Last Movie You Watched

[Karl Henning]

James Hong

And what a filmography! The In-Laws and Blade Runner.

[steve ridgway]

Yesterday, I watched Plan 9 from Outer Space (1957).  Frequently cited as the worst film ever made, I was curious about it and it was on tv so why not.  It was pretty bad but had some charm which is all I could have hoped for.  Some of the reasons why it felt bad is just horrible production values, too campy, poor acting (the co-pilot literally is reading the script on his lap), poor...well everything is poor.  Seems like everything was a single take without rehearsal.  Don't quite understand why there is a vampire or vampira.  One thing I did like is the sun gun idea.  I thought that was quite interesting in the peak of the atom and hydrogen bomb hysteria to allude to the next generation weapon would be a photon bomb but since photons travel through space everywhere, it would destroy the universe. 

The beam of a Gamma Ray Burst might possibly vaporise a planet at a range of 200 light years.

[relm1]

Yesterday, I enjoyed seeing Willow (1988).  A very cute and fun fantasy film with excellent cast, fantastic score (one of James Horner's best), and good story by George Lucas.  I felt Lucas was channeling Tolkien in conceiving a multi-volume epic with trolls, faeries, hobbits (basically a race of dwarfs), witches, wizards, etc.  I liked Willow's character quite a lot in that he is a reluctant hero who accepts the call to help bring the young baby to her destiny while protecting her as best he can.  The side characters were all very enjoyable such as a young Val Kilmer as the rogue thief, those two small comedic faeries that were quite funny.  I loved the queen witch who was fabulous and over the top.  She looked very familiar and I realized the evil sorceress queen here:



...was the same beauty in the classic Twilight Zone episode, "The Lonely".



Overall, a fun film, and exciting journey with a lot of heart.

[pjme]

Un métier sérieux -  A real job

A 2023 film by Thomas Lilti.
A nice little film, almost a documentary on teaching in France - anno 2023.

Teaching is 'a serious profession', this French film does not want to leave any misunderstandings about that. For a year we follow a group of teachers at an ordinary, contemporary secondary school. They have to deal with difficult students, boring teaching material, overwork, conflicts with parents and colleagues. But fortunately there is also a lot of satisfaction in return.
Un métier sérieux fits in with films such as Entre les murs and Das Lehrerzimmer (both very exiting, dramatic films),  but has less to offer in terms of drama and tension.
Still a beautiful professional portrait, with lots of nuance and excellent actors.


Peter

[Karl Henning]

I'll watch pretty much anything involving Patrick Stewart.

He's a great heavy playing across Mel Gibson in Conspiracy Theory.

[Irons]

I'll watch pretty much anything involving Patrick Stewart. His renderings of Ahab, Scrooge, the knight in Excalibur ( Gawain maybe? ), even the minor part he played in Lifeforce ( which I'll happily admit to occasionally cherry-picking because of one of the other " actors " ) are exemplar.

And I would defy anyone to present a performance more astonishing than Stewart's in TNG's " Sarek ".

With the exception of his Yorkshire Tea ad.

[Cato]

With the exception of his Yorkshire Tea ad.

To quote Wile E. Coyote, self-proclaimed "Super Genius" :

"Even a genius can have an off day!"   

[Cato]

I loved the queen witch who was fabulous and over the top.  She looked very familiar and I realized the evil sorceress queen here:



...was the same beauty in the classic Twilight Zone episode, "The Lonely".

You speak of the great Jean Marsh, who gained fame in the c. 1970's British series Upstairs, Downstairs.

Yes, that Twilight Zone episode is a great one: it hearkens back, of course, to The Sandman, the malicious story by E.T.A. Hoffmann.

In her later years, Jean Marsh was also a villainess in Return to Oz:

[Papy Oli]

With the exception of his Yorkshire Tea ad.

I can't give enough likes to this one  ... The Dog and Trumpet makes me laugh every time...  

[Karl Henning]

You speak of the great Jean Marsh, who gained fame in the c. 1970's British series Upstairs, Downstairs.

Yes, that Twilight Zone episode is a great one: it hearkens back, of course, to The Sandman, the malicious story by E.T.A. Hoffmann.

In her later years, Jean Marsh was also a villainess in Return to Oz:

I hadn't made the Return to Oz connection! And of course, "The Lonely" has an exquisite Herrmann score!

[SimonNZ]

Un métier sérieux -  A real job

A 2023 film by Thomas Lilti.
A nice little film, almost a documentary on teaching in France - anno 2023.

Teaching is 'a serious profession', this French film does not want to leave any misunderstandings about that. For a year we follow a group of teachers at an ordinary, contemporary secondary school. They have to deal with difficult students, boring teaching material, overwork, conflicts with parents and colleagues. But fortunately there is also a lot of satisfaction in return.
Un métier sérieux fits in with films such as Entre les murs and Das Lehrerzimmer (both very exiting, dramatic films),  but has less to offer in terms of drama and tension.
Still a beautiful professional portrait, with lots of nuance and excellent actors.


Peter

Hadn't heard of this - or of Das Lehrerzimmer. Thanks for the heads-up.

Have you seen Bertrand Tavernier's film "Ça commence aujourd'hui" or the documentary "Être et avoir" on the same theme?

[Karl Henning]

Ken Burns' film, The American Buffalo. 

[pjme]

Have you seen Bertrand Tavernier's film "Ça commence aujourd'hui" or the documentary "Être et avoir" on the same theme?

I have it on DVD - but it is difficult to repeat the wonderful emotion and gentle magic that transpired at seeing this film for the first time. 
The film had -for a while - a nasty effect on the village :
"In no time, the small village of Saint-Étienne-sur-Usson and its 244 inhabitants, its two streets, its bar, its church... until then so peaceful, were besieged. "Everyone was after us trying to get even the slightest little sentence. Even the mayor at the time, Serge Coudeyras, was harassed on the phone at his workplace."

Until general fed up. The whole village then stood up as one man to protect "their" children."

I missed Taverniers film. 

[relm1]

I hadn't made the Return to Oz connection! And of course, "The Lonely" has an exquisite Herrmann score!

Nor I.  She was really good in Willow and I can see that she can disappear in her roles becoming the character.  Who knew she makes a great villain too. 

Yes, Herrmann was great at everything but even so, the Lonely was an especially effective score.  I can hear quite a bit of Prokofiev in James Horner's score to Willow.  Basically, Alexander Nevsky.

[LKB]

Nor I.  She was really good in Willow and I can see that she can disappear in her roles becoming the character.  Who knew she makes a great villain too. 

Yes, Herrmann was great at everything but even so, the Lonely was an especially effective score.  I can hear quite a bit of Prokofiev in James Horner's score to Willow.  Basically, Alexander Nevsky.

James Horner did some first-rate scoring in several films, but other films he scored make use of other's music, without attribution. So if you're hearing Prokofiev, it may in fact actually be present.

[Cato]

James Horner did some first-rate scoring in several films, but other films he scored make use of other's music, without attribution. So if you're hearing Prokofiev, it may in fact actually be present.

He also stole from himself: in a movie called For Greater Glory, which deals with a rebellion in Mexico by Catholics against the officially atheist government, I was astonished to hear more than a few snippets of the music from Braveheart!


Concerning Jean Marsh:

... She was really good in Willow and I can see that she can disappear in her roles becoming the character.  Who knew she makes a great villain too. 

I should have included Jean Marsh in my list of great character actresses!


Another name came up yesterday for inclusion in the list of great character actors: Harvey Keitel.


It is difficult to choose a movie for him: two Wes Anderson movies come to mind, one rather unlikely.


The Grand Budapest Hotel



...and...

Isle of Dogs

[Karl Henning]

Another name came up yesterday for inclusion in the list of great character actors: Harvey Keitel.

The last two movies I've seen with Harvey Keitel have probably been Taxi Driver & The Last Temptation of Christ.

[Cato]

Yes, Herrmann was great at everything but even so, (The Twilight Zone episode) The Lonely was an especially effective score.

We came across a copy of The Ghost and Mrs. Muir for a dollar.


Excellent, evocative score by our friend Bernard Herrmann: and the Captain's ghost was good preparation for Rex Harrison's later role in My Fair Lady. 

[Karl Henning]

We came across a copy of The Ghost and Mrs. Muir for a dollar.

Excellent!

[DavidW]

The last two movies I've seen with Harvey Keitel have probably been Taxi Driver & The Last Temptation of Christ.

I think his greatest performance was in Bad Lieutenant.  I'm not saying it is an enjoyable movie... it is really hard to watch... but Keitel delivers the performance of his career.