Last Movie You Watched

[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.

[NikF]

Ok, tomorrow I got no Uni (my timetables are empty on Wednesdays this trimester) and the weather is shit, what should I watch tomorrow? 

There's a TL;DR

'Dark Star' (1974) Directed by John Carpenter https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dark_Star_(film)

'Atlantic City' (1980) Directed by Louis Malle https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atlantic_City_(1980_film)

'Cat People' (1942) Directed by Jacques Tourneur https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cat_People_(1942_film)

'A Serious Man' Directed by Joel and Ethan Coen https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Serious_Man

'Leolo' (1992) Directed by Jean-Claude Lauzon  https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Léolo

'Duck Soup' (1933) Directed by Leo McCarey https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duck_Soup_(1933_film)

'Les Ripoux' (1984) Directed by Claude Zidi https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/My_New_Partner

'Track 29' (1988) Directed by Nicolas Roeg https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Track_29

'Breaking Away' (1979) Directed by Peter Yates https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Breaking_Away

DOA (1950) Directed by Rudolph Mate https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/D.O.A._(1950_film)


Just the first titles that came to mind right now. And they should be easy to find.

TL;DR: 'Duck Soup' is one of the very few films I would suggest that someone should watch if they haven't seen it before.

e: links fixed
e2: or not 

[James]

Dawn of the Planet of the Apes
2014 ‧ Drama film/Thriller ‧ 2h 11m

Ten years after simian flu wiped out much of the world's homosapiens, genetically enhanced chimpanzee Caesar (Andy Serkis) and his ever-growing band of followers have established a thriving colony just outside San Francisco in Muir Woods. Meanwhile, a small band of human survivors emerges, which forces Caesar -- as leader -- to grapple with the dual challenge of protecting his people and re-establishing a relationship with the remaining human population -- the latter being Caesar's secret wish.

[asin]B00MH8DU9Q[/asin]

[SimonNZ]

I didn't know what to expect going in, but this was superb.

Had to watch this bit five or six times:

https://www.youtube.com/v/jbo5aF1ASXk

[ritter]

Watched this last night on TV5Monde (their improvised homage to actress Jeanne Moreau, whose death was announced earlier yesterday):



A beautifully shot French film noir (very French and very noir), where Moreau (then on the threshold of international stardom--the film is from the same year as Ascenseur pour l'échafaud) already displays many of the attributes that made her so special, and which led her to work with some of the finest directors of the 60s and 70s; her unconventional but very alluring beauty (she remained a very attractive woman through her old age), this sort of contained emotions that always seem to be on the verge of exploding (but never actually do so), her ability to change her usually cool and detached facial expression with an almost imperceptible smile, and a uncanny capacity to "fill the screen" with her presence (despite her petite size).

A pleasure to watch...

[mc ukrneal]

Amazingly I haven't seen (or even heard of) many of those, I shall watch at least 2 of those tomorrow. I shall be returning 

I love Breaking Away. Great recommendation. Ebert wrote (no spoilers):

"Breaking Away" is a movie to embrace. It's about people who are complicated but decent, who are optimists but see things realistically, who are fundamentally comic characters but have three full dimensions. It's about a Middle America we rarely see in the movies, yes, but it's not corny and it doesn't condescend. Movies like this are hardly ever made at all; when they're made this well, they're precious cinematic miracles.

[ritter]

I love Breaking Away. Great recommendation.

I too liked it very much when it first came out. Having recently been to Bloomington, IN (where my son is a student at the IU's Law School), I should watch it again... 

[André]

Watched this last night on TV5Monde (their improvised homage to actress Jeanne Moreau, whose death was announced earlier yesterday):



A beautifully shot French film noir (very French and very noir), where Moreau (then on the threshold of international stardom--the film is from the same year as Ascenseur pour l'échafaud) already displays many of the attributes that made her so special, and which led her to work with some of the finest directors of the 60s and 70s; her unconventional but very alluring beauty (she remained a very attractive woman through her old age), this sort of contained emotions that always seem to be on the verge of exploding (but never actually do so), her ability to change her usually cool and detached facial expression with an almost imperceptible smile, and a uncanny capacity to "fill the screen" with her presence (despite her petite size).

A pleasure to watch...

A very good assessment of Moreau's art !

[Cato]

I love Breaking Away. Great recommendation. Ebert wrote (no spoilers):

I too liked it very much when it first came out. Having recently been to Bloomington, IN (where my son is a student at the IU's Law School), I should watch it again...

It is a perfect lily of a movie! 

[SonicMan46]

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.

Hi NikF - the BD restorations of Fantasia are just superb and sound of CD quality - highly recommended to those wanting to upgrade!

The presence of Water Brennan in a film just enhances the enjoyment for me - for those not aware, he won 3 Supporting Actor Oscars from 1936 to 1940; I'm actually rather surprised that he was not nominated for more after that last one?  Dave

[Ken B]

Hi NikF - the BD restorations of Fantasia are just superb and sound of CD quality - highly recommended to those wanting to upgrade!

The presence of Water Brennan in a film just enhances the enjoyment for me - for those not aware, he won 3 Supporting Actor Oscars from 1936 to 1940; I'm actually rather surprised that he was not nominated for more after that last one?  Dave

And a rather famous song was written with his voice in mind to sing too, as he first performed it. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E3mAT-4FdP4

[Cato]

The presence of Water Brennan in a film just enhances the enjoyment for me - for those not aware, he won 3 Supporting Actor Oscars from 1936 to 1940; I'm actually rather surprised that he was not nominated for more after that last one?  Dave

It is amazing what sticks in one's mind!  Walter Brennan was the star of a television show called The Real McCoys which dealt with the (usually) comical adventures of a farm family, led by Grandpa Walter Brennan.

I still recall quite vividly his performance in an episode where one of the grandchildren has a school project: an aptitude/personality test to determine what sort of vocation one should pursue...or could pursue.

Grandpa at first is resistant, seeing no reason to take the test because of age and his decades as successful farmer, but eventually gives in.  When the results come back, and the list of possible occupations he could have followed is read to him, one of them shatters him: train engineer.  Walter Brennan's portrayal at this moment - a man devastated by all the possibilities of a path never taken - is masterful.  He confesses to a life-long desire to run a train, to be in charge of a locomotive with a mile of boxcars rushing through the country day and night. 

Like I said, that one scene was so masterful it has remained in my head for over many, many years!  0:)