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Love this movie! It’s definitely making my ballot as well!
Definitely getting my vote as well along with several other animated movies. I suspect Wall E will rank pretty high on the countdown.



You can't make a rainbow without a little rain.
I had this gif of him as my avatar for while:

omg really that gif just made me smile its so cute lol

There are a whole bunch of Wall-E short videos like this on YouTube.

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You can't make a rainbow without a little rain.
Definitely getting my vote as well along with several other animated movies. I suspect Wall E will rank pretty high on the countdown.

I'm pretty sure that there will be several animated movies on my ballot too.



I had never heard of Hideo Gosha but when I ran across these two titles they were going to run on TCM I DVR'd them immediately. Turns out these were the first two films he ever directed. He went on to make 24 films in all and if these two are any indication then I need to familiarize myself with his catalogue. I did watch them out of order though.


Sword of the Beast - Set in the year 1857, the movie opens with Yuuki Gennosuke (Mikijirô Hira) hiding in a corn field. A woman approaches him and offers herself to him. It is, of course a distraction and the film gradually reveals the man's trangression and the reason he's being hunted down. He's a fugitive because he killed his clan's counselor and his pursuers include the dead man's daughter Misa (Toshie Kimura), her fiance and his best friend Daizaburo (Kantarô Suga) and the clan's master swordsman. Knowing that he needs money to fund his flight he teams up with dirt poor farmer Gundaya (Takeshi Katō) in a scheme to poach gold from the Shogun's mountain. Once there he runs across a samurai from another clan, Jurota Yamane (Go Kato) and his wife Taka (Shima Iwasheta). They've been there for some time and have collected quite a bit of gold. Gennosuke realizes that he and Jurota are both victims of higher ups who have promised them advancement and riches. In Gennosuke's case the vice counselor enticed him into murder by dangling the possibility of reform only to turn his back once he was assured of the dead man's position within the clan.

The feel of this is almost noirish which would be awe inspiring because samurai noir is something I didn't even know existed. There are plenty of double crosses and femme fatales and chiaroscuro tableaus. But running beneath it all is Gosha's righteous disapproval at the hypocrisy of the so called ruling class and the pitfalls of blind loyalty. I really liked this. Liked the casting, the somewhat somber story arc and the underlying message.

90/100



Three Outlaw Samurai
- This is Gosha's first ever feature and it's an auspicious beginning IMO. Wandering ronin Sakon Shiba (Tetsuro Tamba) happens across three farmers holding a girl prisoner in an abandoned mill. She turns out to be the daughter of the local magistrate and the men have abducted her in order to force a dialogue on behalf of all the suffering peasants that the lord has long disregarded. At first looking only for somewhere to sleep, Shiba offers advice to the clearly outmatched farmers and when the Magistrate and his motley crew of men eventually show up he takes note of Einosuke Kikyô (Mikijirô Hira) who is clearly in another class as far as demeanor and fighting skills are concerned. With Shiba's help the farmers are able to stymie the magistrate's attempt at forcibly rescuing his daughter.

Once back at his compound the lord hires as many men as he can including the one's currently in his jail cells. One of these is Kyôjûrô Sakura (Isamu Nagato), scruffy and penniless but an expert with a spear and also head and shoulders above the rabble the magistrate is recruiting. Upon meeting Shiba and hearing of the farmer's plight he realizes he has more in common with them and switches sides.

There is plenty of dialoguing and machinations by the magistrate and changes of heart from supporting characters. Gosha once again plays with the heretofore unassailable notion of honor and loyalty by stressing it's limitations when the powers that be refuse to hold up their end of the bargain.

Eventually the seemingly unprincipled Kikyô realizes he can no longer remain on the sidelines and joins arms with the other two samurai in time for the big showdown. This was a fine piece of chanbara but I did enjoy Sword of the Beast a bit more.

85/100



As for Nightingale, I prefer it greatly over The Babadook. Sure, the characters aren’t that deep, but I didn’t find them caricatures.
I second this. I consider The Babadook vastly overrated while Nightingale was, despite some caricature characters, good and bleak revenge tale.
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'Zama' (2018)
Dir. Lucrecia Martel


I thought this was pretty incredible. It's adapted from a novel about a sefaring lawyer waiting for a transfer from a godforsaken Argentinian port village. Lucrecia Martel does a brilliant job of creating the period (17th century) and there's a sinister air at almost every turn. The last 40 minutes are visually stunning and tense.

It would make a good companion piece to the films of Ciro Guerra as it has something to say about Colonialism.

8.7/10




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Empire M - 7.5/10
This is on Amazon Prime - check it out.. I don't want to say too much about it, but if I don't, no one will see it.

It's a movie about an Egyptian mother who works in a high-position for the Ministry of Education, with very pro-democratic ideals, but also with six kids who are growing up and becoming individuals. She encourages them to express themselves, to be themselves, but also wants them to be responsible. She is a widow who wants time for herself and her love life, and things finally become too much, and the kids tell their mother they want this democratic idealism in their home.

The movie is full of very good dialogue with these discussions. All the characters are likable, and when they discuss their plight, sacrifice, desires, and current/future state of the family, each one has a point. Written by the wonderful writer Mahfouz, it's also light-hearted and comedic at times.





I might be in the minority, but I didn’t enjoy Lynch’s Dune at all. Wasn’t the right director for it, in my opinion.
I doubt you're in the minority. Lynch's Dune is considered flawed even by its biggest fans. But there are some things I like about it, and a few of those things I prefer to what's in Villenueve's film. The Harkonnen are perhaps an example of where Villenueve was trying too hard to distance his film from Lynch's, but they end up looking pretty bland and unintriguing by comparison. But at least Jared Leto didn't show up, so it could have been worse. (*knock on wood* I hope Leto doesn't get cast as Feyd in the sequel )



I consider The Babadook vastly overrated while Nightingale was, despite some caricature characters, good and bleak revenge tale.
More like a caricature of a bleak revenge tale, but bleak revenge tales are already a dime a dozen. Babadook is a character study that doesn't resort to cynical degradation as a substitute for psychological conflict.



'Zama' (2018)
Dir. Lucrecia Martel


I thought this was pretty incredible. It's adapted from a novel about a sefaring lawyer waiting for a transfer from a godforsaken Argentinian port village. Lucrecia Martel does a brilliant job of creating the period (17th century) and there's a sinister air at almost every turn. The last 40 minutes are visually stunning and tense.

It would make a good companion piece to the films of Ciro Guerra as it has something to say about Colonialism.

8.7/10

Hmm, I'm intrigued. Have you seen La Ciénaga? It's the only film of her I've seen, but I really dug it.
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It would make a good companion piece to the films of Ciro Guerra as it has something to say about Colonialism.
Visually, and in the colonial theme, the film also reminded me of Echevarria's Cabeza de Vaca (1991), which also starred Daniel Gimenez Cacho.



Visually, and in the colonial theme, the film also reminded me of Echevarria's Cabeza de Vaca (1991), which also starred Daniel Gimenez Cacho.
Excellent thanks. Not heard of it so will add to list.



More like a caricature of a bleak revenge tale, but bleak revenge tales are already a dime a dozen.
My problem was that Kent's message, if there was one, was not clear to me. (I fully acknowledge that could be my problem and not the film's.) But if you're going to subject me to that much misery I'm gonna need to know why I'm enduring it at some point. It's been a long time since my viewing so I don't remember how it all resolves at the end, but I just left the theater feeling like I'd seen a bunch of terrible things happen but had no idea what I was supposed to take from it.
If her goal was just a straight-up I Spit on Your Grave thing then mission accomplished I guess, but I was giving her the benefit of the doubt that there was supposed to be more to it than that.
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The Wiz, 1978

Timid schoolteacher Dorothy (Diana Ross) is transported to the strange fantasy urban landscape of Oz. She connects with the Scarecrow (Michael Jackson), the Tinman (Nipsey Russell), the Cowardly Lion (Ted Ross), and must find her way to the Wizard (Richard Pryor). But the wicked witch Evillene (Mabel King) has other plans for Dorothy (and her little dog, too!).

This film has greatness in fits and starts, but for the most part it feels like a missed opportunity.

What I enjoyed the most here were some of the visuals. Graffiti comes to life at night in an outsized playground. An artist in the subway controls two puppets that seem to get bigger, and bigger, and bigger. The sets and costumes tread a fun line between urban vintage and fantasy. Some of the choreography is really great and fun, especially the larger pieces in the last act.

I also really liked some of the music. "Ease on Down the Road" is a catchy refrain, and "Brand New Day" resonates with some excellent stage musical big number energy.

But overall I found myself struggling with this film a bit. It took me three different viewings to complete it, at one point finding myself dismayed that there were still somehow 50 minutes left. Perhaps it's something about the pacing, but I thought that the film lacked a vital momentum. Instead of feeling eager, I found myself feeling impatient.

Just a real notch below what I was hoping for.




Wow...can't believe this review...I think this is one of the worst movie musicals ever made...here's a link to my review:

https://www.movieforums.com/reviews/...0-the-wiz.html



Watched 'Parasite' recently, and although I haven't actually seen any of the films it beat out for best picture I think it's probably deserved. I've loved all of Bong Joon-Ho's prior films for their uniqueness and absurdism and this was no exception. The best I've heard it described is as a more perfect version of Snowpiercer. Highly recommended.