I've Been Going to the...MOOOOvies

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10 hours ago, Strider said:

Brandy the Dog was in the house last night. Should have been nominated for Best Supporting Actress.

I agree. Beautiful dog.

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2 hours ago, gibsonfan159 said:

Can someone explain what's so great about "Parasite"? It's intriguing for the first half but quickly becomes a scattered, hyperrealistic tragic comedy that does nothing original. 

Never even heard of the damned movie.

Crucial here is that Parasite’s message isn’t the only thing that’s awful about the film. It’s also at least ½ hour too long, with an ending that’s even more implausible than the story of class struggle that precedes the slasher-film ending. Parasite doesn’t deserve Best Foreign Film, Best Picture, or any kind of serious award. That it’s a trendy prediction for some speaks to how much politics and polemic statements within films have replaced good moviemaking as all-important in the eyes of critics and awards’ voters alike.

The Bernie crowd will eat it up I'm sure.

[Stryder1978]

There's nothing special about the movie itself, but in the new "woke" culture of Hollywierd, last year was the "Black Oscars", this year it was the "Asian Oscars"....be prepared for the "Hispanic Oscars" next year.  Everyone gets a turn...everyone gets a prize!

[Strider]

They showed "Spartacus" at the Dome last night. I have lost track of how many times I have seen "Spartacus" but how can you resist Kirk and Woody on the big screen?

There has been a lot of revisionist history and simplification of the end o f the blacklist over the years. This article cuts through the myths.

https://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2012/07/how-kirk-douglas-overstated-his-role-in-breaking-the-hollywood-blacklist/259111/

After "Spartacus" I went home and watched "The Bad & the Beautiful". Not quite as great as "Sweet Smell of Success", but Lana is a knockout. Gloria Grahame, too. Great score by David Raksin.

Next week the El Capitan is showing "20,000 Leagues Under the Sea"!

Edited February 13, 2020 by Strider

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1 hour ago, Strider said:

They showed "Spartacus" at the Dome last night. I have lost track of how many times I have seen "Spartacus" but how can you resist Kirk and Woody on the big screen?

There has been a lot of revisionist history and simplification of the end o f the blacklist over the years. This article cuts through the myths.

https://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2012/07/how-kirk-douglas-overstated-his-role-in-breaking-the-hollywood-blacklist/259111/

After "Spartacus" I went home and watched "The Bad & the Beautiful". Not quite as great as "Sweet Smell of Success", but Lana is a knockout. Gloria Grahame, too. Great score by David Raksin.

Next week the El Capitan is showing "20,000 Leagues Under the Sea"!

You're so lucky to have a theater like that. What's the admission price? Just watched 'The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance' (with Woody of course). Strother Martin was a sadistic little creep, like Jabba The Hutt's sidekick. I loved when John Wayne threw him out of the saloon. 😆

[Stryder1978]

MMMMMMM...Jean Simmons!

[Clinton P. Desveaux]

1917 

[tenyearsgone21]

8 hours ago, Clinton P. Desveaux said:

1917 

What did you think? 

 

[PeaceFrogYum]

6 hours ago, tenyearsgone21 said:

What did you think? 

 

Meh, I thought 1919 was a better year

[gibsonfan159]

The Lighthouse- Two thumbs up from me. Monumental performances by Pattinson and Dafoe. Dark, twisted, and brooding story, filmed with a narrow aspect ratio that really creates a sense of claustrophobia and isolation. Definitely leaves you with a "Wtf did I just watch?" feeling, but in a way that you appreciate. This is performance art.

[Stryder1978]

6 hours ago, gibsonfan159 said:

The Lighthouse- Two thumbs up from me. Monumental performances by Pattinson and Dafoe. Dark, twisted, and brooding story, filmed with a narrow aspect ratio that really creates a sense of claustrophobia and isolation. Definitely leaves you with a "Wtf did I just watch?" feeling, but in a way that you appreciate. This is performance art.

Agree!  That and "The Gentlemen" are my two recent favorite movies so far.  Beat the hell out of the re-makes and comic book movies! 

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Watching 'Is Paris Burning?' 1966 with Gert Frobe as the Nazi general in charge of razing Paris when the allies approach.

[PeaceFrogYum]

9 hours ago, redrum said:

Watching 'Is Paris Burning?' 1966 with Gert Frobe as the Nazi general in charge of razing Paris when the allies approach.

Fucking Nazi's, always having to be complete dicks. Just watched The Night Porter for the fifth time and same thing....Nazi's are assholes! Only a complete shitbird would even contemplate shooting Charlotte Rampling.

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2 hours ago, PeaceFrogYum said:

Fucking Nazi's, always having to be complete dicks. Just watched The Night Porter for the fifth time and same thing....Nazi's are assholes! Only a complete shitbird would even contemplate shooting Charlotte Rampling.

I tend to believe that the Nazi's were from another planet. MonSSters.

[gibsonfan159]

Once Upon A Time In Hollywood- If you like any other Tarantino film you'll like this one. It's the usual cast and the usual dialogue heavy script with the usual over glorified violence. If you're looking for any kind of true to life back story on the Manson murders though, look elsewhere. It only borrows the event as a backdrop and stretches the story into a completely different and unrelated direction in the odd Tarantino fashion. I will say this is one of Leo's best performances.

Joker- This one I found both captivating and disappointing. A hell of a job by Pheonix, but the character itself seems entirely too flawed. The attempt to draw pity on the villain's origin almost whitewashes his integrity as a villain, if that makes sense. It goes too far in the direction of misunderstood mental problems and not enough towards sadistic, evil genius. The obsession with the late night talk show host not only seemed off the mark, but ate up too much of the plot which could have shown more progression of the character. This movie would've been better off being about a random person instead of a Joker origin.

Edited February 24, 2020 by gibsonfan159

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4 hours ago, gibsonfan159 said:

Once Upon A Time In Hollywood- If you like any other Tarantino from you'll like this one. It's the usual cast and the usual dialogue heavy script with the usual over glorified violence. If you're looking for any kind of true to life back story on the Manson murders though, look elsewhere. It only borrows the event as a backdrop and stretches the story into a completely different and unrelated direction in the odd Tarantino fashion. I will say this is one of Leo's best performances.

Joker- This one I found both captivating and disappointing. A hell of a job by Pheonix, but the character itself seems entirely too flawed. The attempt to draw pity on the villain's origin almost whitewashes his integrity as a villain, if that makes sense. It goes too far in the direction of misunderstood mental problems and not enough towards sadistic, evil genius. The obsession with the late night talk show host not only seemed off the mark, but ate up too much of the plot which could have shown more progression of the character. This movie would've been better off being about a random person instead of a Joker origin.

Loved 'Once Upon A Time.' Haven't seen Joker. Doesn't look like it would appeal to me.

[gibsonfan159]

Ford Vs Ferrari- a very typical Hollywood depiction of the American/British team winning at Le Mans. Like, extremely typical. The directing and screenplay feels like they were created using some type of algorithm that finds the perfect balance of a movie. Matt Damon treads dangerously close to going full "Well howdy pilgrim" and Bale's erratic depiction of Ken is a direct continuation of his crackhead character from The Fighter. However, these things don't ruin the film. It still does an excellent job of telling the story of an iconic era for American racing, even if you're not a car person. It's basically Apollo 13 with race cars. I kept waiting for Tom Hanks to show up.

Edit: I truly believe Christian Bale is on crack by the way. As is Matthew Mcconehey (can't spell that one).

Edited February 24, 2020 by gibsonfan159

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11 hours ago, gibsonfan159 said:

 

Edit: I truly believe Christian Bale is on crack by the way.

He is annoying.

[Strider]

On 2/15/2020 at 4:01 AM, tenyearsgone21 said:

What did you think? 

 

Too clean. WWI was a shit show. And the two soldiers sent on the mission were too annoyingly stupid at times. As an Army vet, I kept cringing at some of their boneheaded manoeuvres.

On 2/16/2020 at 10:25 PM, gibsonfan159 said:

The Lighthouse- Two thumbs up from me. Monumental performances by Pattinson and Dafoe. Dark, twisted, and brooding story, filmed with a narrow aspect ratio that really creates a sense of claustrophobia and isolation. Definitely leaves you with a "Wtf did I just watch?" feeling, but in a way that you appreciate. This is performance art.

The pesky seagull was terrific. Like watching a beautiful silent movie with the black and white cinematography in the old-school ratio. Dafoe and Pattinson trying to drive each other and the audience mad. Intense and claustrophobic. Bonus points for the director finding time to squeeze in two wank sessions...one for each actor. And mermaid sex.

Strangely, after the movie I remarked to my friend that I would be perfect for that job. Isolation and being away from people doesn't bother me.

[gibsonfan159]

2 hours ago, Strider said:

Strangely, after the movie I remarked to my friend that I would be perfect for that job. Isolation and being away from people doesn't bother me.

I thought the same. Stranded with an infinite supply of whiskey seems like a legit vacation. I'd even settle for a wind up victrola record player with Zep III- PG.

[gibsonfan159]

1917- I think this film was misrepresented as a true WW1 biopic when in reality it's a situational story with the war as a backdrop. It's a story centered on human willpower, not necessarily war. The unique filming style of limited cameras and long takes works quite well and flows so smoothly you actually don't notice the lack of edits. It also makes you feel more involved with the situation and location. You actually see the sun go down and then rise again, realizing that sleep isn't an option for the character as he's 100% devoted to his mission. 

One thing I found overdone was the "bad guy can't hit shit" stormtrooper shooting. How can someone run behind you five feet away and not properly aim a shot? The amount of pure luck the protagonists have is absurd. Although the filming style is unique, I think it makes the plot feel very shallow. With almost no edits, you can't broaden the plot and locations to create that epic feeling, it's more akin to a stage play. Once you reach the end you realize there's no big finish, the journey just ends slightly disappointingly. The last critique I'll make is about the actors themselves. The two mains, although giving excellent performances, don't have enough charisma or personality to really stand out as leads. They seem more like background actors. Maybe this was intentional? Still a recommended watch though with some high rewatch value.

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Has to be one of the best and funniest westerns ever made. The bar room slap scene was hilarious. 😄

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[Stryder1978]

Just watched JoJo Rabbit.  I was pleasantly surprised.  Something new, something original and a great combination of serious drama and humor.  I give it two thumbs up!

[Strider]

"Paths of Glory". Stone cold classic. Always and forever. Kirk Douglas, R.I.P. Kubrick regular Joe Turkel (that's him as the bartender in "The Shining"...he is also the head of the Tyrell Corporation in "Blade Runner") is one of the sacrificial soldiers, as is quirky character actor Tim Carey.

Also featured on this anti-war double-bill was a Russian movie I had never seen before. "The Ascent" from 1977. Directed by Larisa Shepitko, born in the Ukraine in1938 and died in a car crash in 1979 before her career could really flourish. "The Ascent" was her last movie. Set on the Eastern Front in WWII, two Russian soldiers have to manoeuvre their way through enemy lines. Far superior to "1917".