Rate The Last Movie You Saw

Umpteenth Rewaqtch....Another guilty pleasure that gets richer with each rewatch. You kind of have to put your brain in check for this one and if you can, this irresistible blend of sci fi fantasy and suburban dysfunction can suck you right into the film's orbit, thanks to Tim Burton's sparkling direction overseeing flawless production values and an absolutely enchanting performance by Johnny Depp in the title role that grows sweeter with each rewatch.

He’s always good.

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I’m here only on Mondays, Wednesdays & Fridays. That’s why I’m here now.

I.S.S. (2023)

JANUARY 30, 2024

ARGYLLE (2024)

FEBRUARY 6, 2024

The last two movies I saw in a movie theater were I.S.S. and Argylle. The first one is actually a really cool idea for a movie that ended up being just pretty good. While the premise for a thriller set aboard the International Space Station at a moment when a nuclear war breaks out on planet Earth below is rife with possibilities, the execution is rather blandly pedestrian. However, there are two very positive aspects which elevate the film: 1) It's not an overtly flashy sort of sci-fi film. Everything that happens falls pretty much within the realm of what's physically possible. 2) I like the fact that, in the course of the story, the character that you'd least suspect is the one who ends up being the greatest threat, and that the character who starts all the trouble onboard the station in the first place ends up being pretty heroic. Beyond that, I've really got nothing to say except that I.S.S. is well-acted and well-directed, if rather less than exceptional. Recommended to those with realistic expectations...

I would have to describe the romantic/comedic spy thriller Argylle as being non-stop entertaining, but sort of problematic at the same time! This is one of those movies whose plot involves a confusion of reality, written fiction and personal identity. It's a wacky brew that - without giving too many spoilers - recalls Paul Verhoeven's Total Recall ("You are what you do") and the third-season Star Trek: Deep Space Nine episode Second Skin (although what's a deliberate lie in one is an accidental truth in the other), and even throws a light sprinkle of The Manchurian Candidate in for good measure! What I found somewhat problematic is the fact the whole "reality" framework of the movie is considerably more outlandishly OTT than what's "fictional," and that it seems like there was a missed opportunity to make the "reality" just a dream or something like that - or perhaps, given the emphasis on the Bryce Dallas Howard character's cat Alfie in the trailer, perhaps a revelation at the end that everything was from the cat's point of view! (I know, I know, not very bloody likely...) Granted, taking the "reality game" just that one extra step further would have actually made sense out of the film's most outlandish bit, a fight sequence involving colored smoke and choreographed dance moves. (And I swear that's not made up.) Granted, there is another fight sequence involving "ice skating" over an oil-slick floor that's slightly less silly, but it still doesn't really diminish my misgivings. Recommended for those viewers who just want to have fun and aren't overly picky about internal consistency...

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"It's what people know about themselves inside that makes 'em afraid." - Clint Eastwood as The Stranger, High Plains Drifter (1973)

Meanwhile, on the home viewing front...



The Hellbenders (Sergio Corbucci / 1967)
Soldier Blue (Ralph Nelson / 1970)

A couple of further adventures in the realm of late '60s/early '70s Italian and/or revisionist Westerns!

The Hellbenders is a post-Civil War tale of a family of Confederate rebels led by patriarch Colonel Jonas (played by the always-brilliant Joseph Cotten) who slaughter an entire regiment of Northern Cavalry soldiers and steal a consignment of money in order to finance the resurrection of the Confederacy. Jonas and his three sons stash the money inside a coffin and pretend to be transporting the body of a dead war hero, with a woman accompanying them posing as a widowed wife. Things start to go drastically wrong when the woman is killed and our little clan needs the services of another woman to perform the masquerade. Not one of Sergio Corbucci's best films (that would be Django and The Great Silence), but still a primo slice of Italian Western action!

Soldier Blue has a reputation for being one of the most notoriously violent Westerns of the early '70s, and trust me when I say that it's well-earned. Ralph Nelson's film takes place during the frontier wars of the 1860's, and the film's climax is an unflinching, no-holds-barred depiction of the infamous, unwarranted Sand Creek Massacre of a village of Cheyenne and Arapaho people. (If you can believe it, the massacre in the movie's original rough cut was actually 15 minutes longer! ) The story itself, however, is fictional, and largely depicts the misadventures of a pair of survivors of a massacre of U.S. soldiers by the Cheyenne. Peter Strauss plays the naive young soldier Honus Gant (the title character) and Candice Bergen plays Cresta Lee, a young white woman who's lived among the Cheyenne. (Interestingly enough, Bergen would also play the female lead in another infamous Western bloodbath the following year, the highly underrated The Hunting Party!) Recommended, but brace yourself for that climax!

I love movies about problem solving in space so I’ve been looking forward to ISS. Glad to hear it’s good.

I also watched Boiling Point a couple nights ago thanks to it being on Roku. It’s very well done and I liked it a lot. I didn’t like most of the characters though and in a post The Bear world it’s hard not to compare the two.

All That Jazz (1979)

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[ J ] - [ S ] - [ F ]

Torn Curtain was a pretty good film IMO, but it suffered from two glaring problems: Paul Newman was badly miscast as the professor; and John Addison (Tom Jones) was a poor choice as music composer.

Hitchcock always preferred big name actors in his movies, but he had wanted Cary Grant. Newman was forced on him by Universal's studio executive. But it was a lousy choice. Also Bernard Herrmann's wonderful scores were sorely missed in the picture. Hitchcock should have patched up his beef with Herrmann.

I saw this over the weekend and I have to concur. I thought they should have run with the satire and instead of getting lost in the family. Explore the writers feelings about the genre he is sending up. He turns his nose up at Ms. Golden's book because it is written in vernacular English without seeing how she handles the form and story beyond that. Yet finds she agrees with him about the soullessness of his own parody.

The parts with the family were occasionallly too sweet to some extent. It felt a little like a Hallmark special when the older couple get married The music that accompanied those sweeter scenes was not good.

The Marvels - (2023)

DCU levels of quality. Teyona Parris is a very limited actress, Larson seemed like she was bored to death to be on set and Iman Vellani was the only one that seemed to actually care about anything, I could tell that she was having fun. I didn't enjoy it and I do not recommend it.

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There has been an awekening.... have you felt it?

By "Copyright 1962 by Universal Pictures Co., Inc." - Scan via Heritage Auctions. Cropped from original image., Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/inde...curid=87433419

Flower Drum Song - (1961)

Flower Drum Song came out the same year West Side Story did, so while the latter took home 10 Oscars and became a timeless classic, the former walked away from the Oscars empty handed, converting none of it's 5 nominations. It might be particularly unfair to compare any musical to West Side Story, but this was simply a pleasant diversion that doesn't break through into classic territory. Universal Studios deserves a huge pat on the back for enlisting an all-Asian cast, and not opting to whitewash the proceedings as was common practice at the time (Breakfast at Tiffany's also came out in 1961.) None of the songs in this became hits, and the film feels a little dated. The cinematography and look of the film is great though - all the more unfortunate that I happened upon a particularly poor transfer that looked like it had been ripped directly from VHS. The plot is of the "who will marry who" sort, and running time 132 minutes - but neither of those factors bothered me too much. As I said, it's nice and agreeable enough to see once - but it won't linger in my memory. Miyoshi Umeki is lovely as bride-to-be Mei Li, despite the fact that she's Japanese and not Chinese (Universal wasn't going to go that far - wasn't an all-Asian cast enough? I can just hear the suits asking "What's the difference?") This was easy to like, but nowhere near being a truly great musical.

6/10

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Pollock (2000)

The Zone of Interest (2023)

Shallow Grave follows a trio of flatmates in Edinburgh that find themselves in over their heads when their new mysterious flatmate ends up dead, leaving behind a suitcase full of money. The friends then start sinking deeper into deceit and betrayal as they try to figure out the cost of their actions, while both police and criminals start closing in on them. Is the suitcase full of money enough?

Although everything sounds dead serious, the film is a really nice mixture of dark humor with some thrills, anchored by the cast's interactions and performances. The way they balance both the horrors and the stupidity of their actions is great, while Boyle throws a couple of nice twists to the story. All through, you're never sure who's going to hold and who's going to break; all designed to keep you guessing what is the actual cost of all of this on their lives.

Grade:


Full review on my Movie Loot and the Neo-Noir HoF

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That's how 11-year-old Julia tries to reassure her father, Kristian (Kristoffer Joner), that everything's going to be alright. Still traumatized by the events of the disastrous tsunami that he survived three years ago in The Wave, Kristian has been unable to put back the pieces of his life. He's estranged from his family and living in seclusion in Geiranger, while his family lives in Oslo. But turns out that disasters do "follow" him as he realizes that a major quake might hit the city.

The best thing the film does is to put the focus on the characters and let us feel the consequences. Once again, Kristoffer Joner does a good job conveying the trauma and the guilt of his character, but also the determination that comes after to fix things. This is no The Rock or Stallone, but Joner makes you believe he's the person to stick to. His relationship with his family feels real, and the addition of Marit (Kathrine Thorborg Johansen), the daughter of a recently deceased colleague, is welcome.

Grade:


Full review on my Movie Loot

The Reader (2008)

1st time watch and it is very well done. The court scenes are harrowing as I knew nothing about the tale but her recitence when being promoted surely was a big arrow. Great performances from Winslet and Fiennes.

Probably me.. I like "Cairo Station" a little more. "Chit-chat On The Nile" might be my favorite. I saw it on archive.org

"Emberatoriet meem" is kinda cute. Not a great movie, but an interesting idea of bringing a democratic practice from work into the home. I like Faten Hamama. "River of Love" is on YouTube, too, with she and husband, Omar Sharif

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Snow Trail - 7/10
Very cathartic seeing a decent movie.

If a decent film gives you katharsis, I fear to hear what a masterpiece gives you.

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Look, I'm not judging you - after all, I'm posting here myself, but maybe, just maybe, if you spent less time here and more time watching films, maybe, and I stress, maybe your taste would be of some value. Just a thought, ya know.

Sharper (2023)

Directed by Benjamin Caron
Starring Julianne Moore and ensemble

Good thriller, a lot of twist and turns, a bit overcooked at moments. Anyway, it is entertaining.

70/100

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"Population don't imitate art, population imitate bad television." W.A.
"You can't depend on your eyes when your imagination is out of focus." M.T.

Strange Victory (1948) Directed by Leo Hurwitz. I watched this today on the Criterion Channel. This is an excellent documentary about prejudices in post World War II America. It is thought provoking, articulate, compelling, and powerful. Highly recommended.