Last Movie You Watched

[listener]

TEENAGE DREAMERS  Hong Kong 1983
Leslie Cheung (very early in his career), Chou Hsui-lan as the starlet
Teen-age musical romance with a school production of Romeo and Juliet as a back story
Awful canned music, lots of teenage angst.   Occasional subtitles, more might make it worse.

[aligreto]

A good Marriage....





Engaging and enjoyable.

[Karl Henning]

A good Marriage....



Engaging and enjoyable.

Do you know, thanks to my enjoyment of Kingdom Hospital, you have got me interested here . . . .

[aligreto]

Do you know, thanks to my enjoyment of Kingdom Hospital, you have got me interested here . . . .

Go for it Karl 

[Karl Henning]

Rashomon, even better the second time (not surprisingly).

[aligreto]

Beyond Borders....





A different take on a love story.

[Autumn Leaves]

Latest viewing:



Wasn't expecting anything too thoughtful or original with this one - essentially it was just a big Action/SFX fest.
Like Yimou Zhang's other blockbusters Hero and House Of The Flying Daggers this was a visually appealing movie with beautiful costumes and sets.
Quite good fun - may watch it again at some stage if the opportunity arises.

[Cato]

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.'

Here is a very positive review of Dunkirk:

http://deadline.com/2017/07/dunkirk-review-christopher-nolan-harry-styles-1202132557/

An excerpt:

...Anyone who ever saw Memento knows Nolan is a fan of playing with time and structure, incorporating a pulsating suspense factor even without spelling anything out for the audience. Again, like a true master of cinema, he lets it all come together in sometimes surprising but enormously effective and even emotional ways. With sparse dialogue and an emphasis on three separate angles on the Dunkirk operation, Nolan creates three smaller elements that lead to a much bigger picture.

In a compact 105 minutes, he takes what was in reality a nine-day effort and brings it all into focus, even without dwelling on a lot of character exposition or development. This is not a typical war picture in which we get much backstory of the men fighting it. We see them in action during a crisis where the goal isn't to ultimately show off a victory. Here the endgame is just to get these guys off this beach and take them 26 miles across the English Channel back home, a complex task. This is a movie that, in its quiet way, is about beginnings, a necessary operation just to live to fight another day, but Nolan and his expert production team have made it all riveting to watch and experience....

[SonicMan46]

Last few nights, a variety of films:

Cat People (1942) w/ Simone Simon & Kent Smith - short synopsis below - ratings: 7.4/10, IMDB; 93% Rotten Tomatoes - recorded on my DVR - Criterion has just released a BD of the film, so wanted to re-watch - good film but no need for me to buy the new blu-ray offering; however, kind of a 'horror cult classic' so consider a viewing, if not seen before.

Gifted (2017) w/ actors listed on the cover art - streamed from Amazon - short second synopsis below; ratings: 7.7/10, IMDB; 69% Rotten Tomatoes - Susan & I love these types of films (e.g. Little Man Tate), but this one had more to do w/ the custody issues vs. the brilliance of the girl - I'd do 3+*/5* on Amazon, and 4* if more emphasis was placed on the child - BUT, if you like this type of movie, then recommended.

Vera Cruz (1954) w/ Cooper & Lancaster - short third synopsis below - some great supporting actors (Romero, Borgnine, Bronson, et al) - this is a BD replacement for a DVD-R from the TCM channel - just a fun movie w/ nice interaction between the two main stars.

Fantasia - 1940 & 2000 versions - BD replacements for my older DVDs - 4.7 & 4.8 out of 5 AV ratings HERE - both films are beautiful on a HDTV and w/ the sound way up on my den stereo just outstanding - if you like these Disney productions, then a step-up to blu-ray is mandatory.  Dave

Irena Dubrovna (Simone Simon), a New York City--based fashion designer who hails from Serbia, begins a romance with marine engineer Oliver Reed (Kent Smith). After the couple gets married, Oliver becomes concerned about Irena's notion that she is cursed and may transform into a large cat in the heat of passion. Confiding in his beautiful assistant, Alice Moore (Jane Randolph), about his marital issues, Oliver unwittingly triggers Irena's curse, with tragic results.

Frank Adler (Chris Evans) is a single man raising a child prodigy - his spirited young niece Mary (Mckenna Grace) - in a coastal town in Florida. Frank's plans for a normal school life for Mary are foiled when the 7-year-old's mathematical abilities come to the attention of Frank's formidable mother, Evelyn (Lindsay Duncan), whose plans for her granddaughter threaten to separate Frank and Mary.

Following the American Civil War, veteran Benjamin Trane (Gary Cooper) and gunslinger Joe Erin (Burt Lancaster) are just two of many men who head to Mexico as mercenaries. When Emperor Maximillian (George Macready) recruits their services, they reluctantly work together, since the price is right. Trane and Erin are to escort Countess Marie Duvarre (Denise Darcel) to Vera Cruz -- but when they find a wealth of gold hidden in the stagecoach, the original plan no longer applies.

 

 

[Karl Henning]

Over two days (pausing at the proper Intermission), and only for the second time as yet: The Seven Samurai. I do not now why the first time impressed as little as it did;  this second viewing was a different order of experience, and now at last, am I bowled over 

[James]

John Wick
2014 ‧ Crime film/Thriller ‧ 1h 47m

Legendary assassin John Wick (Keanu Reeves) retired from his violent career after marrying the love of his life. Her sudden death leaves John in deep mourning. When sadistic mobster Iosef Tarasov (Alfie Allen) and his thugs steal John's prized car and kill the puppy that was a last gift from his wife, John unleashes the remorseless killing machine within and seeks vengeance. Meanwhile, Iosef's father (Michael Nyqvist) -- John's former colleague -- puts a huge bounty on John's head.

[asin]B00OV3VGP0[/asin]

[vandermolen]

We watched Dunkirk last night. I thought that it was excellent, especially Mark Rylance's performance, the aerial sequences and Hans Zimmer's pounding soundtrack with its moving use of Elgar at the end. A strong recommendation from me.
I very much agree with the review kindly posted by Leo above.

[Karl Henning]

Cool.

[André]

Surprise ! I thoroughly enjoyed this:



Of course expectations were at the bottom rung, and I was prepared to laugh a the tricks and special effects, but the story is tightly held and camera work is of excellent quality.

[Ken B]

Mulholland Falls

Mulholland Fails. This is a bit of a mess.

[André]

The unsinkable Jeanne Moreau died at age 89. The muse of Louis Malle, Orson Welles, Truffaut, Bunuel, her unique voice deep, raspy and her unusual looks defined French cinema for decades. I don't think it's too much to say she was the greatest french actress of her generation, the French Bette Davis. An unforgettable presence.



Jules et Jim trailer and theme song:

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=nEtiba8_gsk


https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=kjJqHF0mb_k

[Spineur]

Today was a real bad day for the cinema.  Not only we lost Jeanne Moreau but also Sam Shepard at age 73.



A great actor and a very good man.

[NikF]

Cat People (1942) w/ Simone Simon & Kent Smith - short synopsis below - ratings: 7.4/10, IMDB; 93% Rotten Tomatoes - recorded on my DVR - Criterion has just released a BD of the film, so wanted to re-watch - good film but no need for me to buy the new blu-ray offering; however, kind of a 'horror cult classic' so consider a viewing, if not seen before.

Good stuff. 

[SonicMan46]

Far Country, The (1954) w/ James Stewart, Walter Brennan, Ruth Roman & many other great character actors; Anthony Mann, Director - ANY FANS of the Jimmy Stewart-Anthony Mann westerns from the early 1950s?  Below is the list of the 5 'westerns' made (they did several others) - I own 4 on DVD or DVD-R (TCM channel burns) - unfortunately, inexpensive and 'good' blu-ray offerings seem to be missing, really sad since the scenery in these films can be remarkable.

Tonight, I watched the film above from my DVR - short synopsis below - the scenery was magnificent, exterior sites from Jasper National Park & the Athabasca Glacier (couple of images below from the web) - decades ago, Susan & I did a trip to Alberta and stayed in Jasper, road on the glacier, canoed in several lakes, visited Banff & Lake Louise, and ended up in Calgary - a wonderful experience. SO, I'm anxious to see these Mann-Stewart films converted to BDs - fingers crossed -   Dave

Bend of the River (1952) - DVD-R
Far Country, The (1954) - Not In My Collection
Man from Laramie, The (1955) - DVD
Naked Spur, The (1953) - DVD-R
Winchester '73 (1950) - DVD

At the height of the Yukon Gold Rush, cowboy Jeff Webster (James Stewart) and his partner, Ben Tatum (Walter Brennan), want in on the action, and decide to drive their cattle from Wyoming to Yukon. Along their journey, the two run afoul of crooked lawman Gannon (John McIntire), who vows revenge when they escape him. After traveling through all manner of terrain, Webster and Tatum finally arrive at their destination. But Gannon has business in the town, and he intends to make good on his promise.

 

[NikF]

Dave, I agree, the photography in some of those titles (including 'Fantasia' from your previous post) is wonderful; all these years later that three strip Technicolor still has an amazing impact when we view it.

And Walter Brennan - now there's a great character actor.