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I'll have to check out Lady Eve someday. It's been on my watchlist for some time. Haven't given it much priority.
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Nah. Even pre-fanbros it wasn't a story that appealed to me. Drama TV is maybe my least favorite genre. It tends to lack the element of escapism and/or comfort that I look for in my TV viewing. Also, meth had a pretty horrible impact on several of my students and their families, and I'd just be on edge watching a show with that in the center.
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Cure (1997)
Highly rated thriller and rightfully so. Gripping from start to finish, where it ends absolutely majestically.
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Too weird to live, and too rare to die.
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Cure (1997)
Highly rated thriller and rightfully so. Gripping from start to finish, where it ends absolutely majestically.
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I watched this recently too. Very good. Only one of his I've seen but he seems quite an eclectic filmmaker. Got Pulse and Tokyo Sonata lined up.
I didn't really like Pulse but willing to give it another go after watching this. Tokyo Sonata sounds really interesting.
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The mad scientist could control weapons of mass destruction orbiting earth, control military missiles and hack US defense system inside a train with his 1GB RAM computer... But he can't play Cyberpunk 2077 though, what a loser.
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Mank (David Fincher, 2020)
I went into this almost ready to dislike it, as someone who sits firmly on the side of Orson Welles and not Pauline Kael and her discredited take on the movie. I'm glad that Fincher largely avoids the issues of script ownership and conflict between Mank and Welles, instead focussing more on Mank's life, his influences, why he writes the movie.
It works more as an ode to storytelling, to screenwriting, and to Hollywood. It doesn't matter to me what's true and what isn't in this film, the script can be exposition-heavy with lots of long monologues but they're done very affectionately and were enjoyable to me at least. I think someone not really interested in films or the making of Citizen Kane could struggle a bit. The performances are fun, especially Oldman and Burke. One thing I was disappointed with was that although it looks pretty visually, it doesn't use any visual imagery to actually tell the story. Perhaps I was focussed on this aspect more because of the visual amazement of Kane but it's really noticeable how the story is only really told through the script and not direction.
I went into this almost ready to dislike it, as someone who sits firmly on the side of Orson Welles and not Pauline Kael and her discredited take on the movie. I'm glad that Fincher largely avoids the issues of script ownership and conflict between Mank and Welles, instead focussing more on Mank's life, his influences, why he writes the movie.
It works more as an ode to storytelling, to screenwriting, and to Hollywood. It doesn't matter to me what's true and what isn't in this film, the script can be exposition-heavy with lots of long monologues but they're done very affectionately and were enjoyable to me at least. I think someone not really interested in films or the making of Citizen Kane could struggle a bit. The performances are fun, especially Oldman and Burke. One thing I was disappointed with was that although it looks pretty visually, it doesn't use any visual imagery to actually tell the story. Perhaps I was focussed on this aspect more because of the visual amazement of Kane but it's really noticeable how the story is only really told through the script and not direction.
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I have watched Tenet (2020) in Theaters after a long gap due to lockdown in India.
My rating is 6/10
I do watch Hollywood movies, mostly Christopher Nolan and Tarantino films..
My rating is 6/10
I do watch Hollywood movies, mostly Christopher Nolan and Tarantino films..
Troy (2004)
This had good elements and iffy ones. Not being a scholar of Grecian history I will say that it was a good ride. The action is first class and believable (between Hector and Achilles especially). Ends up, as do many, being a "blockbuster" painted into a smaller palette. Enjoyable.
This had good elements and iffy ones. Not being a scholar of Grecian history I will say that it was a good ride. The action is first class and believable (between Hector and Achilles especially). Ends up, as do many, being a "blockbuster" painted into a smaller palette. Enjoyable.
The Return (2003) Andrey Zvyagintsev.
8
The Science of Sleep (2006) Michel Gondry.
Not first viewing. Gondry uses some very interesting animation styles when he let us take part in Stephanes ( Gael Garcia Bernal) dreams.
I had almost forgotten Stephanes entertaining colleague, Guy.
8,5
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The Science of Sleep (2006) Michel Gondry.
Not first viewing. Gondry uses some very interesting animation styles when he let us take part in Stephanes ( Gael Garcia Bernal) dreams.
I had almost forgotten Stephanes entertaining colleague, Guy.
8,5
Last edited by gomorra82; 12-08-20 at 10:16 AM.
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Troy (2004)
This had good elements and iffy ones. Not being a scholar of Grecian history I will say that it was a good ride. The action is first class and believable (between Hector and Achilles especially). Ends up, as do many, being a "blockbuster" painted into a smaller palette. Enjoyable.
This had good elements and iffy ones. Not being a scholar of Grecian history I will say that it was a good ride. The action is first class and believable (between Hector and Achilles especially). Ends up, as do many, being a "blockbuster" painted into a smaller palette. Enjoyable.
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This is pretty good, a 2019 version of Dickens' David Copperfield, available on Amazon Prime. It's fairly low budget, mainly acting and locations, mainly British actors, and completely enjoyable, with a cast that seemed to love the story. It's the umpteenth movie version of the story that was a fictionalized autobiography of the great author himself. I have to admit that while I have always liked Dickens and especially his big characters who wore their spiritual condition like clothing, somehow, I never read Copperfield.
Settle in for a two hour voyage back to 19th century England. It's not a free movie on Prime, but well worth a few bucks. It's not the musical show, but an adaptation of the novel. Accents are heavy and sometimes difficult from my side of the ocean, but given the story and the body language, that's not a problem. Most of the cast is unknown to me aside from Tilda Swinton as Betsy Trotwood and Hugh Laurie is Mr Dick. It's interesting that the production is deliberately multi-racial. Visually, you can't miss that a number of cast members don't look like my idea of 19th century Brits, but past the first 5 minutes, it no longer matters.
Last edited by skizzerflake; 12-08-20 at 10:57 AM.
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Road to Perdition (2002) -
It's fine, I guess. I loved the cinematography and I enjoyed the occasional stylistic flourishes of the shootouts in terms of how music and sound effects were used to ramp up tension. Also, though I'm not the biggest fan on Tom Hanks, I thought his everyday man persona worked well for this film since a central theme for his character was how he tried to shield his son from violence and from going down the same path he took. I also enjoyed the opening 40 or so minutes quite a bit which had a compelling show, don't tell approach to exploring John Rooney's favoritism of Sullivan over his actual son rather than relying on clunky expository lines of dialogue. Once this segment ended though, I felt like the film declined in quality and, after finishing it, I felt kind of unsatisfied by it. Like, yes, the themes are, in fact, in this film and, yes, they do get a proper resolution. The emotional register of the film just feels really blunt. At its core, this was the summary of the main theme:
It just didn't seem to amount to much. Overall, it was competently directed, but it ultimately didn't connect with me as well as it could've.
It's fine, I guess. I loved the cinematography and I enjoyed the occasional stylistic flourishes of the shootouts in terms of how music and sound effects were used to ramp up tension. Also, though I'm not the biggest fan on Tom Hanks, I thought his everyday man persona worked well for this film since a central theme for his character was how he tried to shield his son from violence and from going down the same path he took. I also enjoyed the opening 40 or so minutes quite a bit which had a compelling show, don't tell approach to exploring John Rooney's favoritism of Sullivan over his actual son rather than relying on clunky expository lines of dialogue. Once this segment ended though, I felt like the film declined in quality and, after finishing it, I felt kind of unsatisfied by it. Like, yes, the themes are, in fact, in this film and, yes, they do get a proper resolution. The emotional register of the film just feels really blunt. At its core, this was the summary of the main theme:
WARNING: spoilers below
Will Sullivan be able to prevent his son from going down the path he took? Answer: Yes.
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Beetlejuice -
This imaginative and hilarious horror comedy about that most threatening scourge of the late '80s, yuppies, still holds up very well after 30+ years. Michael Keaton's performance as the titular bio-exorcist remains my favorite of his career. He disappears so deeply into the role that I always forget that he's playing the character every time I watch it and his funniest lines - many of which Keaton improvised - are ones I still use in conversation. The supporting cast is also nothing to sneeze at, my favorite being Catherine O'Hara, who plays what may be the baddest of her many bad moms. As for the duo of Tim Burton and composer Danny Elfman, the movie provides an ideal canvas for their talents. Whether it's the look of Saturn or Elfman's music during the fly sequence, there's a sense that you're seeing their rawest, most unfiltered imagination on display. I've heaped lots of praise upon the movie, but it has noticeable flaws, particularly in its final act. Its contrivances and worldbuilding that seems like it should have come earlier stick out like sore thumbs, and while the city and country folk come to an understanding and the epilogue is a delight, I'm left with a bad taste in my mouth every time. The movie still acheives classic status, not to mention a spot on my short list of great horror comedies.
This imaginative and hilarious horror comedy about that most threatening scourge of the late '80s, yuppies, still holds up very well after 30+ years. Michael Keaton's performance as the titular bio-exorcist remains my favorite of his career. He disappears so deeply into the role that I always forget that he's playing the character every time I watch it and his funniest lines - many of which Keaton improvised - are ones I still use in conversation. The supporting cast is also nothing to sneeze at, my favorite being Catherine O'Hara, who plays what may be the baddest of her many bad moms. As for the duo of Tim Burton and composer Danny Elfman, the movie provides an ideal canvas for their talents. Whether it's the look of Saturn or Elfman's music during the fly sequence, there's a sense that you're seeing their rawest, most unfiltered imagination on display. I've heaped lots of praise upon the movie, but it has noticeable flaws, particularly in its final act. Its contrivances and worldbuilding that seems like it should have come earlier stick out like sore thumbs, and while the city and country folk come to an understanding and the epilogue is a delight, I'm left with a bad taste in my mouth every time. The movie still acheives classic status, not to mention a spot on my short list of great horror comedies.
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High Plains Drifter (1973)
A fantastic Western that got me into Westerns. Who is the Stranger? A former dead Marshal of Lago, or someone else seeking revenge?
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Road to Perdition (2002) -
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Cure (1997)
Highly rated thriller and rightfully so. Gripping from start to finish, where it ends absolutely majestically.
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I'm not a big fan either. It put too much effort into coming across as prestigious than being emotionally satisfying. In other words, it's as if too much time and effort were spent making it look and feel like it was set in the 1930s and wooing cinematography and production design Oscar voters and not enough was spent on giving us reasons to make us care what happens to anybody. In short, it's a prime example of the scenery chewing the actors.
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