Last Movie You Watched

[Wanderer]

Two classic films I recently saw at an outdoor cinema in Athens: Murder dy Death and Monsieur Verdoux. Both are favourites that I hadn't watched in many years. Outdoor cinemas are a quintessential part of Greek summer and they show both the season's popular and blockbuster films as well as classic and auteur films in a nostalgic jasmin-, basil- and honeysuckle-scented setting open to the stars (and sometimes, as in our case, stunning views of the Acropolis).

[Karl Henning]

Two classic films I recently saw at an outdoor cinema in Athens: Murder dy Death and Monsieur Verdoux. Both are favourites that I hadn't watched in many years. Outdoor cinemas are a quintessential part of Greek summer and they show both the season's popular and blockbuster films as well as classic and auteur films in a nostalgic jasmin-, basil- and honeysuckle-scented setting open to the stars (and sometimes, as in our case, stunning views of the Acropolis).

Lovely!

Curiously, I remember seeing Murder by Death in the cinema, when it opened.

[drogulus]

     Recently I watched Le chant du loup, a French film about submarines. I'm a sucker for movies with subs in them. The movie has this cool actor Reda Kateb, who you'll recognize from Zero Dark Thirty and a season of Engrenages, the great French cop show.

[Madiel]

The Scandinavian Film Festival is on here again.

Icelandic film A White, White Day (Hvítur, Hvítur Dagur) apparently got plenty of favourable reviews at Cannes this year. Personally I'm not sure why. Yes, I get that there can be a real artiness to all these uncomfortably long shots, but I've seen plenty of other films that made me more interested in what I was being shown. For me there were too many sequences that were just a bit tedious.

[Karl Henning]

Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story. I understand there's a yet newer biopic out.

[SimonNZ]

Didn't know anything more about this film going in other than that it won the Cannes Palm d'or, which was probably the best way to approach it.

Suffice it to say that my friend and I decide that not only was this excellent, but that over the next few weeks we'd be watching what ever we could by director  Hirokazu Kore-eda.

[aligreto]

Dr. Zhivago





I had not watched this in many years and I still enjoyed it.

[Karl Henning]

Orson Welles Chimes at Midnight

[SonicMan46]

Susan & I just returned from a 4-night stay at the Homestead Resort (last 2 pics below) in the Virginia Mountains (just a 4-hr drive) for our 49th Anniversary - probably our 4th+ visit there since the mid-80s - watched a few films just before our departure and one for me off Amazon last night:

Fugitive (1993) w/ Harrison Ford, Tommy Lee Jones, et al - watched w/ Susan and cannot believe the film has been around for a quarter of a century!  But, we still enjoy both main stars - of course, unbelievable escapes from the Federal Marshall service - excellent Roger Ebert Review for those not familiar w/ the story and the TV series years ago w/ David Janssen - recommended.

John Wick (2014) and John Wick: Chapter 2 (2017) w/ Keanu Reeves as the super assassin John Wick - synopsis of the the first film below - both streamed from Amazon for just me - these are ACTION films w/ Wick killing dozens (and dozens!) of 'villains' after him, and using all sorts of deadly methods, including pencils - of course, these are fantasy films but I did enjoy both and plan to also stream the new third one out in the theaters now, when available - however, will not be purchases for me - BUT, Reeves somewhat limited acting style (IMO - although I loved the first Matrix film) fits nicely into this role.  Recommended if a fan of this genre - read the reviews if unsure.  Dave

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.

   

 

[Karl Henning]

Susan & I just returned from a 4-night stay at the Homestead Resort (last 2 pics below) in the Virginia Mountains (just a 4-hr drive) for our 49th Anniversary - probably our 4th+ visit there since the mid-80s - watched a few films just before our departure and one for me off Amazon last night:

Fugitive (1993) w/ Harrison Ford, Tommy Lee Jones, et al - watched w/ Susan and cannot believe the film has been around for a quarter of a century!  But, we still enjoy both main stars - of course, unbelievable escapes from the Federal Marshall service - excellent Roger Ebert Review for those not familiar w/ the story and the TV series years ago w/ David Janssen - recommended.

John Wick (2014) and John Wick: Chapter 2 (2017) w/ Keanu Reeves as the super assassin John Wick - synopsis of the the first film below - both streamed from Amazon for just me - these are ACTION films w/ Wick killing dozens (and dozens!) of 'villains' after him, and using all sorts of deadly methods, including pencils - of course, these are fantasy films but I did enjoy both and plan to also stream the new third one out in the theaters now, when available - however, will not be purchases for me - BUT, Reeves somewhat limited acting style (IMO - although I loved the first Matrix film) fits nicely into this role.  Recommended if a fan of this genre - read the reviews if unsure.  Dave

   

 

Happy anniversary!

[SonicMan46]

Happy anniversary!

Thanks Karl - at our age, we had a relaxing time (no long strenuous mountain trails anymore), good eats (especially in the Village of Hot Springs), and even signed up for a Falconry introduction (couple pics of Linda, the falconer and a combo of us holding a Harris Hawk) - when we return will likely do an intermediary session w/ the birds (plenty of YouTube videos on the topic w/ some from the Homestead Resort).  Dave

P.S. the bird shown is a Harris Hawk and not a Falcon - my mistake (not a pro!) - seem similar but the falcons have more slender and pointed wings - some info HERE, for those interested - Harris Hawks are native to the southwest USA (and other countries) - Linda had 3 falcons, two hawks, and an amazing looking owl.

 

[aligreto]

Kieslowski: Dekalog, Part 3





This is a very absorbing film with a very simple and direct story line. The plot unfolds at a steady pace and the characters are very believable. There are some very fine and picturesque portraits of the main female protagonist included.

[aligreto]

Thanks Karl - at our age, we had a relaxing time (no long strenuous mountain trails anymore), good eats (especially in the Village of Hot Springs), and even signed up for a Falconry introduction (couple pics of Linda, the falconer and a combo of us holding a Harris Falcon) - when we return will likely do an intermediary session w/ the birds (plenty of YouTube videos on the topic w/ some from the Homestead Resort).  Dave

 

Nice idea Dave. I would like to give that a try sometime.

[Ken B]

Falcons make wonderful instruments of revenge. Just sayin'.

TD The Apartment

A very good Blu ray restoration. It holds up very well, even if the premise is (to pick an odd word that fits) obsolete. Wilder's last really outstanding movie, but I do have a real soft spot for The Private Life Of Sherlock Holmes.

[Karl Henning]

Falcons make wonderful instruments of revenge. Just sayin'.

TD The Apartment

A very good Blu ray restoration. It holds up very well, even if the premise is (to pick an odd word that fits) obsolete. Wilder's last really outstanding movie, but I do have a real soft spot for The Private Life Of Sherlock Holmes.

I need to watch that one; in high school, I played in the pit for Promises, Promises, which I understand was an adaptation.

[George]

Did the falcons have large talons?


(little movie humor)

[aligreto]

Locke





One man driving alone through the night in his car and he is speaking on his car phone with regard to two rolling situations that are simultaneously unfolding and are having a significant impact on his life. It may not read like it is worth your time but it is definitely a wonderfully engrossing and engaging film and it is most certainly worth a watch.  It does, however, require your full attention.

[ritter]

A visit last Saturday to a very well presented exhibition on author and playwright Ödön von Horváth (1901 - 1938) at the Deutsches Theatermuseum in Munich led me to order Maximilian Schell's 1979 film adaptation of arguably Horváth's greatest play, Geschichten aus dem Wiener Wald (Tales from the Vienna Woods).

[asin]3902568992[/asin]

I had read the play (and other works by Horváth) with enthusiasm in my late teens, and has also seen the film in the cinema soon after its initial release. Watching it again now, some 30+ years later, was a great pleasure. Horváth's text, combining the kitsch and sentimental with a very acid social critique, is excellent (no wonder the author is now considered a "classic", and is a regular presence on German stages). In a certain way, he's a sort of Austro-German counterpart to his near contemporary Federico Garcïa Lorca). Schell's adaptation is very engaging, transferring the piece successfully to the screen without betraying its theatrical roots. Some of the acting is also superb, with the curiosity that this was the last appearance of actress Lil Dagover, who had been in movies since the 1910s and had appeared in classics such as The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari).

Unfortunately, this (AFAIK only) transfer to DVD seems destined solely to the German-speaking market. The lack of subtitles in any language (not even in the original) meant that the Viennese accent and idioms required some getting used to for a fluent but non-native German speaker like myself.

[Ken B]

A Civil Action

1998, with John Travolta. A court case about contamination in Woburn Massachusetts. Not bad, could use some tightening. A slightly generous 7/10

[Karl Henning]

A Civil Action

1998, with John Travolta. A court case about contamination in Woburn Massachusetts. Not bad, could use some tightening. A slightly generous 7/10

I still haven't seen it, it was before our time, we've lived in Woburn some 20-odd years.

Thread Duty:

You Will Meet a Tall, Dark Stranger.