Thunderbolt's 2021 Movie Diary

37. The Gambler (2014) TV first watch
A college Literature professor gets deeper and deeper into debt and danger whilst borrowing money from loan sharks.
Worth a look but I didn’t really buy the conclusion. I don’t think anyone could become all of a sudden free from an addiction like this after suffering so much. Definitely for me a one time watch but the acting was pretty good. Also a few good moments of tension.

38. Django (1966) DVD rewatch
Banned in Britain until the 90s, Sergio Corbucci directs this great spaghetti western. Franco Nero stars as the protagonist and is well cast as the coffin dragging gunfighter. With a great score to match, this for me is as enjoyable as Leone’s best.

39. Red River (1948) TV first watch
Last of my Howard Hawks/John Wayne views. Dunson (John Wayne) and his men don’t battle the enemy but themselves whilst struggling to take their cattle herd cross country.
Pretty tame but enjoyable western.

40. Out of the Furnace (2013) TV first watch
Fantastic powerful drama. After the disappearance of an Iraq war veteran, his brother goes in search of his whereabouts.
What starts out as a gritty, moody drama turns into an edge of the seat revenge story. I have not seen a film in such a long time which has really effected my mood. Christian Bale does it again.

41. The Bishop’s Wife (1947) TV rewatch
A fairly mundane festive movie with Cary Grant and David Niven. Obsessed with funding a new cathedral, a Bishop is shown the error of his ways by an angel who guides him in the right direction. The acting is fine but the plot is pretty uneventful.

42. Angel Face (1953) DVD rewatch
Another great film noir directed by Otto Preminger and staring Robert Mitchum.

43. Videoman (2018) TV first watch
Swedish thriller. A diehard video collector decides to sell one of his video tapes to pay off his debts. But when it mysteriously disappears, the hunt is on to find it. The plot also follows a woman also obsessed with the 80s and her struggle with being an alcoholic.
Bizarre drama/thriller which is fairly intriguing but whimpers out in the finale.

44. In Fabric (2018) TV first watch
Surreal horror/black comedy about the owners of a red dress purchased from the weirdest department store.
Fans of Suspiria or David Lynch will be in their element in this perverse tale of consumerism. Beyond weird but never a dull moment.

45. Seabiscuit (2003) TV first watch
I wasn’t expecting too much from this drama but most movies that have Jeff Bridges starring are worth a look. I was actually quite enthralled and thought Toby Maguire was also well cast.

46. Jason and the Argonauts (1963) TV rewatch
Epic special effects from Ray Harryhausen.

47. The Gift (2015) TV first watch
Psychological thriller. My perception of the characters soon changed midway through this movie as a man’s past comes back to haunt him.
Great thriller with a “door left open” ending to make up your own mind.

48. Eddie the Eagle (2016) TV rewatch
Funny but touching true story of the olympic ski jumper and his struggle for recognition in the 80s.

49.Predators (2010) TV rewatch
This film rehashes the best parts of the original movie whilst trying to have fresh ideas. For me it was a fairly dull 105 minutes. I found that I just didn’t care for any of the characters as they get picked off one by one. The original is pure class compared to its uneventful sequels. I did enjoy Predator 2 but only because I place it in the “so bad its good” category. All in all a pretty dull franchise.

50. Hondo (1953) TV first watch
Shortest John Wayne western I have seen to date but still plenty of action.

51. Sonic the Hedgehog (2020) DVD rewatch
After taking my daughter to see this at the cinema she was keen to rewatch it again. Entertaining family film with the usual goofiness from Jim Carrey.

52. Beethoven (1992) TV first watch
Another film night with my daughter. She rated it a , I wasn’t so generous. Great for kids. The humour soon tires for adults.

53. Winchester ’73 (1950) TV rewatch
Back on track with a film from the golden era. James Stewart is on top form in this usual story of revenge. After he wins a Winchester riffle in a competition, it soon gets passed to various fighters who are all in awe of its craftsmanship. But Stewart has a long grudge to settle with someone from his past.

54. The Fugitive (1993) TV rewatch
I saw this movie when it was first released at the cinema in 1993 and could actually still remember many scenes. Harrison Ford is well cast as the Doctor who is trying to find out who was behind his wife’s murder. A touch overlong at 130 minutes but the Harrison Ford and Tommy Lee Jones combo make this a pleasure to watch. This was the third highest grossing film at the box office in 1993.

55. Videodrome (1983) DVD rewatch
After the president of a low budget TV station is exposed to the Videodrome signal, he starts to have weird hallucinations. Max Renn (James Woods) is looking for something new to get his station more of an audience. He becomes intrigued with Videodrome, an ultra low budget show that specialises in torture and murder. After Nicki Brand (Debbie Harry) a radio DJ Max is attracted to is adamant she wants to become part of the show, Max tries to convince her just how dangerous exposure to the show is. But as his hallucinations start to wildly effect him, he goes on a search to find out the truth about Videodrome’s real intentions.
Eroticism and violence blur in what I consider one of David Cronenberg’s finest films. Some will find it hard to make any sense of the plot even by the midway point. But this is worth watching for the stunning effects alone which make this one of Cronenberg’s ultimate body horror offerings. A box office bomb at the time and now considered a cult classic.
Make of this what you will. It’s a rare intelligent horror film which asks many questions.

56. Rudderless (2014) TV first watch
Melancholy film about a man who discovers songs that his dead son wrote. Struggling to deal with his death he starts to perform them with a band.