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It's not your fault.
What was the last film you watched?
- Thread starter Mel O'Drama
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It's not your fault.
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I know.
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I see the title and think, is that RAIN MAN?
No, because the title is GOOD WILL HUNTING.
Oh...then is it FORREST GUMP?
I haven't seen those three movies - intentionally.
Despite Mel's positive review I'm still not convinced, and I also think there's something sneaky about Matt Damon. Maybe he's done that gay4pay thing a few times too many.
No, because the title is GOOD WILL HUNTING.
Oh...then is it FORREST GUMP?
I haven't seen those three movies - intentionally.
Despite Mel's positive review I'm still not convinced, and I also think there's something sneaky about Matt Damon. Maybe he's done that gay4pay thing a few times too many.
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I tend to conflate GWH with Dead Poets Society. It's that theme of Robin Williams playing a teacher-type character who influences young people. Which is what I thought GWH was all about anyway (and which it is, really).
And (surprise, surprise) I've never watched Dead Poets Society, so I may well have that all wrong as well.
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That must have been a shock.
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Miss You Already (2015)
Prime's description was tantalisingly vague:
And that's it.I didn't even try expanding the text (and this morning I've found out that there wasn't any more if I had). Toni Collette's name and the image of her and Drew Barrymore evidently playing friends was enough for me to click in.
Had I noticed the categorisation (International * Drama * Heavy * Heartwarming) or read up any more on the film, I may not have watched. Not as eagerly, anyway. Fortunately, I was able to watch it unfold organically, and probably for the first thirty minutes or so it would have been difficult to pinpoint what the film was about - beyond a general theme of "friendship" - because there were a number of different focal points.
These different dramas co-existing - relationships and strains; IVF; cancer; financial concerns - brought a soap opera element to it. There's also a kind of Beaches thing going on with the focus on the friendship from childhood on two friends, one of whom is overly dramatic with a narcissistic mother, the other being more grounded and with her own set of problems.
With and American and and America-based-Australian on the poster I'd simply assumed this would be an American film. It was a pleasant surprise to find that it was a British film, written by Morwenna Banks. This meant that it handled its subjects with a matter-of-factness and humour. It's not devoid of sentiment (ultimately, it's still a chick flick with Drew Barrymore) but stops short of mawkishness. It's the most graphic and brutally honest on-screen approach I've seen to a storyline about breast cancer, while stopping short of horror or clobbering the viewer round the head with facts.
The cast includes Paddy Considine, whom I've only really previously seen in Pride, where he was equally good. Jacqueline Bisset is Collette's high maintenance actress mother, while Frances de la Tour has a small-but-hugely-memorable role as a theatrical wigmaker.
Toni Collette is unsurprisingly brilliant, and the chemistry between her and Drew is wonderful. Before Drew was cast, Jennifer Aniston and then Rachel Weisz were set to play opposite Toni. I'm glad it worked out the way it did. Incidentally, Collette mentioned E.T. in one of her lines to Barrymore and I found myself wondering if that line was already in there before Drew was finally cast.
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Walk On The Wild Side (1962)
A trashy melodrama with some great Barbara Stanwyck scenes. She bitches, she blackmails, she slaps, and she lusts after her protégé played by Capucine whom I only knew from her supporting role in Joan Collins' SINS mini-series.
In this film, Capucine is almost the spitting image of Joan Crawford, with the high cheekbones and statuesque demeanour.
Most performances are a bit wooden and one-dimensional except for Jane Fonda who even ends up in a catfight.
A trashy melodrama with some great Barbara Stanwyck scenes. She bitches, she blackmails, she slaps, and she lusts after her protégé played by Capucine whom I only knew from her supporting role in Joan Collins' SINS mini-series.
In this film, Capucine is almost the spitting image of Joan Crawford, with the high cheekbones and statuesque demeanour.
Most performances are a bit wooden and one-dimensional except for Jane Fonda who even ends up in a catfight.
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Shattered Glass (2003)
Prime's solicit synopsis - presumably assuming the story be common knowledge - wasn't exactly subtle or spoiler-free, so I knew what this was about despite none of it being familiar to me. Not the film. Nor the events that inspired it. Nor even the publication in question (beyond perhaps hearing or seeing the name mentioned once or twice). This could have gone either way.
Fortunately, familiarity isn't required. I'd go further and say I almost wish I hadn't read anything about it beforehand. Still, though, it was fascinating to watch it unfold because of the way in which the film is constructed. I wouldn't say this is linear storytelling. There's a degree of flashing backwards or forwards, and by its very nature the key narrator is unreliable. Which is exactly why the story was worth telling.
It was no surprise this morning to read that the writer/director had screened All The President's Men for cast and crew immediately before commencing filming. I didn't consciously pick up on parallels with this film (even though I now realise they are glaring, especially considering each is an account of a then-still-very-recent controversy), but as I watched I did liken it to Fincher's Zodiac: another film which owes its style to to All The President's Men (oh - I've just realised Shattered Glass was some four years before Zodiac, which makes this film still more impressively pioneering in its scope). There were other films that sprang to mind as I watched. American Psycho was another due to the unreliable narrator element, and a key character unfolding before one's eyes... even Chloë Sevigny is here, once again playing confidante and loyal supporter of the unstable key character.
On that note, the cast is terrific. I was sold upon seeing Chloë's name along with Steve Zahn, since I find they invariably choose interesting characters and projects. Steve plays a fact-checker who is stumped when he can't find sources, and it becomes part of this intense chess game with numerous players all making different moves.
With Hayden Christensen's performance I felt torn. He's playing a real person, who I've never seen or heard, so it's difficult to know how accurate it is. He played him rather childlike and borderline whiny and monotone. It's also the least-nuanced performance. This morning I realised Hayden would have been perhaps twenty one here. He's interacting with experienced performers of whom he is generally the youngest, so it's a big ask. This morning, with the film still resonating, even though I still suspect other young actors may have played it differently - and probably better - I find myself feeling it might just be a better performance than I realised
The actors who did grab my attention as I watched were Hank Azaria and Peter Sarsgaard, both of whom were terrific. I've seen Hank in a couple of things, I think, but mostly associate his name with The Simpsons. It's a treat to see him turning in such a nice performance. His energy and charisma reminded me of RDJ at his best, which is no bad thing. Meanwhile, writer-director Billy Ray has said that the film really started working for him when he realised that Sarsgaard's character was the film's real protagonist, and it's a very satisfying journey to see him emerge almost from the background to become one of the most exciting and dynamic things in the film. The scene at the end in which he arrives to face his staff was unexpectedly powerful and moving because of how it was presented and because the film had sneaked up on me and won my investment without me fully realising.
I suppose this is a film about trust and belief, and the response to the betrayal of these. It's explored here in as fascinating a way as I've ever seen . The investigative element is riveting, with the characters so well-developed that even the most prosaic of moments becomes compelling.
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The Night Porter (1974)
Another one from the to-watch list, mostly because of Dirk Bogarde and Charlotte Rampling.
It's a psychological, erotic WWII drama, and because the motivations only make sense to the main characters it's a film with multiple readings.
While I understand the negative and emotional response to the film, especially from those who have experienced the holocaust, I simply can't catagorise The Night Porter as exploitative Nazi "porn".
I had expected it to be much more vulgar, but that isn't even the point.
The story can be described as an extreme example of Stockholm syndrome, or, from an erotic point of view, an extreme example of a sadomasochistic relationship.
Personally, I interpret it as the story of two characters who have survived the war; in Max's case because he got away with it, in Lucia's case because she didn't die. But to survive and to live aren't necessarily the same thing.
Max is dehumanised for the monster he became and he can no longer live in daylight. Lucia feels dehumanised for having been subjected to that extreme kind of depravity.
If it's not possible to move forward, if there's no cure or forgiveness, then it almost makes sense that they would try to find some emotional attachment in the only hellish reality they understand, no matter how sick it looks to other people.
A paradoxical love story, as it were.
Another interpretation is that, rather than having her revenge, Lucia's decision to voluntarily reenact that disturbing relationship gives her the agency that she lost once she was imprisoned.
She could even trick herself into believing that it's always been a matter of choice, and that the holocaust circumstances was only background noise.
Regardless of what the story is supposed to express, I found it a rewarding and thought-provoking experience.
It also shows that the war didn't end when the Nazis surrendered as we watch the escaped SS officers trying to bury their guilty conscience.
Just when you thought it couldn't get more evil...
The film has one problem: the vocal dubbing of the continental European actors. It doesn't have to be a problem if it's well done, but in this case it's so bad that it makes those actors look like amateurs, and sometimes it almost took me out of the story. Thankfully, these scenes are relatively short.
Charlotte Rampling looks frighteningly believable as the younger and skinnier version of Lucia - she looks like a beautiful alien - even more so because she made this film only four months after giving birth (according to wiki).
It's not a film for everyone but at the very least it should be celebrated for being unique. I'm going to add it to the growing list of "best of 1974".
Another one from the to-watch list, mostly because of Dirk Bogarde and Charlotte Rampling.
It's a psychological, erotic WWII drama, and because the motivations only make sense to the main characters it's a film with multiple readings.
While I understand the negative and emotional response to the film, especially from those who have experienced the holocaust, I simply can't catagorise The Night Porter as exploitative Nazi "porn".
I had expected it to be much more vulgar, but that isn't even the point.
The story can be described as an extreme example of Stockholm syndrome, or, from an erotic point of view, an extreme example of a sadomasochistic relationship.
Personally, I interpret it as the story of two characters who have survived the war; in Max's case because he got away with it, in Lucia's case because she didn't die. But to survive and to live aren't necessarily the same thing.
Max is dehumanised for the monster he became and he can no longer live in daylight. Lucia feels dehumanised for having been subjected to that extreme kind of depravity.
If it's not possible to move forward, if there's no cure or forgiveness, then it almost makes sense that they would try to find some emotional attachment in the only hellish reality they understand, no matter how sick it looks to other people.
A paradoxical love story, as it were.
Another interpretation is that, rather than having her revenge, Lucia's decision to voluntarily reenact that disturbing relationship gives her the agency that she lost once she was imprisoned.
She could even trick herself into believing that it's always been a matter of choice, and that the holocaust circumstances was only background noise.
Regardless of what the story is supposed to express, I found it a rewarding and thought-provoking experience.
It also shows that the war didn't end when the Nazis surrendered as we watch the escaped SS officers trying to bury their guilty conscience.
Just when you thought it couldn't get more evil...
The film has one problem: the vocal dubbing of the continental European actors. It doesn't have to be a problem if it's well done, but in this case it's so bad that it makes those actors look like amateurs, and sometimes it almost took me out of the story. Thankfully, these scenes are relatively short.
Charlotte Rampling looks frighteningly believable as the younger and skinnier version of Lucia - she looks like a beautiful alien - even more so because she made this film only four months after giving birth (according to wiki).
It's not a film for everyone but at the very least it should be celebrated for being unique. I'm going to add it to the growing list of "best of 1974".
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And So It Goes (2014)
This one pretty much does what it says on the tin. The poster - and particularly Prime's imagery of Diane Keaton and Michael Douglas enjoying one another's company - means there aren't really any surprises. It's one of those "let's pair up two reliable actors and see what the chemistry is like". Keaton in particular seemed to fall into this niche in the last couple of decades with a revolving door of leading men, and it always worked in spite - or because - of the safe predictability.
Rob Reiner directs, so there's a little more depth and heart than the average romcom and it does look very nice. There's a warmth to it all the way through. Tonally it feels different from A Few Good Men which I watched just last week. Curiously, it reminded me more of Misery, despite that film's oppressively icy cold aesthetic on location. This I put down to the small town vibe with its quirky characters. Frances Sternhagen proves to at least as much of a scene-stealer here as she was in Misery. Once again, she's smart-mouthed and insouciant, this time she he has a cigarette almost permanently in her left hand, elbow on the desk or table and forearm facing upwards so the fag is parallel with her face. This was her last role before she presumably retired around a decade before her death, and it's certainly a memorable one. I think I've only seen Frances in these two roles, and wouldn't mind checking out some more.
Douglas plays the grumpy old man none of the neighbours like: a kind of toned-down version of Jack Nicholson's character from As Good As It Gets (a similarity that dawned on me in the second half of the film, when I realised that they even sound a little alike). Truthfully, it's a role that would have been better filled by Nicholson (if they could have got him). I'm generally lukewarm towards Douglas. He's been in a number of projects that I've enjoyed and he's generally watchable enough, but I don't think of him as a great actor, nor do I find him particularly charismatic. This doesn't always read into on-screen chemistry. He had it with Kathleen Turner and Glenn Close (if memory serves. It's a long time since I've watched Romancing The Stone or Fatal Attraction). The chemistry between Douglas and Keaton is rather flat, though. Their sparring relationship worked really well up to the point of that clumsy kiss, after which it felt awkward. This was somewhat in keeping with the plot, but I just found myself thinking how they don't convince as a couple, even if their hard won friendship does work well.
Still, the romance was just one plot and it worked overall. The little girl playing the granddaughter was sweet (even if she did glance towards camera a number of times).
Keaton plays her usual slightly awkward, slightly neurotic, slightly emotional plucky type of role (if it's not broken, don't fix it). Her character is a lounge singer, and she sounds great. Really good. After being caught out with that We Are The World video I had to search online to check that it was Diane singing, and some evidence suggests it is actually Diane's voice we hear. In which case, brava.
Marc Shaiman's score is pretty, but there was one refrain repeated a number of times that was starting to distract me because it reminded me of a specific song I could not place. This morning, having hummed through enough of it to remember some lyrics ("it was a Sunday we buried you in the rain"), a quick search confirmed it reminded me of I'm Still Waiting by Jamie O'Neal.
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I'm pretty sure you've seen her in more roles than just those two, but I think she's mostly known (and therefore somewhat unknown) for her supporting/guest roles in countless films and TV series.
Tess Harper and Bibi Besch are also actresses who "were always there" without their respective names firmly attached to anything.
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I don't doubt it. I scanned over her IMDb before posting before, but on second look I've also spotted The Mist and The Laramie Project, and I dare say I might have also seen her in ER or Cheers or some such supporting or guest role which, as you mentioned, she seemed to do quite a bit.
Oh yes. Bibi's name came up not so long ago when I confused Georgann Johnson with Ellen Geer (each of those, like Bibi, being solid supporting players on series of a certain era).
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Man On A Ledge (2012)
It has the most descriptive-but-unoriginal title since Snakes On A Plane, and I wasn't expecting that much. I was pleasantly surprised.
The construction of the film is pretty perfect, with information given piecemeal to the audience allowing us to work out slowly what's going on while being kept interested by the characters and situations. It's much more elaborate than it first appears, but keeps things feeling simple by mostly focussing on one thing at a time. And just when the audience has caught up on certain facts, the story turns them on their head and reveals different motivations. Added into this is a "who can be trusted" element, and the thrill of a heist. When the strands come together it feels genuinely rewarding.
There is, of course, an over-the-top element to the film's grand scheme, much of which is really only there because it's cinematic. But with this genre it's really best to just go with it and not overthink.
There are a number of familiar faces, several with Marvel connections: Betty Brant, Ben Grimm and the Falcon are present and correct. And the main character looks very much like Peter Quill (but without the questionable church stuff and wanton destruction of revered mid-century modern homes and gardens). Elizabeth Banks had a kind of Farrah Fawcett look to her. I recognised the name but couldn't place her. Turns out I know her from the Raimi Spider-Man films where she had one of the most comic scenes of the series. Then there's grown-up Billy Elliott. Jamie Bell, attractive in a thuggish kind of way, brings a nice intensity to things. I haven't seen Anthony Mackie outside of the MCU, but his characters persona here feels almost identical to Sam Wilson, leading me to believe he generally plays the same likeable, amiable sidekick. Which is fine. Ed Burns is enjoyably villainous. One almost wants to boo and hiss whenever he's on screen.
This would probably have been great fun on a cinema screen, and would work well in 3-D (even though I don't believe it was released that way). It's not as traumatic as Fall (when it comes to creating acrophobia, nothing is as traumatic as Fall), but the sense of being in a precarious position at great height is tangible enough. It certainly removed any desire I may have had to even get near an open tower block window again.
The denouement feels very abrupt and very Hollywood, but I'll take it.
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The Conference (2023)
This Scandinavian dark comedy slasher satirises corporate characters and shenanigans while a bloodthirsty serial killer is creeping up on them.
I was instantly enamoured by the prospect of a dreadful team-building day which, in my opinion, is a real-life horror genre of itself.
In other words: The Office meets Friday The 13th, and it's kinda surprising that it hasn't been done before, as far as I know.
The interaction between the characters - and also the assortment of characters - confused me a little because I had misinterpreted the organisation they represented.
Once I got it it made perfect sense but it's possible that I've missed out on a few jokes.
The moment of the first kill instantly gives away what kind of "dunit" this is going to be which I thought was unfortunate.
The gore is hit-or-miss, it doesn't need to be graphically depicted torture porn but some parts in this film look somewhat obscured. I had to replay one particular kill scene three times before I could understand exactly what killed the character.
The park covers a relatively large area which reduces the tension of "being trapped with". On the other hand, it helps the main characters to be unaware of the bloody goings-on for as long as possible. If it happens too early on in a slasher then it's going to look like an exhausting chase.
By the way, and this can't be a spoiler, you will recognise the Escape Girl in the very first scene. By the way again, how many slashers have Escape Boys? I only know "Ash" from The Evil Dead and that isn't a traditional slasher.
I think The Conference would have been funnier if all the deaths looked accidental, only to reveal a schemer at the very end of the story (and then nobody believes it).
It's entertaining enough, mostly because of the characters, otherwise I wouldn't have watched all of it.
The pre-end credits scene looks surprisingly poignant and cinematic, I don't think I've seen it before, at least not in the slasher genre.
This Scandinavian dark comedy slasher satirises corporate characters and shenanigans while a bloodthirsty serial killer is creeping up on them.
I was instantly enamoured by the prospect of a dreadful team-building day which, in my opinion, is a real-life horror genre of itself.
In other words: The Office meets Friday The 13th, and it's kinda surprising that it hasn't been done before, as far as I know.
The interaction between the characters - and also the assortment of characters - confused me a little because I had misinterpreted the organisation they represented.
Once I got it it made perfect sense but it's possible that I've missed out on a few jokes.
The moment of the first kill instantly gives away what kind of "dunit" this is going to be which I thought was unfortunate.
The gore is hit-or-miss, it doesn't need to be graphically depicted torture porn but some parts in this film look somewhat obscured. I had to replay one particular kill scene three times before I could understand exactly what killed the character.
The park covers a relatively large area which reduces the tension of "being trapped with". On the other hand, it helps the main characters to be unaware of the bloody goings-on for as long as possible. If it happens too early on in a slasher then it's going to look like an exhausting chase.
By the way, and this can't be a spoiler, you will recognise the Escape Girl in the very first scene. By the way again, how many slashers have Escape Boys? I only know "Ash" from The Evil Dead and that isn't a traditional slasher.
I think The Conference would have been funnier if all the deaths looked accidental, only to reveal a schemer at the very end of the story (and then nobody believes it).
It's entertaining enough, mostly because of the characters, otherwise I wouldn't have watched all of it.
The pre-end credits scene looks surprisingly poignant and cinematic, I don't think I've seen it before, at least not in the slasher genre.
Mini-opening credits! , as if it were a 1970s soapy disaster or splashy Agatha Christie movie. But it also looks a bit weird because Ed Harris is the only one I know.
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Oh yes. It is rather Earthquake On A Towering Poseidon Airport looking, isn't it?
If it weren't for superhero films, I possibly wouldnt have recognised any of them.
Jamie Bell is possibly still best known for his childhood role as Billy Elliot (which I only watched for the first time last year). Kind of like Jodie Foster, he was one of those "old heads on young shoulders": essentially a mini grown-up who played his scenes as a person rather than a child, and it felt his adult screen partners didn't cut him any slack:
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Oooh wait a minute...that is not a remake of Billy Liar! Why did I think that?
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Well, they're both set in working class Northern England, so there's that.
But did Billy Fisher angry dance around his northern locale to The Jam?
By the way, you've named yet another classic Britflick I have yet to watch.
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I found it a bit whimsical and repetitive, but maybe you'll get more out of it than I did.
Tom Courtenay's preceding film - The Long Distance Runner - is actually one of my favourites of the British New Wave classics.
I really like how those dance moves act as the narrative. So that's going to be on my watch list.