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American Fiction (2023) is a really well written, funny, smart, surprising film with a career best performance by Jeffrey Wright. I would rank it 2nd out of the best picture nominees.
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Embrace (2016) I thought this was a really interesting and beautiful documentary about body positivity. Watched on Tubi.
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Monty Python and the Holy Grail - Still the king AFAIC. One king, one cup. Well, actually it's more of a three way tie for funniest movie ever between this, Blazing Saddles and Young Frankenstein. So it's more like three kings. This is on Netflix and I started it with the intention of fast forwarding to the part with the rabbit before coming to my senses and rewatching the whole thing. What is there left to say when something is a nerd culture touchstone. Others will be left scratching their heads and wondering what in the hell is so funny. Those people are to be pitied. And maybe hunted for sport. Anyway, this is like the antithesis of most low budget movies. It is indeed low budget but instead of having that undermine the final product the troupe actually makes it work to their advantage. It of course helps that they're making a farce. Using coconuts to mimic the sound of horses because they didn't have the money for real horses or going with that abrupt ending because they couldn't afford to film a climactic battle scene is the entire project in a nutshell. The sort of inspired, spontaneous lunacy that can never be replicated.
90/100
War of the Worlds - The original 1953 classic with Gene Barry (Dr. Clayton Forrester) and Ann Robinson (Sylvia Van Buren). Directed by Byron Haskins who also helmed another sci-fi favorite of mine, Robinson Crusoe on Mars and the decent From the Earth to the Moon. If I had to choose my favorite between this and Spielberg's 2005 version I'd have to pick this one. Not because of any marked superiority but it just tells such a tidy, efficient story in it's 85 minute runtime. It's all there from the first meteor landing to the small town inhabitants growing realization that it was no ordinary space debris to the Army stepping in and then the actual war of the title starting. Barry and Robinson do a fine job of centering the story and putting a human face to the cataclysmic events. There are religious elements but they don't club you over the head with it. Spielberg's version was much more faithful to H.G. Welles' novel while this one feels more like comfort food.
80/100
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The Holdovers - (2023)
Here you have it - one of those "they don't make 'em like they used to" films, making it like they used to and being just as good as a film you'd see from a bygone era which examined relationships, and being human more than trends, pop culture, memes or envelope pushing. Paul Giamatti makes things even more awkward for me come Oscar time by giving what is no doubt the best performance of his career. To give the best of your career and still come third is somewhat Giamatti-like though (character-wise, I know he's won three Golden Globes.) I'm glad to read that the actor hasn't developed a lazy eye in real life. But the movie - really good stuff. What we used to expect from Alexander Payne before he up and made Downsizing. A few big laughs in the audience I saw it with, and I'm sure most everyone enjoyed it as much as I did. I never thought I'd ever think to myself "this is like a film from decades ago - a good one, and it's a shame this kind of filmmaking has been superseded" - getting to know characters in depth, and dealing with the real instead of getting outside the scope of normal human relationships and personality. I really enjoyed The Holdovers.
8/10
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A Tale of Two Sisters - (2003)
A great blend of South Korean ghost story and dramatic tragedy which leaves the core of what's going on a mystery to us viewers until all is revealed. There's much melodramatic grist - once you've seen it, you may feel the urge to see it again. Full review here, on my watchlist thread.
8/10
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By 1996Larry - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/inde...curid=96254236
Battleground - (1949)
This was a huge film in it's day. Battleground tells the story of a group of soldiers in the 101st Airborne Division who had to hold on to the town of Bastogne during the Battle of the Bulge - with many of the incidents therein based on fact. It's a film which highlights camaraderie, and also hardship - many of the characters have reasons to gripe, but life in this Division during this battle was never going to be easy. It's interesting to watch because it was made so soon after the events it describes - and it's near-$2 million budget means there was no expense spared bringing Bastogne to us. There's no blood and guts or swearing - war films were so sanitized during this era in Hollywood, but we do get a sense of a group of soldiers being worn down by scarcity during the battle. This was nominated for a whole heap of Oscars, including Best Picture - winning Best Cinematography (Black and White) and Best Screenplay. Lots of digging fox holes, ducking for cover and running around - but because it was made so soon after the war it lacks the objectivity some later war films have. Still a fine movie though.
7/10
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The Proposal - (2009)
Editor-in-chief boss Margaret Tate (Sandra Bullock) demands that her put-upon, beleaguered personal assistant, Andrew Paxton (Ryan Reynolds) marry her when she's told she can no longer stay in the United States and must return to Canada. There's a good odd-couple dynamic in this film, but the screenplay isn't so hot. Why did they have to make Paxton's family exceedingly wealthy? It changes the power dynamic a lot - but I'd like to see films about ordinary people, instead of a constant flow of Hollywood films with characters that have stupendously large mansions and servants. I'm never rooting for people who already have it all. Reynolds and Bullock actually have wonderful chemistry together - so it's a shame they weren't in a funnier, more involving film. I loved that Betty White was in this - but I think she was ultimately wasted by filmmakers who lacked inspiration.
5/10
By The poster art can or could be obtained from the distributor., Fair use, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=4985495
The Beat That My Heart Skipped - (2005)
Thomas Seyr (Romain Duris) is a seedy, nasty and criminal real estate developer who decides to go for his dream - to become an accomplished pianist. In his way is his past, his best friend's wife, and his wayward father - whom together create a crescendo of drama and violence in this French neo-noir film by A Prophet's Jacques Audiard. My review is here, on my watchlist thread.
7/10
By "Copyright 1953 RKO Radio Pictures Inc." - Scan via Heritage Auctions., Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/inde...curid=86897176
The Hitch-Hiker - (1953)
Two average schmoes pick up a deadly hitch-hiker who orders them at gunpoint to take him to Santa Rosalía - thus beginning a road trip full of tension and fear in this taut Ida Lupino film noir classic. My review is here, on my watchlist thread.
7/10
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Malice - (1993)
Malice is the kind of trashy thriller (Wikipedia says neo-noir) that sees me chuckle a little while writing the review. It's an 'everything bar the kitchen sink' type affair featuring husband and wife Andy Safian (Bill Pullman) and Tracy Safian (Nicole Kidman) along with slick surgeon Dr. Jed Hill (Alec Baldwin) - it starts off with a serial killer and rapist plot that's only incidental to the story (the killer is played by Tobin Bell) because it eventually morphs into a malpractice suit drama. Before we can segue to a courtroom for the expected final act, it morphs into something else again - with so many twists and turns it ends up one of those, "well...it wasn't boring" movies. To top things off, we have Anne Bancroft and George C. Scott show up in a couple of crazy scenes. Did you know Anne Bancroft was only 35 when she appeared in The Graduate? That makes me feel terribly old. Oh - also, in Malice we get a "before she was famous" look at Gwyneth Paltrow in a scene. So, in summing up, this was a screwy movie that I didn't mind watching because really it does what a lot of movies mean to do - entertain. It's only bad feature is the fact that it plays as if the movie itself is inebriated, wobbling all over the place and doing crazy things. Watch it if you don't mind films that do that.
6/10
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I've liked Vanilla Sky, but until tonight I'd never seen the original, Open Your Eyes. It was made on a much fighter budget, obviously, and shine scenes are a bit over the top, but I was very impressed by Eduardo Noriega's performance. The amount he successfully emotes through both heavy makeup and a mask is really impressive.
I like them both, but Open Your Eyes has better performances. This isn't s knock against Tom Cruise, as he did fine, but I honestly have trouble getting into his dramatic performances. He's the ubiquitous action movie star, and I have trouble seeing him any other way.
Anyway, I give Open Your Eyes a
(Roughly translates to a B+)
I like them both, but Open Your Eyes has better performances. This isn't s knock against Tom Cruise, as he did fine, but I honestly have trouble getting into his dramatic performances. He's the ubiquitous action movie star, and I have trouble seeing him any other way.
Anyway, I give Open Your Eyes a
(Roughly translates to a B+)
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Everything Must Go (2010)
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1st Rewatch...Doesn't hold a candle to the 1948 Preston Sturges original, but Dudley Moore's masterful comic performance does make it worth a look.
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2nd Rewatch...this lavish rom com/soap opera remains rich entertainment. I love this movie because the primary characters are rich and powerful, did not gain their wealth and power through criminal means. and they aren't white. There are a pair of scene stealing performances from Oscar winner Michelle Yeoh as the villain of the piece, Nick's mother who does everything he can to tear Nick and Rachel (Constance Wu) and Awkwefina as Rachel's BFF. The movie does lose a couple of points for casting the insufferable Ken Jeong, but his time onscreen is mercifully brief,
Last edited by Gideon58; 02-09-24 at 07:29 PM.
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The Power of Film
My biggest criticism is that I don't wanna see movies mentioned from the last 40 years on Turner CLASSIC Movies. It defeats the purpose of the channel, but then again, they just got rid of their best series, Underground, but I hear the channel is under new ownership.
Also, the host keeps telling me the most obvious shit. "Yeah, no shit, dude" - he must think their viewers are all dumb. "Faith means you have no proof" -- wow, really???? (And on and on)
And I still remember when he mentions Billy Wilder, and says how every movie is a love story, but he omits the most important Wilder thing about love. Someone asks, "What about a Western?" - "Man loves his horse". If someone on his couch can be stoned and think of better shit, then it's not good enough. Transcend me.
My biggest criticism is that I don't wanna see movies mentioned from the last 40 years on Turner CLASSIC Movies. It defeats the purpose of the channel, but then again, they just got rid of their best series, Underground, but I hear the channel is under new ownership.
Also, the host keeps telling me the most obvious shit. "Yeah, no shit, dude" - he must think their viewers are all dumb. "Faith means you have no proof" -- wow, really???? (And on and on)
And I still remember when he mentions Billy Wilder, and says how every movie is a love story, but he omits the most important Wilder thing about love. Someone asks, "What about a Western?" - "Man loves his horse". If someone on his couch can be stoned and think of better shit, then it's not good enough. Transcend me.
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Last edited by matt72582; 02-09-24 at 03:46 PM.
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A Fish Tale (2017) Watched on Tubi. This was not what I expected. It was better. The story is told in an interesting way and I liked the cast. This was a charming and sweet film. Definitely worth checking out.
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⏫️ I hated this movie.
I wanted to like it because the novel was so much fun.
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By https://www.imdb.com/title/tt4807408/, Fair use, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=59102317
The Best of Enemies - (2019)
I know The Best of Enemies isn't the best film about race - mirroring Green Book in it's simplicity and the fact that these films depend on what a white character does to save the day. I really like it because I have a specific weakness for films which feature implacable enemies (full of venom and hatred) who end up becoming friends. Seeing real-life character C. P. Ellis (Sam Rockwell) - a local leader of the Ku Klux Klan in Durham, North Carolina - have his eyes opened by co-operating in a local charrette, and ripping up his Klan card in public, while forming a deep and abiding friendship with black community organizer Taraji P. Henson - well, that makes me feel so good I don't care too much about the bland, careful path this film treads. Sam Rockwell makes the whole process his character goes through completely believable. Anyway, hateful enemies becoming best friends is like my movie heroin - can't get enough of it.
7/10
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I will have to check this out. I love both Sam Rockwell and Taraji P. Henson. I was following her career after I saw her on Empire. She was so good. But the movies, I saw, that she starred in were not good. But this sounds entertaining.
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