Last Movie You Watched and Rate It | Movie-mber Edition

[nameless1]

First Cow - 7/10

Not the masterpiece that it's hailed as, but well worth a watch. The risk you run with minimalist cinema is that the characters and/or story are underdeveloped, and that was the case here IMO.

That said, it had a very different feel to it from most other films, and I will definitely be checking out Kelly Reichardt's other stuff.

I am not sure I will say that the story or the characters are underdeveloped, per say. Yes, everything is barebone, but it feels like a slice of life, and there is a certain sense of catharsis with that.

Reichardt is definitely a very interesting director. Her films are rather slow, but I always feel something with them.

 

[Osprey]

I have to agree that the story and characters in First Cow felt a little undercooked. Also, the film had some good sentiment, but the director milked it a little too much in spots, IMO. If she would've trimmed some of the fat from the 2-hour run time and made it a leaner film, it would've been more to my taste. Still, despite those beefs, I thought that it was well done.

 

[ItsFineImFine]

The Conformist (1970) - 8/10

Damn 70s Jennifer Lawrence was hot. Great camerawork and all. That loose 70s and 60s Italian directing which always drives me a bit nuts and makes the film feel too detached but it's got a unique feeling from its time and country which is hard to replicate.

 

[Chili]

Beggars of Life-1928

Loosely based on a memoir of the same name by a real hobo (Jim Tully). Life riding the rails of a past era, the adventures and the dangers, not knowing where your next meal is coming from. Many great train shots and sequences. Enjoyed it.

 

[nameless1]

The Conformist (1970) - 8/10

Damn 70s Jennifer Lawrence was hot. Great camerawork and all. That loose 70s and 60s Italian directing which always drives me a bit nuts and makes the film feel too detached but it's got a unique feeling from its time and country which is hard to replicate.

Stefania Sandrelli is one of the most beautiful faces I have seen on screen during the 60s and 70s. I was really surprised to learn that she was only 14 when she starred in Divorce Italian Style, and she pretty much looked the same even up to the 80s.

This one is a little hard to gauge for me. While it is well-done and the message definitely makes you think, it is too matter-of-fact. Also, Bertolucci got the mise-en-scene wrong, especially in the Chinese restaurant scene. Not only do I have a hard time to believe that they will actually eat at a Chinese restaurant in the 1930s, the bottle of MaoTai, a famous type of Chinese alcohol, actually did not come into existence until 1956, when the company was founded. It is minor, and it actually does not affect the movie too much, but that scene bugged me to no end, and it made me doubt the film's authenticity.

 

[Osprey]

Anna and the Apocalypse (2017) - 5/10 (Didn't like or dislike it)

A high school student (Ella Hunt) and her friends try to survive a zombie apocalypse at Christmas. This British film is your typical Christmas zombie horror musical comedy. It's like High School Musical meets Shaun of the Dead, in case you've ever yearned for that combination. At any moment throughout the film, whether while just sitting around or impaling zombies, the students will break out in song and dance numbers that look and feel like music videos. I could've done without that, but at least the songs are fairly decent and catchy and sometimes funny. There's also a good deal of comedy through the film, some of which is funny, and gore, making it the goriest musical ever. There really isn't much of a plot, though, and not much character development (unless you consider turning into a zombie to be character development). There are some more serious moments in the final half hour, but they felt like they came out of nowhere and were unearned. Overall, I didn't find it to be a bad film and don't regret watching it, but it didn't do a whole lot for me, either. I think that I'm not really the target audience, though, and that millennials and even younger people might like it better. Still, there may never be another Christmas zombie horror musical comedy, so it has that going for it. It's available on Prime Video and Hulu.

 

[kihei]

This one is a little hard to gauge for me. While it is well-done and the message definitely make you think, it is too matter-of-fact. Also, Bertolucci got the mise-en-scene wrong, especially in the Chinese restaurant scene. Not only do I have a hard time to believe that they will actually eat at a Chinese restaurant in the 1930s, the bottle of MaoTai, a famous type of Chinese alcohol, actually did not come into existence until 1956, when the company was founded. It is minor, and it actually does not affect the movie too much, but that scene bugged me to no end, and it made me doubt the film's authenticity.

 

[kihei]

Ryuichi Sakamoto: Coda (2018) Directed by Stephen Nomura Schible (documenatrary) 8A

I decided to re-watch this documentary about Japanese composer/musician Ryuichi Sakamoto again because I figured it was good for my soul, plus there was more to get from Ryuichi Sakamoto: Coda than I was able to absorb on my initial viewing. I wasn’t wrong. Sakamoto is a man who appreciates the little details, the spaces between things. He approaches sounds in a similar manner to the way a vinologist might savour fine wines. He finds aural enchantment in the damndest places: a ghost piano that somehow mostly survived a tsunami;, the sound of melting water from the North Pole that froze before the Age of Industrialization; the tinkling of raindrops on a bucket he has placed over his head. He shows how much complexity goes into music that many of us would describe as minimalist. The former leader of the progressive rock band Yellow Magic Orchestra, he now, among many other things, composes perfectly judged scores for such movies as Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence, The Last Emperor and The Revenant. While having stage 3 throat cancer (and handling it gracefully), he continues to compose music prolifically. He seems like a thoroughly exceptional man and a lovely human being. As well as anyone I can think of, he embodies the lifelong value of curiosity.

Mostly subtitles

MUBI

 

[Pink Mist]

Ant-Man (2015) directed by Peyton Reed

An ex-con burglar (Paul Rudd) who is trying to go straight gets roped into robbing an old guy’s house. After cracking open the highly secure safe, the only thing he finds is a spandex suit. Upon wearing the suit, he finds it can shrink the wearer to the size of an ant, and that the whole operation of robbing the house was orchestrated for him to assist in stopping an evil scientist. Bland villain, many jokes that are just awkward and don’t land, and terrible tie ins to the Marvel Cinematic Universe which grinds the film to a halt, but at least some of the action and effects is creative and inspired. I do appreciate the relatively small stakes of the film after countless movies where the fate of the planet or universe is threatened. Kind of a bland film overall though.

 

[Pink Mist]

The Kreutzer Sonata (1956) directed by Éric Rohmer

Short film based off of the Tolstoy short story by the same name about a man whose wife begins to fall for another man before his own eyes. Shot in 16mm black and white with a monologue from the husband’s perspective telling the story as it plays out silently through the images, with The Kreutzer Sonata by Beethoven as the score. The story itself is pretty cool as an experiment in story-telling and style, but the real draw for this film is its place in the genesis of the French New Wave film movement, my favourite film movement in the history of cinema. Rohmer was the editor of Cahiers du Cinéma, the influential film criticism magazine which launched the careers of critics turned filmmakers such as François Truffaut, Jean-Luc Godard, and Rohmer himself. Many icons in the film movement make appearances in this film as supporting characters, particularly who is Godard perpetually wearing sunglasses inside with a shit eating grin glued to his face, in addition to the Cahiers du Cinéma office itself being used as a set. Not an essential viewing, but for fans of the French New Wave it is an early glimpse at the start of a filmmaking revolution.

 

[nameless1]

I know it is silly, but it is a major pet peeve of mine when filmmakers put something in the movie, just because it looks like it is from a particular culture, when in reality, it is actually from another culture, or it comes from a different era. I know that tiny detail is very inconsequential overall, but for some reason, it just bugs me to the point that I have to consider rather or not I actually like the film. I will say that 8/10 is probably what I will give to that one too, but I really have to think about the score.

There is a reason to this day, Cannonball Run pisses me off. Honestly, it is a silly little comedy that functions little more than a time waster, but I absolutely hate it, only because the filmmakers had the audacity to say that Michael Hui and Jackie Chan's characters are Japanese, when they actually speak Cantonese throughout the movie. I actually feel completely disrespected, from my heritage, down to my intelligence.

 

[nameless1]

I am not sure if you guys know, but Kim Ki-duk passed away in Latvia. I saw it on twitter last night, but I was not sure of the authenticity.

He is not my favourite director, but his films are very interesting, and he definitely stands out amongst South Korea's best. Like his films though, he just courts controversy, so his legacy is rather mixed.

 

[kihei]

I am not sure if you guys know, but Kim Ki-duk passed away in Latvia. I saw it on twitter last night, but I was not sure of the authenticity.

He is not my favourite director, but his films are very interesting, and he definitely stands out amongst South Korea's best. Like his films though, he just courts controversy, so his legacy is rather mixed.

I don't think I have ever seen any of his films. Any there any that you would recommend?

 

[nameless1]

I don't think I have ever seen any of his films. Any there any that you would recommend?

I have not watched his whole filmography, but I personally like Samaritan Girl and Time. His most acclaimed works are probably Spring, Summer, Autumn, Winter...And Spring, Pietà, and 3-Iron. The pace, storytelling, and even the way he explores the themes are very different from his contemporaries, and quite frankly, from anyone in the world. Even though his films can be hit-and-miss, they always stand out, and are quite memorable.

 

[Rabid Ranger]

Have been on a Bond kick. Just watched Thunderball which is one of my favorites. 8/10.

 

[Pranzo Oltranzista]

I have not watched his whole filmography, but I personally like Samaritan Girl and Time. His most acclaimed works are probably Spring, Summer, Autumn, Winter...And Spring, Pietà, and 3-Iron. The pace, storytelling, and even the way he explores the themes are very different from his contemporaries, and quite frankly, from anyone in the world. Even though his films can be hit-and-miss, they always stand out, and are quite memorable.

Haven't seen your favorites, but seen a few. 3-Iron is a great film, the others were ok.

 

[kihei]

I have not watched his whole filmography, but I personally like Samaritan Girl and Time. His most acclaimed works are probably Spring, Summer, Autumn, Winter...And Spring, Pietà, and 3-Iron. The pace, storytelling, and even the way he explores the themes are very different from his contemporaries, and quite frankly, from anyone in the world. Even though his films can be hit-and-miss, they always stand out, and are quite memorable.

Oh, of course. I have seen the big three you mentioned and quite liked 3 Iron. Thought the other two had problems, especially Pieta. Thanks for the other tips

 

[Devilsfan992]

Hillbilly Elegy- 7.5/10

Much better movie than how the critics responded. It seems like critics don't want to acknowledge the fact that white rural families can struggle just as much as minorities in urban communities. I can't fathom why else a solid movie with top notch acting would receive such low scores.

 

[Osprey]

I'm starting to feel self conscious about being the only one watching Christmas movies...

Christmas in Connecticut (1945) - 7/10 (Really liked it)

A housekeeping magazine arranges for a lonely war hero (Dennis Morgan) to spend Christmas with its most famous food writer (Barbara Stanwyck), who has been lying to her boss and her readers about living on an idyllic farm in Connecticut with a husband and baby and even about knowing how to cook. When her boss decides to invite himself, too, she has to find a farm, a husband, a baby and a chef to keep her job. This charming romantic comedy features a solid performance by Stanwyck as her character desperately tries to juggle all of her lies while also falling in love with the war hero. It has a good number of amusing situations, such as when the borrowed baby that she's pretending is hers is replaced by another... of the opposite sex and hair color. Felix, the portly Hungarian chef, is particularly funny as her accomplice and almost steals the picture. The plot is very unbelievable, from the setup to the many lucky breaks and coincidences that are required to keep the lie going, but that's common with 40s screwball comedies. It's old fashioned, but that's part of the charm, along with the snowy farm setting, the sleigh rides and so on. I wouldn't say that it's one of the better romantic comedies or one of the best Christmas movies, but it's a pleasant, charming combination to watch at this time of year.

 

[MetalheadPenguinsFan]

4/5

 

[kihei]

Z (1969) Directed by Costa-Gavras 9A

Z is the best political thriller that I have ever seen, a thriller that actually lives up to that description. Based on actual events, the movie begins with a brief discussion by Greece's right-wing military government of the need to repress leftism, a form of "mildew" on the State. Shortly thereafter an opposition politician (Yves Montand), a pacifist and national hero, flies into Athens to give a speech. After the speech he is hit accidentally by a small truck, or that is what the government wants us to believe. However, when he dies, the public outcry forces the government to appoint a magistrate (Jean Louis Thintignant) to investigate what really happened. His job is to not dig too deep and to get the investigation over quickly with no damage to the ruling party. He is in every way prepared to do so. Then he starts to investigate and almost against his will he begins to uncover what really happened and the implications are immense. The first half of the movie focuses on what happened before and after the accident while the second half of the movie focuses on the examining magistrate's investigation. That last hour or so where the case slowly unravels is some of the most excitingly sustained, well-edited cinema that I have ever seen. Trintignant gives a great performance as a man incapable of not seeing the rot that he is supposed to be covering up. In his dark shades, he is cool as a cucumber even when things get really intense. I enjoyed Z last night every bit as much as the first time I saw it.

Sidenote: The movie is called Z because in Greece the letter "Z" came to stand for "He lives." and thus the military government banned the letter from the alphabet. For real.

subtitles

 

[Chili]

I'm starting to feel self conscious about being the only one watching Christmas movies, but the show must go on...

Christmas in Connecticut (1945) - 7/10 (Really liked it)

Fwiw, planning to watch one or two over the holidays. Haven't seen March of the Wooden Soldiers aka 'Babes in Toyland' since I was a kid.

 

[Osprey]

Fwiw, planning to watch one or two over the holidays. Haven't seen March of the Wooden Soldiers aka 'Babes in Toyland' since I was a kid.

That's on my list, too. I haven't seen it in a long, long time, as well. I considered watching the two remakes, which I know that I watched quite a lot as a kid, but the poor reviews convinced me not to bother.

 

[Chili]

That's on my list, too. I haven't seen it in a long, long time, as well. I considered watching the two remakes, which I know that I watched quite a lot as a kid, but the poor reviews convinced me not to bother.

I just re-watched it. Didn't know if I would find it dated.

Wonderful film, Laurel & Hardy in fine form. For the child in everyone.

 

[Jussi]

Tenet - 6½/10 Watches this week ago. What a huge disappointment. Biggest annoyance was the music. So irritating and distracting. Way too confusing and Pattinson was the only character I cared somewhat about.