Rate The Last Movie You Saw [Archive] - Page 332

WHITBISSELL!

07-20-24, 02:12 AM

https://64.media.tumblr.com/0ad8c7f594767530f8c3453db93c7bba/tumblr_ox4ayddF2M1sqf5tdo3_400.gifvhttps://64.media.tumblr.com/2fb6aa8b422dff9e951088bc883ea6b6/tumblr_ox4ayddF2M1sqf5tdo4_400.gifv

How to Make a Monster - 1958 American International Pictures release. Horror adjacent but mostly a murder mystery tinged thriller. Veteran make-up artist Pete Dumond (Robert J. Harris) is working on a Wolfman meets Frankenstein movie at a studio which just so happens to be named American International Pictures. It also incidentally features the two characters (or at least their mask/makeup) from I Was a Teenage Frankenstein and I Was a Teenage Werewolf. Gary Conway reprises his role from IWaTF with Gary Clarke subbing for Michael Landon from IWaTW. Dumond and his assistant Rivero (Paul Brinegar) are abruptly informed by the new owners of the studio that their department is being done away with. The East Coast executives feel that monster movies have run their course. Pete doesn't take the news very well to the point where he decides to use his makeup and apothecary skills to drug the two young stars into doing his bidding.

This was kind of a bare bones script with not much happening but it still manages to fill it's 73 minute runtime. Harris does well in the lead role which is fortunate since most of the plot revolves around him. This movie, along with 1957's Blood of Dracula, were an attempt by AIP to cash in on the popularity of the two I Was a Teenage ... films. Thankfully it's over quick enough that there's little chance for any deep seated boredom to set in.

65/100

Fabulous

07-20-24, 05:54 AM

The Nanny Diaries (2007)

3

https://image.tmdb.org/t/p/original/2UvIjHYXMhD70ZX2x3G8SKT8mwV.jpg

Yoda

07-20-24, 10:39 AM

Have you seen the Captain Disillusion video on trick shots?
Maybe. Is it this? If so, it looks familiar, though given his distinctive, uh, makeup, I might just be remembering watching another video of his.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ou7KSmfC3lA

FilmBuff

07-20-24, 10:51 AM

http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_8k7m4e2TYeU/TBDW5bzxFzI/AAAAAAAAI6w/XdkY5y86zTw/s1600/SouthernComfort.jpg

Southern Comfort
2.5

Is Southern Comfort simply a Vietnam metaphor?

It is certainly a valid reading of the movie (I don't know if director Walter Hill ever explicitly endorsed this take), and it almost makes it a slightly more interesting film than it would otherwise have any right to be.

When a National Guard unit gets lost in the Louisiana bayou in 1973, things don't go exactly as planned... let's just say, "stupid is as stupid does". But the men in this unit are a particular kind of stupid. Their actions go beyond the idiotic, especially given that they're in a part of the country they simply don't know very well.

What happens next is, sadly, a bit too predictable, and quite violent (especially for a 1981 film).

Seen today, Southern Comfort also feels like a very weird mix of character actors who were well-known faces throughout the 80s and a lot of other, mostly unknown actors who didn't ever reach the same level of screen ubiquitousness - to the point that it pulls you from the movie in a way that Hill definitely never intended.

Mr Minio

07-20-24, 10:53 AM

South Pacific (1958)

4

https://image.tmdb.org/t/p/original/vtQxHqCjwZXxwdX3anosJlAdjAu.jpg

Poor movie. The jailbait scene was hilarious but France Nuyen was a goddess

FilmBuff

07-20-24, 10:55 AM

Poor movie.

Now, that's hilarious :laugh:

Mr Minio

07-20-24, 11:30 AM

Now, that's hilarious :laugh: It wasn't as bad as Oklahoma!, but a 2h37min musical with weird tinting/lighting/color grading/whatever that was somehow inferior to similar gimmicks in other American musicals or Suspiria and the like because it didn't induce the same hallucinatory state, is a lot to ask from a seasoned cinephile who just watched a 10/10 film. Middling songs, too - I'd definitely like it more as a melodrama. Despite all this, It was worth it for France Nuyen. Still, Rodgers & Hammerstein have no better than State Fair.

FilmBuff

07-20-24, 11:39 AM

You're obviously not an R&H fan :rolleyes:

Mr Minio

07-20-24, 12:10 PM

You're obviously not an R&H fan :rolleyes:

True. Musical as a whole is one of my least favorite genres.

chawhee

07-20-24, 12:23 PM

Greatest Hits (2024)
https://img.uhdpaper.com/wallpaper/the-greatest-hits-lucy-boynton-2024-movie-351@3@a
4
I saw someone review this on here recently, and I'll bite on most Butterfly Effect movie flavors. Though it's kind of cheesy and the script is kind of simplistic, the emotion and story really carried through for me on this one.

FilmBuff

07-20-24, 12:44 PM

Takoma11

07-20-24, 03:59 PM

Maybe. Is it this? If so, it looks familiar, though given his distinctive, uh, makeup, I might just be remembering watching another video of his.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ou7KSmfC3lA

Yes!

Every now and then I just go and watch all of his videos.

His life story---that his parents were traveling Russian circus performers who defected to the US in the 1980s---is so interesting to me.

Takoma11

07-20-24, 07:26 PM

https://external-content.duckduckgo.com/iu/?u=https%3A%2F%2Fprod-images.tcm.com%2FMaster-Profile-Images%2Fmommiedearest1981.4714.jpg&f=1&nofb=1&ipt=42fb64ff1a8d19f438e7dec0d4ea3956388779625f990bc2e115ebc6062c718f&ipo=images

Mommie Dearest, 1981

Based on a book by Christina Crawford, Joan Crawford’s daughter, this film explores the abusive and wild life that Christina (Mara Hobel) and her brother, Christopher (Jeremy Reinbolt) experienced after being adopted by actress Joan Crawford (Faye Dunaway).

Unable to resist wallowing in---and inventing wholecloth---the lurid aspects of this story, the drama-first approach ultimately underwhelms.

3

FULL REVIEW (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=2473677#post2473677)

Allaby

07-20-24, 08:07 PM

It Happened at the Worlds Fair (1963) This was enjoyable. Elvis is very good here and Vicky Tiu is wonderful. I liked the songs and the story. This is one of Elvis's best films. 4

Citizen Rules

07-20-24, 08:19 PM

It Happened at the Worlds Fair (1963) This was enjoyable. Elvis is very good here and Vicky Tiu is wonderful. I liked the songs and the story. This is one of Elvis's best films. rating_4It was one of my favorite of Elvis's films.

Takoma11

07-20-24, 09:24 PM

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Time Without Pity, 1957

After years of being an absentee father, David (Michael Redgrave) arrives back in England shortly after his son, Alec (Alec McCowen), has been convicted of the murder of a young woman. On the day leading up to his son’s execution, David goes on a mad sprint around town, assisted by Alec’s friend Brian (Paul Daneman), determined to prove Alec’s innocence.

Frantic and urgent, this film places you firmly in the dizzying POV of its main character.

4

FULL REVIEW (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=2473690#post2473690)

Thief

07-20-24, 10:26 PM

I thought the lead actress was FANTASTIC. I think she had a better grasp on his writing than any other actor I've seen in his films.

One of the things that came to mind after watching it was why I hadn't seen her in any of his other films, considering he has a bunch of recurring actors, like Dustin Hahn or PJ McCabe (who actually is in [i]The Robbery[i]).

Takoma11

07-20-24, 10:47 PM

One of the things that came to mind after watching it was why I hadn't seen her in any of his other films, considering he has a bunch of recurring actors, like Dustin Hahn or PJ McCabe (who actually is in The Robbery).

Yeah, who knows? From her IMDb page looks like she's doing alright, but mostly working in TV.

FromBeyond

07-21-24, 01:12 AM

Beast 2022

I liked the lion effects. I like Elba. I liked the simple premise. I thought the ending was clever and nice.. some may say far-fetched? I didnt think so. Poetic justice one might say. It wasnt all perfectly executed but it did what it said on the tin for me.

TDH1878

07-21-24, 01:50 AM

Bad Boys for Life (2020)
4

https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgRVnpizsgSmJMZ7DkA-wJFynUjIgDSI57wVM4qHmsXX-7wVNSW0UGzQdDip853xzXda0UXdvR5uAsFvFZquDdoeusHjOf2Kq3N5VfjJ43s4v2qLAZ38bMBuBSyyAhUkTX1XvQOeXprBUd9jC c9JthEa7H-T1dqLgFmch-HPKbF63n_iHisD0KIYTbmL0GB

TDH1878

07-21-24, 01:51 AM

Bad Boys: Ride or Die (2024)
4

https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiJ4WbhXyro9o6rvCvd4feTEd8igdssO31ongtVQETFWVPTMd-O9Tth35K8hT6euNg7uCmkJnUroegq5uptSWoHDLdUCeXFScLTY6mSBY_x20qetEwDnJPjYvnFpP5TcUL65jKRiqiUzM713XOfli1 fSp7y5DEi3bhZv2les7sPmFrpBZJ07wtT7mXrr816

Fabulous

07-21-24, 05:09 AM

How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying (1967)

3

https://image.tmdb.org/t/p/original/refH9kSxtpK8ZtQG6SNHMKhjVxM.jpg

Yoda

07-21-24, 10:14 AM

I’ve become a fan of Jim Cummings after watching Wolf of Snow Hollow a couple years ago. Is there a place to watch all his shorts that’s free/easily accessible?
Well, what a nice coincidence: he's got another short film debuting on his YouTube channel tomorrow:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nVegZJ4UJY0

FilmBuff

07-21-24, 02:24 PM

Haley Bennett double feature

http://www.impawards.com/2023/posters/widow_clicquot_xlg.jpg

Widow Clicquot
2

Widow Clicquot falls flat and is anything but sparkly. It is, in fact, the cinematic equivalent of a bottle of Two-Buck Chuck.

The story of Madame Clicquot, also known as "The Grande Dame of Champagne," should make a great movie - possibly even a very interesting limited series.

Unfortunately, this movie lets its subject down, never really achieving the grand dramatic arc it's clearly going for, and also making her way too focused on her late husband, even after he should be just a distant memory.

More importantly, this is an international co-production about a French historical figure that simply doesn't feel French enough (somewhat like last year's Napoleon). I would have love to see a version of this story that involved a French cast, and a French writing-directing team, at the very least.

Bennett does what she can in the title role, but she's ultimately too American to really pull it off (at least she does not attempt to speak in a fake French accent - but a nondescript accent also feels wrong).

https://image.tmdb.org/t/p/original/6DRef11ZOCFYqMgDDkDQmSdVwww.jpg

Hillbilly Elegy
1

At this point, I think there should be little doubt that Hillbilly Elegy is - despite a talented cast - the very worst movie Ron Howard ever directed.

Because the point of this post is to highlight recent Haley Bennett performances, I'll just say that the movie doesn't really let her do very much here, playing the long-suffering sister of the film's protagonist. She does not suffer as much as some of her co-stars from having to do scenes with the most unconvincing old-age makeup that has ever been used in cinema history.

Ultimately the film lets its whole cast down, which is a shame, because I really like all of them, especially Bennett and Freida Pinto.

At this point, this movie feels like the most pointless waste of time for any serious cinema connoisseur.

stillmellow

07-21-24, 04:32 PM

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/e/ed/Despicable_Me_4_Theatrical_Release_Poster.jpeg/220px-Despicable_Me_4_Theatrical_Release_Poster.jpeg https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/f/f7/Inside_Out_2_poster.jpg/220px-Inside_Out_2_poster.jpg

July 9, 2024

DESPICABLE ME 4 (Chris Renaud / 2024)
INSIDE OUT 2 (Kelsey Mann / 2024)

Well, I just thought I'd take a break from live action for just one week and check out what all the younglings are into these days. I find animated features to be a lot of fun sometimes... in measured doses! While I don't really want to go full-on in-depth on the two that I saw last Tuesday, I will once again say that this is my first viewing experience of either of these franchises. (And anyone who's familiar with my posts will find that a very familiar refrain by now! :lol:)

Despicable Me 4 is the further adventures of Anti-Villain League agent Gru (voiced by Steve Carell) and his family. This time around Gru and his ever-present Minions are up against Maxime Le Mal (voiced by an almost unrecognizable Will Farrell), an old school rival who has made himself into a human cockroach and aims to kidnap Gru's infant son Gru Jr.

While all that was good fun, it was Inside Out 2 that really jumped out at me. I really enjoyed this one a lot. I thought it was rather sophisticated in its portrayal of the turbulent adolescent emotions of Riley Anderson, who's just turned 13. If you've seen the original 2015 film - and I haven't yet - you'll know that this movie deals with the personified emotions Joy, Sadness, Fear, Disgust and Anger who have to work together inside the 11-year-old Riley Anderson's mind. This time around, however, the onset of puberty has triggered the arrival of five new emotions: Anxiety, Envy, Embarrassment, Ennui and Nostalgia. And all this while Riley has gone to an ice hockey camp with her old friends and is desperately trying to fit in with new friends and create a good impression on the coach. What could go wrong, you ask? Much hilarity, poignancy, invention and outright suspense ensues, resulting in a surprisingly affecting film. I would heartily recommend this. :D

It's difficult for me to compare them, because despite Inside Out 2 being a far better made movie, I feel DM4 worked better as a movie. It was very briskly paced and entertaining. The ending song was also very satisfying as a conclusion to Groo's story (as long as they don't try to squeeze out another direct sequel). That said, it's not a very ambitious movie either. It is what it is.

I've voiced my problems with Inside Out 2, but perhaps a bit of the problem is my expectations are much higher, as the original movie is one of my all time favorites.

I give both a solid C+.

GulfportDoc

07-21-24, 05:28 PM

99915
Witness to Murder (1954)

Right in the very first scene a lady looks out her apartment window to the apartment across the way, where she witnesses a vicious strangling murder. So we know from the git-go it won’t be a whodunit. The woman reports what she saw to the police. However by the time the police go to the murderer’s apartment, he has hidden the body in an empty adjacent dwelling. So the police have no choice but to presume that the woman has imagined the whole thing. In fact she’s soon thought to be crazy. The story moves on from there, winding through several twists.

This suspenseful noir has A-list stars: Barbara Stanwyck, George Sanders, and Gary Merrill, as well as several recognizable character actors such as Jesse White and Claude Akins. Unfortunately it was helmed by a mediocre director, Roy Rowland, whose entire career contained only one or two fairly memorable films. Why United Artists chose him to direct this picture with big name stars is puzzling.

But fortunately UA had the sense to hire likely the greatest of noir cinematographers, John Alton. And he didn’t disappoint here. Peppered throughout the production are many signature chiaroscuro shots with dreamy shadows, lighting, and angles. Alton likely saved the film from being a routine crime picture.

Despite Stanwyck’s heft as an actress, she’s miscast here. Her reputation as a great thespian makes it incongruous that she inhabits a part in which the melodramatic daffiness of the character strains credulity. Sanders, on the other hand, excels as a suave psychopath, although evidently we’re not supposed to wonder how an “ex-Nazi” could have such an “ever so” English accent.

The other obvious problem is its vague similarity to another film from 1954, Hitchcock’s masterpiece Rear Window, which landed in theaters several months after “Witness”. Despite their plots feeling slightly familiar, comparing the two is night and day. In fact according to Noir Czar Eddie Muller, screenwriters Chester Erskine and Nunnally Johnson got wind of the story of Hitchcock working on Rear Window, and raced to get UA’s film out before Hitchcock’s.

Nevertheless “Witness” is a good watch, especially for Alton’s photography and Sander’s performance. In my case I’m always fascinated by locations in Los Angeles used in the films of the ‘40s and ‘50s. Featured here are very typical locales which represented typical L.A. architecture of that era. The main settings are two buildings at the corner of San Marino St. and S. Serrano Ave., west of downtown L.A. The canopy of Stanwyck’s apartment building is often shown flapping in the breeze, likely during the time of an occurrence of L.A.’s famous Santa Ana winds. There’s also a glimpse of the grand 4 Star Theater on Wilshire Blvd., whose marquee showed its current feature, 1953’s Julius Ceasar, with Marlon Brando.

Available on various streaming services.

Doc’s rating: 6/10

Allaby

07-21-24, 06:00 PM

Anna and the Apocalypse (2017) I loved this. The film is entertaining, the songs are fantastic, and the performances are genuinely good. This is now in contention for my already too crowded ballot. 4.5

FilmBuff

07-21-24, 06:09 PM

Allaby

07-21-24, 06:18 PM

I hope you got to watch the extended cut!

I'm not sure which cut it was. It is the one streaming on Prime.

Thief

07-21-24, 06:57 PM

THOR: LOVE & THUNDER
(2022, Waititi)

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

"Let me tell you the legend of Thor and Jane. He was a God of Thunder and she, a woman of science. And although they were from different worlds, somehow, it just made sense. And together they embarked on a journey of love."

Thor and Jane, gods and science, love and thunder. This fourth installment in the Thor franchise is very much a story of two sides that not always make sense, with the "god-like" Thor being burdened by human situations as he waltzes from battle to battle, while Jane (Natalie Portman) looks for "divine" solutions to more human issues. When the self-proclaimed God-butcher, Gorr (Christian Bale) threatens New Asgard, Thor and Jane have to find a way to make sense of each other to save the world.

Director and co-writer Taika Waititi brings the same level of absurd humor he brought to Ragnarok and then some. Unfortunately, not all of it makes sense. There seems to be a tonal dissonance between the often non-sensical flow of his direction and script, and the sometimes serious undertones of Gorr and his quest to eliminate all gods. I thought Bale did a pretty good job, but the seriousness of his character and his threat level sometimes felt suffocated by the barrage of absurd jokes and visual gags that Waititi throws at us.

Grade: 2.5

Full review on my Movie Loot (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=2473804#post2473804)

Torgo

07-21-24, 07:02 PM

The Right Stuff - 5

Movies have brought me to tears for a variety of reasons from depictions of grief to ones of joy. This one made this happen for a reason you would not think would start the waterworks: human achievement. The ways it captures attempts to master the skies and beyond dazzle and inspire in every way possible. As for the former, there's Sam Shepard's work as Chuck Yeager, which is not only iconic for how well he plays the man, but also for how he embodies the pinnacle of terrestrial flight and the one-man Greek chorus to the first attempts to go further. How Kaufman and company pulled off Yeager's mission to break the sound barrier and more make you feel like you're his co-pilot, and to praise Shepard even further, I'll just say it's a little hard to believe the actor was afraid to fly.

As happy as I was for the movie to check in with Yeager after the opening scene, Project Mercury is the main event here, and what an event it is! While its seven astronauts will undoubtedly inspire generations yet to come, I appreciate how the movie humanizes them. There's Alan Shepard's love of Ed Sullivan, John Glenn's game show appearances, etc., but where it really comes through is in the press conference scene. With the audience's wildly enthusiastic responses to everything they say, you get a genuine sensation of what it's like to be thrust into the public eye. The same could be said of the scenes with the astronauts' poor wives being hounded by hordes of journalists. As awesome as Yeager's flights are, you really see where the movie earned its Oscars in the scenes where the seven orbit the Earth, with Glenn's being the highlight and not just because he went around it three times. I cannot imagine an American seeing this movie without feeling more patriotic afterwards, but I give it credit for not leaving out the factors that gave us Project Mercury beyond the desire to achieve. The effort to keep up with the Russians is thankfully never sugarcoated and is always amusing, especially due to the repeated shot of Jeff Goldblum's recruiter running to notify the president of their latest advance. Oh, and no matter how many times you have seen parodies or homages of the scene where the astronauts walk towards the camera while in uniform, you will undoubtedly forget to breathe during the one where it all started.

As is typical of historical movies like this one, it has its inconsistencies. Not to discount Fred Ward's work, but the depiction of Gus Grissom in particular is not entirely accurate. Regardless, I am again not ashamed to admit that the special ways this movie depicts humanity pushing the aerial envelope brought a tear to my eye. While it's partly personal - it made me flash back to the first book about space I checked out from the school library - I cannot imagine it not making you believe in humanity just a little more regardless of how interested you are in flight or space travel.

Allaby

07-21-24, 11:50 PM

A Week Away (2021) Watched on Netflix. Directed by Roman White, who did music videos for several popular artists, this Christian musical stars Kevin Quinn, Bailee Madison, Jahbril Cook, David Koechner, and Sherri Shepherd. It's about a troubled teen who has to go to a Christian summer camp and meets a cute girl. The campers sing a mix of original songs and popular Christian hits of the past (including Baby, Baby, The Great Adventure, Dive, and A Pace in this World). There are also a couple fun cameos from two popular Christian singers (you have to watch the movie to see who). The musical performances are fantastic. I thought the actors did a great job. I really enjoyed this. It's fun, cute, and has a positive message, without being overly preachy. This is in contention for my already far too crowded ballot! 4.5

PHOENIX74

07-21-24, 11:59 PM

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/9/93/Playground_%28film%29.jpg
By The poster art can or could be obtained from the distributor., Fair use, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=69613644

Playground - (2021)

Another film here from a child's perspective - watching kids get bullied is one of the aspects of movie watching I find really, really tough to endure. Social hierarchies form, and I actually remember the way some classmates were shut out as if they had some kind of contagious disease. If you talked to this person, helped them or otherwise made contact with them you'd be targeted - which basically isolates the poor, ostracised boy or girl. Playground features this kind of behaviour, along with some pretty strong and violent bullying which involves a brother and sister starting at a new school in this Belgian movie, directed by newcomer Laura Wandel. It's the kind of movie that'll cause some people a lot of anxiety, and it really succeeds at capturing the pint-sized point of view of little Nora, who is thrust into uncertainty and stress when her older brother gets rough treatment from some older kids. She becomes persona non grata by relation, and every attempt at improving the situation only makes things worse. Really heart-rending, this one, and really recommended - it's a breezy 73-minutes long, and a fine movie which will take you way back to a place distant in your memory.

8/10

Allaby

07-22-24, 12:06 AM

FromBeyond

07-22-24, 01:08 AM

stillmellow

07-22-24, 02:15 AM

Love Lies Bleeding is now on HBO MAX and I highly recommend watching it. It's not the easiest watch, but it's a Neo Noir so effective that it seems more like a Coen brothers film than a Coen Brothers film.

Probably the best Neo Noir since You Were Never Really Here.

Warning: something very strange seems to happen near the end, but in combination with what happens to the same character earlier, it's clearly not meant to be taken literally.

It's only weakness is the first half hour is a difficult watch, that could've been improved. Still a great film.

A-

Deschain

07-22-24, 02:20 AM

Love Lies Bleeding. This movie was pretty ****ing cool.

Fabulous

07-22-24, 02:54 AM

Grosse Pointe Blank (1997)

3.5

https://image.tmdb.org/t/p/original/hsz0G2qO4UACi5atBwBqCYfWVSa.jpg

LChimp

07-22-24, 10:45 AM

https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMzkyOTUzYTUtY2UzYS00MjY4LTljZWYtYzMyMmZlMWYwMjQ5XkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMDM2NDM2MQ@@._V1_FMjpg_UX1000_.j pg

7/10

Gideon58

07-22-24, 11:14 AM

https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/71JY0z-fZ4L._AC_UF894,1000_QL80_.jpg

Umpteenth Rewatch...Mel Brooks severely underrated lampoon of the Star Wars saga that works thanks to Brooks' writing and a terrific cast, though the film is effortlessly stolen by Rick Moranis as Dark Helmet. 3.5

Gideon58

07-22-24, 11:27 AM

https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/51MIqQAULbL._AC_UF894,1000_QL80_.jpg

1st Rewatch...Definitely a case of going to the well once too often, I don't know if it's just a case of Keenan Ivory Wayans no longer being involved, but this film, which borrows its principal plot fromSigns, 8 Mile, and The Ring. is dreadfully unfunny. I shudder to think about what the fourth film must be like. 2

Gideon58

07-22-24, 11:37 AM

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/51/Cat_roof.jpg

3rd Rewatch...The story has been cleaned up a bit for general consumption, but director Richard Brooks, and stars Paul Newman, Elizabeth Taylor, and Burl Ives deliver the goods in this steamy film adaptation of the Tennessee Williams play that chronicles the problems of the Pollitt family, which includes Newman as Brick, the alcoholic former football player depressed about the death of his friend Skipper, his wife Maggie (Taylor), the voluptuous vixen who can't get her husband to touch er while trying to encourage him to suck up to his father (Ives) for the family fortune when the possibility comes up that Big Daddy might be dying. There's also a terrific supporting performance from Jack Carson, who I have never enjoyed more as Brick's older brother Gooper, but this is Taylor and Newman's show all the way. This film should have won Newman his first Oscar and Taylor matches him note for note, in a powerhouse performance that she managed to turn in at the same her third husband, Mike Todd, died in a plane crash This is my #2 Taylor performance behind Virginia Woolf. and I am of the opinion that Taylor never looked as breathtaking than she did in this film and that's saying a lot. 4

Allaby

07-22-24, 12:01 PM

Happy Go Lovely (1951) Watched on Youtube. Directed by H. Bruce Humberstone and starring David Niven, Vera-Ellen, and Cesar Romero. A musical romantic comedy about misunderstandings and mistaken identity involving a chorus girl, a millionaire, and a theatre director. I thought it was just alright. Acting is decent, the costumes are pretty good and I liked the dance numbers. The story was only mildly interesting though. 3

TONGO

07-22-24, 12:02 PM

End of Watch with Jake Gyllenhall
4 1/2 out of 5 stars

Thief

07-22-24, 01:00 PM

COMMANDO
(1985, Lester)

https://i.imgur.com/nlkM8Kt.jpg

John Matrix: "I eat Green Berets for breakfast. And right now, I'm very hungry!"
Cindy: "I can't believe this macho bullshit..."

Commando is probably one of the prime examples of this, featuring Schwarzenegger at the top of his game, doing pretty much just that. He plays John Matrix, a former Special Forces colonel who sets out to rescue his daughter (Alyssa Milano) who was kidnapped to force him to assassinate a South American political leader. Despite these stakes, I don't think there's any doubt in anybody that watches this as to who will walk away victorious.

This is one of those films I used to see often when I was a kid. Growing up in the 80s, I caught the brunt of that action film wave. However, it had been probably 25-30 years since I had last seen it, and it is probably that lack of stakes that had kept it at a distance for me. I mean, it is fun and laughable to see Arnold plow his way through an endless army of thugs with bad aim, as bodies fall left and right of him, but it is not necessarily something that sticks with me.

Grade: 3.5

Full review on my Movie Loot (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=2473922#post2473922)

Stirchley

07-22-24, 01:06 PM

Allaby

07-22-24, 01:46 PM

Back to the Beach (1987) I enjoyed this. It's silly fun. 4

Gideon58

07-22-24, 02:49 PM

End of Watch with Jake Gyllenhall
4 1/2 out of 5 stars

Really liked this movie...a link to my review:

https://www.movieforums.com/reviews/1634342-end_of_watch.html

Stirchley

07-22-24, 03:02 PM

Really liked this movie...a link to my review:

https://www.movieforums.com/reviews/1634342-end_of_watch.html

I’ve seen it twice.

Thief

07-22-24, 05:59 PM

THE PIANIST
(2002, Polanski)

https://i.imgur.com/Ot063Nv.jpg

"Majorek, this is the greatest pianist in Poland, maybe the whole world."

The Pianist tackles just that, as we follow Szpilman's struggle to survive in the wake of World War II and the Holocaust. Starting with the occupation of Poland in September 1939, through the forced movement of Polish Jews into the Warsaw Ghetto, and then into full deportation into concentration camps. We see Szpilman, separated from his family, trying to survive mostly thanks to the help of various friends.

This is a film I've seen several times, since it is one of my wife's favorite films. It is a harrowing portrayal of the horrors of the Holocaust, as we see the treatment and conditions that Polish Jews were living through devolving from mockery and disrespect to sheer terror, murder, and genocide. To think of being separated from your family, with no hope or chance of helping them is terrible. Actually, the scene at the train station where the family shares a piece of caramel has got to be my favorite. So simple and yet so heartbreaking.

Grade: 4.5

Full review on my Movie Loot (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=2473992#post2473992)

MovieGal

07-22-24, 08:24 PM

99932
Twisters
(2024)
3.5/5

This was a guilty pleasure for me. Living in Missouri, which is part of "Tornado Alley" and having an interest in Meteorology, I enjoyed this film.

Darth Pazuzu

07-22-24, 08:46 PM

Some more arrivals from Amazon through the mail... and one brand-new 4K release from Kino Lorber pre-ordered through the good folks at Barnes & Noble. :D

https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/51op0kBO+nL._AC_UY218_.jpg https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/61NFubyl4GL._AC_UY218_.jpg https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/917iIUZ-GqL._AC_UY218_.jpg

Man of the West (Anthony Mann / 1958)
The Forgotten Pistolero (Ferdinando Baldi / 1969)
The Unholy Four (Enzo Barboni / 1970)
Brokeback Mountain (Ang Lee / 2005)

Man of the West was one of Anthony Mann's later Westerns, this one starring Gary Cooper. It's really quite a gritty and at times unsettling film. Gary Cooper, in one of his later roles, plays a mysterious reformed gunfighter named Link Jones, who is traveling aboard a train to the town of Good Hope, to make an important delivery. He meets with an extremely talkative gambler named Sam Beasley (Arthur O'Connell) and a saloon singer named Billie Ellis (actress and singer Julie London, of Cry Me a River fame). Then the train gets held up and hijacked by a group of outlaws, and as it turns out, Link used to actually be one of them. Left behind after the gang takes over the train, the three passengers make their way on foot and eventually make it to a hideout used by the gang and their leader Dock Tobin (Lee J. Cobb), a zestfully sadistic old man who welcomes Link back into the fold. But the other gang members aren't nearly as trusting as Dock, and they take both Sam and Billie prisoner. Link, however, is merely pretending to get back into old man Dock's good graces because when the gang hijacked the train they also stole a bag of money which he intends to be used by the citizens of Good Hope, and Link fully intends to reclaim that money, bring his old gang to justice for their crimes and redeem his tarnished reputation. But he also has to protect Sam and Billie from the other gang members, who definitely have ill intent on their minds with regard to Billie. At one horribly tense early moment, one gang member presses a knife to Link's throat in order to persuade Billie to strip for them.

The acting is quite brilliant all around, and Cooper is certainly as stolid as ever, reliable pro that he is. But the real jewel in this movie's crown is Lee J. Cobb's performance as the man who has become one of my favorite Western villains ever. No lie! Whether it's nostalgically reminiscing nostalgically about the past bloody deeds in his criminal past or gleefully cackling at the prospect of one more big score knocking off the bank in the nearby town of Lassoo, the character of Dock Tobin is one seriously deranged and dangerous yet damaged piece of work, and the great Lee J. Cobb simply knocks it out of the park. Seriously, he's downright Shakespearian! (It's no secret that Anthony Mann was a big fan of the Bard's King Lear.) Now, supposedly Dock is Link's uncle and an evil mentor figure who taught him everything he knew in the ways of criminality - which he eventually grew up out of - but the funny thing is, Gary Cooper was actually ten years Lee J. Cobb's senior. Cooper was actually born in 1901, and Cobb in 1911. But you would never know it from the performances they deliver, Cooper somehow looking eternally youthful and Cobb looking every bit the demonic old buzzard.

The Forgotten Pistolero and The Unholy Four are two Italian Westerns co-starring Leonard Mann and Peter Martell, both movies released on a single DVD by the company Wild East in 2007. The first one is especially classy, supposedly being an adaptation of the Greek myth of Orestes. I actually found out about it through two books about Westerns written by British writer Howard Hughes, Stagecoach to Tombstone: The Filmgoers' Guide to the Great Westerns and Once Upon a Time in the Italian West: The Filmgoers' Guide to Spaghetti Westerns. Both books feature a series of Top Ten lists by several prominent writers and critics, including Sergio Leone biographer Sir Christopher Frayling and filmmaker Alex Cox. And The Forgotten Pistolero made both lists of Tom Betts from the Westerns All'Italiana blog, so it's not just one of his favorite Spaghetti Westerns, but one of his favorite Westerns period! So I felt compelled to check this film out, and I've got to say it's pretty good. I don't know that it's necessarily one of the all-time greatest, but I very much understand Betts' enthusiasm. And like I said, there's another movie on the same DVD, The Unholy Four, which also features Mann and Martell as two of the leads, but this time they're joined by Helmuth Schneider and none other than the great Woody Freakin' Strode!! :D The four actors portray four inmates who escape from prison in Dodge City after a group of bank robbers tries to burn it down. One of these inmates is an amnesia case who can't remember his own name, but suspects that the answer to his questions lies in the nearby town of Oaxaca.

Quite honestly, I don't know what I could possibly say about Brokeback Mountain that hasn't been said before many times over by people more articulate than I, so I won't say much. Suffice to say, the movie is a deeply emotionally involving and poetic cinematic masterpiece directed without so much as a single misstep by Ang Lee. This is a movie about thwarted love, pure and simple, regardless of the gender or the sexuality or the gender of the characters, and the movie has no agenda whatsoever beyond telling the plain and brutal truth of it. Not only Ang Lee is performing at a career-best peak here, but so are the actors Jake Gyllenhaal, Heath Ledger, Michelle Williams and Anne Hathaway. As it so happens, I have a very close relative in the hospital right now recovering from brain surgery after having some tumors removed, so watching this movie really strikes a sad chord for me right now (but in a good and gratifying way). The brand spanking new 4K UHD version is simply gorgeous, and deserves to be part of any serious film viewer's collection.

GulfportDoc

07-22-24, 08:47 PM

[Cat on a Hot Tin Roof] 3rd Rewatch...The story has been cleaned up a bit for general consumption, but director Richard Brooks, and stars Paul Newman, Elizabeth Taylor, and Burl Ives deliver the goods in this steamy film adaptation of the Tennessee Williams play that chronicles the problems of the Pollitt family, which includes Newman as Brick, the alcoholic former football player depressed about the death of his friend Skipper, his wife Maggie (Taylor), the voluptuous vixen who can't get her husband to touch er while trying to encourage him to suck up to his father (Ives) for the family fortune when the possibility comes up that Big Daddy might be dying. There's also a terrific supporting performance from Jack Carson, who I have never enjoyed more as Brick's older brother Gooper, but this is Taylor and Newman's show all the way. This film should have won Newman his first Oscar and Taylor matches him note for note, in a powerhouse performance that she managed to turn in at the same her third husband, Mike Todd, died in a plane crash This is my #2 Taylor performance behind Virginia Woolf. and I am of the opinion that Taylor never looked as breathtaking than she did in this film and that's saying a lot. rating_4
It was a stunning film when it came out in '58-- both important artistically and very adult. Everyone loved it, and I was mystified why Brick continuously repelled the sexual advances of is wife, Maggie "the cat", who was drop..dead..gorgeous. When I got older, I understood better, but I think Newman's part was just a tad overwritten and overacted. But he admitted that he overacted in The Hustler as well, but it's one of my favorite films.

All told it was an enjoyable adaption of T. William's '55 play. He wrote some pretty twisted stories.

Marco

07-22-24, 10:22 PM

COMMANDO
(1985, Lester)

https://i.imgur.com/nlkM8Kt.jpg

Commando is probably one of the prime examples of this, featuring Schwarzenegger at the top of his game, doing pretty much just that. He plays John Matrix, a former Special Forces colonel who sets out to rescue his daughter (Alyssa Milano) who was kidnapped to force him to assassinate a South American political leader. Despite these stakes, I don't think there's any doubt in anybody that watches this as to who will walk away victorious.

This is one of those films I used to see often when I was a kid. Growing up in the 80s, I caught the brunt of that action film wave. However, it had been probably 25-30 years since I had last seen it, and it is probably that lack of stakes that had kept it at a distance for me. I mean, it is fun and laughable to see Arnold plow his way through an endless army of thugs with bad aim, as bodies fall left and right of him, but it is not necessarily something that sticks with me.

Grade: 3.5

Full review on my Movie Loot (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=2473922#post2473922)

The final fight is so homoerotic and that's not a diss. I enjoyed this film.

Marco

07-22-24, 10:32 PM

The Guest 2014

I'm just gonna start by giving you the final line of this movie which sums up the latter half for me "what the ****!"

I mean you kinda know where this is going to go but when it goes there it goes big bold and brutal!

Slick directing and superb casting and acting from everyone involved.

5//5

This film was a great piece of hokum. Just the right mixture of menace and clownery that makes you unsure if it's a piss take or serious. I really enjoyed it and took me back to the days of OTT movies like Stephen King adaptations. Dan Stevens is great in it.

Marco

07-22-24, 11:09 PM

The Conformist (1970)
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/7/78/The_Conformist_poster.jpg
Film centered on a mid-level facist lackey who neither believes or disbelieves his reasoning for being such. The direction by Bertolucci is first class and the performance by Jean-Louis Trintignant is impeccable. The set pieces are great and the allusions to mental illness via syphilis of Marcello well depicted. Breaking it down you have to ask, what would you have done in the main protagonist's position and that's the key to the film. He is a cold and calculating individual, shown especially in his romantic forays. This is shot really first class with tremendous scenery. Also had me laughing at bits where I was not sure I should be. The taxi ride was hilarious and underplayed. Rewarding experience.
4.5

PHOENIX74

07-22-24, 11:39 PM

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/d/d4/Stalker_poster.jpg
By https://www.ucalgary.ca/~tstronds/nostalghia.com/TheNews.html, Fair use, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=34273437

Stalker - (1979)

Off to the movies last night to see Stalker on the big screen with a good friend of mine - I was particularly interested in not wasting this opportunity. He said something interesting as we were leaving afterwards - that watching the three main characters in the film traverse the zone was like watching children at play, because the various rules and fantastical but very cerebral occurrences have that same imagination-based inventiveness about them. Stalker is the kind of film you really have to listen carefully to, because the viewer really has to invest energy into completing that atmosphere of strangeness that would otherwise be absent - making the everyday visuals consisting of abandoned and decaying factories and houses suddenly seem otherworldly. It was only my second time seeing it, but reflecting back on the impression it made on me last night has me thinking it's the work of a great thinker and cinematic master at his peak - Andrei Tarkovsky was really something. I've yet to see Ivan's Childhood, Nostalghia and The Sacrifice.

10/10

jal90

07-22-24, 11:55 PM

https://media-cache.cinematerial.com/p/500x/eqsyt4nv/mubanso-japanese-movie-poster.jpg?v=1468765568

A cappella / Mubansô (Hitoshi Yazaki, 2016) rating_4_5

A patient coming of age from the late 60s in Japan, of a girl about to end her high school years while engaging in the strong political activity of that era, having a complicated relationship with her family and meeting her first true love. There are a lot of factors put together and like any good slice of life narrative, it takes a bit of this and a bit of that to elaborate a portrayal of drifting youth that is engaging in the journey and absolutely mesmerizing in the endpoint; uneasy and melancholic, but also rich and meaningful as a story of personal growth.

Zotis

07-23-24, 12:29 AM

I can never get enough of coming of age movies. Especially Asian ones. :D

Marco

07-23-24, 12:41 AM

Thief

07-23-24, 01:30 AM

HUNTER HUNTER
(2020, Linden)

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

"Without its pack, a lone wolf won't go for its usual prey. It'll go for the old, the young, the sick, dead."

That is one of the many lessons that hunter and fur trapper Joseph (Devon Sawa) tries to pass on to his daughter Renee (Summer H. Howell). The two live with their wife and mother Anne (Camille Sullivan) in a remote cabin with just the bare necessities. But when the threat of a lone wolf arises, they have to find ways to survive which also brings up buried tensions between the couple.

Hunter Hunter lives mostly on the atmosphere of dread it manages to build around its main characters. It has its spurts of thrills here and there, but for the most part, it's just the uneasiness it transmits what gets to you. Just like the family is on edge, waiting for the worst, we are on edge wondering when the "lone wolf" will attack.

Grade: 4

Full review on my Movie Loot (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=2474085#post2474085)

Fabulous

07-23-24, 06:42 AM

It's Complicated (2009)

3

https://image.tmdb.org/t/p/original/d1nefTjjqxJJ0NxyDriD38RRTXX.jpg

Robert the List

07-23-24, 07:21 AM

FromBeyond

07-23-24, 08:08 AM

This film was a great piece of hokum. Just the right mixture of menace and clownery that makes you unsure if it's a piss take or serious. I really enjoyed it and took me back to the days of OTT movies like Stephen King adaptations. Dan Stevens is great in it.

Yes! it was fantastic, such a treat, he is so enigmatic in it and devilishly handsome too, had me wondering why he isn't more of a bigger star today. I never thought it was a piss take, I just didnt expect it to pop off as much as it did.

exiler96

07-23-24, 08:31 AM

Robert the List

07-23-24, 08:33 AM

I saw it couple of years ago and agree with the outstanding visuals very much. Loved Grant and Mason (and Martin Launda!) in it.
and their suits!!! they were gorgeous suits!!

exiler96

07-23-24, 08:34 AM

In the Name of the Father (1993)... took a while to get going but when it did, poof... Powerful story and DDL (my avatar) and Pete Postlethwaite were heartbreaking. Should be a mandatory Fathers Day viewing or something. 8/10

Gideon58

07-23-24, 10:31 AM

It was a stunning film when it came out in '58-- both important artistically and very adult. Everyone loved it, and I was mystified why Brick continuously repelled the sexual advances of is wife, Maggie "the cat", who was drop..dead..gorgeous. When I got older, I understood better, but I think Newman's part was just a tad overwritten and overacted. But he admitted that he overacted in The Hustler as well, but it's one of my favorite films.

All told it was an enjoyable adaption of T. William's '55 play. He wrote some pretty twisted stories.

THey took all inferences out of the movie, but the reason Brick wasn't interested in Maggie was because he and Skipper were lovers.in the play.

FilmBuff

07-23-24, 01:53 PM

https://media.hotpress.com/uploads/2022/09/27120526/Kneecap-by-Miguel-Ruiz-15-e1664276753891.jpg

Kneecap
4

I knew absolutely nothing about the Belfast-based hip-hop trio before watching Kneecap, and while I'm no hip-hop fan, I thoroughly enjoyed it.

The band members apparently play themselves, with Michael Fassbender along in a supporting role.

It's hard to think of another recent musical "origin story" as fascinating and disarming as this one, written and directed by Rich Peppiatt in his feature directing debut.

Be aware that much of the movie is in Irish (with English subtitles) and even the parts that are in English have some pretty think Irish accents, so you may want to watch this with a captioning device if you watch it in a theater.

Thief

07-23-24, 04:20 PM

LIFE IS BEAUTIFUL
(1997, Benigni)

https://i.imgur.com/E7spFKH.jpg

"I don't like Visigoths. Starting tomorrow we'll write: 'No spiders and Visigoths allowed'. I'm sick and tired of these Visigoths."

Directed and co-written by Benigni, Life is Beautiful follows the relationship between Guido and Dora (Nicoletta Braschi) in the wake of World War II and the Holocaust. The film is clearly divided in two parts. The first one in 1939 when Guido and Dora meet and fall in love, plays more or less like a traditional romantic comedy. There's your "meet cute", the flirting and courting, an "evil" boyfriend to "defeat", and ultimately a "happy ending".

The second half, though, is a serious war drama. Set in 1944 as the Nazi occupation of Italy takes place, we see Guido and Dora, now a married couple, being forced into a concentration camp along with their young son. As the parents are split, and Giosué is trying to figure out what's going on, Guido makes an effort to convince him that everything is just a game in order to protect him from the horrors around them.

Grade: 4

Full review on my Movie Loot (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=2474211#post2474211)

GulfportDoc

07-23-24, 07:23 PM

THey took all inferences out of the movie, but the reason Brick wasn't interested in Maggie was because he and Skipper were lovers.in the play.
Yes, of course. That's what I was referring to.

Marco

07-23-24, 07:41 PM

Salò, or the 120 Days of Sodom (1975)
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/f/f3/Saloposter.jpg
An extreme film by Pasolini. It's reputation probably makes any rational review meaningless.
Children are captured, children are raped, children are killed. I know it's allegorical as to the fall of the Italian Fascist powers in the North of the country married to the writings of de Sade.

It's a lot to take in and I think the utter bleakness of the film reflects Pasolini's total disgust in humanity. It is,however, well shot, phrased (the "stories" of the whores are interesting) and the internecine actions of those in captivity are as disturbing as the violence that they encounter. What I can say is that it is a profound film directed by a man who was obviously at odds with the world he lived in. Mad humerous cameos and scenes depicting ennui amongst the chaos and torture counterpoint the utter dread. Just don't watch with your grandmother
4

GulfportDoc

07-23-24, 08:01 PM

North by Northwest (1959)
I'll give it a 9.25

Haha. I've watched the first half of this movie goodness knows how many times, and always given up on it because it's so ridiculous.

Well last night I finally finished it. I'm glad I did, because whilst it doesn't get all that much less ridiculous, it's actually quite thrilling by the end, but most of all it is visually gorgeous. Some just stunning pictures from Hitchcock, which Antonioni would have been genuinely proud of.

For me it went from an over hyped nonsense to a must see.
Heh, heh. Well, the audiences (I among them) didn't think it was ridiculous in 1959..🙂 In fact it was the #1 box office success in the U.S. for its first 2 months. Critics loved the picture. Unfortunately it was up against Ben-Hur (now there's a boring picture but for the chariot race), as well as Anatomy of a Murder, Some Like It Hot, The Last Angry Man, and other great films, so it didn't do much at the Oscars.

I was blown away by the picture, and I still love it after umpteen viewings. Everything clicked in that movie: the great actors, the script, Hitchcock's direction, and one of the greatest of music scores in film by the legendary Bernard Herrmann.

The excitement generated right from the opening credits with innovative graphics and Herrmann's driving score instantly draws the viewer in. It's top 3 Hitchcock.

I'm glad to hear that you've become a convert!...👍

FilmBuff

07-23-24, 09:10 PM

https://d3th1nqbpcyfdw.cloudfront.net/1721039292295-e1a2fe8c-3e92-428f-b2ee-f4bc86838391.png

Twisters (4DX presentation)
5

Whatever your feelings about the movie itself, the 4DX presentation of Twisters should be considered a new benchmark for the format.

An almost perfect marriage of movie and film format, the 4DX effects that accompany this movie will shake you up, twist you around until you almost beg for mercy, and leave you feeling like you've just been through, well, a major tornado.

As could be expected, the wind and breeze effects are the major attraction here, but don't underestimate the motion effects. When a truck rolls over several times while the protagonist is tucked inside - believe me, you will feel exactly what that person would have felt, if the rollover had been real.

Now, if that doesn't sound like your idea of fun - that's fine. The format has always appealed to the most adventurous moviegoers and, frankly, it's perfectly understandable that a lot of people prefer the "regular" presentation for action movies.

It had been quite a while since I had as much fun attending a 4DX show, and it definitely sets a high bar for the films that will follow this summer and fall.

Nausicaä

07-24-24, 02:24 AM

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/b/bc/Abigail_Official_Poster.jpg/220px-Abigail_Official_Poster.jpg

3

SF = Z

https://64.media.tumblr.com/246cd9c8fc084ca4d0b8a477a4f34303/f70f4e519998029e-ef/s540x810/ac569c76947320091313719f8994acd60ec740f8.gifv

[Snooze Factor Ratings]:
Z = didn't nod off at all
Zz = nearly nodded off but managed to stay alert
Zzz = nodded off and missed some of the film but went back to watch what I missed
Zzzz = nodded off and missed some of the film but went back to watch what I missed but nodded off again at the same point and therefore needed to go back a number of times before I got through it...
Zzzzz = nodded off and missed some or the rest of the film but was not interested enough to go back over it

Fabulous

07-24-24, 03:08 AM

The Rewrite (2014)

3.5

https://image.tmdb.org/t/p/original/aikBhzg2hT853U876DZglf6qlGN.jpg

jal90

07-24-24, 04:48 AM

I mentioned in the top5 from each decade thread that I hadn't watched Day of wrath, so to fill that gap I saw it today.
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Dra2fO1WoAAnGN_.jpgIt was amazing. Gorgeous in a lot of ways, in the way it's shot, in the way it flows, in the writing, in its approach to the characters, its overall gravity... and above all, it is a story about spirituality in the particularly dark and disheartening context of witch hunts, but one that makes a genuine effort to understand that spirituality in how it affects people and define their values. For a story that could very easily be catalogued as a horror, a psychological drama or an aggressive criticism of the authoritarian use of faith to control society and morality, what I find most amazing is that, being all that, it's mostly a humanistic tale of people whose ideas of happiness or guilt, and their entire lives actually, can only be defined in the context and expectations set by their own faith.
Dreyer is profoundly critical, but also respectful and even mesmerized by how spirituality makes the characters what they are, and he doesn't offer an alternative to that, not because he doesn't want to, but because it wouldn't make sense for them to consider another reality or mindset than the one they are deeply rooted into. To me, this is a masterpiece and another excellent take on Christianity and faith by Dreyer. rating_5

wositelec

07-24-24, 04:50 AM

Goonies (1985) - 8/10

https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BNWFhNzFhNjgtZmIxNi00YTI0LTgwMDEtMTQ1MjJlY2UxZjMzXkEyXkFqcGdeQXBrZWVzZXk@._V1_QL75_UX500_CR0,30,5 00,281_.jpg

Thief

07-24-24, 10:59 AM

THE PURGE
(2013, DeMonaco)

https://i.imgur.com/vo2QIjB.jpg

James: "We're gonna make it through tonight and everything's going to be okay."
Zoey: "Nothing is ever going to be okay again, dad."

Set in a dystopian near future, The Purge follows the annual titular event: a period of 12 hours where any type of crime is permitted as a way of controlling population and improving the economy. Right in the middle of it is James Sandin (Ethan Hawke) who makes a living selling security systems designed to withstand the event. But when he and his family are targeted by a ruthless gang of murderers, they have to find ways to make it through the night.

The thing is that The Purge presents a compelling premise; a society that has essentially found a way to justify and condone crime by giving up to primal impulses, while creating social safeguards around it to pretend that they care. Unfortunately, that premise is then limited for the most part to a basic home invasion film. The novelty of what "the purge" is gets lost in a movie that's really not different from any other home invasion movie.

Grade: 2.5

Full review on my Movie Loot (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=2474402#post2474402)

FilmBuff

07-24-24, 11:51 AM

https://image.tmdb.org/t/p/original/gGBu0hKw9BGddG8RkRAMX7B6NDB.jpg

LOGAN
1.5

I am not familiar with the "Old Man Logan" comics storyline, but I can only imagine it must be better than this!

A blatantly manipulative mess of a film that never quite feels like it has a single genuine emotion in it, further marred by some horribly-shot action scenes, this might also be the worst thing that James Mangold ever directed.

It was once meant to be a final goodbye to the Wolverine character, at least as portrayed by Hugh Jackman (We all know why it's not his final goodbye to the character).

The sole saving graces here are Dafne Keen as Wolverine's daughter, Laura, and the ever-reliable Patrick Stewart, in another not-quite-final turn as Professor Xavier.

Well, it's a good thing that comic-book characters seldom ever truly die.

xSookieStackhouse

07-24-24, 01:04 PM

5 i really enjoyed the movie and loved the gore and the characters and the music
https://posterspy.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/dxw.jpg

Darth Pazuzu

07-24-24, 06:22 PM

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/2/24/Twisters_Official_US_Theatrical_Poster.jpg/220px-Twisters_Official_US_Theatrical_Poster.jpg

July 23, 2024

TWISTERS (Lee Isaac Chung / 2024)

Well, I don't really have much to say beyond the fact that I enjoyed it, and I had fun. :D: :up: I saw the original 1996 Jan De Bont Twister only once in my lifetime, during its original theatrical run (a loooooooooong time ago! :p), so I don't really remember that much about it. Not that it's particularly relevant in the case of this sequel, because it's a standalone film that's not really dependent on one's having seen the '96 original.

No spoilers, but a few observations:

1) If you've seen the trailer, you will recall the character of Boone (Brandon Perea) screaming "We've got twins! Twins!!" In the actual movie, it's a scream of joyous amazement, not terror. And the twin tornadoes come fairly early on in the movie, and it's mainly a plot device to split the characters up, in terms of "Which one do we chase?"

2) This is one of those increasingly rare Hollywood blockbusters which does put a lot of destruction and devastation onscreen, but which is also actually quite mindful of the real-life human cost of such destruction and devastation. A couple of times in the movie, we are shown the destruction of entire neighborhoods and communities, and we see the main characters coming to the aid of people in the aftermath of a tornado, and during the film's intense climax (quite well-executed, I might add) they help to get the townspeople into a movie theater. (BTW, remember The Shining playing at the drive-in during the '96 film? This time it's the original Frankenstein with the famous line "It's alive! It's alive!!" coming just before the screen gets ripped away!) These days, when Godzilla and King Kong beat the crap out of each other (or other monsters) and smash each other into buildings, nobody ever talks about or mentions whether or not people are actually in those structures or if everybody got evacuated when they received word that the "Titans" were in town. The difference is, Godzilla and Kong are not real and tornadoes very much are, and I'm pleased that this movie - while primarily seeking to thrill and entertain - is astute enough to take the human factor into consideration. In addition, there's a little subplot about how information about tornadoes is being fed to a local real estate mogul and developer who uses the information to profit from the destruction, and how this creates a minor conflict between two of the characters and a crisis of conscience for one of them. (No prizes for guessing which way this character will fall.)

In short, not exactly great, but I would still classify it as a superior example of Hollywood franchise filmmaking, which by my reckoning tends to be not all that superior these days. I'm thinking that this is the kind of movie that the late Roger Ebert would have described as a Bruised Forearm Movie (and he also puts the best Indiana Jones and Lethal Weapon movies in this category), "the kind of movie where your date is always grabbing your forearm in a viselike grip, as unbearable excitement unfolds on the screen. After the movie is over, you've had a great time but your arm is black-and-blue for a week." :lol:

exiler96

07-24-24, 06:36 PM

[CENTER]THE PURGE
(2013, DeMonaco)

https://i.imgur.com/vo2QIjB.jpg

The thing is that The Purge presents a compelling premise; a society that has essentially found a way to justify and condone crime by giving up to primal impulses, while creating social safeguards around it to pretend that they care. Unfortunately, that premise is then limited for the most part to a basic home invasion film. The novelty of what "the purge" is gets lost in a movie that's really not different from any other home invasion movie.

Grade: 2.5

The potential that these movies wasted I swear...

Tugg

07-24-24, 08:32 PM

Election (1999) 3.5
https://target.scene7.com/is/image/Target/GUEST_9bbefce8-f5df-4341-a44e-ed90021fc5e0?wid=488&hei=488&fmt=pjpeg
Three Kings (1999) 3
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAPSWl23pZX23fj76fiIyAp5wRqkm2kQ9Fui5UUpQxsb9qSoWQyD0Jgn56TA7helH1Eiik-kLwfhGX7-coLMTKwMApR6Sp_C67S-hGlGp46wVRL1AphhDpLSPWUSKKzjDkyMdnM-fmtCY/s1600/Three+Kings.jpg
The Nanny Diaries (2007) 3.5
https://www.famousbirthdays.com/group_images/medium/nanny-diaries-movie.jpg
Space Cadet (2024) 3.5
https://img-s-msn-com.akamaized.net/tenant/amp/entityid/BB1pkrQ2.img?w=768&h=384&m=6&x=884&y=101&s=364&d=364
Love Lies Bleeding (2024) 3
https://images.immediate.co.uk/production/volatile/sites/3/2023/12/Love-Lies-Bleeding-film-5128251.png?resize=768,574

GulfportDoc

07-24-24, 08:50 PM

and their suits!!! they were gorgeous suits!!
As I'm sure you know, Cary Grant's stylish gray suit was voted the best suit in film of all time, according to GQ magazine.

What cracked me up though was that in the story he wore that gray suit in nearly every scene in the movie, including when he was diving in the dirt in the airplane scene. But he only had it sent out to be "brushed" once!! Gotta figure that suit got pretty rank...:D

Siddon

07-24-24, 09:05 PM

https://static1.cbrimages.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/image-2024-07-18t142827-731.jpg

Oddity (2024)
rating_5

The second perfect horror film of the year after Late Night with the Devil. I don't want to give away too much about the film, only that it opens with a man knocking at a strange door and telling a woman that someone is in her house.

The film does several things well...it almost has an ontology feel to it as each act it almost a different style/type of horror (similar to Longlegs) but the scripting is so tight that you value the craftsmanship. The film also manages to do the right things when it comes to it's technical touches. The sound design, production design and most importantly the lighting is perfect. So when the jump scares start happening it doesn't feel cheap rather it feels earned because the setting is so well done.

My only complaint is it's really a four actor story with a sppoky house which is cliche'd

Robert the List

07-24-24, 10:51 PM

As I'm sure you know, Cary Grant's stylish gray suit was voted the best suit in film of all time, according to GQ magazine.

What cracked me up though was that in the story he wore that gray suit in nearly every scene in the movie, including when he was diving in the dirt in the airplane scene. But he only had it sent out to be "brushed" once!! Gotta figure that suit got pretty rank...:D
I actually didn't know that. Thanks!

Grant's suit was "pressed and sponged" IIRC.

I actually thought Martin Landau's was the best by the way. In the scenes at the house at Mount Rushmore.

By the way, I think Eva Marie Saint is still with us. One of the oldest survivors of Hollywood. Yes, she has just had her 100th birthday. x

Galactic Traveler

07-24-24, 10:58 PM

A Passage to India - 1984

4

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/2/20/PassageToIndiaPoster.jpg

Fabulous

07-25-24, 02:40 AM

The Hanging Tree (1959)

3.5

https://image.tmdb.org/t/p/original/oqIti8LdndlHkY9VkcVmZ69E9M7.jpg

Thief

07-25-24, 11:44 AM

ESCAPE FROM THE PLANET OF THE APES
(1971, Taylor)

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

"One of the reasons for man's original downfall was your peculiar habit of murdering one another. Man destroys man. Apes do not destroy apes."

Escape from the Planet of the Apes is the third installment in the original Planet of the Apes franchise. Set immediately after the events of Beneath the Planet of the Apes where Earth was destroyed, it follows the surviving chimpanzees Cornelius and Zira (Kim Hunter and Roddy McDowall) who have just ended in "present" Earth as a result of a time warp. As the two chimpanzees adjust to life on the planet, they have to also adjust to human's violent nature, which could ultimately threaten them.

Beneath the Planet of the Apes does have its share of plot contrivances and "silly" moments, particularly in the middle act as we see the many ways that Cornelius and Zira are embraced by the general public. However, it does present an interesting dilemma for its human characters. What do you do upon learning the fate of humanity from Cornelius and Zira? What if you could change things, stop them from happening?

Grade: 4

Full review on my Movie Loot (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=2474709#post2474709)

Gideon58

07-25-24, 03:26 PM

https://pics.filmaffinity.com/Hit_Man-487214798-large.jpg

3.5

Thief

07-25-24, 03:56 PM

THE BORDERLANDS
(2013, Goldner)

https://i.imgur.com/8T0XTl4.jpg

"That’s nature for you, Deacon. Big stuff eating small stuff."

The Borderlands follows a Vatican team sent to investigate a series of supernatural occurrences in an old church in the England countryside. The first two to get to the place are Deacon and Gray (Gordon Kennedy and Robin Hill). Despite working for the church, Deacon is a skeptic, but also seems to be hiding something. Meanwhile, Gray is an enthusiastic but mostly non-religious technician that is in charge of setting up cameras to conveniently monitor everything. As the two get deeper and deeper in their investigation, they realize that there might be bigger forces at play.

This is a film I had seen mentioned often on social media, but also while browsing some streaming services. Your enjoyment of it might depend on two key things: first, your tolerance for "found footage" films and second, your tolerance for slow-burn type films. Regarding the former, I guess the film does its best to try to make the constant presence of cameras and headsets feel organic, but you can still see the seams here and there of moments where characters will somehow justify the camera being there.

Grade: 3

Full review on my Movie Loot (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=2474776#post2474776)

Tugg

07-25-24, 04:14 PM

The Bikeriders (2023-2024) 2

I don't like documentary style. Movies should be somewhere between reality and overstretched suspension of disbelief. Bikers values were everything I stand against. I can't stand their sense of importance for stupid crap. And the ending was cliché as far as biker club's fate is concerned.

The gist of what Jodie Comer's character said:- one becomes like the company one surrounds themselves with.

https://deadline.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Bikeriders_768bff.jpg?w=681&h=383&crop=1

GulfportDoc

07-25-24, 07:31 PM

I actually didn't know that. Thanks!

Grant's suit was "pressed and sponged" IIRC.

I actually thought Martin Landau's was the best by the way. In the scenes at the house at Mount Rushmore.

By the way, I think Eva Marie Saint is still with us. One of the oldest survivors of Hollywood. Yes, she has just had her 100th birthday. x
That's right. What a career she had!! And in that film with C. Grant, Saint was heart poundingly sexy and alluring. I recall seeing her in an interview where she claimed that she was semi-swooning in the love scenes with Grant, fortunate to be working with such a male sex symbol...🙂

exiler96

07-25-24, 07:35 PM

Stirchley you weren't kidding...

Wit (2001). A creative and moving take on cancer treatment; anchored around a proper text (based on a play) and a powerhouse performance by Emma Thompson. Man, how many solid films did Mike Nichols leave behind?...

https://lavelleporter.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/emma-thompson-wit.jpg

Robert the List

07-25-24, 07:52 PM

That's right. What a career she had!! And in that film with C. Grant, Saint was heart poundingly sexy and alluring. I recall seeing her in an interview where she claimed that she was semi-swooning in the love scenes with Grant, fortunate to be working with such a male sex symbol...🙂
He in turn was besotted with Sophia Loren
(as was Peter Sellers!)

Robert the List

07-25-24, 08:14 PM

Kaneto Shindô/ The Naked Island (1960) Kaneto Shindo

10/10

Maybe in my top 5 of all time.

I will probably have more images from it than The Leopard.

Probably about the perfect movie. It's a masterpiece of cinema.

Robert the List

07-25-24, 08:29 PM

I took 198 screenshots.

MovieGal

07-25-24, 08:44 PM

Stirchley you weren't kidding...

Wit (2001). A creative and moving take on cancer; anchored around a proper text (based on a play) and a powerhouse performance by Emma Thompson. Man, how many solid films did Mike Nichols leave behind?...

https://lavelleporter.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/emma-thompson-wit.jpg

Are you into heart wrenching cinema? (meaning it makes you sad enough to cry) If so, watch Lorenzo's Oil (1992).

exiler96

07-25-24, 09:06 PM

Are you into heart wrenching cinema? (meaning it makes you sad enough to cry) If so, watch Lorenzo's Oil (1992).I mean, I'll watch anything that promises quality... but that happens to be found more among dramas than action comedies. This film has been on my radar; I just had forgotten it's directed by Dr. George of the Mad Max fame lmao... thanks.

MovieGal

07-25-24, 09:27 PM

I mean, I'll watch anything that promises quality... but that happens to be found more among dramas than action comedies. This film has been on my radar; I just had forgotten it's directed by Dr. George of the Mad Max fame lmao... thanks.

Trust me, watch it.

It really hit me hard as the boy has Adrenoleukodystrophy (ALD) , one of the atrophy of Muscular Dystrophy. My daughter has a different atrophy of Muscular Dystrophy.

Galactic Traveler

07-25-24, 09:41 PM

It won't go down in the history books as a critical masterpiece or anything but for a straight-up action flick it's pretty good. Always enjoy watching it.

3.5

https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BZDJjOTE0N2EtMmRlZS00NzU0LWE0ZWQtM2Q3MWMxNjcwZjBhXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNDk3NzU2MTQ@._V1_.jpg

Thief

07-26-24, 12:53 AM

TRESPASS
(1992, Hill)

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

"I don't know what this stuff is anymore. Our gold. God's gold. Fool's gold."

Trespass follows Vince and Don (Bill Paxton and William Sadler), two firemen from Arkansas that stumble upon a map for a cache of gold valuables hidden in an abandoned building in Illinois. However, as they set out to retrieve it, they find themselves targeted by a street gang led by King James (Ice T) after they witness them killing someone. Trapped inside the building, Vince and Don must find a way to get out and survive.

The film doesn't really lose much time. The setup is brief and it doesn't take that long to get things rolling. Once it does, it creates an atmosphere of both claustrophobia and fear as they are unable to escape, mixed with mistrust in both parties. While Vince and Don's friendship crumbles because of greed, King James has to deal with the defiance of his lieutenant Savon (Ice Cube) who wants to have power. It is an interesting dichotomy even if the film doesn't fully take advantage of it.

Grade: 3

Full review on my Movie Loot (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=2474900#post2474900)

LChimp

07-26-24, 10:25 AM

https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMTEyOTQzZjgtMDM1OC00MWMxLWI2ZGUtYWUwOTQxNTRmZTU0XkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNTU1MDIzMzg@._V1_FMjpg_UX1000_.j pg

No way up - (2024)

Guess they didn't have the budget for Liam Neeson... 4/10

Thief

07-26-24, 10:59 AM

WALLACE & GROMIT
THE CURSE OF THE WERE-RABBIT
(2005, Park & Box)

https://i.imgur.com/g1dPiK2.jpg

"And for our sins, a hideous creature has been sent to punish us all! Repent! Repent! Lest you, too, taste the wrath of... the Were-Rabbit!"

The Curse of the Were-Rabbit is set in the wake of Tottington Hall's Giant Vegetable Competition. As residents are preparing for it, Wallace (Peter Sallis) and Gromit provide pest control to protect the crops from rabbits. However, they soon find themselves the target of a giant "hideous creature sent to punish them all".. the Were-Rabbit!

There are a bunch of things I really liked about this. From the stellar voice work that includes Ralph Fiennes and Helena Bonham Carter to the clever visual gags and running jokes, it all worked perfectly. The script doesn't hide the mystery for that long, but I still found myself largely entertained by it all.

Grade: 4

Full review on my Movie Loot (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=2474987#post2474987)

FilmBuff

07-26-24, 11:07 AM

https://aftercredits.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/DeadpoolAndWolverinePoster.jpg

Deadpool & Wolverine
5

There's never been anything like Deadpool & Wolverine - for fans of the genre, this is true nirvana.

Paying homage to the genre's past like no movie ever has, it is at once a significant re-invention of what the genre can do, particularly in its R-rated variety, as well as a very respectful (yes, respectful) way of honoring its predecessors.

It's almost hard to believe Hugh Jackman, who's never been finer than he is here, has been playing Wolverine for almost a quarter-century.

Unlike the dreadful The Flash, which managed to criminally waste Michael Keaton's long-awaited return as Batman, this movie makes the most of it - and then some.

Of course, there's a lot more surprises in store for fans - and it's absolutely mind-boggling that almost all of it was kept as secret as it was for such a long time. Let's just say, it's the stuff of comic-book fans' dreams.

And there are, of course, a number of fresh faces here - Emma Corrin and Matthew Macfadyen make phenomenal additions to the MCU's all-star roster. They are both fantastic, in a way that perhaps only British actors can.

Whatever you do, make absolutely sure you stay all the way through the end credits - this one is really worth it!

Thief

07-26-24, 12:47 PM

PANDORA
(2016, Park)

https://i.imgur.com/Q8JfKUv.jpg

"We're not going in to die, but to save."

That's the reassurance that Jae-hyeok (Kim Nam-gil) gives to one of his friends as they're about to walk into certain death. But the possibility of saving more lives goes above their own lives. That is one of the main premises of this South Korean disaster film. Set in a small town whose economy is mostly dependent on a nuclear plant, Pandora follows what happens after an earthquake causes a nuclear meltdown.

There are a lot of things that work on the film. There are some genuinely thrilling moments here and there, the special effects and the visuals of the disaster are effective, and for the most part, the majority of the characters are likable and easy to root for. Unfortunately, the film tries to juggle too many little stories that mostly feel like the stereotypical disaster film tropes and that play too much into the melodrama.

Grade: 2.5

Full review on my Movie Loot (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=2475026#post2475026)

Allaby

07-26-24, 02:21 PM

Deadpool and Wolverine (2024) Went to the movies today at 10:30 am and saw this. This was fun. Reynolds and Jackman are good together and there are some enjoyable laugh out loud moments. I would rank it as the 4th best film of the year. 4

FilmBuff

07-26-24, 02:22 PM

Thief

07-26-24, 04:50 PM

TIMECOP
(1994, Hyams)

https://i.imgur.com/F47qb8K.jpg

"I find it reassuring to know what the future holds, don't you?"

TimeCop follows Van Damme's Agent Max Walker, a police officer that becomes a federal agent for an agency created to prevent time travel crimes shortly after his wife (Mia Sara) is killed. The bad guy in question is Aaron McComb (Ron Silver), an ambitious and corrupt politician who has been using time travel to fund his presidential campaign, and who might have something to do with the murder of Walker's wife.

I'm pretty sure I saw this film in theaters, or shortly after, and I've always regarded it as one of Van Damme's best efforts. Rewatching it now after 15 years, I can say it has held up rather well. Even though it has the plot holes and contrivances that are typical of both 90s action movies AND time travel movies, it is still pretty entertaining and fun to watch. Van Damme is serviceable as the lead, but Silver makes for an amusing villain.

Grade: 3.5

Full review on my Movie Loot (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=2475113#post2475113)

Fabulous

07-26-24, 07:40 PM

Easy A (2010)

3

https://image.tmdb.org/t/p/original/30rvmoEBqovm723agDJ3QddWXcY.jpg

GulfportDoc

07-26-24, 08:36 PM

The Beekeeper (2024)

I can't recall many movies where if one sees the poster, that is the highlight of the production. This is one of them however. Trite story, dreadful casting. A Jason Statham walk through.

3/10

Gideon58

07-26-24, 10:45 PM

https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BM2RkODY4NzgtNTRjZC00NGRiLWJmMjEtMGU5MmM2ZTM3MDhlXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNDE0OTU3NDY@._V1_FMjpg_UX1000_.j pg

3.5

Galactic Traveler

07-26-24, 11:01 PM

Was feeling old-school today so watched one of my all-time favorites; the original Rocky. In my humble opinion it's one of the greatest films ever made. Definite top 10 material. But what really gets me about the film is the script. Probably one of the 10 best screenplays ever written. Sylvester Stallone knocked this screenplay out of the park. Not sure how long it took him to write it but it's a masterpiece.

5

https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BNTBkMjg2MjYtYTZjOS00ODQ0LTg0MDEtM2FiNmJmOGU1NGEwXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMjUzOTY1NTc@._V1_.jpg

PHOENIX74

07-26-24, 11:43 PM

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/8/84/Vampires_%281998%29_poster.jpg
Fair use, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=4738515

Vampires - (1998)

Vampires was better than I thought it was going to be, and by that I mean extremely average and uninspired apart from a slick opening with well-built tension and expertly filmed action. That opening promised a lot, and clued us in on the fact that this is very much a western posing as a horror film. The casting of James Woods was a boon for John Carpenter, along with Maximilian Schell, but when the next best in line is Daniel Baldwin it's obvious that the talent pool is extraordinarily shallow. Also, there's such a thin slice of story that those hoping to be engrossed by a compelling narrative will walk home disappointed and kind of irked. It's simply "We've found the original, head vampire who is hoping to conquer the world, lets find him and kill him before he becomes all-powerful" - that's the entire story. Fans of domestic abuse will be happy to see that in this film women are tied to beds naked and slapped so hard they lose consciousness - and that's the good guys doing that stuff! The scene at the beginning, as John "Jack" Crow (Woods) and his team clear out a ramshackle house infested with vampires, shows that Carpenter could really do a great job when on-song - it's a shame that the rest of the film feels almost half-hearted and hurried.

5/10

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/b/b3/L%27Enfant_film.jpg
By The poster art can or could be obtained from Sony Pictures Classics (USA)., Fair use, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=3105885

The Child (L'Enfant) - (2005)

When Bruno (Jérémie Renier) does the unthinkable to his and his partner's (Sonia - played by Déborah François) newborn baby he's hurled into a world of banishment where he has to finally grow up, and fast. This film was very much grounded by realism, and thus compelling in the extreme. Full review here (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?p=2473501#post2473501), in my watchlist thread.

9/10

https://i.postimg.cc/QdrWfCW4/play.jpg
Fair use, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=3105885

Playground - (2016)

Young Gabrysia (Michalina Swistun) prepares to tell her secret crush Szymek (Nicolas Przygoda) that she's in love with him, not knowing that Szymek and his best friend Czarek (Przemyslaw Balinski) are evil monsters about to commit the crime of the century. This was pretty shocking and really hard to watch - you have been warned. Full review here (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?p=2474313#post2474313), in my watchlist thread.

6/10

https://i.postimg.cc/3RrVM2dt/remake.jpg
Fair use, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=3105885

Remake, Remix, Rip-Off: About Copy Culture & Turkish Pop Cinema - (2016)

This was a fun documentary about Turkish cinema and how extremely low budgets are offset by stolen ideas, dialogue, scenes and music from Hollywood - transferred over and becoming weird and wonderful in the process. Full review here (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?p=2474635#post2474635), in my watchlist thread.

7/10

https://i.postimg.cc/fLjdd0CQ/ego.jpg
Fair use, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=3105885

Egomania : Island Without Hope - (1986)

Christoph Schlingensief, director of The German Chainsaw Massacre, brings us a melodrama here which is pretty much par for the course in it's insanity, arthouse sensibilities, and inclusion of Udo Kier, who dominates proceedings. It has no discernable narrative, except for slivers of character, motivation, good and evil. If you love going to your local theater and are artistically minded, this stands out as significant and extremely interesting. Udo Kier is a personal favourite of mine. Full review here (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?p=2474905#post2474905), in my watchlist thread.

8/10

Gideon58

07-27-24, 01:30 AM

https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/51BFEHK5yaL._AC_UF894,1000_QL80_.jpg

5th Rewatch...Right up there with Pretty Woman as his finest work as a director, Garry Marshall created the ultimate "chick flick" with this story of two girls, an aspiring star named CC Bloom and a pampered rich girl named Hillary Whitney who meet on an Atlantic City beach and eventually forge a lifelong friendship chronicled through career and romance highs and lows, including, at one point, their love for the same man. Bette Midler, who also produced the film, is provided the showcase of her career that allows her to demonstrate her endless abilities in all movie genres. Never get tired of that "Otto Titsling" number, though Barbara Hershey never allows herself to be blown off the screen in the less showy role of Hillary and though the film provides plenty of laughs, the final ten minutes are a soapy mess that will enrapture the viewer. This film had a little more substance than I remembered and Midler fans will be in heaven. This is also the film where Hershey introduced a little something to the world called botox. 4

Deschain

07-27-24, 02:17 AM

Deadpool and Wolverine. I can't believe they made a Disney movie about how much it sucks that Disney bought FOX. Incredible. What a picture.

Nausicaä

07-27-24, 02:37 AM

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/7/70/Wicked_Little_Letters_poster.jpg/220px-Wicked_Little_Letters_poster.jpg

3

SF = Z

Viewed: Netflix

Trailer:

https://youtube.com/watch?v=SeTeCWbF8KY&pp=ygUdd2lja2VkIGxpdHRsZSBsZXR0ZXJzIHRyYWlsZXI%3D

[Snooze Factor Ratings]:
Z = didn't nod off at all
Zz = nearly nodded off but managed to stay alert
Zzz = nodded off and missed some of the film but went back to watch what I missed
Zzzz = nodded off and missed some of the film but went back to watch what I missed but nodded off again at the same point and therefore needed to go back a number of times before I got through it...
Zzzzz = nodded off and missed some or the rest of the film but was not interested enough to go back over it

Gideon58

07-27-24, 04:55 AM

https://asuhornettribune.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/WSS-900x523.png

2nd Rewatch...I didn't think it could be done but Oscar winning director Steven Spielberg scored a bullseye with this impressive remake of the 1961 film version of the Broadway musical that premiered in 1957. This version finds Spielberg and screenwriter Tony Kushner returning all of the scenes and songs to their original places in the libretto. Spielberg has the sharks portrayed by actual Latino actors and the four leads actually do their own singing. Justin Peck does a respectable job with the choreography but it doesn't hold a candle to Jerome Robbins' dazzling original choreography. Rachel Zegler's film debut as Maria earned her a Golden Globe and Ansel Elgort is the best Tony I've ever seen. Love Mike Faist as Riff too, but the film is nearly stolen by Ariana DuBose, whose ferocious performance as Anita made her the first queer Latina to win the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress. 4.5

LChimp

07-27-24, 02:42 PM

https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/71lqDylcvGL._AC_UF894,1000_QL80_.jpg

Oppenheimer - (Christopher Nolan, 2023)

Nolan and I don't get along. 5/10

MovieGal

07-27-24, 04:57 PM

100053
Deadpool & Wolverine
(2024)
4/5

This was one hellva ride! Ryan is always perfect as Deadpool as Hugh Jackman is for Wolverine. Being, first, an X-men fan and second, a Marvel fan, I found it highly entertaining. There were exciting scenes and some that were emotional for me. There were things that made this complete. However, there was one minor factor I was not crazy about. And those who truly know me, would understand what I am referring too.

It is one of my top 3 films of this year, along with Abigail and Young Woman and the Sea.

100054
Blade
(1998)
3.75/5

This is still one of my favorite Marvel films.

Allaby

07-27-24, 05:13 PM

Baby Shark's Big Movie! (2023) Would you believe I was forced to watch this against my will? This was actually pretty good though. It's a musical, so maybe it will make the countdown. ;) It's cute and colourful and the songs were catchy. 3.5

I wasn't really forced to watch it. I decided to voluntarily.

GulfportDoc

07-27-24, 07:43 PM

Was feeling old-school today so watched one of my all-time favorites; the original Rocky. In my humble opinion it's one of the greatest films ever made. Definite top 10 material. But what really gets me about the film is the script. Probably one of the 10 best screenplays ever written. Sylvester Stallone knocked this screenplay out of the park. Not sure how long it took him to write it but it's a masterpiece.

rating_5
I agree that it's a very good film. They should have stopped with the first one.

SpelingError

07-27-24, 08:54 PM

Theresienstadt (1944) - 0.5

Well, this is it. I've finally found my first 0.5/5 rating (1/10 if you're reading this on IMDb), thus making this the single worst film I've ever seen.

Part of why I've yet to give out a rating this low is, no matter how strongly I may feel about an aspect of a film, I'm usually able to find value elsewhere, even if it comes down to something as simple as a couple decent actors or some passable camerawork. Which doesn't matter much in the grand scheme of everything I dislike, but I can't say I enjoyed nothing about those films. In order for a film to get a 0.5/5, I'd have to either find nothing of value which appeals to me to any degree or to feel that whatever I find value in to be so brief and insignificant, it's not even worth mentioning. I think this is the film.

Reading the synopsis, I certainly wasn't expecting this to be a good time, yet it still managed to exceed my low expectations. In all fairness though, this is far from the only film I've seen which contains some type of problematic content. Whether you're referring to racism, sexism, homophobia, etc., I've already seen my fair share. As repugnant as those films (or parts of them) may be though, it's not like they're solely their problematic content and nothing else. The first half of The Birth of a Nation is largely free of racism and its second half holds value as a historical document about the dangers of art. The icky romance in Forbidden Planet is just one sub‐plot of the film. All those films with blackface, exploitative child nudity, and unsimulated violence towards animals (or people) have far more to offer aside from those aspects. Even some other Nazi propaganda films I've seen (Olympia and Triumph of the Will) are interesting for various reasons. As for Theresienstadt, the problematic content is so overt and prolonged, it's literally all it depicts. Just 26 minutes of a narrator trying to convince you that Nazi death camps didn't exist. Truly the most morally bankrupt film I've ever seen.

Before I watched it, there were a few ideas I had in mind which could potentially mitigate or complicate the Nazi propaganda, but they all fell flat.

Knowing the director Kurt Gerron was killed shortly after the film was released, my first question was whether he backed the Nazis and willfully worked on the film or if he was coerced into directing it. Reading up on the film, I learned it was the latter. Gerron was of German Jewish descent and was ordered to create the film. After finishing it, he was deported to Auschwitz, where he was killed almost immediately. Ultimately, this knowledge didn't lessen my hatred of the film. In fact, I'd say it made me feel even worse. It's another unpleasant bit of info in an already deeply unpleasant film. Though yeah, none of my hatred for this film is directed at Kurt Gerron.

Given the motives for why the film was commissioned (to distribute it to neutral countries to counter Allied news reports about the persecution of Jews), I was also curious if this would be like The Birth of a Nation where it would hold value as a historical document on the dangers of art, but it didn't succeed in that way either. By the time the film was released, Germany's defeat was imminent, so the Germans were unable to distribute the film to anywhere of interest. There's no evidence to indicate the few people the film was screened to at the time of its release were moved by the footage. Afterwards, the film was considered lost for many years before less than a third of it was discovered in various archives (that's all that remains of it). In spite of that, it's still incredibly obscure and nearly impossible to track down. I only found it by searching a torrent site. Personally, I don't find this historical background interesting at all. Essentially, this is a failed propaganda film which fell into obscurity right away and has remained there ever since. Probably for the better.

Whether the movie would succeed as a technical feat was the last thing I thought about. I knew the cards would be stacked against it from the get-go since they'd go hand in hand with the Nazi propaganda, but I held out some curiosity anyway. All grossness aside, the photography/editing is very standard and almost nothing stands out. I suppose a few shots are well-framed here and there, but again, going hand in hand with the Nazi propaganda did them no favors. It was basically Nazi propaganda - more Nazi propaganda - more Nazi propaganda - well-framed shot of Nazi propaganda - more Nazi propaganda. This drove a firm wedge in between the technical elements and left me completely underwhelmed on that front.

After giving it some thought for a few weeks, I can honestly not think of a single aspect of this that even somewhat appealed to me. Although the film's shorter duration of 26 minutes compared to its initial 90-minute runtime may have been a plus, I can't even give it credit for that since the pacing didn't feel brisk. After ten minutes, I was already done with it. Simply said, a huge waste of time.

SpelingError

07-27-24, 08:54 PM

Robot Monster (1953, Phil Tucker) ‐ 2.5

Not my idea for "worst film ever" territory as I'd put it firmly in the B‐movie pile, but I did find it more joyless than I remembered. While Ro‐Man is the clear standout, the human characters are utterly bland by comparison. Even with my expectations lowered, they had little to no personality, were stuck in Ro‐Man's shadow, and frequently got in the way of what I liked about the film. The wedding sequence, for instance, felt particularly forced and came out of nowhere. Not sure why that was included. Ro‐Man (as well as the stop motion/disaster photography in the opening and ending) is where this film shines though. Yes, he's more cute than scary, but those are the film's B‐movie charms. Watching his actor struggle to move around in the suit while traversing the cliffs is amusing to watch, especially with the idea that he has to chase the human characters down. Fortunately for him, everyone either stands still instead of running away or trips and falls after a few steps. While his schtick began to overstay its welcome, particularly with the walking shots, Ro‐Man's arc in the final act saved the day since the film finally capitalized on the potential of his cuteness. They could've done more with it had they stretched the ending out further, but it still made for a pleasing slice of humanity which the rest of the film lacked. Also, while the twist ending doesn't fix the absurd plot points/character decisions, it at least mitigates my criticisms to a degree by providing a justification for them. Overall, while I liked this a bit less throughout this rewatch, I still wouldn't call it bad. You just need to approach it with the right expectations.

McConnaughay

07-27-24, 09:57 PM

Deadpool & Wolverine: 3.0 out of 5.0

If you want a longer review, I added it to my Review topic on the forum.

Marco

07-27-24, 10:43 PM

Eastern Promises (2007)
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/3/3b/Eastern_Promises_poster.png
For me this is David Cronenberg outside his usual sphere but he depicts an interesting story. It's essentially about the Russian mafia in London and the side effects of (rich) mobsters sex trafficking. The leads, Viggo Mortensen, Naomi Watts and Vincent Cassel all handle themselves very well. But the screenplay is a bit stilted in my view and somewhat predictable. A more flowing narrative would have enhanced the story. The editing is a bit all over the place and jumps from one situation to an entirely different one repeatedly. Nevertheless, an interesting watch.
3

Marco

07-27-24, 11:04 PM

I’ve seen a number of reviews that make the same criticisms that you do concerning The Bikeriders. I thought may be the reason for the lack of plot might be because it keeps too close to the source material.

I think you might be right there about the source material but, for me, it was grating. True or not. As I said, I'm probably not the target audience but on face value I thought it was a very average film.

Takoma11

07-27-24, 11:11 PM

Fabulous

07-28-24, 03:48 AM

Death Becomes Her (1992)

3

https://image.tmdb.org/t/p/original/1HN1VuIgb56m3TSFz77TGeg2HEB.jpg

FilmBuff

07-28-24, 11:16 AM

https://resizing.flixster.com/eKr45wCr5tP-5CZbcssny9UShWQ=/ems.ZW1zLXByZC1hc3NldHMvbW92aWVzLzcxMWY4NDcyLWE4OTMtNDE3MS04ZjVlLTNiNTdmOTM2MTQ0NS53ZWJw

A Fish in the Bathtub
2

Despite a pretty good cast, this one comes across as a bad Woody Allen imitation about a somewhat dysfunctional NYC family dealing with silly misunderstandings and frustrations.

Whatever you think about Allen in hindsight, at least most of his movies were genuinely funny (when they were trying to be, at least) and he hired some pretty good cinematographers.

This one isn't particularly funny - or insightful. Most of the scenes amount to little more than movie clichés - and it quickly grows tiresome.

Most unfortunately, the movie doesn't even know how to make the most of its Brooklyn and Queens locations.

chawhee

07-28-24, 11:51 AM

Barbie (2023)
https://thebeat1036.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/barbie-film-.jpg
4
No change in rating since the last time I saw it. Local park was playing this as an outdoor movie, so my daughter and I went to watch it. Some jokes definitely don't land in my eyes, but it's an overall great movie.

Mr Minio

07-28-24, 12:15 PM

Robot Monster (1953, Phil Tucker) ‐ 2.5 COME ON THE KINBAKU AND RAPE IN THE CAVE SCENES ARE LEGENDARY

SpelingError

07-28-24, 01:13 PM

COME ON THE KINBAKU AND RAPE IN THE CAVE SCENES ARE LEGENDARY

I was less impressed with the scene itself so much as the fact that it was occurring in the young boy's head. I don't know if I'd call it legendary, but the more I think about it, the creepier it gets.

LChimp

07-28-24, 01:43 PM

https://image.tmdb.org/t/p/original/4YK2XzO2knXfwj31VyFuhNxnHDp.jpg

Poker Face - (Russell Crowe, 2022)

Oh Mr. Crowe, you made me believe the poker game was actually relevant to the story. Silly me. 4/10

Allaby

07-28-24, 02:01 PM

A Fairy Tale After All (2022) Watched on Tubi. This has some flaws, but also some charm. I liked the puppets and the singing was nice. The costumes were pretty good. The biggest issue for me was that the lead actress felt miscast. She was clearly too old for the role and they should have cast someone younger. The story is alright, even though it is fairly formulaic and derivative. I did like the use of black and white and animation in some scenes. This is a bit of a mess, but I have seen worse. There are enough enjoyable elements here (especially the puppets) to overlook the flaws. Worth a look. 3

Allaby

07-28-24, 06:40 PM

Pumpkin Spiced Musical (2022) Watched on Tubi. A fun musical comedy about a struggling ad agency that comes up with the idea to market a pumpkin spice scented bra. This was laugh out loud funny. I enjoyed the performances and the songs. Recommended if you like musical comedies, pumpkin spice, and bras. 4

MovieGal

07-28-24, 07:06 PM

100069
The Wolverine
(2013)
3.5/5

Oh I had to watch this. Not just because of Hugh Jackman but I don't miss a chance when he and Hiroyuki Sanada are in a film together.

cat_sidhe

07-28-24, 07:18 PM

100069
The Wolverine
(2013)
3.5/5

Oh I had to watch this. Not just because of Hugh Jackman but I don't miss a chance when he and Hiroyuki Sanada are in a film together.

Haven't seen this but now I must because I am a recent convert to the works of Hiroyuki Sanada. Been watching some of his old films, some are kind of wild. 😅 I'm enjoying the journey so far.

MovieGal

07-28-24, 07:21 PM

Haven't seen this but now I must because I am a recent convert to the works of Hiroyuki Sanada. Been watching some of his old films, some are kind of wild. 😅 I'm enjoying the journey so far.

I'm trying to log in here on my firestick because someone was nice enough to find me one of his first films. I have seen a lot of his work over the years.

Mr Minio

07-28-24, 07:24 PM

I was less impressed with the scene itself so much as the fact that it was occurring in the young boy's head. I don't know if I'd call it legendary, but the more I think about it, the creepier it gets.
Kinky and crazy which makes it better

cat_sidhe

07-28-24, 07:39 PM

I'm trying to log in here on my firestick because someone was nice enough to find me one of his first films. I have seen a lot of his work over the years.

Which one? Was it perhaps Shogun's Ninja or Shogun's Assassin?

MovieGal

07-28-24, 07:42 PM

Which one? Was it perhaps Shogun's Ninja or Shogun's Assassin?

No I believe this is older and a hard to find film. It's from 2002.

cat_sidhe

07-28-24, 07:44 PM

No I believe this is older and a hard to find film. It's from 2002.

Oh I have that one if it's Twilight Samurai. I liked that one a lot.

Mr Minio

07-28-24, 07:50 PM

Oh I have that one if it's Twilight Samurai. I liked that one a lot.
Yamada after all

cat_sidhe

07-28-24, 07:55 PM

Haven't seen much of his.

Galactic Traveler

07-28-24, 08:31 PM

This was on the television today so I kicked back and watched it. Always had high opinions of this film and thought it was a good pick to win the Oscar for Best Picture in 1979, as well as Hoffman and Streep winning acting awards.

4

https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQ0c0g8zgB8FHAXTpmCPw_4hh3WqpgAMgZcZA&s

FilmBuff

07-28-24, 09:30 PM

https://pics.filmaffinity.com/eno-550076510-large.jpg

Eno.
5

Every so often, new technology comes along that completely revolutionizes the motion picture industry: sound, 3-strip Technicolor, 3D, anamorphic lenses, Cinerama, 70mm, IMAX film, etc.
The documentary Eno. is touted as being the first generative feature film ever to receive any kind of wide distribution, and it is entirely possible it may be a sign of things to come.
Could generative films someday replace conventional features? That will depend on whether or not there are adventurous filmmakers, distributors, and audiences that make it happen.

How does generative technology work in a feature film? The film uses proprietary generative software to select footage and edit the film so that a different version is shown each time it is screened. According to a NYT article, there are 52 quintillion possible versions.
The running time for each version of the documentary varies. The version that I watched ran a sleek 76 minutes, credits included; other versions reportedly can be as long as 100 minutes.
What stood out, aside from the content of the documentary itself, was the generative technology on display. Every so often, the screen would flash a quick series of text screens with info that was clearly not meant to be read with background electronic music. I believe I caught the name of the theater and the city where I watched it.

As for the documentary itself, well, it's an incredibly insightful look at the life of a musician whose life I admittedly didn't know a lot about - he's been a producer for artists like David Bowie, U2, Talking Heads, and many others.
His interest in generative technology started while trying it out to create music; from there, it probably wasn't a big stretch to imagine a generative narrative feature.

I'm not sure how many more versions of the documentary I may get a chance to watch, I would definitely not mind watching at least a couple more different versions (reviewers who have seen more than one say there's a lot of overlap, but also quite a few interesting surprises in each one).

I have no way of knowing if someday we might see generative movies from the studios, but certainly it would add a lot of appeal to franchises that are already popular - like Marvel, Pixar, Star Wars, Avatar, Jurassic Park, etc. People could try to "catch them all" and spot all of the differences.

If that day ever comes, you'll have to blame Brian Eno for it.

MovieGal

07-28-24, 10:04 PM

100072
The Twilight Samurai
(2002)
3.75/5

This was a very good film. It's just my type. If the novel it was based on, was on English, it would be the genre I read.

Takoma11

07-28-24, 10:06 PM

https://external-content.duckduckgo.com/iu/?u=https%3A%2F%2Ffilmdaze.net%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2019%2F01%2F500-days-summer-1200-1200-675-675-crop-000000.jpg&f=1&nofb=1&ipt=d1ab5a974417fff10c2020e1789444942b2c4672c4c35e31cdb551dace246939&ipo=images

500 Days of Summer, 2009

Tom (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) is blindsided when his girlfriend Summer (Zoey Deschanel) breaks up with him. Reeling from the sudden split, Tom looks back on their relationship while his friends try to support him in moving forward with his life.

Despite some really interesting ideas, this film can’t quite get its hands around following through with them.

3

FULL REVIEW (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=2475751#post2475751)

Fabulous

07-28-24, 11:43 PM

Bang the Drum Slowly (1973)

3.5

https://image.tmdb.org/t/p/original/pOzF9odMrXcniyOaMtlsp1uNwGU.jpg

Thief

07-29-24, 01:30 PM

PEARL
(2022, West)

https://i.imgur.com/SAjpJOF.jpeg

"It's not about what I want anymore, Mitsy. It's about making the best of what I have."

Pearl follows the titular character (Mia Goth) who was introduced as an old woman in the previous film. Here, we see a young Pearl at one of those crossroads. With dreams of being a movie star and escaping her abusive mother, she is determined to get what she wants. That is until her dreams hit the walls of rejection. That, and the fact that she is, well, a sociopath. All those factors push her into forgetting her dreams and making the best of what she has.

I thought X was a pretty good "slasher" with a bit more depth under the hood. Pearl is not that far from it as it builds on that duality between the title character and Maxine, both played by Goth. Both women have similar backgrounds, raised within abusive environments. Then comes the crossroad. In one key moment from the first film, Maxine defiantly says "I will not accept a life I do not deserve", which immediately puts her on a different path than Pearl, leading up to the third film (which I haven't seen yet).

Grade: 3.5

Full review on my Movie Loot (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=2475864#post2475864)

FilmBuff

07-29-24, 01:45 PM

https://de.web.img3.acsta.net/pictures/210/005/21000589_20130422203505869.jpg

Lenny Cooke
3.5

Didn't really know anything about Lenny Cooke before watching this arresting documentary from the Safdie brothers - and came away thinking this is one of the best sports-related documentaries of the last 20 years.

If you know who he is, you already know what happened to him. If you don't - let's just say he was a very promising young athlete who was massively let down by the powers-that-be at Big Basketball and ended up living a very modest life, away from professional sports.

This is a great reminder that professional sports don't necessarily give young athletes the opportunities they may deserve, for whatever reason, and not everyone who is a promising young athlete will ever get a chance to fulfill their dreams.

Stirchley

07-29-24, 02:00 PM

PEARL
(2022, West)

https://i.imgur.com/SAjpJOF.jpeg

Pearl follows the titular character (Mia Goth) who was introduced as an old woman in the previous film. Here, we see a young Pearl at one of those crossroads. With dreams of being a movie star and escaping her abusive mother, she is determined to get what she wants. That is until her dreams hit the walls of rejection. That, and the fact that she is, well, a sociopath. All those factors push her into forgetting her dreams and making the best of what she has.

I thought X was a pretty good "slasher" with a bit more depth under the hood. Pearl is not that far from it as it builds on that duality between the title character and Maxine, both played by Goth. Both women have similar backgrounds, raised within abusive environments. Then comes the crossroad. In one key moment from the first film, Maxine defiantly says "I will not accept a life I do not deserve", which immediately puts her on a different path than Pearl, leading up to the third film (which I haven't seen yet).

Grade: 3.5

Full review on my Movie Loot (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=2475864#post2475864)

Love both movies & looking forward to Maxxxine.

FilmBuff

07-29-24, 02:01 PM

MAXXXINE is the best of the trilogy :D

Gideon58

07-29-24, 02:31 PM

https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BZjc4MDc0M2QtMDQzNi00YjAyLThjZDEtNTdlMjZiYTVmYTUzXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMTUzMDUzNTI3._V1_.jpg

Umpteenth Rewatch...This 1977 Best Picture nominee is one of the few comedies that the late Neil Simon wrote directly for the screen. Marsha Mason plays Paula McFadden, a divorcee with a ten year old daughter who is deserted by her actor boyfriend when he gets an acting job in Italy. Unbeknownst to Paula, the scummy boyfriend sublet the apartment to an actor named Elliott Garfield (Richard Dreyfuss) and, well, you can probably guess what happens. The screenplay contains the usual Simon zingers and the chemistry between Mason and Dreyfuss cannot be denied. Dreyfuss blindsided Richard Burton and won the Oscar for Best Actor and Mason received one of her four career Best Actress nominations. Quinn Cummings also received a Best supporting Actress for her cute performance as Paula's daughter, Lucy. It's a little on the predictable side, but the actors are so engaging you really don't care and, if memory serves, this is the only Neil Simon comedy to receive a Best Picture nomination. 4

Gideon58

07-29-24, 02:37 PM

https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BYzdiOTVjZmQtNjAyNy00YjA2LTk5ZTAtNmJkMGQ5N2RmNjUxXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMjUzOTY1NTc@._V1_.jpg

3rd Rewatch...Director Rob Reiner scored a direct bullseye with this big budget fairy tale of swordplay and sorcery centered on the star-crossed romance between Princess Buttercup (Robin Wright) and the farm boy Westley (Cary Elwes). Love the framing device in which the story is presented, a granddad (the late Peter Falk) reading a story to his sick grandson (Fred Savage). Reiner has employed flawless production values and a perfect cast to tell this story with some particularly memorable turns from Wallace Shawn, Chris Sarandon, Mandy Patinkin, Christopher Guest, Billy Crystal, Carol Kane, Peter Cook, and even Andre the Giant! This film hasn't aged a bit since 1987. 4.5

Gideon58

07-29-24, 04:25 PM

https://m.media-amazon.com/images/S/pv-target-images/84c8a5ed44691d0c3878abcf5d79d3413880c5ca05065395c08175155973fc60.png

3.5

Thief

07-29-24, 11:35 PM

HÔTEL ÉLECTRIQUE
(1908, De Chomón)

https://i.imgur.com/IP4h0mJ.jpg

"I like to stay in a hotel where it's a dome of silence. I can sit in my room and do nothing."
--Jim Gaffigan

Imagine staying in a hotel room where you actually can do nothing; just sit back and relax. Pioneering filmmaker Segundo de Chomón gives you a glimpse of that in this early silent film where the hotel itself does everything for you. Hôtel Électrique follows a couple staying at the hotel, while different objects do everything for you. From storing your luggage and polishing shoes to brushing your hair.

Grade: 3

Full review on my Movie Loot (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=2475997#post2475997)

Fabulous

07-30-24, 04:24 AM

The Housemaid (1960)

3.5

https://image.tmdb.org/t/p/original/5NfLEeakUxT0JcU9Q830niu2w8e.jpg

exiler96

07-30-24, 08:19 AM

The Lost Weekend (1945) - I'd be satisfied enough if a movie from mid-forties drawing attention to alcoholism had ended up being as just not-preachy; but give it to (arguably) the finest screenwriter/director of the classical Hollywood to make a harrowing piece that actually engages the modern seen-it-all viewer. He gets to the bottom of why Don drinks and elevates what is an essentially "message movie" to an unforgettable character study; one through which we can see simply change the addiction and see ourselves within.
This wisdom of craft and empathy I believe, is the major reason as to why Wilder's films hold up so well decades after they're made. Same goes for aging in Sunset Blvd., loneliness in The Apartment and even sex-work in Irma La Douce... This is his most aching film though.

Also must single-out Ray Milland's great performance and Miklós Rózsa's influential score. 8+ out of 10...

https://theblondeatthefilm.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/lost-weekend-milland-glass.jpg?w=429&h=321

chawhee

07-30-24, 09:54 AM

Glass (2019)
https://film-book.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/glass-movie-poster-01-600x350.png
3
A rewatch, and my thoughts are about the same. Relatively good storytelling until the final 30 minutes or so when the plot tries to twist itself into more knots and gimmicks. Split was easily my favorite of this trilogy.

Allaby

07-30-24, 02:42 PM

Next Level (2019) I only watched this so I could add it to my list of movies I should be embarrassed about watching, but am not. I ended up having fun with this. It is cute and charming and the cast is very likeable. The dancing is pretty good too and I liked the costumes. 4

Thief

07-30-24, 04:52 PM

LE THÉÂTRE DE BOB
(1906, De Chomón)

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

"I'm bored..."
--My kids

That seems to be the sentiment of the three kids depicted in this classic short. Yet another one directed by Segundo de Chomón, Le Théâtre de Bob, or Miniature Theatre, features three kids that put up a miniature show in their room. The short then turns in another impressive showcase of stop-motion animation.

Grade: 3.5

Full review on my Movie Loot (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=2476131#post2476131)

Fabulous

07-30-24, 07:11 PM

Shanghai Express (1932)

3.5

https://image.tmdb.org/t/p/original/yW9OHnJKeHzo7OP1t8E1hvyInmt.jpg

Marco

07-30-24, 07:49 PM

GulfportDoc

07-30-24, 07:55 PM

The Lost Weekend (1945) - I'd be satisfied enough if a movie from mid-forties drawing attention to alcoholism had ended up being as just not-preachy; but give it to (arguably) the finest screenwriter/director of the classical Hollywood to make a harrowing piece that actually engages the modern seen-it-all viewer. He gets to the bottom of why Don drinks and elevates what is an essentially "message movie" to an unforgettable character study; one through which we can see simply change the addiction and see ourselves within.
This wisdom of craft and empathy I believe, is the major reason as to why Wilder's films hold up so well decades after they're made. Same goes for aging in Sunset Blvd., loneliness in The Apartment and even sex-work in Irma La Douce... This is his most aching film though.

Also must single-out Ray Milland's great performance and Miklós Rózsa's influential score. 8+ out of 10...
Good points. As you probably know, Billy Wilder claimed that he wanted the picture to explain Raymond Chandler to himself. He had just gotten finished working with Chandler on Double Indemnity. Wilder said that experience drew him to The Lost Weekend story.

exiler96

07-30-24, 08:21 PM

Good points. As you probably know, Billy Wilder claimed that he wanted the picture to explain Raymond Chandler to himself. He had just gotten finished working with Chandler on Double Indemnity. Wilder said that experience drew him to The Lost Weekend story.I had no idea. Fascinating stuff...

FilmBuff

07-30-24, 08:31 PM

https://sportshub.cbsistatic.com/i/2024/06/10/e4144cf0-43de-4c30-9813-68f514add7b7/deadpool-wolverine-screenx-poster.jpg?auto=webp&width=1944&height=2880&crop=0.675:1,smart

Deadpool & Wolverine (ScreenX)
5

D&W makes surprisingly good use of the ScreenX process, adding side views to almost every major action scene in the movie.

If you want to get an idea of what the movie looks like in ScreenX, here's a short trailer:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G8wtoGolbEY

This definitely feels like one of the most immersive ways to enjoy the movie, letting you see beyond the edge of the regular camera edge in the scenes that are the most packed with visual information.

Raven73

07-31-24, 10:07 AM

Deadpool & Wolverine
7/10.
Despite the movie's message, there's not much of substance here - mostly hype, one-liner jokes, cameos and that's about it. Some good action sequences.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/4/4c/Deadpool_%26_Wolverine_poster.jpg/220px-Deadpool_%26_Wolverine_poster.jpg

MovieGal

07-31-24, 10:18 AM

chawhee

07-31-24, 10:26 AM

Deadpool and Wolverine (2024)
https://www.nme.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/deadpool-and-wolverine-trailer.jpg
4
Not much to say that others haven't already...its good, but not as good as the first Deadpool movie in my book.

Thief

07-31-24, 11:36 AM

LA SIRÈNE
(1904, Méliès)

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

"The Mermaid is proof positive that sometimes wonderful things come in tiny packages."

The short features a gentleman (played by Méliès) going through various steps to prepare and fill a fish tank. After various tricks, the camera closes in on the fish tank where a mermaid now lies. Méliès then keeps building on top of it adding more and more things. "Wonderful things" I might say, in a "tiny package" of 4 minutes.

Grade: 3

Full review on my Movie Loot (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=2476285#post2476285)

Allaby

07-31-24, 12:02 PM

Standing Ovation (2010) I only watched this so I could add it to my list of movies I should be embarrassed to watch, but am not. This was quite something. It's like an unhinged version of Pitch Perfect starring 12 year old girls with weird characters and random subplots. The acting and writing aren't exactly what you would call good, but it is entertaining and I had fun with it. It has a strange charm, cuteness and humour to it that works in spite of (or maybe because of) its flaws. 3.5

Thief

07-31-24, 12:08 PM

LE DIABLE AU COUVENT
(1899, Méliès)

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

"And no wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light."
--2 Corinthians 11:14

With the above Bible quote, Paul was warning the people of Corinth of the many ways that the devil can hide amongst us. That premise is part of what kickstarts this thrilling short from George Méliès. The Devil in a Convent starts with a priest addressing a group of nuns only to reveal he is a devil or trickster, and follows what ensues afterwards.

Grade: 4

Full review on my Movie Loot (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=2476294#post2476294)

Gideon58

07-31-24, 01:16 PM

https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/8140lnZT12L._AC_UF350,350_QL50_.jpg

2nd Rewatch...Tina Fey and Amy Poehler proved to be a formidable onscreen acting team who rise above the mediocrity of their material here. Tina plays a 37 year old unmarried executive who wants a baby more than anything else in the world, but she has reproductive issues that have prevented her from having one up to this point. She decides that surrogacy is the way to go and pays a surrogacy agency $100,000 to find her a surrogate, who shows up in the form of a vivacious, uneducated aging hippie (Poehler) and her common law husband (Dax Shepherd). The screenplay definitely could have been tightened a bit...it takes a little too long at the beginning to establish Fey's desire to have a baby and the inability to do so and then throws a wicked left curve at the 2/3 point before the end. Greg Kinnear makes the most of an underwritten role as a divorced former attorney who now owns a smoothie restaurant who initiates a relationship with Fey. Steve Martin also garners some major laughs as Fay's latest client as does Sigourney Weaver as the fertile head of the surrogacy agency, but it just goes on a lot longer than necessary, though it is vastly superior to Fey and Poehler's next teaming in Sisters. 3.5

Gideon58

07-31-24, 01:24 PM

https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/81sNMBKntYL._AC_UF894,1000_QL80_.jpg

Umpteenth Rewatch...Francis Ford Coppola directed this often moving film version of the best selling novel by SE Hinton that I first read when I was in high school. And that's the number one appeal of this movie. I have never seen a book reproduced onscreen with such pinpoint accuracy. The care that Coppola put into lifting the pages of the book off the page and onto the screen is extraordinary in bringing the story of two warring gangs in 1950's Oklahoma to the screen...sort of West Side Story without the music. The 1983 film also features several future stars a the beginning of their careers, including Patrick Swayze, Rob Lowe, Tom Cruise, Emilio Estevez, Matt Dillon, Diane Lane, C Thomas Howell, though the film is almost stolen by Ralph Macchio as the physically and emotionally wounded Johnny Cade. This reviewer has found endless rewatch appeal in this drama. and though I mentioned West Side Story, this story was turned into a Broadway musical last year which I believe is still running. 3.5

Marco

07-31-24, 01:25 PM

The Klansman (1974)
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/a/aa/The_Klansman_poster.jpg
I watched this as I'd heard some differing views and rather than flogging a dead horse it's like watching a 2 legged sheep trying to get up a hill. The story itself isn't too bad and veers into exploitation territory when a Sherriff and landowner *kind of* support the Civil Rights movement leading up to a heinous race propagated rape (hence the exploitation angle). Richard Burton is clearly sauced up and, while you have seen some actors pi$$ed deliver decent performances (Oliver Reed for instance)...he just looks so sad and forlorn and is obviously tanked up and fighting personal demons. I read most of his scenes were filmed sitting down due to his state and the rare ones he is mobile he looks all over the shop. Sad
1.5

Gideon58

07-31-24, 01:34 PM

https://www.originalposter.co.uk/uploads/529339015483856_mainphotos.jpg

3rd Rewatch...This slick, but terribly predictable legal drama stars Glenn Close as Teddy Barnes, a divorced, corporate attorney with two kids, who gave up criminal law many years ago who is persuaded to defend Jack Forrester (Jeff Bridges), a publishing magnate who has been accused of murdering his wife and maid. As much as I love Close and Bridges. this movie insults viewer intelligence from jump because it simultaneously spells out everything for us that there's no way for us to believe it. There is no doubt from the second the Jack Forrester character appears on the screen that the man is guilty and the fact that Teddy is fooled into believing he's innocent because he romances her makes her character, and everybody else in the film for that matter, look like an idiot. There's just no suspense here, though for serious fans of Close and Bridges, it is definitely worth a look. Robert Loggia's performance as Close's detective earned him a supporting actor Oscar nomination. 2.5

MovieGal

07-31-24, 03:26 PM

100132
She Will
(2022)
3.5/5

It was a decent movie. Had a bit of 70s feel, visually and in the aspect of background music.

Marco

07-31-24, 03:42 PM

Daddio (2023)
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/3/35/Daddio_poster.jpg
An interesting film about wrong choices. Sean Penn plays a world weary cab driver that picks up an Airplane fare with a young lady (Dakota Johnson) and they start to connect via their present and past situations. The acting is first class and it's not as schmaltzy as you may think.
3.5

Stirchley

07-31-24, 03:54 PM

Gideon58

07-31-24, 03:55 PM

https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BZjhmZThmMzUtNDNlMi00YWRhLTg2NzMtMWFiNjBkYTM5MjkwXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNjc0MzMzNjA@._V1_.jpg

3.5

MovieGal

07-31-24, 06:07 PM

100137
Freaks
(2018)
3.5/5

Going into without any knowledge that it was a sci-fi, you could think this was about mental illness.

Fabulous

07-31-24, 06:57 PM

The American Friend (1977)

3.5

https://image.tmdb.org/t/p/original/h59F8NcFSlucTK7fUcndD9TB9jg.jpg

Galactic Traveler

07-31-24, 11:35 PM

Went old school (VERY old school) and watched this gem again. Love it each time I view it.

4.5

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/9/97/Metropolis_%28German_three-sheet_poster%29.jpg/140px-Metropolis_%28German_three-sheet_poster%29.jpg

Deschain

08-01-24, 03:07 AM

Dinner in America. A drug dealing firebug hides from the police with a socially awkward girl and her family.

What a weird wonderful movie.

100140
Look at these sweeties.

Fabulous

08-01-24, 05:45 AM

Black Orpheus (1959)

3.5

https://image.tmdb.org/t/p/original/mXHZJu6wmmNIhbidSMp24PQ3WNw.jpg

Raven73

08-01-24, 08:59 AM

Weird: The Al Yankovic story
Any relation to reality is purely coincidental. They could have called this "Absurd".
6/10.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BOWRiNmI1OTItYjc0Zi00YTYwLWI4OTEtMmE0YTNlODJkOTQwXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMDM2NDM2MQ@@._V1_.jpg

Thief

08-01-24, 02:25 PM

ULTRAMAN: RISING
(2024, Tindle)

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

"Being Ultraman isn’t about fighting. It’s about heart. Using your power to bring balance."

Ultraman: Rising follows Ken Sato, a star baseball player who has to reluctantly take over the role of Ultraman from his estranged father, Professor Sato. But, as luck may have it, he ends up taking care of a baby kaiju, that hatched from one of the creatures he fought. Meanwhile, Dr. Onda, the leader of the Kaiju Defense Force is determined to stop both the kaijus and Ultraman.

Regardless of its moral attempts, the film is a lot of fun. There are some pretty cool action setpieces, the characters are well constructed, and the animation is superb. I think that some of the plot threads it lays down could've been executed better; like Ken's relationship with his father, or the parallels that the film tries to draw between Ken's role as Ultraman and his career as a baseball player.

Grade: 3.5

Full review on my Movie Loot (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=2476575#post2476575)

WHITBISSELL!

08-01-24, 03:33 PM

Dinner in America. A drug dealing firebug hides from the police with a socially awkward girl and her family.

What a weird wonderful movie.

https://www.movieforums.com/community/attachment.php?attachmentid=100140
Look at these sweeties.I just checked out the trailer and I truly need to watch this. But it's on Hulu, which I don't have. :( I'll find it though.

Nausicaä

08-01-24, 07:59 PM

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/3/3d/Next_goal_wins_2023.png/220px-Next_goal_wins_2023.png

3

SF = Z

Viewed: Blu ray

https://i.giphy.com/media/v1.Y2lkPTc5MGI3NjExczcxbmlqMnQxazMxdmxjcnJxMHQ1OHJnZHlkb3VvN2tnOWxubHNxOCZlcD12MV9pbnRlcm5hbF9naWZfY nlfaWQmY3Q9Zw/Dk7nexfMZS5zB2dnAN/giphy.gif

[Snooze Factor Ratings]:
Z = didn't nod off at all
Zz = nearly nodded off but managed to stay alert
Zzz = nodded off and missed some of the film but went back to watch what I missed
Zzzz = nodded off and missed some of the film but went back to watch what I missed but nodded off again at the same point and therefore needed to go back a number of times before I got through it...
Zzzzz = nodded off and missed some or the rest of the film but was not interested enough to go back over it

FilmBuff

08-01-24, 10:42 PM

https://www.vitalthrills.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/trapposter.jpg.webp

Trap
0

The only trap in Shymalan's new movie is the one he's laid out on unsuspecting ticket buyers who might be expecting a halfway decent movie.

If the premise as laid out in the movie's trailer already seemed pretty dumb (and absurd), oooooh boy, you ain't seen nothing yet.

This movie ravages any sense of logic or common sense the way a bulldozer would pummel a sand castle.

The best one can say for the movie is that it's nice to see Hayley Mills is still active, even if she's wasted in one of the most thankless roles ever offered to an elderly screen legend.

As for the nepo element in the movie... it's a shame that Shymalan has recruited his own daughter for a film debut as embarrassing as this. It is really one of the cruelest things any show business father has ever done to one of his own kids.

Thief

08-02-24, 11:49 AM

THE HUNTED
(2003, Friedkin)

https://i.imgur.com/7FiAkYF.png

"Once you are able to kill mentally, the physical part will be easy. The difficult part... is learning how to turn it off."

The Hunted follows a soldier struggling with this: Sergeant Aaron Hallam (Benicio del Toro), a highly skilled Delta Force soldier that has gone rogue as he is burdened by the guilt from all the atrocities he has done and witnessed. Tasked with tracking him down is L.T. Bonham (Tommy Lee Jones), a retired Special Forces instructor that was in charge of training Hallam, and therefore feels responsible for what he's doing.

Director William Friedkin doesn't really waste a lot of time. After a brief prologue showing us what Hallam experienced in the Kosovo War, he drops us right in the middle of his search. Most of the film consists of this cat-and-mouse between both Hallam and Bonham. Coming 10 years after The Fugitive, it's interesting to see how Jones approaches his character. This is not the confident Samuel Gerard. Bonham is soft-spoken, determined but still hesitant at times. On the same note, Hallam is not Kimble. Although we might empathize with his struggle, his actions push him farther from us.

Grade: 3.5

Full review on my Movie Loot (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=2476709#post2476709)

Stirchley

08-02-24, 12:40 PM

Dinner in America. A drug dealing firebug hides from the police with a socially awkward girl and her family.

What a weird wonderful movie.

100140
Look at these sweeties.

Never heard of this, but it’s in my watchlist now.

Gideon58

08-02-24, 12:53 PM

https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BNWY1MDJkZGUtZTE2OS00ODZiLTlmNzQtMDZjNzM2ZjkwM2QxXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMTMxODk2OTU@._V1_FMjpg_UX1000_.j pg

6th Rewatch...The perfect American romantic comedy. Period. 5

Gideon58

08-02-24, 12:59 PM

https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMTQxMzgwNDIyNF5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTgwNjQ4OTI1MDE@._V1_.jpg

Umpteenth Rewatch...One of three Oscar worthy performances from Sidney Poitier in 1967, none of which earned him even a nomination. Poitier plays an engineering school graduate who can't work as an engineer so he accepts a job teaching in London's lower East End, teaching a bunch unruly delinquents. One of those films I just never get tired of rewatching. 4.5

Gideon58

08-02-24, 01:04 PM

https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/91NF1vtXqvL._AC_UF894,1000_QL80_.jpg

2nd Rewatch...The star and director of Scarface reunited a decade later for this sweeping and explosive mob tale, told on a darker and more realistic scale than Scarface, but just as entertaining. Sean Penn's smarmy David Kleinfeld should have earned him an Oscar nomination. 4.5

Gideon58

08-02-24, 01:09 PM

https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSSW7Z4oign-APG9HibY_Kq7DNk_ZSSyNSvLw&s

1st Rewatch...Another example of a great idea on paper that just didn't work in the translation to the screen. On the positive side, the production values are extraordinary and there has never been a better marriage of actor and character than John Goodman and Fred Flintstone, but the silly screenplay completely ignores the rich history of these iconic cartoon characters and creates a story where Fred and Barney behave completely out of character and all the work in the look of the film is a waste. Rosie O'Donnell does nail the Betty Rubble giggle though. Sadly, this was also the final feature film appearance of the legendary Elizabeth Taylor.

Allaby

08-02-24, 01:23 PM

Trap (2024) Josh Hartnett is good here and the rest of the cast are effective in their roles. For the most part, this is a suspenseful and entertaining thriller. There are a few decisions along the way that seem questionable and some strain believability. Late in the film, it started to feel like they didn't know how to end it, but I still enjoyed the journey. 3.5

Stirchley

08-02-24, 01:25 PM

Marco

08-02-24, 01:32 PM

MaXXXine (2024)
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/0/06/MaXXXine_%28poster%29.jpg
Decent enough bit of fluff (I've seen X) with the titular character trying to move into mainstream cinema via a slasher series. She is being mysteriously tracked for her "crimes" in the other film by a sleazy Kevin Bacon who is quite good as a PI. I liked the way the era was captured and some dialogue is sharp "I don't wanna be Marilyn Chambers I wanna be Brook Shields" - "Brook Shields doesn't do porn". The music is good but the whole thing is a flimsy homage and ends up being more like Anthony Perkins in Crimes of Passion - ridiculously hammy.
2

Marco

08-02-24, 01:39 PM

He popped up in season 3 of the Bear & it was good to see him. Don’t think I have seen him in anything since Blackhawk Down.

He was good in "Target Number One" I thought (aka Most Wanted).

GulfportDoc

08-02-24, 08:51 PM

[Carlito's Way]
2nd Rewatch...The star and director of Scarface reunited a decade later for this sweeping and explosively mob tale, told on a darker and more realistic scale than Scarface, but just as entertaining. Sean Penn's smarmy David Kleinfeld should have earned him an Oscar nomination. rating_4_5
I really enjoyed the picture, especially the long take scene in Grand Central Station. In fact it's a bit of a mostly neo-noir classic. Pacino's Carlito did conjure up Scarface's Tony Montana a bit. I didn't care for the ending. It felt forced. But what a crew!

Fabulous

08-02-24, 10:56 PM

Blade (1998)

3.5

https://image.tmdb.org/t/p/original/zDsqKyRDJ7MHpC9gSbphL7n38E1.jpg

Nausicaä

08-03-24, 03:04 AM

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/d/dc/Love_lies_bleeding_poster.jpg/220px-Love_lies_bleeding_poster.jpg

3.5

SF = Zz

Viewed: Blu ray

[Snooze Factor Ratings]:
Z = didn't nod off at all
Zz = nearly nodded off but managed to stay alert
Zzz = nodded off and missed some of the film but went back to watch what I missed
Zzzz = nodded off and missed some of the film but went back to watch what I missed but nodded off again at the same point and therefore needed to go back a number of times before I got through it...
Zzzzz = nodded off and missed some or the rest of the film but was not interested enough to go back over it

exiler96

08-03-24, 05:21 AM

A John Carpenter double-feature...

https://reverseshot.org/uploads/entries/images/escape2-590x308.jpg

Escape from New York (1981) - Re-watched after years; which proved how my first encounter (on a tiny monitor) didn't do it any justice, as its visually and tonally best to be experienced on the biggest screen possible... and I loved it. Wouldn't have my 1999 big apple in a doomed alternative universe any other way than cabby Ernest Borgnine driving a quiet Kurt Russel, Adrienne Barbeau and Harry Dean Stanton around.

https://cultspark.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/Prince-of-Darkness.jpg

Prince of Darkness (1987) - Remains one of the most unique depictions of devil in the genre that I've seen. It's a crime that it's not more beloved - or even seen.

8-9/10 for both... Inject that 80s synth into my veins, dammit.

Fabulous

08-03-24, 09:02 AM

Turner & Hooch (1989)

3

https://image.tmdb.org/t/p/original/lsX1PJjB65Rmn4We3ydEMMpL8S3.jpg

Robert the List

08-03-24, 09:50 AM

Le Cousin Jules 10/10
Wow.
It's interesting that this is described by critics as a documentary.
There is one major development in the film, which I had assumed was scripted, but it appears this is not the case.
Another film I have seen described as documentary is Piavoli's Voices Through Time. That one to me clearly isn't a documentary, because there is significant choreographing of the main players, with at least some of the scenes set up. It is also structured to depict a narrative in the form of the journey through life.
With Cousin Jules, at least one scene is choreographed/directed, although in others I don't get the impression that the actor(s) is/are under specific directions.
The atmosphere and pacing is so similar to that of Nuri Bilge Ceylan and Ming-liang Tsai, albeit their films are clearly works of fiction.
I am undecided whether I would classify LCJ as a documentary. If I don't then it would be in my top 20 movies I think.
Regardless, it is a beautiful film both visually (very Antonioni influenced) and atmospherically.
Mr Minio, would you call it a documentary? Thank you by the way for introducing me to this masterpiece.

Robert the List

08-03-24, 09:55 AM

The film was apparently 'lost' for 40 years by the way, although I wonder whether Robert Bresson had seen it, as the shots of the doors and windows are very similar to some of Bresson's in the final scenes of L'Argent.

Mr Minio

08-03-24, 10:21 AM

Here's a secret: Any documentary save for some Direct Cinema works is "staged".

Robert the List

08-03-24, 11:02 AM

Jules window
100187

L'Argent window
100188

Jules door
100192

L'Argent door
100190

Gideon58

08-03-24, 11:08 AM

*Sky*

08-03-24, 02:24 PM

Oppenheimer (2023) - Christopher Nolan: 5/10

pahaK

08-03-24, 02:35 PM

Prince of Darkness (1987) - Remains one of the most unique depictions of devil in the genre that I've seen. It's a crime that it's not more beloved - or even seen.

Prince of Darkness is my 2nd favorite Carpenter film (the #1 is obviously The Thing). It truly is underrated.

Allaby

08-03-24, 06:09 PM

Like an American Idol/A Music Story (2019) Watched on Tubi. A Swedish musical about a girl who wants to compete in a musical talent competition. This only has 26 votes on imdb and only one other person logged it on Letterboxd, so it is definitely a hidden gem. I thought the girl in this was wonderful and I loved her singing. 4

MovieGal

08-03-24, 06:59 PM

100200
Portret v Sumerkakh
(2011)
3.75/5

A Social Worker's life changes are being raped by three policemen, who mistakenly takes her to be a prostitute.

I seen this long ago and found it on DVD. Thankfully, I invested into a non-region dvd player.

MovieGal

08-03-24, 07:09 PM

100201
Losharik
(1971)
4/5

A young circus juggler dreams of being an big cat tamer. With the help of his juggling balls, his dream comes true.

This is one of my favorite film shorts.

I found this short film many years ago.

Marco

08-03-24, 09:12 PM

Confessions of a Pop Performer (1975)
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/f/fc/%22Confessions_of_a_Pop_Performer%22_%281975%29.jpg
Again, the hapless Tim Lea get's himself into all sorts of pickles, this time as an aspiring pop
star...this is funny to me and I don't mind a bit of bawdiness. The comedy is hit and miss and certainly of it's age (but not rude). I like the "Confessions" series as they don't take themselves too seriously and are genuinely funny. The nudity is basic in this one (bums and boobs) but always in a light hearted way. Like a slice of Britain in the 70s it's nostalgic (and always funny to see folk in these that went on to become serious "aaactors daahling".
3.5

*Sky*

08-03-24, 11:42 PM

Barbie (2023) - Greta Gerwig: 6/10

Torgo

08-04-24, 11:58 AM

Dream Scenario - 4

I don't think I've seen a high-concept oddity like this one that I haven't loved. That especially applies to ones starring Nicolas Cage. This one captures the perils of viral fame and cancel culture in delightfully odd and funny ways. With no disrespect to the movie’s unique concept of "viral dream cameos," its parallels and likely inspirations are obvious, including Cage's own Adaptation. However, the one I thought about the most is not a movie, but a TV episode: South Park's "You Have 0 Friends." In it, Stan's online identity overshadows his real one and gets out of his control. As Cage's professor Paul Matthew's grasp of his dream identity gets looser, the resulting laughs and drama escalate in the best way. His less than successful attempts at capitalizing on his fame, including one involving an, umm...X-rated dream are the highlights for the former. His not so funny alienation from his wife, children, friends and students is not so funny, but Cage - who is in his element - is able to shift gears accordingly. Speaking of gear shifts, the final act does this in a way that makes things get even stranger, believe it or not. In short, imagine a Black Mirror episode on acid. While some have docked points from the movie because of this shift, I found it to be more feature than bug. It's a natural progression down the movie's rabbit hole.

If simply reading the phrase "cancel culture" makes you want to bang your head on your desk, you should see this movie anyway. It successfully proves that whether the Paul Matthews at issue here did anything or not, the punishment rarely, if ever, fits the crime. This recommendation also applies if the name "Nicolas Cage" makes you react similarly. Has his track record been perfect now that he's out of the doldrums of his career? No, but this is up there with Pig as one of the highlights in this stage of it. Oh, and his hairstyle in this one is not too shabby, either.

Fabulous

08-04-24, 05:44 PM

The Sons of Katie Elder (1965)

3.5

https://image.tmdb.org/t/p/original/u9Yrx1ZYMSvtujeCRlLbNON8hR2.jpg

Allaby

08-04-24, 07:08 PM

Island of Lost Girls (2022) Watched on Tubi. A family adventure made by a family. Directed by Ann-Marie and Brian Schmidt and starring their three daughters, Autumn, Avila , and Scarlet. Three orphaned sisters find themselves in a dangerous predicament when they are stranded at sea. I thought this was really well done. The story is engaging and I cared about the girls and was invested in their journey. The three girls are fantastic and do their own stunts, which is quite impressive considering their age and how difficult some of the stunts looked. The cinematography is also quite good. Definitely worth checking out. 4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DnMIdRlsNm4

exiler96

08-04-24, 07:40 PM

Moonlighting (1982) - It sort of just ends without explanation, and the score isn't exactly proper (Hans Zimmer in his debut!)...but otherwise, it's a surprisingly moving, (sort of) minimalistic film about being left alone - and behind, from your wife, your country and any real sense of stability... in an unfriendly England.

When Jeremy Irons said "What a camera likes are eyes which have life and tell a story" he meant himself here too. It's smart to have him speak Polish, and english only for us in his head...he has a small world (work & watch your crew work, leave to shoplift, checkout the girl and back to your bed, and your memories) but every detail he enteracts with is special, and he uses all of those opportunities, every close-up.. In an instance the cap of his pen falls down and he picks it up while you can feel the weight of his other thoughts/concerns on his mind. He makes that moment interesting...may be one of his most different roles, and definitely one of the best performances of that year.

https://player.bfi.org.uk/sites/default/files/styles/landscape_480x270/public/hero-images/moonpighting1.jpg?itok=aWEeuUiY

GulfportDoc

08-04-24, 08:27 PM

Eye of God (1997)
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/7/70/Eye_of_God_%28film%29.jpg
A very interesting "crime" film but I think it's more about the human condition. It runs in a 2 story narrative and is more about crime and retribution (or at least consequences). A naive woman (the superb Martha Plimpton) takes an ex violent lag in in total trust but the mask starts to slip pretty quickly. In the parallel story a young man (Nick Stahl) is apprehended looking like he's carried out a serious crime. Sensitively shot, this is a forgotten film with many salient points.
rating_4
'Preciate the tip. We watched the picture last night, and really enjoyed it. I was surprised at how well it held up after 27 years!

It's a heavyweight cast with Richard Jenkings, Hal Holbrook, Martha Plimpton and others. Plimpton really shined throughout, displaying a good range; plus being so cute!

I couldn't warm up to Kevin Anderson as the nutcase con/suitor/husband. It's not an easy role to bring off, and I felt his portrayal was subpar.

The non-linear story was well edited and kept up one's interest throughout. And I loved the way the ending was suggested, not shown, so that we didn't have to sit through a violent encounter and murder. Everyone could see in their mind's eyes what happened, based upon the opening scenes.

I agree with your rating. Good film.

FilmBuff

08-04-24, 08:35 PM

https://i.postimg.cc/fyrGqVDn/IMG-2287.jpg

Dìdi 弟弟
2.5

You might have heard about Sean Wang during the last awards season, when his documentary short Nǎi Nai & Wài Pó was nominated for an Oscar.

Wang has now followed on that auspicious debut with a feature film, which does suggest he could go on to become a very good filmmaker - but his semi-autobiographical directing debut is somewhat uneven and quite predictable.

The coming of age drama follows a 13-year-old Taiwanese-American boy living in Fremont, California, with his divorced mother and older sister.

Izaac Wang, last seen in the raunchy comedy Good Boys, is excellent here, as is virtually the entire cast of adolescent actors. Joan Chen is also extremely good, as always, as Didi's obviously flawed (but loving) mom.

FilmBuff

08-04-24, 09:44 PM

https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/scratchpad/images/b/b0/Elektra_2005_Poster.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20130802143317

Elektra
3

If you like Jennifer Garner as much as I do, you probably enjoyed this movie more than the average moviegoer, since it definitely wasn't a big hit.

I don't think she was a totally terrible choice to play Elektra, although these days, the casting for this part would be much more competitive, and would have to entail someone with very good athletic skills (not sure if this was true of Garner back in 2005).

The character would be better served by her TV counterpart in Netflix's Daredevil series, which made her relationship with Daredevil much more interesting and nuanced.

Watching it from a 2024 perspective, the movie still has some pretty solid tech credits, but the story decidedly seems a bit on the thin side. Today's MCU would definitely need a much meatier story to make it worthy of a theatrical feature (as opposed to a series or an appearance in another series).

Allaby

08-04-24, 11:52 PM

Baby Geniuses and the Space Baby (AKA. Baby Geniuses 5, 2015) Why did I watch this? Would you believe an alien baby forced me to? No? Would you believe I sometimes force myself to watch bad movies so I can make fun of them? This is technically a terrible movie, yet I secretly enjoyed watching it. It's ridiculous on so many levels. These babies really should start wearing pants if they are going to go on international adventures like this. It's weird that they never wear pants, yet wear hats, boots, shirts and jackets. The acting by the adult actors is fairly hammy, but the babies give enjoyable performances. And Space Baby is pretty cute. These movies are awful though. They should make more. 3.5

Deschain

08-05-24, 12:16 AM

Nausicaä

08-05-24, 02:10 AM

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/c/cf/Driveaway_dolls_poster.png/220px-Driveaway_dolls_poster.png

3

SF = Zzz

Viewed: Blu ray

[Snooze Factor Ratings]:
Z = didn't nod off at all
Zz = nearly nodded off but managed to stay alert
Zzz = nodded off and missed some of the film but went back to watch what I missed
Zzzz = nodded off and missed some of the film but went back to watch what I missed but nodded off again at the same point and therefore needed to go back a number of times before I got through it...
Zzzzz = nodded off and missed some or the rest of the film but was not interested enough to go back over it

Fabulous

08-05-24, 02:46 AM

Torn Curtain (1966)

3

https://image.tmdb.org/t/p/original/f4jSnmJwSsn3ENHzATUZTiWPIaa.jpg

honeykid

08-05-24, 09:11 AM

Moonfall 3 - Do you like disaster films? Do you like sci-fi? Do you like the films based on a premise so preposterous that you're surprised somebody could come up with it? Do you like a little bit of action? Do you want to see a film that looks like Roland Emmerich decided to take two of his previous big hits and mush them together until they became a whole film? Do you want to see Donald Sutherland for like 2 minutes? Then you're in luck because I think I have the film for you and, despite how awful it sounds (and mostly is) it's actually quite a lot of fun. At least, enough to keep me largely entertained for its two hours ten minutes running (which naturally is too long but it seems all films are these days) but I think the best way which you might be able to tell if this is a movie for you or not is from this piece of trivia from IMDb:

A real astronaut was on set during production as an advisor. Whenever he approached Roland Emmerich and said "That's not really possible," they told him to roll with it because "it's just a movie."

That's what this is, it's just a movie and it wants to have fun and do silly things in a silly way and it hopes you do as well. It obviously cost a fortune and, while you can see all that money on the screen, it doesn't really look that good to me. But then, CGI doesn't look that good to me anyway for the most part, so films with twice the budget of this will still look as bad to me, so I don't hold that against it.

Allaby

08-05-24, 09:26 AM

There’s FIVE of these?!

Yes, for some inexplicable reason, there are five Baby Genius movies. ;)

Thief

08-05-24, 10:57 AM

INSIDE OUT 2
(2024, Mann)

https://i.imgur.com/Iiff60f.jpg

"I don't know how to stop Anxiety. Maybe we can't. Maybe this is what happens when you grow up. You feel less joy."

Inside Out 2 follows 13-year-old Riley (Kensington Tallman) who is about to join a weekend ice hockey camp with her two best friends. Meanwhile, Joy (Amy Poehler) and the other "emotions" have to deal with new ones that want to take over her mind. The main one is Anxiety (Maya Hawke), whose frantic and desperate attitude leads Riley to various chaotic and problematic situations in her efforts to take control over Joy.

Just like the first one, I think the script cleverly portrays the inner-workings of the human mind in a way that's relatable to children while also being fun and entertaining (I mean, "sar-chasm" opens a up a "chasm"?). But more importantly, it does so in a way that feels emotionally effective. I like that it feels like we get to see more of Riley here, and I think there is some good build-up for the inevitable third part.

Grade: 3.5

Full review on my Movie Loot (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=2477325#post2477325)

Thief

08-05-24, 10:58 AM

Yes, for some inexplicable reason, there are five Baby Genius movies. ;)

More importantly, you've watched FIVE of these?!

Allaby

08-05-24, 11:00 AM

More importantly, you've watched FIVE of these?!

I haven't seen all five (yet). I've only seen two. I saw the first one years ago and now I have seen this fifth one.

Gideon58

08-05-24, 01:54 PM

https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/81TFhDiUm+L._AC_UF894,1000_QL80_.jpg

1st Rewatch...A deliciously unhinged performance by David Harbour in the starring role is the centerpiece of this action comedy which is basically Miracle on 34th Street meets Die Hard. Harbour plays a hard-drinking, cynical Santa Claus who is tired of Christmas and is ready to give it up until he is summoned to help a little girl whose wealthy family is being held hostage on Christmas Eve by terrorists after $3,0000,0000 in the basement vault. This movie was so much fun because we're not so much surprised by the fact that our first glimpse of Santa has him getting drunk in a bar, but that throughout the film, it' becomes impossible to argue that this guy is actually Santa...older, tired, bitter, but he's still Santa. It takes a little too long to wrap up, but it's still a lot of fun. Also loved John Leguizamo as the head terrorist and Beverly D'Angelo as the bitchy, wealthy matriach of the family, but it's Harbour's show and he runs with it. 3.5

Gideon58

08-05-24, 01:59 PM

https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/812aOGxQKTS._AC_UF894,1000_QL80_.jpg

3rd Rewatch...Surprisingly solid remake of the 1974 Burt Reynolds classic which finds Adam Sandler inheriting the role of Paul Crewe, the pro football quarterback who is sent to prison and, upon arrival, is asked to put together a football team out of his fellow convicts to play in a game against the warden's team, made up of the guards. The film pretty much follows the original, though the screenplay could have been tightened a little. If you can accept Sandler as a pro football player, the rest of the film is pretty easy to take and Sandler pays homage to Reynolds by giving him a supporting role. 3.5

Gideon58

08-05-24, 02:03 PM

https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/81VKGCuvAxL._AC_UF894,1000_QL80_.jpg

2nd Rewatch...This romantic comedy stars Jack Nicholson as a womanizer dating a much younger woman (Amanda Peet) but eventually finds himself attracted to her mother (Diane Keaton). Despite some serious star power at its core, this movie is utterly predictable and has no business being as long as it is. Nicholson is fantastic, as always, and Keaton's performance actually earned her an Oscar nomination...the scene where she can't stop crying is worth the price of admission alone. There's also a sex-on-legs performance from Keanu Reeves as a doctor attracted to Keaton, but sometimes it just seems like this movie is never going to end. 3

Gideon58

08-05-24, 02:09 PM

https://resizing.flixster.com/-XZAfHZM39UwaGJIFWKAE8fS0ak=/v3/t/assets/p8468037_p_v10_aa.jpg

1st Rewatch....Trying to think of something that really works in this 2011 remake of the Dudley Moore classic, but I struggle coming up with something. Russell Brand takes over Moore's role as a drunken playboy engaged to marry the daughter of a gangster (Jennifer Garner) until he meets the girl of his dreams (Greta Gerwig). Screenwriter Peter Baynam tries to bring some originality to the story by changing the gender of a couple of characters. He makes Hobson a woman (Helen Mirren) and makes Arthur's father his mother (Geraldine James) but these changes just confuse the story, not to mention Gerwig is terrible. Fortunately, Gerwig would find her niche in this business later as a director. It might be worth a look if you've never seen the original. 2

Stirchley

08-05-24, 02:16 PM

Russell Brand is so creepy.

WHITBISSELL!

08-05-24, 02:30 PM

https://media1.tenor.com/m/BzSvMIFt5kMAAAAd/oppenheimer-oppenheimer-movie.gif

Oppenheimer - The three hour runtime wasn't an issue at all. The first hour did seem like a series of snapshots or a highlight reel. But around the one hour mark it settled down and drew you in. The casting was a bit of a distraction with your attention constantly diverted playing spot the celebrity. Not having seen the rest of the Best Actor Academy Award nominees I don't know if Cillian Murphy deserved his Oscar but he certainly earned his nomination. I don't know about Downey either but he can still flex his "serious acting" muscles when called upon. I've heard some people call this Nolan's best film with others calling it his worst. I still haven't seen Following and I tried to watch Tenet but wasn't vibing with it and left it for another time. This is not Nolan's worst but it might be his best.

90/100

Gideon58

08-05-24, 04:15 PM

https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BNDcxYTk5MmYtZmZhYS00Yzg0LTg4NGEtZmYzNzZjNDc1ZjNkXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMDM2NDM2MQ@@._V1_.jpg

3.5

Marco

08-05-24, 05:02 PM

Treasure (2024)
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/c/cd/Treasure_2024_film_poster.jpg
Story about an American journalist who travels with her Polish dad to Poland where he grew up in a concentration camp. Adapted from a book, it's..... em... pretty average. The main problems are Fry's comedic/tragic persona..it just doesn't work. Add to that, he is quite a substandard actor and you get the picture (the accent is something else). Lena Dunham (as the daughter) looks bored with the whole thing
There are some mild laughs and some emotional moments but, overall, I thought this a poor film, subject matter or not.
1.5

Darth Pazuzu

08-05-24, 05:50 PM

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/4/4c/Deadpool_%26_Wolverine_poster.jpg

July 30, 2024

DEADPOOL & WOLVERINE (Shawn Levy / 2024)

(MY USUAL TIRED, CLICHÉ DISCLAIMER: I have not seen the first two Deadpool films, and I have not seen any X-Men films after the first three besides Logan. As I've said before, the Marvel Universe is something that I have not really gone out of my way to keep up with. But then, there are a good many fictional universes I'm unfamiliar with that others probably regard a working knowledge of as second in importance only to breathing... :p)

Beyond that disclaimer... I'm really not quite sure what to say here! I mean, did I like the movie? Well... yeah, I did. It was fun to watch, and I was entertained. But I can't help but feel as if that's not enough, somehow. Like on some weird pseudo-intellectual level, I can't fully trust myself. Personally it feels like some sort of strange endpoint has been reached, an apotheosis of sorts. Because here's a movie that comments on itself as a franchise, a movie in which the characters are commenting on themselves as characters, as franchise figureheads. And it's a movie that comments on the very events which have taken place in previous movies, and uses a multiple-universe / alternate-timeline gag to do work around the fact that one of the title characters died in a previous movie! Granted, that last part isn't completely without precedent, because the first J.J. Abrams Star Trek (2009) created the so-called "Kelvin Timeline" in order to reboot the franchise without invalidating the timeline. (And quite honestly, I found the whole concept of the "Time Variance Authority" to be quite Trek-ish, very similar to the Department of Temporal Investigations.) But quite honestly, things have gotten a little out of control this time around. Frankly, I found Deadpool & Wolverine to be something of a self-indulgent head-exploder, even as I found it incredibly entertaining. Cognitive dissonance on my part? Well, perhaps. But frankly, I'm starting to wonder if the superhero movie, as a genre, hasn't reached a kind of apex of decadence and all this fourth-wall-breaking and self-referencing represents an impending death-knell, or final decline. Is it possible for the inner workings of a fictional universe to become so convoluted and knotted up that there can be no more forward motion, merely a bending back and feeding upon itself? Does this represent a kind of insularity, and is it the end result of a creative hermeticism? And what does this signal for the fate of popular culture as a whole? Do we know too much? Are we too hip? Too aware of cliché and convention? Is is the inevitable consequence of wanting the same old thing all over again... but different? And does there come a point where it becomes impossible for "the same" and "different" to co-exist in any viable form? Is the solution to forget everything we know? Start over again? But isn't that "reboots" are originally supposed to do in the first place? Are we simply creating new flavors of the same-old Coca-Cola? To what end? To just make more money?

I know, I know, Questions, questions, questions upon questions. I'm sorry this isn't really much of a review! But it's the sort of weird stream-of-consciousness ramble that a movie like Deadpool & Wolverine provokes in me. Quite honestly, I find the movie un-reviewable by any conventional means. Because I don't see how this movie is really about anything other than itself as a piece of pop culture. So does pop culture know how to be about anything besides itself in this day and age? Do we even know anything of lasting value? Is this merely an endless cycle of consumption and regurgitation? Is this...

OMG, I feel another rant coming on! :lol: Now I guess is as good a time to exit as any other. Ta-ta. Over and out...

WHITBISSELL!

08-06-24, 01:59 AM

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/0/03/Theatrical_poster_for_Dungeons_and_Dragons%2C_Honor_Among_Thieves.jpg

Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves - I think your enjoyment of this movie increases exponentially depending on your familiarity with the fantasy role playing game. Understanding (or at least not rolling your eyes at) the labyrinthine plot and appreciating the humor are all dependent on this. I watched it with four other people and the person who insisted we watch it had already seen it. Two of us, being fans of Harry Potter and LOTR, were somewhat comfortable with the fantasy aspects and able to follow along but the fourth person was completely adrift. I guess that's a good breakdown of the potential audience. The likable cast and a goodly amount of clever moments help but if you're not a fan of CGI stay away. This movie involves a lot of work in front of a green screen. I don't know how successful it was at the box office or if there are any plans for a sequel but by the end of it I considered myself suitably entertained.

70/100

Deschain

08-06-24, 02:24 AM

Snack Shack. Written and directed by Adam Rehmeier, the same guy who did Dinner in America. This was a little more conventionally plotted and a little less focused than Dinner in America but overall very good. I wish it kept up the pace and energy of the first hour or so but still worth some good laughs and all the feels.

Fabulous

08-06-24, 03:30 AM

Legend of the Lost (1957)

3

https://image.tmdb.org/t/p/original/iQg21T1wlsYAuzhdsg5cKsjmNgy.jpg

FilmBuff

08-06-24, 04:00 AM

Because I don't see how this movie is really about anything other than itself as a piece of pop culture.

You're over-thinking it. It's a movie adaptation of material that has been commenting on itself for several decades now, so in that sense it isn't anything new. It does a few things that the source material couldn't really do as well: it works extremely well as a bromance, it's as close to a full-blown musical as any comic book movie has ever been; and it is also an eulogy for a movie series produced by a now-defunct studio (and in some very subversive ways, it is also very critical of the media conglomerate that owns it).

But more than all of that, it's obviously the product of a creative team working on all cylinders and very much aware of the material's inherent flaws. It is, in its own viciously self-deprecating way, damn near perfect.

PHOENIX74

08-06-24, 07:23 AM

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/6/60/Longlegs_film_poster.jpg
By http://www.impawards.com/2024/longlegs_ver7_xxlg.html, Fair use, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=75958671

Longlegs - (2024)

You've got yourself a bit of Silence of the Lambs, a bit of Zodiac and some creepy Sinister-like plot and atmosphere in Longlegs. Osgood Perkins gets nearly everything perfectly right for this kind of film, and the only dropping of the ball was in figuring out where he wanted the story to go. The character of Longlegs/Dale Cobble, played with relish by Nicolas Cage, is effectively scary, and fascinatingly insane - while at the same time seeming to have tapped into the minds of anyone he wants to. Lee Harker (Maika Monroe), our Clarice Starling new FBI recruit set onto Cobble's murder spree is no less weird than Cobble himself. A little psychic, and seemingly autistic - she has an extraordinarily tough time socializing with anyone, but can wrap her head around this monster's cyphers. It's all a road to madness, with a series of horribly murdered families left with few clues and no motive. I loved so much about this movie, but I just think that the story lacked a bit of complexity - made up for with tons of atmosphere and very authentic 70s and 90s decor. Nearly an out-and-out home run. Wonderfully layered and interesting characters all through the movie, with great dialogue. Have yourself a perfectly creepy, unsettling time.

7.5/10

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/4/4c/Deadpool_%26_Wolverine_poster.jpg
By http://www.impawards.com/2024/deadpool_and_wolverine_ver6.html, Fair use, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=73871602

Deadpool & Wolverine - (2024)

If you want dumb fun this is the place to get it at the moment. The fights have absolutely no stakes - with invincible characters either stabbing each other over and over again for no reason, or else dispatching disposable henchmen in ultra-violent "R-rated" ways. The 4th wall breaking has become endemic, and very much Deadpool's (Ryan Reynolds) thing, and Hugh Jackman shows that it's not always a bad thing to embrace a character that is iconic, no matter how many times you sign on to play him. What makes this worth your money though, is how much fun everyone has - as if the world-building, make-or-break pressure is off a little. Emma Corrin, Chris Evans, Channing Tatum, Jennifer Garner, Wesley Snipes and Jon Favreau get to let loose with established characters in a movie that is basically anything goes for laughs, and in the end it made me understand Jackman's sex appeal more than any of his more serious outings. Also, it's use of music is absolutely first class - little wonder that "Like a Prayer" is back on the charts, but all the songs in Deadpool are great and very well utilized. I thought the villain - Cassandra Nova - was interesting and I would have liked to have seen her expanded upon in the greater universe. I mean, there's a gaping hole there right now, isn't there?

7/10