Rate The Last Movie You Saw

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⬆️ I thought this is a mini-series not a movie.
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I Clowns - 1970

An utterly unique and charming film in a world of its own. I look forward to seeing it many more times. When you've laughed and cried you know it's been a good movie.

10/10





The Two Popes (2019) - 6.8/10. Quite liked it. A mellow version of Frost Nixon I would say. And the architecture of Rome/Vatican is just mesmerising. Also good to see Anthony Hopkins on screen after a long time. Loved the fact that the current Pope is a huge fan of football.
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My Favorite Films



Are you gonna bark all day, little doggy?
Ip Man 4: 6/10

The characters are cartoons, the cultural commentary is barely surface level and extremely pandering, and it's about as historically accurate as King Kong. It's about on board with the other Ip Man films in this regard.

But great action and athletic talent make this overall a very watchable film, if not a very good one.

Highly recommended for action/martial arts fans.



Bright light. Bright light. Uh oh.

Hunter's Weekend (Amy Taylor, 2018)
+ 5/10
Lost, Lost, Lost (Jonas Mekas, 1969)
6.5/10
Damnation (Béla Tarr, 1988)
5/10
Interrogation (Ryszard Bugajski, 1989)
6.5/10

In Stalinist Poland, nightclub entertainer Krystyna Janda is tortured and interrogated. Why? That's the way they do things.
Diamond Island (Davy Chou, 2016)
+ 5/10
Oxalis (Brian Gottlieb, 2018)
4.5/10
Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence (Nagisa Ôshima, 1983)
6/10
Walden AKA Diaries Notes and Sketches (Jonas Mekas, 1969)
6.5/10

The director gussies up his style in this personal epic about 1960s culture.
Blank Slate (John Harrison, 2008)
5/10
Bundle of Joy (Norman Taurog, 1956)
6/10
All-American Co-Ed (LeRoy Prinz, 1941)
.5/10
Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ (Fred Niblo 1925)
+ 6.5/10

Judah Ben-Hur (Ramon Novarro) raoces nemesis Massala (Francis X. Bushman) in the Roman arena.
Teddy Bear AKA Mis (Stanislaw Bareja, 1981)
6/10
O. Henry's Full House (5 Directors, 1952)
- 6.5/10
All Mine to Give (Allen Reisner, 1957)
+ 6/10
Master Z: The Ip Man Legacy (Yuen,Woo-Ping, 2018)
6.5/10

Master Z (Jin Zhang) takes on drug-fealing mobster Dave Bautista
The Ambassador to Bern (Attila Szász, 2014)
6/10
A Christmas Carol (Edwin L. Marin, 1938)
6.5/10
Holiday Affair (Don Hartman, 1949)
+ 6/10
Meet John Doe (Frank Capra, 1941)
+ 6.5/10

Unbeknownst to him, Long John Willoughby (Gary Cooper), a disabled bush league pitcher, becomes part f a nefarious plan.
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Carry on Behind (1975)



It's Xmas, it's Carry On Rather enjoyable romp on a camping site, expect nothing but the usual innuendo but it is nicely paced. Does not miss Sid James one bit, Windsor Davies ably handles his duties. Funny and a bit crude but not overly so.





A Rainy Day in New York (2019)

Woody Allen returns to top form in this appealing romantic comedy set in... where else? New York City.

A young bohemian university student from a wealthy NYC family accompanies his student girlfriend to New York in order to show her around, and also to have a romantic weekend. She has been assigned the opportunity by her WASPy college newspaper to interview a famous movie director.

Once she commences the interview, the director invites her to a screening of his new unreleased film. This sets up a whole series of zany encounters, near romances, confrontation with her boyfriend's family, and an inevitable and charming happy ending.

The beefy cast consists of Timothee Chalamet, Elle Fanning, Liv Schreiber, Jude Law, and Selena Gomez. But it is Miss Fanning who is so natural, adorable and entrancing, that she practically steals the show. The entire cast is in top form. Schreiber in particular is completely convincing in his eclectic role as the brooding, boozy film director. Jude Law is nearly unrecognizable in his portrayal of the movie producer. And Chalamet charms as the Woody Allen semi alter ego role. The weakest role was Selena Gomez as Chalamet's saucy inevitable love interest. A more experienced actress would have enhanced the character.

The film, shot in 2017, comes to us two years late due to some contractual hassles with Amazon and the fashionable PC/SJ interference. The picture had its release in Poland during July 2019, and from there world wide.

No one does this style of romantic comedy romp better than does Woody Allen, and it would be nearly impossible to imitate. It's nice to see Allen return to the type of quirky comedic dramas that made him such an iconic writer/director. See this picture. It's a lot of laughs, and very entertaining.

Doc's rating: 8/10



Dolemite is My Name (2019)

+


This was not as laugh out loud funny as I expected, but it was still very entertaining. What really surprised me was that it turned out to be a movie with a warm story and characters. The whole cast was very good, and I think Eddie Murphy should get a shot at some more serious roles.



Shanghai Express - 1932

A very stylish and well made movie, with unusual and effective acting from the main cast. I thought the extended crossfade technique was a little over-used but was nevertheless a noteworthy and useful element. Overall very high technical quality though I found the script to be somewhat lacking.

7/10



Navajo Joe (1966)




Spaghetti western directed by Sergio Corbucci with a score by Ennio Morricone. It doesn't totally feel spaghetti, maybe because it stars Burt Reynolds. He at least passes for an American Indian more than Burt Lancaster did in 1954's Apache, and it's easy to see why he'd soon become one of the biggest movie stars in the world. There is an abundance of ruthless killing in this movie and I thought it was a good watch.



Marriage Story (Noah Baumbach, 2019)


Adam Driver is one of my favourite modern actors but this film's entire being seemed to rely on over-dramatic dialogue sequences, rather than through telling an interesting story cinematically as the first few minutes promisingly suggest it might (through a combination of editing, voice-over etc.). I'm not surprised to see that it's getting a lot of praised with very committed performances but this wasn't for me.

Loveless (Andrey Zvyagintsev, 2017)


A fairly straightforward story of a child gone missing, but through the way the director frames spaces and actors he is able to generate a great feeling of suspense whilst also sharing some of his thoughts on the modern human way of life.

Logan (James Mangold, 2017)


A "superhero" film that instead of aiming to conform to a larger canon, opts to tell a more singular story with its own life. Reminiscent in some ways of some of cinema's most classic hero/anti-hero stories, almost as a modern Western. Very enjoyable.

Burning Cane (Phillip Youmans, 2019)


Remarkable to believe that this has been made by a 19 years old filmmaker. Although far from perfect, the director creates images of great depth, painting a rich, considered slice of American life. Mature beyond his years, and hopefully the start of an exciting cinematic career.

A Serious Man (Coen Brothers, 2009)


The only Coen Brothers' film that I had not seen and very enjoyable in a lot of similar ways to their other works. An interesting exploration of life and its weird idiosyncrasies, what guides our choices and being, but not as non-stop enjoyable or gripping for me as some of their other stuff.

A Woman is a Woman (Jean-Luc Godard, 1961)


I watched this the night before Anna Karina passed away, which was quite a sad coincidence. She is absolutely wonderful as usual. This film was just so delightful for me, very playful, combining various cinematic elements to create a compelling story that had me smiling and laughing throughout. My brother, who also watched Breathless for the first time a few weeks ago, really enjoyed this too.

Velvet Buzzsaw (Dan Gilroy, 2019)


Absolute load of rubbish. Not scary, not funny, not interesting, but worst of all is that it seems like it is trying to be something, a ridiculous attempt at some type of satire that in the end just really really bored me. I almost fell asleep and just wanted it to end. Like some weird mix between Nocturnal Animals and Maps to the Stars but without any life at all to make it compelling.

The Guilty (Gustav Möller, 2018)


Like the very good Locke, this is a film set in one location focussing on one character that manages through dialogue (most of the talking takes place over the phone) to be compelling and suspenseful. Ultimately with such a film there are also limitations as to where the plot can go and some elements do seem slightly contrived, and some of the directorial choices (wide screen camera) seemed a little odd - but overall solid and interesting.

Wind River (Taylor Sheridan, 2017)


A plot full of clichés, every character and action just seemed like something I had seen before. With the environment that the film takes place in, you'd expect some type of suspense or great cinematic moments, but for me everything fell flat. Hold The Dark whilst flawed, was a much stronger film.

Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker (J.J. Abrams, 2019)


Went into this with really low expectations as I saw some poor reviews and also hated Episode 8, but was pleasantly surprised. The plot is full of some ridiculous moments and coincidences but I was happy to accept most of them and go along with it, as Abrams recovered the heart of the story. Instead of focussing on weird characters or uninteresting subplots, the main characters are actually put back together and this manages to create some great emotional moments. The film flies by yet never feels disorientating with some superbly shot sequences.

A Most Violent Year (J.C. Chandor, 2014)


A very well constructed tale that largely hinges on a very good performance from Oscar Isaac. An interesting look at capitalism and the various roles that people play, as well as the different ethical and moral implications of the decisions we make. I liked this and really liked All Is Lost from Chandor, who manages to create compelling stories with limited elements.

A Simple Plan (Sam Raimi, 1998)


Raimi has a go at emulating his friends the Coen Brothers, and for me whilst the result isn't as memorably cinematic, the greatest success of this film is how through its plot it becomes a fascinating and moving character study. Billy Bob Thornton is particularly strong and affecting in his role.

The Curse of the Cat People (Robert Wise & Gunther von Fritsch, 1944)


Absolutely nothing like Cat People but still a decent film. More of a child's fantasy film, probably more similar to The Spirit of the Beehive than anything else I have seen. I enjoyed it but it lacked any really strong cinematic moments to be anything better than good for me.

Brief Encounter (David Lean, 1945)


My first time seeing this classic Romance and it smashed my expectations. Lean obviously famously went on to direct more epic sprawling works like Lawrence of Arabia but here is direction is different but still wonderful and really elevates the story. The camera moves softly, simply, with care, the editing stitches everything together with great balance that gives the film a dreamlike fluidity. The two main performances are dramatic but they work and make the story extremely powerful.
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Once Upon a Time in Hollywood (2019)




It's weird because I think it could have been so much better yet I still loved it. Leo was great but I thought it was Pitt's movie. Him and his dog were totally badass. It doesn't have the brilliant dialogue of his other best movies. A lot of movie within a movie stuff, pretty cool especially with a western countdown upcoming here. Still, I would have liked a little less of that and more L.A. partying. Great soundtrack, not as quirky as his others. For me it's the combination of the Hollywood scene with the Manson cult, a good time with such a horribly ominous feel. The visual of a pregnant Sharon Tate while hearing Mick Jagger sing Out of Time blew my mind and my heart. Even the ending could have been better, and it was still friggin awesome. The ending made the movie for my wife. Ultimate fantasy.
Glad you enjoyed this so much, I thought you would to be honest. I've got it on Blu-ray now and watched it again the other day. Every time I watch it, whenever "Out of Time" hits I get goosebumps. Really really sad and powerful film that works so well for me because of what happened in real life. I watched it with my mum too and she is not always a huge fan of violence but absolutely loved it. I was a bit surprised just how much she enjoyed the whole thing



The Grey Fox (1982)




From the current westerns list, supposedly this is a biographical film and it sure felt very real. Richard Farnsworth is outstanding as a stagecoach robber who serves over 30 years in prison until his release in 1901. He happens to watch The Great Train Robbery soon after which gives him a new idea. He's known as the gentleman bandit and he tries to change his identity while living on the run. A very mature and strong film, a bit different from most other westerns. IMDb and Wiki both have it at 110 minutes long but it's only 85.





First the good: it's bad. Very, very bad. It's absolutely terrible. The bad: Can't think of anything. Lack of gore perhaps. A 19th century witch places a curse on her husband because he wants her to stop killing men by sleeping with them (she keeps a very dangerous snake hidden ...*cough* there) "You're married now, dammit! Stop killing dudes that way!" her husband in the white jeans tells her. The curse is that in 100 years his granddaughter will be killed. But wait? Isn't that also her granddaughter? What kind of bassackwards curse is that? Fast forward to hundred years later when a lady goes diving in the ocean, gets infected with the curse and comes back as the Lady Terminator and begins hunting down the granddaughter. Cars get blown up, Lady Terminator kills dudes by sleeping with them, then with an uzi and when really mad and almost dead by shooting laser death rays from her eyes. This film rips scenes right from Camerons Terminator and remakes them almost shot for shot except it's all done worse, obviously. Much, much worse. Lady Terminator is pretty remarkable. There is so much bad in this that it would take longer than the movies runtime to explain it all. Across the board, this is one of the worst movies I've ever seen. The entire cast and crew deserves a standing ovation. On a steep curve this is a
bad movie.





Nice science fiction movie. A rare gem given that Hollywood doesnt make a lot of original sci-fi anymore. This movie deals with a rather complex moral/ethical problem as well. Very well made. 7.5/10





Nice science fiction movie. A rare gem given that Hollywood doesnt make a lot of original sci-fi anymore. This movie deals with a rather complex moral/ethical problem as well. Very well made. 7.5/10
I'm glad someone besides me appreciates Passengers especially for it's unique way of looking at a rather interesting ethical problem.