Rate The Last Movie You Saw

2nd Rewatch...This cult classic just gets funnier with each rewatch. The scene where the guys take the copy machine out to a filed and destroy it is worth the price of admission alone. Anyone who has ever worked in an office will find something in this movie they will relate to.

1st Rewatch...HBO's creepy and voyeuristic look at the relationship between legendary director Alfred Hitchcock and actress Tippi Hedren during the filming of The Birds and Marnie. Hollywood legend has it that Hitchcock tortured and abused Hedren on the set of The Birds after she spurned his sexual advances, including the use of real birds in a particular scene when he promised her he would be using mechanical ones. This movie is disturbing on so many levels...first of all, it's hard to know whether or not everything that happened here really happened, not to mention the fact that the film makes Hedren look like an idiot. All I could think of while watching this is "Why, after everything Hitch put her through during The Birds would she agree to do Marnie?" Not to mention the way Hitch's wife, Alma (brilliantly played Imelda Staunton) pretty much condoned her husband's behavior. But if the truth be told, the film is worth a look for the breathtaking performance by Toby Jones as Hitchcock, which earned him Emmy and Golden Globe nominations. A post graduate acting course that should be studied...pretty sure the actor doesn't crack a smile for the entire film. So creepy.

Brie was terrific in this. The book is very good too.

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I’m here only on Mondays, Wednesdays & Fridays. That’s why I’m here now.

Think of the young man as the angel of death.

Can’t remember if I bailed out of this. Can’t remember a single scene & no clue if I finished this. Huge fan of Mikkelsen though.

1st Rewatch...This comedy is about the reunion between an accountant (Kevin Hart) who piqued in high school and is now bored with what his life has become and a former fattie (Dwayne Johnson) who was bullied in high school and is now a CIA agent gone rogue The movie starts off quite promisingly watching these two guys reconnect, but it gets dumber and dumber as the relationship gets replaced by car chases and explosions. If the film had stuck to the relationship between these two guys, it could have been something kind of special.

1st Rewatch...Director Elaine May triumphs with this dark and claustrophobic drama about a small time bookie (John Cassavetes) who thinks there is a contract out on his life and contacts his best friend (Peter Falk) to help him. This movie brought me through a myriad of emotions, as a matter of fact, it starts off kind of humorous, but it becomes deadly serious and had my stomach in knots for the majority of the running time. Possibly, Cassavetes' finest performance, he doesn't make a flase move here.

What a palaver to stream this movie in America. Will have to go renew library card & stream it on kanopy.

3rd Rewatch...Easily in the top five of the Robert Altman library and that's saying a lot. Altman knocked it out of the park with this complex and sophisticated mounting of a crime story on a sparkling Hollywood canvas. Tim Robbins plays a movie studio executive who begins getting death threats on postcards but has no idea who is sending said threats. This is the linchpin upon which Altman manages to tell a legitimate crime story on a canvas of multi-level star power that still somehow manages to have that unscripted feel we Altman fans love. Love that scene in the beginning of film where Buck Henry is observed pitching a sequel to The Graduate.

⏫️ Good documentary.

Knuckleball, 2018

Twelve year old Henry (Luca Villacis) is dropped off at the rural farm of his grandfather, Jacob (Michael Ironside) so that his parents can attend a funeral in the area. But when Jacob suffers a medical incident, Henry finds himself at the mercy of Jacob’s disturbed neighbor, Dixon (Munro Chambers). With no way to call for help, Henry must survive the day and the night in a battle of wits, all the while learning more and more about the unsettling relationship between Jacob and Dixon.

Somewhere in the first half was the makings of a dark, eerie thriller. It’s a shame the rest of the film didn’t follow suit.



FULL REVIEW

A Taste Of Honey And Chocolate In January (But No Molasses)!



JANUARY 16, 2024

THE BEEKEEPER (2024)
WONKA (2023)

All in all, a very fun trip to the movies yesterday!

First off was the latest action thriller from director David Ayer, starring Jason Statham. The trailers promised a Full-Tilt Revenge-O-Matic Destruct-O-Rama in the John Wick mould. And yeah, it is that to a large extent, but one with great characterizations (albeit sketched with a certain requisite broadness) and an increasingly disquieting moral ambiguity as the story tilts toward the subject of political assassination. You start out in full support of Adam Clay (Jason Statham)'s mission to take down a rotten network of financial scammers, but start to get increasingly uneasy as his path leads him upward toward nothing less than the highest office in the land. And you start to wonder, "What is the film trying to say, anyway?" (Particularly if you're someone like myself who is of, let's say, a more old-school liberal disposition.) But there's nothing really deep going on, no major political statements being made, especially since our man Clay ends up taking out the individual who deserves it the most. (And I think most people, regardless of individual political beliefs, would probably agree. But no spoilers beyond that, I promise you! ) In short, The Beekeeper probably bites off just a tad more than it can chew from a sociopolitical statement standpoint (try saying those three words really fast five times!), but it is nonetheless an intelligent and engaging full-tilt action thriller. In this instance, revenge is served sweet! Definitely recommended, provided you bring the right set of expectations...

Quite honestly, it's been a while since I've seen the classic 1971 Willy Wonka & The Chocolate Factory starring Gene Wilder, so I don't know if I can make any sort of valid comparison between the original film and the new musical fantasy film about Wonka's formative years, directed by Paul King and starring Timothée Chalamet. (Willy Wonka and Paul Atreides! Wow, nice gigs if you can get 'em...) But I can definitely say that I had a good time at Wonka, and the audience I was with certainly did as well. Chalamet is quite entertaining, portraying the aspirant chocolatier with a geeky earnestness that can't help but steamroll over any naysayers. The newer musical numbers are written by singer/songwriter Neil Hannon and they're quite clever and funny. (And we do get new versions of Oompa Loompa and Pure Imagination from the original film classic. As Hugh Grant says in the movie: "I've started dancing now. Once we've started, we can't stop.") The visual FX are quite splendid, the villains are delightfully daft, and there is pathos in all the right places. As I get further into middle age, I have less of a sweet tooth for chocolate than I had as a youngster, but I kind of felt like buying a candy bar when I get out of the theater. However... seeing as how I'm pinching my proverbial pennies at the moment, I ultimately passed on the urge. But that's no reason to pass on the film! Heartily recommended for those with a sweet tooth...

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"Well, it's what people know about themselves inside that makes 'em afraid" - Clint Eastwood as The Stranger, High Plains Drifter (1973)

"I'll let you be in my dream if I can be in yours" - Bob Dylan, Talkin' World War III Blues (1963)

SF = Z


[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

Very good picture.
My commentary: https://www.movieforums.com/communit...0846&page=3865
(5th review down)

Bank of Dave (2023)

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[ J ] - [ S ] - [ F ]

Tucker & Dale vs. Evil - Finished rewatching seasons 1&2 of Resident Alien and decided to keep the Alan Tudyk-fest going with this rewatch of the 2010 horror/comedy. Tudyk plays Tucker McGee, who has just bought himself a "vacation home" cabin in the hills of West Virginia. He invites his best friend Dale Dobson (Tyler Labine) along to help with the repairs and for some fishing. On the way they run into some college kids on a camping trip who take an immediate dislike to the two so-called hillbillies. This is setup from the getgo as a lampooning of all the "group of kids get attacked by murderous inbred hill dwellers" movies. Dale's clumsy attempt to talk to one of the girls is immediately rebuffed and when the two go night fishing they run into the college kids again. A series of escalating misunderstandings ends up with bodies rapidly piling up. It's the unexpected way the expected fatalities occur that makes this such a watchable flick. Labine is the actual star with Katrina Bowden as Allison, Dale's unrequited crush, sharing much of the camera time. Tudyk provides some MVP support and much of the comic relief. It is gory but since it's in service to such a clever and subversive story many will look past that and simply enjoy the ride.

85/100
A Hard Day's Night - This was my sixth or seventh time watching this but it's probably my favorite comedy/musical of all time. If it actually qualifies as one. There is the loosest of stories with wonderful musical interludes sprinkled thoughout. The Beatles (Paul McCartney, John Lennon, George Harrison and Ringo Starr) are shepherded by their manager Norm (Norman Rossington) and road manager Shake (John Junkin) through one hectic day as they travel by train to London for a televised concert. Also along is the Paul's provocateur grandfather John McCartney (Wilford Brambell). It's got a very unbound and improvised feel to it even though it was written by Welsh playwright Alun Owen and was nominated for a Best Original Screenplay Oscar. This is largely due to the band, each with their own distinct identity but all able to toss off lines with an ease that belies their respective ages (20 to 23). Directed by Richard Lester, this helped make the 4 Lads From Liverpool into bona fide superstars.

90/100

This is such a terrific smart, sci-fi movie, one of my all time favorites. Micheal Rennie is an ET and Patricia Neal as the woman who believes in him. Klaatu has been sent to warn the earth that their choice is between being better, not using nuclear weapons or dealing with Gort, the robot in the background. You really do NOT want to deal with Gort who carries a disintegrator beam in his eyeshade and is quite invulnerable. It's a really smart movie, well done with low-tech FX. Gort was a 7 foot 5 actor, Lock Martin, inside a costume.

It's worth noting that the name of the man is John Carpenter, said to be a thinly veiled reference to Jesus Christ. As you might expect from the blood on his jacket, things don't end well for Carpenter. Great movie, the 1951 is the one to see. The 2008 remake sucks.

One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975)


First time watching this, and it was fine. I expected more based on reputation, so maybe it just hasn't held up quite as well over time. Jack Nicholson is excellent as always, but the plot and themes of the movie seemed rather basic to me. Maybe I'm missing something...

i really loved it, its soo hilarious and loved the casting