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WARNING: spoilers below
I do like the scenes where we see Leonard and Sandra together, but I agree that there are many, many more - perhaps too many - with Leonard and Michelle. It's practically 80/20. Since Leonard and is family are Jewish, I assumed that Leonard and Sandra belong to a branch of Judaism that practices arranged marriage, but maybe I just told myself that so that the implied happiness in the ending makes more sense.
Oh don't get me wrong. I generally agree and...

WARNING: spoilers below

...my sentimental part was rooting for him to stay with Sandra. But the way it was played, I didn't feel "happy" in the end for the reasons I stated above. The way he changes course towards her felt more like a relationship that's destined to fail rather than succeeding.


Then again, perhaps I'm applying too much rationalization and common-sense to a romantic drama, but what the heck.
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I love this movie. So good. Loved Paltrow as a girl from the ‘burbs of NYC. So not her, but she was convincing.
Yeah, Paltrow was indeed very good in it.



Oh don't get me wrong. I generally agree and...

WARNING: spoilers below

...my sentimental part was rooting for him to stay with Sandra. But the way it was played, I didn't feel "happy" in the end for the reasons I stated above. The way he changes course towards her felt more like a relationship that's destined to fail rather than succeeding.


Then again, perhaps I'm applying too much rationalization and common-sense to a romantic drama, but what the heck.
Like I've always said, the heart has reasons that reason doesn't understand.

Well, Blaine Pascal said that, but I wish I came up with it.



Thursday Next's Avatar
I never could get the hang of Thursdays.
Artemis Fowl (2020)

A complete mess on every level. I think it's actually a moral outrage that 125 million dollars was spent on this.




I am going to watch Never Rarely tomorrow. Looking forward to it.

I LOVE The Assistant. Huge fan of Julia & I’ve seen it twice so far.
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Wasn't bad. Have to admit, I prefer the 1988 remake as it has a little more oomph to it but it was neat to see where it all started. Can't wait for the sequel.
Thumbs way up for this one. It made a big impression when it was released in 1958. AND it put Steve McQueen on the map.

I remember when seeing it that I couldn't imagine how that thing could ever be killed...





Pretty good caper. James Caan is a Thief hired to do a job but gets stiffed after the job is completed. So, he needs to be made whole, right?Always like heist movies that show break-ins being a little more complicated than using a set of bolt cutters or stethoscope and Thief has a couple nice break ins. You can see the groundwork for Heat being laid down, which is a better movie imo, but this is good.


Thumbs way up for this one. It made a big impression when it was released in 1958. AND it put Steve McQueen on the map.

I remember when seeing it that I couldn't imagine how that thing could ever be killed...
Seeing what they eventually did to rid themselves of the Blob I can't think of a better time for a sequel than now. Steve was great as Steve but he did look like he may have been held back a few grades.



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Oba: The last samurai


8/10


It's a toho film that looks at Japan's occupation of Saipan, and the subsequent taking of that island by US forces. Oba commanded Japanese soldiers and civilians in an attempt to fight the Americans months after the Japanese had surrendered.



It's actually one of the best WW2 movies I've seen. A bit too theatrical so it's not up there with tora tora tora or a bridge too far, but for a war drama, it's superior to saving private Ryan. Some of the scenes are completely wrong, like how a general asks a captain who speaks Japanese to help him understand why the Japanese keep killing themselves, and then he starts talking about the game of Shogi. It had nothing to do with that, and everything to do with Japanese propaganda that convinced them that Americans were terrible monsters, and that suicide would be better than falling into their hands.



There are several titles for the movie, so don't be mistaken thinking that this has anything to do with that amusing atrocity that starred Tom Cruise.



The Man From Nowhere (2010) -


Overall, this is a solid action film. My opinion on it was slightly tinged by the awful dubbing in the version I watched (specifically in regards to the young girl), but fortunately, I was able to adjust to it after a while and, though I still would've preferred watching a non-dubbed version of the film, I found enough to enjoy about it.

To get it out of the way, yes, the action was definitely the main highlight for me. The various action scenes in the film were diverse and inventive enough so that the film didn't feel like it was repeating itself as it rolled along. The fight in the bathroom, the terrific window jump where the camera follows the protagonist out the window, or the final fight all had great choreography and I can see myself revisiting those scenes in the future. In fact, some moments were so jaw-dropping, I found myself rewinding the film on several different occasions to watch them again. Nowadays, it's rare for action scenes to impress me since I've seen so many of them, but this film was an exception to that.

As for the story, it's fine, I suppose, but I definitely think this is a case of action over story. A number of plot elements (mysterious loner with a criminal past, kidnapped young girl, tragic backstory, villainous side kick who's more skilled than the main villain) are clichés which I've seen in other action films. For the most part, I didn't feel like the film was able to find a unique voice in tackling these plot elements for it to avoid these pitfalls. Of course, this isn't to say I disliked the story by any means. Again, I think it was fine. It just wasn't anything spectacular, in my opinion. If I rewatch the film, I'll likely skip to the second half where most of the action occurs.

Overall, in spite of my reservations towards the story, I did like this film quite a bit as I felt the action was strong enough to make up for the missteps in the narrative. I don't know if I'll watch this film from start to finish again, but I can definitely see myself rewatching the second half in the future.
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Victim of The Night


Pretty good caper. James Caan is a Thief hired to do a job but gets stiffed after the job is completed. So, he needs to be made whole, right?Always like heist movies that show break-ins being a little more complicated than using a set of bolt cutters or stethoscope and Thief has a couple nice break ins. You can see the groundwork for Heat being laid down, which is a better movie imo, but this is good.
Big fan of this one. Easily my favorite Mann film.



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Steve was great as Steve but he did look like he may have been held back a few grades.

Mcqueen had that presence, but I never really thought much of him. He's like that guy who is in great movies, but never responsible for making the movie great.



The movie I most remember him from is The Great Escape. An all star cast, and every time he had a scene, it felt like he was just showing up, and providing nothing. He always played Steve Mcqueen, which means he's like John Wayne. Not an actor, but more like John Wayne pretending to be somebody else. We all knew he wasn't that guy, but he's John Wayne! Mcqueen tried doing the same thing, but with all the passion of an extra.



Big fan of this one. Easily my favorite Mann film.
I don't know if it's quite my favorite but seeing it dismissed as a mere precursor to Heat does bug me a bit. It's at least as good as Heat.



Mcqueen had that presence, but I never really thought much of him. He's like that guy who is in great movies, but never responsible for making the movie great.



The movie I most remember him from is The Great Escape. An all star cast, and every time he had a scene, it felt like he was just showing up, and providing nothing. He always played Steve Mcqueen, which means he's like John Wayne. Not an actor, but more like John Wayne pretending to be somebody else. We all knew he wasn't that guy, but he's John Wayne! Mcqueen tried doing the same thing, but with all the passion of an extra.
I submit Papillion as my counterpoint.



The Swordsman (2020)

A typical Korean historical action movie. Good production values, pretty decent action, but very formulaic story and attempts at stirring some emotions from the viewers. The whole losing sight plot device seemed unnecessary. It doesn't feel like wasting time, but rewatch value is probably close to zero.
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I submit Papillion as my counterpoint.

I had completely forgotten he was even in that movie, so point well made.



Victim of The Night
I don't know if it's quite my favorite but seeing it dismissed as a mere precursor to Heat does bug me a bit. It's at least as good as Heat.
Well, I don't need to reiterate that Heat does very little for me but it's an easy choice between the two for me.

Yeah, after quickly reviewing his filmography I've seen a good number of his movies (but not Collateral) and Thief is the clear winner for me.