Now Watching 2021

[Beltmann]

I'm a huge fan of Paul Schrader and I wish I could report that his new film The Card Counter, in which Oscar Isaac deals with the psychological aftermath of his stint as an interrogator at Abu Ghraib, ranked among his best movies. It's an ambitious and interesting work, yes, but it also feels unfocused and rather airless.

 

 

[chuckrh]

[Beltmann]

Even though I could have watched Cry Macho for free on HBO Max, I still went out to the theater for it. Why? Because Clint Eastwood, even now when his age is definitely showing, deserves to be seen on the big screen. The movie is at best minor Eastwood (both as actor and director). It has considerable limitations and more than a few awkward moments. But it also has unusual grace in certain passages and, given the current cinema climate, it scans as refreshingly mature storytelling. That's to be celebrated. Plus, it's Eastwood doing Eastwood-y things, which is to be savored!

[chuckrh]

[Boss_Tweedy]

On 9/19/2021 at 3:42 PM, Beltmann said:

Even though I could have watched Cry Macho for free on HBO Max, I still went out to the theater for it. Why? Because Clint Eastwood, even now when his age is definitely showing, deserves to be seen on the big screen. The movie is at best minor Eastwood (both as actor and director). It has considerable limitations and more than a few awkward moments. But it also has unusual grace in certain passages and, given the current cinema climate, it scans as refreshingly mature storytelling. That's to be celebrated. Plus, it's Eastwood doing Eastwood-y things, which is to be savored!

 

I'm so out of it these days that I didn't even realize it's already playing. Thanks for your review. It's inspired me to go to the theater for it. Plus who knows how many more times we'll have a chance to see a new Eastwood movie? 

[Boss_Tweedy]

17 hours ago, chuckrh said:

 

Well dang. Has this already started? I really need to pay better attention. 

[chuckrh]

ok but a little disappointing

[Beltmann]

Thanks to the Criterion Channel, I was finally able to catch Ann Hui’s Boat People (1982), a Hong Kong classic that I’ve been hankering to see for several decades. Mixing sharp social criticism with broad melodrama, Hui follows a Japanese photojournalist as he tries to circumvent the propaganda ministry of North Vietnam and pull back the green curtain obscuring the nation’s hidden horrors.

 

[chuckrh]

Excellent!

[Chez]

4 hours ago, chuckrh said:

Excellent!

Whoa!  Thanks for the heads-up on this.

[chuckrh]

2 hours ago, Chez said:

Whoa!  Thanks for the heads-up on this.

you're welcome

[Beltmann]

That VU doc was such a wonderful, woozy experience. Loved it.

[Beltmann]

There’s plenty of scary stuff in The Last Duel, even if it functions as a Rashomon-style drama about sexual assault in medieval France rather than horror. I didn’t care for Ridley Scott’s decision to iron everything into a smooth, gray/blue haze--it feels like an affectation for a story already muddied by its competing versions of truth--but otherwise the movie is one of his stronger exercises in narrative. I found it curious how the screenplay makes its biggest, obvious points with a battle-axe but then presents deeper ideas in subtle, easy-to-miss ways. This is especially true in its final third, which focuses on the voice of Marguerite de Carrouges (Jodie Comer), who in real life needed the help of her knight husband (Matt Damon) to formally accuse a squire (Adam Driver) of raping her. (Perhaps credit for the nuances should go to Nicole Holofcener, who assisted Damon and Ben Affleck with the writing.) Everything leads to a violent, trial-by-combat spectacle between Damon and Driver that counts as a rare action scene rooted in genuine character conflict, with real meaning at stake. I haven’t been so invested in a sword fight since Rob Roy (1995), a minor revenge classic that has some plot overlap with The Last Duel.

 

 

[chuckrh]

[calvino]

8 hours ago, chuckrh said:

 

I enjoyed watching this. An interesting guy.

[Beltmann]

There’s a whiff of exploitation about Hounds of Love, which uses as its suspense template the true crime story of a Western Australia couple who kidnapped and tortured a series of girls in the ‘80s, but director Ben Young’s artful staging and emphasis on psychology go a long way in mitigating those concerns. I found the movie gripping, thoughtful, and, by the end, rather moving. It’s also anchored by three female performances of unusual depth. It's October, so I was in the mood for an off-beat horror movie and this fit the bill quite nicely.

 

 

[chuckrh]

[brownie]

1 hour ago, chuckrh said:

I watched this last night and thought it was great.  My only complaint is that they did not tell enough of the story, and now I have to wait years until the next installment is made.

Both the cast performances and the cinematography were spectacular!

[Boss_Tweedy]

I thought this was my 40th World Series, but I forgot about the strike season of '94 in which there was no World Series. I wanted to go, but tickets to the games in Atlanta are over $1,000 for standing room only! Oh, well. Maybe some day. Go Braves!

 

[Winston Legthigh]

On 10/24/2021 at 6:09 AM, brownie said:

I watched this last night and thought it was great.  My only complaint is that they did not tell enough of the story, and now I have to wait years until the next installment is made.

Both the cast performances and the cinematography were spectacular!

 

I've just read that part 2 has been green-lit, and he also wants to do a part 3 - being Dune Messiah. 

 

Gorgeous film, and the soundtrack is great too. I'm already viewing it again, in small bits. I don't think I ever watched the entirety of Lynch's version, and I haven't read the book, but now that I understand the basics of the plot, I've got a copy reserved at the library. 

[brownie]

6 hours ago, Winston Legthigh said:

 

I've just read that part 2 has been green-lit, and he also wants to do a part 3 - being Dune Messiah. 

 

Gorgeous film, and the soundtrack is great too. I'm already viewing it again, in small bits. I don't think I ever watched the entirety of Lynch's version, and I haven't read the book, but now that I understand the basics of the plot, I've got a copy reserved at the library. 

Do go ahead and read the book(s).  I read three of them after seeing the Lynch version back in the day, and they helped a lot with understanding.  I’m glad I read them.

[u2roolz]

I wanted to give a recommendation for a film that I consider to be one of the very best films that I’ve seen all year: Small Engine Repair. I saw a trailer for this film back in late August and noticed that it was set in Manchester, NH which is about a half hour from where I live. The film was actually shot in upstate NY except for a few aerial shots of the red mill buildings in Manchester. 
 

Anyways, the trailer had me intrigued and I was surprised to see that it got booked in a theater in Manchester. It didn’t get much of a wide release around MA/NH, so I decided to go see it on opening day (Sept 10th) in said theater and I was completely blown away. It’s the first time in a long time that I walked out of a theater “all jacked up”, after what I had just watched. 
 

John Pollono, the writer/director & star, created a terrifically written “hang out” movie with rich characters that felt real and themes that are extremely relevant. Jon Bernthal & Shea Whigham are fantastic as the 2 friends who make regular life experience stories into legends, while seemingly frozen in time. They definitely feel like 2 guys that you could see in any random bar.
 

The enjoyment of watching the film unfold is getting to the last half of the film which was a huge tonal shift that Pollono pulled off with expert craftsmanship. The trailer does tease what’s coming, so maybe skip it if you truly want to be surprised. I don’t think I’ve seen as great of a directorial debut in quite some time. 
 

 I was vaguely aware of the off Broadway stage play with the same 3 actors, so this all felt fresh to me. 
 

(Available to rent digitally wherever you rent films.)

[kidsmoke]

Your review has me intrigued! I'll look for it.

[Beltmann]

1 hour ago, u2roolz said:

I wanted to give a recommendation for a film that I consider to be one of the very best films that I’ve seen all year: Small Engine Repair.

 

Ooh, I've been eager to see this. Thrilled to hear your glowing endorsement!

[Beltmann]

Over the last two weeks of October I consumed 27 horror movies, including eight rewatches.

I'm a little embarrassed that it's taken me this long to finally see Dan O’Bannon’s apocalyptic zombie comedy The Return of the Living Dead and what can I say? This might be my favorite collection of merry bad-taste gags outside of Peter Jackson’s Dead Alive. My only regret is that I’ve wasted three decades not watching this.

 

I’m guessing the bald, hungry punk zombie in The Return of the Living Dead that cries for “More brains!” would turn away from Halloween Kills, which unforgivably forgets that its precursor had intelligent characters, and instead devour Antlers, a smart, superior creature feature concerned with the long horns of trauma, longing, and desperation.

 

I especially enjoyed sharing the original The Fly (1958) with my 13-year-old. (I also watched David Cronenberg’s mesmerizing remake for the umpteenth time.) I’m not a huge fan of French Extremity Horror, but will recommend Inside, which is currently on the Criterion Channel, as an exemplary entry in the genre.