Rate The Last Movie You Saw

The first hour is pretty dull from what I recall, but the next two are pretty entertaining. This genre is basically crack to me.

On one hand, I don't disagree with anything you're saying here. But on the other hand, there's a level of dumbassed commitment in Hardy's performance that I found completely infectious. And it's a rare modern superhero movie that clocks in at a decent runtime and doesn't make you do twenty movies worth of homework to keep up. I had more fun with this than 90% of the genre, is what I'm saying.

1st Rewatch...This tension-filled film version of August Wilson's play is anchored by the Oscar-nominated performances of Viola Davis and Chadwick Boseman in his final film role. Despite his tragic passing, Boseman was the darling of the 2020 award season for this performance until he was blindsided by Anthony Hopkins at the Oscars. The screenplay is a little talky and it never escapes its stage origins, but Davis and Boseman make it worth the watch. Do I think Hopkins stole the Oscar from Boseman? No.

I've not paid a great deal of attention to the MCU (but it's hard to escape somewhat), but is Venom now officially in the MCU? I thought Sony still had the movie rights (obviously, would be a Spiderman situation legally).

I was pretty disappointed with Prisoners of the Ghostland, fwiw.

Nope (2022) - Jordan Peele



Credit where credit is due: Nope is one of the most ambitious movies I've seen in a while. But it also bites off more than it can chew. Peele's latest project is sci-fi, horror, comedy, and satire wrapped into one. He absolutely nails down some elements – the atmospheric second act is rife with tension and striking imagery – but struggles with others. The action-packed third act sags under its own weight, as does the subplot featuring a sitcom chimpanzee gone berserk. There also seemed to be an inkling of commentary on the erasure of Black filmmakers, which Peele, unfortunately, does not develop.

A couple of reviewers have suggested that Nope would work better on a smaller scale. I agree, but only to a certain extent – doing so would have improved the film's coherence at the cost of squandering Peele's vision. And it's the latter that differentiates Nope from its contemporaries. As the lights turned on and the credits emerged, I noticed a lot of people discussing the movie – more than usual, in hushed, excited tones. Jordan Peele might not have made a streamlined film, but he has undoubtedly made a thought-provoking one.

__________________
Letterboxd Profile: https://letterboxd.com/GatsbyG/

Right, but SO MUCH of the movie is given over to stuff that isn't Tom Hardy clambering around a lobster tank or deliriously chugging tater tots.

I did actually like that Eddie is kind of a moron. Maybe my favorite moment was when his editor at the news organization was like "So what is your source on these accusations?" and Eddie just stared at him like this was the first time he'd ever heard of a reporter basing a story on sources and not on a hunch.

Same.

By Daniel Clark Creative, Fair use, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=59343407

The Social Network - (2010)

The Social Network portrays Mark Zuckerberg (played here, ever so well, by Jesse Eisenberg) as a horrible kid who just happens to be ever so smart - and when his girlfriend (who he treats awfully) leaves him events conspire to Zuckerberg inventing a program that connects university students together - Facebook, an invention which is eventually worth $25 billion. Unfortunately, the idea came from a couple of Harvard students he never credited, and he was helped financially by Eduardo Saverin (Andrew Garfield), who he eventually cuts off - which sets everything up for lawsuits, through which this story is told. This film is one of Fincher's best, and really taps in to our unethical, immoral and greed-driven society, of which the story of Zuckerberg is a perfect example. Catching up with it this time has left an even bigger impression on me, and I'd consider this one of the best the 2010s has to offer. Very enjoyable.

9/10


By PosterRevolution, Fair use, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=4553820

The Breakfast Club - (1985)

You could be cynical I guess, when adults make films about kids rebelling against the same adults that are selling them this film, but The Breakfast Club was the movie of my generation - I was just about to embark on high school when it came out, and it touched a nerve within a lot of us. A 35-year-old John Hughes wrote the screenplay that just went to show he was at the peak of his powers already, and had a finger on the pulse of the youth of those days. While it veers a little towards comedy (especially with Anthony Michael Hall) this was basically a drama involving five kids during a day-long Saturday detention session where they begin to open up to each other and forge bonds after a combative beginning - revealing more of themselves, and therefore highlighting issues most kids go through. A great soundtrack was crucial to this film's success - along with at least one character a kid could relate to.

8/10


By POV - Impawards, Fair use, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=19271817

Sixteen Candles - (1984)

Sixteen Candles can't quite maintain the momentum it has built up after an excellent and very funny start, with a very forgettable second and third act. Nevertheless, it was the directorial debut for John Hughes and introduced us to Molly Ringwald and gave Anthony Michael Hall's career another boost after appearing in Vacation - they both shine brightly. It also features a teenage John Cusack in only his second role - he was to hit big the next year in Better Off Dead..., which is another film I remember fondly, but haven't seen in decades. A fun watch - but it does have racial and sexual issues, which just compound the fact that it loses it's way after the half way point.

6/10


By http://www.impawards.com/2017/kong_s...land_ver2.html, Fair use, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=51138666

Kong : Skull Island - (2017)

I think I noted this the last time I watched Skull Island and rated it here, but while the action and effects in this film are to be commended, the human characters lack depth, and don't give the film much dramatic impact - we simply never really grow to care for them. The film is fun though - monsters galore.

6/10

__________________

No he's not. And I thought of that as soon as I posted it. But hey, he's a Marvel character and that's close enough to anyone who's not a hardcore fan of Marvel/Disney.

Huge fan of that one.

__________________
IMDb
Letterboxd

I wish I had been too, but there's something about Fincher's general emotional detachment as a filmmaker that makes him less well-suited for Dramas such as it, and better for the Thrillers that he's more famous for, I have to admit. When it comes to his more dramatic efforts, it feels like he's either being way too sentimental (Benjamin Button), or too sterile, like with TSN.

Very poorly acted, bad CGI and very predictable. Nothing can be saved here.

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

If I had the time to go and watch this again today, I'd give it some serious thought. As soon as Kenny Loggins "Dangerzone" came blasting out during the opening credits I said to myself "Oooh, a five star movie." It's not a five star movie but it was a ton of fun and everything I had heard about it was true - from great cinematography to nostalgia to just a simple, well done story. First time I went to a theater in years and it was a blast. Didn't hurt that I was the only person in the theater. Definitely worth plunking out a few bucks to see it on a big screen.

I didn't feel emotionally detached from the film at all, personally. Rather, I felt Zuckerberg to be a compelling character in the film and that he was developed and realized rather well.

The Duke (2020)

Not bad retro style Brit-comedy. A lot of nicely done social details though there are some naive even silly lines in the second half.
Anyway, good production design and cinematography. Jim Broadbent and Helen Mirren are on high level as always.
7/10.

__________________
"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.

Not really. He appeared in a post-credit scene in the last Spidey movie, hinting that he might be able to cross over due to the events of that film, but the scene ends with him missing the boat on that.

Funny, not only did I think he nailed it all, to the wall, I thought he made it seem effortless and I came away thinking that Peele is actually a better filmmaker than even his already very good material. I went back and saw it again.

Is he flying a plane without a cockpit canopy?

I should rewatch it as well. I have a feeling I'll like it more with a second viewing.

Tom Cruise doesn't need a canopy. He's a bit nutty ya know.