Amph What was the last movie you saw? (Ver. 2)

Tales From the Hood 2. More unintentional comedy than horror. Some segments we're sorta decent, and others get real heavy handed with seriousness. Keith David did well, but the of the cast was just bleh.

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I watched a lot of movies to get in the Halloween spirit but they were a lot of movies I've seen and discussed at length previously. In short if you haven't seen the Universal classics you are missing out and need to rectify that immediately. I did see 'Halloween' and so here is my review...

'Halloween'

The new Halloween is pretty good and comes very close to getting the spirit of the original Carpenter film. That being said it doesn't quite free it's self of the cliche trappings of a slasher film. The set-up to the film is really the strongest thing about it. I agree with @Rogue1-and-a-half about the podcasters being a really clever element to the story. Jefferson Hall and Rhian Rees are pitch perfect as NPR esque hipsters who poke this dormant geriatric monster until he wakes up. The movie should have followed them more because when Michael eventually starts hunting down teenagers it really loses a lot of the goodwill it built up.

I know a lot of reviews dislike Haluk Bilginer Doctor character. I liked him quite a bit because I think the Doctor role is necessary in the 'Halloween' series. There are so many great things about the original 'Halloween', it truly is a horror masterpiece. If you asked me what my favorite thing about it is though I would have to say Donald Pleasance. The character perfectly adds that sense of doom in just that right way that gets close to over the top but is still enduring. I'll watch some of the rougher 'Halloween' sequels for Pleasance. I think of Loomis as an eccentric Van Helsing character. And so since I can't have Loomis I'm glad I get a "new Loomis".

I like the way this character eventually plays a major role in the story too as it definitely sort of surprised me.

Spoiler

We had to have someone assist Michael in escaping on Halloween night. You couldn't just have a freak accident again. I like that Doctor Saritan wanted to recreate the massacre and turns from a Loomis stand-in into a mad man. I had a feeling Michael didn't get out on his own. I was sort of suspecting the podcasters might have had a hand in it. If they really wanted to pull a 'Last Jedi' they should have had Laurie set him free to hunt him

Jamie Lee Curtis is great. The character of Laurie has been through so much through the series and I felt like this film really is the first sequel to do her justice. It acknowledges the fear and turmoil she has gone though has harmed her loved ones but it doesn't make her weak or a victim. She's been waiting for Michael to kill him. It's a much more interesting characterization when compared to 'Halloween H20' where she's been almost paralyzed by fear.

Spoiler

That being said I don't really like the retconning. It worked better when they were siblings. It gave Michael far more motivation and depth. Why does he care so much about hunting Laurie if he's just pure evil who has an impulse to indiscriminately kill?

There will be a sequel but there really shouldn't be. The ending is pitch perfect.

Spoiler

Michael staring defiantly at Laurie as he burns to death is just so chilling and in character

So in short when 'Halloween' delves into it's adult characters and the series rich mythology it's outstanding. When the teens are getting killed for the sake of it, it is pretty subpar.

 

@Master_Lok love the review of The Thing, which echo my thoughts on it. It’s a classic, simple as that. I was born in the 70s so growing up in the 80s and seeing pioneering fx films like that when I was at school was like a right of passage. The Thing, Alien, American Werewolf..... were the talk of the playground, and what an era to discover films too with the advent of VHS and video shops which were like an Aladdin’s cave.

For me the effects and the film haven’t dated, but it makes me wonder if films like that have the same impact on viewers in the decades since. Back then films like this were not only good stories but also cutting edge and innovative. In addition it was almost like an event to be able to watch these films because they just weren’t as accessible as they are these days.

 

I watched The Thing when I was 20 or 21. It was on TV late at night and I was up late writing an essay; I had no idea what I was letting myself in for. It scared the crap out of me like no film since Alien, but it was more than just jump scares, it was and is a great story with great performances. There aren't many horror movies I would sit through again, but this is one.

 

Andy, wow. A classic indeed. Well said. The school yard talks about ultra violent horror is a very vivid memory for me too ( I was such a chicken Friday the 13th and Maniac being the conversational draws that I remember in grade school). Beyond the Hammer films, I didn't start dipping my toe into horror until the mid 80s when I forced myself to start reading Fangoria (so I wouldn't get sick while watching some of these movies). Once I started watching I couldn't stop. I have very vivid memories of scouting video shops for the most insane horrors, it felt more taboo back then.

For many of these movies I do not find the FX dated either, which is why I am so happy that practical make up FX are gaining traction with bigger productions again (Of course Baker and Bottin are retired which bums me out to to no end now that filmmakers are looking to FX teams again). Anyway, I still believe in these monsters too even though I know how they move and how their victims are created, there's something that feels very genuine and legit. The magic of movie-making right there.

@soitscometothis The Thing still scares me despite at least a hundred viewings at this point. The perceptions and the break down of trust still feel very real. And yes, great stories and characterization are key. After so many years of non-linear, very light on the characterization Italian horrors, it's awesome to go back to these movies and enjoy them for the characters and their plights too.

I tried watching some of the newer interviews on the Shout Factory The Thing blu from 3 years ago, but I tapped out.

Watching the 1997 version of Star Wars again now and immediately identified with R2's sad little sigh ("hhuuuunnnnnnnnnnn") - awwwww.

 

Nocturnal Animals (2016)
This is not so much a review as a warning: I did not have a particularly enjoyable viewing of this film as I totally misunderstood what it was about, having looked at the IMDb plot summary which reads:

This is very misleading, as is the fact that several people in their IMDb reviews describe this as a thriller. The thriller element comes from the sections of the film which portray the events told in the book draft which gallery owner Amy Adams is reading. IMDb's summary makes it sound as if she becomes worried that her ex (Jake Gyllenhaal) has sent this to her in order to scare her, and I assumed this would lead to a thriller element in the "real world" - it doesn't. In fact, I'm not sure Adams' gallery owner felt threatened by the draft at all. Disturbed, yes; intrigued, yes; scared for her own life... I didn't notice it. I wasn't watching it as closely as I should have done though, so I guess it's possible.

The film is essentially two stories: (1) Amy Adams is a gallery owner who appears to have it all, but underneath is suffering a mid-life crisis where she is having doubts about the life she is living, and which come to a head when she receives a book draft of a brutal thriller from her long estranged first husband which causes her to reflect on that relationship, and the choices she made that ended the marriage; and (2) the thriller her ex has written, where Jake Gyllenhaal (who also plays the ex in the real world section) is a family man driving his wife and teenage daughter across the American Midwest when they attract the unwanted attention of a group of redneck thugs.

The cast is top-notch: Amy Adams, Jake Gyllenhaal, Michael Shannon, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Isla Fisher, Armie Hammer, Laura Linney, Michael Sheen, Jana Malone... they're all in there somewhere, though some don't get much more than brief cameos. The cinematography is good (but watch out for the opening credits which focus on a close-up of a very overweight older woman dancing naked - this is not Sunday afternoon viewing for all the family), the thriller section is gripping (but often hard to watch as you can see where it's all leading), and there is a lot to think about in terms of the parallels between the fictional thriller and the real-world autopsy of a relationship, so I think it is worth watching. Just don't be like me waiting for the gallery owner's tale to turn into a paranoid thriller, because you'll find yourself waiting for something that never comes.

 

Ocean's 8 .

they stole some necklaces , and it wasn't very difficult .

err- can't think of much else to say really .

 

I thought Ocean's 8 was a lot of fun. Better than 12 and 13, but not as good as the....original remake?

 

Yeah, the "villain" wasn't very menacing, and you never got a sense of danger or a significant threat to their plans.

Terry Benedict oozed menace; the Night Fox was a big enough jerk to risk death to people all because of his ego being bruised; and Michael Corleone, I mean, Banks "jokingly" threatened to harm a partner he just screwed out of a deal.

The bodyguards protecting the necklace appeared more menacing and more of a threat than Richard Armitage's character.

 

Bohemian Rhapsody

Even though it didn't take a lot of risks and played it very safe, I was engaged the entire time and it didn't feel like it went on for over 2 hours. Rami Malek did an excellent job. I'd definitely give it a solid B.

 

Nutcracker and the Four Realms

Spoiler

The trailers mislead you into making you think Mother Ginger is the villain, but she isn't.

 

Don't bother with the book. It sucks.

 

Mr. Holmes (2015)
I streamed this movie through my Kanopy Channel on Roku. I've always liked Ian McKlellan as an actor; but IMO this movie in general was rather slow. He stars as an aged/elderly Sherlock Holmes well past his prime; and he's having trouble remembering even his last case that happened decades earlier. The movie was around an hour and forty minutes long, so at least it was tolerable.

 

The 15:17 to Paris .

directed by Clint Eastwood . This is based on the true story of 3 American lads who stopped a terrorist on a train in France in 2015 . The incident itself only lasted a few minutes , so most of the film is flashbacks about their lives growing up .
It's a very modest film , their lives aren't particularly dramatic , but its engrossing nevertheless .

.

 

The Sword of Doom (1966)
Again. My third watch through of this film and it still impresses with its cinematography and swordplay. Protagonist doesn't get any more sympathetic, though.

 

The Greatest Raid of All (2007)
Documentary about the British Commando raid on the St Nazaire docks in France during the early days of WW2. I don't understand why this battle isn't better known; it was an amazing feat of courage and cunning against overwhelming odds, and it really deserves a big Dunkirk-style movie of its own. Anyway, this documentary was pretty good, covered most of the high points of the action and the people who were there, but with only an hour run time, there just isn't enough time to cover all the details and incidents I've read in books on the subject. I really wish they'd managed to squeeze in Wynne's weapons.

 

Rashomon

My friend gave me his Criterion Collection version of this film as he knows I like The Seven Samurai by Kurosawa.

Couldn't sleep, so I watched it in the middle of the night. First viewing. I really enjoyed the film, especially the cinematography, and all the shots in the forest and of the rain. This movie has tons of atmosphere.
The actors were good too.

I must confess, I need to rewatch Rashomon again soon, as I know I didn't get everything I could from the plot. Watching it at that insane time of the middle of the night gave it a dream like quality, or enhanced that aspect at least, and I'm afraid I don't have anything insightful to say about the film.

I just really liked it a lot and need to revisit it soon. After I rewatch The Seven Samurai.
I need to choose another Kurosawa film too. I heard Ran is good. Any suggestions?

 

Smallfoot

 

Yup Ran is epic.

Ditto Throne of Blood. Mifune is fantastic.

Have you seen Yojimbo and Sanjuro? If not, rent those. The former was ripped off by Sergio Leone and birthed the spaghetti western genre.

 

Thanks for the suggestions, Master Lok.
I will add them to my list. I feel like I saw Yojimbo once, ages ago. Should revisit it.

I'll start with Ran and Throne of Blood. I've always wanted to see The Hidden Fortress too. Also because GL said it inspired Star Wars.

 

I would actually suggest holding off on Ran, not because it's hard to "get" per se, but because it's kind of this pessimistic end of career thing that takes on more significance the more of his work you see. The sense of finality is palpable even if he still managed three more movies.

Two non-samurai movies of his that I love: Ikiru, which is about death but also kind of weirdly uplifting, in a way, and Stray Dog which basically invented buddy cop films.

 

@Ramza
Thank you for the suggestions. I added them to my list.

Amadeus

I've seen the theatrical version of this movie several times. Always loved it, even though it is nearly entirelly fictional. Obviously, the brilliant music speaks for itself and the cast is great. Very nice costume piece.

This last viewing was the Director's Cut.
I must say I prefer the theatrical version of this film. I didn't feel like the additional scenes added much and it felt overly long and bloated. Almost like watching a different movie, tbh. The excellent flow and pacing of the original are negated in this version, imo.

 

Sorry to Bother You An anti-capitalist Dude, Where's My Car? Seriously, it goes in a wild direction.