Last Movie You Watched

[Madiel]

The Wrestler.



It's always nice when something lives up to the reviews. This was a strong movie, set in a world I wouldn't expect to care about but I cared about Mickey Rourke and Marisa Tomei.

[greg]

Watched 10 Cloverfield Lane and The Cloverfield Paradox.

The former being a highly suspenseful thriller and the latter being a very difficult, but interesting, plot. Both waaaay different from the first one, and also way different than each other. But still the same consistent tone of trying to figure out the underlying truth of what is actually going on.

Such an awesome movie trilogy. Seems it still keeps you in the dark about the commonality between the three movies, though, other than the obvious aspects that you can observe.

[Christo]

Roma, by Mexican film maker Alfonso Cuarón. An incredible dive into the early 1970s, with all details fitting; and an every day's life story that convinces enough:

[SonicMan46]

Sweet Smell of Success (1957) w/ Burt Lancaster, Tony Curtis, et al - features the Chico Hamilton Quintet - synopsis below; the interaction of Burt and Tony, both 'dirt balls' is excellent - I enjoyed but Susan wasn't enthralled - recommended if the description below is of interest.

Songcatcher (2000) w/ Janet McTeer, Aidan Quinn and many others, including Taj Mahal & Iris DeMent - synopsis below - although reviews were somewhat mixed on release, we love this movie - filmed around Asheville and the North Carolina mountains, just 'close to home' for us.  The musical performances are the highlight in my mind - more at the link.  Dave

Sweet Smell of Success is a 1957 film noir drama film directed by Alexander Mackendrick, starring Burt Lancaster, Tony Curtis, Susan Harrison, and Martin Milner. The shadowy noir cinematography filmed on location in New York City was shot by James Wong Howe. The musical score was arranged and conducted by Elmer Bernstein and the film also features jazz performances by the Chico Hamilton Quintet. The film tells the story of powerful and sleazy newspaper columnist J.J. Hunsecker (based on Walter Winchell) who uses his connections to ruin his sister's relationship with a man he deems unworthy of her. Despite a poorly received preview screening, the film has greatly improved in stature and is now highly acclaimed by film critics, particularly for its cinematography and screenplay. In 1993, the film was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant."(edited  Source)

Songcatcher is a 2000 drama film directed by Maggie Greenwald. It is about a musicologist researching and collecting Appalachian folk music in the mountains of western North Carolina. Although Songcatcher is a fictional film, it is loosely based on the work of Olive Dame Campbell, founder of the John C. Campbell Folk School in Brasstown, North Carolina, and that of the English folk song collector Cecil Sharp, portrayed at the end of the film as professor Cyrus Whittle. (Source)

 

[Karl Henning]

Once again, Uma Thurman has killed Bill.

[SurprisedByBeauty]

Well, we watched a number of 'Christmas Holiday' films but Susan wanted something about New Years, so she selected the one below, which we streamed from Amazon:

After the Thin Man (1936) w/ William Powell, Myrna Loy, James Stewart, and of course, Asta, their dog - short synopsis below, first quote - based on the novel, The Thin Man by Dashiell Hammett (see second quote); this is the second of 6 'Thin Man Films' made w/ the co-stars from 1934-1947, all quite entertaining - events occur around New Year's Eve w/ nightclub scenes, etc. - recommended, especially if you have not seen the 'chemistry' between Powell and Loy in these detective films.  Dave

We watched that, a few nights ago. Boy... if it weren't for Powell and Loy, it would probably be a stinker. The more often I see James Stewart, the more convinced I am that he really _was_ a lousy actor. That goshdarn whiney, oily, dawdling, mouth-full-of-marbles voice of his, medium-full of righteous pity, and the hang-dog look: He can be really quite insufferable -- unless he's in a tight, tight script. (Vertigo, for example.)

Still, I'm not sure if now I don't want to watch the other "Thin Man" bits, after all. :-) I'm conflicted.

[André]

Roma, by Mexican film maker Alfonso Cuarón. An incredible dive into the early 1970s, with all details fitting; and an every day's life story that convinces enough:

A great movie indeed.

[Papy Oli]

Bridget Jones, Edge of Reason & It's a Wonderful Life.

[SonicMan46]

We watched that, a few nights ago. Boy... if it weren't for Powell and Loy, it would probably be a stinker. The more often I see James Stewart, the more convinced I am that he really _was_ a lousy actor. That goshdarn whiney, oily, dawdling, mouth-full-of-marbles voice of his, medium-full of righteous pity, and the hang-dog look: He can be really quite insufferable -- unless he's in a tight, tight script. (Vertigo, for example.)

Still, I'm not sure if now I don't want to watch the other "Thin Man" bits, after all. :-) I'm conflicted.

Hi Jens - the chemistry between Powell & Loy was special, assume the reason a half dozen films were made - I've seen them all and that main star relationship remains strong; however, after seeing the second one, my wife was not interested in continuing on w/ the series, so a 'conflicted' family here in North Carolina! 

About James Stewart, I own many of his films from the famous early ones (Destry Rides Again, Little Shop Around..Corner, Mr. Smith...Washington, It's Wonderful Life) to the later '50s Westerns he made w/ Anthony Mann - not sure how many to these you may have seen but he was and remains a favorite of his many fans.  Dave

[milk]

[Karl Henning]

Great fun!

For me, cinematic comfort food: Stardust Memories.

[Karl Henning]

Francis Ford Coppola's commentary upon The Godfather

(* typo *)

[SonicMan46]

Last Hunt, The (1956) w/ Stewart Granger, Robert Taylor, Lloyd Nolan, Debra Paget, & Russ Tamblyn - new BD acquisition and a film not seen in likely 40+ years!  Filmed mainly in South Dakota in the Badlands National Park & Custer State Park w/ beautiful landscapes; excellent AV restoration so worth a watch just for the scenery.  According to the Wiki quote below, buffalo were actually killed, as explained.  Also watching the film coincided w/ an order of buffalo filet mignon & elk tenderloin being shipped from Jackson Hole Buffalo Meat Co., a healthy alternate to beef. 

First Blood (1982) w/ Sylvester Stallone, Brian Dennehy, and Richard Crenna.  Now I already own this film (the only Rambo movie that I like) on an older BD but for the holidays we treated ourselves to a new 49" Sony 4K HDTV, so decided just to make an inexpensive purchase of Amazon's 4K version which looked beautiful on the new TV and a definite improvement over my rather darkish & drab BD - may make some other 4K digital streaming buys - don't own a 4K BD player (yet) and certainly do not plan to replace my 500+ BDs any time soon at my age!  Dave

Sandy McKenzie (Stewart Granger) sets out on his last hunt with his new partner, the obsessive Charles Gilson (Robert Taylor). While McKenzie has grown tired of buffalo hunting, Gilson derives a pleasure from his "stands" – killing an entire herd of buffalo at one time. When Gilson chases down and kills an Indian raiding party, he takes an Indian woman and her child captive. The presence of the native woman causes tension and Gilson becomes increasingly paranoid and deranged, leading to a stand-off between the two former partners.  Eighty percent of the movie was shot on location at the Badlands National Park and Custer State Park in South Dakota during the then-annual "thinning" of the buffalo herd. Actual footage of buffalo being shot and killed (by government marksmen) was used for the film. Harvey Lancaster of Custer was the main marksman for the filming. (edited - Source)

 

[drogulus]

don't own a 4K BD player (yet) and certainly do not plan to replace my 500+ BDs any time soon at my age!  Dave

     You can buy a used Oppo 203 for as little as $1000.

[SonicMan46]

     You can buy a used Oppo 203 for as little as $1000.

LOL -    Might as well buy a new one! But, not planning to purchase 4K discs - if I changed my mind, my spending budget would be much more modest - from Crutchfield again, I was 'eyeing' the model shown below - have $55 credit there so for $150, I could consider a purchase - would be nice to have just a handful of physical 4K media to show off the new TV?       Dave

[drogulus]

LOL -    Might as well buy a new one! But, not planning to purchase 4K discs - if I changed my mind, my spending budget would be much more modest - from Crutchfield again, I was 'eyeing' the model shown below - have $55 credit there so for $150, I could consider a purchase - would be nice to have just a handful of physical 4K media to show off the new TV?       Dave

     Oppo discontinued the player in 2017. That's why it's so expensive. The Sony would be a good choice, as it's on all the "best 4k player that's not an Oppo" lists.

[Karl Henning]

Last night, The Godfather

Tonight, Francis Ford Coppola's commentary upon The Godfather, Part II

[DavidW]

I own the Oppo 203, I had to have it serviced twice in a matter of months.  My older 103 never had any problems at all, and I still have it.

I replaced the 203 with a Panasonic player which is excellent.  It has the ability to detect edges and apply anti-aliasing which makes upscaled dvds look very crisp.  Better than I thought was possible.

Anyway I watched Promising Young Woman which was a great movie with a brutal ending.

[SonicMan46]

LOL -    Might as well buy a new one! But, not planning to purchase 4K discs - if I changed my mind, my spending budget would be much more modest - from Crutchfield again, I was 'eyeing' the model shown below - have $55 credit there so for $150, I could consider a purchase - would be nice to have just a handful of physical 4K media to show off the new TV?       Dave

 

Well guys - went ahead and ordered the Sony 4K player above - features, reviews, & price fit my 'comfort zone' - also bought the cable inserted above - my older HDMI cable likely did not meet the standards of the new BD player nor my new Sony 4K HDTV - Dave

[DavidW]

Well guys - went ahead and ordered the Sony 4K player above - features, reviews, & price fit my 'comfort zone' - also bought the cable inserted above - my older HDMI cable likely did not meet the standards of the new BD player nor my new Sony 4K HDTV - Dave

Enjoy Dave!  And don't forget to pick up some 4k discs to watch.