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Déjà Vu (2006, Tony Scott)

Very entertaining (and slightly underrated.. maybe?) time travel crime thriller with Denzel Washington.



Victim of The Night
The Outlaw Josey Wales -


This is another strong Clint Eastwood-directed Western. Having seen all of them now except for Honkytonk Man and Bronco Billy, I'd say this one coincides with the star/director's politics the most. I wouldn't be surprised if it's on lists of the best libertarian movies ever made. It's bound to appeal to all Western fans regardless of political leaning, however. It makes a compelling argument that those in government too easily get away with lying, cheating and thievery, especially against the kind of decent hardworking people who need them the most like those in Josey's company. Highlights include the Union army's "allegiance" ceremony and Josey's plea for a truce with Native American chief Ten Bears (a welcome appearance by One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest Will Sampson), in which he states his - and what might as well be Eastwood's - political stance. Speaking of Native Americans, it has one of the most sympathetic and fair treatments of them I've seen in a Western and in a movie in general. Besides Sampson, I very much enjoyed Chief Dan George's performance as Josey's companion and guide. With that said, those who love Westerns for the good stuff like gunfights, horse rides through scenic vistas and tough-talking grandmas (courtesy of a very good Paula Trueman) will find it here and it's all very well done. Despite its political boldness, the movie ultimately does not push the genre's envelope. I still think it's a must-see for Western lovers and would rank it as Eastwood's third best directorial effort in the genre behind Unforgiven and Pale Rider.
One of my favorite movies ever.
It used to run on HBO a lot back in the early and mid-80s and I must've watched it 20 or more times. Used to pretty much be able to quote the whole movie.
Mr. Chain Blue-Lightnin' hisself.



Lone Watie (Dan George) is great, and of course it's a surprisingly deep character in Josey Wales for a Western Hero, but for me, the highlight of the movie is Josey's meeting with Ten Bears.
I grew up watching "Cowboys and Indians" on TV all the time and you'd think coming up back in the 1970s I'd have thought of "Indians" as the bad guys, as savages but it's funny because growing up with Tanto from The Lone Ranger and Ten Bears (along with George) as really the most prominent "Indians" in my screen-world, I actually kinda thought the opposite. Tanto was so noble and distinguished in that show and then Ten Bears comes along who is this man with incredible gravitas and dignity. While his time in the movie may be short, the scene between him and Wales is deep with both men showing a more civilized nature than all the world around them with a real value for life and Ten Bears in particular has this almost regal quality to him... that's how I grew up thinking of Native Americans.



I only wish the music was better on the ride-up, kinda detracts a little.



Victim of The Night
I'm not sure what you mean by "scrawny" presence, but if you meant that he lacked in presence, I have to think that that's kind of an odd thing to say, since a pretty wide consensus of people (myself included) expressed the sentiment that he left a bigger impression in his role than the actual star of the film did.
I've always strongly rejected this idea.
Michael Jordan chewed more scenery than Boseman but Boseman gave a much more nuanced performance, in my opinion. Much more. For me, Jordan never stole a scene from Boseman other than the one big one where they did everything they could script-wise, direction, camera, etc., to give him his big moment (in the "Hey, Auntie" scene, obviously). Now I get that Jordan kinda did what was asked of him, but I still thought he leaned too hard into it, as, for me he always does. I really liked him in Creed but again, I just felt like he overdid it a bit and I think he did in BP as well. To me, Jordan seems like a movie-star while Boseman seemed like a real actor.
My heart kinda broke a little when Boseman died.



Victim of The Night
25th Hall of Fame

BlacKkKlansman (2018) -


More than happy to watch this film again as it's one of my favorites of the 2010's. One thing I like about it is how it provides middle ground to both races. This extends to the police as one of the cops is corrupt and even the black characters such as Ron's love interest Patrice, who believes all cops are racist. Speaking of her, the love interest sub-plot doesn't feel tacked on as her character adds a lot to Ron's arc such as her differentiating views on the police which challenge Ron's own beliefs and how she requests for him to fight to grant power for all people, not just his race. I also really enjoyed the acting. Even though John David Washington wasn't as experienced of an actor as Denzel Washington, he was able to capture the energy and subtlety of his father in this role. I also like how there's so many memorable scenes in this film. For example, the various suspenseful moments or Lee humorously mocking the KKK in various scenes (like a scene of them having an over-the-top positive reaction to The Birth of a Nation) are great. In fact, even a simple scene of Felix and Connie lying in bed where they talk about how their marriage has been enriched throughout the years has darker implications since they list the KKK as one of the main reasons for this. While some people call Lee's films convoluted due to all the ideas he crams in them, they shouldn't find that issue here as the thematic montages are cleverly woven into the film, giving a bookend structure to it. The opening minutes detail the U.S.'s long history with racism, and the conclusion to this timeline serves as a chilling reminder that despite what Ron accomplished in this film, we've yet to see an end to racism and the fight still goes on. It's a bold and striking message which any director who'd turn this story into Oscar bait wouldn't dare to go near. Overall, it's an excellent film and I'm glad I got to rewatch it for this thread.
I agree, I thought this was instantly one of Lee's best films and I'd have been happy for it to have captured Best Picture.
And I especially agree on J.D. Washington. I had no idea who he was when I saw the film but I thought he was simultaneously magnetic and versatile, flexible. He had the energy you talk about but was also, like his father, able to be funny or light as needed. Hoping for a big future from him, I hope Tenet didn't scuttle his career.



I agree, I thought this was instantly one of Lee's best films and I'd have been happy for it to have captured Best Picture.
And I especially agree on J.D. Washington. I had no idea who he was when I saw the film but I thought he was simultaneously magnetic and versatile, flexible. He had the energy you talk about but was also, like his father, able to be funny or light as needed. Hoping for a big future from him, I hope Tenet didn't scuttle his career.
Yeah, I'm not a big fan of Nolan, but I kind of want to watch Tenet just to see J. D. Washington (as well as Robert Pattinson as I'm a huge fan of him).
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I’ll go to bat for Tenet. I think it’s great with craft and a degree of humor about itself that’s atypical of Nolan, where he outright has a scene where he tells the audience to not think too much about the effects.

Tonally, it’s a modern Bond film that got infected by Primer. The disorientation of the plotting is intentional due to the subterfuge of spycraft and the paradoxical nature of timey-wimey non-sense.

Does it make complete sense? No. Probably not. Does it craft a narrative where stuff not making complete sense is fine because A) the characters recognize that they can’t really grasp everything that’s going on and B) it’s all in service of spectacle on a level frequently lost in the miasma of green screen blockbusters? Yes on both counts.

Tenet won’t hurt anyone’s career except maybe Nolan, though I think his outspoken feud with WB over HBOMax did worse for him in that regard than anything about this film.



I’ll go to bat for Tenet. I think it’s great with craft and a degree of humor about itself that’s atypical of Nolan, where he outright has a scene where he tells the audience to not think too much about the effects.

Tonally, it’s a modern Bond film that got infected by Primer. The disorientation of the plotting is intentional due to the subterfuge of spycraft and the paradoxical nature of timey-wimey non-sense.

Does it make complete sense? No. Probably not. Does it craft a narrative where stuff not making complete sense is fine because A) the characters recognize that they can’t really grasp everything that’s going on and B) it’s all in service of spectacle on a level frequently lost in the miasma of green screen blockbusters? Yes on both counts.

Tenet won’t hurt anyone’s career except maybe Nolan, though I think his outspoken feud with WB over HBOMax did worse for him in that regard than anything about this film.
I might check it out then.



One of my favorite movies ever.
It used to run on HBO a lot back in the early and mid-80s and I must've watched it 20 or more times. Used to pretty much be able to quote the whole movie.
Mr. Chain Blue-Lightnin' hisself.



Lone Watie (Dan George) is great, and of course it's a surprisingly deep character in Josey Wales for a Western Hero, but for me, the highlight of the movie is Josey's meeting with Ten Bears.
I grew up watching "Cowboys and Indians" on TV all the time and you'd think coming up back in the 1970s I'd have thought of "Indians" as the bad guys, as savages but it's funny because growing up with Tanto from The Lone Ranger and Ten Bears (along with George) as really the most prominent "Indians" in my screen-world, I actually kinda thought the opposite. Tanto was so noble and distinguished in that show and then Ten Bears comes along who is this man with incredible gravitas and dignity. While his time in the movie may be short, the scene between him and Wales is deep with both men showing a more civilized nature than all the world around them with a real value for life and Ten Bears in particular has this almost regal quality to him... that's how I grew up thinking of Native Americans.



I only wish the music was better on the ride-up, kinda detracts a little.
I agree about the Ten Bears scene. After I watched that part, I was like, "that actor is really good, where have I seen him before?" It was a nice surprise to discover it was Will Sampson because I didn't know he played anyone else besides Chief. It's a shame we lost him relatively young. I have a connection to "gentle giants" like him and Andre the Giant because I sort of consider myself one.

It looks like two of his sons are a dance duo appropriately called the Sampsons Brothers Duo.

Also, John Vernon is so good in this. I've barely seen him in dramatic roles because it seems like his career went in a Leslie Nielsen-like direction after he was in Animal House. He was great in roles like that, but it was nice to see him in a role like this for a change.



Above Suspicion (2019)

Alright, held the interest for it's entirety. Story about scandal in a town leading leading to desperate measures. Sorry that's vague but the film is too, still, not worthless. Thora Birch in rarely seen appearance too. What TF happened there?



I might check it out then.
If you have the capabilities, it's one of the best demo films for 4K and surround sound I have encountered and the more immersive the experience, the better.





Excellent movie.



A classic of Mexican cinema.



Very good movie. I really enjoyed it. No clue why Swinton won an Oscar though.
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I’m here only on Mondays, Wednesdays & Fridays. That’s why I’m here now.



If you have the capabilities, it's one of the best demo films for 4K and surround sound I have encountered and the more immersive the experience, the better.
I'm pretty sure my dad has all that set up, so I'll have to try that out then.



A classic of Mexican cinema.

Love Y tu mamá también, soo breezy.



Victim of The Night
I’ll go to bat for Tenet. I think it’s great with craft and a degree of humor about itself that’s atypical of Nolan, where he outright has a scene where he tells the audience to not think too much about the effects.

Tonally, it’s a modern Bond film that got infected by Primer. The disorientation of the plotting is intentional due to the subterfuge of spycraft and the paradoxical nature of timey-wimey non-sense.

Does it make complete sense? No. Probably not. Does it craft a narrative where stuff not making complete sense is fine because A) the characters recognize that they can’t really grasp everything that’s going on and B) it’s all in service of spectacle on a level frequently lost in the miasma of green screen blockbusters? Yes on both counts.

Tenet won’t hurt anyone’s career except maybe Nolan, though I think his outspoken feud with WB over HBOMax did worse for him in that regard than anything about this film.
Does it have a Third Act that's not a significant let-down like every other Nolan film?



Victim of The Night
Also, John Vernon is so good in this. I've barely seen him in dramatic roles because it seems like his career went in a Leslie Nielsen-like direction after he was in Animal House. He was great in roles like that, but it was nice to see him in a role like this for a change.
Yes, I forgot about Vernon. The final scene between he and Josey is also a favorite of mine.



Does it have a Third Act that's not a significant let-down like every other Nolan film?
I like the third act. It's the biggest spectacle of the film and has some solid catharsis for two of its most important characters.

Then again, I don't think all of Nolan's third acts are let downs. Just a few.



Victim of The Night



Very good movie. I really enjoyed it. No clue why Swinton won an Oscar though.
Ouch. One of my favorite performances of that decade, completely elevated an already very good film, even in comparison to the great performance by Tom Wilkinson. Never occurred to me that her win could possibly be in question I thought it was a master-class.



Victim of The Night
I like the third act. It's the biggest spectacle of the film and has some solid catharsis for two of its most important characters.

Then again, I don't think all of Nolan's third acts are let downs. Just a few.
Alright, food for thought.