Last Movie You Saw, Name & Review Movie • Page 11

Fail Safe was one of the most tense films I've ever seen, with a horrific, chilling finale. Sidney Lumet is maybe my favorite director that I haven't seen enough of, and I'm looking forward to continue to remedy that. I love that this film about the inevitability of nuclear conflict didn't paint these people in charge as deliberate monsters, they're (almost) all well meaning people overtaken by the system they themselves put in place. It's a movie about people doing their jobs as best they can, and how that has the potential to kill millions and millions of people.

 

I am not quite as high on it as you, but that's a good movie, nihilistic as it is. I think what hurt it is being a straight-faced version of that story in the same year Dr. Strangelove came out.

 

The Invitation: 7/10
The final act was predictable, even if the last minute or so was pretty spectacular. I don't want to spoil anything. The set up is the payoff in this movie. So much tension and underlying emotion.

 

Mountains May Depart has gotten a lot of criticism for the final third of the film, which switches location and language. It is true that the English-language dialogue is embarrassing and too on-the-nose, but even then it is still a very moving tale of the ways in which globalization separates us from our humanity, even with the illusion of connectedness through social media or any other variety of platforms. More than any other director, Jia Zhangke de-mythologizes American apprehension toward China, showing the parallels in modern life across borders.

 

Me, Earl, and the Dying Girl had bright spots, namely the girl and Earl. I feel like I would've geeked out over all the film references had I seen it in High School; however, the main dude was so self centered and petty and smug, and the film celebrated him as the hero. He was a shithead to everyone, I have no idea why people associated with him. Definitely could have done more with the supposed protagonist and made better use of all the film snobbery

Watching Reservoir Dogs now

 

I loved Everybody Wants Some!!. An introspective look into masculinity, but also just super fucking fun and hilarious (admittedly particularly if you're into baseball-- I played it through high school). But the characters are so fleshed out, the setting is so lively, it's such a smart film. I love the search for identity within masculinity, in frathouses, in disco clubs, in country bars, in punk clubs, in performance art house parties, it was fantastic. A lot of the time films that are so male-centric or bro-ey can be sexist, but this film is better than that. Some of the characters definitely are, but while the film has I think just one girl with a name, she is completely real. She feels like she has weight beyond her connection to the male lead, she had a past before him and will have a future after him. Linklater is great.

Personally, it feels like a follow-up to the Sandlot. I loved that movie as a kid. That movie is about kids who are single-mindedly focused on baseball. Everybody Wants Some is about who those kids grew up to be. They still play baseball, but they've grown up and realized it's a part of their lives: not their whole lives. It'd be a super fun double feature.

 

Finally saw Batman v Superman and holy shit it's even worse than I thought it'd be

 

Watched one of my absolute favorites with my folks tonight: The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford.

All the performances are great, most are haunting. The final scene with Bob, Charlie and Jesse James is just... astounding. Never loses its power, no matter how many times I watch it. And for a three hour movie, christ oh mighty it flies by (my mother, who can barely tolerate a 90 minute movie, would say otherwise). One of my favorite technical details about films is cinematography and JJ is spot on.

2007 was a fantastic year for American films and contains a lot of my favorites (this one, Michael Clayton, No Country for Old Men, Zodiac, There Will Be Blood).

 

Hardcore Henry - 5/5 - Really enjoyed it. Im not into pretty brutal films, but really digged this one. The opening credits reminded me of james bond, but more brutal.

 

Poltergeist (2015) - 7/10

I actually liked this more than I expected to. Sam Rockwell and the girl who played the teenage daughter were both pretty awful, but the movie itself was at least mildly entertaining. Obviously the original is much better; this is just kind of a fun, mindless way to pass some time.

 

In the Heat of the Night - 9/10

 

The Lost Weekend is a great delve into the psyche of addiction and self-destructive behavior, there's some really fantastic, dark imagery and sequences in there and the structure lends itself well to the frantic, disjointed nature of a drunken memory. I do like the ending, but it feels a bit light and simple in comparison to the gradual decline into really deep, haunting, bleak darkness in the first hour and a half.

 

Been putting off this movie forever because I also have the book and want to read it first. But then I'd have to read.

 

I haven't watched this for a few years but I remember it being one of those films that just floored me when I was first exploring classic Hollywood. Still probably my favorite Wilder. At least tied with Sunset Blvd.

 

It's definitely powerful and leaves an impression. Wilder is really great, some really dark stuff going on in this and Sunset.

 

Wilder's gift was his ability to do both drama and comedy at insanely high levels

 

The Crucible feels like a movie made for the purpose of being shown in suburban high school classes, which is how I had to watch it seven times. It is painfully literal to the play, leaving nothing to the imagination and overstating everything from the source material. It features a ton of famous actors and actresses but feels worse than the production the Drama team did earlier in the year, all histrionic and over-emotive.

It only works as a loose study guide for a class of kids who did not pay enough attention to when we were reading, but it offers little to stimulate them. The days when I could show The New World and Marie Antoinette are missed.

 

@Morrissey Marie Antoinette by Sofia Copolla? Didn't think of you as someone who'd like her work, nor did I think of that movie as something that could be shown in a class, though I guess you're right that it should be since it is so stylized and engaging, visually and otherwise, in comparison to something like The Crucible.

 

Sofia Coppola is one of the best American directors. It is PG 13, so it was allowed. The thing that was really great was the anachronistic the music and behavior was which helped the students understand the French Revolution better

 

That movie really misses the mark. Which is crazy with that cast and the fact that Miller was adapting his own damn play.

It works on stage, so theoretically they should have just been able to aim a damn camera at it and get something better than this.

 

The Jungle Book (2016) is gorgeous to look at, one of the stronger 3D efforts I've seen since Avatar (Hugo and Gravity being the other notably strong uses of the technology). The story and character moments are poorly structured though, leaving the whole thing unsatisfying at worst and boring at best. The primary antagonist spends most of the film off-screen, implied to just, I guess, be lazing around saying intimidating things rather than actively pursuing Mowgli. Meanwhile Mowgli gets swept up into three inconsequential conflicts that don't tie in very meaningfully to his journey aside from a plot mechanic level. Disappointing, boring, but again, really strong cinematography and visual effects.

 

Spooks: The Greater Good - 7/10

If you aren't a fan of the TV series that preceeded this I can see why some people wouldn't like it but since I am a fan of the series which lasted nearly a decade it is great to see more of the characters in this. Pretty routine in most areas but it is still entertaining, has its tense scenes, a few neat plot twists but not really what I would call cinematic as it does feel like a long episode from the show.

 

Convoy (1978)

Not quite sure what to make of this, I enjoyed it quite a bit despite a few boring parts. The stunts/action were top notch, I really liked how it was shot, music/score is solid, the cast is decent but it never really comes to a satisfying conclusion (even though it is a funny one) and can't help but feel that even though it touches on certain subjects (racism and heavy handed law officials) it could of gone a lot further. Still, it is better than other 'car crash' movies that were so popular in the seventies which granted isn't saying much.

 

How tied is it to the song?

 

Very much so, characters mentioned in the song are in it and it is used to update where they are location wise. Surprised me how good it was considering it is based on just a song.