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Nightmare Alley (2021)

Guillermo del Toro never seems to get that big box office hit. In his follow-up to his BP winner Nightmare Alley is a remake of a 47' noir. It tells the story of a carnival worker who dives deeper and deeper into mental-ism. In essence it a dual movie the carnival part and the city part, the carnival part is like a slice of life drama where the city is basically a horror film.

This might be the best film of the year, Bradley Cooper is fantastic in this but he plays off all the supporting figures so well. The city set design is just insane bringing you into this world of opulence. Richard Jenkins and Cate Blanchett don't show up until the second half and they basically steal the show.

The film has basically three twists at the end with the final twist the most predictable and the first twist should have been played much better. But still at the end of the day this is a classic and I recommend it strongly. I might just end up putting this in the next Hall of Fame.





Alive (1993) -


The plane crash in the opening is very intense and a great way to start off one of the most harrowing survival stories in history. It sucked me right into the film and it took some time for its effect to wear off. As the film went on though, it began to lose my engagement and I wasn't able to get back into it. In spite of all the hurdles the survivors went through, I strangely felt like I was at a distance from the proceedings. Looking up the plane crash, I learned that the survivors were stuck in the mountains for 72 days before they were rescued. While I'm sure this must have been very difficult, I didn't feel the passage of time while watching the film. I felt that the actors' bodies, faces, and eyes looked way too healthy for them to have faced over two months of near-starvation. When a title card late in the film said "Day 60", it didn't feel like they were there for 60 days. They looked about the same as they did in the opening scene. As for some other aspects of the film, the acting is fine. Nothing special per se and there's some hammy bits here and there, but I did enjoy Ethan Hawke's performance as Nando since he started off the ordeal in really bad shape, but gradually got better as the film went on to the point that he was the most resourceful member of the group. Overall though, I was left cold by this film since the potential it showed in its first act was ultimately wasted.
I saw this film back in the 90s and it really left an impression. I haven't seen it in a long time, though. Not sure how it would fare for me now.
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I saw this film back in the 90s and it really left an impression. I haven't seen it in a long time, though. Not sure how it would fare for me now.
I liked it a lot when I first watched it several years ago as well. I rewatched it a couple days ago to show it to one of my roommates, but while I still enjoyed it, it didn't hold up as well as I remembered.
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Nightmare Alley (2021)

Guillermo del Toro never seems to get that big box office hit. In his follow-up to his BP winner Nightmare Alley is a remake of a 47' noir. It tells the story of a carnival worker who dives deeper and deeper into mental-ism. In essence it a dual movie the carnival part and the city part, the carnival part is like a slice of life drama where the city is basically a horror film.

This might be the best film of the year, Bradley Cooper is fantastic in this but he plays off all the supporting figures so well. The city set design is just insane bringing you into this world of opulence. Richard Jenkins and Cate Blanchett don't show up until the second half and they basically steal the show.

The film has basically three twists at the end with the final twist the most predictable and the first twist should have been played much better. But still at the end of the day this is a classic and I recommend it strongly. I might just end up putting this in the next Hall of Fame.


Have you seen the original '47 version? If yes, is it good and is there any point to watch it before this?
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I liked it a lot when I first watched it several years ago as well. I rewatched it a couple days ago to show it to one of my roommates, but while I still enjoyed it, it didn't hold up as well as I remembered.
I saw this film back in the 90s and it really left an impression. I haven't seen it in a long time, though. Not sure how it would fare for me now.
I highly recommend that you both check out the documentary Stranded: I've Come from a Plane that Crashed in the Mountains. It is riveting stuff and deeply empathetic to the experiences of the victims.



Have you seen the original '47 version? If yes, is it good and is there any point to watch it before this?

It's on my DVR I might have seen it or not, I was going to rewatch it at some point



I highly recommend that you both check out the documentary Stranded: I've Come from a Plane that Crashed in the Mountains. It is riveting stuff and deeply empathetic to the experiences of the victims.
I know I saw a documentary back in the day, but that title doesn't ring a bell. I'll check it out. Thanks!



I know I saw a documentary back in the day, but that title doesn't ring a bell. I'll check it out. Thanks!
It is a really great film, and some of the revelations in it are pretty astounding.

Especially the way that
WARNING: spoilers below
the media and the general public responded to the revelations about their having been cannibalism
.



Bright light. Bright light. Uh oh.

The Kindred (Jamie Patterson, 2021)
- 5.5/10
College Girls (A.C. Stephen [Stephen C. Apostolof], 1968)
4/10
Cash McCall (Joseph Pevney, 1960)
6/10
Gunga Din (George Stevens, 1939)
7+/10

At the height of British colonialism in India, the British take on the Thuggees. Temple of Doom is a partial remake.
The Curse of La Patasola (AJ Jones, 2022)
+ 4.5/10
Every Girl Should Be Married (Don Hartman, 1948)
6/10
The Commando (Asif Akbar, 2021)
+ 4.5/10
Sing 2 (Garth Jennings, 2021)
6.5/10

Buster Moon (Matthew McConaughey) returns to take on a smug promoter and put on a show with a reclusive rock star.
The Free Fall (Adam Stilwell, 2021)
5/10
Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House (H.C. Potter, 1948)
+ 6/10
Shattered (Luis Prieto, 2022)
5/10
Rifkin's Festival (Woody Allen, 2020)
6/10

Struggling writer/ex-film professor Wallace Shawn plays the Woody Allen stand-in this time when he accompanies his publicist wife Gina Gershon to the San Sebastian Film Festival. She falls for her film director client while he becomes infatuated with doctor Elena Anaya. Some amusing European film recreations.
Italian Studies (Adam Leon, 2021)
5/10
A Journal for Jordan (Denzel Washington, 2021)
6/10
Amityville Uprising (Thomas J. Churchill, 2022)
+ 3.5/10
The Innocents (Jack Clayton, 1961)
+ 8/10

Governess Deborah Kerr encounters dead caretaker Peter Wyngarde who she sees as a direct threat to the children she's in charge of. Psychological Victorian horror is awesome in every way.
Taming the Garden (Salomé Jashi, 2021)
+ 5/10
The Royal Treatment (Rick Jacobson, 2022)
6-/10
Executive Suite (Robert Wise, 1954)
- 7/10
The King's Daughter aka The Moon and the Sun (Sean McNamara, 2022)
6-/10

Kaya Scodelario argues with King Louis XIV (Pierce Brosnan) about her arranged marriage and the fate of a mermaid with magical healing powers.
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Nightmare Alley (2021)

Guillermo del Toro never seems to get that big box office hit. In his follow-up to his BP winner Nightmare Alley is a remake of a 47' noir. It tells the story of a carnival worker who dives deeper and deeper into mental-ism. In essence it a dual movie the carnival part and the city part, the carnival part is like a slice of life drama where the city is basically a horror film.

This might be the best film of the year, Bradley Cooper is fantastic in this but he plays off all the supporting figures so well. The city set design is just insane bringing you into this world of opulence. Richard Jenkins and Cate Blanchett don't show up until the second half and they basically steal the show.

The film has basically three twists at the end with the final twist the most predictable and the first twist should have been played much better. But still at the end of the day this is a classic and I recommend it strongly. I might just end up putting this in the next Hall of Fame.


Wow, your review definitely make me want to add this to my watchlist.



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I thought Magnolia was his attempt at an Altman film. Maybe he thought it was worth attempting twice.

Most definitely.. I also think "There Will Be Blood" is similar to "McCabe & Mrs. Miller", and "Inherent Vice" is trying to replicate "The Long Goodbye"... I've seen enough homages. Just do your own thing.


(after watching his last three, four movies)


"Bring Robert Altman back!"



I highly recommend that you both check out the documentary Stranded: I've Come from a Plane that Crashed in the Mountains. It is riveting stuff and deeply empathetic to the experiences of the victims.
I'll have to check it out.



27th Hall of Fame

Baby Face (1933) -


I found this to be a compelling film as the likability of Stanwyck's character resonated with me the most. Watching the earlier scenes in the bar, it wasn't hard to see why Lily rebelled against the men she encountered at the bank. Her father forced her to sleep with her customers for many years and her daily routine in the bar involved men putting their hands on her to ask for requests and other men asking to sleep with her. Due to that, the early scenes of her seducing the men in her workplace to move higher up (I like how her ascent is represented by the camera moving up different floors in the bank from outside) are liberating to watch. As this goes on though, the impact she has on the other men keeps growing more and more severe. First, she gets a worker fired, she then complicates a relationship with another man and his wife, and she finally causes a major tragedy (one she doesn't seem bothered by). Watching her humanity slip away as she keeps getting carried away with her original goal is tragic, especially given how much I cared for her at the start of the film. I also found it interesting how Chico, her best friend in the bar, didn't advance in rank with her and remained as a maid all throughout the film. That was a nice touch of social commentary which showed how minority races will have an especially hard time of getting a high paying job in that environment. Looking at some of the reviews, I noticed there were some mixed reactions to the ending. Some people really liked it, while others felt it didn't work. On one hand, I felt like the remorse Lily eventually showed was earned and a compelling culmination to her arc, but on the other hand, I think the film wrapped itself up into too neat of a bow (this is an issue I've noticed a few times for movies with unlikable protagonists) and, given some of the things Lily caused in the film, her outcome at the end didn't feel earned. This is a minor issue though. Ending aside, I really enjoyed this film.



Have you seen the original '47 version? If yes, is it good and is there any point to watch it before this?

No...It's up to you but I would recommend the Del Toro version.




Nightmare Alley (1947)

Having loved the 2021 version I decided to pop in the 40's version staring Tyrone Power. It's a good movie but it's an inferior version of the story. Power's is the lead...everyone else is clearly supporting him and frankly a shallower version of each character. Not to say the film is bad it's just clearly a film noir while the modern version is much more horrific.

It's a good companion piece to the remake because Del Toro does add parts to the remake that are in the original. But the film just touches on the themes of the story.





Aliens
...eh, I mean...
Alien 2: On Earth (1980)

An Italian B-horror (and that's a kinda generous description, as is my rating) knocking-off Alien (sort of, it doesn't really resemble it in any way). Lots of stock footage, lots of driving around, 'cause using the budget to buy a car is more important than the film. It's definitely not Aliens, it's not even Contamination, but at least it's better than Terminator 2 (come on, you know which one).




Little Fish (2020, Chad Hartigan)

The obvious "Eternal Sunshine..." parallels aside, this strongly reminded me of Apples, a superb Greek-Polish film I saw recently that explores the premise and implications of a memory loss pandemic. This one is less quirky and artsy than Apples and has a more romantic flavor to it but it's good, I liked it. You know right away you hit upon something good when the film makes you forget about analysing stuff and pulls you into the story, making you care about the characters and what happens to them. The plot is relatively easy to follow (although there were a couple of things that remained a bit of a mystery), and the acting is really good. It's not the most profound or artistically stunning movie ever made, but it has a charm, it's warm, it's bittersweet, it's touching — good ending, too.