The Resident Bitch Prepares for the MoFo 2010s Countdown

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I found my review of Blue Ruin:



Blue Ruin (Jeremy Saulnier, 2013)
Imdb

Date Watched: 05/15/2020
Cinema or Home: Home
Reason For Watching: The 22nd MoFo Hall of Fame
Rewatch: No


This is a pretty straight-forward film about a man forced to confront his past in order to exact revenge on the man who he believes murdered his parents. With such a premise it could have been something really great. It could have had a protagonist I could've really gotten behind and those acts of vengeance could've felt a whole lot more satisfying. Unfortunately, however, the protagonist we get is a traumatized shell of a man who is just too empty to garner more than a vague sense of sympathy from me.

I did appreciate though the casting choice. Star Macon Blair lends a sense of authenticity to the lead role as the somewhat dumpy-looking every man, Dwight - a man turned killer without any combat training or past experience. But, again, that emptiness of the character prevented me from ever being truly invested in him.

Overall, Blue Ruin is a solid film and it held my interest for its 90 minute run, but this is not something I'm likely to ever revisit and I've probably been a bit generous with my rating.

I don’t think I’ll bother with a rewatch.



Avoid "Holy Motors" at all costs. Was thinking of nom'g this for the "Son of Infamy" thread.

Contrary to what one might think from the title, it is not part of the Fast & Furious franchise, let alone about any drag racing cult drifting along in Tokyo.


It is from Leos Carax, who directed the recent movie, Annette. I don't know how much one extrapolate from one to guess how much they'd like the other (they seemed like very different movies to me), unless one absolutely, absolutely hated Annette (and not speaking hyperbolically), outside of the music, and one can intuit it's existing in a style of filmmaking they don't care for, then that would probably be an indicator to avoid it.



I can't think of any recommendations.
Unless you want documentaries about ethnic and political purges (of the mass murder variety) in Southeast Asia. I can give you three of those.





Lilting (Hong Khaou, 2014)

This is another movie I saw being suggested in GBG's 2010's Recommendations thread. I hadn't even heard of it before then,

Although it's rather short, this is definitely a movie that requires patience and full engagement. It's a slow meditation on grief, guilt, obligation, and understanding. Ben Whishaw gives a particularly strong performance as a young man trying to connect with his dead boyfriend's Chinese-Cambodian mother - who doesn't like him, speaks no English, and doesn't know that her son was gay. Cheng Pei Pei is also excellent as the dead man's mother and gives a lot of humanity to a character that might otherwise have come off as cold, particularly in the film's earlier scenes.

It's a very moving film and one that I'll probably watch again, but my shortlist for the 2010s countdown is now at 82 films so its chances of making the final cut are pretty slim.

Just going to say again that it's really great to see someone else talking about this movie. I really loved it and immediately wanted to recommend it to everyone.



You can't make a rainbow without a little rain.
@Miss Vicky, I know that you watch a lot of animated movies, so I was wondering if you've seen any of these movies, and are they worth watching for the 2010s countdown?

Shaun the Sheep Movie (2015)
Smallfoot (2018)
Abominable (2019)

Also, I liked Hotel Transylvania (2012), so are Hotel Transylvania 2 (2015) and Hotel Transylvania 3: Summer Vacation (2018) worth watching?
__________________
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If I answer a game thread correctly, just skip my turn and continue with the game.
OPEN FLOOR.



@Miss Vicky, I know that you watch a lot of animated movies, so I was wondering if you've seen any of these movies, and are they worth watching for the 2010s countdown?

Shaun the Sheep Movie (2015)
Smallfoot (2018)
Abominable (2019)

Also, I liked Hotel Transylvania (2012), so are Hotel Transylvania 2 (2015) and Hotel Transylvania 3: Summer Vacation (2018) worth watching?
I actually wasn't a fan of Hotel Transylvania, so I didn't watch the sequels. Of the others, I've only seen Abominable. The animation was really gorgeous but I just couldn't get into the story. I know it's an animated movie about a Yeti or whatever, but the heavy fantasy and the involvement of magic just didn't work for me. It might be worth your while, though.



You can't make a rainbow without a little rain.
I actually wasn't a fan of Hotel Transylvania, so I didn't watch the sequels. Of the others, I've only seen Abominable. The animation was really gorgeous but I just couldn't get into the story. I know it's an animated movie about a Yeti or whatever, but the heavy fantasy and the involvement of magic just didn't work for me. It might be worth your while, though.

Thank you.

I recently bought Smallfoot and Abominable on DVD (at garage sales, so they were cheap enough to take the risk), and I DVRed the other movies, but I didn't know if I should jump them near the top of my watchlist, or let them wait and possibly not see them before the deadline.





My Life As A Zucchini (Ma vie de courgette) (Claude Barras, 2014)
(Rewatch)

I first watched this movie last year and, while I enjoyed it overall, I had kind of mixed feelings about it. I liked the story, but really disliked the style of the characters and sets. I also didn't quite connect with it as strongly I would've liked, but I felt it had potential to grow on me... and grow on me it did. Whereas I found the art style crude and off-putting then, tonight I found it whimsical and charming and while still no tears were shed, I must admit I got a little misty-eyed this time.

The story itself isn't original. Courgette and the other children all have devastatingly tragic backstories but, while the movie never lets the audience forget where these kids came from, it also never really dwells on their past. It's still the age old trope of orphan protagonists overcoming their circumstances and finding out that family doesn't have to be blood, but it manages to somehow feel a little more authentic than some of the better known films in the same vein. It also packs everything into a runtime that's barely over an hour, making it a great choice if you're short on time.




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I never could get the hang of Thursdays.
Always hard to predict whether you will like something, but here are a few suggestions:

The Way He Looks (2014) - coming of age drama/ gay romance
The Lobster (2015) - weird comedy/drama anti-romance? Hard to describe, but weird, which is probably a plus
Under the Skin (2014) - Alien serial killer strangeness. You might hate this, I'm still not sure whether I liked it or hated it, but also very weird and stays with you in a creepy, lingering sort of a way
Only Lovers Left Alive (2013) - vampire musicians confront eternity in different ways
A Ghost Story (2017) - this starts slowly as kind of look at grief but sort of evolves into more existential territory. I thought it was different and interesting.



Always hard to predict whether you will like something, but here are a few suggestions:

The Way He Looks (2014) - coming of age drama/ gay romance
The Lobster (2015) - weird comedy/drama anti-romance? Hard to describe, but weird, which is probably a plus
Under the Skin (2014) - Alien serial killer strangeness. You might hate this, I'm still not sure whether I liked it or hated it, but also very weird and stays with you in a creepy, lingering sort of a way
Only Lovers Left Alive (2013) - vampire musicians confront eternity in different ways
A Ghost Story (2017) - this starts slowly as kind of look at grief but sort of evolves into more existential territory. I thought it was different and interesting.
Ghosts, aliens, vampires, and a dystopian society where single people get turned into animals? All of those sound like they require more suspension of disbelief than I usually allow for live action, so I can't promise I'll watch any of them, but maybe? The Lobster sounds weird enough that I might give it a go. I'll definitely check out The Way He Looks.



Some that I think you might enjoy. I put a few in each category.

Dramas
Phoenix--more of a drama/thriller
Mustang
The Handmaiden--also a mish mash of drama/thriller/comedy
Room
Shoplifters
Short Term 12
I, Daniel Blake
Gifted (I loved this film about a man trying to do what's best for his niece when he adopts her after her mother's death)
Calvary
I Will Follow

Family/Comedy
Paddington 2
The Farewell
The Guard

Romance
Far From the Madding Crowd (period romance from Hardy's novel)
About Time (romantic comedy)
God's Own Country (drama/gay romance that is great on both fronts)

Thriller
First Reformed
Stoker
The Invitation
Upstream Color
Tikkun (this movie is kind of hard to classify)



I third Room and Shoplifters and second Mustang, I, Daniel Blake, Gifted, and First Reformed.
I haven't heard anyone else talk about Gifted, but it's such a solid and optimistic/sweet film.



Some that I think you might enjoy. I put a few in each category.

I've seen Short Term 12, I, Daniel Blake, and Room. I recall being fairly indifferent to Short Term 12, so it's not on my shortlist. The other two are possibles but need a rewatch.

I wasn't a fan of the Paddington books as kid so I never bothered with the first movie, so the sequel's pretty much out of the question. I'll add God's Own Country to the watchlist. I'll have to look up the others when I get home to see what sounds good.



I wasn't a fan of the Paddington books as kid so I never bothered with the first movie, so the sequel's pretty much out of the question. I'll add God's Own Country to the watchlist. I'll have to look up the others when I get home to see what sounds good.
I never read the Paddington books as a kid, but I thought that both films were really sweet with some good comedy and adorably committed performances from the adult actors. You also don't need to watch the first film to watch the sequel. Not trying to hard sell you, I was realizing that most of what I was recommending was pretty heavy stuff.



I never read the Paddington books as a kid, but I thought that both films were really sweet with some good comedy and adorably committed performances from the adult actors. You also don't need to watch the first film to watch the sequel. Not trying to hard sell you, I was realizing that most of what I was recommending was pretty heavy stuff.
Nothing wrong with heavy stuff. Movies that make me cry tend to be movies that I love and I often favor movies that don't end happily. That said, happy shit makes me cry too.



Nothing wrong with heavy stuff. Movies that make me cry tend to be movies that I love and I often favor movies that don't end happily. That said, happy shit makes me cry too.
LOL, same!



Please Read Before Making Any Recommendations:

My list of possible first-time watches is now over 50 movies long (including all of the movies suggested to me here, as well as those I already intended to watch). If you haven't made any suggestions yet, please check out this list of what's already been suggested:

2010s First Time Watch List

If you haven't made recommendations already and really want to, you may want to consider limiting your suggestions. If you have already made suggestions, please check the list to make sure I've selected the correct fim(s). I'll try to keep this list updated and have linked it in the first post.

Having said that, there's absolutely no way I'm going to get to all or even most of these before the deadline. If there is one particular 2010s film you really want me to watch, let me know and we can maybe make an arrangement where you watch one movie of my choosing and I watch one of yours.

Edit: Here is a list of 10 movies I most want people to watch: Movie Trades. If you'd like to arrange a trade, choose one of these (that you haven't yet seen) and let me know what you'd like me to watch, then I'll let you know if I'm down for doing the trade. If you've already seen all ten of these but are still interested in a trade, let me know and we may still be able to work something out.

Things to keep in mind before making recommendations:

-If it's not animated and requires a high level of suspension of disbelief (Fantasy, Sci-Fi, Horror, Superhero, Musicals), there's a good chance I'm not going to like it. This is not necessarily a dealbreaker, but keep it in mind.
-I'm not generally a fan of documentaries, so probably don't bother suggesting them though it's not necessarily a dealbreaker.
-If it contains actual animal cruelty, don't suggest it. Period. This is a dealbreaker.
-If its central character is a woman or if it has a majority female cast, I'm probably not going to be too into it. Not a dealbreaker, but something to consider.
-If it was made by Paul Thomas Anderson, Wes Anderson, David O. Russell, or Darren Arronofsky, don't even bother. There's a decent chance I've already seen it and I probably don't like it. This is not a complete list of directors to avoid.
-I don't like Christian Bale, Mark Wahlberg, Adam Sandler, George Clooney, Paul Dano, or Robert Pattinson. So probably don't suggest anything with them in it. Wahlberg is a dealbreaker. I may add to this list later.