Movies you've seen recently (Part 1)

Cafe Society
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Hey Justin!

I have a suggestion for you. If you have not yet seen “The Walk” (2015) …

It’s about high-wire artist Philippe Petit who in 1974 recruits a team of people to help him walk between the World Trade Center towers.

I just caught a glimpse of a preview and it is rated very high at IMDB (7.8). It looks like it might be real good and I’m guessing that if you liked Southpaw and Sunshine Superman, you might really enjoy this one.

I saw Southpaw and I really liked it. I’m going to check out Sunshine Superman now thanks to your post.

Thank You!

:slight_smile:

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Hey Justin,

I just re-read your post and saw what you said about Last Shift.

You might really like a much better cop film called End of Watch (2012).

It is another one of Jake Gyllenhall’s films. I’m a sucker for him. I really like most all his films.

Anyway, this one is packed full of action and I’m guessing people might really like it because it’s a very high quality film.

It’s rated 7.7 which is very good and it has some great action and a surprise ending that will leave you scratching your head and saying, “Whaaaa … ???”

But it’s great.

It’s about cops vs. gangs in LA. Jake Gyllenhall plays an LAPD cop.

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I saw this several weeks back, and generally liked it, although I thought it was REALLY a stretch in the Holmes pastiche department. Holmes traveling to Japan after the end of WWII? Another of those dreary attempts to humanize Holmes by showing his poor showing the human elements of a case? I’ve seen it before, and wasn’t impressed.

so imagine my surprise to learn that the book this is based on is highly regarded – Mitch Cullins’ A Slight Trick of the Mind. In the first place, books about Sherlock Holmes, while well-liked, are rarely highly regarded in mainstream fiction. In the second place, it didn’t feel to me like really good Holmes. (Nor did it to you, evidently). There are claims that the writing is very good, but I haven’t read any of Cullins’ stuff yet.

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Finally saw the original Spanish-language version of The Orphanage. It was very good, and the twist at the end was one of the most satisfying — in a sickening, gut-punching sort of way — of any movie I’ve seen.

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Not to beat this one to death, as everybody has different tastes. I talked my wife into watching it last night, and she enjoyed it. It was beautifully filmed in noir style, with a classic noir plot. The movie was nominated for a cinematography Oscar. Thornton’s taciturn performance was brilliant, given that he was limited to minimum dialog and very little action. He truly “wasn’t there” in a big way, and his performance garnered rave reviews. It was an odd film, surely, but that’s usually a given for the Coen brothers.

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Watched Brighton Rock (1947 version), starring a young Richard Attenborough and Hermione Baddeley, as a pathological thug and a good time girl, respectively. This is another movie based on a Graham Greene novel, with all the elements that you expect from Greene, including references to faith and the Catholic Church. I’m afraid I fell asleep a few times, but don’t feel like I missed much. Because of the British slang, it was difficult to understand WTH they were talking about, even with subtitles.

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Just saw Insidious 3 on pay-per-view

I want my 5 dollars back. Awful. Boredom, then standard ‘jump out at you’ scares, then stupid. And then some more stupid.

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Recently seen:

Bad Day at Black Rock
A 1955 crime drama, with Spencer Tracy as a crusty, disabled World War II vet arriving in an isolated, boss-controlled desert town for reasons that are only gradually revealed. Very atmospheric but didn’t grab me, all in all.

Spectre
The latest James Bond movie. Daniel Craig is excellent as always as 007, and there’s a great opening sequence set during Mexico City’s Day of the Dead festivities, but also some amazingly implausible action scenes (even for a Bond film!) and a so-so plot. Overall just not as good as it might have been.

Back to the Future
Saw this 1985 sf comedy classic on the big screen again for the first time in many years, with the score played live - and very well - by the Cleveland Orchestra. Just as funny, upbeat and clever as I remembered.

A Little Princess
A pretty good 1995 adaptation of the Frances Hodgson Burnett children’s classic. Beautiful cinematography and a farfetched but heartwarming story.

Star Wars: The Force Awakens
A highly derivative plot (the Rebels must destroy yet another superweapon), true, but lots of shoutouts to earlier SW movies, a welcome return of the original cast, and two charismatic, appealing new stars - a conscience-stricken former stormtrooper and a beautiful, plucky young woman who is strong in the Force. Despite some nitpicks, I really enjoyed it.

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I’ve seen a few movies recently and would just like to offer my opinions of them:

. The Walk (2015) The Walk (2015) - IMDb

This is the story of high wire artist Philippe Petit who strung up a wire between the two towers of the World Trade Center in NYC in 1974 and walked back and forth between the two towers a few times. It was rated 7.6 on IMDB which is usually considered to be Very Good to Excellent. But I thought it was a bore. I’m sorry to say that IMHO, there was very little that was excellent about this movie. He had a love interest but there was little or no love affair. There was nothing to applaud in this film. It was just very pedestrian. Just a very average story.

. The Hateful Eight (2015) The Hateful Eight (2015) - IMDb

This is one of the finest films I’ve ever seen. It was directed by Quentin Tarantino and it starred many of the same actors who have appeared in his films in the past. They include Samuel L. Jackson, Tim Roth, Michael Madsen, Kurt Russell, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Walton Groggins and Bruce Dern. It got an 8.2 rating at IMDB which I think is fairly well deserved. It was a very “gripping” move from start to end. Never once did I feel like fast forwarding through some parts. It was extremely violent. But the violence was woven through the plot and well placed. It was extremely entertaining. I can’t recommend this movie enough if you like this sort of thing.
. The Salvation (2014) The Salvation (2014) - IMDb

IMO, this was a cheesy rip-off of The Hateful Eight. Many similarities. Both films begin with a stage coach ride through the snowy wintery West. Both films are full of violence. But there is one huge difference. The Hateful Eight is extremely entertaining but The Salvation is just violence with no associate entertainment. I thought it was just awful.

. Kidnapping Mr. Heinecken (2015) Kidnapping Mr. Heineken (2015) - IMDb

This is the story based on the kidnapping of the billionaire head of Heinecken Breweries. It was not particularly exciting or entertaining. It was a tiny bit interesting due to the method these punks employed to kidnap the man. But most of the rest of the film was highly predicable and boring. The action was piss poor. The interaction among the characters was piss poor. There was on very striking fact about this film. The part of Mr. Heinecken was played by Anthony Hopkins and I had never before ever seen him play a part in a bad film that his acting could not rescue. But this was the exception. His part was piss poor and boring. I def would not recommended this film. It sucks.

. Pixels Pixels (2015) - IMDb

A stupid film starring Adam Sandler and Kevin James. I have seen other films starring these two bufoons but usually at least one of them is somewhat entertaining. Not this time. Just listen to how stupid the plot is:

In 1982 there is a competetion for the world’s champion video game player. A record is made of the event and shot out into outer space in the hope of contacting an alien race. Well, it works. They contact an alien race who believes this recorded record is a declaration of war. That is the last interesting thing about this movie. The rest of it is just awful. I don’t think it will appeal even to young kids. Why? Because young kids are not interested in ancient video games that seem like dinosaurs today. This film even manages to make Michelle Monaghan look bad and makes her acting appear to be bad. I don’t know how they ever managed to do that because she is truly a beautiful and talented lady.

Oh well, stay away from this turkey. I have to go out now but I may post some more later today.

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Re A Little Princess, which I liked a lot too. I know you know, but some might not, that was directed by Alfonso Cuarón, who went on to make Y Tu Mama Tambien (which brought Gael Garcia Bernal and Diego Luna to a wider audience), Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Children of Men, and Gravity, which won 7 Oscars, including Best Picture and Best Director for Cuarón.

It was based on the book by Frances Hodgson Burnett, which was also the basis for the 1939 Shirley Temple tearjerker. The cinematographer for A Little Princess was Emmanuel Lubezki, who was nominated for an Oscar for it, his first of 7 nominations so far (he’s won twice, for Gravity and last year for Birdman). He’ll probably be nominated again this year for his work on The Revenant.

Lest anyone think it’s “just a kid’s movie” it has a pretty great pedigree.

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Gravity didn’t win B. Picture, 12 Years a Slave won that year. His Birdman won last year.

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“A girl walks home alone at night” is the last notable movie I have watched. Sinister atmosphere, just will worth a punt

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Re-watched Inside Out with FtGKid1 the other night. Kind of odd watching a kid’s movie with a “kid” again after all these years. At least we were at home so I could do crosswords during the boring parts (and there were quite a few of those). It’s not at all like The Incredibles which I find attention grabbing no matter how many times I’ve seen it.

OTOH, Phyllis Smith is still remarkable.

MrsFtG suggested watching The Big Lebowski recently which we did. I think I’m in love.

One of the lesser known recent movies we’ve watched lately is Mistress America with Greta Gerwig. By Noah Baumbach. Seems to have sat on the shelf a while. Not sure why. It’s a fairly decent film with lots of yuks, semi-deep conversation and little sad bits. (See the IMDb quote page for it for a taste.)

Good thing the plot was basically irrelevant. You knew how it was going to end.

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Just saw the new Star Wars movie. The Force was with me right up until I stepped on gum on the way out of the theater. Gum. Fucking gum. Do you know how many decades it’s been since I stepped on fucking GUM?

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Oh damn, sorry. I was in a hurry because I was going to go see Hateful Eight & Carol so I didn’t check to make sure.

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We both goofed. Birdman was directed by Alejandro González Iñárritu (Amores Perros, 21 Grams, Babel, Biutiful, Birdman, The Revenant) not Alfonso Cuarón. Now Guillermo del Toro needs to direct something that’ll get him a Best Director Oscar, so all three of the Three Amigos will have one.

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Watched “Zack and Miri Make A Porno” recently. I realized it was a modern update of the old Shirley Temple movie plotllines: “We need more money for popsicles. Where will we get some?” “I know! Let’s put on a show in the old barn!”

For much of the film I was having the problem in most films in which Seth Rogen’s stoner character has a girlfriend, namely, “What the fuck does she see in him?” He’s a completely irresponsible idiot who forgets to pay the rent, the water and the electricity. His sweet platonic girlfriend he lives with (played by a miscast Elizabeth Banks) puts up with all this shit. Obviously she’s crazy about him, but there’s nothing in his character as presented in the screenplay to give you a reason why. I kinda wanted to punch his face on Miri’s behalf a lot.

Elizabeth Banks was simply never believable as Miri. She’s just too gorgeous and too mentally mature to be a believable counterpart to Zack’s stoner idiot. She kinda TRIES to play the idiot, but to be a believable mate for Rogen, she needed to go full retard, and she never even came close.

Katie Morgan, who is also in the movie, is more the type to be a match for Rogen’s character. Her, I would have believed in the role. Banks, not so much.

Still a fun and interesting movie, I had one more insight: it’s a movie that shows how far people have come. Normally any movie about a small town bunch would have, as a major plot point local prudes trying to shut them down. But no such group appears. It’s like they don’t exist any more, like they don’t matter. And it feels kinda right. I’m sure there are towns full of prudes still around, but I’m also sure there are towns without any significant prudish presence.

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Seeing Hateful Eight this weekend.

This will be my first time seeing a movie in a theater in a long time, due to a cellphone texted/talker on my last visit.

ETA: this shows just how powerful Quentin is!

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I watched “Cake” with Jennifer Aniston on Netflix. She plays a drug-addicted accident survivor that becomes obsessed with a woman in her support group that committed suicide. It was very weird and grim but, tending towards weird and grim things myself, I enjoyed it.

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I saw Spotlight, about the Boston Globe’s investigation of the Catholic priest sex scandal. Fantastic movie and highly recommended. I can’t remember another movie where no one in the theater got up to leave when the credits rolled. We all just sat there in stunned silence. This is right up there with All the President’s Men and will surely be an Oscar contender.