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Post by Martin Stett on Jun 18, 2018 18:08:01 GMT
Spirited Away (2001 rewatch) -- Hadn't seen this for a while. I'm a big Miyazaki fan, but thought this was merely a fun Alice in Wonderland type of adventure the first time, and this watch hasn't changed my opinion. But what a world this Alice explores! Fantastical worlds don't get much more fun or wild than this, and I enjoyed myself immensely. Hisaishi's score is great stuff too. 8/10
Mr. Turner (2014) -- *grunt* Well, I think my *cough* problem with this *snort* movie is that it doesn't have much of a *groin scratch* arc. It just *moan* goes through Turner's *sob* life, and I don't see a beginning, middle or *snarl* ending. And I'm picky that way. I want my stories to have actual arcs to them in which the characters or the way we perceive them change. On a scene by scene basis, this movie isn't bad, but as a whole? There's nothing here. 4/10
My Neighbor Totoro (1988 rewatch) -- I haven't seen this in around a decade. What a delightful, joyful gem of a movie this is. What sets it apart from other kids' fare that are just trying to warm the heart is that there are genuine concerns these girls have, and real fears they face. Totoro may be wonderful, but in the end, he means nothing next to their mother, or their father, or each other. They need him at this stage of their lives, but it is the real people they love and care for that is the real focus of the story. And that is truly wonderful. Also, I still haven't gotten that damn theme song out of my head and that is wonderful too. 10/10
Whiplash (2014 rewatch) -- I felt that it sags a bit towards the beginning, but once things get in gear, THEY GET IN GEAR. It's a great thrill ride of a movie, and even if I once again found it shallow after looking back on it, this is still an experience that is better than most other films. 8/10
Howl's Moving Castle (2004 rewatch) -- This rewatch was not kind. I thought the movie was bottom tier Miyazaki before, but what a messy mashup of unrelated plot strands that show up and drop out without a warning. It worked for Spirited Away because that was a fantastical dream; this just has too much on its plate, and everything winds up undercooked. It is predictably gorgeous and I really enjoyed the movie at first, but this is hovering around 4/10 or 5/10 right now. Once I realized that Miyazaki had no idea where the hell he was taking all of his cool ideas, I got tired of it.
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Post by mhynson27 on Jun 18, 2018 18:27:57 GMT
Hereditary (re-watch)
The Rider
You Were Never Really Here
We the Animals
Solo: A Star Wars Story
Jurassic Park (re-watch)
American Animals
Leave No Trace
Burning
Lean on Pete
BlacKkKlansman
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Post by Pavan on Jun 18, 2018 19:57:54 GMT
Red Eye (2005)- 7/10
Scream 4 (2011)- 5.5/10
Picnic at Hanging Rock (1975)- 8/10
The Cranes are Flying (1957)- 8/10
Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer (1986)- 7/10
Unsane (2018)- 6.5/10
Pete's Dragon (2016)- 7/10
Bambi (1942)- 7/10
Notting Hill (1999)- 7/10
Liar Liar (1997)- 7/10
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Post by therealcomicman117 on Jun 18, 2018 21:19:23 GMT
Coco - Still fantastic. That ending tears me up good. Bless Pixar for knowing how to pull at the heartstrings correctly. - 9.5 / 10
Hereditary - Wow, just wow. Legit spooked me. I even got worked up at points. Best part though, is that I saw in a theater alone. I can only imagine what it would have been like, had I seen this with a crowd booing and shouting at the screen. - 8 / 10
Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber - The singing is so so, but god is this is probably the last Burton film that I've really cared about to date (lets hope Dumbo changes that). It's in his typical modern style, but here it really works. - 7.5 / 10
The Incredibles 2 - Pretty fantastic, might even love it as just as much as the first. It's hilarious, especially the Jack-Jack bits, I enjoyed how unpredictable his powers were, and the action might just be the best I've seen in any superhero film this year. It's also amazing, how much the animation has improved / evolved in the fourteen years since the first. The movie looks so good. - 9 / 10
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Post by Tommen_Saperstein on Jun 18, 2018 21:38:28 GMT
Mr. Turner (2014) -- *grunt* Well, I think my *cough* problem with this *snort* movie is that it doesn't have much of a *groin scratch* arc. It just *moan* goes through Turner's *sob* life, and I don't see a beginning, middle or *snarl* ending. And I'm picky that way. I want my stories to have actual arcs to them in which the characters or the way we perceive them change. On a scene by scene basis, this movie isn't bad, but as a whole? There's nothing here. 4/10 Leigh intentionally avoided any kind of narrative formula with this thing. The movie's only purpose is to portray J.M.W. Turner's life as accurately as possible, warts and all. If you approach the movie expecting an arc, you're bound to be disappointed and confused. If you watch the film as it was meant to be watched, as a free-form, overarching glimpse into a flawed artist's messy life, you can pick up lots of interesting themes and subtext, like how Dick Pope's cinematography mimics Turner's artistic style, or how events in Turner's life influenced his art, or how the emergence of the camera threatened painters like Turner, or how Turner stymied public and critical opinion with a form of artistic expression that was new and personal. And there's also that delightful undercurrent of dry humor that persists throughout most of the film (any scene involving Ruskin for example) to keep things interesting, but admittedly that humor will be most accessible to viewers who are already on board with the movie's free-form structure and just want to see where it goes next. For Leigh to have gone into the pre-production of a picture like this with the intent of giving its characters narrative arcs would have been a bastardization of the material and a dishonest depiction of the subjects. There's something incredibly liberating in how Leigh approached these individuals on their own terms when so many biopics opt for more conventional structures. I'd have had it no other way. It's probably my favorite movie about artistic expression. |
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Post by Martin Stett on Jun 18, 2018 21:48:41 GMT
Mr. Turner (2014) -- *grunt* Well, I think my *cough* problem with this *snort* movie is that it doesn't have much of a *groin scratch* arc. It just *moan* goes through Turner's *sob* life, and I don't see a beginning, middle or *snarl* ending. And I'm picky that way. I want my stories to have actual arcs to them in which the characters or the way we perceive them change. On a scene by scene basis, this movie isn't bad, but as a whole? There's nothing here. 4/10 Leigh intentionally avoided any kind of narrative formula with this thing. The movie's only purpose is to portray J.M.W. Turner's life as accurately as possible, warts and all. If you approach the movie expecting an arc, you're bound to be disappointed and confused. If you watch the film as it was meant to be watched, as a free-form, overarching glimpse into a flawed artist's messy life, you can pick up lots of interesting themes and subtext, like how Dick Pope's cinematography mimics Turner's artistic style, or how events in Turner's life influenced his art, or how the emergence of the camera threatened painters like Turner, or how Turner stymied public and critical opinion with a form of artistic expression that was new and personal. And there's also that delightful undercurrent of dry humor that persists throughout most of the film (any scene involving Ruskin for example) to keep things interesting, but admittedly that humor will be most accessible to viewers who are already on board with the movie's free-form structure and just want to see where it goes next. For Leigh to have gone into the pre-production of a picture like this with the intent of giving its characters narrative arcs would have been a bastardization of the material and a dishonest depiction of the subjects. There's something incredibly liberating in how Leigh approached these individuals on their own terms when so many biopics opt for more conventional structures. I'd have had it no other way. It's probably my favorite movie about artistic expression. I get that. I just think that Leigh was pretty terrible at it. I'm not sure it can be done at all (to suit me), honestly. |
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Post by notacrook on Jun 18, 2018 22:24:07 GMT
Most films I've watched in a single week in a while.
Thoroughbreds - 8.5/10
Revenge - 7/10
Game Night - 7.5/10
Red Sparrow - 6/10
Hereditary - 5/10
It Comes At Night - 4/10
Lady Bird (re-watch) - 10/10
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Post by Pittsnogle_Goggins on Jun 18, 2018 22:27:59 GMT
Fahrenheit 451
Geostorm
Backdraft
Sing
Black Panther
The Hangover
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Post by Mattsby on Jun 19, 2018 0:34:49 GMT
Bad Company (1972) 7 ; a smart, interesting concept (some of the Oliver Twist story repurposed to the Civil War era about ragtag draft dodgers) with a spry Jeff Bridges (as the Artful Dodger get it?) but its direction is tepid and kinda tone-deaf....
Red River (1948) 7 ; well made for sure, and might be Wayne's best perf, but it really doesn't follow thru on its themes (the ending is a dud) and takes too long to introduce conflict or tension... seek Culpepper Cattle Co ('72) for a vastly better and in some ways an update on this (Culpepper actually plays like a mix of this and Bad Company - ha!) ....
El Dorado (1967) 6ish ; an extra goofy and less charming version of Rio Bravo....
River of No Return (1954) 5 or 6 ; very much a phony little studio pic but there are highlights and Monroe is actually pretty good....
Running on Empty (1988) 8 ; well, I was a rippled puddle on the floor at the end so that counts for something. The kinda clumsy narrative mapping and the unneeded score and that it's quite dated, all mostly forgiven bc of the deeply felt payoff and great performances....
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Post by JangoB on Jun 19, 2018 8:12:23 GMT
Drums Along the Mohawk - An excellent John Ford film which I wish was a tad longer since there is potential for some truly epic storytelling but instead the story is told with a rather quick pace. But that's also good! Gorgeous to look at too, stunning color photography (Ford's first color film btw).
Pacific Rim: Uprising - A flaming pile of shit. I bet "Atlantic Rim" is not this stupid.
Mo' Better Blues - Mo' better makes it mo' better indeed. Great Spike Lee flick in which he finds creative ways to tell a rather familiar story of a musician's life. Gorgeously shot, filled with charismatic performances and just vibrating with energy and Lee's cinematic voice.
The Tale - I have nothing but sympathy for Jennifer Fox as a person and everything that's happened to her is awful. With that said, I have to judge the movie separately from that and I did not find it good. Aside from the utterly bland filmmaking, it just felt oddly detached, and even though the idea of reexamining buried memories is quite fascinating, I just didn't think the film worked as a whole. Half of the film is Laura Dern looking at a monitor or at photographs and it just seems like wasted screentime. I also have a bit of a problem with someone recreating their adolescent sexual abuse for film purposes. I understand that making the film must've been therapeutic for her but there's something icky about her deciding where to place the camera, how to light the shot and how to instruct the actors while filming her own abuse.
The Incredibles - REWATCH. It's just perfect.
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Post by Johnny_Hellzapoppin on Jun 19, 2018 9:43:37 GMT
I didn't watch much, but they were all good choices
Black Panther (2018) 8/10
Hereditary (2018) 9/10
Set It Up (2018) 7/10
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Post by Tommen_Saperstein on Jun 19, 2018 11:24:47 GMT
Splendor in the Grass (1961) - manages to tackle the coming of age narrative with romance and depth and tragedy with a hefty mental illness motif without once feeling sappy. Bravo, Mr. Kazan. 8/10
Hush...Hush, Sweet Charlotte (1964) - Fans of Baby Jane will get the same treatment with this entry, and Bette Davis once more brings all the delightful trappings of high camp to a similarly misunderstood character. Olivia de Havilland wasn't utilized as effectively as I would have liked, and the movie isn't as disturbing as its predecessor, but I loved how it followed the same path to effectively the same conclusion but in new and surprising ways. It's just as surprising and enjoyable as Baby Jane, but very much in the same style. 8/10
Georgy Girl (1966) - Redgrave and Rampling are great but Alan Bates is customarily annoying and James Mason fails at trying to be funny in a performance that someone somewhere thought deserved an Academy Award nomination. Not a fan of the film at all. The tone is annoyingly twee and the the story takes a problematic approach to sex roles. 5/10
Out of Africa (1985) - a tortuously long blast of hot air. 5/10
Broadway Danny Rose (1984) - I continue to be a fan of Allen's output, and this is one of his funniest entries but I was also surprised at how good his performance was in this. You know what you're getting with an Allen performance, but this one actually had some emotional depth to it that was surprising. I had a greater sense of his character's disappointment and sadness at the end of this film than I have with any of Woody's other characters. 8/10
The King of Comedy (1983) - It's quite good. Much funnier than I was expecting, and De Niro is fantastically creepy, but I'm not a huge fan of the ending. Up until that point I had been watching Rupert's absurd antics with detached amusement and not a little discomfort, but towards the end it felt like Scorsese was asking the viewer to sympathize and identify with Rupert, which I couldn't do. None of his actions in the film are justifiable because they all stem from a deeply disturbed and warped perspective. Everything building up to the conclusion had established that fact. 7.5/10
White Dog (1982) - The racism metaphor is so on-the-nose, but where the film succeeds indisputably is Fuller's white-knuckle approach to animal horror. I've never been so frightened of a dog. Fuller's directing with Ennio Morricone's score will put the fear of god into you. 7.5/10
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