Which films have you seen lately Vol.22 Now with Smell-O-Vision.

[Kyriakos]

The Death of Stalin, 2017. Rewatch for me of a favorite film which takes the death of one of the most odious people who ever lived and turns it into a comedy about the viciousness and loathsomeness of politics. Arguably worth watching for the scenery porn and Jason Isaac's performance of Marshal Zhukov.

Why did they decide to have him use a parody of a Cockney accent?

 

[EvaDK]

Deadpool & Wolverine
Very funny with its almost chaotic violence and gore. The story is entirely forgettable and the villains are just punching bags for our heroes. Cameos galore, so stay free of spoilers. Highly entertaining but falls short in moving me emotionally, which is otherwise where The Wolverine and Logan excelled.

 

[Kyriakos]

I am looking forward to Trap (tbr August 2 iirc). Though it can easily be bad, the last time I saw the lead actor in anything was in Penny Dreadful (he was popular in the late 90s-early 00s).

 

[Smellincoffee]

Why did they decide to have him use a parody of a Cockney accent?

Isaacs described that one as a "broad Yorkshire" accent. I never heard any rhyming slang..

 

[BenitoChavez]

Deadpool & Wolverine
Very funny with its almost chaotic violence and gore. The story is entirely forgettable and the villains are just punching bags for our heroes. Cameos galore, so stay free of spoilers. Highly entertaining but falls short in moving me emotionally, which is otherwise where The Wolverine and Logan excelled.

I saw it too and mostly agree, but there were scenes where Jackman and Reynolds were able to sell it emotionally for me. Overall its a really fun comic book movie.

 

[EgonSpengler]

In a Lonely Place (1950) - Classic noir drama with Humphrey Bogart as an abusive Hollywood screenwriter who may have finally gone too far. I tend to bounce off stories that feature an unlikable protagonist, so when a movie or tv show decides to feature someone who's a donkey, they're choosing to start themselves in a hole they have to climb out of just to get back to neutral. And sometimes they do. I loved House MD, but I could never quite get into Shameless. Bogey does a decent job here of making his character just likeable enough that I could feel bad for him and not bail out. I also really liked Gloria Grahame. I don't remember ever seeing her before, although I may have seen Oklahoma! (1955) when I was a kid.

Spoiler :

Unfortunately, the film leans heavily on a romance that I just didn't buy. For me the biggest surprise in this movie was when she said she loved him. I could think of a couple ways to explain it - maybe she's a bit damaged herself, or she's one of these women who's attracted to 'broken' men she thinks she can fix - but the movie never spells it out, and up to that point, she seemed like a healthy adult woman to me. I'm not sure my reaction to the film's ending was what the filmmakers wanted it to be. I think the ending was supposed to be seen as tragic. 'If only the murderer had confessed a day earlier, they'd be on their honeymoon now.' My reaction was instead 'Thank God the murderer didn't confess a day earlier. She almost married him.' So the ending was tragic for Dix, in the sense that his whole life was tragic, but if she'd married him it wouldn't have solved anything, would've just been tragedy on top of tragedy. I mean, she said it herself earlier in the film, she wasn't sure that Dix didn't kill the girl. I like to think that her tears at the end were in recognition of the fact that it never would've worked, that she didn't trust him, even knowing that he wasn't a murderer, that he would never be happy, and she was crying for him more than for herself. Also, it's a smaller thing, but I just kept bumping my head on the age difference. Bogey was 50 when this movie was filmed and Grahame was 26, and they both looked it.

The Dive (2023) - Survival-thriller about two sisters who go SCUBA diving in some caves off Malta. It started off badly - the script is terrible - but I'm glad I stuck with it, because it got more compelling. Worth a watch if you like things like Crawl (2019) and Fall (2022). I liked the simplicity and the crispness: It's basically just the two women for the entire movie, they're in only 50 feet/15 meters of water, and at 91 minutes, the movie almost takes place in real time (not quite, but a slightly different version of this movie could've had a clock counting down in the lower-right corner of the screen).

Hell or High Water (2016) - A modern Western with something to say about predatory banks, written by Taylor Sheridan (Sicario; Wind River) and directed by David Mackenzie. I've never seen any of Mackenzie's movies before this one, but I know his Starred Up (2013) is well-regarded. Chris Pine and Ben Foster play brothers who only need $43,000 to save the family farm in rural Texas and decide to liberate it from the aforementioned banks. My Guy Jeff Bridges plays the Texas Ranger hot on their heels. The script and the performances do a great job making all the characters relatable and likeable, even while you know they're on a collision course and it can't end well for everyone. This is the best I've seen from Chris Pine if, like me, you've been a little lukewarm on him over the years (and if you're a fan of his already, I think this would have to be a must-watch). I think this is also the best Ben Foster I've seen. The supporting cast includes faces you'll recognize, Dale Dickey, Marin Ireland, Sheridan's pal Gil Birmingham, and Amber Midthunder, who must've been 17 or 18 at the time. There's some violence, inevitably, but like Scario and Wind River, it's not an action movie, it's a drama with guns.

The Silence of the Lambs (1991) - Three movies have ever swept the "Big 5" at the Academy Awards (Best Picture, Best Screenplay, Best Director, Best Actress, Best Actor): It Happened One Night (1934), One Flew Over the ****oo's Nest (1975), and The Silence of the Lambs. Having also rewatched Manhunter (1986) not too long ago, I affirm my belief that Anthony Hopkins' Lecter is much better than Brian Cox's. Cox played him cool and aloof, Lecter played him threatening and in your head - aided by Demme's famous closeups - and, eventually, casually violent. If you're into the serial-killer genre, you've already seen this. If you're not, I still recommend it; it's not as scary or as gory as you worry it will be, and it really is one of the best films ever made. It is not without controversy, though I don't want to spoil either the movie or the experience of watching it.

Spoiler :

The interpretation of the movie as being anti-queer isn't new. It's not 'revisionist history' to say that this movie portrays a queer character in a poor light, and without anything balanced against it. When it premiered in '91, GLAAD organized a protest and people in the media criticized it. Although, at the time the film was criticized for being homophobic. Even the queer community back then hadn't fully wrapped its head around gender dysphoria or trans people yet. The characters in the movie use the now-antiquated term "trans-sexual" and I believe the director used the term "transvestite" to refer to Buffalo Bill on at least one occasion. I don't want to be the one to start or supervise a whole separate conversation on this aspect of this film, but it's certainly worthy of one. People have been talking about it since the movie came out, and continue to. If you're interested in reading about that aspect of the movie, here are a couple of recent-ish articles by members of the media who self-identify as queer (just to get the ball rolling, I don't claim these are definitive - I'm sure there's lots more, I just picked two from sites I know):

Understanding Silence of the Lambs’ complicated cultural legacy

30 years after its debut, the classic horror film’s influence is so much bigger than Hannibal Lecter.

www.vox.com

https://slate.com/human-interest/20...d-down-silence-of-the-lambs-gay-backlash.html

Rewatching Lambs and Manhunter makes me want to also rewatch the tv series Hannibal (2013), but not any of the other films. Actually, Red Dragon (2002) was okay. I'd watch Manhunter before Red Dragon - they're both adaptations of the same book - but the latter was pretty good. The tv series Hannibal is a prequel to all of these movies and the novels they're based on, and was very good. Mads Mikkelsen plays a 3rd entirely different interpretation of the character Hannibal Lecter, and I think it stands up against Hopkins' version.

 

[lymond]

Been a couple of years or so but really enjoyed Hell or High Water.

I think Manhunter and Red Dragon are both very good. RD has the crisper production and fantastic cast, but MH holds its own. I have seen both at least a coupla times each and read the book. Fiennes was amazing but then he always is.

 

[EgonSpengler]

Been a couple of years or so but really enjoyed Hell or High Water.

I think Manhunter and Red Dragon are both very good. RD has the crisper production and fantastic cast, but MH holds its own. I have seen both at least a coupla times each and read the book. Fiennes was amazing but then he always is.

Yeah, the cast of Red Dragon is off the hook. I think it's almost certainly Brett Ratner's best movie. I haven't seen that one in years, though, and I just rewatched Manhunter last month, so I may be suffering from some recency bias.

 

[Synobun]

The Age of Adaline. One of the worst "romance" films in existence. Would have been much better if it'd focused on the mother/daughter relationship instead of Mr. Doesn't Take No For An Answer And Stalks You.

 

[BenitoChavez]

Long Legs - I liked the acting and atmosphere throughout most of the film. But the ending was deeply unsatisfying. There was no meaning behind everything. It was just creepy people doing bad things because of evil stuff.

 

[Kyriakos]

For those that wanted a b-movie variant of M3gan, there's Megan.

 

[Synobun]

Find Me Falling. A new Netflix romcom that got trashed by critics but was a hit with genre fans. Not amazing, but not obnoxious. No abusive stereotypes. It also targets an older generation, 40+ people, so it felt less immature than a teen romcom might. As far as romance movies go, decent.

 

[Miniskirt]

In a Lonely Place (1950) - Classic noir drama with Humphrey Bogart as an abusive Hollywood screenwriter who may have finally gone too far. I tend to bounce off stories that feature an unlikable protagonist, so when a movie or tv show decides to feature someone who's a donkey, they're choosing to start themselves in a hole they have to climb out of just to get back to neutral. And sometimes they do. I loved House MD, but I could never quite get into Shameless. Bogey does a decent job here of making his character just likeable enough that I could feel bad for him and not bail out. I also really liked Gloria Grahame. I don't remember ever seeing her before, although I may have seen Oklahoma! (1955) when I was a kid.

Okay. I saw this 3 or 4 years ago, and though I have always liked Bogie, this film is the first time I realized that he can really act. I count this as one of my now-favorite Bogie films because of this. I don't really remember what In A Lonely Place was about, other than your summary now, but I did enjoy it. Have re-watched a number of his fillums since on the lookout for acting. Like Harrison Ford, Cary Grant, and even Errol Flynn, these guys play their similar persona so often it can be easy to forget that they are all actually great Actors. (Yes, even Errol Flynn - a fun Bette Davis quote can be found where she did not want to act with Flynn but after doing so, with surprise said, "the man can act!")

"They" always want to throw these guys in with younger women, because we all want to see these guys, in anything. But, don't forget, Bogie's real life wife, Lauren Bacall, was 25 YEARS YOUNGER for reals. So age differences for him is much less of a stretch than these other guys.

I enjoyed the latest Indiana Jones movie just the other day. I wished for more of the age-appropriate Karen Allen, but was glad to see that she is currently a completely adorable old gal.

 

[Smellincoffee]

Father Stu, 2022. Mark Wahlberg plays Fr. Stuart Long, a boxer who begins hanging around the Catholic church for love of a woman, but embraces it fully after a near-death experience in which he has a vision of the Virgin Mary which urges him to find purpose in his life. Despite his love for Carmen, he pursues a calling to the priesthood that becomes more difficult after he is diagnosed with a progressive muscle disease which renders the former boxer into a man in a wheelchair. Despite his suffering and limitations, he finds meaning and imparts that to others. Best movie I've seen this year.

 

[EgonSpengler]

Okay. I saw this 3 or 4 years ago, and though I have always liked Bogie, this film is the first time I realized that he can really act. I count this as one of my now-favorite Bogie films because of this. I don't really remember what In A Lonely Place was about, other than your summary now, but I did enjoy it. Have re-watched a number of his fillums since on the lookout for acting. Like Harrison Ford, Cary Grant, and even Errol Flynn, these guys play their similar persona so often it can be easy to forget that they are all actually great Actors. (Yes, even Errol Flynn - a fun Bette Davis quote can be found where she did not want to act with Flynn but after doing so, with surprise said, "the man can act!")

"They" always want to throw these guys in with younger women, because we all want to see these guys, in anything. But, don't forget, Bogie's real life wife, Lauren Bacall, was 25 YEARS YOUNGER for reals. So age differences for him is much less of a stretch than these other guys.

I enjoyed the latest Indiana Jones movie just the other day. I wished for more of the age-appropriate Karen Allen, but was glad to see that she is currently a completely adorable old gal.

My "Hey, Bogart can act" moment was The Petrified Forest (1936). Which co-starred Bette Davis, coincidentally.

 

[Smellincoffee]

Yojimbo, 1961. A rogue samurai wanders into a town and discovers that it's divided between two gangs; realizing that a lot of them are guys who need killin', he plays one side off the other for two hours. Enjoyed this more than Seven Samurai in part because it's not four hours long and there's a much smaller cast of characters to keep track of.

Nights on Earth, 1991. Not a film per se, but a collection of five shorts, featuring stories of taxi drivers working in LA, NY, Paris, Rome, and Helsinki. All are very different stories: the only one I didn't like was Rome, because the driver was absolutely obnoxious and he dumps the body of a priest who he talks to death in his cab.

 

[lymond]

I saw Night on Earth some years ago. I think Winona was in it as a driver too. I can barely remember it now though, but recall some shorts were def better than others.

 

[Smellincoffee]

I saw Night on Earth some years ago. I think Winona was in it as a driver too. I can barely remember it now though, but recall some shorts were def better than others.

Yep! She's in the first one, as an LA cabbie who gives a producer a ride and the producer tries to convince her to give up her dreams of being a mechanic to go to Hollywood instead.

 

[lymond]

I watched Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes on Peacock last night. Apparently, this movie is the beginning of a new trilogy set in the distant future, following the story of the first trilogy. I found it quite enjoyable and stayed interested throughout. Some people have complained that it's too long and slow, as it runs for about 2.5 hours. A bit of editing could have made it tighter. The very early bits were a tad slowish with the family and clan stuff. Once you get to Raka - another friendly Orangutan - the movie really kicks into gear. It nicely incorporates some concepts from the original movies. Ciri did a great job playing Nova (Mae), and the CGI is exceptional. I felt that it wasn't as ultimately profound as I was expecting after watching the first 30 minutes or so, but the ending is solid. The film does nicely set the stage for more to come. There was also an interesting cameo in the second half (if you didn't read the cast lists beforehand [edit: actually 1.5 cameos as for me I was quite familiar with the second one but many may not be]).

 

[Smellincoffee]

Kansas City, 1996. A white criminal robs some associate of a black gang leader and is subsequently captured so that Harry Belafonte, doing a Marlon Brando impersonation, can run his mouth for two hours. Meanwhile, the white criminal's girlfriend kidnaps the wife of a crooked politician in hopes that said politician will use his influence to get the black gang to let the hood go. It doesn't end well, but the viewer gets LOTS of nice jazz and pretty cars. Really liked Jennifer Leigh's tough-gal act.