Last Movie You Watched

[LKB]

I just returned from seeing Steven Spielberg's latest film, The Fabelmans, and I loved it!  It's not going to be everyone's cup of tea (there is no spectacle), it's just a personal movie about a geeky kid who is obsessed with making movies.  But at a broader sense, it's a note to a younger self about pursuing your dreams and a love letter to parents.  It is so well directed (I guess Spielberg did his homework), acted (the kid who plays the young Spielberg so much embodies him but also the family and quirky friends and family), and told.  By the end of the film, it felt so personal and connected to any dreamer.  SPOILERS:The thing is, this could be anyone's story...but Spielberg happened to hit it big where almost no one ever will.  Then again, how does one define making it big?  I know some who've made it quite big and think themselves failures because they aren't as big as the people they compare themselves to.  I loved how this was handled in the film.  (SPOILER within SPOILER: crazy uncle's plight).  Though the film dragged a bit at the start, by its end, it was a very satisfying and personal film that lingers in my memory and clearly the most personal film Spielberg made.  He had to wait for his parents to pass away to make this tribute to them because his father didn't even know the full story in it, yet it wasn't about wrath or hate or revenge but love and passion, art, and dreams...a tribute to them without sugarcoating flaws.  A lovely, sensitive film.

A helpful review, thanks. 

[VonStupp]

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (2022)
Benedict Cumberbatch, Elizabeth Olsen

Good to see Sam Raimi back in the director's chair, and the inevitable cameo by Bruce "The Chin" Campbell.

VS

[relm1]

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (2022)
Benedict Cumberbatch, Elizabeth Olsen

Good to see Sam Raimi back in the director's chair, and the inevitable cameo by Bruce "The Chin" Campbell.

VS

I liked it too.  And love Sam Raimi...and Bruce The Chin. 

[71 dB]

I just returned from seeing Steven Spielberg's latest film, The Fabelmans, and I loved it!

Wow, you already saw it? The premier in Finland is February 17 2023! I have months to wait! 

[VonStupp]

I liked it too.  And love Sam Raimi...and Bruce The Chin.

I found it fun, moreso than what I caught last night:

Thor: Love and Thunder (2022)
Chris Hemsworth, Natalie Portman
Tessa Thompson, Christian Bale

Thor has always been jokey, but I found its non-stop farce exhausting. My wife tittered plenty, though.

An unexpected appearance from Bale, whose character reminded me strongly of Star Trek V: The Final Frontier (1989).

What does God need with a starship?

VS

[relm1]

Wow, you already saw it? The premier in Finland is February 17 2023! I have months to wait! 

Yes - probably to get it to quality for Oscar contenders, it must be in limited release before going wide. 

I found it fun, moreso than what I caught last night:

Thor: Love and Thunder (2022)
Chris Hemsworth, Natalie Portman
Tessa Thompson, Christian Bale

Thor has always been jokey, but I found its non-stop farce exhausting. My wife tittered plenty, though.

An unexpected appearance from Bale, whose character reminded me strongly of Star Trek V: The Final Frontier (1989).
VS

Disliked as well.  Loved Ragnarok but found Love and Thunder to be Loud and Ponderous. 

[71 dB]

Yes - probably to get it to quality for Oscar contenders, it must be in limited release before going wide. 

I see. Often we see movies here in Finland hours before the US thanks to time difference. Not this time. I was expecting this to come out in December (everywhere) for some reason so I was shocked to see the release date while surprised some of you lucky people have already seen it. 

[Dry Brett Kavanaugh]

Stalin. Robert Duvall, et al..   

[Karl Henning]

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (2022)
Benedict Cumberbatch, Elizabeth Olsen

Good to see Sam Raimi back in the director's chair, and the inevitable cameo by Bruce "The Chin" Campbell.

VS

I saw about the first 15 minutes by accident. I should really go ahead and watch the lot.

[71 dB]

Hereditary (2018)

A lot of noise has been made about this movie, but I didn't like it much. Not very scare and it feels very empty. There is not much plot under the creepy atmosphere. For me it was more important to see this than to enjoy it to know what the buzz was about. Turned out not much... 

Watched this on TV. It took this long (4 years of so) for it to be shown on TV...

[Madiel]

Servant of the People (2)



Which is completely silly. And won't make the slightest bit of sense to anyone who hasn't watched the first season of the TV show Servant of the People (it was made between the first and second seasons, hence the "2" in the original title because the 1st season of the TV show counts as "1"). But notable because you can watch Zelenskyy on the run from thugs while dressed as a Ukrainian grandmother.

[VonStupp]

I saw about the first 15 minutes by accident. I should really go ahead and watch the lot.

Some sly references to Evil Dead 2 and Army of Darkness that amused me as well.

VS

[Pohjolas Daughter]

Tried something very different from my usual fair last night:  a Japanese horror film from 1968 called Kuroneko (aka "Black Cat") directed by Kianeto Shindo.  Without giving too much away, it's set in a village in war-torn feudal Japan and has to do with two revengeful spirits and their quest for justice.  It's also in black and white.

PD

[SonicMan46]

Last few nights, an old Hitchcock favorite on Criterion and a recent Marvel comic hit, purchased as an UHD Amazon streamer:

Foreign Correspondent (1940) - short synopsis below along with the cast; teenage Day adorable - exciting early Hitch production.

Black Panther (2018) - brief review w/ cast below - watched this film on release and was impressed w/ the story and the graphics.  Yesterday, NPR devoted a whole hour to the movie emphasizing the tragic early death of Chadwick Boseman, SO selling cheaply as an UHD Amazon streamer and made the purchase - looked spectacular on my 50" HDTV (wish that I had room for a larger flat screen -  ).  Dave

Foreign Correspondent is an American spy thriller film directed by Alfred Hitchcock. It tells the story of an American reporter based in Britain who tries to expose enemy spies involved in a fictional continent-wide conspiracy in the prelude to World War II. It stars Joel McCrea and features 19-year-old Laraine Day, Herbert Marshall, George Sanders, Albert Basserman, and Robert Benchley, along with Edmund Gwenn. The film was one of two Hitchcock films nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture, the other being Rebecca, which went on to win the award. The film was nominated for six Academy Awards, but did not win any. (Source

Black Panther is an American superhero film based on the Marvel Comics character. Produced by Marvel Studios and distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures, it is the 18th film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). The film was directed by Ryan Coogler, who co-wrote the screenplay with Joe Robert Cole, and it stars Chadwick Boseman as T'Challa / Black Panther alongside Michael B. Jordan, Lupita Nyong'o, Danai Gurira, Martin Freeman, Daniel Kaluuya, Letitia Wright, Winston Duke, Angela Bassett, Forest Whitaker, and Andy Serkis. In Black Panther, T'Challa is crowned king of Wakanda following his father's death, but he is challenged by Killmonger (Jordan), who plans to abandon the country's isolationist policies and begin a global revolution. (Source)

 

[Karl Henning]

Tried something very different from my usual fair last night:  a Japanese horror film from 1968 called Kuroneko (aka "Black Cat") directed by Kianeto Shindo.  Without giving too much away, it's set in a village in war-torn feudal Japan and has to do with two revengeful spirits and their quest for justice.  It's also in black and white.

PD

Sounds very interesting, PD!

Last few nights, an old Hitchcock favorite on Criterion and a recent Marvel comic hit, purchased as an UHD Amazon streamer:

Foreign Correspondent (1940) - short synopsis below along with the cast; teenage Day adorable - exciting early Hitch production.

Somehow, I've not seen that one yet, Dave. I must be able to find it at the library!

TD: Naked Gun, which somehow I'd never seen before. Damn, but it's funny.

[Brian]

TD: Naked Gun, which somehow I'd never seen before. Damn, but it's funny.

Now you're ready to start an Enrico Pallazzo thread in the opera subforum!

[Karl Henning]

Now you're ready to start an Enrico Pallazzo thread in the opera subforum!

(* chortle *)

TD: Always good ... Stardust Memories.

[George]

TD: Naked Gun, which somehow I'd never seen before. Damn, but it's funny.

Indeed it is! Police Squad (the TV series) is well worth checking out, Karl. 

[LKB]

Indeed it is! Police Squad (the TV series) is well worth checking out, Karl.

+1

I had the DVD with all six episodes for years, and finally donated it to a friend at work.

Police Squad ( In Color! ) is awesome.

[Karl Henning]

Indeed it is! Police Squad (the TV series) is well worth checking out, Karl. 

+1

I had the DVD with all six episodes for years, and finally donated it to a friend at work.

Police Squad ( In Color! ) is awesome.

Noted, thanks!