Recently viewed movie thread - Rental, Streaming, Theater etc (21 Viewers)

[Ilov80s]

Dear Santa- we wanted to watch a mindless new Christmas movie as we dozed off to bed last night. It’s a Jack Black vehicle where a kid with a learning disability accidentally writes a letter to Satan instead of Santa. It’s very bad as expected and the ending is actually kind of jaw droppingly bad. But it fit what we were looking for perfectly lol.

How does a movie like this get greenlit?

Pitchman: It's a family movie.

Mogul: What's it about?

Pitchman: It's about a kid palling around with Satan instead of Santa. It's a hilarious setup because of the mis-spelling!

Mogul: Well okay, as long as you maintain the family feel while the prince of darkness hams it up.

It’s such a bizarre tone too because Jack Black makes a child molestation joke to a 12 year old and the ending is so messed up. Oh and the 12 year old plays beer pong. They couldn’t decide if they wanted a family movie or an adult comedy and it just ends up as a train wreck.

 

[Gjallarhorn]

Just watched Carry-On and it was pretty bad. Jason Bateman, who is one of my favorites, acted like he was disinterested in doing this straight to Netflix film.

 

[ChicoCat]

Watched the Joker sequel last night...

Thought it was phenomenal. I understand why some people loathed it; but by and large...I felt that it stayed within the confines of the universe/narrative that the first movie set out. Were people really expecting some sort of super hero/villain caper movie?

 

[TripItUp]

Watched the Joker sequel last night...

Thought it was phenomenal. I understand why some people loathed it; but by and large...I felt that it stayed within the confines of the universe/narrative that the first movie set out. Were people really expecting some sort of super hero/villain caper movie?

yeah, I liked it too...just don't expect a superhero movie and you'll be fine

criticism way over the top imho, Phoenix and Gaga were great.

 

[El Floppo]

Just watched Carry-On and it was pretty bad. Jason Bateman, who is one of my favorites, acted like he was disinterested in doing this straight to Netflix film.

I tried to save you and others.

It's not terrible, but it's just..there. kind of a waste of 2 hours in your life...which is ok sometimes, like on a long plane ride or stuck in a hospital.

 

[Gjallarhorn]

Just watched Carry-On and it was pretty bad. Jason Bateman, who is one of my favorites, acted like he was disinterested in doing this straight to Netflix film.

I tried to save you and others.

It's not terrible, but it's just..there. kind of a waste of 2 hours in your life...which is ok sometimes, like on a long plane ride or stuck in a hospital.

I am all for suspending disbelief but is the film has to be somewhat realistic if it doesn’t have dragons in it.

 

[Tick]

This will mark my 5th year logging the movies I've watched and posting a list of the 25 best NEW TO ME watches of the year. I wasn't sure if it was a good idea the first time I posted it but I got great responses from posters like @Eephus @krista4 @KarmaPolice and rip wikkid so I will hopefully do this as long as Joe keeps this place open.

25. Brooklyn (2015)- I am of Irish descent so I admit it could be bias that has me so enjoying the story of an Irish girl finding love in 1950s NYC, but this is one of the most romantic movies of the millenia to me. A movie about leaving home, finding home, missing home, returning home and not returning home. Maybe our real home is the relationships we create? Saoirse Ronan is an actress that I can't take my eyes off of. She's cute but not a supermodel and she's not especially kinetic. Yet, she is inherently interesting- proof that having "it" comes from a dimension just slightly beyond our senses. Standouts: Young Soairse arriving in the movies as a fully formed star. All of the art direction, costume, etc. It looked like it felt, perfectly captured time and place.

24. The Official Story (1985)- You adopted a baby, loved her and raised her. When she was a teenager you learned that as a baby she was taken from her mother without consent. Who's love is more real- the mom who spent her life raising the child or the mom who spent her life looking for her? And what if you find out your spouse knew the entire time? Welcome to the right wing military dictatorship of late 20th century Argentina. Standouts: Well there it is, we are at movie 24 and Norma Aleandro has given the performance "of the year".

23. A Hero (2021)- Stressful. This movie will make you feel desperate. It lives in the grey areas where well intentioned people find their little lies turning to quicksand. An Iranian man in a debtors prison makes up a seemingly harmless story about how he came into some money to buy his freedom but every step he takes to get free, only pulls him down further. Standouts: Not sure I have one. It just all seemed to be balanced perfectly so I guess that means the standout was probably director Ashgar Farhadi.

22. Petite Maman (2021)- The twin flame to All of Us Strangers. I actually don't want to say any more about the plot here because it's best to be discovered. I knew nothing of this going into it and I think it made the movie far better. It's from the director of Portrait of a Lady on Fire. It's about parent-child relationships. It's 72 minutes. It's a sweet gentle fantasy of answers to questions we all had as kids but probably stopped considering decades ago. Standouts: The writer, director and editor and anyone else who let this movie be 72 minutes. It was as long as it needed to be which is actually the correct length for any movie. The twin girls are both really good in their roles. Maybe the language barrier hides deficits in their performance but to an English speaker, they come off like fairies born into HD.

21. Bullets Over Broadway (1994)- A Woody Allen movie with no Woody Allen. A gangster-theater-comedy-period piece, an Oscar winning performance for the great Dianne Wiest. It's just a jaunty little movie with a can't miss cast. Standouts: The casting director who got Jack Warden, Jennifer Tilley, John Cusack, Jim Broadbent and Mary-Louise Parker all together.

I agree 100% with the things you said about Petite Maman - I also came in knowing nothing.

 

[Ilov80s]

My ongoing list of 25 best new to me watches of 2024 ...

20. Affliction (1997)- A Paul Schrader movie which means we've got a loner wrestling with isolation and loneliness, personal and moral failings. This time it's Nick Nolte, giving the best perforrmance of his career, as a small town cop who becomes convinced a local hunting accident was murder. Yet he seems to be the only person who thinks this and his obsession with proving it goes beyond anything rational. This is a dark, cold neonoir and one of the best from the 90s. Standouts: I already mentioned the grizzly unhinged Nolte performance but even better might be James Coburn who won an Oscar for his portrayal of Nolte's abusive father.

19. The Pledge (2001)- I had pretty low expectations for this. I never remembered hearing much good about it and it's directed by Sean Penn. Figured this would be a mess or overly indulgent. But instead I found something really tight and focused. It makes a perfect double feature with Affliction. I am posting a review from a Letterboxd user because I think it's really the perfect review for a film that generally seemed to not be all that well received:

I find that describing The Pledge is easiest when saying what the film is not. The film is not noir, not a crime film, nor is it a thriller (although it touches upon all this genres); instead, The Pledge is a detective film. By that I mean that the film’s core focus is about how the central crime affects Jack Nicholson‘s character, the obsession the crime creates and the extreme lengths the character is willing to go for a solution. The crime is not the focus, the detective is the focus. The crime itself is pedestrian, nothing too thrilling. So if you watch The Pledge with your focus on the plot and the crime, then I can see how you would walk away from the movie thinking it was nothing special. The Pledge looks behind the crime, at the man trying to solve the crime and the obsession it breeds in him. The film is a warning to the viewer: dedication is admirable but obsession is devastating. https://letterboxd.com/rakgsr/film/the-pledge/

Standouts: Would it be any surprise to hear Jack gives a riveting performance? Yet, the person who most electrifies the screen and does something truly special is Mickey Rourke. He has one scene in a movie with a murderers row of great performers (Benecio Del Toro, Aaron Eckhart, Helen Mirren, Harry Dean Stanton, Robin Wright, Vanessa Redgrave, etc) and yet it is Rourke who leaves an impression to the bone.

18. Le Doulos (1963)- Jean Pierre Melville is the greatest crime director IMO. More than Michael Mann or Martin Scorsese or whoever else. The title is a French slang for an informant- released in the US as The Finger Man. A gangster recently released from prison is mixed up in a botched jewel heist and suspicions spread until they cover everyone in shadows and blood. It's intricately structured with twists and turns, leading to a tragic conclusion that questions whether people can escape their past actions. Melville has a minimalist approach but it works like a perfectly designed mechanism turning towards total destruction. Standouts: Belmondo. Jean Paul f'n Belmondo.

17. Poor Things (2023)- And now for something entirely different lol. I don't even know what to say about this. Poor Things is definitely not for everyone. Yorgos Lanthimos has made some movies that I strongly disliked but Poor Things was so surreal and bizarre that I kind of loved it. Funny and creepy but the world created for it is so delightful. A steam punk alternate world setting for a film that wonders what if Frankenstein made a Barbie doll instead of a monster? Love it or hate it, I am sure you've at least never seen anything quite like it. Stand outs: The whole production team knocked this this so far out of the park creating a totally unique world. Emma Stone just absolutely went for it here. The full development from baby to adult, the wild sex scenes, this woman truly gave herself up for this role.

16. Kagemusha (1980)- George Lucas and Francis Ford Coppola helped convince 20th Century Fox to cover some of the production costs and get Kurosawa's first color samurai film to the big screen. After a long period of financial difficutly, this dreamy (nightmare?) hit is widely regarded as one of the great movies in Japanese cinema. A lowly criminal is spared the death sentence in order to impersonate a dying feudal lord. Kagemusha (The Shadow Warrior) is one of the masterworks of late career Kurosawa. Standouts: Honestly, the color is what stikes me the most. Like I said, this is the first time Kurosawa did an epic color samurai film and the way he used saturated colors and muted colors, deep reds, vivid blues, and rich earth tones makes a stunning film to see. The horrors of war, the fleeting existance of even the greatest of men and the permanence of nature are all captured beautifully with color. Check out this American trailer from 1980

 

[Don Quixote]

Watched His Three Daughters on Netflix last night. Getting some potential Oscar buzz, particularly for the three lead actresses (Carrie Coon, Natasha Lyonne, and Elizabeth Olsen). I could see Lyonne in particular picking up a Best Supporting Actress. Interesting character study of three daughters dealing with their father in hospice care and coming back together to help take care of him in his final days. Pretty well-done and felt more like a play than a movie at times (not a complaint). Not really one that I’d say to drop everything to watch, but solid film.

 

[El Floppo]

My ongoing list of 25 best new to me watches of 2024 ...

20. Affliction (1997)- A Paul Schrader movie which means we've got a loner wrestling with isolation and loneliness, personal and moral failings. This time it's Nick Nolte, giving the best perforrmance of his career, as a small town cop who becomes convinced a local hunting accident was murder. Yet he seems to be the only person who thinks this and his obsession with proving it goes beyond anything rational. This is a dark, cold neonoir and one of the best from the 90s. Standouts: I already mentioned the grizzly unhinged Nolte performance but even better might be James Coburn who won an Oscar for his portrayal of Nolte's abusive father.

19. The Pledge (2001)- I had pretty low expectations for this. I never remembered hearing much good about it and it's directed by Sean Penn. Figured this would be a mess or overly indulgent. But instead I found something really tight and focused. It makes a perfect double feature with Affliction. I am posting a review from a Letterboxd user because I think it's really the perfect review for a film that generally seemed to not be all that well received:

I find that describing The Pledge is easiest when saying what the film is not. The film is not noir, not a crime film, nor is it a thriller (although it touches upon all this genres); instead, The Pledge is a detective film. By that I mean that the film’s core focus is about how the central crime affects Jack Nicholson‘s character, the obsession the crime creates and the extreme lengths the character is willing to go for a solution. The crime is not the focus, the detective is the focus. The crime itself is pedestrian, nothing too thrilling. So if you watch The Pledge with your focus on the plot and the crime, then I can see how you would walk away from the movie thinking it was nothing special. The Pledge looks behind the crime, at the man trying to solve the crime and the obsession it breeds in him. The film is a warning to the viewer: dedication is admirable but obsession is devastating. https://letterboxd.com/rakgsr/film/the-pledge/

Standouts: Would it be any surprise to hear Jack gives a riveting performance? Yet, the person who most electrifies the screen and does something truly special is Mickey Rourke. He has one scene in a movie with a murderers row of great performers (Benecio Del Toro, Aaron Eckhart, Helen Mirren, Harry Dean Stanton, Robin Wright, Vanessa Redgrave, etc) and yet it is Rourke who leaves an impression to the bone.

18. Le Doulos (1963)- Jean Pierre Melville is the greatest crime director IMO. More than Michael Mann or Martin Scorsese or whoever else. The title is a French slang for an informant- released in the US as The Finger Man. A gangster recently released from prison is mixed up in a botched jewel heist and suspicions spread until they cover everyone in shadows and blood. It's intricately structured with twists and turns, leading to a tragic conclusion that questions whether people can escape their past actions. Melville has a minimalist approach but it works like a perfectly designed mechanism turning towards total destruction. Standouts: Belmondo. Jean Paul f'n Belmondo.

17. Poor Things (2023)- And now for something entirely different lol. I don't even know what to say about this. Poor Things is definitely not for everyone. Yorgos Lanthimos has made some movies that I strongly disliked but Poor Things was so surreal and bizarre that I kind of loved it. Funny and creepy but the world created for it is so delightful. A steam punk alternate world setting for a film that wonders what if Frankenstein made a Barbie doll instead of a monster? Love it or hate it, I am sure you've at least never seen anything quite like it. Stand outs: The whole production team knocked this this so far out of the park creating a totally unique world. Emma Stone just absolutely went for it here. The full development from baby to adult, the wild sex scenes, this woman truly gave herself up for this role.

16. Kagemusha (1980)- George Lucas and Francis Ford Coppola helped convince 20th Century Fox to cover some of the production costs and get Kurosawa's first color samurai film to the big screen. After a long period of financial difficutly, this dreamy (nightmare?) hit is widely regarded as one of the great movies in Japanese cinema. A lowly criminal is spared the death sentence in order to impersonate a dying feudal lord. Kagemusha (The Shadow Warrior) is one of the masterworks of late career Kurosawa. Standouts: Honestly, the color is what stikes me the most. Like I said, this is the first time Kurosawa did an epic color samurai film and the way he used saturated colors and muted colors, deep reds, vivid blues, and rich earth tones makes a stunning film to see. The horrors of war, the fleeting existance of even the greatest of men and the permanence of nature are all captured beautifully with color. Check out this American trailer from 1980

Really liked all of those.

I saw Kagemusha only the 1 time in the theater as a 12yo. I recall sweeping battle sequences with lots of color coded flag waving...but nothing else. I had already seen and loved 7 Samurai, so was hoping for something more like that- in terms of character studies and a little more intimacy, but my memory was that it's not that kind of film. Also remember walking away at 12 not feeling too much towards the film..I suppose I should give it a rewatch.

 

[Gjallarhorn]

Watched His Three Daughters on Netflix last night. Getting some potential Oscar buzz, particularly for the three lead actresses (Carrie Coons, Natasha Lyonne, and Elizabeth Olsen). I could see Lyonne in particular picking up a Best Supporting Actress. Interesting character study of three daughters dealing with their father in hospice care and coming back together to help take care of him in his final days. Pretty well-done and felt more like a play than a movie at times (not a complaint). Not really one that I’d say to drop everything to watch, but solid film.

I am new to this section, and specifically this thread, so I m curious what people on here think about "Oscar buzz". Do people equate the movies nominated for Oscars as being good? I ask because I have not followed/watched the Oscars since 1992. I don't want to derail this, but it popped into my mind whilst reading your post.

 

[Eephus]

I am new to this section, and specifically this thread, so I m curious what people on here think about "Oscar buzz". Do people equate the movies nominated for Oscars as being good? I ask because I have not followed/watched the Oscars since 1992. I don't want to derail this, but it popped into my mind whilst reading your post.

There's another thread for that

***Official Academy Awards Discussion Thread*** - “Hollywood’s Biggest Night”

I did not see a thread and thought I’d get one going. Who are your picks, and who are you wearing?

forums.footballguys.com

 

[El Floppo]

Watched His Three Daughters on Netflix last night. Getting some potential Oscar buzz, particularly for the three lead actresses (Carrie Coons, Natasha Lyonne, and Elizabeth Olsen). I could see Lyonne in particular picking up a Best Supporting Actress. Interesting character study of three daughters dealing with their father in hospice care and coming back together to help take care of him in his final days. Pretty well-done and felt more like a play than a movie at times (not a complaint). Not really one that I’d say to drop everything to watch, but solid film.

I am new to this section, and specifically this thread, so I m curious what people on here think about "Oscar buzz". Do people equate the movies nominated for Oscars as being good? I ask because I have not followed/watched the Oscars since 1992. I don't want to derail this, but it popped into my mind whilst reading your post.

It will cause me to look further, which I may not if just glancing at titles. But I'm not seeing "Oscar buzz" and immediately diving in without knowing more.

I tend to trust most of the thoughts in this thread more than something like "Oscar buzz".

 

[Gjallarhorn]

Watched His Three Daughters on Netflix last night. Getting some potential Oscar buzz, particularly for the three lead actresses (Carrie Coons, Natasha Lyonne, and Elizabeth Olsen). I could see Lyonne in particular picking up a Best Supporting Actress. Interesting character study of three daughters dealing with their father in hospice care and coming back together to help take care of him in his final days. Pretty well-done and felt more like a play than a movie at times (not a complaint). Not really one that I’d say to drop everything to watch, but solid film.

I am new to this section, and specifically this thread, so I m curious what people on here think about "Oscar buzz". Do people equate the movies nominated for Oscars as being good? I ask because I have not followed/watched the Oscars since 1992. I don't want to derail this, but it popped into my mind whilst reading your post.

It will cause me to look further, which I may not if just glancing at titles. But I'm not seeing "Oscar buzz" and immediately diving in without knowing more.

I tend to trust most of the thoughts in this thread more than something like "Oscar buzz".

Roger that, i was not sure what the masses thought. Of the 10 nominees last year, Oppenheimer was the only one I saw.

 

[Don Quixote]

Watched His Three Daughters on Netflix last night. Getting some potential Oscar buzz, particularly for the three lead actresses (Carrie Coons, Natasha Lyonne, and Elizabeth Olsen). I could see Lyonne in particular picking up a Best Supporting Actress. Interesting character study of three daughters dealing with their father in hospice care and coming back together to help take care of him in his final days. Pretty well-done and felt more like a play than a movie at times (not a complaint). Not really one that I’d say to drop everything to watch, but solid film.

I am new to this section, and specifically this thread, so I m curious what people on here think about "Oscar buzz". Do people equate the movies nominated for Oscars as being good? I ask because I have not followed/watched the Oscars since 1992. I don't want to derail this, but it popped into my mind whilst reading your post.

I don’t necessarily equate with being good, but it does usually get my attention. And I don’t think usually way off base. If you told me the best movies of 2023 included some mix of Oppenheimer, Killers of the Flower Moon, American Fiction, Poor Things, Past Lives, The Holdovers, etc., I would generally agree with that. But that’s just what I think and YMMV.

His Three Daughters is currently on Rotten Tomatoes with 98% positive from critics, and 84% positive with audience, if that works better as a metric for you.

 

[Gjallarhorn]

Watched His Three Daughters on Netflix last night. Getting some potential Oscar buzz, particularly for the three lead actresses (Carrie Coons, Natasha Lyonne, and Elizabeth Olsen). I could see Lyonne in particular picking up a Best Supporting Actress. Interesting character study of three daughters dealing with their father in hospice care and coming back together to help take care of him in his final days. Pretty well-done and felt more like a play than a movie at times (not a complaint). Not really one that I’d say to drop everything to watch, but solid film.

I am new to this section, and specifically this thread, so I m curious what people on here think about "Oscar buzz". Do people equate the movies nominated for Oscars as being good? I ask because I have not followed/watched the Oscars since 1992. I don't want to derail this, but it popped into my mind whilst reading your post.

I don’t necessarily equate with being good, but it does usually get my attention. And I don’t think usually way off base. If you told me the best movies of 2023 included some mix of Oppenheimer, Killers of the Flower Moon, American Fiction, Poor Things, Past Lives, The Holdovers, etc., I would generally agree with that. But that’s just what I think and YMMV.

His Three Daughters is currently on Rotten Tomatoes with 98% positive from critics, and 84% positive with audience, if that works better as a metric for you.

I was not even arguing with the metric, more so wanted to hear what others thought. I usually look at Rotten Tomatoes...

 

[FarFromHome]

Watched the Joker sequel last night...

Thought it was phenomenal. I understand why some people loathed it; but by and large...I felt that it stayed within the confines of the universe/narrative that the first movie set out. Were people really expecting some sort of super hero/villain caper movie?

yeah, I liked it too...just don't expect a superhero movie and you'll be fine

criticism way over the top imho, Phoenix and Gaga were great.

Watched this last night. Got so much hate I was expecting to turn it off. You nailed it with, "just don't expect a superhero movie" If you watch it as a dark, gritty standalone movie it wasn't bad at all. I won't watch it again, but I was pleasantly surprised.

 

[krista4]

My ongoing list of 25 best new to me watches of 2024 ...

20. Affliction (1997)-

19. The Pledge (2001)-

18. Le Doulos (1963)-

17. Poor Things (2023)-

16. Kagemusha (1980)-

The performances in Affliction were among the best I've ever seen. I feel like Nick Nolte lost his mind/fell of a cliff after this?

Happy to see you acknowledge The Pledge, which has been a "guilty pleasure" of mine. Only "guilty" because for some reason it was never given any love.

Poor Things is a movie I'd never wish to see again but was enjoyable at the time. Emma Stone was unbelievable and deserved an Oscar in a very stacked field that year.

Kagemusha is a third-tier Kurosawa for me, which still makes it better than 99.99% of films.

Addng Le Doulos to my watch list!

 

[BLOCKED_PUNT]

Poor Things is definitely not for everyone

this. I thought it was a little interesting but I checked out after awhile

 

[El Floppo]

Poor Things is definitely not for everyone

this. I thought it was a little interesting but I checked out after awhile

I found it visually staggering... in a great way.

 

[Don Quixote]

Watched Conclave tonight. Streaming on Peacock. The power games felt reminiscent of things like House of Cards, Wolf Hall, Succession, Death of Stalin, etc. Don’t really think it added much to the genre. Entertaining enough for a couple of hours though.

 

[BLOCKED_PUNT]

I found it visually staggering... in a great way

I wonder why?

 

[Don Quixote]

I found it visually staggering... in a great way

I wonder why?

A lot of prep work went into selecting the right cameras and lens to produce some of the stunning cinematography. A pretty detailed article about it here.

Life Anew: Poor Things

Robbie Ryan, BSC, ISC and director Yorgos Lanthimos maintain their intuitive methodology on a grand-scale production.

theasc.com

 

[El Floppo]

I found it visually staggering... in a great way

I wonder why?

A lot of prep work went into selecting the right cameras and lens to produce some of the stunning cinematography. A pretty detailed article about it here.

Life Anew: Poor Things

Robbie Ryan, BSC, ISC and director Yorgos Lanthimos maintain their intuitive methodology on a grand-scale production.

theasc.com

Looking forward to reading that, thanks!

And no.. nudity wasn't what separated this. The art direction and world building... Costumes, hair, set design, lighting, architecture, even biology-plant/animal life... Astonishing, distinct and beautiful. Doesn't surprise me that a lot of thought went into the camera work and lens selection.

 

[Ilov80s]

Watched His Three Daughters on Netflix last night. Getting some potential Oscar buzz, particularly for the three lead actresses (Carrie Coons, Natasha Lyonne, and Elizabeth Olsen). I could see Lyonne in particular picking up a Best Supporting Actress. Interesting character study of three daughters dealing with their father in hospice care and coming back together to help take care of him in his final days. Pretty well-done and felt more like a play than a movie at times (not a complaint). Not really one that I’d say to drop everything to watch, but solid film.

I am new to this section, and specifically this thread, so I m curious what people on here think about "Oscar buzz". Do people equate the movies nominated for Oscars as being good? I ask because I have not followed/watched the Oscars since 1992. I don't want to derail this, but it popped into my mind whilst reading your post.

It will cause me to look further, which I may not if just glancing at titles. But I'm not seeing "Oscar buzz" and immediately diving in without knowing more.

I tend to trust most of the thoughts in this thread more than something like "Oscar buzz".

Roger that, i was not sure what the masses thought. Of the 10 nominees last year, Oppenheimer was the only one I saw.

I will say I try to check out most movies getting “Oscar buzz”. Not even because it’s the Oscar’s but just because that’s representative of what the critics and people who make movies to have considered the best stuff of the year. I do the same with music. I am much more likely to look at a critical list of best albums of the year than to just find the most streamed songs. For me, I’ve found that’s just where my tastes lie. Last years Oscar’s were stacked. I saw all 10 best picture nominees and liked all of them to some varying degree.

 

[Gjallarhorn]

Watched His Three Daughters on Netflix last night. Getting some potential Oscar buzz, particularly for the three lead actresses (Carrie Coons, Natasha Lyonne, and Elizabeth Olsen). I could see Lyonne in particular picking up a Best Supporting Actress. Interesting character study of three daughters dealing with their father in hospice care and coming back together to help take care of him in his final days. Pretty well-done and felt more like a play than a movie at times (not a complaint). Not really one that I’d say to drop everything to watch, but solid film.

I am new to this section, and specifically this thread, so I m curious what people on here think about "Oscar buzz". Do people equate the movies nominated for Oscars as being good? I ask because I have not followed/watched the Oscars since 1992. I don't want to derail this, but it popped into my mind whilst reading your post.

It will cause me to look further, which I may not if just glancing at titles. But I'm not seeing "Oscar buzz" and immediately diving in without knowing more.

I tend to trust most of the thoughts in this thread more than something like "Oscar buzz".

Roger that, i was not sure what the masses thought. Of the 10 nominees last year, Oppenheimer was the only one I saw.

I will say I try to check out most movies getting “Oscar buzz”. Not even because it’s the Oscar’s but just because that’s representative of what the critics and people who make movies to have considered the best stuff of the year. I do the same with music. I am much more likely to look at a critical list of best albums of the year than to just find the most streamed songs. For me, I’ve found that’s just where my tastes lie. Last years Oscar’s were stacked. I saw all 10 best picture nominees and liked all of them to some varying degree.

Makes sense. As I stated I have not followed the Oscars in a long time. Maybe it is time to start following it again.

 

[Courtjester]

Just watched Carry-On and it was pretty bad. Jason Bateman, who is one of my favorites, acted like he was disinterested in doing this straight to Netflix film.

I tried to save you and others.

It's not terrible, but it's just..there. kind of a waste of 2 hours in your life...which is ok sometimes, like on a long plane ride or stuck in a hospital.

There were multiple scenes where you just had to suspend "too much" reality to make it work. Ok, girl run from the killer and find some help. Girl runs through a terminal surrounded by THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE, but somehow manages to find an area where she is alone with said killer. All she had to do was stop at any given point and yell "Rape" or "Free Cinnabons" or anything and a dozen people would have come to her aid.

Someone needs to hire me in the movie business and my job will be to go over the ending of movies before they are released and make sure they make sense. I can guarantee there would have been some re-shoots with this one.

 

[El Floppo]

Just watched Carry-On and it was pretty bad. Jason Bateman, who is one of my favorites, acted like he was disinterested in doing this straight to Netflix film.

I tried to save you and others.

It's not terrible, but it's just..there. kind of a waste of 2 hours in your life...which is ok sometimes, like on a long plane ride or stuck in a hospital.

There were multiple scenes where you just had to suspend "too much" reality to make it work. Ok, girl run from the killer and find some help. Girl runs through a terminal surrounded by THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE, but somehow manages to find an area where she is alone with said killer. All she had to do was stop at any given point and yell "Rape" or "Free Cinnabons" or anything and a dozen people would have come to her aid.

Someone needs to hire me in the movie business and my job will be to go over the ending of movies before they are released and make sure they make sense. I can guarantee there would have been some re-shoots with this one.

That was a good one.

I also like how, despite the girlfriend directing them somewhere to do next steps it just happens to be the exact one spot that the sniper had raced off in the van to cover while parking in eyeshot of LAX terminal. That's a smart sniper. That's a lucky sniper finding such good parking.

 

[Moonlight]

My ongoing list of 25 best new to me watches of 2024 ...

20. Affliction (1997)- A Paul Schrader movie which means we've got a loner wrestling with isolation and loneliness, personal and moral failings. This time it's Nick Nolte, giving the best perforrmance of his career, as a small town cop who becomes convinced a local hunting accident was murder. Yet he seems to be the only person who thinks this and his obsession with proving it goes beyond anything rational. This is a dark, cold neonoir and one of the best from the 90s. Standouts: I already mentioned the grizzly unhinged Nolte performance but even better might be James Coburn who won an Oscar for his portrayal of Nolte's abusive father.

19. The Pledge (2001)- I had pretty low expectations for this. I never remembered hearing much good about it and it's directed by Sean Penn. Figured this would be a mess or overly indulgent. But instead I found something really tight and focused. It makes a perfect double feature with Affliction. I am posting a review from a Letterboxd user because I think it's really the perfect review for a film that generally seemed to not be all that well received:

I find that describing The Pledge is easiest when saying what the film is not. The film is not noir, not a crime film, nor is it a thriller (although it touches upon all this genres); instead, The Pledge is a detective film. By that I mean that the film’s core focus is about how the central crime affects Jack Nicholson‘s character, the obsession the crime creates and the extreme lengths the character is willing to go for a solution. The crime is not the focus, the detective is the focus. The crime itself is pedestrian, nothing too thrilling. So if you watch The Pledge with your focus on the plot and the crime, then I can see how you would walk away from the movie thinking it was nothing special. The Pledge looks behind the crime, at the man trying to solve the crime and the obsession it breeds in him. The film is a warning to the viewer: dedication is admirable but obsession is devastating. https://letterboxd.com/rakgsr/film/the-pledge/

Standouts: Would it be any surprise to hear Jack gives a riveting performance? Yet, the person who most electrifies the screen and does something truly special is Mickey Rourke. He has one scene in a movie with a murderers row of great performers (Benecio Del Toro, Aaron Eckhart, Helen Mirren, Harry Dean Stanton, Robin Wright, Vanessa Redgrave, etc) and yet it is Rourke who leaves an impression to the bone.

18. Le Doulos (1963)- Jean Pierre Melville is the greatest crime director IMO. More than Michael Mann or Martin Scorsese or whoever else. The title is a French slang for an informant- released in the US as The Finger Man. A gangster recently released from prison is mixed up in a botched jewel heist and suspicions spread until they cover everyone in shadows and blood. It's intricately structured with twists and turns, leading to a tragic conclusion that questions whether people can escape their past actions. Melville has a minimalist approach but it works like a perfectly designed mechanism turning towards total destruction. Standouts: Belmondo. Jean Paul f'n Belmondo.

17. Poor Things (2023)- And now for something entirely different lol. I don't even know what to say about this. Poor Things is definitely not for everyone. Yorgos Lanthimos has made some movies that I strongly disliked but Poor Things was so surreal and bizarre that I kind of loved it. Funny and creepy but the world created for it is so delightful. A steam punk alternate world setting for a film that wonders what if Frankenstein made a Barbie doll instead of a monster? Love it or hate it, I am sure you've at least never seen anything quite like it. Stand outs: The whole production team knocked this this so far out of the park creating a totally unique world. Emma Stone just absolutely went for it here. The full development from baby to adult, the wild sex scenes, this woman truly gave herself up for this role.

16. Kagemusha (1980)- George Lucas and Francis Ford Coppola helped convince 20th Century Fox to cover some of the production costs and get Kurosawa's first color samurai film to the big screen. After a long period of financial difficutly, this dreamy (nightmare?) hit is widely regarded as one of the great movies in Japanese cinema. A lowly criminal is spared the death sentence in order to impersonate a dying feudal lord. Kagemusha (The Shadow Warrior) is one of the masterworks of late career Kurosawa. Standouts: Honestly, the color is what stikes me the most. Like I said, this is the first time Kurosawa did an epic color samurai film and the way he used saturated colors and muted colors, deep reds, vivid blues, and rich earth tones makes a stunning film to see. The horrors of war, the fleeting existance of even the greatest of men and the permanence of nature are all captured beautifully with color. Check out this American trailer from 1980

Really liked all of those.

I saw Kagemusha only the 1 time in the theater as a 12yo. I recall sweeping battle sequences with lots of color coded flag waving...but nothing else. I had already seen and loved 7 Samurai, so was hoping for something more like that- in terms of character studies and a little more intimacy, but my memory was that it's not that kind of film. Also remember walking away at 12 not feeling too much towards the film..I suppose I should give it a rewatch.

Trust your 12 year old memory. I found Kagemusha incredibly long and stupendously boring.

 

[Ilov80s]

My ongoing list of 25 best new to me watches of 2024 ...

20. Affliction (1997)-

19. The Pledge (2001)-

18. Le Doulos (1963)-

17. Poor Things (2023)-

16. Kagemusha (1980)-

The performances in Affliction were among the best I've ever seen. I feel like Nick Nolte lost his mind/fell of a cliff after this?

Happy to see you acknowledge The Pledge, which has been a "guilty pleasure" of mine. Only "guilty" because for some reason it was never given any love.

Poor Things is a movie I'd never wish to see again but was enjoyable at the time. Emma Stone was unbelievable and deserved an Oscar in a very stacked field that year.

Kagemusha is a third-tier Kurosawa for me, which still makes it better than 99.99% of films.

Addng Le Doulos to my watch list!

Cool to see someone else likes The Pledge. I thought it was excellent and am surprised with that loaded cast that it seemed to get released with little fanfare and just disappear from consciousness.

 

[El Floppo]

My ongoing list of 25 best new to me watches of 2024 ...

20. Affliction (1997)-

19. The Pledge (2001)-

18. Le Doulos (1963)-

17. Poor Things (2023)-

16. Kagemusha (1980)-

The performances in Affliction were among the best I've ever seen. I feel like Nick Nolte lost his mind/fell of a cliff after this?

Happy to see you acknowledge The Pledge, which has been a "guilty pleasure" of mine. Only "guilty" because for some reason it was never given any love.

Poor Things is a movie I'd never wish to see again but was enjoyable at the time. Emma Stone was unbelievable and deserved an Oscar in a very stacked field that year.

Kagemusha is a third-tier Kurosawa for me, which still makes it better than 99.99% of films.

Addng Le Doulos to my watch list!

Cool to see someone else likes The Pledge. I thought it was excellent and am surprised with that loaded cast that it seemed to get released with little fanfare and just disappear from consciousness.

I was a big fan... Haven't seen it since the theaters and don't really remember it too much

 

[BLOCKED_PUNT]

Did someone say Free Cinnabon?!?

 

[Eephus]

Trust your 12 year old memory. I found Kagemusha incredibly long and stupendously boring.

It's not my favorite Kurosawa. The story of the thief masquerading as the warlord is slow to develop and a bit confusing. The battle scenes are a bunch of color coordinated forces charging to and fro without the intensity and close combat of The Seven Samurai. But I thought the film nailed its ending.

 

[Tick]

The Final Countdown (Prime): 1980 movie starring dads - Charlie Sheen and Kirk Douglas. IMDB 6.7. A 1980 aircraft carrier gets yoinked back to Dec 6, 1941 off of Hawaii.

This movie stinks. Nothing to recommend it, really.

Spoiler: stinky plot

Nothing really happens. Charlie Sheen's character didn't do anything. The captain finally decided to do something, then called it off. They just dinked around for a day and got zapped back without doing anything, and the director played victory march music like they accomplished something. It was at least going to be some boomer war porn, but was more like boomer blue balls.

 

[Andy Dufresne]

The Final Countdown (Prime): 1980 movie starring dads - Charlie Sheen and Kirk Douglas. IMDB 6.7. A 1980 aircraft carrier gets yoinked back to Dec 6, 1941 off of Hawaii.

This movie stinks. Nothing to recommend it, really.

Spoiler: stinky plot

Nothing really happens. Charlie Sheen's character didn't do anything. The captain finally decided to do something, then called it off. They just dinked around for a day and got zapped back without doing anything, and the director played victory march music like they accomplished something. It was at least going to be some boomer war porn, but was more like boomer blue balls.

I was going to disagree with you until I read your spoiler, then I couldn't because you're right. But I like it anyway.

I'd love to see a reboot where they actually do engage and then return to a radically changed world in the present - A Sound Of Thunder style.

 

[El Floppo]

The Final Countdown (Prime): 1980 movie starring dads - Charlie Sheen and Kirk Douglas. IMDB 6.7. A 1980 aircraft carrier gets yoinked back to Dec 6, 1941 off of Hawaii.

This movie stinks. Nothing to recommend it, really.

Spoiler: stinky plot

Nothing really happens. Charlie Sheen's character didn't do anything. The captain finally decided to do something, then called it off. They just dinked around for a day and got zapped back without doing anything, and the director played victory march music like they accomplished something. It was at least going to be some boomer war porn, but was more like boomer blue balls.

I was going to disagree with you until I read your spoiler, then I couldn't because you're right. But I like it anyway.

I'd love to see a reboot where they actually do engage and then return to a radically changed world in the present - A Sound Of Thunder style.

Was this the one where they buzz japanese zeros with jets?

Felt like it was on TV a lot.

 

[Joe Schmo]

Now I can't get that song out of my head...

 

[Tick]

Oops, Martin Sheen.

 

[El Floppo]

Oops, Martin Sheen.

So not a 10yo Charlie?

 

[Tick]

Oops, Martin Sheen.

So not a 10yo Charlie?

It always startles me to see youngish Martin Sheen just looking exactly like Emilio Estevez.

 

[Eephus]

Oops, Martin Sheen.

So not a 10yo Charlie?

It wouldn't be the most implausible thing in the movie

 

[Eephus]

Speaking of implausible, Conclave's twist ending was a doozy. I still really liked the movie.

I was brought up Catholic and my interest in the history and trappings of the Vatican has stayed with me even if my faith hasn't. Conclave was a fascinating and beautifully filmed glimpse at the power politics of the church. At its center was a masterfully subtle performance of Ralph Fiennes and his furrowed brow.

 

[Tick]

Boy Kills World (Hulu): IMDB 6.4 John Wicky sort of movie, but with some Jojo Rabbit thrown in. It's a very rote story for most of the movie - kid wants revenge on the powerful person who killed his family. But there are some twists - he's deaf and mute (with his internal monologue by H.Jon Benjamin - Archer/Bob's Burgers) interacts with visions of his dead sister, and is trained by The Shaman, who's a bad guy from Raid: Redemption and one of the Wick movies. He grows up to be Bill Skarsgard (the young Tom Brady looking one). He goes to take on the family that killed his, with most of the actors being That Guy from another movie/show.

The action is completely brutal in a Raid way - the final fight is so ridiculous and made me blanch at one point from how gruesome it was. There was good comedy thrown in as well. I liked the movie. The rating is probably fine. Famke Janssen looks plastic now - it's unsettling.

 

[jamny]

I enjoyed Furiosa. Some cheesy CGI and a somewhat tired storyline but it was a fun ride. I watched it one segment at a time so maybe that helped with the length of it since it is a long movie. I tend to really like origin stories and I like how it set up Fury Road. I think I actually liked this more than Fury Road.

 

[The Gator]

The Highest Brasil

It was like Wes Anderson made a movie about Napoleon Dynamite but Napoleon is and old Irish fisherman. not quite sure what that was

 

[jdoggydogg]

Watched the Joker sequel last night...

Thought it was phenomenal. I understand why some people loathed it; but by and large...I felt that it stayed within the confines of the universe/narrative that the first movie set out. Were people really expecting some sort of super hero/villain caper movie?

Not a fan of musicals, but I liked the first Joker movie. How many songs in the sequel?

 

[ChicoCat]

Watched the Joker sequel last night...

Thought it was phenomenal. I understand why some people loathed it; but by and large...I felt that it stayed within the confines of the universe/narrative that the first movie set out. Were people really expecting some sort of super hero/villain caper movie?

Not a fan of musicals, but I liked the first Joker movie. How many songs in the sequel?

I want to say there was like 8 or 9.....but a few of them were just maybe like 30 seconds of singing as its way of dealing with things in his head. IIRC, there was 5 big 1-3 minute productions.

 

[jdoggydogg]

My ongoing list of 25 best new to me watches of 2024 ...

20. Affliction (1997)- A Paul Schrader movie which means we've got a loner wrestling with isolation and loneliness, personal and moral failings. This time it's Nick Nolte, giving the best perforrmance of his career, as a small town cop who becomes convinced a local hunting accident was murder. Yet he seems to be the only person who thinks this and his obsession with proving it goes beyond anything rational. This is a dark, cold neonoir and one of the best from the 90s. Standouts: I already mentioned the grizzly unhinged Nolte performance but even better might be James Coburn who won an Oscar for his portrayal of Nolte's abusive father.

19. The Pledge (2001)- I had pretty low expectations for this. I never remembered hearing much good about it and it's directed by Sean Penn. Figured this would be a mess or overly indulgent. But instead I found something really tight and focused. It makes a perfect double feature with Affliction. I am posting a review from a Letterboxd user because I think it's really the perfect review for a film that generally seemed to not be all that well received:

17. Poor Things (2023)- And now for something entirely different lol. I don't even know what to say about this. Poor Things is definitely not for everyone. Yorgos Lanthimos has made some movies that I strongly disliked but Poor Things was so surreal and bizarre that I kind of loved it. Funny and creepy but the world created for it is so delightful. A steam punk alternate world setting for a film that wonders what if Frankenstein made a Barbie doll instead of a monster? Love it or hate it, I am sure you've at least never seen anything quite like it. Stand outs: The whole production team knocked this this so far out of the park creating a totally unique world. Emma Stone just absolutely went for it here. The full development from baby to adult, the wild sex scenes, this woman truly gave herself up for this role.

Affliction was excellent. I remember liking The Pledge a lot. That three minute scene with Mickey Rourke is one of the greatest performances on film. Poor Things was pretty nuts, but I loved it.

 

[krista4]

That three minute scene with Mickey Rourke is one of the greatest performances on film.

Speaking of best performances ever on film in a short span (maybe 90 seconds in this case), I'm eagerly awaiting to see if the film containing one of them hits @Ilov80s 's list for this year.

 

[Ilov80s]

That three minute scene with Mickey Rourke is one of the greatest performances on film.

Speaking of best performances ever on film in a short span (maybe 90 seconds in this case), I'm eagerly awaiting to see if the film containing one of them hits @Ilov80s 's list for this year.

Hmmm now obviously my lists are harder to guess at because it’s what I saw that was new to me which is very predictable. So I’m assuming you’re thinking about a 2024 film? In that case it’s unlikely because I’m so far behind in my usual theater trips. It’s been awhile since a year has ended and have I’ve seen so few new films. I hope to do some major catch up in the next 3 months though.