The Resident Bitch's Movie Log

→ in
Tools    





There was actually an animated film I heard about recently that made me think of you as I thought it might appeal to you. Was called Breadwinner I believe. Looked a million miles away from stuff like Ferdinand and Emoji Movie; much more in the vein of Persepolis and Waltz With Bashir, both of which I believe you were a fan of
I just watched the trailer and it looks really good. I'll have to check it out at some point.



Miss Vicky's Loyal and Willing Slave
I just watched the trailer and it looks really good. I'll have to check it out at some point.
Glad to be of service in alerting you to its existence. Hopefully you enjoy it whenever you're able to check it out

Sorry you didn't take to Call Me By Your Name as much as you were hoping/expecting. Not seen it myself yet but thought it might appeal to you

EDIT - There was actually another animated film I saw something about earlier on. Was called Big Fish and Begonia (the unusual name caught my eye); didn't look into it enough to know what it was about but visually looked to be a rather beautiful film





Big (Penny Marshall, 1988)
Imdb

Date Watched: 04/20/18
Cinema or Home: Friend's house
Reason For Watching: She wanted to introduce her children to it
Rewatch: Yes.


Big was one of my favorite movies growing up, but it's not a film that I've revisited much as an adult. I had quite a bit of fun watching it last night. Although I'm not as enamored of it as I was as a child, its innocent and playful charm was a nice change of pace from my usual, much heavier, live action fare. Unfortunately, my friend's demon spawn children grew bored of it rather quickly and were restless and disruptive, which may account at least in part for why I didn't love it as much as I once did.

Still a very enjoyable watch though.

+



Miss Vicky's Loyal and Willing Slave
I still adore Big. Just such a lovely film with a brilliant performance from Hanks.

Unfortunately, my friend's demon spawn children grew bored of it rather quickly and were restless and disruptive, which may account at least in part for why I didn't love it as much as I once did.
See, there's the problem! Kids! Kids ruin everything!





You Were Never Really Here (Lynne Ramsay, 2017)
Imdb

Date Watched: 04/22/18
Cinema or Home: Cinema
Reason For Watching: Joaquin Phoenix
Rewatch: No.


In terms of its story, You Were Never Really Here offers nothing new. It's a character study of a traumatized war veteran who uses his skills to find and rescue a girl who has been trafficked. But what struck me about the film was how authentic and un-Hollywood it felt.

There are so many ways in which the film could've easily fallen into tired cliché. The scenes of violence could've been highly stylized with an overwrought score blaring over the carnage. But they aren't. They're much more quiet and almost matter-of-fact. And where another film's central character might over-emote and put on his best "rage" face as he goes in, guns blazing, or otherwise employ some martial arts skill shoe-horned in for the cool factor, this one chooses simple weapons and displays no showy style in using them. But the thing that I found most striking was his reaction to the things that happened - which is to say silence and a certain numbness, punctuated by moments of anguish or even unexpected humanity. And in this role, of course, Joaquin Phoenix is excellent.

You Were Never Really Here remains fiercely independent of Hollywood flash in other ways, too. Once rescued, there are no tearful, dramatic thank yous from the girl. Instead, she exhibits that same quiet numbness born of unspeakable trauma. And for our veteran, we get glimpses of his trauma in the form of flashbacks, but there's no overbearingly emotional score to heighten our sense of sadness at what we are seeing. The film's cinematography and score are impressive without being showy. And the film's conclusion offers no real closure and only a small hint of optimism.

At just under 90 minutes, the film is relatively brief, but it is a slow burn and doesn't offer any real rewards to the attention deficient. It requires full investment and the payoff of this haunting tale is well worth it.

+



So glad you liked it, and your review highlights some great points. I think because Ramsay chose to not over-explain, the film is even more successful in it's attempts to really get into Joe's head. The movie feels as psychologically torn-up as Joe is.



Glad you liked it, Miss Vicky!

It's always satisfying when a film you're really looking forward to, also really seems to work for you when you can finally watch it.

I had a similar experience with Phantom Thread last year and I'm glad you had this with You Were Never Really Here, which is also one of my favorites of 2017.
__________________
Cobpyth's Movie Log ~ 2019



Miss Vicky's Loyal and Willing Slave
Really glad you enjoyed You Were Never Really Here. I know how much you look forward to new work from your beloved Joaquin.



Sorry if I'm rude but I'm right
@Miss Vicky: Do you log every film you watch in this thread, or just some of them? Your quantity is pretty low!
__________________
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.





Waterloo Bridge (James Whale, 1931)
Imdb

Date Watched: 05/15/18
Cinema or Home: Home
Reason For Watching: 16th MoFo Hall of Fame, Nominated by Citizen Rules
Rewatch: No.


I must admit that I was less than thrilled to see this film show up on the list of nominations and I don't deny that I have something of a prejudice against very old movies. I frequently struggle to connect with them because the acting is so often overly theatrical and very much unlike more modern acting that leans more towards a natural, less exaggerated approach. It also bothers me how ridiculously puritan these films often are (and yes, I'm aware of the whys about that), with an essentially total denial of anything sexual or base in nature.

While James Whale's Waterloo Bridge did not completely shatter my preconceived notions about films of this era, I was very pleasantly surprised at how different it still managed to be from my expectations. I certainly never thought that I would be watching a film that covered the subject matter that it did or that I would be able to overcome the disconnect I so often feel and actually be engaged with the characters, though it took some time for me to get there. I also came into this film being almost completely ignorant of its director, knowing him only as the director of classic horror movies (none of which I've actually seen) and knowing that really only because of the film Gods and Monsters.

As to the more specific aspects of the film, I thought the performances of both Mae Clarke and Douglass Montgomery were strong - though I found both characters distasteful in the beginning: Her for her attitude and him for his ridiculous level of naivete and his premature proclamations of love. But both managed to win me over eventually and I found myself actually wanting things to work out for them and invested in their fates. I also really appreciated that the film did not give the stereotypical Hollywood ending. There was no Happily Ever After shoe-horned in to make the audience feel good.

Ultimately, I came away with a very positive impression of the film, but I do have to wonder how much of that was owed to the difference between expectation and reality and I wonder whether the film will hold up as well on a rewatch. Right now, though, that doesn't matter and for the moment at least this is a very strong start to this Hall of Fame.

-





Frances Ha (Noah Baumbach, 2012)
Imdb

Date Watched: 05/17/18
Cinema or Home: Home
Reason For Watching: 16th MoFo Hall of Fame, Nominated by rauldc14
Rewatch: No.


Frances Ha is a well made film. The cinematography is crisp and beautiful, the soundtrack was well chosen, and the performances are solid. It all centers around Frances, an apprentice dancer who bounces around from apartment to apartment. She very awkwardly bumbles through her interactions with her friends and other people she encounters in her life and struggles to deal with her very strained relationship with her best friend.

Which would all be wonderful if I found Frances endearing, but instead I found her rather annoying and it's impossible to truly enjoy a film like this if you don't like the main character.






The Breadwinner (Nora Twomey, 2017)
Imdb

Date Watched: 05/17/18
Cinema or Home: Home
Reason For Watching: Suggested by @JayDee
Rewatch: No.


The Breadwinner gives a glimpse into the lives of Afghani women and children living under Taliban oppression. Eleven year old Parvana is forced to disguise herself as a boy in order to work and provide food and water for her mother, older sister, and baby brother after her father is imprisoned by the Taliban.

The film is beautifully animated and features strong vocal performances. It also has a very important story to tell and tells it well. However its relentless series of images and situations that are both heartbreaking and enraging make it a very emotionally wearing film to watch and likely isn't something I'll revisit any time soon.

-



I thought it was a lot better than Coco personally. Although i probably felt about the same as you overall.

Me and JJ are doing this thing - https://www.movieforums.com/communit...ad.php?t=54030

You should join us at some point considering you are such a fan of animation at least to provide a dissenting voice to me and JJ's likely gushing haha. It's not a Hall of Fame thing that you have to join and watch everything, if you see something you are interested in joining in with then you can do that while ignoring all the stuff you aren't.

Also ask Funny Face if you get the chance. She nominated Cobweb Hotel in the last one she did (i convinced her to join after she sent me that after seeing what we were doing, she was great and made several of us cry with her out of the blue other nomination haha) and we're doing a running non-committal thing that i think she'd agree suits her more than the HoF's with a deadline and whatever.



Miss Vicky's Loyal and Willing Slave
Nice little flurry of watches/reviews.

Glad you enjoyed Breadwinner. Well maybe 'enjoyed' isn't the right word going by your review; appreciated or admired perhaps a better fit.





They Shoot Horses, Don't They? (Sydney Pollack, 1969)
Imdb

Date Watched: 05/19/18
Cinema or Home: Home
Reason For Watching: 16th MoFo Hall of Fame, Nominated by cricket
Rewatch: No.


Although I've known of this film for some time, it was only by its reputation as a quality film. I was completely ignorant of its content until I pressed play.

And I came away with very mixed feelings about it. I liked the sort of spectacle of cruelty that the dance marathon represented and how it reflects how much people enjoy watching others suffer and the lengths to which people will go in the name of entertainment or in the pursuit of money or perceived fame, whether it be from greed or desperation. But at the same time, the premise also meant that meaningful interaction between the characters - and, therefore, proper development of those characters - was limited. As a result, they came off to me as being very one dimensional and too much so for me to care about them. This was especially true for Gloria and as a result I felt nothing when the film came to a close.

None of which is to say that I think it's not a good movie. It's a well constructed film and I can kinda see why it clicks so well for others, but unfortunately it just didn't do that for me.

+





Call Me By Your Name (Luca Guadagnino, 2017)
Imdb

Date Watched: 04/12/18
Cinema or Home: Home
Reason For Watching: I'd heard good things about it
Rewatch: No.


I watched this a few days ago, but I've had a very difficult time coming up with something to say about it.

I went into this film expecting to really like it a lot, but came away only thinking it was pretty good. I'm not sure how much of the fault there lies with the film though as everything about it was solid. It looked great, the performances were good and the story was interesting. And yet I felt a sort of disconnect from it all.

Perhaps I just wasn't in the right mood for a slow burn drama like this and I do plan to revisit it at some point in the future. Here's hoping I get better results next time.

-
Hope you do like it when you revisit it I loved it first time
__________________
Health is the greatest gift, contentment the greatest wealth, faithfulness the best relationship.
Buddha



Hope you do like it when you revisit it I loved it first time
It's been nominated in the Hall of Fame that I'm participating in right now, so I'll be rewatching it some time in the next several weeks. I'm hoping I like it the second time around.





3:10 to Yuma (James Mangold, 2007)
Imdb

Date Watched: 5/20/18
Cinema or Home: Home
Reason For Watching: 16th MoFo Hall of Fame, nominated by me
Rewatch: Yes


I've never much considered myself a fan of Westerns. There are a handful of them that I really love, but overall I find the genre to not really suit my tastes. James Mangold's 3:10 to Yuma is a big exception to that and became an instant favorite when I first watched it eleven years ago.

It has all of the aspects of the genre that you expect to see - gun fights, drinking, beautiful women, horses, and gorgeous landscapes but all of those things are completely secondary to the relationships between the characters. And these relationships are what really draw me into the film.

The story centers around one particular relationship - the uneasy truce and growing respect between Russell Crowe's Ben Wade, an infamous outlaw who has been captured and is to be transported to Contention to board a train to Yuma prison, and Christian Bale's Dan Evans, a struggling rancher, husband, and father desperate to save his home and redeem himself in the eyes of his family, who has volunteered to escort Wade to the train for a price. I've never been a fan of Bale and would in fact list him among my least favorite actors, but in this role he is solid. His stoicism and restrained emotion work well to embody the self loathing and desperation of the downtrodden rancher who still holds on to his principles. Not surprisingly though, he is outshown by Russell Crowe who brings charisma, intensity, a cunning playfulness, and just a touch of sensitivity to a man that is also a ruthless killer and remorseless thief.

But the performance that impressed me most - not just this time, but the first time and every time - has been Ben Foster as Charlie Prince, Ben Wade's second in command with a cool swagger, a great sense of style, and fantastic lines. But more importantly, this cold blooded killer is also a man of dedication and unwavering loyalty. And as much as he deserved what came to him in the end, I couldn't help but feel a twinge of pity at the betrayal he suffered.

And that to me is what really makes it a great film. Things are not truly black and white. The characters are human, the lines between heroes and villains are blurred, and I am able to become just as emotionally invested in each.

+