Amph What was the last movie you saw?

If you like Jane Austen and Buffy the Vampire Slayer and you've got Netflix I'd give it a shot. You'll know in the first ten minutes if it's your cup of tea or not.

 

I don't, don't and do, but I think I will give it a shot sometime .

 

The comparison with AL: VH is spot on, especially since both novels were written by the same author.

Also, while not a movie, there's Sense & Sensibility & Seamonsters.

 

I watched Requiem for a Dream.....that was um something, kinda weird

 

Ahh, I didn't know that, but it makes sense.

Yet. Not a movie yet .

 

Saratoga Trunk (1945)

Low grade trash starring one of Slowpoke's favorites, Ingrid Bergman.

Ingrid Bergman plays a hysterical, manic depressive schemer and I've never seen her ham to this level. Oh, I've seen her tear some scenes up, but it's as if she downed a bunch of Pixie Stix before each scene, making everyone seem like they're in slow motion before she eventually suffers a sugar crash (the character actually sleeps for two days). It's the only fun to be had here.

I like Gary Cooper less and less every time I see him out of his element. He's just not up to the task, here.

Someone decided it was a good idea to put Flora Robson in Haitian Creole voodoo blackface. If that wasn't enough, there's dwarf exploitation, too.

So, yeah.

Trash.

 

I Am Not Your Negro (2016) – Raoul Peck

The story of the Negro in America is the story of America. And it is not a pretty story.

I first encountered the incredible fire that is James Baldwin and his work a few years ago when I read a Library of America volume dedicated to his non-fiction; it included the entirety of five of his non-fiction books and a smattering of other essays. I found myself absolutely floored by the visceral impact of this writing that came from the sixties & seventies but still seemed to resonate with the power of a passionate sermon when it came to the issues of today. Peck’s tribute to Baldwin is nothing less than worthy. Peck bases the movie around Baldwin’s words, both written and spoken, and the result is less a documentary film and more of a filmed essay. But if “filmed essay” sounds dull to you, you couldn’t be more wrong. This movie explores issues of race and culture in American society with that same visceral impact I remember from Baldwin’s books. To say the writing is sharp would be an understatement; to call it insightful would be to damn with faint praise. This movie burns with passion and the text is something like holy writ, a kind of racial, American scripture that sees clearly through the nonsense and pointless debate that so paralyzes and clouds American society today. This isn’t to say that the film is simple minded; it’s almost painfully nuanced at times, but nuanced with real emotion and real truth, not the false nuance of deception and deflection that so often enters our discussions about race in America. It’s a movie that held me absolutely captivated. I left the film with my mind racing. I wanted to turn right around and see it again, right then, before I left the theater; there had been too much, too much thoughtful discussion, too much righteous indignation and too much powerful, insightful language. I knew there was no way I could even remember a fraction and my mind was whirling with ideas and thoughts related to the issues discussed in the film. It is, dare I say it, the best examination of racial tension, prejudice and oppression released in the world of film in a decade or more. It feels at once timeless and utterly of the moment. It’s a movie that has been needed for decades, but could somehow only be made now. It’s astonishing and challenging and disturbing and brilliant. One final, somewhat trivial note: Samuel L. Jackson, reading Baldwin’s written words and serving as narrator, is perfectly restrained and yet evocative, absolutely on-point; it’s the best, most nuanced performance he’s given since the nineties. 4 stars.

tl;dr – filmed essay crafted out of James Baldwin’s beautiful, insightful, fiery words is astonishing exploration of race in America; thoughtful, passionate, troubling & impactful; a masterwork. 4 stars.

More Movie Reviews!

 

GotG2. A ton of fun, and a little earned drama, but I didn't love it like the first one. Maybe because I only knew about half the songs, as opposed to the first one where I knew almost all of them.

 

All three "Ip Man" movies, just re-watched. Love it, I do enjoy martial arts flicks, including Kung Fu. Bruce Lee, Jackie Chan, Jet Li, all great guys. And Donnie Yen too. Those of you who have never heard of Ip Man (who, by the way, was a renowned real life Wing Chun Kung Fu master, and actually taught Bruce Lee, btw, which is mentioned in the last movie; you may have seen him beat the crap out of a whole bunch of Stormtroopers in Rogue One, even whole blind Cause, that's how badass he is lol

Anyway, this is one of my favorite moments


Awesome fighting action. However, with all my great respect for both Mr. Ip

Spoiler

and Mr. Yen, who is a great fighter IRL in his own right

I honestly don't believe he would have won such a show down (which never happened, as far as anyone knows, the real Ip Man never fought any Muay Thai guys, btw).

I am, of course, biased, because Muay is my own discipline lol But, still... I have objective reasons to say it is a superior style to karate (having fought and beat karate guys), and any Kung Fu too. Just IMHO

 

'Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2'

I think it was Juke Skywalker who brilliantly compared the MCU to McDonalds food. It's a lot of junk but sometimes you have a taste for junk. If everything else was a Big Mac I think the original 'Guardians' was one of only two that rises above the conventions of the rest of the MCU. Let's say it's a prime rib and so Vol. 2 is left overs. This movie is all about how much we liked the original and borrows every bit of good will it can from it's predecessor. It works largely because everyone is so darn good in their roles. You get a lot of hints about the tricks and surprises and so they don't really work all that well but it's loud and colorful and we love the characters so I stayed invested and was entertained despite my best instincts.

I don't know how well a Vol. 3 would work but I liked this one.

Note: Kurt Russell is miscast. Should have been Bruce Campbell...

 

I've described Heat as the shortest 3 hr. film I've ever seen. Whenever I revisit it, I'm always impressed by how meticulously crafted it is. There's a payoff for every little moment. Great, great movie.

Gonna snap a picture of that for posterity, as me and brilliantly have never been used in the same sentence before .

Ooh, as much as I like Russell, Campbell would've been per-fect. He's tailor made for the GOTG universe anyway.

 

been watching a bunch of heath ledger films recently talented actor who died too young

the patriot(2000)
It is 1776 in colonial South Carolina. Benjamin Martin, a French-Indian war hero who is haunted by his past, now wants nothing more than to live peacefully on his small plantation, and wants no part of a war with the most powerful nation in the world, Great Britain. Meanwhile, his two eldest sons, Gabriel and Thomas, can't wait to enlist in the newly formed "Continental Army." When South Carolina decides to join the rebellion against England, Gabriel immediately signs up to fight...without his father's permission. But when Colonel William Tavington, British dragoon, infamous for his brutal tactics, comes and burns the Martin Plantation to the ground, tragedy strikes. Benjamin quickly finds himself torn between protecting his family, and seeking revenge along with being a part of the birth of a new, young, and ambitious nation. 7/10



A Knights Tale(2001)
Inspired by "The Canterbury Tales," as well as the early life of William Marshall (later First Earl of Pembroke), this is the story of William, a young squire with a gift for jousting. After his master dies suddenly, the squire hits the road with his cohorts Roland and Wat. On the journey, they stumble across an unknown writer, Chaucer. William, lacking a proper pedigree, convinces Chaucer to forge genealogy documents that will pass him off as a knight. With his newly-minted history in hand, the young man sets out to prove himself a worthy knight at the country's jousting competition, and finds romance along the way. personally i really enjoyed this movie as a fun popcorn movie heath is good mark addy aka king robert baratheon of game of thrones fame is always good in these medievil roles. and alan tudyk is always funny. 8/10

Ned Kelly(2003)
Though recognized for heroism as a lad, Ned Kelly can not escape the stigma of being the eldest of a brood sired by a known criminal. In days when an arrest equaled guilt and a conviction, his unfair imprisonment for horse thievery puts him steadfast, in the eyes of Victorian police, on the wrong side of things for life. With a sister unable to dissuade the unwanted advances of Constable Fitzpatrick, Ned, his brother Dan, and friends Joe Byrne and Steve Hart soon find themselves labeled "an outlaw gang" by the less-than-honorable constable. It's a designation they're apt to live up to after Ned's mother is unfairly arrested and sentenced to three years hard labor. In retaliation, the Kelly Gang strikes out against the oppressive Victorian government, with ultimately tragic results and passage into Australian folklore. 6/10
based off the famous australian outlaw ned kelly who is still talked about to this day as well as tours of where he lived his last hold out against the police and where he was hanged.

The Dark Knight(2008)
Set within a year after the events of Batman Begins, Batman, Lieutenant James Gordon, and new district attorney Harvey Dent successfully begin to round up the criminals that plague Gotham City until a mysterious and sadistic criminal mastermind known only as the Joker appears in Gotham, creating a new wave of chaos. Batman's struggle against the Joker becomes deeply personal, forcing him to "confront everything he believes" and improve his technology to stop him. A love triangle develops between Bruce Wayne, Dent and Rachel 10/10 the best superhero movie of all time imo bale was good but ledger was amazing in the role that got him a oscar that he wasn't alive to accept.

 

The Day After Tomorrow: starring Dennis Quaid and Jake Gylenhaal, it's about humanity's attempts to survive the onset of a new ice age.

Sent from my VS985 4G using Tapatalk

 

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2


In a word: Fun!

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 is a wonderful follow up film to the original movie and a great addition to the MCU. Vol. 2 is not as good as the original in terms of plot, freshness and humor. It's about half way through the film before it moves forward with the plot, until then, is basically set up of setting and characters and jokes. So, it feels like a sitcom. I'm entertained but I'm not sure where the film is taking me. Since it's the sequel, the freshness of the characters and the world isn't there like the first film; however, what it lacks in freshness it compensates with depth of certain character like Yondu and Nebula. However, Baby Groot adds a fresh take on the character. As for the humor, it's a bit more sophomoric than the original with more juvenile and slapstick like comedy.

Having said all that, the film is great on its own merits as the chemistry and interactions between the characters feel organic and sincere, which pave the way for the emotion moments. Moreover, the entertainment value of Vol. 2 is very high. I don't recall a dull moment, as it's nicely paced film that knows how to balance the exposition, humor, character development and story telling.

 

The Green Mile

I know this is a unpopular opinion but I ended up liking this more then Shawshank Redemption and has become one of my favorite films.

 

Guardians of the Galaxy: Vol 2

Genuinely thought it was better than the first. A more personal character driven story with a much better story. A flawed story, but still better than whatever the first movie was about. Yondu stole the show for me, and Rooker did such a great job in his performance. I wish they had built up Yondu being more father figure like to Quill, which would have made the scenes at the end hit harder. They still hit hard enough.

The first movie wasn't James Gunn enough for me. This one was, and I felt was better for it.

 

Valkyrie (2008)
Story wont get mentioned in school history books, but a story that should be told nonetheless. Picks up after the bomb goes off. Lot of people will see it because of Tom Cruise, but also stars Kenneth Branagh, Bill Nighy, Eddie Izzard, and Terence Stamp.

4/5

Just Go With It (2011)
I actually really liked this movie. Thought Jennifer Aniston was excellent, and Adam Sandler did a decent enough job. I recommend it.

4/5

The Fantastic 4 (2005)
Seen this movie a few times, but the first time I’ve seen the Extended Edition. Starts slow and cheesy, but picks up after they gain their powers. I liked the ‘learning to work together as a team’ in this better than in The Avengers. The Thing and Human Torch are my favorites, but Reed Richards was portrayed as an incompetent scientist, and Sue Storm was, well, invisible.

4/5

The Fantastic 4: Rise of the Silver Surfer (2007)
Felt like a B-movie. Dr. Doom felt shoe-horned in and there wasn’t any characterization. The Silver Surfer and Galactus were okay. I liked how the inside of Galacatus’s cloud looked like a face. A better depiction of Reed Richards too.


3/5

 

Kill Bill Vol 1/2: An effective homage to 70s kung fu and Shaw Brother's films and revenge films. Action is violent and over the top but also effective and sort of serves as the beginning of Tarantino's modern filmmaking style. Performances all work with Uma Thurman and the late David Carradine being standouts amongst a big cast crossing both films. Even small roles from the likes of Samuel L. Jackson, Sonny Chiba and the late Michael Parks (particularly in Vol 2) work. Not my favourite Tarantino films for sure but both are entertaining films. Maybe if I was a bigger fan of their genre and more familiar with their genre I'd appreciate them more.

 

The Brasher Doubloon, 1947

Very overlooked detective film noir flick based on a Raymond Chandler novel featuring his main creation Philip Marlowe.

Decent installment of the genre with a few worthy highlights.
George Montgomery makes for too dashing of a hard boiled detective but he's good. A memorable character is a hood with a deeply scarred face who dresses like a carnival barker. There's more action than you usually get with these which I liked. Also, you get a few inspired moments of camera work that deliver the classic noir, dark crowded space feel.

Worth a watch and it's on YouTube.

 

a few I've watched lately

Beauty and the Beast - I thought it was well done (and Ewan was great)... but I'd probably say the original animated version is a bit better. My girls loved it.

Blade Runner (final cut) - Hadn't watched this in quite awhile so I decided to throw it on while I was working one day after seeing the trailer. Great flick, but man... it would flop even worse than it did at the time if it came out now. It's quite slow and there's very little expositional character development (although there is actually a lot of character development if you pay attention).

Prometheus - Still feel this movie starts with a cool premise and an engaging start and then just doesn't go anywhere that interesting with it. I'm ok with mystery, but we needed a few more answers/insights.

Aliens - Still great, and one of the best sci-fi action movies ever made. Most of the effects still look wonderful... in fact the movie arguably still looks better than many movies made today (the aliens look incredible and insanely creepy)

We're the Millers - still the funniest movie I've seen in years (by a long shot)

Predator - Still a great action film, great ensemble cast... some of the characters crack me up everytime. My wife had never seen it (she was born in 81, so a bit young when it came out) and she actually (surprising to me) liked it

 

The Red Turtle - The latest by Studio Ghibli appears to be a simplistic movie with impressive visuals and no dialogue, however it's a rich, powerful and emotional one. Recommended.

 

Turbokid. Imagine Mad Max on bicycles, then throw in a really, really violent Saturday morning cartoon. And evil Michael Ironside.

 

The Quiet Man, starring John Wayne

 

Gah! Been meaning to check this one out for a while now. I've streamed the awesome synthwave soundtrack many times already. Don't know if you've seen it yet, but Kung Fury is an indie feature that's in the same spirit (Does a lot w/a little. Heavy 80s influence). Absolutely worth checking out.