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Mucho Mucho Amor, 2020

I was not familiar with Walter Mercado, a Puerto Rican astrologer who was uber famous from the 1970s to the 2000s, until a recent episode of RuPaul's Drag Race: All Stars where one of the queens played him as a character in a skit.

The documentary was really fascinating.

A quote from one of the interview subjects in the film maybe best sums up Mercado's mystery and appeal: "When I first saw him on TV, I wasn't sure if I was looking at a man, a woman, or a sorcerer."

Mercado has a striking appearance and an undeniable charisma. While I do not personally believe in psychics or astrology, I found myself nodding along to a lot of what Mercado had to say. I can see why he was so beloved by so many. As one person observes--nothing negative ever comes out of Walter's mouth. When he says that he hopes for peace and love for others, it seems completely authentic. While Mercado's work is wrapped in outlandish costumes and sets and intense performance, at its core it is a message of love that feels like it comes from a very real place.

The documentary is split into basically two parts. The first part gives a history of Mercado's life, and especially his years of fame. The second part documents Mercado's preparation for a respective of his work being hosted in Miami. While some attention is paid to a falling out that Mercado had with his business manager, the bulk of the film is focused on helping the viewer to understand the scope of Mercado's career and popularity.

Another fascinating aspect of the film is how Mercado navigated being part of a strongly homophobic community while at the same time exuding what one interview subject calls "a strong feminine energy." Mercado deftly waves away any questions--direct or indirect--about his sexuality or sex life. His declarations that he makes love "to life" is so in line with his overall personality that it doesn't feel disingenuous. At the same time, several testimonies from interview subjects show that, despite Mercado never being "out", the visibility of a unabashedly feminine man on television was very important to many people who often felt "other" because of their sexuality or mannerisms. It's fascinating to watch someone embrace many elements that would be consider a bad thing or taboo and just totally own them. At one point Mercado says, "I never have to rehearse to be myself." As much as he is over the top--wearing chunky jewelry and a cape that weighs 20 pounds--you do get the sense that he is being himself.

This was a very enjoyable documentary. It's really wonderful to see someone who puts out good vibes into the universe, and the impact that this had on so many people. Watching Mercado talk just made me happy.

Maybe my only complaint would be that the filmmakers are clearly in Mercado's corner, meaning that they do not press him on the one unsavory aspect of his career (his involvement in 1-900 psychic phone lines that many people considered predatory or exploitative). But honestly, I see why you'd be in his corner. This was an utterly delightful film and I'd certainly recommend it.

The Mutilator (originally titled Fall Break) (1984)
One of the more substandard slasher efforts but what the hell, I enjoyed it.
Entertaining for all the wrong reasons.

A very skippable crime, drama, action, thriller. But if you're into Ana de Armas then it's a must see. :D

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Turkey Shoot (1982)

An Australian the most dangerous game, prison camp exploitation, and 1984 mashup with almost Sadean villains. For an exploitation film, the violence is quite tame and the action is hilariously bad. I guess one of the hunters best defines the movie; a smug sadistic dude driving around in a mini tractor (with a machine gun attached, of course) and assisted by a cannibalistic wolfman circus freak. How awesomely stupid is that?

It's quite dull and repetitive, but it's bad enough not to be actually bad.

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Color Out of Space (2019, Richard Stanley)

Somewhat reminiscent of Annihilation, only way worse.

Exactly.

The Exterminator (1980)
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Remember wanting to see this so much when I was a nipper with family browsing in the video store (think it was the cover)...Hmmm, it's not bad but not worth the wait. Pretty standard vigilante stuff that tries a wee bit of extra nastiness in the violence. There is a back story too of a friendship torn apart from coming home from 'nam and finding it hard to function. Not awful...just average.

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Four Weddings and a Funeral, 1994

Another classic romantic comedy, though this one's kind of a "meh" with a single important sidenote.

Charles (Hugh Grant) despairs of ever finding the "perfect girl" and so takes the cynical view that he will never marry. After he meets an American woman, Carrie (Andy McDowell) at a friend's wedding, he begins to reconsider his notions of love and happiness.

So everything that I said about Sleepless in Seattle I wish had been true about this movie. There is so little development of the main characters that even by the end of the film they mostly felt like strangers to me. What's more--everyone in the movie was kind of awful? There's one side of Charles that's the "Oh, he says the wrong thing at the wrong time" that's meant to be charming. And it sort of is (Hugh Grant excels at a sort of charismatic blustering). But Charles and his friends are also mean. Like, really mean. They have cruel nicknames for people just outside their immediate social circle, and especially women. "Duckface", "Vomiting Veronica", "Miss Piggy" and so on. And we are shown precious little kindness from them to redeem this cruelty. It seems like when the writers came up with a funny line of dialogue they put it in the film, no matter how bad it made the characters look who spoke them.

And outside of not liking the characters very much, all they do is talk about relationships and marriage, but not in any kind of productive way. Charles literally gives a speech at a wedding in which he says "I don't think I could ever get married," then later complains that no one wants to marry him. It's annoying. Dude--if you explicitly tell women you don't want marriage, you can't turn around and cry about it when they don't want to marry you, right? There's just no growth from Charles or any of the other main characters. Yes, there are a few "people realizing they loved their friend the whole time" moments, but as a group they never really matured. And it's not a good look for characters in their late 20s/30s.

And to hearken back (again) to Sleepless in Seattle, this film does the old dirty trick of making the main characters partner with people who are awful so that we can be okay with the main characters treating them poorly. It's a crummy way to make selfish or inconsiderate actions from the main characters (like cheating on them or humiliating them) feel justified.

So here's my one important sidenote: I was really fascinated by the treatment of the film's lone gay couple. Two of Charles' friends, Matthew and Gareth are clearly in a long-term romantic relationship, yet characters in the film repeatedly refer to them as single. In a very emotional moment, Matthew is referred to as "Gareth's best friend" instead of as his partner or lover. Their relationship is somehow a surprise to all of their good friends which is . . . hmm. And there's no acknowledgement of what it must be like to attend wedding after wedding, knowing that they can never make their own union legal. But on the flip side, the only genuinely great sequence of the film (something I won't describe in detail because it's a big spoiler) comes from an emotional declaration of love from Matthew to Gareth. And I think it's also worth noting that this is the rare romantic comedy where the gay characters aren't screeching, flamboyant caricatures. It's almost the only thing in the film that makes me feel as if it's worth recommending.

Overall a big disappointment, but the treatment of the characters of Gareth and Matthew makes for an interesting time capsule moment of the treatment of gay characters in the genre of romantic comedies.

Papillon (2017)

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I have no idea why they did a remake of this movie. The original is a classic and the performances by Steve McQueen and Dustin Hoffman are epic - nothing can hold a candle to it or to the performances. As a movie, the remake isn't bad, but it's not great either (the original is great!)

The original even had a level of humor (or perhaps situations of tragic irony) in a very bleak situation as delivered by McQueen & Hoffman that is completely absent from this new version.

Rami Malek was probably the only highlight of the movie and okay in the role of Louis Degas (but lackluster compared to the memorable performance of Dustin Hoffman). Malek never seemed quite as helpless or desperate as Hoffman's version - and therefore was less sympathetic for the audience. And we need not even mention the flat performance by the main character as no one can compare to the charisma of Steve McQueen.

Don't know which was closer to the factual story, but the only thing the remake had over the original was a brief photo during the end credits of the real-life Papillon.

Somebody posted about this a few months ago and that's when I put it on my watchlist. It lost best foreign language film to Roma but I think this is better. In fact I think it's better than any of the best picture nominees that year. It's a Lebanese movie and there's a poor couple who have too many children and we just see a story that can happen. It's an emotional movie that very much makes you appreciate what you have. There's a great performance from a baby which is something I don't recall ever seeing before. It was kind of weird because the baby's character was a male but the real baby is a female. Before I moved from Chicago to Boston I lived with a Lebanese family for a few months not realizing what kind of place they came from. Now I understand why the mother used to hide the cookies from me.

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300 Miles to Heaven (1989)



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Results, 2015

What a weird film.

Trevor (Guy Pearce) runs a gym and frequently butts heads with one of his trainers, Kat (Cobie Smulders). When a wealthy client, Danny, hires Kat to help him get in shape, his involvement in their lives causes a rift between them.

This movie was like putting bananas, tuna, and coffee grounds in a blender. The ingredients are good, but the recipe is garbage. I liked the film in parts, but as a whole I really didn't care for it.

I guess my problem with the film boils down to the "quirky reality" it pushes as an overall vibe. For me, these "quirks" were incredibly off-putting, specifically things like Kat's hot temper, which is clearly meant to be funny. But watching her berate a waitress at a diner over an extra $1 on a bill? Not fun, not funny. Watching her "hilariously" ambush a woman and berate her for being a deadbeat because she was behind on paying her bills? Not fun, not funny. And the character doesn't grow at all. Her berating the waitress happens almost at the end of the film. Kat never resolves her anger issues, they just get folded into the "aren't we an odd couple?!" romance that she has with Trevor.

I was similarly put off by the character of Danny. He has more money than he knows what to do with, and for a while you genuinely feel for his character as he tries to figure out how to be a man that his ex-wife will want back. But he's also . . . kind of a creep. And just like with Kat and her temper, the film kind of leans into this. At the end of the film (SPOILERS, SORT OF???) he bribes a bunch of college students (so to be clear 18-22 year old while he is very much middle aged) to his home with the promise of alcohol. And the film thinks that this is a good thing and a positive step for his character. The problem here is not just the creep element of a middle aged man plying literal teenage girls with alcohol, it's the fact that this man is more than happy to use his money to get what he wants. I found it pretty gross, and the more the film played it up as fun and sweet (complete with adorable music underneath him dancing with a room full of sorority sisters) the more I was repelled by it.

The character of Trevor escapes mostly unscathed, and I felt as if the film never totally got a read on him. The problem (as stated repeatedly) is supposedly that he's too in his own head and not in touch with his emotions. But the film's proposed solution to this--pushing him toward romance with the over-emotional Kat--feels wrong-headed.

I will give credit for incredibly strong performances across the board. And I will admit that despite generally disliking the story and the beats it was trying to hit, it did have many unpredictable moments.

Now, I've not seen this since the 90's and I only watched it the once, I think, but that's not being mean. That's being British. Especially for the middle and upper classes. It's very difficult to make a romantic comedy based around characters who'd rather drill their own teeth than express a feeling. :D

Since Monday

Because there's so much good movie i can't rate all good movie 7 et more out of 10 so Keep in mind i rate movie like this.

bad movie it's 1 to 3 out of 10, (don't loose your time)
ok movie are 4 to 5 out of 10, (watchable)
good movie are 6 to 7 out of 10, (enjoyable)
exellent movie 8-9 on 10, (realy had fun)
chef d'oeuvre 10/10 (it's change my life)

Frankenstein's Army
Great effort, interesting kind of Robotic Nazi Clive Barker's tortured souls creature, lots of gore but still a lost of time 3/10



Battledogs
Sometime no comment is the best comment 2/10



Willy Wonka and the chocolate factory
Great classic (i thought) kids get bored very quick and me to i guess. Don't get me wrong still a good movie but you know even some wine don't get better with age. A generous 6/10




Snowtimes (la guerre des tuques)
French animated remake of a 80's kid movie. During the winter school break a buch of children playing snowballs war will learn things of life and they will all grow a little. Very well done movie. Kids appreciated so do I. Remind me my childhood 7/10


Escape room
Rare movie night with my teen daughter. It Keeped her without cell phone and out of her room for 90 min or so. So i'll guess it's a win. She liked it. I found it good to but to quick i could appreciate more suspence. 6/10

Phantasm V
I'm a fan of phantasm franchise so i was ready to be disappointed and guess what... i was... Anyways it's not like i didn't know every 2000's sequel of the 80's are bad... 4/10


Paul
Not the best Simon Pegg but same kind of humour found it enjoyable 7/10

I've loved many a droll, snarky, buttoned-up British character. But these characters were obnoxious. And, honestly, I didn't find them very funny.

Calling someone "Miss Piggy" because she's fat is something a 5 year old could think of. I expected more wit and was disappointed that most the dialogue felt like cheap one-liners.

Also, the contempt was mostly directed at the woman Charles was dating or had dated. Why should I care about Charles finding love when it's clear that he's really nasty about the women he's with? Multiple jokes were about perfectly nice women discovering that they are being mocked behind their back. That's funny why?

The whole thing was shallow and basic. For a romantic comedy I found it neither romantic (Matthew and Gareth's subplot aside) nor funny. If I'd laughed more, I might cut it more slack. But I literally can't think of a single part that genuinely made me laugh.

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Кома (2019)
aka Coma

A Russian SciFi film that loans heavily from Matrix and Inception with a touch of Ink. Like so often with modern Russian movies, the writing is weak. Characters are caricatures and the plot combined from multiple Hollywood blockbusters is rushed. The visual effects are really good, though, especially considering the estimated budget of $4M. Not boring but forgettable.

Dolan's Cadillac (2009)
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Direct revenge thriller from the pen of Stephen King. This was actually very enjoyable in how its constructed. The tale of Toms (Wes Bentley) quest for vengeance for his hood murdered wife scanned well. The denouement between the 2 protagonists is written so well and depicted with real skill. Liked this.

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Sniper with Tom Beringer...I'll give it 1 star.

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redline (2009)

3.5/5

Sorry I forgot how to do the popcorns

Here's how. And Welcome back!

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Black Christmas (1974)
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Nothing wrong with it, just feels a bit dated (though Psycho never does, to me). Also kind of boring. Maybe I was in the wrong mood for it.
This was a rewatch, but it’s been a while.

thank you :whoopi:

I think that the disturbing phone call in the opening scene is worth at least .

A horror friend of mine had some nice things to say about one of the remakes, but I've only ever seen the original.

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The Booksellers, 2020

This was a quaint little documentary about the work of rare book collectors/traders/sellers. The film looks at several different specific sellers, while at the same time exploring the history (and future) of bookselling.

The best part of the film for me was just seeing the different approaches and the different reasons why the sellers got into it in the first place. For many of them, it was something personal and their specific passion is reflected in what they collect.

The film also goes into what e-book and the internet in general have done to the book trade. It explores the generation divide between sellers.

One of the points that the film makes is that there is an increasing diversity of interests in collectors. As one of the interview subjects puts it, the point is not to say that all book sellers from the 50s and earlier were "goons and misogynists", but that for a very long time the culture of book selling and book collecting primarily reflected the interests of older white men. The idea of what was worthy of being saved was seen through only one demographic. By book sellers/collectors becoming more diverse, the market actually becomes larger.

At the same time, the film does acknowledge the implicit bias in the field. For many years, official rare book societies simply refused to admit women. One book seller reports that, even today, he is often *the* black book seller in any given space. Several women recount that many customers would rather ask any man--even the janitor, even some random man in the store--advice than come to them, despite them owning the store.

This is interesting and important because of what another collector says--books are deeply personal things and they are "as close to a person as anything you can create". Ideas and stories and so many other things are held inside of books. What people decide is worthy--and who they trust to tell them about worthy books--has a huge impact on which stories and ideas are preserved and carried into future generations.

The booksellers interviewed are a droll and enjoyable bunch. This isn't a documentary full of high drama or twists, but just a deep and personal look at a specific sub-culture.

I myself love books, and I enjoyed spending 100 minutes in like-minded company.

Woman on the Run (1950)



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Спутник (2020)
aka Sputnik

Another Russian SciFi film. It's a little better than yesterday's Coma but that's mainly because I like its style more. It's something like a mix of The Twilight Zone, Arrival and Alien. As usual with the modern Russian films, the writing is somewhat lacking. It's also almost Soviet-era film in the sense that it shows no fault in the system at all.

At least you know how to copy and paste I'm impressed...

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Four Rooms -

four f*ck's sake

The Inn of the Sixth Happiness (1958)



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What If, 2013

Wallace (Daniel Radcliffe) meets Chantry (Zoe Kazan) at a party after a string of broken relationships. The two instantly hit it off, but Chantry has a boyfriend. The two agree to just be friends, but both struggle--Wallace having to hide his feelings and Chantry dealing with feelings of alienation from her boyfriend, Ben, who has decided to go abroad for work for the next six months.

This is a classic "can men and women really be just friends?" set up. Overall I liked the film. Radcliffe and Kazan have an easy chemistry, and on their own they are likable characters.

I did have some mixed feelings about how some of the surrounding comedy worked. There are a lot of slapstick sequences that I find more cringe-worthy than funny--things like people falling out of windows, falling down stairs, being punched, etc. Adam Driver and Mackenzie Davis play an outrageous couple (Driver's character is Wallace's friend and Chantry's cousin), and while their performances are good, I found their characters kind of obnoxious.

There was almost a feeling of tension in the film. I see that there are three writers credited (two who wrote the original play and one who adapted the play for film), and maybe that has a bit to do with the different levels of comedy. For example, the film seems to find Driver's character really funny. But in a mid-film sequence, they conspire to leave Wallace and Chantry alone on a beach with no clothing and just one sleeping bag. Much to the film's credit, Chantry especially is really upset by this behavior and correctly identifies it as crossing a line. The night of forced intimacy (because they have to share the sleeping bag) ends up alienating the two instead of magically bringing them together.

I think that this is a good example of a film where the actors really elevate the material. Radcliffe and Kazan nail the delivery of their lines and keep both of the main character sympathetic. The film never feels like it's on Chantry's side or on Wallace's side, and a lot of that is down to he performances.

It's a shame that the writing feels a bit off. It's like someone was in the room who was empathetic and understood how relationships work, and another person was in the room who preferred dumb/"edgy" humor. I was honestly kind of shocked by an out-of-nowhere transphobic joke about the Adam Driver character having once kissed a transgender woman. and how this is a deeply shameful thing that he has to hide from his fiance. Likewise a remark that a character makes about being disgusted by seeing a woman's labia. It's just weird and asynchronous.

Somehow this movie feels like a near-miss to me, but on the strength and charm of the performances alone I'd recommend it.

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That’s pretty high! Rekindled my interest.

Blanchett's performance alone makes it worth a look

I'm literally watching this right now!

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I’m Not Scared (2003)

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Rewatch. Love this film.

Whoa! Flashback!! I remember renting this movie when it first came out.

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Work It, 2020

This was a fun little bit of teen-dance-romance fluff.

Perfect student Quinn has her heart set on going to Duke University. At her admissions interview, she ends up backing herself into a corner when she leads the interviewer to believe that she is a member of her high school's award-winning dance team. Having alienated the dance team over an unfortunate lighting mishap, Quinn ends up forming her own rag-tag dance team with the help of her talented film Jas. Along the way, Quinn ends up romancing a former dancer who she hopes will help the team choreograph their performances.

This was an example of a solid teen flick for me. It's absent of any gross-out or mean-spirited humor. The emphasis is on the main characters doing well and working together, not on humiliating their opponents. The actors are all perfectly likable, and the performances are all fine.

The dance sequences are all pretty fun, and there's a range of styles on display. I also really loved a sequence that featured dancers with disabilities, including a one-legged breakdancer named B-Boy Samuka. The music is fun, and generally the whole cast looks like they are having a good time.

The only complaints I had are pretty mild. There's a total lack of character development for the other dancers in the group. I can literally not remember their names (Bollywood dance girl, soccer player, karate kid, mix tape guy, goth girl). The film is so focused on Quinn that the idea that she and the group are bonding doesn't come across as very convincing. The film's plot is almost comically predictable. Not a single thing in the entire movie will surprise you.

This isn't the most memorable movie, but I thoroughly enjoyed watching it. If you're at all in to dance and you need a little pick-me-up, you might consider checking it out.

Diary of a Lost Girl (1929)



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Out of the Blue -

and into the black

Like the fact you have a "Horror Friend" Takoma, ;) we should have friends for all genres... "My film noir buddy" :)

I have several horror friends. I have one silent films friend. I have one weird movies friend. I actually do have a film noir buddy--he and I did the TCM online noir class "Into the Darkness" together a few years back.

I like having people whose taste roughly aligns to mine because they're such a great source of recommendations.

I also like having some people who have very different taste. I know one guy who really liked the end to Haute Tension. And yet somehow we're still friends, despite this obvious mark against his character. ;)

Huh, and here I was thinking...



The Revenant -

This movie just gets uglier and emptier each time I watch it.

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A Secret Love, 2020

Wow--this is like three excellent documentaries rolled into one.

Terry and Pat are a lesbian couple who met in the 1940s, when Terry came down from Canada to play in the female baseball league (immortalized in the film A League of Their Own). The film explores Terry's experience in the baseball league, the two women and their forbidden love, and the struggles they have as they age and begin to experience medical issues.

The least amount of time is spent on the baseball league, though the details are fascinating. It's true that the women in the league had to go to charm school. Their mandatory uniform was a skirt and it had to go at least 6 inches above the knee. They had to apply makeup before every game. It's an interesting (and slightly frustrating) look at the way that female athletes were regarded. Pat herself was a hockey player, and it's really cool to see their passion for sports.

The second aspect of the film is understanding what it was like for a lesbian couple in the 1940s. Both women were pursued by male suitors, and they had to actively keep their relationship a secret. Because of their sports careers, both were sometimes featured in the newspaper, and they had to worry that they would be recognized if they stole away to a hotel for a weekend. The movie does not belabor the point, but a few key historical clips and comments make clear the homophobia they faced. Terry's brother would often say that she just "needed to be f*cked by a big black guy to set her straight." We watch a clip of a hall of college students being told "There might be some girls in here who are lesbian. You will be caught. You will be found out. And the rest of your life will be a living hell."

But most of the film actually focuses on the decisions that the couple has to make as they age. In that sense, there's a wonderful universal element to the story. As Terry becomes more frail, a clear rift begins to form between Pat, who wants to stay in the house where she and Terry have lived for 21 years, and Terry's family, who want the couple to move back to Canada and/or move into a retirement home.

I had a great-aunt who was very determined that she wanted to live out her life at home. So I really understood Pat's point of view. At the same time, you can understand the anxiety that Terry's family feels as her health declines.

Something that was interesting to me was the undercurrent (and sometimes it's very on the surface) tension between Pat and Terry's family. Several members of Terry's family say that Pat has "stolen" Terry away or has been keeping Terry all to herself. The family just does not seem to connect the homophobia that Terry and Pat have faced with their decision to be isolated from the family. Terry, heartbreakingly, says that she hid her sexuality from her niece Diana because "I didn't want to lose her love." Even as Terry's family acts grumpy about Terry and Pat being secretive, they turn around and concede that Terry might have been disowned for it. The family resents that Terry and Pat have a "secret life" (complete with *gasp* gay friends), while at the same time expressing masked discomfort with them being gay and acknowledging that they will face pushback. Pat's brother tells her that she can't get married because it will "hurt the family". These women have lived with so much fear that it's no surprise they retreat into themselves.

This film was really powerful and emotional. As a look at forbidden love, and as a look at what it means for elderly people to make choices about their final years, I thought it was incredibly compelling.

Highly, highly recommended.

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Choke, 2020

It's been a while since I saw a movie that was genuinely, enjoyably bad.

Let's start with the two nice things I can say about this movie: (1) the actors seem to genuinely be trying their best and (2) there is almost an interesting theme underneath it all.

Serial killer Brandon makes a habit of choking women to death and filming them as he kills them. One day he strikes up a conversation with a teenage girl on a train, Jeanie. The other side of the film follows depressed police detective Robert(?), who employs a dominatrix/prostitute/therapist, Stephanie, who incorporates choking into her sessions with him. When Jeanie ends up meeting and working for Stephanie, she crosses paths with Robert.

This is not a good film. The acting is spotty, the writing is odd, and a series of fantasy sequences do not generate enough emotion to justify their existence. But let me tell you why you might find it to be an enjoyably not good film.

The Poor Actors

There are a lot of scenes in this film where I got the distinct impression that the director gave only a handful of suggestions and then started the camera and said "Go!". The actors end up doing these sequences (which, God, I almost hope weren't scripted) that look more like acting exercises than scenes. Things like Brandon laughing and giggling maniacally while he hugs a lava lamp, or a scene where Jeanie's mother berates her for becoming a whore! a whore! a whore!.

The Writing

In the scenes that do seem written, the language is just . . . off. Characters use odd turns of phrase, like a 17 year old saying "I haven't seen him for many years." Or the detective saying "Yes, this is a terrible situation." Much of the dialogue as a feel as if it were translated.

The Settings/Props

I have a few friends who make films, so I don't as a rule make much fun of films on a budget. But there's a level of almost disregard for making things look good or realistic. And maybe the best example of this is when Jeanie's mother is throwing her "dirty money" at her. Guys, IT'S ALL IN FIVES AND ONES!!! Jeanie is supposedly being paid like $500 for her sessions with Robert, and he's paying her in singles?!?!?!? It's like the cast and crew just grabbed whatever they had in their wallets.

What's frustrating here is that the film actually sets up a scenario where there could have been some compelling parallels between the characters. Robert seeks out choking because it allows him to relinquish control--Brandon uses choking to control women. Instead the film seems more interested in a surface-level, fetish-y portrayal of choking, not delving at all into why either of the characters feel this compulsion or how it actually helps or hurts them.

The film also shies away form nudity (especially male nudity), and there's something baffling about a movie that's like "Young women being choked to death with clear sexual overtones? YES! Penis? NO!".

Skip, unless you want a so-bad-it's-good laugh.

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Juliet, Naked, 2018

This was maybe the most mature of the romantic comedies I've been watching lately, though I wish it had had the nerve to do something more unexpected in its final act.

Annie (Rose Byrne) lives an underwhelming small town life with her boyfriend Duncan (Chris O'Dowd), who is OBSESSED with an American indie music artist called Tucker Crowe (Ethan Hawke). Tucker disappeared suddenly in the middle of a show in the late 90s, and hasn't been seen since. One day, Annie writes an honest critical review of some of Crowe's music, and is shocked when the man himself reaches out to her. The two begin a correspondence and it forces Annie to reconsider her life and priorities.

Hands down the best thing about this film is Rose Bryne's performance as Annie. She is able to portray someone who is intelligent and kind but also a bit indecisive. Instead of coming off as wishy-washy, Bryne infuses Annie with a real sense of a person who just isn't sure what she wants her life to look like, or if she can have everything she wants.

The most interesting dynamic of the film is how it positions the two male romantic interests. Duncan is obsessed with Tucker, to the point that he neglects or talks over Annie and berates her if she doesn't align with his point of view. His entire understanding of their relationship is filtered through what will make him feel good or comfortable.

Tucker, on the other hand, is a more subdued person, but he brings along a lot of baggage: namely multiple children by multiple women. While Tucker constantly tries to frame his many fractured relationships as the byproduct of poor choices in his younger years, it's clear that he continues to make selfish choices that undermine the trust of his ex-partners and his children. There was one element of his past (I'll stay vague because it's revealed later in the movie) that I personally thought bordered on being unforgivable.

Both male love interests have their flaws, and I really applaud the film for doing something that romance movies almost *never* do: introducing the third option. Something that the film, and Annie, seriously consider is neither of them. This is such a rarity in romantic comedies. Maybe neither guy is the right one for Annie, and it was really nice to see that in a film and in a character. The idea that a character (and especially a woman) needs to "pick the best one" is something that plagues a lot of romantic stories about women.

And this brings me to my main complaint about the film, namely that .

Overall a pretty good film and I was even more impressed to discover that Rose Byrne was six months pregnant while filming.

Tully (2018)

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An umpteenth rewatch. I have a fondness for this one, although it does paint a dreary picture of motherhood, which if you’ve worked with children and have spent enough time around them and their parents doesn’t seem entirely fair (or at least, entirely balanced). It occasionally feels like a cautionary tale which... wants to warn women that having kids will wreck their lives and bodies?.. I’m a bit conflicted here. That said, I appreciate Reitman was probably aiming for that bittersweet feeling. The acting is top-notch and the end twist is brilliantly done, not really predictable and well-justified in terms of character development (probably the only example I can think of where that is the case, too). As an aside, I’m always amazed at how diverse and unpredictable Reitman Jr’s portfolio is as a filmmaker.

To echo what Iroquois said above, I think that the ending is pretty brilliant.

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Straight Up, 2019

I do not say this often, but this movie needed to be like 15 minutes longer.

A young man named Todd (James Sweeney, who also wrote and directed) has moderate OCD. His discomfort with body fluids means that he's had very little experience with sex. Having always assumed that he was gay, a conversation with his therapist leads him to believe that he may actually be bisexual or even straight. When he meets aspiring actress Rory (Katie Findlay) with whom he has a lot in common, the two strike up a friendship that soon turns romantic. Rory has her own reasons that she may not prefer sexual contact, and so the two settle into a sexless romantic relationship. This is all complicated by Todd's friends who believe he is in denial about being gay, and by Rory struggling to figure out what she really wants from a relationship.

The idea of a sexless romantic relationship is an interesting premise for a romantic comedy. For the character of Todd, the arrangement makes a lot of sense. He has severe phobias about body fluids (male or female), and he is satisfied by physical (if not sexual) intimacy. What they choose to do with Rory is a bit more complicated. We learn in very vague terms that Rory has been the victim of sexual violence in the past. The film keeps her history vague, and I actually appreciated the approach which felt respectful and not exploitative or dismissive. We see her unintentionally out herself as a victim to her acting class; then we see that she is sent into a panic attack when someone at a party kisses her without her permission; and finally we see (but do not hear) her explain what happened to Todd. For Rory, it's clear that this arrangement is a mixed blessing--despite her trauma, a sexless relationship maybe isn't what she's really after, and it's sad to think that a negative sexual experience as a younger person would stop her from having an enjoyable sex life as an adult. Given all the scenes of Todd in therapy, I just wanted to see Rory get some professional help. Still, it was nice that despite this history, I never felt like Rory was being defined by her past, just as I never felt that Todd was being defined solely by his OCD.

It's hard to explain this without getting spoiler-y, so I'll just say that with about 8 minutes left in the movie I was starting to panic about how they were going to wrap things up in a satisfying way. While the movie did offer up an ending that I thought was very interesting and optimistic, it was pushed on screen in about the space of a minute. I wish that we'd been more privy to watching the characters find their resolution. Too much of what must have been very interesting conversations and decisions were left off-screen. And it's a shame, because the ending is actually pretty cool.

Sweeney and Findlay have excellent chemistry as two people who have come to love each other. They have strong "old married couple" energy, and their personalities work well with each other. Both of them have good comic timing, and the writing of their characters is pretty good. Hat tip to Randall Park for his performance as Todd's (racist) father--he's funny, but more importantly, he is an uncanny match for Sweeney.

The only thing that I didn't like about the film were the characters of Ryder and Meg, Todd's friends. I say "friends", but . . . how were these people ever friends? Ryder and Meg are crude and assertive and they just don't make sense with Todd's character. As the film goes on, their characters get more and more extreme. I understand their function in the film: they are provocateurs who push Todd and Rory into discomfort and conflict. But I found them so thoroughly unpleasant. They are, to put it bluntly, bad people. Romantic comedies can have wacky comic relief sidekicks, but these two often went too far for me. No kindness--just nothing to explain why Todd would be friends with them. Todd and Rory are both nice people in their own way, and it was weird to me that they didn't seem to know any nice people.

This was an incredibly unconventional romantic comedy. It took two categories of people (someone with serious mental health issues and someone who is a survivor of sexual abuse/assault) who could easily have been exploited or patronized and makes them fully realized, sympathetic, and likable leads.

Despite a few missteps (the friend characters and a handful of gross-out scenes, including a really poorly conceived scene of Todd trying to sleep with an 18 year old girl), this was a unique and compelling romantic comedy that is, for lack of a better word, very modern in its sensibilities.

Re: Rate The Last Movie You Saw
 

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Running On Empty (1988, Sidney Lumet)

Low-key, gentle family drama with an angular, almost awkward - endearingly so - performance from River Phoenix (very James Dean-like in a way). Solid, with some touching moments, but nothing outstanding.

Re: Rate The Last Movie You Saw
 

City For Conquest - 6.5/10
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Re: Rate The Last Movie You Saw
 

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The Color of Pomegranates (1969)





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Monkey Business (1931)





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Small Time Crooks (2000)

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6th re-watch...one of my guilty pleasure that has endless re-watch appeal. It's silly and improbable, but endlessly entertaining, thanks primarily to an impressive all-star cast, though Robert Downey Jr. effortlessly steals the film.

Seems to me I once saw this entirely in French, but, whatever. Good movie. A classic.

Love this. Great trilogy.

Yes, I need to re-visit Repulsion. Love Rosemary’s Baby.

Loved Brooklyn...rated it higher than you did

Guys and Dolls (1955)



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Summer of 84 (2018)
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Pretty OK enough Canadian thriller that reminded me a lot of Disturbia. Ending kinda let it down

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Icarus, 2017

There's something inherently risky about making a documentary about something in the present.

If you're telling a story about a bombshell from the past (say a political scandal from the 70s or a murder from the 50s), you already know that there's compelling, noteworthy material. You know that you're sitting on grisly details or that a certain photo will elicit gasps.

But when you set out to film something with an unknown endpoint, you just have to hope that something gripping will happen. As Bryan Fogel learns in Icarus, you can have almost too much of a good thing!

Fogel is into competitive distance bike racing. In a post-Armstrong era, Fogel notes that there's just *something* separating him from the best athletes. He comes up with an idea to see if he can use performance-enhancing drugs and escape detection.

The first 20 or so minutes consists of Fogel getting a doctor to sign off on testosterone injections and acquiring other illicit products and then tracking his progress in the racing world.

Then he meets Grigory.

Grigory Rodchenkov was a Russian doctor in charge of testing athletes for doping in Russian for years and years. He's a larger-than-life personality and begins coaching Fogel in how to avoid testing positive. There are hints and implications from other interview subjects about why Grigory might be so good at getting around PED testing, and then the whole thing just blows wide open. Right as Fogel is getting momentum on his own journey, the Russian doping scandal begins to break. Suddenly, Grigory is talking to Fogel in coded language and making allusions to the guards who have been sent to watch him. Fogel becomes something of a lifeline for Grigory as the latter decides to flee Russia.

Then other Russian workers associated with the scandal begin dying and the urgency steps up a notch.

There's something a bit exhilarating about documentaries like this. There's a point where you feel the story leaving control of the director (maybe around the time the KGB and FBI and mysterious men in suits begin circling?), and there's that shift to a filmmaker doing his best to capture and document what is happening.

Through it all, Fogel is wise to keep Grigory as the center of the narrative. If there's a takeaway here, it's the way that people get caught in the middle when the big international dogs fight. Ultimately, this is an issue between Putin/Russia and several international governing bodies. But it's always up to someone lower on the totem pole to step up and take the hit--to resign, to admit guilt, or even to die if needed. As the direct link between the government and the testing process, Grigory is the one who knows all the dirty secrets--we the audience and Fogel himself watch helplessly as Grigory faces pressure from all directions with seemingly no one actually on his side.

I can see why this film won Best Documentary at the Oscars. It's a contemporary, edge-of-your seat story.

It’s my favourite of them all. I feel like David Lynch tried to plagiarise it afterwards with Lost Highwayand didn’t quite succeed.

Happy End (2017)

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Haneke often has fascinating insight into cringeworthy human behaviour but rarely drives it home. This is no exception, but it’s a compelling watch.

Never seen Lost Highway so can’t comment.

Fairly sure I did not finish this though I do like Haneke.

Re-watch. Not the greatest movie I’ve ever seen, but I liked it. James’s novella is better.

It does drag a lot. I had good company and kept watching, but it’s definitely not his best.

Re: Rate The Last Movie You Saw
 

⬆️ My favorite is The White Ribbon. Love this movie.

The Face of Another (1966)



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Looooooove The Face of Another. Excellent psychological sci-fi with some truly memorable visuals.

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I, Tonya, 2017

This was really excellent and fun.

Using a mix of interviews from key figures in Tonya Harding's life (Tonya, husband Jeff, mother LaVona, Hard Copy reporter Martin Maddox, etc), the film takes us through Tonya's lift, from her early years all the way through "The Incident".

Led by an assured, energetic performance from Margot Robbie as Tonya, the film offers up a portrait that is at once unflattering and sympathetic. Tonya is a natural athlete with tremendous strength and nerve, but she faces tremendous pressure from her critical mother and a skating world that admires her technical prowess but considers her inelegant.

Perhaps the biggest takeaway from the film is just how different Tonya's life could have been. Raised by a mother who is determined to make her daughter tough, Tonya's only source of motivation is being told that she can't. LaVona (played in a blistering performance by Allison Janney) is unsparing with her verbal, emotional, and physical abuse. In one sequence, Tonya's coach walks in on LaVona beating a pre-teen Tonya with a hairbrush in a bathroom.

Seeking an escape from her home life, Tonya ends up marrying boyfriend Jeff. I didn't even recognize Sebastian Stan (the Winter Soldier himself) in the role of Jeff. He oozes a sort of goofball charm, which makes it all the more shocking when a physically abusive side rears its head. The fact that Tonya repeatedly leaves Jeff but goes back to him again and again makes a sort of twisted sense when you see their scenes together. Jeff is as abusive as Tonya's mother, but at least he sometimes tells her that she's pretty and talented.

The third rocky relationship in Tonya's life is the one that she has with the sport itself. Tonya is one of few women to be able to land a triple axle jump. But she is frequently dinged for the subjective "performance" element of the score. Even as she outskates her competition on a technical level, she doesn't have the look or the grace or the style that would please the judges. While the film itself doesn't really go after Nancy Kerrigan, it does make a point about the fact that likability can actually determine whether or not you succeed. How many sports will mark you down for not being ladylike enough? Tonya is penalized for who she is, not what she can do. Yes, it's how the sport works, but you can completely understand Tonya's frustration.

The film fully embraces the subjective nature of its presentation of facts. There is frequent fourth-wall breaking that takes place. In one scene, an angry Tonya chases Jeff and fires a gun at him--then she turns directly to the camera, says "I never actually did this", cocks the gun, and moves off-camera. Characters frequently contradict each other in their version of events, and the film seems to almost relish these moments of disagreement. There will never be proof of things like whether or not a certain conversation took place.

The film also does a great job with the ice skating sequences. I don't know the nature of the CGI/effects involved, but they are just wonderful.

I read one criticism of the film in terms of its bold soundtrack, but I didn't mind it. The storytelling here is larger-than-life, and so I didn't think that it was out of place.

A great little flick with really strong performances.

Re: Rate The Last Movie You Saw
 

Reflections in a Golden Eye (1967)



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Re: Rate The Last Movie You Saw
 

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Alice in the Cities (1974)

Yes, The White Ribbon is outright brilliant.

sdsss

Watched it last night. It still holds up after almost 30 years. I agree that Downey was good, and you can see how he'd develop into a big star. I've never been a Sally Fields fan, but she sure earned her money in this one! She was very good.

Parseltongue?

I love this movie.. Even better than the French original.

For those in Peril (2013)
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Small Scots fishing town story of a brother who is treated with suspicion in his village after he is on the boat where his brother and 4 other trawlermen perish but he survives (and claims not to recall the circumstances of the tragedy). Well shot in Aberdeenshire with a beguiling performance from George MacKay and good support from some other Scottish drama stalwarts. Thought it was heading for a different outcome and the ending was a bit "arty" compared to the rest of the film (lots of cinecamera footage and flashback sequences) but I enjoyed this.

Re: Rate The Last Movie You Saw
 

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Old Joy (2006, Kelly Reichardt)


A fleeting glimpse into a fading friendship coming back to life for just a day, with the serene presence of nature as a bystander. Reichardt's probing eye observes life as it flows gently along, in a semi-detached, unobtrusive manner; words are spoken but it's what's not being said that is at the center of attention. I felt that the film captures perfectly the feeling of loss and sadness but in a cosmically bittersweet, epiphanal way.
"Sorrow is nothing but worn out joy."

In hindsight, I think the ending was good as it is. It just frustrated me when I first watched it. I think both Mac and Childs are "the thing".

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잠 못 드는 밤 [Sleepless Night] (2012) - A Paterson for foreign film enthusiasts (if you're Korean, that's your problem). Outclasses Hong Sang-soo as it wins your heart with little, touching slice-of-life gestures of love instead of people arguing after they had too much soju.
また逢う日まで [Until We Meet Again] (1950) - - A very beautiful, tragic love story that offers much more than just the often-quoted glass kiss (which Antonioni stole for L'eclisse). I'm a sucker for this kind of romance, so naturally I loved it.
Peter Ibbetson (1935) - - This is so sentimental and dreamy, I should be head over heels for it, but I'm not. The omnipresent Light is one of Borzagian kitsch.
尼羅河女兒 [Daughter of the Nile] (1987) - - 3H's least favorite of his own films, and I can't really tell why. It's a pretty good film.
人嚇鬼 [Hocus Pocus] (1984) - - Only for maniacs of the Mr. Vampire series. Slightly enjoyable, but that's it.
The Cabin in the Woods (2011) - - Looks like a sheet slasher. A few interesting ideas do not make it a masterpiece. Stop pretending it's a Tarkovsky of horror.
Suspiria (2018) - - Surface level hipster art. Did Tilda get only 3 roles? Poor. I would prefer it if she played absolutely every single character. The film's 1 hour too long. Add some 30 minutes and you can watch the original Suspiria twice in a row during that time.
Jojo Rabbit (2019) - - Starts quite awful, but gets better as it goes. Nothing too great, but I ended up enjoying it. :)
When the Clouds Roll By (1919) - - Quite an enjoyable silent. Fairbanks is quite kinetic in this if you know what I mean. :)
エコエコアザラク [Eko Eko Azarak] (1995) - - A very solid flick! A little bit of lesbianism, witches, schoolgirls, Satanic rituals, good atmosphere, and gore. Not enough of any of that, but I had a good time watching this!
エコエコアザラクII: Birth of the Wizard [Eko Eko Azarak II: Birth of the Wizard] (1996) - - Sadly the second installment in the trilogy, actually a prequel to the first film, does not deliver. :( You can watch it if you liked the first film, though. Maybe you'll enjoy it more than me.
Čovek nije tica [Man Is Not a Bird] (1965) - - My least favorite Dušan Makavejev film from what I've seen.
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天国にいちばん近い島 [The Island Closest to Heaven] (1984) - - More like The Island Closest to Your Heart. Lovely! The more Obayashi films I watch, the more I realize he's the only director I need! It's about a teenage girl making a trip to New Caledonia. She tries to find an island her late father told her about when she was a little girl. The sandal scene at the beginning and I'm already sold! What. A. Treat.
それから [And Then...] (1985) - - A very reserved film with some great aesthetic. The tension is so tangible in scenes between the (so beautiful) girl and the (so slacking) man. This was recommended by Bi Gan. If you don't know who he is, where have you been for the past 5 years?!
Ana və Oğul [Mother and Son] (2019) - - Didn't really like this one too much.
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畫中仙 [Picture of a Nymph] (1988) - - A spin-off of Chinese Ghost Story again starring Joey Wong. It was released between the first two films in the trilogy, and directed by the guy playing the Taoist from all the films! Perhaps this doesn't reach the level of the original films, but it sure isn't far off! The way-too-sparse romantic moments are to die for! Music is spellbinding, and Joey Wong is dreamlike! Quick! Give me a Chinese ghost to fall in love with!!! :_;
誘惑者 [The Enchantment] (1989) - - A weird and quite an original film! The twists are quite surprising, but the movie plays out as if it didn't even care about them. The VHS quality in the version I watched only made the film more atmospheric. *.*
本陣殺人事件 [Death at an Old Mansion] (1976) - - I thought it's going to be a horror, but it's a murder mystery! Another surprise would be that Obayashi composed the music for the film. Naturally, since he played the piano, you'd expect some piano music, but no. The soundtrack is very sparse AND features just koto music. Quite a surprise. The actual solution to the case is surprising, and the visuals are very nice.
烈火青春 [Nomad] (1982) - - - A fine albeit way overrated film. Just like Patrick Tam's previous effort, the gialloesque Love Massacre, Nomad looks good but lacks something to become a great film. It's hard to pinpoint what that something is, though.
Édes Emma, drága Böbe - Vázlatok, aktok [Sweet Emma, Dear Böbe] (1992) - - And the Hungarians deliver yet another depressive film heavily set within a very specific era of Eastern Block countries freeing from USSR!
八兩金 [Eight Taels of Gold] (1989) - - Let's take a moment to say how adorable Sylvia Chang is in this film. Now that we have this settled, let me just tell you this has Sammo Hung! And this is a somewhat heart-breaking non-romance romance film. Yeah, it broke my heart, and the final 15 minutes are especially excruciating. And then the final minute is a reference to Kurosawa's Ran. What?! Oh, and this film is mainly about immigration, returning home etc., but who cares when I'm heartbroken.
Bait (2019) - - Kitchen Sink Realism is back! Mad props for shooting on tape - I didn't think anyone would make a movie that looked like this again!
The Alligator People (1959) - - Very enjoyable and not half as kitschy as it sounds!

Murder by Contract (1958)



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The Reflecting Skin (1990)

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When his friends start disappearing, Seth becomes convinced Dolphin, his English neighbour, is a vampire, stealing the souls of the neighborhood children one by one. After his brother, Cameron (Viggo Mortensen), returns home and takes a liking to Dolphin, Seth feels it's up to him to save Cameron from his friends' fate.

I’m having family over, hence the many rewatches. Can’t risk anything I haven’t seen as they might be upset (never can judge anyone’s taste a 100%). Was told the above is very scary, though I’d always interpreted it as a straightforward drama. But we both liked it. Great performances, ambience, wheat fields and sunset sequences and soundtrack. Viggo Mortensen is fantastic here. But this being my third or fourth time, I interpreted the film slightly differently than before. After the first watch there is a certain instinct to sympathise with Seth for wanting to spend more time with his brother and protect him from a perceived threat, but this time around, he just seemed incredibly mean and almost psychopathic/‘evil’ for no particular reason. Got me to appreciate for the first time why some people see younger siblings as inherently meaner than the older ones. Didn’t feel sorry for Seth at all by the end of the film.

Re: Rate The Last Movie You Saw
 

Zheng tu. 8.5 out of 10. This is a Chinese film.

I mean, I have a hard time liking anyone who tortures an animal for fun. So Seth was kind of on my crap list from the beginning.

I will say, however, that a lot of Seth's cruelty comes from the fact that he is shut out of the life of the adults around him. People do not speak plainly--they all talk in an adult code, and Seth is left to filter that through his child's brain. His frustration is what often leads to him acting out.

Doplhin says that she's 200 years old, he takes it literally. No one will ever say that his father is gay. His brother cannot bring himself to speak honestly to Seth about the horrors of war, and specifically his guilt over his own actions. He has no context to understand what it means to find a dead baby.

I agree that it's hard to feel sorry for Seth when so much of his unnecessary cruelty is directed at Dolphin, someone who is just quietly in pain. While I didn't particularly like him as a character, I can at least feel sorry for someone who can't understand what's happening around him and does not grasp the depth of the consequences of some of his actions.

I actually think that an interesting dynamic of the film is the way that Seth pinpoints his anger on Dolphin. The men in the car are much more of an obvious menace, so why does Seth hone in on Dolphin? This is not a fully-developed thought, but Dolphin is weird and very "other", while the guys in the car are very all-American looking. I wonder if part of what we're meant to see is the way that when things are going wrong, it's easy to put a target on someone who looks or acts different.

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[Rated}2.5[/rating]

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The Irishman, 2019

Just being honest, were it not for the 2020 Film Challenge thread I would probably not have watched this movie. Mob movies just aren't my thing, for reasons I'll go into a bit. That said, this is a really solid film from almost every technical angle.

The story tracks the life of Frank Sheeran (Robert DeNiro), a man who becomes a hit man for the Italian mob and his complicated relationship with Jimmy Hoffa (Al Pacino). As Jimmy becomes more and more integrated with the mob, personal relationships--including with his own family--take a backseat.

There's very little to criticize from a technical point of view. The acting from DeNiro and Pacino is excellent, as are the performances from the supporting cast (including a prominently featured Joe Pesci). The direction is good. The whole film looks great. My only technical criticism were the strange titles that kept popping up to tell about the fates of certain characters. I didn't mind the idea too much--but the titles look like something I would have create in iMovie. They look, for lack of a better word, cheap. And the point that they make--the violent deaths of so many of the men in this circle--seems already pretty apparent in the film.

My problem with mob movies is that way too often it feels like there's an admiration for the mobsters and the way that they are able to perpetrate violence without consequences. There were definitely several sequences in The Irishman that felt this way. It's one thing when a criminal is "fighting the man" or whatever, especially when their crimes aren't violent. But the mob is powerful. They have a ton of sway. And watching certain sequences it felt borderline celebratory of their way of life. It's a fine line between "this is fascinating" (which it is) and "this is cool". It's true that the film does inject melancholy to counter this element, but it feels disproportionate.

My favorite aspect of the film was, ironically, the element that got the least amount of screen time. (And, speaking of screen time, this movie is 3 1/2 hours long! At one point I had watched 90 minutes . . . you know, the length of a whole normal movie. And I still had two hours to go . . .you know, the length of a slightly long normal movie.) Anyway, my favorite element was the way that the film showed the impact of Frank's work on his family. Starting with a scene in which Frank's daughter watches in mute horror as Frank beats a man and brutally smashes his fingers, I loved the portrayal of the people who end up on the fringe of Frank's work. Specifically his wife and especially his children, who have no power or control over their lives being intertwined with the mob and its accompanying violence. There's a great, brief sequence where Frank's wife shakes as she goes to turn on the family car--visions of recent car bombings dancing in her head. Frank frequently shrugs off the mob's mistakes ("Oops. Bad hit!"), but his family has to live with the knowledge that such violence might suddenly descend on them. It's this dynamic that is the best condemnation of Frank's character. He not only lacks empathy for the people he hurts/kills, he lacks empathy for his own family.

Not exactly my cup of tea, but a solid film that deserves the praise it gets.

Re: Rate The Last Movie You Saw
 

I wanted to like The Irishman moren than I really did. Mid tier Scorsese, if you ask me. The gnawing feeling I had throughout was that Marty and his team had done much more with less in the past.