Last Movie You Watched

[Dry Brett Kavanaugh]

Hi Poju - I've owned that film for ages but have not watched in years - maybe if the Mickey Rooney character could be deleted - 

BUT, the music by Henry Mancini and Johnny Mercer, especially Moon River is still memorable to me (use to play the song on my accordion as a teen -  )  Dave

The character in question and Hollywood's constant search for ugliest/weirdest actors/acting for Asian characters have been debated several times in Japanese parliament.

[Cato]

Concerning Avatar: many thanks for the comments!

I share your reaction exactly - given its (the original Avatar) apparently the highest-grossing film of all time, I couldn't have been more underwhelmed.  I have no intention of watching the new one until it turns up free inside a breakfast cereal.  I think "it was blue" should be a new critical shorthand. 

What other films could/should be described by a single colour?!

Yes, despite nearly a quarter of a billion dollars (mainly for special effects), you end up with a quasi-average Western.

Except this Western was blue!   

I never understood the hype around Avatar. It is a visually beautiful movie, but otherwise I found it uninteresting and boring. I have zero interest in the new one. Modern big budget movies are rarely interesting (and try) to lure people into the theatres with LOUD trailers and well-known classic titles.

Amen!  And can previews with wanna-be-oh-so-dramatic BOOMING soundtracks become any more annoying?

Maybe It was blue is all there ever really was ....

Aye!  Maybe revisiting The Moon is Blue which was almost banned nationwide for using the word "virgin" (without being followed by "Mary") would have been more interesting!

I had two massive problems with that film:

Firstly, they start by saying and showing how dangerous the planet is, only to then have it become Disney-nice,

Secondly, main guy should have graduated into the natives by being accepted as their lowest, most novice, member - and treating that status as the honor it would be. Not their White Savior, ffs.

I feel like I also had a long list of smaller issues, but they've thankfully faded from memory.

Amen 3 times!  One of the "smaller issues" was a comment about the "weak gravity" on the planet, but that seems not to be evident most of the time!

Another problem for me was the cartoonish villain played by Stephen Lang...who was made to look like Jonah Jameson for some reason.

And a highly intelligent scientist will be puffing on cancer sticks c. 200 years in the future? 

How much money did the Tobacco Industry pay to have that placed into the movie?

Many thanks again for the comments!

[George]

Last night, several more DVD-Rs upgraded to HD streamers on Amazon:

The Year of Living Dangerously (1982) - short synopsis below; attractive stars in the young Gibson and Weaver; Linda Hunt's Oscar winning performance is special - 4*/4* review by Roger Ebert HERE for those interested.

Hi Dave,

Didn't see that film, but I enjoyed Hunt in The Practice.

[SonicMan46]

Hi Dave,

Didn't see that film, but I enjoyed Hunt in The Practice.

Hey George - worth a watch!  Dave

[SonicMan46]

Desperate Hours, The (1955) - another DVD-R > HD Amazon upgrade - synopsis and cast below which was somewhat complicated; first B&W film in Paramount's new VistaVision widescreen format - looked great on my HDTV - one of Bogie's last movies (he died in January 1957); March and Bogart excellent together (not sure that Spencer Tracy could have put in a better performance?).  Dave

The Desperate Hours is a film noir starring Humphrey Bogart and Fredric March. It was produced and directed by William Wyler and based on the 1954 novel and 1955 play of the same name, written by Joseph Hayes, and loosely built on actual events. The film takes place on the Northside of Indianapolis. The original Broadway production had Paul Newman in the Bogart role but he was passed over because Bogart was a much bigger star. The character of Glenn Griffin was made older in the script so Bogart could play the part. Bogart said he viewed the story as "Duke Mantee grown up." Spencer Tracy was originally cast as Daniel Hilliard. Although he and Bogart were very good friends, both insisted on top billing, and Tracy eventually withdrew from the picture. Fredric March replaced Tracy. The Desperate Hours was the first black-and-white film in VistaVision, Paramount's wide-screen process. In 1956, Joseph Hayes won an Edgar Award from the Mystery Writers of America for Best Motion Picture Screenplay. (Source)

 

[71 dB]

Amen!  And can previews with wanna-be-oh-so-dramatic BOOMING soundtracks become any more annoying?

My life experience tells me things can always become more annoying even when it seems impossible.

[Karl Henning]

It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World. Liked it so much, I'll watch again before returning this to the library.

[relm1]

It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World. Liked it so much, I'll watch again before returning this to the library.

Never seen it but remember my parents laughing uncontrollably as they watched it when I was a kid.  Will have to add it to my must see list.

[SimonNZ]

Watched this on tv last night and confirmed the high opinion I had of it from my first viewing.

Kind of hard to believe that Robert Zemeckis made a film with so many sharp edges and so uncuddly.

[Karl Henning]

I've always considered Avatar to be James Cameron's attempt to convince the world that all you need is stunning visuals to produce memorable and significant cinema.

I saw it in its initial release, and was unconvinced...

Speaking, admittedly, as one who was uninterested in seeing the actual movie on what screen soever, the enormity of its success completely baffled me ....

[Karl Henning]

It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World. Liked it so much, I'll watch again before returning this to the library.

Best banana peel gag (not shown in this video) I've ever seen.

[Karl Henning]

Aye!  Maybe revisiting The Moon is Blue which was almost banned nationwide for using the word "virgin" (without being followed by "Mary") would have been more interesting!

I'm still chuckling that they had to drop sperm to worm from the script for the 1961 film of West Side Story.

[LKB]

I'm still chuckling that they had to drop sperm to worm from the script for the 1961 film of West Side Story.

Well, in 1961 TV spouses were sleeping separately in twin beds. " Hell " and " damn " were almost never heard on American TV, and any programming which included even the most innocuous sexual situation had to do so via euphanisms and other absurdities.

I imagine Bernstein probably just rolled his eyes and muttered, " Sure, fine, whatever... "

[SimonNZ]

And women's sleeping attire was a sort of lighter fabric housecoat, buttoned to the throat and floor length.

I was reminded of that in a podcast recently.


And being on the lookout for bad chess in movies i was amused when the same podcast pointed out the following exchange from a 60s film:

"Check"
"You're bluffing"

[Karl Henning]

And women's sleeping attire was a sort of lighter fabric housecoat, buttoned to the throat and floor length.

I was reminded of that in a podcast recently.


And being on the lookout for bad chess in movies i was amused when the same podcast pointed out the following exchange from a 60s film:

"Check"
"You're bluffing"

(* chortle *)

TD: I did watch the Extended Version (I think they called it) of It's a Mad,  Mad,  Mad,  Mad World with the commentary. Part of my motivation was occasional mention in the other supplements of actors who are in the movie, but whom I hadn't marked: Jerry Lewis, Buster Keaton, e.g. Very informative commentary. I'm ready to set the movie aside for a while (enormous fun though it is.) The original motivation to seek it out at last was mention of it in a supplement to Stanley Kramer's High Noon.

[SimonNZ]

Bullet Train

Highly enjoyable silliness.

[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

So, now I've finished it up. Won't lie: at one point I paused it to make tea, and realized that there was another hour to go, and I was already a little genre-fatigued. Overall, I'll say I more or less enjoyed it, but could not bear to watch it again.

[SonicMan46]

Well, still doing some DVD-R > HD Amazon streamers - below three excellent films from the past:

All the King's Men (1949) - summary and cast below - Crawford great in a role made for him.

China Seas (1935) - synopsis below w/ cast; fourth of six Gable-Harlow films (she died in 1937, age 26 y/o) - surprised at the quality of the HD for such an old film - South Seas adventure with 'no stops' on the variety of plots and scenes (a lot of borrowing but still a fun film).

Jane Eyre (1943) - see last quote w/ Orson Welles and Joan Fontaine - Welles is superb and dominates the film; the Gothic, dark and gloomy, scenery is eerie and excellent.  All of these films recommended if you're into old Hollywood!     Dave

All the King's Men is an American drama written, produced, and directed by Robert Rossen. It is based on the 1946 Robert Penn Warren novel. The film stars Broderick Crawford, John Ireland, Mercedes McCambridge, and Joanne Dru. The plot focuses on the rise and fall of the ambitious and ruthless politician Willie Stark (Crawford) in the American South. Though a fictional character, Stark strongly resembles Louisiana governor Huey Long. The film won three Academy Awards, including the Academy Award for Best Picture, the award for Best Actor (Broderick Crawford) and Best Supporting Actress (Mercedes McCambridge) (Source).

China Seas is an American adventure film starring Clark Gable as a brave sea captain, Jean Harlow as his brassy paramour, and Wallace Beery as a suspect character. The oceangoing epic also features Lewis Stone, Rosalind Russell, Akim Tamiroff, and Hattie McDaniel, while humorist Robert Benchley memorably portrays a character reeling drunk from one end of the film to the other. The lavish MGM epic was written by James Kevin McGuinness and Jules Furthman from the 1930 book by Crosbie Garstin, and directed by Tay Garnett. This is one of only four sound films with Beery in which he did not receive top billing. (Source)

Jane Eyre is an American film adaptation of Charlotte Brontë's 1847 novel of the same name, released by 20th Century Fox. It was directed by Robert Stevenson and produced by the uncredited Kenneth Macgowan and Orson Welles; Welles also stars in the film as Edward Rochester, with Joan Fontaine playing the title character. The screenplay was written by John Houseman, Aldous Huxley, and director Robert Stevenson. The musical score was composed and conducted by Bernard Herrmann, and the cinematography was by George Barnes. (Source)

   

[SimonNZ]

Beter than I expected it to be, but still a pity that the director of Nomadland is putting her time and energy into a project like this

[Karl Henning]

Well, still doing some DVD-R > HD Amazon streamers - below three excellent films from the past:

All the King's Men (1949) - summary and cast below - Crawford great in a role made for him.

China Seas (1935) - synopsis below w/ cast; fourth of six Gable-Harlow films (she died in 1937, age 26 y/o) - surprised at the quality of the HD for such an old film - South Seas adventure with 'no stops' on the variety of plots and scenes (a lot of borrowing but still a fun film).

Jane Eyre (1943) - see last quote w/ Orson Welles and Joan Fontaine - Welles is superb and dominates the film; the Gothic, dark and gloomy, scenery is eerie and excellent.  All of these films recommended if you're into old Hollywood!    Dave 

I certainly need to see that Jane Eyre, Dave.