Last Movie You Watched

[nickcar]

this almost looping these days .,,.. about two years when paul walker was gone. the forever fast & furious 7, forever classic and eternal

[listener]

from my Shaw collection, THE JADE-FACED ASSASSIN   HK 1970   dir. Yen Chuan
...a lady warrior raises the son of the swordsman who scorned her, but arranges to have his sister raised by his sworn enemy, hoping to make the unknowing twins kill each other in a death duel.  A nice part for Fan Mei-Sheng lifts the middle when the going gets really complicated.
Lots of wire work (like the flying effects in a stage version of Peter Pan)

[Brahmsian]

Strongly recommended (as is director's accompanying commentary).

[asin]B00UHAJ0MW[/asin]

Hmm, thanks for the recommendation.  I will add to my Netflix list. 

[Brahmsian]

Deborah Harry (Blondie) is still performing, age 70. Patti Smith, 68. Emmylou Harris, 68. Lucinda Williams, 62. Heart's Ann Wilson (65) and Nancy Wilson (61) are still rocking. Don't be an ageist, Dave 

Sarge

You forgot to mention Kate Bush (57).  I think she is one of your favourites, Sarge? 

[ZauberdrachenNr.7]

Hmm, thanks for the recommendation.  I will add to my Netflix list. 

One of the most haunting, troubling films I've seen in my over (Bergman-ridden) six decades.  Watched it three times; the commentary twice.  Acting is consummate and sometimes authentically inebriated! The Russian landscape is worth the price of admission alone. Zvyagintsev is a director who takes some chances : while I don't agree always, in practice, with what one might term his 'cinematic strategy' I do in principle, which is to deliberately create a field for viewers'  own insights and conclusions.  This film is like a thing alive with all its mystery, beauty, ugliness and ambiguity. 

[North Star]

One of the most haunting, troubling films I've seen in my over six decades.  Watched it three times; the commentary twice.  Acting is consummate and sometimes authentically inebriated! The Russian landscape is worth the price of admission alone. Zvyagintsev is a director who takes some chances : while I don't agree always, in practice, with what one might term his 'cinematic strategy' I do in principle, which is to deliberately create a field for viewers'  own insights and conclusions.  This film is like a thing alive with all its mystery, beauty, ugliness and ambiguity.

Sounds good. I thought very well of his first movie, The Return. Elena and especially Banishment a bit less, but I definitely will want to see what he's done now.

[SimonNZ]

Chronicle of the long relationship between writer Christopher Isherwood and much younger artist Don Bachardy.

More about Don than Chris, told largely from his perspective, mostly from direct interviews and voice overs. A very successful and sympathetic "portrait of a marriage", if less so as a portrait of either artist or insight into their art.

[Sergeant Rock]

You forgot to mention Kate Bush (57).  I think she is one of your favourites, Sarge? 

She is...but at 57 she's still a kid, and for that reason, she doesn't count   

Sarge

[SonicMan46]

Tonight watching some old films on my DVR off the TCM channel:

State of the Union (1948) w/ Spencer Tracy, Katherine Hepburn, Van Johnson, Angela Lansbury, and Adolphe Menjou; Frank Capra, Director - short synopsis first quote below - great cast - don't believe that I've seen this film before but quite entertaining - worth a watch if available to you - recommended.

Kim (1950) w/ Errol Flynn, Dean Stockwell, and Paul Lucas; longer synopsis in second quote below - excellent technicolor film w/ Stockwell doing a great job - Kipling story and enjoyable - also recommended.  Dave

Kay Thordyke loves Grant Matthews and helps him become Republican nominee for President. The party machine begins to worry as Grant begins to speak for himself. At an important dinner his wife Mary condemns corrupt politicians and Grant learns to speak out even more boldly..

Kim, a young boy living on his own on the streets of India, is actually the son of a British officer. He meets a lama, a holy man, and devotes himself to his tending. But when British administrators discover his birthright, he is placed in a British school. His nature, however, is opposed to the regimentation expected for the son of a British soldier, and he rebels. His familiarity with Indian life and his ability to pass as an Indian child allows him to function as a spy for the British as they attempt to thwart revolution and invasion of India. Rejoining his holy man, Kim (with the help of daring adventurer Mahbub Ali) takes on a dangerous mission.

 

[Karl Henning]

Hi Karl - one of our favorite Woody Allen films - have always loved the use of B&W and the blu-ray release is simply spectacular (below a partial quote of the video description from HERE) - hard to believe the movie was made in 1979!  Enjoy - Dave

Hoy, Dave . . . I've finally taken the plunge and bought a Blu-ray player, and Manhattan is one of the first three Blu-ray titles I've ordered, to christen the appliance.

Filming

Allen talked to cinematographer Gordon Willis about how fun it would be to shoot the film in black and white, Panavision aspect ratio (2.35:1) because it would give "a great look at New York City, which is sort of one of the characters in the film". Allen decided to shoot his film in black and white because that's how he remembers it from when he was small. "Maybe it's a reminiscence from old photographs, films, books and all that. But that's how I remember New York." He always heard Gershwin music with it, too. In Manhattan he really thinks that he and cinematographer Gordon Willis – succeeded in showing the city. "When seeing it there on that big screen, it's really decadent". The picture was shot on location with the exception of some of the scenes in the planetarium which were filmed on a set.

The bridge shot

The famous bridge shot was done at five in the morning. The production had to bring their own bench as there were no park benches at the location. The bridge had two sets of necklace lights on a timer controlled by the city. When the sun came up, the bridge lights went off. Willis made arrangements with the city to leave the lights on and that he would let them know when they got the shot. Afterwards, they could be turned off. As they started to shoot the scene, one string of bridge lights went out, and Allen was forced to use that take.

After finishing the film, Allen was very unhappy with it and asked United Artists not to release it. He offered to make a film for free instead. He later said, "I just thought to myself, 'At this point in my life, if this is the best I can do, they shouldn't give me money to make movies.'"

[SonicMan46]

Hoy, Dave . . . I've finally taken the plunge and bought a Blu-ray player, and Manhattan is one of the first three Blu-ray titles I've ordered, to christen the appliance.

Hi Karl - great! Blu-ray players are so inexpensive these days and backward compatible w/ so many optical media formats - hope that your enjoy the restoration on Manhattan - Dave

[Karl Henning]

Hi Karl - great! Blu-ray players are so inexpensive these days and backward compatible w/ so many optical media formats - hope that your enjoy the restoration on Manhattan - Dave

This device certainly costs less than the first DVD player we bought!  And I'll be able to connect my laptop to it via the miracle of Bluetooth . . . so many toys . . . .

[aligreto]

This device certainly costs less than the first DVD player we bought!  And I'll be able to connect my laptop to it via the miracle of Bluetooth . . . so many toys . . . .

Toys for big boys......enjoy 

[Karl Henning]

I'll break open the toy tomorrow.

This week I've watched (via the old technology ) I Am Legend (Robert Neville had a particularly bad birthday, that year), Gravity (should have known, given that title, that we would find our way to earth at last) and "The Doorbell Rang" from A Nero Wolfe Mystery.


My old choir buddy David Frieze tells me I should watch a Vincent Price movie which (I presume) is also based on the Matheson novel.  The library copy is the 2-disc set with the theatrical release with "the controversial alternate ending";  I watched the "regular" ending first, upbeat, a nice heroic tone . . . the alternate ending I found less satisfying on a couple of counts, I wanted to hum along, "they called it zombie love" . . . that whole and the zombies stood down notion I found a bit puzzling (I only watched the ending, though, perhaps earlier in the movie the script makes it somehow logical), and everyone driving off to Vermont together as a cozy family, felt anti-climactic to me, undercutting the title.

[SonicMan46]

Well, I still had a couple of old movies on my DVR, so decided to watch a few tonight:

Border Incident (1949) w/ Ricardo Montalban, George Murphy, & Howard Da Silva; Anthony Mann, director - first synopsis below - rating 7/10, IMDB - first time watch and enjoyed - amazing how long Montalban's career lasted from these early movies through TV and on as Khan in Star Trek!

The Cincinnati Kid (1965) w/ Steve McQueen, Ann-Margret, Karl Malden, Tuesday Weld, & Edward G. Robinson - second synopsis - rating 7.3/10, IMDB - takes place in New Orleans - the two gals were in their gorgeous primes - enjoyable film which I do not own (looks like the BD is out from the image I found below) but probably will not add to my collection.  Both of these films are worth seeing - Dave

In this topical film noir, a gang smuggles illegal Mexican farmworkers across the California border and kills the immigrants before they can return home. When federal agents Pablo Rodriguez (Ricardo Montalban) and Jack Bearnes (George Murphy) go undercover to overturn the organization, they find themselves face-to-face with its leader, Owen Parkson (Howard da Silva). The agents quickly realize that what began as a routine murder case has become a struggle for survival.

Young poker player Eric Stoner (Steve McQueen), also known as the "Cincinnati Kid," wants to build his reputation by beating the best player around, Lancey "The Man" Howard (Edward G. Robinson). Through Stoner's friend, "Shooter" (Karl Malden), a game with Howard is scheduled. However, Stoner discovers the game is being fixed against Howard by Slade (Rip Torn) out of revenge for a bad loss he suffered to Howard. Stoner objects because he feels he can take the match on his own merits.

 

[Bogey]

 

Love Robinson in this film, Dave.  His final line is one of my favorite moments in all of film.

[Todd]

At the behest of my daughter, I watched Jurassic World.  (Chris Pratt is hunky, don't you know?)  It's awful stuff.  Some of the dialogue is B movie bad.  Vincent D'Onofrio is a giant walking ham in the movie.  I can't say that the ca 2015 CGI dinosaurs improve much upon the ca 1993 CGI dinosaurs, and it is certain that Colin Trevorrow is no Steven Spielberg.  Mr Trevorrow has apparently been tapped to direct the 9th installment of the Star Wars franchise.  The producers hired the wrong Jurassic movie director.  At least Opie Cunningham's daughter is real pretty and offered me something to watch.

(On a slightly related note, Chris Pratt and Vincent D'Onofrio are slated to be in a remake of The Magnificent Seven.  Oh boy.)

[Karl Henning]

You know, for some movies, B-movie bad would be an improvement!

[SonicMan46]

 

At the behest of my daughter, I watched Jurassic World.  (Chris Pratt is hunky, don't you know?)  It's awful stuff.  Some of the dialogue is B movie bad.  Vincent D'Onofrio is a giant walking ham in the movie.  I can't say that the ca 2015 CGI dinosaurs improve much upon the ca 1993 CGI dinosaurs, and it is certain that Colin Trevorrow is no Steven Spielberg.  Mr Trevorrow has apparently been tapped to direct the 9th installment of the Star Wars franchise.  The producers hired the wrong Jurassic movie director.  At least Opie Cunningham's daughter is real pretty and offered me something to watch.

(On a slightly related note, Chris Pratt and Vincent D'Onofrio are slated to be in a remake of The Magnificent Seven.  Oh boy.)

Hey Todd - I streamed Jurassic World a month or so ago - and I must agee w/ the above in bold, i.e. Bryce Dallas Howard held my interest to the very end of the film!   Dave

[SonicMan46]

Love Robinson in this film, Dave.  His final line is one of my favorite moments in all of film.

Hey Bill - don't believe that I've seen that film since first released and completely forgot the ending - Edward G. Robinson (1893-1973) was in his early 70s in that movie and still going strong!  Enjoyed, and Ann-Margaret was a joy to watch, too!  Dave