Last Movie You Watched

[Bogey]

Is it a guilty pleasure?  I mean, I can be your cover, by pointing out that I like The Shining  0:)

I went to see that in the cinema back when it was released, and I remember that being a fun night at the movies.  What a cast, for goodness' sake:  Harry Dean Stanton as "Brain," Isaac Hayes as the Duke of New York, President Donald Pleasance, cabbie Ernest Borgnine . . . and of course, Adrienne Barbeau as "Brain's squeeze."

Call me "Snake", Karl.

And I would throw gas mileage to the wind and readily trade in my Fit for The Duke's ride:

[Karl Henning]

That's definitely not moving at warp speed.

[Bogey]

That's definitely not moving at warp speed.

This enables folks to "soak in" the moment.

[zamyrabyrd]

Lawrence of Arabia

We watch that film periodically around here.
By chance I am reading "The Secret Lives of Lawrence of Arabia" by Phillip Knightly and Colin Simpson (1969).

[Karl Henning]

We watch that film periodically around here.
By chance I am reading "The Secret Lives of Lawrence of Arabia" by Phillip Knightly and Colin Simpson (1969).

I need to watch that 'un again.

[Cato]

Lawrence of Arabia



The epic in all of it's glory 

I need to watch that 'un again.

I have always thought that Claude Rains was simply outstanding as the droll, Realpolitikisch Dryden.  "Dry" is part of the joke, I would think!  0:)

[SonicMan46]

Lawrence of Arabia

 

The epic in all of it's glory 

For those who love Lawrence of Arabia and are into the blu-ray format, then I highly recommend the BD inserted above - partial quote of the opening video description quoted below - full review HERE - both visuals and sound are superb - a true 'demonstration' disc!  Dave

To be sure, no rose-colored glasses are required to see the greatness in the look back at Lawrence of Arabia, and now through the high scrutiny lens of Blu-ray comes an image that today requires only the gift of sight to see in all of its filmic glory. Sony's meticulous 4K restoration is not just a treat, it's a revelation and perhaps the definitive Blu-ray catalogue release, if not the format's finest presentation. It's a beautiful picture, to say the least, every frame lovingly cared for and displayed on Blu-ray with the sort of attention to detail and, indeed, flawlessness that a film of this magnitude commands. Sony's picture dazzles from the opening shots of Lawrence speeding down very well-defined pavement and past sharp and accurate foliage.

[SonicMan46]

Last night, an Amazon streamer that was on my 'to watch' list:

Kong: Skull Island (2017) w/ Tom Hiddleston, Samuel Jackson, Bree Larson, John Goodman, et al - short synopsis below.  Reviews: 6.8/10, IMDB; 76%, Rotten Tomatoes; and 3/4, Roger Ebert Site (review by Matt Zoller Seitz HERE - rather good for those interested).  I'm a BIG fan of monster movies since childhood and still enjoy watching - of the BIG APE films, I do own the original King Kong (1933), now well restored on blu-ray, and also bought the 'too long' Peter Jackson version on BD from 2005 and watched over two nights.

SO, how about this newest 'BIG APE' film?  Movie clocks in at 2 hours, the specials are quite good but overdone (at least for me), Kong the creature is impressive, and the other 'animals' on Skull Island impress - the 'love interest' w/ Bree Larson is only platonic (unlike the Fay Wray affair - ) - spoiler alert - Kong does survive and remains on the island.  Probably my favorite performance was by John C. Reilly, a WW II pilot stranded on the island for decades; in fact, I'd probably drop a star w/o him as the comic relief.  My rating would be 3+*/5* on Amazon - recommended if you're a monster movie fan who likes HUGE PRIMATES!  Dave

P.S. NOW - would I watch this film again - possibly?  Would I purchase the BD (2K) reviewed below?  Well not at the price asked but w/ a reduction and some Amazon credit, I might pick the movie up for ten bucks (streaming was $5) - will be interested in comments from others - 

Scientists, soldiers and adventurers unite to explore a mythical, uncharted island in the Pacific Ocean. Cut off from everything they know, they venture into the domain of the mighty Kong, igniting the ultimate battle between man and nature. As their mission of discovery soon becomes one of survival, they must fight to escape from a primal world where humanity does not belong.

[Bogey]

1947



A decent enough crime drama.  Like a number of films from this time, they use a narrator with an important sounding voice reminding you how real the movie is and telling you more than once that it was based on real events.  Classic film buffs will recognize numerous actors in supporting roles. 7/10 stars. 

[Bogey]

Huge sale at Kino.  Many more than half off.

https://www.klstudioclassics.com/

[Todd]

Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets.  Visually imaginative and very well executed - it's the next step beyond Avatar in terms of visuals - the story and dialog are very poor, and the two leads are positively dreadful.  It's hard to decided who is worse, the dude, who sounds like a dimmer Keanu Reeves, or the lovely Cara Delevingne, who can't even convincingly play a statuesque beauty.  One can see homages to all manner of sci-fi films and see the influence this comic had on subsequent sci-fi, so there's that, I guess, and the first person one sees is Rutger Hauer, which almost serves as the highlight of the movie.  Too bad there's not a twentieth anniversary touring edition of The Fifth Element this year; that flick is several orders of magnitude better than this dud.

[Karl Henning]

There is no good excuse to offer why, but last night for the first time I watched Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home.  Preposterous sundries notwithstanding, thoroughly enjoyable.

[SonicMan46]

Huge sale at Kino.  Many more than half off.

https://www.klstudioclassics.com/

Bill - thanks for the link; I've never been to the Kino Lorber website and was not aware of their 'sale' offerings - looking through the BD list, I already own dozens of these films, but will do a closer inspection along w/ my movie list (of course, always check the blu-ray.com site for quality evaluation - Kino seems to try to find the best material available to them but does little in restoration, but just my impression from viewing their discs and reading reviews) - however, I watched the Peck film below last night produced by Kino which received a 4/3.5 rating for visuals and audio - and I must say the B&W film looked quite good (on scene in Death Valley).  Dave
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[George]

Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets.  Visually imaginative and very well executed - it's the next step beyond Avatar in terms of visuals - the story and dialog are very poor, and the two leads are positively dreadful.  It's hard to decided who is worse, the dude, who sounds like a dimmer Keanu Reeves, or the lovely Cara Delevingne, who can't even convincingly play a statuesque beauty.  One can see homages to all manner of sci-fi films and see the influence this comic had on subsequent sci-fi, so there's that, I guess, and the first person one sees is Rutger Hauer, which almost serves as the highlight of the movie.  Too bad there's not a twentieth anniversary touring edition of The Fifth Element this year; that flick is several orders of magnitude better than this dud.

Given its name, I wonder if it is meant as a sleep aid.

[aligreto]

The Box....





Not exactly a "Mind-Blowing Chiller" but certainly an interesting film about choice and consequence.

[vandermolen]

Am going to see Dunkirk on Sunday so will report back.

The current issue of the satirical magazine Private Eye features, on its front cover, an image from the film of a packed group of British soldiers crammed together awaiting evacuation on a jetty and cowering down trying to avoid aerial bombardment.

A speech bubble from one of the states: 'It's harder to leave Europe than we thought.'

[Mahlerian]

Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets.  Visually imaginative and very well executed - it's the next step beyond Avatar in terms of visuals - the story and dialog are very poor, and the two leads are positively dreadful.

So, in that sense, about on par with Avatar.

[Bogey]

So, in that sense, about on par with Avatar.

It has to be better than Avatar....it jut has to be.

[Mister Sharpe]

Troubling, touching and ultimately redeeming (ooops, spoiler alert) 'real life' musical about the murders of five prostitutes in Ipswich and their effect on a community. Recommended.

[asin]B01HFRBJJQ[/asin]

[SonicMan46]

Well, a couple of new BDs arrived for my collection - viewed the last few nights:

Yellow Sky (1948) w/ Gregory Peck, Anne Baxter, Richard Widmark, et al - short synopsis below; filmed in part in Death Valley w/ a Ghost Town (see pic below) - 7.5/10 rating on IMDB - the Kino Lorber offering is quite good w/ an excellent B&W presentation; Peck is head of a bunch of bank robbers and gradually falls in love w/ Baxter - enjoyable western film - recommended.  I'd probably go for a 4*/5* rating on Amazon.

Night People (1954) w/ Gregory Peck, Broderick Crawford, Rita Gam, Buddy Ebsen, et al - second short synopsis below; 6.6/10 rating on IMDB - another Kino Lorber production which could have been better, especially w/ the visuals - only one scene showing the beautiful legs of Rita Gam (pic added below for a better appreciation - the film Mohawk is suggested) - I'd probably do 3+*/5* on Amazon if rating there - like Peck and the story; Crawford his usual self - also recommended.  Dave

Fugitive James "Stretch" Dawson (Gregory Peck) and his ring of bandits hide out in a town that has been deserted by its entire population, except for a young woman named Mike (Anne Baxter) and her grandfather. When Dude (Richard Widmark), the cruelest thug in the gang, learns from the two locals that there is gold nearby, he devises a scheme to knock off Mike and her grandpa, then gets his cohorts to go along with the plan. Stretch refuses, which leads to a violent power struggle.

A U.S. soldier stationed in West Berlin after the end of World War II is kidnapped and held captive in East Berlin. Col. Steve Van Dyke (Gregory Peck) is leading the kidnapping investigation, which becomes more complex as he is forced to deal with deceit, conspiracies and double identities. As Van Dyke begins to discover the truth about the case, he finds himself in a perilous situation -- even his closest ally, his former lover Hoffy (Anita Björk), may not be who she says she is.

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