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  1. In Memory of LAJ_FETT: Please share your remembrances and condolences HERE

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

Discussion in 'Community' started by Violent Violet Menace, Nov 17, 2017.

  1. LAJ_FETT

    LAJ_FETT Tech Admin (2007-2023) - She Held Us Together star 10 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    May 25, 2002
    That is a pretty good film. It was running on one of the movie channels recently.
     
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  2. Todd the Jedi

    Todd the Jedi Mod and Loving Tyrant of SWTV, Lit, & Collecting star 6 Staff Member Manager

    Registered:
    Oct 16, 2008
    Ikiru (1952)

    Kurosawa delivers a masterful exploration of mortality and how we choose to spend our lives. A man learns he will die from stomach cancer, and suddenly realizes he's wasted his adult life in a menial job providing for a son that doesn't fully appreciate him. It can certainly hit home for a lot of people in those types of jobs, and make them wonder, as a doctor in this film posits, what they would do if they knew they only had a little more time to live (ikiru BTW means just that- "to live" in Japanese). Takashi Shimura gives a beautiful performance filled with much pathos as this terminal man, who first tries just getting lost in blissful happiness, but then decides he'll make the absolute most of his last months by finally giving a damn about his job beyond just crossing t's and dotting i's. Kurosawa then makes the interesting choice of skipping ahead to his funeral, where his family and coworkers fill us in on what he did in his last months. It's a great complement to the first half of the film where the man is wondering just how he can spend his life to the fullest, as it's these people looking at his actions and finding it so mysterious that someone would suddenly shift their perspective and try their damnedest to just help some people. They get so caught up in the why that they barely even realize that they are just like he was- slaves to the system, just going from day to day not really living, only continually moving without much purpose. Which again, can definitely hit home for a lot of people.

    Like most of Kurosawa's films, it's very meticulously put together, and offers a lot of differing perspectives on the events that unfold. It's very much a tragicomedy, one that both condemns the monotony of bureaucracy and also revels in the frivolities of life, and how they can both be either helpful or harmful to a person. At first this man goes to a bar to enjoy some drinks after a life of sobriety, but he also knows how harmful such an activity can be to someone with his type of cancer. And then there's his position within the government, which early in the film is portrayed as a cold machine obstructing the needs of the people in the name of proper procedure, but then he has an epiphany and uses his accumulated knowledge of the system to finally make some real good change that will benefit the little people and not just keep the machine chugging along. It's quite the dichotomy, especially when at the very end, despite pledging to follow his example, most of his coworkers return to their same old routines. Though bleak in some regards, it is ultimately poignant and hopeful, for if this one man can change after wasting away for so long, perhaps we all can.
     
  3. Kenneth Morgan

    Kenneth Morgan Chosen One star 5

    Registered:
    May 27, 1999
    Arguably the best movie about the sinking of the Titanic. And no one is "King of the World!"
     
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  4. Kenneth Morgan

    Kenneth Morgan Chosen One star 5

    Registered:
    May 27, 1999
    Noteworthy for portraying Rambo as a deeply flawed person, rather than an unstoppable killing machine. And the opening scenes actually feature him looking happy, a big rarity in the series that followed.
     
  5. Rogue1-and-a-half

    Rogue1-and-a-half Manager Emeritus who is writing his masterpiece star 9 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    Nov 2, 2000
    [​IMG]

    Freaky (2020) – Christopher Landon

    Writer-director Christopher Landon seems to be carving out a niche for himself in the arena of high-concept horror. You can essentially sum up all of his movies in a sentence. Scouts Guide to the Zombie Apocalypse = boy scouts fighting zombies. Happy Death Day = a Groundhogs Day-esque timeloop meets a slasher movie. And then this one: A Freaky Friday-esque body swap meets slasher movie. I’m about as big a fan of Happy Death Day as you’re going to find; I genuinely think it’s a masterpiece and Landon and co here are definitely trying to recapture that magic. And there’s a lot you could unpack here in this weird switcheroo wherein a serial killer ends up in the body of one of his would-be victims and that victim ends up in the killer’s body. Kathryn Newton and Vince Vaughan are both good in their dual roles; I think the best of the four (?) lead performances is Newton as waifish teen on the outside, vile serial killer on the inside. The movie understands the incongruity of a tiny blonde girl chasing people twice her size with a butcher knife and they’re going to get some laughs out of it, by God. And they do. But I felt that the movie didn’t do enough with the premise. There was more comedic potential to be found and more, dare I say it, actual social commentary as well. The movie could have gone down some interesting roads in terms of its portrayal of gender, of course, but shouldn’t there be a slapstick sequence of the killer, now trapped in the body of a young teenager, trying and failing to do things because his body is now so much smaller and weaker? And shouldn’t that slapstick sequence then kind of end up actually saying something about power dynamics? But no, once the killer is in Millie’s body, he's able to just continue his killing spree without being really impacted by it. There were probably lessons for Millie to learn too, lessons about perception and confidence, but the movie kind of doesn’t go there either. This isn’t a bad movie. I laughed several times. The performances are all quite good and entertaining; watch especially for Alan Ruck, of all people, to show up as a sneering, mustache-twirling shop teacher. So, it’s not a movie that lives up to Happy Death Day; well, okay, that’s not totally fair, I guess. But it also fails to really live up to its own premise. That’s a little less okay. But, still, it’s light on its feet, high energy and a fun genre mash-up. 3 stars.

    tl;dr – body-swap comedy meets slasher movie with fun results, thanks to a game cast; doesn’t quite live up to its potential, but it’s fun. 3 stars.
     
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  6. Havac

    Havac Former Moderator star 7 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    Sep 29, 2005
    Too Late for Tears. A great noir that proceeds from a dark, simple premise, as so many do. As a couple drive down a deserted road, someone throws a bag full of money into their car. Husband Arthur Kennedy wants to turn it in, while wife Lizabeth Scott, shaped by a past of poverty, is absolutely desperate to hang onto it. Of course, intended recipient Dan Duryea shows up to sleaze around and demand the money, and things take several turns from there. Lizabeth Scott is the queen of the femmes fatales, so you can guess what kind of turns, but the film is pretty clever with the specific twisty course it takes. It’s a sharply executed noir with a great dark concept at its heart, and I found it highly enjoyable.
     
  7. CT-867-5309

    CT-867-5309 Chosen One star 7

    Registered:
    Jan 5, 2011
    I tried Moonstruck. I stopped during Cage's first scene.
     
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  8. Havac

    Havac Former Moderator star 7 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    Sep 29, 2005
    Boat People. A Hong Kong movie about a Japanese photojournalist visiting postwar Vietnam, it’s a bold look at the failings of the communist regime to deliver on its promises. The protagonist, a pliant “foreign friend,” finally breaks away from his orchestrated photo-ops with the help of a friendly official; sees the poverty, violence, and repression that characterize the regime; and befriends a poor family (there’s not really any other kind). It’s a film with a strongly focused message, but it’s well made and sensitive in its depiction of the tribulations of poverty and authoritarian brutality that created the titular boat people. A fascinating look at the political issues of southeast Asia being addressed in contemporary regional cinema.
     
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  9. GregMcP

    GregMcP Force Ghost star 5

    Registered:
    Jul 7, 2015
    One more Kaiju movie...
    Pulgasari (1985, North Korea)

    You know, it wasn't bad.
    In mediaeval Korea, the wicked Feudal Lords and their army are oppressing the honorable poor hard working farmers.

    In jail, the old dying blacksmith makes a magical doll of a bull-man. A drop of blood from his daughter brings to life Pulgasari.

    Pulgasari starts cute and gremlinish, but grows steadily by eating iron eventually growing to proper Kaiju size. He helps the revolting farmers defeat the King and bring freedom for the People.

    A very socialist Kaiju movie.
    Technically, the effects are quite good, and the story is pretty fun.

    The background story of the movie is worth a read. The director and lead actress were kidnapped from the south, and Toho effects guys being tricked into the job. I'll have to find out more about it
     
    Last edited: Jan 30, 2021
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  10. Ahsoka's Tano

    Ahsoka's Tano Force Ghost star 7

    Registered:
    Oct 28, 2014
    Sarah's Key (2010)
    Paris, 1942. French Jews are being rounded up by the local police on orders of the occupying Germans. A young family who has been living in an apartment is caught off-guard, and the daughter decides to hide her little brother in the wall of their bedroom and locks it shut, with the promise of her return. Flash forward to 2009, and a young couple are renovating their family's Paris apartment, the same one that was occupied by the Jewish family during the war. It's adapted from a novel and the entirety of the story is fictionalized, but it still features the overwhelming true theme of pain and suffering during the purging of the Jewish people in the Holocaust. I felt it was a heartfelt story and the actors did a fine job portraying their emotions; especially kudos to the children in the film as these days I've found child actors to be just too over-the-top and unconvincing for the most part.
     
    Last edited: Jan 30, 2021
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  11. gezvader28

    gezvader28 Chosen One star 6

    Registered:
    Mar 22, 2003
    Harry's War 1981

    I'd never seen this before. A mailman goes to war against the IRS after they hound his aunt into an early grave. comedy-drama , coulda been good but the timing was all off with the comedy.
     
  12. Kenneth Morgan

    Kenneth Morgan Chosen One star 5

    Registered:
    May 27, 1999
    I haven't seen that movie in decades, since HBO ran it in the early 1980's.
     
  13. soitscometothis

    soitscometothis Chosen One star 6

    Registered:
    Jul 11, 2003
    The Dig (2021)
    Drama based around the discovery of the ship grave at Sutton Hoo. Ralph Fiennes, Carey Mulligan, Lilly James, Johnny Flynn and young Archie Barnes are the principal cast, and are very good, with Fiennes and Mulligan sure to get nominations at the Bafta's.

    Quality film worth catching, especially if you've seen the Sutton Hoo exhibition at the British Museum..
     
  14. Dagobahsystem

    Dagobahsystem Chosen One star 10

    Registered:
    Sep 25, 2015
    David Lynch The Art Life

    This is 2016 documentary about David Lynch. There are several producers and directors involved in the making of this fascinating look into the mind of a genius.

    Considerable time is spent on David's childhood and his relationships with his parents and friends. These stories are intercut with home movies and photos as well as 2016 footage of David painting and creating his various art pieces. And smoking cigarettes which he does constantly lol. There are some sweet scenes of him working on art with his toddler child.

    This is essential viewing for Lynch fans, but be aware that this does not get into his films much at all, but is more a documentary about his life as an artist and the challenges he faced personally and professionally up until he won the AFI grant that allowed him to create his first masterpiece Eraserhead.

    As far as documentaries go, this is a 10/10 and at 88 minutes it goes by quickly.
     
  15. Ahsoka's Tano

    Ahsoka's Tano Force Ghost star 7

    Registered:
    Oct 28, 2014
    Well I might as well piggyback on this review as I just watched the movie tonight. Considering I majored in Anthropology/Archaeology in College, this film definitely had already piqued my interest without having read the novel nor knowing about the true life excavation itself. It was an intriguing, gripping story taking place with the onset of WWII just around the corner. As @soitscometothis suggested, the cast did a superb job in conveying the story. While you can it's certainly worthy of a Bafta; I'll say it's most assuredly worthy of an Oscar!

    One question for those who've seen it.
    I assume that Edith was buried with the ship at the end, correct? You see her comforting her son in the ship at night, and then in the next scene the boy is waving good-bye in formal clothes as Basil and the others are burying the ship. Was that part of the story true as well?
     
    Last edited: Jan 30, 2021
  16. Django211

    Django211 Force Ghost star 4

    Registered:
    Mar 6, 1999
    The Lovers and the Despot is a documentary about the kidnapped actress and director and forced to make films by Kim Jong-il . Choi Eun-hie gives her account of what happened to her and her ex-husband as do her children. She even had secret audio tapes of Kim. It’s an amazing story.
     
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  17. Havac

    Havac Former Moderator star 7 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    Sep 29, 2005
    The Racket. I’m pretty sure TCM’s secret 2020 agenda was to slowly go through the entire Robert Ryan filmography. In this cops-vs-the-mob B-movie, Robert Mitchum plays a crusading, honest police captain out to nail Robert Ryan’s crime boss who thinks he has the whole city in his pocket. The movie does a good job of adding some addition layers: on Mitchum’s side are an idealistic young officer and his reporter friend who is naively devoted to Lizabeth Scott, the girlfriend of Ryan’s brother who might be used as a witness against him. On Ryan’s side, he now represents a larger syndicate that constrains his hotheaded tendencies in ways he’s not used to, and they are trying to make a corrupt DA a judge, which would give them a stranglehold over the city, while Mitchum tries to force the DA into prosecuting Ryan. It’s just a typical B-movie, but with good actors and a fairly strong plot, it’s definitely solid entertainment.
     
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  18. Havac

    Havac Former Moderator star 7 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    Sep 29, 2005
    The Venetian Affair. A slow-paced, fairly serious spy film, it’s the kind of thing I would like to like if it were just better. After a diplomat blows up a Cold War summit, Robert Vaughn, journalist and alcoholic ex-spy, is pulled into the investigation by CIA agent Ed Asner, in which his Communist agent ex-wife is suspected. There is also Boris Karloff as some kind of free agent intelligence person who has written a report on the bombing and some other independent nefarious spy agency person and unfortunately the whole plot just ends up as an atmospheric but utterly chaotic and vague muddle that they don’t even attempt to clear up until literally the last lines of the movie, by which time it is much too late. Vaughn is excellently cast in the role of a haggard but driven sad-sack, and his performance, radiating exhaustion and this really soulful mournfulness, is almost worth watching the movie for. Unfortunately, it’s the only really good thing in it.
     
  19. Master_Lok

    Master_Lok Force Ghost star 6

    Registered:
    Dec 18, 2012
    Ah Kam (The Stunt Woman), 1996

    Ann Hui’s drama looks at Michelle Yeoh’s title character as she becomes a stunt woman in Master Tung’s (Sammo Hung) crew. Ah Kam is swept away from the dangers of being a stunt woman by a shady club owner Sam. She eventually returns to her stunt team, but not before Tung’s young son (Ah Long) runs afoul of some very silly looking triads. A confrontation ensues as one of Tung’s crew is beaten by the thugs resulting in Tung’s vengeance quest gone bad. Ah Long stands up the triads and they pursue him and Ah Kam who defends him. This earns them death threats from the gangsters.

    When the triads attempt to kill both, the rest of Tung’s stunt team appears with the police (who’ve wanted to bust this silly looking triad leader for years) and things end happily ever after.

    I get the mix of HK action and almost soap opera drama. I liked the family aspect of the stunt team.

    Three things stood out to me: 1) Ah Kam’s relationship with Sam would mirror Michelle’s marriage to a non film industry man who insisted she give up acting and stunt work (Thankfully, she divorced him); 2) Michelle was badly injured during the making of the movie which put a damper on my viewing, and 3) Ann Hui understood the dynamics of mixing action and drama while avoiding full on sap with Ah Kam’s private life. I can see why she also made the triads cartoony.

    I probably will not watch this again, but appreciated seeing it.
     
    Last edited: Jan 30, 2021
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  20. Havac

    Havac Former Moderator star 7 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    Sep 29, 2005
    I would just like to note that I watched Tenet for the second time, and I stand by my opinion. An amazing film — one of the most insanely bold movies I’ve seen, a blockbuster action movie that genuinely challenges the audience to keep up. It’s not perfect, but man, does it work, and it delivers creative thrills that are utterly unlike anything else you’re going to see.
     
  21. The2ndQuest

    The2ndQuest Tri-Mod With a Mouth star 10 Staff Member Manager

    Registered:
    Jan 27, 2000
    [​IMG]

    Marketing: How many tag lines does the poster need?
    The Seven-Ups: Yes.

    The Seven-Ups (1971)
    Viewing Experience: DVD

    [​IMG]

    “A funeral really brings them out, huh?”
    “Respect for the dead is very important, you know that.”
    “They should show as much for the living.”


    This is a film that is probably more interesting for what it is rather than for what it contains. The producer of Bullitt and The French Connection, in his only directorial effort, made a film starring Roy Scheider playing a character inspired by the same real-life cop that his character in The French Connection was based on. Circling around a premise inspired by actual events that predated the real-world events that inspired The French Connection. Released after The French Connection as if it were a spiritual sequel (and, if not, certainly a film blatantly trying to cash in on that film’s success), but before the actual French Connection II was made.

    So it’s kind of a prequel to The French Connection while being kind of a sequel to The French Connection- or, at the very least, a spin-off. One that gives, on a top-level glance, a nice balance with FC2- as that film only deals with Gene Hackman’s character, so it feels proper to have this film where the focus is on Schedier’s.

    [​IMG]

    The true highlight of the film, and probably the only reason to really watch it, is one hell of a 10-minute long car chase that clearly is pulling from its Bullitt and French Connection… uh, well, connections. It is rather intense and well shot (and I think certainly eclipses the somewhat overrated chase in Bullitt) and pulls off the minor miracle of making an extended car chase through New York City seem plausible (then again, we’re dealing with NYC traffic patterns from almost 50 years ago here, not modern-day congestion).



    The film overall is fine, however. It’s just nothing too special. A cop show in the 80’s or 90’s could have told this story in 1 or 2 episodes. But, credit where it’s due, this film was pulling it off 1-2 decades before then- and the car chase in particular does exceed a TV chase. That said, the film itself probably could have been better served if it had shaved off 10-15 minutes here or there off of the run time (or used that time to further develop the antagonists so that they would have higher-level motivations and interactions beyond greed and escape).

    And while it sometimes feels like a TV-level story, there are occasions where the camera work elevates the quality of the visuals. A good use of dolly and panning shots, which is refreshing in an era where the horrendous use of zooms was trendy.

    The cast does their jobs well enough. Scheider is, as one would expect, just an immensely likable presence on screen- and he does it with seemingly such comfort that you can understand, beyond typecasting concerns, why he’d play law enforcement officers in so many films (French Connection, here, Jaws, Blue Thunder, etc). The supporting members of his team are effective in their roles but aren’t given much opportunity to ever take the spotlight so they remain decidedly background in nature.

    Despite the likability of his persona, the character himself still partakes in the typical 70’s edgey-cop tropes, such as beating and torturing suspects. A torturous interrogation in a hospital also gets unsettlingly intimate. His ultimately treatment of a mob snitch situation, where he is mostly acting with incomplete information with his punishment, also questions how heroically we see him as a character.

    [​IMG]

    The actual antagonist of the film has a great “I am the son of Dvaid Bowie and Willem Dafoe” vibe to him, and though I wish we could have gotten more from him, there is a nice touch where he is scared by the maneuvers his get-away driver is pulling off during the main car chase. You’d normally think the bad guys would more calm and collected and bad ass in such sequences (unless it is in a comedy), so giving him a more human reaction (without sliding into parody or cowardliness) was refreshing.

    [​IMG]

    Their actual scheme, which is main premise of the film, involves the kidnapping and ransom of mafia figures is an interesting notion and involves some notable moments- in particular a creepy use of a drive-through car wash (especially as I still remember the old ones that didn’t make you wait outside the car and how it was already defaultly kinda creepy from a child’s POV to go through from inside the car).

    The Seven-Ups themselves aren’t really made much of a focus as an entity beyond being a typical undercover crime unit, despite supposedly being a highly secretive task force. There is one point where the Chief of Police accidentally reveals their existence to the press and then, weirdly, elaborates further upon them, but nothing ever comes of that plot point (in fact, it makes the entire scene in which is happens utterly pointless within the film).

    This doesn’t hold up to the two French Connection films, but it fits well enough (and is decently entertaining enough) to round out an unofficial trilogy of sorts with them. Though what order you watch them in would be up to you- using the Seven-Ups as a psedo-prequel to the others kind makes more sense from a quality and character focus standpoint, but using it as a post-FC2 coda of sorts could work as well, even though it is weaker than those two.
     
  22. Ahsoka's Tano

    Ahsoka's Tano Force Ghost star 7

    Registered:
    Oct 28, 2014
    The Prom (2020)
    Based on the hit Broadway show, a teenager in Indiana is humiliated by the parents and school board because she is not allowed to go to the prom with her girlfriend. A group of Broadway actors who just got dumped from horrible reviews for their latest show team up to take up the cause. It's a HS musical for the current generation. It's a nice story with a heartfelt theme. Most of the music wasn't all that catchy, if you're into that sort of thing; but overall I was pretty satisfied with the film.
     
  23. christophero30

    christophero30 Chosen One star 10

    Registered:
    May 18, 2017
    Music and Lyrics
    Very funny romantic comedy with Hugh Grant as a washed up 80's pop star (think of the other guy from wham!) and Drew Barrymore as the woman who helps him complete a song. Very funny 80's references, and Grant displays great comic timing as he usually does. Brad Garret and Kristen Johnson are funny is supporting roles.
     
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  24. The2ndQuest

    The2ndQuest Tri-Mod With a Mouth star 10 Staff Member Manager

    Registered:
    Jan 27, 2000
    [​IMG]

    Death Race 2000 (1975)
    Viewing Experience: Streaming (Fandor via Prime Video)

    Well, isn’t this just a goofy, ultra-violent, Wacky Races-like little thing? A Roger Corman B-movie that knows what it is and does it well- and, coming in at about an hour in length, it also doesn’t over stay its welcome.

    Did not expect the 4:3 aspect ratio. Did not expect the hilariously dark Carmageddon facet to it. Knew Carradine was in it. Completely forgot that Stallone was in this (and I only barely now recall remember reading his name in relation to this once), though it makes some sense in retrospect, given his later interest in racing that would manifest as Driven in 2001. And it was a fun coincidence to see Martin Kove (Kreese in the Karate Kid universe) have a small role here as well, given the proximity to Cobra Kai Season 3’s release.

    [​IMG]

    And even though this is a total cartoon, through and through, there are still some clever bits in here (particularly one involving a landmine) as well as some lovely black humor. I also swear they filmed at least one scene with the commentators in slow motion so that when it is played back at regular speed, they have an unnatural sharp, snappiness to their movements.


    [​IMG]

    Race With the Devil (1975)
    Viewing Experience: Streaming (Prime Video)

    [​IMG]

    “We get there and these kids, they killed five cats. i mean, skinned them. They was dancing around with their clothes off and rubbing cat blood over each other. One of them is screaming he’s the devil. At least, that’s what he claimed until I locked him up. Anyways, damndest thing you ever saw.”
    “Yeah, well, this time they ran out of cats.”


    Two couples in a camper out on vacation accidentally witness a satanic sacrifice in the wild and, upon discovery, are pursued by the cultists (who have infiltrated places along their entire route) for the remainder of their trip. The general concept of the film is familiar by now, but this one does it pretty decently- so long as you accept the coincidence that this redneck cult just happens to have this level of influence and member placement along their exact trip route (amounting to several days travel).

    [​IMG]

    The film has some fat- the main two characters are motorbike enthusiasts, dealers and racers so we get two or three sequences related to that early on. However, that plays no role in rest of the film and was probably in there just for some “action” padding and to play off of Henry Fonda’s Easy Rider association to some degree. They could have shaved that stuff down more.

    The characters also act with reasonable intelligence throughout- except for one or two moments near the end where simply stopping the vehicle would have prevented hardships (and drastically altered the end of the film) and caused no harm to anyone.

    [​IMG]

    The climax of the film involves an extended road battle that basically pulls the trigger on all the elements that have been built up to that point. And that actually rewards the viewer for buying into the absurdity of the initial premise’s coincidental nature. It also becomes a full action movie at that point. Unfortunately, it has a very “**** YOU!”, abrupt ending that undercuts the payoff of the film (and this would be different from my previous critiques over the abrupt endings to other films from this era).
     
    Last edited: Jan 31, 2021
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  25. Kenneth Morgan

    Kenneth Morgan Chosen One star 5

    Registered:
    May 27, 1999
    Haven't seen this one, but Vaughn must've made this during a break from "Man from U.N.C.L.E.". And the title sounds like an "U.N.C.L.E." episode.