current film strut
- Thread starter ketan
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Dunno about hollywood but like some kind of premature greyhair weekday 2pm moviegoer I joined my fellow visibly decaying octogenarians for their usual slow-paced foreign movie matinee the other week and saw Toni Erdmann, the nearly 3-hour father-daughter German comedy (yeah, hard sell).
Really enjoyed it, think it had some serious shit to say about maintaining a connection not only to your family, but to humanity in general, especially when you're in a job that removes it from you - which seems to be the case for more and more jobs these days. But it was still funny, in a "the Office" kind of way. I wasn't rolling but it kept me onboard for the whole duration, which is an achievement I think.
Watched the first 3 hour chunk of Made in America on BBC, started the second, gave up on the gruesome murder shit. I remember that stuff too well from the first time around, but the first part with the background of his career, how he treated his success as an escape from responsibilities to the community he grew up in, how his attitude seemed to be that he could get away with anything, and putting all that in the historical context of what was happening with civil rights, black athletes taking political stands, and the LAPD, all that stuff was great and newer to me as I was too young to know all the background when the trial went down.
Really enjoyed it, think it had some serious shit to say about maintaining a connection not only to your family, but to humanity in general, especially when you're in a job that removes it from you - which seems to be the case for more and more jobs these days. But it was still funny, in a "the Office" kind of way. I wasn't rolling but it kept me onboard for the whole duration, which is an achievement I think.
Watched the first 3 hour chunk of Made in America on BBC, started the second, gave up on the gruesome murder shit. I remember that stuff too well from the first time around, but the first part with the background of his career, how he treated his success as an escape from responsibilities to the community he grew up in, how his attitude seemed to be that he could get away with anything, and putting all that in the historical context of what was happening with civil rights, black athletes taking political stands, and the LAPD, all that stuff was great and newer to me as I was too young to know all the background when the trial went down.
I enjoyed Logan, if only for the novelty of blood and gore: I was slightly aware that I was enjoying that a bit too much 
At fucking last!
At fucking last!
Just hit up Mubi for a French double feature at home last night - Cléo from 5 to 7, Agnes Varda's ultra classic new wave, and the only new wave film I've seen where a female character seems to be more than an object; and Le Parc, a weird recent film of a teenage date in a park that turns to nighttime and basically all dialogue stops about halfway through and things get weirder and weirder when darkness falls. Definitely a mood piece that will try your patience if you're not ready for that kind of thing, but I really liked it and busted out laughing at one part way harder than if the rest of the film hadn't been so meditative and withdrawn.
I dunno if Mubi's selection is the same worldwide, I imagine so, but compared to Netflix etc.
I dunno if Mubi's selection is the same worldwide, I imagine so, but compared to Netflix etc.
Trainspotting 2 was absolutely exceptional! Amazing movie, so well written, spot on acting. Better than the first one!
Life: good if you're into claustrophobic space ship situations with aggressive aliens. Bad if you go with acute hangover and talkative girlfriend.
Finally saw Rogue One! I really enjoyed it, esp b/c I didn't realize it was a prequel to Ep 4 until the very end. It was a bit long, and there were too many obvious/direct references to other movies in the series, but still: 8/10.
Saw Get Out too and it was a riot. Such a great Rosemary's Baby vibe.
Saw Get Out too and it was a riot. Such a great Rosemary's Baby vibe.
Yeah Free Fire was great, the highlight of a 9-hour, five-movie flight. Made me laugh a few times despite the crowded plane. Exactly as I'd have described it - Tarantino basically without all the massive drawbacks and hangups of Tarantino.
On that same flight I caught up with a few others I'd been meaning to watch -
Hell or High Water, which was good and made me wanna check out more from the same director, but not the next-level stuff some critics were calling it.
La La Land - it was fine, not worth a best picture nor a "backlash". Even if this was the movie Damien Chazelle WANTED to make when he made Whiplash instead, Whiplash is better.
Moonlight - latte pass, but it was really, really good and not in the artsy hard-to-watch way. The way people have been talking about it makes it sound like a chore, like "Crash" or other Best Picture bait that was half about feeling proud that you got through it as a viewer, but Moonlight is totally not that, really watchable, character-driven, story-driven, not stupid with aesthetics shitting all over the story, but also not workmanlike. Had a distinctive visual touch still.
On that same flight I caught up with a few others I'd been meaning to watch -
Hell or High Water, which was good and made me wanna check out more from the same director, but not the next-level stuff some critics were calling it.
La La Land - it was fine, not worth a best picture nor a "backlash". Even if this was the movie Damien Chazelle WANTED to make when he made Whiplash instead, Whiplash is better.
Moonlight - latte pass, but it was really, really good and not in the artsy hard-to-watch way. The way people have been talking about it makes it sound like a chore, like "Crash" or other Best Picture bait that was half about feeling proud that you got through it as a viewer, but Moonlight is totally not that, really watchable, character-driven, story-driven, not stupid with aesthetics shitting all over the story, but also not workmanlike. Had a distinctive visual touch still.
That reminds me I really need to see Moonlight. I was a little bit wary about it for exactly the reasons you mention about but this is the kind of ringing endorsement that convinces me I need to get on with watching it. It's still on at the cinema here so perhaps I'll go to a showing this week.
In other news, I finally, finally, saw Rogue One. What an entertaining film - ropey Cushing CGI apart it was fun from beginning to end and showed you can balance fan service without having to constantly labour the point.
Saw Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol 2 yesterday.
I already couldn't tell you the plot but the obvious love the filmmakers have for their subject shone through. Managed to be very funny without the continuing snark of Deadpool. I really liked it.
Also, the film is stupendously gorgeous. A proper psychedelic mix of neon and mushroom trips.
I already couldn't tell you the plot but the obvious love the filmmakers have for their subject shone through. Managed to be very funny without the continuing snark of Deadpool. I really liked it.
Also, the film is stupendously gorgeous. A proper psychedelic mix of neon and mushroom trips.
I'm conflicted about G odda G 2. I generally hate comic book movies and therefore haven't seen the Marvel dreck that the first film supposedly exceeded enough to make all my friends recommend it with that usual "this time it's different! I know it's Marvel/superheroes/comic adaptation but THIS TIME it's not mega juvenile weightless consequenceless CG, blah blah" that I get told with about one film a year (recently been aggressively recommended "Logan). The first was "different" compared to my usual superhero movie experience in that it was fine, a fun space adventure, but if it had been much worse I'd have felt like I'd been proven right again. I've heard it's not as good as the first so...
It depends what you're looking for. This is not going to leave a lasting impression on your soul or give insights into the human condition. But it is very funny and has a warmth to it I've not seen in any of the other Marvel films.
As someone with no connection to the core material, I personally enjoyed it more than the first one. Also, I have time for any film that makes Michael Rooker one of its leads.
Logan is about as far down my watch list as I can get. I really could do without ever seeing another "dark" superhero movie.
As someone with no connection to the core material, I personally enjoyed it more than the first one. Also, I have time for any film that makes Michael Rooker one of its leads.
Logan is about as far down my watch list as I can get. I really could do without ever seeing another "dark" superhero movie.
