Last Movie You Watched

[SimonNZ]

[Madiel]

A Royal Affair



The story is extraordinary, and as far as I can tell sticks fairly well to the real-life events. In the first couple of years of the 1770s, Denmark was turned upside down. A mad king, and an affair between the queen and the king's personal doctor who was effectively running the country and was full of new-fangled Enlightenment ideas.

The one thing that really got in the way for me in the film, though, was the casting of Mads Mikkelsen. Yes, he's a good actor, but I just don't think he was right for the part. All the main players were younger in real life, but especially the real life Struensee. The age gap between Mikkelsen and Alicia Vikander just felt too big and stopped me from being convinced about the love affair.

[aligreto]

Leave No Trace





It is the story of a misfit who wants to live in the wilds and his daughter whose needs are becoming different as she is maturing. This was a very engaging and enjoyable film.

[Todd]

Antarctica: A Year on Ice.  I've never been to Antarctica, nor do I plan to go, but I figured it could be fun to watch a short documentary about what it's like to live there for an entire year.  It looks boring as hell.  And cold.  Real cold.  Yes, the scenery is breathtaking, the aurora striking, and the clear night sky reveals a panoply of stars and galaxies, but it's cold.  Real cold.  As in as cold as Antarctica.  An enjoyable enough trifle.

[Brian]

Antarctica: A Year on Ice.  I've never been to Antarctica, nor do I plan to go, but I figured it could be fun to watch a short documentary about what it's like to live there for an entire year.  It looks boring as hell.  And cold.  Real cold.  Yes, the scenery is breathtaking, the aurora striking, and the clear night sky reveals a panoply of stars and galaxies, but it's cold.  Real cold.  As in as cold as Antarctica.  An enjoyable enough trifle.

See if you can find the Werner Herzog documentary about life in Antarctica, too, which I've never forgotten because of the sequence about how penguins commit suicide.

[Todd]

See if you can find the Werner Herzog documentary about life in Antarctica, too, which I've never forgotten because of the sequence about how penguins commit suicide.

I may give it a shot, but do penguins really commit suicide in the sense that we understand it? 

[Brian]

I may give it a shot, but do penguins really commit suicide in the sense that we understand it?

No, but Herzog thinks so and tries to strong-arm an expert into agreeing with him. It's a delightful bit of Herzogian surrealism/philosophizing.

[Todd]

No, but Herzog thinks so and tries to strong-arm an expert into agreeing with him. It's a delightful bit of Herzogian surrealism/philosophizing.

OK, that makes more sense. 

Suicidal Penguins could be a good name for a punk band.  Young, angry guys in tuxes.

[aligreto]

Frozen II





Certain circumstances led me to have to watch this. It is rated 6+ so I said "Right, just about my level of maturity". 
This was a dark film and I truly believe that children that young would not really follow it. I understand that it was already re-written in part after the initial screen tests for that reason.
I do realise that the young children only want to see what's her name, the reindeer guy and the snowman fellow all of which are here in abundance.
I actually found it very enjoyable and engaging.

[steve ridgway]

Riddick. Frenzied and violent sci fi action .

[arpeggio]

As a gift my son got a subscription to Apple TV.

I just watched the latest Tom Hanks movie Greyhound which is about the Battle of the Atlantic.  Awesome.  Hanks wrote the screenplay.

[SonicMan46]

Paths of Glory (1957) w/ Kirk Douglas, Ralph Meeker, Adolphe Menjou, George Macready, Wayne Morris, et al; Stanley Kubrick, director - 4.5/5 ratings for video and audio restoration HERE - short synopsis below - one of Douglas' favorite films and one of the best 'anti-war' movies made - highly recommended.  Dave

Stanley Kubrick's Paths of Glory is among the most powerful antiwar films ever made. A fiery Kirk Douglas stars as a World War I French colonel who goes head-to-head with the army's ruthless top brass when his men are accused of cowardice after being unable to carry out an impossible mission. This haunting, exquisitely photographed dissection of the military machine in all its absurdity and capacity for dehumanization (a theme Kubrick would continue to explore throughout his career) is assembled with its legendary director's customary precision, from its tense trench warfare sequences to its gripping courtroom climax to its ravaging final scene. (Source)

 

[aligreto]

RockNRolla





This is a crime film set in London. It has serious crime undertones and yet there is a large element of humour involved. I like this genre and this film did not disappoint in any way. It is definitely worth a watch.

[Florestan]

A Royal Affair

Have you noticed that the Guardian blurb on the cover doesn't make much sense? A mad king in this movie, a mad king in The Madness of King George, all right, but where is the mad king in Amadeus?

[Florestan]

Riddick. Frenzied and violent sci fi action .

Far-fetched beyond redemption too.  .

[Madiel]

Have you noticed that the Guardian blurb on the cover doesn't make much sense? A mad king in this movie, a mad king in The Madness of King George, all right, but where is the mad king in Amadeus?

Ha. No, I had completely ignored that part of the poster. I think they were trying to connect the period setting plus intrigue and plotting.

[Florestan]

Ha. No, I had completely ignored that part of the poster. I think they were trying to connect the period setting plus intrigue and plotting.

Yes, I think that too but frankly they could have found a better match than Amadeus, for instance Marie Antoinette --- at least the latter is much more about royalty and their life than the former.

(Now it's me who nitpicks.  )

I think I've seen the Danish movie a few years ago. And now that I think of it, I know where I have seen Mads Mikkelsen recently: in a Carlsberg advertising. 

[Madiel]

Mads Mikkelsen is everywhere. Even my former Danish teacher jokes about how you see the same Danish actors all the time in their films and television, and when it comes to Danish actors with an international profile, the answer is pretty well Mads.

His brother is a damn fine actor, actually, but has never made the international transition.

[SonicMan46]

The Fountainhead (1949) w/ Gary Cooper, Patricia Neal, and Raymond Massey - based on book by Ayn Rand, who also wrote the screenplay - own as a DVD-R from the TCM channel; amazed that I convinced by wife to watch the film - she enjoyed.  Short synopsis below - Cooper & Neal attractive together - recommended.  Dave

Unconventional and arrogant architect Howard Roark (Gary Cooper) sees himself as misunderstood, having been openly criticized by writer Ellsworth Toohey (Robert Douglas). Taking a job at a quarry in lieu of compromising his vision, Roark becomes involved with rich, married socialite Dominique Francon (Patricia Neal). As he struggles to preserve his ideals and projects while competing for the heart of a married woman, Roark's reactions become increasingly complex and dramatic.

 

[drogulus]

Mads Mikkelsen is everywhere. Even my former Danish teacher jokes about how you see the same Danish actors all the time in their films and television, and when it comes to Danish actors with an international profile, the answer is pretty well Mads.

His brother is a damn fine actor, actually, but has never made the international transition.

     Lars played a villain in one of the Sherlock series, and he got quite a bit of international exposure from a big role in Forbrydelsen.