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I can't remember this film, so I'll have to re-watch it. Many people don't realize what a great actor Mickey Rooney was. He had such a strong image as a goody two-shoes guy next door Americana icon from playing in 1930s & '40s movies, that it took the public quite awhile to see the depth of his talent. He really had a helluva range.
Quicksand is one of the few noirs that breaks the rules of noir. It's been awhile since I seen it but I remember liking it. Mickey Rooney is way good. Funny thing is in the last week I seen Quicksand on youtube and saved it. I'll have to watch it again someday.



I just finished watching In The Heights. Spectacularly directed by Jon M. Chu, this adaption of the Broadway musical is about the lives and dreams of a group of people in the neighborhood of Washington Heights in New York City. The film features a wonderful cast and is brimming with enthusiasm, energy and life. In The Heights is an exuberant blast and I really enjoyed all the lively song and dance numbers. The film looks great and is a joyful experience celebrating community, dreams and life itself. I expect this to be a major Oscar contender. One of the best films of the year and a must see movie event that will make you want to sing and dance! My rating is a
.



I highly recommend Before the Devil Knows You're Dead, Thief...here's a link to my review:

https://www.movieforums.com/reviews/...oure-dead.html
Oh, I've seen it. I'm a fan.
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Quicksand is one of the few noirs that breaks the rules of noir. It's been awhile since I seen it but I remember liking it. Mickey Rooney is way good. Funny thing is in the last week I seen Quicksand on youtube and saved it. I'll have to watch it again someday.
It's also on Prime, in case YouTube fails.



I can't remember this film, so I'll have to re-watch it. Many people don't realize what a great actor Mickey Rooney was. He had such a strong image as a goody two-shoes guy next door Americana icon from playing in 1930s & '40s movies, that it took the public quite awhile to see the depth of his talent. He really had a helluva range.
I'm trying to think what else I've seen Rooney on and I'm drawing a blank. I mean, I know he was a child actor but I'm not sure if I've even seen any of his child performances.



I'm trying to think what else I've seen Rooney on and I'm drawing a blank. I mean, I know he was a child actor but I'm not sure if I've even seen any of his child performances.
Surely you’ve seen his timeless turn in Breakfast at Tiffany’s as Mr. Yunioshi???



I forgot the opening line.

By Source, Fair use, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=62070151

Bombshell - (2019)

I'm not an American but I remember many of the events in this film as if I were, such is the worldwide interest in Fox News (as a kind of right-wing propaganda television network,) Donald Trump and the global campaign to fight sexual harassment - some of which Fox, Trump and Hollywood set in motion. Big, fat, ugly, yet powerful old men using said power to coerce young female employees into sex always shocks me, like I'm some naïve youngster. It's hideous - and maybe I'm part of the problem by consciously burying my head in the sand and pretending it doesn't happen.

In reliving the dramatic fall of Roger Ailes, we're treated to some powerful and particularly good performances by Charlize Theron, Nicole Kidman, Margot Robbie, John Lithgow and Malcolm McDowell. I laud Lithgow for taking on such a dark, disagreeable part, and he's fantastic (under some amazing prosthetics.) I enjoyed McDowell and his take on Rupert Murdoch. Charlize Theron is the best of this ensemble though. I like how this wasn't limited to Roger Ailes - we're shown what an organization which almost encouraged sexual harassment in the workplace is like for the women who work there.

7/10



Double feature - Anything worthwhile must be obtained honestly



Wonder Woman 1984 - This is a mixed bag. It's a sequel so more often than not it doesn't quite measure up to the original. On the plus side it does have what made the first one so charming and distinctive which would be star Gal Gadot and director Patty Jenkins. She's back as Diana Prince/Wonder Woman and, since this is set in 1984 for some reason, she still hasn't fully owned her heroic identity. She instead lives a quiet life as a curator at the Smithsonian in Washington D.C, off the grid and choosing to discreetly swoop in and help those in need. She meets unassuming coworker and gemologist/cryptozoologist Barbara Minerva (Kristen Wiig) and takes an immediate liking to her.
WARNING: spoilers below
At the same time Barbara is approached by smooth talking dare-to-dream entrepeneur Maxwell "Max Lord" Lorenzano (Pedro Pascal) who is surreptitiously hunting for the Dreamstone, which is purported to grant the holder one wish. Lord chooses to actually become the Dreamstone, promptly gets his wish, then embarks on a mission to become the single most powerful person on the planet. The wishes, in reality, come at a heavy cost with Lord taking something of value in exchange. Barbara, tired of being disregarded, asks to be more like Diana, then wishes to be an "apex predator". She takes on the characteristics of a cheetah leading to an inevitable CGI overload of a showdown with Wonder Woman. Diana, on the other hand, unknowingly wishes to be reunited with the love of her life, Steve Trevor, which allows Chris Pine to put in an appearance.


It is a mixed bag like I said. There didn't seem to be enough of the rousing WW heroics of the first.
WARNING: spoilers below
That could be put down to a lack of any clearly distinctive villains. The Cheetah (Barbara Minerva) is deceived by Lord and the Dreamstone and even Lord himself is given a redemptive arc. Yet it doesn't ring false either because of this particular superhero's inherent grace and altruistic underpinnings.
There is a bit of a bravura set piece in the Middle East desert and there are moments of transcendent charm like the prologue on Themyscira and Steve and Diana's flight through a fireworks show. No, it doesn't quite get there but for fans of Princess Diana of Themyscira it's enough.






I, Tonya - On January 6th 1994 figure skater Nancy Kerrigan is assaulted by an unknown assailant in Detroit after a practice session. Shortly after, the FBI begin an investigation and they are promptly led to a suspect who's been bragging to just about anyone who will listen that it was his "crew" that was responsible for the attack. Given the collective brain power of the people involved things soon unravel and the trail of bread crumbs leads the feds to fellow figure skater Tonya Harding and her ex-husband Jeff Gillooly. As the movie itself touches upon, even though not everyone has heard of the whole sordid affair, at the time Harding and Gillooly were household names and the film does do an accurate job of capturing not only the era but the competitive figure skating milieu.

Counting this I've seen Margot Robbie onscreen seven times so maybe I just hadn't caught her in the right role. Because up till now I just had her figured for an okay actress. Drop dead sexy in Wolf of Wall Street of course, and somewhat memorable in Suicide Squad and Birds of Prey. But nothing to write home about. And then she goes and does this. Robbie certainly earned her Academy Award nomination for Best Actress but strictly speaking it was a team effort. Craig Gillespie's direction, Sebastian Stan's solid portrayal of Gillooly and, in an all-eyes-on-me performance that won her a Best Supporting Actress Oscar, Allison Janney as Tonya's Medusa of a mother, LaVona Golden. There's also marvelous embellishment provided by Paul Walter Hauser as Gillooly's remarkably delusional co-conspirator Shawn Eckardt. Plus Julianne Nicholson as Harding's longtime coach and Bobby Cannavale as scuzzy tabloid reporter Martin Maddox. It's a trenchant black comedy with cagey use of fourth wall breaking and Gillespie does a solid job of setting up Tonya's background and impetus by way of explaining not only her success but her eventual and inevitable downfall. This is certainly worth a watch.





One film with Ethan that I fell is so over rated, and to some extent unknown is Maudie.

I'm never emotional watching a film, but I was with this one, also, I think was one of his best performances.

I've never seen any other movie with Sally Hawkins, but from that one I can say she's a great actress.
You haven’t seen The Shape of Water? I don’t blame you, if not, but she’s good in that.



Surely you’ve seen his timeless turn in Breakfast at Tiffany’s as Mr. Yunioshi???
Nah I've seen clips but never seen the film. I read the book a long time ago, though. Should I dive in?



I highly recommend Before the Devil Knows You're Dead, Thief...here's a link to my review:

https://www.movieforums.com/reviews/...oure-dead.html
Just read your review. Nice writeup, although based in what you wrote, I thought you would go higher than 3/5 But seriously, I agree with pretty much everything you wrote.



I'm trying to think what else I've seen Rooney on and I'm drawing a blank. I mean, I know he was a child actor but I'm not sure if I've even seen any of his child performances.
I guess he did do a lot of work as a child actor. But he really came into his own with the "Andy Hardy" films, like A Family Affair (1937) and 8-10 other Hardy films. He more or less played the same type of character through the '40s. Then at least by the time of The Big Wheel (1949) and then Quicksand, he was really broadening his range.

Looking back, I'm surprised at the many scores of films he did. One that always sticks out in my mind is Requiem For a Heavyweight (1962) with Anthony Quinn and Jackie Gleason. Really first rate. He was a riot in Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961) playing a Japanese man.

Funny story: In 1970 I had played in the band for the Smothers Brothers Summer Special. The music was pre-recorded in the studio, but because it was union, we were paid to come out and hang around during the taping in case they wanted to use any of the musicians. I was on a break in the hallway behind all the sound stages at the vast ABC studio complex.

There was a group from other shows standing around smoking. All of a sudden Mickey Rooney walks up, picked out two gorgeous female dancers, put his arm around both of them, and said lasciviously, "Hiya girls. Wanna be in the movies?" Everybody cracked up. He was the same in life as he was in movies. A short man, but very aggressive and larger than life.



Bright light. Bright light. Uh oh.
Surely you’ve seen his timeless turn in Breakfast at Tiffany’s as Mr. Yunioshi???
Nah I've seen clips but never seen the film. I read the book a long time ago, though. Should I dive in?
The movie is a must-see but most find Rooney problematic. I highly recommend National Velvet which you can watch with your kids.
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I guess he did do a lot of work as a child actor. But he really came into his own with the "Andy Hardy" films, like A Family Affair (1937) and 8-10 other Hardy films. He more or less played the same type of character through the '40s. Then at least by the time of The Big Wheel (1949) and then Quicksand, he was really broadening his range.

Looking back, I'm surprised at the many scores of films he did. One that always sticks out in my mind is Requiem For a Heavyweight (1962) with Anthony Quinn and Jackie Gleason. Really first rate. He was a riot in Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961) playing a Japanese man.

Funny story: In 1970 I had played in the band for the Smothers Brothers Summer Special. The music was pre-recorded in the studio, but because it was union, we were paid to come out and hang around during the taping in case they wanted to use any of the musicians. I was on a break in the hallway behind all the sound stages at the vast ABC studio complex.

There was a group from other shows standing around smoking. All of a sudden Mickey Rooney walks up, picked out two gorgeous female dancers, put his arm around both of them, and said lasciviously, "Hiya girls. Wanna be in the movies?" Everybody cracked up. He was the same in life as he was in movies. A short man, but very aggressive and larger than life.
That's the kind of vibe I got for him in Quicksand. There's like a particular bottled up energy in it.



Nah I've seen clips but never seen the film. I read the book a long time ago, though. Should I dive in?
The movie surrounding it is pretty wonderful but his performance certainly adds a memorable and distinct “flavor” that’s worth seeing in context, if only for how egregiously ill fitting it is in that context.



The Long Riders (1980)

A weirdly paced western about Jesse James and his gang. It relies too much on its gimmick (all brothers are played by real brothers) and feels like a collection of random scenes instead of a story. In a way, it's The Wild Bunch lite with the blood spurts and slow-motion shoot-outs and all.
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Bright light. Bright light. Uh oh.

A Man for Hanging (Joseph Mazzuca, 1972)
+ 4.5/10
A Song for Miss Julie (William Rowland, 1945)
5.5/10
Awake (Mark Raso, 2021)
5/10
The Flesh and the Fiends (John Gilling, 1960)
+ 6/10

In 1820s Edinburgh, Doctor Robert Knox (Peter Cushing) is surrounded by Hare (Donald Pleasance) and Burke (George Rose) who provide him with cadavers to allow him to teach his autopsy class.
Tragic Jungle (Yulene Olaizola, 2020)
5.5/10
The Big Chance (Albert Herman, 1933)
5/10
The Long Island Cannibal Massacre (Nathan Schiff, 1980)
+ 4.5/10
Insect Woman (Kim Ki-young, 1972)
6/10

Yes, the Oscar-winning grandma from Minari (Youn Yuh-jung) stars as a femme fatale mistress in this hyper melodrama.
Mosquita y Mari (Aurora Guerrero, 2012)
5.5/10
Occupation: Rainfall (Luke Sparke, 2020)
+ 5/10
Where To? AKA Ila Ayn (Georges Nasser, 1957)
5.5/10
Gypsy 83 (Todd Stephens, 2001)
6/10

Aspiring singer Sara Rue and gay Goth Birkett Turton [left] take an eventful road trip to NYC.
Bad Boy (Kurt Neumann, 1949)
6/10
Carmen & Lola (Arantxa Echevarría, 2018)
5.5/10
The Milpitas Monster (Robert L. Burrill, 1976)
3/10
For Me and My Gal (Busby Berkeley, 1942)
6/10

Vaudeville performer Judy Garland meets and marries Gene Kelly [in his debut] who's unscrupulously trying to avoid WWI.
Mickey the Great (J.A. Duffy, 1945)
6/10
The Shadow on the Window (William Asher, 1957)
5.5/10
Missing Women (Philip Ford, 1951)
5/10
Profile (Timur Bekmambetov, 2018)
6/10

British journalist Valene Kane goes undercover on the net to try to trap terrorist Shazad Latif, but she may be the one who gets trapped.