Last Movie You Watched

[Karl Henning]

And now, a Coen Bros film which, a little mysteriously, I've not seen yet:
Geen Land voor Oude Mannen

[JBS]

And now, a Coen Bros film which, a little mysteriously, I've not seen yet:
Geen Land voor Oude Mannen

met of zonder ondertiteling?

[Karl Henning]

met of zonder ondertiteling?

in het Engels. 

[JBS]

in het Engels.

een verhaal over duivels in de taal van engelen


[Google Translate is een geweldig ding]

[Karl Henning]

And now, a Coen Bros film which, a little mysteriously, I've not seen yet:
Geen Land voor Oude Mannen

Not my favorite of their output. Let's say I have at best a limited interest in a study of the biodiversity of "Second Amendment People." Okay, so we've got the psychopathic Javier Bardem, the coolly businesslike Woody Harrelson and the more-or-less everyman Josh Brolin. And they're not going to sing Kumbaya together at the campfire. I suppose what I liked best about the yarn is that Tommy Lee Jones' sheriff is easily the most humane character, but as he sadly observes, he's "overmatched." Nihilistic conclusion: mere law-abiding humanity is no match for the sociopathy around us. Sadly on point for our day, but that doesn't inspire love on my part. YMMV.

[Karl Henning]

Not my favorite of their output. Let's say I have at best a limited interest in a study of the biodiversity of "Second Amendment People." Okay, so we've got the psychopathic Javier Bardem, the coolly businesslike Woody Harrelson and the more-or-less everyman Josh Brolin. And they're not going to sing Kumbaya together at the campfire. I suppose what I liked best about the yarn is that Tommy Lee Jones' sheriff is easily the most humane character, but as he sadly observes, he's "overmatched." Nihilistic conclusion: mere law-abiding humanity is no match for the sociopathy around us. Sadly on point for our day, but that doesn't inspire love on my part. YMMV.

I mean, the execution (on the part of the Bros Coen) is characteristically excellent, and the movie deserved its awards.

[Karl Henning]

Now that @DavidW has managed expectations, I satisfy my curiosity: Alien Romulus

[Karl Henning]

Now that @DavidW has managed expectations, I satisfy my curiosity: Alien Romulus

The return of Ash was both a nice touch and effective exposition. And at the least they've got me sticking with it, where I had to bail out from Covenant. 

[Karl Henning]

The return of Ash was both a nice touch and effective exposition. And at the least they've got me sticking with it, where I had to bail out from Covenant.

Of course, it's not actually Ash, whom Parker incinerated, but a similar model named Rook, who somehow got mutilated in a way not dissimilar to Ash.

[DavidW]

The return of Ash was both a nice touch and effective exposition. And at the least they've got me sticking with it, where I had to bail out from Covenant.

btw, that is literal AI playing AI because Ian Holmes passed away!

[Karl Henning]

btw, that is literal AI playing AI because Ian Holmes passed away!

Yes, I had guessed it was an animatronic (they found a head cast of Holm from his Bilbo days.)
Overall, glad I watched it. The ending (eager to play the traditional "it ain't over yet" game) is too chaotic and seems even to dissolve into "scattershot." I don't believe I'll need to watch again, even if an additional viewing might possibly clarify the end. 

[Karl Henning]

Crimson Tide. 

[DavidW]

Yes, I had guessed it was an animatronic (they found a head cast of Holm from his Bilbo days.)

It is not that, it is full CGI with AI to provide the performance. No animatronics this time round. This is the second time AI is used in the Alien franchise. Cameron's 4k remaster of Aliens used AI to eliminate the excessive film grain. That was one for his bucket list. He never wanted to use that cheap film stock, but it was the only thing available at the time due to film shortages.

[Karl Henning]

Crimson Tide.

Very much enjoyed this. In some ways, The Bounty for the nuclear era. I hardly noted aught of the score, just the men's choir intoning "Eternal Father, Strong to Save." But it was well worth watching Denzel Washington and the late Gene Hackman at loggerheads.

[Karl Henning]

Zeffirelli's Jane Eyre Charlotte Gainsbourg and Wm Hurt. And I ought to have recognized Billie Whitelaw as Grace Poole.

[DavidW]

Zeffirelli's Jane Eyre Charlotte Gainsbourg and Wm Hurt. And I ought to have recognized Billie Whitelaw as Grace Poole.

I haven't seen it, but it is one of my favorite novels.

[Karl Henning]

I haven't seen it, but it is one of my favorite novels.

As one expects of the director, gorgeous to behold.

[DavidW]

Yesterday I watched Superman:


The Good: Great Superman. He checks that people are alright, he saves people and animals, even a squirrel! He exerts minimum force to preserve life. The actor embodies the role like no one has since Christopher Reeve. Great Lex Luthor. He is always five steps ahead. Nathan Fillion is perfect as The Green Lantern. Mr. Terrific and Krypto the Super Dog steal the movie, though. The director, James Gunn, does NOT lean into the silliness of his Guardians of the Galaxy movies. He realizes that Superman is great because he is sincere. Don't get me wrong, it is funny, though most of the humor comes from Krypto and the Justice Gang.

The Bad: The social commentary on current issues is heavy-handed, even if they changed the names of the countries. Think Superman IV. And I can't think of anything more on the nose than Lex Luthor using a thousand monkeys to type mean tweets about Superman. The movie is also overstuffed with too many characters and plot threads. It lacks the focus and cohesion of older Superman movies (including Man of Steel), but does feel like a typical modern ensemble cast superhero movie, for better or worse.

Overall: This is a good movie with a return to optimism and compassion that we haven't seen in Superman movies for 19 years. But it is good, not great. It doesn't reach Richard Donner levels, but if you liked Saturday cartoons growing up, this is what it feels like.

[DavidW]

Rewatched this classic:

[Karl Henning]

Rewatched this classic:

I saw it in the cinema when it opened. Loved it then, love it now.