Last Movie You Watched? Mark 9

Yeah, I remember reading somewhere that Sly was a forceps delivery and complications arising from that had contributed to his slurred speech.

Thor: The Dark World (2013)

I dug the first one fine, and thought this would be more or less on the same level. My expectations were surpassed. I really enjoyed this one a lot and I might even go as far as to say that it's the best of the Marvel Cinematic Universe films so far. A huge improvement after IRON MAN 3 too, and I liked that one more than most people.

I've enjoyed ever Marvel Cinematic Universe film so far. As good as Thor: The Dark World was, I still feel Iron Man 3 was a little better, if for no other reason than I loved the Mandarin twist (not to mention his Mandarin voice).

Rocky Balboa (2006)

Just as good as I remembered it. It captures the spirit of the original and feels complete in a way that ROCKY V failed to do. I even like that it reflects on Stallone's career, with many doubting he could pull it off, being laughed at, his son being initially embarrassed, ect. I remember seeing the trailer for this in theaters, and many actually laughed and joked about it after it played. It was ballsy for Stallone to do, but he does it with earnestness and that's what really ranks it high among the films. So yeah, I rank it at #2, easily. Couldn't have done a better way to cap the series off. Now it's Bruce Willis that needs to do his own RB with DIE HARD, preferably with McTiernan

ROCK-O-METER

ROCKY
ROCKY BALBOA
ROCKY II
ROCKY III
ROCKY IV
ROCKY V

It was nice to revisit this series.

A new McTiernan Die Hard... I want it!

Double Indemnity

A great slice of film noir, three towering performances (albeit a smaller role for Robinson than you might subsequently have wished for) a smart and sassy script and a director who knows how to milk tension when its appropriate. Looks terrific on Blu Ray too with enough grain to feel authentic, but lines clean enough to make it seem new.

9/10

Charade (1963)

Did a blind purchase of a Criterion release last year but never got around to watching it all until now. I actually enjoyed this a lot. It was a bit more comic than I expected, but I was able to roll along with it easily. Greats score, btw.

2012

Lousy CGI/back projection in parts, acting that's more neither than there and not enough George Segal. Bit of a waste of time.

Thor II

That was fun. Loving the banter between Thor and Loki, and loving a baddie that you can't help but cheer for, even a little bit. Okay I've never seen the point in the romance aspect, but at least the sheer fun of Skarsgard's nutty scientist and the Thor/Loki love/hate more than makes up for any cloying tweeness.

Ender's Game (2013)
directed by Gavin Hood

To say that the novel is better is a little pedantic. We all know that movies are never going to be 100% true to their literary counterparts. I would never expect Ender's Game to attempt such a feat, since, after all, 90% of the book takes place in one character's thoughts. However, in this case it's abundantly clear that those involved with the film have no understanding of the appeal of the source material whatsoever and put no effort into even trying to make it work. Major, integral aspects of the story are either significantly marginalized or removed completely in favor of a whitewashed, surface-only version that's been dumbed-down for a young-adult audience (Concurrently, I don't feel that Card's novel specifically targeted a young demographic, despite most of the characters being children). Simply put, Hood (and Hollywood) doesn't trust that an audience can accept nuanced character study, and unfortunately doesn't even give us the choice or opportunity to do so. Compare this to a film like Planet of the Apes (a film which honors it's source material, yet adapts it so it works on-screen while subsequently presenting subtly different ideas) and you can see that films based on books CAN be adapted and can be adapted well.

Even as a standalone film, it's quite underwhelming. There are a few rather enjoyable moments mostly during the zero-gravity training, but for the most part the action isn't very exciting, the character relationships are unconvincing and underdeveloped, performances are flat, the casting is bizarre and the whole thing moves at such a rushed pace that any kind of drama or tension is lost.

The Quiet Man

solid movie. The highlight shot for me seems to be the close-up on Wayne's face in the flashback of the fateful boxing match. The likes of Bond and McLaglen excel. Oh for more Ward Bonds today.

Hungry Games 2: Electric Boogaloo

Was shit. Poorly structured and anti-climactic.

World War Z

I got a little over halfway through the film before I pressed "stop". I knew the film wasn't like the book, I knew the film would disappoint me, I didn't know that the film would disappoint me this goddamn much. The shit hits the fan maybe two minutes in, barely enough time to introduce the main character and his family, and then all hell breaks outrageously loose.

After that, it just became muddled, stupid. A globe-trotting zombie movie sounded kind of cool to begin with, now I know it was a mistake. Other than Brad Pitt's face every thirty seconds, I can't see why this movie got the positive reception that it did. It angers me to know that they're making a sequel. Quarantine disappointed me, but not to the degree that this film did.

It saddens me to say that a MAD parody called "World War DBZ" was a thousand times better.

Wait Until Dark (1967)

Finally got around to seeing this one. Delightfully twisted, overall very well staged and executed. I'm tempted to call it Young's best film, but I'll give that time since I like FRWL just as much. Hepburn and Arkin are highlights, still Crenna is very good here too.

Robin & Marian (1976)

Liked it plenty. Not great, but very worthwhile for the chemistry between Connery and Hepburn, and the duel at the end is very good. And as always, great to hear a film scored by John Barry.

JFK

One of my all time favourite comedies.

Largo's Shark wrote:

JFK

One of my all time favourite comedies.

superb main theme though.

Also watched JFK the other day.

I liked the bit with Donald Sutherland. Everything else was a bit meh.

My Zatoichi box set from Criterion Collection arrived today. Having already seen the first 3 films I opted to skip ahead to #4 and re-watch the remastered transfers of #1-3 at a later date.

Zatoichi The Fugitive (1963)

A very enjoyable film and visually stunning for what is essentially a B-movie. The third film was filmed mostly on sets. With this film switching to mostly on location shooting, it definitely makes a huge difference. The cinematography by Chikashi Makiura is excellent. I'd definitely be interesting in tracking down some of his other work based on what he did in this picture. The main players working on this film all brought their A-game. The direction and editing is fantastic.

Of the first 4 films in the series, I think this one is by far the best. Solid script gives the character much more depth than the prior films and is complimented by the great execution.

I Spit On Your Grave 2...apparently the whole thing is on youtube too.

Largo's Shark wrote:

JFK

One of my all time favourite comedies.

Way up there with SALVADOR, eh?

Even if I wasn't sympathetic to the subject matter, I'd still consider it an amazing job editorially. A tremendous amount of info to impart in JFK, and there was also the need to put the info in perspective (different treatments for speculation, recreation, or 'movie.') To me, NBK is an example of using that style in support of nothing at all, so it is an empty exercise, whereas here the cutting is essential to delivering the film.

Wish they didn't have to do so much fictionalizing with the Kevin Bacon character, though he does have one hysterically funny line, something to the effect that Garrison doesn't know anything about real truth because he ain't never been fucked in the ass.

trevanian wrote:

Largo's Shark wrote:

JFK

One of my all time favourite comedies.

Way up there with SALVADOR, eh?

No, like BORN ON THE FOURTH OF JULY, PLATOON, and NIXON -- those are profoundly moving films.

Don't get me wrong, I like JFK for what it is. A sort of meta-commentary/farce on the power of conspiracy theories, though I'm sure that's not what Stone intended. The collage-like editing is virtuosic, DP Robert Richardson did an incredible job with those PARCAN top/backlights, overexposed 100 ASA film and ProMist filters for that 'nuclear' halo, and I love most of Williams's score.

Pesci makes the film for me, though. After Ferrie's death and the Mr. X scene, the film loses my interest. Costner becomes increasingly monotone and preachy, the family scenes with Spacek and the kids don't work, and the looping of the headshot in the Zapruder film gets almost pornographic.

Out of all of Stone's films, I'd say it's got the most in common with NATURAL BORN KILLERS. Both are black comedies.

Yeah, I think if that was what Stone had intended, he'd've hired Charlie Sheen to narrate instead of Martin. I do agree about act 3 being the weakest link.

trevanian wrote:

Yeah, I think if that was what Stone had intended, he'd've hired Charlie Sheen to narrate instead of Martin.

Only the prologue, IIRC. None of that prepares you for the zaniness ahead.

ALL THAT JAZZ (1979) - dir. Bob Fosse.

This was the first movie starting with A on my hard drive that I was yet to watch. I literally could not be bothered cycling further down with my remote. Didn't know I was sitting down to watch a Palme d'Or winner.  

I had my laptop open intending to multi-task. Instead I was transfixed. A great film, but I'm still trying to process it in order to articulate how I feel about it. I was actually really tempted to watch it again right away. I'm honestly surprised I hadn't heard of it more, as I thought it'd be a film discussed a lot more than it is.

I definitely thought it jumped up a couple of notches in the second half, as Gideon inches towards death and Fosse eases you into full blown surrealism. The preservation of typical musical storytelling until this point in the story is great as it makes the strangeness of the medium make sense. The sequence below is just fantastic, awesomely shot, conceived, choreographed....



And that ending is such a punch to the gut. Ann Reinking was a quality piece as well, Fosse was a lucky bastard.

Between this and CABARET, how is the rest of Fosse's work? He was an interesting director, or at least had the makings of one.

MATCH POINT (2005) - dir. Woody Allen

Another one where I wasn't expecting much and wound up watching the whole thing. Just really well done.

SCOOP (2006) - dir. Woody Allen

Did not expect this to have been as poorly received as it was. Any film with Scarlett Johansen in a swimsuit is off to a good start! Sure, it's not brilliant, but I thought it was an enjoyable enough light comedy. (Though I tend to feel this way about most of Allen's less-well-reviewed films)

VICKY CRISTINA BARCELONA (2008) - dir. Woody Allen

Love Rebecca Hall, but this really did nothing for me.

MIDNIGHT IN PARIS (2011) - dir. Woody Allen

Really enjoyable. Breezy. Funny. Though I thought Owen Wilson was the weak link.

SHAME (2011) - dir. Steve McQueen

Great performance from Fassbender and nicely shot but other than that - what's the point? There's not really a story. It felt like an overlong short film.

SILVER LININGS PLAYBOOK (2012) - dir. David O. Russell.

Yeah, it's basically a rom-com. Yeah, the end is kind of cheesy. But it plays within the standard rom-com story beats fairly creatively and has smart, complicated characters compared to the formulaic Anna Faris type films. Nice performance from Cooper but Lawrence and DeNiro really walk away with the film. Especially Lawrence.

Bridesmaids (2011) - dir. Paul Feig.

Really, how is this any different from the various critically derided vehicles starring Adam Sandler, Seth Rogan, Jason Sudeikis et al that still pollute our movie theatres from time-to-time? Oh right, it stars women, so suddenly all the purile humour and clichéd storytelling is fresh and innovative. I guess I liked seeing Rose Byrne doing comedy for a change.

At World's End

We both laughed so much we were coughing our guts up. That's what watching it with a heavy cold does for you.