doesn't even suit my taste but it's still a lot of fun.

The Hangman (1959) 3.5 No action, no bad guys, all good.

Stagecoach (1939) Repeat 3 Better for me the 2nd time around but it looks like I'll need a 3rd.

Voyage to Agatis (2010) 3 An extreme film that I thought was good for it's intended audience only.

April viewings-16
2020 viewings-49

MovieMeditation

05-01-20, 07:58 PM

The Searchers (1956) Repeat 5 All these years I went around saying I didn't like this movie. Unbelievable.
I’d be damned.

Maybe one day I will like it too. Oh no.

Captain Spaulding

05-08-20, 02:40 AM

re93animator

05-08-20, 12:02 PM

Any plans to continue with the series?

I've seen the first twelve Zatoichi movies, and yet I'm not even halfway through the series. :eek: It's remarkable that they were able to churn out multiple films a year for a decade plus and yet maintain such a consistent level of quality. Only problem for me is that the basic template is the same for nearly every film, so at this point they've all blurred together in my memory. I keep returning to the series just for Shintaro Katsu's portrayal of the blind swordsman/masseuse -- charming and self-deprecating one moment, then in a flash he's stabbed six Yakuza to death with his cane. I'm surprised his eyes didn't end up permanently stuck in the back of his head from all the times he played the character.

I'll probably watch more eventually. Zatoichi Meets Yojimbo peaks my interest, as well as the '89 one. I did like Katsu in the role. Do you have any particular recommendations, despite them blurring together?

Captain Spaulding

05-11-20, 02:57 AM

I'll probably watch more eventually. Zatoichi Meets Yojimbo peaks my interest, as well as the '89 one. I did like Katsu in the role. Do you have any particular recommendations, despite them blurring together?

Fight, Zatoichi, Fight -- #8 in the series -- is my favorite so far. The blind swordsman finds himself responsible for the well-being of a newborn. Sounds like it'd be very comical (and there's certainly some humor, like Zatoichi offering his nipple for the child to nurse), but overall it's quite poignant and melancholic. More than any other entry I've seen to this point, I feel like #8 provides the most depth for the titular character.

donniedarko

05-26-20, 04:03 PM

https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5c26813d31d4df8c923922ec/5c26885888251b49965c78eb/5c268ecfdc3f5c482377d46e/1572808505611/maxresdefault.jpg?format=1000w

Recent Viewings:
(Rewatch) A Serious Man ( Coen, 2009)- 4+
Uncut Gems (Safdie, 2019)- 4-
Truman Show (Weir, 1998)- 3.5

Skepsis93

05-31-20, 09:05 AM

Been a while since I did this :eek:

This isn't everything I've seen, just a selection.

Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood (Tarantino, 2019) 4+
La Grande Illusion (Renoir, 1937) 4
Senna (Kapadia, 2010) 3.5+
Lady Bird (Gerwig, 2017) 4+
Green Book (Farrelly, 2018) 3.5-
The Hustle (Addison, 2019) 1.5
The Fugitive (Davis, 1993) 3.5
Jojo Rabbit (Waititi, 2019) 4
Avengers: Endgame (Russos, 2019) 4+
Men in Black: International (Gray, 2019) 1.5-
Mary Poppins Returns (Marshall, 2018) 3.5-
Zootropolis (Howard, Moore & Bush, 2016) 2.5+
Captain Marvel (Boden & Fleck, 2019) 2.5-
Knives Out (Johnson, 2019) 4
A Quiet Place (Krasinski, 2018) 3.5
Doctor Strange (Derrickson, 2016) 3.5
The Theory of Everything (Marsh, 2014) 4
Moana (Clements, Musker, Hall & Williams, 2016) 3.5
Rocketman (Fletcher, 2019) 3.5+
Justice League (Snyder, 2017) 1
Dunkirk (Nolan, 2017) 4
Thor: Ragnarok (Waititi, 2017) 4
Guardians of the Galaxy: Vol. 2 (Gunn, 2017) 4
Spider-Man: Homecoming (Watts, 2017) 3.5-
Spider-Man: Far from Home (Watts, 2019) 3.5
Black Panther (Coogler, 2018) 3.5
21 Bridges (Kirk, 2019) 2.5
Aquaman (Wan, 2018) 1.5-
Ready Player One (Spielberg, 2018) 2.5
Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle (Kasdan, 2017) 4.5
Jumanji: The Next Level (Kasdan, 2019) 3.5
Godzilla: King of the Monsters (Dougherty, 2019) 2

cricket

06-01-20, 06:39 PM

May, 2020 movies watched-

Devil's Doorway (1950) 3+ A good western that was more sad than anything else.

The Player (1992) 4.5 Was never even interested in seeing this and I thought it was brilliant.

Hannie Caulder (1971) 3.5- Not sure how good it really is but I liked it a lot.

Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia (1974) Repeat 4+ Hard to believe I thought it was average the 1st time when it suits me so well.

Tears of the Black Tiger (2000) 3.5 Thai film from the westerns list that's very different.

There Was a Crooked Man (1970) 3.5 Uneven, but very entertaining with a great cast.

The Spanish Chainsaw Massacre (2017) 1 Plenty sick but too amateurish to be effective.

The Wild Bunch (1969) Repeat 4.5 I don't know if it's the best western but to me it's the baddest.

Les Miserables (1935) 5 Not too shabby for a blind watch. I watched it twice.

The Purple Rose of Cairo (1985) 3+ Hard not to like even though it's not my style.

Predestination (2014) 4 The best mind blower I've seen since Kill List.

Debris Documentar (2003) 2.5 Something must be wrong with me for even watching this.

The Ballad of Cable Hogue (1970) 3.5+ In a way, it's the most impressed I've been with director Sam Peckinpah.

Female Prisoner #701: Scorpion (1972) 3.5 The best women in prison film I've seen.

My Name is Nobody (1973) 3 Occasionally the quirk is too much for me but it's a good movie.

May viewings-15
2020-64

re93animator

06-24-20, 07:09 AM

Kiss of the Dragon (2001) - rating_2
Jet Li beats everyone at rock paper scissors by always choosing paper.

Fight Zatoichi Fight (1964) - rating_3_5
Zatoichi attempts to keep a baby away from sharp objects. Rural Japan is much more photogenic than in the first movie, and sword waving takes a backseat to a stronger dramatic story (save for some unfortunate potty humor).
https://i.imgur.com/mmzlqQr.png?1
https://i.imgur.com/l6LFGsg.png?1
https://i.imgur.com/9kFN59Q.png?1

The Art of Self Defense (2019) - rating_3
A dark comedy about an insecure young man seeking empowerment at a karate dojo after being mugged. It's Kaurismaki-level deadpan; little to no music, asperger dialogue, and unemotive characters. That may alienate many expecting something more quirky going by the trailer. It's full of silly, relatable martial arts gym cliches and in it's odd way, points out problems with some martial arts schools (such as cult-like gym loyalty, abusive instructors, and over-emphasizing ranks).
https://i.imgur.com/i9Ko2m6.png?1
https://i.imgur.com/ejEVgqR.png?1

Images (1972) - rating_2_5
A married woman travels to the countryside to unwind, but is met with worsening hallucinations that prey on guilt and fear. It's a well-made descent into madness that tries to blur the line between reality and the lead's delirium.

Virus (1999) - rating_2
Several caricatures with questionable accents board a big boat infested with the contents of Shinya Tsukamoto's dumpster. It's a high-budget b-movie. Aliens on a ship. An hour and a half cliche. Every character needs to be described in one brief sentence or less. It's silly, but not altogether boring.
https://i.imgur.com/gaaB0g4.png?1

God Told Me To (1976) - rating_3_5
Random well-to-do citizens start going on murder-sprees claiming that God told them to. The story starts as a sort of crime drama, and progressively gets more unusual. I'm glad it took outlandish risks, and didn't stay in safe pedestrian thriller territory.
https://i.imgur.com/7qE8grv.png?1

Hrafninn flygur / When the Raven Flies (1984) - rating_3_5
Viking Yojimbo seeks retribution for his murdered family via cunning plan. The setting feels very authentic with grimy costumes & dwellings, beautiful establishing shots, and less than beautiful humans. Then there's a cool but repetitive prog rock soundtrack.
https://i.imgur.com/r7HTIHf.png?1
https://i.imgur.com/Mz4AqC4.png?1
https://i.imgur.com/EM1mYtc.png?1
https://i.imgur.com/w96TsrZ.png?1

Thank you to Captain Spaulding and Wine cellar Joe for the recommendations! 😊

cricket

07-01-20, 09:14 AM

June, 2020 movies watched-

Queen & Slim (2019) 3+ A good movie though not particularly memorable.

The Sons of Katie Elder (1965) 3.5- Much better than expected.

Uncut Gems (2019) 4+ Me loving this movie was very predictable.

The Art of Racing in the Rain (2019) 4 Doggie bring tears.

Slow West (2015) 3.5 Nice tight western with an ending that made a difference.

Paris, Texas (1984) 4 A great movie but I didn't take it as the masterpiece I had hoped for.

Mid90's (2018) 3.5 Authentic and funny coming of age film.

Female Prisoner Scorpion: Jailhouse 41 (1972) 3 Good but not as good as the first.

North to Alaska (1960) 2.5 Lighthearted and likable John Wayne movie.

Adam's Apples (2005) 4 One of the best dark comedies I've ever seen.

Geronimo: An American Legend (1993) 2.5 Disappointing given the director and cast.

Female Prisoner Scorpion: Beast Stable (1973) 3.5 On par with the 1st of the series.

Vigilante (1982) Repeat 2.5 Decent trashy fun.

Ran (1985) 4 Amazing spectacle.

Crawl (2019) 2 Cheap thrills.

June viewings-15
2020-79

re93animator

07-18-20, 04:44 AM

The Relic (1997) - rating_3
Police investigate murders in a giant museum loaded with expendable security guards, tacky red herrings, Jurassic Park's security grid, and a monster. It feels like a long X-Files episode with a cinematographer who does his job after just waking up. Cleaning lady with asthma is one of the greatest red herrings I've ever seen. I have nothing sarcastic left to say. It's simple and silly, but actually really fun.
https://i.imgur.com/VmjpJ4Q.png?1

Masters of Horror: Pick Me Up (2006) - rating_3
A bus breaks down in the countryside, and two unassociated serial killers take notice. Every character seems to be mentally impaired, but it has very pretty Pacific Northwest scenery and a good premise.
https://i.imgur.com/KZDG7OU.png?1

Madhouse (1974) - rating_2
As an older horror star returns to his seminal role, people start dying in cinematic fashion. Price and Cushing are always fun to watch, but it's not really comedic or dumb enough to forgive some stretches of logic. It just feels like a quickly pieced together genre cash in.
https://i.imgur.com/jq0AdWz.png?1
https://i.imgur.com/efGqgIe.png?1

The Nanny (1965) - rating_3_5
A 10 year old boy returns home after spending two years in a reform facility, but is wary of the family's trusted houshold nanny. It seems like an evil nanny movie at face value, but turns into something more complex. The dialogue-driven screenplay has some overly-nonchalant reactions to near-death experiences, but is great at building tension out of a frustrating 'boy who cried wolf' scenario. A very good, slow burning thriller and easy rec for anyone.
https://i.imgur.com/AtwvNne.png?1

Brother (2000) - rating_3
A Yakuza member is sent away to Los Angeles and quickly gets involved in a turf war. Another sort of violent ambient crime movie from Takeshi Kitano. Beautiful, pervasive film-noir-ish music, little to no environmental noise, a disturbingly calm reaction to death, and a meditative lead.
https://i.imgur.com/BLg2rz0.png?1

American Perfekt (1997) - rating_4
An idiosyncratic movie about perilous hitchhiking. Characters are borderline Lynchian with oft unnatural dialogue and eccentricities. Not for everyone, but I love this kind of offbeat thriller, and there's plenty of pretty desert scenery to chew on.

White of the Eye (1987) - rating_4
A killer in Tucson is preying on women, and a family man working nearby is questioned by the police. It takes a while to get going. The first half mostly deals with familial development, which may make the second half better, but is a bit of a chore to get through. The two lead performances are outstanding, and unusual in that they're very naturalistic when everything else seems a bit surreal. The visuals are colorful, gritty, and glowing. The music is an odd genre mashing of 80s keyboards, opera music, and western guitars. The first kill scene is so overwhelmingly strange, sensorial, and artistic that it set an unfortunately high bar that the rest of the movie didn't quite live up to, but this is still a very unique killer thriller/familial drama that would appeal to oddball cult-ish tastes. I regret only now exploring Donald Cammell's stuff.

HashtagBrownies

07-20-20, 08:02 PM

Seen in June

Double Indemnity:3.5 I don’t like Billy Wilder as much as everyone else does, but I still enjoy his stuff and this was also good. It's been awhile since I saw a noir.

Ocean’s Eleven:4 A fast-paced heist film with no deaths or much violence, a unique take that makes for a easy and fun film to watch with the family.

Inside Llewyn Davis:4- A great drama from the Coen’s about the desire for your art to get noticed in this massive world. I liked that ‘Clancy Brothers’ cameo.

The curious Case of Benjamin Button:3.5 I really have no insightful commentary into this other than that I liked it.

Shiraz: A Romance of India:3 Saw this as part of the We Are One Film Festival. Nice to see a part of cinema history I haven’t heard much about. Not much more comment other than the scene of them trying to execute the main character with an elephant’s foot was unintentionally funny.

A Chump at Oxford:4Even if some jokes drag on for too long, it’s still another hilarious escapade from possibly my favourite comedy duo.

Friday:3.5- This film could legitimately be a stage play considering most of the action takes place on the main characters front yard. One of those comedies that may not be laugh-out-loud but its lightheartedness and characters make for a worthwhile viewing.

Bunny Lake is Missing:3.5+ For the most part I just saw this as an average thriller with great lighting. The last 20 minutes however are so unexpected though and make the characters we thought we knew so much more interesting that it immediately improved the film for me. Once again Preminger is telling taboo stories that challenged Hollywood when they were released.

Parasite:4RE-WATCH I think a lot of the appeal of Parasite was the unexpected and shocking moments. On a second watch I can then have a more nuanced look at it. Even if it gets a bit over the top in the second half it’s a very well written thriller with great characters.

Popstar, Never Stop Never stopping:3.5 A humorous take on musicians and the music industry.

Carefree:3 The dancing and some of the comedy is all great and dandy, apart from that it didn’t leave much of an impression on me (Loved the Hattie McDaniel cameo however). I’ll have to check out more old Hollywood musicals.

Click:3 Felt like something light to watch and this did the trick. The way it takes a more dark tone than other Sandler comedies is pretty interesting, even if the fart and sex jokes get boring after awhile.

The Hangover:3.5+ First time watching what some consider a modern day classic. In comparison to Click you can see just how well written the story, the characters and the jokes are. The sense of adventure and tension adds a lot of fun.

Sleepaway Camp:3 Find it funny how old slasher films are always depicted in media as over the top gore and sex all over the place, when in reality a lot of them are fairly boring and nobody dies until like halfway through the film. The effects range from great to terrible and the tone shifts from horrifically gruesome to incredibly silly very quickly.

I can see why people talk about the ending so much. It's so much better than the rest of the film I’m almost disappointed it wasn’t in a different film; it adds so much more nuance and empathy to the villain of the film.

We’re The Millers:3.5RE-WATCH I saw it with my extended family a long time ago but they really wanted to watch it again so why not? I forgot a lot of the plot points and jokes so it was almost a new experience. Thematically and story-wise it doesn’t leave much of an impact after you see it, but interactions between the (perfectly casted imo) main characters are a giggle a minute.

Highlander:3.5- Cool fantasy tale. I enjoyed the fight scenes and the romance scenes set in the past.

Sophie's Choice:3.5- I know everyone likes to make fun of Meryl Streep these days, but we shouldn’t forget she’s a legitimately great performer. I don’t feel like I got much out of the story of the writer trying to hook up with Sophie, as the flashbacks are so much more interesting by comparison (If it wasn’t for Meryl’s brilliant performance the present day scenes would be fairly mediocre). If the director and writer instead focused on the past scenes I would possibly love the film.

Night of the Living Dead:3? RE-WATCH This is kind a weird film for me. Despite me finding the film kinda boring, I still love it? A 6/10 that I probably like more than most of my 7/10’s if that contradictory statement shows what I mean. The score is haunting and the the character of Ben is almost iconic. These and the classic status of the film make up for some bland performances and the human drama (which personally I didn’t find too interesting after they open the basement).

Dawn of the dead:4RE-WATCH Was worried I wouldn’t like this much on a second watch. Nope. Tom Savini is such a great artist and his gore is so gross but colourful; Personally I thought the grey and blue zombies was a good approach to take in presenting the zombies in this film. Goblin’s score is possibly one of my favourite film scores; It works just fine as an album without the film but it fits perfectly into the film.

(I also watched lots of short films as part of the We Are One film festival, but I’ll post those in a different thread)

neiba

07-25-20, 02:54 PM

May 2020

The Exorcism of Emily Rose (2005) 3
The Rite (2011) 2+
Angel Heart (1987) 2.5+
The Stranger (1946) 3
Bobby Robson: More than a Manager (2018) 3
The Third Man (1949) rewatch 4+
Red Dragon (2002) 3 -
Anastasia (1997) 3.5 -
Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (2001) rewatch 2.5+
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (2002) rewatch 2.5+
Harry Potter and the Prisioner of Azkaban (2004) rewatch 3-
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2005) rewatch 3
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (2007) rewatch 3.5
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (2009) rewatch 3.5
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 (2010) rewatch 3.5+
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 (2011) rewatch 3.5+

Month Count: 16
Year Count: 78

neiba

07-25-20, 03:14 PM

June 2020

The Big Short (2015) 3.5
Crossfire (1947) 2.5-
Double Indemnity (1944) rewatch 3+
L.A. Confidential (1997) rewatch 4
Le Corbeau (1943) 2.5-
Hacksaw Ridge (2016) 3 -
Watchmen (2009) 2-
Ready Player One (2018) 3-
Vice (2018) 3+
Zero Dark Thirty (2012) 3
Trance (2013) 2+
The Asphalt Jungle (1950) rewatch 3-
The Big Heat (1953) rewatch 3.5
Doctor Sleep (2019) 1
Harold and Maude (1971) 2+
Carrie (1976) 3.5
Lucy (2014) 2.5 -
The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001) rewatch 3.5
The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers rewatch (2002) 3-
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King rewatch (2003) 3.5+

Month Count: 20
Year Count: 98

cricket

08-01-20, 12:52 PM

July, 2020 movies watched-

The Hunt (2020) 2.5 An underachiever of a movie but still a very good watch for the right viewer.

Cure (1997) 3.5 Very good Japanese crime/mystery/psychological horror mix.

Ready or Not (2019) 2.5 A reasonably entertaining 90 minutes.

A Bell From Hell (1973) 3 An unsettling European horror that I'm surprised I hadn't heard of before.

Bliss (2019) 3.5- A good movie to watch if you're f***ed up.

Knives Out (2019) 4+ Extremely entertaining.

Images (1972) 3.5 Susannah York is a mental mess, making her even more attractive.

Cash Calls Hell (1966) 3+ Japanese crime film that's probably better than my rating would indicate.

Valerie and Her Week of Wonders (1970) 2.5 Really good for the right audience.

Christiane F. (1981) 5 A complete soul shaker and a big new favorite.

The Golden Glove (2019) 4- A sick movie that's worth it if you have a sick sense of humor.

Richard Jewell (2019) 3.5+ A fairly standard film yet I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Battle of Britain (1969) 2.5 Pretty epic and has a great cast, but I thought too much of it was dull.

The Invisible Man (2020) 4 Way better than expected.

The Burning Moon (1992) 2- Ok German low budget splatter film.

July viewings-15
2020 viewings-94

re93animator

08-08-20, 10:14 AM

Malpertuis (1971) – 3.5
The owner of a fantastical manor is expecting to die soon, and all tenants worry about their inheritance. It’s a dark, semi-surrealistic movie with quite a few odd, incestuous sexual overtones and an attractive antique-fantasy aesthetic. Orson Welles gets the role of a lifetime as Cassavius. Top billing for about 10 minutes of lying in a bed & mumbling.
https://i.imgur.com/K7Ar0O9.png?1
https://i.imgur.com/rBjsuyS.png?1
https://i.imgur.com/IHDBP3N.png?1
https://i.imgur.com/JmSdJ0V.gif

Performance (1970) – 3.5
A strong-armed gangster seeks refuge in an eccentric artist’s home. Therein we see his traditionalist standards confronted by sexual ambiguity & psychedelia. It’s entertaining enough, but some greatness lies within the unusually cut hippie-powered sociological critique that’s both easy to follow, and open for interpretation.
https://i.imgur.com/VinHRRc.png?1

Photographing Fairies (1997) – 4
An early 20th century photographer travels to a small English village to investigate an anomalous photograph. Intriguing, pretty, very well-made, and darker than any classical ‘fairy tale.’ I’m surprised it isn’t held in higher regard. The only real gripe I have is with some questionable character actions/reactions, such as the little girls showing zero grief after tragically losing their mother. What the f*ck?
https://i.imgur.com/YsWwEaI.png?1
https://i.imgur.com/BNVsImS.png?1

Demon Seed (1977) – 2
A woman is trapped in her house with an amoral supercomputer that wants to impregnate her. After seeing White of the Eye, this wasn’t as original or bizarre as I was hoping, but it’s a passable sci-fi thriller.

Mandy (2018) - 3.5
A man goes after a deranged cult that kidnapped his wife. Radical kaleidoscopic cinematography, extreme schlocky violence, and a very dark minimal plot. It'd be hard to find a better model for a love it or hate it movie. The psychedelia doesn't even come close to relenting enough to appeal to more ordinary tastes, but for those that like schlock, arthouse pacing, and a very dark trippy style, this is a gem.
https://i.imgur.com/szFk7w1.png?1
https://i.imgur.com/4PWtGOG.png?1

Timescape (1991) - 3
A man opening up a hotel is visited by several mysterious tenants. It’s hard to say much without spoiling anything. A very entertaining sci-fi movie that feels very of-its-time.

City of the Living Dead (1980) – 2
A Lucio Fulci homage to Lovecraft… with zombies. Very good murky, gory, maggoty, slowly-pushing-someone-towards-a-pointy-thing horror with a cool soundtrack, and laughably bad everything else. Unfortunately, the good elements aren’t able to overshadow the bad until the final act.
https://i.imgur.com/Fe9jYcM.png?1
https://i.imgur.com/3YkSUSu.png?1
https://i.imgur.com/DsLUyzW.png?1
https://i.imgur.com/I9uefv7.png?1
https://i.imgur.com/YGHQCdd.png?1

MonnoM

08-09-20, 08:39 PM

Malpertuis (1971) – rating_3_5
The owner of a fantastical manor is expecting to die soon, and all tenants worry about their inheritance. It’s a dark, semi-surrealistic movie with quite a few odd, incestuous sexual overtones and an attractive antique-fantasy aesthetic. Orson Welles gets the role of a lifetime as Cassavius. Top billing for about 10 minutes of lying in a bed & mumbling.
https://i.imgur.com/K7Ar0O9.png?1
https://i.imgur.com/rBjsuyS.png?1
https://i.imgur.com/IHDBP3N.png?1
https://i.imgur.com/JmSdJ0V.gif

Performance (1970) – rating_3_5
A strong-armed gangster seeks refuge in an eccentric artist’s home. Therein we see his traditionalist standards confronted by sexual ambiguity & psychedelia. It’s entertaining enough, but some greatness lies within the unusually cut hippie-powered sociological critique that’s both easy to follow, and open for interpretation.
https://i.imgur.com/VinHRRc.png?1

Photographing Fairies (1997) – rating_4
An early 20th century photographer travels to a small English village to investigate an anomalous photograph. Intriguing, pretty, very well-made, and darker than any classical ‘fairy tale.’ I’m surprised it isn’t held in higher regard. The only real gripe I have is with some questionable character actions/reactions, such as the little girls showing zero grief after tragically losing their mother. What the f*ck?
https://i.imgur.com/YsWwEaI.png?1
https://i.imgur.com/BNVsImS.png?1

Demon Seed (1977) – rating_2
A woman is trapped in her house with an amoral supercomputer that wants to impregnate her. After seeing White of the Eye, this wasn’t as original or bizarre as I was hoping, but it’s a passable sci-fi thriller.

Mandy (2018) - rating_3_5
A man goes after a deranged cult that kidnapped his wife. Radical kaleidoscopic cinematography, extreme schlocky violence, and a very dark minimal plot. It'd be hard to find a better model for a love it or hate it movie. The psychedelia doesn't even come close to relenting enough to appeal to more ordinary tastes, but for those that like schlock, arthouse pacing, and a very dark trippy style, this is a gem.
https://i.imgur.com/szFk7w1.png?1
https://i.imgur.com/4PWtGOG.png?1

Timescape (1991) - rating_3
A man opening up a hotel is visited by several mysterious tenants. It’s hard to say much without spoiling anything. A very entertaining sci-fi movie that feels very of-its-time.

City of the Living Dead (1980) – rating_2
A Lucio Fulci homage to Lovecraft… with zombies. Very good murky, gory, maggoty, slowly-pushing-someone-towards-a-pointy-thing horror with a cool soundtrack, and laughably bad everything else. Unfortunately, the good elements aren’t able to overshadow the bad until the final act.
https://i.imgur.com/Fe9jYcM.png?1
https://i.imgur.com/3YkSUSu.png?1
https://i.imgur.com/DsLUyzW.png?1
https://i.imgur.com/I9uefv7.png?1
https://i.imgur.com/YGHQCdd.png?1

Is it bad I want to watch Malpertuis solely based on that gif?

I tried watching PF years ago and couldn't finish it because I thought it was unbearably boring. I might give it another shot. Maybe. Probably not, though.

Mandy turned out to be more enjoyable than I was expecting. I really dug the trippy, kaleidoscopic look. I wish more movies implemented it.

City of the Living Dead looks interesting solely from a practical effects perspective...and kittens never disappoint.

re93animator

08-10-20, 08:34 AM

Is it bad I want to watch Malpertuis solely based on that gif?

I tried watching PF years ago and couldn't finish it because I thought it was unbearably boring. I might give it another shot. Maybe. Probably not, though.

Mandy turned out to be more enjoyable than I was expecting. I really dug the trippy, kaleidoscopic look. I wish more movies implemented it.

City of the Living Dead looks interesting solely from a practical effects perspective...and kittens never disappoint.

I highly recommend it if you like dark fantasy/surrealism. A bit proto-Gilliam. I may be underrating it. I’m afraid that gif is the only footage of its kind though. No more shoving impoverished children on crutches.

I was probably in the right mood for PF. I liked the elegant setting, music, & cinematography in the beginning, but I can see how someone would find it boring.

I think Mandy took its visual cue from older Italian horror. Did you see Color Out of Space yet?

It’s a Fulci movie, so the practical effects are really the most fun thing about it apart from a foggy, colorful tomb at the end. But be prepared to see that kitty get flung.

pahaK

08-10-20, 09:23 AM

City of the Living Dead looks interesting solely from a practical effects perspective...and kittens never disappoint.

Don't believe in that blasphemous two popcorn rating :D It's a solid 4 film.

Sedai

08-10-20, 11:35 AM

Checked out a couple of decent films this weekend.

Cargo (Space is Cold)
(Engler, 2009)

3_5

https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/S/sgp-catalog-images/region_US/iglzg-TEBC6C11Y85-Full-Image_GalleryBackground-en-US-1553098892914._SX1080_.jpg

It's rare these days to find a totally original sci-fi film. If that is what you are looking for, well, Cargo will not qualify. ;) That said, even though it's somewhat derivative, 2009's German-made Cargo is well worth a watch. Atmospheric and well made, I found it quite entertaining. I including the sometime-not-used addition to the tile of the film, as there are several films that share the name.

Triangle
Smith, 2009

3

https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-HekIhorkrdk/U2f95vrkMcI/AAAAAAAAEb8/qhaZXW9gzlA/w1200-h630-p-nu/triangle.jpg

While clearly borrowing from the superior Spanish film Timecrimes, Triangle is still a pretty cool flick. First, it stars Melissa George, who is my future ex-wife. Secondly, while Triangle clearly doesn't handle its Schrodinger's cat material as well as Timecrimes, I still give it high marks for its brass balls ending, that pulls exactly zero punches. Sure, the thing has plenty of plot holes, but I still found myself enjoying it as I watched.

MonnoM

08-10-20, 06:00 PM

I highly recommend it if you like dark fantasy/surrealism. A bit proto-Gilliam. I may be underrating it. I’m afraid that gif is the only footage of its kind though. No more shoving impoverished children on crutches.

I was probably in the right mood for PF. I liked the elegant setting, music, & cinematography in the beginning, but I can see how someone would find it boring.

I think Mandy took its visual cue from older Italian horror. Did you see Color Out of Space yet?

It’s a Fulci movie, so the practical effects are really the most fun thing about it apart from a foggy, colorful tomb at the end. But be prepared to see that kitty get flung.

I'll add it to my queue. :D

I haven't seen Color Out of Space yet, but I plan on it very soon.

"But be prepared to see that kitty get flung." Not cool. :mrt:

neiba

08-11-20, 03:51 PM

July 2020

http://br.web.img2.acsta.net/r_1920_1080/medias/nmedia/18/65/04/64/18968099.jpg

The Hateful Eight (2015) rewatch 3.5 -
Fitzcarraldo (1982) 3 -
Bicycle Thieves (1948) 3.5
Millennium Actress (2001) 2
Rio Bravo (1959) 4+
Elevator to the Gallows (1958) 3
The Battle of Algiers (1966)3.5
Mildred Pierce (1945) 3+
Last Picture Show (1971) 3.5-
Blue Ruin (2013) 3
Rules of Engagement (2000) 2.5 +
Waco: The Rules of Engagement (1997) 2.5 -
State of Siege (1972) 4
Shine (1996) 4-
Dronningen (2019) 3.5+
Joker (2019) rewatch 2.5+
Miss Violence (2013) 3+
The Secret in Their Eyes (2009) 4
The Nice Guys (2016) 2.5+
Mr. and Mrs. Smith (2005) 2.5+
Ferris Bueller's Day Off (1986) 2
The Old Guard (2020) 2+

Month Count: 22
Year Count: 120

meatwadsprite

08-19-20, 01:47 AM

Lost Highway
1997

Creepy and atmospheric in the first half, then morphs into the goofiest **** ever in the second half. Feels like the demo run for Mulholland Drive. The acting/dialogue here is god-like compared to the new Twin Peaks episodes.

Boys State
2020

High school nerds employ real tactics to win their faux election. Worth signing up for Apple TV free trial. Just remember to cancel your subscription afterwards.

Strangers on a Train
1951

Robert Walker is incredible here, it's a shame he died a year later.

Ran
1985

Strong first half capped off by one of the best battle scenes i've ever seen. Meandering second half that refuses to end.

Under the Skin
2014

Coherent David Lynch fan film propped up by sci-fi cliches.

The Maltese Falcon
1941

Bogart has to find a Falcon made out of chocolate for a collector.

The Assistant
2020

Mostly going for super-realism but then decides that being a movie is more entertaining.

Sonic the Hedgehog
2020

Close call between this and the Mario movie.

Suspiria
2018

Very serious Dragonball Z art movie. One of the dumbest films yet to come out.

Throne of Blood
1957

Frustrating because it's not perfect. An incredible story that is hampered by some barely realized characters. A brilliant mashup of Shakespeare, samurai, and demonic horror filled to the brim with memorable imagery and scenes.

Probably one of the bigger influences on The Shining, along with The Haunting and Eraserhead.

Sunset Boulevard
1950

The real deal.

re93animator

08-22-20, 06:21 PM

The Arrival (1996) – 3
An astronomer is promptly fired after receiving a mysterious space transmission, which tingles his tin foil. It’s dumb Hollywood adventure sci-fi that takes a baton from the X-Files. Characters and actions are often cartoonish. Charlie Sheen goes from zero to 2011 within the first 20 minutes. The movie actually gets really fun around the halfway mark, but overstays its welcome and ends on a generic note.
https://i.imgur.com/PVmZ9U6.png?1

If It’s Tuesday, This Must Be Belgium (1969) – 2.5
A comedy about a group of American tourists on a hurried bus tour through Western Europe. Unfortunately, the closest thing we get to a central story is the least entertaining subplot of the movie, but the ‘character’ tourists with forced quirks are hilarious.

Diabel (1972) – 4
What happens when you give your actors Shakespearean material and an endless supply of cocaine?
https://i.imgur.com/7AQky5e.gif

The Stunt Man (1980) – 3
A man on the run from the police stumbles onto a movie set overseen by a power-crazy director. This is carried by quick, clever dialogue and superior acting from an Altman-esque cast. Then there are impressive stunt scenes within stunt scenes within stunt scenes. A little humor, a little tension, a little drama.
https://i.imgur.com/l36997j.png?1

The Blood of a Poet (1933) – 3.5
A young man experiences surreal goings-on that include his hand developing a mouth, a hotel with an uncertain gravitational pull, and a living statue. Then schoolboys get into a dangerous snowball fight. Like most classic surrealism, hidden meanings are elusive (if they’re there at all), leaving the mind plenty of room to wander.
https://i.imgur.com/kb65bxS.png?1
https://i.imgur.com/673mPBZ.png?1

The Dunwich Horror (1970) – 2.5
An out of town girl is charmed by a locally shunned young man that lives in a creepy old manor with his gramps. Campy acting, on the nose dialogue, and an enjoyably groovy but cartoonish Les Baxter score make it impossible to take anything here seriously, but it is admirably artistic. *sniffs wine The aesthetic recalls Corman’s colorful Poe films with a dash of Scooby Doo. It’s still possible to have some fun with properly tuned expectations.
https://i.imgur.com/BND7s8B.png?1
https://i.imgur.com/uRp3xN1.png?1
https://i.imgur.com/gzl8JIN.gif

Depraved (2019) – 3
A modern-day Frankenstein story with pessimistic commentary about human nature. Henry, the ‘creator,’ comes across as a bit too normal for a guy that wants to splice together corpses. I like a bit of sensationalism here. The rest of the cast is irritating at times (often by intention), but largely believable. The movie has a decent look with a yellow & green color scheme, is set almost entirely at night or in a derelict warehouse, and flirts with stop motion and psychedelic CG effects.

I only watched this because Larry Fessenden was in the chair. I liked Fessenden’s movies a lot around 10-15 years ago, but he lost me after Beneath (a low-brow deviant amidst his pretty original filmography). I’m glad that he’s at least exercising his tried and true style here: psychological drama disguised as horror. That is until the last half hour, wherein the movie turns into an implausible, hastily edited mess. Maybe I’m being a little generous because I’m rooting for Fessenden to continue making movies in his pretty unique style.
https://i.imgur.com/6KeFv6S.png?1
https://i.imgur.com/oDLFQyf.png?1

cricket

08-31-20, 10:02 PM

August, 2020 movies watched-

Turkey Shoot (1982) 2 Ok low budget Australian cult film.

Elite Squad: The Enemy Within (2010) 3.5+ A step down from the first but still a terrific crime film.

Submarine (2010) 3.5 Excellent coming of age story set in Wales.

Compulsion (1959) 3.5 I liked it more before it got to the courtroom despite the entrance of Orson Welles.

Schindler's List (1993) Repeat 5 As great as it is, I still don't think of it as a personal favorite.

Capernaum (2018) 4.5- Nominated for best foreign film, it should have won best picture.

JoJo Rabbit (2019) Repeat 2.5+ A good quality movie that I just don't care for.

JoJo Rabbit (2019) Repeat 4 3rd times a charm.

Never Rarely Sometimes Always (2020) 3 I thought it did well for an average at best story.

Yellow Submarine (1968) Repeat 2.5 It's a good thing I love The Beatles.

Late Spring (1949) Repeat 4- Less impactful than my 1st time but still one of my favorites from director Ozu.

Long Weekend (1978) 2+ Not good enough to make up for the lack of excitement.

August viewings-12
2020 viewings-106

meatwadsprite

09-10-20, 04:15 AM

Bad Times at the El Royale
2018

Tarantino fan film starts off promising but gets less interesting as the mystery is sucked out.

The Lady Vanishes
1938

The perfect movie to watch in a hospital at 5:00 in the morning.

Rebecca
1940

Hitchcock winning best picture for this is like if Scorsese won best picture for The Departed.

Dracula
1931

Dracula shows up at some guys house uninvited so they get mad at him and he says that he is an evil vampire then leaves but then comes back which slightly irritates a doctor and he steals a woman to be his dracula wife but he falls asleep during the chase scene so they stab him and he dies.

It Happened One Night
1934

A grumpy guy yells at a woman for an hour so she falls in love with him. More logical than Dracula.

The Wizard of Oz
1939

The tornado in this movie is insane.

It's a Wonderful Life
1946

Way different than it's countless parodies.

Midsommar
2019

Another neat but hollow follow up by a promising horror director to sit alongside El Royale, Under the Silver Lake, and Southland Tales.

Too one dimensional to work as a break up flick. Too predictable to work as a thriller.

All About Eve
1950

A mirror film to Sunset Boulevard which came out the same year. This one won the oscar which means it's not as good. But it's still pretty good.

The Favourite
2018

Surprisingly watchable for the guy who made Dogtooth.

John-Connor

09-11-20, 09:28 AM

It's been a while!

Watched since April:

67756
_
3 The Hollywood Knights 1980 Floyd Mutrux
3 The Patriot 2000 Roland Emmerich
3 The Physician 2013 Philipp Stölzl
3 Ronny Chieng: Asian Comedian Destroys America! 2019 Sebastian DiNatale
3 The Informer 2019 Andrea Di Stefano
3 Project Power 2020 Henry Joost, Ariel Schulman
3 Justice League Dark: Apokolips War 2020 Matt Peters, Christina Sotta
_
3+ Wyatt Earp 1994 Lawrence Kasdan
3+ Reign of Fire 2002 Rob Bowman
3+ Greyhound 2020 Aaron Schneider
_
3.5 The General 1926 Buster Keaton, Clyde Bruckman
3.5 All Quiet on the Western Front 1930 Lewis Milestone
3.5 A Place in the Sun 1951 George Stevens
3.5 The Man Who Knew Too Much 1956 Alfred Hitchcock
3.5 The Innocents 1961 Jack Clayton
3.5 Silver Streak 1976 Arthur Hiller
3.5 Blue Collar 1978 Paul Schrader
3.5 Gettysburg 1993 Ronald F. Maxwell
3.5 Ninja Scroll 1993 ‘獣兵衛忍風帖’ Yoshiaki Kawajiri
3.5 The Bandit 1996 ‘Eşkıya’ Yavuz Turgul
3.5 Dear Zachary: A Letter to a Son 2008 Kurt Kuenne
3.5 Centurion 2010 Neil Marshall
3.5 Exodus: Gods and Kings 2014 Ridley Scott
3.5 Jerry Seinfeld: 23 Hours to Kill 2020 Joe DeMaio
3.5 Mulan 2020 Niki Caro
3.5 Bill & Ted Face the Music 2020 Dean Parisot
_
3.5+ Metropolis 1927 Fritz Lang
3.5+ Somewhere in Time 1980 Jeannot Szwarc
3.5+ Diner 1982 Barry Levinson
3.5+ Body Double 1984 Brian De Palma
3.5+ About Last Night… 1986 Edward Zwick
3.5+ Eight Men Out 1988 John Sayles
3.5+ The Way Back 2010 Peter Weir
3.5+ The Social Dilemma 2020 Jeff Orlowski
3.5+ I’m Thinking of Ending Things 2020 Charlie Kaufman
_
4 The Lady Vanishes 1938 Alfred Hitchcock
4 Leave Her to Heaven 1945 John M. Stahl
4 The Cruel Sea 1953 Charles Frend
4 The Enemy Below 1957 Dick Powell
4 A Night to Remember 1958 Roy Ward Baker
4 Z 1969 Costa-Gavras
4 The Mack 1973 Michael Campus
4 Lucky Luciano 1973 Francesco Rosi
4 Dead Man’s Letters 1986 ‘Письма мертвого человека’ Konstantin Lopushansky
4 Matewan 1987 John Sayles
4 Mystery Train 1989 Jim Jarmusch
4 Geronimo: An American Legend 1993 Walter Hill
4 We Were Soldiers 2002 Randall Wallace
4 The New World 2005 Terrence Malick
4 Curse of the Golden Flower 2006 ‘滿城盡帶黃金甲’ Zhang Yimou
4 Bill Burr: I’m Sorry You Feel That Way 2014 Karas Jay
4 Brooklyn 2015 John Crowley
4 Jerry Before Seinfeld 2017 Michael Bonfiglio
4 Adam Sandler: 100% Fresh 2018 Steven Brill
4 Togo 2019 Ericson Core
4 8:46 2020 Dave Chappelle
_
4+ The Human Condition I 1959 ‘人間の條件’ Masaki Kobayashi
4+ The Train 1964 John Frankenheimer
4+ Dressed to Kill 1980 Brian De Palma
4+ Gallipoli 1981 Peter Weir
4+ Never Cry Wolf 1983 Carroll Ballard
4+ Ran 1985 ‘乱’ Akira Kurosawa
4+ The Vanishing 1988 ‘Spoorloos’ Directed by George Sluizer
4+ Bacurau 2019 Kleber Mendonça Filho, Juliano Dornelles
_
4.5 Cat on a Hot Tin Roof 1958 Richard Brooks
4.5 War and Peace 1966 ‘Война и мир’ Sergey Bondarchuk
4.5 Lady Snowblood 1973 ‘修羅雪姫’ Toshiya Fujita
4.5 Inside Moves 1980 Richard Donner

meatwadsprite

09-21-20, 03:59 AM

Bill and Ted Excellent Adventure 3
Bill and Ted Bogus Journey 3
Bill and Ted Face the Music 2

As a big Bill and Ted fan since last week, the new one is lame.

A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood

Half lifetime channel movie, half The Master with Tom Hanks as Mr. Rogers.

2

I'm Thinking of Ending Things

Kaufman running circles around younger filmmakers trying to be surreal. Turning a bleak, mopey, mess of a movie into fine entertainment.

3

Child's Play
(2019)

This would have been a great movie if Chucky wasn't actually evil.

2

His Girl Friday

4

cricket

09-30-20, 09:11 PM

September, 2020 movies watched-

Stand By Me (1986) Repeat 3.5 A mixture of good and nostalgic.

The Great Mouse Detective (1986) 3.5- I think I enjoyed it as much as I could have.

The Skin I Live In (2011) Repeat 4.5 Definitely my kind of movie.

The Fisher King (1991) 3.5 A lot that I loved but not consistent the whole way through.

Le Samourai (1967) Repeat 3.5 There's plenty to like despite my issues with the main character.

The Reflecting Skin (1990) 3- Fairly unsettling and worth a watch.

Hunger (2008) 3.5+ Great performance from Fassbender.

The Mummy (1969) 3 More a very good experience than a movie I really enjoyed.

Rise of the Footsoldier 4: The Heist (2019) 3.5- Big fan of the whole series.

Gangs of New York (2002) 3+ I couldn't take it seriously but I did enjoy myself.

September viewings-10
2020 viewings-116

Chypmunk

10-01-20, 04:48 AM

68183
The one w/o a poster on the second row is Intimate Stranger (2006) (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0836662/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0).

the samoan lawyer

10-01-20, 08:43 AM

https://www.movieforums.com/community/attachment.php?attachmentid=68183
The one w/o a poster on the second row is Intimate Stranger (2006) (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0836662/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0).

Cant see First Cow anywhere there?!

Chypmunk

10-01-20, 08:54 AM

Cant see First Cow anywhere there?!
Darn, I guess I must've forgotten to rate it :(

re93animator

10-11-20, 12:09 PM

I’m Thinking of Ending Things (2020) – 4
A surreal movie about a young woman having doubts about visiting her boyfriend's parents. The plot seems like a canvas for disheartening philosophical diatribes about complacency in relationships, delusional hopefulness, and more. The writing might be too surreal and/or gloomy for many, but I loved the sometimes funny, oft thought-provoking story that (to me) seemed to be about confusion & apprehension that comes with youth.

Under Siege (1992) - 2.5
An 'up to one man to stop them,' 'he's the best there is' action extravaganza, wherein one 'lowly cook' aboard a naval vessel must thwart a disgruntled hippie's violent takeover. Steven Seagal activates all video game action hero perks to nonchalantly tear through highly trained operatives while babysitting a playboy model. Pretty fun, but I started to get bored with the pandemonium in the second half.
https://i.imgur.com/qoSFJAF.png?1

Death in Brunswick (1991) – 3
A hapless man in his mid-30s gets a new job and girlfriend. His life is looking up until a coworker dies in violent fashion. It's a comic-thriller-drama, although not too funny. The comedy comes from OTT characters and quirky, Gilliam-esque cinematography amidst a colorful, trashy setting. The romance is forced and not very likable, but the movie gets better when morbid elements come into play.
https://i.imgur.com/GxihEo6.png?1

A Perfect Getaway (2009) - 3
Killer thriller in the jungle. A gimmicky cast of characters begin to suspect one another when they hear of a killer couple on the loose. There seems to be a subtle yellow-ish post-production filter to add a humid-feeling, but it makes the scenery look less attractive than it should. Despite some audience insulting plot points & red herrings, it's enjoyable. David Twohy is one of my preferred popcorn directors.
https://i.imgur.com/sIIeWtB.png?1
https://i.imgur.com/RyWe7II.png

Matchstick Men (2003) – 3
A professional con artist meets his 14-year-old daughter for the first time. Well made movie. Good acting, writing, camerastuffs, etc., and a fun, OTT, neurotic Nic Cage performance.
“BULLSH*T MON”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tk8biqsC-VI

donniedarko

10-12-20, 05:39 PM

Checked out a couple of decent films this weekend.

Triangle
Smith, 2009

3

https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-HekIhorkrdk/U2f95vrkMcI/AAAAAAAAEb8/qhaZXW9gzlA/w1200-h630-p-nu/triangle.jpg

While clearly borrowing from the superior Spanish film Timecrimes, Triangle is still a pretty cool flick. First, it stars Melissa George, who is my future ex-wife. Secondly, while Triangle clearly doesn't handle its Schrodinger's cat material as well as Timecrimes, I still give it high marks for its brass balls ending, that pulls exactly zero punches. Sure, the thing has plenty of plot holes, but I still found myself enjoying it as I watched.

LOVE, both Triangle and Timecrimes, the latter slightly more

donniedarko

10-13-20, 12:53 AM

Since May

https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/6dac561/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1691x951+0+0/resize/1486x836!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fb5%2F6c%2F1342c2286936ec81928322afef02%2Fla-1562346590-0tnlgzj980-snap-image
Midsommar (Aster, 2019)
Aster is seriously the director to look out for right now, between this and Hereditary he's doing brilliant things. This one is perhaps slightly less lasting but haunting none the less. His cult obsession reminds of of Polanski, as does much of the directorial style. One of the best modern day horrors.
4-

Jojo rabbit (Waititi, 2019)
Hard to remember you're not watching a Wes Anderson film, during this colorful and touching WWII piece. Very human, and well balanced. The final quote really sticks. Probably will rate higher with another viewing
3.5++

American Murder: The Family Next Door (Popplewell, 2020)
This is actually the laziest true crime documentary I have ever wasted my time watching. You will get much more insight off about any amateur Youtube video diving in the case. News collage mixed with facebook posts, no drama, no effort, no intrigue. And it's actually an interesting case, but this was a waste. F*ck Chris Watts, and F*ck this lazy production
1

re93animator

10-31-20, 06:02 PM

Nostalgic Halloween week. Revisiting 80s & 90s movies I haven't seen in many a moon:

The Night Flier (1997) - rating_3
Miguel Ferrer plays the usual sweet, affable, kindhearted, considerate and generous individual who works for a highly reputable tabloid that, in absolutely good faith, puts him on the case of a vampiric serial murderer. Hacky writing and OTT characters, but a comfortable & spooky atmosphere with a big Fulci-esque climax. Also, the movie takes its runtime to build up the big face reveal of the villain, so you can thank the marketing team for putting it on the poster.
https://i.imgur.com/sztVOFt.png?1

Deep Rising (1998) - rating_3
A group of ruffians board an ostentatious cruise ship intending to rob it, but are foiled by the offspring of CG water tremors & the langoliers. Dumb fun action horror. There are actually some pretty funny one liners, a consistently fun plot, and a likable wise cracking hero played by Treat Williams. It seems a bit more self-aware than most of its ilk. Best consumed with testosterone, caffeine and popcorn.
https://i.imgur.com/Me19XnQ.png?1

Pumpkinhead (1988) - rating_3
A rural shopkeeper employs a rubbery demon to enact revenge on a group of cityfolk. I did not remember how great the cinematography is. Although there's plenty of camp, there are also some powerful and morbid moments that aren't drug down by it.
https://i.imgur.com/sKIFxo3.png?1
https://i.imgur.com/FHur43k.png?1
https://i.imgur.com/R0lVfd6.png?1

Leviathan (1989) - rating_3_5
An underwater Alien rip-off with elements of The Thing thrown in. It's not too ham-fisted until the gore commences. Most of it is a lot of fun, with a decent cast and a well-paced build to the horror, but is bookended by one of the tackiest, most phoned in endings I've ever seen.
https://i.imgur.com/xMHUWLj.png?1

Mimic (1997) - rating_3_5
Killer man-sized roaches in New York. Steamy dark blue-green-yellow cinematography is the most standout element, along with Charles S. Dutton stealing every scene he's in. The great atmosphere carries it most of the way, but the final act is too hectic for my tastes, and hinders the creepiness that came before it. Still my favorite Del Toro movie behind Pan's Labyrinth.
https://i.imgur.com/RVON03q.png?1

Hellbound: Hellraiser II (1988) - rating_4
A heavy dose of twisted, fantastical, borderline surreal horror that goes way beyond even Barker's original vision. Christopher Young's score is even more aptly epic. The movie is batsh*t and creative enough for me to forgive some silliness and implausibilities.
https://i.imgur.com/eQru7Jm.png?1
https://i.imgur.com/sMD3MLG.png?1

Lord of Illusions (1995) - rating_3_5
A neo-noir horror movie about a private eye getting mixed up in a case involving real magic. Special effects range from outstanding twisted practical effects to some absurdly corny CGI. It's a unique horror movie, though the noir elements and lead character are cliche (that may have been the point; a homage to old school gumshoes).
https://i.imgur.com/BFg9vQL.png?1

cricket

11-01-20, 08:38 AM

October, 2020 movies watched-

Possessor (2020) 4+ A must watch for fans of Sci-Fi/horror.

The Nightingale (2018) 4 I was pleasantly surprised at how brutal this historical revenge tale was.

Borat 2 (2020) 3.5- The dude is just funny.

Totally Under Control (2020) 3.5 Excellent documentary even if it's liberal propaganda.

A Man and a Woman (1966) 4 Beautiful French romance with it's share of pain.

October viewings-5
2020 viewings-121

MargoAdams

11-02-20, 07:47 AM

Hello! I'm glad to be here.

Captain Spaulding

11-05-20, 01:50 AM

Deep Rising (1998) - rating_3
A group of ruffians board an ostentatious cruise ship intending to rob it, but are foiled by the offspring of CG water tremors & the langoliers. Dumb fun action horror. There are actually some pretty funny one liners, a consistently fun plot, and a likable wise cracking hero played by Treat Williams. It seems a bit more self-aware than most of its ilk. Best consumed with testosterone, caffeine and popcorn.
https://i.imgur.com/Me19XnQ.png?1

Pleased to see a positive reaction. This is a longtime favorite of mine. I think it's considerably better than its reputation. The movie doesn't have the obnoxious level of self-awareness that bugs me about a lot of modern movies with B-movie premises, but everyone in front and behind the camera seemed fully aware of the type of flick they were making, yet it still treats itself seriously enough for viewers to invest in the stakes. Famke Janssen at the peak of her sex appeal is another highlight.

Speaking of dumb, fun, testosterone-fueled action-horror-comedies starring Treat Williams, you ever seen the 80's zombie buddy-cop flick, Dead Heat? That's another favorite of mine I'd recommend.

re93animator

11-05-20, 08:08 PM

Pleased to see a positive reaction. This is a longtime favorite of mine. I think it's considerably better than its reputation. The movie doesn't have the obnoxious level of self-awareness that bugs me about a lot of modern movies with B-movie premises, but everyone in front and behind the camera seemed fully aware of the type of flick they were making, yet it still treats itself seriously enough for viewers to invest in the stakes. Famke Janssen at the peak of her sex appeal is another highlight.

Speaking of dumb, fun, testosterone-fueled action-horror-comedies starring Treat Williams, you ever seen the 80's zombie buddy-cop flick, Dead Heat? That's another favorite of mine I'd recommend.
The purpose of that binge was to rewatch movies that I already knew I had fun with in the past. I may have underrated it a bit. It's hard to imagine anyone that likes OTT slimy action not enjoying Deep Rising.

Haven't seen Dead Heat, but it looks good. I'll seek it out soon.

HashtagBrownies

12-01-20, 08:49 AM

Seen in November

Possessor 4-: You rarely see gore like this in horror and action anymore, so this was a fun change of pace. The characters are a bit boring, which makes me hesitant to re-watch it, but I’m still excited to see what Brandon Cronenberg comes up with next.

All About my Mother Re-watch 4-: Not as good as I remembered, but I still love the characters and colours.

The Last American Virgin 4: An average sex comedy that evolves into a heart wrenching critique of itself. I know it’s a bit of a cult classic, but I’d like to see it become more popular.

The Merchant of Venice (2015) 3: I miss the theatre. :(

Saboteur 3.5-: Maybe it echoes ‘The 39 Steps' too much and is tonally inconsistent in parts, but since it’s Hitchcock you’re guaranteed excellent chase scenes and a nail-biting ending.

Red Heat 2.5: Not one of Arnie’s best ventures; it’s watchable but doesn’t do anything that hasn’t been done before.

The Mask Re-watch 3.5+: I miss these silly CGI slapstick films. Jim Carrey is great as always, and the style and presentation of the moonlit city is what my mind always goes to when I think of noir.

The Blob (1958) 2.5+: I don’t hate ’tell don’t show’ old B-movies (I mean, I love The Fly and The Incredible Shrinking Man), it’s just that there wasn't enough Blob action for me; too many scenes of teenagers goofing around or arguing with the police.

We Live in Public 3.5: Documentary about a crazy tech guy who created intense art projects which represented his view of the internet. Quite an interesting guy, and he might’ve predicted the prevalence of social media?

Dancer in the Dark 4.5+: Manages to re-evaluate the musical genre while not insulting the genre and still being an excellent musical in its own right. Björk is as good as an actress as she is a singer, she does amazingly at portraying a childlike but brave and determined mother. I know some critique it as being melodramatic, but I quite like that; sometimes we all need a good cry in our lives (and Hollywood musicals can be quite melodramatic so it kinda ties into the meaning of the film).

The Exorcist 3 3.5+: Should’ve just called it something else, it’s a good horror but it’s unfair to compare it to The Exorcist. George C. Scott is amazing, in fact nearly all of the acting in this film is very good. Despite being quite quaint in comparison to the Exorcist, it manages to pack in a few good scares. The scenes of people describing crimes really echo ‘Seven’, even though this was made before that.

On the Town 3.5: I honestly preferred the dancing over the actual songs, but yeah I had fun.

Scream 2 4-: Of course you can’t really live up to the first one, but it still manages to be quite suspenseful and have humorous scenes that make fun of itself.

————————————————————
Saw these ones as part of an online film festival

Paris is Burning 4: One of those documentaries where the director doesn’t intervene and just lets the subjects speak for themselves. A very humorous but tragic story that offers a whole new perspective on NYC. Director gave an introduction for this one, so that was cool

Keyboard Fantasies 4-: I don’t care for music documentaries, but the premise interested me enough to check this out. A documentary about a dude that made an electronic album in the 80’s that sold like 50 copies, now it’s a cult classic and we get to see his touring life with his band. Cool examination of a single person and shows how fun the young indie touring artist scene is.

Siberia 3.5+: My first Abel Ferrara, so I have no idea whether this was a unique film or a boring retread of his previous work. Still, I found it an interesting one of those ‘dreamscape’ films. Abel introduced this one, so I appreciated that.

Honeymood 3: If ‘The Odyssey’ was a romcom set over a single night. I like how it depicts how you love a partner even if you’re arguing with them, but that’s about it really.

Wildfire 4: A really solid character piece with great performances.

Ashes and Diamonds 3.5-: I have the same thoughts about this that I'd have to a Bergman film; it has great visuals and an incredible effective ending, but it just doesn’t resonate with me that much.

Irish Destiny (1926) 4: Feels like one of those old Soviet propaganda films but within a different context. Loses some of the tension in the second half, but it’s still a really good political drama. Our head of government gave an introduction to this one, so I guess they were really f*ckin' pumped for a restoration lol.

Wolfwalkers 4: Tomm Moore/Cartoon Saloon never missteps. Suffers from most of the cliches that kids films suffer from, but the animation and music are ten times better than most kids films. Also has amazing voice acting and emotional resonance too. Will definitely be checking out this one again. Q&A with Tomm Moore afterwards, that was interesting.

Chypmunk

12-01-20, 09:11 AM

October watches (doesn't include films previously rated or marked as seen on here):
69496

November watches (doesn't include films previously rated or marked as seen on here):
69494
69495
The one w/o a poster on the second row is Maruja (1959) (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0282724/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_6)
Thr four w/o posters on row five are (l-r):
Dr. Sex (1964) (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0058037/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1)
Slander House (1938) (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0030763/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0)
Pink Panic (1967) short (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0062123/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1)
Sicque! Sicque! Sicque! (1966) short (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0060976/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1)

cricket

12-01-20, 04:01 PM

November, 2020 movies watched-

Portrait of a Lady on Fire (2019) 3+ Pretty good for me and I can understand the love.

Across the Universe (2007) 5 A great experience more than a great movie.

All About My Mother (1999) 4.5- My 2nd movie from this director and now I'm hooked.

No Reason (2010) 2- Passable German extreme film.

Rolling Vengeance (1987) 2.5- Decent enough 80's cheese.

Pig (2010) 1.5+ It has it moments but it gets tiring.

November viewings-6
2020 viewings-127

John-Connor

12-02-20, 06:19 AM

First time viewings + Re-watches September, October, November

69549

_
1.5The Day the Earth Stood Still 2008 Scott Derrickson
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3 National Lampoon’s Vacation 1983 Harold Ramis
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3+ Phenomena 1985 Dario Argento
3+ Night Moves 1975 Arthur Penn
3+ The Darjeeling Limited 2007 Wes Anderson
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3.5 Atlantic City 1980 Louis Malle
3.5 Used Cars 1980 Robert Zemeckis
3.5 The Final Countdown 1980 Don Taylor
3.5 Hoosiers 1986 David Anspaugh
3.5 F/X Murder by Illusion 1986 Robert Mandel
3.5 Gardens of Stone 1987 Francis Ford Coppola
_
3.5+ The Quiet Man 1952 John Ford
3.5+ Super Fly 1972 Gordon Parks Jr.
3.5+ Breaker Morant 1980 Bruce Beresford
_
4- Run Silent, Run Deep 1958 Robert Wise
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4 Shadow of a Doubt 1943 Alfred Hitchcock
4 The Trouble with Harry 1955 Alfred Hitchcock
4 Jean de Florette 1986 Claude Berri
4 Manon of the Spring ‘Manon des Sources’ 1986 Claude Berri
??rating?? A Visitor to a Museum ‘Посетитель музея’ 1989 Konstantin Lopushansky
4 In the Mood for Love 2000 ‘花樣年華’ Wong Kar-wai
4 Good Night, and Good Luck. 2005 George Clooney
4 Tenet 2020 Christopher Nolan
_
4+ Investigation of a Citizen Above Suspicion 1970 Elio Petri
4+ Ghost in the Shell 1995 Mamoru Oshii
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4.5 Sherlock Holmes: The Hound of the Baskervilles 1988 Brian Mills (TV Movie)
_
5 Planes, Trains and Automobiles 1987 John Hughes

mark f

12-12-20, 10:54 PM

Harold and Maude (Hal Ashby, 1971) 4

https://media1.tenor.com/images/77ec85f0668d6e88e54cc250701e5c91/tenor.gif?itemid=7800221
Harold and Maude certainly isn't meant to be some political diatribe. It's not about economics or conservatiism vs. liberalism, although it wouldn't be hard to pull that out if you want to discuss where its heart lies. Do I look up to Maude? Of course I do. She's not like anybody else. Is she wacky and a wacko? Of course; that's why I love her. Harold and Maude is just much simpler in its basics than people seem to think it is, although its details can be complex. Harold represents Death and Maude represents Life. That's not anything too tough to grasp. If you find this a simplistic look at life, especially for a draft-age kid who could go to Vietnam at anytime (it was made in 1971) somehow personally insulting, then I think you're taking it much too seriously. Yes, and that includes the fact that Maude is a survivor of a Nazi concentration camp (remember the tattooed number on her arm?)

First and foremost, Harry and Maude is a comedy, and one I've been laughing at out loud at for almost 27 years now. It's definitely one of the blackest comedies ever made, but it probably does have the funniest sets of "deaths" of any black comedy I've seen. I do not find anything reasonable about any of the characters that the film seems to make fun of, nor do I find the concept of being drafted to go and fight in a war which seems to have no meaning something to be proud about doing. Harold was probably supposed to be about seven years older than I am, but I was in the last group that actually had their birth dates numbered in the draft, so even if it happened to me after I saw Harold and Maude, I definitely can relate to something about why Harold sees death as the way to live and "fake death" as preferable to real death.

Secondly, Harold and Maude is very romantic. Yes, the Priest's verbalization of what it would be like for Harold and Maude to make love makes him sick, but I find it hilarious. Harold and Maude is one of those films where you can see why opposites attract or maybe even why people who are actually similar at heart seem to be opposites; they were born at different times and went through similar things at different times. You just need to sit down and talk with someone about why they seem different. I mean, even Harold is a bit taken aback at how brazen Maude's antics seem to be, but whatever you say, Maude never really hurts anybody. At least not compared to what she must have lived through in the camps. Besides, Maude knows what we do not know. Maude knows how everything will turn out, and she lets Harold make his own choice on how to live and whether to die. If you ask me, if Maude wasn't good for Harold, then the ending would have been a much bigger downer than it is.

My fave scenes in the flick, besides Harold's suicides, are the ending, the awesome scene where they're having a picnic, pick flowers and then the camera pulls back to show you where they are, and the scene with the motorcycle cop. If you don't know, the cop is played by Tom Skerritt (Alien), and he's hilarious. Now, if I had some reason to be worried about any of the characters running around loose on the street who might actually endanger people, it would be this cop. If his pistol didn't misfire, he probably would have shot a pedestrian stone dead.

mark f

12-16-20, 03:59 PM

The Apartment (Billy Wilder, 1960) 3.5+

https://thumbs.gfycat.com/GlitteringEverlastingComet-size_restricted.gif
You know that scene near the beginning of The Apartment where Jack Lemmon comes home after a long day's work and then waits for some executive and his escort to vacate his apartment? He eats a TV dinner and drinks a bottle of Coke (a sly preview of Wilder's next film, One, Two, Three) while he's watching late-night TV. The channel is going to show the classic Grand Hotel, but instead they list all the cast and just when Jack's excited, they go to those late-night TV commercials they had during all-night movies back in the day. That scene really reminded me of how I'd stay up all night at the neighbors' house babysitting and watch tons of old movies with those lousy, ridiculous commercials. Another anecdote I can tell you about The Apartment was that when I bought my first VCR, it was one of the movies I bought along with it. I used to watch it every time it was on TV, but I hadn't seen the film for a few years, and it was the best film I could buy at a reasonable price.

It is really an acerbic drama masquerading as a "light romantic comedy". It's about a bunch of wealthy, misogynistic creeps taking advantage of women and Jack Lemmon's poor schmuck. But Jack gets blamed for the poor behavior, and Shirley MacLaine is demeaned so much, she tries to commit suicide! Light entertainment? It does have Billy Wilder and writing partner I.A.L. Diamond's usual quota of wit and dark satire, but it's one of Wilder's most dramatic films, at least since Some Like It Hot. But it's also a very good movie and obviously one of his most beloved.

mark f

12-24-20, 10:58 AM

Forrest Gump (Robert Zemeckis, 1994) 4

https://33.media.tumblr.com/ce4ef726554fd65cb013bfe38dbbbeed/tumblr_inline_mzarm5Z6xW1r4j8j1.gif

In my original 100, I placed it at 49. It's very entertaining, an impressive technical achievement and well acted by Hanks and Sinise. As far as some other themes it touches (women's lib, AIDS), it's not particularly successful but at least it addresses them. I prefer it as an offbeat comedy more than a serious drama or a weepie. I've said before that it's basically a Cliffs Notes version of the second half of 20th century American history. You should study the real thing rather than take it from Forrest Gump.

Forrest certainly does experience many things which are important to our life, but he's not responsible for them. They would have all happened and been discovered without him. In other words, Hunt and Liddy would still have been discovered without Forrest, and honest to God, they were! The point of Forrest Gump and what makes it an important stepping stone for many people who have no concept or desire to learn about the history of the United States during the last 50 years is that movies can actually teach them something about reality which is totally separate from vampire love, torture, wizards, werewolves, paranormal bull****e, bogus witches, etc. When I used to teach at my school, more teenagers probably learn about the concepts of the reality of rock and roll, civil rights, modern U.S. political assassinations, the Vietnam War, AIDs, etc., from Forrest Gump. However, the key is that it makes most of them want to learn the OTHER truth about all those subjects after watching it.

On the other hand, if they had a woebegone teacher such as I, they also learned about cinematic history as well as that of other important concepts which hopefully lasted them the rest of their lives, but Forrest Gump can only be considered something hellacious if you think that it's specifically responsible for the [Current] Downfall of Western Civilization. :cool: It's so ancient at this point that I find that difficult to believe. Besides, Forrest Gump probably has more reality in it than most films do because there are just so many films made nowadays which have NO reality whatsoever.

re93animator

12-26-20, 12:15 PM

Arena (1989) - rating_3
One human becomes a contendah in the alien-dominated pro fighting of the future. Who would want to see puny humanoids fighting eachother when you can get awkwardly immobile aliens slinging rubber appendages.

These kind of movies often only look fun from afar, but this one stays pretty entertaining throughout, and is enhanced by the cool 80s sci-fi set zeitgeist.

https://i.imgur.com/Tt5adVW.png?1
https://i.imgur.com/q4c7zbP.png?1
I hope the extra pair of hands got paid well.

Knives Out (2019) - rating_3
Clever, well-made, elegant (sans vomit) spin on a murder mystery with little replayability.
https://i.imgur.com/uoSXKHX.png?1

The Jacket (2005) - rating_3
A war veteran with PTSD is (perhaps falsely) accused of a crime and institutionalized. A psych thriller that makes the viewer question the lead's dismal reality. Not particularly unique, but good.
https://i.imgur.com/X05BTHp.png?1

Waiting for Guffman (1996) - rating_3_5
A mockumentary about a quirky small town cast producing a so-bad-it's-good play. It's shot in a dry, fly on the wall style that could have had an influence on The Office and the like.
https://i.imgur.com/7MFZcUv.png?1

Stay (2005) - rating_2_5
A psychiatrist starts to question his sanity while trying to help a suicidal patient. I expected a standard reality-bending psych thriller, but this is more artistic than most of its ilk, with as much Lynchian influence as a quickly paced Hollywood thriller will allow. Despite that, the story never really grabbed me and I felt somewhat disinterested when it came time for the big emotional climax.

Possessor (2020) - rating_3
A business in the near-future uses humans as surrogates to commit gory assassinations. There's a very bleak dark ambient tone with an experimental shooting style. It doesn't have a good enough atmosphere to carry it through tedium, but I liked it overall. Especially the twisted montage scenes.
https://i.imgur.com/lsm4Jvv.png?1

Confessions of an Opium Eater (1962) - rating_4?
A man tries to save women from the slave trade in Chinatown's seedy underworld. Dark & disturbing subject matter even by today's standards, racial insensitivities, terrible supporting acting, an eerie caricatured Chinese/Theremin score, cool sets with flimsy cardboard hidden passageways, dramatic Vincent Price narration, silly action scenes that appear to be lifted from a Laurel & Hardy film, a slow-motion Vincent-Price-escaping-slave-traders-in-an-Opium-den-while-high-as-a-kite scene, a dwarf lady that's supposed to pass as a girl but looks like she's pushing 60, and a hard to follow plot.

At times I felt like giving this 1/5 and would flip to 4/5 in the next scene. This is incredibly bizarre for a cheap old Hollywood thriller. I recommend it to fans of older weird cinema.

https://i.imgur.com/YE4PuHS.png?1
https://i.imgur.com/0TpfugI.gif
There is no explanation given for the horse.

https://i.imgur.com/zdevJyc.gif

mark f

12-30-20, 12:04 PM

Come and See (Elem Klimov, 1985) 3.5+ Art House Rating 5

https://64.media.tumblr.com/e1d345eeea28ec9b45fcdfdc07ad82c4/tumblr_on5tl3hlmp1u4mt3bo1_500.gifv

Come and See basically tells the story of a boy who is thrust into the unknown horror of World War II. His country, and more specifically, his village, needs him to help combat the Nazis. The central character, probably no more than 15, feels pride in being allowed to fight with what amounts to a Resistance movement, since there is really no organized military involved. Director Klimov is a master of sight and sound, and although the film is accessible to everyone, there are periods where it almost seems like an experimental film. After a particular loud nearby explosion, a hum stays on the soundtrack for maybe 20+ minutes because the characters are unable to actually hear each other. One thing about Come and See is that even if you can sense the feeling that you should expect the worst, when it shows up, you are not prepared for how visceral and spontaneous it truly is. I don't really want to reveal anymore, but the boy, despite spending an idyllic couple of days with a girl he meets along the way, looks at the end like he's literally aged from 15 to about 30 in the span of weeks.

Here's an interview with director Klimov who discusses how he tried to make the movie for years but was blocked by Soviet censors. He and his co-writer lived through the war and says, "That subject was too sacred for us to be false" and he says, "I think the film is rather reserved... we could have shown such things there, but no one would have beren able to watch it, and our work would've been in vain." I've also included an obituary (http://www.theguardian.com/news/2003/nov/04/guardianobituaries.russia) which highlights the fact that he had problems with the government before and after all the films he made. His wife's death and the whole experience left him incapable of making another film the remaining 18 years of his life.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VN9_r1NEnGM

cricket

01-01-21, 11:20 AM

December, 2020 movies watched-

The Right Stuff (1983) 4.5 Exceptional crowd pleaser.

Lolita Vibrator Torture (1987) 3- A better than average extreme film.

Flesh Meat Doll(S) (2016) 2.5 15 minute extreme short that delivers the sick.

Underworld (1927) 3.5 One of many good movies from Josef Von Sternberg.

Secrets & Lies (1996) 4.5+ So emotionally rewarding.

Downfall (2004) 5 Incredible.

Pig Pen (2015) 1.5 A few decent moments but too amateurish.

Dard Divorce (2007) 2.5 Pretty decent extreme film with lots of violence.

The Help (2011) 3.5- A little uneven but good quality and story.

December viewings-9
2021 viewings-136
7 year total since keeping track-2299

mark f

01-05-21, 04:20 AM

Chinatown (Roman Polanski, 1974) 4

https://nerdist.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/Chinatown.gif

Chinatown begins with almost a perfect recreation of the best opening credits which a classic mystery NEVER actually began with. The Sepiatone, the fast scroll, Jerry Goldsmith's sexy, jazzy score, the mistaken-identity opening, Gittes' obsession with sex... they're all perfect.

And the film does build and build... My fave mystery (both as book and novel) has always been The Maltese Falcon, but Sam Spade never lets anybody get his number. Scripter Robert Towne lets Nicholson's Gittes fall for Evelyn Mulwray (Faye Dunaway), and their chemistry is terrific, so by the time we reach the most-Noirish ending of any Noir, our guts are just as busted up as Gittes. The ending is not rushed at all. After all, what do you want to see? Gittes cry and then go blow away Noah Cross like the ending of Taxi Driver? I don't think so, I hope.

You know, I've seen this movie so many damn times and the first time I saw it was one of the first drive-ins I went to in 1974, but for some strange reason, I never realized that Nicholson's Jake Gittes acted almost completely like an amateur at the beginning of Chinatown. I mean, Sam Spade seems like a pro in The Maltese Falcon, but when one of Gittes' "operatives" takes photos and shows them to him, Gittes blows him off ("Is that all you got?") and shows no signs of realizing who Noah Cross (John Huston) is.

Then, later on when Gittes is doing his own photographic essays, he knocks down some tiles a la Ben-Hur to try to announce his presence!

The scene where the "real" Evelyn Mulwray shows up is a classic where Gittes talks about "contemplating the moon", but it introduces many of the concepts of Film Noir into modern film usage. "Noir" literally means "Black" in French, but since most film noirs were made and shot in America before the French defined the term, I think that we are allowed to adapt the definition to mean anything which seems to involve a man, a woman, a mystery and something "Pitch Black". I cannot think of a plot more "black" or "noir" than Chinatown, so you will never convince me that it's not a perfect example of film noir. Even though the cinematography by John Alonzo of Chinatown is often crisp and bright, the plotting is dark and murky, but that doesn't mean that Alonzo doesn't go out of his way to use plenty of shadows throughout the film.

An homage to The Maltese Falcon is apparently the character named Ida Sessions. Well, Iva was the name of Sam Spade's partner Miles Archer's wife, and Spade was having an affair with her before Miles got "lead poisoning" and died. Let's see. It's also about halfway through Chinatown that one of the great reveals occurs and I'm talking about the line, "It's bad for the glass."

Gittes may be an amateur as a private dick, but he does go out of his way to sing about what he thinks of the real Evelyn Mulwray - "I love you and just the way you look tonight... "

What do you think of the scene in the bathroom where Gittes finds the flaw in Evelyn's iris? Wasn't that just about the sexiest scene in screen history?

As Chinatown inexorably moves on to its finale, who else is haunted by Gittes' comment that in Chinatown he was trying to keep somebody from being hurt? Chinatown is crammed with scenes which no other film contains. Do any others contain chases through orange fields? How about people getting knifed in the nose and spending 40% of the film with a huge bandage on the nose? Then again, many films refer to something which happened to a character before the movie started, but very few do not reveal what it was that happened .

How about all the fun clues and foreshadowing spread throughout the movie which lead you to the identity of the murderer and the chief baddie in the flick? In the very first scene where Curly [who rules] (Burt Young) looks at the photos which Gittes got of his wife cheating, Curly says, "They don't pay you as much for skipjack as they do for albacore." Later when Gittes looks at the photos of Mulwray arguing with who turns out to be Noah Cross, Walsh says he could only make out one phrase due to all the noisy traffic, "apple core". In Yelbertson's office, there are several photographs of big fish on the walls. Later on, in Yelberton's secretary's room, Gittes sees lots of photos of Mulwray and Cross and learns who Cross is.

Just for fun, the "midget" (Polanski) who slices up Gittes' nose tells him that next time he'll cut the rest of it off and feed it to his goldfish. Later on, Gittes speaks the line, "What do you think of them apples?" just in case you forgot about "apple core". Gittes finally meets Cross and has lunch with him on Catalina Island at the Albacore Club. His lunch is a fish served with the head on. Cross says he prefers them that way and Gittes says that it's fine "as long as you don't serve the chicken that way." Of course, later on we learn that the Old Age Home is "sponsored" and does some work for the Albacore Club. Then we also learn that Mrs. Mulwray is Noah Cross's daughter.

As a side note, in the restaurant where the pianist plays "The Way You Look Tonight" the arrangement seems to highlight how much the melody resembles that of "As Time Goes By" ([I]Casablanca).

Chypmunk

01-05-21, 04:30 AM

December watches:
71139

re93animator

01-05-21, 12:58 PM

Le Dîner de Cons (1998) - rating_3_5
A group of country club douchebags have weekly dinner parties to invite & exploit 'idiots' that they meet. A golfing-related back injury renders one host incapable of attending, and he is left in the care of his 'idiot,' who unintentionally takes steps to sabotage his life. I love this premise. A well acted dialogue driven comedy that had me giggling throughout most of it. I only wish we got to see Pignon (the idiot) at the dinner party, accidentally wreaking havok with the purest of intentions.
https://i.imgur.com/Uv7XSwU.png?1

Kikujiro (1999) - rating_4
An irresponsible man with a short fuse is paid to take a young boy to meet his mother for the first time. It's moving, hilarious, and charming, but far from the Hollywood sense. It's a deadpan comedy, with ocassional surreal or very un-family friendly content.
https://i.imgur.com/0Eotszi.png?1

Divorcing Jack (1998) - rating_3
A rebel journalist accidentally gets mixed up in a murder mystery and political conspiracy with a wild, somewhat eccentric cast. A comedy thriller with a fun, crass attitude.
https://i.imgur.com/93hqrRV.png?1

Homicide (1991) - rating_3
A Jewish detective is put on a case that seems connected to a Jewish conspiracy, involving folks that gatekeep him for not speaking Hebrew. Joe Mantegna is such a good actor here. The kind of actor that makes me forget I'm watching a movie character. Mamet's naturalistic dialogue helps too. It feels like there was more story to be had here, but it was cut off at the neck to fit a runtime.

Or... the ending is the writer's way of illustrating how personal biases can often make things seem bigger than they are. I like that message.
https://i.imgur.com/IRI3qdI.png?1

Dead Heat (1988) - rating_3
An undead officer (named Roger Mortis) and his buddy take on a group of folks who are turning corpses into criminals. Fun easy watch for fans of camp. The schlocky horror elements are the highlight (especially the undead butcher shop), but the wisecracking tries too hard, isn't as funny or well-acted as it needs to be, and gets annoying pretty quickly.
https://i.imgur.com/rpFygBE.jpg

Gozu (2003) - rating_3_5
A young yakuza member searches for his missing brother. An old favorite, but not quite as great as I remembered. It's oft associated with disturbing gore-laden horror films, but is in better company with dark surrealism. Slow and dry (a bit too slow), with exceptionally weird and perverse characters carrying a straight-man(ish) lead through a series of unpredictable events. Nearly every scene is bizarre enough to make you uncomfortable, and absurd enough to make you laugh. Things to avoid for the next month: custard, milk, and ladles.
https://i.imgur.com/vTdcQVW.png?1
https://i.imgur.com/pwhR3of.jpg?1

Weasel

01-06-21, 02:50 AM

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind 5

Jim Carey plays not Jim Carey. Who would have thought?

Soul 3

Gives you the patented "Pixar feeling" once you're finished, and the all new "Existential Crisis" while you're watching. Does its job, while still remaining pretty generic and predictable, in line with most modern animated movies (I didn't say all!).

Return of the Jedi 3.5

Not sure why people dog on this one while holding the first (I refuse to say A New Hope) on this pedestal. In my opinion they both share a lot of the same flaws, and end up being fun space action films and not much more. Which is totally fine, these films are iconic for a reason, but I think Empire is the only one that feels fully realized (So controversial, I know).

Perfect Blue 2.5

Good movie for all the blind people out there, because they just tell you everything that happens and what it means in one scene.

Hope I did this right!

mark f

01-07-21, 07:25 PM

12 Angry Men (Sidney Lumet, 1957) 4
http://thesituationist.files.wordpress.com/2007/06/12-angry-men.jpg
The other jurors want Juror #3 to convince them...

I'm trying to think back to when I first watched the film and how I may have reacted. I was a teenager, but that would have been the early '70s. It was probably my introduction to how a jury might work, especially one where almost everybody sees the case as cut-and-dried. Of course, I understood it was a melodrama where everyone slightly exaggerates their words and acting for dramatic effect. It's still filmed "realistically", so it gets to have it both ways as a realistic drama and a highly-theatrical experience.

The real key to 12 Angry Men's success is Reginald Rose's tightly-wound script, which provides all the jurors [who seem to be heading, shall we say, due west] with flaws and personalities and then as it slowly reveals all of the people we've never seen in the film (those mentioned or testifying during the trial), the semblance of doubt begins to take root in more than just one juror's mind. The path seems to shift ever so subtly until near the end, the jury appears to be heading due west. It's all left to the viewer to decide how they would vote and how they may change their opinion based on the pieces of evidence being examined throughout the film. As far as I'm concerned, the strongest scene in the film the first time I watched it remains the most memorable one to me still: the scene where Juror #8 produces the knife. Besides being the centerpiece of the script, it's also Sidney Lumet's best-directed scene.

mark f

01-09-21, 06:05 PM

A Clockwork Orange (Stanley Kubrick, 1971) 4

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The first time I watched A Clockwork Orange was on a double bill with Deliverance at a very large screen theatre when I was 18. I watched it by myself. Both movies pretty much blew my mind. The music in A Clockwork Orange was really overpowering, perhaps even moreso than the potent imagery. It was really quite shocking to see it considering that Kubrick's last film was the G-rated 2001: A Space Odyssey.

A Clockwork Orange sucks the viewer in with a weird, otherworldly atmosphere by using high-contrast photography and a Beethoven soundtrack. It isn't science fiction. It's closer to some kind of alternate universe. Almost immediately it pummels you with sex and ultraviolence in an attempt to either turn you on or turn you off (or perhaps more significantly, both at the same time). The subject matter is rather repulsive but the cinematics are spectacular. We follow Alex and his "little droogies" around while they "shag and fag" and vicariously see things which seem beyond the pale, but Beethoven is just oh so beautiful.

Then, the flick turns a bit more serious and substantial when Alex ends up in prison and is enticed to undergo some kind of miracle therapy. I know many people who love the first part of the film but say that the next section (the point of the film) is "boring". They wanted more in-out and ultra violence. Well, we do get to that and that's the film's coup. The authorities basically use A Clockwork Orange itself as the miracle cure for Alex to become a "normal member of society". Alex is forced to watch a facsimile of A Clockwork Orange to get repulsed by rape and violence, and since Beethoven is on the soundtrack, it deeply disturbs and affects him. The whole thing is really just a political scam though with Alex as the guinea pig in the middle of a political war. However, even the "peace and freedom" types want their revenge on Alex so the whole movie comes full circle.

Now, I realize that what I'm saying here is nothing new or enlightening. It's always been there right in the film. But as time goes by, and I get more and more students who started watching ultra-violent films and pornos when they were five-years-old, and they mostly have a kid or two by the time they're 15 and they belong to gangs and want to do things like Alex does in the first part of the movie, A Clockwork Orange takes on a kind of prescience which makes it seem better now than when it was first released. But I've always been deeply disturbed because I loved the film the first time.

Wyldesyde19

01-09-21, 06:25 PM

Reading this reminds me how much I wish I grew up during the 70’s. To be able to see the cinema during that period would have been something.
I envy you

mark f

01-10-21, 12:44 PM

Once Upon a Time in the West (Sergio Leone, 1968) 3

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I have had something of a love/hate relationship with this film since I first saw it. I can remember the very first time, I thought the opening credits with all the water dripping and extended BS was an attack on the audience, but now I can see it as an entertainer (and I believe that Leone believed himself to be more of an entertainer than an artist) trying to tell his audience that they are going to see the most personal "spaghetti" western ever made. Back in the day, the attenuated presentation pissed the crap out of me, but nowadays, I can see the thing as the first (and probably, the only) western opera. I still have problems with it, but it's easy for me to watch it repeatedly. In fact, the movie this mostly reminds me of is Apocalypse Now. Coppola probably owes Leone some more acknowledgment, but Leone may have needed to pay back the compliment with his later gangster epic.

Little did I realize that he and Morricone were creating the first genuine opera in western history. Have you heard of the term "horse opera"? That's just some way of warning certain people that westerns may be melodramatic at times. But Once Upon a Time in the West is a legit opera, and if you didn't know it, operas tend to be LONG. It's is Leone's most-otherworldly western - it's almost as if a literal horse opera were set on another planet although Monument Valley plays a part. That works with my idea though since Monument Valley also makes an appearance in 2001: A Space Odyssey during "Beyond the Infinite".

Mr Minio

01-10-21, 08:42 PM

Elmer Gantry (1960) - 3

https://i.imgur.com/Vf0V1d8.png

Slightly overhyped by mark f but also slightly genius.

mark f

01-12-21, 07:05 PM

Lawrence of Arabia (David Lean, 1962) 4

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I've seen Lawrence of Arabia on the big screen a few times, and having watched it at the Big Newport (http://cinematreasures.org/theaters/2915), I recommend seeing it on the largest one you can possibly find. The film paints its characters as very flawed (but most are understandable) and the story is rather unpredictable, sorta like the viewer is a grain of sand blown by the desert wind. Lawrence is undoubtedly the most enigmatic character and perhaps the most enigmatic lead character and hero of any major motion picture. Peter O'Toole plays him fascinatingly. His eyes seem to convey so much without any dialogue, but ultimately what and why he feels the way he does is not explained, nor is it necessary. The entire visual aesthetic of the film is such a powerful experience that it does most of the explaining. The film and locations are mesmerizing. You just get engulfed in it and let it take you where it does. Hopefully, you will be rewarded with a cinematic experience unlike any other. In that way, Lawrence of Arabia reminds me of 2001: A Space Odyssey. The desert seems almost as huge as outer space.

mark f

01-13-21, 03:20 AM

Apocalypse Now (Francis Coppola, 1979) 3.5

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I have my own kind of love for Apocalypse Now. No, it's not so deep and natural as what I have for Jaws, where you love something so much that you'll accept and adore it, warts and all. I love Coppola's spectacle for what it attempted to do and what it was able to accompish. I better love it since I've seen it over 15 times in its various incarnations.

There are so many perfect scenes, and Coppola wields so much technical prowess, showering the audience with cinema which demands to be seen and heard on the big screen. I do not consider it a masterpiece, except in the integration of some spectacular sights and sounds and a few excellent performances. I would agree with the words "meandering", "self-indulgent" and "overlong", but I would certainly advise everyone to watch it and decide for themselves. Yet somehow, to me, Coppola lost his way and became another Kurtz, losing the thread, trying to piece together a third act from bits and pieces, shadows, insane babblings from Hopper and Brando, and allegorical meaning tying the story's unraveling to that of the Vietnam War itself. Many of the film's staunchest defenders deny there's anything imperfect about it or if there is, it's supposed to be there and they love it. Welcome to my world of Jaws love. :cool:

The Redux version does add what I consider to be satirically-hilarious scenes involving a surfboard and a beautiful visual explanation of what happened to one of the main characters, but I think the original is too long as it is, so I'd watch the original first. There are about 50 added minutes in Redux, and most of those are towards the end which is already overextended in my opinion. I'd still say to watch it at some future time.

mark f

01-13-21, 07:26 PM

Blade Runner (Ridley Scott, 1982) 3.5-

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I'm sorry this sounds so negative but I really fo like it for the most part. If anything, Blade Runner's reputation and stature has grown in recent years. I saw Blade Runner as a sneak preview, so maybe I actually saw some of the various edited features up front, on the big screen. suppose the bottom line is that it's hard for me to care about any of the characters in Blade Runner. I have the same problem with a few of Scorsese's and Lynch's films. I can intellectually understand what the intent of the filmmaker is, but I'm left completely cold and unmoved by what I actually see and hear. Maybe it's just a flaw with my heart and soul; I could just be missing certain parts of me.

On a technical level, I'm impressed with the opening visuals and many of the F/X and sets. I found those more intriguing than the plot and characters. I realize that it seems far more impressive than something like Fritz Lang's Metropolis, but I can see a reference in Blade Runner to that silent epic. I also like the music, but having impressive technical credits I think Blade Runner is a good film. I realize that people believe that the visuals and sonics make it just spectacular, and if you care about these "creations" who never had a chance to rebel against their God, then you must think the film is visionary and great. Of course, when it was originally reviewed, it wasn't greeted with that many positive notices, and although it was able to earn $28 million in its first release, it wasn't really considered a financial success either. I realize the film has gone through changes and the narration has always been a problem for many viewers, but I don't seem to think the narration changes the way I feel about the film very much.

I can live with the Me against the World idea because it happens a lot. However, I find this to be a bit of a revisionist attitude. I still feel pretty much the way about the film as I did back in 1982, even without the narration, the changed ending and the dream. If anything, I thought more of it than the audience and critics did back then. It's the current audience and critics who have evolved to become the World against me. I'm just my stodgy old self. Maybe the fact is that the theme of Blade Runner subliminally resonates with me more than I know, since I cannot seem to find the compassion (at least towards the movie) which the film seems to advocate for all "humans".

mark f

01-13-21, 08:55 PM

Citizen Kane (Orson Welles, 1941) 3.5 Classic Rating 5

http://filmyear.typepad.com/photos/uncategorized/2008/05/16/citizen_kane_1941_2.jpg

I loved the way the silent title of the movie segued into the fence outside Xanadu and focused on the "No Trespassing" sign; it basically tells you right up front that Kane does not want you meddling in his personal affairs but then the film attempts to do so. The camera climbs the fence and proceeds to get closer to the main building, passing the remnants of a zoo (Hearst Castle had a zoo) and a golf course. Eventually we get close to the one light on in the main building which goes off and then comes back on. Cut to the snow globe, Kane's lips, "Rosebud", globe gets dropped and broken as the nurse walks in and finds that Kane is dead.

After that we get the News on the March newsreel which delineates Kane's life and shows many views of the man. I especially like the scene on the balcony where Kane is with Hitler and the implication that Kane supported him before he knew any better. After the newsreel ends, the director seems to want to find a hook into Kane's life and focuses on the great man's final word Rosebud to try to find out what made him tick. However, the first few people seem to have no idea of what Rosebud is. However, Gregg Toland's photography highlights the use of saturated rear lighting and the way it causes people's extremities to darken and extend that light. Brenda said, "It reminds me of (the scene where Sally sings "Maybe This Time" in Cabaret.

After the death of the main character, it segues into a long newsreel about his life story. The beginning is so audacious that it throws a lot of first-time viewers for a loop. Not only that, but as you begin to get your bearings, the film introduces a number of elderly characters who all reminisce about Kane, so now we see him from many different perspectives, but they aren't always in chronological order and some of them are contradictory. So, once again, the narrative is completely unusual, and Welles and his fellow artists continue to catch you off guard by using overlapping dialogue, deep focus photography, special effects to make things seem larger than they are, extensive makeup work on almost every actor seen in the film during various times in their lives, an intense and haunting Bernard Herrmann score, which coupled with bizarre sound effects and strange editing (the scene where the bird cackles, the scene where the photograph comes to life, the photographic journey up to the opera house rafters during a particular "aria", and hundreds more). All these directorial choices just make the film more enjoyable and dense for the watcher, but once again, some people do not like films where they do not like the characters. I don't know. It seems to me that several modern directors have become famous for highlighting some of the most unlikable characters ever, and among those I would include Martin Scorsese and Christopher Nolan

http://titirangistoryteller.files.wordpress.com/2009/04/kane-3.jpg

I believe that Rosebud's use is two-fold. It's obviously meant to humanize Kane at the end of the film. At the beginning, we have no idea what Rosebud could be although we are given the clue of the snow globe falling out of Kane's hands when he says it. The beginning uses Rosebud as the entire basis of what turns out to be the "plot" of the movie. How are we going to go about trying to find out the soul of this dead man who the world knows a lot of but cannot really understand what makes him tick. Therefore, Rosebud is the clothesline from which the various witnesses are strung in an attempt to crack the nut of Citizen Kane. The fact that no one surviving or studied is able to illuminate Rosebud's meaning is significant but actually fades well into the background for a while until the film reaches its conclusion. It's only in the film's final moments, after we've seen Kane at his most-selfish-and-despotic, that Rosebud returns as something important to show that the man may truly have been just a child at heart. Rosebud certainly relates to Kane's innocence and is also somewhat explainable as the reason why he initially runs his newspaper as if he were a kid in a candy store. Kane did start out as someone who just seemed to have fun with all the things he inherited but eventually he thought of them and all his friends and employees more as possessions rather than toys or things for him to entertain himself, his cohorts and hopefully the world.

You see, I don't believe that Kane ever lost "Rosebud". After all, it was at Xanadu and he could have found it if he truly desired that. What he lost was the meaning of Rosebud and he only recalled it on his deathbed. It's as if Kane's life flashed before his eyes (sort of like the newsreel which immediately comes on directly after his death) and the thing which made him happiest of all was Rosebud. At the end of the movie we see that Kane and Rosebud are both going to the same place -- to ashes. It's tragic, yes, but what it really means is that Kane is just another man. No matter how rich and influential you are during life, you can't take it with you and you'll never really separate yourself from the simplest, humblest soul on Earth, except that perhaps that person may live a life filled with his/her Rosebud and not need to try to find a substitute by collecting objects and people. It may not be profound but it still turns the movie and the man into a tragic figure. Think about it. If we never learned what Rosebud was, most people wouldn't think as highly of the film. At least that's my opinion.

mark f

01-13-21, 09:40 PM

Vertigo (Alfred Hitchcock, 1958) 4

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Vertigo is thought of way better than it once was, but it deserves to be. Vertigo is basically about obsession, transference, guilt, fate, and possession of the characters. It's multi-layered, even if it's the viewers who increase its significance through repeat viewings. You've pretty much got what the characters did in the film after the first bell tower scene, but it should really be looked at from the perspective of a dream or nightmare which it resembles for the most part. It's not supposed to be rational, so if your problems with it are that it doesn't make sense, you'll never like it or get what you're supposed to get out of it. If you try to go along with it, you'll be rewarded with a hypnotic experience. I realize that I criticize similar films for similar reasons, but take my word for it :), this one is better. I love the on-location and subjective photography of San Francisco and its environs but my fave is the walk in the Redwoods. Vertigo is not your average film or viewing experience. It seems to defy logic and has few likable characters. However, the photography and music are hypnotic. Vertigo is the kind of film which demands multiple viewings to "get into it", and then eventually you discover that the film is thematically-rich, not only in the way people behave in a relationship but how directors/scripters use their actors and how films use their viewers. Vertigo is a film which greatly divides people. Many believe it's the apotheosis of everything Hitch ever did and reveals himself more than any other film. Then there are those who like it up to a point but are baffled by some of the plot, plot twists, and character revelations. They just think it gets stupid and/or silly.

Mr Minio

01-14-21, 12:57 AM

Mary Goes Round (2017)

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As recommended by mark f in the Recommend me some pick-me-up, feel-good, comfort food movies (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?t=62690) thread. Well, I don't know but the film surely wasn't what I asked for in this thread but hey, it's mark f - he's probably entertained by a giant shark devouring people. Oh, WAIT!!! Apart from the fact the film wasn't what I really wanted (to be fair, it's hard for a non-Asian film to be that), it was a very good film. A sort of Kenneth Lonergan-core tackling serious topics in a genuine, heartfelt manner. Apart from all the gloom and heaviness of the topics depicted in this indie drama, it indeed turned out quite on the sunny side, which made me smile quite a bit. I can totally see why mark recommended it in this thread and after all I'm glad he did. Thanks, mark.

mark f

01-14-21, 06:06 PM

The Shining (Stanley Kubrick, 1980) 3.5

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Inspired by The Phantom Carriage
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To tell you the truth, I never understand why people think that The Shining is so good. I do believe that it's a good film, but when the word "best" raises its head, I become incredulous. My brother and I drove an hour to Hollywood to get in a line for another hour and watch a sneak preview of The Shining. The opening credits almost made us giddy, and there were many other impressive scenes. However, since we both loved the novel, we knew that many of the highlights were changed around and that Nicholson gave one of his earliest "over-the-top" performances. People were laughing when something ominous was happening and it cut to 4:05 PM. It's just too long in my opinion and doesn't really have to be, but Kubrick has a way of making long movies sometimes. Therefore, we were both disappointed. Kubrick eventually cut about three minutes, mostly at the end (which didn't really seem to be nearly as important as things like how Scatman Crothers has the "shining" and knows that something bad will happen, yet he has no idea it will happen to him!! Now I can accept it for the pleasures found along the way [mostly visual but some good audio/music too], and I can forgive Nicholson because he's so funny

mark f

01-15-21, 03:07 PM

2001: A Space Odyssey (Stanley Kubrick, 1968) 4

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If you don't like 2001: A Space Odyssey that is your right. It has always been liked though. It earned an enormous amount at the box office in 1968 when it was released and has always been massively popular. This is from the common viewer's perspective and not something limited to critics and "art house snobs" if you believe such a group exists. Now, the fact that it can be studied and discussed in film classes throughout the world just adds to its accessability to "everyone". Once again, I realize that not everyone likes it but there is no film which everyone likes.

I have my own interpretations of what happens in the film, and I believe many others do too. It's not that we know everything; it's just that we know enough to understand what seems to be the intended meaning of the overall film. It doesn't seem that difficult to grasp what's happening since it's all told chronologically and the evolution of Man seems directly related to the Monolith appearances. Now, who's responsible for the Monoliths and what the ultimate act of evolution (if any) is, that's open to interpretation and what makes the film complex and personal. Within the film are all kinds of other messages, including a mistrust of technology and governments and the fact that a single human being seems to be more important than all the technology in the world, even if you believe that human being to be incredibly boring.

I'm not sure what else to say. Kubrick was always a perfectionist and he certainly is here. I have watched the film dozens of times dating back to seeing it at the theatre in 1970. I'll admit to not "getting it" the first time when I was 14, but I knew I was watching something which was spectacular and unlike any thing I had ever seen, so it made watching it a compulsive experience. I certainly do think that movie audiences of the late '60s/early '70s had some awesome movies to watch and didn't consider themselves any more pretentious than you consider yourself. If people want to call Kubrick pretentious, go ahead, but trying to make a super realistic film in the context of a visionary sci-fi plot is something nobody had ever done before. The audiences of both 1968 and 2021 still enjoy the ride, at least for the most part.

mark f

01-15-21, 03:19 PM

Eyes Wide Shut (Stanley Kubrick, 1999) 3.5

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I'm not going to get into any in-depth psychological rationale about whether what happens to Cruise in the film is real or imaginary because I choose to accept it all as real. That makes the film scarier and more significant as a possibly-serious film about the complexity of marriage and open relationships. Cruise can't handle that his wife (Nicole Kidman) finds other men attractive and/or fun, and she can even have a Citizen Kane-type memory, albeit far more erotic in nature, than the one about the girl with the parasol.

Cruise uses his wife's confession to go on a night-long odyssey, which involves death by old age, drugs and murder, pedophilia, secret organizations, humongous, otherworldly orgies and attacks from drunken, macho homophobic youths. His world is turned almost inside out and his wife and daughter are threatened. This is all in exchange of Cruise trying to somehow payback his wife for her "non-infidelity", and even Cruise doesn't actually get laid, but he comes a lot closer than she ever did.

I have to admit that the film is slowly paced, but as it moves along, it builds suspense and becomes much more compelling and hypnotic. It has one of the most attractive female casts I can remember. Sydney Pollack is especially good playing a character who knows far more than Cruise and the audience do. I probably have a lot more to say about this film because I haven't really said anything, but I haven't watched this film in at least six years. I do own it though (I received it as a gift), so I will try to rewatch it so that I can make a more-compelling argument next time. For people who have actually seen it and didn't like it at all, I'd rewatch the orgy scene first because that is its own mini-movie and seems pretty unique in cinema to me. The music, camerawork and staging are spectacular, and it all builds to an almost Phantom of the Opera-ish crescendo with the removal of a mask. Really creepy stuff.

mark f

01-15-21, 08:32 PM

Alien (Ridley Scott, 1979) 4

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Alien is a classic and one of those films which should be seen on as large a screen as possible. True, it borrows a lot from It! The Terror from Beyond Space and Planet of the Vampires, but its budget and technical/creative team (including H.R. Giger) allow it to be far more spectacular than those low-budget flicks. Alien is a terriifc example of a sci-fi/horror flick. The first half is mind-bending sci-fi showing things which had never really been shown before, especially within what appeared to be such spectacular and wide-open sets (even if some were matte paintings). The second half is one of the better claustrophobic monster-on-the-loose flicks aboard the spaceship.

I really love Alien, I remember seeing it several times on the Big Newport's humongous screen and later at FILMEX's 50-hour horror marathon back-to-back with The Exorcist. Even after all these years and newer movies, it still has the strong basic foundation, combined with a sense of originality due to Giger's art directon and creature designs, to qualify as one of the scariest, most-visionary horrors and sci-fis ever made. My fave Alien scene is the long scene down on the planet where they find an enormous underground world, and the eggs on the surface. Then John Hurt sticks his head down a little too close...POW! For me, that scene climaxes with the chest buster

http://seveninchesofyourtime.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/giger.jpg

mark f

01-17-21, 02:11 AM

Taxi Driver (Martin Scorsese, 1976) 3.5-

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I'm once again one of the outsiders at the celebration although Taxi Driver has gone up in my estimation about as much as any film I've seen from the time I first watched it and downright hated it until now. I suppose I could stand at the doorway to the party though and ask Holden or cricket for a piece of cake or a beer.

I had a real problem with Taxi Driver when I first saw it in 1976. I didn't like or understand Travis Bickle, and what's more, I didn't like any of the other characters. I've seen it many times since, and I still find it to be extremely-flawed, but its pure cinematics have finally won me over enough to raise my rating up to what it is here. The cinematography and music were always great, but only go so far for what I thought was convoluted. For every scene which I find extended or overkill, I'm rewarded with some spectacular visual/aural pyrotechnics, often something as simple as a taxi driving down a neon-lit night-time street set to the jazzy Bernard Herrmann musical score. Robert De Niro's performance is quite incredible even though he remains an enigma. I believe the most-controversial scenes in the film are the entire rescue bloodbath at the end and the way it's perceived by the press and allegedly the filmmakers. Taxi Driver is definitely a film to be seen, and I'm now begrudgingly allowing myself to come to almost admit that I can "like" or "enjoy" it. One thing's for sure. Compared to all the other vigilante-type flicks which have come along since, Taxi Driver is much more complex and compelling. Ultimately, movies have caught up with Taxi Driver in content and subject matter, but most make it feel much better, both in reality and in the fact that it was almost prescient in the direction a large portion of modern cinema would take. I think it's a very good movie.

re93animator

01-17-21, 11:12 AM

mark f over the past week:
https://i.imgur.com/d32Ib0S.gif

Taxi Driver (Martin Scorsese, 1976) rating_3_5-

I had a real problem with Taxi Driver when I first saw it in 1976. I didn't like or understand Travis Bickle, and what's more, I didn't like any of the other characters. I've seen it many times since, and I still find it to be extremely-flawed, but its pure cinematics have finally won me over enough to raise my rating up to what it is here.

I've loved Taxi Driver since I was a teen mainly because I found Bickle tragically relatable. I didn't quite realize why at first, but I think it was Travis' incredibly flawed way of turning his own confused frustrations into disgust for others. Lashing out at external stressors (often understandably) instead of addressing his many internal problems. I think many people do this without realizing it. Maybe I'm way off base, but he remains a powerful character because I feel like I still have a grasp of what's going on in his mind and can immerse myself in the character, for better or worse.

Gideon58

01-18-21, 07:42 PM

mark f

01-19-21, 12:56 PM

Goodfellas (Martin Scorsese, 1989) 4

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Scorsese basically shows off in every single scene, and for once, he has a screenplay worthy of it. Even if all the acting is very good, I'm not all that gung-ho about the male leads' (Ray Liotta, Robert De Niro, Joe Pesci) although I believe that Paul Sorvino does his finest cinematic work and that Lorraine Bracco (and Marty's Mom!) outact everybody else. It covers most of the major mob activity in NYC from the '50s through the '80s, but don't expect to find anybody to root for or care about. Even so, it's a brilliant film. As far as the long, "drug-induced" helicopter scene [which is understandable in Henry Hill's case], there really have been police helicopters flying over my house for decades. My friends have often been paranoid because they thought it was about our illegal outdoor toking, but they fly around constantly searching for criminals who try to hide out in a huge park near my house. Scorsese's masterpiece covers almost everything significant he's tried to convey through cinema. You can watch many other of his films, but I'd start with this one and branch off from there.

mark f

01-23-21, 12:38 AM

American Graffiti (George Lucas, 1973) 4.5

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When I feel like watching something which enables me to just sit back with what amounts to about two dozen old friends and admire film in an almost pure form, this is always one of my Go-To films. From the opening titles, it's clear that Lucas is in complete control of the camera and sound, and in fact, it's partly the way he actually lights and shoots (with plenty of expert help) the film (95% of which takes place at night) which turns something which can be seen as a silly high school comedy into something much more meaningful. However, with that rock solid script, a collection of great performances and one of the greatest uses of pop songs in motion picture history (each song seems to comment on the exact actions of the characters at the time), it would be difficult to confuse American Graffiti with something like Porky's. There are so many memorable episodes and incidents, and they all flow so smoothly, that anyone who has never watched this yet or didn't get it the first time should take another look ASAP. Be sure to watch the Special Features where Lucas discusses that nobody wanted to film the original script, the original cut was over three hours and that if he didn't get a name attached to the film (Francis Ford Coppola), it would have never been financed and filmed in the first place, even though the budget was only $700,000. Of course, when you're watching this on DVD now, it looks like the budget was closer to $40 million with the state-of-the-art visual updating and ultimate sound recording and effects.

mark f

01-23-21, 10:41 PM

War and Peace (Sergei Bondarchuk, 1967) 4.5

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This is a true rarity: a film which tells a gargantuan story, based on a nation's most-popular/important novel, which expands the envelope of cinema on several levels. As enormous as much of the film is, it never strays too far from the story of its three central characters: Natasha (Lyudmila Savelyeva), a young, highly-emotional girl who feels strongly for her first love; Prince Andrei (Vyacheslav Tikhonov) who proposes to her but reneges when she acts foolishly; and Pierre (director Bondarchuk), her married cousin, who has always loved her and wishes to correct a mistake. Fifty plus years ago, the entire Soviet Union government contributed $100 million to make this awesome film, thus making it in today's dollars the most expensive film ever made. Even so, the film is mind-boggling and a totally-personal triumph for the director. The battle scenes have probably never been equaled, and the camerawork is creatively-luxuriant and bends to the stories' necessities. It truly is among the most spectacular films ever made, but Bondarchuk can even turn a simple scene into an emotional apocalypse through subtle photography, sound design and music. In fact, there are so many folk songs sung by many of the characters that it occasionally seems to be a haunting musical. This film may well be vastly underrated by me, but if you get a chance to watch it, try to see the Russian DVD (Ruscico); the rest of those on the market greatly reduce its power.

rauldc14

01-23-21, 11:00 PM

That's how you spent your last 3 days?

It was ok but I still think it's an overrated 8 hour film or whatever it was.

Mr Minio

01-23-21, 11:12 PM

but if you get a chance to watch it, try to see the Russian DVD (Ruscico); the rest of those on the market greatly reduce its power Are you saying the 2K restoration's high picture quality strips it off of its visual power in some way, offering too pristine a quality and therefore a sterile feel to the film in place of the rough and more nuanced feel of the DVD version? Or is the 2K restoration and/or other DVD releases devoid of some scenes?

I watched it only once years ago when it was only available on DVD but if I were to ever rewatch it, I'd probably grab the 2K Blu-ray, so I'd like to understand your reasoning.

That's how you spent your last 3 days? More like his last 8 hours. And he managed to throw in a couple of shorts in between. :)
It was ok but I still think it's an overrated 8 hour film or whatever it was. Say whatever you want but it's easily the greatest epic of all time Objectively, in terms of scope. And subjectively, if you have good taste. ;)

mark f

01-24-21, 12:41 AM

Allegro non troppo (Bruno Bozzetto, 1976) 4

https://i.pinimg.com/474x/9f/4c/11/9f4c11fa2331a3f94bbf772b55ce97cf.jpg

I love that whole movie - it's in my top 100. It's half a satire on the animation of Fantasia and half a black-and-white live-action jab at Disney's serious attitude towards the orchestra/conductor presented as a slapstick Fellini spoof. and this part is funnier the more you appreciate Fellini. The B&W live-action section has a despotic conductor who keeps his orchestra of little old ladies and his animator prisoners until he needs them for the classical music accompaniment and the animations. This part is done as a spoof/satire of Fellini by way of the Marx Brothers. There are surrealistic touches throughout the film, including many seemingly mean, violent ones involving some of the creations of the animator (Maurizio Nichetti) and a lovely cleaning woman who's mutually attracred to him. The conductor ts a particularly hateful character but that just makes him funnier. I haven't even gotten to the idiot "narrator" or some kind of dancing gorilla thing. But, to paraphrase Shakespeare, the animation's the thing.The "cartoons" are beautiful, spectacular, funny, melancholic, sexy, witty, surrealistic and thought-provoking. I could go into more details about it, but I'll just say the combo of classical music and deeply personaI animation creates huge emotions. I especially love the Bolero Evolution sequence and the Sibelius "Valse triste"/Homeless Cat segment too, which can be seen here.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jtaXp8jsBVA
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rtyNbCJCYw8

Iroquois

01-24-21, 05:44 AM

That's how you spent your last 3 days?

It was ok but I still think it's an overrated 8 hour film or whatever it was.

Curious now as to what you consider an accurately-rated 8-hour film.

rauldc14

01-24-21, 08:47 AM

Curious now as to what you consider an accurately-rated 8-hour film.

Only one I've seen. Never got to Shoah yet.

Iroquois

01-24-21, 09:00 AM

That's a 9-hour film.

pahaK

01-24-21, 12:59 PM

Hmm... I think I need to find 8 hours' time at some point. Hopefully, that 1080p version on YouTube is fine.

Mr Minio

01-24-21, 05:50 PM

Tokyo Story (1953) [REWATCH]

https://i.imgur.com/jXuhK8q.png
"It's dawn and the sun is out. It's going to be hot today, isn't it?"

The challenge one faces when attempting to write about a legend is that firstly, the legend is well known and therefore many have studied it to death, and secondly, the legend is worshipped, and therefore one has to find a way to bypass its status of a masterpiece and tackle it on a more personal level. The legend is Yasujiro Ozu's Tokyo Story, and the personal approach is perhaps the only way to write about the film and still create an interesting piece of text.

I first watched Tokyo Story back in March 2013. I'm quite sure it was my first Ozu film and a sort of gateway to Japanese cinema. It was by no means the first Japanese film I have ever seen but certainly the first of this kind. I remember liking it very much but still leaving with a 'that's it?' sort of impression. Rewatching it now, almost 8 years later, I confirm - yes, that's it! But after numerous other Ozus, Naruses, Yamadas, Goshos, Shimizus et al, that 'it' took on some inexplicable, deep meaning. Back in the day I watched other Ozu films and liked them more than Tokyo Story. Perhaps I still do. But that's beside the point.

I come from a very small family and one that seems to get smaller each year. I never felt that way before but recently I've been finding myself moved by cinematic depictions of families, especially in Japanese cinema. Of course, it's best when the depicted family is a perfect one - that's when my heart starts racing. But usually, this is not the case. As much as the importance of both love and family have grown in my eyes tremendously, the idea that family is family no matter how bad its members are is largely lost on me. It's too idealistic even to me. However, the idea that a black sheep can still reunite with their loved ones... When depicted skillfully and with a lot of heart like in Yoji Yamada's About Her Brother, now that's touching and relatable in some ways. But Tokyo Story is not about that.

The most surface-level meaning to Tokyo Story, to put it as ambiguously as possible, is that one should keep close to their family before it's too late. Then, you have a lot of other observations and meanings to the film, both apparent and hidden, that I'd rather not mention in detail here so as not to ruin the experience of those of you who still haven't seen this film (seriously, what are you waiting for?!). I'm not intending to enter into polemics with the film's message. As long as I believe that you ought to keep close to those you love, not all of us are fortunate enough to have their beloved ones in their family. Another point, children are entitled to their own lives and do not owe anything to their parents - a point the film is not denying. I believe the film is downright saying this but still focusing on the feelings of the parents. That's perhaps what makes it so powerful and humane.

Ozu's approach is original even though it's just your usual shōshimin eiga that was quite popular at the time. But Ozu ignores the 180-degree rule. Ozu tells the story like nobody before him but many after. The things he talks about - sure, say, the idea that the bonds of love are stronger than the bonds of blood. Naruse did that as early as in 1932 in his beautiful silent No Blood Relation. But the way Ozu talks about it. Or rather how he doesn't talk about it at all but shows it - that's interesting. And how Chishu Ryu's character copes with loss. How he utters "It's dawn and the sun is out. It's going to be hot today, isn't it?". There is not a hint of melodrama in that but it hits you hard all the same. This is pure melancholy.

So perhaps Mizoguchi was right to praise Ozu and say what Ozu does is much more mysterious than Mizoguchi's own films. After all, Ozu's films are, or at least this film - Tokyo Story is, pretty straightforward. But Ozu's films are all about life. And what's more mysterious than life?

Two weeks ago I rewatched Tokyo Story, a film mostly composed of gorgeous static shots with the camera placed relatively low so as to imitate the point of view of a person sitting on the floor. I especially loved the pillow shot portraying three-or-so women in kimonos standing on the bridge. Quite breathtaking! All actors give convincing performances. Chishu Ryu and Chieko Higashiyama create perhaps the most charming couple of all time! And Setsuko Hara - what a charming flower she is! A morning glory of film! And definitely a more presentable morning glory than that of my own. ;) Oh, how I love Japanese films that evoke mono no aware. Makes me want to watch Shimizu's Ornamental Hairpin again. Makes me want to watch other Ozu films, other movies from the Noriko Trilogy. Makes me want to watch movies. The journey of a cinephile is a long one, so it's good to get back to a familiar place from time to time.

mark f

01-26-21, 10:34 AM

Pulp Fiction (Quentin Tarantino, 1994) 4.5

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For me, this is easily Tarantino's best film, and no matter where he drew his "inspiration", it's crammed with quirky, interesting characters and witty dialogue. Iconic scenes abound - the restaurant scene, the dance, the miracle shooting, suitcase, the watch, foot message, the Gimp, prank call, "clean this ***** out", walk the Earth, etc. Just thinking about many of the minor characters makes me smile; people like Steve Buscemi's Buddy Holly, Eric Stoltz's Lance, and Christopher Walken's Captain Koons. Much has been made of the film's non-linear structure, but I find it to be not that significant, at least while watching it. It adds something more to discuss after it's over, but while watching it, I mainly think about how great Samuel L. Jackson and Harvey Keitel are. Back in 1994, this is the way I called the Oscars: I said that Samuel L. Jackson should win Best Actor for Pulp Fiction, but since he was nominated Best Supporting Actor for his role as Jules, and John Travolta was nomed Best Actor for Vincent Vega in the same film, I said, well, that's pretty tough, Samuel L. because there's no way you're going to beat Martin Landau ("Let's shoot this fu(ka") for Best Supporting Actor.

Mr Minio

01-26-21, 12:41 PM

I hated Pulp Fiction when I first watched it back in 2011, I couldn't stand the excessive swearing and as I literally watched it in between some of the best films ever made and films that made me a cinephile and changed my life (Werckmeister Harmonies, Stalker, Seventh Seal), Pulp Fiction seriously let me down.

I really liked Pulp Fiction when I rewatched it in 2014. I remember watching it in a rented room with a laptop on my lap (after all it's called a LAPtop, eh?!). I'd definitely become more open-minded since 2011 and simply enjoyed the film for what it was. I even found myself caring for the characters toward the end of the film.

It's been years and I might rewatch it. I've watched all Tarantino films since and even though I don't think Pulp Fiction is a masterpiece nor even Tarantino's best, I agree it's a fun film.

donniedarko

01-27-21, 12:10 AM

https://www.indiewire.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/The-Lighthouse.jpg
Not So Recent Viewings:
The Light House (Eggers, 2019)- 4-
Elf (Favreau, 2003)- 4-
I'm Thinking of Ending Things (Kaufman, 2020)- 3
The Mimic (Huh, 2017)- 2
Borat: Subsequent Movie Film (Woliner, 2020) - 2

I'm Thinking of Ending Things (Kaufman, 2020)

It's been some time since I've been compelled to jot some thoughts down after watching a film, but here I am. I'll start off by saying my limited experience with Kaufman has been a mixed bag. LOVE Being John Malkovich (written by), likeEternal Sunshine (written by), and HATE Synecdoche, New York. This falls somewhere in the middle.

I'd break this experience up into three pieces
1. The Car Scenes
2. The Farmhouse
3. The School

https://media.vanityfair.com/photos/5f51cd7d1e10df7a77868af4/master/w_2560%2Cc_limit/thinking-of-ending-things-ending.jpg
Similarly to how the woman gets annoyed with Jake for being overly pretentious, I definitely felt this through much of the car scene dialogues. How much of this was intentional and how much was Kaufman to flex, I don't know. Probably comes down to the adaptation and I have not read the original book. There's a few clever moments in here however, perhaps if you've seen A Woman Under The Influence and Oklahoma five times, you'd pick up more than me who hasn't seen those in near a decade- but for me man at 15-20 mins a piece these car scenes could just feel overly elongated. Despite speaking only like two cliche overly pretentious grad students could, somehow always to keep me engaged, and a bit tense however, especially in the second series where Jake keeps asking if we're going back to the farmhouse. The feel created in these moments was actually surprisingly well done, in this stranded world- similar to how the woman describes her painting I guess. Although she seems perfectly calm, there's an unnerving presence.
2.5

https://static01.nyt.com/images/2020/09/01/arts/00thinking/merlin_176250954_761469ea-43e1-4f80-b578-30f8c56e0fc8-superJumbo.jpg
The Farmhouse is the absolutely brilliant part of the film, my God was this unsettling, surreal, and extremely uncomfortable. Cloest thing to Eraserhead I've ever seen, and that's one of my top ten films so this is huge praise for me. In this 30-40 minute scene Kaufman takes on surrealism as well as Bunuel, Lynch, or Svanmajer. It's also on level of scariness as some modern greats of Get out and Us. I believe this is the only part of the movie where I picked up some of the symbolism, and there's some interesting statements on aging through out. I can't say I gathered a hollistic picture of what's being said- if there really is anything- but I was STRESSED through this whole interaction. Which is hard to do with 0 character build (the woman doesn't even have a name) and very little emotional response from our protagonist- outside of confusion. Never fear. As I said this is a modern Eraserhead, would've made an amazing stand alone short film
4.5

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And then came the school scene, where our backgorund janitor is finally tied in! And this is where the film completely lost me, my God. All the drama, all the intensity, all the chilliness of it just went away the minute they started dancing and there forward. I no longer care enough to dissect any meaning , I'm no longer engaged, I no longer feel anything watching this. I'm sure for other audience this is the mind blowing moment where we can connect all the odd dots, for me this is the moment Kaufman fails in carrying the energy. And I can't really expect him too. This final series feel ADHD, over done, and frankly empty to me.
1

It's hard for me to tie this altogether, since as a viewer I did fail too- and as a movie it failed to keep me. But there's still something special about this Netflix original. Oddly it would've felt more complete to me if it ended about 35 mins early, when she confronts the janitor. But hey I'm not as smart as Kaufman or the quantum physicist and wanna be diligent scholar who are our protagonists (are they)? But the farmhouse stretch is enough for me to reccomend this unique horror experience

Overall: 3

Mr Minio

01-27-21, 02:17 PM

American Graffiti (1973)

https://cdn2.creativecirclemedia.com/ptleader/original/20181126-225129-5d0c5b856c6b1c2b304cb0a7f140d469.jpg

Really expected to dislike it but ended up liking it very much! Great late-night mood and just a lot of fun spiced up by competent filmmaking. Didn't expect Harrison Ford in this! Also, great music.

mark f

01-28-21, 07:27 PM

The Godfather (Francis Ford Coppola, 1972) 4.5

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Peerless gangster saga, both about the American Dream and the American Nightmare, is masterfully crafted and acted by a cast which seems to fully inhabit each and every character, so much so that the viewer believes they know them all well. All the scenes flow smoothly from one highlight to the next. The Godfather is generally considered one of the best post-classic Hollywood movies with old-fashioned storytelling magic. The only thing I can think of as being "unusual" about the storytelling is the way it starts at the wedding, but even that turns out to be awesome since it's the film's longest set piece.

Unlike many others here, this is my easy pick for Coppola's best film. It's a totally stand alone, audacious, suspenseful tale of the Mob (or Family), told in a traditional story arc. The beginning, middle and end are perfect. The acting is uniformly terrific, and the cast is easily the greatest of The Godfather movies. I have come to appreciate how superb Part II is, when blended with the original, but it took me a while to accept it as almost as great. Maybe this film is a tad more melodramatic than the second one, but even though Brando should have won Best Supporting Actor here (well, maybe not, Joel Grey, anyone?) and Pacino should have been nominated Best Actor (vice versa of the way they actually were), Brando dominates this film in his few scenes. It's just that the film is so rich in all its characters that distinctions among importance are irrelevant. After all, like I said before, the entire cast is pretty damn impressive, so I'll shut up before I have to name them all. Just don't forget to leave the gun and take the cannoli.

cricket

02-01-21, 02:40 PM

January, 2021 movies watched-

Crazy Murder (2014) 2- An A+ for revolting.

Good Night, and Good Luck (2005) 3+ A very good movie but it's nothing more than expected.

The Secret in Their Eyes (2009) Repeat 5 The only "thriller" I can think of that touches my soul.

Philadelphia (1993) 3.5 A good movie that would have been better if I saw it 20 years ago.

Beasts of the Southern Wild (2012) 2.5 Just not for me.

Becky (2020) 2 Excruciatingly typical.

Aniara (2018) 3.5- Above average Swedish Sci-Fi.

VFW (2019) 3+ Good time nonsense.

Barry Lyndon (1975) Repeat 4 Leaves me a little cold, yet I find it practically flawless.

In a Glass Cage (1986) Repeat 3 Above average for a sick film but it's another that leaves me cold.

Rudderless (2014) 2.5+ Kind of like a good made for TV movie.

Shame (1968) Repeat 4 One of my favorite movies from director Bergman.

The Sea Inside (2004) 3.5+ A very moving film starring the great Javier Bardem.

Sundays and Cybele (1962) 4.5 Foreign language Oscar winner that I can't believe I didn't know about before.

The Day of the Jackal (1973) Repeat 4 Much more enjoyable this time with knowing what pace to expect.

The Man from Nowhere (2010) Repeat 3.5 Above average action film but the lack of originality was more apparent this time.

Carcinoma (2014) 2- Well done but not easy to get through.

The Guilty (2018) 3.5 A lot out of very little.

Vampyr (1932) Repeat 2.5 Love the visuals and sounds but that's it.

La Dolce Vita (1960) Repeat 3.5 Still not sure what to think of this one.

The Whisperers (1967) 3- Decent kitchen sink that I thought should have been better.

January viewings-21

Chypmunk

02-01-21, 02:49 PM

January watches (includes rewatches that have never been rated on here):
72539
*missing poster is The Badge Of Marshal Brennan (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0050158/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0)

Skepsis93

02-03-21, 11:46 AM

https://i.imgur.com/yn6jGk3.jpg

Stalker
Andrei Tarkovsky, 1979

Possible spoilers ahead

I saw Mirror quite a few years ago now and it was so impenetrable to me that it took a long time to rediscover the desire to give Tarkovsky another whirl. When I saw first Andrei Rublev and then later Stalker pop up on our top 100 list I knew it was about time. And what a densely challenging, frustrating, thought-provoking, otherworldly, rewarding experience it ended up being.

It’s clear that Tarkovsky intended this film to be an intensely personal experience for each individual that takes the leap into this almost 3-hour long spiritual journey, whose modest plot follows three men as they venture into the mysterious Zone, in search of a Room which supposedly has the power to grant a person’s innermost desire. I feel it’s pointless to try to discern any concrete “point” Tarkovsky was trying to make; it’s so densely packed with ideas that each viewer will draw a different conclusion. The fact that you can find masses of wildly varying interpretations of this film around the web is proof of that. At any rate, I can’t pretend to completely understand even my own feelings about it after one viewing.

Purely as a piece of visual art, it’s beautiful and full of unforgettable images. It’s not a beautiful world they inhabit, certainly not, at least, in the pre- and post- Zone sequences (emphasised by the murky sepia-toned cinematography, contrasting the escape into the expectant colour of the Zone). But the way it is photographed (along with the sparse soundtrack) gives it a distinctive magical-realist quality for which I struggle to find a comparison. The languid flow of the camerawork, allowing us to absorb each shot, the lingering close-ups of the wonderfully expressive performances of Kaydanovskiy and Solonitsyn particularly, suck you almost into a trance at times.

I’m sure it’s possible to let all of this good stuff simply wash over you and enjoy the imagery without even trying to dissect the film’s many themes too much. But there’s so much there that it seems a shame not to at least try to pick apart what it all means to you.

For me, the journey of the Stalker, the Writer and the Professor is a metaphor for life itself, and the three men each represent the vastly different approaches we can take to finding happiness within it – led by God, by art, by science. In reality we are of course complicated beings more than likely dominated by a combination of these things, in conflict with one another, just as the three men butt heads – like the writer mocking the Stalker with his crown of thorns, and the latter, near the end of the film, decrying lack of faith and the spread of cynicism. Their snaking, illogical route through the Zone is the similarly snaking one our lives take, stumbling around in the darkness in search of meaning and an ideal of desire fulfilment and contentment. The nature of the journey changes as our philosophy and mindset does, just as the Zone becomes crueller as the writer infects the group with his increasing agitation and scepticism. The journey, and the destination, is about so much less than giving us what we want, as much as revealing to us our deepest truths, things we wouldn’t admit even to ourselves. The “meat grinder” has this effect on the writer, who admits that his profession is a torment to him, and at the precipice of the Room we learn that a previous Stalker, “Porcupine,” learnt this same reality in the harshest of ways.

Be careful what you wish for, then. Whether it is indeed a real, magical place, or – more likely – a product of the imagination, the Room is a dangerous proposition, revealing not what we tell ourselves and others we desire, but what our true nature dictates we do. In this way, beyond the superficial (like the visual transition to colour), the comparisons to The Wizard of Oz are apt. The men ultimately find that what they seek is a facade, but not in the “you had it in you all along” kind of happy way of Fleming’s film. The men are ultimately shown the unattainability of what they set out to obtain.

It’s been a long time since I’ve seen something that has felt so mysteriously resonant, made me think so much. I can’t pretend to have a theory about all of it, and maybe mine is the shallowest of possible interpretations. But it has made me keen to revisit and dig deeper into the mystery.

4.5

Sedai

02-03-21, 11:50 AM

It’s been a long time since I’ve seen something that has felt so mysteriously resonant, made me think so much. I can’t pretend to have a theory about all of it, and maybe mine is the shallowest of possible interpretations. But it has made me keen to revisit and dig deeper into the mystery.

Where did you watch this? I am having trouble finding a place to access this...

Skepsis93

02-03-21, 11:55 AM

Where did you watch this? I am having trouble finding a place to access this...

It's available on Prime Video (https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/video/detail/B01FGFW6AK/ref=atv_dp_share_cu_r) here in the UK, sorry I wouldn't know about US availability.

seanc

02-03-21, 12:08 PM

Love that Stalker review Skepsis. I feel similarly about my thoughts on it doing the movie justice, but I think they do. Because Stalker is about the never ending spiritual journey and it's encapsulated perfectly here. I plan on watching this and Solaris again sooner than later. Can't wait.

Weasel

02-07-21, 02:17 PM

Mad Max: Fury Road 3.5
72935

While not the "10/10 best movie of the year" the internet might say it is, to me Mad Max: Fury Road is a thoroughly entertaining flick where person drive car into other person car and big explosion happens. Needed more guitar man tho.

The Social Network 5
72937

For me, I usually care much more about who's writing a movie than who's directing it. I think it's a lot easier for a mediocre director and a good screenwriter to make a good film than vice versa. There are a few guys who stand outside this generalization and Fincher is absolutely one of them. Not saying the screenplay here isn't great, because it is, but to me what makes this film work is just how well Fincher is able to piece together scenes to make a very compelling narrative. Also hahaha it's funny lizard man do you get the joke he is lizard

There Will Be Blood 5
72938

This is one of my favorites, but I don't want to sing its praises since I think it's best going in blind. What I will say is that this movie is almost perfect in every way, and I think you could analyze and dissect it for hours. What I think's more fun, and more entertaining to read as you slurp down that coffee like the drone you are, is what sucks in this film. There is one scene, one scene in the 158 minute running time that pulls a Perfect Blue and just throws all the subtlety out the window. I won't say what it is for those who haven't seen the film, but it gets pretty cartoony and two-dimensional for this one scene, before getting back to the great stuff. For any other movie this would take off some points, but the rest of this film is so ******* good that I don't think it matters all too much.

------------------

Been watching too many good movies lately, I'll try to see some ****tier ones and let you fine folks know how agitated they make me because that makes for better entertainment.

re93animator

02-10-21, 10:50 AM

Dark of the Sun (1968) - rating_3_5
Mercenaries hired to snatch some diamonds in the Congo. A good movie with a low-buttoned shirt and hair on its chest. The score is an excellent Morricone knock off, albeit too light for often brutal & heavy content. Other than that, it's a little too tightly edited for my liking. The gorgeous scenery feels cramped.
https://i.imgur.com/23CQd0m.png?1

The Blood on Satan's Claw (1971) - rating_2_5
Aggravating young Satanic collective up to no good. Harbors an authentic enough 1600s atmosphere within a nice rural setting. Good dialogue and acting too. Despite some silly zoom-in scares, it's probably better than I'm giving it credit for, but it just never grabbed me.
https://i.imgur.com/luEB42z.png?1

Blast of Silence (1961) - rating_3
An anti-social hitman on a job. It's got a ton of dark noir-ish style, and is a pretty good character study of someone that, without sinister narration detailing his inner thoughts, would seem like a pretty unremarkable fellow. Some character actions seem unnatural, and the composer could use an odd dose of ritalin.
https://i.imgur.com/5kXqTKv.png?1

Memories of Murder (2003) - rating_3_5
An old favorite that I hadn't seen in years. A group of knuckle-happy detectives in a military-governed South Korea investigate (and attempt to frame) certain oddball suspects for a series of murders. The characters drive the story, and are able to pull off comedy without diminishing the gravity of the subject matter. This has to have one of my favorite epilogues too; bitter and chilling.
https://i.imgur.com/vSkMjWy.png?1

Sedai

02-10-21, 12:14 PM

The Town
Affleck, 2010

4

Excellent crime thriller set in my neck of the woods. Perfectly paced with some excellent performances. Be careful down Charlestown, alright kid?

https://www.tasteofcinema.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/Blake-Lively-in-The-Town-2010.jpg

Stalker
Tarkovsky, 1979

4

Hypnotic and thought provoking, I don't think I quite understood some of it, but I was certainly pulled into the proceedings. Watched this in an effort to 100% the recent best-of list. Probably deserves a higher mark, but some sections were a struggle to get through. I am sure that is all on me.

https://image.tmdb.org/t/p/original/xhet9FxP6VoRdlBSsfc9FhCsKSW.jpg

OK, now that we have the actual films out of the way... ;)

Xanadu
Greenwald, 1980

3

Awful stuff. Love every second of it. Watched it with my two year-old daughter and she was dancing along with the musical number. Will watch again, probably soon.

https://i.pinimg.com/originals/5f/82/2a/5f822a9d156caa9d68a952254e954118.jpg

The Warriors
Hill, 1979

3_5

Not so awful stuff. Love every second of it. My wife hates this movie, so there is a constant barrage of derision funneled my way whenever I watch this, to which I respond by proceeding to quote the film for a week straight after I watch it.

https://www.moviehousememories.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/the-warriors-1979-movie-still.jpg

Sedai

02-11-21, 05:12 PM

Goodfellas
Scorsese, 1990

5

https://media.phillyvoice.com/media/images/GoodfellasScreengrab.2e16d0ba.fill-1200x630-c0.png

Cheery, light-hearted family film about a sweet old lady who makes great marinara sauce, and her kind-hearted son and his two neighborly friends. OK, only the sauce statement is true, but that doesn't stop Goodfellas from being one of the best films ever made.

The Quick and the Dead
Raimi, 1995

3

https://resizing.flixster.com/5_P1KyGx7VawKjLJskuArNhuI08=/740x380/v1.bjsxNTI4MjA7ajsxODY3NjsxMjAwOzk3Mjs2NDg

This one was a mixed bag for me. Some stuff to like here, but it also felt like Raimi took Hackman's character from Unforgiven and plopped him down in a decidedly worse film with a boilerplate script and Sharon Stone doing a Clint Eastwood impersonation. There were some cool shots and Hackman killed it as usual, but overall, not a great flick.

Sedai

02-12-21, 12:16 PM

Amelie
Juenet, 2001

5

https://ourculturemag.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/Ame%CC%81lie-glass-1536x650.jpg

It had been a while, but it was finally time to revisit Ms. Poulain. I went ahead and watched it twice this week. Close to a perfect film.

Mr Minio

02-13-21, 11:54 PM

The Song of Bernadette (1943)

https://i.makeagif.com/media/5-24-2016/dR6d_u.gif

After 40-odd Johnnie To films I thought that as much as I love the HK auteur, I indeed should tackle another director. I'd love to write about To and his films but I have no idea how to approach this. Meanwhile, I decided to watch my first Henry King.

The Song of Bernadette is a panegyric and the makers never try to hide it. From the opening title saying "For those who believe, no explanation is necessary; for those who do not believe, no explanation is possible." (the line is later repeated by one of the characters toward the end of the film), to the solemn nature of the visions, it's pretty evident this is a work of a laudatory nature.

The miracles are evident and aplenty, leaving very little to the imagination. This is not Ordet, patiently waiting to strike in the finale, nor Stars in My Crown, poetically electrifying with its miracle and then surprisingly showing that where God cannot cope, man must help Him. No, The Song of Bernadette is something else. It's a big Oscar-winner on a saint. Not devoid of poetry, mainly found in its riveting cinematography, Jennifer Jones' coy performance, and the juxtaposition between the exterior and interior - especially visible in the monastery scenes towards the end, the film oftentimes takes the literal route. Mary manifests herself in the image of a beautiful lady with gold roses on her feet - an image quite possibly taken from some classic painting of the time. There's a point to be made about how the viewer sees Mary just like Bernadette does and if and what it entails but I don't know enough about Henry King to draw any conclusions about his intentions. Perhaps he was simply enamored with early silents like Vie et Passion du Christ. ;)

It's not a huge spoiler to say that Bernadette's life wasn't devoid of suffering and it's interesting to note how her profile matches your average Christian saint darling (one could say that Christianity - especially Catholicism - is at its root leeringly sadistic). As a person who used to be Catholic and now boasts of atheism, I declare I never found the idea of saints especially believable, hence why I seem to prefer films where miracles happen mysteriously, by the intervention of a Light. I think the mystery is a big part of faith. That's why I'm not a fan of depicting gods literally. But that's more of a personal preference.

Besides the intriguing photography (a few times the camera is held lower than necessary resulting in a worm's-eye view), and Bernadette herself, two well-fleshed-out side-characters have their little arcs that work better than expected. Writers managed to avoid playing some very questionable tones, and it's very easy to imagine how you could go too far with Vincent Price's character (had no idea the actor was going to be in this film).

By no means do I deem The Song of Bernadette a masterpiece, and I can name some better films both about saints and miracles, but the film's sanctified character makes it easy to get into, the seemingly outrageous 156 minutes go by relatively fast, and your questions and doubts about Bernadette should keep you thinking as much as it did Sister Marie Therese (although probably not for 10 years).

Sedai

02-15-21, 10:17 AM

Dazed and Confused
Linklater, 1993

3_5

https://pics.filmaffinity.com/Dazed_and_Confused-817091700-large.jpg

This is a bit better than I recall it being, or perhaps my tired ass is just longing for more carefree days. Anyway, gets the period right for the most part, and captures the vibe of the era fairly well.

Parasite
Ho, 2019

4_5

https://img.cinemablend.com/filter:scale/quill/4/4/e/2/f/d/44e2fdcaf4242950dc0d85a959b1b5cda75ad9cb.jpg?fw=1200

My wife still hadn't seen this, so we fit it in over the weekend. She loved it, and I thought it was just as good the second time around.

Mr Minio

02-26-21, 10:47 PM

China Girl (1987)

https://i.imgur.com/AyxoKPo.png

Ferrara's West Side Story (because, obviously, both take the central idea from Romeo and Juliet). The youth revolts against tradition and the status quo. Some fight using love, others using hate. Correctly points out that a China Girl is all you need to be happy. ;) Look out for a young racist Horatio Caine long before his YEEEEEAAAAH days. Expected a minor Ferrara but this is up there with his best.

跟蹤 [Eye in the Sky] (2007)

https://i.imgur.com/Pyfads1.png

Allegedly directed by To's screenwriter Yau Nai-Hoi but, come on, by now it shouldn't come as a surprise that this was most probably ghost-directed by Johnnie To. Thanks to To's masterful directing and Cheng Siu-Keung's cinematography we get yet another exceptionally shot crime thriller. Seriously, any other non-arthouse HK film feels so boring and plain after a To. I turned off another Milkyway Image production, Looking for Mr. Perfect directed by Ringo Lam, partly for that reason (I love Lam's On Fire Trilogy and blast-of-a-film Full Contact and I like Shu Qi so I guess I will have to get back to it - I was pretty tired, I gotta admit). Eye in the Sky might seem quite regular screenplay-wise but there is a surprise or two along the way, and Johnnie To uses his skill to make it insanely watchable. Not to mention Simon Freakin' Yam tellin' jokes and mentoring rookie Kate Tsui (she's such a cutie!). Loved it.

Trở Về [The Return] (1994)

https://i.imgur.com/aKeDk3e.png

A beautiful feminist melodrama ala ennobled Sirk*, in which invisible lines cruelly divide people while the hegemony of rectangles over human silhouettes covers deep wounds. While my first Đặng Nhật Minh and his best When the Tenth Month Comes and his best 90s film Nostalgia for Countryland are quite open in their poetic beauty, The Return, not unlike Guava Season, is a much more cryptic film. It's easy to understand the general story and the feelings of the female protagonist, but the exact goings-on are often deliberately obscured, left ambiguous, or concealed. After having seen 6 Đặng Nhật Minh films, I pronounce him the best Vietnamese director ever (take that, Trần Anh Hùng!). He's a guy whose films look so simple but hold such poetic power that they bring tears to my eyes. I can't wait to watch his last film Don't Burn! Miss Nhung is another one I haven't seen but no English subtitles are available! Shame!

* I feel kinda bad name-dropping Douglas Sirk so much, especially given I'm not a fan of his. Constantly mentioning Sirk signifies that I'm probably giving him too much credit. Anyway, by ennobled I mean a much more reserved and pure. Pure poetry, that is, crystallized on screen.

re93animator

02-27-21, 05:31 PM

Tremors II: Aftershocks (1996) (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0114720/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0) - rating_2_5
Graboids have been reported somewhere in Mexico, and a company offers the Graboid-tested Earl Bassett $50,000 per kill. He declines. They don't raise the price. He accepts.

Fred Ward is such a cool & likable lead. Perfect for the self-aware humor and jovial spirit of the movie.

Having mini-walking monsters ruins a lot of the fun though, relegating it to generic monster movie in acts 2&3.
https://i.imgur.com/wG9NP1f.png?1

Willy's Wonderland (2021) (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt8114980/) - rating_3_5
8 robot mascot demons locked in a building with caffeinated Nic Cage. Intentionally stupid and simple. It has a psychedelic style akin to Mandy, but less artsy with a faster pace. Probably what a lot of naysayers wished Mandy was like. Funny and cool.
https://i.imgur.com/3mcxvI5.png?1

Special (2006) (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0479162/) - rating_4
A hapless man volunteers for a medication trial and starts believing that he has super powers. Bittersweet and melancholy. It starts off a little try-hard, but does capture the monotony of life well, which makes it all the more funny and powerful when wild stuff starts happening. It's concise and silly with a low-budget feel, but I was very moved by it.

The Ghoul (1933) (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0024055/) - rating_1_5
A dying man pledges his life to Anubis in the hope that he will be resurrected. Largely takes place in a dark, quasi-expressionistic horror house with some Egyptian paraphernalia. The imagery is pretty remarkable, but the movie is just too corny and boring overall. Somehow vapid and melodramatic at the same time.

Xchange (2001) (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0242150/) - rating_2
In the near future, people can temporarily switch bodies. A promising concept, though it belongs in a time far removed from what looks like present day with some cheap Nickelodeon props. Are early 2000s computer graphics considered retrofuturism yet? This movie has aged like milk and feels a lot like a pervy TV production. Although the part of me that misses Windows XP gradients really likes the goofy weird look, I doubt too many others will.
https://i.imgur.com/Hz2S87u.jpg?1

Crawl (2019) (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt8364368/) - rating_3
Father, daughter, and dog try to avoid hungry alligators during a hurricane. As a lifelong Floridian, I've only had to deal with this scenario three times in the past.

There's some bent logic to conveniently justify more suspense, a little too much CGI for my liking, not enough meth for a more Florida than Florida movie, and the dog is the smartest character.

In all seriousness, I hate alligators. These movies bother me. I look like Chuck Liddell watching a fight on cocaine the whole time.
https://i.imgur.com/Z7eSD3g.gif

HashtagBrownies

02-28-21, 07:26 PM

Seen in February

Sans Soleil: 3.5 Some of the sequences in this have a marvellous combination of image and sound. Even with that, I still somewhat agree with the Vincent Canby’s very negative review of the film, though not nearly as intensely or hatefully. Is a travelogue with nice music really “best documentary of all time” material?

Funeral Parade of Roses: 3.5+ Oedipus Rex but within the context of Japan’s lgbt scene? That’s such a specific premise that I have to wonder how the director came up with it. Matsumoto uses some very bizarre visuals for certain sequences, but they weren’t used often so I would’ve liked to have seen more of it. The interview sections reminded me alot of Paris is Burning or the interview scene in the 400 Blows. I’ll have to check out more by Matsumoto.

All that Heaven Allows: 3.5 Lovely use of colours and a cute romance. The characters also feel much more human than most romance films at the time, I felt like I was looking at a real person when looking at Jane Wyman’s character.

Far From Heaven: 4 One of those films that’s kind a remake but not really a remake. Basically takes the style and themes of Sirk but does it from a modern perspective.I do like how this film somewhat more realistic than All That Heaven Allows (She doesn’t marry the gardener or is completely swept off her feet by him or anything like that).

The Slumber Party Massacre: 3 Picked this out because I’m planning to watch more women directed films this year to expand my taste. What saves this from being boring is the very humorous conversations between the friends at the party; it makes them seem all the more human. Some of the kills and chases are really good too. Will definitely watch the sequel.

Vampyr: 4 I believe what adds to the film’s creepy, unreal atmosphere is the blending of styles: It looks like a film from the 20’s, but the way the camera is moved and placed is very ahead of it’s time and it has sound (also don’t forget the blurring and odd effects). This film have one of the most unique atmospheres I’ve seen due to this. Also very empathetic and expressive acting (as is to be expected from Dreyer)

She-Man: A Story of Fixation: 2 A boring, problematic (but kinda progressive) mess of a B-movie that’s made watchable by it’s hilarious bad acting and a sassy drag queen.

Pink Flamingos: 4 The use of a live chicken during ‘that’ scene is simply inexcusable. Apart from that it’s a great time; The hilarious, exaggerated way in which people talk is probably the most obvious indicator that this film isn’t meant to be taken seriously, and the film really benefits from that (SOMEONE HAS SENT ME A BOWEL MOVEMENT!). Upcoming John Waters binge? Maybe.

Batman Returns: 3.5 Good, superhero fun. I should’ve watched this in December, the Christmas atmosphere is quite tranquil.

Love Meetings: 3+ Felt like a lot of the interviews were just the same ideas repeated over and over again, just by different people. I feel like because of this, the film could’ve been way shorter and gotten the exact same message across. Still, it’s very interesting to see how people viewed sexuality back then.

Thriller: A Cruel Picture: 4- A rape-revenge that takes a very long time to get to the revenge. Despite this, it’s still quite badass, though in a bit of a silly way (They use slow motion for every, single death in this film and the lack of self-awareness in it is shocking). The soundtrack is quite experimental, as in there’s no similarity in the tracks and everything is so random. Sometimes the music falls flat (Like there’s a scene where she’s just driving but they’re playing untuned Teletubby-esque music?), but sometimes it’s great (that slo-mo martial arts scene with the peaceful, ethereal music is wonderful). I love the gunplay, even if the blood kinda looks like ketchup.

Mr Minio

03-01-21, 02:24 AM

Is a travelogue with nice music really “best documentary of all time” material? Yes.

Chypmunk

03-01-21, 04:28 AM

February watches (includes rewatches that have never been rated on here but not those that have):
73839

cricket

03-02-21, 08:21 AM

February, 2021 movies watched-

The Slayer (1982) 3- Enjoyable enough for horror fans.

Hard Times (1975) Repeat 3.5 Not a great movie but a great guy movie.

[B]The Beast in Heat (1977) 1.5+ Mediocre nazsploitation.

The Untold Story (1993) 3.5+ One of the best Cat III movies I've seen.

Days of Wine & Roses (1958) 4 Better than the more well known 1962 version.

Antwone Fisher (2002) 4 For this story, the only thing that matters is strong performances.

Amateur Porn Star Killer 3 (2009) 1+ Not good enough to compel me to watch the rest of the series.

Trauma (2017) 4 Highly recommended for those who like the sicker stuff.

Rabies (2010) 3.5 The first Israeli horror movie is a good one.

Clash (2016) 4.5 Very intense hidden gem.

The Italian Connection (1972) 3.5- A good step below Caliber 9 but still worth watching.

Wild Tales (2014) 3.5 Plenty of good moments.

Le Doulos (1962) 3.5 Very good Melville crime film.

February viewings-13
2021 viewings-34

Weasel

03-07-21, 11:50 PM

Watched some really good looking movies (well, for the most part), here they are:

Hot Fuzz 4

74359

Bing bang cop go haha!. Starts off as a decently funny film but really picks up near the end. Not as laugh out loud as some other comedies for me but it does a real good job at pulling you in while still keeping up the laughs.

Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World 4.5

74360
This is the best image I could find that didn't spoil anything I'm so sorry

Third time seeing this, was having a pretty dour day and decided to turn something on to give me a few laughs. Obviously, the visuals are the most immediately noticeable thing about this film, and I can't imagine the work it took to get all of this stuff done right. Not just the visual effects, but the choreography really made all the action stand out. There are some goofy shots in there too, but they add to the cheesy charm the movie has. Same with the ending, and however embarrassing it is to say it I think it helped me have a better outlook on things for the following days. Hilarious too, especially the visual gags and more dry stuff. I'd say it's funnier than Hot Fuzz and Hot Fuzz has the better story, but I love this film.

Fantastic Mr. Fox 3.5

74361

Fun animated family film with a really cool style. It's really short too, so if you just want something quick and fun to watch this is a good pick.

Speed Racer

74362

There's a good chance I end up writing a real review to this, so I won't say too much or give a rating. I have a pretty personal connection to this film and I gotta decide if I want to include any of that in my review, and I also gotta decide how I want to phrase everything. There's so much I need to include to really illustrate my thoughts, and that balance is delicate. I think that describes this movie pretty well, too. A crazy ass racing/crime/comedy movie like this is many things, but it certainly isn't boring. What I will say is this is one of the most enjoyable and bat**** crazy films you will see, and I recommend it to anyone who can deal with the colors.

mark f

03-21-21, 10:28 PM

Platoon (Oliver Stone, 1986) 4

https://i.makeagif.com/media/6-16-2015/qeQhpo.gif

Harrowing and poetic depiction of Vietnam as a sort of allegory which works because of Stone's real-life experiences and his masterful control behind the camera. 1986 was a very intense year for watching movies in the theatre. First, there was Aliens which was incredibly nerve-wracking, and then later on, Platoon came along with several hair-raising battle scenes and confrontations. The story is almost simplistic as Charlie Sheen's new recruit is being tempted and has to decide who is really good or evil, Barnes (Tom Berenger) or Elias (Willem Dafoe), but what's depicted on screen is powerful and important, especially in the context of Stone's career. Platoon perhaps uses Barber's "Adaggio For Strings" as evocatively as any film has, and here's the roll call for the cast ("Sound off if you've got a pair"): Keith David, Johnny Depp, Forrest Whitaker, John C. McGinley, Kevin Dillon, Richard Edson, Tony Todd, Mark Moses, Reggie Johnson and Dale Dye.

cricket

03-31-21, 06:58 PM

March, 2021 movies watched-

The Beast (1975) 2- Absurd but amusing when it wasn't boring.

H-8...(1958) 4+ Some call it the best Croatian movie ever made.

Magical Girl (2014) 4.5- Surprised I haven't heard more about this.

Sword of the Beast (1965) 3+ Pretty good Samourai film.

Underground (1995) 4.5 A crazy amount of energy.

Brother (1997) 4 Grimy Russian crime film.

Greenland (2020) 3.5 Hard to say how good it is but I was entertained the whole time.

Maria Candelaria (1944) 3 Decent Cannes' winner.

Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters (1985) 3 A decent story and movie from Ebert's list.

Taste of Cherry (1997) 2.5 My 3rd movie from the director and I'm not a fan.

Fallen Angels (1995) 3 Loved the style but it didn't take me anywhere.

Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives (2010) 3- A good movie that's better suited for people more spiritual than I.

Au Revoir Les Enfants (1987) 4+ Like having two excellent movies in one.

Another Round (2020) 4.5- Great story about a topic I can relate to.

March viewings-14
2021 viewings-48

Chypmunk

04-01-21, 04:28 AM

March seen list:
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MIssing posters are Dog Men (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt3686104/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0) (top row) and Inale (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1744772/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0) (bottom row).

HashtagBrownies

04-01-21, 11:39 AM

Seen in March

(Lots of online film festivals this month!)

Dirty Computer 2: Don’t know what I was expecting from a short film made up of music videos, but I found out that it’s not my thing.

Supernova 4: A wonderful romance film that you’ll have to get the tissues out for (Tissues for crying! You pervert!).

Jumbo 3: Doesn’t do enough with its concept I think.The whole point of the film is to show the absurdity of a woman falling in love with an inanimate object. Only, it’s not that bizarre, because the object is actually sentient in the film. The whole bizarreness of the situation would’ve been way more compelling if the object was actually inanimate, I think.

To the Moon 2.5: A collage film made up of clips from films that showcase/talk about the moon with no references at all to space travel or the moon landing. Very unique idea and well made, but just wasn’t my thing.

Hold Your Breath (1924) 2.5: Alright comedy about a woman climbing on a building Harold Loyd style.

Another Round 4: Wonderful tragic comedy, can’t wait to see it again.

The Crazy Ray 3: Probably not the director’s intention, but this film is a f*cking nightmare for anyone afraid of heights: There’s scenes where characters are just ideally sitting on the edges of the Eiffel Tower and it's terrifying.

Gunda 4: If Béla Tarr made a nature documentary. An incredibly meditative film that really takes its time. The ten minute long take at the end is simultaneously boring and heart-wrenching.

Boys from County Hell 3: Has some funny moments and good effects, but the plot points are so predictable that I’m fully convinced it was written by an algorithm.

Source Code 3.5: An overall solid film that has one issue that I’m probably the only person in the world that cares about. At the end, the main character steals a man’s life and goes off with his girlfriend. That’s incredibly deranged but it’s depicted as a happy ending

Lapsis 3.5: Really like the first half where there’s a great sense of mystery and exploration in this unique sci-fi world, but in the last 30 minutes the mystery is swiftly resoled and it becomes a different type of film. Would loved it if it stayed with the tone of the first half.

Pulse (2001) 3.5: The first half is really good and has some of the most effective scary scenes I’ve seen in quite a while, but it lost me in the second half when it veered off in to a very different plot direction.

Lost in La Mancha 4: Quite incredible that a film can go so badly so fast.

He Dreams of Giants 3.5: Sequel to Lost in La Mancha. Repeats the same concepts of the craziness of the filmmaking environment but has a more positive tone.

The Butcher Boy 3.5: A really sad dramedy about a boy going insane. Very good child acting.

Body and Soul (1925) 3.5: Starts out really slow, but soon picks up steam with some great acting.

Police Story 2 3.5: Not as funny or action packed as the first one, but still good.

Grass: A Nation’s Battle for Life 3: Interesting documentary about a group of people I never heard about before.

Beauty Prize (1930) 3: The version I watched has an extremely clever use of transitioning from silent to sound, but I just wish the film was shorter.

A Kiss from Mary Pickford 3: Some of the jokes were really funny and the actual cameo from Mary Pickford was cool, but I found it forgettable.

Delicatessen 4: Love the style, love the comedy, love the action scenes. I need to see more from this director.

The Hound of the Baskervilles (1929) 3.5: Solid gothic tale that unfortunately has a few reels missing from it.

A Star is Born (1954 4: A bit too long, but the songs are amazing and the emotional beats are really effective.

Simone 3?: An sort of bad sci-fi comedy that I fully expected to go into Southland Tales/Under the silver Lake levels of entertainment, but it gets too sentimental towards the end and the characters are not at all interesting.

re93animator

04-29-21, 05:37 PM

Harrison Bergeron (1995) - rating_3
Exceptional citizens of the future are 'handicapped' in order to equalize society. Good grades are frowned upon, mediocrity is lauded, marriages are algorithmically determined, and a clandestine ruling class supervises all behind the scenes. More metaphorical commentary than it is story-centric. Set within a 1950s Norman Rockwell-ian retro-future wherein traffic violations are punishable by televised execution. Based on a Kurt Vonnegut short. Like a George Carlin bit come to life. Given the absurdity, I think it was played a little too straight.
https://i.imgur.com/cXUfwSh.png?1

Southern Comfort (1981) - rating_3_5
A troupe of National Guardsmen get lost in the Louisiana bayou and are threatened by unseen attackers, infighting, and madness. A very good movie with primo scenery and soundtrack, but the initial reason for conflict with the Cajuns is so forced, dumb, and irrational that it's hard not to chalk it up to lazy writing. Characters' going from zero to batsh*t feels over the top too. Maybe all the stock bird sounds got to them.
https://i.imgur.com/WlTlO2J.png?1

Upgrade (2018) - rating_3
A man gets a hyperintelligent AI implant and uses it to find his wife's killer(s). Artsy kaleidoscopic lighting with uber realistic violence. The environment is mostly relatable distressed modern civilization with expensive looking sci-fi trimmings to remind you that you're in the future. Puts in perspective how deep we've already gone into invasive AI territory, and how close we are to this sort of future. Engrossing, dark, sometimes funny.

Paycheck (2003) - rating_2
A man is paid to work on secret corporate projects, and willingly has his memory wiped as an ultimate NDA. I enjoyed some sets and plot exposition in the first half, but by the end all of my interest (and all of the redeeming unintentional humor) was sucked away by genericism.
https://i.imgur.com/eBarAQk.png?1

The Autopsy of Jane Doe (2016) - rating_3_5
An autopsy of an unidentified woman unveils odd suggestions of death. It's been a long time since a horror movie made me uncomfortable, although expected over-the-top moments hindered the unease a bit. It's a good mystery, and Brian Cox can make semi-ridiculous horror dialogue sound like Shakespeare.

Minority Report (2002) - rating_4
I've always been a bit disappointed in this because it neglected to explore the parts of the world I found most interesting (vice-serving VR centers, personalized advertising, public criticism of futurecrime, etc.) in lieu of action thriller bombast. I guess my expectations were tempered this time. Some of the coolest set design ever, and it's allowed to get a little weird for a Spielberg movie.

I forgot how annoying Agatha could be though.
https://i.imgur.com/zbdvVw5.gif

cricket

05-01-21, 05:47 PM

April, 2021 movies watched-

World on a Wire (1973) 3.5 Not the easiest 3 1/2 hours but worth it.

Black Rain (1989) 5 Not the average Michael Douglas movie.

La Ceremonie (1995) 4.5 One of those endings that make you go damnnnn.

Mephisto (1981) 3.5- A very high quality film that was not of the greatest interest to me.

Promising Young Woman (2020) 4 A story that's an easy sell for me.

Kagemusha (1980) 3.5 A technical marvel that was of moderate interest for me.

Shoplifters (2018) 4 I believe I'd think even more of it if I watch it again.

Port of Shadows (1938) 3.5- Jean Gabin stars in a French crime film that's worth a watch.

Vengeance is Mine (1979) 5 The second brilliant movie this month from a director I had never heard of before.

Three Colors: Blue (1993) 3.5 All very good but nothing that blew me away.

Jiro Dreams of Sushi (2011) 3.5+ Excellent documentary.

April viewings-11
2021 viewings-59

Chypmunk

05-01-21, 05:55 PM

April seen list:
77133
Missing poster is The Nest (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5783250/?ref_=nm_flmg_dr_3).

Weasel

05-02-21, 01:30 AM

Reservoir Dogs
77141

I like the title.

5

Die Hard
77142
I found this poster on Google Images hope you enjoy :)

Quite possibly the dumbest movie ever made. Massive Russian men. 12 zillion plot holes. Black guy that listens to Stevie Wonder. Every line of dialogue is unfiltered mental retardation.

Doesn't make it any less awesome though.

3.5

Dr. Strangelove Or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb
77144

Wasn't laugh out loud for me on first watch, but this is probably one of the best satires I've ever seen. It's main message is very clear, and it gets pretty obvious, but it manages to remain clever. Much like Die Hard, this movie really makes you think.

5

Once Upon a Time... In Hollywood
77143
Tarantino threatens to murder Brad Pitt with a pistol

Tarantino's Wolf of Wallstreet. Long, great cast, funny, and stylish. Unlike Wolf of Wallstreet, this movie builds. Might turn some people away, it's a slow burner. I was wondering when the cool stuff would happen too. But when it does, it's worth it.

I showed it to my son and he starting crying. Idiot doesn't even know who Sergio Corbucci is. I breastfed him and threw him out the window.

5

HashtagBrownies

05-02-21, 11:29 AM

Seen in April

The Adventures of Mark Twain 3.5: One of those weird movies where stuff just happens and the overarching plot isn't developed much. Still a very interesting stop motion film.

Wake in Fright 3.5: Despite what Wikipedia might tell you, I wouldn't call this a thriller: It feels more like an intense psychological drama with a thriller feel. The scenes where the characters drive in the pitch black desert illuminating the red eyes of the kangaroos with their headlights evoked a unique emotion from me that I don't know how to describe.

20 Million Miles to Earth 3.5: Wonderful effects, I laughed when one character picked up the creature and you could tell it was just a doll.

Superstar: The Karen Carpenter Story 4.5: Most filmmakers that make a film with an interesting gimmick simply use that to engage their audiences and don't put much else into the film. Not Todd Haynes though: He has made an emotional experimental biopic with fantastic voice acting that's so good you almost forget all of the performers are Barbie dolls. Hopefully people won't be too mad if I pick this for a Hall of Fame.

Punishment Park 4+: Why are nearly all mockumentaries comedies? There's so many different emotions and stories that could be explored by making it into a fake documentary. Peter Watkins is one of the few filmmakers to understand the genre's potential and i cannot wait to check out more of his work.

Dead Calm 3.5: Intense and well-shot thriller. Would watch again.

The Stuff 3.5: That poster that always fascinated me as a kid is somewhat misleading: Apart from a few shots of gross body horror, this is a straight up comedy! I liked all the bizarre moments and the absolute joke of a main character.

WarGames 3.5: Solid teen romp with a great finale.

Hot Shots! Part Deux REWATCH: Will we ever get good parody movies again?

Crash (1996) 4+: Half of this film is just sex scenes, but that kind of thing doesn't bother me. I often find the characters and pacing in Cronenberg films lacking, but I didn't experience any of those issues watching this. Great soundtrack too.

A League of their Own 3.5: Enjoyable Hollywood film with really fun characters.

Chypmunk

05-31-21, 12:38 PM

May seen list:
78158

John-Connor

06-01-21, 06:56 AM

78190
78189

2 Wonder Woman 1984 2020 Patty Jenkins

2.5 Coming 2 America 2021 Craig Brewer

3 Senso 1954 Luchino Visconti
3 L’Argent 1983 Robert Bresson
3 The Story of Adele H. 1975 François Truffaut

3.5 Joint Security Area 2000 Park Chan-wook
3.5 The Front Line 2011 Jang Hoon
3.5 The Host 2006 Bong Joon-ho
3.5 Inside Men 2015 Woo Min-ho

3.5+ Pépé le Moko 1937 Julien Duvivier
3.5+ The Seventh Seal 1957 Ingmar Bergman
3.5+ Suspiria 1977 Dario Argento
3.5+ A Touch of Zen 1971 King Hu
3.5+ The Professor 1986 Giuseppe Tornatore
3.5+ Dazed and Confused 1993 Richard Linklater
3.5+ Lone Star 1996 John Sayles
3.5+ The Legend of 1900 1998 Giuseppe Tornatore
3.5+ Incendies 2010 Denis Villeneuve
3.5+ Kon-Tiki 2012 Joachim Rønning, Espen Sandberg

4 Ikiru 1952 Akira Kurosawa
4 The Cranes Are Flying 1957 Mikhail Kalatozov
4 The Human Condition II: Road to Eternity 1959 Masaki Kobayashi
4 Shoot the Piano Player 1960 François Truffaut
4 The Human Condition III: A Soldier’s Prayer 1961 Masaki Kobayashi
4 8½ 1963 Federico Fellini
4 Goyokin 1969 Hideo Gosha
4 One Deadly Summer 1983 Jean Becker
4 A Brighter Summer Day 1991 Edward Yang
4 Underground 1995 Emir Kusturica
4 Buffalo ’66 1998 Vincent Gallo
4 Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter… and Spring 2003 Kim Ki-duk
4 A Separation 2011 Asghar Farhadi
4 The Age of Shadows 2016 Kim Jee-woon

4+ Grand Illusion 1937 Jean Renoir
4+ Port of Shadows 1938 Marcel Carné
4+ Umberto D. 1952 Vittorio De Sica
4+ Tokyo Story 1953 Yasujirō Ozu
4+ Diabolique 1955 Henri-Georges Clouzot
4+ The Hidden Fortress 1958 Akira Kurosawa
4+ Red Beard 1965 Akira Kurosawa
4+ Say Anything… 1989 Cameron Crowe
4+ Malena 2000 Giuseppe Tornatore
4+ Masquerade 2012 Choo Chang-min

4.5 The Wages of Fear 1953 Henri-Georges Clouzot
4.5 The Postman 1994 Michael Radford

cricket

06-01-21, 07:30 AM

May, 2021 movies watched-

The Green Years (1963) 3.5+ A Portuguese gem that I hadn't previously heard of.

Show Me Love (1998) 4 Much better than expected.

Themroc (1973) 3 One of the more unique movies I've seen that wasn't terrible.

Chungking Express (1994) 3.5+ My favorite of the 3 I've seen from the director.

Three Colors: White (1994) 4.5- Loved it more than Blue, looking forward to Red.

The Truth (1960) 4.5 A courtroom drama with Brigitte Bardot facing murder charges. Release her dammit!

Talk to Her (2002) 4 I believe Almodovar will be one of my favorite directors once I see more.

Sundays and Cybele (1962) Repeat 5 So much to appreciate about this movie.

About Elly (2009) 4 The director has a gift for sucking the viewer in.

The Eel (1997) 3+ A big step down from the other 2 I've seen from the director but still pretty good.

Touchez Pas Au Grisbi (1954) 4+ Great noir with Gene Gabin.

5 Centimeters Per Second (2007) 3.5 Excellent animation.

Three Colors: Red (1994) 4.5 My favorite of the trilogy.

Rocco and His Brothers (1960) 4.5 One of the best Italian movies I've seen.

The Official Story (1985) 3.5 Foreign language Oscar winner with an excellent story.

Volver (2006) 3.5- Good, but my least favorite of the 4 I've seen so far from Almodovar.

May viewings-16
2021 viewings-75

ScarletLion

06-01-21, 07:49 AM

HashtagBrownies

06-01-21, 07:58 AM

Seen in May

Miami Connection 3: Awful acting, a story that makes no sense, but it is good fun and the soundtrack is genuinely good.

The American Friend: 4+: A brilliant and quiet European drama with tinges of American cinema. Wonderful colour and cinematography. Good acting too.

The Naked Gun 3.5: If I saw this as a kid I would’ve adored it, but its power is lessened by the fact that I’ve now been so exposed to weird comedy. Still very funny though, I loved all the scenes where Neilsen was going haywire with his car.

Hellraiser 4-: Existenial gory nightmare with great effects.

Panic Room 3.5: Love a good survival movie (and Jodie Foster). Very intense.

Horror Noire 3.5: Interesting doc about the portrayal of black people in horror. Watch it if you want any good horror recommendations.

Different from the Others 3: Had to watch it for its historical significance (a pro-gay movie in the 1910’s sounds too good too be true), but it’s not exactly the greatest film. The story and structure are more like a PSA than an actual film; Imagine if Reefer Madness was about homophobia instead of weed. Still a very interesting film despite that.

Brain Damage 4: A humorous if gory story about ones spiral into addiction with awesome special effects.

Smoke and Mirrors: The Story of Tom Savini 3.5: Documentary about the personal life of an interesting man. He seems incredibly friendly and dedicated to the craft.

Quiz Show 3.5: Very well acted and shot historical film, even if it does have a sappy, Hollywood ending tacked on.

Pieces 3.5: Was expecting to get bored by this, but the suspense scenes are actually fairly well done (The kills and the hilarious acting also help!).

Friday the 13th Part 2 3: It kills me how long this film takes to get to the slashing. Very good chase scene and interesting protagonist though.

In Search of Darkness 3.5: Man I’m having fun with my Shudder subscription. Essentially just 4 hours of horror celebs going ‘Hey, remember that movie? That was a good movie!’. The film is also intersected with short discussions on horror topics like movie posters and the final girl. I think this film would’ve been much better if it was an in depth look at those topics instead. The choice of interviewees was good too. One guy felt out of place though; The way he spoke made it sound like he was just reading a script/the films wikipedia page.

Four Flies on Grey Velvet 3: A bit of a drag, but contains some great suspense scenes and scary moments.

The Stone Tape 4+: A film that I simultaneously love and hate. I just kept on getting angrier and angrier in the second half: Our female protagonist is constantly making informed decisions and conclusions on the supernatural threat, but her boss keeps on dismissing her and threatening her with getting fired. YOU LITERALLY HIRED HER TO DO THIS! IT’S HER JOB!. WHY DID YOU HIRE HER IF YOU’RE JUST GOING TO CONSTANTLY IGNORE HER AND GET MAD WITH HER?! Even with that, it’s a great low-budget ghost story with an awesome atmosphere.

Anticipation of the Night 2.5+: Experimental feature by Brakhage. I could take it or leave it. Nothing wrong with it, it's just not my thing.

The Celluloid Closet: 3.5+ Like Horror noire, watch if you want any good film recommendations

Maniac: 4 Reminds me of The Evil Dead in some ways, it’s amateurish in places but also shows extreme talent. A serial killer movie with very good special effects. The scene in the subway was one of the best scary scenes I’ve seen in a horror film in a long time.

Behind the Mask: The Rise of Leslie Vernon: 2.5 No more uppity genre satires, society has progressed passed the need for uppity genre satires. The first 2/3rds of the film were quite good and I really enjoyed its take on the slasher. However, the last 30 minutes are so fcking bad that it badly hindered my viewing experience.

The Poseidon Adventure: 3.5 Solid disaster film with solid performances.

Basket Case: 3.5 Probably the thing that stuck out most about this film is how every secondary or background character is a total weirdo, making the villain seem like the normal one! Has great kills and some genuinely creepy moments.

Chypmunk

06-30-21, 10:28 AM

June seen list:
79024
Missing poster is: Brides (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt3502932/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0).

John-Connor

06-30-21, 10:54 AM

May seen list:
https://www.movieforums.com/community/attachment.php?attachmentid=78158
Out of curiosity, what rating did you give New World and The 10th Victim?

Chypmunk

06-30-21, 10:58 AM

Out of curiosity, what rating did you give New World and The 10th Victim?
New World: 3.5
The Tenth Victim: 2.5

cricket

06-30-21, 09:25 PM

June, 2021 movies watched-

Island of Flowers (1989) 3 Amusing short from the Doc's list.

The Long Absense (1961) 3+ Decent Cannes winner.

The Double Life of Veronique (1991) 2.5 The 1st out of 6 movies from this director that I didn't care for.

The Long Goodbye (1973) Repeat 4 I don't even think it's all that good but I really enjoy it anyway.

Blackkklansman (2018) Repeat 3.5 I have a few issues with it but it's still entertaining and at times powerful.

Cut and Run (1985) 1.5 Trashy action film for fans of cheese and sleaze only.

Dream Home (2010) 2.5 Brutally violent but merely average overall.

American Movie (1999) Repeat 4- One of my favorite documentaries.

Whiplash (2014) Repeat 3.5 I don't get the IMDb rating but it's a good flick.

Vertigo (1958) Repeat 3.5- Still not sure how much I like it after seeing it a few times.

Chimes at Midnight (1965) Repeat 3 Nothing rougher for me than Shakespeare movies but this was much better than my first viewing.

Les Miserables (1935) Repeat 4.5+ The only version I've seen and I love it.

Bicycle Thieves (1948) Repeat 4 Better than the first time.

Wrong Turn (2021) 4 Totally awesome for horror fans.

A Children's Story (2004) 3.5 Strong Italian coming of age crime film.

Portraits of Andrea Palmer (2018) 2- Ok for a low budget sleaze fest.

Black Sun: The Nanking Massacre (1995) 2.5- Pretty damn disturbing.

June viewings-17
2021 viewings-92

meatwadsprite

07-05-21, 04:21 PM

Solaris and Solaris

https://thumbs.gfycat.com/RecklessIllinformedBluetonguelizard-size_restricted.gif

A 3 hour movie that feels more like 20 hours. I don't think i've been this frustrated with a movie since I watched Throne of Blood, which is funny because Kurosawa actually visited the set of Solaris.

The concept is brilliant, the ending is insane, you have some incredible special effects and shots, but these elements can't quite gel together because of all the dumb stuff sandwiched between the film's magical moments.

The camera lingers on this foggy, dreamlike country house setting with swirling weeds and flowing water before immediately cutting to this bizarrely well shot government briefing film. The briefing paints Solaris as this fantastical and alien experience, far beyond anything we could imagine or understand. However when our main character arrives at the space station in it's orbit, he becomes so bored that he ends up sleeping for the rest of the movie.

The idea is man collapsing in on himself, unable to reach beyond his own hang ups. The repetitive plot makes sense thematically but is executed with such little flair that it drains all life out of the film.

As an art movie of course you have some of the most pathetic dialogue ever put to screen.

Kris and his dead wife clone talk in circles about nothing, forever. They're still figuring out the intricacies of being cloned from a memory hours after the audience has stopped giving a ****. The scientists babble on about philosophy in a less profound matter than The Matrix Reloaded, literally spelling out the themes of the film for the viewer.

Soderbergh's 2002 version with George Clooney is snappier with better dialogue, but is also far less memorable. Missing out on those special moments of Tarkovsky's film like the opening, finale, and zero gravity sequence.

To me Solaris is more fun to think about and dissect than it is to watch and experience. Tarkosvky infamously called 2001 "cold and sterile" which is ironically a far better descriptor of his own film. In that final, horrific, pan out shot, we see Kris entirely submerged in a world of his own, but the closest Solaris comes to illustrating what is lost here is a 5 minute scene of driving through traffic.

donniedarko

07-19-21, 10:39 PM

https://thumbs.gfycat.com/AngelicForkedAoudad-size_restricted.gif

Since January:
What Happened to Monday (Wirkola, 2017) - 3 -
Promising Young Woman (Fennell, 2020)- 3+
Operation Varsity Blues (Smith, 2021)- 2.5 ++
Child's Play (Klevberg, 2019)- 3--
Tom Clancy's Without Remorse (Sollima, 2021)- 2.5--
Mortal Combar (McQuoid, 2021)- 2--
The Butterfly Effect (Bress/Grueber, 2004)- 4
Fear Street Part One: 1994 (Janiak, 2021)- 1.5
Fear Street Part Two: 1978 (Janiak, 2021)- 3
Fear Street Part Three: 1666 (Janiak, 2021)- 2

meatwadsprite

07-22-21, 05:28 PM

The Mirror

https://www.filminquiry.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/The-Mirror-1.jpg

Compared to Solaris this is like an action movie. Lots of incredible images. I think he's trying to capture how parents and countries mold people into what they are, sometimes by literally putting a mirror in the scene.

Visceral, but also vague and formless.

Stalker

https://i.ytimg.com/vi/YuOnfQd-aTw/maxresdefault.jpg

Now we're talking. Tarkovsky was clearly a fan of photographing nature at it's most surreal and here is the movie that lets him lean into that. The most simple and mysterious of these three.

Chypmunk

07-31-21, 03:26 PM

July seen list:
79808

Seems to be missing a few but hey-ho, too lazy to look into it ;)

mark f

08-03-21, 12:22 AM

Cyrano de Bergerac (Jean-Paul Rappeneau, 1990) 4

https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/hostedimages/1474068187i/20549880._SX540_.jpg

Edmond Rostand's Cyrano de Bergerac is one of my favorite plays and one of my fave movies. There have been some good films based on it. The awesome José Ferrer won his only Oscar for the low-budget, yet high-entertainment, 1950 version. Steve Martin gave one of his best performances and did one of his best scripts for the wonderful Roxanne (1987).

But my favorite version is undoubtedly the French version where Gerard Depardieu gives one of film's most memorable performances. From the opening scene, the play starring the pompous idiot actor, you know you are witnessing something special. First off, even if the film fibs in its depiction of the way the gigantic candelabras are all lit by hand and then pulled up by rope to light the theatre (and I don't know if it does), that's the way I would want to see the scene staged. Depardieu is incredible spouting Rostand's poetry (subtitled in English by A Clockwork Orange's Anthony Burgess), full of so much wit, and then he immediately has to duel AND defeat AND escape from a group of overarmed fops who couldn't possibly recognize a real man.

For me, Depardieu is mindboggling, whether he's being witty, excelling at physical activity, or (especially) pouring his heart out to the love of his life Roxane (Anne Brochet), whether subtly expressing himself as a possible lover to her or heartbreakingly pitching the young soldier Christian (Vincent Perez) she dearly falls in love with at first sight. The balcony scene where Cyrano speaks his heart to Roxane, during a storm, while pretending to be Christian, ranks with the opening scene for virtuosic filmmaking and acting. The film continues with another jealous lover who tries to ruin both Cyrano and Christian, by sending them off to war, but it all culminates in a moving finale where everything becomes very tragic, yet still beautiful.

cricket

08-05-21, 06:51 PM

July, 2021 movies watched-

Nobody (2021) 3.5 Just a lot of fun.

Bacurau (2019) 4 Awesome Brazilian genre flick.

The Last Circus (2010) 3.5- Murder, mayhem, and clowns.

Unhinged (2020) 2.5 Good fun if you want to laugh during a stupid road rage movie.

Stranger than Paradise (1984) 3.5 Easily my favorite of the 4 Jarmusch films I've seen.

Red Road (2006) 3.5+ What started off like a mystery became powerful and sad.

The Decline of Western Civilization (1981) 3.5- A good doc that would have been very good if I were into punk rock.

Field of Dreams (1989) 3.5+ Sappy, but in a very pleasant and enchanting way.

Caravaggio (1986) 2.5 Not a bad movie, but it has a bit going against it as far as my taste goes.

July viewings-9
2021 viewings-101

re93animator

08-16-21, 12:15 AM

The Phantom of the Monastery (1934) – rating_3_5
Three hikers with nowhere better to go stay the night in a gloomy old monastery inhabited by silent monks. A bit of silly melodrama in a great macabre old locale.

Abbott and Costello Meet Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1953) – rating_2_5
Not much of note, but a funny enough romp. Somewhat darker material than most A&C horror crossovers, with the shoddiest makeup. I don’t know what to say about the odd suffragette stuff.
https://i.imgur.com/atOMdI3.png?1

Abbott and Costello Meet the Mummy (1955) - rating_2
I want this to be my favorite A&C movie because I love old Hollywood Arabian fantasy paraphernalia, but the jokes are mostly misses, the Mummy seems like a sub-plot, and even for an A&C movie, it tests my tolerance for stupid.
https://i.imgur.com/KIlP9HY.gif

Clue (1985) – rating_3
Very on the nose, hit you over the head with a [insert weapon] dialogue, but intentionally so. Not too funny, but has its charm. I like the mystery throwback vibe.

The Island (2005) - rating_2_5
Fascinating, odd sci-fi world to start with, but loses itself halfway and devolves into a CBS thriller.

Chypmunk

08-31-21, 05:58 PM

August seen list:
80837
Missing posters are:
Secret Workshops (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1729663/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1) (top row)
Roaring Abyss (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt4768354/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0) (second row)

cricket

08-31-21, 09:48 PM

August, 2021 movies watched-

Sophie's Choice (1982) 3.5+ Strong story and performances.

Monsieur Hire (1989) 3.5+ Superb French film from the Ebert list.

August viewings-2
2021 viewings-103

re93animator

09-06-21, 01:00 PM

Altered (2006) - rating_3
A troupe of rednecks abduct an alien. Schlocky and more fun than the IMDB score suggests. Decent actors either mumble or yell at each other while doing questionable stuff. They’re still relatable enough, but maybe that’s just cause I live in central Florida.
https://i.imgur.com/QOtWNWM.png?1

Joy Ride (2001) - rating_2
Two young men play a prank on a baddie. Said prank is painfully dumb & forced, kind of cheapening the whole conflict. Perfunctory thriller stuff, but it has cooler cinematography than I expected.
https://i.imgur.com/t6AZHKs.png?1

Abbott and Costello Meet The Killer (1949) - rating_3
One of the better ones. More whodunnit than horror spoof.
https://i.imgur.com/myoc5ZZ.gif

The Shrine (2010) – rating_2_5
Three travelers investigate disappearances in a small Lovecraftian village. Quite a few red flags are ignored. I didn’t get too invested in the characters, and the cult-ish baddies seems a little trite, but it finishes pretty strong.
https://i.imgur.com/nhE4J8a.png?1

Frozen (2010) - rating_3
Three people get left behind on a ski lift. A what-would-you-do scenario with great acting and a screenplay that really seems to care about its characters.
https://i.imgur.com/1B5vVUW.png?1

Asylum Blackout / The Incident (2011) – rating_4
Chefs and guards are locked in an asylum with rampaging lunatics during an electrical outage. Ultra-ultra-violent with a great atmosphere and a very twisted portrayal of sadistic loons. It feels like a survival horror game. The ending will likely disappoint.

Points for nice Wilhelm scream placement.
https://i.imgur.com/oWzNCMi.png?1

Underwater (2020) - rating_2_5
Apparently I can’t resist mediocre underwater monster movies. It’s often hard to make out what’s happening behind bubbles, dust, ridiculous Gears of War suits, & caffeinated camera men, and I have little desire to see folks dodging CG debris. I liked that it was a little more adventurous than most of its ilk, and some of the dramatic stuff was better than it has a right to be in this kind of movie. Whoever got to pick the title must have dirt on a studio exec.
https://i.imgur.com/ZirrU71.png?1

MonnoM

09-06-21, 09:54 PM

Sedai

09-14-21, 12:18 PM

Flight 93
Markle, 2006

2_5

https://images.moviesanywhere.com/78de5aaf161a300563d769302f467282/443fd0ad-3116-45e8-8fc6-fdb603afef4e.jpg?w=2560&r=16x9
Low-rent knock off of the Paul Greengrass flick United 93. Basically the same film with less directorial skill and more melodrama.

Zero Dark Thirty
Bigelow, 2011

4

https://api.time.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/zero-dark-thirty.jpg?quality=85&w=1000&h=512&crop=1
Perhaps Bigelow's most well-directed film. Interesting and engaging, but still comes off as a bit of a CIA puff piece.

13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi
Bay, 2016

3_5

https://www.cheatsheet.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/Screen-Shot-2016-01-15-at-3.17.14-PM.png
Easily Bay's most watchable film for me, but I tend to dislike Bay, so that's not saying a lot. Still...Bay exercises quite a bit more restraint here than he normally does, going over the top less and managing to not completely go off the rails into sensory overload nonsense. Then again, this isn't a Transformers film or whatever other nonsense he usually makes. I dunno, I liked this one more than I thought I would.

The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada
Jones, 2005

5

https://film-grab.com/wp-content/uploads/photo-gallery/26%20(1206).jpg?bwg=1547474557
How had I not heard of this film? Luckily, I recently spotted this flick at the very top of a "best of the 2000s" list curated by none other than Holden Pike. Glad I took a shot, because it was excellent. Thinking back, I can't really find fault with this one. Will go ahead and give it a perfect rating for now.

Rockatansky

09-14-21, 12:22 PM

I think 13 Hours benefits a lot from Bay giving you a sense of the compound's layout, which makes the action a lot easier to follow.

Sedai

09-14-21, 12:37 PM

I think 13 Hours benefits a lot from Bay giving you a sense of the compound's layout, which makes the action a lot easier to follow.

I forgot to mention that it is paced really, really well, never dragging and never accelerating into craziness, as he is known to do.

Chypmunk

10-01-21, 05:15 AM

September seen list:
81654
Missing posters are:
Boy With A Flute (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt6475660/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1) (top row)
A Man Returned (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5348550/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1) (middle row)
The Heart Of The World (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0260948/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1) (bottom row)

donniedarko

10-10-21, 11:33 PM

https://imgix.bustle.com/uploads/image/2021/9/29/34c89591-d83e-4ef3-9d21-ba9e60e60829-https___cdnsanityio_images_xq1bjtf4_production_4c350f5b6b640ac730110af5b32c54cc24f918ea-5065x3377.jpg?w=1200&h=630&fit=crop&crop=faces&fm=jpg
Lamb (Johansson, 2021)

I can't say I'm very impressed with this movie regardless of the lense I take. Whether I view it as a horror or try to interpret the film as a metaphorical art house film to dissect, there's just not much there. Johansson gives the audience very little, and expects them to do a lot. Lamb gives you a decent, but not overly intense landscape. Three extremely one-dimensional characters, with immediately clear vices. & a kinda funny looking chimeras. After that you're on your own, and I couldn't muster the interest.

2 -

Other Viewings:
{REWATCH} We Need to Talk About Kevin (Ramsay, 2011) - 3.5
Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile (Berlinger, 2019) - 3-
Freaky (Landon, 2020)- 2.5
Assasins Run (Cromby/Skya, 2013)- 1-
A Fall From Grace (Perry, 2020)- .5

Nothing to exciting in the film world for me, did just get into The Sopranos however, and I'm loving it

Ultraman BLACK

10-15-21, 02:14 PM

Mad Max Ultimate review
Multiple views.
https://fanart.tv/fanart/movies/9659/moviebackground/mad-max-5222ad099cddd.jpg
3.5
Weird, fast, furious, cheap and awesome!

https://fanart.tv/fanart/movies/8810/moviebackground/mad-max-2-the-road-warrior-52228e678ad16.jpg
5
Action masterclass! Madness in the desert of the future real. The world of thus who survived the end of civilization.

https://fanart.tv/fanart/movies/9355/moviebackground/mad-max-beyond-thunderdome-59b9653bb5d39.jpg
4
Sadness and darkness disguised with innocence. The world of those born after the end. Nothing but sand and dreams - Haunting. Great ending for Mel's trilogy. Goodbye, soldier.

https://fanart.tv/fanart/movies/76341/moviebackground/mad-max-fury-road-53fb49c8ab260.jpg
3
Good action, weak characters. Fast, furious and boring.

Chypmunk

10-31-21, 07:31 PM

October seen list (newly rated only):
82444
Missing posters are:
Black Memory (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0171119/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0) (top row)
Anapeson (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5135118/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1) (2nd row)
King Of The Underworld (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0125310/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_2) & The Fall Of The House Of Usher (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0177766/?ref_=fn_al_tt_7) (3rd row)

re93animator

11-28-21, 09:51 PM

The Wild Hunt (2009) - rating_3_5
Folks get carried away at a Medieval fantasy cosplay retreat. Good job of making characters seem normal and silly before pulling you into the darker tone. It’d be so easy to write this into a ridiculous, over the top corner, but by the time it blows its top, the scenario actually started feeling emotional. Not quite the horror it seems to be marketed as.

Nobody (2021) – rating_3
I don’t have much to say. Pretty entertaining. Aptly marketed.

The Accountant (2016) - rating_2
The awkward autistic relationship is the most interesting part of the movie, but plays second fiddle to magnetic limb fight scenes and a dull thriller plot.

Halloween Kills (2021) – rating_2_5
Good ending & music from my man JC, but silly writing throughout (namely the gang chasing a mental Danny DeVito lookalike around an emergency room, thinking the short fat skullet guy is somehow MM). Somewhat entertaining but dumb and passable.

The Deep House (2021) - rating_3
Folks explore an underwater haunted house. The horror and mystery throughout most of it, trite as it is, is pretty entertaining. The writing is unoriginal despite a cool premise, and the revelatory ending feels so tacked on I couldn’t help but laugh. It can’t be easy filming a mostly underwater movie wherein set design, sound, camerawork, and lighting play such a big part, so props for not painting the lens with too many bubbles.
https://i.imgur.com/AWPkNzD.png?1

Mystery Street (1950) – rating_4
Detective investigating a murder. A cool noir; dark for its time.
https://i.imgur.com/yERHcZX.png?1

Dagon (2021) – rating_3
Technically a video game, but pretty much a short, slightly interactive movie. Nice brief visual accompaniment to HP Lovecraft’s story, but the most control you have is half-rotating the POV. I think legs would’ve given it the extra bit of immersion it needed, but it’s free, so go for it.

Chypmunk

11-30-21, 02:28 PM

November seen list (newly rated only):
83131

MonnoM

11-30-21, 08:15 PM

The Deep House (2021) - rating_3
Folks explore an underwater haunted house. The horror and mystery throughout most of it, trite as it is, is pretty entertaining. The writing is unoriginal despite a cool premise, and the revelatory ending feels so tacked on I couldn’t help but laugh. It can’t be easy filming a mostly underwater movie wherein set design, sound, camerawork, and lighting play such a big part, so props for not painting the lens with too many bubbles.
https://i.imgur.com/AWPkNzD.png?1

Well, at least you got a good laugh out of it. :D

cricket

12-03-21, 07:39 PM

November, 2021 movies watched-

The Testament of Dr. Mabuse (1933) 3.5- First movie in over 2 months and I struggled for the first third or so.

Gone with the Pope (1976) 2.5+ Moderately entertaining but not what I was hoping for.

November viewings-2
2021 viewings-105

mark f

12-30-21, 11:48 AM

The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (Andrew Dominik, 2007) 2.5

https://i.gifer.com/SWyZ.gif

I watched The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford thrice, each time with a different set of people. Most of them liked it well-enough, and my brother was probably the most impressed with it. However, every single person needed me to explain to them, at various points, who some of the supporting characters were and where they were supposed to be at. When my scriptwriter brother needs me to explain to him who is staying with whose relations and why, I think that there are definitely flaws in the storytelling, especially when you have a 160 minute movie where you have plenty of time to make plot points clear.

Now, I understand that some people find "plot" to be a dirty word. In the case of this film, I'll admit that writer/director Dominik was looking for atmosphere and tone, and I believe he produced his desired effect. I just don't understand why someone would make essentially an arthouse western, with what I consider stilted performances and dialogue, make it go on for far too long, and then try to pass it off as a psychologically-deep, naturalistic film. Well, maybe I do; Michael Cimino did it with Heaven's Gate, but I find Heaven's Gate to be the better of the two films.

Before I go on sounding like the curmudgeon I am, I will say that I was impressed with the visuals. Overall, I prefer Deakins' work in No Country For Old Men, but the shot of the train holdup at night, with Jesse James standing in front of it, and the exterior light casting enormous shadows from the train onto the forest is as impressive an individual visual scene as I've seen. The score is good, and parts of the narration are interesting, although the dryness makes me find it less special than it was probably intended to be. There are enough good things here for me to give it a qualified recommendation. I don't feel that I wasted eight hours watching it three times. I admire it more than I did the first time, but I don't like it any more. My rating: 2.5.

As far as the actors and characters go, I'd say that over the course of three viewings, I've warmed to Affleck's performance, but his character still comes across as an underdeveloped cipher who I know little more about at the end of the film than I do when he first opened his mouth. On the other hand, I enjoyed Brad Pitt as a psycho, and I did feel the intelligence behind his character. He seemed all too real to me. I just would have thought that he'd squash Bob Ford like a bug. I even thought Sam Shepard's Frank James should have trusted his judgment and wasted Robert Ford in their introductory scene. Oh yeah, what the heck happened to Frank James? He's certainly a significant character, and then he just disappears. Oh well, I guess Jesse wasn't as smart as he seemed without his big brother. Even though Sam Rockwell also seems a bit affected as Charlie Ford, he is at least recognizable as a real character, but that's because he's actually given lines which someone might actually say in real life.

The film was open to being so ironic about how the characters were in real life compared to how they are depicted in folklore. To me, that would be the reason to make another Jesse James film, but I don't feel the irony here. I just feel a director unintentionally draining the life out of his material with method acting and what seems to be method directing. That is my main critique of this film. For all the artistry, skill, beauty and originality on display, it feels to me like looking at a butterfly collection. It's all very lifeless. Oops, the curmudgeon has resurfaced.

It's tough for me to say that Andrew Dominik is "method directing" since this is only his second film. It may have made more sense if I waited for his next film to see if I could determine a pattern. To tell you the truth, I've never said or written that phrase before in my life, but as I thought that some of the performances seemed to use the Method, I started trying to find a way to describe his way of telling this story.

Method Acting involves the actors using personal experiences in (sometimes) similar situations to draw out the emotions of the character they are playing. It also sometimes includes things which seem so personal that the actor/character occasionally seems to become disconnected from the other actors/characters around them. Brando was probably the best Method Actor I know of, but needless to say, he is infamous for some eccentric performances.

Watching The Ass of JJ, I was struck by how original the direction was. I can accept that this will appeal to many who see the film. I was trying to get inside Dominik's head to determine why he made all the choices he did, in both script and direction. I could see a touchstone in the works of Terrence Malick, but since I'm more used to Malick, I find his work, rightly or wrongly, to be be more true to himself. So then, I decided that Dominik made this film for a very deep-rooted personal reason which I'm not sure that I could fully grasp. Was he trying to place himself in the actual times of Jesse James and thus transport viewers to a more-relaxed, simpler world where things would "just seem slower"? It certainly seemed a possibility and a worthy endeavor.

Or was Dominik just trying to create a revisionist western along the lines of Altman's McCabe and Mrs. Miller? I wasn't sure if he was making an homage or a personal statement. However, as the film progressed, I started to find the presentation more eccentric rather than less so. This made me understand that he believed in the courage of his convictions, but perhaps his Method in depicting them was to go so far within himself that when they're projected onto the screen, he may have disconnected himself from at least this viewer. Utter BS, I admit, but it's a decent rationalization for inventing a phrase to support one's opinion. Now that I've used it, I can think of some more possible Method directors, both good and not-so-good. But I think that's going even more off-topic, or does that really mean eccentric, on my part? Have I become a Method reviewer? The horror...

Chypmunk

12-31-21, 02:37 PM

December seen list (newly rated only):
83963
Missing posters are:
Jungle (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5144102/?ref_=fn_tt_tt_17) (top row)
Passport To Treason (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0048471/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1) (middle row)

jiraffejustin

12-31-21, 03:07 PM

Watching The Ass of JJ, I was struck

:randy:

cricket

01-01-22, 11:12 AM

December, 2021 movies watched-

Brother's Keeper (1992) 4 One of my new favorite documentaries.

Dheepan (2015) 3.5 This was great until it went off Taxi Driver style.

JFK (1991) 4 Stone throws a lot at the viewer and plenty of it sticks.

December viewings-3
2021 viewings-108
8 year total since keeping track-2407

re93animator

01-03-22, 08:35 AM

Trying to fall in love with the movies again...
Yojimbo – 4
Sanjuro – 3.5
Papillon – 4.5
Bullitt – 3.5
The Producers – 3.5
Lawrence of Arabia – 4.5
The Bridge on the River Kwai – 4
Sweet Smell of Success – 4

https://i.imgur.com/m4RGshi.png?1
https://i.imgur.com/7WL7BYE.png?1
https://i.imgur.com/4ukzaiP.png?1
https://i.imgur.com/SOiag96.png?1
https://i.imgur.com/r49z7tp.png?1
https://i.imgur.com/ssgwB3B.png?1
https://i.imgur.com/bpMRiyJ.png?1
https://i.imgur.com/l3ikmoB.png?1

The Matrix 4 (2021) – 3
Everyone gets their magnetic forearms, gust of wind attacks, and ability to destroy at least 3 walls at once by looking at them funny. Maybe a higher score than it deserves because of cool dark cinematography, cyber body mods, and nostalgia.

mark f

01-13-22, 01:45 PM

Ratatouille (Brad Bird, 2007) 4

https://i.pinimg.com/originals/e7/89/4f/e7894f0048f3417aed2dbe33c7abd2c9.gif

Basically, I think the film's message is along the lines that you may find your better half (Remy is obviously Linguini's better half) in the strangest places. I love and laugh out loud, repeatedly, at the way that Remy controls Linguini by pulling his hair. It's physical slapstick as good as it gets and just about as good as anything the great silent clowns ever did. Another message is that humans and non-humans can relate equally as long as they respect each other, although I'm not sure how much Remy actually respects Linguini up front, after all there's not much there.

In general, I just love the storytelling ability of Brad Bird. He may have used the TV more effectively in The Incredibles and The Iron Giant, but it goes without saying that Bird likes to communicate info through TVs, especially primitive ones. His use of the floating TV here is a classic movie motif - it's Remy's mind remembering what he's already seen. The thing which appeals to me about Ratatouille is that there is so much going on that I cannot complain about most of it because I'm too busy enjoying it. Yes, Act III is the best. Does everyone notice that Ego looks like a character out of a Tim Burton flick, that his typewriter has a skull on it and that his "gothic room" is in the shape of a coffin? You can see that all in the scene where Ego learns that Gusteau's is now popular again.

As far as the romance is concerned, maybe it is underdeveloped, but it's certainly believable. Linguini seems to have almost no social skills, but you don't need social skills to be attracted to women in the workplace. It's just normal. Linguini has very little past and very little depth (except for what Remy gives him), so it's not surprising that he doesn't especially grow after he learns he's the offspring of Gusteau. However, he does use what he can do quite well in Act III. Linguini uses his skating prowess to serve everyone quite handsomely when Ego shows up. He also seems less-tongue-tied than normal. The last 25 minutes are the best. However, among my earlier, fave lines are "Let's toast to your non-idiocy!" and " I don't LIKE food. I LOVE it. If I don't love it, I don't SWALLOW".

mark f

01-20-22, 01:05 PM

The Dark Knight (Christopher Nolan, 2008) 4

https://i.gifer.com/2lVs.gif

I felt that the Joker was actually one of the more honest characters in the movie. Even if he changed the story of his origin depending exactly on who he was talking to, and he does deliver one baldfaced lie, it appears to all be within the realm of his believing in having fun by playing games. Batman seems to force himself to have to believe in what he stands for, but the Joker has no problem whatsoever in letting you know that he believes in Anarchy and the vileness of human nature, but it still has to be demonstrated with a maximum amount of "fun". This Joker is definitely one of the scarier characters I've ever seen. I don't know if you think that escalating one-note symphony which played during the tenser moments of the film was a cheat or super-effective, but I always took it to be what the Joker hears inside his mind when things are going his way.

Many of the characters in the film are duplicitous, but the Joker seems to stay true to his beliefs. He's obviously very smart and possesses some form of mind control to be able to pull off all the things he does with no visible means of support. I mean, he must have some financial backing, but it isn't anything comparable to Bruce Wayne's. Plus, the Joker commits a heinous crime in the film: he burns money! :cool: (I'm only discussing what's seen in this film, not the comic books.)

In some ways the Joker and Harvey Dent both seem interested in playing games of chance, whether involving playing cards or coin flips. The Joker probably enjoys doing magic tricks more than Harvey, but he certainly did a good one when he spoke to Harvey Dent (offscreen) in the hospital room.

mark f

01-24-22, 11:45 AM

No Country For Old Men (Coen Bros., 2007) 3.5

http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2007/10/23/books/pc-nocountry533.jpg

This is a terrific film, but the Coens just love to throw curves towards the end at the audience. They did it in Barton Fink and The Man Who Wasn't There, and I believe they do it here too. This flick grabs you from the beginning and is so unusual and suspenseful that it slowly wraps its fingers around your throat and tightens. The scene where the dog chases Llewelyn in the river almost had me giddy; I couldn't believe I was watching something that I should have seen long ago. The shootout in the deserted smalltown streets between Llewelyn and Anton was even better. I never once cared that nobody reared their head. There are several other classic suspense scenes in the film, especially involving cheap motels and a botched drug transaction. Tommy Lee Jones' Sheriff is a terrific character, but somehow, the three strong characters seem to be hung out to dry during the last 20 minutes.

NOTE - This was all resolved by me almost immediately, but I include it here anyway.

These unanswered questions are what I find lessens the impact of the film. My fave character is Llewelyn. We never see what happens to him. We can imply it, but I don't think it's fair that such a cool character "just disappears". What happened to the money? Where did Anton's character go when the Sheriff was outside the motel crime scene? We saw him. We saw the opened vent, but that was too small for him to get away through. Is Anton actually a "part-time ghost" as the Sheriff hypothesizes? Who is the family member in the wheelchair that the Sheriff talks to? (Again, I can imply who it is, and if you read the story, maybe you know, but that's not fair. Movies aren't novels and they often change things.) Does Anton kill Llewelyn's wife? The Carson Wells character implies that Anton lives by a code (even if it's a psychotic's code). Did Anton spare the wife and violate his own code, thus causing the "accident" at the end of the film? Was that crackup at the end even an "accident"? What happens to Anton? How do the Sheriff's two dreams tie the entire story together?

donniedarko

01-25-22, 01:13 PM

Every film I've watched in the past three months, all of which selected by my girlfriend

Dune (Villeneuve , 2021) - 3.5-
The Unforgivable (Fingscheidt , 2021) - 3.5
Sightless (Karl, 2020) - 2
Red Notice (Thurber, 2021) - 1.5+

mark f

01-26-22, 02:55 PM

Mulholland Dr. (David Lynch, 2001) 2.5

https://p2.itc.cn/q_70/images03/20210601/dc30d37b93e74592b3e3823a64deac1a.gif

Mulholland Dr. is another film everybody seems to love, but I only slightly like. My favorite scene is when Naomi Watts "acts" with Chad Everett. That's "real" and doesn't need twists to make commentary about Hollywood vs. reality. I guess I'm just a wet blanket, sitting all alone in the corner at this big party Lynch is having with everyone else. I do think the film is interesting and leads to some thought-provoking ideas but I'm just not fully drawn in. Sometimes I find Lynch's atmosphere and "audacity" downright silly, but I do find this one better than most.

It pretty much made sense to me the first time - at least my interpretation. Then I read the experts and their explanation deflated me and the film. Are there really any films which don't allow someone to "engage" with them? It seems that opposite ones engage people who are looking for "opposite things". I don't want my films to be spoon-fed, but I'd like to know my interpretations partially agree with what the creator intended. If not, why isn't someone's interpretation of a film as "idiotic nonsense" make as much sense as the interpretation of it as "poetic beauty"? Sorry about the comments. They're not meant as a debate or a popularity contest because I'll lose that. Just think of it as the loyal opposition saying hello and telling you to have fun as much as you can because sometimes I apparently don't. :)

cricket

01-31-22, 08:09 PM

January, 2022 movies watched-

Halloween Kills (2021) 2.5 Not bad after a terrible start.

Apocalypse Now: Redux (1979) 4+ 1st time watching this version. A consistently imperfect movie with highs as high as anything else that's ever been done.

Jaws (1975) Repeat 4 Above average in every way but it doesn't seem that it'll ever be a personal favorite.

Witness for the Prosecution (1957) Repeat 4.5 My favorite courtroom movie.

Safety Last (1923) Repeat 3 Really nothing to dislike but it never gets me higher than mild amusement.

Magical Girl (2014) Repeat 4.5- Recommended for people who like movies like the Dogtooth director makes whatever his name is.

Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) Repeat 4+ Still the greatest adventure movie ever made, even if I don't quite love it the same way I once did.

One Cut of the Dead (2017) 3.5+ Not quite horror and not quite comedy, but it's all fun.

Midnight Cowboy (1969) Repeat 4.5 This movie has frustrated me for many years because I couldn't understand why it wasn't a favorite. Finally the frustration is gone.

Total-9

Chypmunk

02-01-22, 04:12 AM

January seen list (newly rated only):
84973
Missing posters are:
Le départ d'Arlequin et de Pierrette [Pierrette's Escapade] (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0000299/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1) (top row)
The Lost Zeppelin (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0020109/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0) (second row)
Passenger To London (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0134884/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0) (fourth row)

Mr Minio

02-17-22, 09:33 AM

Земля [Earth] (1930) - rating_4_5
Арсенал [Arsenal] (1929) - rating_4

http://25.media.tumblr.com/2d7bc5bc3508662ebd0ac341da51a4fb/tumblr_muikr4IIMJ1rt5fq2o1_500.gif

<Guap mode on>
Tarkovsky loved these movies, so it's natural these are masterpieces.
<Guap mode off>

Now that Tarkovsky loved Earth actually does mean something to me and helps to understand the visible bounds between cinematical inspirations. Dovzhenko is a Soviet cinema pioneer and obviously his films were supposed to be and were propaganda, but I'd rather compare him to avangard Dziga Vertov than arguably the most known Sergei Eisenstein. Under the propaganda flare there's a whole new world of poetic maestry full of symbolism and visual majesty.

http://24.media.tumblr.com/1dd842198fd48b323e89acb74d7d469c/tumblr_mugzubyxFK1rt5fq2o1_500.gif

It shouldn't be anything new that Tarkovsky loved Dovzhenko as their films are very alike. Earth and Arsenal abandon the idea of linear easy-to-follow plot to show ostensibly incoherent events thanks to the montage build on juxtaposition and extreme face close-ups. The result resembles a more poetic Vertov.

http://31.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lp5wlo9hrz1qfg94wo1_500.gif

Both Earth and Arsenal were made as propaganda films to encourage Ukrainian peasants to collectivize their land and join Ukraine to USSR, but thanks to Dovzhenko's skills became something more. The unstoppable turn of events occurs as when a man dies, child is born and when the cruel man flogs a horse, shortly after that the peasant collapses. The Earth ends with the image of apples in the rain. One of the most visually striking and spoiler-free endings of all time!

魔法少女まどか☆マギカ [Puella Magi Madoka Magica] (2011) - rating_4

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Now that's what I call a titillating rifle!

I wanted to write fake impressions and rate it one star to see Guap's reaction, but then thought of possible consequences of him writing the longest post MoFo ever seen and creating the biggest pean in the name of anime and little magical girls the world has ever witnessed. Naturally, it would be fun to see him trolled, but at the same time it would bring a lot of confusion and anger to other users of these forums. So. thinking about their, and also Guap's, mental health I abandoned the idea.

Guaporense is a weird dude. His favourite anime have little girls in them and he glorifies PMMM whenever possible, which led me and some MoFos into thinking that he works as the advertiser for PMMM's publisher. After seeing the twelve episode TV series version of the anime I sort of got why he is so excited, but there's a thin line between excitement and zeal to scream out loudly: "This is the best movie ever!!!".

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Hump you very much!

Needless to say, I eventually fell for Guaporense's charm and watched the thing. The length allows it to create a really good story and interesting world (worlds?) of ordinary girls turning into magical witch-fighters. Don't let the cute visuals deceive you. PMMM is dark, heavy, even sinister psychological drama. It's got amazing twists, great sub-plots, lesbian references, Faustian theme and a lot of moral dilammas protagonists have to face. The idea of a world within a world and therefore different animation style for the 'other' world is really beautiful and creates a trippy atmosphere. The mind-tuggling time episode is really nice, but I felt like the ending, although really good, is too much. It's like trying to be metaphysical too much.

And in that final hour of revelation, when the universe is being recreated, the very spirit of anime magic ejaculates from the screen and metaphysical power should embrace my cinephile heart I'm staring at Madoka's boobies and wondering why doesn't she have nipples on them. DAFUQ.

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Yeah, the protagonist even wanted to design her costume and made a drawing of it in her notebook. xD
Browsing through some of my old (2014) posts in this thread. Wow, I used to be much funnier and inventive! Browsing through some of my old (2014 & 2016) posts in this thread. Wow, I used to be so much funnier and more inventive! Also, much more immature but so what!?

Captain Spaulding

02-26-22, 02:21 PM

January Tab

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The Seven Year Itch (Billy Wilder, 1955) [REWATCH]: Besides Some Like it Hot and The Apartment, this is probably the Wilder I revisit the most often, even if it's a lesser picture than several others in his esteemed filmography. Marilyn Monroe essentially playing Marilyn Monroe, descending from a staircase to nowhere into the sexual fantasies of every hot-blooded straight male. This is such a horny, perverse film for its era. Too bad the Hays Code cock-blocked Ewell's character from cheating on his wife. I've seen several people remark that they would've enjoyed this more if it had starred Jack Lemmon, but Lemmon is too naturally charming for the role. The character is meant to be a pathetic loser, and the schlubby, hangdog Ewell is perfect for the part. 4

Red Notice (Rawson Marshall Thurber, 2021): Ultra generic globe-trotting adventure that is at least watchable thanks to the A-list trio of headliners and the lofty price tag attached to all the on-screen spectacle. Never particularly exciting despite a fast pace; never particularly amusing despite a constant barrage of jokes (many of which are going to age terribly); never particularly clever despite several convoluted twists and turns. Slick but smug, well-dressed but hollow. Cinematic equivalent of drinking boxed wine in a rented tuxedo. 2

Track of the Cat (William A. Wellman, 1954): Expected a traditional man-versus-nature western with Robert Mitchum tracking the titular cat. Instead got a man-versus-nurture wannabe Tennessee Williams stage play dressed in western attire. Histrionic and overwrought to a fault. Memorably odd. Heavy on metaphors. Wellman's attempt to film a black-and-white movie in color. Some impressive exterior shots in the snow, but most of the film is cramped indoors. Suffers whenever Mitchum isn't on screen, and unfortunately that's most of the second half. 2.5

Bruised (Halle Berry, 2020): Berry fares well in front and behind the camera in her directorial debut, exhibiting impressive physicality in her role as a former UFC fighter, but the trite script and bloated runtime prove too much of an encumbrance. This could've been a decent Rocky rehash with a tighter focus on training and combat, but the hackneyed interpersonal drama (abusive boyfriend! traumatic upbringing! estranged son dumped on doorstep!) atop so many underdog tropes ultimately sinks the film despite valiant performances attempting to buoy the clichés. The climactic battle in the octagon is well choreographed, even though it's very much a Hollywood version of MMA. 2

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The Eyes of Tammy Faye (Michael Showalter, 2021): Uneven biopic that flirts with camp but ultimately settles into standard formula. Chastain elevates the material with a big, showy, award-seeking performance: funny accent, a few musical numbers, the full gamut of emotions, while saddled with garishly distracting prosthetic cheeks. Andrew Garfield's performance amounts to little more than mimicry. I didn't realize until watching the movie that most of the events occurred near my neck of the woods. The movie arguably goes too easy on Faye's own culpability in her husband's schemes. Apparently Jim Bakker is still out there conning in the name of God, peddling colloidal silver as a COVID cure. 3

Borat Subsequent Movie Film (Jason Woliner, 2020): Rough going early on, and remains scattershot throughout, with lots of jokes that don't elicit much of a reaction, but the funniest moments are hysterical, and nearly all of them come courtesy of Maria Bakalova. It requires a deep reservoir of resolve to not wilt from embarrassment or break character when you're the cynosure of such intensely awkward situations. Also impressed by how effortlessly they adjusted to the pandemic, as if it was part of their plan all along. 2.5

A Pistol for Ringo (Duccio Tessari, 1965): Opens with two men coming face to face in the street, seemingly about to draw their pistols in a duel, only to instead shake hands and wish each other merry Christmas, setting the tone for this offbeat, playful spaghetti western. Our titular gunslinger drinks milk instead of whiskey, only kills in self-defense, and greets every moment of peril with a carefree grin. Story-wise, this isn't far removed from the Man with No Name trilogy -- an antihero playing both sides to maximize profit -- but the flippant tone confounds expectations, in a good way. Lighthearted without sacrificing gravity; mirthful without slipping into comedy; laidback yet never lacking momentum. The supporting cast is excellent. This is more of an ensemble piece considering how often Ringo is content to hang out in the background. Top-ten spaghetti. 4

The Return of Ringo (Duccio Tessari, 1965): Sequel in name only, with most of the cast returning to play entirely different characters, which gives this a Twilight Zone vibe when watched closely to the original, as if we've slipped into a parallel universe. Far more serious and traditional than its predecessor, which also makes it less interesting, but still a high-quality spaghetti western. Morricone's score reflects the darker tone, giving the music a grander, operatic density, which just sounds so much cooler to me than the eccentric, playful score he laid down for the first film. 3.5

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Minari (Lee Isaac Chung, 2020): We've seen plenty of films about outsiders seeking the American dream, but this one has a fresh perspective and honesty thanks to a high degree of naturalism and tenderness. Easy to forget that we're watching actors and not a real family. Excellent performances across the board. Yuen and Yuh-jung received most of the attention, but I was most impressed with Han Ye-ri, and the kids give uncommonly good performances as well. For the most part, the script avoids storytelling contrivances (and I liked that Chekhov's heart condition didn't play out as expected) but the forced dramatic moment at the end rings hollow, especially compared to how sincerely the film had previously treated moments of conflict. I'm thirsting for Mountain Dew. 3.5

The Alpinist (Peter Mortimer & Nick Rosen, 2021): Invites obvious parallels to Free Solo, as both are documentaries about daredevil mountaineers who risk their lives scaling treacherous peaks without the assistance of protective equipment. I found the dude in Free Solo arrogantly off-putting, whereas the subject here, Marc-André Leclerc, is much more personable with his big-kid demeanor. Only problem: he couldn't care less about the documentary, often ghosting the filmmakers during his most impressive feats or forgetting to turn on the camera when tasked with documenting his progress, so we aren't treated to a ton of footage, but what little we get is breathtaking. 3

Greyhound (Aaron Schneider, 2020): Rarely do I find naval combat cinematically compelling, and this was no exception. Zero effort put into characterization, wasting the charm and talent of Tom Hanks. Feels less like a film than an extended set piece. The FX are impressive, but the digital sheen on everything ruins any sense of verisimilitude when it's obvious to viewers that even the water is fake. Despite the non-stop torrent of gunfire and torpedoes, this was pretty damn boring. At least the Oscar nomination for Best Sound was warranted. 1.5

Blue Chips (William Friedkin, 1994): Disagree with the detractors who accuse this of being a strident morality lecture. Blunt but nuanced. Nolte is great as a Bobby Knight analog. The turnstile of real-life basketball legends throughout the film adds authenticity. I was particularly impressed with Bob Cousy's performance. The in-game action feels legit. Shaq's acting skills might not be much better than his free-throw ability, but his charm and charisma compensates. Refreshing to see a sports drama so unconcerned with championship banners or rousing inspiration. Primary criticism would be the stereotypical ancillary characters. 3.5

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Teknolust (Lynn Hershman Leeson, 2002): Strange, quirky, low-budget, digitally-shot science-fiction that features Tilda Swinton in four separate roles: a scientist named Rosetta Stone and her three cyborg clones, each with their own personalized color scheme and cheap-ass wig. The story is easy to follow, but the peculiar sense of humor, bizarre plot machinations and alien-like behavior from every human character conjures persistent what-the-f**kery. Tea brewed from semen. Condoms as currency. Microwave video calls. An STD that manifests as a forehead bar-code. Karen Black as Dirty Dick. I have no idea what the film is trying to say about technology and human intimacy, and the ending is disappointingly rote, but the early-internet aesthetic and heightened weirdness maintained my interest. 3

My Spy (Peter Segal, 2020): Unlike most family films, this doesn't shy away from on-screen deaths. We even get a slow-motion decapitation played for laughs. Perhaps that PG-13 content within a very PG story puts the film in a no-man's land for some viewers, but I appreciated that the violence isn't handled with kid gloves. Batista is a real-life Hulk, and the awkward utilization of his bulky physique adds charm to his attempts at comedy, even when he's failing at provoking laughter. Script both embraces and pokes fun of action-movie tropes. Exceeded my low expectations. 3

Thunder Road (Arthur Ripley, 1958): Appears to be something of a passion project for Robert Mitchum, as he stars, produces, writes the story and the theme song. Unfortunately this tale of Appalachian bootlegging is wheel-clamped by the Code's crime-doesn't-pay morality. Filming most of the car chases with rear projection denies viewers even the simplest thrills. The supporting cast, including Mitchum's spitting-image, real-life son (awkwardly cast as his brother), gives uniformly rigid performances. Mitchum is effortlessly bad-ass and captivating as usual, but he can only carry the movie so far when every other aspect is so lackluster. 2

The Visitors (Elia Kazan, 1972): The repressed trauma and guilt of Casualties of War breaks bread with the themes and simmering tension of Straw Dogs inside the real-life home of legendary director Elia Kazan. As always, Kazan gets the most out of his cast, including James Woods in his on-screen debut. The low-budget, do-it-yourself, home-video atmosphere, shot on 16mm, feels much more like the type of film a young, upcoming director would make at the start of their career. Despite his advanced age and accomplishments, Kazan directs with the vitality of a hungry maverick itching to provoke strong reactions and controversy. This is an angry film, rough around the edges, purposely uncomfortable. Balled fists of celluloid. 3.5

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Queen & Slim (Melina Matsoukas, 2019) Captivating opening act, with the cleverly written diner scene, tense police altercation and ensuing panic of the immediate fallout. Sadly, the movie never lives up to its early potential, slowly getting worse thanks to baffling character decisions, dull detours, tin-eared dialogue and well-intentioned but clumsily integrated topicality. Central performances and lyrical cinematography are the highlights. 3

Jay and Silent Bob Reboot (Kevin Smith, 2019): Tusk and Yoga Hosers might be terrible, but at least Kevin Smith took a risk with their weed-inspired absurdity. This is nothing but lazy fan service. I've always felt that Jay and Silent Bob work best as ancillary characters. That opinion hasn't changed. It hurts to even look at them nowadays with their ghoulish appearances. Mewes has aged horribly and Smith appears sickly from the drastic weight loss. Constant cameos from the View Askewniverse might appease the most sentimental diehard fans. I'm not one of them, as I've never found Smith particularly funny despite sharing a similarly crude, puerile sense of humor, but this is a new low for him. Complete auto-pilot. The treacly emotion is just as cringe as the constant winking at the audience. One of the unfunniest movies I've ever watched. 0.5

Bridget Jones's Diary (Sharon Maguire, 2001): Colin Firth might be one of my least favorite actors. Even the movie describes him as a dullard, so it's befuddling to me that he's presented as the preferred suitor. Hugh Grant's character might be a lying cheat but at least he has a personality and a sense of humor; plus he's far more attractive. Regardless, the MVP here is obviously Renée Zellweger with her winning personality. Cute, charming and fairly amusing. Lots of panty humor. Enjoyed this enough that I'll eventually seek out the sequels. 3

The Winds of Autumn (Charles B. Pierce, 1976): Decent western about an 11-year-old boy seeking vengeance for his murdered Quaker family. I wasn't a fan of the awkwardly incorporated slow-motion during every moment of violence but there's some nice outdoor photography. Cool to see Jack Elam receive top billing for once with his crazy wandering eye. He and Jeannette Nolan -- the elderly matriarch of this possibly inbred family of violent criminals -- make this obscure western worthwhile. 2.5

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5 Card Stud (Henry Hathaway, 1968): Sturdy western bolstered by stalwart performances by veterans like Dean Martin, Robert Mitchum, Roddy McDowall and Yaphet Kotto. Whodunnit plot adds an interesting angle, establishing a vaguely slasher-like structure, but the reveal is too telegraphed to qualify as a true mystery. 3

The Tax Collector (David Ayer, 2020): Shia LaBeouf got a giant tattoo across his chest and abdomen to better play his character, yet you hilariously never even see the tattoo because he's decked out in a suit the whole movie. Say what you will, but the dude is always committed, and he's the only interesting part of this dreary, overly grim crime flick. Too bad he's not the main character. Ayer seems like the type of dude who still drives a Hummer while sporting an Affliction t-shirt. All his films try insufferably hard to appear tough and masculine. This stereotypical garbage is his douchiest film yet. 1.5

Skyline (Greg & Colin Strause, 2010): Recently heard surprisingly good things about the sequels, which prompted me to finally give this critically-reviled alien-invasion flick a chance. The writing is abysmal. Paper-thin characters with zero personality spouting incredibly flat dialogue. FX are impressive, however, especially for their modest budget. I enjoyed seeing so many brains plucked from skulls, and the ending is effective. The movie isn't afraid to kill off anyone and everyone, which I appreciate. 2

I Wake Up Screaming (H. Bruce Humberstone, 1941): Features all the tasty flourishes of noir, along with a compelling whodunnit plot. Victor Mature might not possess much range, and I remain surprised that ladies found him so attractive, but his distrustful smarminess is put to excellent use as a promoter/murder suspect/love interest. Laird Cregar, with his Orson Welles-like presence, is the standout as a sinister detective hellbent on making Mature's character squirm. 3.5

Hangover Square (John Brahm, 1945): Unusual noir featuring a Dr. Jekyll/Mr. Hyde angle, as a distinguished composer prone to violent blackouts falls under the spell of a manipulative femme fatale. Boasts two highly memorable scenes, both involving fire. Laird Cregar's final role before his untimely death at 31. 3.5

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Antebellum (Gerard Bush & Christopher Renz, 2020): I'm a bit surprised by the overwhelmingly negative reception. Perhaps the wrong genre classification is partly to blame. People complain that it isn't scary, but I never felt like the film was even trying to be scary. Disturbing and unsettling, yes, but this is very much a thriller, not horror. The awkward structure doesn't help, either, and the middle act drags when Gabourey Sidibe saunters in and steals the movie from Janelle Monáe. The twist isn't what I expected (in a good way), and draws comparison to my favorite Shyamalan flick. The filmmakers sloppily aim for the subversive Jordan Peele approach to social commentary. I think the film would've been stronger had it fully embraced its exploitative nature -- been pulpier, uglier, more gratuitous. The technical aspects are impressive, especially the single-shot opening. I admire the creative risks, even though not everything hits the mark. 3

Tom Clancy's Without Remorse (Stefano Sollima, 2021): Never read anything by Tom Clancy, but I enjoyed this more than most of his other adaptations. Perhaps too somber and old-fashioned for its own good with a few too many scenes that strain credulity, but the plentiful action sequences are skillfully directed. Michael B. Jordan's physique is impressive, but he still comes across too soft when he's supposed to be intimidating. 3

Woman Walks Ahead (Susanna White, 2017): Biographical western about a woman who paints a portrait of Sitting Bull before becoming an advocate for the tribe in their fight to prevent the U.S. government from expropriating their land. Typical white-savior narrative with a downbeat ending. Listless, poorly paced. The type of film a substitute teacher would use to bore a classroom. Commendable performances from Chastain, Rockwell and Michael Greyeyes. 2

Indiana Jones & the Last Crusade (Steven Spielberg, 1989): Kingdom of the Crystal Skull was my introduction to the franchise, and it remains my favorite of the series, which possibly puts me in a minority of one. I find all these movies plenty ridiculous, but Crystal Skull is the only one to embrace the camp and absurdity. Those traits are the same reason I prefer Moore's output as Bond. I've already forgotten everything that happened in this movie except for the opening on the train with River Phoenix and the climactic tank chase. That's partly because I nodded off during the middle portions. I simply find Indy a dull, uninteresting hero, and the drab color palette doesn't help. I watched Temple of Doom for the first time a few months ago. While I enjoyed how deranged it got at times, the grating tag-team of Short Round and the perpetually screeching woman gave me a headache. At least that one maintained my interest, however, whereas this one literally put me to sleep. Boredom is the biggest sin a movie like this can commit. Where's Shia LaBeouf and those monkeys when you need them? 2

Chypmunk

02-28-22, 01:46 PM

February seen list (newly rated only):
85706
Missing a couple but hey-ho, it was still a 'lazy' month anyway.

Captain Spaulding

03-22-22, 08:18 PM

February Tab

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Everly (Joe Lynch, 2014): Single-location, violent grindhouse shoot-em-up. Hits the ground firing and barely relents for 90-minutes of bullet-spraying carnage. Completely disregards traditional set-ups or typical characterization. All you need to know is that Salma Hayek is some kind of sex slave to a dangerous Japanese crime boss and now he wants her flat-lined. Tone is a bit wonky, trying to cram forced motherly emotion into the proceedings by placing a young girl in danger, which doesn't mesh well with the gallows humor and pulpy mayhem. Occasionally flirts with Miike-like derangement. Also features one of the gnarliest deaths I've seen in awhile, with a sadistic madman getting a dose of his own acid, then crawling across the floor in agony as it melts him from within, leaving a blood-streaked, gooey trail like a giant menstruating slug. I haven't been this turned on by Hayek since she undulated with a python. 3

The Greatest (Tom Gries, 1977): A biopic about Muhammad Ali starring Muhammad Ali as Muhammad Ali. For that reason alone, this is worth watching, and I'm surprised that it's so obscure given the man's enduring popularity. Released one year after Rocky, this was likely a cash grab at the time, but all these decades later it's quite the curio -- and a decent movie to boot. Ali's performance is fine, especially when he's in showmanship mode, and the boxing matches are comprised of actual footage. Ali's portrayal isn't exactly impartial, but what do you expect? Features small supporting roles from Ernest Borgnine, Robert Duvall and James Earl Jones. 3

Coming 2 America (Craig Brewer, 2021): Coasts on nostalgia that I don't possess, having only seen the original once and finding it lackluster. Not particularly funny, but at least the jokes aren't total groaners -- except for maybe the overdone schtick of Murphy and Hall playing multiple characters in ridiculous make-up. Overlong with too many embarrassing musical numbers, but the cast is clearly having fun and the message of gender equality and the film's sweet-natured tone make for an undemanding, pleasant diversion. Wesley Snipes deserves more comedic roles. The hairstylists and wardrobe department earn every penny. 2

Wiener-Dog (Todd Solondz, 2016): I love Solondz's idiosyncratic style. If you've seen even one of his films, you'll instantly recognize his deeply sardonic humor and awkwardly mannered characterizations. Edgy, bitter, cynical, misanthropic. Mocking his characters with borderline cruelty while simultaneously offering an empathetic pat on the back. Quality-wise, I'd place Weiner-Dog in the middle of his filmography. This is essentially four short films, each representing a different stage of life, with a cute dachshund as the through-line. The first segment, featuring slow-motion diarrhea dollies and Julie Delpy explaining canine gang-rape to her sickly, inquisitive son, was my least favorite. The second segment, with Greta Gerwig playing an adult Dawn Wiener from Welcome to the Dollhouse, might be the least amusing, but it's easily the most emotionally resonant, and therefore the strongest.3

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Razorback (Everett De Roche, 1984): Nightmarish cinematography and kinetic editing provide enough visual window dressing to compensate for lackluster plotting and thin characterization. The movie doesn't settle on a protagonist until at least a third of the way through its run-time, which is a tactic I admire in theory, but sadly it chooses the dullest candidate. The monstrous boar looks great, like a rampaging furry rhino barreling through houses and snatching babies for snacks, but disappointingly it takes a backseat to the stereotypical redneck antagonists. 3

The 355 (Simon Kinberg, 2022): Chastain, Cruz, Kruger and Nyong'o are overqualified for this globe-trotting espionage action flick -- code name: Mission: Impossible - Vagina Protocol -- and the plot is ultra generic, find-the-MacGuffin, save-the-world stuff, but I enjoyed it despite its predictability. Features plenty of well-orchestrated thrills and suspense, and the cast is talented enough to temporarily disguise the taste of microwaved leftovers. 3

Old Enough (Marisa Silver, 1984): One of the better female-centric coming-of-age films I've seen. An adolescent reverie on the summer streets of New York City. Writer/Director Marisa Silver was only 23 at the time, so she's able to slip into the mindset of her teenaged characters with acuity, capturing little nuances that similar films often ignore. Mostly plotless with low stakes and evaporating conflicts. Even the stark class disparity between the budding friends is refreshingly observed without becoming a foundation for manufactured drama or social commentary. Falters a bit in the last act with the sudden emphasis on the floozy who moves upstairs. One of the actresses, Rainbow Harvest (her parents must be Care Bears), is a spitting image of my first celebrity crush, Winona Ryder. 3.5

Sabrina (Sydney Pollack, 1995): The age difference and lack of romantic chemistry between Bogart and Hepburn kept me from wholly buying into the original. This remake fares better in that regard, but it's sorely missing the sharp wit of Wilder's dialogue, and Julia Ormand is no match for Hepburn's effervescent charm. This is fine for what it is, but it's a bit light on comedy for my taste..2.5

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The Witch (Robert Eggers, 2015): I've watched a lot of horror films, but very few have felt this sinister. A pervading sense of doom so thick and overwhelming that it nearly seeps into your living room. Felt like I was being slowly sucked into a nightmare, or brought to a boil in a witch's cauldron. Helpless, hopeless, abandoned. Diseased piety corroding the soul from within. Puritanical corruption. Familial destruction. Sin's whispered seduction. Thankfully I watched with subtitles or I would've missed a quarter of the dialogue, which is extremely well-written. Spot-on performances and casting. Anna Taylor-Joy's large expressive eyes, pure and virginal but also coquettish and mischievous, as in her confessions of sin which hint at pleasure in the absence of remorse. The gaunt, haggard, heavily-creased faces of Ralph Ineson and Kate Dickie epitomizing the toil of a harsh, physical, day-to-day existence. Mark Korven's disconcerting, dissonant score and Jarin Blaschke's stark, earthly cinematography merging in unholy union to spawn an atmosphere so ominous it threatens to swallow the soul. A perpetually overcast color palette that has forever blotted any semblance of warmth or sunlight or respite. The most disturbing baby-oil tutorial in existence. I was skeptical that the The Witch would live up to the enormous hype, thinking that I'd likely appreciate its craft more than the film itself, but I was spellbound by every aspect. Instant horror classic and a potential new favorite. Can't wait to revisit it and likely boost my rating as my impression of the film has only grown stronger in the weeks since watching it. Black Phillip beckons.4

Wander (April Mullen, 2020): A whacked-out thriller tailor-made for conspiracy theorists who think that the COVID vaccine contains microscopic chips. Aaron Eckhart fully commits to the crazy with his over-the-top performance, while Tommy Lee Jones seems to have wandered bemusedly on set and stuck around for a free sandwich. The lurching pace, unreliable narrator and constant twists make it difficult to remain invested. A movie constantly chasing its own tail. 1.5

Where's Poppa? (Carl Reiner, 1970): Black comedy that revels in offensive humor without feeling mean-spirited. The infamous tushy scene feels disappointingly tame in a post-Farrelly-Brothers world, while the racial stereotyping and coerced rape gag feel much edgier. Hated the corduroy aesthetic. The wardrobe and production design are true to the period, but I can practically smell the moth balls when everything on screen looks as if it was stitched together from my grandmother's curtains. I wish that they had stuck with the incestuous original ending, which would've been the shocking capper befitting such a blithely amoral film, instead of the deflated shrug of an ending we get instead. 3

The Lost City of Z (James Grey, 2016): Handsomely old-fashioned biographical adventure. James Grey channeling his inner David Lean. Normally the awkward stop/start narrative would feel unsatisfying, but you can't criticize the script when it's simply following the timeline of true events. I wish that Hunnam and Pattinson had swapped roles, as the former lacks the charisma to be a compelling lead. Sienna Miller out acts everyone with her limited screen time. Something about people floating down a river flanked by dangerous natives and mysterious jungles intrigues me endlessly. Maybe I was a howler monkey in a previous life. Or an adventurous mosquito. 3.5

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Deep Rising (Stephen Sommers, 1998) [REWATCH] Tremors aboard The Poseidon Adventure. Comedy, horror, action, science-fiction, romance. An exasperated Treat Williams exclaiming, "Now What!?" every ten minutes. Hungry tentacles, regurgitated skeletons, corridors of bloody slime. Famke Janssen reminding everyone that she was once one of the hottest babes in Hollywood. A cast of familiar character actors getting picked off one by one. Limitless ammo, axes to the head, slow-motion jet skis outracing climactic explosions. Tongue-in-cheek B-movie entertainment on a 45-million-dollar budget. This was one of my go-to rentals as a kid when I couldn't find anything new that interested me. Still just as fun today as it was back then. 4

Beautiful Boy (Felix van Groeningen, 2018): I think Steve Carell has done fine dramatic work in the past -- Foxcatcher being the most notable example -- but throughout this movie I could never shake the impression that the concerned dad faces he repeatedly employs were two seconds from shattering into a Michael Scott grin. This movie should've hit home for me, as I've seen firsthand the destruction meth can cause a family, but nothing about it felt fully believable to me, despite its true-story origins. Fairly routine "drugs are bad, mkay?" tale that lacks insight or emotional gravitas and feels a bit uppity and try-hard. More vain than vein. 2.5

Her Smell (Alex Ross Perry, 2018): Character study segmented into five vignettes. Primarily a showcase for Elisabeth Moss, who gives an impressively exhaustive performance as a volatile rock star on a kamikaze spiral into a pit of self-destruction and self-loathing that alienates everyone around her and likely most viewers as well who aren't accustomed to such off-putting leads. Camerawork admirably mirrors her state of mind, especially in the dizzying, chaotic early segments. Would've preferred that it didn't follow the traditional redemption arc. 3

The Haunting of Sharon Tate (Daniel Farrands, 2019): I was hoping that the overwhelmingly negative reception (2.8 on IMDb; 1.0 on Letterboxd; nominated for multiple Razzies) was a result of moral outrage. The film is undeniably tasteless, but to my disappointment it's not because the film is a gruesome re-enactment of a real-life tragedy but rather a bone-headed revisionist take that adds supernaturalism to its ham-fisted themes. Hilary Duff bears a slight resemblance to Sharon Tate at certain camera angles, but she's woefully miscast talent-wise. In addition to the amateur performances and sheer dullness of the plot, the director doesn't even attempt to capture the look of the period. The unavoidable comparison to Once Upon a Time in Hollywood does the movie no favors either, with Margot Robbie's elegant portrayal of Tate still fresh in the mind, as well as Tarantino's comparatively tactful revision of the same events. 1

Chypmunk

03-31-22, 05:36 PM

March seen list (newly rated only):
86443

Mr Minio

03-31-22, 06:23 PM

March seen list (newly rated only): The King of Laziness strikes again!

cricket

04-01-22, 10:25 AM

February, 2022 movies watched-

True Romance (1993) Repeat 4.5 Not a top of the line favorite like it once was, but still a total blast for what it is.

Total-1

March, 2022 movies watched-

Mad Love (1985) 3+ Overly manic but a pretty decent watch.

Dolores Claiborne (1995) Repeat 3.5+ Very engrossing for what could have easily been an average movie.

Thunder Road (2018) 3.5 A successful mix of comedy and drama but I feel like it could have been much more.

Demons (1971) Repeat 4.5 Up among my favorites out of Japan.

Quo Vado? (2016) 5 Sometimes movies unexpectedly make you feel a certain way and that makes them special.

The Secret of Roan Inish (1994) 4 The rare family friendly fantasy that drew me in.

Don't Talk to Irene (2017) 3 Cringy awkward at times but with enough laughs to make it a decent comedy.

My Dog Skip (2000) 2.5 Ok only because I love dog movies.

Chicken Run (2000) 3.5 A rare animated movie for me and it was a lot of fun.

Total-9
2022 total-19

ScarletLion

04-01-22, 10:46 AM

March seen list (newly rated only):
86443

Pieta, Deliverance and Frances Ha! Good stuff there.

donniedarko

04-04-22, 01:13 AM

love your posts Captain Spaulding

donniedarko

04-20-22, 06:08 PM

https://cdn.onebauer.media/one/empire-tmdb/films/157336/images/xu9zaAevzQ5nnrsXN6JcahLnG4i.jpg?format=jpg&quality=80&width=960&height=540&ratio=16-9&resize=aspectfill
Recent Watches:
Interstellar (Nolan, 2014) - 4.5
The Tinder Swindler (Morris, 2022) - 3.5 -
Dead Asleep (Borgman, 2021) - 3
RW: There's Something Wrong with Aunt Diane (Garbus, 2011) - 2.5
RW: Monster in Law (Luketic, 2005)- 2
The Batman (Reeves, 2022)- 2-

gomorra82

04-24-22, 01:54 PM

Last month:
Manhattan: 8/10
When Harry Met Sally: 8/10
Casablanca: 9/10
The Ten Commandments: 10/10
The Insider: 8/10

Higher Learning:
Felt like an edjucational movie about Racism/rapeculture, wich it also is. I wathed it mostly because of Rapaport.
6/10.

Chypmunk

04-29-22, 11:14 AM

Probably not gonna watch anything else before the end of the month so...
April seen list (newly rated only):
86931

Chypmunk

05-31-22, 05:46 PM

May seen list (newly rated only):
87397
Missing poster is Convento (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1764240/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_1)

cricket

05-31-22, 08:04 PM

April, 2022 movies watched-

Baby Face (1933) 3.5 Barbara Stanwyck goes full slut mode.

Thank You for Smoking (2005) 4+ A relevant and very funny satire.

Cure (1997) Repeat 3.5 I think it's better than my rating.

Wrong (2012) 2.5 Quirky comedy with a style that only moderately worked for me.

What We Do in the Shadows (2014) 4+ For a mockumentary about vampires, I thought it was just about flawless.

Total-5

May, 2022 movies watched-

Ocean's Eleven (1960) 4+ Not a great movie but I enjoyed the hell out of it.

Blade of the Immortal (2017) 3.5 If bloody swordplay is your thing then this is for you.

With Honors (1994) 3.5- Corny and Cliche yet I fell for a good amount of it.

Don't Look Up (2021) 4.5- Very funny and entertaining the whole way through.

Black Dynamite (2009) 3.5+ Very funny.

Total-5
2022 total-29

Captain Spaulding

06-06-22, 07:55 PM

March Tab (yes, I'm aware that it's now June; I've fallen behind, okay?)

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Tropic Thunder (Ben Stiller, 2008) [REWATCH]: The funniest, most memorable moments are so great that my memory glosses over how scattershot the movie is as a whole. Such a deep, talented cast, but most of them are underutilized and/or stuck with one-note characters (e.g. Jack Black's fiending addict and Danny McBride's reckless pyromaniac). Tom Cruise's thick-forearmed, dick-swinging, expletive-yelling studio executive was hilarious in 2008, but those scenes now fall flat without the element of surprise. Meanwhile, I'd forgotten that Matthew McConaughey is even in this bitch. The script unleashes a broad barrage of jabs at Hollywood's pretensions, inadequacies and over-compensations. Perhaps a longer run-time would've allowed the comedy and satire to cohere more strongly instead of feeling like such a haphazard avalanche of good but under-cooked ideas. If this film went into production today, outraged Twitter mobs would likely shut down production once word got out about its use of blackface. Critics of the film's portrayal of intellectual disabilities have a stronger argument since that aspect is admittedly less nuanced and sensitive. 3.5

Texas Chainsaw Massacre (David Blue Garcia, 2022): My write-up got a bit lengthy, so I expanded it to a full-length review and tossed it in The Gutter (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?p=2305087#post2305087). 3

Short Eyes (Robert M. Young, 1977): Adapted from a play written by Miguel Piñero while he was incarcerated at Sing Sing prison for armed robbery, giving this underseen gem a hardened legitimacy few prison dramas can match. Essentially a hang-out film, barely any plot. We're just a fly on a prison-cell bar, watching inmates race cockroaches and barter for smokes, everyone asserting their dominance in subtle or not-so-subtle fashion as they navigate racially-charged landmines. Puff out your chest, but tread softly. Felt like I had to "get bad" (https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=S0x3PszuYv4) like Richard Pryor in Stir Crazy not to get shanked on my living room couch. In an early scene, Curtis Mayfield leads the mess hall in a memorable musical number, then is vanquished to solitary for misleading viewers into thinking that this film is remotely lighthearted. Bruce Davidson is despicable and sympathetic as the titular "short eyes," prison code for child molester. His confession to a fellow inmate is one of the most riveting and intensely uncomfortable monologues I've witnessed. Jose Perez gives an equally strong performance as an audience surrogate, left to ponder if two wrongs make a right. Raw, gritty, hard-hitting film. 3.5

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Dragonwyck (Joseph L. Mankiewicz, 1946): Gothic melodrama that plays like an inferior version of Rebecca. You can tell that this is an adaptation as it tries unsuccessfully to cram a novel's worth of content into a 103-minute run-time. Side characters disappear without explanation, sub-plots fizzle out, jarring time-jumps sacrifice the necessary context for big emotional moments to land with impact. Vincent Price is excellent, however, dressing up his devilish subterfuge with gentlemanly charm like only he can. His character is a total bastard, yet Price's portrayal makes him sympathetic. Film boasts nice atmosphere, as well. 3

Palmer (Fisher Stevens, 2021): It's difficult to dislike this heartwarming family drama despite its overwhelming familiarity. The lingering stench of NSYNC is probably what kept me from fully buying into Timberlake's character as an ex-convict, as he still comes across too soft, but otherwise he gives a nicely understated performance. The young boy who becomes his surrogate son demonstrates enough acting talent to promise a fruitful future in the industry. Themes aren't subtle but at least the script doesn't beat viewers over the head. Juno Temple is always a welcome sight with her willingness to play trashy characters who remove their clothes on a whim. Mayhem from the Allstate commercials plays her abusive boyfriend in an amusing bit of casting. You know exactly how this story is going to play out, but there's a tenderness and honesty to it that makes the big emotional moments feel earned without the viewer feeling overly manipulated. Sensitively handles gender non-conformity as well. 3

Hitman's Wife's Bodyguard (Patrick Hughes, 2021): The generic, unfunny, mediocre 2017 film made bank at the box office, so now we get the awkwardly-titled sequel that is equally generic, unfunny and mediocre. Ryan Reynolds once again plays Ryan Reynolds, put-upon and sarcastic. Samuel L. Jackson once again plays Samuel L. Jackson, foul-mouthed and foul-tempered. Salma Hayek, one of the few bright spots in the first film, now shares top billing, but this go-round her character's obnoxiousness cancels out her sex appeal. Antonio Banderas is the baddie, but his performance belongs in a film that takes itself more seriously. The script mistakes vulgarity for humor. The same jokes are repeated over and over despite whiffing each time. The plot is exhausting, the action uninspiring. I hated this movie at first, but things improve slightly in the second half. Highlight: Morgan Freeman and Samuel L. Jackson sharing the screen, which is the first time that's happened to my knowledge. Some of the needle drops are also inspired. 2

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Johnny Suede (Tom DiCillo, 1991): Strong Jarmuschian vibes with rockabilly-inspired Twin Peaks-styled characterizations. Feels as directionless as the eponymous character. Brad Pitt rocks a pompadour that would make even Johnny Bravo envious. I wish the film was more focused on his pursuit of rock n' roll stardom than his dating history. The setting, period and characterizations are frustratingly inconsistent, vacillating between a quirky post-apocalypse populated by rats and stragglers and homeless dreamers huddled around a broken jukebox to present-day, FM-stereo, suit-and-tie domestication. Sometimes people react to Johnny Suede as if he fell through a 1950's portal onto a 90's NY sidewalk. In other scenes it's as if the whole world has been set adrift in time and space. The artistic indecision of a first-time filmmaker still molding his talent. Would've fared better as a short film. 2.5

Bright Future (Kiyoshi Kurosawa, 2003): Not as satisfyingly creepy or as mesmerizing as the director's Cure, one of my favorite Japanese exports, but similarly cryptic and foreboding. Less a slow burn than a glowing ember, but the escalating unease and unpredictable characters kept me engaged. Felt like it was building toward a big moment that never arrived. The aloofness of the characters is mirrored in the filmmaking. Visually unappealing, but the camera accentuates the sense of alienation. Every aspect feels measured and purposeful in service of its themes, making this less a film for casual viewing than a film to discern and interpret. 3

Nobody (Ilya Naishuller, 2021): Highly-entertaining, ultra-violent, perfectly-paced wish-fulfillment for suburban dads trapped with loveless marriages, ungrateful children and soulless jobs who fantasize about unleashing their inner John Wick. Hats off to Bob Odenkirk, who performed most of his own stunts, for putting in the work to prove his casting isn't just a novelty. The choreography team nimbly works around his physical limitations to present him as a believable bad-ass. The brutal bus fight (https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=oROB_7A4oeI) is the highlight, with the relative quiet accentuating every grunt of physical exertion, but we're also treated to firearm carnage, automotive mayhem and ingenious Home Alone-style death-traps. I like how Odenkirk's character suffers quite a bit of punishment early on, but becomes stronger and more invincible as the rust wears off. I wasn't sure if Christopher Lloyd was even still alive, so it was a delight to see him show up and join in on the bloodshed. At the risk of sounding xenophobic, there's also a perverse pleasure derived from all the baddies being Russian, given current world events. 3.5

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Dead End Drive-In (Brian Trenchard-Smith, 1986): The title, poster and genre classification on TUBI misled me into thinking that this is a horror film. Turns out it isn't horror at all, but Ozploitation dystopian sci-fi/action in the vein of Mad Max. That led to some disappointment on my end since I was itching for horror and it took me half the run-time to realize that the face-painted dude on the poster wasn't going to show up and stab everyone to death. Nonetheless, this is a fun curio from the 80's. Lots of synth, punk fashion and clumsily executed satire with a cool concept: drive-ins as concentrations camps, where societal rejects are placated with drugs, music, junk food and exploitation flicks. Personally, that sounds more utopian than dystopian. The racist anti-immigration angle was likely shoehorned into the last act so that viewers like myself would sour on the setting and its inhabitants, thus rooting for the hero's escape. Story feels a bit plotless, and the average-day protagonist is like a flannel shirt misplaced on a rack of spiked leather jackets. The climax culminates with some nice stunt-work and pyro action.3

Finch (Miguel Sapochnik, 2021): Charming, refreshingly simple, post-apocalyptic science-fiction. A man and his dog and a robot. Avoids pitfalls of similar films: no scrolling texts, no reliance on exposition or flashbacks, no plot twists involving other survivors, no grandiose delusions about re-population. Essentially a road movie. Lacks traditional conflict but doesn't lack tension or emotional stakes, especially for dog-lovers like myself. Tom Hanks is reliably great, but the film wouldn't work without the superb motion-capture and vocal performance from Caleb Landry Jones breathing life into the robot with memorable endearment. 3.5

Beat Girl (Edmond T. Gréville, 1960): Hilariously dated youth-gone-wild exploitation about a perpetually pouty teenager who discovers her new step-mother used to be a sex worker and leverages that knowledge to become a stripper herself. Most notable for being John Berry's first film commission. Christopher Lee sleazes it up as a predatory strip club owner, although it's hard to pay attention to him when there's a babe in the background gyrating on stage with tassels on her nips. Most of the acting is abysmal, especially from the daughter and step-mom, both of whom are gorgeous but can't emote. The ridiculous slang was likely written by some square trying to be hip because I don't think teenagers ever quite talked like this, daddy-o. Features a few ineptly-filmed musical numbers in which the actors barely lip-sync while not even pretending to play their instruments. Everyone appears bored and disillusioned, but I guess that's the point. 2

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Pig (Michael Sarnoski, 2021): Slow, sullen, subdued. Subverts expectations by using grief as a lantern instead of as a weapon. All the plaudits are deserved, especially for Cage's equally subversive performance. This is an extremely well-made movie, possessing an omnipresent tension that feels like a slow-burning fuse. Unfortunately, I'm a bloodthirsty misanthrope drawn to schlock, so the John Wick-style revenge-thriller that the movie subverts is exactly the type of movie I'd rather watch. I don't want to see a moody, pensive Nicolas Cage lumbering through his sorrow. I want someone to feed him a slice of bacon, then reveal that it was his beloved pet pig so that he flies into a delirious Cage Rage and impales them with a stick, screaming to the heavens, "Oink, oink, motherf**ker!" as he spit-roasts them over a fire. The movie teases viewers like myself with its underground fight club inside the restaurant. That's the movie I want, and in the words of Batista, "Give me what I want!" (https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=nzobsJyLiqM) 2.5

The Banker (George Nolfi, 2020): The real-life story of two black enterprisers who were able to circumvent systemic racism by hiring a white man to be the face of their business as they acquired real estate deserves to be told, but unless you're really into discussions about bank loans and interest rates, the subject matter doesn't make for compelling viewing. I was never outright bored, but I was never particularly invested, either. The director does nothing to spice up the presentation, settling for standard, old-fashioned, corny storytelling befitting a classroom. Mackie's lead performance feels too stiff and uptight. Samuel L. Jackson provides much needed levity. Just because you're dealing with historical subject matter doesn't mean you can't occasionally loosen your tie. 2.5

The King of Staten Island (Judd Apatow, 2020): The only reason I know of Pete Davidson is because of his highly publicized entanglements with so many beautiful women. He must be hung like a horse because his face looks like someone made a mold of a pasty, drug-addict's a**hole, then let it melt in extreme heat. Maybe we could all bang a Kardashian if we littered our bodies with crudely drawn ink. Bel Powley plays his on-and-off girlfriend. She's a talented actress, but I couldn't help thinking that she's far beneath his real-life physical standards. The semi-autobiographical script is co-written by Davidson, and features moments that feel highly personal and vulnerable, but that small-scale intimacy eventually becomes broadly formulaic. Judd Apatow is seemingly incapable of making a movie that's under two hours. Nor can he resist cloying sentimentality to wrap up his shaggy, meandering stories of arrested development. This is more of a drama with a lot of jokes than an outright comedy. Some of it works, some of it doesn't. You'd never guess that this features the same cinematographer as There Will Be Blood. 3

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Poison Ivy (Katt Shea, 1992): Erotic thriller that feels awkwardly caught between the tawdry expectations of the genre and aspirations for something more artful and tasteful. Same awkward middle-ground applies to its targeted teenaged audience and housewife execution. The result is an unsatisfactory blue-balls experience. I'm surprised that Drew Barrymore was still underage at the time, although that makes her "adult" performance more impressive. Her steamy scenes with Tom Skerritt would likely cause somewhat of a fuss today. The empathetic nature of Barrymore's character makes for an uncharacteristically gray villain. Her desires aren't nefarious, just her methods. Sara Gilbert's bookish, dry personality is a good foil, and I'm all for lesbian undertones. You'd think that the soundtrack would feature contemporary hits fueled by early-90's youth but instead we're subjected to stuffy saxophone that reeks of menopause, exemplifying once again that awkward disconnect. 2.5

Copshop (Joe Carnahan, 2021): Entertaining siege film that is fun in the moment but too derivative to leave a lasting impression. Assault on Precinct 13 written & directed by a Tarantino impersonator, with a heavy dollop of Guy Ritchie on the side. As a Tarantino fan, I don't mind the copycat soundtrack or chattiness or amorality, but the movie confuses swagger with smugness, and its self-satisfaction is unwarranted and off-putting. Too much affectation, not enough originality. Alexis Louder's charismatic, "rambunctious" performance would've been a star-making turn if the film had found a larger audience. I'd love to see a spin-off dedicated to Toby Huss's wildly eccentric, amusingly psychotic hitman. 3

Coda (Sian Heder, 2021): This feels more like a highly accomplished Disney Channel production than a Best Picture winner. Doesn't deviate from the standard coming-of-age template; predictable, calculated; the filmmaking is as standard as Times New Roman font. Professionally made but unremarkable in every facet except the performances and the enormous amount of heart, which should win over all but the most cynical viewers. With all the horrible shit going on in the world and so much toxic division, it makes sense that the Academy would award a film that is the equivalent of a group hug, artistry be damned. Add strong representation of the deaf community, and Hollywood can pat themselves on the back. This film would not have worked half as well if it hadn't cast actual deaf actors. Troy Kotsur's accolades were well-deserved, as he anchors the most memorable scenes, whether he's amusingly pantomiming penis wrapping or "listening" to the vocal chord reverberations of his talented daughter, a moment so touching that simply talking about it made mark f cry on the MoFo podcast. 3.5

Chypmunk

06-30-22, 02:43 PM

June seen list (newly rated only):
87786

cricket

07-02-22, 10:20 AM

June, 2022 movies watched

Straightheads (2007) 2 Passable for the right taste.

The Sadness (2021) 3 Bloody mayhem out of Taiwan.

Atrocious (2015) 3 Good extreme film means it's recommended for practically nobody.

Cross of Iron (1977) 3.5+ A good war flick from Sam Peckinpah

Barefoot Gen (1983) 4.5 Comparable to Grave of the Fireflies.

A Quiet Place II (2020) 3 A pretty good watch, but not as good as the first.

The Candy Snatchers (1973) 2.5 Not as exploitative as I had hoped.

Rovdyr (2008) 3+ Standard horror but done well.

Bunny Lake is Missing (1965) 3.5 I was loving this but the last half hour let me down a little.

Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956) Repeat 3.5- Hard to say if I like this or the 1978 version better.

Adam's Apples (2005) Repeat 4+ The funniest foreign language film I've seen.

Total-11
2022 total-40

Hey Fredrick

07-03-22, 11:58 AM

June flicks. I kind of stuck with good rewatches and crap new watches starting with:
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Butcher, Baker, Nightmare Maker (1981)

This was okay. An aunt has her teenage nephew living with her due to an accident involving the teens parents and she develops a bit of a crush on him, which is not all too good and leads to murder(s). The Detective investigating the murders believes that the kid is the murderer because he is a homosexual and that's what they do. That's the angle they go with and they aren't shy about letting the Detectives feelings known. Anyway, Susan Tyrell is the crazy Aunt and she's very good at being crazy, again. She's always weird, goofy and entertaining. Other than that, the rest of the cast - eh. Bill Paxton, also of questionable character, shows up as the rival of our main character and Julia Duffy plays the love interest. This wasn't bad but I wouldn't recommend it if you want a real crowd pleasing experience. It was unique. rating_3

***

https://i.imgur.com/3r3M8Qa.jpg?1Stripper: "The only thing that's gonna save her now is a great set of t**s :D "
*top comes off*
Stripper: "Not bad :( "

This is the kind of poster that really grabs my attention and pretty much have to see what inspired it. Happy to see that it stars a brunette and pre-Friends Lisa Kudrow (for about 2 minutes), a horribly miscast Martin Mull as a sleazy, strip club owner and Maxwell Caulfield who was in Grease 2. This is a terrible movie but seeing as how it's a low budget affair about strippers being murdered by a serial killer you should know what to expect going in. A journalist goes undercover at the strip joint because she thinks the strippers are holding back from talking to the police and they are. No explanation is given it's just the code of the strippers, apparently, that when you are being hunted and murdered you don't talk to police. **** tha Police! and no, this is not Old Town. Anyway, in order to fit in the journalist is going to have to, ya know, get naked and her first striptease is awesome. She's absolutely terrible but the worst part may be that her boss showed up for the premier, to calm her nerves or something. Offer her a little support, perhaps. Nah, he's a pig. Yeah, he was way too enthusiastic to see his employee disrobe, like Tom Cruise on Oprah enthusiastic. Cringy. It's an awful(ly) funny scene. As soon as everything's off, and it's just her and the pole, she finds her groove, which is still pretty bad but somehow she does become the clubs star attraction. Of course that draws the attention of who? Uh-huh. This has slightly more plot than Orgy of the Dead but it's still pretty thin and the only reason it reaches a real movie runtime is because of the stripteases. Credit where due - all the routines are different and have interesting levels of bad. There are a few unintentional laughs to be had with this one. One scene, I called Ms. Fredrick in to watch. "You see anything weird about this scene?" I ask as a woman in gold body paint does her routine. "Yeah," she says "Her boobs don't move." That took all of two seconds but she has an eye for that sort of thing. rating_2

***

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Vigilante (1982)

Thought his was pretty good. Stars Robert Forester as a man who sees the gang bangers who beat his wife and kill his child beat the rap because of a shitty judge. After the verdict is read, Forester ends up in jail due to a little contempt of court, meets a tough guy prisoner (a wonderful Woody Strode) who takes him under his wing, learns a few things the hard way and is back on the streets to get a little justice. I love the NYC that is presented here. It's a dirty, sleazy, Taxi Driver looking NYC. Fred "The Hammer" Williamson co-stars as the leader of a vigilante squad that hunts down bad guys in an effort to reclaim the neighborhood. Forrester works with The Hammer to find the punks and dole out some street justice. Joe Spinell has a small role as the oily, douche-bag lawyer who gets the thugs off. rating_4

***

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Mother's Day (1980)

Okay, maybe Dance With Death wasn't the worst movie I watched last month. How about a film about a couple of rednecks whose Mother likes watching them rape, torture and murder? What a great idea for a movie. Well, I'm one of them people PT Barnum was talking about - there's one born every minute....As soon as I heard the familiar sound of the Troma synth come out of the speakers I knew I should skip it, like I usually do, but I went with it instead. So this is a bad movie but what really makes it weird is the tone goes from silly Toxic Avenger humor to some pretty nasty stuff in the manner of seconds. rating_2

***

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The exact opposite of what was happening on screen was happening to me. I made a loaf of sourdough from scratch, rebuilt my car engine, counted to a million, walked into he living room and this was STILL going. People on vacation go to a beach and begin to rapidly age and die. I'm done with Shyamalan. DONE! I know I'm not going to like what he's peddling but I check it out anyway hoping for something different. Like PT Barnum once said....There's one born every minute. rating_2

***
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The Triple Wedgie from Jackass Forever

It was a good run but it's about time to retire, guys. I'm not even gonna get into the plot as a lot of it has already been told in previous Jackass films. Funniest bit- Preston Lacy's speed bag balls getting punched by a reciprocating saw adorned with boxing gloves. Or Dangers' encounter with the bear. Maybe the triple wedgie. The vultures molesting Wee Man was funny. I laughed frequently but not as hard as usual. A lot of the stuff seemed recycled and the new cast was ok. A little PSA - if you gonna be showing your junk, gooch this often clean it up a little. This is the grossest of all the films and they look like they smell real bad. rating_3

***

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The original [rec] made my top 25 horror films here at MoFo. This one was awful. Everything everybody did was the opposite of what should have happened. If, after being attacked by a "zombie" thing another "zombie" thing comes running at me and I'm armed, I'm unloading on it. That's logical. It's been in the zombie manual since 1968. But that doesn't happen. Why? I don't know. Suspense? That's just a taste of the dumb in this movie. The only good thing about this was Manuela Velasco showing up again. rating_1_5

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Arabella: Black Angel (1989)

I was having a bad day so why not pile on. I guess this is a giallo, not a fan of the genre, and it has a ton of sex/nudity, really red blood and a it's a mystery. From what I got, a woman is married to a writer who is in a wheelchair. He can't *ahem* do it for her so she looks elsewhere. The catch is all the dudes she finds and bangs end up kind of dead after she uses them. The weapon of choice for the murderer is a pair of scissors. Sounds cooler than it is. Gonna give it a rating_2 just because it is such a try hard piece of sleaze. Feels longer than it is.

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Beavis and Butthead Do the Universe

Not a bad follow up to Do America. What it gets right is this doesn't feel like there's been a 25+ year lay off for these guys. It fits right in with what they've always been. They're still dumb and thanks to a science fair gone awry and a sympathetic Judge they may get a chance to score with an astronaut. As the title suggests, this time they go to space where they cause a Gravity level disaster, get abandoned, eventually get wormholed and end up in 2022. This is where Judge shines. 2022 B&B are not the most...they aren't built for today's sensitivities, as we find out. There are a few very funny moments (white privilege anybody?) in BaBDtU and it's apparent that Mike Judge hasn't aged past these guys through the years very much, if at all. He can write these guys in his sleep. For fans only. [rating]3[rating]

Rewatches:
Risky Business
Predator
Michael Clayton
Raising Arizona
10 to Midnight

Others:
Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2022)
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